Introduction:
A. How many of you enjoy ANAGRAMS?
1. What is an anagram? It is “a word or phrase formed by reordering the letters of another word or phrase.”
2. Here are a few that I thought you might enjoy.
3. DORMITORY = Dirty Room
4. THE MORSE CODE = Here Come Dots
5. SLOT MACHINES = Cash Lost In’em
6. MOTHER-IN-LAW = Woman Hitler
B. The whole idea of anagrams coincides with the thrust of today’s message that I have titled “Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing.
1. False teachers are a lot like ANAGRAMS. They try to present themselves as something they are not.
2. They try to hide the true reality and ramifications of their teaching.
3. The sheep will run from obvious dangers like wolves, so the wolves try to disguise themselves so that they won’t be noticed immediately or at all.
C. In our last sermon from 1 John, we noticed that John had a positive message of assurance for the children of God.
1. He concluded that discussion with the statement, “And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us” (1 Jn. 3:24).
2. That mention of the Holy Spirit prompted John to address the larger subject of spiritual discernment.
3. Yes, God has given us His Spirit, but it is necessary for us to weigh the claims of those who say they are spiritually enlightened.
4. So, John insists that we must “test the spirits to see whether they are from God” (4:1).
5. The apostle Paul gave the same warning to the Corinthians, who likewise needed to weigh the authority of the prophetic voices they were hearing (1 Cor. 12:1-3; 14:29).
D. One essential idea that is assumed throughout this section is this: Two spirits are active in this world, the Spirit of truth, and the spirit of falsehood (4:6).
1. There is the Spirit who comes from God, who glorifies and elevates His Son, Jesus Christ, and there is the spirit of antichrist, which is welcomed by the world and sabotages the truth about Jesus.
2. In Matthew 7:15, Jesus warned us, “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.”
3. 2 Peter 2:1, Peter warns, “But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false prophets among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them – bringing swift destruction on themselves.”
4. Paul’s parting words to the Ephesian elders included, “I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!” (Acts 20:29-30)
5. Because of this reality, John provided two tests so that the Christians to whom he was writing, would be able to discern the truth, and recognize the wolves.
E. We have discussed throughout this series that the church John was trying to minister to was in the grips of a division, a split caused by false teachers.
1. It is important to pause and gain some appreciation for the challenge faced by the early church.
2. Most (if not all) of the early congregations were isolated house churches in cities throughout the Roman empire.
3. In the early years there were no formal creeds to give doctrinal guidance, nor were the Scriptures available as we have them today.
4. No one owned a “New Testament,” and at best the early Christians only had random collections of letters from the apostles and collections of stories about Jesus.
5. Oral communication was essential, and churches relied on emissaries from their leaders, who taught and relayed information.
6. Paul repeatedly sent out Timothy and Silas in this capacity, and John sent out elders as his spokespersons (3 Jn 5).
F. But, problems arose when prophets or teachers arrived claiming an authority that was not rightfully theirs.
1. Paul addressed the problem of unauthorized teachers in his correspondence with the churches of Galatia and Thessalonica.
2. Because some churches received false letters, Paul even decided to sign his correspondence with recognizable markings (Gal. 6:11; Col. 4:8; 2 Thess. 3:17).
3. This phenomenon meant that churches could fall prey to unscrupulous itinerant prophets and teachers, and John’s churches were no exception.
4. Consequently, Christians had to be ready to assess both the message they heard and the spirit that inspired it.
G. So, John gave them two tests.
1. I like the old story told about the young American engineer named Billy who was sent to Ireland by his company to work in a new plant.
2. This two year assignment was desirable because it would enable him to earn enough money to marry his long-time girlfriend, Irene.
3. The separated couple corresponded often, but as the lonely weeks went by, Irene began expressing doubts that Billy was being true to her, after all, he was around many lovely Irish lasses.
4. Billy wrote, declaring with some passion that he was paying absolutely no attention to the local girls. “I admit,” he wrote, “that sometimes I’m tempted. But I fight it. I’m keeping myself for you.”
5. In the next mailing he received from Irene, Billy found a harmonica and this note, “I’m sending this to you so that you can learn to play it and have something to keep your mind off those girls.”
6. Billy replied, “Thanks for the harmonica. I’m practicing it every night and thinking of you.”
7. At the end of his two years, he returned on an airplane and Irene met him at the airport.
8. He rushed forward to embrace Irene, but she held up a restraining hand and said, “Before we do any kind of celebrating, let me hear you play that harmonica!”
9. She needed a clear test and so did John’s disciples.
I. John’s First Test: What They Say About Jesus (4:2-3)
A. This is the only time the Greek word for “testing” (dokimazo) occurs in John’s writings, although it occurs often in the rest of the NT (22 times), and is used often by Paul when he challenges his churches to assess the validity of irregular teaching (1 Thess. 5:21; 1 Tim. 3:10)
1. Let’s read again verses 2 – 3, “This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.”
2. So, what should a person look for? The fact that the Spirit of God always glorifies the Son of God.
3. Therefore, the first test centers entirely on one’s view of Jesus Christ.
B. Behind these words John is urging us to hold three beliefs about Jesus (we can conclude these from all of John’s writings.
1. First, that the man Jesus of Nazareth is indeed the divine Word of God.
2. Second, that Jesus Christ was and is fully divine as well as fully human.
3. Third, that Jesus is the sole source of eternal life since he alone reveals the Father to us and atones for our sins.
4. John sees this confession as central to Christian discipleship.
5. We must conclude that this affirmation is not simply a matter of holding a creed. It must be more than just holding to some set of intellectual ideas.
