Scripture

I say this because many deceivers have gone out int the world. They deny that Jesus Christ came in a real body. Such a person is a deceiver and an antichrist.

Observation

John writes this letter to “the chosen lady”, probably referring to a local church. He declares that he was happy to have met some of the “children” of the lady, finding them living according to the truth.

We must live in love for one another according to the commandment of God. Many deceivers have gone out into the world. These people deny that Jesus came in a physical body.

If anyone comes into a meeting teaching lies about Christ, we should not give them any kind of encouragement.

Application

There were many sects and heresies that sprang up in the early decades of the church.

One of the more persistent heresies was called Gnosticism. According to the Gnostics, we can only achieve salvation by learning knowledge that was hidden from most people, but was revealed to a select few. They drew in teachings from many religions, including Christianity. The core belief of these groups was that the physical world, including our bodies, is evil, but the spirit world is good.

We know that Jesus came into the world, in the normal way, as a complete human being, including a body. For many people it was impossible to believe that a perfect God could dwell in a physical body. So they denied that Jesus had a body, and that He died in that body.

John says that to follow such teachings is to be against Christ, that is antichrist.

Our beliefs are important because they determine how we believe. For John, the important doctrine that Jesus came into the world in the form of a man, with a body, was the basis for us to love other people with the love of God. To abandon this belief would eventually mean abandoning love for one another.

Not all of us are called to be theologians, but we all must check that the things we think and say correspond to the Bible.

Prayer

Holy Spirit, please convict me about the things that I think and the things that I do, in whatever way I go against your will. Amen.