Take your Bibles, please, and
open them to 1 John, chapter 2. 1 John, chapter 2. I want to read verses 18 and
19, just those two verses this morning. While you're turning to that
portion of Scripture, let me ask you a question. We sang a
song just a few minutes ago, a new one. And I hope we learn
it pretty soon. I tell you, that's a good song.
I like the melody as well as the words. How many crowns does the Christian
have that he can gain? Do you remember? It's been taught, but it's been
a long time ago. I won't tell you now, I'll let
you think about it. Well, maybe I will. Number of fingers on one hand. I want to introduce these two
verses this morning by calling attention to something that is
very important. These two verses that we're going
to read in just a moment are very, very important from
the standpoint of eschatology. You say, well,
where do you get that? Are you trying to make something
big out of nothing? No. I'll take time this morning and
I hope I don't put you to sleep. But many years ago, In my research
work, which lasted several years on eschatology, I had to go back to this very
passage of scripture to have the proper start. So that shows you how important
these two verses are. All right? And there's something
also very controversial in these two verses. We'll deal with that. Children, it is the last hour. That's the NASB. What does the King James say,
if you have your King James? That's better. The King James
has the better translation, as I'll do my best to prove this
morning, on the translation of the word Hora. is the Greek word
for time, day, etc. Children, it is the last, I'm
going to use the word time, and just as you heard that Antichrist,
singular, is coming, even now, at the time John wrote even now
many antichrists, plural, have arisen. From this we know that
it is the last time. Same words repeated twice, once
at the beginning of the text and last one at the conclusion. Verse 19, they went out from
us, they referring to the antichrists, but they were not really of us. For if they had been of us, they
would have remained with us. But they went out in order that
it might be shown that they all are not of us. You can't imagine how much one must know on the study of prophecy to deal
with these two verses accurately or biblically. We'll take up where we left off
last Sunday, and we'll have all the outlines
on this particular aspect of our study of fellowship for you
next Sunday. Some of the Corinthians were
deceived by antichrists. These Antichrists that had deceived
some of the Corinthians, according to 2 Corinthians 11 verses 1
through 4. So they had been deceived. Christians
can be deceived, not to the point of destruction, but they can
be deceived. Many times in the New Testament,
especially the church epistles, be not deceived, be not deceived,
be not deceived. So some of the Corinthians were
deceived by Antichrist, who preached, turn if you will please to 2
Corinthians 11 verse 4. 2 Corinthians 11 verse 4. We have
two different words here and we must call attention to why
we have two different words. So the Corinthians had been deceived
by Antichrist who had preached another Jesus. Now what is the Greek word for
another? It is Alas. I'll spell it in
English. A-L-L-O-S. It's an adjective. Alas Iesus. Iesus is the Greek for Jesus. Now, Elon or a lost, alon, as
you will find it in your Greek text, is the inflected form because
it is in the accusative case, it's masculine, and it is singular
in number. Now, it wasn't a different Jesus,
but a denial of identity by not proclaiming the Savior Paul had
preached. So it's translated, another.
Another Jesus. And then he goes on to say, a
different spirit. Benuma heteron. And that's heteros, another adjective.
And it's the word from which we get the English word heresy. heresy, a different spirit or a heretical
spirit, different spirit from the one
they had received when he wrought a work of grace in their hearts.
And then notice thirdly, A different gospel, translated different.
It's the same Greek adjective as the last one, heteros. Now, let's read it again. So,
it was a different message, one that Paul didn't preach,
that they had received by these deceivers, the antichrists. Let's read it now in the NASB,
if you have the NASB. For if one comes and preaches
another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or you receive a different
spirit, which you have not received, or a different gospel, which
you have not accepted, Although many of the Corinthians
were older people, follow me closely here, they were little
children. According to 1 Corinthians 3
verse 1, they were little children. And the Greek word for children
here is napios, napios. They were not of age spiritually. They were like infants just born. They were immature. They had
never developed. Now, folks, that's a strong statement,
but I want you to turn to 1 Corinthians 3, verse 1, and I want to show
you something. We want to take time because
this is a very important introduction. to what I'm going to give this
morning. And thy brethren could not speak
to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh. That's
sad. That's what Paul had to contend
with, with the Corinthians. And then he says, as to babes
in Christ, that's napios, plural, napios, not napios, to give you the inflected form.
