1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. 8: Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. 9: He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. 10: He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. 11: But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.

Introduction

Last Sunday, we looked at 1 John 2, verses 3 through 6 where the apostle John affirms that we can know that we know God. How? We can know that we know Him, if we are keeping His commandments. We can know that we are in Him, if we are keeping His Word. Keep in mind what John is saying and what he is not saying. John is not saying that we come to know God by good works or by keeping the Law. No, instead, what he is saying is this is how we know that we know God.

How J Ligon Duncan explains it, bears repeating, “So, it’s very important for us to note that John is not saying that we know God by keeping His commandments. Rather, he is saying, ‘We know that we know God by keeping His commandments.’ Those are two, distinct questions, and we need to keep them distinct. That is, John is not teaching salvation by obedience, nor is he even teaching assurance by obedience; but John is teaching that salvation is evidenced by obedience, and, in turn, that obedience contributes to our assurance.”

As we saw last week, John’s point is that we can claim to know God and that we are in Him only if we are obeying Him. If a person claims to know God but his or her life is not changed by knowing Him, that is a sign that that person does not really know God, does not have a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. There is no knowledge of God that does not also lead to the keeping of His commandments. The reality of our faith and love for God is demonstrated by keeping the commandments of Christ. That’s what our Lord says in John 14:15 “If ye love me, keep my commandments.”  Then in John 14:23, our Lord says, “... If a man love me, he will keep my words.”

In our text today, the apostle John focuses on one single commandment. He has been talking about “the commandments” in general, but now in this section, he directs the reader’s attention to one specific commandment we are to keep.

1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. 8: Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. 

John now focuses on one of the commandments we are to keep. At the outset John wants his readers to know that the commandment he is referring to is not new but old. But then in verse 8, he describes this old commandment as also new. What is this? What is this commandment that John describes as old but also new? And how is this commandment old and new at the same time? That’s what I invite you to consider with me this morning—The Old but New Commandment. John, as you will see in this study, is speaking about the commandment to love, specifically the commandment to love one another. And clearly, love for others is the focus of what John is talking about in these verses. It’s that love for one another that gives us assurance of salvation. So, today consider with me the commandment to love in three headings, namely, it was Emphasized by Christ, Exemplified by Christ, and Exhibited by those who are in Christ.

I - Emphasized by Christ

1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. 8: Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.

This command to love one another is old but new at the same time.

1. Old in its Duration

The command to love one another is an old commandment in terms of duration. Look at what John says about this commandment:

1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.

According to John, the commandment he is writing them is not new, because it is something they had known and heard before. John says, they had it from the beginning, and they heard it from the beginning. Now the question is from beginning of what?

First of all, we see this command all the way back to the Old Testament. For instance, when one of the Pharisees asked our Lord Jesus in Matthew 22, what was the great commandment, He took them back to the Old Testament in Deuteronomy 6:5, and He said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.” Then He went on and said, “And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:39-40). We also see this in the book of Leviticus chapter 19, verse 18 where it says, “Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.” From the very beginning, the command to love—to love God and to love our neighbors has been taught, established, and commanded. So, in that sense they had and heard this command to love from the beginning.

Secondly, from the beginning of their Christian life. John’s readers had been taught the importance of loving one another. It was not something they had never heard before. They knew that to love one another was an important aspect of their fellowship with the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. As someone has pointed out, the truth that we are to love one another is so important in the Christian life that it is repeated 12 times in the New Testament and 5 times in First John alone!

Romans 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

1 Thessalonians 4:9 But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.

2. New in its Emphasis

The command to love one another is an old commandment in terms of duration but it is a new commandment in terms of emphasis. The commandment to love was new because our Lord Jesus Himself underscored its importance and its practical application. Listen to what our Lord Jesus Christ Himself says regarding this commandment to love. In John 13:34-35 our Lord says, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.”

The Lord puts a new emphasis on this commandment. He adds to the command that we find in Leviticus 19:18, the words, “as I have loved you.” Our Lord here, elevated love to a higher standard for the church and commanded His disciples to imitate His love. To love like the Lord Jesus Christ loved. How did the Lord Jesus Christ love? He loved sacrificially, selflessly, and even unto death. Now, the question arises as to how can fallen men like you and me, love like Jesus, the Son of God loved? We will answer that when we get to our third heading.

But first, let’s look at how this love was demonstrated by Christ which brings us to our second heading:

II - Exemplified by Christ

1 John 2:8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.

This new commandment to love our neighbors is true in Jesus Christ. He has demonstrated love in an amazing new way.

John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

1 John 3:16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

“Chuck Colton told the story of a group of American prisoners of war during the Second World War, who were made to do hard labor in a prison camp. Each had a shovel and would dig all day, then come in and give an account of his tool in the evening. One evening 20 prisoners were lined up by the guard and the shovels were counted. The guard counted nineteen shovels and turned in rage on the 20 prisoners demanding to know which one did not bring his shovel back. No one responded. The guard took out his gun and said that he would shoot five men if the guilty prisoner did not step forward. After a moment of tense silence, a 19-year-old soldier stepped forward with his head bowed down. The guard grabbed him, took him to the side and shot him in the head, and turned to warn the others that they better be more careful than he was. When the guard left, the men counted the shovels and there were 20. The guard had miscounted. And the boy had given his life for his friends.” - John Piper

The young soldier’s sacrifice is a great demonstration of love, but as great as this demonstration of love is, it still pales in comparison to the love of Christ for us.

