I John  - Chapter 2


In chapter one, the Apostle Paul was direct in stating who was and who was not a true believer in Jesus Christ.  He was careful to point out that those of the cultic belief in Docetism who had entered into the church were liars, who believed Jesus did not come in the flesh, and that they did not sin.  He boldly proclaimed that the truth of Jesus was not in them. 

As we enter into chapter 2, the apostle now addresses those who are true believers of various spiritual maturity levels.  It is these believers whom he calls his little children. 

Jesus is our Propitiation

1. My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.

The Apostle John is addressing his congregations in Asia Minor as a pastor and an elder, calling them "my little children," pleading for them to avoid sin at all cost.  He begins by giving warnings to the churches saying: "We all sin because we were born with a sin nature.  We will sin - that is inevitable.  Our efforts, however, need to be to avoid sin as much as we are able."  We will sin from time to time, and when we do, the Word of God tells us that we have Jesus as our "propitiation" and our "advocate" (someone to speak on our behalf) to God - the godhead (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that lives within us). 

As true believers in Jesus, it began by believing and proclaiming Jesus is God, yet He is God's Son Who paid the price for our sins. He became our "propitiation" and paid the price for our sins.  God then rose Jesus from the dead.  Through our faith in Him, He then became our Savior and Lord.  When that happened, we were given the indwelling Holy Spirit so that we can have fellowship with God.  Thus our walk with God began.

Jesus died not only for you and me as believers, Jesus died for the whole world.  The world, however, either denies or does not recognize Jesus as that propitiation for our sinful lives; therefore, does not and cannot have a relationship and fellowship with the godhead.  It goes beyond the world's human reasoning that God is satisfied with the blood sacrifice His Son Jesus has made for the salvation of mankind.

The Test of Knowing Christ

3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

It is easy for the world to distinquish a believer from a non-believer in Jesus Christ.  Aside from having an inward heartfelt belief in Jesus as the Christ and all that He has done for our sins, having had confessing that belief - it is our lifestyle that gives us away.  The question to ask ourselves then is:  "Do we truly purpose to follow the commands of Christ?  Do we want to lead a righteous life - a life like Jesus livehd while on this earth?"  If our heart is to please Christ in all we do and say, our lifestyle will automatically give us away.  As was brought out in chapter 1, we will know a person by the fruit in their life (Matt 7:16).

   
Personal Application:  We can say we know Christ all we want, pretending to  be religious, keeping all the laws and doctrines of the church, but if we haven't taken that first step in believing who Jesus is and what He has done for us, being more concerned with following rules than by living a righteous life in Christ,  we are deceiving ourselves.  Leading a righteous Christian life isn't something we have to do, it is something we want to do.  We love Him and we know living a righteous life pleases our Lord.

Jesus was very specific when He gave His instruction to love God above all else, and then love your neighbor as yourself. Luke 10:27.  The Bible tells us that the world will know us by our love. John 13:35.  Again, our lifestyles give us away and the heart and lifestyle will come together as one.  

On the other hand, there are also some who claim to be believers in Christ, but practice what is considered "greasy grace," allowing carnal fleshly living to rule over their lives.  In reality, they don't live any different than those of the world.  Both are wrong in the eyes of God because belief and righteous living go hand in hand. 

To those who keep the commands of the Word of God, they demonstrate to the world that they love God and that they love others.  As such, the world will spot a true believer because of his or her righteous living.  Loving God and loving others will be demonstrated through their lives.   

