(20-23) Identifying the spirit of antichrist.
But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
a. You have an anointing: Here John referred to a common anointing, belonging to all believers. This is an anointing that makes discernment possible for those who seek it in the Lord (and you know all things).
i. When the New Testament speaks of anointing, it speaks of it as the common property of all believers. This is true even though all believers may not be walking in the anointing God has given them. The New Testament does not speak of a “special” anointing given to particular individuals.
ii. Among some Christians today, there is a rather magical or superstitious approach to this idea of anointing. In their mind, the anointing is like a virus or a germ that can be spread by casual contact or infect a whole group. Usually these folks think that when one “catches” the anointing, you can tell because they begin acting strangely. This isn’t the Bible’s idea of anointing.
iii. Anointing has the idea of being filled with and blessed by the Holy Spirit. This is something that is the common property of all Christians, but something we can and should become more submitted and responsive to. “As oil was used among the Asiatics for the inauguration of persons in important offices, and this oil was acknowledged to be an emblem of the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, without which the duties of those offices could not be discharged; so it is put here for the Spirit himself, who presided in the Church, and from which all gifts and graces flowed.” (Clarke)
iv. This idea of anointing – literally, to be blessed with oil – was said to be the reason behind one of the punishments given to John in persecution. The Roman emperor Domitian cast John in a boiling vat of oil, as if to say, “Here is a real anointing.” John emerged from the vat of boiling oil unharmed, because he was anointed indeed.
b. And you know all things: Because of the anointing of the Holy Spirit given to all believers, they possess the resources for knowing the truth. This isn’t to say that teachers are unnecessary, because one of the resources for knowing the truth is the reminding given by teachers like John.
i. In verse 20, John used a different word for know than he mostly used before. Previously John used the word meaning knowledge by experience; here he used the word meaning knowledge by intuition. We know some things intuitively by the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
c. Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? The context makes it clear that to affirm that Jesus is the Christ has to do with more than just saying, “He is the Messiah.” It has to do with understanding the relationship between Jesus and God the Father: He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. In other words, someone could say, “I believe Jesus is the Christ… as I define ‘Christ.’” But we must believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, as the Bible defines Christ – the Messiah, who is fully God and fully man; who perfectly revealed the Father to us.
d. He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son: The spirit of antichrist identifies itself by its denial of Jesus and its denial of the Father, remembering that Jesus and the Father can be denied even by those who seem to speak well of them both.
i. We can deny Jesus while praising Him with our words; we can deny Him by offering a substitute Jesus or by ministering in a manner that denies the character of Jesus.
e. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either: John here repeated an idea that Jesus expressed often, as recorded in the Gospel of John. Jesus said, He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me (John 12:44-45). He who receives Me receives Him who sent Me (John 13:20).
i. Often times it is said, “We all worship the same God. You have one name for Him and I have another. But that doesn’t matter. We are just talking about different roads to the same God because we all have the same God.” Here is the question to ask in response: “Was your God perfectly revealed in Jesus Christ?” If your God was, then you have the same God. If your God wasn’t perfectly revealed in Jesus, then you do not have the same God as in the Bible.
ii. There are many people who seem rather spiritual or religious, yet reject Jesus Christ. While their religion or spirituality may do them much good in this life – giving them a basis for morality and good behavior – it does them nothing before God, because in rejecting Jesus they reject God.
E. Abiding: preserving our relationship.
1. (24) Preserving relationship against the threat of the spirit of antichrist: abiding in the true Christian message and abiding in God.
Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.
a. Therefore: In light of the danger of the spirit of antichrist, we protect ourselves against the spirit of antichrist by abiding in the original, core Christian message (that which you heard from the beginning). As we walk in the simplicity and power of that message, we will not be led astray.
i. Humans, by nature, are almost always attracted to something just because it is new. We almost always think of new as better. But when it comes to truth, new is not better. That which you heard from the beginning is better.
ii. The apostle Paul communicated the same idea in Galatians 1:6-9, where he warns against going after a new gospel and emphasizes the importance of continuing on in the original gospel that Paul taught.
iii. This is difficult because we are tempted to be tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting (Ephesians 4:14). We often itch for something “new” and “exciting” even if it departs from that which you heard from the beginning.
b. Which you heard from the beginning: This does not describe whatever teaching any Christian might receive when he is newly following Jesus. The beginning, for these believers, describes the time when they were under the teaching of the apostles, which is now recorded for us in the New Testament.
i. Simply put, we abide in what is from the beginning when we stay close to our Bibles. If that was your environment when you were a young Christian, wonderful. But if it was not, then put yourself in that environment now.
c. Let that abide in you: This doesn’t mean just knowing it, but living in it. When we are living in the simplicity of the truth of Jesus Christ, then we will abide in the Son and in the Father.
i. Our world is filled with people searching for God, some sincerely and some insincerely. But if someone wants to really live in God, John tells us how: let the message of the apostles (which you heard from the beginning) live in you.
ii. John did not say, “If you know God’s Word, you know God,” because someone can have a bare, intellectual knowledge of God’s Word. But he did say, “If God’s Word lives in you, God lives in you.” We can come to a living, growing, relationship with God through His Word.
d. You also will abide in the Son and in the Father: This is absolutely necessary for the Christian life. John will use the word abide six times in these few verses, and the idea is repeated throughout the New Testament.
i. Abiding in Jesus (living in Jesus) is not a passive thing; it is an active thing. We must give ourselves both mentally and spiritually to living in Jesus. “We abide in him, not by a physical law, as a mass of iron abides on the earth; but by a mental and spiritual law, by which the greatness of divine love and goodness holds us fast to the Lord Jesus.” (Spurgeon)
ii. Yet, not only are we called to abide in Him; but we also know that He abides in us. It is a two-way relationship. “You are to take care that you abide in Christ as much as if all depended upon yourself; and yet you can look to the promise of the covenant, and see that the real reason for your abiding in Christ lies in the operation of his unchanging love and grace.” (Spurgeon)
2. (25) The blessing of abiding in the truth and in God: eternal life.
And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.
a. This is the promise: When His truth (what we heard from the beginning) lives in us, then God lives in us. When God lives in us, we have a promise. In this kind of life, the promise of eternal life is real.
b. Eternal life: This is not mere immortality. Every human being, made in the image of God, is immortal, in the sense that our souls will live forever, either in heaven or in hell. So, eternal life doesn’t just mean a life that lasts for eternity. It describes the kind of life that God, the Eternal One, has in Himself.
i. Therefore, while the idea of eternal life has reference to the life beyond this present world, it doesn’t begin when we die. If we don’t have eternal life now, we won’t get it when we die.
ii. This is why it is so important to have the promise of eternal life right now. And we have this promise if God’s truth abides in you, and we abide in the Son and in the Father.
iii. So, abiding is our grounds of confidence with God. We have the promise of eternal life as we abide. “You must be in a living, loving, lasting union with the Son of God, or else you are not in a state of salvation.” (Spurgeon)
3. (26-27) Our protection against deception: the anointing.
These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.
a. These things I have written: John knew there was deception among these early Christians, and it concerned him. He had a passion to keep them consistent with God’s message of truth.
b. The anointing which you have received from Him abides in you: This abiding and anointing is what enables Christians to continue in the truth.
i. John first referred to this anointing back in 1 John 2:20. This anointing is not the private property of a few special or spectacular Christians. All Christians have the presence of God’s Spirit within them.
c. You do not need that anyone teach you: Just as he stated in 1 John 2:20 (you know all things), John tells us again that the anointing we receive from God guides us into truth. We are guided into truth on a one-on-one level, God confirming it to our hearts.
i. Again, John’s message is simple. Because of the anointing of the Holy Spirit given to all believers, they possess the resources for knowing the truth. This is not to say that teachers are unnecessary, because one of the resources for knowing the truth is the reminder given by teachers like John.
d. You will abide in Him: This anointing which guides us into truth will also guide us closer to Jesus.
