1 John 1:1-4 : We Were There
5-Day Bible Reading Plan and Devotional Guide
Based on the Series: Confidence
Day 1: The Word That Was There From the Beginning
Reading: 1 John 1:1-4
Devotional: John opens his letter not with argument but with witness. He was there. He heard, saw, and touched the one who is life itself. This is not philosophy or speculation — it is testimony grounded in history. The same Jesus who walked with the disciples walks with you through his Word and his Spirit. You do not need hidden knowledge or secret wisdom to find him. He has made himself known. Today, rest in the reality that your faith is not built on guesswork but on the unshakeable testimony of those who knew him face to face.
Reflection: What would it mean for your daily life to treat the Bible as reliable, eyewitness testimony rather than merely inspirational literature?
Practical Application: Read 1 John chapter 1 in its entirety in two different Bible translations and note one phrase that strikes you differently in each version.
Day 2: Life Is Found in the Son
Reading: 1 John 5:11-13
Devotional: John strips away every layer of complexity and delivers a truth so clear it almost startles us. God has given eternal life, and that life is in his Son. Not in a system. Not in a set of spiritual exercises. Not in hidden wisdom discovered through inner searching. In the Son. If you have him, you have life. If you do not have him, you do not have life. This is not harsh — it is merciful. God did not make salvation a puzzle to be solved. He made it a person to be received. Today, receive him again with fresh gratitude.
Reflection: Are there areas of your spiritual life where you have been searching for something beyond what Christ has already provided?
Practical Application: Write out 1 John 5:13 on an index card and place it somewhere you will see it throughout the day as a reminder of the confidence you are invited to carry.
Day 3: Confidence to Approach the Throne
Reading: Hebrews 4:14-16
Devotional: The writer of Hebrews tells us that because of Jesus, we can approach God's throne of grace with confidence. Not timidity. Not shame. Not the sense that we must first make ourselves presentable. Confidence. This is the inheritance of every believer — direct, unobstructed access to the Father through the Son. The false teachings John warned against made God distant and unknowable, reachable only through layers of secret wisdom. But Jesus tore that veil. He made the way plain. Whatever weight you are carrying today, you are invited to bring it directly to the throne and receive mercy and grace in your time of need.
Reflection: What has been keeping you from approaching God openly and honestly in prayer? Is it shame, distraction, or a quiet belief that he is harder to reach than he says he is?
Practical Application: Set aside ten uninterrupted minutes today to pray with the specific intention of approaching God with confidence, bringing before him one burden you have been carrying quietly on your own.
Day 4: In Christ Are Hidden All the Treasures
Reading: Colossians 2:2-10
Devotional: Paul writes with urgency to a church being pulled toward fine-sounding arguments that placed wisdom and knowledge outside of Christ. His answer is direct: all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ. Not scattered across the spiritual landscape waiting to be discovered through personal searching. In him. This means that growing in wisdom is not a matter of accumulating the right information from the right sources — it is a matter of growing in your knowledge of Jesus himself. Every truth worth knowing finds its center in him. Do not be taken captive by hollow philosophy when fullness is available in Christ.
Reflection: What voices or sources of teaching have you been giving authority in your life? How do they measure up when held against the person and words of Jesus?
Practical Application: Identify one teaching, habit of thought, or repeated source of information in your life that you need to evaluate more carefully against Scripture. Bring it before God in prayer and ask for discernment.
Day 5: See What Great Love the Father Has Lavished on Us
Reading: 1 John 3:1-3
Devotional: John pauses in the middle of his letter and calls us to simply look. See what great love the Father has lavished on us. The word lavished carries the sense of abundance, of generosity that goes beyond what is merely sufficient. You are not tolerated by God. You are not admitted into his family on a technicality. You are loved lavishly, and you are called his child. That is not a title you earned. It is a name he gave. As you close this five-day journey, let this truth settle into the deepest part of who you are. You are known. You are loved. You are his. Walk in that confidence today and every day.
Reflection: Do you live as though you believe you are a deeply loved child of God, or do you carry a quiet sense that his love for you is conditional on your performance?
Practical Application: Journal a response to this question: What would change about how I treat myself, others, and God if I fully believed I was lavishly loved by the Father? Carry one specific answer from that journal entry into the week ahead.
Based on the Series: Confidence
Day 1: The Word That Was There From the Beginning
Reading: 1 John 1:1-4
Devotional: John opens his letter not with argument but with witness. He was there. He heard, saw, and touched the one who is life itself. This is not philosophy or speculation — it is testimony grounded in history. The same Jesus who walked with the disciples walks with you through his Word and his Spirit. You do not need hidden knowledge or secret wisdom to find him. He has made himself known. Today, rest in the reality that your faith is not built on guesswork but on the unshakeable testimony of those who knew him face to face.
