The 1 John Test

1 John Test Presented by Brad Bennett

Do you consider yourself to be a born-again Christian?

The issue of your relationship with God is so important that you cannot afford to be deceived or have any doubt.

A Tree and Its Fruit – bad tree vs. good tree scenario

You can tell a lot about someone by the fruit their life produces

Matthew 7:15-23

¹⁵“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. ¹⁶By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. ¹⁹Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.  ²¹“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. ²²Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ ²³Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

1 Samuel 16:7

We are to be fruit inspectors

Within the book of 1 John we have been given a series of tests that every person can use to be sure that they have eternal life.

1 John 5:13

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life…”

Test 1: A true Christian cannot ignore sin

1 John 1:6-10

⁶If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. ⁷But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from allsin. ⁸If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.

These verses tell us that everyone sins, but a true Christian cannot continually sin – he must confess it (agree with God about it). Any person who practices sin, refuses to agree with God about sin, and refuses to turn from sin is not a true Christian.

Test 2: A true Christian has a desire to obey Christ’s commands

1 John 2:3-6

³We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. ⁴The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ⁵But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: ⁶Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.

As we see, a true Christian has a deep desire to obey Christ. Obedience to Him is a pattern of a true Christian’s life.

There must be a deep desire and love for God’s word.

Test 3: A true Christian does not love the world

1 John 2:15

¹⁵Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

The “world” is a value system that leaves God out and is controlled by Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4). A true Christian does not find joy in the world’s value system. A person who leaves God out of their decisions and daily life – and whose efforts are to find joy in those things that leave God out would indicate they are not a true Christian.

Test 4: A true Christian continues faithful in fellowship

1 John 2:19

¹⁹They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.

A person who has forsaken the church – making a final turning away from it – is a person who lacked genuineness from the beginning.

Test 5: A true Christian truly loves people.

1 John 3:14-15

¹⁴We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death. ¹⁵Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.

John 15:12-13

12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.

The heart of a true Christian cannot be a permanent dwelling place for hate. The above verses are not referring to a momentary flare up, but an attitude of hate as a pattern of life.