Down an Unfamiliar Road

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NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXX) 06/29/21

^2:27 But you received the Holy Spirit, and now He lives within you, in your hearts, so that you don’t need anyone to teach you what is right. For He teaches you all things, and He tells you the Truth. He is not a liar. So, just as He has said, you must live in the Anointed One, never to depart from Him.

Alfred E. Plummer (1746-1829) now sees the Apostle John adding several contrasts to the ones already mentioned. They involve the Present World with the Future World and the Anointed One versus the antichrist. Again, these are a test of loyalty that will determine whether a person is a professing Christian or a possessing Christian. But in these cases, it is more a matter of avoiding than choosing.^[1]

Samuel E. Pierce (1746-1829) says people the Apostle John talks about here all had union with the Lord Jesus the Anointed One. Their interest and communion were with Him. The Apostle would have them remain steadfast in their profession and possession given by the Spirit to them as the best outward proof that their testimony of these things showed the reality of grace in a person’s life. That’s why John urged over and over again to learn from these instances. We are not to be so exact in always interpreting every word we read out of God’s holy book. Our Lord Jesus gave us an example.  

The Gospels show that our Master delivered verbatim the same sermon and parables repeatedly, says Pierce. Therefore, we need not be ashamed to follow His example. Pierce is trying to say that we should be comfortable using the same words Sunday after Sunday. He is pointing out particular words that a person might hear in every message: repentance, faith, love, born again, sin, grace, forgiveness, the cross, et al. These are truths to emphasize again and again. They are God’s words brought to our memory by the Holy Spirit.^[2]

Richard Rothe (1799-1867) feels that John has reached a juncture here in verse twenty-seven. He seems satisfied with what he’s written so far and doesn’t see any reason to require anything further since they have received the Holy Spirit, and He lives within their hearts. It doesn’t mean they’ve reached the level where no further instructions are needed, but that they are capable of fighting the good fight and keeping the faith. So, if they faithfully follow the anointing of the Spirit that enlightens them, they will not forsake the truths initially communicated to them. Growing in the Lord is a continuous process; we never stop learning, but there must come to some point when we correctly use and abide by what we’ve already learned.^[3]

Robert Lewis Dabney (1819-1904) points out that what John says here shows that the perseverance of the saints’ proceeds “from the abiding of the Spirit, and the seed of God within them.” At the hour they believe, every Christian is so united to the Anointed One that they partake of His indwelling Spirit. This union is permanent. The motivating cause for instituting God’s free and eternal love is a permanent and unchangeable status. The indwelling of the Spirit promised to believers is a permanent and abiding gift.[4] That’s why the Apostle Paul said we are not to grieve God’s Holy Spirit, who secured us for the day of redemption.^[5] No doubt, that begins when we are guilty of quenching His Spirit.^[6]

William Kelly (1821-1906) says that it is interesting to inquire about the difference between our obedience and our righteousness. Yet is not the answer sufficiently plain? Although righteousness is always obedient, in itself, it is an expression not only of submission to divine authority but of consistency with a relationship. It seems to define its proper meaning. Even if we seek the force of God’s righteousness, it is no less applicable than elsewhere. It means the consistency of God with His relationship, just as it is with the Anointed One’s righteousness or with man’s righteousness, as significantly as they all may differ. In God’s case, there is the perfection of the Anointed One’s consistency with His relationship with believers. In our case, we have to lament the shortcoming of our inconsistency as Christians with our Lord and Master.[7]

Friedrich Düsterdieck (1822-1906) talks about believing Jews who sealed in John’s Revelation and how it relates to every approved Christian. Their sealing occurs by receiving the new seal of the covenant, the Holy Spirit of the Father, and the Son in extraordinary power and fullness. Thus, He appears in a visible mark, characterizing their entire conduct, and secures them against the trials of the empire of the world, especially on the part of a counterfeit Christianity,^[8] and the judgments of God proceeding throughout the world.^[9] How ridiculous it is for anyone to break that seal and lose all its promises.

John James Lias (1834-1923) addresses the Apostle’s John’s words that true born-again believers who have the Holy Spirit living in them do not need anyone to teach this. Lias says that we can see that these words, like those in verse twenty, are addressed to the believing community. They have the potential of being true of every member. But this may not have been true of each Christian. Otherwise, there would have been no need to caution them. The fact is that the spiritual gifts granted to the Christian Church members are conditional, like all other gifts, upon proper use. There is no permit here for spiritual fanatics who imagine themselves to have such firm possession of their souls they are entitled to believe that they already understand all truth.[10]

Lias goes on to say that we need to be careful about being deceived from within. The devil is always busy trying to fool the believer by making “the worse appear to be the better choice.” Yes, Satan is skilled in placing the temptations of a sinful appetite in their most attractive light. He provides us with alternative names for our sins. Extravagance is an open-mindedness; indulgence is leniency; partying is amusement; a free-for-all is a social acceptance; unbelief is independent thinking; greed is ambition. What was once “sinful” is a choice, and what was proper is “old fashion.”

Lias says the Apostle John sees these as “mockers” who “walk after their ungodly lusts,” “not having the Spirit in them,” they “separate themselves” from the true congregation of the faithful. There is only One who can “keep us from falling,” and to “present us faultless before the presence of God’s glory, with exceeding joy,” even He who anointed us with His Holy Spirit. We can be safe only if we “abide in Him.” “In Him is Life, and Life is the Light of the world.” Believe in Him, and you will abide in union with Him. None of these “seducing spirits” will be able to “pluck you out of His hand.”^[11] [12]

William Sinclair (1850-1917) also shares some insightful information on the effects of anointing. He tells us that anointing with oil played a significant part in the physical life of Eastern races. The climate was dry, humid, and exhausting; moisturizer restored freshness, elasticity, and vitality to the thirsty and feeble frame.

So, like dew reviving the vegetation on the hillside, says Sinclair or ointment restoring the strength to muscles and ligaments, the healing, soothing, influence of the Divine Spirit breathes new life into the heart of God’s children. By unfolding the meaning of what they heard, brings all things to their remembrance, which guides them into all truth.[13] So, the Apostle John tells them they did not need the unproven discoveries of false teachers; all they wanted was the unction of God to revive what they heard from the beginning.^[14]

A. T. Robertson (1863-1934) points to what we should understand when the Apostle John talks about teaching. The Greek verb didaskō (“teaching”) is used in the present active indicative tense here. It means, that the subject is acting on rather than being acted upon. That means reality rather than hypothetical activity is in view. The Holy Spirit is to bring all things to their remembrance[15] and bear witness concerning the Anointed One.[16] Yet, they need to be reminded of what they already know to be “true” and “no lie,” according to John’s positive and negative habit.[17] So, he urges them to “abide in Him.” Jesus precisely demanded that the disciples abide in Him.[18] ^[19]

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[1] Plummer, Alfred: First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 97

[2] Pierce, S. E., An Exposition of the First Epistle General of John, op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 293

[3] Rothe, Richard: The Expository Times, op. cit., September 1892, p. 552

[4] Dabney, Robert L. Systematic Theology, op. cit., (Kindle Locations 10856-10858)

[5] Ephesians 4:30

[6] 1 Thessalonians 5:19

[7] Kelly, William: An Exposition of the Epistles of John the Apostle, op. cit., pp. 164-165

[8] See Matthew 24:21-25

[9] Düsterdieck, Friedrich: Critical and Exegetical Handbook on the Revelation of John, op. cit., p. 258

[10] Lias, J. J., The First Epistle of John with Exposition, op, cist., pp. 168-169

[11] John 10:28

[12] Lias, J. J., The First Epistle of John with Homiletical Treatment, op. cit., pp. 174-176

[13] John 16:13

[14] Sinclair, William, First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 481

[15] John 14:26

[16] Ibid. 15:26; 16:12-15

[17] 1 John 1:5

[18] John 15:4ff

[19] Robertson, A. T. Word Pictures, op. cit., p. 1952

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NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXIX) 06/28/21

^2:27 But you have received the Holy Spirit, and He lives within you, in your hearts, so that you don’t need anyone to teach you what is right. For He teaches you all things, and He tells you the Truth. He is not a liar. So, just as He has said, you must live in the Anointed One, never to depart from Him.

