WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.140 If you have your Bibles with you this morning, 00:00:02.299 --> 00:00:07.179 I'd like to invite you to turn to 1 John chapter 00:00:07.179 --> 00:00:12.740 2 verses 18 to 21. Now John likes to hide out 00:00:12.740 --> 00:00:15.539 in the back of our Bibles with his friends 2 00:00:15.539 --> 00:00:18.879 John and 3 John. They're tiny little books, but 00:00:18.879 --> 00:00:21.600 as you get towards the end of your Bibles, you 00:00:21.600 --> 00:00:24.719 should find 1 John. Now we're going to do something 00:00:24.719 --> 00:00:27.440 a little bit different this morning in that before 00:00:27.440 --> 00:00:30.260 we read the text, I actually want to give you 00:00:30.260 --> 00:00:33.979 the context as to what's happening here before 00:00:33.979 --> 00:00:38.299 I read these verses for you. See, John was writing 00:00:38.299 --> 00:00:41.960 to a local congregation that had members that 00:00:41.960 --> 00:00:45.780 just picked up and left them. In other words, 00:00:46.000 --> 00:00:49.479 they had a church community. They had what they 00:00:49.479 --> 00:00:52.240 thought were brothers and sisters in Christ but 00:00:52.240 --> 00:00:56.399 then just overnight they disappeared. They shared 00:00:56.399 --> 00:00:59.619 fellowship, service and likely even suffered 00:00:59.619 --> 00:01:02.659 with them but then all of a sudden they were 00:01:02.659 --> 00:01:07.340 just gone. So John writes to this confused and 00:01:07.340 --> 00:01:11.480 most likely very hurting congregation to help 00:01:11.480 --> 00:01:14.299 them understand exactly what's happening here. 00:01:14.829 --> 00:01:18.109 Now just to be clear, John isn't specifically 00:01:18.109 --> 00:01:21.650 talking about people here that they didn't like 00:01:21.650 --> 00:01:23.930 the renovations that were happening to the church 00:01:23.930 --> 00:01:26.950 or the colour of the carpet that the building 00:01:26.950 --> 00:01:30.689 committee had chosen, so they went and joined 00:01:30.689 --> 00:01:34.769 another gospel believing preaching faithful church. 00:01:35.409 --> 00:01:38.629 No, the people John's referring to didn't remain 00:01:38.629 --> 00:01:42.510 in the community of Christ because as we'll see 00:01:42.829 --> 00:01:47.269 They stop believing the truth of the gospel as 00:01:47.269 --> 00:01:50.870 revealed by Christ and given to the apostles. 00:01:51.750 --> 00:01:55.569 And the church, they're really struggling here. 00:01:55.969 --> 00:01:59.090 They're really struggling to understand how this 00:01:59.090 --> 00:02:02.510 could have happened. How could people who had 00:02:02.510 --> 00:02:05.569 been with them, that they loved, all of a sudden 00:02:05.569 --> 00:02:10.270 just walk away, rejecting both them and Jesus 00:02:10.270 --> 00:02:14.680 in the doing? So it's with that context that 00:02:14.680 --> 00:02:18.500 we read these words from 1 John chapter 2 verses 00:02:18.500 --> 00:02:22.120 18 to 21. Hear the word of the Lord as given 00:02:22.120 --> 00:02:27.219 to us by the Apostle John. Children, it's the 00:02:27.219 --> 00:02:31.039 last hour. And as you've heard that Antichrist 00:02:31.039 --> 00:02:34.620 is coming. So now many Antichrists have come. 00:02:35.599 --> 00:02:40.050 Therefore we know that it is the last hour. They 00:02:40.050 --> 00:02:43.189 went out from us, but they were not of us, for 00:02:43.189 --> 00:02:46.389 if they had been of us, they would have continued 00:02:46.389 --> 00:02:50.789 with us. But they went out, that it might become 00:02:50.789 --> 00:02:58.090 plain that they all are not of us. But you, you've 00:02:58.090 --> 00:03:02.409 been anointed by the Holy One. You have, you 00:03:02.409 --> 00:03:05.770 all have knowledge. I write to you not because 00:03:05.770 --> 00:03:09.389 you don't know the truth, but because you know 00:03:09.389 --> 00:03:15.610 it and because no lie is of the truth. Church, 00:03:15.629 --> 00:03:17.849 why don't you join me in praying and asking our 00:03:17.849 --> 00:03:19.949 Father to help us with these words this morning. 00:03:22.810 --> 00:03:25.770 Father God, we ask that by the work of your Spirit 00:03:25.770 --> 00:03:28.990 you would help us to see the truth of this passage 00:03:28.990 --> 00:03:32.110 this morning. That we would be a people looking 00:03:32.110 --> 00:03:36.030 to Christ and illuminated by your supernatural 00:03:36.030 --> 00:03:39.479 work. We ask for this for the sake of Christ, 00:03:40.159 --> 00:03:44.439 his bride and in his name, amen. Right, so as 00:03:44.439 --> 00:03:47.620 we've just read, there's a lot going on in these 00:03:47.620 --> 00:03:49.680 few words that we have before us this morning. 