The Test of Truth

Today we discover another test  or “proof” found in 1 John – the test of Truth.

¹⁸ Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come. ¹⁹ These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.²⁰ But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit, and all of you know the truth. ²¹ So I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies. ²² And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. ²³ Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.²⁴ So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father. ²⁵ And in this fellowship we enjoy the eternal life he promised us.²⁶ I am writing these things to warn you about those who want to lead you astray. ²⁷ But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.    1 John 2:18-28 (NLT)

 Notice, John addresses his readers as “little children” (vs. 18 & 28). That’s an indication of their spiritual condition: still spiritual infants or toddlers. They need constant care and attention and guidance. They’re stumbling around in the dark as much as they are walking in the light.

They were in danger of being deceived by the antichrist spirit of their day – of being deceived by people who claimed to be followers of Jesus Christ – but were not. Today we call those deceivers “Gnostics.” Spiritual “know-it-alls.” John is clearly warning against “…those who want to lead you astray” (vs. 26).

John refers to these deceivers as “antichrists”: “Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come” (vs. 18). This reference to the “last hour” is about the “latest last days of the last days” – the time period between Christ first coming and His Second Coming.

The word “antichrist” is used only used in John’s writings. “Antichrist” means those who are “against” or in “opposition” to Christ OR those who offer an “imitation” of Christ. Put together it means “those who, assuming the guise of Christ, oppose Christ.”

Also “antichrist”  is a reference to the evil power operating in John’s world then, and in our world today, in anticipation of the revelation of the two “beasts” (another name for “Antichrist”) mentioned in the book of Revelation.

So, what is it that identifies an “antichrist” according to John? What are they like and how do they operate?  We can find clues in Jesus words in Matthew 24.

• Matthew 24:5, 24:“…for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many…for false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones.”

So, “antichrists” are DECEIVERS and liars!

In our lifetimes or the recent past we have seen many “antichrists”…

• Adolf Hitler…who deceived a whole nation…who believed he and his followers were a superior race destined to take over the world. He was “antichrist.”
• Jim Jones…A San Francisco minister and city council member who deceived over 900 people (poor & uneducated + rich and well-educated) into believing that he was God… …He and his followers died in a bizarre ritual by drinking cyanide-laced Kool-Aid in French Guana, where they had located to build their utopia. He was “antichrist.”
• Sung Myung Moon…the founder and leader of the Unification Church established in Seoul, Korea…Moon considered himself the Second Coming of Christ…He was believed by Unification Church members (“Moonies”) to be the Messiah…anointed to fulfill Jesus’ unfinished mission…He died in 2020. He was “antichrist.”

And this is a very short list. The list could go on and on and on…

The main deception of “antichrist” is to deny the divinity of Jesus Christ.

“And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.” (vs. 22-23) 

The primary definition of an “antichrist” is anyone who denies Jesus being equal with God, while simultaneously being against Christ and claiming to be Christ or have His authority.

Notice the last part of vs. 23: “But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”

That’s the test of knowing the Truth…acknowledging and confessing Jesus for who He is…the “Word of Life,” equal in every way with God!

So, John says, the primary definition of an “antichrist” is denying the Son (Jesus Christ) by being against Christ and claiming to be Christ or having His authority – simultaneously.

I believe that’s what John is saying to us in Revelation 13. There are going to be two people at the end of the age, who will especially embody this definition – claiming to be Christ and being against Christ at the same time.

• 13:5-8 speaks of one “beast” – a person with great political power to deceive, raised up by Satan himself. They will be against Christ. “Then the beast was allowed to speak great blasphemies against God. And he was given authority to do whatever he wanted for forty-two months. And he spoke terrible words of blasphemy against God, slandering his name and his dwelling—that is, those who dwell in heaven. And the beast was allowed to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And he was given authority to rule over every tribe and people and language and nation. And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life before the world was made—the Book that belongs to the Lamb who was slaughtered.”
• 13:11ff tells us of a second beast – a religious ruler. This beast “…looked like a lamb…but spoke with the voice of a dragon (cf. Rev. 12). This beast will have great religious power to deceive and to persuade people to worship the first beast. This beast  “performed astounding miracles…and deceived all the people who belonged to this world…”

So, these two beasts are both coming at the “end of the age.” They are both “antichrist” in nature – one “against” Christ, the other “instead of” Christ.

John says a second thing about “antichrists” in vs. 19: “These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise, they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.” (vs. 19)

Not only are they deceivers – but they are DEFECTORS, too.

Some people who had made a confession of faith in Jesus and claimed to be His followers in John’s day had all the appearances of being Christians – but they weren’t. They…

• Called themselves Christians
• Identified with a local church gathering
• Were baptized and received communion

But John says the way you can tell whether or not someone is really a child of God is by where they end up – inside the church or outside the church.

