Let's read together 2nd John
verses 7 through 11. 2nd John verses 7 through 11. My subject tonight is Essential
Doctrine. Essential Doctrine, that's the
title of my message. 2nd John verse 7. Many deceivers are entered into
the world who confess not that Jesus Christ is coming to flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. Look to yourselves that we lose
not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive
a full reward. Whosoever transgresseth and abideth
not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God. He that abideth
in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the
Son. If there come any unto you and bring not this doctrine,
receive him not into your house, neither bid him Godspeed. For
he that biddeth him Godspeed is partaker of his evil deeds. Now, the Apostle John, writing
by divine inspiration, tells us, as did the Lord Jesus himself
and as did the other apostles, there are true preachers and
false preachers, true believers and false believers, those who
truly know God and those who merely profess to know God. The
Spirit of God tells us very plainly concerning the work of this thing
of the ministry of the gospel, Satan has his impostors. Wherever
God raises up men to proclaim the word, Satan raises up impostors
to pervert the word. And then the Spirit of God tells
us plainly that all who are gods have a common faith and a common
salvation. There are things that all true
believers and all true preachers hold in common. They all believe
these things. Let me give you just three or
four. First, all who are born of God, having God's common salvation,
being taught of God's spirit, believe the word of God. We believe
God's word. The psalmist said, thou hast
magnified thy word above all thy name. We bring everything
to the test of Holy Scripture. every doctrine, every practice
to the test of Holy Scripture. And we believe God's word. This
is our rule of life as individual believers. We seek in all things
to conform to the revelation of God in Holy Scripture. Whatever
God's testimony is, that's truth. If it seems to be contrary to
our reason, if it seems to be contrary to scientific data,
if it seems to be contrary to experience, that doesn't change
a thing. What God writes in his word is
truth. And we bow our feeble knowledge,
our feeble learning, our feeble sense of understanding to the
revelation of God. For all scripture is given by
inspiration of God, breathed out by God. Holy men of old spake
as they were moved, as they were carried along by God the Holy
Spirit, so that the word we have before us is God's holy word. Whatever doctrine this book teaches,
that's the truth. Whatever doctrine is opposed
to the revelation of this book, that's false. We believe the
word of God. Second, all true believers and
all true preachers of the gospel reverence, fear, and worship
the one true and living God. There's no room for compromise
here. We fear God and hold him in great reverence. The scripture
declares holy and reverend is his name. Holy and reverend is
his name. We worship God as God. We bow to God as God. We believe God as God. We trust God as God. I mean by that we believe God,
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, the sovereign, omnipotent, almighty
God, and we worship him as such. If we did not recognize and bow
to the revelation of scripture concerning the character of God,
we could find no reasonable peace for our souls. Our God is in
the heavens. He hath done whatsoever he hath
pleased. The heavens do rule. And we not only bow to that fact,
we rejoice to know it. Our God sits on his throne, and
we worship him as God, the just, the holy, the true one, the sovereign,
omnipotent Lord God. Number three, all true believers
and all true preachers of the gospel are conscious of, acknowledge,
and confess their sin. With David, we say, Against thee
and thee only have I sinned and done this great evil in thy sight
With David we acknowledge my sins are ever before me My sins
are ever before me God. Give me grace ever to see my
sin Give me grace ever to acknowledge my sin Give me grace to live
constantly in the awareness of the corruption and depravity
of my heart. As I do, then I recognize my
need of my Redeemer and turn to Him for righteousness and
for pardon. Every believer, every believer,
whether in the pulpit or in the pew, is aware of and confesses
his sin. We cast ourselves at the footstool
of God's throne of grace and seek his mercy as sinners needing
mercy. And he promises if we confess
our sin, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sin and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Believers, true believers, preachers, true
preachers, don't try to hide their nakedness under the fig
leaves of their own righteousness. They don't try to pretend they
are not what they know they are. We acknowledge and confess our
sin. Number four, and all true believers,
all true preachers have an understanding of and a love for the person
and work of the Lord Jesus. And listen carefully, true preachers,
True believers are not confused with regard to the person and
work of the Son of God. True believers, true preachers
are not confused with regard to the person and work of the
Son of God. The very elementary revelation
of the gospel is concerning the person and work of the Son of
God. Believers know who Christ is.
We have an understanding and a great love for our Redeemer.
We rejoice in the doctrine of Christ. Turn back to 1 John 5.
