Beloved SonRise family, we are in the midst of our Tough Texts series, where we intentionallywrestle with passages of Scripture that challenge, perplex, or even discomfort us. These are theverses that make us stop, reflect, and lean harder on Gods Word. Tonight, we confront one suchpassage: 1 John 5:13-17.
If I were to ask you today, What is the single greatest struggle in the Christian life? many ofyou would likely say doubt. We wrestle with the question: Am I truly saved? We examine ourfailures, our inconsistent obedience, and the persistent presence of sin in our lives, and wewonder, Do I really have what it takes to be a Christian? Do I have eternal life?The Apostle John was intimately familiar with this struggle. Throughout this letter, he has givenus a series of spiritual tests to help us discern the reality of our faith and the assurance thatflows from it: Do you believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God? Do you obey Godscommandments? Do you love your brothers and sisters in Christ? Johns purpose is clear: tocultivate assurancea settled confidence that those who believe in Jesus Christ truly belong toGod. John connects the assurance of salvation with the power of intercessory prayer and thereality of sin in the believers life.
Transition: Before we delve into Johns teachings on sin and prayer, let us consider a poignantexample of the human struggle with fear and doubt.
Illustration: John Bunyan and the Sin Leading to Death
In Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, John Bunyan recounts a season early in hisChristian life when he feared he had committed the sin that leads to death. For weeks, heagonized, convinced that his sin was unforgivable. He compared himself to Peter and Judas andconcluded his sin was worse than both.Desperate, Bunyan sought counsel from an older believersomeone he thought wiser, moreseasoned in Scriptureconfessing the blasphemous thoughts he had uttered in his heart and hismomentary yielding to temptation to deny the Lord. But instead of offering comfort, the olderman sorrowfully agreed that Bunyan had indeed committed the sin that leads to death. Bunyansanguish reveals a universal Christian strugglethe fear that we might fall so far that grace canno longer reach us. Though Bunyan eventually found comfort in Gods mercy, his tormentunderscores how severe Johns warning truly is.
Transition: Understanding Bunyans struggle helps us appreciate why John wrote his epistletoguide believers toward assurance, even in the face of sin, while warning of the dangers ofpersistently rejecting Christ.
The passage of 1 John 5:16-17 presents one of the most profound and challenging distinctions inthe New Testament: the difference between a "sin that leads to death" and a "sin that does notlead to death." It is one of the more difficult passages in the New Testament. The passage createstension: on the one hand, the letter is emphatically pastoral, encouraging the reader to know thatthey have eternal life (1 John 5:13 ). On the other hand, this passage introduces a sin that leadsto death and a caution against praying for it. This passage has been debated for two millennia.We must understand the distinction not as a difference in the severity of the act, but in thespiritual state of the person sinning. Many scholars, theologians, church fathers, and pastors overthe centuries have debated on how one should rightly interpret this text.
From a Reformed standpoint, we must hold together (at a minimum) two truths:
1. True believers persevere and are kept by the power of God (i.e., perseverance of the2. saints).
The New Testament warns seriously against apostasy, unbelief, false doctrine, andunrepentant sin.
To grasp the weight of Johns words, we must first understand the context in which they arespoken. John wrote to churches in Asia Minor, likely from Ephesus, between A.D. 85 and 95.Within these churches, a false teachingwhat scholars refer to as proto-Gnosticismhademerged. These heretics denied the true humanity of Christ. Some, known as Docetists, claimedJesus only seemed to have a body. Others, followers of Cerinthus, taught that the divine Christleft the man Jesus before the crucifixion.
This heresy produced moral and spiritual decay. Believing themselves to possess a higher, secretknowledge (gnōsis), they concluded that physical behavior was irrelevant to their understanding.This led to antinomianism, the idea that believers were no longer bound by moral law. Johnexposes their false claims: They went out from us, but they were not of us (1 John 2:19 ).
