4:13 John now provides a criterion that confirms that one has come to know personally God’s love: the gift of his Spirit. We know (ginōskomen) with a personal knowledge that we abide in him. Believers (note the plural) should be conscious of the indwelling Spirit. With a continuous and ongoing awareness, there is an intimate communion with God by his Spirit. It is the knowledge of this indwelling of the Holy Spirit that gives the believer assurance of his membership in the family of God. In harmony with what the apostle Paul asserts, “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Rom 8:16). “Has given” is in the perfect tense. It “denotes the resultant indwelling of the Spirit imparted at regeneration.” We receive the Spirit as gift, not obligation.128

4:14 For the third time John speaks of God sending his Son (vv. 9, 10). Now he refers to God intimately as Father. Again John gives the core of the gospel message. He begins with an emphatic “we” (hemeis) and proclaims that their message is rooted in historical reality and personal experience. John introduces another criterion (hence the use of the conjunction kai) for confirmation of the believers’ union with God: adherence to the apostolic message. They bear “witness” to the Father’s saving activity in the Son. There is some discussion as to the antecedent of “we.” The verse strikes with such force, however, that we believe the apostolic witness must be in view. It recalls the vivid testimony of the prologue itself (1:1–3). A strong affirmation of the message and mission of the incarnate Christ is clear. John is undergirding the fact that although “no one has seen God,” “we have” seen his Son whom he sent. The use of apestalken (“has sent”) refers to the actual sending and also to the purpose—the salvation of the world. God had sinners in mind when he sent the Son of his love (cf. Col 1:13–14).

4:15 The message of love and truth are mutually inclusive. This confession provides further evidence that there is communion between God and the person making the statement. It also exposes the true from the false professor. It is a confession of public conviction and acknowledgment that reveals an inward commitment: “Jesus is the Son of God. I believe in him. I trust in him not just as the Savior of the world, but as my Savior. I personally trust in him as the Savior, the Son sent from God.” Once again John affirms the mutuality of the divine relationship between God and man, “God lives in him and he in God.” This is not just a statement regarding the status of Jesus as the Son. It is a confession that results in a reception of new life resulting in a commitment to obedient trust. The natural reaction of someone who genuinely believes that Jesus is the Son of God is to join his life with his in all that means. The resultant obedience gives the necessary outward evidence that there is true fellowship with God. To live or abide in God (“live” is present tense) is a vital, intimate, continuous, and growing reality. The believer has a new and invisible power for the fulfillment of his work on earth: “God is in him.” He realizes that his life is not on earth, that he belongs essentially to another order: “he is in God.”

4:16 John now gathers together several of his previous thoughts. The “we” again is emphatic. He clearly refers to himself and all of his readers and affirms that they know and believe. These two Greek words, egnōkamen (“know”) and pepisteukamen (“rely”), are so closely connected that they form what should be considered something of a “compound verb,” since they both concern the object of love. They are both in the perfect tense, which signifies that the result of these two characteristics is an abiding reality. There is a definite order and emphasis in the verbs. Knowledge is prior to and explained by faith. Faith must have content. “Keep the faith” is nonsensical. “Faith in what?” is always the crucial question. When one abides in the love of God, his knowledge of God grows, and his faith in God grows. The more we love him, the more we understand him, and in turn we trust him more and our faith increases. Westcott says:

We must have a true if limited knowledge of the object of faith before true faith can exist; and true faith opens the way to fuller knowledge. A general faith in Christ and self-surrender to Him prepared the disciples for a loftier apprehension of His character. The actual experience of love includes the promise of a larger manifestation of its treasures.

Faith and love are at the same time fruit and evidence of one who is indwelt by God. It is this indwelling that makes the fruit possible.

Divine-human mutuality is once again expressed here. Bruce notes: “The love which dwells in the community of God’s children and which they show to one another is His love imparted to them. More than that: the God of love imparts Himself to His people, so dwelling within them that they, in their turn, dwell in His love and dwell in Him.” Indeed this is a fulfillment of the prayer of Jesus: “I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them” (John 17:26). When we remain in this love, we live in God because God is love (cf. v. 8). It must be stated that the previous characteristics and qualifications are still required. Speaking of the love of God, as many often do, is not enough. The confession of the incarnate Christ and acknowledgment of his atonement and Lordship are necessary. Without this combination, this mutual abiding is not possible. The fact that the word “abide” (menō) occurs three times in the Greek text underscores this point.