00:03:50.199 --> 00:03:54.520 So I've broken it up into three parts so that 00:03:54.520 --> 00:03:56.780 we can kind of get our heads around what's going 00:03:56.780 --> 00:04:03.349 on here. First in verse 18, John talks about 00:04:03.349 --> 00:04:07.789 being in the last days, the last hour, and about 00:04:07.789 --> 00:04:11.729 the Antichrist. Second, in verse 19, he tells 00:04:11.729 --> 00:04:14.449 us that real Christians will stick it out, but 00:04:14.449 --> 00:04:18.810 false converts will fall away. And third, in 00:04:18.810 --> 00:04:22.209 verses 20 to 21, he tells us that Christians 00:04:22.209 --> 00:04:26.089 will stick it out because we have the Holy Spirit. 00:04:26.490 --> 00:04:28.850 So three things that I want us to have a look 00:04:28.850 --> 00:04:33.629 at this morning. First, by looking at verse 18. 00:04:34.889 --> 00:04:37.370 Now, to really understand what our apostle is 00:04:37.370 --> 00:04:42.050 telling us here, We have to understand that really 00:04:42.050 --> 00:04:45.250 important phrase that he employs there of the 00:04:45.250 --> 00:04:49.129 last hour. I think that's really important that 00:04:49.129 --> 00:04:52.730 we see what he's doing there because it's actually 00:04:52.730 --> 00:04:56.189 a phrase that helps us to understand the big 00:04:56.189 --> 00:05:00.310 picture story of the Bible. You see, if you open 00:05:00.310 --> 00:05:02.889 your Bibles to the very first few pages, you 00:05:02.889 --> 00:05:06.410 might come across a page that simply says the 00:05:06.410 --> 00:05:09.660 Old Testament. And then as you kind of go towards 00:05:09.660 --> 00:05:11.579 the back of your Bible, as you're flicking through, 00:05:11.639 --> 00:05:14.459 there's going to be another page that says the 00:05:14.459 --> 00:05:17.740 New Testament. Now thinking about the Old Testament 00:05:17.740 --> 00:05:20.439 here and everything kind of in between the old 00:05:20.439 --> 00:05:25.120 and the new, the book of Hebrews tells us that 00:05:25.120 --> 00:05:29.600 God is telling us all about his unfolding plan 00:05:29.600 --> 00:05:36.060 of redemption that's revealed in types. in types, 00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:39.259 kind of in the shadows. We might think about 00:05:39.259 --> 00:05:42.459 it like what we see around us this morning. There's 00:05:42.459 --> 00:05:46.399 scaffolding. And with scaffolding, you get a 00:05:46.399 --> 00:05:50.300 picture of what's to come, right? But obviously, 00:05:50.420 --> 00:05:54.680 what we see around us, well, that's not the final 00:05:54.680 --> 00:05:59.220 form. We get the picture in part, but it's in 00:05:59.220 --> 00:06:04.360 kind of its skeletal stage, we might say. That's 00:06:04.360 --> 00:06:06.600 how we're to think about the Old Testament. It 00:06:06.600 --> 00:06:11.439 gives us a picture of something to come in types, 00:06:11.860 --> 00:06:15.600 in figures. It's in skeletal form. Well, the 00:06:15.600 --> 00:06:18.819 New Testament reveals that that all changed when 00:06:18.819 --> 00:06:23.300 Jesus came to us 2 ,000 years ago. He is, we 00:06:23.300 --> 00:06:27.420 might say, the flesh on the bones. He's the gyproc 00:06:27.420 --> 00:06:32.519 on the frame. The full picture of what the Old 00:06:32.519 --> 00:06:36.720 Testament was pointing to us all along, us two 00:06:36.720 --> 00:06:40.300 all along. But what's this got to do with the 00:06:40.300 --> 00:06:44.000 last hour? Well, the Old Testament writers, they 00:06:44.000 --> 00:06:47.379 spoke about the Messiah, the anointed one, that's 00:06:47.379 --> 00:06:51.779 what it means, and of Israel, which the New Testament 00:06:51.779 --> 00:06:55.319 writers called the Christ, who would come in 00:06:55.319 --> 00:07:01.019 the last days to rule and to reign. He would 00:07:01.019 --> 00:07:04.199 rule and reign and judge the world. Now, this 00:07:04.199 --> 00:07:06.740 is where things get really interesting. The apostles 00:07:06.740 --> 00:07:09.319 throughout their writings continually pointed 00:07:09.319 --> 00:07:13.019 to Jesus and said that that which was written 00:07:13.019 --> 00:07:16.620 of the Christ in the Old Testament was being 00:07:16.620 --> 00:07:21.779 fulfilled in the Jesus that they knew and that 00:07:21.779 --> 00:07:26.519 they walked with. In other words, according to 00:07:26.519 --> 00:07:31.180 the apostles, according to the new explaining 00:07:31.180 --> 00:07:37.689 the old, The last days were inaugurated in the 00:07:37.689 --> 00:07:42.649 life, death, resurrection and the ascension of 00:07:42.649 --> 00:07:47.930 Jesus to the right hand of God the Father. for 00:07:47.930 --> 00:07:50.069 you keen beings out there, we know that that's 00:07:50.069 --> 00:07:52.389 not everything that the Bible has to say, that 00:07:52.389 --> 00:07:54.610 the prophets look to. They also look to something 00:07:54.610 --> 00:07:58.649 called the Day of the Lord, where God will come 00:07:58.649 --> 00:08:02.189 to judge all the