Introduction: The Word Incarnate

1 [1]What was [2]from the beginning,
what we have heard,
what we have seen with our eyes,
what we looked at and our hands have touched—
concerning [3]the Word of life—

2 and this life was [4]made visible;
we have seen it and testify to it,
and we announce to you the eternal life,
which was with the Father
and was revealed to us—

Fellowship with the Father and the Son

3 what we have seen and heard we now declare to you,
so that you also may share fellowship with us.
And truly, our [5]fellowship is with the Father
and with His Son, Jesus Christ.

4 We write these things [6]so that our joy may be complete.

Walk in the Light of God

5 This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you:
[7]God is light,
and in Him there is no darkness at all.

6 If we claim to have fellowship with Him but walk in darkness,
we lie and do not live according to the truth.

7 But if we [8]walk in the light, as He is in the light,
we have [9]fellowship with one another,
and the [10]blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

The Acknowledgment of Indwelling Sin

8 If we claim [11]we have no sin,
we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

Sin Confessed, Forgiven and Cleansed

9 [12]If we confess our sins,
He is [13]faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

10 If we say [14]we have not sinned,
we make Him a liar,
and His word is not in us.

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[1] (1:1) John begins not with greetings or theology but with testimony. He insists that what he proclaims is not speculation or mystical vision, it’s tangible, historical, embodied truth: “heard… seen… touched.” He counters early forms of Docetism (the teaching that Jesus only appeared human) by emphasizing the physical reality of Christ.

[2] (1:1) From the beginning. recalls both Genesis 1 (“In the beginning”) and John 1:1. The Word existed before creation — Jesus is eternal, not created.

[3] (1:1) The Word of life. (Greek: ho logos tēs zōēs) refers to Jesus as the divine communicator and source of life itself.

[4] (1:2) made visible. The invisible God has been revealed in a person. Christianity begins with revelation, not speculation.

[5] (1:3) Fellowship (koinōnia) means deep participation in divine life. John sees Christian community as a shared life with God and with one another. Fellowship with God is ethical and relational: we can’t claim intimacy with God while persisting in moral darkness.

[6] (1:4) So that our joy may be complete.  John’s motive is pastoral, not abstract. The fullness of joy comes from shared fellowship in the truth.

[7] (1:5) Here John moves from testimony to theology: the nature of God. God is light meaning pure holiness, truth, and revelation. Darkness symbolizes sin, deceit, and alienation from God. This echoes John 1:4–5, light represents divine life shining in a dark world.

[8] (1:7) Walk in the light means living truthfully, humbly, and transparently before God and others.

[9] (1:7) Notice the plural “we have fellowship with one another”, holiness builds community, not isolation.

[10] (1:7) The blood of Jesus washes us from all sin. We are cleansedfrom sin, continual (by confession of sin) and ongoing cleansing (by sanctification). It’s not a one-time event but a living relationship of grace.

[11] (1:8) Some Christians claim to have reached a state beyond sin (“we have no sin”). John calls this self-deception. There is no such thing as a sinless Christian on earth today. Sinless perfection is a false teaching.

[12] (1:9) If we confess our sins. The correct response to personal sin is confession, honest acknowledgement before God.

[13] (1:9) God is both “faithful and just” when he forgives sin. God forgives not because He overlooks sin, but because Christ’s blood satisfies divine justice. Forgiveness is both merciful and righteous. The aim is cleansing not just being pardoned of sin, but being free from it.

[14] (1:10) Denying sin by saying, “we have not sinned” is tantamount to calling God a liar, since His Word reveals the universality of sin.