Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.
The liar is the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ, and he is antichrist because in denying the Son he denies both the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father, while whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. Refusal to acknowledge Christ as the Son of God marks teachers of Spiritualism as having neither the Son nor the Father, showing that Spiritualism denies both and is a manifestation of antichrist. Denial also includes false teachings that reject the distinct personality of God the Father and Jesus Christ, and Spiritualism even in its changed Christian guise that professes to accept Christ and the Bible while explaining away its solemn truths and leading men to reject it as the foundation of faith. Continuing in the truth heard from the beginning about the Father and the Son, holding to and obeying what was first received, keeps believers abiding in both and joined to them in love.
Liar Denies Father Son
The liar is the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ. That denial is itself lying, and it marks him as antichrist. He is antichrist because in denying the Son he denies the Father also, and so denies both the Father and the Son. Denial of this kind includes rejecting the distinct personality of God the Father and of Jesus Christ.
Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father. Whoever rejects the Son has neither the Son nor the Father. By contrast, whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. To acknowledge Christ as God's Son is therefore to have the Father, while to refuse to acknowledge Him is to be without reverence for the Father, in rebellion against God's law and despising Christ's blood.
The verse stands as a warning against seducers who deny Christ.
Antichrist's Many Disguises
To deny that Jesus is the Christ is to lie, and to deny the Son in this way is to deny both the Father and the Son, so that such denial is antichrist. Spiritualist teachers are marked by this refusal to acknowledge Christ as the Son of God, and because they reject the Son they have neither the Son nor the Father. This proves that Spiritualism by denying Christ denies both the Father and the Son and is a manifestation of antichrist, standing in rebellion against God. Those who refuse to acknowledge Christ as God's Son show no reverence for the Father but stand in rebellion against God's law while despising Christ's blood. Whoever rejects the Son has neither the Son nor the Father, while whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
The same denial belongs to deceivers who claim loyalty to God while rejecting Christ and his gospel, introducing false teachings and living in disobedience to God's law. Denial also includes false teachings that reject the distinct personality of God the Father and Jesus Christ. Denial includes Spiritualism even in its changed Christian guise. Denial is not only open denunciation of Christ and the Bible but also a professed acceptance of both that interprets the Bible to please the unrenewed heart and makes its solemn and vital truths of no effect. Such professed acceptance degrades the love of God to weak sentimentalism with little distinction between good and evil, keeps out of sight God's justice, His denunciations of sin and the requirements of His holy law, and teaches men to regard the decalogue as a dead letter. It captivates with pleasing fables and leads men to reject the Bible as the foundation of faith, and such veiled denial is as verily a denial of Christ as open denunciation was before, made more dangerous and more subtle by blinding the people so the deception is not discerned.
Antichrist is made up of those who refuse to be taught of God and instead hold the traditions of men and rule themselves. Those who feed on the Word of God and practice it and receive God's Word and live by Christ's lessons stand with the Lord, while those who will not practice the lessons of Christ but mold themselves pass over to the side of the enemy against God and are written Antichrist. Those who reject Christ find in Antichrist the center of their union, while the people of God press together in unity as one with Jesus Christ, and the two parties stand in collision until the Lord appears and shines before His ancients gloriously and sets up a kingdom that shall stand forever. Papal decrees and constitutions so misrepresented Christ that it was wondered whether the pope was antichrist himself or his apostle. Antichrist has a definite meaning in the Word that must be clearly seen. That meaning is to be learned from the prophecies of Daniel and John which interpret each other and by their fulfillment in these last days explain themselves. Satan has combined and will continue to combine with the churches against the truth of God and the last battle between the powers of darkness and the powers of light will be most determined, and those who become confused and fail to see the meaning will surely place themselves on the side of antichrist until they stand wholly on the side of the world.
Abiding Ready Last Days
To remain in the Father and the Son is to continue in what was heard from the beginning concerning the distinct personal reality of both, holding fast to the truths first received and obeying them in love-joined union with them. Denial of that distinct personality of God the Father and of Jesus Christ is the lie that makes one antichrist, for to deny the Son is to lose the Father as well. Those who believe in Christ as Savior and entrust themselves to His guidance are glorified in Him and thereby gain victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil.
