In my opinion, the Church by and large has greatly misunderstood John’s final words in his epistle. Some of what he claimed here has even been used in the Prosperity Gospel by the name-it-and-claim-it (sometimes referred to as the “blab-it-and-grab-it”) charlatans of our day. Nevertheless, their idea of the Gospel cannot be supported by John in his epistle. John told his readers that the confidence we have in God proves evident, in that, whatever we ask according to the will of God, he will hear us, and, if we know that he hears us, we have already received what we have asked for (1John 5:14-15). That is, the Lord has agreed to give us what we have requested of him. Nevertheless, John wasn’t referring to having a successful business, buying a car, a home or the latest electronic device we believe is so necessary in today’s environment. Such preaching abuses the word of God that we find in our Bibles.
We need to keep in mind that John at this point in his epistle is summing up what he had already told believers, so when he mentioned praying for what was according to the will of God (1John 5:14), he was speaking of the commandments he mentioned earlier, which are loving God (1John 5:3; cp. John 14:15, 21) and one’s brother in Christ (1John 4:7, 20-21). Accounting 1John 5:14-15 for more than this would be reading one’s own ideas into the text, and that is what the Prosperity Gospel adherents do.
Continuing with the flow of John’s epistle in light of the fact that he is offering a summation of what he had already written, John mentioned sin (1John 5:16). He told his readers, if they witnessed one of their brethren sinning a sin that was not unto death, they should pray for that one and he or she would be given life by the Lord. What is John telling us here? Earlier, John claimed that everyone commits sin (1John 1:8), but, if we confess our sins, the Lord will forgive them and wash away our unrighteousness (1John 1:9). Nevertheless, later in his epistle he said Christ was manifested in order to take away our sins, so whoever abides in Christ doesn’t work sin, but whoever does work sin, this is proof that that one is not abiding in Christ (1John 3:5-6). In other words John is speaking of a brother who begins to work sin. That is, he didn’t merely stumble into sin, but has begun to desire to reap the fruits of unrighteousness.
Notice that John differentiated between sins. He called one that which was not unto death, and the other that was unto death (1John 5:16), and the one who committed the sin that was unto death was not to be prayed for. How should we understand John’s words? Years ago, when I frequented the religious discussion boards on-line, I was once asked by an unbeliever: “Why doesn’t God simply forgive a sinner? I forgive those who have offended me, and I require nothing more of them. Why does God want to punish everyone for sinning?” At first I was taken aback. I really had to reconsider what I thought about forgiveness and God.
There are two types of sin mentioned in the Bible. There are those that can be forgiven outright, just as my friend on the religious discussion board referred to years ago. However, there is also the type of sin that cannot go unpunished. Some folks confuse this sin by calling it the unpardonable sin, but there really is no such sin. All unrighteousness in sin, but God can and does forgive all sins. However, some sins must be punished (1John 5:16-17). Rebellion is such a sin that must be punished. Adam rebelled[1] and he, as well as his descendants embarked on a course away from God. There can’t be any fellowship with God under such circumstances. Does the king invite his traitorous rebel leader to eat with him at his table?
David committed many sins, but God forgave everything he did, except for when he conspired to kill his friend in order to cover up what he (David) had done. That sin, couldn’t go unpunished, and God punished David in that the sword would not depart from his family. His own son rose up in rebellion against him, and David was forced to flee for his life. In the end, David was restored, but the point is, there are sins that can be forgiven outright, no punishment is needed, just repentance. But, there are also sins that cannot go unpunished, and this is what John was speaking of in 1John 5:16.
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[1] Did you ever wonder why Eve said God wouldn’t allow her to even touch the Tree of Knowledge (Genesis 3:2-3)? It certainly wasn’t what God told Adam (Genesis 2:16-17). Where did Eve get her information? Adam was the only other person around, so logic demands he lied to her! Yet, God didn’t expel Adam from the Garden (fellowship with him) for lying. Therefore, simply lying (slandering God) isn’t punishable with death. It led to death in that lying did lead to open rebellion, but lying of and by itself is a sin not unto death, and one can pray for the liar in hope the Lord would give him time (life), and he would repent (1John 5:14-16).
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