peoples of the world, which 00:08:02.189 --> 00:08:06.310 quite obviously hasn't happened yet. And so we 00:08:06.310 --> 00:08:10.470 might ask, did the apostles get it wrong? Well, 00:08:11.730 --> 00:08:14.480 let's think about it like this. When you look 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:17.860 up at the night sky and see all the stars from 00:08:17.860 --> 00:08:22.079 our perspective here on earth They all kind of 00:08:22.079 --> 00:08:25.779 appear to be roughly the same distance away, 00:08:25.779 --> 00:08:29.720 right? But if you could view those same stars 00:08:29.720 --> 00:08:33.700 from a different angle, let's say from the side 00:08:34.190 --> 00:08:37.830 You would quickly see that there's millions not 00:08:37.830 --> 00:08:41.990 if not hundreds of millions of kilometers Separating 00:08:41.990 --> 00:08:45.590 those stars from each other which seems so close 00:08:45.590 --> 00:08:50.330 together from our point of view here on earth 00:08:50.330 --> 00:08:54.730 What am I trying to say here well the prophets 00:08:54.730 --> 00:08:58.830 they really did see the life of Christ from their 00:08:58.830 --> 00:09:02.529 point of view and Much of the time they wrote 00:09:02.529 --> 00:09:06.659 about him and his coming in the last days as 00:09:06.659 --> 00:09:10.580 one great big event. But in the New Testament, 00:09:10.639 --> 00:09:13.779 Jesus and the apostles, they give us this other 00:09:13.779 --> 00:09:16.779 point of view. They give us this side view, we 00:09:16.779 --> 00:09:20.240 might say, in that there was a first coming and 00:09:20.240 --> 00:09:22.879 Jesus came as a lamb for the slaughter, for the 00:09:22.879 --> 00:09:25.980 sins of his people, and there will come a second 00:09:25.980 --> 00:09:29.759 coming where Jesus will come as the lion of the 00:09:29.759 --> 00:09:32.700 tribe of Judah, where he really will come to 00:09:32.700 --> 00:09:36.850 judge. the living and the dead. And so Jesus 00:09:36.850 --> 00:09:40.029 really does rule and reign. He really will judge 00:09:40.029 --> 00:09:43.590 the world but it hasn't happened all in one big 00:09:43.590 --> 00:09:46.769 event like the prophets saw it from their point 00:09:46.769 --> 00:09:51.889 of view. All this to say church, Jesus is the 00:09:51.889 --> 00:09:55.299 Christ. He is the one that the prophets spoke 00:09:55.299 --> 00:09:58.639 about that they were pointing to in the Old Testament 00:09:58.639 --> 00:10:02.799 and the last days were truly inaugurated. They 00:10:02.799 --> 00:10:06.120 truly started when Jesus came on the scene 2 00:10:06.120 --> 00:10:10.100 ,000 years ago. But as the apostles make it clear 00:10:10.100 --> 00:10:13.259 in their writings, there's a first coming and 00:10:13.259 --> 00:10:16.210 there will be a second coming. A future day when 00:10:16.210 --> 00:10:19.429 all things will be brought to completion and 00:10:19.429 --> 00:10:22.850 where the people of God will be taken into glory. 00:10:23.809 --> 00:10:27.649 To put that another way, we're no longer in the 00:10:27.649 --> 00:10:31.330 Old Testament, reading it, wondering what it's 00:10:31.330 --> 00:10:35.110 all about, who it's really pointing to, but neither 00:10:35.110 --> 00:10:39.529 are we in the new heavens and the new earth just 00:10:39.529 --> 00:10:44.809 yet. Now, we're living in the final stage of 00:10:44.809 --> 00:10:48.210 God's redemptive plan before He wraps everything 00:10:48.210 --> 00:10:53.750 up. It's as John tells us here, we're in the 00:10:53.750 --> 00:10:59.370 final hour. Now, if that was mind -blowing to 00:10:59.370 --> 00:11:01.490 you just then, well, this is really going to 00:11:01.490 --> 00:11:04.789 blow your mind. John then starts to speak about 00:11:04.789 --> 00:11:08.169 this person, the Antichrist. We see this here 00:11:08.169 --> 00:11:13.210 in verse 18. And before we dive into what he's 00:11:13.210 --> 00:11:16.509 saying here, I want us to pause for a moment 00:11:16.509 --> 00:11:19.769 and have a think about what he's not saying. 00:11:20.629 --> 00:11:23.009 You see, over the years, there's been so many 00:11:23.009 --> 00:11:26.789 different misunderstandings and wild interpretations 00:11:26.789 --> 00:11:32.190 about who and what the Antichrist is. If you 00:11:32.190 --> 00:11:35.409 grew up in the 70s, you might remember a cult 00:11:35.409 --> 00:11:39.730 classic movie called The Omen. which is a dramatic 00:11:39.730 --> 00:11:42.730 and fictional story, let me highlight fictional 00:11:42.730 --> 00:11:46.649 to you, about the devil fathering a child through 00:11:46.649 --> 00:11:50.809 a mysterious woman and that child turned out 00:11:50.809 --> 00:11:55.090 to be none other than the Antichrist, the devil 00:11:55.090 --> 00:11:58.480 incarnate. Or if you're from my generation, you 00:11:58.480 --> 00:12:01.440 might remember how some people were seriously 00:12:01.440 --> 00:12:04.240 convinced that Marilyn Manson was the Antichrist 00:12:04.240 --> 00:12:07.860 just because of his makeup and his lyrics in 00:12:07.860 --> 00:12:12.980 his wild stage antics. History is full of names, 00:12:13.600 --> 00:12:17.659 some famous, some infamous that people have labelled 00:12:17.659 --> 00:12:21.470 as the Antichrist. Napoleon Bonaparte, Adolf 00:12:21.470 --> 00:12:24.509 Hitler, and even as recently as Barack Obama. 