Free Bible Commentary
“First John 3:19-22”
Categories: First John“We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him in whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.”
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“We will know by this that we are of the truth” (verse 19): If we love “in deed and truth,” and not only “with word or with tongue” (verse 18). If we express our faith in Jesus by a sacrificial love for our needy brothers and sisters in Christ that prompts us to share “this world’s goods” with them (verse 17), we “will assure our heart before Him.” This is most certainly not the ONLY criterion that constitutes a saving faith, but it is an absolutely indispensable aspect of a life of holiness and truth in service to the Lord our God. We must “keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight” (verse 22), and loving our brothers in sisters in Christ with a fervent, active, benevolent love is an integral part of His will for us.
But sometimes we do fall short of keeping His commands. We stumble and trip up and fall into sin in many ways (James 3:2), even as we earnestly endeavor to walk in the light of His love and truth. Sometimes “our heart condemns us” (verse 20) because of our “wretchedness” (Romans 7:24), and I am very grateful that they do. When I do something foolish and sinful, I usually do not require reprisals from other brethren in Christ because I tend to be my own worst critic and am inclined to beat my own self up pretty well. As much as I am thankful that my heart easily condemns me and nudges me in the direction of godly sorrow and repentance, I am even more relieved that “God is greater than” my heart.
The simple truth of the matter is that my heart cannot truly condemn me or justify me before the Lord, only the word of God can do that. Some people’s hearts convince them that they are saved, and other people’s hearts convince them that they are lost, but the human heart can never be a good enough gauge to determine whether a person is right in the sight of God. You could ask the Apostle Paul (then known as Saul) when he was persecuting the church and trying to obliterate it from the face of the earth, and all the while doing so “in all good conscience” before God (Acts 23:1). The older Paul who was a mature Christian and Apostle of Jesus Christ also tells us: “But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court; in fact, I do not even examine myself. For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the one who examines me is the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 4:3-4)
It is the Lord who examines us, and either condemns us for our sins or acquits us by His mercy and grace through our obedient faith. The Apostle John wrote this letter (by inspiration of the Holy Spirit) to encourage His discouraged and confused brethren that they already knew the truth, and that if they continued in it they could be assured they are “of the truth,” and could know for certain that they were saved (1 John 5:13), regardless of all the perverted doctrine and hateful venom the false teachers were spewing.
So, if we have obeyed the Gospel by repenting of our sins and putting the Lord on in baptism for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38); and if we endeavor to walk in the light by keeping the Lord’s commandments (1 John 1:5-10); and worship the Lord exclusively in spirit and truth (John 4:24), we can know that we are saved (1 John 5:13). Even if we mess up from time to time. Even if our hearts beat us up for the past sins we are ashamed of that sometimes come back to haunt us and we have a hard time forgiving ourselves for. Even though our flawed, emotional hearts bring doubt and discouragement into the picture, “God is greater than our heart,” and we can have complete “confidence before” Him when He promises us salvation through Christ Jesus our Lord by His mercy and His grace. In fact, that is what mercy and grace are all about: forgiveness of wrongdoing that we are totally undeserving of.
Keep doing “the things that are pleasing in His sight” (verse 22), and do not make excuses for your sins. If you stumble into sin, confess it and turn from it and beg the Lord for forgiveness. “He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). And if you are not currently keeping His commandments and doing those things that please Him, make this day the day that you embark upon a life of faithfulness to the Lord that instills the confidence within you to know that “whatever” you “ask” you will “receive of Him.” As long as you ask with the mindset that “His will be done.” And if you are thinking right and living right, you will only ask for things that are in alignment with His will in the first place.
Please read 1 John 3:23-24 for tomorrow.
Have a wonderful day!
-Louie Taylor
