Beware of the Antichrists

Text: 1 John 2:18–27
Series: Sermons 2001 Rewritten
Date:
Speaker: Ed Rangel
Location: Waupaca Church of Christ
Bible Version: NASB 1995
Sermon Type: Expository

Learning Objectives

1. Explain how John uses the term “antichrist” in 1 John and 2 John.
2. Distinguish the biblical teaching about antichrists from popular end-times speculation.
3. Show that antichrist teaching was already present in John’s day.
4. Identify the doctrinal marks of antichrist error: denying the Son, rejecting apostolic truth, and deceiving Christians.
5. Call Christians to abide in the truth heard from the beginning and reject every doctrine that opposes Christ.

Thesis

John does not point the church to a future headline figure but warns that many antichrists had already arisen, and the only safe response is to abide in the apostolic truth concerning Jesus Christ.

Introduction.

1. Few subjects have been abused like the subject of the antichrist. a. Popular religion turns it into prophecy charts. b. Denominational teachers tie it to political fear. c. Speculation about 666, Armageddon, and a future earthly kingdom often gets dragged into the discussion.
2. John writes differently. a. He does not tell Christians to search the newspapers. b. He does not build a future timeline. c. He tells them many antichrists had already arisen.
3. First John 2:18 says, “Children, it is the last hour.” a. John writes to Christians in his own day. b. He says they had heard antichrist was coming. c. He then says, “even now many antichrists have appeared.”
4. The question must be answered from Scripture. a. Who were these antichrists? b. What did they teach? c. How were Christians to avoid being deceived? d. How do we resist antichrist teaching today?
5. The danger is not a monster from a movie. a. The danger is religious error that opposes Christ. b. The danger is deception wearing spiritual language. c. The danger is leaving apostolic truth while still claiming to belong to God.

I. John Teaches That Many Antichrists Had Already Arisen.

A. The term “antichrist” belongs especially to John’s writings.

1. First John 2:18 uses the word twice. a. John says they had heard antichrist was coming. b. John says many antichrists had already arisen. c. John says this showed it was the last hour.
2. First John 2:22 identifies the antichrist. a. “Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ?” b. “This is the antichrist.” c. The denial concerns the Father and the Son.
3. First John 4:3 speaks of the spirit of the antichrist. a. Every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. b. The spirit of the antichrist was coming. c. John says it was already in the world.

B. Second John confirms the same doctrine.

1. Second John 7 says many deceivers had gone out into the world. a. They did not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. b. John calls this person the deceiver. c. John also calls him the antichrist.
2. The issue is Christological. a. They denied the truth about Jesus. b. They attacked His identity. c. They rejected the doctrine necessary to salvation.
3. The issue is not merely bad manners or minor confusion. a. To deny the Son is to lose the Father. b. To corrupt the doctrine of Christ is to stand against Christ. c. To deceive Christians about Jesus is antichrist work.

C. John’s warning corrects modern speculation.

1. John does not describe one future world ruler as the main burden of the text. a. He says many antichrists had already appeared. b. He says they had gone out. c. He says they were trying to deceive the saints.
2. Popular premillennial systems often move the discussion away from John’s point. a. They focus on one future villain. b. They connect the antichrist to postponed-kingdom theories. c. They often ignore John’s immediate warning to the church.
3. Scripture must control the subject. a. Let John define the term. b. Let John identify the danger. c. Let John tell the church how to respond.

II. The Antichrists Departed from Apostolic Truth.

A. They went out from the apostolic fellowship.

1. First John 2:19 says, “They went out from us.” a. These were not harmless outsiders with no connection to the church. b. They had some association with the people of God. c. Their departure revealed their true condition.
2. John says they were not really of us. a. If they had been of us, they would have remained. b. Their going out exposed them. c. Departure from apostolic truth proved they were not faithful brethren.
3. This was not merely a change of location. a. They went out doctrinally. b. They went out spiritually. c. They went out from the truth once delivered.

B. They rejected the authority of Christ’s messengers.

1. John 13:20 records Jesus saying, “He who receives whomever I send receives Me.” a. To reject Christ’s apostles is to reject Christ. b. Apostolic authority is not optional. c. Their message carried the authority of the Lord who sent them.
2. First John 4:6 says, “We are from God.” a. The one who knows God listens to the apostles. b. The one who is not from God does not listen to them. c. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
3. Antichrist doctrine refuses apostolic boundaries. a. It may use religious language. b. It may claim deeper insight. c. It does not abide in the doctrine Christ delivered through His apostles.

C. The same pattern still appears.

1. Some begin among Christians and later resist the word. a. They once seemed to stand with the truth. b. They begin to loosen doctrine. c. They eventually lead others away.
2. The outward appearance may look ordinary. a. Antichrist error does not always look wild at first. b. It may sound educated. c. It may sound loving, enlightened, or spiritual.
3. The test is doctrine. a. Does it confess the true Christ? b. Does it abide in apostolic teaching? c. Does it submit to the written word?

III. The Antichrists Denied the Truth About Jesus Christ.

A. John identifies the central lie.

1. First John 2:22 says the liar denies that Jesus is the Christ. a. Jesus is not merely a religious teacher. b. Jesus is not merely an example. c. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
2. John says the one who denies the Son does not have the Father. a. A man cannot reject the Son and keep the Father. b. A man cannot claim God while denying Christ. c. The Father and Son cannot be separated by false doctrine.
3. First John 2:23 says the one who confesses the Son has the Father also. a. Confession of Christ matters. b. Doctrine about Christ matters. c. Eternal life is tied to the true Son, not an invented Jesus.

