Seventeen Indicators of a Disciple of Jesus from 1st John.

Truthfully, lists like the one that follows can have a snare built in. They can lead us to believe that this list is like a New Covenant batch of rules that we must practice in order to be a great Christian or even to be a Christian at all. This is not that kind of list. These are aspects of the reality of “receiving” Jesus, of putting our faith in Him, and being born again. This is a description of the New Creation that we are when we come to the faith of Jesus and believe It for ourselves. These things show what happens to a person when Jesus gets ahold of them!

These are items of truth to be reveled in—celebrated in, or to sing to God with, and sing about to each other! We should go in depth, let them sink in, and wallow for a while in these realities. We should pray to God that these things be fleshed out more and more each day. These things, (to borrow from 1st John) make our joy complete and help other’s joy be full too!

Here, the Lord is talking to you dear saint. This is personal, this is intimate, so take it seriously, and then jump for joy in His presence! The “he” and the “you” in this list is now, yes right now, you… if you are indeed “in the faith.”  (2 Cor. 13:5)

One thing that is seemingly missing from many disciples experience is quiet confidence in and full assurance of their salvation. The goal of this letter (and it is implicitly stated in this letter) is that this knowledge, this confidence be deeply planted in the soul of the believer. Satan Is the accuser of the brethren, and his biggest accusation is that somehow, despite the evidence here presented in Scriptures is not true and we are in the category of the cast off, the sinner, the lost, or the just plain old “not good enough for heaven yet” container or take your pick other deleterious box he wants to keep us in. (Seriously, I am not a fan of this “categorizer” of the brethren!)

We can’t live that way without having serious mental problems. That is having a split personality honestly. We must dwell in this truth, trust His Word, and let Him shape us and then simply (out of His riches) make it our aim to please and obey Him! These are the truths that will help us grow up in our like precious faith! They are true about us because The Truth (Jesus) has made a way for us to be born of God! This is the truth that will feed our souls, set us free, and bind us in unity to other saints! Boy do we need those things to happen!

So here is what I have found in John’s first letter. With the Spirit’s help who lives in you, what will you find? Please share in the comments!

1. The “revealed” Word of Life to you now brings true fellowship with other believers, with God, and completes the disciple’s joy.  1 Jn 1:1-4

2. He desires to and practices walking in the Light. 1 Jn 1:5-6 (though he may stumble he quicky admits it and receives cleansing and quickly begins proclaiming the riches of Christ because that is who he is. See #16) 1 Jn 1:7-10

3. Walking in the Light means loving your brother. 1 Jn 2:10

4. He does not love the world anymore. 1 Jn 2:15-17

5. He has the anointing of the Holy One and knows Jesus and abides in God. 1 Jn 2:20-27 (Thus, he is safeguarded against deceivers)

6. He will remain confident even until the Lord’s return because he is truly born of Him who is righteous. 1 Jn 2:28-3:3

7. He, alongside all genuine believers, and Jesus Himself destroys the works of the devil. 1 Jn 3:4-10

8.  Instead of taking life, he lays down his life for his brothers and sisters. 1 Jn 3:11-18

9.  His heart and conscience are ruled by God and at peace. 1 Jn 3:19-21

10.  In response to faith and love God grants what he asks. 1 Jn 3:21-23  (This is the evidence that the Spirit is in him)

11.  He confesses Jesus and overcomes what and who is false. 1 Jn 4:1-6

12.  Since God is love so is he at his core! 1 Jn. 4:7-11 (in him love is perfected vs 12)

13.  As Jesus is so his follower is in the world. 1 Jn. 4:17-20 (despite opposition he is w/out fear because His Kind, the love filled kind casts it out)

14.  He believes Jesus is the Messiah, has been born of God, loves the Father, and loves whoever has been born of God. 1 Jn. 4:21-5:1

15.  Through faith he overcomes the world. 1 Jn 5:1-5

16.  Through faith, the testimony of God and His Son lives in him, and it is that testimony that testifies through him. 1 Jn. 5:6-12

17.  He knows that he has eternal life. 1 Jn. 5:13 (also that his prayers are heard, that God protects him from practice of sin, and that he (his eternal life) is from God.

If you want to bolster your faith in the Lord, please read our book “One Truth – Liberating, Nourishing, Unifying!”  You can download it as a Kindle book on Amazon, order the paperback version there, or read it for free on the One Body Life app in the App store on Apple or on Google Play.