Three categories of believers

In our text today, John points out three categories of believers. We see in these categories three stages of spiritual development in our quest for spiritual maturity. The three stages of Christian growth are children, fathers, and young men (vv. 12-14). I do not believe these categories have anything to do with age or gender. It is possible for someone to be seventy years old and still be a spiritual babe. Perfection is not the goal, progress is. We don’t want to be at the same place as we were last year, we want to be moving upward. John is addressing and classifying these various stages of spiritual growth. Each group (stage of growth) is mentioned twice with two reasons for writing attached to each. By grouping them together we observe the following:

1. "I write unto you, little children (that is new Christians), because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake” (v. 12).
2. "I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the father” (v. 13).
3. "I write unto you, fathers (spiritual mature with a deep rich knowledge of God) because you have known Him that is from the beginning” (vv. 13, 14).
4. "I write unto you, young men, (mature believers) because you have overcome the wicked  one,” (v. 13); “because ye are strong, and the Word of God abideth in you” (v. 14).