James Arminius speaks of the internal witness of the Holy Spirit. He says that the sufficiency of the Spirit proceeds from the abundance of His knowledge of God’s secrets and the very efficient way He reveals them. We cannot praise the competence of the Spirit more than by declaring, “The full-grown Christian understands all things, and yet he is not understood. For who has the thoughts of the Lord? Who can tell Him what to do? But we have the thoughts of Christ.”[1] The Apostle John is the most illustrious herald with the same capability, as we read here in verse twenty-seven.[2]

Matthew Poole (1624-1679) writes about the meaning of anointing. He says that it is evident that the anointing of persons to some high office was not an empty rite of ordination or authorization, but also a symbol of their qualification by another anointing coming upon them. Thus, our Lord Jesus carried the high distinction of being the Anointed One. It not only signified His appointment to the offices of Prophet, Priest, and King by receiving the unction of the Holy Spirit as the only One qualified to hold those positions. Therefore, to everyone He sends out as prophets and priests, He imparts the same Spirit.[3] They, too, then become one of the anointed. That is the point the Apostle John is making here in verse twenty-seven.[4]

John Flavel (1627-1691) points out that many people have raised objections against what John says in verse twenty-seven. One complaint is this: We cannot require people to have Light and Knowledge as prerequisites to receiving the Anointed One. Yet, some may say, as an unregenerate sinner, I am in the dark and ignorant. Therefore, I need to know more than I do now to be better qualified to discuss the mysteries of religion.

Flavel answers this objection by saying that you should be able to distinguish between information and knowledge. That way, you can see that ignorance of religious faith does not block your interest in the Anointed One. In fact, there is natural knowledge even of spiritual objects, a spark of nature resulting from education. Then there is spiritual knowledge of divine things. It also comes from enlightenment, but through the anointing of the Holy Spirit. These insights are the effect and fruit of the Spirit’s sanctifying work upon our reborn spirit. The results are that a person’s own heart informs and brings them understanding. The work of God’s grace in our soul helps us understand its nature – this is spiritual knowledge.^[5]

Flavel goes on to tell us that one of the evils of sin cured by the Anointed One is His dominion over the souls of sinners. When sin holds power over the soul, that signifies a deplorable condition. It darkens understanding, corrupts the conscience, stiffens the will, hardens the heart, misplaces, and throws all affections into disarray. As a result, the dominion of sin over the soul infects every part of the body. How difficult is the cure of this disease, asks Flavel? It exceeds the skill of angels and humans, but the Anointed One treats it through the Holy Spirit with His perfect cure. The remedy for guilt is His blood; He relieves the dominion of sin with sanctification. Even when the presence of sin darkens the understanding,[6] the Spirit of holiness sheds light to eliminate the blindness and restores sight.[7] That is John’s message here in verse twenty-seven.^[8]

English Roman Catholic Bishop Richard Challoner (1691-1781), commenting on verse twenty-seven (in the margin) he writes, “You want to avoid being taught by any of these men, who, under the pretense of imparting more knowledge to you, seek to seduce you (verse 26), since you are sufficiently taught already, and have all knowledge and grace in the church, with the unction of the Holy Spirit; which these new teachers have no share in.”[9] Given the relationship between the Protestant and Catholic Church in those days, there is no doubt that Challoner has people like Flavel in mind.

John Gill (1697-1771) tells us that a person must faithfully and virtuously perform as Mediator. Only a very upright person can plead for guilty persons, which they could not do if they were suspected of. As Pontius Pilate said of Jesus, “I find no fault in Him.” It would be hard to doubt such a sinless individual. Thus, you can trust that they would act faithfully on your behalf. It is their flawless character that benefits the defendant in various ways. Such characteristics for a mediator fit the Anointed One perfectly. In fact, the Jews adopted the word “mediator” in their language[10]  but applied it to various purposes involving charity, repentance, and good works.^[11]

Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) shares that we cannot compare a worldly person’s enjoyment in spiritual things, and their divine truth and excellency, with those of a true believer in the Anointed One. Worldly people do not know divine things because they have nothing of the Spirit of God dwelling in them, for we learn it is the Spirit who teaches these things. Ungodly people have no such degree of devotion; they have only nature and nothing of the Spirit. Even a tiny spark of the Spirit would help them understand heavenly things.^[12]

John Wesley (1703-1791) continues writing in his pamphlet to the leaders of English religion, focusing on the Holy Spirit’s ministry to sanctify. He says that every believer should be inspired to learn more about the undisclosed and mighty workings of God’s Holy Spirit within us. The Spirit quickens the mind and stirs up godly emotions in their hearts. However, the Spirit does not do the work of the new birth inwardly unless He moves in and lives in us to continue His work. Did not the Apostle tell us, “Do you not know that you are a house of God and that the Holy Spirit lives in you?”[13] Paul also tells us, “Your sinful nature does not control you. The Spirit of God guides you if you have Him living in you.”[14] Having the Spirit in us as a teacher is precisely what the Apostle John says here in verse twenty-seven.^[15]

In another writing, Wesley mentions that God will equally hold every generation and nation responsible for how they accepted His message in Torah, Prophets, Gospel, Apostles. If they refuse to believe in those things, how would they ever trust in the resurrection of the Anointed One from the dead?  Although it should please God to continue all the wonders He performed on earth, still, these people, however wise and intelligent they may be in things relating to the present world, would fight against God and all His messengers despite these miracles. Did they not do the same in Jesus’ day?

Meanwhile, says Wesley, God will reveal his truth unto babes, unto those who are meek and lowly, whose desires are in heaven, who want to “know nothing save Jesus the Anointed One and Him crucified.”[16] They need no signs or miracles to show them His will. They abide by one basic rule: “We have received the Holy Spirit, and He lives in us, so we don’t need anyone to teach us what is truth.” It enables them to examine all doctrines according to the Law and the Testimony. And, whatever their reborn spirit agrees with, they receive without waiting to see it attested by miracles. But, on the other hand, whatever is contrary to this, they reject, nor can any wonder move them to receive it.[17]

James Macknight (1721-1800) helps us see that we can misinterpret verse twenty-seven without verse twenty-six. In other words, since John is writing all this to his constituents, he tells them they do not need to go and consult anyone else to verify what he has written. After all, they have the unction of the Holy Spirit upon them, and so they can test if what John is saying is true. Macknight then points to some groups even in his day were active, and he saw them as not having the unction on them or their teachings. Such a group was the “Quakers.”^[18] What disturbed Macknight the most were those who claimed to have had new revelations not contained in the Scriptures.[19]

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[1] 1 Corinthians 2:15-16

[2] Orations of James Arminius: Oration 4, The Certainty of Sacred Theology, p. 119

[3] Romans 8:9

[4] Poole, Matthew: Commentary on the Holy Bible, op. cit., Kindle Location 630

[5] Flavel, John: The Method of Grace, Ch. 7, p. 122

[6] 1 Corinthians 2:14

[7] Ephesians 5:8

[8] John Flavel: The Method of Grace, op. cit., Ch. 10, pp. 192, 199

[9] Challoner, Richard. Douay-Rheims Version of the Holy Bible, 1749, Commentary, loc. cit.

