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The Antichrist 1 John 2:18-19 Open your Bibles this morning to 1 John, chapter 2, verses 18-27. 1 John 2:18-27. Follow along as I read the text. Read text. Every era of Christian history has been characterized by discussion and debate over certain doctrinal issues. The doctrinal and theological issue that is on the minds of many today relates to eschatology, that is, the study of last things. The end times and prophecies about the future have been the subjects of much attention in recent years. Perhaps this is most notably seen in the contemporary book series Left Behind. These books give one interpretation of what the Bible teaches about the end times. The vast popularity of these books-now-turned-movies demonstrates that a question that is on people’s minds is, “What does the Bible say about the end of the world?” It is also safe to say that there is almost no subject in theology that is subject to more interpretive differences than eschatology. Even those who claim to be in the same theological circles often have small differences of opinion on various matters, whether it be the role of the nation of Israel, the timing of the rapture, what happens after the second coming, or other such matters. As we come to this next section in 1 John, we find terms that are connected and tied into the study of last things. In verse 18 we see such terms as antichrist and the last hour, and our minds begin to think futuristically. “Who is the antichrist?” “What does he mean by the last hour?” “What will happen in the future with antichrist and all the other prophecies?” are perhaps some questions that begin to come to mind as you hear these kinds of terms. John, in this text, sheds a little light onto some of the questions about the study of last things, but he has a far more practical purpose in mind in this section than just to help us draw a timeline of future events and prophecies. John writes this section, especially verses 18-19, because he wants us to realize the time in which we live so that we can safeguard ourselves against false teaching. John does have a few things to say about the end times, but his primary focus is for you to realize the times in which you live so that you can safeguard yourselves against false teaching and lying doctrine. As we approach this text this morning it is important that you keep in mind the whole purpose of John’s letter. We read this purpose in chapter one verse three. John told us that his purpose is so that we might have fellowship with the apostles, and not only with them, but also with God the Father and God the Son, Jesus Christ. One of his main purposes in writing to these believers is so that they might have unhindered and uninterrupted fellowship with God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ. With this purpose in mind, he sets out in verses 5 through 10 to lay down some criteria for having fellowship with God and God’s people. Denying our own sin and walking in darkness will prevent us from having true fellowship with God, who is Light. Confessing our sins to Jesus, our Advocate, will keep us in true fellowship with Him and the Father. In chapter 2, verses 3-6 we find that obedience to God’s commands is a necessary ingredient for unhindered fellowship with God. We are to walk as Jesus walked. And, John tells us in verses 7 and 8, this is nothing new, even though it is now lived out in a new way in Christ. A third component to fellowship with God is loving the brethren. We cannot have intimate fellowship with God if we do not love the brethren, our fellow believers. And while we love the brethren, we also must be sure that we do not love the world. It is impossible to have true and unhindered fellowship with the Father if we love the world, because the love of the Father and the love of the world are mutually exclusive and cannot coexist in a person’s heart. And all of this is made possible, you remember, by the Gospel of Jesus Christ which has brought us forgiveness of sins, the power to overcome the evil one, and knowledge of our Savior Himself. It is with this background that we must come at this next section. John is dealing with the issue of fellowship with God, and he still goes on to deal with that here. At this point John begins to give us a different kind of test than he has before, and he brings up the subject of doctrine. Not only are there practical tests to the Christian life, such as obedience to God and loving the brethren, but there are also doctrinal tests to see if we are in fact orthodox in our beliefs. Christianity, after all, is based upon faith, and that faith must have content, and it must have the right content, or it is built on a shaky foundation that will not stand in the day of judgment. So John has to deal with the content of the Christian faith, and he will do this here and then he will do it again later in his letter and go about it in a different fashion. There are three parts to what John wants to deal with doctrinally here. The first part is the Antichrist in verses 18 and 19. The second part is the doctrine that is necessary to have the Father and the Son, and that is found in verses 20 through 23, and then finally he deals with abiding in that necessary doctrine in verses 24 through 27. This morning we are going to take the first section, the Antichrist, found in verses 18 and 19. Once again let me remind you that the reason John is writing here is so that you, the reader, will realize the times in which you are living so that you can safeguard yourself against false doctrine.
