Join with us one more time in
the book of 1 John, and we're gonna read 1 John 2, starting
with verse 18. It says, little children, it is
the last time. And as ye have heard that Antichrist
shall come, even now are there many Antichrists whereby we know
that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they
were not of us. For if they had been of us, they
would no doubt have continued with us. But they went out that
they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. But
ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.
I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because
ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is a liar but
he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist
that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son,
the same hath not the Father, but he that acknowledges the
Son hath the Father also. Let that, therefore, abide in
you which you have heard from the beginning. If that which
you have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye shall
also continue in the Son and in the Father. And this is the
promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life." And we looked at, The last time we
looked at the part of verse 18, the beginning of it where it
says, little children, it is the last time. And as you have
heard that the Antichrist shall come, even now there are many
Antichrists whereby we know it is the last time. We looked into
that, that it's not the last time as far as the last day or
the coming of the Lord right that minute that they're talking
about, but the last time, as we see, has been from when the
Lord said it's finished. On Calvary, when the price was
paid to redeem his people, all was finished that needed to be
accomplished for the sheep's redemption. From that time on,
it is the last times. The next thing that's gonna happen,
other than him calling all his sheep in, is he's coming back.
And that's the next big thing to look for, and that we anticipate. And as we said, and has been
said many times, the Old Testament said someone is coming. And the
gospels say someone is here, and the rest of the scriptures
from the gospels on was someone's coming again. And that's what
we look forward to, and that's what we contemplate, and the next big
thing that's gonna happen is the Lord's coming back. There
may be a lot of things that take place, and it talks about, we
talked about the antichrist, and we mentioned that, and we're
gonna, so not the last time we see or hear of that in John,
1 John, but that anything that is antichrist against him is
antichrist. I'd like to, I'd like to read a statement
again that an Adam Clark commentator that
said about these things. And I'd like to read it again.
He said, every man who opposes the spirit of the gospel and
every teacher and writer who endeavors to lower the gospel
standard to the spirit and taste of the world is genuinely anti-Christ
no matter among whom he's found. So anything that lowers the standard,
as he says, of the gospel of Christ down to man's taste and
liking is antichrist. It's not standing for what the
gospel stands for and declares. And so the antichrist, speaking
about anything and anyone, many make of the antichrist with a
big A on it that it's a person. And the scripture doesn't hold
forth that it's a man. There are many that say that,
point to the religion of Rome and different things. Indeed,
Antichrist, but not the only Antichrist that's in this world.
But anyone that opposes that, that is different from that or
departs from that is Antichrist. And here, I'd like to go on And
here in verse 19, it's speaking about the Antichrist and keep
us on track of who we're talking about. Verse 19 goes on and says,
they went out from us, but they were not of us. For if they had
been of us, they no doubt would have continued with us. But they
went out that they might be manifest. that they were not all of us.
And we have to connect that to up above about the Antichrist.
And it says that those who departed had departed the truth of the
gospel is what it's speaking about. Doesn't mean they departed,
moved away, traveled, were gone, whatever in a physical sense,
that may be part of it, but that those who had departed had departed
the truth of the gospel. and they may have been physically
in their midst, but far from the truth of the gospel in Christ
and still be in the midst. We have heard of those who have
questioned the holiness of Jesus Christ in our day, God Almighty,
it would declare they have departed from us. That is, apparently
departed the truth as it is given to us in scripture. Not from
what Sovereign Grace Baptist Church alone says, but what the
scriptures have to say. That's what we declare is what
the scriptures have to say, not some dogma or point of fact that
we put forth of our own as truth. But any of those that depart
from who he is and who the scriptures say he is, That's anti-Christ
and that's what it talks about being departed from the gospel.