Look at verse 2. I gave you milk to drink, not
solid food, for you were not yet able to receive it. You couldn't
take solid food. Indeed, even now you are not
able. Verse 3, For you are still fleshly,
for since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are
you not walking like mere men. Do you see why a lot of the Corinthians
didn't like Paul? He told them what their condition
really was. And no one likes to hear that,
especially if he's really guilty and been trying to hide it or
camouflage it. I'm gonna have a little problem
today with my throat, so you'll have to bear with me. Although
many of the Corinthians were older men, older people, they
were little children in growth and development. There was no Savior superior
to Jesus Christ. No spirit could give more comfort
or possessed more power to sanctify than he who they had received. And no gospel revealed more power
to sanctify and contained better promises than the message to which they
had been exposed, the teaching and preaching of Paul. He was
a doctrinal teacher and preacher. He gave it all, and he gave his
best at all times. Since baby Christians were enduring
the false teachers to which they were exposed, Paul wondered why
they could not bear with him for a little while because he
had become their father by means of the gospel that he was proclaiming. And you know the word that he
used in Greek, not the ordinary word for father, pater, pater. Turn, if you will, please, to
1 Corinthians 4.15. You'll see why I'm doing this
in the study of verses 18 and 19 of 1 John 2. In 1 Corinthians 4.15, Paul had
this to say to them. For if you were to have countless
tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers. And that's
the plural for pater. For in Christ Jesus I became
your Father through the Gospel. I became
your Father, your Tutor. The word Father, Pater, is referring,
of course, to the spiritual fatherhood of the individual who was the
instructor. is used in the spiritual sense
of a gospel minister standing in a father's place caring for
spiritual children, Christians, babies in Christ. You can see what an awesome responsibility
it is. Abraham was called the father
of all the children of God in Romans 4 verse 11. Those of the faith, true faith,
God-given faith, are referred to as sons of Abraham, Galatians
3 verse 7. The word pater is used several
ways in the New Testament, but in 1 Corinthians 4.15, it is
used in the sense of being apparent to an individual. It is used
corporately rather than individually. In this case, since Paul was
a non-creative means, watch what I'm saying, a non-creative means,
he could never become creatively associated with a sovereign creator
in the new birth. You know, a lot of people think
that a preacher can save people, not in the regeneration sense. He might deliver them and save
them in the sense of deliverance from false doctrine by his teaching,
but not delivering them from darkness to light. I can't resist adding something
at this point. Does a sinner assist in the new
birth? Every Arminian believes he does.
He has to give his okay. I want you to save me. Not a
word of truth in that. That's heresy, folks. You know, I heard something this
last week that really did nauseate me. This was somebody in the
cabinet of our government who made this statement. They were
talking about the scientists now creating an embryo in the
laboratory. Have you been reading? Have you
kept up with it? Do you know what I'm talking about? How many
of you know what I'm talking about? Well, quite a few of you
do. So I wanted to see what this
person was going to say. And this takes the cake. And I wouldn't want to eat any
of that kind of cake. But this person made this statement.
The scientists are not creating a personality. Wasn't that rich? Just simply creating embryos
for scientific analysis. Who's the giver of life? You
know and I know who it is. And I'll tell you a lot of doctors
and a lot of scientists today are dabbling with things they
had better lay their hands off of. I think the Lord is about ready
to show us who's the boss. Who's the boss? I think it's
later than we might think. You know, when I think about
people and their idea of giving God
the okay to save me, I must be willing to submit. And so I submit
myself to you. And if I didn't submit myself
to you, Lord, you couldn't do anything for me. Not when it
comes to regeneration. That is not so. That is not so. That's like saying
majority rules. You know, democracy believes
the majority rules. Do you believe in democracy?
I don't. I don't believe in democracy
in the sense of a democratic, solely democratic form of government. I don't believe in it. It becomes
not a democracy. It becomes a mobocracy. The majority
have never been right. And the majority never will be
right. But I want to show you something.
