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Scripture Reading: 1 John 4:1-6
In this message we come to 4:1-6. These verses stand as a particular section. Apparently this section has nothing to do with either the preceding section or the following section. As we have seen, the preceding section is concerned with loving the brothers. The following section returns to the matter of loving the brothers. Therefore, 4:1-6 stands between two sections concerned with loving the brothers. We may wonder, then, how 4:1-6 is related to these sections.
I believe 4:1-6 is inserted for at least two reasons. The first reason is related to our need to discern the spirits. In 3:24 John speaks of the “Spirit whom He gave to us.” Because the Spirit is mentioned here, John goes on to the matter of discerning, proving, trying, the spirits. There is more than one kind of spirit in the universe. Hence, we need John’s warning to prove the spirits.
First John 4:1-6 is a parenthetical section warning the believers to discern the spirits that they may recognize the false prophets. This warning is related to the mention of the Spirit in the preceding verse, 3:24, the Spirit whereby we know that the Lord abides in us. A similar warning was given in 2:18-23. The expressions “every spirit” and “the spirits” in 4:1 refer either to the spirits of the prophets (1 Cor. 14:32) motivated by the Spirit of truth, or to the spirit of the false prophets actuated by the spirit of deception. Hence, there is the need to discern the spirits by proving them to see whether they have their source out of God. This is the reason John says in verse 1, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but prove the spirits whether they are out of God.” To prove the spirits is to discern them (1 Cor. 12:10) by putting them on trial.
I believe that a second reason for John’s inserting 4:1-6 is to warn the believers that although we need to love the brothers, we should not receive false prophets and antichrists. We should love all men, including our enemies. However, we cannot receive a false prophet or an antichrist.
In the early years of my ministry, we found it necessary to inoculate the saints against modernism. A number of professors and others in the universities had been influenced by modernistic teachings concerning Christ and the Bible. The modernists taught that Christ is not God, that He was an illegitimate son of Mary with Joseph, that He was a great philosopher, and that He died on the cross not for redemption but as a martyr. Furthermore, the modernists did not believe in the Bible. In particular, they did not believe in the miracles recorded in the Scriptures.
When we stood up to oppose modernism, some friends said to us, “Shouldn’t we love them? Shouldn’t we receive them?” We, however, practiced John’s word in his second Epistle: “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not say to him, Rejoice!” (v. 10). To love a person is one thing, but to receive one who is a false prophet or an antichrist is an altogether different thing.
John realized that it was necessary for him, when speaking about loving the brothers, to say a word regarding false prophets and antichrists. We must prove the spirits and stay away from the false prophets. Although we need to love the brothers and even all men, we should never receive a false prophet or an antichrist.
In 4:1 John tells us that “many false prophets have gone out into the world.” In Matthew 24:24 the false prophets differ from the false Christs. But here the false prophets are the antichrists (v. 3), those who teach heretically concerning the Person of Christ (2:18, 22-23). The “world” in 4:1 does not refer to the universe or to the earth; rather, it refers to the people, to human society on earth, who are the components of the satanic world system.
In 4:2 John continues, “In this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit which confesses Jesus Christ having come in the flesh is out of God.” The “spirit” here is the spirit of a genuine prophet motivated by the Holy Spirit of truth, a spirit that confesses the divine conception of Jesus, affirming that He was born as the Son of God. Every such spirit surely has its source in God; it is out of God. In this we know the Spirit of God.
Jesus was conceived of the Spirit (Matt. 1:18). To confess Jesus coming in the flesh is to confess that He was divinely conceived to be born as the Son of God (Luke 1:31-35). Since He was conceived of the Spirit to be born in the flesh, the Spirit would never deny that He has come in the flesh through divine conception.
At this point we need to consider further the meaning of the word “antichrist.” In Matthew 24:5 the Lord Jesus says, “For many shall come in My name, saying, I am the Christ, and they shall lead many astray.” This verse speaks of a false Christ, someone who pretends to be Christ, in order to lead the believers astray.
In 2:26 and 3:7 John also speaks of being led astray. In this Epistle, to be led astray is to be led away from the reality of the Person of Christ, from the reality that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. But according to Matthew 24:5, a false Christ is one who pretends to be Christ in order to lead people astray.
In Matthew 24:23 and 24 the Lord Jesus says, “Then if anyone says to you, Behold, here is the Christ, or, Here; do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets shall arise and shall show great signs and wonders so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.” These verses indicate that it is possible for even the chosen people of God to be deceived and led astray. Due to the Lord’s word concerning false Christs and false prophets, there was the teaching among the believers in the early days that false Christs and false prophets would rise up.
In 1 John there are three verses concerning the antichrist. In 2:18 John says, “Young children, it is the last hour, and even as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come; whereby we know that it is the last hour.” Notice that in this verse the definite article is not used before “antichrist.” John simply says that the believers heard that antichrist is coming and then goes on to say that many antichrists have come.
In 2:22 John again speaks concerning the antichrist: “Who is the liar if not he who is denying that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, who is denying the Father and the Son.” The word “liar” indicates a false prophet. The liar, the false prophet, who denies that Jesus is the Christ, is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son.
First John 4:3 says, “And every spirit which does not confess Jesus, is not out of God; and this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now is already in the world.” Like 2:22, this verse indicates that in the first Epistle of John an antichrist is a false prophet, and a false prophet is an antichrist.
