Overall Question: How does knowing Jesus bring a believer into closer fellowship with the saints?

1 John 1:3 NIV “We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.”

Sunday – Intro to 1 John
1 John 1:1-4 God’s Word to the Nations “1 ¶ The Word of life existed from the beginning. We have heard it. We have seen it. We observed and touched it. 2 This life was revealed to us. We have seen it, and we testify about it. We are reporting to you about this eternal life that was in the presence of the Father and was revealed to us. 3 This is the life we have seen and heard. We are reporting about it to you also so that you, too, can have a relationship with us. Our relationship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 We are writing this so that we can be completely filled with joy.”
1 John 1:3 COMMENTARY WILLIAM BURKITT’S NOTES As if he had said, "We declare unto you that of Christ which we ourselves have seen and heard, and what we had by sight and hearing you are to receive from our testimony; and our design and end herein is sincerely this, that you may have fellowship, and be of one communion with us, and not with false teachers, and by virtue of your communion with us may partake of the same faith and grace, and all spiritual benefits and privileges which Christ has purchased for us; and you will have no cause to repent of your coming into our communion and fellowship; for verily we, and all that have sincerely embraced the doctrine of the gospel with us, have fellowship with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ, and with each other."

Monday – Comparison Between 1 John 1 and John 1
1 John 1:1-5 CEV “1 ¶ The Word that gives life was from the beginning, and this is the one our message is about. Our ears have heard, our own eyes have seen, and our hands touched this Word. 2 The one who gives life appeared! We saw it happen, and we are witnesses to what we have seen. Now we are telling you about this eternal life that was with the Father and appeared to us. 3 We are telling you what we have seen and heard, so that you may share in this life with us. And we share in it with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 We are writing to tell you these things, because this makes us truly happy. 5 ¶ Jesus told us that God is light and doesn’t have any darkness in him. Now we are telling you.”
John 1:1-5 CEV “1 ¶ In the beginning was the one who is called the Word. The Word was with God and was truly God. 2 From the very beginning the Word was with God. 3 And with this Word, God created all things. Nothing was made without the Word. Everything that was created 4 received its life from him, and his life gave light to everyone. 5 ¶ The light keeps shining in the dark, and darkness has never put it out.”

Tuesday – The Word of Life
1 John 1:1-2 Holman “1 ¶ What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have observed, and have touched with our hands, concerning the Word of life— 2 that life was revealed, and we have seen it and we testify and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us—”
[i]1 John 1:1 COMMENTARY FAMILY BIBLE NOTES the Word is here used, as in Joh 1:1,14, for Christ's divine and eternal person; and he is called "the Word of life," because he has life in himself, and is the author of life natural and spiritual. Joh 1:4.
Genesis 1:14 ESV “And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years,”
Daniel 5:38 ESV “but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored.”
Matthew 8:8 ESV “But the centurion replied, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.” [/i]
John 1:1-4 KJ21 “1 ¶ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and that life was the Light of men.”
Acts 17:28 KJ21 “For in Him we live, and move, and have our being; as also certain of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’”

Wednesday – Eyewitnesses
Deuteronomy 4:1-9 NRSV “1 ¶ So now, Israel, give heed to the statutes and ordinances that I am teaching you to observe, so that you may live to enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. 2 You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the LORD your God with which I am charging you. 3 You have seen for yourselves what the LORD did with regard to the Baal of Peor—how the LORD your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor, 4 while those of you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. 5 See, just as the LORD my God has charged me, I now teach you statutes and ordinances for you to observe in the land that you are about to enter and occupy. 6 You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!" 7 For what other great nation has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is whenever we call to him? 8 And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today? 9 But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children’s children—”
Deuteronomy 4:3 COMMENTARY BY JAMIESON, FAUSSET, AND BROWN The allusion to that recent and appalling judgment was seasonably made as a powerful dissuasive against idolatry, and the fact mentioned was calculated to make a deep impression on people who knew and felt the truth of it.
Acts 4:20 NRSV “for we cannot keep from speaking about what we have seen and heard."”
Acts 4:20 COMMENTARY ROBERTSON’S NT WORD PICTURES This is defiance of the civil and ecclesiastical authorities that was justified, for the temple authorities stepped in between the conscience and God. Peter and John were willing to pay the price of this defiance with their lives. This is the courage of martyrs through all the ages.
1 Corinthians 15:4-8 NRSV “4 and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.”
1 Corinthians 15:5 COMMENTARY BY ALBERT BARNES Paul, therefore, appeals to the witnesses who had attested, or who yet lived to attest, the truth of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus; and shows that it was not possible that so many witnesses should have been deceived. As this was not the first time in which the evidence had been stated to them, and as his purpose was merely to remind them of what they had heard and believed, he does not adduce all the witnesses to the event, but refers only to the more important ones.