You know, I pastored Baptist churches, three of them. That
was enough for me. We believe in democracy. Democracy
rules in our congregation. If democracy rules, what does
the preacher do? Does he simply do what the democracy
or the democratic body tells him to do? Listen closely, folks. I may say something this morning
that really will strike a note. Well, let's read a few verses
of scripture. Would you like to do that? I think I'll start at a particular
place. I like, first of all, I'm going
to kind of read them backwards. Will you open your Bibles to
Hebrews, first of all? Book of Hebrews. Now, forget
about what you've been taught or what you've heard. See, the founders of this country
did not initiate a democracy per se. There's more to it than
that. Let's look at this. Let's look
at verse 7 of chapter 13. Hebrews chapter 13. Remember those who led you. The King James says rule. Use
the word rule. Hebrews 13 7. The NASB says remember
those who led you. David, will you stand and read
that from the King James, if you have the King James with
you? Remember those who led you, who
spoke the word of God to you, and considering the result of
their conduct, imitate their faith. I'd like you to drop down
to verse 17. Obey your leaders, and these
are elders, teachers, and submit to them. See, the Baptists are
saying now that a woman is not to submit herself to her husband. Well, that's not what the scripture
says. It says the very opposite. for they keep watch over your
souls. A true elder, not a false Christ,
but a true elder. Watch this. Obey your leaders,
submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls. As those who will give an account,
let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would
be unprofitable for you. Now drop down to verse 24, next
to the last verse. Greet all your leaders, or your
elders, and all the saints. Grace be with you all. Now I'd
like you to back up. Turn to 1 Timothy chapter 5.
1 Timothy chapter 5. And I'd like for us to begin
reading with about the 17th verse. Let the elders who rule well. Elders who rule well. Who are
serving in the place of ruling the church? The democratic body? Think about the average Methodist
church or Baptist church today. Let me get your attention for
a moment. The only difference between Baptists
and Methodists, really, Baptists sprinkle babies when they're
really, really babies, and Baptists are bad about immersing four-,
five-, and six-year-old babies. Now, they're members. Do they
have a right to vote? Democracy rules. Just think it
through, folks, and it'll turn your stomach wrong side out.
All right? Now listen to verse 17 again. Let the elders who rule well
be considered worthy of double honor. especially those who work hard
at preaching and teaching. There's a difference between
preaching and teaching. There is a difference. Notice verse
18. For the scripture says, You shall
not muzzle the ox while he is threshing, and the laborer is
worthy of his wages. Do not receive an accusation
against an elder except on the basis of two or three witnesses. Folks, I've had the opportunity
and the responsibility of pointing that out a number of times in
my ministry. Those who continue in sin rebuke
in the presence of all. Who's to do that? The elders. so that the rest also may be
fearful of sinning." Rebuke Him that those who are present, if
they're guilty, they'll be fearful. He's talking about Christians,
folks. He's not talking about unsaved church members. Okay,
notice verse 21. I solemnly charge you. Who's
He charging? He's charging the elders. in
the presence of God and Christ Jesus of His chosen angels to
maintain these principles without bias, doing nothing in a spirit of
partiality. Do not lay hands upon anyone
too hastily and thus share responsibility
for the sins of others. Keep yourself free from sin.
I want you to go back to 1 Thessalonians, just back up a little further. 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. I
want to show you what YOUR responsibility is. And it's an awesome responsibility. Chapter 5, verse 12. But we request
of you, Paul said, brethren, that you appreciate those who
diligently labor among you and have charge over you in the Lord
and give you instruction. I don't think any of you can
accuse me of coming around and saying to you, you better watch
out. I'm your ruler. I don't do it like that. That's
not the way to do it. Someone who does that lets you
know how much power he has. He's in the wrong place. He doesn't
need to be where he is. You better get him out. In all
likelihood, he's an antichrist. We don't operate like that. Then
he says, and that you esteem them very highly in love. because of their work. Live in peace with one another. And we urge you, brethren, admonish
the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with
all men. See, what I'm doing, I'm showing
you this morning what the Bible has to say about true ministers,
true rulers, and Antichrist, false rulers. I want you to go to 2 Thessalonians
for a moment. 2 Thessalonians. Look at chapter 3. I want to
begin reading with verse 6. Now we command you, brethren. I have the right to command you.
What I'm doing when I command you, I'm using the Bible to do
it. I'm not doing it. I just give you what the book
says. So Paul said, now we command you, brethren, in the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep aloof from every brother
who leads an unruly life. You better keep aloof of him.