Transition: With this background in mind, we see that Johns warnings are not about ordinaryfailings but about a serious, deliberate turning away from Christ. Understanding the falseteachings in these churches helps us grasp why he emphasizes both the reality of apostasy andthe certainty of assurance for those who genuinely belong to God. Before addressing thechallenges of sin and prayer, John first anchors us in the unshakable certainty every believer canhave in Christ.
The Foundation of Assurance: (v. 13)
The Privilege of Intercession: (vv. 1416a)
The Warning of Apostasy: (vv. 16b17)
1. The Foundation of Assurance: (v. 13)
The purpose of John's letter is assurance. John says plainly: These things I have written to youwho believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.He is not writing to make believers doubt, but to make them certain. The Gospel of John waswritten so that unbelievers might come to faith (John 20:31 ). This epistle, however, was writtenso that believers might rest in faith. Here, John is not addressing unbelievers, nor is he presentinga hypothetical scenario. He is speaking directly to those who already believethose who haveplaced their trust in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. The goal of his letter is not to sow doubt, butto cultivate certainty and confidence. Assurance, therefore, is both possible and necessary for theChristian life.
But what does this assurance look like in practice? John tells us that it rests not in ourperformance, our feelings, or our ability to overcome sin, but in the finished work of Christ. Thebelievers security is anchored in the Person and work of JesusHis obedience, His death on thecross, and His resurrection. As John later emphasizes in 1 John 5:11-12, eternal life is found inChrist, not in our own efforts: And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and thislife is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does nothave life. True assurance rests not in our performance but in the finished work of Christin Hisobedience, His death, and His resurrection. As John Calvin explains: The certainty of salvationis not founded on our own righteousness, but on the unfailing promise and fidelity of God inChrist.
Transition: With assurance in mind, John now draws a connection between confidence in Godand our prayer life, showing how assurance motivates intercessory love. Having established theunshakeable certainty of our salvation, John now turns to how that assurance shapes our lives. Aheart confident in Gods love will naturally reach out in prayer, interceding for others in theirstruggles.2. The Privilege of Intercession: (vv. 1416a)John begins in verse 14: And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we askanything according to His will, He hears us. Here, John describes the assurance believerspossess in prayer. Prayer is not tentative or uncertainit is grounded in a relationship with God.Because we belong to Him, we may approach His throne boldly, confident that He hears us. Thisconfidence, however, is conditioned by alignment with His will. It is not a blank check forselfish desires, but an invitation to participate in Gods redemptive work according to Hispurposes.
Verse 15 continues this thought: And if we know that He hears uswhatever we askweknow that we have the requests that we have asked of Him. John emphasizes the effectivenessand certainty of prayer. When we pray in accordance with Gods will, we may rest assured thatour petitions are not ignored or lost. Gods hearing is not passive; it is active, responsive, andpurposeful, bringing life, restoration, and spiritual fruit in the believers life and in the lives ofothers.
In 1 John 5:16 a, John instructs believers: If anyone sees his brother committing a sin notleading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life. Here, John is describing the believerscall to intercede for one another. He distinguishes between sins that are serious yet remediableand those that are final and irreparable. In this verse, he focuses on the first: the sins that do notend in spiritual death. Believers who stumble are still within the reach of Gods grace, and prayerbecomes the channel through which God restores and gives life.
John now connects our assurance with our prayer life: And this is the confidence that we havetoward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we ask, we knowthat we have the requests that we have asked of him. Notice the link between assurance andintercession: those who know they belong to God are quick to pray for others who stumble.Intercession is both a privilege and a responsibility for believers in the local church. We areinvited to stand in the gap for others, not to judge or condemn, but to bring them before God.This prayer reflects the heart of God, who Himself intercedes for us (Romans 8:34 ; Hebrewssuch prayer for other believers to be answered: 7:25 ), and demonstrates the Spirits active work within our own hearts. John tells us to expectGod will give him life. This is not presumption, but we can pray boldly for one another, knowing that as we pray for theperseverance of the saints, we pray according to Gods will
Transition: John immediately illustrates this connection by distinguishing two kinds of sin:those that do not lead to death and those that do. Lets consider the first category.3. The Warning of Apostasy: (v