In 4:3 the spirit that does not confess Jesus, is the spirit of a false prophet actuated by the spirit of deception, the spirit that does not confess Jesus coming in the flesh. This is the spirit of the errors of the Docetists (Docetes). This name was derived from the Greek dokein, “to seem,” “to appear to be.” The heretical view of the Docetists was that Jesus Christ was not a real man, but simply appeared so. According to the Docetists, Christ was merely a phantasm. Docetism was mixed up with Gnosticism, which taught that all matter was essentially evil. Hence, Docetists taught that, since Christ is holy, He could never have had the defilement of human flesh. They said that Christ’s body was not real flesh and blood, but merely a deceptive, transient phantom, so that He did not suffer, die, and resurrect. Such heresy not only undermines the Lord’s incarnation, but also undermines His redemption and resurrection. Docetism was a characteristic feature of the first antichristian errorists whom John had in view here and in 2 John 7. The spirit of such errorists surely does not have its source in God; it is not out of God. This is the spirit of the antichrist.
In 2 John 7 the apostle John once again speaks concerning the antichrist: “Because many deceivers went out into the world, who do not confess Jesus Christ coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.” These deceivers are the liars, the false prophets, who deny that Jesus is God incarnate and in this way deny the deity of Christ. John clearly says that these deceivers are antichrists.
In the past a number of Bible teachers have used the title antichrist in a particular way. In 2 Thessalonians 2:3 and 4 Paul speaks of the man of lawlessness, “the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or an object of worship, so that he seats himself in the temple of God, proclaiming himself that he is God.” As prophesied in Daniel 7:20-21, 24-26; 8:9-12, 23-25; 9:27; and 11:36-37, this man of lawlessness will cast down the truth to the ground, change laws, destroy and corrupt many to an extraordinary degree, blaspheme God, and deceive men. Paul prophesied of the coming of this man of lawlessness.
In Revelation 13 we have two beasts: the first beast from the sea and the second beast from the earth. The second beast is the false prophet, who works for the first beast: “He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his sight, and he causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose death stroke was healed” (v. 12). The first beast will be the last Caesar of the restored kingdom of the Roman Empire, and the second beast, the false prophet, will work for him.
Because of these prophecies, many Bible teachers have applied the title “antichrist” to the coming man of lawlessness, the one who will exalt himself above God and cause himself to be worshipped and who will oppose and persecute Christians and Jews. He is also identified with the first beast in Revelation 13. It certainly is not wrong to apply the title antichrist to this person.
However, regarding the coming antichrist, Bible teachers have followed different interpretations. For instance, in his reference Bible, Dr. Scofield says that the antichrist will be the second beast in Revelation 13, the beast from the earth: “The ‘many antichrists’ precede and prepare the way for the Antichrist, who is ‘the Beast out of the earth’ of Rev. 13:11-17, and the ‘false prophet’ of Rev. 16:13; 19:20; 20:10. He is the last ecclesiastical head, as the Beast of Rev. 13:1-8 is the last civil head. For purposes of persecution he is permitted to exercise the autocratic power of the emperor-Beast.” In contrast to Scofield’s understanding, other Bible teachers say that the first beast of Revelation 13 will be the antichrist and that the second beast will be the false prophet. But Scofield says that the second beast, the false prophet, will be the antichrist. This means that Dr. Scofield says that the false prophet will be the antichrist.
The New Scofield Reference Bible in its note offers a somewhat different interpretation: “Many identify the ‘beast coming up out of the earth’ as the Antichrist....If the ‘beast coming up out of the earth’ (vv. 11-17) is the Antichrist, he is the same as the ‘false prophet’ of 16:13; 19:20; 20:10. Because the word ‘antichrist’ is never directly applied to him, however, some have considered the term ‘antichrist,’ defined in the sense against Christ, as applying to the first beast (vv. 1-10), who is the political ruler.” It is clear, therefore, that Bible teachers have different interpretations in the matter of to whom the title “antichrist” should be applied.
We have considered this matter in order to point out that there will not be just one antichrist. I do not think that any Bible teacher would dare to say that only the coming man of lawlessness, the son of destruction, is the antichrist. We should not be so definite as to teach that there will be only one antichrist and that before the coming of this one there will not be any other antichrists. But due to traditional teachings, many Christians have the concept that only one person will be the antichrist.
Bible teachers often speak about the antichrist, giving the impression that antichrist is a proper noun referring only to one person. However, according to John’s use of this term in 2:18, 22; 4:3; and 2 John 7, this is a general title, a title referring to a category of persons. It is not a unique, proper title referring to one particular person. Therefore, the title “antichrist” is different from the title “Christ,” for there is only one Christ and anyone who claims to be Christ is either a false Christ or an antichrist. But we should not use the word antichrist as if it were a proper noun.
Regarding this, translators of the Bible hold different opinions. For example, in his translation Wuest capitalizes antichrist, thus making it a proper noun. The Berkeley version does the same thing. However, J. N. Darby does not capitalize this word in his New Translation. Likewise, the word antichrist is not capitalized in the King James Version, the American Standard Version, or in the New American Standard Version.
It is not scriptural to say that there will be only one antichrist. But it is also wrong to say that the man of lawlessness, the son of destruction who exalts himself above all that is called God, is not an antichrist. That person should definitely be regarded as an antichrist.
In Matthew 24 the false prophets are of one category, and the false Christs are of another category. In Matthew 24:24 the Lord Jesus clearly speaks of both false Christs and false prophets. But in John’s Epistles the false prophets are antichrists. As we have pointed out, some Bible teachers say that the first beast in Revelation 13 will be the antichrist. But Scofield and others say that the second beast, the false prophet, will be the antichrist. According to Scofield’s interpretation, the antichrist is in the same category as the false prophets.
What conclusion should we draw from all these considerations? Should we regard the false prophets and the antichrists as two different categories? In a sense, we may understand them as two distinct categories. Eventually, however, the false prophets and the false Christs are all anti-Christ, against Christ, and hence are all antichrists. In the following message we shall consider the principle of antichrist.
