Evidences of Salvation / 1 John / 5. The Affection Test

1 JOHN – EVIDENCES OF SALVATION

First of all, let’s look at John’s purpose in writing his letter. Look at 1 John 1:1-3:

1 John 1:1-3 ¶ That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life - 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us - 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.

John is writing authoritatively as an eye-witness of Jesus’ life and teaching. John knows how one comes by eternal life, and the nature of such life when one has it. Therefore, he is in a somewhat unique position to be able to proclaim it. His purpose is that those who read his letter might know that they have “fellowship” with believers.

He says, in verse 3, “that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.”

In 1 John 2:19, John will speak fo those who:

1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

John is saying in the first few lines of his letter,

“I want you to know that you are of us. I want you to know that you are part of the fellowship. I want you to know that you share in the eternal life which the Father and the Son possess, and which all genuine believers possess. Everything that I am no proclaiming as an eye-witness of Jesus is so that you might know that you too have this fellowship.”

That’s our hope this morning too. We don’t want to cause genuine believers to doubt their salvation, but to rejoice in their salvation as they test themselves to see whether or not they are in the faith. As Paul said to the Corinthians:

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? - unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

So, with that, let’s continue. The fifth test which John offers to help us to know that we are part of the fellowship of genuine believers is what we will call, “The Affection Test.”

5. The Affection Test

1 John 3:14-16 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers…

John now gives another mark that we belong to the fellowship of genuine believers: we love the brothers. This is not a vague warmth toward religious people in general. It is a particular affection for those who belong to Christ. John even puts it in the strongest possible terms. Love for fellow believers is how “we know that we have passed out of death into life.” The absence of that love is not a minor character flaw. “Whoever does not love abides in death.”

This should not surprise us. John began his letter by saying that his purpose was that his readers would have fellowship with the apostles, and that this fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3). Those who share life with the Father and the Son will share life with one another. The same new birth that produces conviction of sin, submission to Christ’s commands, separation from the world, and hope in His appearing also produces a new family affection.

John says the same thing later in the letter:

1 John 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.

If you love the Father, you will love His children. Do you love fellow Christians? Not only those whom you might be naturally drawn to, but those who you might otherwise overlook or even avoid? Has your love for Jesus caused you to forge unlikely friendships and produced in you an uncommon love? It's this kind of supernatural love, uncommon to the world, that ought to set the church apart.

LOVE DEFINED BY THE CROSS

And notice that John won’t allow talk about such a love to remain in the abstract. He immediately defines it by the cross:

1 John 3:16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.

John tells us that a sure sign of salvation is a love between fellow believers – and he doesn’t allow us to define that love for ourselves. The measure is the love of Jesus Himself. He loved with a humble, sacrificial, serving love. He loved people who could not repay Him and did not deserve Him. That is the pattern He set for His people.

This is the same command Jesus gave on the night before He was crucified:

John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Notice what Jesus did not say. He did not say the world would know we are His disciples by our buildings, our precision in doctrine alone, or even by our evangelistic activity. Those things matter. But the mark He named is this: “if you have love for one another.” The consequence of Jesus’ perfect life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection is the establishment of a community of ransomed people who love one another. And this love must be a Christlike love, since it is the evidence that we belong to him.

NOT IN WORD ONLY

Now, to help us avoid what might be our natural tendency to relegate this sort of love to mere feelings, John goes on to show just how practical this love is. He says in verse 17-18:

1 John 3:17-18 But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

Words are not enough here either. A claim to love the brothers that never opens the wallet, the schedule, the home, or the heart is not the love John is describing. Genuine love notices need. It refuses to close the heart. It moves toward the brother or sister at cost to itself.

That is why Jesus could say that “all people” would know we are His disciples by this love. How else would they know, except by seeing it? Love that stays inside private sentiment cannot serve as a public mark. Love that shows up in deed and in truth can.

This is also why the New Testament is so full of “one another” commands. They are not extra advice for already-healthy churches. They are the practical shape of the love Jesus commanded. We are to love one another with brotherly affection, outdo one another in showing honor, bear with one another, forgive one another, serve one another, stir one another up to love and good works, and refuse to speak evil of one another. These are not optional extras. They are how the Affection Test becomes visible in ordinary congregational life.

WHAT THIS LOVE IS NOT

This does not mean every relationship in the church will feel easy. It does not mean we pretend there are no differences, no disappointments, and no need for correction. Love in the church includes admonition, restoration, and sometimes even the hard work of discipline. But even then the aim is the brother’s good, not our own irritation. The question is not whether we enjoy every person equally. The question is whether the life of Jesus in us produces a real movement toward His people - especially when it costs us something.

Hatred, contempt, settled indifference, and a closed heart toward the brothers are not compatible with eternal life. John is willing to say that as plainly as he said it about walking in darkness and refusing Christ’s commands.

THE TEST APPLIED

So examine yourself:

• Do you have a real affection for fellow believers - not only the ones you would have chosen, but the ones Christ has placed beside you?

• Has your love for Jesus created in you a love for His people that you did not have before?

• When a brother or sister is in need, does your heart open or close?

• Is your love visible in deed and in truth, or does it remain mostly in talk?

Would an outsider looking at this church have reason to conclude that these people belong to Jesus because of the way they treat one another?

The one who has passed from death to life will not be content to love Jesus in isolation from Jesus’ people. He will want to love the brothers. That desire, however imperfectly practiced, is itself evidence that he has come to share in the life of the Father and the Son.

Next time, we will consider the “Continuation Test.”