00:12:24.590 --> 00:12:27.950 It seems that every generation has a stab in 00:12:27.950 --> 00:12:32.230 the dark as to who this Antichrist might be. 00:12:32.269 --> 00:12:36.789 Usually they're informed by the news. So we might 00:12:36.789 --> 00:12:43.269 ask, where does this image come from? Well, interestingly, 00:12:43.570 --> 00:12:47.649 John is the first to call this person the Antichrist, 00:12:47.649 --> 00:12:51.279 but the person as it's described is first talked 00:12:51.279 --> 00:12:55.759 about in the Old Testament by Daniel, particularly 00:12:55.759 --> 00:12:59.039 in chapters seven through to nine where we're 00:12:59.039 --> 00:13:02.740 given a picture of one who will set themselves 00:13:02.740 --> 00:13:06.960 up against the Messiah, the Christ and his kingdom 00:13:06.960 --> 00:13:11.590 and his people in the last days. And that's certainly 00:13:11.590 --> 00:13:14.990 something that we need to be aware of, but instead 00:13:14.990 --> 00:13:18.590 of trying to figure out the identity of this 00:13:18.590 --> 00:13:22.009 mysterious person here, John wants us to see 00:13:22.009 --> 00:13:26.269 this principle of the Antichrist that was already 00:13:26.269 --> 00:13:30.070 present in the church that he was writing to 00:13:30.070 --> 00:13:35.250 2 ,000 years ago. There were many Antichrists, 00:13:35.389 --> 00:13:38.700 as he says here in verse 18. And he says that 00:13:38.700 --> 00:13:41.259 that was the case because people were very much 00:13:41.259 --> 00:13:45.720 like that archetypal figure to come were denying 00:13:45.720 --> 00:13:50.139 the truth of who Jesus is as revealed in the 00:13:50.139 --> 00:13:56.240 Word. And they were leaving Christ's rule in 00:13:56.240 --> 00:13:59.500 the church that he had established to go and 00:13:59.500 --> 00:14:05.019 set something else up in its place. Brothers 00:14:05.019 --> 00:14:10.820 and sisters, pop culture might paint the picture 00:14:10.820 --> 00:14:14.820 of the Antichrist as the devil incarnate or a 00:14:14.820 --> 00:14:19.200 rock and roller or an internet influencer, but 00:14:19.200 --> 00:14:22.779 John would have us see that the principle of 00:14:22.779 --> 00:14:25.879 the Antichrist is actually anyone who denies 00:14:25.879 --> 00:14:29.679 what the Bible has to say about Jesus. and then 00:14:29.679 --> 00:14:33.100 ends up taking themselves out of what Christ 00:14:33.100 --> 00:14:36.779 has established on earth with his people so as 00:14:36.779 --> 00:14:44.080 to set something else up in its place. It's really 00:14:44.080 --> 00:14:46.399 serious what our apostle is saying here in verse 00:14:46.399 --> 00:14:51.889 18. John says we're in the last hour. because 00:14:51.889 --> 00:14:55.309 he's drawing on Daniel to say in the last days 00:14:55.309 --> 00:14:57.809 one would come and set themselves up against 00:14:57.809 --> 00:15:01.289 Christ and his people and he's saying that principle 00:15:01.289 --> 00:15:06.190 is being seen in the church here and now. People 00:15:06.190 --> 00:15:09.129 are leaving to go and set something else up. 00:15:10.629 --> 00:15:13.769 So what are we meant to do with this in our day 00:15:13.769 --> 00:15:16.769 and age? Well first I would say that we should 00:15:16.769 --> 00:15:20.840 remind ourselves that we are living in the final 00:15:20.840 --> 00:15:24.279 stages of God's plan for this world. I don't 00:15:24.279 --> 00:15:27.059 know if you've ever gone to a grand final event 00:15:27.059 --> 00:15:31.700 and been in the sports stadium as the time is 00:15:31.700 --> 00:15:34.659 ticking down. It's a thrilling event to say the 00:15:34.659 --> 00:15:38.659 least, especially in the final half of the game. 00:15:40.440 --> 00:15:44.379 Well, our apostle is telling us here. He's saying, 00:15:44.379 --> 00:15:46.840 Church, stop playing like you're in the first 00:15:46.840 --> 00:15:51.980 half. time is near to where the referee is going 00:15:51.980 --> 00:15:55.019 to blow that whistle and the whole thing is going 00:15:55.019 --> 00:16:00.259 to be wrapped up. Don't live life like you have 00:16:00.259 --> 00:16:04.899 all the time in the world. Church, let me remind 00:16:04.899 --> 00:16:07.980 you of the last words that our Lord said to us. 00:16:08.679 --> 00:16:12.179 It's in the very last pages of our Bibles. He 00:16:12.179 --> 00:16:19.029 said, surely I'm coming soon. Jesus said that 00:16:19.029 --> 00:16:24.610 2 ,000 years ago. I'm coming soon. The point 00:16:24.610 --> 00:16:27.470 is this, there's an urgency to what we're meant 00:16:27.470 --> 00:16:30.970 to feel here. The world as we know it, the reality 00:16:30.970 --> 00:16:33.809 that we've grown accustomed to won't last forever. 