Don't you have anything to do with him? He's talking to the
church, folks. This is talking about church
members. and not according to the tradition, and tradition
here is used in a good sense, which you receive from us. For
you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example, because
we did not act in an indisciplined manner among you, nor did we
eat anyone's bread without paying for it. but with labor and hardship
we kept working night and day so that we might not be a burden
to any of you." That's Paul. That's Paul, folks. And that's
true of every man of God, called of God. Not because we do not
have the right to this, but in order to offer ourselves as a
model for you, that you might follow our example. You see,
today, people in high office of our government, they don't
care anything about the character of the individual. That doesn't
mean anything. Just so he's a Democrat or a
Republican that's getting the job done. Hogwash. Notice verse 11. For we hear
that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing
no work at all, but acting like busybodies. Now such persons
we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in
quiet fashion and eat their own bread. But as for you, brethren,
do not grow weary of doing good." Folks, I admit sometimes it gets
pretty wearisome But you just keep on because you know what
you have to do. The subjects of John's address. Now let's go from the Corinthians
to 1 John 2, 18 and 19. The subject of John's address,
unlike the Corinthians that we've been talking about and some of
the others, like Thessalonians and so forth, who had time for
development. They had time for development,
but they didn't take advantage of the opportunity. My greatest
difficulty through the years has been to get all the people
together over a long enough period of time to really teach them
all the same thing. You know what I'm talking about?
That's not easy. Not easy. So these Christians, these little
children in 1 John 2 were babies in Christ. They had not had the
opportunities that the Corinthians had who sat under Paul's ministry
and listened to him over a period of time. Now I want to deal with something
that's very important and practical. There are two reasons for undeveloped
Christians. Only two reasons. Do you know
what they are? I want you to think for a moment.
Only two reasons. Number one, failure by ministers
who say they're God called ministers to feed the sheep. failure to feed the sheep by
the ministers. Not feeding the people when they
come. Not giving an exposition of the
scriptures. Not dealing with all the great
doctrinal truths from Genesis to Revelation. You know why that's true today? Preachers in general Enter the
ministry with one thing in mind, to climb the respective denominational
ladder. They start out with a small church
because that's the way you start. And they work hard, build a building
and other things, so they'll get a call to a little larger
church. And up the ladder they go. You know who taught me against
that? A Plymouth Brethren man. I thank
God for him often yet. When I think about him, I thank
God for what he taught me. You don't enter the ministry
to climb a denominational ladder. You enter the ministry because
God called you to preach. and you're willing when you get
in a place to stay there and to do the best you can. Fight
all the battles. Don't run when a battle comes
up. In my first little assembly,
I came to the conclusion that it wasn't even a true assembly. My wife and I were fresh on the
field. I was very young. And there was a man in the church
who didn't like what I had done. He was the chief mogul of the
little assembly. We ran about 80 or 90, about
as many as we have now, or maybe more. Big family. Are you with me? Listen closely,
folks. A big family belonged to it. They ran the church. So
one man, he was the only deacon, He did the preaching when they
didn't have a preacher, and they were without a preacher most
of the time, and he liked that because he did the preaching.
He was a song leader. He was a Sunday school superintendent.
He was the whole cheese. Well, I didn't know it when I
went there, but it didn't take long that I found out. And so
I suggested one Sunday from the pulpit I said, Brother Barks,
B-A-R-K-S, I remember his name, Lloyd Barks, a big German that
weighed about 220 pounds in all muscle, worked at a handle factory,
H-A-N-D-L-E, axe handles and all kinds of handles. At the close of the service,
my wife and I went back, we shook hands with the people, We noticed
they kept standing around and didn't leave. And as soon as the last one walked
out, except Juanita and myself standing there, and Lloyd and
his wife, she was a big woman. She turned to Juanita and said,
if your husband doesn't watch out what he's going to do, my
husband's going to run him off if it takes an axe handle to
do it. Juanita, she was very meek in
those days, folks. Very shy. But that kind of, her
hair, you know, when a dog gets angry, sees a strange dog, how
it'll bristle up? Well, her hair almost raised
up a little on her head. And she said, why don't you let
your husband do the threatening? And that's all she said. I turned
to Lloyd, and I said, Lloyd, I called him Mr. Barks, I wasn't
but 23. So I called him Mr. Barkley, he's about 45. I said,
I don't believe in fighting, but I said, I have news for you. I said, if you have that reputation
in this church, you just start in. You could whip me, I'm sure,
with one hand tied behind you. But I'll be here and facing you
until I drop dead and draw my last breath, until this is straightened
out." He looked at me so funny. And I did. You know where I did
it? From the pulpit. And when I called
what he had done, he and his wife, and he was a member of
that big family. Even some of his own family members
got up and said, if you don't repent and do the right thing,
and I remember, I'll never forget this as long as I live, one of
his relatives said, Brother Best, I'm so happy that you had the
guts to do that. But it didn't change the church.
And I left pretty quick, I knew it wasn't as, you know what it
was? A split off, which I learned after I got there. Split off
from another church. A big family split off. So you
see what I'm talking about? Now we're coming to something.
