Life in Christ: Studies in 1 John (The Original Five Volumes in One)

Wonderful in depth study.

Here is a God-centered exposition set that does not use any Greek words, nor difficult jargons. It is layman-friendly, but solid, powerful, heart-and-soul-searching by which I have been greatly blessed. Though the audio version of Dr. Jones' sermons are available online through their recording trust website, but due to poor-quality technology, considering these were recorded in the 1930's and 40's, I tend to lean toward the text version for clarity purposes.The first epistle of John contains some redundancies to emphasize how exceedingly important the points being repeated are to ensure the audience truly understands and embraces them; namely, the doctrines of the Lord Jesus Christ, who he is, his nature, his accomplishment on the cross, as well as the goal of Christian life, that is, a joyful "fellowship with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ". It exposes the reality of Christians, who are "of God" living in a fallen world that "lies in wickedness", the reality of spiritual warfare against 'the world', 'the flesh' and 'the devil' within which false doctrines are included. John, often called "The Apostle of Love" also covers exquisitely the test of the existence of true grace in a person by hammering over and over the importance of embracing the right doctrines, keeping the commandments, loving the brothers. Pastor Jones clarifies several times, from the redundant nature of the epistle, the true meaning of the Apostle's exhortations, being aware of the danger of the two extremes resulting from a misinterpretation, whether intentionally or not; namely the antinomianism and legalism or perfectionism, as well as the false doctrines that are still pertinent today, particularly mysticism, which I believe the Pantecostal denominations need to heed. Some verses that Dr. Jones preached are particularly encouraging to me, among which are when he covers what the "world" means in ch.2 v. 15-16, the test of a Christian in ch.5 v.19, idolatry in ch.5 v.21, in addition to the exposition on some parts that I had a hard time understanding, as in ch.3, v.6-9, 20, and ch.5 v. 16.I can tell Pastor Jones is the kind of preacher I wish I had the privilege sitting under. Though I may not have the preaching experience of what Prof. JI Packer describes as "with the force of electric shock, bringing to at least one of his listeners more of a sense of God than any other man" but I would agree with Pastor John Piper's comment that "many of us have felt this shock even through the written form of Lloyd-Jones' sermons."

Great read from one of the best expositors!

There are certain pastors/teachers over the years that have consistently demonstrated that they "got it." And, the true joy is that they have the blessed ability to "give the sense" of the Word and help us to understand and receive our own blessing and comfort from the Scriptures. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones is one such person. This is by far my favorite writing of his. I like that he took one of the smallest books in the New Testament and - like the disciple John himself - walk with us through doctrine, example, practical application, doubts, fears, and deception, and misunderstanding. You cannot (or at least should not IMHO) rush through this book. You want to pause and think, to reflect, to cry tears of appreciation and worship. You want to savor each section.What I appreciate most of all is that, even though it is five volumes in one, and each "volume" is divided into its own sections, Dr. Lloyd-Jones does not lose the "forest" for the "trees." He constantly reminds you of the BIG themes, the grand narrative, the full story.If you only buy one Christian book this year to supplement your Bible reading, to build your faith, to learn more about what it really means to be a Christian, YOUR LIFE IN CHRIST should be THAT book."You should not desire that which caused Him (Jesus the Christ, our Savior and Lord) so much suffering and so much pain."

I read this book right after finishing sermon on the mount and even though it was 700+ pages I could not put it down. The way he gives his sermon, I cannot describe it in words but if you truly want to grow as a Christian and truly want to understand the love of God, his presence in your life then spend some time with this book. Such a joy reading and meditating on this book. I consider reading this book as having a personal worship and it was so satisfying.

1 John is only 5 chapters and yet this book is 734 pages long. How did Martyn Lloyd Jonesfind so much to say about an epistle that most of us don't really pay a lot of attention to ?I liked it because I like the way he writes and how well he explains things. He was an independent preacher in that he didn't belong to any denomination. He was also a medical doctor. He examined the bible and Christianity as a doctor might and I believe that this gave him a little different insight into the bible. He interpreted the bible in his own way. It turns out that he interpreted it more or less as Calvin did. He was considered by some to be the greatest preacher of the 20th century. All of his sermons are available on line for free.

This book is just amazing, God definitely speaks through the author. You will definitely be blessed by reading this book. I can’t say enough about this book, I highly recommend

I read this book three years ago and was so challenged by it in my spiritual walk with Christ that I invited my study group to read it together, which we are doing. Three reasons I like it among others are: it has greatly helped me in my understanding of the book of I John, it emphasizes the basic importance of solid doctrine, and it is straight forward in its challenge and application to life based on the doctrine. It is over 700 pages but well worth the read. I heartily recommend it to those who are serious in their discipleship in Chtist.

OK book, although not life changing for me. I've had a lot of issues in my life at that time and was looking for help in various Christian literature; however, I have found little help if any at all.

Fantastic Book, it's amazing how much exposition the author can reveal from the word of God.

You are the best

This book will be a blessing to study.

As always, Martyn Lloyd-Jones presents a comprehensive but easily understood commentary of John's epistle. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting a more thorough look at this particular book, but as one who's read many L-J books, I highly recommend any book he has written. This kind of depth is hard to find within modern day Bible commentaries (tho' there are a few....).