An “antichrist” is someone who will eventually withdraw from other Christians and stop identifying with the body of Christ – and they end up right back in the “world”!

A Biblical example is Judas Iscariot, of whom Jesus said: “But here at this table, sitting among us as a friend, is the man who will betray me.” At the first Lord’s Supper was a “pretender” who identified himself with the apostles. He looked and acted like an apostle – but he was an “antichrist.”

John’s making a very serious point here when he says: “These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us…” He’s saying there are people who look and act as if they were children of God – but they proved who they really were by their view of who Jesus Christ really is.

This ought to cause every person who calls themselves a follower of Jesus Christ to ask themselves a few hard questions, like:

• “Have I really faced up to my sin in the light of the cross of Jesus Christ?”
• “Have I come to God in repentance – owning my guilt and acknowledging my sin?”
• “Do I depend only on Jesus for my salvation?”
• “Is there any evidence in my life of being a new person in Christ?”
• “Do I love the Word of God – and do I want it in my life?”
• “Do I love my brothers & sisters in Christ?”
• “Do I really love Jesus Christ?”

The Bible says that we’re supposed to examine ourselves from time to time. “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.”  2 Cor. 13:5

Ask yourself: “Am I really following Jesus? Or is it some imitation of Jesus that I’ve bought into?”

If you’re secure in your faith in Jesus Christ, the “Word of Life” – God in human form and the only way to salvation and eternal life – then your faith will hold up to the test of self-examination.  Don’t be afraid to ask yourself. “Am I really a follower of Jesus…or am I just caught up in all the ‘hype’?”

One of my favorite Bible teachers, J. Vernon McGee, said: “I believe in the security of the believers. But I also believe in the insecurity of the make-believers!”

We need to examine ourselves to see what kind of believers we really are!

The sleeper box office hit movie, Jesus Revolution, is an accurate depiction of the “Jesus Movement” of the 1960’s & 70’s. I lived those glorious, supernatural days as a young Christian in my late tens and early twenties. And a whole bunch of people I knew who professed faith in Jesus Christ, eventually “fell away” from their professed faith in Jesus Christ – some very well known, others anonymous self-proclaimed believers. All I can say about them is…Only God can make the final “examination.”

But John’s point is this: Antichrists and the “antichrist” spirit that pervades large portions of the so-called “church” in America today, will cause those caught up in it to be two things: DECEIVERS of others & DEFECTORS from the faith.

In verses 20, 21 & 27 in this passage, John gives us the “antidote” for the “antichrist” spirit and those who deceive others while claiming to convey Christ’s truth: “But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit [you have an anointing – NASB], and all of you know the truth. So, I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies…But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.”

This is a “play on words” by John…

“Gnostics” [the New Agers & Evolutionaries of John’s day] believed that you had to be “initiated” in certain beliefs to be spiritually “in the know.” You had to have exclusive knowledge (“gnosis”) before you could be really spiritual.

But, John says, that’s not true. Why? Because “the Holy One has given you his Spirit, and all of you know the truth.” Other translations say: “You have an anointing and you know…”        

John says that the manifestation of that “Holy Spirit anointing” is that it allows the Holy Spirit to teach you everything you need to know so you can know the difference between truth and lies.

Jesus taught the same thing to his disciples: “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you…But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.” (John 14:16-17, 26)

This “anointing” is from the “Holy One” – the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of all true followers of Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit permeates this planet. He’s WITH everyone on the planet…He’s IN all true believers & followers of in Jesus Christ…but, He can be UPON every believer who chooses to live a life dedicated (consecrated) to serving Jesus and “walking” and “abiding” in the Light of the Truth of God and His Word!

That’s what John is referring to here as an “anointing” (“holy confidence”) from God.

 Unfortunately, the concept of being “anointed” has suffered from a lot of “false press” and “unnecessary hype” – especially in circles in which that word is used often. Like the…

• TV evangelist selling his DVDs: “The most anointed message you’ll ever hear!”
• Revivalist preacher: “I feel the anointing tonight!”
• Vocalist introduced as: “The most anointed singer in Gospel music!”
• Threatened pastor: “Touch not the Lord’s anointed!”

I do not want to minimize the concept of being anointed…BUT…we need to gain and keep a biblical perspective of just what the “anointing” means for ALL NT believers…

So, what does the phrase “You have an anointing and you know…” mean for each of us?