Not because we are the authority of things, but we cite the authority
of all things that we have in our midst. We have the scriptures
that we hold. And those that went out from
that, what the scripture has to say. And we have that in our
day. And as it says, as it said, Many
antichrists come and go through time and tell the Lord, come,
there are going to be these things and this error in the world. And I think departing from the
word of God says several things. I think it says, it questions
or changes who Christ is, his nature and attributes. Who man
is, his sinful nature, his will, changes what the scriptures say
about that. What God demands, God demands holiness and righteousness
and that is often changed into, we can shore that up by what
we are and how we do things. And then who Christ died for,
the church of his own sheep he died for, not for, When it was
finished, it didn't cover the world, bar none. It covered the
sheep that were died for, that the everlasting covenant included. And do the departed, that they're speaking of believe
the report that God has for it. They don't believe the report
or they wouldn't have departed from the gospel. And these are
some things of what Antichrist stands for and I think what it
means. Anything that, and as Adam Clarke
said, anything that lowers what the gospel is lowers it to what
man's taste and liking is, it's antichrist, anything that's contrary
to what the scriptures say. And I think that that's pretty,
pretty plain in that respect. Turn with me to the book of Jude,
if you will, please. To the book of Jude, and we went
through the book of Jude here. for some time, a while back,
and in verse 12, it's speaking about these, and
the book of Jude talks about those that had departed, and
the ones that were in their midst that had departed the truth and
were, causing disruption and bad things
to take place within the church. And in verse 12 of Jude, it says,
these are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with
you, feeding themselves without fear. Clouds they are without
water, carried about of winds, trees whose fruit withereth without
fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots. Raging waves of the sea, it says,
foaming out their own shame, wandering stars to whom is reserved
the blackness of darkness forever. And Enoch also the seventh from
Adam prophesied of these saying, behold, the Lord cometh with
10,000 of his saints to execute judgment upon all and to convince
all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds, which
they have ungodly committed. and of all their hard speeches
which ungodly sinners have spoken against him." And I think that
characterizes some of that, of what it speaks about, about Antichrist.
But here it says at the end, and all their hard speeches which
ungodly sinners have spoken against him. And these hard speeches
would be anything, again, that changes who he is, who the scriptures
say he is, to a God that man would like and would prefer to
have. And we see that as Norm has been
in Acts, and we see that in the book of Joshua, the actions of
men that were being dealt with. that is contrary to what God
says about things, what the scripture says. Back in 1 John again. Let me
turn the pages here. Back in 1 John chapter two. And verse 20 and 21, It says, but ye have an unction
from the Holy One, and that ye know all things. I have not written
unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know
it, and that no lie is of the truth. And up here where it says,
you have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. a couple of comments. It's not
saying you know all things bar none. It says you know all things
have been revealed to God's people about himself and salvation and
what is required and about ourselves. There's an awful lot that we
do not know, but the scripture is plain to us and showeth those
things. And it says, I've written unto
you, not because you know not the truth, but because you know
it, and that know lies of the truth. And the truth we have
is the scriptures we hold, and as the Lord reveals that to his
people, those things. Anything that's contrary to that,
or ideas that we come up with, we need to always and constantly
measure that by what the scriptures have to say. and not just taking
a verse or a word from a verse and then building a doctrine
around it, as happens many times. Or an idea, and it's something
that I think that we always have to be careful of, of not coming
with an idea we want to substantiate and then finding the scriptures
that substantiate that proof. But we need to make sure that
it's the scriptures that are translating and teaching the
scriptures to us, just to support an idea we have. As Ben has said
before, you can find anything you want in the scriptures if
you take the verse and the word that you want. But we need to
be careful, and that's something we're always on guard about,
is that what we have to say and what we have to bring out actually
is what the scripture says, and not what we want to say, but