So first of all, people have to be indoctrinated. And it's
the elder's responsibility to indoctrinate the people. I've tried to do that, not as
well as I would like to have done it, but I've tried to do
that. Now, what's the other reason?
Preachers as a whole are not feeding the people, not teaching
the scriptures, period. Secondly, Failure by Christians
to take advantage of the opportunities that they have to learn God's
Word. That's the second. Now open your Bibles to those
two verses. We're going to do a real study
of these two verses. So keep them open here to 1 John
2.18-19. The phrase, it is the last hour,
as the NASB says, and I'm gonna go ahead and use the NASB in
my lesson sheets, but I'm going to put the word time, T-I-M-E,
in brackets, following. That means I prefer the word
time. So the phrase, it is the last
time, is one of great debate. Did you know that? Here's where all the studies
of eschatology begin. And I'll try to help you this
morning by giving some information I don't think I've shared with
you to this extent before. John used the Greek eschate hora
esten. Those are the three words. and
you translate it, estin is a verb, it is, and you translate it,
it is. And then esketos is an adjective,
and that's the word from which we get esketology, esketology,
esketos, it's an adjective. So eskete, the order, word order,
you see is different in the Greek text. But when you translate
it, you say, it is the last time. the last time. So John used the
Greek eskete hora esten and esten is a present active indicative
verb at the beginning and at the conclusion of this text.
If you have your Greek and linear with you this morning, you'll
notice it's used at the beginning of the verse and at the conclusion
of the verse. Same, same wording. And this is the only place in
the New Testament that this particular phrase is used. No definite article is used. Notice that. You say, well, why
did you say THE last hour? THE is a definite article. And
there's no definite article in the Greek here. So do you say a time? No. Well,
how can you get around it? Well, let me tell you, if you
want to study, if you want to study the article, the Greek
article, I can give you a little booklet of about probably a couple
of hundred pages just on the subject of the article, the Greek
article. Quite a study. I'll try to share
with you some highlights from it in just a moment. No definite
article is used with the adjective eschatos, which means what? Last, uttermost, last state,
or latter end. That's the meaning of eschatos. Some assume that the absence
of a definite article indicates that John only said, it is a
last hour, or it is a last time. It would sound a little funny
to say, it is a last time. Now, just think about it for
a moment. It is the last time. Now, you're gonna have to follow
me. Of course, I'll give it to you in the notes, and you can
wrestle with them if you don't get it all this morning. Of course,
this is very important. The Greek word hora, that's omega,
the long O in the Greek. And whenever you have the rough
breathing, it always carries the H sound. So hora, hora. The Greek word hora, the word
for hour, day, our time and an indefinite period of time. Notice what I said, an indefinite
period of time. And I'll apply that in just a
moment. It is used in the sense of an hour or of a day. In Matthew 8, 13, well I won't
give you these verses, I won't take the time to do that because
you'll have the outline next week. So it is used in the sense
of an hour or of a day. And I'll give you some verses.
It's also used as an extended period of time. And I'll give
you the verse on that. It's also used in the sense of
a short season. And that first Thessalonians
2.17, I'll just give you one. And then it's also used as a
definite point in time. And I'll give you a couple of
verses on that. So some think that it fits the context to say
John was speaking of the messianic age. Now watch this, folks. Please stay with me now on this.
Don't lose me. Of the age. Messianic age in
the sense of the revelation of grace. Let me say that again.
And I'll show you, it's necessary to have these things stated before
we do something else. So, they explain that as John
the Baptist closed the period of the preparation for the coming
of the Lord Jesus, he was the forerunner, and you study about
John the Baptist in the first of Matthew, first of Mark, first
of Luke, and the first of John. and that his ministry came to
a conclusion. He introduced Christ, John the
Baptist. So watch this. They explained
that as John the Baptist closed the period of the preparation
for the revelation of Christ, the Apostle John completed it. Now there's some good statements
in this, but I'm going to show you that their conclusion is
wrong. So please follow me. I've wrestled
with this for at least 10 years over a long period of time, many
years ago. I'll share it with you. So, their
conclusion is that finality of revelation has been reached. That's true. The finality of
revelation has been reached. And we have that in Jude verse
3. The Word is completed, so there
is truth in it, so stay with me now. And what else? Although Revelation has been
completed, this view seems to be strained in the light of the
overall context in which it is found. You always have to consider
the context, folks, and you know that as well as I do. So, since the phrase, it is the
last time, is without an article in the
Greek text, it is used in the sense of meaning as though it's
without an article to call attention to the character of the time,
hora. Sometimes the article should
be used in the English translation when it is not used in the Greek. And this happens to be one of
them. And that takes a lot of study. A lot of study. Its use is determined, always
determined, by the context. Now, watch this. The phrase,
it is the last time. comes on the heels of, comes
on the heels of. Look at verse 17. Go back just
one verse. Let's look at the context now.
