Jesus was the source of eternal life

JESUS WAS THE SOURCE OF ETERNAL LIFE
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
I JOHN 5:11 And this is the testimony: God has given
us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever
has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of
God does not have life.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
The Fourfold Witness To The Divine Sonship Of Jesus
1 John 5:6-11
W. Jones
This is he that came by waterand blood, etc. We omit the interpolated clauses,
and take the text as it is given in the RevisedVersion. St. John here states the
basis of that faith by means of which the Christian overcomes the world. We
have the most convincing testimony that the confidence which is reposedin
Jesus Christ as the Sonof Godis wellfounded. That testimony is manifold.
We have -
I. THE TESTIMONYOF HIS BAPTISM. "This is he that came by water,...
even Jesus Christ." The coming here meant is not that of his incarnation, his
entrance into this world; but his coming forth from the retirement of

Nazarethto enter upon his greatredemptive mission. His coming "by water"
we regard as referring to his baptism by John. That baptism was:
1. The inauguration of his greatmission. When Jesus wentto John for
baptism he had finally left his private life, and was just about to enter upon
his public ministry, and his baptism was a fitting introduction to that
ministry.
2. An inauguration characterizedby supernatural and Divine attestation.
Probably it is for this reasonthat St. John here refers to our Lord's baptism:
"Jesus, whenhe was baptized, went up straightwayfrom the water:and lo,
the heavens were openedunto him," etc. (Matthew 3:16, 17). And John the
Baptist testified, "This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a Man which is
become before me: for he was before me. And I knew him not; but that he
should be made manifest to Israel," etc. (John1:30-34).
II. THE TESTIMONYOF HIS CRUCIFIXION. "This is he that came by
waterand blood, even Jesus Christ; not with the wateronly, but with the
waterand with the blood." The reference is to the blood which he shed upon
the cross forthe redemption of mankind. But how did his death witness to the
truth that he was the Sonof God?
1. By the extraordinary phenomena associatedwith his death. "Now from the
sixth hour there was darkness overall the land until the ninth hour.... And
Jesus yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in
twain from the top to the bottom," etc. (Matthew 27:45, 50-54;Luke 23:47,
48).
2. By the transcendentmoral grandeur expressed in his death. He voluntarily
submitted himself to death for the salvationof the lost world. Our Lord said,
"Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life that I may
take it again. No one taketh it awayfrom me," etc. (John 10:17, 18); "He gave
himself for our sins," etc. (Galatians 1:4); "He gave himself a Ransomfor us,"
etc. (1 Timothy 2:6); "He gave himself for us," etc. (Titus 2:14); "Christ also
suffered for sins once, the Righteous for the unrighteous," etc. (1 Peter3:18).
He freely surrendered himself to the most painful and shameful death, not for
himself, or for his friends, but for sinners and rebels againsthim and his

Father, and in order that they might have eternallife. Such self-sacrificewas
more than human, more than angelic, - it was strictly and properly Divine.
"This was compassionlike a God,
That when the Saviour knew
The price of pardon was his blood,
His pity ne'er withdrew."
(Watts.)
III. THE TESTIMONYOF HIS SPIRIT. "And it is the Spirit that beareth
witness, because the Spirit is the truth, Forthere are three who bear witness,
the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one." Notice:
1. The nature of the testimony of the Holy Spirit. At our Lord's baptism the
Spirit bore witness that he was the Sonof God (Matthew 3:16, 17). Our Lord
said, "The Spirit of truth, which proceedethfrom the Father, he shall bear
witness of me" (John 15:26). Again he said, "The Spirit of truth... he shall
glorify me; for he shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto you." He bore
witness to the Messiahshipof Jesus by coming down, according to his promise,
upon the apostles, andby making the gospelof Christ which they preached a
saving powerto thousands of souls (Acts 2; Acts 4:31). And he bears witness
for Christ in the hearts of Christians (chapter 3:24; 1 Corinthians 12:3).
2. The value of the testimony of the Holy Spirit. "The Spirit, is the truth;"
"The Spirit of truth" (John 14:17;John 15:26); "When he, the Spirit of truth,
is come, he shall guide you into all the truth." His testimony is of the utmost
value and importance, because it is perfectly free from error or fraud;
proceeding from the Spirit of truth, the Spirit who is the truth, it is light
without any darkness, truth without any error. And his testimony is that Jesus
is the Messiahand the Son of God.
IV. THE TESTIMONYOF HIS BELIEVING PEOPLE. "He that believeth
on the Son of God hath the witness in him.... And the witness is this, that God

gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son." "The object of the Divine
testimony being," says Alford, "to produce faith in Christ, the apostle takes
him in whom it has wrought this its effect, one who habitually believes in the
Son of God, and says of such a one that he possessesthe testimony in himself."
All genuine believers in Jesus Christ have the witness of their own
consciousness"thatGod gave unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son."
They are consciousthat the life of love - love to God and. to man - is theirs.
"We know that we have passedout of death into life, because we love the
brethren." And we know that this life was quickenedwithin us through the
exercise offaith in Christ. To us individually this is the most convincing of all
witnesses."One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see."
V. THE TESTIMONYOF ALL THE BEFORE-MENTIONED COMBINED.
All the foregoing witnessesare united and concurrent in their evidence. "The
three agree in one." We may saythat the four agree in one. Their testimony is
unanimous. There is no contradiction, no discrepancyin their evidence. With
one voice they declare, "Rabbi, thou art the Sonof God, thou art the King of
Israel." "Thouart the Christ, the Son of the living God." Notice two points in
conclusion:
1. The claim which this testimony has upon, our acceptance."ifwe receive the
witness of men, the witness of God is greater," etc. We receive human
testimony, notwithstanding that
(1) The witness may unintentionally be untrue. Human observations and
impressions and recollectionsare not always accurate;hence the witness of
men is sometimes undesignedly incorrect. But in the manifold and Divine
testimony to the truth that Jesus is the Son of God there cannot be any
inaccuracyor imperfection.
(2) The human witness may intentionally be untrue. Man may endeavourto
deceive;he may willfully bear false witness. But "the witness of God is
greater." The Spirit of truth cannot lie. Therefore this testimony has the most
commanding claims upon our acceptance.
2. The issue involved in type non-acceptanceofthis testimony. "He that
believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he hath not believed in the

witness that God hath borne concerning his Son." Is any one prepared to
discredit God? Will any one implicitly charge him with falsehood? Be it ours
to receive his testimony with larger, fuller confidence, and to restin his Son
with deeper, more loving, and more reverent trust. - W.J.
Biblical Illustrator
And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in
His Son
1 John 5:11
The Divine record
John Natt, B. D.
It is obvious that the designs of God respecting the work of His hands entirely
depend on His own will, and that, unless He please to favour us with an
express declarationof those designs, we may, indeed, by debating about the
probabilities of the case, bewilderourselves in all the mazes of metaphysical

conjecture;but, as for anything like certainty respecting what so deeply
concerns us, that is a point which it is utterly beyond our abilities to attain.
Such a declaration, however, Godhas been pleasedto make. In the recordof
the Old and New Testaments we have an express revelationof His will.
I. THE UNMERITED GRANT OF OUR GOD.
1. The nature of the blessing here said to be granted to us.(1) It is life, life
worthy of the name, a life perfectly exempt from every kind and degree of
evil, and accompaniedby every conceivable and by every inconceivable
good.(2)This life is eternal, not like our presentlife, which is but as a vapour
that appearethfor a short time and then vanisheth away.(3)It is a life, too,
which includes everything that appertains to it, the pardon of our sins,
reconciliationwith God, adoption into His family, and all those sanctifying
influences of the Holy Spirit which constitute the foretaste of this eternal life
in the heart of the Christian.
2. The person to whom this grant is here also saidto be made. "To us," the
sinful children of sinful parents; "to us," miserable sinners, who thus were
lying in darkness and in the shadow of death, provided only we will acceptthe
boon in His appointed way; "to us" hath God given eternal life.
3. The gratuitous nature of the grant. For in what way but in that of a free gift
could eternal life be made over to those who have both forfeited the blessing
and incurred the curse?
II. THE CHANNEL THROUGH WHICH THIS GRANT IS CONVEYED TO
US.
1. The obstacles whichstoodin the way of this grant were of the most
formidable description. These were no other than the severerperfections of
the Divine nature, and the honour both of God's law and of His universal
government.
2. But by the determination that this free gift of life should be in the Sonof
God, to be sought for through Him alone, all the obstacles to the grant, which
presentedthemselves from the quarters just referred to, were at once
removed.

III. THE CHARACTER OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHO WILL OBTAIN
THE BENEFIT OF THIS GRANT AND OF THESE WHO WILL FAIL OF
IT. "He that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not the Son of God hath
not life."
1. It is clear, then, on the one hand, that we are interestedin this grant of
eternal life if we have the Son.
2. And it is the undisputed testimony of the recordthat he that thus hath the
Son hath life, and that he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
(John Natt, B. D.)
Eternal life a gift
Homilist.
I. THE SUBJECT OF THE "RECORD" — "ETERNALLIFE." What is it?
It is not endless existence. The "record" refers not to this point. The Bible
assumes man's immortality. "Eternallife" consists in the soul's well-being —
its intrinsic, internal blessedness:"the kingdom of God is within you." This
life is "eternal." It is drawn from the Eternal One; His principles of rectitude
imbedded in the heart and "springing up into everlasting life."
II. THE DOCTRINE OF THE RECORD, "GODHATH GIVEN TO US
ETERNALLIFE, AND THIS IS IN HIS SON."
1. It is gift. Not something for which men need to toil, but something to be
simply received.
2. It is a gift alreadygiven. "God hath given," etc. The believer has its
foretaste.
3. It is a gift alreadygiven "in His Son." Notin systems, churches;"grace and
truth" come by Jesus Christ.
4. This is for "record." It is testifiedthat men may know it on God's authority
and live.

