The book of First John

A Verse by Verse Study
Text 1st John 1:1

 

A. John starts off by speaking of a beginning. “That which was from the beginning,” V. 1a

     1. There are three different beginnings spoken of in the bible.

          a. Gen. 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth”

          b. John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

          c. 1st John 1:1 “That which was from the beginning,”

          d. All three are speaking of different times of beginnings. 

     2.  Gen. 1:1

          a. This beginning is the beginning of creation, because before creation there was no beginning.

          b.   Creation of what? The earth? No! What ever God created first.

          c. All we know is has a beginning and that word starts only in creation.

     3. John 1:1

          a. This beginning goes back as far as the first one but also passes it. In fact this beginning truly has not beginning.

          b. John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2.) The same was in the beginning with God. (3.) All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” Notice the words, “the Word was with God” go back as far as you can think, beyond creation, back billions and trillions of years, and out of eternity comes the Lord Jesus Christ. Way back there He is already past tense; He is the Ancient of Days.

    4. 1st John 1:1

          a. This is the beginning of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. V. 1b  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;” This had to be the Man Christ Jesus. 

          b. I think it would truly start as His ministry started, but none the less it is indeed the incarnation.

          c. John spoke of four things, 1. "We have heard" (through the ear-gate). 2.  "we have seen" (through the eye-gate), 3. "we have looked upon" (lit., gazed intently upon), 4. "our hands have handled.".

     5. John said “Which we have heard.” – This hearing is not as I have heard Him, or was it He heard about His teachings through His word or another mans teachings. This means he heard Jesus speak and therefore John heard God speak.

     6. “Which we have seen with our eyes.” Not as we have seen Him, but rather actually viewed with his own eye the Lord.

          a. John says He had personal testimony of the ministry of Jesus, so what he was going to teach was absolutely truth.

          b. 2 Peter 1:16 “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.”

     7. “Which we have looked upon.” What is the difference between seen and looked upon?

          a. John had said “Which we have seen with our eyes” the word seen means to stare at, as thought you would stare at a plane in the sky or as though you would stare at an accident on the road.

          b. John also said here “Which we have seen with our eyes” The word looked is a verb and means to look closely at. But he evidently designs to include an idea in this word which would imply something more than mere beholding or seeing. The additional idea which is couched in this word seems to be that of desire or pleasure; that is, that he had looked on him with desire, or satisfaction, or with the pleasure with which one beholds a beloved object.

          c. The greatest time of these men lives was to have looked upon Him. John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” The word “beheld” and the phrase “looked upon Him” come from the very same Greek word and mean the same thing.

     8. “And our hands have handled.” Johns expounds his relationship with the Lord, here he speaks of actually touching Jesus. 

          a. Just as Peter did when he began to sink in the water.

          b. This is proof the Jesus was indeed a man, not a spirit, but a man. Luke 24:39 “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.”

          c. John 20:25-27 “The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. (26.) And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. (27.) Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.”

     9. What was it I had heard, seen, looked upon, and handled? “The Word of life;”

          a. The Word of life, who is so called, because he has life in himself, as God, as the Mediator, and as man, and is the author of life, natural, spiritual, and eternal, it must be understood as he, the Word, is made manifest in the flesh.

          b. John here is combining what he had said in the book of John, V. 1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” And V. 4 “In him was life; and the life was the light of men.”