4. (28-29) What it means to live in Jesus.
And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.
a. Abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed: Abiding in Jesus means that we need not be afraid or ashamed when Jesus returns. This is because we have intimately known Him, and therefore we can have confidence at His coming.
i. John brings up a challenging image. When Jesus returns, some people will be afraid because they never knew Jesus at all. But among those who know Him, some will not be afraid, they will be ashamed before Him at His coming. They will realize that they have been living worldly, unfruitful lives. In one moment, the understanding will overwhelm them that whatever else they accomplished in life, they did not abide in Him as they could have.
ii. Paul the Apostle speaks of those who are “barely saved”: he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Corinthians 3:15). There are those who, for at least a moment, the coming of Jesus will be a moment of disappointment rather than glory.
iii. It is important for us to carefully consider these matters because it is difficult to measure the distance between “barely saved” and “almost saved.” It is dangerous to contemplate questions such as, “How little can I do and still make it to heaven?” or “How far can I stray from the Shepherd and still be part of the flock?” Instead we should be diligent to not be ashamed before Him at His coming.
iv. “What is the way to prepare for Christ’s coming? By the study of the prophecies? Yes, if you are sufficiently instructed to be able to understand them. ‘To be prepared for the Lord’s coming,’ some enthusiasts might say, ‘had I not better spend a month in retirement, and get out of this wicked world?’ You may, if you like; and especially you will do so if you are lazy. But the one Scriptural prescription for preparing for his coming is this, ‘Abide in him.’ If you abide in the faith of him, holding his truth, following his example, and making him your dwelling-place, your Lord may come at any hour, and you will welcome him.” (Spurgeon)
b. When He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed: We never grow beyond our need to abide and find our confidence in abiding in Jesus. Because John used “we” instead of “you,” we know that he needed this confidence also.
c. Abide in Him: This is the way to be confident when Jesus comes. When you abide in Him, you are ready for Jesus to come at any time.
i. The idea of living in Jesus is so important in the Bible. Jesus promised in John 14:23: If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
ii. Paul expressed this idea in his prayer for the Ephesians in Ephesians 3:17: that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. There are two Greek words to convey the idea of “to live in”; one has the idea of living in a place as a stranger, and the other has the idea of settling down in a place to make it your permanent home. Dwell in Ephesians 3:17 uses the ancient Greek word for a permanent home, indicating that Jesus wants to settle down in your heart, not just visit as a stranger.
iii. Do you abide in Him? Or do you just visit Jesus every once in a while? Abiding in Jesus gives us confidence because we know we wouldn’t change our lives substantially if we somehow knew Jesus would come back next week. We would already be abiding in Him.
d. Everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him: Abiding in Jesus means that we will practice righteousness in our lives because we are born of Him. Being born again has changed our lives from a disposition to sin to a disposition to righteousness.
i. This is a test of our abiding in Him, the same kind of test John mentioned in 1 John 1:6, 2:4, and 2:9. There is something wrong if someone claims to be born of Him and he does not practice righteousness.
ii. When someone is born of someone else, there is almost always a family resemblance. You say, “Look, she has her mother’s eyes” or “He has his father’s nose.” Well, the children of God have a family resemblance to their Father in heaven. He is righteous, so those who are born of Him also practice righteousness. “God hath no children destitute of his image, or who resemble him not.” (Poole)
iii. We will not perfect righteousness until we are glorified with Jesus; but we can practice righteousness right now, as we are born of Him.
iv. There are three precious claims for each Christian in this chapter. I know Him (1 John 2:4), I abide in Him (1 John 2:6), and I am in the light (1 John 2:9). John wants us to know that if these statements are true, it will show in our lives, especially in our love for brothers and sisters in Jesus.