Scripture Reading: 1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 1:7
There are four verses in his Epistles where the apostle John speaks of antichrist. In 2:18 he says that many antichrists have come; in 2:22, that the antichrist, the liar, is one who denies the Father and the Son; in 4:3, that the spirit of the antichrist does not confess Jesus; and 2 John 1:7, that the deceivers who have gone out into the world are antichrists. In these four verses we can see that there is a principle of antichrist.
What is an antichrist in principle? In order to answer this question, let us consider 2:18, “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.” This verse implies a principle. Anyone who practices this principle is in the category of antichrist.
During the time of the apostles, there was much talk about the coming antichrist. John refers to this when he tells those who received this Epistle that they “heard that antichrist is coming.” Then he immediately goes on to say that many antichrists have come. The fact that there have been many antichrists implies a principle, the principle of antichrist.
In 2:22 we can see more clearly what the principle of antichrist is: “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.” I would call your attention to the word “denying” used twice in this verse. This verse speaks of denying that Jesus is the Christ and also of denying the Father and the Son. Here we have the principle of antichrist. The principle of antichrist is to deny what Christ is. What principle must one follow in order to be an antichrist? He must follow the principle of denying what Christ is. Jesus is the Christ, Christ is the Son of God, and the Son of God is the embodiment of the Father. To deny any aspect of this truth is to deny something of what Christ is and thereby to follow the principle of antichrist.
The principle of antichrist is to deny something of Christ’s Person. According to 2:22, the antichrist denies that Jesus is the Christ. As we have seen, this was the heresy of Cerinthus, who separated the earthly man Jesus from the heavenly Christ. (He considered Jesus the son of Joseph and Mary.) Cerinthus also taught that after Jesus was baptized, Christ as a dove descended upon Him, but left Jesus at the end of His ministry so that Jesus suffered on the cross and rose from the dead, while Christ remained separated as a spiritual being. Cerinthus, therefore, denied that Jesus is the Christ. As verse 22 indicates, this is also to deny the Father and the Son. When the two sentences in verse 22 are put together, we can see clearly that to deny Christ is to deny the Father and the Son. Because Cerinthus denied that Jesus is the Christ and thereby denied the Father and the Son, he was an antichrist. This is an illustration of the principle of antichrist. What makes a person an antichrist, at least in principle, is that he denies some aspect of what Christ is.
The Greek prefix anti has two main meanings. First, it means against; second, it means in place of, or instead of. This indicates that an antichrist is against Christ and also replaces Christ with something else. To be an antichrist is, on the one hand, to be against Christ; on the other hand, it is also to have something instead of Christ, something that replaces Christ. By this we see that the principle of antichrist involves denying what Christ is. This is to be anti-Christ, against Christ. Of course, whenever someone denies what Christ is, automatically that person will replace Christ with something else. Hence, an antichrist is both against Christ and is one who replaces Christ.
We may use the modernists as an illustration of denying Christ and replacing Christ. Modernists deny that Christ is the Redeemer. They do not believe that Christ died on the cross for our sins. Instead, they claim that Christ was persecuted for His teachings and was put to death because of His teachings and died on the cross as a martyr. It is clear that modernists deny that Christ is the Redeemer who died on the cross for our sins. First, they deny this aspect of Christ’s Person. Then they go on to replace the Redeemer with a martyr. In this way, they have a martyr in place of the Redeemer. This is to have something instead of Christ as the result of denying what Christ is.
We must be careful never to deny anything of what Christ is. We should never deny any part, any aspect, or any item of Christ’s Person. To deny any aspect of Christ’s Person is to practice the principle of antichrist. Some who hear this may say, “I certainly am not an antichrist, for I am not against Christ.” One may not be against Christ or deny Christ consciously. But unconsciously we may deny some aspect of Christ’s Person and then replace this aspect with something else.
Some condemn us for teaching that, according to the Scriptures, Christ is all-inclusive, for teaching that He is God, the Son, the Father, and the Spirit. Second Corinthians 3:17 clearly says, “The Lord is the Spirit.” A confirming verse is 1 Corinthians 15:45b, “The last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.” Furthermore, Isaiah 9:6 says that a child is born to us and that a Son is given to us, and that His name is called the everlasting Father, or, according to the Hebrew, the Father of eternity. Here we see that the Son is called the eternal Father. These verses reveal that Christ is the Spirit and also the eternal Father.
Several years ago some opposing ones held a meeting to discuss how to deal with our so-called heretical teaching concerning the Triune God. In that meeting the following remarks were made: “Isaiah 9:6: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. There Jesus is called the Father. Right? So He’s the Father. That’s what it says. That’s Isaiah 9:6. Now we don’t normally say this because tradition is involved here.” These critics admitted that, because of their tradition, they normally do not say that Christ is the Father. I am glad that in the midst of the opposers’ criticism there was an honest word admitting that according to Isaiah 9:6, Jesus is the Father, even though they do not normally say this because it involves the matter of tradition. By this we can see that regarding this matter they care more for tradition than for what the divine revelation actually says. However, we follow the pure Word of God. According to the Scriptures, the Son is called the eternal Father, and Christ the Lord is the Spirit who gives life.