(Homilist.)
Eternal life
G. Wilson.
Before opening up the passage there are two preliminary questions that press
for answer. In the first place, what is meant by the Scriptural phrase, "eternal
life"? The term, eternallife, is hardly at all one of quantity, but of quality.
Just as there is wheat life in the wheat plant, bird life in the wingedcreatures,
lion life in the lion, so there is Christ life in the Christian. It is a condition of
existence in which the very life of God pulsates through every faculty of the
life of man, bringing him into affinity of love and purpose and aspirationwith
the EternalHimself. Eternal life is, therefore, the imparting of Christ's own
life to those who acceptHim as Saviourand Master. A secondpreliminary
question presses foranswer. When and where is this eternal life attained? It
seems clearfrom the Word of God that it is attained in this world and not in
the world to come. Men do not go to heavento get it, but they go to heaven
because they have it. If these things are true it surely becomes a pressing
interest to every thoughtful man as to how this priceless gift may become his
own personalpossession, as to how he may grow in eternal life and eternal life
grow in him, and as to how he may have the joy, the power, and the prospect
of it. These questions are all clearlyansweredin the text.
I. ETERNALLIFE IS PROVIDED IN CHRIST. "This life is in His Son." It is
of the very lastimportance to note well the fountain of this eternal life. It is
not in man as natural, for as natural he is fallen, and the fall implied the loss
of this life of God in the soul of man, the passing awayof all conscious affinity
with God, and the coming in of a spirit of alienationand hostility. And as it is
not in man naturally, neither does man find it in what is calledhis
environment. We think that the power of environment over human life is
greatly exaggeratedin our day, and is essentiallythe reversalof a central
principle in God's dealings with the world. It is never the new environment
that makes the new man, but it is the new man that creates the new
environment. Let us, therefore, face the fact that eternallife is provided only

in Jesus Christ our Lord. Those in quest of it have, therefore, not to wander
over a wilderness of abstractthought, and not to whip the energies ofmind
and heart to attain this greatend; but, as a person deeply convinced that this
gift is not now theirs, to come humbly and trustfully to the feet of the living
personality of the Lord Jesus Christ, who alone has this gift to give, and who
is longing to bestow it.
II. ETERNALLIFE IS PUBLISHED IN CHRIST. "This is the record that
God hath given to us eternallife," and this life is in His Son essentially. The
whole Word of God is an apocalypse or unveiling of Christ. The testimony of
God Himself, of the Holy Spirit, of inspired historian, poet, prophet, and
evangelist, all convergesonthe Lord Jesus Christ.
III. ETERNALLIFE IS POSSESSED IN CHRIST. God hath given to us
eternal life, and this life is in His Son; "he that hath the Son hath life." The
gift has not only been provided and published, but it has in a very realsense
actually been given. God has given to us eternal life. We stand firm on the
ground that Christ's part, both in provision and offer, has already been
finished; but salvationby gift implies the part of the receiveras well as the
part of the giver, and while the gift has been offered there is no salvation, and
there can be no salvationtill the gift is accepted. This view of the possessionof
eternal life delivers man from all perplexity as to the ground of his acceptance
with God, and as to his humble assurance ofthe certainty of his salvation. It
causes feelings,for example, to fall into due perspective in spiritual
experiences. Whena man comes to see that he possessesChrist, and on that
possessioncancalleternal life his own, there will come, and must come, those
feelings of peace and rest and certainty and enjoyment, and until he is quite
sure that he possesses Christ, and with Him all things, the feelings will be
fitful and the whole life will be clouded.
IV. ETERNALLIFE IS PERPETUATED IN CHRIST. "These things have I
written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God that ye may know
that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of
God." The entrance of eternal life into the soul of man is the entrance of
Christ Himself to dwell and reign and unfold the nature that He inhabits and
permeates. The whole Christ, and only Christ, is neededto save, and the

whole Christ in perpetual indwelling is needed to sanctify. There is no possible
life for the Christian apart from his abiding in Christ and Christ abiding in
him. Out of this flows all the sweetnessofsanctity, all the dignity of lowliness,
all the enlarging of love, all the practicalpower of obedience, and all the
finished graces ofa complete character.
(G. Wilson.)
Example and life
W. Gladden, D. D.
It will be admitted, of course, that Christ has given us a perfect example. He
has not only told us what to do, He has shownus how to live. He was Himself,
by the method which He followed, the greatobject teacher, and His life was
the greatobjectlesson. Example is more powerful than precept; its influence
goes deeperand takes hold of us with a strongergrasp; but after all it is of the
same nature as precept. You can give a child in words some idea of the rules
of polite behaviour; you can give him an example of politeness which will be
much more instructive and effective in forming his manner than any verbal
rules; but the rules and the example would both operate in the same way; they
would reach and influence him through his intellect and his will. In both cases
the effectproduced would be the result of a voluntary effort. It is easierfor
him to imitate your actions than it is to remember and obey your rules; but
both address the will through the intelligence. Now, while the imitation of an
actionis easierand pleasanterthan the obedience of a precept, there is still a
greatlack of beauty and of vigour in the conduct that is simply the result of
imitation. There is a perceptible hardness and stiffness and unreality about it;
it is artificial. So, then, if a perfectexample were put before us, and we should
setourselves resolutelyand carefully to the copying of that example, we
should be sure to fail; our lives, though they might seemoutwardly very like
the life we were trying to imitate, would resemble it only as the artificial
flowerresembles the realone. When God gave you being He gave you
characterand personality of your own. What He meant you to be is indicated
in the very constitution of your soul, And although by disobedience and

alienation from Him you may have badly injured your own character, though
the Divine perfection in which it ought to shine may but dimly appear in it, yet
the ground plan, so to speak, is there, and that is the plan on which your
characteris to be built; the thing for you to do is simply to become what God
meant you to be, and this you cannotdo by trying to imitate the characterand
conduct of some one else. What men most need is the healing, the quickening,
the replenishing of their spiritual life. It is not a model to live by, it is "new life
and fuller that we want." And this is the want that Christ supplies. "I am
come," He says, "thatthey might have life and that they might have it more
abundantly." How is it that He imparts to men this life? Ah, I do not know
that. How does the sun impart life to the seeds and roots and bulbs that
during all this long winter have been waiting for him under ground? I do not
know how he does it, but I know that he does it. Some of them have heard his
voice already and have come forth from their graves. The subtle might of his
regenerating rays is seeking them out; they begin to feel in every fibre the
influence of his power; life is quickened within them by his genialinfluence.
And as many as receive Jesus Christ, as many as will acceptHim as the Lord
of their life, and will let Him instruct them and lead them and inspire them,
sweetlyyielding to the influences of His grace, will find that He is doing for
them something like what the sun does for the germs beneath the soil; that He
is imparting spiritual life to them; that He is kindling in their souls the love of
all things right and true and good, and increasing in them the power to realise
such things in their lives. This is what He does for all who will receive Him.
But the text says that this life is eternal life. The witness is that God has given
to us eternallife and the life is in His Son. Yea, verily! The life whose
organising principles are righteousness andtruth and love is a life that takes
hold of the aeons to come with a sure grasp. God has so made the universe
that these principles are indestructible; in the nature of things virtue is
immortal; the life that is incorporate with it has the promise of an everlasting
day.
(W. Gladden, D. D.)
Life in Christ

T. Archer, D. D.
Mark the grammaticalform. The statementis not part of the record, but "the
record" itself, as if God had given none else. "This is the record," standing out
alone in its sublime grandeur. "This is the record" that transcends all others
by its brilliancy, upon which every conscience might rest. So in 1 John 2:25 he
uses exactly the same emphatic expression — "This is the promise that He
hath promised us, even eternal life," as if not a single star shone in the
firmament above except this; as if not one promise had been given except this,
standing out distinct, full, alone in hopes and comfort to all. And not only he,
but St. Paul, so different in the characteristicorderof intellect, uses the same
kind of expression— "The wages ofsin is death, but the gift of God is eternal
life through Jesus Christour Lord" (Romans 6:23); "the gift," as if no other
boon had been granted — the gift towering out above all, and standing in its
holy Alpine grandeur, the noblest blessing God had evergiven to His people.
Put these three passagestogether, and then we have brought before us this
glorious truth, that He is emphatically the gift, the record to us, the promise of
God of life eternalthrough His Son.
I. THE RELIGION WHICH WE PROFESS, TRUE PRACTICAL
CHRISTIANITY, IS LIFE. This truth lies at the foundation of this passage;
and what type canbe more glorious of goodconferred? The most despised
creature upon earth clings to life. I need not saythat the life here spokenof is
not physical life, not a life in common with an ungodly man, not a life in
common with the beasts that perish, but spiritual life, life in the soul, life in
the thinking elements of our nature, life in that part of our nature which links
us with God Himself, and which, if lost, consigns us to everlasting ruin. Such
then is the boon; the Christian lives. Religionis no dead thing; it is not
formalism, it is not mere professionalism, it is not the assentof the
understanding to certain dogmas, it is not the experience in the heart even of
certain sentimental emotions. Religion, if it be anything at all, is a living,
practicalreality. I have the conviction that I have spiritual life, because I
think with God, I feelthe presence ofGod, I move in the ways of God. The
Christian, then, lives; that life may be mysterious, but it is the distinguishing
characterof the Christian man that he has this spiritual life in him. I add that

it is, moreover, a progressive thing. Here religion harmonises with all the
phenomena and rules of life.
II. THIS LIFE IS DIVINE IN ITS ORIGIN — "Godhath given to us eternal
life." All life is of Divine production. Pierce as far as you may into eternity,
the deeperand closerour examination of its realities, the more fully and
simply are we thrown on our conviction of the Divine origin. All life is the
production of the eternalGod. The spiritual life of which I speak is, therefore,
certainly of His production. The old Greek fable, myth, to use the fashionable
expressionof modern times, brings out the truth in a simple shape — "You
may take a man and sethim up by the pillar of the temple, but unless the god
who inhabits it touches him he cannot move a step." Or, according to another
Greek fable, you may take clay and form and fashion it into the mould of a
man, but unless the celestialfire penetrates the frame and imparts life it has
no power of action. "Paul may plant, and Apollos may water, but God gives
the increase."All means and appliances are in vain until the powerof God
Himself shall visit the Church — all in vain until Jesus Christ, who, when His
messageis proclaimed, shall accompanythat messagewithHis own living
powerand wakenup dead spirits into eternallife.
III. THIS LIFE IS IN CHRIST. The source, I say, of that life which is the gift
of God, the source of all life, is Christ Himself. Again, for this purpose He is
describedas having life in Himself. Mark the emphatic expression. It
corresponds with that expressionof the living God, "I am that I am" —
Jehovah. Pray for this gift, but pray for it in union with Christ's sacrifice, for
without His death the Spirit never had come down.
IV. THIS LIFE IS NOT ONLY THROUGH THE SON, BUT IS IN THE
SON, AND WILL JUST BE IN US AS IT IS IN HIM. In other words, the
characterof the life of the Sonof Godis a model characterto all the
brotherhood of Christ; every Christian is a Christian just in the degree that
he is Christ-like.
V. THIS LIFE, THIS DIVINE GIFT, IS ETERNAL. Now the soul is eternal,
and as such, therefore, this life must endure forever. That man is a fool who
tries to procure something by greatlabour which will last only till tomorrow.