00:16:34.750 --> 00:16:38.490 In fact, we're standing on the cusp of the next 00:16:38.490 --> 00:16:42.289 great phase of God's plan. We're living in the 00:16:42.289 --> 00:16:45.429 last days. We're in the final moments. It's as 00:16:45.429 --> 00:16:50.860 John tells us here, Dear ones, we're in the last 00:16:50.860 --> 00:16:56.539 hour and we have been since Christ came on the 00:16:56.539 --> 00:17:02.220 scene 2 ,000 years ago. I just want to say something 00:17:02.220 --> 00:17:05.059 as a quick word in passing. This doesn't mean 00:17:05.059 --> 00:17:09.339 that we are meant to live like frantic people. 00:17:09.680 --> 00:17:12.640 To hear this sermon, to read these words and 00:17:12.640 --> 00:17:15.299 then go out into the world and sell all our possessions, 00:17:15.640 --> 00:17:18.200 being reckless with all the things that we have 00:17:18.200 --> 00:17:23.680 and not plan for anything in the future. That's 00:17:23.680 --> 00:17:27.559 not the takeaway here, but what we should get 00:17:27.559 --> 00:17:32.980 is a sense of weight and urgency. The truth of 00:17:32.980 --> 00:17:37.220 scripture ought to be a light to our path. It 00:17:37.220 --> 00:17:40.900 should stir us, especially when it comes to thinking 00:17:40.900 --> 00:17:45.079 about the Church's witness in this world. We're 00:17:45.079 --> 00:17:48.400 to live with expectation because we know our 00:17:48.400 --> 00:17:51.400 Lord God is coming again to take us to where 00:17:51.400 --> 00:17:56.700 He is but also with urgency because He's coming 00:17:56.700 --> 00:18:01.500 soon. Second, I believe there is a very serious 00:18:01.500 --> 00:18:04.940 warning in our Apostles words here as well and 00:18:04.940 --> 00:18:07.779 that's that we must be watchful and on guard. 00:18:08.269 --> 00:18:11.509 We live in a day and age where anyone can call 00:18:11.509 --> 00:18:14.589 themselves a Bible teacher, they can set themselves 00:18:14.589 --> 00:18:18.230 up a website, make themselves a YouTube channel 00:18:18.230 --> 00:18:22.089 and preach their own newfound truths, things 00:18:22.089 --> 00:18:25.390 that they claim others, in fact even the apostles 00:18:25.390 --> 00:18:30.230 somehow missed. Well the reality is this, Jesus 00:18:30.230 --> 00:18:34.670 established his church through his chosen apostles 00:18:34.670 --> 00:18:37.910 and prophets, we see that in Ephesians. And the 00:18:37.910 --> 00:18:40.210 apostles, along with the prophets, formed the 00:18:40.210 --> 00:18:43.609 foundation of the church. What they have given 00:18:43.609 --> 00:18:47.630 us in the scripture is the solid foundation on 00:18:47.630 --> 00:18:52.210 which we are to build upon. That's the sober 00:18:52.210 --> 00:18:54.750 warning that John is giving here. He knew that 00:18:54.750 --> 00:18:58.309 from the very beginning false teachers, wolves, 00:18:58.710 --> 00:19:01.809 would come into the flock and claim that the 00:19:01.809 --> 00:19:05.319 apostles got it wrong. That they didn't capture 00:19:05.319 --> 00:19:08.759 the whole essence of the gospel. That they had 00:19:08.759 --> 00:19:11.599 discovered something more. They misunderstood 00:19:11.599 --> 00:19:14.440 God's Word and what it truly said and they were 00:19:14.440 --> 00:19:19.140 taking people away. John understood the danger 00:19:19.140 --> 00:19:24.160 then and the warning is for us now. Some in the 00:19:24.160 --> 00:19:29.400 church will believe false teaching and they will 00:19:29.400 --> 00:19:37.539 leave. So be on guard. Now, as horrid as that 00:19:37.539 --> 00:19:40.740 warning is, as sobering as it is, there's good 00:19:40.740 --> 00:19:43.480 news in our verse as well, in our passage this 00:19:43.480 --> 00:19:49.180 morning. We see it here in verse 19. True believers 00:19:49.180 --> 00:19:53.380 will not fall away. False converts will, but 00:19:53.380 --> 00:19:58.339 true believers cannot and will not because of 00:19:58.339 --> 00:20:02.539 who we're united to. Hear John's words again 00:20:02.539 --> 00:20:05.720 as told to us in verse 19 here. They went out 00:20:05.720 --> 00:20:09.839 from us, but they were not of us. For if they 00:20:09.839 --> 00:20:13.039 had been of us, they would have continued with 00:20:13.039 --> 00:20:17.480 us. But they went out. That it might become plain 00:20:17.480 --> 00:20:23.339 that they are all not of us. I really want you 00:20:23.339 --> 00:20:26.200 to see what John is not telling us here this 00:20:26.200 --> 00:20:29.839 morning. You see he isn't saying that