Letters from the Beloved – This Letter is for You, Listen Up

1 John 2:12-14 [NKJV] 12 I write to you, little children, Because your sins are forgiven you for His name's sake. 13 I write to you, fathers, Because you have known Him [who is] from the beginning. I write to you, young men, Because you have overcome the wicked one. I write to you, little children, Because you have known the Father. 14 I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him [who is] from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.

This passage always seemed odd to me. Why go back and forth in 3 verses between “little children”, “young men” and “fathers”? Why didn’t John just give the full instruction to “little children”, and then to the “young men” and finally to the “fathers”? And why sometimes say “I write” and other times “I have written”?

Well, Strong’s concordance answers the latter question. I’m not sure why the translators went back and form between “write” and “have written”, but John used the same Greek word every time. It is a word that can reference the lettering style of the writing or the contents of the writing. So, there seems to be no mystery in John’s choice of words.

Little children = literally a little child or the kindly address of disciples by a teacher

Young men = youth under forty, or a young attendant or servant

Fathers = literally: nourisher, protector, upholder and is also use for male ancestor

To “little children” he reminds them that they are forgiven and have known the Father. This “have known” could mean “have knowledge of”, which seems like the appropriate use of the word, given the John addresses this group as his young disciples.

When we start out in the faith, getting to know the Father is one of the greatest first steps in our path to Christian growth. If we don’t seek to know Him, we cannot grow in faith or learn to walk in His ways. Even before that, understanding that we are forgiven draws us to the Father, to Jesus and to Baptism.

To “young men” he writes, “because you have overcome the wicked one”, and then “Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.” As we grow in faith and obedience, we seek to grow in grace and in knowledge [2 Peter 3:18] of Jesus. Thereby, we become stronger in our faith and overcome the hold of the wicked one on our lives. We sin less and no longer fall for his devices.

To the “fathers” John writes, “Because you have known Him who is from the beginning”. This, then, should be the result from moving beyond a spiritual child and spiritual youth to being a “father” or “elder” in the faith – that we have come to know the Father, who has always existed.

John seems to be saying that regardless of the stage of my Christian walk that I find myself to be in – or that I feel myself to be in – his letter, his message is for me.

“Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.”

In addition, the terms John uses for each stage seem to show affection and respect for those in that stage. In other words, there is no condemnation for being new to the faith or being in a growth stage or having been in the faith long enough to feel I am a spiritual elder. He writes to all to instruct and encourage continued growth.

The reason John’s style of repetition isn’t clear. It could be a writer’s style, emphasizing something that I cannot figure out because I don’t know Greek. I don’t find anything in commentaries to fully explain it, except to say that John is emphasizing what he is saying within this letter, not what he has written in the past (his epistle).

So, I envision it something like this: whether you are a babe in Christ, someone who is working on your growth, or an elder in the faith, I am writing to you, referring both to what he has already said in this letter and what he is about to say. It seems to be a call to “listen up” and a way to emphasize that this message is for me, no matter where I am in my walk with Christ.

John has so much to say in this letter – so much instruction and guidance that this is a good time to take note and to be reminded of its application to everyone in any phase of Christian growth.

Let’s keep that in mind as we continue to study the book of 1 John.

Sweet sisters, John the Beloved wants you to know that his message is for you.

I welcome your comments and questions. You can write me in the comments section or at Nancy@DyanmicChristianMinistries.org