1 John 5:1

Throughout this epistle, John repeatedly emphasized the three tests: faith, obedience and love. All three were stressed in 1 John 2, and most of 1 John 3 was devoted to obedience and love. 1 John 4 emphasized faith and love. The three go together, however, as is evident throughout this letter. In the opening paragraph of this chapter (1 John 5:1-5), "faith" (or belief) occurs in 1 John 5:1,4,5; "love" occurs in 1 John 5:1,2,3; and "obey" (keep his commandments) occurs in 1 John 5:2,3. Faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, however, is established upon testimony, the testimony of three witnesses, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood; and the second paragraph (1 John 5:6-12) lays strong emphasis upon these. Another paragraph is related to boldness in prayer (except in cases where "sin unto death" is present) (1 John 5:13-17); and the letter is concluded by a brief summary and exhortation (1 John 5:18-21).

Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God: and whosoever loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. (1 John 5:1)

Whosoever believeth ... also implies obedience or fidelity, there being no intimation whatever in a statement like this that mere faith, or faith only, is equivalent to the new birth. "Believeth" in this place, as frequently in the New Testament, is a synecdoche for a number of closely related actions involved in conversion.

That Jesus is the Christ ... Christianity is grounded in the absolute proposition that Jesus of Nazareth was (is) the Dayspring from on High, God incarnate in human flesh, the promised Messiah of the Hebrews, the "seed of the woman" (Genesis 3:15) who would crush the head of the serpent, whose "goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2). That incarnate deity identified in the New Testament as "Jesus Christ" is man's unique Saviour, and only those who manifest an obedient faith in him can receive the inestimable privilege of the new birth.

Is begotten of God ... has the meaning of "is born of God," that is, has received the new birth, being raised "to walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:3-5).

Whosoever loveth him that begat loveth also him that is begotten ... In other words, whosoever loves God, being himself a child of God, loves not God alone but all of God's other children also. John's argument here is a type of compound syllogism called "sorites," but with some of the steps omitted. The entire argument would be something like this:

Everyone with obedient faith in Christ is a child of God.

Every child of God loves the Father.

Therefore, everyone with obedient faith loves God.

Everyone that loves God loves God's children.

Therefore, everyone with obedient faith loves the children of God.