Again, 1 John 1:1-4 reads:
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched–this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We write this to make our/your joy complete.
According to John Stott in his volume The Epistles of John: An Introduction and Commentary, the Preface’s “noble sweep unfolds the purpose of God from eternity to eternity, from that which was from the beginning (vs. 1) to the fullness of joy (vs. 4) experienced by Christian believers, which will not be finally consummated until the end” (58). Recognizing that what was from the beginning is now historically manifest and authoritatively proclaimed, Stott points out that the result is communal fellowship and completed joy. “The proclamation was not an end in itself; its purpose, immediate and ultimate, is now defined. The immediate is fellowship (koinonia, vs. 3), and the ultimate joy (chara, vs. 4). The fellowship created by Christ in the days of His flesh within the apostolic band, and deepened by the coming of the spirit at Pentecost, was not to be limited to them…The purpose of proclamation of the gospel is, therefore, not salvation but fellowship. Yet, properly understood, this is the meaning of salvation in its widest embrace, including reconciliation to God in Christ, holiness of life, and incorporation in the Church. This fellowship is the meaning of eternal life” (63, emphasis mine). Because our fellowship is with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, we can confidently state that human fellowship spontaneously arises from divine fellowship. The true message produces true communion. And true communion fosters true joy.
But Stott is quick to point out that, because of sin, complete communion is not possible in this life. We must wait for both perfect communion and perfect joy in the life to come. As a result, Stott sees this passage as pointing beyond this life to the life of heaven. When our communion with God and with one another is made complete, then so will our joy be perfected. In this way, we do not need to despair when we see flaws in our fellowship or when we feel less than perfectly joyful all the time. The one who was from the beginning has been proclaimed—and he will be proclaimed until the end. “The substance of the apostolic proclamation was the historical manifestation of the Eternal; its purpose was and is a fellowship with one another, which is based on fellowship with the Father and the Son and issues in fullness of joy” (66). We now experience real tastes of the fellowship and joy to come, but we are aware that these are only tastes and not yet the full feast we have been promised and that has been guaranteed in the gift of God’s Spirit to us.