Here's how John sums this up. Verse 20. We know. We know. Now he's writing to
folks just like you and me. He's writing as a preacher just
like me. And he's writing to believers
just like you. Young and old. Believers who
are strong in faith and believers who are weak in faith babes in
grace and old men in grace. He says we know We know that
the Son of God is 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 every true believer Every true preacher has an understanding
of the doctrine of Christ. He knows, believes, and rejoices
in the doctrine of Christ. Now, let's look at our text,
line by line. First, verse 7. The Apostle John
warns us that many deceivers are entered into the world. And
who are these deceivers? There are many deceivers who
confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is
a deceiver and an antichrist. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. He doesn't say this is a man
who, who needs to learn better doctrine. It doesn't say this
is a, this is a weak brother who needs to be better taught.
Those who deny the doctrine of Christ who deny that Jesus Christ
is come in the flesh This is a deceiver. This is antichrist
They are very religious They're preachers. They're zealous. They
are active in religious service, but they're deceivers Antichrist
john describes them back in chapter 2 of first john Verse 18 little
children. It is the last time As you have
heard that Antichrist shall come even now are there many Antichrist? Whereby we know it is the last
time turn to 1st Peter chapter 3 I'm sorry 2nd Peter 2nd Peter
chapter 2 verses 1 through 3 These deceivers are false prophets. They're false prophets Second Peter chapter 2 there
were false prophets also among the people even as there shall
be false teachers among you, who privately shall bring in
damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and
bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow," look
what he speaks now, they're pernicious ways. False religion is pernicious.
False religion is wicked, it's evil. They're pernicious ways.
by reason of whom the way of truth, the doctrine of Christ,
is evil spoken of. And through covetousness, through
covetousness, desire for power, for gain, for influence, for
position, through covetousness, desiring to promote themselves
through covetousness, these make a vain show or make merchandise
of you whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not. and
their damnation slumbereth not. Paul calls them ministers of
Satan. They transform themselves into angels of light and ministers
of righteousness. Not the righteousness of God,
not the righteousness that's in Christ Jesus, but your righteousness,
telling you what you do to make yourself righteous. These deceivers
are people who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. Now notice how John uses his
language purposefully. He doesn't say, they confess
not that Christ was born. You were born. I was born. Christ was not born. Christ came. There's a huge difference. He
was, yes indeed, born of the Virgin Mary, but the scripture
speaks of him here as he who is come. They confess not that
Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. Notice the tense John uses here. He doesn't say Christ came in
the flesh. He said Christ is come. In fact,
the language is a perfect present participle. John is saying Christ
is coming in the flesh. These deceivers, these anti-Christ,
they confess not that Jesus the Christ who came in the flesh
is coming in the flesh. Again, back in 1 John chapter
4. The chief error, the chief error of all false religion,
the chief error of all false religion concerns the person
and work of the Son of God. Now mark that down. The real
problem with Russellites is not that they don't have Christmas
trees. That's not the real problem with them. The real problem with
Mormons is not the secret things they do in baptizing for the
dead. That's not the real problem. That's not the real problem.
The real problem with false religion is the denial of the person and
work of the Son of God. That's where the rubber hits
the road. That's where the revelation of God is, and that's where the
denial of God is. Look here in 1 John 4, verse
1. Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits,
whether they are of God, because many false prophets are going
out into the world. Hereby know we the Spirit of
God. Every spirit that confesseth
that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God. Every spirit
that confesseth not that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh
is not of God and this is the spirit of Antichrist Whereof
you have heard that it should come and even now already is
in the world Let me make five vital statements Five vital statements. I think they're worth remembering
number one our Savior came in the flesh and But he existed
before he came. He could not have come in the
flesh. Did he not have a pre-existence
before he came in the flesh? The Apostle John speaks very
plainly in 1 John 1. He says, In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning
with God. All things were made by him, and without him was not
anything made that was made. But not only did our Lord Jesus
have an eternal existence as God, because he is God, but it
speaks of him as our covenant surety, as our representative,
as our mediator, as that one who is the lamb slain from the
foundation of the world, so that all his work Is where it finished
from the foundation of the world as our covenant surety and our
mediator He stood before god from eternity and says I wisdom
dwell with understanding and it says I was with him and my
delights were with the sons of men and that's before the world
was made number two God the son came into this world in real
humanity The word was made flesh Without giving up anything, without
giving up anything, the Lord Jesus took on himself our nature,
a real human being. came into this world, was conceived
in the virgin's womb by the Holy Spirit, and our Savior came into
this world in that real human body, with that real human soul
as our mediator. And he lived in obedience to
the Father, and died under the wrath of God, and put away sin
as a real man who is himself God Almighty. And now he's seated
on the throne of glory. and it governs the universe in
our flesh, so that that one who sits upon the throne of the universe,
who governs all things, is God our Savior in our nature, touched
with the feeling of our infirmities. You know the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, how that though he was rich, yet for your sakes
he became poor, that you through his poverty might be made rich.
