seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 John 2:18 Dear 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. 19 They 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.
20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. 21 I 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. 22 Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
24 As for you, see 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. 25 And this is what he promised us—eternal life.
26 I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. 27 As 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.
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Here's the link to the commentary I read.
Little children, it is the last hour: John lived in the constant expectancy of Jesus’ return, regarding his time as the last hour. This is an expectancy that we should also have, knowing that the Lord’s return can come at any time.
Seeing the nature of our times and what the Bible says about the end times, we should regard ourselves as being in the last few minutes.
The Antichrist is coming: John here refers to an individual who has captured the imagination of many people, including those who don’t even know the Bible. Many are ignorant about this person called the Antichrist, except what they have learned from movies like The Omen.
The name Antichrist is important to understand. The prefix anti can mean “the opposite of” or “instead of.” The Antichrist is the “opposite Jesus”; he is the “instead of” Jesus.
Most people have focused on the idea of the “opposite Jesus.” This has made them think that the Antichrist will appear as a supremely evil person. They think that as much as Jesus went around doing good, the Antichrist will go around doing bad. As much as Jesus’ character and personality were beautiful and attractive, the Antichrist’s character and personality will be ugly and repulsive. As much as Jesus spoke only truth, the Antichrist will speak only lies. This emphasizes the idea of the “opposite Jesus” too much. The Antichrist will instead be more of an “instead of Jesus.” He will look wonderful, be charming and successful. He will be the ultimate winner, and appear as an angel of light.
Some have wondered if this Antichrist will be an individual or a political system. This is really a small distinction, because it will in a sense be both a person and a political system. To a large extent, a man does represent and personify an entire government or system; when we think of Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, the figures of Hitler as an individual and Nazi Germany as a state are virtually the same. The Antichrist is an individual, but he will also be associated with a powerful government.
The Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come: There is a distinction between the Antichrist and many antichrists. There is a “spirit” of antichrist, and this “spirit” of antichrist will one day find its ultimate fulfillment in the Antichrist, who will lead humanity in an end-times rebellion against God.
In other words, though the world still waits to see the ultimate revealing of the Antichrist, there are little “previews” of this man and his mission to come. These are the antichrists with a little “a” instead of a capital letter “A.”
By which we know that it is the last hour: This indicates that John expected that the presence of many antichrists — of many people who offer a false, substitute Christ — is evidence of the lateness in the hour before Jesus’ coming. John writes that this was true in his day; we could say it is even truer in our own.
Essentially, the Antichrist is a world dictator who leads humanity in what seems to be a golden age, until he shows his true colors — and the judgment of God is poured out on him and his empire immediately before the return of Jesus.
We should take notice, because the world stage is set for a political and economic “superman” to arise, a single political leader to organize a world-dominating confederation of nations. National leaders speak of a new world order, but no one has been able to really define it, much less lead it. Yet this leader is coming.
This Antichrist will have surrounding him the kind of personality cult we are conditioned to accept today. Not only in America do we practice a sick worship of celebrities, but around the world, nations of hundreds of millions of people have been induced to worship a person — like Lenin, Stalin, or Mao. This shows us just how strong a personality cult can be when the government gets behind it wholeheartedly. All these developments should make us understand that the Antichrist is ready to be revealed when the moment is right.
They went out from us: This shows that many of these antichrists at one time or another identified themselves with Christian communities. The fact that they left the body of Christ demonstrated that they were not of us to begin with.
You have an anointing: Here John referred to a common anointing, belonging to all believers. This is an anointing that makes discernment possible for those who seek it in the Lord (and you know all things).
Anointing has the idea of being filled with and blessed by the Holy Spirit. This is something that is the common property of all Christians, but something we can and should become more submitted and responsive to. “As oil was used among the Asiatics for the inauguration of persons in important offices, and this oil was acknowledged to be an emblem of the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, without which the duties of those offices could not be discharged; so it is put here for the Spirit himself, who presided in the Church, and from which all gifts and graces flowed.” (Clarke)
This idea of anointing — literally, to be blessed with oil — was said to be the reason behind one of the punishments given to John in persecution. The Roman emperor Domitian cast John in a boiling vat of oil, as if to say, “Here is a real anointing.” John emerged from the vat of boiling oil unharmed, because he was anointed indeed.
Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? The context makes it clear that to affirm that Jesus is the Christ has to do with more than just saying, “He is the Messiah.” It has to do with understanding the relationship between Jesus and God the Father: He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. In other words, someone could say, “I believe Jesus is the Christ… as I define “Christ.” But we must believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, as the Bible defines Christ — the Messiah, who is fully God and fully man; who perfectly revealed the Father to us.
Therefore: In light of the danger of the spirit of antichrist, we protect ourselves against the spirit of antichrist by abiding in the original, core Christian message (that which you heard from the beginning). As we walk in the simplicity and power of that message, we will not be led astray.
Which you heard from the beginning: This does not describe whatever teaching any Christian might receive when he is newly following Jesus. The beginning, for these believers, describes the time when they were under the teaching of the apostles, which is now recorded for us in the New Testament.
This is the promise: When His truth (what we heard from the beginning) lives in us, then God lives in us. When God lives in us, we have a promise. In this kind of life, the promise of eternal life is real.
Eternal life: This is not mere immortality. Every human being, made in the image of God, is immortal, in the sense that our souls will live forever, either in heaven or in hell. So, eternal life doesn’t just mean a life that lasts for eternity. It describes the kind of life that God, the Eternal One, has in Himself.
These things I have written: John knew there was deception among these early Christians, and it concerned him. He had a passion to keep them consistent with God’s message of truth.
The anointing which you have received from Him abides in you: This abiding and anointing is what enables Christians to continue in the truth.
John first referred to this anointing back in 1 John 2:20. This anointing is not the private property of a few special or spectacular Christians. All Christians have the presence of God’s Spirit within them.
You do not need that anyone teach you: Just as he stated in 1 John 2:20 (you know all things), John tells us again that the anointing we receive from God guides us into truth. We are guided into truth on a one-on-one level, God confirming it to our hearts.
Again, John’s message is simple. Because of the anointing of the Holy Spirit given to all believers, they possess the resources for knowing the truth. This is not to say that teachers are unnecessary, because one of the resources for knowing the truth is the reminder given by teachers like John.
You will abide in Him: This anointing which guides us into truth will also guide us closer to Jesus.
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I figure the anti-christ [little a] is a blustering windbag how loves himself over everyone and everything. I base that on the fact that the commentary trying to explain the anti-christ [little a] is so longwinded. Generally, when I think longwinded, I think of two professions, preachers and politicians.
Preachers seem to be longwinded when I had to skip breakfast and they have something this difficult to explain. When my stomach starts growling, I think of the anti-christ [little a] who loves the sound of their own voice. Preachers, I must add, includes the Pope and his priests as well. Preacher also includes the "tent evangelist" and his minions as well. It also includes TV preachers.
Politicians, well they have to be longwinded. That's what the population expects from them. I have often wondered if professional speech writers get paid by the word.
Israel is in trouble. I don't recall a time when Israel has been so hated. Christians generally think of Israel as a Sacred Place where Jesus was born and crucified. I heard some numbers just yesterday. It was a doctor working in a Gazan hospital who was being interviewed. The dead in Gaza outnumber the dead in Israel by more than double. It was Hamas [imbedded in Gaza] who attacked Israel in the first place. It is Israel who is killing the most people.
Why is everyone so surprised and upset that Israel has killed more humans than Hamas? Israel has always done it that way. Israel doesn't pay other countries to leave them alone... they take names and destroy so people will think three times before attacking Israel. That's the way God runs a war in His Land of Promise.
My Jewish buddy tells me this war in Israel is political. Most of the Jewish people don't particularly agree with the powers running the show. They are expecting the Messiah to come and straighten this mess out.
Christians need to watch out for the anti-christs [little a] before the Anti-Christ [big A] finally makes his appearance. It's the anti-christ [little a] who is like a worm in the apple basket. He will destroy everything, given the time. He will distort the Gospel and Christians will sit and nod their heads in agreement. The Anti-Christ [big A] softening us up for the blow.
Peter denied Jesus. John is warning us not to be a Peter... in other words....
Don't be a Dick!
