Abide in Him — 1 John 2

0:00 The message today is, the part that I'm assigned is one John two verse 18 to the end of the chapter. Before I get into verse 18, I want to review the four verses or so verse, before 18. I'll go back to the fourteenth verse just for continuity, so we'll pick up the flow. The fourteenth verse, just halfway through the verse, it talks about the young men. I wanna pick it up right there.

0:31 I've I've written to you young men because you are strong and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one. So in this portion, in addressing the young men, it first of all speaks of the resource that the young men have, it's the word of God, and then it says that you're strong, so I'm thinking that it simply means because you've been in the word, you've allowed the word to have a place in your heart, you've become spiritually strong, and the result is that you've overcome the wicked one. So it introduces the wicked one, the enemy of our souls, Satan. So we have the enemy, and we have God's resource to be able to meet and grapple with the enemy. Then immediately after that, it goes into the subject of the world, which is an alien place, a place where the enemy has the rule, so it introduces the enemy and then it's gonna introduce the kingdom of the enemy, the place where he works and the place where we actually live.

1:54 And so it introduces the world. We're told later on in the first epistle of John that the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one, that is the whole world is under the influence of the wicked one, and we're told elsewhere in scripture that Satan is the ruler of this world, and that he's the god of this world, and we get the idea that that's his kingdom out there, the world. It's a place where the Christian will be under attack. Now the first thing it says about the world is it says don't love the world, and it says if you love the world, the love of the Father is not in you. It seems to be implying simply that there's not room in the heart of man to have love for the world and love for the Lord, and love for the Father at the same time.

2:56 So it's either gonna be one or it's going to be the other. And I think if we would go back in our experience, we would find that that's exactly right, that whenever we kind of get our eyes or our priorities in this world, we find out that there's a sort of a spiritual vacuum there, and so that's the first direction. Then having introduced that warning, he proceeds to give them an idea of how Satan actually attacks us, because we know that it's through our own lust that Satan has, shall we say, an end into our lives, it's through the temptations through lust, and so it goes through the three basic temptations, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. So the lust of the flesh, the physical desires, perhaps we could say the lust of the flesh is sort of the worship of experience, and then the lust of the eyes, basically covetousness, the desire for material things of this world, maybe the worship of the material, and then finally the pride of life. We all understand a little bit of the pride of life.

4:13 Sure, sure, the Lord works with us to help us to judge the pride that's in us, but it's there, and it wells up pretty quickly. And so those are the three things, perhaps you could call the pride of life the worship of self. Anyway, he he he sort of gives us this little overview of the world and and this is what you gotta watch out for. Here's here's the way Satan does it. Then finally, he says, the world is passing away and the lust of it, but he who does the will of God abides forever.

6:15 They went out from us, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us. But they went out that they might be made manifest that none of them were of us. But you have an anointing from the holy one, and you know all things. I've 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?

6:47 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. Therefore, let that abide in you which you have heard from the beginning. If that which you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.

7:12 And this is the promise that he has promised us, eternal life. 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 that same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, just as it has taught you, you will abide in him. 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. So in summary, he's introducing to us the fact that there are many false teachers called Antichrist that have come into their midst, and they're already there, they're already there, and that they're teaching that which will undermine their faith, the believer's faith, the family of God's faith, and then he introduces them to the fact that they have some resources to be able to overcome against this incoming bad doctrine, and those resources are the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.

8:48 And so we have the two resources, and he takes time to detail out what the actual false doctrine is, and then finally at the end of the chapter he says, now little children, abide in him. Do it. Do it. And so we'll go back to the eighteenth verse. Little children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come by which we know that it is the last hour.

10:07 I believe the answer is this, that God simply doesn't look at time the way that you and I look at time. And so I'm gonna turn back, it's just one page back in my bible, it's two Peter chapter three and verse eight, and it says this, it says, Beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as a day. What a wonderful description of how God looks at time. God is just simply God, and he looks at it different from us. But then we have to say, but it's still us, so why would God say that?

10:51 Why would God have John say it that way? It's the last hour. And I think this could be the idea. It's simply that God wants you and me to look at it the way he looks at it. He's not saying gonna go and look at it the way you're looking at it.

11:11 He says I want you to look at it the way I look at it. And so here's our God that can look ahead two thousand years and see something. He says I want you to look at it as something that you would anticipate right now. Now God knows that you and I can't bridge two thousand years, so for the early disciples, God didn't tell them, hey, don't worry about this, I want you to be expectantly waiting for me to come, but it will be a little while, just two thousand years. God knew very good and well that you and I would not be able to cope with two thousand years, and so God just said, no, I'm not gonna tell you how long it's gonna be, I want you to look at it this way.

