Verses to review today: 1 John 2:11-20
New Verse: 1 John 2:21

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. (ESV)

I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. (KJV)

Greek: οὐκ ἔγραψα ὑμῖν ὅτι οὐκ οἴδατε τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἀλλʼ ὅτι οἴδατε αὐτὴν καὶ ὅτι πᾶν ψεῦδος ἐκ τῆς ἀληθείας οὐκ ἔστιν.

Transliterated Greek: ouk egrapsa hymin hoti ouk oidate tēn alētheian all’ hoti oidate autēn kai hoti pan pseudos ek tēs alētheias ouk estin.

Literal Word for Word Translation: I have not written to you because you know not the truth, but because you know it and because every lie is not from the truth.

Vocab: οἴδατε, iodate, you know; ἀλήθειαν, alētheian, truth; πᾶν, pan, all/every; ψεῦδος, pseudos, lie.

Commentary: John tells them he is writing to them because they are the ones who know the truth. They are not the ones being deceived because it is they who know the truth. Verse 20 announced that they know the truth because they have been anointed with the Holy Spirit by God. There were many antichrists among them, but they did not remain because they were still in darkness and deception. What was the difference? The Holy Spirit! The Gnostics claimed to have the true knowledge, but they didn’t have the Spirit.

When it comes to theology, there may be many things that believers might disagree on, but the one thing they will agree on is that Jesus is the Christ – the Anointed One! The Gnostic antichrists are called such by John because they deny Jesus is the Christ. It is by understanding that Jesus is the Messiah/Christ, God in flesh, that one is illuminated and standing in the light.

Today, as then, our churches are filled with people who have not been empowered by the Holy Spirit. They “believe” in the flesh and thus are susceptible to turning away from the faith as these antichrists did. When a person “loses their salvation,” they were not sealed by the Holy Spirit and given the spiritual truth about Jesus. It is by the light of the Spirit that one understands their sin, their situation, the grace of God, and is able to repent and follow Jesus as Lord. A Christian who has not markedly changed, has confessed Christ for motives other than to be transformed and saved and thus has not received the Spirit (see Acts 2:38; Jn 14:15-17; 16:7-15).