7 Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. 8 Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. 9 He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. 10 He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11 But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

The apostle is driving in the point that belief and action work together.  The Apostle James told us the same thing in James 2:17-18.  One without the other is dead and useless.  You cannot have one without the other.  The Apostle John does, however, point out strongly an additional point - how we treat our brothers and sisters in the Lord is also indicative of our love for Christ and our love for righteous living.  In other words, we are to love God with all of our soul and strength and love others - especially those of the household of faith as much as we love ourselves.  If we say we are walking in the light of the Word of God, but hate, or even dislike our brothers and sisters in the Lord, we are living in darkness.  In other words, we are denying our faith in Jesus, because we are commanded to love our brothers and sisters in the Lord.   The reality is when we love God and His Word, we love to be around other like-minded believers.  We think and act alike.  The apostle puts it very strongly to say we are living in darkness and are blind to the things of the Lord when we don't love our fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord.

Personal Application:  While we may struggle liking another believer from time to time, the Bible gives us various instructions in Scripture as how to deal with such a person - one being Matt 18:15-17.  We are not necessarily commanded to like everyone in the Body of Christ, whether through personality differences or conflicts, doctrinal differences, ungodly behavior, or for whatever reason, but we are commanded to love them as a person because they are a child of God. 

Three Spiritual Stages

12 I write to you, little children, Because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.
13 I write to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,Because you have overcome the wicked one.
I write to you, little children, Because you have known the Father.
14 I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you,
And you have overcome the wicked one.

In verses 12-14, the Apostle John is speaking to everyone in the Church, calling them children, with some having matured to young men and then some having matured to being fathers.  While it is possible that these verses could refer to physical age, it is more likely that the Apostle John is speaking of spiritual maturity.  The Apostle John pulls back here to remind the churches that they all already know the basic truth.  In other words, as children of God, they already know God through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, and that their sins are forgiven.  That is basic Christianity. 

As young men, the Word of God already abides in them and they have already learned to overcome Satan and his wicked forces. 

As fathers, they have known God for a very long time - probably from the beginning when Jesus walked the earth.   The apostle was commending and encouraged those in the Church for what they had in Christ and their assurance of eternal life.  On the other hand,  he also warns them about those who would deceive them, and urges them to be vigilant in the development of their faith.   

In theory, the longer one has been a believer, the more mature one "should be;" but sadly, that is seldom the case. There are many "fathers" (older believers) who are still babes in the faith, but because of failure to get to know and follow the Word of God they are still children spiritually.  John's aim, however, is that they overcome the darkness of carnality, that they keep the commandments of God, and that they walk in the light of God's Word.  As such, they will receive fullness of joy, conquer hate, and love each other with a love so real that the world will see it and give glory to God.  John's aim is that the believers will awaken with hope and courage to grab hold of the Word of God and fight against the enemy that wants to keep them in carnality and destroy them. 

John knows that his letter is tough, but filled with hope - the hope of living a victorious life in Christ, filled with love and purpose, and life eternal with God forever.

Do Not Love the World

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

When the Apostle John refers to the world, he is referring to the evils of the world - this world's system.  This world and its system is controlled by Satan. 

The apostle is also referring to the lust of the flesh meaning living by our natural senses - the lust of the eyes, meaning letting the passions of what we may see bring us into sin, and the pride of life, thinking we are above others.  These evil behaviors are of the world, not from the love of God.  The Apostle Paul reminds us that we are not to be conformed to this world's system or the patterns of this world.  Instead, we are to be transformed to the Word of God. Rom. 12:2.

To reiterate what he has previously spoken, to love the world and its sytem and the things in it is NOT loving God.  Again Jesus tells us to love God above all else and love our neighbor as ourself.  To love the world is contrary to what God's Word is telling us.  While this world will one day pass away, and all the evils that go with it, those who do the will of God will live on victoriously forever. 

Deceptions of the Last Hour

18 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. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.

For the past 2000 years, we have been in the last days, and as we draw closer to the final end, we are entering into the last hour, or even the last minute before the end of this age will be finalized.  Throughout these last days they have been many false teachers/anti-christs who have come and gone to deceive not only the Church but the world.  In other words, these false teachers have come out of the Church, pretending to be believers, but instead, they came to deceive.  As such, the Apostle John called them antichrists.  In every generation Satan has planted these anti-christs in the world to deceive.  As we draw to the end of the last days, THE one true antichrist will appear, pretending to come out of the Church, but will not be a true believer.  He will disguise himself at first, but later come out to rule the world with vengeance to ruin and overtake the hearts of men - both in the church and in the world.