But this eternal life never conies to a close. Moreoverit is a life which shall
expand. I can set no limits to it.
VI. WHO HAVE THAT LIFE? What man possessesit? Who has a distinct
credential that he does possess it? "He became the author of eternal salvation
unto all them that obey Him." Tell me not of spasmodic enjoyments of
spiritual elevation, of occasionalparoxysms of spiritual life. I ask, is Christ's
life in you? Is His law in your hearts, and is it exemplified in your lives? If so,
you have clearproof of the possessionof that gift which is everlasting.
(T. Archer, D. D.)
COMMENTARIES
BensonCommentary
1 John 5:11-12. And this is the record — Η μαρτυρια, the testimony; the sum
of God’s testimony concerning his Son, and salvationthrough him:
this is the thing testified by the six witnesses — the three in heaven, and the
three on earth; that God hath given to us — Hath sincerelyand freely offered
to mankind in general, and hath actually conferredon true believers in
particular; eternallife — Namely, a title to it, in their justification and
adoption, Titus 3:7; Romans 8:17; a meetness for it, in their new creationor
sanctification, Colossians1:12;2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:22; Ephesians
4:24; and a foretaste orearnestof it, by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in
their hearts, Ephesians 1:14; giving them to enjoy communion with the Father
and the Son, 1 John 1:3; and through that, as it were, to sit in heavenly places
in Christ Jesus, andhave their conversationin heaven, Ephesians 2:6; Php
3:20. And this life is in his Son — Whose doctrine hath revealed it; whose
merits have procured it; whose Spirit hath imparted the beginning of it; and

whose example will conduct us to the complete possessionofit. In other
words, by whom it is purchased, and in whom it is treasured up; so that he
has all the springs, and the fulness of it, in himself, to communicate to his
body, the church, first in grace and then in glory. “Thoughthe apostle, in
what goes before, has spokenparticularly of the three in heaven, and of the
three on earth, who bear witness continually, he deferred mentioning, till now,
what it is they are witnessing;that by introducing it last of all, and after so
much preparation, it might make the strongerimpression on the minds of his
readers.” He that hath the Son — That hath the saving knowledge ofhim
communicated by the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, Ephesians 1:17;
Matthew 11:27; that hath living faith in him, working by love, Galatians 2:20;
Galatians 5:6; and hereby hath a realinterest in him, as a wife hath in her
husband, Romans 7:4; and vital union with him, such as a branch hath with
the tree in which it grows, John15:4; or such as a member of the human body
has with the head thereof, 1 Corinthians 12:27;Romans 12:5; and who, in
consequence ofthat interest in him, and union with him, hath a conformity to
him; hath in him the mind that was in Christ, and walks as he walked, Php
2:5; or he, to whom Christ is made of God wisdom, righteousness,
sanctification, and redemption; see on 1 Corinthians 1:30; such a one in these
respects having the Son, hath life — Hath spiritual life here, and is entitled to,
made in a degree meet for, and has an earnestof, eternallife hereafter. But he
that hath not the Son of God — Hath not that interest in his merits, that union
with him through the Spirit, that conformity, more or less, to his image: he,
whom Christ has not enlightened as his wisdom, justified as his righteousness,
renewedas his sanctification;whateverhe may profess, whateverorthodoxy
of sentiment, regularity of conduct, or form of godliness;hath not life — Hath
neither spiritual life here, being still alienatedfrom the life of God, Ephesians
4:18; nor is in the way to eternallife hereafter. He hath no part or lot therein.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
5:9-12 Nothing can be more absurd than the conduct of those who doubt as to
the truth of Christianity, while in the common affairs of life they do not
hesitate to proceedon human testimony, and would deem any one out of his
senses who declinedto do so. The real Christian has seenhis guilt and misery,
and his need of such a Saviour. He has seenthe suitableness ofsuch a Saviour

to all his spiritual wants and circumstances. He has found and felt the power
of the word and doctrine of Christ, humbling, healing, quickening, and
comforting his soul. He has a new disposition, and new delights, and is not the
man that he formerly was. Yet he finds still a conflictwith himself, with sin,
with the flesh, the world, and wickedpowers. Buthe finds such strength from
faith in Christ, that he canovercome the world, and travel on towards a
better. Such assurance has the gospelbeliever: he has a witness in himself,
which puts the matter out of doubt with him, except in hours of darkness or
conflict; but he cannot be argued out of his belief in the leading truths of the
gospel. Here is what makes the unbeliever's sin so awful; the sin of unbelief.
He gives Godthe lie; because he believes not the record that God gave of his
Son. It is in vain for a man to plead that he believes the testimony of God in
other things, while he rejects it in this. He that refuses to trust and honour
Christ as the Son of God, who disdains to submit to his teaching as Prophet, to
rely on his atonementand intercessionas High Priest, or to obey him as King,
is dead in sin, under condemnation; nor will any outward morality, learning,
forms, notions, or confidences availhim.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
And this is the record - This is the sum, or the amount, of the testimony
(μαρτυρία marturia) which God has given respecting him.
That God hath given to us eternallife - Has provided, through the Saviour,
the means of obtaining eternallife. See the notes at John 5:24; John 17:2-3.
And this life is in his Son - Is treasuredup in him, or is to be obtained through
him. See the John 1:4; John 11:25;John 14:6 notes; Colossians 3:3 note.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
11. hath given—Greek, aorist:"gave" once forall. Not only "promised" it.
life is in his Son—essentially(Joh 1:4; 11:25;14:6); bodily (Col 2:9);
operatively (2Ti 1:10) [Lange in Alford]. It is in the secondAdam, the Sonof
God, that this life is securedto us, which, if left to depend on us, we should
lose, like the first Adam.

Matthew Poole's Commentary
His testimony, that this is his Son and the Christ, imports so much, that
eternal life is in him, as the source and fountain of it; so that he gives it to us
in no other way than in and by him.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
And this is the record,.... The sum and substance ofit, with respectto the
person of Christ, and the security of salvationin him, who is the true God,
and eternallife:
that God hath given to us eternallife; which is a life of glory and happiness
hereafter;in the present state is unseen, but will in the world to come be a life
of vision, free from all the sorrows and imperfections of this; and will be of the
utmost perfectionand pleasure, and for ever. This is a pure free grace gift of
God the Father, proceeding from his sovereigns goodwill and pleasure, and
which he gives to all his chosenones, for they are ordained unto eternal life; to
as many as he has given to his Son; to all that are redeemedby his blood, and
are brought to believe in him: to these he gave it in his Son before the world
began; and to the same in time he gives the right unto it, the meetness for it,
and the pledge and earnestof it; and will hereafter give them the thing itself,
the whole of it, to be possessedand enjoyed by them in person, to all eternity.
And this life is in his Son: not only the purpose and promise of it, but that
itself; Christ askedit of his Father in the covenant of peace, and he gave it to
him, that he might have it in himself for all his people;and here it is safe and
secure, it is hid with Christ in God, it is bound up in the bundle of life with
him; and because he lives, this life will never be lost, or they come short of it.
Geneva Study Bible
{12} And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life
is in his Son.
(12) Now at length he shows whatthis testimony is that is confirmed with so
many witnesses:that is, that life or everlasting happiness is the gift of God,

which is the Son, and proceeds from him to us, who by faith are joined with
him, so that without him, life is nowhere to be found.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT Commentary
states in what waythat witness of God shows itself as internal to the believer;
to him who, by believing, has the objective witness of God in himself, it is no
longerpurely objective, but he experiences it in himself as a divine power, or
as the ζωὴ αἰώνιος which God has given him
1 John 5:11 states in what waythat witness of God shows itself as internal to
the believer; to him who, by believing, has the objective witness of God in
himself, it is no longer purely objective, but he experiences it in himself as a
divine power, or as the ζωὴ αἰώνιος which God has given him.[318] Hence the
apostle says:“And this is the record, ὅτι ζωὴν αἰώνιονἔδωκεν ἡμῖν ὁ Θεός.”
With ἩΜῖΝ, ΤΟῖς ΠΕΠΙΣΤΕΥΚΌΣΙΝ is to be mentally supplied.
ΖΩῊ ΑἸΏΝΙΟς is not “the hope of eternal life” (Bede: dedit nobis vitam
aeternam, sed adhuc in terra peregrinantibus in spe, quam daturus estin
coelis ad se pervenientibus in re), but it is this itself, the divine life, of which
the believeris even here a partaker;what the believer hopes for, that he has
already.
ζωὴν αἰώνιον, as the principal idea, is put first.
ἜΔΩΚΕΝ means: “he gave;” it is not = promisit (Socinus), nor does it express
merely the firmitatem et certitudinem promissionis divinae (a Lapide).