Number three, the Lord Jesus came into this world the sent
one of God He came as the sent one of God. Let's look at a couple
of passages turn back to Isaiah chapter 42 Isaiah chapter 42 Christ is the Messiah the anointed
Jehovah's righteous servant He was sent here on an errand of
mercy. He was sent here to do something
He was sent of God for a specific purpose. Listen what the scripture
says Isaiah 42 verse 1 The Lord God speaks the triune Jehovah. It says behold my servant whom
I uphold mine elect in whom my soul delighteth I Put my spirit
upon him He shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He
will bring justice, he will bring just judgment, and he will bring
righteousness to his elect among the Gentiles. And he will do
so by himself. He shall not cry, nor lift up,
nor cause his voice to be heard in the streets. He is led as
a lamb to the slaughter. As a sheep before her shearers
is done, he opens not his mouth. All the time he was in this world,
going about doing his father's business, never sought in any
way, he never sought in any way to keep the Jews from doing exactly
what he, before the war began, had ordained must be done, and
that's to nail him to the cursed tree at the appointed hour. He
shall not cry nor be discouraged, and not lift up his voice in
the streets. A bruised reed shall he not break,
and a smoking flap shall he not quench. He will bring forth judgment
to truth. Now watch this. He shall not
fail. What a word. He who is Jehovah's
righteous servant. shall not fail. Failure is not
a possibility with him who is the sent one of God. He shall
not be discouraged till he has set judgment, righteousness,
justice, and judgment in the earth and the isles shall wait
for his law. That is the Gentile worlds. God's
elect waiting for the word to come to them at the appointed
time. Now turn to John chapter 10, John's gospel chapter 10. Our Lord Jesus, as Jehovah's
righteous servant, here speaks of himself as the shepherd, the
good shepherd. He says in verse 11, I am the
good shepherd. I am the good shepherd. Now, when you think about the
relationship between the shepherd and the sheep, understand clearly
the teaching of scripture. It is not just a a picture that
you have in your mind's eye of a poor man tending sheep out
on a hillside somewhere walking around with them. That's not
the picture that's given. It's a picture of a man responsible
for sheep, committed to his care. And our Lord Jesus, as our good
shepherd, is that one unto whom the triune God has committed
all his sheep. And the shepherd is altogether
responsible for the sheep. So that the life and the safety
and the provision and the protection of the sheep is altogether the
responsibility of the shepherd. Watch what it says. I am the
good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his
life for the sheep. The good shepherd devotes his
life to the sheep. The good shepherd gives his entire
being to the sheep. Verse 14. I am the good shepherd,
and know my sheep, and have known of mine. As the Father knoweth
me, even so know I the Father, and I lay down my life for the
sheep. Not only have I devoted my life
to the sheep, not only is my entire being devoted to the sheep,
I lay down my life in the room, in the place, in the stead of
the sheep. Other sheep I have I'm sorry.
I lay down my life for the sheep for 16 and other sheep I have
which are not of this fold them also I must bring This is the
Son of God speaking This is Son of God speaking. He says there
are some sheep that that I haven't yet called. Some sheep who haven't
yet been born into my kingdom. Some sheep who are yet lost and
haven't yet been found. Them also I must bring. Must because I'm responsible.
Must because I agreed to it before the world began. And they shall
hear my voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd.
Therefore doth my Father love me because I lay down my life
that I might take it again. No man hath taketh it from me,
but I lay it down in myself. I have power to lay it down.
I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received
of my Father. The Savior says the Father loves
me because I lay down my life for the sheep. He says the Father
loves me because I bring my sheep into heaven's glory. He says,
the father loves me because I've come here as his shepherd to
give life to the sheep and save the sheep. Does that mean that
he was not loved of God beforehand? Of course not. He is God, the
eternal son. But here he's speaking about
an earned love. He's speaking about a love that
he has earned by his obedience to the father as our shepherd.
