1 John | 2:18-23

Jul 26, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: An Old Man’s Final Charge: Hold Fast to the Real Jesus

John’s weathered hands grip truth like a lifeline. After fifty years of walking with Jesus, he pleads with believers to cling to the unaltered Christ—the one who died, rose, and reigns. Compromise on Jesus’ identity isn’t theological nitpicking; it’s the difference between flourishing and withering. Just as a single mislabeled ingredient alters a recipe, subtle shifts in understanding Christ corrupt the whole gospel. Vigilance isn’t fear—it’s love protecting the source of life. [03:00]

Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life. (1 John 2:24-25, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you felt pressure to adjust your understanding of Jesus to fit cultural expectations? What specific truth about Him do you need to reaffirm today?

Day 2: The Last Hour’s Urgent Vigilance: Antichrists Among Us Now

The “last hour” isn’t a countdown clock—it’s the present age where light and darkness collide. Antichrists aren’t future comic-book villains but present-day distorters of Christ’s identity. They sit in pews, quote Scripture, and smile while diluting the gospel. John shocks believers into realizing false teachings aren’t abstract ideas but wolves wearing familiar faces. Urgency isn’t panic—it’s the steady gaze of a soldier guarding treasure. [12:03]

Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. (1 John 2:18-19, ESV)

Reflection: Which subtle distortion of Jesus’ identity have you recently encountered in media, relationships, or even church settings? How did you recognize it?

Day 3: Knowing the Real Jesus: No Room for “Close Enough”

Mistaking Carrie for Brooke reveals a dangerous truth—nearness to Christ isn’t kinship with Christ. The wrong Jesus, no matter how compassionate or wise, cannot save. Like checking a friend’s birthmark, believers must study the biblical Christ’s scars, tears, and triumph. Compromise whispers, “Does His resurrection really need to be physical?” Vigilance answers, “Yes—or He isn’t Savior.” [40:19]

Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. (1 John 2:22-23, ESV)

Reflection: When have you tolerated a “close enough” version of Jesus to avoid conflict? What specific aspect of His true identity restores your courage?

Day 4: Anointed to Know: The Spirit’s Mark on the Beloved

The Holy Spirit’s anointing isn’t mystical oil—it’s the believer’s DNA test. Just as children inherit their father’s eyes, the Spirit stamps Christ’s likeness on His people. This mark isn’t earned through study but received through surrender. When counterfeit Christs arise, the anointing whispers, “This isn’t your Brother.” Confidence grows not in battling lies but in beholding Truth. [31:47]

But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. (1 John 2:20-21, ESV)

Reflection: How has the Spirit recently confirmed your spiritual “family resemblance” to Christ during a moment of confusion or doubt?

Day 5: Flourishing in the Real: Life Rooted in the True Gospel

Abiding in Christ isn’t monastic retreat—it’s grafting into a living vine. Every false teaching acts like herbicide, threatening to sever believers from their nourishing root. John’s final charge mirrors a gardener’s care: prune distractions, water with truth, and stake young growth to the unchanging gospel. Flourishing comes not from chasing novelty but sinking deeper into ancient reality. [49:08]

I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him. (1 John 2:26-27, ESV)

Reflection: What daily practice helps you distinguish between the “fresh” and the “true” when engaging spiritual teachings? How does this protect your roots?

Sermon Summary

John writes as an old man in Ephesus, fifty plus years after Jesus died and rose, with a lifetime of walking out the gospel behind him. John’s heart comes out like a father saying, “This is what matters.” The church already has the New Testament witness. The gospel is not fuzzy. Jesus has come, lived, died, risen, ascended, and promised to return. John wants faithful followers of Jesus to be absolutely certain about who Jesus is, what he has done, and who they are because of him.

God’s heart in 1 John is not that obedience would prop up his faithfulness. God does not need human obedience to be God. The believer needs obedience because obedience is the outcome of trust, and trust in the right Jesus leads to life. The wrong Jesus, or trust in a reshaped Jesus, leads to fading and withering instead of flourishing.

John first warns against loving the world, because the world has a belief system that can sound reasonable and slowly end up on the wall of a believer’s life, like an old collage that still gives space to a former love. John then turns the urgency way up: “Children, it is the last hour,” and “Antichrist is coming.” The last hour is not a failed countdown. The last hour is the whole span between the ascension of Jesus and his return, the time when Christ has been clearly revealed and people either confess him or deny him.

John says many antichrists have already come. These antichrists are not merely every person who has never believed. John names a more painful category: people who went out from the church because the Jesus they embraced was no longer the Jesus of the gospel. They once stood among the faithful, but their departure made plain that they had never truly belonged.

The text refuses fear that salvation hangs by a thread of personal performance. John says those who belong to God are anointed by the Holy One and have knowledge. The warning is not, “Stay faithful or God will drop you.” The warning is, “Since the faithful already know Jesus, do not be foolish with counterfeit versions of him.”