Myrberg incorrectly finds the import of the μαρτυρία of Godstated in ὍΤΙ
Κ.Τ.Λ., which is in opposition to the context. The secondpart of the verse:
ΚΑῚ ΑὝΤΗ Ἡ ΖΩῊ ἘΝ Τῷ ΥἹῷ ΑὐΤΟῦ ἘΣΤΙΝ, which is not dependent
on ὍΤΙ (Baumgarten-Crusius), but forms a co-ordinate principal clause,
gives a further explanation in regard to ΖΩῊ ΑἸΏΝΙΟς. Several
commentators find this thought expressedin these words, that we possess the
ΖΩῊ ΑἸΏΝ. in the Son, i.e. in fellowship with the Son; but this the words do
not say;they rather state where the ζωὴ αἰών., which God gave to believers,
had its original place, namely, in the Son; comp. John 1:4. Frommann (p.
405):“the eternal life of which the Christian is by faith a partaker, is one with
the life that dwells in Christ” (so also Düsterdieck, etc.). Braune incorrectly
separates ΑὝΤΗfrom Ἡ ΖΩΉ, as he puts ἘΣΤΊΝ betweenthem in the
thought, and refers ΑὝΤΗ to the idea ΑἸΏΝΙΟς:“and this … namely,
ΑἸΏΝΙΟς … is the life,” etc.
[318]According to Braune, by ὅτι the import of the record is meant to be
stated; but then John would be speaking of a different recordfrom that which
he mentioned before.
Expositor's Greek Testament
1 John 5:11. The Testimony of the Incarnation. cf. 1 John 1:2. ἔδωκεν, “gave,”
aoristreferring to a definite historic act, the Incarnation.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
11. And this is the record] Better, as R.V., And the witness is this, as in 1 John
5:9 : this is what the external witness of God, when it is internally
appropriated by the believer, consists in; viz. the Divine gift of eternallife.
eternal life] See on 1 John 1:2 and on John 3:36; John 5:24. ‘Hath given’ is
more literally gave;but perhaps this is a case in which the English perfect
may representthe Greek aorist. But at any rate ‘gave’must not be weakened

into ‘offered’, still less into ‘promised’. The believer already possesses eternal
life.
this life is in his Son] This is a new independent statement, coordinate with the
first clause:it is not, like the secondclause, dependent upon the first. Eternal
life has its seatand source in the Son, who is the ‘Prince’ or ‘Author of life’
(Acts 3:15): see on John 1:4; John 5:26.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 11. - "And the substance of the internal testimony is this - we are
conscious ofthe Divine gift of eternallife, and this we have in the Son of
God." St. John's ζωὴ αἰώνιος is not "everlasting life:" the idea of endlessness
may be included in it, but it is not the main one. The distinction between
eternity and time is one which the human mind feels to be real and necessary.
But we are apt to lose ourselves whenwe try to think of eternity. We admit
that it is not time, that it is the very antithesis of time, and yet we attempt to
measure it while we declare it to be immeasurable. We make it simply a very
long time. The main idea of "eternallife" in St. John's writings has no direct
reference to time. Eternal life is possessedalreadyby believers; it is not a
thing of the future (John 3:36; John 5:24; John 6:47, 54;John 17:3). It is that
life in God which includes all blessedness, andwhich is not broken by physical
death (John 11:25). Its opposite is exclusion from God.
Vincent's Word Studies
Hath given (ἔδωκεν)
The aoristtense, gave. So Rev. The reference is to the historic fact of the gift.
So 1 John 3:23 : "We should love one another as He gave (ἔδωκεν) us
commandment." 1 John 3:24 : "We know that He abideth in us by the Spirit
which He gave (ἔδωκεν) us." On the other hand, 1 John 3:1 : "Beholdwhat
manner of love the Fatherhath bestowed (δέδωκεν)upon us." The gift of love
abides in the fact that we are now children of God (1 John 3:2).
Eternal life (ζωὴν αἰώνιον)

Compare the phrase τὴν ζωὴν τὴν αἰώνιον the life, the eternallife (1 John
1:2), and ἡ αἰώνιος ζωὴ the eternallife (John 17:3). For the distinction
betweenthe phrases see on1 John 1:2. The phrase here, without either article,
merely defines the characterof the life.
PRECEPT AUSTIN RESOURCES
1 John 5:11 Commentary
1 John 5 Resources
Updated: Thu, 11/01/2018 - 18:54 By admin
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1 John 5:11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and
this life is in His Son:
Greek - kai aute estin (3SPAI) e marturia hoti zoen aionion edoken(3SAAI)
hemin o theos kaiaute e zoe en to huio autou estin (3SPAI):
Wuest - which testimony is on record, with the result that he is in a settled
state of unbelief. And this is the testimony, that life eternalGod gave us.
NLT And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this
life is in his Son.
this: 1Jn 5:7,10 Joh1:19,32-34 8:13,1419:35 3Jn1:12 Rev1:2
God: 1Jn 5:13 2:25 Mt 25:46 Joh 3:15,16,364:4,36 6:40,47,68 10:28 12:50 Joh
17:2,3 Ro 5:21 6:23 1Ti 1:16 Tit 1:2 Jude 1:21

this: 1Jn 5:12,20 1Jn1:1-3 1Jn 4:9 John 1:4 Jn 5:21,26 Jn 11:25,26 Jn14:6
Col 3:3-4 Rev 22:1
1 John 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
GOD'S GIFT:
LIFE IN HIS SON
As Jackmanrightly remarks 1Jn 5:11 and 1Jn 5:12 "must stand as among the
most magnificent in the whole of the New Testament. The consequencesof
believing God’s truth or denying it could hardly be more important or far-
reaching. John is not merely concernedabout academic disagreements over
theologicalniceties. Eternaldestinies are at stake. (The MessageofJohn's
Letters)
Kruse - Up to this point the author has emphasized God’s witness concerning
the person(came in the flesh) and work (came by water and blood) of the
historical Jesus, but here he emphasises God’s testimony concerning the
benefit made available to believers through him. (Pillar NT Commentary)
(Bolding added)
And (kai) - John, in the previous verse, just told us how serious the matter of
receiving the testimony of Godis. Now he will tell us what this testimony is.
The testimony is crucial because in the receiptor rejectionof it hangs the
receptionor failure to receive eternal life. The testimony of God to His Son
comes with a life-changing offer.
Hiebert - The opening “and” (kai) of 1Jn 5:11 points to a further matter
connectedwith the response made to God’s witness. Involved is the matter of
eternal life. In verse 11 John states whatthe witness of God involves whereas
1Jn 5:12 states the contrasting results of these opposite reactions to the Son of
God.
Testimony (3141)(marturia/martyria relatedto martureo = to witness <>
martus/martys = a witness)is that which furnishes evidence or proof.
"According to the Jewishlaw threefold testimony was valid." (Smith) "The

conditions for a legally valid witness are laid down in Dt. 19:15 (cf. Mt. 18:16;
Jn 8:17-18.;10:25; 2Co 13:1)." (Robertson)
A testimony is a solemndeclarationor affirmation made for the purpose of
establishing or proving some fact. As an aside the frequent costof such a
"witness" is pointed up by the fact that we derive our English word "martyr"
from this Greek word.
Kistemaker- John comes to the concluding thought of his discourse on the
Son of God. He specificallystates the content of God’s testimony and
eliminates any misunderstanding about God’s Son. What is the content of
God’s testimony? “Godhas given us eternallife.” Notice that John is
addressing believers when he uses the first personpronoun us. He does not
say that eternal life will be given (future tense)but that God has given it (past
tense)to us. We have this life now in principle (John 3:17), and when we enter
the presence ofGod in glory, we will have it fully. (BakerNT Commentary)
Steven Cole - Eternal life is God’s gift, not something we gain through our
goodworks or efforts. It does not require some specialsecretknowledge,as
the heretics taught. Like any gift, you must know about it (in this case, God
has testified about it) and you must receive it (cp Jn 1:11-13). If you have to
earn it, it’s not a gift (cp Ro 4:1-5-note). (1 John 5:5-13 Is Christianity Merely
Psychological?)
Guzik - This is God’s essentialmessageto man; that eternal life is a gift from
God, receivedin Jesus Christ.
Has given (1325)(didomi) means to give and in contextis based on decisionof
will of Giver and no merit of the recipients. Didomi is aorist tense which
marks the historic fact that God gave us the gift of eternal life in His Son and
we possess itnow in time but forever in eternity. In 1Jn 3:24 didomi is used by
John of the Holy Spirit "Whom He has given (didomi) us." The only thing
men have to do is to receive God's bountiful gift of Christ's payment for our
sins. And notice that John uses the plural pronoun "us" thus including
himself in those blessedwith God's gift.

John uses didomi in the perfecttense in 1Jn3:1 = See how greata love the
Father has bestowedupon us, that we should be calledchildren of God; and
[such] we are. For this reasonthe world does not know us, because it did not
know Him." The perfect tense of the gift emphasizes the abiding presence of
God’s love! We will have His love forever and ever, amen!
Vincent on the aoristtense of have given - The reference is to the historic fact
of the gift. So 1 John 3:23: “We should love one another as He gave us
commandment.” 1Jn 3:24: “We know that He abideth in us by the Spirit
which He gave us.” On the other hand, 1John 3:1: “Beholdwhat manner of
love the Father hath bestowed(dedoken)upon us.” The gift of love abides in
the factthat we are now children of God (1Jn 3:2).
Brooke - The gift of life is a witness only where it has been received.
Westcottnotes that has given refers "to the historic facts by which this life
was communicated to humanity. That which before Christ’s coming was a
greathope, by His coming was realizedand given. The gift, as far as St John
here regards it, was made to Christians, who appropriate it."
ETERNAL
LIFE
God has give us eternallife - This greatphrase occurs 41xin the NAS, most
often (21x) in the writings of John - Matt 19:16, 29; 25:46;Mark 10:17, 30;
Luke 10:25; 18:18, 30;John 3:15-16, 36;4:14; 5:24, 39; 6:27, 40, 47, 54, 68;
10:28;12:50; 17:2-3; Acts 13:46, 48;Ro 2:7; 5:21; 6:22f; Gal6:8; 1Ti 1:16;
6:12; Titus 1:2; 3:7; 1John1:2; 2:25; 3:15; 5:11, 13, 20; Jude 1:21
Note that the Greek order is emphatic: eternallife God has given to us.
Westcott- The Missionof His Son, which He attested, was the gift of life (John
10:10, 10:28;17:2), of life in His Son (John 20:31).
Steven Cole - God’s gift is eternallife. Nothing could be a greatergift!
Becauseofour sins, we were spiritually dead (Eph 2:1-3-note), alienatedfrom
the life of God (Col 1:21-note, Ro 5:10-note). God gives us as our present
possession, notonly unending life, but also His very life (Col 3:4-note). He is