that these 00:20:29.839 --> 00:20:33.079 people that had left, that they were true believers 00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:36.720 and that they had given up on the gift of faith 00:20:36.720 --> 00:20:41.960 and disappeared. Or that they were legitimately 00:20:41.960 --> 00:20:46.460 born again of Christ, brothers and sisters in 00:20:46.460 --> 00:20:51.079 Him who fell away. Now notice the language. He 00:20:51.079 --> 00:20:55.210 says that they left. And in the doing, they actually 00:20:55.210 --> 00:20:57.789 revealed that they were never truly believers 00:20:57.789 --> 00:21:01.569 in the first place, as it might become plain 00:21:01.569 --> 00:21:07.910 that they are all not of us. It's what John says 00:21:07.910 --> 00:21:13.329 here in verse 19. He says that when these people 00:21:13.329 --> 00:21:15.869 left the church, when they denied the gospel, 00:21:17.390 --> 00:21:20.049 When they shunned the community of Christ, they 00:21:20.049 --> 00:21:22.450 actually revealed that they were false converts 00:21:22.450 --> 00:21:25.089 in the first place, as their leaving, their rejection 00:21:25.089 --> 00:21:29.289 of the truth, actually only ended up showing 00:21:29.289 --> 00:21:34.269 their true colours. John says, for if they had 00:21:34.269 --> 00:21:38.710 been of us, they would have continued with us. 00:21:41.490 --> 00:21:44.470 So according to our apostle, if we're understanding 00:21:44.470 --> 00:21:49.710 him right this morning, Being part of a Christian 00:21:49.710 --> 00:21:53.589 community is really important. Because the way 00:21:53.589 --> 00:21:56.609 that our apostle sees it, being part of a faithful 00:21:56.609 --> 00:22:00.750 church and continuing in fellowship, is only 00:22:00.750 --> 00:22:03.890 the outworking of the fellowship that we've already 00:22:03.890 --> 00:22:07.589 obtained in Christ. In fact, that's how John 00:22:07.589 --> 00:22:10.569 starts his whole letter, that which we have seen, 00:22:10.930 --> 00:22:14.410 we have heard and we proclaim to you so that... 00:22:14.809 --> 00:22:19.369 so that you may too have fellowship with us. 00:22:20.569 --> 00:22:23.190 And indeed, our fellowship is with the Father 00:22:23.190 --> 00:22:28.130 and His Son, Jesus Christ. Brothers and sisters, 00:22:28.130 --> 00:22:32.009 that's why the Christian longs and desires to 00:22:32.009 --> 00:22:34.029 be with their spiritual siblings, with their 00:22:34.029 --> 00:22:37.130 church family, no matter where in the world you 00:22:37.130 --> 00:22:40.269 might find yourself or what biblically faithful 00:22:40.269 --> 00:22:43.710 denomination that you like to affiliate with. 00:22:44.059 --> 00:22:48.519 We long to be with our brothers and sisters because 00:22:48.519 --> 00:22:53.740 we have a supernatural fellowship in Christ and 00:22:53.740 --> 00:22:56.980 that supernatural fellowship manifests itself 00:22:56.980 --> 00:23:01.799 in wanting to be part of the body, to be with 00:23:01.799 --> 00:23:06.299 others in Christ's body. That's why true Christians 00:23:06.299 --> 00:23:10.200 desire fellowship with God's people and why they 00:23:10.200 --> 00:23:14.700 won't ultimately They won't ultimately abandon 00:23:14.700 --> 00:23:19.059 their brothers and sisters or Christ. It's because 00:23:19.059 --> 00:23:23.019 there is a bond, a supernatural bond that is 00:23:23.019 --> 00:23:26.400 deeper than flesh and blood. All this to say 00:23:26.400 --> 00:23:29.460 this desire to be with each other and fellowship 00:23:29.460 --> 00:23:33.000 isn't something that is manufactured or that 00:23:33.000 --> 00:23:37.619 we're forced to do. No, we desire to be around 00:23:37.619 --> 00:23:40.779 one another, to fellowship with one another because 00:23:41.049 --> 00:23:45.170 It's the supernatural outworking of already being 00:23:45.170 --> 00:23:50.329 part of God's family. Say that another way, we 00:23:50.329 --> 00:23:53.930 don't gather in Christian community in order 00:23:53.930 --> 00:23:57.690 to get saved. It's not what we're meant to take 00:23:57.690 --> 00:24:01.410 from this. We gather because we already are. 00:24:02.380 --> 00:24:06.380 I think the 19th century, the great 19th century 00:24:06.380 --> 00:24:09.559 preacher, Charles Spurgeon, he hammered this 00:24:09.559 --> 00:24:12.440 one on the head in one of his sermons when he 00:24:12.440 --> 00:24:16.460 says, God's people are not dogs. Otherwise they 00:24:16.460 --> 00:24:19.299 might be a people that go about by themselves. 