And the world is passing away, the cosmos is passing away. Folks,
I want you to know this world system is passing away. It's passing away. And it's going
to completely pass away. 2 Peter chapter 3, I'll take time
to read it now. And also its lusts, its lusts
are passing away. But the one who does the will
of God abides forever. Now consider This is the last,
it is THE last time on the heels of what? Verse 17. John gave a general warning concerning
the evil world system passing away. But he went further to
warn young believers about the Antichrist the false teachers,
just as I'm trying to do to you today, 2,000 years later, and
to describe the character of the time, horror, an indefinite,
an indefinite period of time. The indefinite period of time. Are you with me? in which they
lived, and you and I are still living in that indefinite period
of time, but it's coming to a conclusion. I might better take time in just
a moment and read you something about that. So even now, in verse
18, many antichrists, John says, have arisen. From this we know
that it is the last time which is of an indefinite period
of time. I'd like to show you something. Turn to 2 Peter chapter 3. You
know all the talk by the environmentalists today, global warming. Folks, it's going to get warm.
It's going to get real warm. So turn to 2 Peter chapter 3. 2 Peter 3, beginning with verse
10. But the day of the Lord will
come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a
roar, and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat,
and the earth and its works will be burned up. There's your global warming.
It's going to get real warm, folks. Since all these things
are to be destroyed in this way, who's going to do it? God's going
to do it. What sort of people, what sort
of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness? looking for and hastening the
coming of the day of God, on account of which the heavens
shall be destroyed by burning and the elements will melt with
intense heat. But according to His promise,
we are looking for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness
dwells. You know what's going to happen?
The earth on which you and I live now is going to be purified by
fire. And the new Jerusalem coming
down from God out of heaven, Revelation 21 and 22, is going
to be right here on this purified earth. You know why? Because
the psalmist said the earth was made for man. Mars was not made
for man. Moon was not made for man. And I could say a lot more. The
Earth was made for man. Think about it for a moment.
The climate. We can live here in connection with the sun. So the time of all Christians,
as well as the evils that characterize it, may be viewed as transit
in character. James described the fading away
life. Turn, if you will, please, to
James 4.14. James 4.14. Listen to this. Yet you do not
know what your life will be like tomorrow. I don't know what mine
will be like tomorrow. Juanita didn't know the day before
she fell what her life was going to be like for days to come. And you and I don't know. We
don't know. So listen, you are just a vapor. You're just a vapor that appears
for a while and then vanishes away. John and those to whom
he wrote were living in the first part of the last time. And folks,
I believe since John, Antichrists have continued to increase. There
are more Antichrists today than ever before. But listen to this, the final
The time for the final drama is almost completed. I said the
time for the final drama, and I'm no date setter. I'm not that
foolish. The young believers to whom John
wrote had heard that Antichrist is coming. Now watch this. Here's
where we're going to get into something that you really need
to understand. And you'll be going back to this in the study
of eschatology if you really get into the study of eschatology.
Maybe the Lord will let me live long enough that we'll get into
it again after I get through with fellowship. But I want to
know if we have some fellowship first. Do you mind me being like
that? The young believers to whom John
wrote had heard that Antichrist is coming. But they must know
that Antichrists were already present. And they were present
when John wrote. Even now, he said, even now,
when he wrote, many Antichrists have arisen. The present tense
of the verb used here in reference to the Antichrists Coming has
puzzled many. I said has puzzled many great
men of the past. I'm talking about like Martin
Luther, John Calvin, John Owen, and I can name many of the Puritans.
So watch this, listen carefully, follow my notes when you get
them. Here is the seedbed And this is where prophecy has its
beginning. So watch this. The present tense used in reference
to the Antichrist's coming has puzzled many. The Antichrist,
his coming, has puzzled many. But this presents no problem
to the student of Scripture. Antichrist is coming, we're told. Singular. He hasn't come. The Antichrist are the forerunners
of the Antichrist. Now, he may not even be born
yet, but he may be born and may be living, and we don't know
who he is until he's manifested. He'll be the false Christ. He'll
make a treaty with the Jews Three and a half years. Seven years
to begin with, but he's going to break that treaty. Three and
a half years will be not so bad. Last three and a half years will
be awful. That's when he'll set himself up in the very temple
of God that will be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Are you listening?
