1 John's message - GOD COME IN FLESH

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Although not the deepest, 1 John seems to be the hardest to comprehensibly follow, due to John's extremely spiritual language. But go to the rest of the bible and it all comes together.

I was blessed to notice this thought in 1 John: (Note: This is not about prophecy, although I mention ANTICHRIST from 1 John. I don't think we should always think of prophecy when we read the term ANTICHRIST. I believe this thought below proves that antichrist is not always a prophecy issue.)

1 John 1:1-3 KJV That which was from the beginning, 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; (2) (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us; ) (3) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

John emphasizes the MANIFESTATION of God in the physical. He said he saw, heard and physically handled the Word of Life. And this is none other than God, Himself, since John borrowed a phrase from Gen 1:1 saying "That which was from the beginning". God was in the beginning.

And John's desire is to see the "little children" stand solidly on the fact that God manifested in flesh, due to antichrists saying Jesus is not come in the flesh.

Such hard-to-be-understood phrases in 1 John begin to be more easily understood once we know this is the point John was making.

Chapter 2 speaks about loving each other in order to say we love God, because this visible love indicates God indeed is influencing us, and that can only occur if we truly are in touch with God, or KNOW Him.

1 John 2:3 KJV And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

Then John speaks of the entire spirit and make-up of the world:

1 John 2:15-17 KJV Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (16) For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. (17) And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

The entirety of the world is the threefold spirit of lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and the pride of life. And the world will pass away due to this essential comprisal of the world.

Adam and Eve were confronted with the forbidden fruit. That fruit had one ingredient that lacked in all the other fruit in the world, but held two elements that all the other fruit possessed as well.

ALL FRUIT:

Genesis 2:9 KJV And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

FORBIDDEN FRUIT:

Genesis 3:6 KJV And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

The first two elements in the forbidden fruit were in all the other fruit. But the third element was not -- "desire to make one wise" - and was the killer. It is the "pride of life" that John spoke about.

This prideful element affected the first two elements and twisted them. "Good for food" became "lust of the flesh". "Pleasant to the sight" became "lust of the eyes".

The forbidden fruit had the lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and pride of life. But since Adam ate this fruit, the ENTIRE "WORLD" became filled with those three things. So John said the all that is in the world is the lust of eyes, lust of flesh and pride of life.

So the spirit of the world possessing these three elements was said to pass away, just as Adam was told he would die if he ingested the forbidden fruit.

COMPARE:

Genesis 2:17 KJV But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. (17) And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Adam would live forever had he eaten instead of the fruit of life, just as John said, "he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever".

Genesis 3:22 KJV And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

Continued...