[10] Kabbala Denudata – Kabbalah Unveiled by S. L. MacGregor Mathers, The Theosophical Publishing Company, New York, 1912

[11] Gill, John: Exposition of the Entire Bible (Kindle Location 340145)

[12] Edwards, Jonathan, The Works of, Vol. 6, Ch. 4, pp. 349-350

[13] 1 Corinthians 3:16; cf. 6:15

[14] Romans 8:9

[15] Wesley, John, The Works of: Vol. 8, op. cit., p, 114

[16] 1 Corinthians 2:2

[17] Wesley, John: A Letter to the Right Reverend the Lord Bishop of Gloucester, p. 175

[18] The term “Quakers” referred to the Religious Society of Friends, also referred to as the Quaker Movement, was founded in England in the 17th century by George Fox. He and other early Quakers, or Friends, were persecuted for their beliefs, which included the idea that the presence of God exists in every person. Quakers rejected elaborate religious ceremonies, didn’t have official clergy and believed in spiritual equality for men and women. Quaker missionaries first arrived in America in the mid-1650s. Quakers, who practice pacifism, played a key role in both the abolitionist and women’s rights movements. Meanwhile, “Quaker” emerged as a derisive nickname for Fox and others who shared his belief in the biblical passage that people should “tremble at the Word of the Lord.” (See Isaiah 66:5)

[19] Macknight, James: The Apostolic Epistles, Vol. 6, p. 57

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When François Fénelon wrote the following words, the world seemed to be crumbling around him. There was no peace, only fighting, and wars. But his main concern was not for physical protection, but the safety of his soul. After much thought, Fénelon concluded that when we want to feel secure in our faith and God, we must yield to God when He urges us to let Him reign in our hearts. Ask yourself, did you hesitate or resist very much when the world sought to seduce you through its passions and pleasures? Did you resist evil as forcefully as you struggle against what is good? When you decided to go astray, becoming corrupt, lost, acting against the innermost consciousness of the heart by reason of indulging in vanity or sensual pleasure, you weren’t afraid of going too far; you choose, you yielded unreservedly.

But when it comes to the question of believing that we, who did not make ourselves, were made by an all-wise, all-powerful Hand – to acknowledge that we owe all to Him. From whom we received all, and who made us for Himself – then we begin to deliberate, to foster subtle doubts involving the simplest matters. We are afraid of being gullible; we mistrust our feelings; we shift our ground. We fear to give too much to Him for whom nothing can be too much, though we never gave Him anything. Yet, we are ashamed of being grateful and letting the world see how much we want to serve Him! In a word, we are more timid, shrinking, and shy about what is good than we were concerned about what is evil.

All I would ask of you is to simply follow the leading of your heart toward what is good, as you once followed toward worldly passions toward evil. Whenever you examine the foundation of your faith, you will quickly see that there is nothing substantial to be said against it and that those who oppose it do so only to evade the rules of holy living, rejecting God in favor of self-seeking. But in all honesty, is it fair to be broad-minded on behalf of self and narrow-minded on things of holiness?

Stop arguing. Either listen to your heart, in which God’s Spirit, so often ignored, is now speaking lovingly despite your past unfaithfulness. Or, consult such friends as you know to be right-minded and sincere. Ask them what serving God should be, whether they are sorry for pledging themselves to Him, and if they think they were too naïve or too bold in converting. They, like you, were in the world. Ask whether they regret having forsaken it, and whether the intoxication of Babylon is sweeter than the peace of Zion? No, indeed! Whatever crosses Christians carry in life, we need never lose that blessed peace of heart through which we accept every suffering, desiring no happiness that God denies. Can the world give you as much? Are people of the world always satisfied with everything that comes to them, content without all they do not have? Do they do everything out of love and with their heart?

What are you afraid of? Leaving that which will soon leave you?

What are you afraid of? Following too much goodness, finding an all-too-loving God, of being drawn by an attraction that is stronger than self or the charms of this wretched world?

What are you afraid of? Becoming too humble, too detached, too pure, too true, too reasonable, too grateful to your Father who is in heaven? I implore you to be afraid of nothing so much as this false fear – this foolish, worldly wisdom that hesitates between God and self, vice and virtue, gratitude and ingratitude, life and death.

___Written over 450 years ago

Vocabulary redacted by Dr. Robert R Seyda

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NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXVIII) 06/25/21

^2:26 These remarks of mine about the Antichrist are pointed at those who would dearly love to blindfold you and lead you astray.

COMMENTARY

Ernst Dryander (1843-1922) writes, dear Christians, it is not for us to bring about or force this separation, even though we live in an age of unreality and lukewarmness. To attempt to sift out the numberless half-hearted, nominal Christians, in order that there may be a select company of the faithful ones – this task is not ours. Far from it! God, the Father alone, can do that, and at some time, He will perhaps do it.

Our duty consists in this, says Dryander, that our faith should have complete mastery over every sinful tendency. Also, it should rule and guide every action in our life so that beliefs become more apparent in our daily conduct. That way, the indwelling power and love of the Anointed One should shine brighter from within us. I pray to God, says Dryander, that those whose religion is only an outward, unreal, sham, withdraw themselves, while those who yearn for the strength of such faith would be more powerfully attracted.[1]

2:27a But you have received the Holy Spirit as a gift, and He lives within you, so you don’t need any help in finding out what is genuine. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what He teaches you is true, not false. So, stay in union with the Anointed One as He taught you to do.

EXPOSITION

The one factor that these false prophets and deceiving spirits could not misinform or mislead was the indwelling Holy Spirit in the believer. This Spirit of God not only knew the only way to salvation and heaven, but how to get there. As we read in Jeremiah, this indwelling of God’s Spirit was a promise made long ago.^[2] Jesus Himself verified this promise when He told His disciples that this Helper whom the Father sent would teach them everything they needed to know and help them to remember all that He told them. This Helper was none other than the Holy Spirit that the Father would send in His name.^[3] This meaning of the Holy Spirit coming in Jesus’ name implied that the Spirit would come to continue the work that Jesus started with the same divine power and authority. That means whatever the Spirit does, He does it as Jesus would have done it.

For example, Paul gives his testimony to this same effect. Whatever he was telling the Corinthians, it did not come from words written under the inspiration of human wisdom, but concepts taught to him by the Holy Spirit. We use the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths.^[4] And as Paul wrote the Ephesians from prison, he reminded them that some of the things they were hearing are not what they learned about the Anointed One from him. Since they heard about Jesus and learned the truth that comes only from Him, they must remain steadfast in His teachings.^[5]

Paul was also proud of the Thessalonians because of the way they accepted his message. They heard it and took it as God’s message, not Paul’s own. And it works for those who believe.^[6] And in a letter to young Timothy, the Apostle Paul firmly believes that the Lord chose him to be a teacher and a missionary to teach faith and truth to those who do not know God. He was not lying, but telling them the facts that he received from the Anointed One Himself.^[7]

But Paul was not the only one who felt this way. The Apostle Peter wrote to his constituents and to those who questioned the reliability of his message. He told them it had nothing to do with fiction when he told them about the power of our Lord Jesus the Anointed One and of His coming again. Peter saw His immense power with his physical eyes. That was when He received honor and splendor from God the Father, a voice came to Him from the All-powerful God, saying, “This is My much-loved Son. I am delighted with Him.”^[8] As we know, the most trusted testimony in a court of law is that which comes from an eyewitness.

