“And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God” (KJV, 1 John 4:14-15).
“And we have seen and do testify”
The disciples were unique individuals. They were not merely sharing what they thought was true. Instead, they could verify their claims. As a result, they were unwavering in their convictions even unto death.
They claimed that the Messiah had walked upon the earth. They claimed that Jesus had died and risen from the dead. Amid much persecution, they testified to their beliefs.
John had already stated, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)” (1 John 1:1-2).
John and the other apostles had heard Christ speak. They saw Christ with their own eyes. They even touched Jesus.
During the Last Supper, Jesus told the disciples that one of them would betray Him. Shortly after, John is pictured as laying upon Christ. The matter of Christ being the incarnate God had been settled in John’s mind.
John heard, saw, and touched Christ. He was there at the crucifixion of Jesus and ran to the tomb shortly after Jesus’ resurrection. He was there when Jesus appeared to the disciples when they were closed in a room for fear of Jews and when Jesus ascended into heaven.
John was not the average witness. On the contrary, he was one of the closest companions of Jesus. He could speak of Jesus as nobody else could. Thus, he declared that he saw and testified.
“that the Father sent the Son”
Here one can see the beginning of the testimony. John wanted his readers to know that the Father sent the Son. Before one gets to the rest of John’s testimony, John’s words and the Father’s actions must be appreciated.
The Father sending the Son was not a minor matter. It was monumental.
The Father did not simply send His Son. He sent His beloved Son. The Bible affirms the Father’s love for the Son many times over. When Jesus was baptized, the heavens opened up, and the Spirit of God descended upon Jesus like a dove.
Then the Father called out from heaven and declared, “…This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17). The Father’s sending of the Son was sacrificial. God did not need to send the Son. He would have been justified in judging mankind.
But instead, He sent His only begotten.
“to be the Saviour of the world”
Then John moves forward to tell the reader why the Father sent the Son. God the Father sent Jesus to be the Savior of the world. John would have never forgotten the words of Christ as recorded in His Gospel.
Jesus said “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:16-17).
The Father sent the Son as an act of love.
The love of God is sacrificial and must be recognized as such. The Father was not monstrous in sending the Son, nor had He lost His mind. The Father could have brought mankind before Him to be judged and found guilty of many crimes.
However, in love, the Father sent the Son so that man could be forgiven for His sin. God so loved the world that He gave.
Jesus is the Savior of the world, and there is no other. There is no other name whereby man can be saved. Instead, Jesus is the way, truth, and life and is the only way to the Father. While the Father sent the Son, the Son willingly submitted to the Father’s will.
It is also important to realize that the Father did not forcefully send the Son.
Instead, the Bible says, “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it up again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father” (John 10:17-18).
Jesus willingly laid down His life as the Savior of the world.
“Whosoever shall confess”
But this does not mean that everyone is automatically saved, nor does it mean that everyone can be trusted. The death of Christ is only effectual for the one who responds to Him in a way that the Bible outlines.
Along with this, the only one equipped to share the Word of God is a true believer.
As a result, John wanted his readers to know that there must be a confession that takes place in response to Jesus as the Savior of the world. The Greek word translated as confess is homologeo which carries the meaning of assenting and acknowledging.
It is essential to know the context of the passage. John was not establishing a path to salvation. Instead, he gave a test to determine whether the messenger of the Word was a true messenger.
For instance, he previously said, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God” (1 John 4:1-2).
The “confession” of the previous verse serves the same purpose as the “confession” in 1 John 4:15. But what was the confession?
“that Jesus is the Son of God”
John moves forward to stating the confession in clear terms. If someone were to claim that Jesus was the Son of God, it would have been evidence that he could be trusted. Saying that Jesus was and is the Son of God is not intended to diminish His deity.
The Jews realized what such a claim entailed, as should the Christian today. The Scripture says, “Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God” (John 5:18).
Clearly, to be equal with God is to be God. Two is equal to two because it is two. The logic is simple.
Thus, to claim that Jesus is the Son of God is also to affirm His unique identity and deity. It is to affirm the God-Head and make a claim that is unshakably Christian.
“God dwelleth in him, and he in God”
A necessary component of teaching biblical truth is to be a Christian. If someone is not a Christian, he is not valid to teach the Word of God. The Bible affirms such a claim many times over.
The unbeliever is dead in his sins and trespasses. He is in the darkness rather than the light. He is without the Holy Spirit and, as a result, cannot discern and understand biblical truth.
On the other hand, the Christian has been united with God. The union of the believer and God is foundational for all things pertaining to life and godliness. The flesh profits nothing, but the Spirit gives life.
Apart from God, Jesus has said man can do nothing. As a result, man can only produce good and be fit to teach the Word when God works through Him based upon their union.
Final prayer
Father, I thank You for Your Word and instruction on how to distinguish between truth and error. Please help me to grow in being wise and discerning. While there are a lot of messages and ideas in the world today, I know that only what is in line with Your Word is truth. In Jesus’ name, Amen.