Warning Concerning Antichrists

It seems that around Christmas and Easter time, you begin to see all sorts of TV shows and magazine articles all emphasizing some sort of search for the true Jesus, for some new revelation, or for some fresh understanding. The world cannot deny the monumental impact Christ has had.

And, this search in different ways has carried over into the church as well as it seems popular now to "deconstruct" your faith, which many times results in a creating a Jesus you're more comfortable with and a faith practice that better suits your personal longings. Caveat, it can be a profitable thing to search the Scripture and find out why we believe what we believe and practice the things we practice, but when our goal is to tear down the faith rather than dig deeper in order to remain in Christ, our practice is misguided.

Well, John warns about the true nature of those who would deny Jesus as Scripture proclaims Him: they are antichrists. His aim is that the true church would embrace Jesus, the true gospel, and abide in Christ by the Spirit.

1 John 2:18–27 ESV

Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life. I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.

Remember the Apostles' Teaching.

1 John 2:18-22

Two things: it is the last hour, and the antichrists are here.

The last hour began with the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. Here, John uses it twice. It seems John’s use of the term is not to refer to some eschatological final day before the Jesus returned, but in a general sense that says with the death and resurrection of Christ, believers are living in the final act of salvation history, waiting for the end of all things.

It may surprise you, but John is the only person to refer to the antichrist, and he only does it in his letters, not in Revelation. What we know for certain is that these antichrist(s) was or is a person who opposes Jesus and denies or redefines who He is. Luke 11:23 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”

It’s not just what the antichrists believe, but also what they have done — abandoned the church. Not everyone who belonged to the church actually belonged to the church. If they truly were a part of the church, they would have continued with the church. Cultural and historical understandings help us to know that John isn’t referring to a group of people “changing churches.” At the time of John’s writing, there would have probably been a church in any given city. Their departure from the church and from the apostle’s teaching revealed the fact that they didn’t belong to the church. Their departure reveals that, in John’s previous words, they were actually full of darkness the whole time.

John is intentional about distancing himself and the true church from this group that at one time appeared to be a part of the true church. He says they went out from us, BUT…were not of us.

To further his distinction, John notes that the true church, the real believers are the ones who have been anointed by the Holy One. Because of this, we possess true knowledge, especially when it comes to the gospel. Now against those who would claim that any “word” is of the Spirit, it’s important to remember that there is a faith that has once and for all been delivered to the saints (Jude 3-4), and there was a commonly held understanding of orthodoxy, contended for by the apostles and through their teaching, rooted in the words of Christ Himself, that provide a measure by which to gauge all truth. And, it is the Spirit’s role, as the “Spirit of truth” (John 14:17), to guide God’s people and “teach” believers “all things and bring to…remembrance all” that Christ said to His disciples. It’s even in the Great Commission, to teach everything that Christ commanded. Just because we have the Spirit doesn’t mean we can speak strange utterances, new truths that are contrary to what Christ revealed.

One last quick note before verse 21 — we often speak of gifted teachers, preachers, and worship leaders as being “anointed.” However, that’s not a very NT view of anointing. Here, John indicates all who have the Spirit are anointed!

John’s audience has the truth, they’ve received it and they know it. They are not ignorant of the truth. There is an interesting connection that can loosely be traced back to previous statements made by John, particularly about there being no mixture of darkness in God, and the fact that those who remain in sin/darkness practice lies because His word is not in us. Fellowship with Him, which is established by the Spirit as we respond in faith to His grace, leads us into the light. John affirms the truth they’d already been taught.

The point of denial includes first a denial that Jesus is the Christ. Failing to embrace Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah is a failure to embrace God’s plan of redemption and a rejection of His covenant promises. In fact, Jesus rejection as the Messiah by the people who should have expected His coming remained a mystery. John 1:11 says that even though Jesus came to His own, they did not receive Him, and Paul pondered the mystery of the rejection of Jesus by the Jews in Rom.10:21-11:27. Still, John goes beyond simply recognizing Jesus as the Messiah.

John’s writing clearly paints the deity of Christ as a core issue of belief. This is part of the knowledge that genuine believers have come to possess. The first council of the church, the Council of Nicea in 325, sought to defend the deity of Christ. One cannot deny the Son and also have fellowship with the Father; anyone claiming otherwise is a liar.

Illustration: The man with a massive art collection.

Application: The slope of theological compromise, liberal learning, a small break with biblical teaching, it’s a slippery slope indeed, and rarely will one come back from it. We must remember the apostles’ teaching, for better to be divided on truth than united in error. And, I don’t say that flippantly, for the unity of the church is big deal, All the more so when it comes to the primary issue of our view of Jesus. Let us hold fast to Him who was slain and lives again, living to let the on-looking world know that Christ is what we treasure most.