what the scriptures say. The word unction, the word is used several times
in the scripture, but that word is used as itself not very often,
and it translates from charisma or ointment or anointing. It's, and as it means here, as
it's talking about here, and there are those that also hold
forth, and we're gonna look at some scriptures that speak to
this same thought, that the Lord himself, the Holy One, is where
this anointing comes from. The Holy Spirit applies this,
but it's that anointing or robe of righteousness that he has
that is a covering. That word charisma or ointment
or anointing, it's also translated as smearing or covering, which
is curious, I guess, in how it's used in different places. But
that is the, The thought of it, it's an anointing
or a teaching from the spirit himself. And I'd like to look
down at verse 27 in chapter two of John, also the first John,
the same word is used. Verse 26 and 27, it says, these
things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you,
but the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you,
and ye need not that any man teach you, but as the same anointing
teaches you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, even
as it has taught you, ye shall abide in him. But this anointing
here and where it's used twice here, anointing which you have
received of him is the same word as the unction up above that's
used there in verse 20. So I'd like to look at several
other places. While we're in 1 John, turn with
me to chapter four. 1 John chapter four and verse one, and we'll see how these apply
and how these fit with what we see there. It says, beloved,
believe not every spirit, but try the spirits, whether they
are of God, because many false prophets are gone out into the
world. Hereby you know the spirit of God, every spirit that confesses
that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God. And every
spirit that confesses not that Jesus Christ has come in the
flesh is not of God. And this is that spirit of antichrist
where of you have heard that it should come. And even now
already is it in the world. And here, particularly up here,
in this church, It says, believe not every spirit, but try the
spirits whether they are of God, because many false prophets are
gone out into the world. And it's not where it says, try
every spirit, that's judging those things that are taught
and said by the light that we have, by the scripture that we
have in hand. and as the spirit reveals to
his people those things, but it's not a try them or judge them as we
would prefer, but as the scripture has to say about it. If somebody
says a statement about the Lord, one that baffles me recently,
in fairly recent times, those that say, yea, was Christ really
without sin? How that can even come up, how
that, that was not too hard to try that by the spirit of what
the scripture says. It says he is the perfect spotless
lamb of God. There's no, that's not a questionable
thing. That's not, that that would even come up in curiosity
baffles me amongst people that claim that the Lord is their
righteousness. If there's any doubt that he
was sinless, his righteousness may not be as good as we think
it is. So we know the scripture that
that is a non-starter if we examine the attributes of God and who
Christ is. That's not too hard to judge,
but there are the same other things that come up that question
who he is or who he died for, the different things that we
mentioned, any of those things come up. If they don't square
with the scripture, it's just plain wrong. Some are like the
questioning of Christ, whether he had any sin or not. That's shameful that that's even
a starter in thought of people that claim to be believers. But those type of things have
to be exposed by what the scripture had to say. That's what it says here, believe
not every spirit, but triumph by what the scripture has to
say. And we're on safe ground if we do that. And that's the
only ground that we can safely stand on. Turn the page to chapter
five here in 1 John for just a verse. Chapter five and verse
20. Right down at the end there,
1 John, it says, and we know that the Son of God has come
and hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is
true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son, Jesus
Christ. This is the true God and eternal
life. And up above here, it says that
he hath the Son, verse 12, he hath the Son, hath life. He hath
not the Son of God, hath not life. But here it says that he
hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is
true. And we are in him that is true, even in his son, Jesus
Christ. This is the true God and eternal
life. Again, that speaks directly to
that, I believe, of the unction of the direction of the spirit
to God's people to reveal some things to them, but it's through
his spirit and through his word that it's revealed. It's not
apart from what the scripture have to say. Turn with me to 1 Corinthians,
please. If you would, 1 Corinthians.
