1 John Phrasing
1 John 4:7-21
The end goal of our lives as Christians: to be perfected in love
#phrasing
#Christ
Published February 5th, 2022; Updated February 6th, 2022
1 John 4:7-21
1 John 4:7-21
editing
NT
1 John 4:7-21
esv
Those Born of God love one another
The General State
Beloved,
Reference
let us love one another,
for love is from God,
Ground
and whoever ... has been born
of God
Subjective
loves
Explanation
and knows God.
Result or Explanation
Anyone ... does not know God,
who does not love
because God is love.
The Sending of his Son to enable our loving
In this
Means
the love ... was made manifest
of God
among us,
Locative sphere
that God sent his only Son
Content of 4:9a means
into the world,
Destination
so that we might live
Purpose
through him.
Means/Agency
In this
is love,
not that we have loved God
Negative
but that ... and sent his Son
Content of 4:10a means
he loved us
to be the propitiation
for our sins.
Beloved,
if God ... loved us,
in this manner so
Manner
we also ought to love one another.
No one has ever seen God;
Concessive
if we love one another,
Conditional
God abides in us
and his love is perfected
Explanation or Result
in us.
Faith in Christ (Doctrine) and the Spirit enable our loving
By this
we know
that we abide in him
Content
and he
in us,
Locative
because that he has given us of his Spirit.
Content of 13a means
And we have seen
and testify
that the Father has sent his Son
to be the Savior
of the world.
Objective
Whoever confesses ... God abides in him,
that Jesus is the Son of God,
and he
in God.
Locative sphere
So And we have come to know ... the love
and to believe
that God has
for us.
Purpose advantage
God is love,
abides
in love
Locative Sphere
and whoever ... abides in God,
and God abides in him.
Explanation or Result
The Essential Goal of our Love
By this
is love perfected
with us,
Reference/Explanation
so that we may have confidence
Result
for in the day of judgment,
Temporal
because that ... so also are we in this world.
Content of Means in 17a
as he is
Comparison
There is no fear in love,
but perfect love casts out fear.
For fear has to do with punishment,
fears
and whoever ... has not been perfected
in love.
General statement, one more time
We love
because he himself first loved us.
If anyone ... he is a liar;
(who) ... and hates his brother,
says, “I love God,”
for he ... cannot love God
who does not love his brother
whom he has seen
whom he has not seen.
And this commandment we have
from him:
Source
whoever ... must also love his brother.
loves God
Questions to answer 1. In 4, 17 what is "also in the this world, as he is"? I think it means our end point in our holiness, at the very end, when we have been purified completely. 2. In 4:18 Why the sudden talk about fear, and then after that, about punishment? What is its connection to perfection (also 4:12)? Why does John introduce that topic here? I think it is “perfected love” now, at the second coming of Jesus . The fear is the fear one would have in the final judgement, of not confident of his justification
phrasing
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