B. John also confronts denial of Christ coming in the flesh.

1. Second John 7 says deceivers did not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. a. This error attacked the incarnation. b. It denied the real humanity of Jesus. c. It undermined the real suffering and saving work of Christ.
2. First John 4:2 says every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God. a. The confession is not empty wording. b. It is a doctrinal confession about the real Christ. c. God’s truth identifies Jesus as truly come in the flesh.
3. This mattered because the gospel depends on the real Christ. a. If Jesus did not truly come, He did not truly suffer. b. If He did not truly suffer, He did not truly die for sins. c. If He did not truly rise, Christian faith collapses.

C. The Old Testament had pointed to the true Christ.

1. Isaiah 53 speaks of the suffering servant. a. He was pierced through for our transgressions. b. He was crushed for our iniquities. c. The LORD caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.
2. Psalm 16 points to resurrection hope. a. God would not abandon His Holy One to decay. b. Peter uses this text in Acts 2 to preach the resurrection of Christ. c. The Christ had to be both crucified and raised.
3. John’s doctrine of Christ is not optional. a. It fulfills God’s revealed plan. b. It stands at the center of salvation. c. Denying it is not a secondary mistake.

IV. Christians Must Abide in the Truth and Refuse Deception.

A. John tells Christians to let the original message abide in them.

1. First John 2:24 says, “As for you, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning.” a. They did not need a newer gospel. b. They did not need secret doctrine. c. They needed to remain in what they had already received.
2. If the original message abides in them, they will abide in the Son and the Father. a. Fellowship with God is tied to abiding in truth. b. No man remains in Christ by leaving Christ’s doctrine. c. Doctrine and fellowship cannot be separated.
3. The promise is eternal life. a. First John 2:25 says this is the promise. b. Eternal life is not promised to those who abandon Christ. c. Eternal life belongs to those who abide.

B. John writes because deceivers were active.

1. First John 2:26 says, “These things I have written to you concerning those who are trying to deceive you.” a. Deception was not theoretical. b. Deceivers were trying to influence Christians. c. The church had to be warned.
2. Satan has always used religious deception. a. Genesis 3 shows the serpent twisting God’s word. b. Second Corinthians 11:3 warns that minds can be led astray from sincere devotion to Christ. c. Error often comes as a religious alternative, not open atheism.
3. Christians must not be naïve. a. Test the message. b. Test the teacher. c. Test the doctrine by Scripture.

C. Christians today must abide in Scripture.

1. We do not rely on a continuing miraculous anointing to replace the written word. a. John’s readers had an anointing connected with the truth revealed in that apostolic age. b. The completed Scriptures now equip the man of God for every good work. c. Second Timothy 3:16–17 gives us the sufficient written word.
2. Jude 3 says the faith was once for all delivered to the saints. a. The faith does not need revision. b. The faith does not need modern additions. c. The faith must be defended.
3. Romans 1:16 says the gospel is God’s power for salvation. a. Not speculation. b. Not prophecy charts. c. Not emotional claims. d. The gospel.

Application.

1. For the Christian. a. Do not let the word “antichrist” be defined by movies, charts, or denominational speculation. b. Let John define it. c. Anyone who opposes the truth about Christ stands in antichrist error.
2. For the church. a. Test every teacher by apostolic doctrine. b. Do not be impressed by confidence, novelty, or religious popularity. c. Abide in what was heard from the beginning.
3. For parents and teachers. a. Teach children the true identity of Jesus. b. Teach them why doctrine about Christ matters. c. Do not raise them on sensational prophecy theories while leaving them weak on the gospel.
4. For the deceived. a. If you have followed a doctrine that denies Christ, corrupts His word, or leaves apostolic truth, repent. b. Come back to the Scripture. c. No one has the Father while rejecting the Son.

Conclusion.

1. John says many antichrists had already arisen. a. The danger was present in his own day. b. The danger was doctrinal. c. The danger was tied to denying the Son and deceiving Christians.
2. John does not send us into speculation. a. He sends us back to the truth. b. He sends us back to what was heard from the beginning. c. He tells us to abide.
3. The same warning still stands. a. Do not follow those who deny the true Christ. b. Do not follow those who reject apostolic doctrine. c. Do not follow those who go beyond Scripture and still claim God.
4. Beware of the antichrists. a. Not because we are afraid. b. Not because we chase rumors. c. Because the Holy Spirit warned the church through John.

Invitation.

1. Hear the word. a. Romans 10:17 says faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
2. Believe Christ. a. John 8:24 warns that unless you believe that Jesus is He, you will die in your sins.
3. Repent. a. Acts 17:30 says God commands all people everywhere to repent.
4. Confess Christ. a. Romans 10:9–10 teaches confession with the mouth and belief in the heart.
5. Be baptized for the remission of sins. a. Acts 2:38 commands repentance and baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins.
6. Live faithfully. a. Revelation 2:10 calls the Christian to be faithful until death.
7. Abide in the Son. a. Do not obey the gospel and then drift into error. b. Do not confess Christ and later deny Him by doctrine or life. c. Remain in the truth that was revealed from the beginning.

Word Study.

Scripture Interlock Table.