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James and 1, 2, and 3 John

  1. Lesson One
    Overview of James
    18 Activities
    |
    1 Assessment
  2. Lesson Two
    James and Scripture
    19 Activities
  3. Lesson Three
    1 John
    21 Activities
  4. Lesson Four
    2 and 3 John
    21 Activities
  5. Lesson Five
    Proto-Gnosticism
    13 Activities
  6. Course Wrap-up
    Course Completion
    1 Activity
    |
    1 Assessment

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James and 1, 2, and 3 John 1 John In | Living in YHWH: Does the Father Abide in Us Too?
Lesson 3, Activity 12

In | Living in YHWH: Does the Father Abide in Us Too?

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The short answer according to the Bible is “yes.” 

While the idea of being indwelt by Jesus and the Spirit may be more familiar, the thought of the Father living in us—and of our living in the Father—is important for us to come to terms with. We might refer to 1 John 3:24:

The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us. 
1 John 3:24 NIV

While the Spirit is singled out here as being “given,” no similar distinctions are made as to which persons “live in us,” or as to which “we live in.” The assumption is “all of them.” For a more explicit statement of this kind, we might refer back to a similar passage in John’s Gospel where Jesus promises:

If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. 
John 14:23 NASB

There are many other passages in John’s writings that make this point, but it’s enough for us just to acknowledge it here. Before we move on, it’s also worth acknowledging the celebration of this intimacy with all three divine persons in Christian tradition. Eastern Orthodox Christians sing: 

The Holy Spirit giveth life to souls; 
He exalteth them in purity; 
He causeth the sole nature of the Trinity 
to shine in them mysteriously.

The Roman Catholic Church makes the same assumption:

This indwelling of God in the souls of the just is attributed by what theologians call appropriation to the Holy Ghost, but in reality it is common to the three Divine Persons.

If we’re tempted to think of God as in some way giving us access to just some part of Himself, or of the Father being more distant or less available to us, John offers a welcome correction. 

Liturgy quoted from: “Antiphon in the 4th tone from the Sunday Office” in Vladimir Lossky, The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church, 2005, p. 162.

Catholic quote from: “Divine Presence,” Catholic Encyclopedia.