{"id":12622,"date":"2024-03-04T12:39:55","date_gmt":"2024-03-04T18:39:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theclarion.org\/?p=12622"},"modified":"2024-03-04T12:39:55","modified_gmt":"2024-03-04T18:39:55","slug":"thoughts-from-the-bible-155","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/?p=12622","title":{"rendered":"Thoughts from The Bible"},"content":{"rendered":"

1 John 2:18-24<\/strong><\/p>\n

by Cody Anderson Corinth Missionary Church<\/em><\/p>\n

Pray and ask for a fresh, unbiased mind as you read 1 John 2:18-24. Don\u2019t bring any of your preconceived notions about words in the text. Let the words say what they say. Humble yourself to heed the words.
\nIn\u00a0verse 18,\u00a0we come across three\u00a0terms\u00a0that we need to make sure we understand. When John speaks to them as children, he is using it as an expression\u00a0of\u00a0his\u00a0relationship\u00a0with the readers. They may be young in the faith, but he is pleading out of compassion and from a place of authority. John also uses the term last hour which indicates the time between the ascension of Christ and His return. John doesn\u2019t try to determine a specific\u00a0time,\u00a0but he knows that the return of Christ is closer than before. The last term\u00a0to discuss\u00a0is antichrist. Not just antichrist,\u00a0but the plural antichrists as well. In the context,\u00a0the focus will be on the antichrists from inside the \u201cchurch.\u201d<\/p>\n

Focus is not usually put on the term antichrists, but it is more relevant today than ever before. The antichrists have succeeded in part by distorting the truth. Now, the idea of truth is even debated. Antichrists can create millions of lies, yet there is only one truth. Therefore, it is of utmost importance for the Church to be the pillar and buttress of truth.\u00a0<\/p>\n

What struck me the hardest was that these antichrists originate from inside the \u201cchurch.\u201d We usually want to look at worldly influences and culture as the devil\u2019s works, but John says these antichrists are from the Christian community itself. To think the church is immune to false teaching is a lie most bought into long ago. Most people think that if someone reads a passage from the Bible then speaks for 30 minutes about anything and everything under the sun, then they are preaching God\u2019s Word. These antichrists will disguise their lies with a little bit of truth sprinkled in to get us to think they are from God.<\/p>\n

Again, John offers a message of assurance amid the intense warning. We have a helper \u2013 the Holy Spirit in us. One role of the Holy Spirit is to provide clarity among the cacophony of voices that pull us in every direction. John proceeds by encouraging the readers that they know truth. We are to remain diligent in knowing God\u2019s Word, and by the aid of the Holy Spirit, we are equipped to decipher the lies. \u00a0<\/p>\n

John emphasizes the importance of abiding in what believers have heard from the beginning. This adherence to the original teachings of Christ and the apostles is crucial. I once read a prayer that I often repeat. It was something to the extent of, \u201cGive me Jesus, nothing more, nothing less, and nothing else.\u201d Christ is enough.\u00a0
\nThe antichrists, according to John, deny two core truths: the\u00a0Father\u00a0and the Son. This denial can manifest in various forms. It can be\u00a0outright rejection to subtle distortions of the nature of God and Christ.\u00a0People that deny the divinity or the humanity of Christ are sure to be considered antichrists.\u00a0<\/p>\n

John concludes with a powerful promise. If you confess the Son of the Scriptures, you remain in the Father. Faith is about having a relationship with God which only comes through Jesus. This exclusive claim might seem offensive to some, but it remains the bedrock of Christian doctrine.<\/p>\n

Looking back over these verses, I have seen it less of a warning and more of a call to remain in the faith. We are to hold on stronger to Christ as the
\nFather holds on to us. We also must make sure to remain true to the\u00a0Word of God\u00a0and\u00a0proclaim what it says. We don\u2019t decide what the\u00a0Scriptures say or teach. They are authoritative and powerful. We must be diligent to understand what they are teaching and hold fast to their truth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 John 2:18-24 by Cody Anderson Corinth Missionary Church Pray and ask for a fresh, unbiased mind as you read 1 John 2:18-24. Don\u2019t bring any of your preconceived notions about words in the text. Let the words say what they say. Humble yourself to heed the words.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tho"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12622"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12622\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12623,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12622\/revisions\/12623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}