And chapter one, first Corinthians in chapter one. And verses, starting with verse 21, it says, for that, after that
in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, It pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign,
and the Greeks seek after wisdom. But we preach Christ crucified
unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness,
but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ
the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness
of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger
than men. For you see your calling, brethren,
how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not
many noble are called. But God hath chosen the foolish
things of the world to confound the wise, and God hath chosen
the weak things of the world to confound the mighty. It goes on, no flesh of glory
in his presence, but the weak vessels, God has chosen to hold forth
the gospel. The gospel is the power of God
unto salvation, as we see, and that the argument isn't with
the person delivering the scriptures. We don't stand in our own authority,
we stand in what the scripture says. And up here, it says, we
preach Christ crucified unto the Jews of stumbling block and
unto the Greeks foolishness. And then that which are called
both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God and the wisdom
of God. So when it speaks about that,
we know all things in him, we, in him, as the scripture speak
to about him and who he is to his people, that's where we stand
in. And that's what we have to stand
in. And that, Unction or anointing is from, with the spirit and
as the scriptures hold forth. Excuse me. In Ephesians, turn
to the book of Ephesians if you would please with me. The book of Ephesians. wonderful first chapter that
a lot of times is skipped over to chapter two and beyond, but
it's a chapter one of Ephesians is a blessed chapter to God's
people because it shows the standing we have, why we have a standing,
why chapter two comes about. But I'd like to read in, starting
in verse 17 of Ephesians chapter one, It says, that the God of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the father of glory may give unto you the spirit of wisdom
and revelation and the knowledge of him. The eyes of your understanding
being enlightened that you may know what is the hope of his
calling and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance
in the saints. and what is the exceeding greatness
of his power to us who believe, according to the working of his
mighty power, which he wrought in Christ when he raised him
from the dead and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly
places. Far above all principality and
power and might and dominion and every name that is named,
not only in this world but also in that which is to come. and
hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be the head
over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness
of him that filleth all in all." And up to here, verse 17 again,
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the father of glory,
may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of him. And notice that it didn't just
say that he give us knowledge and wisdom. It says, give us
those things, give us the spirit of wisdom and revelation and
the knowledge of him, Christ himself. That's, as other parts
of scripture say, that he causes his people to grow in grace and
the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. And by knowing who he
is, And what he has done and does for his people, we can be
in pretty solid ground. That relieves some of the nonsense
that we could come up with reading in the book of Daniel or the
book of Revelation or the book of any other book. It keeps us
on the straight and narrow of what we need to know and whom
we have redemption in the knowledge of him. And then in Philippians, in the book of Philippians, there's
a, in Philippians chapter two, It speaks in the first chapter
that he prays that God teaches and
knowledge and judgment that we can approve those things that
are excellent. And then in chapter two, starting with verse 13,
it says, For it is God which worketh in
you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things
without murmurings and disputings that you may be blameless and
harmless the sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked
and perverse nation among whom you shine as lights in the world,
holding forth the word of life that I may rejoice in the day
of Christ that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain."
And then here it speaks to, God worketh in you both to will and
to do of his good pleasure. And then it says, with sons of
God, it says, without rebuke in a crooked and perverse nation,
among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding forth the
word of life, that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, and holding
forth the word of life as we hold it in our hands, the scripture,
and that what true life is, what true light is, and as it speaks
to us. And he prays that that happens. And there in verse 13, where
it said, it's God in you, which worketh both to will and to do
of his good pleasure. To put the desire in us is of
his doing. We don't have desires towards
God if he doesn't put that in us. And that is something that
is... That's always going to be with
us is that his doing in us and putting those
desires in here in us. And then down here and also in Philippians
right here in the third chapter, And starting with verse eight,
and Paul says, yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss
for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for
whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them,
but dumb that I may win Christ and be found in him, not having
my own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is
through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of
God by faith. And that I may know him and the
power of his resurrection, fellowship of his sufferings being made
conformable unto his death. But a couple of things here, the excellency of the knowledge
of Christ Jesus, my Lord, and Here where it says, and be found
in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that
which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which
is of God by faith. And I think it gets back to the
thought there of the antichrist, those that would do just the
opposite of this here, having their own righteousness, anything
that changes what the gospel is and who our Lord is, It changes,