Thursday – Fellowship of the Saints
1 John 1:3 NRSV “we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.”
1 John 1:3 COMMENTARY BY ALBERT BARNES he wished that they might have the same belief, and the same hope, and the same joy which he himself had, arising from the fact that the Son of God had become incarnate, and had appeared among men. To "have fellowship," means to have anything in common with others; to partake of it; to share it with them
Acts 2:42-47 20th Century NT “42 ¶ They devoted themselves to the teaching of the Apostles and to the Common Life of the Church, to the Breaking of the Bread and to the Prayers. 43 A deep impression was made upon every one, and many wonders and signs were done at the hands of the Apostles. 44 All who became believers in Christ held everything for the common use; 45 They sold their property and their goods, and shared the proceeds among them all, according to their individual needs. 46 Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the Temple Courts, and to the Breaking of Bread at their homes, while they partook of their food in simple-hearted gladness, praising God, and winning the good-will of all the people. 47 And the Lord daily added to their company those who were in the path of Salvation.”
Acts 2:46 COMMENTARY BY ALBERT BARNES Singleness of heart. This means with a sincere and pure heart. They were satisfied and thankful. They were not perplexed or anxious; nor were they solicitious for the luxurious living, or aspiring after the vain objects of the men of the world.
Romans 12:3-17 20th Century NT “3 In fulfillment of the charge with which I have been entrusted, I bid every one of you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think, but to think till he learns to think soberly—in accordance with the measure of faith that God has allotted to each. 4 For, just as in the human body there is a union of many parts, and each part has its own function, 5 So we, by our union in Christ, many though we are, form but one body, and individually we are related one to another as its parts. 6 Since our gifts differ in accordance with the particular charge entrusted to us, if our gift is to preach, let our preaching correspond to our faith; 7 If it is to minister to others, let us devote ourselves to our ministry; the teacher to his teaching, 8 The speaker to his exhortation. Let the man who gives in charity do so with a generous heart; let him who is in authority exercise due diligence; let him who shows kindness do so in a cheerful spirit. 9 Let your love be sincere. Hate the wrong; cling to the right. 10 In brotherly love, be affectionate to one another; in showing respect, set an example of deference to one another; 11 Never flagging in zeal; fervent in spirit; serving the Master; 12 Rejoicing in your hope; steadfast under persecution; persevering in prayer; 13 Relieving the wants of Christ’s People; devoted to hospitality. 14 Bless your persecutors—bless and never curse. 15 Rejoice with those who are rejoicing, and weep with those who are weeping. 16 Let the same spirit of sympathy animate you all, not a spirit of pride; be glad to associate with the lowly. Do not think too highly of yourselves. 17 Never return injury for injury. Aim at doing what all men will recognize as honorable.”
Romans 12:16 COMMENTARY GENEVA BIBLE NOTES There is nothing that disrupts harmony as much as seeking glory, when every man detests a base estate, and ambitiously seeks to be exalted.

Anything else would be 'hearsay' and is not admissible in a court of law.

HEY CHILDOFCHRIST


I would have to agree about telling what we see
and here


dgrimm60

Happy Sabbath everyone!

I would really like to have some discussion here about why John so prominately called Jesus the 'Word'. ie. The WORD was with God, and the WORD was God. 1 John We have seen...looked upon...handled...the WORD. Why that term in particular?

Sure thing, Jesus said his mission or job, so to speak, was to speak for the Father and provide the Father's testimony of truth to a world full of lies. He told His disciples that the words He gave them were His Father's words and John wrote about this in chapters 14,15,16 and 17--(among others)

We can know that His word is the truth because He told ONLY His disciples that when He left, the Holy Spirit would cause them to remember EVERYTHING that He had said. (John 14:26) In John 17:20, Jesus' prayer is for those who would read the same words written by these same eyewitnesses.

Therefore it should be no surprise when John's statement about the Word, being the same as Jesus' words from the Father. Make sense? Enjoy!

Blessings, (SDA)

Thanks Dr. Rich, some folks in my SS class expressed similar connections too.

I would make one more comment about the 'WORD', though. In John 1, John explains that "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the begtinning with God. All things were made by him... In Genesis when describing the Creation scene, each time'life' was called into existence, it was because 'God said'.... ( "And God said...and it was so). The 'word' of God called life into existence including the Resurection of Jesus Himself. So Jesus is refered to as 'The Word of Life'. This Word was in the beginning-beginning with God - and was God, - before Creation. Then He was the Word that created in the beginning of the world. And He is the Word that brought knowledge of the Father, and of Salvation too.

I'll bet that's not so very clear to anyone - but it seems to me that the 'Word of Life' was just that, the word that gave life, and In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Thanks for the discussion, it does help to clarify questions!