1 John 3:23

Memory Verse

And this is His commandment, in order that we should believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He gave command to us (1 John 3:23).

God the Father has given us a command to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ. Name describes the character of the person; therefore, we are to believe in who He is and what He has done.

This passage uses the titles “Jesus” and “Christ” for a reason. Jesus is God in the flesh (John 1:1, 14). The name Jesus refers to His humanity, for He is fully human and fully God (Philippians 2:5–8). Since John is writing after the resurrection, the title Christ refers to the resurrected, glorified One (Acts 2:36). He is the One who came in the flesh, died on behalf of our sins, and was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3–4).

Everyone who denies that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not out from God (1 John 4:3). Many will come proclaiming another Jesus, bringing a different gospel, and receiving a different spirit (2 Corinthians 11:4). These ones are to be accursed–separated for the destruction they bring upon themselves (Galatians 1:7–8).

If we believe Jesus died and rose again, even if we pass away before the Lord returns for the Church, He will bring us back with Him to partake in the resurrection of the Church (1 Thessalonians 4:14).