00:24:19.619 --> 00:24:24.940 No, they are called sheep. And therefore sheep, 00:24:25.619 --> 00:24:30.130 they naturally are found in flocks. There's one 00:24:30.130 --> 00:24:31.769 last thing that I want to draw your attention 00:24:31.769 --> 00:24:35.109 to here, and it's found in verses 20 and 21, 00:24:35.450 --> 00:24:39.009 and it's this. True believers are anointed of 00:24:39.009 --> 00:24:43.210 the Holy One. In other words, all the children 00:24:43.210 --> 00:24:47.450 of God are indwelt by the Holy Spirit who actively 00:24:47.450 --> 00:24:50.890 works in us. He brings us into the light, into 00:24:50.890 --> 00:24:55.589 the truth, and He gives us discernment, recognising 00:24:55.589 --> 00:25:00.799 gospel truth. from demonic deception. Let's have 00:25:00.799 --> 00:25:03.519 a look at verse 20 there. But you have been anointed 00:25:03.519 --> 00:25:08.380 by the Holy One and you all have knowledge. Now 00:25:08.380 --> 00:25:10.259 we're not going to spend as much time here but 00:25:10.259 --> 00:25:13.460 I want to highlight for you that John is affirming 00:25:13.630 --> 00:25:17.450 only something that the other apostles knew to 00:25:17.450 --> 00:25:20.829 be true of every born -again believer. God the 00:25:20.829 --> 00:25:24.730 Father has given God the Holy Spirit to unite 00:25:24.730 --> 00:25:29.630 us to His Son, Jesus. And through the Spirit's 00:25:29.630 --> 00:25:33.430 ongoing work in us, we will have a firm grasp, 00:25:33.690 --> 00:25:37.650 a growing, maturing grasp of the truth because 00:25:37.650 --> 00:25:43.839 it's been planted deeply within our hearts. so 00:25:43.839 --> 00:25:47.720 that we might stand firm until the end. Listen 00:25:47.720 --> 00:25:51.859 to how the Apostle Paul puts it in 2 Corinthians 00:25:51.859 --> 00:26:00.880 chapter 1 verses 21 to 22. Now it is God who 00:26:00.880 --> 00:26:07.170 makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He 00:26:07.170 --> 00:26:10.769 anointed us, he set his seal of ownership on 00:26:10.769 --> 00:26:14.910 us and put his spirit in our hearts as a deposit, 00:26:15.869 --> 00:26:20.170 guaranteeing what is to come. Essentially our 00:26:20.170 --> 00:26:23.210 apostle is saying here to the church, to true 00:26:23.210 --> 00:26:27.470 believers, to born again children of God. He's 00:26:27.470 --> 00:26:30.509 saying that the Holy Spirit that was given to 00:26:30.509 --> 00:26:34.450 you is to establish us so that we can stand firm 00:26:34.450 --> 00:26:39.549 in the truth of our most holy faith. That's the 00:26:39.549 --> 00:26:44.190 Spirit's role. He is an anchor that doesn't let 00:26:44.190 --> 00:26:47.599 us drift off too far. from the truth if we could 00:26:47.599 --> 00:26:51.319 see it like that. Now this is incredibly important 00:26:51.319 --> 00:26:54.900 both in John's context and in ours now because 00:26:54.900 --> 00:26:58.880 there were and there still are people claiming 00:26:58.880 --> 00:27:03.359 that there is more to the gospel than that which 00:27:03.359 --> 00:27:06.819 was revealed by the prophets and the apostles. 00:27:07.509 --> 00:27:10.309 They're saying there is a secret knowledge a 00:27:10.309 --> 00:27:13.349 hidden truth something that the Apostles didn't 00:27:13.349 --> 00:27:16.990 have but we do and if you don't follow our teaching 00:27:16.990 --> 00:27:23.690 Ultimately, you can't be saved But John He uses 00:27:23.690 --> 00:27:28.089 the sword of the Lord He counters this directly 00:27:28.089 --> 00:27:31.009 and he says to the believers in the church you 00:27:31.009 --> 00:27:34.670 have the Holy Spirit of God You know the truth 00:27:35.339 --> 00:27:38.500 not because of your superior intellect but because 00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:43.579 of the one who has anointed you. You know to 00:27:43.579 --> 00:27:46.400 whom you belong and you can discern the truth 00:27:46.400 --> 00:27:49.500 from these lies because of the Holy Spirit who 00:27:49.500 --> 00:27:53.380 dwells in you. John wraps it up for us nicely 00:27:53.380 --> 00:27:55.900 here in verse 21 and he says, I write to you 00:27:55.900 --> 00:27:59.200 not because you don't know the truth but because 00:27:59.200 --> 00:28:02.259 you know it and because no lie is of the truth. 00:28:03.150 --> 00:28:05.650 Brothers and sisters, do you see what the Apostle 00:28:05.650 --> 00:28:09.970 John is doing here? He reminds us in the church 00:28:09.970 --> 00:28:14.470 that there is no new truth about Jesus that you 00:28:14.470 --> 00:28:17.529 haven't already heard. You've heard the gospel. 00:28:18.230 --> 00:28:22.000 You've believed the gospel. You've put your trust 00:28:22.000 --> 00:28:25.140 in the Gospel as it's been revealed to you by 00:28:25.140 --> 00:28:28.460 the Word of God and through the preaching, the 00:28:28.460 --> 00:28:31.259 writing, the inscriptuation, I can't say that 00:28:31.259 --> 00:28:34.519 word properly, of the prophets and the apostles. 