It was in 1933 that I first began to realize that Christ is the Spirit. For more than seven years I had been under the teaching of the Brethren. They taught that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are three separate Persons. This teaching that I inherited from the Brethren no doubt corresponds to common traditional teaching. I came into the church life in 1932, and I went to Shanghai to be with Brother Nee in 1933. One day the church in Shanghai invited an itinerant Chinese preacher, who was working with the China Inland Mission, to speak in one of the meetings. In his message he strongly emphasized the point that we should not think that the Lord Jesus is separate from the Spirit. Instead, Christ and the Spirit are one. To this, Brother Nee, who was sitting at the back of the meeting hall, said a loud “Amen.” Brother Nee’s response surprised me. After the meeting Brother Nee and I talked about the message. In that conversation Brother Nee said to me, “Witness, we all must know that Christ is the Spirit, and this must be our message.” Then I began to study this matter carefully. The more I studied the Word, the more convinced I became that today Christ and the Spirit are one.
Concerning certain aspects of Christ’s Person, many believers follow tradition and neglect the revelation of the Bible. If we are fair, we shall realize that Isaiah 9:6 says that the Son is called the Father and that 2 Corinthians 3:17 and 1 Corinthians 15:45b reveal that Christ is the life-giving Spirit. To deny that Christ is the eternal Father or that He is the life-giving Spirit is to be anti these aspects of His Person. In this sense, to make such a denial is to follow the principle of antichrist, which is to deny something of what Christ is.
We see further aspects of Christ’s Person in chapter one of Colossians. According to Colossians 1:15, Christ is the Firstborn of all creation, and according to verse 18, He is the Firstborn from among the dead. As the Firstborn of all creation, Christ is the first among God’s creatures, just as the Firstborn from among the dead means that He is the first One in resurrection. However, some Bible teachers will admit that Christ is the first One in resurrection, but they will not say that Christ is the first One in God’s creation. It is absurd to say that Christ is first in resurrection, but not first in creation. The title “Firstborn” is used twice in the same chapter, referring to Christ being the Firstborn in God’s creation and also in resurrection. Traditional theology admits that Christ is first in resurrection, but not that Christ is first in God’s creation.
Some teachers and theologians will not say that Christ is a creature. They claim that it is impossible for Christ, the very God, the Creator, to be a creature. Nevertheless, with respect to His humanity Christ certainly is a creature. The Bible clearly and definitely says that Christ partook of flesh and blood (Heb. 2:14). Christ became a man possessing blood and flesh. Is it not true that man is a creature? Is it not true that blood and flesh are elements of creation? Certainly humanity, flesh, and blood are all created things. Actually, to say that Christ is not a creature is almost equal to saying that Christ did not come in the flesh, as is condemned in 1 John 4.
Some of those who deny that Christ is a creature have a good intention. Their intention is to uphold the deity of Christ. According to their understanding, to say that Christ is a creature is to take away His deity and His status as the Creator, the almighty God. In principle, this is what the Docetists did. The heretical view of the Docetists was that Jesus Christ was not a real man, but simply appeared to be a man in the flesh. They taught that since Christ is holy, He could never have had the defilement of human flesh. Therefore, they taught that His body was not real flesh and blood, but merely a transient phantom. Holding to the concept that matter is inherently evil, the Docetists denied that Christ came in the flesh. Even if the Docetists had a good intention, they nonetheless followed the principle of antichrist because they denied something of what Christ is.
No matter what a person’s intention may be, whether it is good or evil, as long as he denies any aspect of Christ’s Person, he is following the principle of antichrist, although he may be doing so unconsciously. Someone may have the good intention of exalting Christ as the almighty Creator. Having this intention, he may not be willing to say that Christ is a creature. Nevertheless, the Bible reveals that with respect to His humanity, which surely is something created, Christ is a creature. Furthermore, according to the New Testament, Christ today is still a man. However, some Christians do not believe that Christ is now sitting on the throne in the heavens as a man. Jesus Christ is both God and man. Because He is both God and man, He is both the Creator and a creature.
Those who follow traditional theology often deny three aspects of what Christ is. They deny that Christ is the Spirit, they deny that Christ is the Father, and they deny that Christ is the first among the creatures. Since the principle of antichrist is to deny some aspect of what Christ is, to deny any of these three aspects is to practice this principle, although it may be done unconsciously and unintentionally.
If we understand what the principle of antichrist is, we shall realize that certain Bible teachers unconsciously follow this principle. According to the Epistles of 1 and 2 John, anyone who denies any item of Christ’s Person is following the principle of antichrist. May we be impressed with the fact that the principle of antichrist is first to deny something of what Christ is and then to replace Christ with something else.