Therefore, John was confident that his eyewitness testimony came directly from the Son of God. It was Jesus Himself who said to any doubters, “If you continue to accept and obey my teaching, you are my followers. You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”^[9] Paul had the same message for the Colossians. He let them know that they accepted Jesus as their Messiah and Lord, so they must continue to live by following His teachings and example.^[10]

In one of the early Creeds of the Church, the question, “Why is the Son of God called Jesus, that is a Savior?” The answer is: Because He saves us and delivers us from our sins, and likewise because we ought not to seek, neither can find salvation in any other. Then the next question asks, “Do such then believe in Jesus the only Savior, who seek their salvation and welfare of saints, of themselves, or anywhere else?” The answer is, they do not. Though they boast of Him in words, yet in deeds, they deny Jesus is the only Savior. Therefore, if Jesus is not their complete Savior, they must find a way to gain salvation independently. So far, no one has been able to accomplish this.^[11]

COMMENTARY

Augustine uses the term “teaches” some eleven times in his sermon on, verses eighteen through twenty-seven. He quotes the Apostle John saying that believers need no teaching because the “unction” itself is instruction. The Holy Spirit counsels them concerning certain things they need to know, not found in books. The indwelling Spirit teaches them not to go back into sin as though they were untaught. The Holy Spirit’s teaching goes to the heart, not the mind. He teaches them as a master with expertise. God’s Spirit instructs them with inspired teaching.^[12] Augustine preaches in another sermon that the Holy Spirit teaches what God says because God cannot lie; He teaches that which we cannot articulate.^[13]

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1275) contemplated whether the gift of understanding is in all who are in a state of grace? It would seem, he responds, that the gift of spiritual knowledge is not in all who are redeemed. Pope Gregory the Great says that “that duller minds, when joined with the wise, are fed by their understanding.”[14] Now many who are in a state of grace suffer from the “dullness” of the mind. Therefore, the gift of understanding is not in all who are in a state of grace. Some who have sanctifying grace may suffer dullness of mind concerning things that are not necessary for salvation; the Holy Spirit only instructs them on essential truths. But this seems to go against what John says here in verse twenty-seven.

On the contrary, says Aquinas, for it is written: “They know nothing; they understand nothing. They walk around in the dark. All that the earth is built upon is shaking.” But no one who is in a state of grace walks in darkness, according to Jesus: “Anyone who follows Me will not walk in darkness. He will have the Light of Life.”[15] Therefore, no one who is in a state of grace is without the gift of understanding. He continues, there must be the correctness of the will since grace prepares a person’s choices for good.[16]

The Greek philosopher Aristotle says that the object of the will is to be understood. Now the God’s Spirit does not force a person to do what’s right, says Aquinas, unless there is already some knowledge of the truth.[17] So, just as the Holy Spirit leads a person’s will toward some supernatural truth by the gift of love, also He uses the gift of understanding. He enlightens the human mind so that it knows some divine truth toward which a sanctified will moves. Therefore, as the gift of love is in those who have sanctifying grace, so is the gift of understanding.[18]

Someone asks Aquinas another question on whether discernment is in all those who have grace. To some, it would seem that far-sightedness is not in all saved by grace. Carefulness requires diligence, that one may foresee what needs correcting. But many who have grace do not have this alertness. Therefore, not all in grace have premeditation. “Not true at all,” Aquinas responds, “no person has grace unless they are virtuous.”[19] Now no one can be ethical without insight. Pope Gregory says that “other ethics cannot be virtues at all unless they prudently affect what they desire to accomplish.”[20] Therefore, all who are in grace have foresight.^[21]

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[1] Dryander, E., A Commentary on the First Epistle of St. John in the Form of Addresses, op. cit., pp. 78

[2] Jeremiah 31:33-34

[3] John 14:26; 16:13

[4] 1 Corinthians 2:13

[5] Ephesians 4:20-21

[6] 1 Thessalonians 2:13

[7] 1 Timothy 2:7

[8] 2 Peter 1:16-17

[9] John 8:21-32; See 15:4-7

[10] Colossians 2:6

[11] Creeds of the Church: The Heidelberg Catechism (1563), AGES Software, Of God the Son, 11. Lord’s Day, Question 30, p. 28; Also see Joel 2:28

[12] Augustine: Ten Homilies on the First Epistle of John, Homily 3, pp. 945-955

[13] Ibid. Ten Homilies on First Epistle of John, Homily 4, pp. 956-966

[14] Gregory the Great, Morals, Bk. 2, ⁋49

[15] John 8:12

[16] Augustine of Hippo. The Father’s Church, Vol. 35, Fathers of the Truth, New York, 1957, Bk. 4, Ch. 3, pp. 178-179

[17] Aristotle, De Anima, Bk. 3, Ch. 7, pp. 42-43

[18] Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica, Vol. 3, pp. 99-100

[19] If we take this as a part of doctrine, then it is clear that Aquinas feels that in order to be right with God you must first get right. Such is the teaching of salvation by works.

[20] Pope Gregory the Great I, Morals, op. cit., Bk. 2, ⁋46

[21] Ibid. pp. 572-573

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NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXVII) 06/24/21

^2:25 And this is what the Son promised us, to live with Him forever.

And to Bishop Titus, Paul pointed out that as an apostle of Jesus the Anointed One, he was sent to proclaim faith to those God chose and help them know the truth that shows people how to serve God. This faith and knowledge make us sure that we have eternal life. Our heavenly Father promised that life to us before time began – and YAHWEH does not lie.^[1] And the Lord had a similar message for Jude to share with his congregation as a sign of His never-ending love, grace, and mercy.^[2]

COMMENTARY

Byzantine archbishop, Theophylact, comments on his interpretation of what eternal life means. He proposes that it means knowing the one true God and Jesus the Anointed One, whom He sent.^[3] I would say that Theophylact’s definition is more of what contributes to eternal life, not eternal life itself. Eternal life is being in God’s presence for perpetuity.

Thomas Scott (1749-1821) assures us that the “unction” from the Holy One alone can teach that knowledge, will indeed preserve a person from all delusions. Thus, when they become firmly established in the great truths of the Gospel, we’ll know, “there is no lie in truth.” We will, therefore, disregard the eloquence, learning, ingenuity, and confidence of those who contradict the Bible; and be satisfied with opposing the express testimony of the truth itself to their well varnished and ably defended falsehoods.^[4]

William Lincoln (1788-1844) illustrates how the Father and the Son may appear to some. He states, supposing two stars appear close together in the sky. If you take a telescope and look at the two, at first, they may seem to be next to each other; but if you zoom closer, you begin to see that they are not as near as they first appeared. Or, even if you are walking down the sidewalk and see two streetlights off in the distance. But as you draw nearer to them, they appear to separate, and you see that though they appeared next to each other, they are not. In other words, the more we know of anything in creation, the more we will perceive that it is complex and divisible.

Not so with God and the Anointed One. While we know little of God, we will not see the incredible, divine oneness between Father and Son. The more you learn about God, the increase in your experiential relationship brings you even nearer to God. And the more you find that as the Father is in the Anointed One, the Anointed One is in the Father. You will find that what He said to His disciples, “Have I been with you all this time, and you do not know Me yet? Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’”[5] [6]

Robert Candlish (1760-1854) emphasizes what the Apostle John said: this is what you heard from the beginning, and have believed, and have found experientially to be true. So, “I pray that the Anointed One may live in your hearts by faith. I pray that you will be filled with love.”[7] Otherwise, you cannot face the Light; you cannot meet the Light with a clear and open eye, the Light of that bright and open eye of God. You will tremble beneath its truth and love. If at any moment you lose union with the Anointed One, you lose both truth and love. Only truth and love are comfortable in the bright rays of the Light.