And they're already ready to build it. They're being hindered. Did you know some of the vessels
of the tabernacle have already been prepared? Have already been prepared. They're
in hiding. They're kept someplace. So antichrist is coming. So the
futuristic present, this is called futuristic present, is generally
punctiliar in action or aeristic point action Elijah is coming. Here's an illustration. Matthew 17, 11. Elijah is coming,
present, middle, indicative of Urkamai, which means to come,
and will restore all things. That's a prophecy given in Matthew
17, 11. This is the same inflected form
of Urkamai as that used in 1 John 2, 18. And it is futuristic present. It's a present tense, but it
is a futuristic present tense in the Greek. Therefore, be on
the alert, for you do not know which day our Lord is coming.
Present middle indicative of Urkamai, which is also a futuristic
present. Matthew 24, 42. The purpose of the futuristic
present is to get and hold the Christian's attention. Now let
me stop for a moment, let's take a breath and let me say it again
and you grab it and don't ever forget it. Why do we have the
futuristic present tense of the verb in the Greek? Here it is,
here it is, in order that our attention may be gotten And when
it gets our attention, it keeps our attention. Turn to John 14, 3. I want to
show you something. It should get our attention because
it is not only predictive, but it is affirmative. Predictive
and affirmative. See, when I say Christ is coming,
that's predictive. But when you study the Word of
God, as He came the first time, He's coming the second time.
So it affirms He's coming. Since He came the first time,
He is going to come the second time. He said He's going to come.
And He'll keep His Word. All right, I want to read John
14, 3 and call your attention to something. And if I go, and prepare a place
for you. Christ is speaking. We're all
familiar with this verse. Every person who's been a Christian
for any length of time, John 14 is one of his favorite chapters. And if I go and prepare a place
for you, I WILL COME AGAIN as Paul in Erkemiah. And you know
what it is? It is a futuristic present middle,
which affirms Christ's coming. A futuristic present middle. And then he says, I will come
and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be
also. Although the subjects of John's
address were young believers. They had heard from the apostles,
the predictive certainty of the coming of the Antichrist. The preposition of prefix on
T, it's Christ with a preposition of prefix on T, A-N-T-I. And what does it mean? Another? So the prepositional prefix denotes
the opposition by the false Christ before the manifestation of Jesus
Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Antichrist precedes
Antichrist. Are you with me? The Antichrist
precedes the coming of THE Christ. Are you with me? That's the order. And folks, the Bible is a book
of order. The subjects of Antichrist and
Antichrist are very controversial among Bible students, even today. Now let me share some things
with you that I have found. in my studies in years past. Every person's view of eschatology, of which there are many, is reflected in his interpretation
of 1 John 2.18. Don't forget that. Please don't
forget that. Distinction must be made between
Antichrist as a fact and Antichrist which is prophetical. See, we
have both in this passage. When the word Antichrist is used,
that's a fact. They were already in existence.
That's factual. But the Antichrist was not factual. That's predicted. That's prophetical. That is yet to take place. You
see how wonderful it is to study the scriptures. I've never been one, and I'm
not, and I never will be one. Take a text, depart from it,
and never come back. Study the scriptures. Study the
scriptures. So the antichrist of prophecies
is coming. Is coming. Perfect active indicative. The Antichrist of prophecies
is coming, futuristic present. Hence, the anti-Christian opposition
will climax in the Antichrist. The man of lawlessness, as he
is called. The son of perdition, as he is
referred to in 2 Thessalonians 2 and verse 3. Many antichrists
already existed in John's day, and antichrists will continue
to emerge until the close of the age of grace, the age in
which you and I live. So all these people today, all
these preachers that say Christ's blood is not needed, A person
can be saved and go to heaven by another plan of salvation
other than Christ. He's an Antichrist. He's an enemy
of Christ. He's against Christ. All of those
Baptists and Methodists and Pentecostal preachers and many of them, folks,
I know of it. I know of it. I know what I'm
talking about. Believe Christ could sin? If my Lord Jesus Christ
could sin, He's an Antichrist. If He believes that, He's an
Antichrist. I said he's an Antichrist. He's against Christ. He's against
the Christ of Scripture. Now let's look at the Reformers
and the Protestant Reformation for a little bit. Let's get into
history for just a little bit. The Reformers and the founders
of Protestantism believed and taught that the papacy, the Roman
Catholic Church, was the Antichrist of 1st John 2.18. Did you know
