1 John 4:1-3

1 John 4:1-3

Beloved, do not believe every spirit but determine the genuineness of the spirits if they are out of God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.  In this you all know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ while being in the flesh is out of God.  And every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not out of God.  And this one is the spirit of the antichrist, whom you all have heard that it comes and it is now already in the world.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

John deftly tells us to test the spirits.  In fact, he does more than this.  John commands us to test the spirits.  In other words, we should have a certain amount of skepticism when it comes to life and the people around us.  Plenty of people will appear to have wisdom.  Plenty of people will appear to have love.  Plenty of people can promise you a path to know God (or even a god) better.  Plenty of people will promise happiness, fulfillment, or a dream to invest in.  But from John’s perspective, there is only one God.  And there is only one way to God: Jesus Christ.   That is the fundamental truth underpinning Christianity.

Why is it important to understand that Christianity is about understanding that the only way to God is through Christ?  How does this understanding piggyback onto Jesus’ own teaching in John 14:6?

Second Thought:

Let’s look more deeply into this confession.  You see, to confess that Jesus came in the flesh and mean it implies that we also follow what Jesus teaches.  What Jesus teaches is that we take up our cross and follow Him.  In other words, to confess Jesus in the flesh is to abandon our own self-centered living and instead humbly submit to God.  We cannot truly believe God came to dwell among us without also truly submitting to Him.  Remember the double emphasis of faith: believe and obey.  When Christ came in the flesh He demonstrated belief and ultimate obedience.  We are to do the same.

Do you believe Jesus came in the flesh?  How does this play out in your life in obedient submission to Him?

Third Thought:

In these verses John speaks about the spirit of the antichrist.  Remember what we said back in John 2:18-22 when John last used the word antichrist.  Yes, the Bible speaks on the Antichrist, who is the final grand opponent of God who will lead humanity away from God.  But John speaks of antichrists – plural.  Everyone who denies Christ has a spirit antithetical to Christ.  Everyone who seeks to fulfill their own desires rather than seeking God’s will in humble obedience to Him has a spirit of an antichrist about them.  John wants us to understand that there are two fundamental positions to take with God.  We are either with Christ or against Christ.  We either submit to God or submit to ourselves.  We either have the Spirit of Christ within us or a spirit contrary to Christ.

How do you pursue the will of the Father?  How do you demonstrate the Spirit of Christ in your life?

Passage for Tomorrow: 1 John 4:4-6