the Author of life (cp Acts 3:15NIV, Heb 2:10-note, Heb 5:9-note, Heb 12:2-
note). Jesus promisedthat if we believe in Him, we shall live even if we die,
and that everyone who lives and believes in Him will never die (John 11:25-
26). In other words, physical death will not rob us of this eternal life with
God.. (1 John 5:5-13 Is Christianity Merely Psychological?)
Eternal life (zoen aionion) is "a person's new and redeemedexistence in Jesus
Christ that is granted by God as a gift to all believers. Eternal life refers to the
quality or characterof our new existence in Christ as well as the unending
characterof that life." (Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary).
The only life that can be classifiedas the blessed life, the joyful life, the
meaningful life is eternallife. Dearreader, dare I asked"Do you possess this
life? It is found only in God's Son!"
Keathley - "Eternallife is a life with eternalramifications that are not only
future, but is to so encompass our daily existence that it becomes a controlling
and directing force… Our need is to take hold of our eternallife and live in
the light of its significance and meaning both for time and eternity."
Vincent - “Your new spiritual life is no longer in the sphere of the earthly and
sensual, but is with the life of the risen Christ, who is unseen with God.”
John Stott - Three important truths are taught in these verses about eternal
life. First, it is not a prize which we have earnedor could earn but an
undeserved gift. Secondly, it is found in Christ, so that, in order to give us life,
God both gave and gives us his Son. Thirdly, this gift of life in Christ is a
present possession. True, it is further describedas eternal, aiōnios, which
means literally ‘belonging to the age’, i.e. the age to come. But since the age to
come has broken into this present age, the life of the age to come, namely
‘eternal life’, can be receivedand enjoyed here and now.
Eternal (166)(aionios)is an adjective which means existing at all times,
perpetual, pertaining to an unlimited duration of time. Without end, never to
cease, everlasting. (Ro 1:20 - God's power, Mt 18:8 - God's place of judgment,
Ro 16:26 - God's attribute) Mounce observes that "This adjective typically
functions in three settings:the eternity of God and the divine realm; the

blessings ofsalvation; and everlasting conditions that have neither beginning
nor end."
Life (2222)(zoe)in Scripture is used (1) to refer to physical life (Ro 8:38-note,
1Co 3:22, Php 1:20-note, Jas 4:14, etc) but more often to (2) to supernatural
life in contrastto a life subjectto eternaldeath (Jn 3:36, see all 43 uses of
"eternallife" below). This quality of life speaks offullness of life which alone
belongs to God the Giver of life and is available to His children now (Ro 6:4-
note,, Ep 4:18-note)as wellas in eternity future (Mk 10:30, Titus 1:2-note on
Eternal Life).
Zoe in the presentcontext describes the absolute fullness of life, both essential
and ethical, which alone belongs to God the Giver of life. Truly meaningful
life, life on the "highestplane", life that really is worthwhile is found only in
"the promise of life in Christ Jesus". (2Ti1:1-note) Who came so that we
might have life and might have it abundantly (Jn 10:10). Eternal life then is
the life of the Lord Jesus Himself. It is a life that is capable of enjoying the
things of God down here, but especiallythe only life that will be suitable to
enter and enjoy the grace ofGod in heaven.
"Life" in 1John- 1 John 1:1, 1:2, 2:16, 2:25, 3:14, 15, 16, 5:11, 12, 13, 16, 20
Other ResourcesonEternal Life:
Eternal Life - Baker's EvangelicalDictionaryofBiblical Theology
Eternal Life - Holman Bible Dictionary
Eternal Life - Hastings'Dictionary of the New Testament
Eternal Life - Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theologicaland EcclesiasticalLiterature
Eternal Life - Easton's Bible Dictionary
Life - Nave's TopicalBible
Jackmanobserves thateternal life "means literally the life of eternity, the life
of the world to come. Yet this is something which God has already given to
those who believe in Jesus. It is the presentpossessionofevery Christian
believer… Supremely, the life of eternity is life that has overcome the grave,

and that life can be found in Christ alone who triumphed over death by his
glorious resurrection. This life is in his Son." (The Message ofJohn's Letters)
(Bolding added) One wonders if we more fully graspedthe profundity of the
truth that we even now possesseternallife, would that realization not
significantly impact how we live in time?
Vincent on eternal life - Compare the phrase ten zoen ten aionion - the life, the
eternal life (1Jn 1:2), and e aionios zoe = the eternallife (John 17:3). For the
distinction betweenthe phrases see note on 1Jn 1:2 (Note on 1Jn 1:2 = The
Word Himself who is the Life. Compare John 14:6; 5:26; 1Jn 5:11, 12. Life
expresses the nature of the Word John 1:4). The phrase, the Life, besides
being equivalent to the Word, also indicates, like the Truth and the Light, an
aspectof His being.). The phrase here, without either article, merely defines
the characterofthe life. (I would add it speaks not of the quantity but of the
quality of life. Some might refer to it as "Abundant Life" (Jn 10:10a), the
"Christ life" or the "ExchangedLife." In any event, it is life as God intended
it to be lived, for our goodand His glory. Amen.)
Smalley on eternal life - it is the highest kind of spiritual and moral life,
irrespective of time, which God enables the believerto share in relationship
with Jesus.
Robert W. Yarbrough on eternal life - The divinely bestowedgift of
blessednessin God's presence that endures without end. This relates especially
to the quality of life in this age, and to both the quality and duration of life in
the age to come. (See lengthy article on Eternal Life - Baker's Evangelical
Dictionary of Biblical Theology)
John MacArthur - The essenceofeternallife is the believer’s participation in
the blessedeverlasting life of Christ (cf. Jn 1:4) through his or her union with
Him (Ro 5:21; 6:4, 11, 23; 1Co 15:22;2Co 5:17; Gal 2:20; Col3:3-4; 2Ti1:1,
10; Jude 1:21). Jesus defined it in His High PriestlyPrayer to the Father:
“This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus
Christ whom You have sent” (Jn 17:3). It is the life of the age to come (Eph
2:6-7), which believers will most fully experience in the perfect, unending
glory, holiness, and joy of heaven (Ro 8:19-23, 29;1Co 15:49; Phil 3:20–21;

1Jn 3:2). The eternal life promised by God in the Old Testament(e.g., 2Sa
12:23;Ps 16:8-10;133:3;Da 12:2) and soughtby the Jews of Jesus’day (Lk
10:25;Jn 5:39) comes only to those who believe God’s testimony and place
their faith in His Son. (1-3 John- MacArthur New TestamentCommentary)
This life is in His Son- compare this thought with Paul's phrase In Christ.
The only way to obtain this life is by believing in His Son.
Indeed Jesus is eternal life (1Jn 5:20); the eternal life that was with the Father
from the beginning (1Jn 1:2).
Boice explains why life in His Sonis so crucial - “It is as impossible to have life
without having Christ as it is impossible to have Christ without at the same
time possessing eternallife.”
Yes, in me, in me He dwelleth;
I in Him, and He in me!
And my empty soul He filleth,
Here and through eternity.
—Horatius Bonar
Wuest explains that "eternallife which is given to the believing sinner is not a
mere abstraction, not some spiritual energyor dynamic, but a Person, the
Lord Jesus. Paulspeaks of“Christ, our life” (Col 3:4-note). John speaks of
“the Word of the life” (1Jn 1:1). The life here is eternallife." (Wuest's Word
Studies from the Greek New Testament)
Since we as believers have eternal life by the work of the Holy Spirit in us, let
us live out the new life by the powerof the same Spirit not by trying to keepa
setof rules of do's and don'ts. The Law never could give life, and was never
intended to be the Christian’s rule of life.
Jackmanon life in His Son - this is a theme developed very extensivelyin
John’s Gospel(Ed: See verses below), which underlines that only in Jesus can
such life be known and experienced. So to the unbelieving Jews who were
trying to kill him because ‘he was evencalling God his own Father, making

himself equal with God’ (Jn. 5:18), Jesus unambiguously declared, ‘Justas the
Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Songives life to whom
he is pleasedto give it’ (Jn. 5:21). And again, ‘As the Fatherhas life in
himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself’ (Jn. 5:26). He
concludes, ‘Yet you refuse to come to me to have life’ (Jn. 5:40). Later, to the
crowds still marveling at the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus declares
himself to be the bread of life, for which they are craving, and continues, ‘For
my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him
shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day’ (Jn. 6:40).
Speaking of his sheep, as the goodshepherd, Jesus promises, ‘I give them
eternal life, and they shall never perish; no-one can snatchthem out of my
hand’ (Jn. 10:28). Then, in the very face of death itself, with Lazarus four
days in the tomb, he declares to Martha, ‘I am the resurrectionand the life.
He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoeverlives and
believes in me will never die’ (Jn. 11:25–26). With this dominant theme
running through John’s gospel, we are not surprised to find that it recurs in
the most intimate chapter of all, chapter 17. Here the Son is reviewing in
prayer all that has happened in his ministry before committing himself, his
disciples and the future church to the Father. The work he is now about to
complete is seenin terms of eternal life. ‘For you grantedhim authority over
all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now
this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus
Christ, whom you have sent’ (Jn. 17:2–3). (The Message ofJohn's Letters)
This life is in His Son- a few cross referencesto ponder our life in Jesus…
1Jn 5:12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God
does not have the life.
1Jn 5:20-note And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us
understanding, in order that we might know Him who is true, and we are in
Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternallife.
1Jn 4:9-note By this the love of Godwas manifested in us, that God has sent
His only begottenSoninto the world so that we might live through Him.
John 1:4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

John 5:21; 26 “Forjust as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even
so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 26 “Forjust as the Father has
life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself;
John 11:25-26 Jesus saidto her, “I am the resurrectionand the life; he who
believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in
Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
John 14:6 Jesus saidto him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one
comes to the Father, but through Me.
Jn 20:31 but these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His Name.
Colossians 3:3-4-note Foryou have died and your life is hidden with Christ in
God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed
with Him in glory (cp 1Jn 3:3-note).
BARCLAY
THE ESSENCEOF THE FAITH (1 John 5:11-13)
5:11-13 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life and that that
life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who has not the Son has not
life. I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of
God that you may know that you have eternal life.
With this paragraph the letter proper comes to an end. What follows is in the
nature of a postscript. The end is a statementthat the essence ofthe Christian
life is eternallife.
The word for eternal is aionios (Greek #166). It means far more than simply
lasting for ever. A life which lastedfor ever might well be a curse and not a
blessing, an intolerable burden and not a shining gift. There is only one person

to whom aionios may properly be applied and that is God. In the real sense of
the term it is God alone who possessesand inhabits eternity. Eternal life is,
therefore, nothing other than the life of God himself. What we are promised is
that here and now there canbe given us a share in the very life of God.
In God there is peace and, therefore, eternal life means serenity. It means a
life liberated from the fears which haunt the human situation. In God there is
powerand, therefore, eternal life means the defeat of frustration. It means a
life filled with the power of God and, therefore, victorious over circumstance.
In God there is holiness and, therefore, eternal life means the defeat of sin. It
means a life clad with the purity of God and armed againstthe soiling
infections of the world. In God there is love and, therefore, eternal life means
the end of bitterness and hatred. It means a life which has the love of God in
its heart and the undefeatable love of man in all its feelings and in all its
action. In God there is life and, therefore eternal life means the defeat of
death. It means a life which is indestructible because it has in it the
indestructibility of Godhimself.
It is John's convictionthat such a life comes through Jesus Christ and in no
other way. Why should that be? If eternal life is the life of God, it means that
we can possessthat life only when we know God and are enabled to approach
him and restin him. We cando these two things only in Jesus Christ. The Son
alone fully knows the Father and, therefore, only he canfully reveal to us
what God is like. As John had it in his gospel:"No one has everseenGod; the
only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known" (John
1:18). And Jesus Christalone canbring us to God. It is in him that there is
open to us the new and living way into the presence of God (Hebrews 10:19-
23). We may take a simple analogy. If we wish to meet someone whomwe do
not know and who moves in a completely different circle from our own, we
can achieve that meeting only by finding someone who knows him and is
willing to introduce us to him. That is what Jesus does forus in regardto God.
Eternal life is the life of God and we can find that life only through Jesus
Christ.