6. James tells us that the demons know this about Jesus.
7. We must hold to the truths about Jesus, but also acknowledge the Lordship of Jesus in our practice of daily obedience to God.
C. John says that to fail to hold to the truths about Christ is to reflect the insidious “spirit of the antichrist” that lives in the world.
1. It is interesting to compare today’s verses from 4:1-3 with 2:18-22.
2. In the first section, having the right relation with the Father leads to a correct view of the Son.
3. In today’s section, having the right relation with the Spirit leads to a similarly correct view of the Son.
4. In each case the Son is central in all true connection with God.
5. So, to pass the first test, the teacher and teaching must hold to the truth about Jesus.
II. John’s Second Test: What the World Thinks About Them (4:4-6)
A. John’s second test has to do with audiences.
1. Who celebrates this teaching? Where does it find a following?
2. Look at verses 4-6, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.”
B. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that if false teachings (such as those of the secessionists) originate with an ungodly spirit, that these utterances will find a ready reception in the world.
1. We live in a time in which numbers are often perceived of as the means of assessing where God is moving in the world.
2. A rapidly expanding church or cult is sometimes taken as the sign of God’s unique blessing.
3. John would question this. According to John, therefore, acceptance by the majority of people in the world is not the criteria for determining where God is at work.
4. It is the response of the church, the community of true believers, that can test the veracity of a word from the Lord.
5. God’s people know his voice – like sheep they recognize their shepherd (Jn 10:4ff).
6. And the corporate voice of the faith community should be trusted.
7. John reassures his readers in verse 4 that the Holy Spirit in them is more powerful than this spirit in the world.
8. The Spirit of God is unrivaled and those who reside in the Holy Spirit have no reason to fear, even though they may be in the minority, or may face ridicule and rejection.
C. So, these are John’s two tests and this is how we can discern “the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood” (v. 6).
1. First, we must look for the Christological correctness of anyone’s teaching.
a. If the incarnate Christ has been theologically removed or altered, and if Christ is not at the center of what someone says, then we are right to be suspicious.
2. Second, if the Christian community we have always trusted refuses this teaching, then we should be warned.
a. And if the supposed “Word from the Lord” finds ready reception in the world, then we should beware.
Conclusion:
A. John’s command that we “test the spirits” is apt for our generation since there are so many competing claims to religious truth today.
1. Cults and new religious movements abound in our time.
2. But we also face another difficult challenge – Our culture prizes religious tolerance and pluralism.
3. Such “testing of the spirits” is frowned upon as being narrow, overly critical and judgmental.
4. To “test the spirits” today will take considerable discernment and a lot of courage.
5. Nevertheless, John’s command is clear: Such testing is the responsibility of every generation.
B. Because John’s tests are limited to one historical setting, we will need to keep an eye on the contemporary challenges that the church must confront in our generation.
1. We are challenged with questions of biblical authority, sexuality, morality and social justice.
2. We must be ready to not only tell how we feel about the issues that face us, but we must be able to give a coherent, objective, and biblically reasoned argument for or against them.
3. As a church we must build a Christian maturity that can use biblical radar to spot intruders who want to upend the church’s beliefs.
4. This biblical radar must be able to tell the difference between minor issues and colossal errors that can have eternal consequences.
C. We are coming off another winter here in Central New York, it started off very mild, and then became very severe.
1. One of the interesting things about winter are snow sculptures and ice sculptures.
2. With incredible skill, the ice sculpturist can take a 400 pound block of ice and turn it into a sleigh full of puppies, or a polar bear.
3. Or a snow sculpturist can turn a pile of snow into a beautiful sculpture.
4. There is a person who lives on Rt. 370 in the village who does a snow sculpture every year. This year they did an angel.
5. Ice and snow sculptures are beautiful to look at, but they don’t last…they melt when it begins to warm up.
6. False teachers and their doctrines are like that, too.
7. They may look good, but they can’t stand up to the heat of scrutiny.
D. Nevertheless, one of the most amazing things about false teachings and the cults that propagate them, is that their doctrines, are intricate, persuasive and often thoroughly deceptive.
1. Their teachings are frequently so close or similar to the truth that it is hard to tell the difference.
2. It is very easy for the young in faith, or the untaught to fall prey to the deception.
E. So, what must we do?
1. We must take responsibility for our spiritual lives and take seriously the beliefs we put our trust in.
2. We must be sure we have a well-balanced diet of God’s Word.
3. We must be like the Bereans of Acts 17 who received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. (Acts. 17:11)
4. Other things like prayer, fellowship, and service must be given a priority in each of our lives.
5. We don’t want to have said of us what was said of the those people in Hebrews 5:12, “In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food.”
6. How many of us will take seriously the spiritual war we are in?
7. How many of us will sharpen their swords and put on the full armor of God?
8. 2 Tim. 2:15, Paul wrote to Timothy saying, “Do your best to present your self to God approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”
9. Let’s watch out for the wolves…
a. They are often dressed in sheep’s clothing.
b. They may be on TV or the radio, looking and sounding good.
c. They may come knocking at our door, or they may be a friend at work.
10. Whomever they are…
a. They distort the person of Jesus.
b. They distort the good news.
c. They change God’s promises and commands.
d. And the masses approve of their message.
11. May God help us recognize what is false and hold to what is true.
12. May we trust in the Holy Spirit at work in each of us and in the church as a whole.
13. And may we, individually and collectively, study and preach the word of truth.
(I relied heavily on the NIV Application Commentary on 1 John)