The Appearance of the Antichrist (v. 18) To begin with John deals with the appearance of the antichrist, and that is found in verse 18. The appearance of the antichrist. He writes, Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. This verse logically connects back to verse 17, where John tells us that the world and its lusts are passing away. They are in process of decay and destruction, and one reason we can confidently say they are passing away is because we are now in the last hour. What does John mean by the last hour? Turn back to Hebrews chapter one. Hebrews 1:1. The writer of Hebrews writes, God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son. Here we find a very similar phrase to what we saw in 1 John, and we find the same idea. The last days or the last hour is the period in which we now live, between the first and second coming of Jesus. It is the time in which God has spoken to us in His Son. The last hour, or the last days, is this time period where Jesus is our revelation from God. In times past the prophets spoke, but now we have Jesus revealed to us, and because of that we are in the last days. Peter makes mention of this in Acts 2 in his sermon on the day of Pentecost when the church began. Everyone around him thought the apostles were drunk because they were speaking in tongues, and Peter stood up to correct this misinterpretation, and he said in Acts 2:15-17, For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day; but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: “And it shall be in the last days,” God says, “That I will pour forth My Spirit on all mankind.” Peter realized that what was happening was the beginning of the fulfillment of prophecy, and that the last days had begun. In the same way, John realizes that it is the last hour, or the last days. The last hour means the time from the coming of the Spirit after the first coming of Christ to the second coming of Christ. The whole period, which has now lasted nearly 2000 years, is considered the last hour, or the last days. John wants his readers to understand that they are in the last hour, meaning that the timetable of events and world history is nearing its final mark. In God’s timetable, this time period is the last hour, and so John reminds his readers to be on the alert. To prove his claim that it is the last hour, John mentions the appearance of many antichrists. He writes, And just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. These believers knew that someone whom John calls antichrist was to come. John is the only New Testament writer to call this person antichrist, but he is certainly not the only one to discuss this person. It was something that Paul taught in his ministry, and he wrote concerning the antichrist to the church in Thessalonica. In 2 Thessalonians 2:3 and following we read of the man of lawlessness who exalts himself as being God. This is the same person to whom John refers in 1 John 2:18. “You have heard,” John says in effect, “that antichrist, the man of lawlessness, the son of destruction, is coming. You know this is true.” But John goes on to add, “But let me tell you something more, many antichrists have already appeared!” John teaches that there is to be an antichrist who is to come and exalt himself as if he were God, but before he comes, he will have many forerunners who will operate on the same spirit as he does. Paul agrees with this when he writes in 2 Thessalonians 2:7, For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. The man of lawlessness has not yet been revealed, but his spirit is at work in the world, and the mystery of lawlessness is alive and well. Jesus also predicted that many antichrists would come. He said in Matthew 24:5, For many will come in My Name, saying, “I am the Christ,” and will mislead many. And again in verse 24 He said, For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. “Many will call themselves the Christ,” Jesus said, “and they will be powerful and persuasive, so persuasive that if it were not for the fact that the elect are God’s chosen people even they might be misled!” There is a person who will arise and exalt himself as God, yet before he is revealed, the mystery of lawlessness is at work and many antichrists will come evidencing the same spirit as him, and will be opposed to all that Jesus is. They will be against Christ. They will be false teachers, false prophets. And John says to his readers, “You have heard that antichrist is coming in the future, but not only that, look around you, for in a sense antichrist is already here!” Be on your guard against false teaching because many antichrists have appeared who are opposed to Jesus, the true Messiah. So this is what John wants his readers to realize. These are dangerous days. These are perilous times. There are many antichrists, both in John’s day and in ours. This is no time for Christians to be lax about doctrinal matters and the truth of God’s Word, for many are alive today who oppose the truth of Jesus and would have it completely destroyed if they could! “My little children,” John is saying, “it is time to wake up and be alert, for these are the last days, and we must be vigilant, for antichrist is here, and the mystery of lawlessness is at work.” We know by this that this is the last hour. Because of this opposition to Christ we know it is the last hour. Now the question naturally must arise in the minds of John’s readers, “Who is he talking about? Who are these many antichrists?” And not only the questions of identity, but those of origin. “Where does the antichrist come from? Where is he that I might guard myself against him?” The Apostasy of the Antichrist (v. 19) If we are to safeguard ourselves against false teaching, we must know where these errors will come from, and so in verse 19 John tells us that these antichrists originate in the church. They are apostates. We see in this verse the apostasy of the antichrist. He begins the verse by saying, They went out from us. The question is: Who does he refer to when he says “they?” There is no antecedent to that pronoun in verse 19, so it seems that John is referring to the many antichrists of verse 18 when he says “they” in verse 19. These antichrists that appeared were at one time in the church. They at one time appeared to be wonderful brothers in the Lord. They professed Jesus as their Savior and Lord, and they probably even evidenced a lifestyle that would have backed up their claim. As time went on, though, John tells us that they went out from us, but they were not really of us. There were these people in the church with every appearance of godliness and love for the Lord, yet somehow now they have gone out and departed from the truth. And the reason is because they were not really ever in the truth. “They at one time had the appearance of being from us,” John says, “but the fact that they left proves that they were not really from us.” These antichrists rose up from within the church. I find that
when this happens the common reaction is usually shock and disbelief. Yet the Bible warns us again and again that