There are three main words for “anointing” in the Old Testament…

• “mashach” = “to massage/rub oil on someone/thing”; an act of dedication/consecration
• “mashiyach” = reference to a person/object being anointed; Messiah = “anointed One” or “the Christ”
• “suwk” = use of oil for personal hygiene; “anointing” yourself with oil and lotion.

So, being “anointed” in the OT referred to being dedicated and consecrated and set apart for a purpose. The Tabernacle and its furnishings were set apart for exclusive use in worship of God. Also, prophets and priests and kings were “anointed” for God’s purposes.

 And “anointing” in the OT had a three-fold purpose:

• To establish authority
• To dedicate or consecrate
• To spiritually empower

Prophets, were given authority to rule the state along with the king; they were dedicated as God’s unique messengers; and empowered by God to give His Word to His people.

Priests, were given authority in matters of worship; they were dedicated unto God; and they were empowered for the daily tasks they performed.

Kings, were given authority to lead God’s people; He and the nation He ruled were dedicated by God to bless all other nations; He was empowered to rule over God’s people as their sovereign King and commander-in-chief.

TODAY in the New Testament era in which we live, Jesus Christ is the ultimate “Anointed One,” the “Messiah.” He’s our Prophet, Priest and King. And Jesus…

• Fulfilled the office of Prophet by being the Word of God (John = “the Word of Life”). “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:1, 14
• Fulfilled the office of Priest by being the only mediator between God & humanity. “For there is only one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus.” 1 Timothy 2:5
• Fulfilled the office of King by being hailed as King in His triumphal entry into Jerusalem on a colt. It was a fulfillment of a prophecy of Zechariah who predicted that the “Anointed One” would ride into Jerusalem on a donkey. “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” Zachariah 9:9. “‘The whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’” Luke 19:37-38

And John’s message in Revelation tells us…Jesus will return as a “warrior king” riding on a white horse, with the inscription ”King of Kings and Lord of Lords” written on His thigh.

 So, what about us New Testament believers? Is there an anointing for us as well?

John’s answer is that there is an “anointing” – and it’s not just for the few who are “super spiritual.” It’s for ALL who want it!

The NT word for “anointing” is “charisma”, the same as the Old Testament word for “massage or rub”… (think of it as being spiritually “massaged by Jesus” relieving the tension in your spirit).

“Anointing” also has the same purpose in the New Testament as in the Old Testament: to give authority and to dedicate (consecrate) and to empower.

• Authority to be His children…to live as accepted by Him…without shame or guilt as we approach Him…being confident in His love for us…John 1:12: “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right [authority] to become children of God.” 
• Dedicated/Consecrated to walk and live in the Light of who Jesus is…living obedient and trusting lives in the ways of God…because His ways work better…and they produce life in us and in the lives of the people we touch everyday (spouse, children, coworkers, friends, extended family…). 1 Corinthians 6:11: “But you were washed, you were sanctified [dedicated /consecrated], you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” 
• Empowerment to be a witness to the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ …to share God’s truth and love with others with holy confidence… leaving the results up to Him. Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power [empowerment] when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

So, what’s the point of this passage for us? What can we take home today and apply to our lives?

There is an “anointing” for each of us as people of the New Covenant. Each of us who have confessed faith in Jesus Christ are authorized, dedicated, and empowered by this anointing to do great things for God while we live on this planet!

If you are a member of God’s family by faith in Jesus Christ – then you have this anointing!  It’s not just for those you see as “super spiritual” – it’s for every one of God’s children – and that includes you.

Are you living in the “anointing”? Are you experiencing the authority…dedication …empowerment of that anointing?  If not, why not? Jesus has extended it to us…“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.” He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!” (Luke 4:11-13).  “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

 The same anointing and the same authority Jesus had – He’s given to us!

 John ends this part of his letter with the following exhortation to us: “So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father. And in this fellowship we enjoy the eternal life he promised us…And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame” (1 John 2:24-25, 28).          

If Jesus promises to abide with us forever – then it’s not too much of John to exhort us to remain faithful and in fellowship with Jesus and the Father and each other. “Remain” means to continue, to live, to endure, to stand…in the TRUTH.

The test of whether we’re living in the TRUTH, whether there’s any evidence of the TRUTH in us is found in our confessing Jesus Christ as the One and Only Lord and the one and only way to God AND by living daily in the authority and the dedication and the empowerment of the “Anointed One” – Jesus Christ Himself.

That’s the test – the proof – that the TRUTH is living in us.

To know more about defining true spiritual maturity and how to develop it, read my book Every Man Jack – Becoming the Man God Wants You to Be, available on Amazon (//www.amazon.com/Every-Man-Jack.../dp/1973680386), WestBow Press (www.westbowpress.com), and wherever books are sold.