Victory by Present Knowledge of Christ

Excerpt

Continuous victory over the world is based on present knowledge and doing God’s will (2:12–17). John used the term “children” to refer to all the believers (cf. 2:1, 28). Then John referred to both the old and young believers. The term “mature” refers to those who are older or more spiritually mature. The term“young” refers to younger members of the congregation. He repeated himself in 2:14 to emphasize why he wrote. He wrote, not because the readers were ignorant and weak, but because they were already strong and victorious. It was the opponents who viewed the believers as ignorant and weak. The sins ofbelievers have been forgiven and continue to stand forgiven. More

Hughes, Robert B., and J. Carl Laney. Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001. Print. The Tyndale Reference Library.