many are in the church who are not really part of the body of Christ. When Paul was leaving This is how it will work even when the final antichrist comes. In 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Paul writes, Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed. This is the order of events: first, the apostasy will happen. What does that mean? The church will turn its back on the true faith. The church will fall away and become apostate; it will leave the truth of Christ. When that happens, the man of lawlessness will be revealed. He will, in a sense, lead this revolt against Christ from within the church. The visible church will be lured away from the truth of God into the lie of Satan and this man of lawlessness will rise up to lead the revolt and apostasy. It is precisely because the church will become corrupt and turn its back on Christ that we are warned not to be deceived. If the lie came from outside the church we would not believe it; but what will be so deceptive is that it will come from those who claim to be eminent Christian men, Christian leaders. We are forewarned to be on the alert for such men who claim the name of Christ, yet who seek after their own lusts and desires rather than the glory of God. Do you see how needful it is for Christians to be discerning? In today’s world it is not enough to sit back and just accept anyone who names the name of Christ and welcome them in with open arms. We live in the last hour, and we must be discerning. We cannot go on blurring the lines and allowing anyone who names the name of Christ to just come in, but discernment must be exercised by the people of God to determine whether something is biblically sound or not. If we lose our discernment, we will be so easily deceived by these savage wolves, these deceivers and false prophets and false teachers. So John says, They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us. Here we come to the second point John makes about this apostasy. The first point is that those who left were not truly part of the church, and the second point is that all who are truly part of the church will persevere and abide in the truth. This is great doctrine that John lays down for us here. It may be called by several different names, but it is captured well by the phrase the perseverance of the saints. All those who are truly in Christ abide in Christ until the end. That is John’s point. He tells us not to be shocked at what has happened, and not to wonder about it, but to realize that they never were truly saved to begin with. They never had salvation at all. That is proven by the fact that they did not persevere. Anyone who does not persevere is not saved. This is a truth that is found all over the New Testament. Jesus taught this truth at least two times in the book of Matthew. Turn there with me. Matthew 10:22. Jesus is sending out the disciples to do some ministry, and He gives them this sermon to prepare them, and He says in Matthew 10:22, You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved. “There will be persecution,” Jesus says, “and the one who stays the course and endures to the end, that one is the one who will be saved, and no one else.” In Matthew 24 we see this same truth again. At the end of the age sin will be rampant on the earth like never before, and ungodliness will increase, and Jesus says in Matthew 24:12-13, Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. It is the one who endures who is saved. It is the one who remains in the truth who is truly saved. Paul taught this in 1 Corinthians 15:1-2 when he wrote, Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which you stand, by which you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. You are only saved by this gospel if you hold fast to it. If you fail to hold fast to the truth of the gospel, whatever belief you may have thought you had was vain and will profit you nothing. Endurance is the test that proves salvation. Over and
over again the book of Hebrews those in the church are warned to not fall away,
to not shrink back into unbelief, because those who shrink back, shrink back
into destruction (Heb 10:39). If we do
not endure, we prove by our lack of endurance that our faith was a sham and we
fall away to destruction. There are two truths in the Bible that are balancing truths. One is what we have just been discussing, the truth that only those who persevere to the end will be saved. The other truth is that all those who are saved will persevere to the end. Paul wrote in Philippians 1:6 that he was confident that God would complete the good work He had started in the Philippian believers. And of course in Romans 8:38-39 we read that there is nothing in all of creation, including ourselves, that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. We are, if we truly have faith, eternally secure. But if we fall away, we prove that we never had true faith. We must make sure that we always keep these two truths in balance. We must emphasize both truths. There are many who have a false assurance, who live a life that demonstrates no evidence of godliness, yet who feel that they are saved because they were at one time in the church. We must remind them that only the one who endures to the end shall be saved. There are others who are afraid that they could lose their salvation with the smallest sin, and we must encourage these by reminding them that they are eternally secure in their true faith. John writes this to clear up any confusion his readers might have about these antichrists who once walked among them. His readers were most likely wondering how people who seemed like such wonderful Christians could now be professing such false doctrine and living such sinful lives, and John tells his readers that these may have had a place among true believers at one time, but they themselves were never truly part of the body of Christ. Thirdly, John gives us the reason why these antichrists did not persevere. The reason they fell away was so that it would be shown that they all are not of us. Their fall was for the purpose of demonstrating their true character. This apostasy divides the sheep from the goats, the wheat from the chaff. This was the purpose of the division in this church. The apostle Paul also recognized
that sometimes division has a purpose in God’s plan. In 1 Corinthians 11:18-19 he wrote, For, in the first place, when you come
together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I
believe it. For there must also be
factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among
you. In essence what Paul is saying
is this: “I hear that there is disunity at We are living in the last hour. These are times when, as Christians, we must be discerning and we must be able to distinguish the true from the false. We are not to be deceived. The most dangerous thing about these antichrists, these false teachers, was that they arose from within the church. They were men who were probably respected and trusted. Yet their departure from following the truth proved the true nature of their character. John wants his readers, both when he wrote the letter and this morning, to be discerning, to realize the time in which we live, so that we can safeguard ourselves against false teachers who will spring up among us, who would deceive us. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit would protect us from such evil influences and keep our minds devoted to the truth of Christ in His Word. Let’s pray. [Home page] [ ]
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