00:28:35.480 --> 00:28:39.700 Because of this you know the truth. A truth that 00:28:39.700 --> 00:28:44.259 will protect you from lies. For the Holy Spirit 00:28:44.259 --> 00:28:49.339 has given us wisdom and understanding. Church, 00:28:49.380 --> 00:28:51.619 one final thing to say here, we live in a world 00:28:51.619 --> 00:28:56.339 that gets very, very bored very easily. Always 00:28:56.339 --> 00:29:00.519 looking for the next big thing to cure the soul. 00:29:01.220 --> 00:29:03.160 We live in a world where a lot of people get 00:29:03.160 --> 00:29:06.960 their worldview from Instagram clips and YouTube 00:29:06.960 --> 00:29:10.400 channels and it's a complete understatement to 00:29:10.400 --> 00:29:14.339 say that there's a lot of fake news out there. 00:29:15.150 --> 00:29:18.430 Well, as we've seen this morning, we are a people 00:29:18.430 --> 00:29:22.970 who are in danger of falling for an antichrist 00:29:22.970 --> 00:29:30.269 agenda. But that's not to say that we will fall 00:29:30.269 --> 00:29:34.430 for the schemes of the enemy. No, the Holy Spirit 00:29:34.430 --> 00:29:38.150 has been given to all God's children and the 00:29:38.150 --> 00:29:40.890 Spirit is the one who has joined us to Christ. 00:29:42.009 --> 00:29:45.569 He will never leave nor forsake us and He will 00:29:45.569 --> 00:29:49.170 never contradict the revelation that has been 00:29:49.170 --> 00:29:52.410 given to us in the Good News. Now the Spirit 00:29:52.410 --> 00:29:55.589 will never contradict His Word because He gave 00:29:55.589 --> 00:29:59.990 it to us. He will only illuminate what He has 00:29:59.990 --> 00:30:06.769 given to us. If anyone comes along and claims 00:30:06.769 --> 00:30:12.009 a new truth about the Gospel, a secret wisdom 00:30:12.009 --> 00:30:15.230 about how to really be saved, a new teaching 00:30:15.230 --> 00:30:19.329 that contradicts what we know about Jesus as 00:30:19.329 --> 00:30:23.390 revealed in his word to us, then instinctively, 00:30:24.329 --> 00:30:30.329 the sheep know the voice of the shepherd. And 00:30:30.329 --> 00:30:35.529 we will run from that wolf. That's why we need 00:30:35.529 --> 00:30:40.299 the church. That's why we need each other, brothers 00:30:40.299 --> 00:30:44.539 and sisters. We need each other to keep pointing 00:30:44.539 --> 00:30:48.000 one another to the way, to the truth, to the 00:30:48.000 --> 00:30:53.660 life. The church was founded by the prophets 00:30:53.660 --> 00:30:56.759 and the apostles with Christ as its cornerstone. 00:30:56.819 --> 00:31:01.059 It is a gracious gift of God's mercy to us in 00:31:01.059 --> 00:31:07.990 this world. We're in a spiritual battle. If we 00:31:07.990 --> 00:31:13.430 go Han Solo on the rest of the platoon, it's 00:31:13.430 --> 00:31:18.470 not a great thing. The church is here to help 00:31:18.470 --> 00:31:23.349 us to persevere in our most holy faith. Look 00:31:23.349 --> 00:31:25.470 around you this morning, brothers and sisters. 00:31:27.150 --> 00:31:31.269 Christ has given us to one another. To love each 00:31:31.269 --> 00:31:35.710 other, to encourage each other. to help each 00:31:35.710 --> 00:31:39.470 other on this journey until our Lord comes again 00:31:39.470 --> 00:31:44.569 to take us to where he is. We are the sheep of 00:31:44.569 --> 00:31:48.789 his flock. And so let's stay close to our great 00:31:48.789 --> 00:31:52.769 shepherd and encourage each other along the way. 00:31:53.109 --> 00:31:59.329 Would you please pray with me? Lord Jesus, we 00:31:59.329 --> 00:32:04.769 thank you so much that you have Torn us out of 00:32:04.769 --> 00:32:09.089 this world Lord that we by nature were going 00:32:09.089 --> 00:32:13.430 one way, but you revealed yourself your life 00:32:13.430 --> 00:32:17.609 your perfect life your substitutionary death 00:32:17.609 --> 00:32:25.029 your resurrection for justification Your ascension 00:32:25.029 --> 00:32:28.589 to the right hand where you rule and reign until 00:32:28.589 --> 00:32:33.420 you come to get us again Father, we thank you 00:32:33.420 --> 00:32:37.099 for the gift of the church. We thank you that 00:32:37.099 --> 00:32:39.220 we're not just gathered here in Armidale, that 00:32:39.220 --> 00:32:42.619 we're gathered in Brookden, that we're gathered 00:32:42.619 --> 00:32:47.279 in Gosnells, that we're gathered in North Perth, 00:32:47.420 --> 00:32:50.799 South Perth, Sydney, Papua New Guinea, Africa 00:32:50.799 --> 00:32:54.400 and so many different places. There's churches 00:32:54.400 --> 00:32:57.839 that are visibly able to promote you and there's 00:32:57.839 --> 00:33:02.279 churches that are somewhat underground. We thank 00:33:02.279 --> 00:33:05.480 you for the gift that you have given us of each 00:33:05.480 --> 00:33:09.859 other. Lord, I ask that we would be a people 00:33:09.859 --> 00:33:14.500 that would hear truth, know truth, and weigh 00:33:14.500 --> 00:33:18.720 everything that we hear by your word. That everything 00:33:18.720 --> 00:33:22.799 we would do would be for your glory. We ask for 00:33:22.799 --> 00:33:24.039 this in Jesus' name.