TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES - Bible Study
TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES
1 John 2:18-29
It makes no difference what you believe, just as long as you are sincere!"
That statement expresses the personal philosophy of many people today, but it is doubtful whether most of those who make it have really thought it through. Is "sincerity" the magic ingredient that makes something true? If so, then you ought to be able to apply it to any area of life, and not only to religion.
A nurse in a city hospital gives some medicine to a patient, and the patient becomes violently ill. The nurse is sincere but the medicine is wrong, and the patient almost dies.
A man hears noises in the house one night and decides a burglar is at work. He gets his gun and shoots the "burglar," who turns out to be his daughter! Unable to sleep, she has gotten up for a bite to eat. She ends up the victim of her father's "sincerity."
It takes more than "sincerity" to make something true. Faith in a he will always cause serious consequences; faith in the truth is never misplaced. It does make a difference what a man believes! If a man wants to drive from Chicago to New York, no amount of sincerity will get him there if the highway is taking him to Los Angeles. A person who is real builds his life on truth, not superstition or lies. It is impossible to live a real life by believing lies.
God has warned the church family ("little children") about the conflict between light and darkness (1 John 1:1-2:6) and between love and hatred (1 John 2:7-17). Now He warns them about a third conflict: the conflict between truth and error. It is not enough for a believer to walk in the light and to walk in love; he must also walk in truth. The issue is truth or consequences!
Before John explains the tragic consequences of turning from the truth, he emphasizes the seriousness of the matter. He does so by using two special terms: "the last time" and "antichrist." Both terms make it clear that Christians are living in an hour of crisis and must guard against the errors of the enemy.
"The last time" (or "the last hour") is a term that reminds us that a new age has dawned on the world. "The darkness is past, and the true light now shineth" (1 John 2:8). Since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God is doing a "new thing" in this world. All of Old Testament history prepared the way for the work of Christ on the cross, all history since that time is merely preparation for "the end," when Jesus will come and establish His kingdom. There is nothing more that God must do for the salvation of sinners.
You may ask, "But if it was 'the last hour' in John’s Day, why has Jesus not yet returned?"
This is an excellent question and Scripture gives us the answer. God is not limited by time the way His creatures are. God works in human time, but He is above time (2 Peter 3:8).
"The last hour" began back in John's day and has been growing in intensity ever since. There were ungodly false teachers in John's day, and during the intervening centuries they have increased both in number and in influence. "The last hour" or "the last times" are phrases that describe a kind of time, not a duration of time. "The latter times" are described in 1 Tim 4. Paul, like John, observed characteristics of his time, and we see the same characteristics today in even greater intensity.
In other words, Christians have always been living in "the last time" in crisis days. It is therefore important that you know what you believe and why you believe it.
The second term, "antichrist," is used in the Bible only by John (1 John 2:18,22; 4:3; 2 John 7). It describes three things: 1. a spirit in the world that opposes or denies Christ; 2. the false teachers who embody this spirit; and, 3. a person who will head up the final world rebellion against Christ.
The "spirit of antichrist" (1 John 4:3) has been in the world since Satan declared war on God (Gen 3). The "spirit of antichrist" is behind every false doctrine and every "religious" substitute for the realities Christians have in Christ. That prefix anti, actually, has a dual meaning. It can mean, in the Greek, both "against" Christ and "instead of' Christ. Satan in his frenzy is fighting Christ and His eternal truth, and he is substituting his counterfeits for the realities found only in our Lord Jesus.
The "spirit of antichrist" is in the world today. It will eventually lead to the appearance of a "satanic superman" whom the Bible calls "Antichrist" (capital A). He is called (2 Thess 2:1-12) "the man of sin" (or "lawlessness").
This passage explains that there are two forces at work in today's world: truth is working through the church by the Holy Spirit, and evil is working by the energy of Satan. The Holy Spirit in Christians, is holding back lawlessness; but when the church is removed at the Rapture (1 Thess 4:13-18), Satan will be able to complete his temporary victory and take over the world. (John has more to say about His world ruler and his evil system in the Book of Rev., particularly 13; 16:13 and 19:20.)
Does it make any difference what you believe? It makes all the difference in the world! You are living in crisis days - in the last hour - and the spirit of antichrist is working in the world! It is vitally important that you know and believe the truth and be able to detect lies when they come your way.
John's epistle gives three outstanding marks of the false teacher who is controlled by the "spirit of antichrist."