Let's look at this scripture passage from the Amplified Version to help understand this further.

I John 2:18-19 AMP  Children, it is the last hour [the end of this age]; and just as you heard that the antichrist is coming [the one who will oppose Christ and attempt to replace Him], even now many antichrists (false teachers) have appeared, which confirms our belief that it is the last hour.  19  They went out from us [seeming at first to be Christians], but they were not really of us [because they were not truly born-again and spiritually transformed; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out [teaching false doctrine], so that it would be clearly shown that none of them are of us.

It was clear that the Apostlle John was calling those who supported Docetism were not only false teachers, but antichrists.  They came into the church claiming to be believers, but in time their true self became evident.

20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. 21 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.

The Apostle John is reminding believers that they each have the anointing of the Holy Spirit living on the inside of them to know truth.  The Holy Spirit, as part of the godhead, knows all things.  Because He lives within you, you are anointed and He tells you what you need to know.  He will never lie to you, but always give you the truth.

22 Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ?  He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. 

Anyone in the Church who denies that Jesus is the Christ is a liar.  Let's again relook at the five points of Christianity and what it means to be a Christian.  The following is what every true Christian believes:

The 5 points of Christianity

1.  Jesus is the Son of God, yet He is God
2.  Jesus came to earth as a human, died on the cross (as a human) for our sins
3.  God raise Jesus from the dead 
4.  Jesus sits at the right-hand of God interceding for His Body - the Church
5.  Jesus is coming very soon to bring His (Body/Church) until Himself to spend eternity with Him

All this to say that to be a true believer in Jesus as the Christ, the above criteria must be in place.  To miss any part of that criteria denies one to be a true believer.  To take away even one point is not true belief in Jesus, therefore a cult.  Docetism denied that Jesus came to earth in the flesh; therefore His death was also not of the flesh.  That is heresy. 

23 Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

Anyone who denies (does not believe in and confess Jesus as the Son of God) does not have God living within him or her, because Jesus is God - they are One.  He who acknowledge Jesus also has the Father because, again, the two are One.  They are inseparable (Jn 10:30).

Let Truth Abide in You

24 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. 25 And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.

"Hang on," the apostle is saying - "hang on to the truths that have been given you - that which you have heard from the beginning - that comes from Christ.  Keep those truths within you, meaning - live for Christ.  Our goal is the promise that God has given us -  eternal life with Him .

26 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. 27 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.

The Apostle John's message has been a warning to believers so they would not be deceived.  The anointing of the Holy Spirit abides within the hearts of believers and you do not need anyone to teach you the things of God because the Holy Spirit is your teacher.

  • Does that mean you never listen to a preacher or a teacher?  No, of course not!  We must always remember that anyone who preaches the Word of God is simply speaking forth the oracles of God that comes from the Scriptures as inspired by the Holy Spirit.  They are simply messengers of the truths of God's Word. 
  • It is then your responsible to verify everything that is spoken out as truth that comes from the Word of God and the Holy Spirit within you. 
  • They should both confirm each other.

Abide in Christ

28 And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. 

The Apostle Paul again speaks to them as children to live for Christ.  For when Christ comes at the Rapture of the Church, we, as the Bride of Christ may all have confidence and not be ashamed before the Lord.  I personally read this verse to say that we should keep Christ's coming - when He comes to rapture us home on the forefront of our minds and hearts.  What a glorious day that will be.  As we do, it will be a continuous incentive to live righteous lives before Him.

29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.

Because Christ is righteous, and He dwells within the hearts of all believers, we know that those believers who practices righteousness is born of God - living the life of God for all the world to see. 

 End Notes

(1)  Christianity.com