John addresses believers who are in all different stages of life and stages of faith. He addresses new believers as "dear children", and believers who have a fair amount of experience as "young men", and believers who have been in the faith a long time as "fathers". We need to keep in mind that in John's day it was mainly the men who led worship services, so he's addressing the males of the congregation. But the principles we will study today also apply to female believers. I am a woman and I believe God can use me for His kingdom work just as much as He can use a man. He has given different gifts and different jobs to each of us, but we can take John's words and apply them to women as well as to men. John could just as easily address new female believers as "little children", and female believers who have been in the faith a while as "young women", and females who have been in the faith a long time as "mothers". What we need to take away from our study today is that no matter how short or how long we've been in the faith, we all have something to learn. And no matter how long or how short we've been in the faith, we all have something to contribute.
"I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of His name." (1 John 2:12) When we first accept Christ as Savior, about the only thing we know for sure at that point is that He has forgiven our sins. I was raised in the church and could quote some Scripture from memory, but it wasn't until I was twenty-two years old that I gave my heart to Christ, and on that day I literally knew nothing else but that Christ had forgiven me for my sins. I couldn't even call to mind the little Scripture that I knew by heart; all I could do was bask in the joy of my salvation. That was all I needed to do right at first. The relief of turning my life over to Christ was overwhelming. I'd been experiencing an intense feeling of dread every night during that summer of 1992 and suddenly all my terrible fear was gone and my sleep at night was sweet. During those first few days it simply wasn't possible for me to take in much information because all I could think about was the sense of "cleanness" I felt. This is why, when John addresses new believers, he speaks only of the forgiveness they now have in Christ. They aren't able yet to do much more for the kingdom of Christ than rejoice in their newfound salvation.
John speaks next to the men who have been in the faith long enough to be able to lead others to Christ and to help fellow believers live godly lives. "I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning." (1 John 2:13a) These believers have been in the faith so long that they've developed a deep relationship with the Lord. They have studied the word of God for many years and they have committed to memory a great deal of Scripture. They understand how everything in the Old Testament pointed to the advent of Christ. They understand how Christ's life, death, burial, and resurrection fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies about Him. They are in a position to explain the Scriptures in a way that leads unbelievers to Christ, and they are in a position to help believers grow in their relationship to the Lord. People can come to these elders and receive advice that's based on godly principles. They can come to the elders for encouragement that's based on experience.
Next John addresses the young men. "I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one." (1 John 2:13b) These are believers who have enough experience under their belts to be able to lead others to Christ, and they are young enough (both physically and spiritually) to go out into various parts of the world and share the gospel with an enormous amount of energy and enthusiasm. This is often the group that Satan hits the hardest. They are so "on fire" for the Lord and are so busy being about the Lord's business that Satan wants nothing more than to cause them to veer off course. John's words are meant to encourage this group. He doesn't say, "You have to overcome the evil one," but instead he says, "You have overcome the evil one." Why does he speak of this overcoming as if it's as good as done and as if it isn't a daily struggle? Because in Christ it is as good as done! They belong to Christ---to the One who has overcome the world---and through Him they already have the victory. Even though they are deep in the trenches of war every day, their victory is assured. They are on the winning side.
John starts over and addresses all these believers in various stages of faith. He begins again with those new in the faith. "I write to you, dear children, because you know the Father." (1 John 2:14a) We see he's changed it up a bit. These who are young in the faith know little else yet except that their sins have been forgiven. But they are already beginning to know the Father because they know Christ. Christ said, "Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father." (John 14:9) So although they don't know much yet, they know enough about Christ that they've trusted Him as their Savior. Christ, through the way He interacted with His fellow human beings, has shown them the loving heart of the Father. Knowing about this love sets a good, solid foundation upon which to build a strong life of faith.
John speaks next to the fathers and he says to them exactly the same thing he said before. I think he says the same thing because nothing new needs to be said to them. They are doing what they are supposed to be doing, so he just encourages them to keep up the good work. "I write to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning." (1 John 2:14b) The Christian church is still in its early stages in John's day, which means that believers who have been in the faith long enough to be called "fathers" are the older men. Many of them are no longer physically able to go on missionary journeys. They are considered elders, and the elders of the church can best use their experience to help their local churches grow.
When addressing the young men, John repeats the statement that they have overcome the evil one, but this time he reminds them that they are strong. He knows Satan buffets them every day with lies. Satan tells them that they don't have what it takes to take the gospel to the world. The best way to fight lies is with the truth, so John reminds them to stay in the word of God. God is going to give them everything they need to successfully complete their mission, for the Lord thoroughly equips His soldiers. They have the "whole armor of God", as the Apostle Paul would say. (Ephesians 6:11-18) "I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one." (1 John 2:14c) We can't fight the lies of the devil if we don't know the truth. It's imperative that we study the word of God and memorize Scripture to use in battle with the enemy. This is how Christ successfully fought Satan in the wilderness. This is how we can successfully fight Satan while we live in this fallen world. If we don't know the truth of God's word, we are going to fall for lies. But if we commit the word of God to heart, we are going to be able to refute those lies and keep on being faithful soldiers of the Lord.
We are overcomers. Don't let Satan, or the doubts that so often beset the mortal human mind, tell you otherwise. Christ will never ask you to do anything that He's not going to equip you to do.
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