October 20, 2008 1 John 2:18-27 (New International Version)
Today we’re going to talk about warnings, about red flags, about potential threats; to individuals and to the church. We’re going to think about what we are doing with our time, what time we have left. And we’re going to talk about the spirit of antichrist. Sound interesting? I hope so. God’s word is always interesting, always relevant, and always true.
Turn in your bible to 1 John Chapter 2, verses 18-27. I’m reading from the New International Version.
Warning Against Antichrists
18Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. 19They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.
20But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.[a] 21I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. 22Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist—he denies the Father and the Son. 23No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
24See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. 25And this is what he promised us—even eternal life.
26I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. 27As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.
An old farmer was worried one night at midnight by the grandfather clock striking not 12, but 14 times. He turns and shakes his wife out of her sleep, ‘Nellie wake up! It’s later than it’s ever been before!’
It’s late. It’s late in the history of this world. Many ages have come and gone. Many nations have risen and fallen. The markets of our modern age have also risen and fallen. There are wars, rumors of wars, wars in the court rooms and wars on the school grounds. There have been disasters in nature such as the world has never seen, since the great flood for sure…Hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, and fires. Our planet is in an uproar, it’s inhabitants living in turmoil. These are what many people have called, the last days.
John calls it something a little more striking though. He calls it the last HOUR. Do you feel rushed when you know that there’s just a little time left before something REALLY important happening? Maybe it’s a big meeting at the office, maybe it’s a first date, maybe it’s your wedding, maybe it’s a date in court, maybe it’s preparing a sermon, it could be anything. There’s something about that last hour, those last 60 minutes before the big event that brings up feelings of nervousness, anticipation, excitement, fear, and dread.
But those feeling should only be evident if we are unprepared. If we are confident and knowledgeable about what is about to happen, we have nothing to fear. Jesus tells us that in the last days, many bad things will happen. These are signs of the end of the age. And these things must happen, all in preparation for Christ’s triumphant return to rule on this earth for 1000 years!
And one of those signs is what John is telling us here; the spirit of antichrist. Anything that is ‘anti’ something, is opposite or opposed or against that thing. So someone who is anti-Christ is someone who is opposed to Jesus and His teaching, who is against Him being the way the truth and the life, and will lead others away from following His ways. We are taught that in the final days that THE antichrist will appear and lead many away from Christ. But John tells us in this text that many have already come. It’s true. For the spirit of antichrist is alive and well in the hearts of those who are opposed to the church. How often do we hear people saying that church isn’t relevant, God doesn’t exist, and Christians are fools? Too often I’d say.
And even within the church, there can be a spirit of division, a spirit of antichrist. John talks about people who were once part of the church, but have now left. It is a sad fact that some choose to follow Christ, choose to be part of a local church, and seem to have given their whole lives over to Him. But, in time, they fall away from coming to church, from reading the Bible, and from serving God in any way at all. They leave the church, perhaps never to return, and perhaps to even speak out against the church. They become anti-church, anti-God, and anti-Christ.
John says that there are those who were never really true followers of Christ at all. It was all a front, for if they were REALLY with us, they wouldn’t have left. They were not true believers. Their leaving just shows that to be true. People have left the church for many reasons that they feel justify their decision. ‘the church is full of hypocrites, the church has hurt me in some way, the church doesn’t live up to my expectations, the church is too restricting on my life-style, the church is too judgmental, the church is…’ you get the idea.
The truth is, the church is filled with people who have flaws, who make mistakes, who don’t all like the same music, who are not perfect. But what we have is the wonderful grace and love of God that helps us to forgive one another, that helps us to appreciate each other’s differences, and accepts that we are all on a journey in learning about God together. It’s not my or the highway, it is GOD’S WAY AND NO OTHER WAY!
We who are followers of Christ have a special gift, a special anointing. We know the truth, and that Truth is Jesus Christ. To deny that Jesus is the head of this church, of every church, is to deny that He is God. For Christ and the Father are one and the same, as Jesus himself told us in John 10:30, ‘I and the Father are one.’ And that anointing allows us to understand God’s teaching in a way that folks who don’t know God just can’t seem to understand.
John says in verse 27 that this anointing allows us to not NEED someone to teach us about all things. Does that mean we don’t need to come to church and listen to me or someone else give a sermon? Does that mean we don’t need to come together in home groups and discuss the bible? Does it mean we can live the Christian life all alone? I don’t think so! What he is saying is that we, as true believers, have the ability to understand the scriptures, and can learn from the Holy Spirit truths that will lead us to eternal life. Truth that will show the spirit of antichrist as false, and truth that will set us free!
But there is one key to all of that though, and that is that we MUST remain in Him. We’ve got to stick to it, and not walk away when we feel like we don’t want to do church anymore. When we feel uncomfortable or confused, we are not to turn away, but realize that perhaps God is trying to speak to us, trying to teach us, trying to change us more and more into the image of Christ.
So what can we take from this passage today? Here are some quick thoughts:
1) Watch the clock. Time on this earth is running out. Christ WILL return. Watch the signs, be ready, don’t miss what He has for you in these last days, and hours.
2) Read the Bible. I can never stress enough how deeply important it is to know the word of God. It is life, it is instruction, it is the final word, it is God revealing Himself to us, and it is what allows us to know the truth from lies. It must be part of every day we live. To not read it is to go to war unarmed. And we are in a war, a war against truth and morals, against mercy and grace, and against everything that the Word stands for. The Bible has been taken out of our schools, it has been outlawed in many nations, how long until it is restricted further here in Canada? Read it and memorize it. For there may come days when it is all we have.
3) Don’t give up on the church. This is God’s church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it, though they will try. The church is the bride of Christ. He loves it, He loves us. We come here to be loved and accepted, despite all our mistakes, and flaws, and shortcomings, the church is where we can be forgiven and set free. This is where the community needs to know that they are loved, no matter who they are, no matter where they come from, no matter what. Yeah, we may not be the biggest, we may not have all the big programs, but we have the Spirit of God, and that is enough to get us from here to wherever God intends to take us, amen? Dream big. God is able to do more than we could ever ask or imagine. Trust Him, serve Him, love Him, love and serve those around you, showing them that God is alive and well in your life, and in this church!