Reflection: What would it mean for your daily life to treat the Bible as reliable, eyewitness testimony rather than merely inspirational literature?
Practical Application: Read 1 John chapter 1 in its entirety in two different Bible translations and note one phrase that strikes you differently in each version.
Day 2: Life Is Found in the Son
Reading: 1 John 5:11-13
Devotional: John strips away every layer of complexity and delivers a truth so clear it almost startles us. God has given eternal life, and that life is in his Son. Not in a system. Not in a set of spiritual exercises. Not in hidden wisdom discovered through inner searching. In the Son. If you have him, you have life. If you do not have him, you do not have life. This is not harsh — it is merciful. God did not make salvation a puzzle to be solved. He made it a person to be received. Today, receive him again with fresh gratitude.
Reflection: Are there areas of your spiritual life where you have been searching for something beyond what Christ has already provided?
Practical Application: Write out 1 John 5:13 on an index card and place it somewhere you will see it throughout the day as a reminder of the confidence you are invited to carry.
Day 3: Confidence to Approach the Throne
Reading: Hebrews 4:14-16
Devotional: The writer of Hebrews tells us that because of Jesus, we can approach God's throne of grace with confidence. Not timidity. Not shame. Not the sense that we must first make ourselves presentable. Confidence. This is the inheritance of every believer — direct, unobstructed access to the Father through the Son. The false teachings John warned against made God distant and unknowable, reachable only through layers of secret wisdom. But Jesus tore that veil. He made the way plain. Whatever weight you are carrying today, you are invited to bring it directly to the throne and receive mercy and grace in your time of need.
Reflection: What has been keeping you from approaching God openly and honestly in prayer? Is it shame, distraction, or a quiet belief that he is harder to reach than he says he is?
Practical Application: Set aside ten uninterrupted minutes today to pray with the specific intention of approaching God with confidence, bringing before him one burden you have been carrying quietly on your own.
Day 4: In Christ Are Hidden All the Treasures
Reading: Colossians 2:2-10
Devotional: Paul writes with urgency to a church being pulled toward fine-sounding arguments that placed wisdom and knowledge outside of Christ. His answer is direct: all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ. Not scattered across the spiritual landscape waiting to be discovered through personal searching. In him. This means that growing in wisdom is not a matter of accumulating the right information from the right sources — it is a matter of growing in your knowledge of Jesus himself. Every truth worth knowing finds its center in him. Do not be taken captive by hollow philosophy when fullness is available in Christ.
Reflection: What voices or sources of teaching have you been giving authority in your life? How do they measure up when held against the person and words of Jesus?
Practical Application: Identify one teaching, habit of thought, or repeated source of information in your life that you need to evaluate more carefully against Scripture. Bring it before God in prayer and ask for discernment.
Day 5: See What Great Love the Father Has Lavished on Us
Reading: 1 John 3:1-3
Devotional: John pauses in the middle of his letter and calls us to simply look. See what great love the Father has lavished on us. The word lavished carries the sense of abundance, of generosity that goes beyond what is merely sufficient. You are not tolerated by God. You are not admitted into his family on a technicality. You are loved lavishly, and you are called his child. That is not a title you earned. It is a name he gave. As you close this five-day journey, let this truth settle into the deepest part of who you are. You are known. You are loved. You are his. Walk in that confidence today and every day.
Reflection: Do you live as though you believe you are a deeply loved child of God, or do you carry a quiet sense that his love for you is conditional on your performance?
Practical Application: Journal a response to this question: What would change about how I treat myself, others, and God if I fully believed I was lavishly loved by the Father? Carry one specific answer from that journal entry into the week ahead.
Extra questions to think about...
John opens his letter by emphasizing that he and the other disciples were eyewitnesses who heard, saw, and touched Jesus -- how does the physical, tangible nature of Christ's appearance strengthen your personal confidence in the gospel?
The sermon describes how false teachers in John's time used pieces of truth twisted into fine-sounding arguments to lead believers astray -- in what ways do you see similar tactics being used today, and how do you personally guard against being deceived?
Gnostic teaching claimed that salvation comes from a hidden spiritual wisdom found within oneself rather than through faith in Jesus -- in what subtle ways might this kind of inward-focused, self-sufficient thinking creep into modern Christian life or even your own spiritual walk?
The pastor challenges the congregation to read, reread, and journal through 1 John repeatedly and in multiple translations -- what practical habits or disciplines do you currently have in place to go deeper into Scripture, and what might need to change?
John writes in 1 John 5:12 that whoever has the Son has life and whoever does not have the Son does not have life -- how does the simplicity of this truth challenge or comfort you, and how does it shape the way you share your faith with others?