11:54 I want you to look at it as though you're in the last hour. The Lord could come any time, and I want you to grapple with it in that way. I want you to lay hold of the fact that he's coming, and he's coming again. And kind of in that vein, when you go to the very end of the book of Revelation, you find the Lord Jesus, and he says, surely I'm coming quickly. And and then then we go through this same little logical problem of, but that's two thousand years.

12:27 Is that quickly? And say, in God's eyes it is. And and and God refused to let John or the apostles understand that it would be, that there would be this long extended time because he knew they couldn't grapple with it. Instead he said, I want you to have this attitude that you're at the last hour. He might come anytime.

12:48 And so, then he, in eighteenth verse, he says, and this is how you know it's the last hour, he said, because there's many antichrist in the world. Now, now he's, I believe what he's saying is, and he has just said, you've heard that Antichrist will come. Oh, I'm not gonna get into the description of prophecy, I myself identify the Antichrist as the false prophet of Revelation, the second beast of Revelation 13, the false prophet of Revelation, the end of Revelation 19. You can look that up and work it out yourself, but the idea is that there is this prophetic figure that's coming, and he's associated with the great tribulation, and he's anti Christ, he's against Christ, he's against all that Christ stands for, and so John introduces him sort of by the way, and then he says, but by the way, there are many Antichrist already here, and that's how you can know that it's the last hour. That is the moral environment or the evil spiritual environment that will be at the last hour was already existent at the time that John was writing his epistle here, and so he could say, you can know that it's the last hour because look at the condition of things, look at what's being taught out there, look, the Antichrist are already there, and so you can look at it and lay hold of the fact that it's the last hour, it's going to be just like it will at the end.

14:48 Now having introduced us to that, he makes this statement in the nineteenth verse. They went out from us, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would not have continued with us. But they went out that they might be made manifest that none of them were of us. Now, this seems to be saying that, or the point of the verse is that God would somehow clarify that these men were false teachers, they would not be able to remain amongst them, and so they would go out from them, and that would be the final proof that they weren't true. There's another way of taking this verse which I was kind of gratified by, and that is that when he says they went out from us, that he's the apostle, right?

15:48 He's talking, and the idea being that they departed from us, the apostles, in their doctrine. They went out from us, but they were not of us, you can tell by their teaching. If they had been of us, if they had been of the apostolic doctrine, they would have continued in what we have taught, but they went out that it might be manifested that none of them were of us. So the final damning evidence of the character of these false teachers was the doctrine that they had taught, that was all in in in conflict with what the apostles had given. I I like that because it is patently clear that that the the final evidence that they were false teachers and liars, that they were deceivers, was that they were contradicting the apostolic doctrine of God, of the deity.

16:56 So they were attacking Jesus as the Messiah, they were attacking all these things, and the patent proof that they were not of God was that they were undermining the very foundational doctrines of Christianity. Okay, in the twentieth and the twenty first verses, he's going to say, now just remember, you've been given some resources by which you can defend yourselves, shall we say, from these false teachers, and so what are the resources? Verse 20, but you have an anointing from the holy one, and you know all things. I have not written unto you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Then I'm gonna skip a couple of verses, and we'll come back to them.

18:28 And this is the promise that he has promised to us, eternal life. These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. Okay, the first of these resources to be able to stand against the false doctrine was they were given the Holy Spirit. Now, we know from the rest of the Scripture part of the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, we're born of the Spirit, that's John chapter three, we're sealed by the spirit, that's Ephesians one thirteen, and the spirit is the one that, the holy spirit is the one that indwells us, and so this is the doctrine, this is what he's referring to. I thought it was kind of interesting, I said okay, going to look up verses for each of these and try, that I came up with about five or six verses that talked about the spirit of God dwelling in us, the indwelling of the holy spirit.

19:36 The one I came up with to read is first Corinthians three sixteen, I'll just read that one. The indwelling of the holy spirit. First Corinthians three sixteen. Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the spirit of God dwells in you? It's the spirit of God dwelling in us.

20:03 There are other verses that bring out the same idea, possibly even more clearly than that one. But, so we understand this, when the Lord Jesus was here, he talked about the Holy Spirit, this is in the upper room ministry, and he told them that the Holy Spirit is a helper, it's a teacher, the Holy Spirit is a guide, the Holy Spirit is a convictor, and so the Holy Spirit is shall we say at your service, the Holy Spirit is indwelling you, it's right there and helping you. I don't think I mentioned that, did I? The helper. The holy spirit is the helper, and and so he he he's he's a tremendous resource.

