The book of 1 John serves as a test of genuine faith, giving believers a way to examine their hearts and determine whether they truly know Jesus. In 1 John 2, the apostle John lays out three primary ways to evaluate our faith: through obedience, love, and separation from the world. Each of these serves as a mirror, reflecting whether or not we are truly walking with Christ.
Knowing Christ Through Obedience
One of the clearest indicators of whether we truly know Christ is found in 1 John 2:3-6, which says,
“Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”
Obedience is not a requirement for salvation, but it is the evidence of salvation. Jesus Himself said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” A person who claims to know God but has no desire to obey Him is deceiving himself. This aligns with Titus 1:16, which says,
“They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work.”
The ultimate standard for the believer is Jesus Christ Himself. As John wrote, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked” (1 John 2:6). This echoes the words of Jesus in Luke 6:46, “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” True faith is demonstrated through a transformed life that follows in the footsteps of Christ.
Do We Love Our Brothers and Sisters in Christ?
Another key test of genuine faith is love for other believers. In 1 John 2:9-11, the apostle writes,
“He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.”
Love is the distinguishing mark of a true disciple of Jesus. In John 13:35, Christ declared, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” If someone claims to know Christ but harbors bitterness, unforgiveness, or hatred toward other believers, then according to John, they are still in darkness. This teaching is reinforced in 1 John 4:7-8, which says,
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”
Hatred and unforgiveness are spiritual blindness. A person who walks in darkness does not know where they are going, because their eyes are blinded by sin. Matthew 6:14-15 warns,
“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Love is not an option for a believer—it is the very evidence that we belong to Christ.
Do We Love the World or Love God?
John also warns that love for the world is incompatible with love for God. In 1 John 2:15-17, he writes,
“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 lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
Loving the world does not mean we cannot enjoy God’s creation or the blessings He provides. It means we do not prioritize or value the things of this world over our relationship with God. Jesus made this clear in Matthew 6:24, saying,
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
John highlights three major categories of worldly temptation: “the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” (1 John 2:16). These are the same temptations that Satan used in the Garden of Eden and in his attempt to deceive Jesus. In Genesis 3:6, Eve saw that the forbidden fruit was “good for food (lust of the flesh), pleasant to the eyes (lust of the eyes), and desirable to make one wise (pride of life).” Likewise, in Matthew 4:1-11, Satan tempted Jesus with the same three appeals—physical satisfaction, worldly power, and prideful recognition.
John reminds us that the world is temporary. “And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:17). This echoes Jesus’ words in Matthew 16:26, “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?”
A heart that is consumed by the world is a heart that does not belong to Christ. James 4:4 declares, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” If we find ourselves more in love with the things of this world than with the things of God, we must ask ourselves if we truly belong to Him.
My Final Thoughts
1 John 2 provides a clear self-examination for every believer. Do we obey His commandments? Do we love our fellow Christians? Do we reject the love of the world in favor of the love of the Father? These are not optional parts of Christianity—they are the marks of a life that truly belongs to Jesus.
Jesus did not come so that we could simply say we believe in Him while living a life of rebellion. He came to transform us, to make us new creations, and to bring us into fellowship with the Father. As Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:17,
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
If we find that our lives do not align with the tests in 1 John 2, then we must examine our hearts and ask ourselves if we truly know Him. As 2 Corinthians 13:5 commands,
“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.”
There is no greater question than this: Do we truly know Christ? The answer is not found in what we say but in how we live.
