It’s a question many Christians wrestle with quietly: Do I really know Jesus? First John chapter two offers a surprisingly honest and reassuring answer, and it’s not what you might expect at first glance.
When Truth Gets Cloudy, What Should Christians Do?
John wrote his letter to a group of interconnected churches that were confused. People had come in with new ideas about Jesus, remaking Him into something more convenient, and then left to start their own thing. Those who stayed behind were left wondering: Am I following the real Jesus?
That situation is not so different from today. For 2,000 years, people have been reshaping Jesus into someone who conveniently agrees with everything they already believe. The core challenge remains the same: when truth gets cloudy, stay close to the real Jesus.
Does Obedience Earn Your Relationship with Jesus?
First John 2:3 says: “And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.” That can feel unsettling at first. If keeping commandments is the test, most of us would fail immediately.
But John is not saying you have to live a perfect life. He already wrote in chapter one that anyone who claims to be without sin is a liar. And the entire Bible makes clear that our relationship with God is not earned through our actions.
If obedience could earn a relationship with God, there would have been no reason for Jesus to come, to live, and to die on the cross. As Romans 5:8 reminds us: “But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus is not a taskmaster. He is a loving Savior who made a way when we could not make one ourselves.
So What Is John Actually Saying?
John is pointing to direction, not perfection. He is asking: What path are you walking? Are you consistently moving toward obedience or away from it? Verse six puts it plainly: “Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.”
The principle is simple: your actions show who you know. Relationships are invisible in themselves. What you can see is how someone acts, what they say, and what they do for others. Those things reveal the nature of the relationship.
Verse five adds something important: “Whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected.” This is not about God’s love for us, which is unchanging. It is about our love for God being made complete, rounded out, and revealed through how we live.
What Commandments Is John Talking About?
John answers this directly in First John 3:23: “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as He has commanded us.”
Two things. Believe in Jesus. Love one another. That’s the foundation.
Can You Walk with Jesus While Walking in Hate?
John is direct: you cannot. Verses nine through eleven make clear that whoever hates a brother or sister is walking in darkness, not light.
This connects back to what Jesus Himself called a new commandment. In John 13:34-35, Jesus said: “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. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
The world is watching. And according to Jesus, love among His followers is one of the clearest signs that He is real and that He changes people.
What Does This Look Like Practically?
This is not about warm feelings or agreeing on everything. It is about the kind of love Jesus modeled, a love that lays itself down. First John 3:16 defines it this way: “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.”
A helpful question to sit with: How do you feel about fellow followers of Jesus who disagree with you on secondary issues? Not the essentials of who Jesus is, but the things that divide people into camps and factions. You may not be able to change your feelings in a moment, but you can shape them over time by what you bring before your mind.
Indifference is not neutral. Contempt is not neutral. John leaves only two options: love or hate. And Jesus says love is what sets His people apart.
Why Does John Warn Against Loving the World?
After encouraging his readers, John gives two warnings. The first is against loving the world. Verses 15 through 17 say: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in Him. For all that is in the world, the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life, is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”
He is not talking about the planet or the people in it. He is talking about the whole system of desire that runs against God. The craving for more, the envy of what others have, the pride that says I deserve better. These are not new temptations. But they come at us in new ways.
The voices shaping our view of the world are not always obvious. Social media, news feeds, and the constant stream of messages on our phones are quietly forming what we believe is possible and what we think we deserve. The message that says “look out for number one” does not usually arrive as a bold announcement. It drips in slowly, day after day, until it starts to feel like common sense.
Spiritual maturity is not about moving on to something newer or deeper. Maturity means staying with what is true.
What Does John Mean by Antichrists?
The second warning is about antichrists. John writes in verse 18 that his readers have heard the Antichrist is coming, but He points out that many antichrists have already appeared. He is referring to those who left the church and denied that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
Verses 22 through 23 are clear: “Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, He who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.”
For John, every question about spiritual confusion eventually comes back to one thing: What are you doing with Jesus? Who do you say He is?
You Already Have What You Need
Before and after these warnings, John encourages his readers. Verse 20 says: “But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge.” If you are in Christ, the Holy Spirit lives in you. You are not left to figure this out alone. You have access to the One who is truth.
This is also why being in community with other followers of Jesus matters so much. Face to face relationships with people who are also following Jesus give you a place to process what is happening in your life, to be reminded of what is true, and to be prayed for when things fall apart.
Life Application
This week, take time to have an honest conversation with Jesus. Ask Him directly: Where are You calling me back? Is it to truth, to love, or to obedience?
– Are the voices you are listening to daily shaping your view of Jesus in ways you have not noticed?
– Is there a brother or sister in Christ toward whom you are cultivating contempt or indifference rather than love?
– Are you walking in a consistent direction toward obedience, even when you stumble along the way?
– Are you in face to face community with other followers of Jesus who can speak truth into your life?
The challenge is this: identify one relationship with a fellow believer where love has grown cold or distant, and take one concrete step toward them this week. A conversation, a prayer, a message. Not because it is easy, but because Jesus laid down His life for both of you, and that is the kind of love that tells the world something real is happening.
When truth gets cloudy, you do not need a new version of Jesus. You need to stay close to the real one.
