We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

1 John 4:13-18

John starts this passage with the assurance that our faith and assurance come from the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. In verse 14 he states that “the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.” It’s worth noting that this is the third time that John said that in only two paragraphs, in verse 9, 10 and here, verse 14. Perhaps John is into the idea of teaching by repetition. Maybe he employs the literary tool of redundancy to underscore what is really important. It’s only fair to note that in verse 9 he says that God sent his Son so that we might live through him. In verse 10 he adds he gave us Jesus as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. In verse 14 he goes a little bit more general, he sent His Son to be Savior of the world. I’m not wanting to be too academic here, the point is that the emphasis broadens: first, God speaks to those of us who respond through Jesus His Son, second, he says that through Jesus our sins are atoned for, then he points toward to our mandate to take this message to the whole world.

How can the world know the saving message of Jesus unless believers share it? And that requires the acknowledgement that Jesus is the Son of God and then the proclamation of that message with our mouths and lives.

For John, this was not to be a threatening or intimidating message: we don’t have to live in fear of the verdict on the day of judgment. If the Spirit has really moved in us, we are like him, we carry his credentials. If we truly receive God’s love, it’s pretty hard to be afraid – just as a child who comes home to a loving parent, even if he or she has screwed up, knows that the parent loves him or her much more than that parent frets about the mistake. John is proclaiming that God is not in the punishment business with His kids. We are all in the process of getting that because we’re all raised in a context of fear. That’s part of the work of the Spirit – to teach us to open up to love and, in so doing, become ambassadors of love. Pretty good job if you can get it. You get it?