20:55 Now, now, we wanna say that the Holy Spirit by and large works through bringing the word of God to our attention. By, I'll say it like this, by popping up verses that we have read and perhaps taken time to meditate on them, popping them up in our minds so that some way we have that answer suddenly concerning the doctrine that is being attacked through our spiritual enemy, Satan. And so, the Holy Spirit is our great resource. The other thing that I would like to mention specifically about the Holy Spirit is this, that we have understanding through the Holy Spirit, and I think that may be the sense of which it says you know all things. I don't think it says you know all things in the absolute sense of knowing all things, certainly don't have a sense that I know all things, but well, maybe sometimes I do, I shouldn't, okay.

22:12 The fact is that we have one who's capable of giving us the understanding so that we'll be able to discern in that sense, the knowledge of all to be able to discern through the Holy Spirit. He's there, he's our great helper. I thank God for his provision. Now the other resource that he gives, perhaps it's referred to by, I haven't written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Believe that this knowledge, I know it's immediately following the verse on the Holy Spirit, but I believe that it actually has more actual reference to the word of God, and that...

23:03 And like I like I had mentioned that that practically how does the Holy Spirit do it is that I... He just sort of pops up verses that that we've already spent time and looked at and studied and enjoyed or meditated upon, He brings them to mind so that we do have the answers. Well, those things that He brings to mind are I believe is referred to in the twenty first verse, I have not written unto you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. And then popping down to the twenty fourth verse again, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning, that's the word of God I believe it's a reference to, the word of God, that which you, if that which, if what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you will abide in the son and in the father. So a great resource.

23:53 Now now, another good verse to bring in at this moment is the first one that I mentioned, is the fourteenth verse, and it says about the young men, you're strong, you're strong, the word of God abides in you. You're strong, the word of... So it's it's our grand resource. I love the the verse in Hebrews four twelve. The word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two edged sword.

24:27 So it's our great resource for discernment, the word of God. Okay. So those are our two resources. We we know we have the great enemy, we have the world, which is sort of his kingdom, we have his his his men, the false prophet, the false teachers, the the antichrist, we have his men coming against us as enemies, and and we have these resources given to us by God, the holy spirit and the word of God to to be able to battle the enemy. Now what I have in mind at this point is to say, now what is the character of this attack that the enemy is making upon us?

25:48 So the very first major deceptive doctrine that these antichrists bring out is that they're saying that Jesus is not the Christ. Who is a liar but he that denies that Jesus is the Christ? Now of course, we understand that the word Christ is simply the Greek word for Messiah, so we can understand that, that it's simply the Greek word. It's interesting, interesting little trivia, piece of trivia knowledge, and that is that in the Septuagint, which was the old Greek translation of the Old Testament, actually made before the time of Christ, that in the Septuagint, the in the Old Testament, the word in the Old Testament for Messiah is translated Christ, So this was even before Christ came. So it's kind of interesting that he was already named as Christ before before he actually came onto the scene.

26:48 Now now it's interesting that this doctrine of denying that Jesus is the Messiah is is branded as a lie. They're liars. You know, it's like you point the finger right on, they're liars, you know, and and it's just kinda, it's interesting that that one specifically has said liars, liars. Why then would God select that one and say liars to it? And I believe, what at least struck me was this, that in God's revelation to man, through the Old Testament and New Testament, in the Old Testament, God made numerous references to a Messiah that was to come.

27:33 Gave a tremendous amount of detail, actually. Some have have been able to count 300 or even more actual references to the Messiah in the Old Testament. Then when we come to the New Testament, to the Gospels, and it starts talking about Jesus, it'll go along and it says, and it'll tell something that happened, then it'll say, oh, this was a fulfillment of that prophecy, and it'll list some prophecy by Jeremiah or Isaiah, or one of the prophets, you know, and and and then it'll go along, and then you'll hit another one. And and the gospels are simply peppered full of these of these references back to to make sure that we understand that God has built a case for Jesus being the Christ. And that is so such a basic part of the scriptures themselves that God would look in wrath, those that would tempt to contradict it and say liars, know, he would point right at them.

28:39 So what are some of those prophecies? So, probably the first one that pops in mind if you go into the Gospel of Matthew, he's said to be a descendant of both Abraham and David, and he was. He's said to be a descendant, or rather he's said to be born of a virgin, and he was. He is said to be born in a place called Bethlehem, and he was. It's interesting that as the Lord Jesus was coming into Jerusalem, we're talking about the the Palm Sunday thing, it was it was said ahead of time that that this Messiah would come into Jerusalem riding on a donkey in a colt, the foal of the donkey.