John makes the line plain: whoever denies the Son does not have the Father. A close-enough Jesus is not Jesus. Like confusing Brooke and Carrie, similarities can fool someone for a while, but at some point the details show the truth. The church must love people graciously while refusing to treat anti-Christ claims as harmless. The goal is not rejection of people, but deep grounding in the real Jesus so that the real Jesus can be brought to them.

Key Takeaways

1. The last hour is now [17:18] The last hour is not simply a dramatic end-times clock ticking down in the background. The last hour is the present age after Jesus has been fully revealed through his life, death, resurrection, and ascension. The urgency comes from the fact that Christ is no longer hidden in shadows, so every reshaping of him is a response to clear light. [17:18]
2. Obedience grows out of trust [05:32] God does not need obedience in order to prove himself faithful. The believer needs obedience because obedience is what trust looks like when it takes God seriously. Fear can produce outward compliance, but trust produces a life that actually moves toward flourishing. [05:32]
3. Close enough is not Jesus [40:56] A counterfeit Christ can carry familiar words, warm tones, and many true-sounding claims. Yet John draws the line at the actual Son, not a nearly accurate version of him. The difference matters because a wrong Jesus cannot give the life that only the true Christ gives. [40:56]
4. Anointing gives real discernment [31:33] John does not write as though faithful believers are clueless or empty. The anointing of the Holy One means that the truth has already been given, received, and known. Discernment is not spiritual suspicion toward everyone, but steady confidence in the Christ already confessed. [31:33]
5. Love people, reject anti-Christ claims [47:41] John’s warning does not make people enemies to be hated or discarded. The church is called to pray, care, engage, and love without pretending false claims about Jesus are safe. Real love refuses both cruelty toward people and compromise about Christ.

## [47:41]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:56] - John’s Final Letters from Ephesus
[03:00] - Holding Fast to the Real Jesus
[05:04] - Why God Does Not Need Obedience
[08:09] - John Writes to Faithful Followers
[09:54] - Do Not Love the World
[12:03] - The Last Hour and Antichrist
[17:18] - What the Last Hour Means
[22:35] - Antichrists Who Went Out
[27:13] - They Were Not Truly of Us
[31:33] - Anointed by the Holy One
[35:39] - Denying the Son Denies the Father
[37:57] - Close Enough Is Still Wrong
[43:42] - Subtle Drift Inside the Church
[47:02] - Loving People Without Buying In
[49:08] - Knowing Jesus Deeply Enough

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

1 John 2:18-23
“Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also.” [12:03]

1 John 2:15
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” [09:54]

1 John 2:12-14
“I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.” [31:01]

Observation questions

In 1 John 2:18-23, what does John say marks “the last hour,” and what does he say these antichrists did? [22:35]
Looking at 1 John 2:12-14 and 2:20-21 together, what words does John use to describe the people he is writing to?
In 1 John 2:21-23, what direct connection does John make between confessing or denying the Son and having the Father? [35:39]
What are some of the ways “the world” can quietly shape a believer’s thinking if it is left hanging around unchallenged? [10:25]

Interpretation questions

John says the “last hour” is already here. How does that change the way believers should think about spiritual urgency in ordinary life, not just in dramatic end-times scenarios? [17:18]
John says those who left “were not of us.” How does that guard believers from thinking salvation hangs by a thread of personal performance, while still taking false teaching seriously? [27:13]
John says believers are “anointed by the Holy One” and already “have knowledge.” What does that suggest about how discernment usually works in the church? Is it mainly panic and suspicion, or a steady knowing of the real Jesus? [31:33]
John draws a very strong line: denying the Son means not having the Father. Why is “close enough” language about Jesus still dangerous, even when it sounds warm, sincere, or partly true? [40:56]

Application questions

Obedience is not meant to be a way of keeping God loyal; it is the fruit of trusting him. In what part of life is obedience currently feeling more like fear than trust? What might it look like to trust Jesus there instead? [05:32]
The world’s beliefs can stay on the wall of a person’s life longer than they realize. What idea, habit, or value from the world still seems to have too much space in the heart right now? [09:54]
Many people are comfortable with a Jesus who is inspiring, useful, or culturally acceptable, but not the Jesus of the gospel. Where is there pressure right now to soften, resize, or reshape Jesus so life feels easier? [43:42]
Believers already have real knowledge of Christ through the Holy Spirit. What practices actually help a person know Jesus deeply enough to recognize a counterfeit version of him? Which of those practices is most needed right now? [49:08]
False ideas about Jesus often come through voices that once sounded solid and helpful. How does someone personally stay humble and teachable without becoming gullible? [44:48]
People should be loved genuinely, but anti-Christ claims should not be treated as harmless. Is there anyone in life right now who needs both kindness and clearer honesty about who Jesus really is? What might that look like? [47:41]
John writes to people who know the truth and belong to God. When doubt, confusion, or spiritual pressure rises, what truths about Jesus and about belonging to him most help steady the heart? [33:18]

Sermon Clips

60s

#JesusOrNothing

“As much as that person thought they were talking to Brooke. As much as that person coming to me wholeheartedly is certain they met my wife. If she's not my wife, she's not my wife. You know I'm saying? Once you've described some things and you go past a certain point, I'm like, yep. Not not not Brooke. And, there's no version in which I would say this. Well, since you got most of it right, let's just say it's Brooke. In fact, in fact, I think it might have been Brooke. I mean, you just said isn't Brooke, but it's close enough. And then we do this with Jesus, don't we? What we do with Jesus is that if it's close enough, if enough of the things are shared and said, if enough of the stuff is the same, then we feel bad saying, well, who am I to say that that's not at least close enough? And what John's saying is there is no close enough. It's either Jesus or it's not.”