it goes right back to works at self-righteousness that is of
the law, it says, that which is the faith of Christ,
the righteousness which is of God by faith. And that is, I
think a lot of things can be tied right back to that. And
it's who man is and who God is. And I think antichrist is anything,
again, that dilutes who he is in any way, shape, or form. And it can take on a lot of different
forms and thoughts. And then in the book of Matthew, The book of Matthew, Matthew
chapter 16. Matthew chapter 16. And he asked him, it started
in verse 13. It says, when Jesus came to the
coast of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples saying, whom
do men say that I am the son of, that I the son of man am? And they said, some say that
thou art John the Baptist, some Elias, others Jeremias, or one
of the prophets. And he saith unto them, but whom
say ye that I am? In verse 16. It says that Simon
Peter answered and said, thou art the Christ, the son of the
living God. In verse 17, Jesus answered and said unto him, blessed
art thou Simon Bar-Jonah, for the flesh and blood hath not
revealed it unto you. But my father, which is in heaven,
and he goes on and says, I said to thee that thou art Peter,
and upon this rock with a big R, not little r, will I build
my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
And here, verse 17, flesh and blood is not revealed. And if
indeed we have anything and we hold anything in truth of the
scripture, and we believe that, it's of his doing that that we
can do that. As it says here, flesh and blood
hasn't revealed it to you. We can know the words of the
scripture. We can know the language of it. We can understand some
of the Greek and Hebrew and stuff, but it still has to be revealed
to his people. And we pray that that, as Paul
says, that's what we pray that he does is reveal the truth to
us through the word. In John, in the book of John
chapter 14, book of John chapter 14. And I think the book of John,
there's a lot that's been attacked in the book of what book of John
has to say about salvation, which says about the covenant, eternal
covenant, everlasting covenant, who God's sheep are. And there's a lot that's been mishandled
and misapplied and misused here in the book of John as the rest
of the scripture. John 14 and verse 26 and 27,
it says, but the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father
was sent in my name, shall teach you all things and bring all
things to your remembrance whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I
leave with you, my peace I give unto you, not as the world give
I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled,
neither let it be afraid. But it's here, the Holy Ghost
will teach you all things. And again, not saying encyclopedic
knowledge of all there is to know, but of those important
things that we need to know about the Lord and about ourselves
and about how he regenerates his people and those things that
come from that, how those connect. And while we're here, go back
up to verse 17. It says, verse 17, John 14, it
says, even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive
because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him, but ye know him
for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you. I will not leave
you comfortless, I will come to you. But here, the spirit
of truth that says the world cannot receive. If the spirit
doesn't reveal it, it's not taught by lessons. It's taught by the
Lord himself and the Lord himself through the scripture as we hold
it. And then I think some things that are pointed to in the scriptures
that come from this and out from this and Second Peter, the book of Second
Peter. Second Peter speaks about some
of these same things about about the teaching of the Lord to his
people and about the false teachers and prophets. But in 2 Peter
chapter 1, starting with verse 1 of the first chapter, it says,
Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them
that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness
of God and our Savior Jesus Christ. Grace and peace be multiplied
unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
according as his divine power hath given unto us all things
that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him
that hath called us to glory and virtue, whereby are given
unto us exceeding great and precious promises. But by these ye might
be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption
that is in the world. through lust. And then it says
in verse five, and beside this giving all diligence, add to
your faith virtue and to virtue knowledge and to knowledge temperance
and to temperance patience and to patience godliness and to
godliness, brotherly kindness and to brotherly kindness charity.
For if these things be in you and abound, they make that you
shall neither be barren nor fruitful in the knowledge of our Lord
Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things
is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that
he was purged from his old sins. So in this first opening part
of 2 Peter, he again reiterates how we stand and who we stand
in and whose power it has been given to us. And that it says,
those that have obtained like precious faith in our God and
Savior Jesus Christ. And it says, according as his
divine power, verse three, hath given unto us all things that
pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of him
that call us to glory and virtue. Again, it's been His power, it's
not our will or doing, but by God's power that He indeed has
given us these things. And then it goes on, as it says
there, not just the knowledge of Him, but the outworking that'll
show from that, of these different things that it speaks about,
that kindness, brotherly kindness and charity. patience and temperance
and all the different things it goes down here through that
will be the goal. That's the desire to have. It
may not appear all the time that way, but that's the desire and
the goal. And then, Finishing for today, again, with
the last couple of verses of the book of Jude, it says, look
unto him that's able to present us faultless before himself. He is the one that presents us
faultless. So we'll pick this up again next
time, but here today, particularly with the the thoughts of abiding
in that truth that he gives us and has in us by the Spirit and
speaking about the Antichrist as anything that is not according
to what the Scripture says about him. And God keep us from that
and protect us in that, in doing that. So again, thank you for
your attention