The first thing that jumps out at me here is a cautionary note. We know we have come to know Him by keeping His commandments. That is not the same thing as saying that we are justified by our adherence to the commandments. It is saying that if you are living no differently than you lived before, something is out of kilter. Does your walk match your talk? Do your deeds match your creeds?
The New Testament is full of commandments. Love one another. Gather together. Do this in remembrance of me. Preach the Word. Pray. Not being under the condemnation of the Law does not mean we are without expectation and obligation as Christians. Those who say they know Him but then turn around and refuse to obey His commandments demonstrate that they don’t know Him at all because one of the signs that a person is a Christian is willingness and a desire to obey Christ’s commandments. Obedience is a hallmark of the Christian life. We obey based on His Word, so if someone claims to be a Christian but never cracks open the Bible, how can they know how to walk?
Can you be a “carnal” Christian? Can you walk in the ways of the world and flaunt the commandments and say you are His? Not do you sin, we all sin even after being born again (see Romans 7). Do you see salvation as a "get out of sin free" card? These are serious questions and John gives a pretty serious warning.
This is a hard passage for Protestants. We shy away from anything that smacks of works based justification so much that we sometimes underemphasize obedience. We also feel justified in picking and choosing which commandments to emphasize and which to ignore. I have observed this phenomena in many places where the Scripture says one thing and yet it is casually ignored with "We are under grace, not the Law" as an excuse. Examine yourself and ask the hard questions. You can fool others around you, you can sometimes even lie to yourself but ultimately you will not be able to lie to Him.
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