The sermon draws a distinction between happiness and joy, suggesting that genuine joy rooted in God's promises can coexist with life's storms -- can you identify a season in your life where you experienced this kind of joy, and what sustained it?
The pastor emphasizes that the koinonia, or fellowship, described in 1 John 1 involves deep, honest, and real community with other believers -- what does authentic Christian community look like in your life, and where might God be calling you to go deeper with others?
John declares in 1 John 3:1 that the Father has lavished great love on us so that we are called children of God -- how fully do you live in the reality of that identity, and what fears or doubts tend to keep you from embracing it?
The sermon warns against returning to spiritual bondage after Christ has set us free, comparing it to going back to vomit -- what are the specific false teachings, habits, or thought patterns that you find most tempting to return to, and how does the gospel speak into those areas?
The pastor stresses that sharing the good news of Jesus should bring us joy and that we should desire others to join us in this relationship with God regardless of how messy their lives are -- what does it look like practically for you to extend that kind of invitation to the people around you?
The sermon describes how false teachers in John's time used pieces of truth twisted into fine-sounding arguments to lead believers astray -- in what ways do you see similar tactics being used today, and how do you personally guard against being deceived?
Gnostic teaching claimed that salvation comes from a hidden spiritual wisdom found within oneself rather than through faith in Jesus -- in what subtle ways might this kind of inward-focused, self-sufficient thinking creep into modern Christian life or even your own spiritual walk?
The pastor challenges the congregation to read, reread, and journal through 1 John repeatedly and in multiple translations -- what practical habits or disciplines do you currently have in place to go deeper into Scripture, and what might need to change?
John writes in 1 John 5:12 that whoever has the Son has life and whoever does not have the Son does not have life -- how does the simplicity of this truth challenge or comfort you, and how does it shape the way you share your faith with others?
The sermon draws a distinction between happiness and joy, suggesting that genuine joy rooted in God's promises can coexist with life's storms -- can you identify a season in your life where you experienced this kind of joy, and what sustained it?
The pastor emphasizes that the koinonia, or fellowship, described in 1 John 1 involves deep, honest, and real community with other believers -- what does authentic Christian community look like in your life, and where might God be calling you to go deeper with others?
John declares in 1 John 3:1 that the Father has lavished great love on us so that we are called children of God -- how fully do you live in the reality of that identity, and what fears or doubts tend to keep you from embracing it?
The sermon warns against returning to spiritual bondage after Christ has set us free, comparing it to going back to vomit -- what are the specific false teachings, habits, or thought patterns that you find most tempting to return to, and how does the gospel speak into those areas?
The pastor stresses that sharing the good news of Jesus should bring us joy and that we should desire others to join us in this relationship with God regardless of how messy their lives are -- what does it look like practically for you to extend that kind of invitation to the people around you?
Digging In Deeper
Here is a list of all scripture references mentioned or alluded to in the sermon:
1. 1 John 1:1-4
2. 1 John 3:1
3. 1 John 4:17
4. 1 John 5:11-13
5. John 1:1
6. John 14:6
7. Colossians 1:15-17
8. Colossians 2:2-4
9. Colossians 2:8-10
10. Matthew 1:23
11. Hebrews 4:16
12. Romans 5:8
13. Acts 2:44
The following verses are not directly cited but are clearly alluded to or paraphrased in the sermon:
14. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (the reference to "itching ears" and people seeking teachers who tell them what they want to hear)
15. Matthew 11:29-30 (the reference to Jesus saying "take up my yoke" and his teaching not being hard)
16. Acts 17:10-11 (the reference to the Bereans examining Paul's teaching against scripture)
17. Galatians 5:7 (the reference to false teachers "cutting in" on believers)
18. Proverbs 26:11 (the reference to returning to "vomit")
1. 1 John 1:1-4
2. 1 John 3:1
3. 1 John 4:17
4. 1 John 5:11-13
5. John 1:1
6. John 14:6
7. Colossians 1:15-17
8. Colossians 2:2-4
9. Colossians 2:8-10
10. Matthew 1:23
11. Hebrews 4:16
12. Romans 5:8
13. Acts 2:44
The following verses are not directly cited but are clearly alluded to or paraphrased in the sermon:
14. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (the reference to "itching ears" and people seeking teachers who tell them what they want to hear)
15. Matthew 11:29-30 (the reference to Jesus saying "take up my yoke" and his teaching not being hard)
16. Acts 17:10-11 (the reference to the Bereans examining Paul's teaching against scripture)
17. Galatians 5:7 (the reference to false teachers "cutting in" on believers)
18. Proverbs 26:11 (the reference to returning to "vomit")