Remain in the Apostles' Teaching.

1 John 2:23-27

This verse is the hinge of John’s discussion in these verses. It is a reminder that Jesus is the dividing line in the world’s religions. What a person decides to do with Jesus makes all the difference, as the remaining verses will continue to flesh out.

While so far John has generally been concerned with ethical matters (i.e., walking in the darkness, etc.), here he is concerned with a theological matter — what one believes about Jesus.

If one denies the Son, he has the Father. There is a clear unity between the two. Likewise, if you confess the Son, you have the Father also.

Fellowship with the Father and Son are vital to true salvation, an essential aspect of our faith in God. But, fellowship with the Father is impossible apart from confession of the Son.

Eternal life is found in Christ alone. Here, the command is to have this life abide constantly in us. Further, John is noting that this is the truth that first brought them to faith, the gospel as it was preached from the beginning. In the context of perverted doctrines, John maintains that the truth the he contends for is the truth he has proclaimed all along. Beware of new winds of doctrine, but cling to the faith that (again) was once for all delivered to the saints. This also provides hermeneutical instruction. If a theological viewpoint is rather new in the grand scope of interpretation, and if that viewpoint has not historical backing, beware!

We are tempted to think the gospel message is baby food, and sometimes we think that going “deep” in the Scripture is spending countless hours of study on a single word or verse. There is fruit that can and does come from that, but the gospel is just as much meant for our baby steps as it is for our maturing in Christ. Simply put, we can never move away from the gospel. And verse 25 reminds us of this, that at the end of the day, the gospel is still a message of God’s grace, a promise made by God to us.

Because the gospel, because eternity is at stake, John finds it necessary to deal with these false teachers. They are trying to deceive the church. John has given tests to discern the true nature of the false teachers and their lack of salvation while bolstering and encouraging the faith of the church, bolstering their confidence in their salvation. And while false teachers typically aren’t trying to outright drag people away from “Jesus,” their misguided theology, their faulty understanding drags people away from Christ. Make no mistake about it, any belief system that diminishes Christ and His work, His deity, death, and resurrection, isn’t another way of looking at Jesus, as if any and all interpretations were valid. Instead, it rejects Christ and does not remain in Him.

So that we won’t start to fear, John gives a final word of encouragement in verse 27. False teaching will be exposed by the true gospel and the Holy Spirit.

This final verse does much to diminish the need for others to “receive a word” on our behalf. The Spirit convicts us concerning truth, particularly in matters of salvation, and He guides us continually according to His Word.

There is evidence of Jer.31:33-34 here as well, where the prophet, speaking of the New Covenant, says that the law will be within us, written on our hearts. Further, we will no longer plead and teach each other to know the Lord, for God’s people will certainly know Him. The New Covenant stipulations were already in play for John as earlier he made mention of the fact that we have come to known Him, a chief marker of NC Christianity.

This does not diminish the need for teachers in the church, which some are called and gifted to do. Rather, it serves as a reminder that we’re indeed received the faith once-for-all delivered to the saints, and there is no need for external, new revelations about Jesus. He is God’s final and greatest word, and the Spirit bears witness to the reality of who He is.

Abide in Him is the final exhortation. It should remind us of John 15:5. Jesus is the true vine, and we must remain in Him. He is the source of life and on-going spiritual vitality. Apart from Him, we can do nothing. So, how do we abide in Christ? Here are a few disciplines:

Embrace the truth about Christ and center your life on it.

Regularly intake Scripture.

Pray.

Obey.

Surround yourself with other believers who are doing the same.

Illustration: There are all types of learners in the world. I’m one of those guys that, I can read a book, watch a video, educate myself, but at the end of the day, I need to do it. Yesterday, we were hauling some stuff to the dump, and my wife can tell you, I nerd out on different types of videos…practical skills from a time gone by, like how to tie an alpine butterfly and a trucker’s hitch. I’ve watched those videos, but yesterday I couldn’t remember how to tie either one. Today I can, because I practiced it yesterday.

Application: So it is with God’s truth. We know it because we learn, but then we know it because we abide in it, live it, and put it to practice.

If we could summarize the Apostles' teaching, boil it down to one sentence, what would we say? Perhaps Herman Bavinck, a Dutch churchman and theologian, stated it best when he said, "Christ is Christianity itself." Danny Akin notes, "This is what the apostle's taught. This is what the Word says. This is what the Spirit affirms. This is what we believe. This is where we abide. This is what we confess." And, this is what we are promised: eternal life.