that? That's nonsense, but they believed
it. They surely did. They surely
did. And there are amillennialists
today who believe it. Amillennialism is very much in
vogue today. So their opinion was that the
Prince who is to come, Daniel 9.26, was Titus who destroyed
Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 A.D. I've got books on this,
folks, written by him. And the person who will make
a firm covenant with many for a week, they say, is Jesus Christ. It'll take you long to say, He's
an Antichrist, isn't He? And you're right. They concluded that in the middle
of the 70th week, Jesus Christ caused the sacrifice and oblation
to cease when he offered himself as the one perfect sacrifice
for sin. Brother, that is twisting the
scriptures. Our millennialists, watch what
I'm saying, and I say it without any reservation or hesitation,
our millennialists continue in the same belief and teaching
today. They question why this reasonable
and satisfying long accepted interpretation is rejected for
the recent and modern interpretation of premillennialism. They add that no uninitiated
reader would imagine the prince who is to come of Daniel 9.26
was a prophecy of the Antichrist. Their accusation is that such
a theory has come from outside the Protestant Church to confuse
the people of God. So you see why you have so much
opposition in teaching the Word today? The terms Reformer and Protestant
must be defined. What do you mean by a reformist? A reformist is one who advocates
or practices reform. You know, all of them that I've
talked to act like they've already arrived. So I ask the question,
are you continuing to reform? And that really stirs up a wasp
nest. Are you with me? A reformist is one who belongs
to a movement that seeks to improve or amend that which is wrong,
corrupt, or unsatisfactory. He aims to cause people to abandon
false doctrine and their evil ways. He thinks that when they
have become reformed, their false ideology or ideology, however
you want to pronounce it, and evil ways will have been completely
eliminated. Now watch what I'm going to say.
Therefore, the so-called reformed theology has passed the stage of growth
and development. They still need reforming, but
they don't recognize it. They think they have arrived.
Anytime you find a Christian who studies a little bit and
he thinks he has arrived, he's dangerous. He's dangerous. Secondly, Protestantism. is referred to as the religion
of the Protestants. Protestant assemblies are those
who do not adhere to the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church.
Martin Luther, for instance, born in 1483, died in 1546, a
German theologian. And John Calvin, 1509, died in 1564, A French theologian were leaders
of the Protestant Reformation. Both men came out of the Roman
Catholic Church protesting against her. Folks, that doesn't mean anything. You've got to study it for yourself.
The Antichrist, now let's, in conclusion now, let's bring this
to a heading. The Antichrist, that's plural,
in John's time were false teachers, just as they are today, who had
gone out of the visible aspect of the assembly. They went out
from us. Why? Because they were not of us.
Verse 19, If they had been of us, they would no doubt have
continued with us. But they went out that it might
be made manifest that they were not of us. That's what John said in verse
19. The reference to Antichrists
who went out is not merely historical. You need to underscore that word
historical. Antichrists are forerunners of the Antichrist, as we've already
said. Since Antichrists individual
personal humans, the Antichrist must also be a personal human
being, not a system like Catholicism. You see what I'm saying? Since
Antichrists are individual human humans, the Antichrist must also
be a human being. The idea of the Antichrist being
the system of the Roman Catholic Church, including all the popes,
is absolute nonsense. I said absolute nonsense. And I don't know how many of
you are independent like your Christian reforms Protestant
reforms and your Presbyterians and Episcopalians and your Anglicans
and on and on I could go, folks. I'll say one thing for the Catholics.
They don't compromise. They may say they're compromised,
but they don't compromise. I haven't heard any of them denying
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I don't believe in consubstantiation
of the Lutheran Church or transubstantiation of the Roman Catholic Church.
I don't believe any of that. But to say that Catholicism is
the Antichrist is absolute nonsense. This concept is as absurd as
saying the man of lawlessness, the son of perdition, is the
Roman Catholic Church. You wouldn't say that a human
being is a Roman Catholic Church, would you? And you don't say
the Roman Catholic Church is this. Just turn it around. Be sensible. Such rationale would
lead one to conclude that the Son of God is a system instead
of the second person of the Godhead. The Antichrist is not a prophetic
symbol. but he is the man of lawlessness. Just as Jesus Christ was the
incarnate Son of God, full of wisdom, containing the wisdom,
fullness of God's wisdom, Antichrist will be the fullness of wickedness.