56s

#ProtectTheGospel

“He led the church well. They held fast. And now, over the twenty years, people within the church left because of their disagreement with Gospel theology. Did you note that I just said they? They didn't disagree with like the loudness of the music or that way they dressed. There's good reasons sometimes to say, this is not my thing. Doesn't make people anti Christ when they leave a church because of not Gospel theology. You with me? But when you change your gospel theology or your understanding of who Jesus is, and therefore you leave the place that holds to the gospel and who Jesus is, that is what he's describing here as those who have left. They were once with us and they are now anti Christ because they're teaching and living following a different Jesus.”

80s

#LovePeopleTruthMatters

“when we think of our Muslim friends or our Mormon friends or our Jehovah's Witness friends or our fill in the blank, any other religion that has Jesus involved, when we think about Joshua Harris and Rob Bell, what should we be doing with those folks? We should reject them. Never speak to them. Good. I'm glad you're laughing because if you're not, you should. No. Man, we should be praying for them. We should be caring for them. We should be kind and gracious, not with an agenda, but because we love them. We should engage in their lives. We should not hate them or reject them or see them as our enemy. But what they teach, we should see as anti Christ. And we should be vigilant deeply and not allow ourselves to begin to slowly buy in because of our love for people. Let's all get along as it relates to Jesus. It's so close. It's not. And why does that matter? Because if you have the wrong Jesus, you are not alive, but dead. So having the right Jesus matters. And if we care about anyone who doesn't have the right Jesus, what should we want for them? That they would meet the right Jesus, which means you and I better be grounded in the right Jesus.”

48s

#WatchForSubtleShifts

“Did you catch all of that? And the reason this is important is because it is easy often or at least easier to look at a philosophy of the world and how it opposes the things of God and you kind of just know I'm choosing that because I want to. Right? But it's more complex, isn't it? When someone's preaching Jesus, talking Jesus, living Jesus, but the subtleties in what they're saying have changed Jesus. And you need to be vigilant and watchful over that is what he's saying because that category is anti Christ, and we should be right back with, we should all be very much vigilant of that, shouldn't we? Now watch what he does here. Look at this.”

49s

#WakeUpNow

“So now you and I ought to be like, what? I'm surrounded by antichrist. Right? I'm just saying we we we should we should catch the urgency by which John is elevating our present reality to the same importance as it would be if we were literally in some end time and the anti Christ was here and we were battling against that reality. A world order that's gonna form and steal our minds. You know how that feels that urgency. Right? And he's saying when should we feel that urgency? Right here. Why? Because what's with us right now? Many antichrists. So look what he says.”

41s

#GraceNotPerformance

“because what John is doing here while he's laying out this journey for us as followers of Jesus to be faithful in trusting and obeying Jesus. He also wants to be constantly careful not to suggest to us this horrid foundation that says, you better stay faithful to Jesus. Otherwise, you're gonna lose your salvation, lose your belonging to him, lose everything. Right? Because we've said this many times. If that's the gospel and that's an anti gospel, it means God is dependent on my faithfulness in order to show himself faithful. You with me?”

61s

#RejectFalseTeaching

“There were people in the church leaders who were teachers that had changed who Jesus was. They didn't believe in the resurrection for example. That was one change. There were other changes. They started shaping Jesus to be someone he's not, so that they could either have wonderful, teaching that people would be enamored by. Remember? It was like they teach all these myths and wonders because it tickles people's ears. I know stuff about Jesus that you don't know. Or they wanted to fit into the culture they were, more, amiably because the cult culture was hostile. And and and what did Paul say? Timothy, have nothing to do with those false teachings. Stand vigilantly. Draw lines in the sand. Who Jesus is matters more than anything else. And if that goes awry, everything goes awry. And so what did Timothy do?”

74s

#TheyNeverBelonged

“No. I mean, it's a real thing. Isn't it? And and John's saying, that's not how this worked. Look to look at the look at the tenses he uses in this. He says, they were never actually part. Though they came from within, they actually never belonged. And how do we know that they were not actually belonging? Because they went down this path. So what he's not doing here is saying, we'll get to that in a second. You better be vigilant because if you go down that path, it's over for you. What he's saying is, since you belong to God, don't be stupid. And do a thing that will cause you to not have the flourishing life here and now, you already know they didn't know. They had an idea. They were looking at it, but they decided after looking at it all, nah. That's not the Jesus I think is most fill in the blank. Easy, comfortable, whatever. Add this, subtract that, change that. So they When did they believe in Jesus? What he's saying is they didn't.”

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