If you fall back into darkness again, says Candlish, you will come under its power, the force of its untrue and unloving ways. Then the old dark doubts and fears of guilt will descend on you. Also, those old dark shelters of lies will tempt you; the old mysterious devices of self-justification will return to haunt you. Then old dark habits of involvement with the world’s lusts, listening to their wooing, seduces you, and the threatening anxiety of an irritable and angry discontentment with yourselves, your God, and your fellow man. They will begin to rot in your being. Instead of the light of truth, there is contamination souring of your spirit. Instead of the light of love, there is the dark dungeon smell of suspicion, hostility, and alienation from God.[8] What Candlish says here does not qualify to be part of the look-good, feel-good self-help sermons you hear today. That’s because it is part of the double-edged sword of God’s Word.[9]

James Morgan (1859-1942) discusses the message the Apostle John places here in verse twenty-eight, “those who will be ashamed before Him at His coming.” It emerges from the revelation of a young Hebrew, named Daniel, “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth will wake up. Some will have a life that lasts forever, but others will have shame and will suffer much forever.”[10] How awful, says Morgan, for anyone to be ashamed that day, embarrassed by their unbelief, humiliated by their sins, and distressed because of missed opportunities, neglected privileges, and uncaring attitude for lost souls!

How blessed it will be not to be distraught at His coming, says Morgan, not stand contrite before Him who now appears in His glory, not disappointed by the hope we had in Him! Not forlorn by the realization of that blessedness for which we long looked and prayed! Oh, brothers and sisters, calls out Morgan, be in the Anointed One now, stay put in Him, and so you “will have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.”[11]

Rudolf Bultmann (1884-1976) notes that “life” and “eternal life” appear in the same sense. So, it is proper to ask whether “eternal” has a chronological meaning and not merely a quality designation.[12] Since there is no time in eternity, quality is a better interpretation than quantity.

Donald W. Burdick (1917-1996) says three facts are true of the person whose profession of saving fellowship is genuine. First, the truth will remain in the believer (verse 24). Second, the anointing of the Holy Spirit dwells in the believer (verse 27). And third, the believer continues in a vital relationship with God and His Son. (verses 24, 27-28).^[13] Notice, the subject here is “fellowship,” not salvation. You may ask why? You see, your redemption did not occur when you were born again. Only after you rise from the grave or are transformed to meet the Lord in the air will the seal be applied to you. However, unless you continue your fellowship with God, His Son, the Holy Spirit, and each other, you will not be walking in the Light when He returns. You will be stumbling around in the darkness and be left behind. Do you remember the foolish bridesmaids who forgot their oil?^[14]

2:26a That’s why I am writing these things to warn you about those who want to lead you down the wrong path.

EXPOSITION

Here the Apostle John adds another layer of truth to fortify his cause and purpose for writing this letter. He knows the religious charlatans are already at work, trying to divide and weaken the churches. So, in the words of Solomon, the apostle is only trying to give them good advice and keep them from falling into the hands of those whose intent is to lead them astray from the truth.^[15] It was something that the Apostle Paul feared would happen in Ephesus after he showed up in Jerusalem to face his ultimate destiny.^[16] His apprehension may have been fueled by what he warned the Corinthians about.^[17] But they were not the only ones; Paul expressed concerns about such scoundrels coming to Colossae to cause discord with their empty philosophy.^[18]

In fact, Paul was so concerned about this false prophet plague spreading that he wrote to Timothy and told him that the Holy Spirit had given a message that such imitators of the true prophets would do their dirty work by following the teachings and lies spread by demons.^[19] But Paul and John were not alone; the Apostle Peter also sent out such a warning to his constituents. ^[20] If they can get any believer to doubt that Jesus, the man from Galilee, was the incarnate Son of God, they would have accomplished their task. Deceit was and has always been poisonous to the congregations of the Anointed One.^[21]

In this verse, the Apostle John, for a moment, resumes and concludes his writing respecting antichrists. When he says, “I am writing these things…,” he refers to what precedes, especially verses eighteen to twenty-three, as distinct from what is about to follow. When John mentions, “Those trying to seduce you,” the present Greek participle “those” indicates the continual attempt of these false teachers to lead John’s “little children” astray. It certainly puts a frame around all the word pictures he has penned until now.

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[1] Titus 1:1-2; 3:7

[2] Jude 1:21

[3] Theophylact, Bray, G. (Ed.), op. cit., 1-3 John, p. 190

[4] Thomas Scott: First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 487

[5] John 14:9

[6] William Lincoln, Lectures on the Epistles of St. John, pp. 55-56

[7] Ephesians 3:17

[8] Candlish, R. S., The First Epistle of John Expounded in a Series of Lectures, op. cit., p. 196

[9] Hebrews 4:12

[10] Daniel 12:2

[11] Morgan, J., An Exposition of the First Epistle of John, op. cit., pp. 158-159

[12] Bultmann, Rudolf: The Johannine Epistles, op. cit., p. 40

[13] Burdick, Donald W., The Epistles of John, op. cit., p. 44

[14] Matthew 25

[15] Proverbs 12:26

[16] Acts of the Apostles 20:29-30

[17] 2 Corinthians 11:13-15

[18] Colossians 2:8, 18

[19] 1 Timothy 4:1

[20] 2 Peter 2:1-3

[21] 2 John 1:7

• 

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXVII) 06/23/21

^2:24 Be sure that you continue to follow the teaching you heard from the beginning. If you do that, you will always be in the Son and the Father.

COMMENTARY

James Arminius (1560-1609) states that it is good when the Church’s is in union with the Anointed One. There, a dwelling place is promised without termination by the bounds of this life. It will continue forever, and finally, when this short life is transformed for heaven. Regarding this, the Apostle says, “I desire to depart and to be with the Anointed One,”[1] and the Anointed One says, “Father, I want My followers You gave Me to be with Me where I am.”[2] John says that the end of this Gospel is “that our fellowship may be with the Father and the Son.”[3]  Eternal life is not possible without such fellowship. In another place, he explains the same end in these words, “But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in Him, you will have life by the power of His name.”[4] But from the meaning of the same Apostle, it appears that this fellowship has a prior union. These are his words, here in verse twenty-four. Shall the marriage between the Anointed One and His Church ceases at a period when He presents His spouse, sanctified to Himself by His blood? Far be the idea from us! For the union, which had commenced here on earth, will then, at length, be accomplished and finished in heaven.^[5]

Richard Rothe (1799-1867) points out that John is referring to the old original teaching. He phrases it as “that which you heard from the beginning.” John may not have intended it so but, in his Gospel, he explained that “in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” So, we can see a play on words here by taking the word “beginning” and applying it to Jesus the Anointed One. In other words, what they heard from the “beginning” was from the “Beginning Himself.” Rothe says that experience teaches that deviation from this truth leads ultimately to the denial of the Anointed One and God. He warns that the more we add to the original teachings of Jesus, the greater the danger of deviating from that conception of the truth, which forms the basis for further Church teachings.^[6]

John Stock (1817-1884) reminds us that Noah remained in his ark, which “just as God had commanded Noah. Then the Lord closed the door behind them,”^[7] nor did Noah depart from this prepared refuge from the flood, which came upon and destroyed the world of the ungodly,^[8] till God commanded him to do so. And so, the Church of the living God won and transformed by God’s truth, does not depart from it, continues to obey it still, and thereby reaps the unspeakable benefit of abiding in God, the Father, and the Son. Believers continue in the Son by being connected to Him as the Head of the body, [9] sustained by Him as the living bread of life,^[10] drawing from Him as the inexhaustible fountain of living waters;[11] and anchored to Him as the Rock,[12] through His doctrine and fellowship.^[13]

John James Lias (1834-1923) says that continued union with the Son and Father is the only possible means of salvation. The denial of this truth leads directly to the destruction of all moral principles. The ethical lives of unbelievers are due to their acceptance of the moral principles of their culture. These moral principles of Christians are contingent upon the holy Law-giver. Without His word, it is like a skyscraper without a foundation. And such a structure cannot stand long.^[14] Denial of revelation, then, is ultimately a denial of all truth. And it also cuts away the only power that can enable us to “do the truth.” Thus, continuance in the Son and the Father is the only means whereby (1) error, the source of all evil, can be gradually dispelled, and (2) truth, the source of all holiness and goodness, enabled to take full possession of the heart.^[15]