ALAN CARR
THE BIRTHMARKS OF THE TRUE BELIEVER
Intro: In the church I attended as a boy, there was a setof twin girls who
attended there also. These two girls were absolutelyidentical, except for the
fact that one of them had a large birthmark on her cheek. Without that
birthmark, it would have been impossible, at leastfor me, to have told them
apart.
Did you know that all true believers also possesscertainmarks that setthem
apart from the rest of humanity? We could rightly call these things that set us
apart our birthmarks. They appearwhen we are savedand they mark us as
children of God. Every saved personhas every one of the birthmarks of
salvation.
Some people doubt whether it is possible to know for sure that one is saved.
Well, the Bible tells us of some who knew:Job, Job19:25; Paul, 2 Tim. 1:12.
Since God is no respecterofpersons, you may have that same assurance also.
In fact, one of the reasons for the writing of this book from which we have
read this morning, was to help people know for sure that they had been saved,
1:6; 5:13. As you readFirst John, it becomes clearthat he is trying to help
God's people gain absolute assurance oftheir salvation. He uses the word
"know" 39 times. John is trying to tell us that there are some things we can
know. One of them is whether or not we are saved.
If you have struggledin this area, I want to help you getthat matter settled
once and for all this morning. I want to share the birthmarks of the true
believer with you this morning. Identifying the presence, orthe lack, of these
traits within our lives can help us understand where we stand in relation to
God. If you have struggled in this area, there is no need to do so any longer.
God can give you assurance, onway or the other, right now. Let's look
togetherat The Birthmarks Of The True Believer.

I. 5:1 A SPIRITUAL CONVERSION
A. This verse tells us that the true believer is a person who "believes" that
Jesus is the Christ. What then is belief? Is it merely a mental acknowledgment
of the facts? No!Beliefis knowing something with the head, but it is also
accepting that truth into the heart. Genuine belief, or saving faith, is coming
to the place where one is trusting nothing else, or no one else, but Jesus Christ
for salvation. There is no room for works, religion, gooddeeds, or anything
else in the heart of the truly savedperson.
B. I cannottell you whether you are savedor not. Only you know what you
are trusting to getyou to heaven. Howeverwe do have the promises of God in
this matter: 1 John 5:12; John 5:24; John 3:16; Acts 16:31; Rom. 10:9-13;
Rom. 8:1; Rev. 22:17;Acts 2:21, and hundreds more besides!We also have
this principle from Scripture: God is holy and cannot lie, Heb. 6:18. What He
promises to do, He will do! Therefore, if you have trusted Jesus Christ as your
Savior, according to the plan laid out in the Bible, then you are saved!You
have His word on it!
C. So, that brings us to the place where some questions must be askedand
answered.
1. Has there been a definite, clearmoment in your life when you trusted Jesus
Christ, and nothing else to save your soul?
2. When you had your "experience"was it according to the plan laid out in
the Word of God? Namely:
A. Did you come to the place where you recognizedand acknowledgedyour
sins to God? (Rom. 3:23; 3:10) That is, have you ever been lost? Until you can
see your sins and yourself as a sinner, you cannot be saved. This process is
calledconviction! It is the Holy Spirit drawing sinner unto Himself, John
6:44; John 16:7-11.
B. Did you recognize the horrible consequencesofyour sins? Namely, did you
know that because ofyour sins, you were separatedfrom God, Isa. 59:2; dead
in those sins, Eph. 2:1, and because of your sins headed to an eternity in Hell,
Rom. 6:23? This goes back to the knowledge ofbeing lost before God.

C. Did you come to the place where you understoodcompletely what Jesus did
for you when He died on the cross and when He rose from the dead? Did you
understand that when He died, He was dying in your place, shedding His
blood for your sins, 2 Cor. 5:21; Rev. 1:5? Did you understand that when He
arose from the dead, He did so to provide you with a new life? Did you go
beyond just knowing these things in your head to believing them with all your
being?
D. Did you cry out to God confessing yourselfa sinner, acknowledging Jesus
Christ and His shed blood as your only hope of forgiveness andsalvation? Did
you ask Him into your heart and life to be your personalSavior? Did you
trust Him and nothing but Him to save your soul, Rom. 10:13?
3. When this experience took place, was it crystal clear? I mean, when you
look back now, is there a clearlydefined moment in time when everything
changed? Or, is the whole thing kind of fuzzy and unclear? The fact of the
matter is this: when Jesus saves a soul, it isn't a thing done in a corner. It is
clearand dramatic. The circumstances surrounding the conversionmay
differ, but one thing remains the same, there will be a specific point in time
that the redeemed personcan point to and say. "Rightthere is when I trusted
Jesus Christ as my Saviorand my life was forevertransformed!" (Ill. The
Gadarene Demoniac, Mark 5;Ill. Saul of Tarsus, Acts 9; Ill. Me - May 23,
1983!)
D. Now, looking back, and in all honesty, how would you describe the event
you are trusting to take you to Heaven? Was it clearand dramatic? Can you
honestly say that you trusted Jesus and Him alone to save your soul? If so,
then that is the Bible way. Or, would you have to admit that you really can't
remember everbeing lost? You can't remember confessing your sins and
receiving Christ into your life. In fact, the whole event is unclear. Maybe you
need to come this morning and get that thing nailed down. There will be the
birthmark of a genuine spiritual conversion.
I. A Spiritual Conversion
II. 1:6-7 A SPIRITUAL CHANGE

(Ill. These verses tell us that those who are saved have a desire to "walk in the
light". Jesus is the Light, John 8:12. Therefore, those who are saved will want
to seek fellowshipwith Jesus. In other words, when they are converted, their
whole life will change. This is a theme that runs through the whole book of
First John. He tells us that the secondbirthmark of the true believer is a
spiritual change in their lives. Let's follow this thread through First John and
see if we possessthis mark of the new birth.)
A. 1:6-7 - There will be a desire for fellowship with the things of light. The
person who is truly savedby grace will gravitate towardthose things that
have to do with the Lord. Things like the Bible, prayer, the church, the
fellowship of the saints, etc, will all be precious and specialto the person who
has been saved. If you find that you are drawn toward things pertaining to
darkness, you might need to check up on where you stand with Jesus.
B. 2:3-6 - There will be a desire within the true believer to do the things God
commands us to do, and to avoid the things God commands us not to do.
Genuine salvationis proven by a desire to obey God! According to verse 6, the
genuinely saved personwill want to walk just like Jesus!
C. 2:29 - There will be such a change in the believers life that they will
naturally begin to do the things that mark them as righteous. They will live
out the new life that was placed within them when they were saved by the
grace ofGod.
D. 3:6-10; 5:18 - The true believer cannot continue to live a life of sin.
According to these verses, the genuinely converted personwill be unable to
live a lifestyle of unrepentant sin. When John tells us that those who are saved
do not sin, he is not teaching sinless perfection. As we know, all people, even
Christians sin, 1 John 1:8-10. However, when we come to faith in Jesus, there
is a new dynamic that takes place within our lives. When the genuinely
convertedperson sins, there is an immediate sense ofwrong. The believer will
understand that they have damagedtheir fellowship with God and will not
have peace in their life until they make it right with God. The only way for a
believer to handle sin is for them to confess it and getit out into the light.

Those believers who do sin are miserable until they repent, and they are
brought under the chastisementof God, Heb. 12:6-11. The whole point is this:
if you cansin and never be bothered by it, then you probably aren't saved. If
you cansin and not suffer chastisement, then you probably aren't saved. If
you cansin and enjoy it, then you probably aren't saved. If you are able to life
with sin in your life everyday, and not feelan ache in your heart for restored
fellowship with God,the I would suggestto you that you should come to Jesus
today and be born again.
Now, don't misunderstand me, savedpeople do sin! However, they will not
enjoy it like they did before they were saved!And, when they sin, they will
never get awaywith it! God will deal with them in love, Rev. 3:19, but if they
will not repent, then He will deal with them in judgment, 1 Cor. 5:5; 1 John
5:16.
E. 4:6 - Another clearmark of genuine conversionis that the savedperson will
receive the Word of God when it is preachedand when it is read. It will not be
something to doubt, debate or getangry over. The savedperson will hear the
voice of the Lord through His Word and will respond to it accordingly. Jesus
said that this would be a characteristic ofHis sheep, John 10:27. The desire to
hear the Word of God; the ability to understand the Word of God; and the
desire to do what God says in His Word are all indicators of spiritual life, 1
Cor. 2:14.
F. When Jesus saves a life, He literally changes that person from the inside
out. They are a brand new creature, 2 Cor. 5:17; Col. 3:1-17. They can never
be the same, neither will they want to be anymore.
G. Has there been a definite change in your life?
H. Now, some people who hear this were savedat a young age. Theywere
savedbefore they ever had the chance to go off into vile sin. They may feel
that their testimony is lacking something. Let me just say, you have the best
testimony of all! However, you can gage your life by the same measuring stick.
While you might not be able to saythat God brought you out of gross, black
sin, you can saythat He has workedin you life so that there is no desire within
you for the things of the world or the works of darkness. If the natural, fleshly

desires manifestedby a lost world are absent in your life, that is a good thing,
and that is a cause foryou to have assurance before the Lord.
So, has there been a definite, spiritual conversionand a definite, spiritual
change in your life?
II. A Spiritual Change
III. 2:9-11 A SPIRITUAL CHARITY
(Ill. A third birthmark in the true believer's life is that there will be a genuine
love for other believers. It will be a love that is unexplainable. It will be a love
that is, at times, strongerthan love felt for those of one's natural family. This
is a conceptmentioned numerous times within this little book and is worthy of
mentioning today.)
A. Let's notice all the times John refers to this truth in his book:2:9-11; 3:14-
15; 4:7-8; 4:11-12;4:20-21. If you are saved, this special, spiritual
manifestation of the love of God through your life for other believers will be a
reality!
B. How will this love manifest itself? There are severalways in which true,
Christlike love will be seenin the life of the genuine believer.
1. In a desire to fellowshipand worship with other believers - Heb. 10:25.
2. In a concernover the welfare of others in the family of God - 1 Cor. 12:26;
Phil. 2:3-4; Gal. 6:2; Rom. 12:15.
3. There will be concernwhen we have offended a brother in Christ - Rom.
14:19-22;1 Cor. 8:9-13.
4. There will be a desire for reconciliationwhen there is a breech in the body
of Christ - Eph. 4:26-32;Matt. 5:23-24;Matt. 18:21-35;Luke 17:3-5.
C. There is more that could be said about this matter, but I think the
implications are clear. If we are genuinely saved, there will an unexplainable
desire to be with and to love our fellow believers.

