(REFLECTIONS ON 1 John 5:13-21)

Below are two different English translation of today’s Scripture, 1 John 5:16-17. Please read and meditate on both.

New International Version (NIV)

16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death.

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

16 If anyone sees his brother or sister committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will, for him, give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death; I am not saying that he should ask about that. 17 All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death.

In the NASB translation, rather than prayer, the word “ask” is used, which is perhaps a better direct translation from the original Greek. Regarding sin not leading to death, John writes, “he shall ask and God will, for him, give life to those who commit sin not leading to death.” (NASB) That the Lord will give life as we intercede for others, means that those we ask, pray, and intercede for, will also have an opportunity as we have had, to confess their sins and to receive life in Christ.

However, regarding the sin that leads to death, John writes, “I am not saying that you should ask about that.” (NASB) What sin leads to death? Perhaps the answer isn’t a specific sin or specific type of sin, but any action that leads to physical death.

For all we can understand is that there are those that choose to live life a certain way or make certain decisions that break them to the point that their bodies cannot physically sustain life any longer. This can happen over time, or can be immediate. This can be deliberate, or accidental.

John writes regarding this sin that we should not ask about that. There are Biblical scholars that interpret this meaning that we should not try to understand, make sense, or ask about the specifics of how a certain person’s lifestyle or decisions led to their physical death and demise.

This we leave to the Lord, because only He knows and understands. In the Lord’s hands we commit ourselves. We ask, we pray, we intercede for those around us that they may do as we do, and confess their sins to the Lord, because forgiveness of sins and life in Christ is why Christ died for the world.

However, for those that are no longer with us, let us not try to understand, to guess, to judge, because their souls are now completely in God’s hands. In the Lord’s hands we commit ourselves.

Yes, the Lord reminds us today that in the Lord’s hands we commit ourselves. In the Lord there is mercy, grace, healing, the possible despite the impossible, and so we commit ourselves to Him. That which we cannot explain, understand, control, or change, we can only commit to Him, and in the Lord’s hands we commit ourselves.

May we end today’s devotion with the Serenity Prayer. Let us pray together:

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” 

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: 1 John 5