James Morgan (1859-1942) says this will become clearer while we read when we notice the Apostle John’s object for writing as he did. The three terms, “abide,” “remain,” and “continue,” are from the same Greek verb menō. The repetition is sufficient to show the extreme importance attached to the thought by the Apostle John. What, then, is it? We find it in the phrase, “The Truth is not in us,” John uses again and again throughout this epistle. So that the truth may be helpful, it must be in us. It is not some speculation in the head, but a practical principle in the heart. It must be food for our soul, as nutrition is for the body. But it is not mere knowledge of the truth. It is a system by which we operate. It is the golden chest, like the Ark of the Covenant, that contains the Jewel. And that Jewel is Jesus the Anointed One.[16]

Morgan goes on to say that this thought is proclaimed with tremendous power by more than one apostle. The Apostle Peter puts it this way: “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself through his marvelous glory and excellence.”[17] Peter believes that the promises of God should have such influence. That’s why the Apostle goes on to say, “But to obtain these gifts, you need more than faith; you must also work hard to be good, and even that is not enough. For then, you must learn to know God better and discover what he wants you to do. Next, learn to put aside your desires so that you will become patient and godly, gladly letting God have his way with you. It will make possible the next step, which is for you to enjoy other people and to like them, and finally, you will grow to love them deeply. The more you go on in this way, the more you will grow strong spiritually and become fruitful and useful to our Lord Jesus the Anointed One.”[18]

Paul views the subject in the same light. He says, “Since we have these great promises, dear friends, let us turn away from every sin of the body or of the spirit. Let us honor God with love and fear by giving ourselves to Him in every way.”[19] Surely this ought to be the effect of God’s promises, says Morgan. Gratitude to Him who gifted them for that purpose. The conscious happiness with which their enjoyment inspires us should have a good effect on us. And above all, the hope they set before us should transport us beyond the world, sin, and self and elevate us to heaven with its anticipated holiness, blessedness, and glory. It will be the same with all who truly receive the doctrine of the text, “this is the promise that He hath promised us, even eternal life.”^[20]

Stephen S. Smalley (1931-2018) believes that we must keep in mind that the believer who lives in the Light and dwells in harmony with God the Son and Father is not an automatic spiritual condition. Remaining in the Light and union with God rests exclusively upon the continuous appropriation of the blessings and responsibilities of the Christian Gospel. We cannot take for granted that such fellowship is ours because we are good church members or belong to a Bible study group. They must make sure that what they heard, which drew them to the Anointed One for salvation, is still echoing in them.^[21]

2:25a And this is what the Son promised to us – never-ending life.

EXPOSITION

Is John revealing something that was never heard before by the children of Israel? While he was in exile in Babylon, Daniel was given this word: “There are many who are dead and buried. Some of them will wake up and live forever, but others will wake up to everlasting shame and disgrace.” Could this be the Scripture Jesus told His Jewish critics to lookup? Not so. It was certainly something the Apostle Paul preached; his final pronouncement was that when people knowingly sin, they earn what sin pays – death. But God gives His people a gift they cannot buy or merit – eternal life in Jesus, our Lord the Anointed One.^[22]

After the Apostle Paul called the Galatians foolish for going back under the iron hand of the Law, he then told them not to be made fools of again, thinking they can hide anything from God. A person will harvest whatever they plant! If they do things to satisfy their sinful tendencies, they will end up losing everything. However, if a person does those things that please the Holy Spirit, they will have a life that lasts forever.^[23] But, says Paul, God does not erase from His loving mind those who insist on doing things their way. Paul testifies that God had loving-kindness for him. Jesus the Anointed One used him to show that He has patience without limit. Jesus wanted him to be an example for those who would believe in and have eternal life.^[24] That’s why he tells young Timothy to try as hard as he could to win his fight against Satan and the world for Jesus’ sake. Take hold of eternal life. It is the life you were chosen to have when you confessed your faith in Jesus – that wonderful truth that you preached so openly and that so many people heard.^[25]

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[1] Philippians 1:23

[2] John 17:24

[3] 1 John 1:3

[4] John 20:31

[5] Arminius, James: Oration 3, The Author and the End of Theology, p. 87

[6] Rothe, Richard: The Expository Times, op. cit., September 1892, pp. 551-552

[7] Genesis 7:16

[8] See 2 Peter 2:5

[9] Colossians 1:18

[10] John 6:35

[11] Ibid. 4:14; 7:38; cf. Jeremiah 17:13; Zechariah 14:8-9

[12] Matthew 7:24; 1 Corinthians 3:11; 1 Peter 2:6;

[13] Stock, John: An Exposition of the First Epistle General of St. John, op. cit., p. 197

[14] See Luke 6:48; 1 Corinthians 3:11; Ephesians 2:20, et. al.

[15] Lias, J. J., The First Epistle of John with Homiletical Treatment, op. cit., pp. 163-164

[16] Morgan, James: Biblical Illustrator, First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 138

[17] 2 Peter 1:3

[18] Ibid. 1:5-8

[19] 2 Corinthians 7:1

[20] Morgan, James: An Exposition of the First Epistle of John, op. cit. pp. 148–149

[21] Smalley, Stephen S., Word Biblical Commentary, Vol. 51, op. cit., p. 117

[22] Ibid. 6:23

[23] Galatians 6:7-8

[24] 1 Timothy 1:16

[25] Ibid. 6:12

• 

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXVI) 06/22/21

^2:23 For a person who doesn’t believe in the Anointed One, God’s Son, cannot call God their Father. But they who have the Anointed One, God’s Son, also have God as their Father.

Rudolf Bultmann (1874-1976) says the question that has arisen is, in what sense do the heretical teachers deny that Jesus is the Anointed One? Since they claim to belong to the Christian congregation, they must believe God sent the Anointed One to bring salvation. So, does the dispute seem to center on to what degree we acknowledge Him as the Son of God? We must examine the fact that He came in the flesh as a human being^[1] to find out how His incarnation took place. It boiled down to two choices: He came in Spirit and was incarnated in human flesh through His birth by Mary. Or, one can assume that Jesus already existed as a just and holy man, and God chose to put the Spirit of the Messiah in Him, as seen at His Baptism by John the Baptizer.^[2]

The Orthodox Church, of which John as an elder and Apostle, took view number one. Jesus was both man and God in one human form. It was the only way He could become both our Savior and Advocate before the Father. The heretics responded that this man Jesus died in the flesh as a human, but God raised His Spirit of the Messiah after the flesh died to live on forever.^[3]

Paul W. Hoon (1910-2000) says that the dissenters in the congregation had issues beyond Jesus’ divinity. They understood the idea of a crucified Messiah, but they could not stand the concept of a humanized God. They no doubt accepted Jesus of Nazareth as the Anointed One, but they could not tolerate the doctrine that Jesus of Nazareth was “God.” They might have believed in the God likeness of the Anointed One, but it was impossible to believe in the Christ likeness of God. Even in his day, says Hoon, the world strikes back at the proclamation that Jesus is both man and God.^[4]

D. Edmond Hiebert (1928-1995) says that those who deny the Son of God do not have God as their Father. Their denial of the Son also means that they have no personal relationship with God as “the Father.” They do not stand in any child-parent relationship with Him. By their denial of the Son, they excommunicate themselves from the great Christian family in which the Anointed One is the Brother, and God is the Father of all believers. “Whoever denies” (John is not referencing the deniers as a group, but individually), which serves as a warning to all deniers of the Son universally.^[5]

Karen H. Jobes (1968) makes it clear that when you take Jesus as your Savior, you get God as your Father. But if you say “no” to Jesus, you are also saying “no” to the Father who sent Him. John further explains that one cannot have fellowship with God the Father and deny that Jesus is the Anointed One. Therefore, the proper understanding of who Jesus is, is a necessary element of true friendship with the Father, which is the only solid basis of assurance of eternal life.[6]

Christian Jewish writer David Stern sees that what the Apostle John says in verses twenty-two and twenty-three invites comparison with Yeshua’s statements — “If you knew me, you would know my Father too.”[7] “The Father and I are one,”[8] and “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through me.”[9] All these verses refute the Two-Covenant theory, which says that Jews and Christians each have their independent but equally valid covenants with God so that Jews do not need to relate to the Final Covenant or Yeshua.^[10] Even some Final Covenant believers feel that the First Covenant is of no value to them.