That love, that which is earned by him is love that he had with
the father before the world was because he earned it before the
world was as the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
And the father loves the son for his obedience. He came here
with a specific work to do, a work given him to do before the world
began. And he actually accomplished
the work. The Son of God came here in human
flesh for the purpose of bringing in perfect, everlasting righteousness. He came here for the purpose
of putting away the sins of his people by the satisfaction of
divine justice. He came here for the purpose
of making atonement for sin. He came here to show the righteousness
of God in the forgiveness of sin. by the sacrifice of himself,
so that God might be just and the justifier of all who believe.
All right, here's the fourth thing. Having fulfilled all that
he was sent here to do, the son of man, who is God the son, arose
from the grave, ascended back to the father, and took his seat
upon the throne of heaven as a prince and a savior, as our
king and our priest, to give eternal life to as many as the
father has given him. so that he is that one portrayed
in the 16th Psalm of whom the psalmist says it's not possible
that death should behold of him. He said, thou will not leave
my soul in hell, neither will thou suffer thine holy one to
see corruption. And three days after his burial,
our Lord was raised from the dead because he had accomplished
that which the father had committed to his trust. He had put away
our sins by the sacrifice of himself, satisfying divine justice,
making atonement for the perfect reconciliation of our souls under
the father. And now our Savior sits upon
the throne of heaven and makes the earth his footstool and waits
until all his enemies are brought in subjection unto him. What
is it that Christ is doing? He is ruling the world for the
saving of his people. That ought to peace our hearts. That ought to peace our hearts. I chose my words deliberately.
That ought to cause our hearts to live in continual peace. Our Redeemer, who loved us and
gave himself for us, has control of the universe. And he exercises
that control all the time to save his people from their sins. A fifth thing. This great God-man,
our dear Savior. Turn to 2 Thessalonians 1. The Lord Jesus is coming again
in the flesh to make all things new. 2 Thessalonians 1, verse 7. Ah,
children of God, how we ought to live on the tiptoe of faith,
anticipating this. To you who are troubled, rest
with us. when the Lord Jesus shall be
revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire,
taking vengeance on them that know not God and obey not the
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall be punished with everlasting
destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory
of his power when he shall come. Now watch this. Christ is coming
to be glorified in all his saints. So that in the consummate salvation
of God's elect, Christ, the God-man, our mediator, shall be glorified
in the salvation of all his saints. Now watch this. And to be admired
in all them that believe. When Christ comes, he will come
and show forth his glory to wandering worlds in the salvation of his
people. And we will admire him. all his person and work because
our testimony among you was believed in that day. Wherefore also we
pray always for you that God would count you worthy of this
calling and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness and
the work of faith with power. The name of our Lord Jesus Christ
may be glorified in you and you in him and according to the grace
of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ Okay, let's look back
at our text verse 8 John tells us that Those who
deny this doctrine of Christ are Antichrist listen carefully
what it says right at the end of verse 7 no matter what a person
may say No matter what else they may believe about Jesus Christ,
if he denies and confesses not that Jesus Christ has come in
the flesh, this is a deceiver and an antichrist. It's not suggesting
that there are these fellows, they deny that Christ is God. They say, no, he's not God. Some
do. Some deny that. It's not that they deny that
he was a good man. Some would. It's not that they
deny that he was crucified. It's not that they deny he rose
from the dead. To deny that Jesus Christ is
come in the flesh is to deny that he actually accomplished
what he came here to accomplish. But the scripture says he finished
his work and sat down at the right hand of the majesty on
high. Now look at verse eight. Look to yourselves. Look to yourselves. In the face of these deceivers,
these antichrists, in the face of all the false religion that
swarms around you, look to yourselves. Look to yourselves that we lose
not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive
a full reward. Tenaciously rip from your mind
every thought that suggest personal righteousness, personal worth,
personal merit from God. Bring every thought in subjection
and captivity to the gospel of God's free grace. Look to yourselves
that should not be turned aside from the blessed hope of the
gospel. Christ the Lord, our Redeemer, is himself our reward. And we have a full reward Awaiting
us in heavenly glory Preachers have to talk about degrees of
reward and you earning things from God and you Having a higher
place in heaven or just getting saved by the skin of your teeth.
