First John: 1 John 2:11a-Hating One’s Fellow-Believer is Living in the Darkness of Satan’s Cosmic System
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But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. (ESV)
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Tuesday June 20, 2017
www.wenstrom.org
Lesson # 59
But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. (ESV)
“But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness” stands in contrast with the previous assertion in , which teaches the spiritual principle that the believer who at any time does love their fellow-believer is living in the light.
“And walks in the darkness” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction kai (καί), “and” (2) preposition en (ἐν), “in” (3) articular dative feminine singular form of the noun skotia (σκοτία), “the darkness” (4) third person singular present active indicative form of the verb peripateō (περιπατέω), “walks.”
The conjunction kai is epexegetical meaning that it is introducing an assertion which makes explicit the meaning of the previous assertion which states that the believer who at any time does hate their fellow-believer is, as an eternal spiritual truth in the darkness of Satan’s cosmic system.
The word is introducing an assertion that states that the believer who hates their fellow-believer is conducting their life in the darkness or according to the standards of the darkness of Satan’s cosmic system.
The epexegetical use of the word is indicated by two factors.
The first is the repetition of the prepositional phrase en tē skotia (ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ), “in the darkness” which John uses to modified both the verb peripateō as well as the previous verb eimi.
Secondly, the verb eimi in the previous assertion is ambiguous whereas peripateō is explicit.
The verb peripateō means “to conduct one’s life in a particular manner” and is used in relation to the conduct or lifestyle of the believer who hates their fellow-believer.
The present tense of this verb is also a gnomic present which is used to make an absolute statement regarding the believer who hates their fellow believer, namely that they are living in the spiritual darkness of Satan’s cosmic system.
The one who at any time does hate his fellow-believer is in the darkness. Specifically, he is conducting his life in this darkness. Consequently, he unequivocally does not know for certain where he is going because this darkness has blinded his eyes. (My translation)
The apostle John in presents another spiritual principle to the recipients of this epistle who were believers who lived in the Roman province of Asia in the last decade of the first century A.D.
This principle is designed to protect their fellowship with the Trinity.
Specifically, he wants to protect them from the proto-Gnostic teachers who infiltrated their region of the world at that time.
In this verse, we must remember that he is presenting a hypothetical situation taking place in the Christian community.
John teaches in verse 11 that the believer who at any time does hate their fellow-believer is, as an eternal spiritual truth in the darkness.
Then, he gets more specific in this assertion by teaching that they are conducting their life in this darkness.
This assertion stands in contrast with the previous one he presented in verse 10, which taught that the believer who at any time does love their fellow-believer is living in the light.
Consequently, there is unequivocally no cause of stumbling in this believer.
Therefore, the contrast between these two verses is between the believer who obeys the Lord’s command to love one another with the believer who does not obey this command.
There is also a contrast between the results of loving one’s fellow-believer and the results of failing to do so.
As we noted in our study of , when John speaks of “hate” in , he is speaking of hate in the active as well as passive sense.
In the active literal sense, hate speaks of expressing unjustifiable hostility and antagonism towards one’s fellow believer, which expresses itself in malicious words and actions.
This hatred exists between believers since the kingdom of darkness can deceive believers and of course believers still have a sin nature.
Therefore, this indicates that every believer has the capacity to hate their fellow believer in the sense of being hostile and antagonistic towards them since they all have a sin nature until the day that they die or the rapture, whichever comes first.
This type of hatred is seen in Saul and David’s relationship in which the former hated the latter by persecuting him and even attempting to kill him.
Hate in a passive sense speaks of the believer being indifferent towards their fellow believer.
John mentions this type of hatred in .
In this passage, he asserts that the believer who has the financial or material means to help a fellow believer and yet does not do so, is not obeying the command to love their fellow believer.
This passive expression of hate is manifested by coldness, by isolation, by exclusion, unconcern for your fellow believer.
Someone has well said that indifference is the cruelest form of hate.
The Gospels clearly teach this fact to be true.
What hurt our Lord most was not the active enmity of those who were trying to accomplish His death, but the coldness and indifference of those who once followed him yet turned aside from Him and idly stood by as He was put to death.
Therefore, when John speaks of hate here in , he is not simply speaking of acting maliciously towards one’s fellow believer but he is also referring to indifference, coldness, isolation, exclusion and unconcern for one’s fellow believer.
This passive form of hate is the absence of acts of love.
It is basically the failure to obey the command to love one another as Christ has loved.
Hate is an absolute spiritual principle which means that if a believer is not loving their fellow believer, then, they are hating them.
If they are not loving their fellow believer, they are not experiencing fellowship with the Lord since experiencing fellowship with the Lord is contingent upon the believer obeying the command to love one another as Christ has loved all men.
If the believer is not obeying the command to love one another as Christ loves them, then they in essence hate their fellow believer.
Therefore, when love is absent, hate is present.
Love unexpressed is not love at all.
Indifference towards one fellow believer in need constitutes hatred of them.
Hate for the believer begins with the failure to deny self and take up his cross daily (; ; ).
It is also the unwillingness to lay down one’s life for a brother ().
Hatred considers its own needs first (; Phlp. 2:3-4).
Whenever a believer fails to help his fellow believer in need, he is in effect despising his fellow believer.
The brother or sister in Christ who is despised is, in effect, hated.
“In the darkness” is figurative language for the cosmic system of Satan or in other words, it refers to the devil’s kingdom which presently and temporarily rules planet earth until Jesus Christ’s Second Advent and subsequent millennial reign.
Satan’s kingdom is characterized by sin and evil in contrast to God’s kingdom which is characterized by holiness.
Satan’s cosmic system is characterized by spiritual darkness because of sin and hate which is result of disobedience to God’s command to love one another.
Therefore, living in the darkness is equivalent to sinful behavior.
When John speaks of the believer living their life in the darkness in , he is referring to the believer living their life according to the standards of Satan’s kingdom and which standards are sin and hate and is manifested by disobedience to the command to love one another.