2:24a So, you must continue to follow what you were taught from the beginning of your conversion. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father.

EXPOSITION

The Apostle John just said that it would prove so effective a guard against the antichrist to those who received the Spirit of God. Furthermore, those who receive it would remain in union with the Anointed One since, being taught of God, they would not be deceived by any pretenses of antichrist doctrines. However unbelievable I may seem, John now guards against any abuse by balancing his statement concerning a believer’s obligation to others, which reminds him of his responsibility and duty by saying, “Keep on believing what you were taught from the beginning. If you do, you will always be in close fellowship with both God the Father and His Son.” Hence, John’s topic – “Abiding in the Anointed One is our duty,” occupied His thoughts, which should be our primary obligation as well.

There is no alternate route to salvation and heaven, says John. You can’t exit the highway of holiness to take a shortcut. That’s why the wise young Psalmist told God that he took His words to heart as a treasure so that he would not go the wrong way.^[11] Perhaps this smart young man took what the wise king Solomon said about truth and wisdom from God being something to  treasure.[12] And it stands to reason that John was inspired by what the Messiah said about wanting us to have union with Him and His Word.^[13]

Indeed, the Apostle Paul was convinced of this principle because he told the Colossians to let the Word of the Anointed One live in them as a rich source of wisdom and counsel.^[14] A wise believer will ensure that such teachings are followed and used to keep them from going astray.^[15] That will ensure that they will share in all that the Anointed One provides from beginning to end.^[16] Having this truth and union with each other will guarantee that grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and from His Son, Jesus the Anointed One, will be around as long as they live in truth and love.^[17] John was so happy when told of his constituent’s faithfulness to the Gospel.^[18] So, it was also in a message John sent to the Church in the city of Sardis.^[19]

John was there when Jesus told the skeptics that they saw things from an earthly perspective, while He saw them from a heavenly perspective. He came expressly to inform them that if they didn’t change and believe His message, they would die in their sins. Incredibly, they asked Jesus, “Who do you think you are saying such a thing?” Jesus responded that He has been telling them from the beginning who He is, the Messiah, the Son of God.^[20] So, He is not going to change now or in eternity; they are the ones who need to be transformed to have everlasting life. Oddly enough, the Apostle Paul ran into the same type of question in Philippi.^[21] The Apostle John also dealt with a similar situation in his second letter.^[22]

Jesus could not emphasize it more clearly than He did when He talked about how all His teachings should be followed out of love, not as an obligation to Torah. It assures them the Son and the Father will be in daily union with them.^[23] And what did they have to lose? Our Lord told them with all sincerity that He loved you as the Father loved me. Remain steadfast in my love. I obeyed my Father’s commands, and He continues to love me. In the same way, if you follow my commands, I will continue to love you.[24]

The Lord did this for a specific reason. That was so that all who believe in Him can be one. They are all in Him, and He is in them. That’s why He prayed to the Father that they could also be one in us. Then the world will believe that He was the one who sent Him. Jesus goes on to tell the Father; “I gave them the splendor that You gave me. I gave them this magnificence so that they can be one with us, just as you and I are one with each other. I will be in them, and you will be in me. So, they will be undivided as one. Then the world will know that You sent Me and that You loved them just as you loved me.” The Master finishes by telling the Father that He wants these people given to Him to be every place where He is. He wants them to see Him in His full splendor – the splendor the Father gave Him because before He created the world, He loved Him.^[25]

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[1] See 1 John 4:2

[2] Matthew 3:17

[3] Bultmann, Rudolf: The Johannine Epistles, op. cit., pp. 38-39

[4] Hoon, Paul W., The Interpreter’s Bible, op. cit., Vol. XII, p. 246

[5] Hiebert, D. Edmond, 1 John, Bibliotheca Sacra, op. cit., p. 87

[6] Jobes, Karen H., 1, 2, and 3 John, op. cit., p. 130

[7] John 8:19

[8] Ibid. 10:30

[9] Ibid. 14:6

[10] Stern, David H., Jewish New Testament Commentary, op. cit., (Kindle Locations 21725-21729)

[11] Psalm 119:11

[12] Proverbs 23:23

[13] John 15:7

[14] Colossians 3:16

[15] Hebrews 2:1

[16] Ibid. 3:14

[17] 2 John 1:2-3

[18] 3 John 1:3

[19] Revelation 3:3

[20] John 8:23-25

[21] Philippians 4:15

[22] 2 John 1:5-6

[23] John 14:23

[24] Ibid. 15:9-10

[25] Ibid. 17:21-24

• 

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXV) 06/21/21

^2:23 For a person who doesn’t believe in the Anointed One, God’s Son, can’t call God, Father. But they who have the Anointed One, God’s Son, also have God as their Father.

Due to this knowledge, says Owen, believers received unexplainable evidence of the eternal power of the Godhead. But this knowledge depends on an acquaintance with the person of the Anointed One, wherein we see the express image and beams of the glory of His father manifested. As the Scriptures declare: “The Son radiates God’s glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.”^{[1] [2]}

James Macknight (1721-1800) sees the Apostle John further identifying these “antichrists” that were beginning to infect the body of the Anointed One. They deny that Jesus is the Anointed One, that He is the Son of the Father in heaven, and the promise of eternal life as coming from them. That’s why John then says that another reason for his writing them is to keep them from being seduced by these false teachers.^[3]

Samuel E. Pierce (1746-1829) suggests that we use this text first without the addition. Who is a liar but he that denies that Jesus is the Anointed One? He is an antichrist that denies the Father and the Son. Whosoever denies the Son, has no relation with the Father. Thus, it most evidently appears, here is the whole substance of the text itself; what follows do not add to it. Whether it is agreed to or not, it does not corrupt the doctrine in it. No one can show that this is true. It is only an explanation of reality.^[4]

Adam Clarke (1762-1832) believes we can render verse twenty-two as “Those who deny the Son do not belong to the Father. Those who declare the Son belongs to the Father.” It leads very comfortably into what verse twenty-four has to say about those who do declare the Son. Clarke says that those who continue in the doctrines concerning the incarnation, passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and intercession of the Lord Jesus, which they heard preached from the beginning by His apostles. When done, they will continue to be in union with the Son and the Father.^[5]

Robert Candlish (1760-1854) gives a rather poetic tone to his interpretation of what the Apostle John says here in verse twenty-three. He writes:

        See how low He stoops – how condescending none but a holy God and lost souls can tell,

                    like Jesus, the Anointed One down into the depths of sin’s guilt and hell.

         And above the head of the Anointed obedient righteous One, the dark clouds of fury roll.

                    Do not deny Him; acknowledge Him as the Redeemer of your soul.

          Confess that “Jesus is the Anointed One,” and you are not ashamed of His cross.

                    It is your glory, and it may well come across.