II. A Spiritual Change
III. A Spiritual Charity
IV. 4:13 A SPIRITUAL COMPANION
(Ill. Where do you stand thus far? Do you have the birthmarks of genuine
conversion? All of the above are easyto understand and can be clearly seenby
everyone here today as we look at our own lives. The final one I want to share,
however, is not so easilydiscerned. It is this matter that we are more prone to
satanic and fleshly deception. I am referring to the matter of inner peace. I am
referring to the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.)
A. When a person has been genuinely saved, there will be the inner witness of
the Holy Spirit, Rom. 8:16. The Holy Spirit moved into our hearts at the
instant of conversion, Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:13. His job in us is to sealus, Eph.
4:30; lead us, John 16:13; and to give us assurance ofour salvation; Eph.
1:13-14;2 Cor. 1:22; 2 Cor. 5:5. The presence ofthe Spirit of God in our lives
is proof positive that we belong to the Lord!
B. This is a mysterious thing, but it is absolutely essentialfor the assurance of
one's salvation. When the Spirit of God is presentin your life, He will speak to
your heart. He will tell you things. He will guide you. He will warn you. He
will lead you. He will feed you. He will comfort you. He will teachyou the
truth. He will rise up within your heart and confirm the reality of your
adoption into the family of God, ***Rom. 5:5***.Like a mother who wraps
her arms around that insecure child everyday and expressesher undying love,
the Spirit of God does the same things for the redeemed child of the Lord.
(Ill. To put it simply, when you getsaved, there is a spiritual instinct placed
within you. You immediately begin to desire those things that pertain to God,
His Word, His work and His worship. This will not be a passing thing, but it
will endure throughout life because ofthe presence ofthe Spirit in your
heart.)

C. If there is no peace;if there is no assurance;if there is not communion of
the Spirit of God with your spirit, then it may be that He is not there. It may
be that you need to be saved. If the Spirit of God never speaks to your heart,
then you need to examine yourself. It may be that you have never really been
saved! This can also be causedby unconfessedsin in the life of the believer.
When we are walking in the light, the Spirit of the Lord will bear witness
within us that we are in the family!
D. Someone may say, "Preacher, Idon't know if the Spirit os there or not."
Let me say to you, if He is there, you will know it! How? There will be no
question when He is in your life! There will be times when He will get so big
that His presence is crystal. At other times, His presence will be indicated by
subtle things like an inner desire for prayer, for the Word of God, to tell a lost
person about Jesus, etc. He will make His presence knownand He will give
you assurance ofyour salvation! The presence ofthe Holy Ghostin your life is
proof that you belong to God!
Conc:I know I have covereda lot of territory this morning. But, I felt lead of
the Lord to preach this message.Why? Because there are people in this room
who are not sure where they stand with God. There are others who know they
are not saved. My friends, if you lack even one of the birthmarks of the true
believer this morning, then this message wassentthis wayfor your benefit.
It's all or nothing! You need to leave the seatwhere you are sitting and you
need to come to Jesus and getthis thing settled right now and forever. If the
Lord is speaking to your heat you need to come!If you are in doubt you need
to come. If you are convincedthat you are lost, you need to come. Will you
listen to the call of God and come to Him for salvation today? Or, will you
continue to live in doubt and fear? God canhelp you if you will come to Him
right now.
You can know!God wants you to know! And, the first step in your coming to
know for sure is for your to make our way to Him right now!

RICH CATHERS
1 John 5:10-13
WednesdayEvening Bible Study
May 20, 1998
Introduction
If you were to die tonight, do you know if you’d go to heaven?
Are you sure? Do you ever question your salvation?
This is one of those basic issues of Christian maturity that we all need to come
to grips with. That is, if we want to keepgrowing in the Lord.
:10-13 Assurance in Salvation
:10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself
John is talking about the Holy Spirit, whom he was just referring to in verse 8
–
(1 John 5:8 KJV) And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit,
and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
Paul also talkedabout how the Holy Spirit was a witness inside of us:
Rom 8:9-17 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit
of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none
of his. {10} And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because ofsin; but the
Spirit is life because ofrighteousness. {11}But if the Spirit of him that raised
up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead
shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. {12}
Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
{13} For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do
mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. {14} For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. {15} For ye have not receivedthe

spirit of bondage againto fear; but ye have receivedthe Spirit of adoption,
whereby we cry, Abba, Father. {16} The Spirit itself beareth witness with our
spirit, that we are the children of God: {17} And if children, then heirs; heirs
of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we
may be also glorified together.
There ought to be a time in our lives when we recognize that the Holy Spirit is
in us, giving us confirmation that we are indeed God’s children.
The difficulty with this is that this can be a very subjective, feeling kind of a
thing. And sometimes we aren’t always too good at understanding our
feelings. I might be depressedbecause I haven’t gotten a goodsleepin a week,
and then conclude that because I’m depressed, that the Holy Spirit isn’t in my
life. We’ll talk more about feelings later …
:10 he that believeth not God hath made him a liar
the recordthat God gave – literally, "the witness that God witnessed"
The Greek wordfor "witness" (martureo, and it’s various forms) appears
three times in this verse, as well as again in verse 11 ("record").
The picture is that of a courtroom, with God up on the witness stand.
God begins to tell the courtroom that Jesus was His Son, and that Jesus was
sent to be the Savior of the world. You stand up and object, "Your honor, the
witness is not telling the truth!"
How absurd.
When a person looks atall the evidences and witnessesofwho Jesus is, and
then rejects them as false, they are in turn calling God a liar.
:10 because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son
What is the witness God has made concerning His Son? I can think of four of
them.
1) The Holy Spirit
As He lives in us. (Rom. 8:16)

2) Prophetic fulfillment.
Jesus was not fluke. Long before He showedup on planet earth, Godhad
whispered into the ears of the prophets, and they had recordedmuch about
the coming Messiah.
There were over 300 specific prophecies fulfilled by Jesus’first coming to
earth. Details such as His genealogy, His place of birth, what His ministry
would be about, descriptions of His death, burial, and resurrection.
Science Speaks(Peter Stoner, Moody Press, 1963)references the fulfilling of
8 prophecies.
"We find that the chance that any man might have lived down to the present
time and fulfilled all eight prophecies is 1 in 1017." Thatis 1 in
100,000,000,000,000,000. Mr. Stoner then illustrated the probability by
supposing that "we take 1017 silverdollars and lay them on the face of Texas.
They will coverall of the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver
dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man
and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one
silver dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of
getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had
of writing these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one
man, from their day to the present time, providing they wrote them in their
own wisdom."
Mr. Stoner considered48 prophecies ... " 1 in 10157"."This is a really large
number and it represents an extremely small chance. Letus try to visualize it.
The silver dollar, which we have been using, is entirely too large. We must
selecta smaller object. The electronis about as small an object as we know of.
It is so small that it will take 2.5 times 1015 ofthem laid side by side to make a
line, single file, one inch long. If we were going to count electrons in this line
one inch long, and we counted 250 eachminute, and if we counted day and
night, it would take us 19,000,000 years to count just the one inch of electrons.
If we had a cubic inch of these electrons and we tried to count them it would
take us, counting steadily 250 eachminute, 19,000,000times 19,000,000times
19,000,000years or6.9 times 1021 years." "Withthis introduction, let us go

back to our chance of 1 in 10157.Let us suppose that we are talking this
number of electrons, marking one, and thoroughly stir whole mass, then
blindfolding a man and letting him try to find the right one. What chance has
he of finding the right one? What kind of a pile will this number of electrons
make? They make an inconceivably large volume."
3) God’s witness during Jesus’earthly ministry
Severaltimes during Jesus’ministry, God the Father gave an audible witness
to who Jesus was.
(Mat 3:16-17 KJV) And Jesus, whenhe was baptized, went up straightwayout
of the water:and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit
of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: {17} And lo a voice
from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
(Mat 17:5 KJV) While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed
them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son,
in whom I am well pleased;hear ye him.
(John 12:27-28 KJV) Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father,
save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. {28} Father,
glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both
glorified it, and will glorify it again.
4) The resurrection
This was what Peter’s sermonwas all about on the Day of Pentecost, as he was
preaching Jesus to be the Messiah:
Ac 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israelknow assuredly, that God hath
made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
4) The messageofthe apostles
This is the messagethat John is giving right now. God is speaking through the
apostles to the people.
The personwho does not want to believe these "witnesses"aboutJesus from
the Father, are calling God a liar.