What nonsense Salvation by God's free grace and the Lord Jesus
said day, but I am thy exceeding great reward Knowing that the
Lord, you shall receive the reward of an inheritance for you serve
the Lord Christ. We trust in Christ, looking to
him alone as our wisdom, our righteousness, our sanctification
and redemption, trusting him alone as our savior. We shall
not lose a third reward being given us by him in the last day. Now verse nine, my subject is
essential doctrine. Here in verses 9, 10, and 11,
John shows us how essential this doctrine is. Whosoever transgresseth
and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ. Would somebody read that out
loud for me? Hath not God. Now that's serious. Whosoever
transgresseth and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath
not God. That's not the statement of some
rash, bigoted, overzealous preacher. That's the statement of a man
writing by inspiration of God the Holy Ghost. Those who deny
that Jesus Christ actually accomplished what he came here to accomplish,
that he actually saved his people from their sins, that he actually
put away sin by the sacrifice of himself, have not God. He that abideth in the doctrine
of Christ hath both the Father and the Son. The doctrine of
Christ specifically has to do with his substitutionary accomplishments
as our Savior. For the sake of time, let's just
look at one very familiar text, 2 Corinthians 5. 2 Corinthians
5. Verse 17. Therefore, if any man be in Christ,
he is a new creature. A new creature. A new creation. Old things are passed away. All
his sin is put away. All his corrupt record is gone. All his transgressions are gone. All his iniquities are gone,
buried in the depths of the sea of infinite forgetfulness, never
to be remembered again. All things are passed away. Behold,
all things are become new, made perfectly new, given a new record
new name and a new nature Christ in you the hope of glory and
this is all God's work and All things are of God who hath reconciled
us to himself by Jesus Christ and hath given us the ministry
of reconciliation to wit that God was in Christ, reconciling
the world unto himself, reconciling his people, scattered through
all the world, through all the ages of time, unto himself, not
imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto
us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors
for Christ. As though God did beseech you by us, we pray you
in Christ's name, be you reconciled to God, because the work is all
done. hath made him to be sin for us,
who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of
God in him. Read on. Verse 9. He that abideth in the doctrine
of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. What a sweet, blessed
word from God that is. Abiding in the doctrine of Christ,
That is to say, trusting Christ alone as our only all-sufficient
Savior, we live in union with the living God perpetually and
forever. Turn back to our Lord's prayer
in John chapter 17. John chapter 17. Man denies the doctrine of Christ,
hath neither the Father nor the Son. But he who abides in the
doctrine of Christ hath both the Father and the Son. This
is what our Lord says in verse 20. Neither pray I for these
alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their
word, that they all may be one. As thou, Father, art in me and
I in thee, that they also may be one in us, one with the triune
God, one in the person of our Savior, that the world may believe
that thou has sent me, verse 22, and the glory, there one
in us and one in glory, for the glory which thou gavest me, I've
given them, that they may be one even as we are one. I in
them and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one, and
that the world may know that thou has sent me. Has loved them
as thou has loved me All right back in our text verse 10 If any come unto you and bring
not this doctrine Receive him not into your house Neither bid
him Godspeed For he that biddeth him God's speed is partaker of
his evil deeds. In days gone by when there was
a plague in the house, the house would be quarantined so that
the people would not be harmed by the plague. That was the reason
for the quarantine. John, writing by inspiration
of the Holy Spirit, says with regard to all Arminian free will
works religion. Now, let me be crystal clear.
Every form of religion that makes salvation depend on you. That's
what I'm talking about. Doesn't matter what name it uses. If the religion somehow makes
righteousness and redemption and acceptance with God depend
on you. then that's free will works religion. That's worshipping yourself.
John says quarantine the house. Quarantine the house. Don't have
anything to do with that. These are anti-Christ, anti-God,
anti-grace. Oh, they're such good people.
Bro, we just read of their pernicious ways, didn't we? Man, that's my mama, that's my
daddy, they're good people. That's my son, that's my daughter,
they're good people. They're pernicious ways, pernicious ways,
evil, ungodly ways. Would you call it good, would
you call it good to see your father slip a little poison to
your baby every day? Oh, he's such a good man, he's
such a good man. Everybody knows he's such a good
man. Would you call that good? Would you call that good? That's
absurd, preacher. Yes, that's absurd. That's absurd. They seek to destroy you. That's what religion seeks. That's
what messengers of Satan seek. To destroy you. And to destroy
the souls of all who are dear to you. Give no credibility to
it. Give no acceptance to it. The
doctrine of Christ, the doctrine of the gospel is essential doctrine. See that you believe it. It is
that gospel that declares God has saved us and called us with
a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to
his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus
before the world began. All hail the power of Jesus'
name. Let angels prostrate fall. Bring
forth the royal diadem and crown him Lord of all. You chosen seed
of Israel's race, you ransom from the fall. Hail him who saved
you by his grace and crown him Lord of all. Sinners whose love
can ne'er forget the wormwood and the gall, Go spread your
praises at His feet and crown Him Lord of all. Amen.