Romans 5:6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7: For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 8: But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9: Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 10: For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

This is a kind of love that the world had never really seen before. Before the Lord Jesus Christ came to earth and offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins on the cross, the world had never seen such kind of love. A kind of love that is willing to die, not just for his friends but also for his enemies. He taught His disciples and us to love our enemies, to bless them that curse us, do good to them that hate us, and pray for them which despitefully use us, and persecute us. And our Lord showed it by example. He loved His enemies and prayed for them. The Lord Jesus is the greatest example of love in the history of the world. He loved us not in word only, but in action and in truth.

III - Exhibited by Christians

Loving one another is expected of those who are in Christ. Look at our text again, 1 John 2:8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him. But then John continues to say, “and in you.” How can this selfless and sacrificial love be true also in us? How is this possible? Read on. John says, “because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.” It is also true in us because we are now in Him and He is in us. It is also true in us because of our new relationship with Him who is light and love. It is also true in us because we have been translated from darkness into light. As you abide in Christ and fellowship with the Father, as Wiersbe puts it, “The darkness is passing away little by little, and the True Light is shining brighter and brighter in our hearts.”

Then John goes on to make an application in 1 John 2:9-11, “He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.”

Our response to the command to love reveals our essential character. The word “hateth” is in the progressive present tense, which means that hatred is one’s continual attitude in life. John is not referring to occasional anger in which one might be annoyed or upset with another person. No, he is referring to a fixed and settled “unwillingness to change” attitude of hatred.

1 John 2:11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.

In this verse, John says three things about the man who claims to be in the light, that is, who claims to be saved, who claims to be a Christian but continuously and habitually breaks that commandment to love.

First, he “is in darkness even until now.” John says the man who continually hates proves that he is still in darkness. In other words, he belongs to the darkness. Second, not only is the man who hates his brother in the darkness, he also “walketh in darkness.” To “be in darkness” and to “walk in darkness” go together. One walks in darkness because he is in the darkness. Findlay says it this way, “His conduct matches his character; he cannot act otherwise that he is or walk in any region other than that where his habitation lies.” Third, the man who habitually hates “knoweth not whither he goeth.” That is to say, that he is without direction or goal in life. He does not know where he is going. This is because the darkness has blinded his eyes. Vaughan writes, “Hatred robs us of all spiritual insight. It blinds us to the virtues of others, the faults in ourselves, and the peril which awaits us if we persist in this course of life.”

But in contrast, John says, “He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.” The word “loveth” is also in the progressive present tense, which means that love is one’s fixed and settled principle of life. The person who habitually keeps the command to love shows that he belongs to the light. Also, because he is in the light, there is nothing to cause himself to fall and there is nothing in himself that will cause others to fall and stumble.

Closing Thoughts

If the Lord Jesus Christ in His life and especially His death emphasized and exemplified love, then those of us who claim to know Him and follow Him are expected and obligated to live in love and to love like He loved. We must exhibit the love of Christ in our lives. This cannot be done apart from the new birth, for we are by nature selfish and self-centered. This is why our Lord Jesus Christ told Nicodemus, a good moral religious leader and teacher, “Ye must be born again!” Something radical must happen inside us in order to love like the Lord Jesus Christ loved. You and I must be born again, then and only then are we able to love our neighbors as Jesus loved and love our neighbor as ourselves.

1 John 5:1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.

You and I must be born again through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Have you been born again? Have you believed on the Lord Jesus Christ to be your own personal Saviour? If not, I pray you do so today.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as the original recipients of John first letter, heard and knew the commandment to love, we also have heard and known this commandment from the beginning. I pray that our love for one another and for those outside our congregation would grow. But if our love for one another is going to blossom and grow in our church, we must be deeply rooted in God’s love. If you and I are going to become loving people, we must grow in our realization of the depth of God’s love for us. This means we have to spend time in His Word and in prayer and ask the Spirit to continually shed abroad or pour His love into our hearts. This is a call for believers to constantly meditate on the love of God for us. In this same letter John writes in chapter 3, verse 1, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.”

And can it be that I should gain

An int'rest in the Saviour's blood?

Died He for me, who caused His pain?

For me, who Him to death pursued?

He left His Father's throne above,

So free, so infinite His grace;

Emptied Himself of all but love,

And bled for Adam's helpless race;

'Tis mercy all, immense and free;

For, O my God, it found out me.

Amazing love! how can it be

That Thou, my God, should die for me?

May you see the depth of Christ’s love for you as it is revealed in His Word, and may God enable us to love one another!

AMEN!