29:36 And so we get it laid out in some detail in, I think in three of the gospels, that it tells how the Lord Jesus said, go get that donkey and bring it here. So they go get the donkey and bring it, and the Lord comes riding into Jerusalem in a donkey, and fulfilling perfectly the prophecy. Now someone could say, well, of course he knew that prophecy, so he just did it so. And that's actually partly true in that case, but there are so many of them that he wouldn't have any control as a man over, for instance, he wouldn't have any control over the fact that Judas Iscariot would go and make an agreement to betray him for 30 pieces of silver, and yet, over there in the book of Zechariah lays it right out and says that he would be, that 30 pieces of silver would be given for a burial place, I believe the Potter's Field is mentioned, such detail is given, He is the Messiah, and those that deny it are simply liars. So that's the first doctrine.

31:35 That kind of smacks to me of the denial of the Trinity. Maybe we could look at those two doctrines and just see how clearly God has brought them both out. So the first one we'll hit is the doctrine of the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Okay, so for instance, this is one that is under attack by the Jehovah's Witness, and I know I've had a number of conversations with them, and they're willing to say Jesus was the son of God, but if you say, well, but Jesus himself was God, he was God the son, woah, woah, wait a second, they would say, not that's not right. So they are denying the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ.

32:34 Well, well, that's the spirit of antichrist. That's what that is. And and so the first verse I'd like us to look at is is Hebrews chapter one and verse eight. If you would turn with me to Hebrews one eight. I like this one because I know I've done some struggling through various verses, it seems like some way or another they're able to find a loophole, some way of misinterpreting a verse and taking it in some other way, and not understanding that it's airtight, that he is God the Son.

33:24 And so I finally came to this verse, Hebrews one eight, and I said I don't see how anybody can get around this one. It says, but to the son, he says, your throne, o God, is forever and ever. A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom. So so here here is here is God the father talking to the son, and and he says, he said, to the Son, he says, your throne, oh God. He calls him God.

33:53 That's pretty airtight, I believe. Now now another one that's that's really very excellent is the gospel of John, the first verse in the gospel of John. I'll just read the verse for you. In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. And so, particularly the last part where it says the word was God.

34:19 It doesn't say, it doesn't put an article in front of God, it doesn't say the word was a God, it doesn't say the word was the God, it leaves the article off completely, and so what it is saying is the word was God in essence, that's what it was its essence, It was God. So this is good, a good verse to remember because it brings out the Lord Jesus as being God himself. Yes, he's the son of God, but he's more than just the son of God, he is God, He's God himself. Does it beautifully. And then if we go down two more verses, in the beginning, he was in the beginning with God, and then the third verse, all things were made through him, without him nothing was made that was made.

35:15 So the Lord Jesus is presented as the very creator himself, and we know that the scriptures themselves start off with this wonderful verse, in the beginning, God created the heavens and earth, and guess who it was? It was our precious savior, the Lord Jesus himself, that was the great creator. And if anyone has any doubts, say oh this is just one verse, then we can look in Colossians one and in Hebrews one, and we find out that it repeats this claim concerning the Lord Jesus, that he is the creator. Our Lord Jesus is God the son, he is deity, and how clearly the scripture actually brings it out. Now the second thing, I'm not completely clear this is exactly what they were fighting against, but I know that often a misunderstanding in the doctrine of God, doctrine of what God is, is the idea that there is a trinity.

36:20 And I'd just like to run through about four or five verses real quickly. The first verse is the one I quoted already, in the beginning God created the heavens and earth, and I'm not a Hebrew scholar, but I do have books I can look it up in, so the word God is Elohim. It's an interesting word because it's a plural word. Isn't it interesting that it's talking about God, and yet it uses a plural word to refer to God? I think that's fascinating.

36:55 Then if you will turn with me to Deuteronomy chapter six and verse four. We have this verse, Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Here, O Israel, I believe it's called the Shama, Shama, isn't it? Something like that, called the Shama, it's much quoted by the Jewish people. Here, O Israel, the Lord our God is one.

37:34 Now the word God here again is Elohim, it's a plural word, interesting that it's referring to God with a plural word, and then then it says the Lord is one, you say, well how how can plural be one? And so the answer is that this word for one is a word, I've written it down here if I can read my own writing, it's Echad, e c h a d. It's a it's a Hebrew word, and it doesn't mean the the number one. It doesn't mean God is one, the number one. It means that God is is is a unity.