Those who feed upon the Word of God and put it into practice and live by the lessons of Christ stand on the Lord's side, while those who refuse to be taught of God, cling to human traditions, rule themselves, and will not practice His lessons mold themselves after their own way and pass over to the enemy's side against God. The people of God press together in unity as one with Jesus Christ, but those who reject Christ find in antichrist the center of their union, so that the two parties stand in collision until the Lord appears and shines gloriously before His ancients and establishes a kingdom that shall stand forever. In the determined last battle between the powers of darkness and the powers of light, when Satan combines with the churches against the truth of God, confusion about the definite meaning of antichrist revealed in the Word will place souls on the side of antichrist and then wholly on the side of the world, so instead of assimilating with the world God's true children must become more distinct from it and fight bravely on the side of Christ. That meaning is to be clearly seen and learned from the prophecies of Daniel and John, which interpret each other and by their fulfillment in these last days explain themselves as witnesses to truths everyone should understand.
The verse gives instruction from Christ that must be studied and obeyed without delay, calling every soul not to exalt self and disparage others but to criticize self, confess and forsake personal sin, and set the heart in order at once. Such diligent repentance cleanses from sin and makes ready for the Lord's appearing in the great day of atonement. The chapter holds plain truths of great consequence for those living in the last days, to be read and studied together with the warning about leaving first love, so that the love of Christ abides in the heart, gives fragrance to words and works, and believers grow up into Christ in love in true Christian fellowship. The chapter is the best sermon for bringing into practical life simple trusting prayer to God in faith rather than trust in human weakness, the putting away of false science, caution against being led astray by any man's supposed wisdom, trust in God as helper, life as God's little children led and guided by the Lord at every step, seeking God rather than letting any living man decoy the soul from steadfast faith to follow another man's judgment, since man has no wisdom beyond what he receives from God, looking to Him who is the source of all wisdom and walking in the light of the Word of God.
The liar is the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ, and he is antichrist because in denying the Son he denies both the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father, while whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. Refusal to acknowledge Christ as the Son of God marks teachers of Spiritualism as having neither the Son nor the Father, showing that Spiritualism denies both and is a manifestation of antichrist. Denial also includes false teachings that reject the distinct personality of God the Father and Jesus Christ, and Spiritualism even in its changed Christian guise that professes to accept Christ and the Bible while explaining away its solemn truths and leading men to reject it as the foundation of faith. Continuing in the truth heard from the beginning about the Father and the Son, holding to and obeying what was first received, keeps believers abiding in both and joined to them in love.
Liar Denies Father Son
The liar is the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ. That denial is itself lying, and it marks him as antichrist. He is antichrist because in denying the Son he denies the Father also, and so denies both the Father and the Son. Denial of this kind includes rejecting the distinct personality of God the Father and of Jesus Christ.
Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father. Whoever rejects the Son has neither the Son nor the Father. By contrast, whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. To acknowledge Christ as God's Son is therefore to have the Father, while to refuse to acknowledge Him is to be without reverence for the Father, in rebellion against God's law and despising Christ's blood.
The verse stands as a warning against seducers who deny Christ.
Antichrist's Many Disguises
To deny that Jesus is the Christ is to lie, and to deny the Son in this way is to deny both the Father and the Son, so that such denial is antichrist. Spiritualist teachers are marked by this refusal to acknowledge Christ as the Son of God, and because they reject the Son they have neither the Son nor the Father. This proves that Spiritualism by denying Christ denies both the Father and the Son and is a manifestation of antichrist, standing in rebellion against God. Those who refuse to acknowledge Christ as God's Son show no reverence for the Father but stand in rebellion against God's law while despising Christ's blood. Whoever rejects the Son has neither the Son nor the Father, while whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
The same denial belongs to deceivers who claim loyalty to God while rejecting Christ and his gospel, introducing false teachings and living in disobedience to God's law. Denial also includes false teachings that reject the distinct personality of God the Father and Jesus Christ. Denial includes Spiritualism even in its changed Christian guise. Denial is not only open denunciation of Christ and the Bible but also a professed acceptance of both that interprets the Bible to please the unrenewed heart and makes its solemn and vital truths of no effect. Such professed acceptance degrades the love of God to weak sentimentalism with little distinction between good and evil, keeps out of sight God's justice, His denunciations of sin and the requirements of His holy law, and teaches men to regard the decalogue as a dead letter. It captivates with pleasing fables and leads men to reject the Bible as the foundation of faith, and such veiled denial is as verily a denial of Christ as open denunciation was before, made more dangerous and more subtle by blinding the people so the deception is not discerned.