4:17 John now expands his discussion by incorporating the theme of judgment. He also refers to what he has just written. The clear message is that the love one has for God has an effect on the future. The confession of Jesus as Lord and the mutual abiding between God and the believer allow for God’s love to have its full expression. It is in his close union with God (referring to the mutual relationship) that a believer’s love is made complete or perfected in order that he will have no fear in the day of judgment. The “function of love in the believer’s life is the impartation of a bold confidence that will enable him to stand before the judgment seat of Christ without fear or shame.”139 On that day the believer need not fear because Christ has atoned for his sins. The atonement also has a present effect since “in this world we are like him” (lit., “just as that one is, we also are in this world”). This does not mean that we have attained his perfection, but we stand in relation to God the same way that Christ does, and in this way we are like him. Those who are indwelt by God have a relationship with their Judge that is characterized by love. It is this love that allows the believer to have confidence when looking toward that day of judgment.

4:18 John begins this verse with an affirmation. The reason that the believer need not fear is that the relationship between him and God through Christ is based on love, and in love “there is no fear.” The word “fear” begins the sentence and is thus emphatic. Literally John says, “Fear not is in love.” The believer can have full “confidence” based on this assertion. John uses the word phobos (fear), which can mean either a good fear (respect) or bad fear (dread). It is this latter type of fear to which he is referring. There should be no dread in the life of the one in whom God dwells. In fact the claim here is that love and fear are mutually exclusive. This is made even more evident by the use of the strong adversative alla, “but.” There is a drastic disparity between the two entities. They cannot coexist because perfect love “drives out fear.” Robertson calls this phrase a powerful metaphor and notes that this can mean “to turn out-of-doors.” The evil of fear is cast out of those in whom God’s love is being perfected. This is because fear “has to do with punishment.” John’s use of kolasin (“punishment”) in this context clearly is a reference to eternal punishment. The fear of this punishment is already being felt by the one whom John is describing. This individual is deficient in love, which would cast out the fear. This deficiency of love causes one to dread the day of judgment for fear of permanent departure from the presence of God. Therefore if one fears this day, he is not being perfected in love.

4:19 The sentence once more begins with an emphatic “we” (hēmeis). The comparison is being made between our love for God and God’s love for us. His love is prior. Plummer gives three reasons why this fact is significant:

1. Our love owes its origin to God’s love.

2. Love is characterized by fear when there is a doubt it will be returned. We have no fear of this since God’s love was prior to ours.

3. Affection can easily flow from a heart filled with gratitude for God’s initiation of love toward us. Yes, we love but only because he loved us first. Remember: he sent his Son to die for you.

4:20 The inward character of an individual is revealed when he lies about his love for God. He declares that he loves God but fails to demonstrate that love in his treatment of fellow Christians. One may possibly claim to love God and deceive others since God cannot be seen and others are not able to prove the truth of the declaration. The visible manifestation of an individual’s love for God, however, will eventually show up in his dealings with his brothers and sisters in Christ, who indeed are very visible.

The phrase “whom he can see” (hon hēoraken), which is expressed in the perfect tense, pictures a permanent condition that continues from the past. The unloved brother has been and continues to be in sight, while God has been and remains out of sight. This is no sporadic occasion but a constant and sustained situation. It is not just unlikely, but it also is impossible for a man to love God if he fails to love his brother. Love for God and hatred for a brother cannot coexist in the same heart. They are mutually exclusive and completely incompatible. The concern here is not with the individual’s attempt to love, that is, he tried and failed, but his complete unwillingness and inability since he does not have the love of God in him in order to accomplish the task in the first place. The words “God” and “brother” are juxtaposed to emphasize the fact that one must have the same love for both.

Jesus had already made it clear that to love God and to love one’s neighbor are mutually inclusive (Mark 12:29–31). John very clearly acknowledged this existence of the potential for people to claim verbally to know God and to be indwelt by him and yet treat others who have made this same commitment with disdain. John has not hidden his own contempt for this kind of hypocrisy and in fact has already stated that to behave this way puts the perpetrator in kinship with Cain (1 John 3:18).

4:21 Loving one’s brother is not just a spiritual requirement; it also is a command. The reason that it is impossible for the inconsistency stated in 4:20 to remain is that the command to love God and the command to love one’s brother are two parts of one command. They are inseparable. In fact, the use of “and” (kai) to begin the verse connects it with the prior verse. The phrase ap’ autou (“From him,” trans. “he has …”) is a reference to God the Father as the final source of the commandment. Disobedience to this commandment demonstrates a false love toward God that results in failure to love the brethren. As Paul wrote: “The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ ” (Gal 5:14). Of course, Paul and John therefore agree with their Lord (Mark 12:31).