To be honest, I found this passage very difficult to understand due to unnatural sentence structure, and the way John loves to wander from thought to thought. Hopefully, by breaking it down, the doctrines John is trying to proclaim to us will become clear.
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked up and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life...
1 John 1:1
- The word of life was from the beginning (of the universe?)
- John/apostles/eyewitnesses heard the word of life
- They saw the word of life with their eyes
- They looked up and touched with their hands
- They are not making this up
- The word of life can be experienced in every aspect
John starts this letter much in the same way he starts the gospel of John. In the gospel of John , the Word is revealed to be Jesus Christ. Here, interestingly enough, he describes the Word as "the word of life" as opposed to just "the Word." While in the gospel, John talks about what was witnessed of Jesus, here, he refers to the experiences. What John is writing are not something he thought up or reasoned, but his message is based on reality that he himself witnessed.
...the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us...
1 John 1:2
- The word of life was made (by whom?)
- The word of life was made manifest
- Manifest -- adj. clear or obvious to the eye or mind. (revealed?)
- In this context, probably talking about Jesus coming to earth as a human
- John/apostles/eyewitnesses saw this manifestation
- They testify that this is the eternal life
- They testify to us
- They proclaim that this is the eternal life
- They proclaim to us
- The eternal life was with the Father
- The eternal life was what was made manifest to us i.e. the word of life is the eternal life
John focuses so much on Jesus becoming manifest here. What a wonder, it is! He talks about it with the greatest enthusiasm--"GUYS!! I SAW Jesus!!! He was with us. The God of the universe came and visited us!" There is something here that John knows, that he wants and desires us to realize and understand. This is
eternal life we are talking about. This is the most important thing that has ever happened and that ever will happen. This is what we have been looking for; everything that we ever wanted, whether we realize it or not, is right here. God, with us. God has made a way for us to live and fellowship with Him again. God is everything we have ever wanted, and He is here. We can have an experience eternal life, fully and completely, in every way.
...that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that (y)our joy may be complete.
1 John 1:3-4
- John/apostles/eyewitnesses are proclaiming also what they have seen and heard
- In addition to proclaiming the eternal life that was made manifest
- They proclaim what they have experienced in order that we may have fellowship (with them? or with God?)
- This fellowship they have and that they want us to have is deeper than first appears; indeed it is actually with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ
- So, John and the others are testifying and proclaim what they have experienced and witnessed so that we may have fellowship with God along with them (note: Holy Spirit is not mentioned)
- They are telling us these things so that our/their joy may be complete
- John and the others want us to have fellowship with God and have complete joy
- Is this saying that fellowship with God will make our joy complete?
Obviously, I could have broken this passage down much further and dived much deeper. There is quite a lot here. But mainly, the point here is that what John is telling us is
very important. He is proclaiming to us what he has experienced and witnessed so that we may have eternal life in fellowship with God. When we see/understand these things, our joy will be complete. If our joy is complete, there is nothing to add to it. Nothing can stop us, because of what we know and have, which is eternal fellowship with God our Creator.