38:20 Let me try to... Well, actually the best example of what that really means is is found in in Genesis two twenty four, and it's talking about the man and the woman, and I think this is a real clincher of what, of showing us what God really intends. This is the real clincher. It says, of one flesh he made, well, I'm gonna have to read it. Hebrews, or rather Genesis chapter two and verse 24.

38:52 Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Okay, so now are we saying that my wife and I are no longer individuals, and I think if you were around our house, you'd see we're very much individuals, but God has said that he's made us one flesh, he's joined joined us together as one, and it's the exact same word that's used in the Shama, it's the exactly same word for one, and so we say, oh, so we have the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and they are made into one God, somewhere in eternity. They're one God, okay, that helps us to understand the trinity. I'm running out of time, so I'm going to tell you what some verses say and give you the reference and keep moving, okay? So the next thing to try to establish the trinity is to realize that all three of them are called God, and so and so we find that that the father is God, Ephesians four six, you can look it up in your leisure, Ephesians four six, the father is called God.

40:12 We've already read Hebrews one eight, the son is called God, and in Acts five, three, and four, it's the story of Ananias and Sapphira, the Holy Spirit is referred to as God, and so all three are God, they're individuals, the individual persons of the trinity are individuals, they're described in this way, that at the time of the Lord Jesus' baptism, God the Father spoke in an audible voice from heaven, and and and as he spoke that verse, that... With that voice from heaven, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven in a visible form of of a dove. He comes down and lights on the Lord Jesus, who's in his physical body, has just been baptized by John the Baptist. So there there are three individuals, and they are joined in one as God, the Elohim. Okay, so that deals with the doctrine of the trinity.

42:51 John one verse 14, and the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the father, full of grace and truth. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. How important is this doctrine? How important is this doctrine? Well, it's dreadfully important, and so I know that we went through the book of Hebrews recently, and I had the pleasure of speaking on the second chapter of Hebrews, and I took up the theme that I found in the second chapter of Hebrews, it's kind of a theme, I found at least six different reasons stated why the Lord Jesus actually came and took on the body of a man.

43:47 And so let's turn to Hebrews chapter two, and I'm going to read two verses out of Hebrews chapter two to of clinch this idea. Okay, the first verse is verse nine, but we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that he by the grace of God might taste death for everyone. So if the Lord Jesus did not come and take on flesh, take on a literal physical body, then he couldn't die for our sins. This is critically important. The very foundations of our beliefs in Christianity are being attacked by this doctrine.

44:43 And and so so then the... Another really good verse further down, verse 14. In as much then as the children are partake... Have partaken of flesh and blood. Oh, that's...

44:57 We're talking about this issue, aren't we? The the the the the partaking of flesh and blood. In as much then as the children have partaken of of flesh and blood, he himself, Jesus, likewise shared in the same, that through death he might destroy him who has the power of death and and, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. I'm so happy Jesus came in the flesh and died for our sin. Aren't you?

45:31 Now, now, the doctrine that they're actually attacking was called Gnosticism, that was the doctrine, and it was rampant at that time. I'm going to do is I'm read one paragraph out of MacDonald, and it just describes Gnosticism, and then we'll try to close. At the time John was writing, a false sect had arisen, which became known as Gnosticism. These Gnostics professed to be Christians, but claimed to have additional knowledge superior to that of the Apostles taught. They claimed that a person could not be completely satisfied until they had been initiated into the deeper truths.

46:19 Some taught that matter was evil and therefore a man, Jesus, could not be God. As a man, Jesus could not be God. They made a distinction between Jesus and the Christ. The Christ was a divine emanation which came upon Jesus, that is baptism, and left before his death perhaps the Garden Of Gethsemane. According to them, Jesus did die, but the Christ did not die.

46:43 In short, they denied the incarnation, that Jesus is Christ and that Jesus Christ is both God and man. John realized that these people were not true Christians, and so he warned the readers against them by showing that the Gnostics did not have the marks of the true children of God. So that completes the study of those four different doctrinal departures. Now the final word, just wanna jump ahead to it is, now little children, abide in me. So we've understood that we have a great enemy, the world is a dangerous place, but Jesus Christ is is, and and there's false prophets out there, but but now the the exhortation to us is to to keep in the word and keep in the spirit and and to be overcomers against the false doctrines that are brought.

48:07 We thank you that there is a trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We thank you that the Lord Jesus did indeed come in the flesh and died for our sins. Thank you, father, for your blessings upon us. In Jesus name, amen.