First John: 1 John 2:27b-The Believer Has No Need For Anyone to Teach Them Lesson # 88

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. (ESV)

Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom

Thursday September 21, 2017

www.wenstrom.org

Lesson # 88

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. (ESV)

“And you have no need that anyone should teach you” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction kai (καί), “and” (2) emphatic negative adverb ou (οὔ), “no” (3) accusative feminine singular form of the noun chreia (χρεία), “need” (3) second person plural present active indicative form of the verb echō (ἒχω), “you have” (4) conjunction hina (ἵνα), “that” (5) nominative masculine singular form of the indefinite pronoun tis (τις), “anyone” (6) third person singular present active subjunctive form of the verb didaskō (διδάσκω), “should teach” (7) accusative second person plural form of the personal pronoun su (σύ), “you.”

Once again, we have the conjunction kai which is functioning here as a marker of result which means that the word is introducing a declarative statement which presents the result of the previous declarative statement.

The verb echō means “to have, to possess” either in an abstract or concrete sense.

The word’s meaning is emphatically negated by the emphatic negative adverb ou, which expresses an absolute, direct and full negation.

The second person plural form of this verb means “each one of you” referring to the recipients of this epistle in a corporate sense and is used in a distributive sense emphasizing on exceptions.

The direct object of this verb is the noun chreia, which is in the singular and means “need” referring to that which someone is lacking and particularly needed.

It pertains to that which should happen or be supplied because it is needed.

Here the need is for any person to teach the recipients of this epistle.

Therefore, the verb echō, the emphatic negative adverb ou and the noun chreia express the idea that the recipients of this epistle by no means possess a need for anyone to teach them or we could say they have absolutely no need for anyone to teach them.

The conjunction hina means “that” and is employed with the subjunctive mood of the verb didaskō, “should teach” in order to form an epexegetical clause which explains or clarifies the noun chreia which begs to be defined.

The indefinite pronoun tis means “anyone” since the word pertains to a reference to someone indefinite and here it refers to no particular member of the human race.

The verb didaskō means, “to teach, to educate, to train, to impart information in a public assembly” which would indicate that no one in the human race is needed to perform the action of teaching the recipients of this epistle.

The verb didaskō means “to teach, instruct” and speaks of the antichrists teaching the recipients of this epistle the truth.

Once again, we have the second personal plural form of the personal pronoun su, which means “any of you” since the word refers to the recipients of this epistle as a corporate unit and it is used in a distributive sense emphasizing no exceptions.

The present tense of this verb is a gnomic present which is used to describe something that is true any time.

This would express the idea of no one at any time being needed to teach the recipients of this epistle the truth because of the anointing they received at justification.

However, this anointing which each of you received from Him lives within each of you. Consequently, each of you have absolutely no need that anyone teach you. Quite to the contrary, because His anointing teaches each one of you about everything, namely what is true so that it is never a lie likewise in the same way, it has taught each of you, continue to make it your habit of living in fellowship with Him. (My translation)

The adversative clause which begins is followed by a result clause which presents the result of this anointing of the Holy Spirit living in the recipients of this epistle.

It asserts that each of the recipients of this epistle have absolutely no need that anyone teach them.

Therefore, this result clause is teaching that they never need anyone to teach them such as the proto-Gnostic teachers as a result of receiving this anointing which they received at the moment of their conversion.

This is indicated by John’s statements in .

In verse 20, John taught that they possessed an anointing from the Holy One Jesus Christ so that each of them possessed knowledge.

In verse 21, he assures them that they knew the truth.

Therefore, these two verses teach that the recipients of the epistle possessed knowledge of the truth because of the anointing they possessed which is the Spirit of truth.

Consequently, the reference to teaching the recipients of this epistle speaks of receiving instruction regarding truth since teach that they possessed knowledge of the truth because of this anointing and John refers to this anointing again here in .

Thus, since John is associating this anointing with possessing knowledge of the truth, and this anointing is referred to here again in , the reference to being taught the truth speaks of the antichrists teaching the recipients of this epistle.

When John tells the recipients of this epistle that they have absolutely no one to teach them, he is not saying that they have no need of a pastor-teacher since he would not have written this epistle in which he taught them.

He was emphasizing with them that the Holy Spirit was their divine teacher.

John is addressing the situation with the false teachers when he makes this statement that they have absolutely no need for anyone to teach.

He has the proto-Gnostic teachers in mind when he makes this statement.

Thus, he is implying that they have no need for these false teachers.

Also, , and teach that God has given certain men the gift of apostleship and teaching to instruct the church.

The Holy Spirit uses these men to instruct the church or in other words, He is using these men as His instrument to teach truth to the church.

The apostles taught in the Temple in the midst of the stiff opposition from the Sanhedrin ().

Paul taught everywhere throughout the Roman Empire ().

The pastor-teacher’s job is to communicate doctrine and God the Holy Spirit is the believer’s true Teacher or Mentor (, ; ; ).

The pastor’s job is to supply the believer with spiritual information or the Word of God ().

Paul exhorted Timothy to teach.

I solemnly charge in the presence of God (the Father) as well as the Christ who is Jesus, who is inevitably going to judge the living as well as the dead and in addition by His appearing as well as by His kingdom: 2 to make it your top priority of publically proclaiming with authority as a herald the message. I solemnly charge you to make it your top priority of always being prepared to perform this task whether the circumstance is favorable or unfavorable. I solemnly charge you to make it your top priority to convict. I solemnly charge you to make it your top priority to rebuke. I solemnly charge you to make it your top priority to exhort with a patience which is absolute as well as by means of instruction. (My translation)

Each of these five commands Paul issues Timothy in emphasize the importance that the apostles placed upon the teaching of the Word of God to the Christian community.

In fact, it was the first of the four daily disciplines the first century apostolic church practiced.

reveals that the apostolic church in the first century practiced assembling together on a daily basis in order to hear the teaching of the apostles, fellowship, the observance of the Lord’s Supper and sharing meals together and corporate prayer.

teaches that the first century apostolic church practiced daily four disciplines, which composed their corporate worship of God: (1) Teaching of the Word of God. (2) Fellowship between believers. (3) Lord’s Supper and taking meals together. (4) Corporate Prayer.

The first century apostolic church gathered together daily to practice the first spiritual discipline, namely, to hear the teaching of the apostles since the Word of God is the believer’s spiritual food.

But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.’” (NASB95)

The believers in Berea practiced the daily intake of the Word of God.

The brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. (NASB95)

Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. (NASB95)

reveals that they won souls “daily” and they searched the Scriptures “daily.”