Antichrist is made up of those who refuse to be taught of God and instead hold the traditions of men and rule themselves. Those who feed on the Word of God and practice it and receive God's Word and live by Christ's lessons stand with the Lord, while those who will not practice the lessons of Christ but mold themselves pass over to the side of the enemy against God and are written Antichrist. Those who reject Christ find in Antichrist the center of their union, while the people of God press together in unity as one with Jesus Christ, and the two parties stand in collision until the Lord appears and shines before His ancients gloriously and sets up a kingdom that shall stand forever. Papal decrees and constitutions so misrepresented Christ that it was wondered whether the pope was antichrist himself or his apostle. Antichrist has a definite meaning in the Word that must be clearly seen. That meaning is to be learned from the prophecies of Daniel and John which interpret each other and by their fulfillment in these last days explain themselves. Satan has combined and will continue to combine with the churches against the truth of God and the last battle between the powers of darkness and the powers of light will be most determined, and those who become confused and fail to see the meaning will surely place themselves on the side of antichrist until they stand wholly on the side of the world.
Abiding Ready Last Days
To remain in the Father and the Son is to continue in what was heard from the beginning concerning the distinct personal reality of both, holding fast to the truths first received and obeying them in love-joined union with them. Denial of that distinct personality of God the Father and of Jesus Christ is the lie that makes one antichrist, for to deny the Son is to lose the Father as well. Those who believe in Christ as Savior and entrust themselves to His guidance are glorified in Him and thereby gain victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil.
Those who feed upon the Word of God and put it into practice and live by the lessons of Christ stand on the Lord's side, while those who refuse to be taught of God, cling to human traditions, rule themselves, and will not practice His lessons mold themselves after their own way and pass over to the enemy's side against God. The people of God press together in unity as one with Jesus Christ, but those who reject Christ find in antichrist the center of their union, so that the two parties stand in collision until the Lord appears and shines gloriously before His ancients and establishes a kingdom that shall stand forever. In the determined last battle between the powers of darkness and the powers of light, when Satan combines with the churches against the truth of God, confusion about the definite meaning of antichrist revealed in the Word will place souls on the side of antichrist and then wholly on the side of the world, so instead of assimilating with the world God's true children must become more distinct from it and fight bravely on the side of Christ. That meaning is to be clearly seen and learned from the prophecies of Daniel and John, which interpret each other and by their fulfillment in these last days explain themselves as witnesses to truths everyone should understand.
The verse gives instruction from Christ that must be studied and obeyed without delay, calling every soul not to exalt self and disparage others but to criticize self, confess and forsake personal sin, and set the heart in order at once. Such diligent repentance cleanses from sin and makes ready for the Lord's appearing in the great day of atonement. The chapter holds plain truths of great consequence for those living in the last days, to be read and studied together with the warning about leaving first love, so that the love of Christ abides in the heart, gives fragrance to words and works, and believers grow up into Christ in love in true Christian fellowship. The chapter is the best sermon for bringing into practical life simple trusting prayer to God in faith rather than trust in human weakness, the putting away of false science, caution against being led astray by any man's supposed wisdom, trust in God as helper, life as God's little children led and guided by the Lord at every step, seeking God rather than letting any living man decoy the soul from steadfast faith to follow another man's judgment, since man has no wisdom beyond what he receives from God, looking to Him who is the source of all wisdom and walking in the light of the Word of God.