:11 And this is the record
or, "this is the witness" (marturia)
:11 that God hath given to us eternal life
eternal – aionios – without beginning and end, that which always has been and
always will be; gives prominence to the immeasurableness ofeternity
Someone was telling me the other day that they came across a web site that
was talking about what this word "eternal" meant. They claimed that the
original Greek word meant a setperiod of time, all leading up to the point of
saying that the Lake of Fire was only for a thousand years, and then everyone
in there just disappears.
The word means eternal.
The Lake of Fire is eternal. But so is our Eternal Life.
life – zoe – life; the state of one who is possessedofvitality or is animate; the
focus isn’t on how we live (which is bios, "biology"), but on the fact of
existence. It’s opposite is death.
:11 this life is in his Son.
The kind of life we’re talking about is found on in Jesus.
It is not found in Mohammed, Buddha or Krishna.
It is not found in drugs, pleasure, or intellectualpursuits.
It is not found in meditation, easternmysticism, or contacting the dead.
It is found in Jesus.
This sounds kind of narrow-minded to some. It may be, but it’s the truth.
Sometimes it’s goodto be narrow-minded. After last week’s pastors’
conference, my friend Steve Santos flew home to Hawaii. Suppose the captain
of the plane gets on the intercom and announces, "Wellfolks, I don’t want to
be such a narrow minded person, so we’re just going to head the plane out
that-a-ways, and fly off into the sunset. I’m sure we’ll getto Hawaii." Just

being off one degree on your course to Hawaii will take you hundreds of miles
off course, and you’ll never find the tiny islands in the middle of the Pacific.
There’s a reasonwhy God is so narrow minded.
This is not simply a matter of "because Isaid so", but there’s a real reasonto
this.
Lesson:
Only Jesus pays for sins.
There is no other path that even claims to take care of your sins.
And yet the truth is, this is what is keeping us from God.
Even in the Old Testament, we clearlysee the sign posts –
(Isa 59:1-2 KJV) Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot
save;neither his ear heavy, that it cannothear: {2} But your iniquities have
separatedbetweenyou and your God, and your sins have hid his face from
you, that he will not hear.
(Ezek 18:20 KJV) The soulthat sinneth, it shall die…
The price involved in paying for our sins involves death, substituting one
death for another.
But when Jesus came to pay for our sins, He didn’t simply lay down a single
human life to pay for another’s sins. He was God in the flesh, and when He
laid down His life, He laid down an eternallife, paying for an infinite amount
of sins.
This is why the life is in the Son.
There is no other way.
:12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath
not life.
This is what salvationis all about. Do you have Jesus?

Eternal life is simply a matter of "having the Son".
Now John is going to remind us how to "have the Son".
:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son
of God
believe on –
This is to me an interesting phrase and has always kind of stuck out to me in
the Greek.
This "believe on" isn’t just a matter of acknowledging the existence of
someone.
(James 2:19 KJV) Thou believestthat there is one God; thou doestwell: the
devils also believe, and tremble.
And I can tell you now, that devils aren’t saved!
The phrase in Greek appears 32 times in the New Testament, 29 of those times
being used by John in either his gospelor 1John. (verses are listed at end of
notes)
The thing that has always stuck out is that the word "on" (Greek eis), usually
carries the idea of "into". This little preposition is found 1774 times in the NT,
and in the King James is usually translated "into", "to", or "unto" overa
1,000 ofthose times, and only 58 times as "on" (of which 32 times are these
"believe on" verses).
It’s the idea of "trusting in" someone, counting on them.
When we encourage someone to do a particularly hard task, we often sayto
them, "Go ahead, you can do it, I believe in you". When someone lets us
down, we might say, "I’m so hurt, I was counting on you, I believed in you".
In fact, this phrase in the Greek was in the verse we started with (1John 5:10),
and could be translated this way –

"The that is counting on the Son of God has the witness in himself: He that
does not believe God has made Him a liar; because he has not counted on the
record that God gave of His Son."
Lesson:
Are you counting on Jesus?
Are you counting on Him to pay for your sins?
Are you counting on Him to give you eternallife?
:13 that ye may know that ye have eternal life
know – eido – to see;to know; knowledge notfocusedon experience, but
knowledge focusedonunderstanding
God desires that you understand, that you know that you have eternal life.
It’s not a matter of wishful thinking, it’s a matter of knowing.
Lesson:
The importance of Assurance / Acceptance
Knowing once and for all whether or now you’re going to heaven is one of
those milestones that every Christian needs to pass if they are going to grow
and be effective in their Christian life.
I think this is a problem that many people have, in that they struggle for a
feeling of acceptance.
For some of you, you feel like you were never totally acceptedby your
parents, and you’re still working very hard to be loved, accepted, and
approved by them.
For some of you, you’ve somehow gottenthe idea that you need to earn
people’s respectand love. So much of what you do in life is aimed at getting
people to like you. Whenever you’re in a group of people, you feel like you’re
on stage, and have to perform just right, or somebody might rejectyou.
Illustration

In "The Whisper Test," Mary Ann Bird writes:I grew up knowing I was
different, and I hated it. I was born with a cleft palate, and when I started
school, my classmates made it clearto me how I lookedto others: a little girl
with a misshapen lip, crookednose, lopsidedteeth, and garbled speech.
When schoolmates asked, "Whathappened to your lip?" I'd tell them I'd
fallen and cut it on a piece of glass. Somehow it seemedmore acceptable to
have suffered an accidentthan to have been born different. I was convinced
that no one outside my family could love me.
There was, however, a teacherin the secondgrade whom we all adored--Mrs.
Leonard by name. She was short, round, happy--a sparkling lady.
Annually we had a hearing test. ... Mrs. Leonard gave the testto everyone in
the class, andfinally it was my turn. I knew from past years that as we stood
againstthe door and coveredone ear, the teachersitting at her desk would
whisper something, and we would have to repeat it back--things like "The sky
is blue" or "Do you have new shoes?"I waited there for those words that God
must have put into her mouth, those sevenwords that changedmy life. Mrs.
Leonard said, in her whisper, "I wish you were my little girl."
God says to every person deformed by sin, "I wish you were my son" or "I
wish you were my daughter."
Lesson:
Get your acceptancefrom God.
We have a need for acceptance. Butthere’s only one true source that can give
us the acceptancewe need. That’s the Lord.
This is what the issue of assurance is all about. Does Godacceptme? Will He
continue to acceptme?
God considers it finished business. It’s not even in question as far as He’s
concerned.
(Eph 1:3-7 KJV) Blessedbe the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessedus with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

{4} According as he hath chosenus in him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: {5} Having
predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself,
according to the goodpleasure of his will, {6} To the praise of the glory of his
grace, whereinhe hath made us acceptedin the beloved. {7} In whom we have
redemption through his blood, the forgiveness ofsins, according to the riches
of his grace;
God has made us "accepted"in Jesus Christ. It’s in Jesus that we find God’s
acceptanceand God’s love.
How much of our lives would be changedif we really, really knew deep down
inside that we no longer had to "perform" for people in order to be
"accepted"?
When we realize we are acceptedcompletelyby the Lord, we cantake our
eyes off of ourselves, andlearn to give to others, being more concernedabout
their needs than our own.
Personalexample:I can work hard to prepare and deliver a really neat Bible
Study so you will all like me. Or I can work hard to prepare and deliver a
goodBible Study because youneed one to grow in the Lord.
Lesson:
Trusting His Word - The Basis for Assurance.
This is what it all boils down to, do I really believe that I can trust God, and
what He promises in His word?
My assuranceshould depend on what God says.
He says that if you have the Son, you have the Life.
He says that if you are counting on the Son, then you have the Son.
My assuranceshould not rest upon feelings.
They can be as fickle as what you ate last night for dinner.
(2 Cor 5:7 KJV) (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

We need to learn to not live our lives based upon what our senses tellus (like
feelings, circumstances,etc.), but basedupon what we believe, what we are
counting on.
:13 and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
This last phrase does not seemto appear in the bestmanuscripts. But that
doesn’t bother us, because Godhas already told us this!
(John 20:31 KJV) But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the
Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his
name.
Extra:
"Believe on" verses
John 1:12 But as many as receivedhim, to them gave he powerto become the
sons of God, even to them that believe <4100>on<1519> his name:
John 2:11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and
manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed <4100> on<1519> him.
John 3:18 He that believeth <4100>on<1519> him is not condemned: but he
that believeth <4100> notis condemned already, because he hath <4100>not
believed <4100> in the name of the only begottenSon of God.
John 3:36 He that believeth <4100>on<1519> the Son hath everlasting life:
and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God
abideth on him.
John 4:39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed <4100>on<1519>
him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I
did.
John 6:29 Jesus answeredandsaid unto them, This is the work of God, that ye
believe <4100>on<1519> him whom he hath sent.

John 6:35 And Jesus saidunto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to
me shall never hunger; and he that believeth <4100> on<1519>me shall
never thirst.
John 6:40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth
the Son, and believeth <4100> on<1519> him, may have everlasting life: and I
will raise him up at the lastday.
John 6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth <4100>on<1519>
me hath everlasting life.
John 7:31 And many of the people believed <4100>on<1519> him, and said,
When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath
done?
John 7:38 He that believeth <4100>on<1519> me, as the scripture hath said,
out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
John 7:39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe <4100> on
<1519> him should receive:for the Holy Ghostwas not yet given; because that
Jesus was not yet glorified.)
John 7:48 Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed<4100>on
<1519> him?
John 8:30 As he spake these words, many believed <4100>on<1519> him.
John 9:35 ¶ Jesus heardthat they had casthim out; and when he had found
him, he said unto him, Dost<4100> thoubelieve <4100> on<1519>the Sonof
God?
John 9:36 He answeredand said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe <4100>
on <1519> him?
John 10:42 And many believed <4100>on<1519> him there.
John 11:45 ¶ Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seenthe
things which Jesus did, believed <4100> on<1519> him.

John 11:48 If we let him thus alone, all men will believe <4100>on<1519>
him: and the Romans shall come and take awayboth our place and nation.
John 12:11 Because thatby reasonofhim many of the Jews wentaway, and
believed <4100> on<1519>Jesus.
John 12:37 ¶ But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they
believed <4100> noton <1519> him:
John 12:42 ¶ Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed <4100>
on <1519> him; but because of the Pharisees theydid not confess him, lest
they should be put out of the synagogue:
John 12:44 ¶ Jesus criedand said, He that believeth <4100> on<1519> me,
believeth <4100> noton <1519>me, but on <1519> him that sent me.
John 12:46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoeverbelieveth<4100>
on <1519> me should not abide in darkness.
John 14:12 ¶ Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth <4100>on
<1519> me, the works that I do shall he do also;and greaterworks than these
shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
John 16:9 Of sin, because theybelieve <4100> noton <1519> me;
John 17:20 ¶ Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall
believe <4100>on<1519> me through their word;
Acts 14:23 And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had
prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on <1519> whomthey
believed <4100>.
Acts 19:4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of
repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe <4100>on<1519>
him which should come after him, that is, on <1519> ChristJesus.
Philippians 1:29 For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to
believe <4100>on<1519> him, but also to suffer for his sake;

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