For what fruit is yours through not denying, but acknowledging, the Son, asks Candlish. He came from the Father as His Anointed One to suffer humiliation for you. It must be more than narrowly escaping punishment and being saved by the smallest margin. That would be nothing to ridicule. But what privileges are yours now? What hope for eternal life? He and the Father are one. He inherits the Father’s kingdom, riches, and joys. Jesus has the Father’s heart. He has the Father Himself. And nothing will please Him more than you’re acknowledging Him brings you into union with the Father as He and the Father are of one accord.[6]

Henry Alford has a lengthy treatment of this verse. His main point is this: Not only are there antichrists who deny that Jesus is the Son of God, but by denying the Anointed One, they prohibit any access to their lives. In so doing, they also deny the Father the same privilege. It becomes more complicated by the fact that a person cannot get to know the Father without knowing the Son.[7] So, there’s no sense in any Unitarian to say that they do not accept Yeshua of Nazareth as the Son of God but accept God the Father. That is as ridiculous as saying that while you are favorable to the flames in the fireplace, you don’t want the heat they provide.

Johannes Ebrard (1819-1891) makes an interesting observation on verses twenty-two and twenty-three. Identifying Jesus as the Anointed One from God places a lie and truth in opposition to one another. He does so in comprehensive yet straightforward terms. His writing here is simple enough for children to understand, while those older and more mature find it enlightening. In fact, says Ebrard, there is no passage in all the Scriptures in which, and for which it can support by the ancient saying that truth and lie are like a stream,“in which a child may wade, and an elephant bathe.”^[8]

To put the idea of truth and lie another way, let us imagine that reality is like a pool of water where there is a shallow portion and a deep section. Whether you wade in the shallow part or swim in the deeper section, you can claim you were in the pool. So, it is with the debate over Jesus being the Son of God. There are those in the shallow portion who say Jesus was the Messiah; He just wasn’t God’s Son in the sense of His offspring. Others in the deeper section say that Jesus could only be the Messiah because He is the only begotten Son of God. Despite all the contention, one is a lie, and the other is the truth. They both cannot be correct.

Augustus Strong (1834-1921) says that the Trinity tells us something of God’s absolute and essential nature, not simply what He is to us but also in Himself. If the Anointed One is the eternal Son of the Father, God is indeed and in essence a Father; the social nature, the spring of love is of the very essence of the eternal Being; the communication of life, the reciprocation of affection dates from beyond time, belongs to the very being of God. The Unitarian idea of a solitary God profoundly affects our conception of God, reduces it to mere power, identifies God with abstract cause and thought. Love is grounded in power, not power in love. The omniscient Father, omnipotent Son, and omnipresent Spirit is the genius of the universe.”^[9] In other words, He does not possess these traits; He is all of these.

John James Lias (1834-1923) believes that there are “three arguments” to be noted. (1) The denial of the Anointed One is a lie and even breathes the spirit of Antichrist himself. (2) It is a denial of God’s own Son. And since He, the Father, manifests Himself by the Son, and Him alone, (3) to deny the Son is to deprive ourselves of the Father. Similarly, to confess the Son is to receive the Divine Life of the Father. To acknowledge the Son is to realize what He is, namely, the imparter of Divine Light and Life, the medium whereby all that is in the Father He brought into the world through His Son. Those who confess this open their souls to the fullness of Divine Father, who is inherent in the Son.[10]

Alonzo R. Cocke (1858-1901) has an interesting illustration for us to picture what the Apostle John says here. He begins with “Jesus is the central sum of all truth,” and, therefore, to deny that Jesus is the Anointed One, in whatever way, makes one a universal liar. Denying Jesus, one has rejected the central core of truth.[11] Some say that Jesus was a blessed and devoted man who was a champion of compassion for humanity. But they deny that He is eternal life manifesting itself and the fountain of divine energy. It is a trick to claim for themselves an infallible authority to remove Jesus from His throne and put themselves in His place. No one can claim that Jesus is the Anointed One, a prophet, priest, and king. He is the foundation of all apostolic teaching, the root of the Gospel. To deny the Anointed One or any of these offices is the play the role of a liar.[12]

James Morgan (1859-1942) suggests that the antichrist does not deny the existence of the Father and the Son as two distinct beings, the one dwelling in heaven and the other on earth. Apparently, the reference is to some union between them, which some might feel inclined or tempted to deny. Nor have we far to go to discover what that union is. The apostle John states it has to be that of a Father and Son. But there’s more to it than that. It goes beyond the relationship between God and the angels, or of God and humankind. In this relationship, the Son is the equal of the Father.

The Jews understood Him to claim that equality when He called Himself the Son of God, and so charged Him with blasphemy, and proceeded to stone Him. It is that of which our Lord often spoke, saying, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So, why are you asking to see Him? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I say are not mine, but are from my Father, who lives in me. And He does His work through me.”[13] He does not hesitate to say, “The Father does not say who is guilty. He gives this to the Son to do. He does this so that all people will honor the Son as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father Who sent Him.”[14]

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[1] Hebrews 1:3

[2] John Owen: Vol 3, Of Communion with God, Ch. 3, p. 106

[3] James Macknight: First Epistle of John, op. cit., pp. 55-56

[4] Pierce, S. E., An Exposition of the First Epistle General of John, op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 250

[5] Clarke, Adam: First Epistle of John, op. cit., p. 76

[6] Candlish, R. S., The First Epistle of John Expounded in a Series of Lectures, op. cit., p. 192

[7] Alford, Henry: Greek NT, op. cit., p. 454

[8] Ebrard, J. H. A. (1860)., Biblical Commentary on the Epistles of St. John, in Continuation of the Work of Olshausen, (W. B. Pope, Trans.), Edinburgh; London; Dublin: T & T Clark; Hamilton, Adams & Co.; John Robertson, p. 188

[9] Strong, Augustus H. Systematic Theology, op. cit., p. 635

[10] Lias, J. J., The First Epistle of John with Exposition, op. cit., pp. 159-160

[11] Martin Luther is incorrect in translating it as “a liar.”

[12] Cocke, A. R. (1895)., Studies in the Epistles of John, op. cit., p. 59

[13] John 14:9b-10

[14] Ibid. 5:22-24

• 

The Royal Way of the Cross

It’s remarkable what we can learn from history. Remember, the Bible you read was written 2,000 years ago and is still relevant for us today. So are the writings of great Bible scholars. When they reflect on the conditions in their day, it almost seems like we have the same thing today. Such a person was François Fénelon, born in 1651. Britain could not provide a balance of power, entangled as it was in the civil war that had led to the execution of King Charles I in 1649. So, the 1648 Peace Treaty signed in Westphalia, Germany, left France the dominant power in Europe. Within France, a series of revolts against the crown had begun in 1648, and the outcome of the struggle was by no means certain. In other words, there was hostility between races, constant riots, rebellion against authority, and disrespect for all things sacred.

These were the conditions and atmosphere in which François Fénelon grew up. So, he decided to write down his thoughts, feelings, and impressions. It is essential to remember as one reads his letters and meditations that they were initially written to individuals and often deal with particular problems. The same is true, of course, of the Apostle. Paul’s letters in the New Testament. In both cases. It is necessary to bear this in mind to avoid stressing some point out of context and spirit of the whole. All this needs to be held in mind when reading or interpreting any individual passage. We will begin by looking at his work that involves many themes, and we’ll start with “Seeing our true spirituality state before God.” So, when reading this, think of a dear and trusted friend writing it to you out of love.

Dear (put your name here), in order to make your prayers more profitable, it would be well from the beginning to picture yourself as a week, helpless, miserable wretch, perishing of hunger, who knows only one person whom you can ask or hope for help. Or picture yourself as a terrible sick person, covered with sores and ready to die unless some compassionate physician will care for you and bring you back to health. [Remember, these are suggested word-pictures, not physical but spiritual conditions] These are genuine pictures of our situation before God. Your soul is as vacant of any heavenly treasure as a homeless person living under an overpass. You need them more urgently, and there is no one but God to whom you can go and expect an answer. Again, your soul is infinitely more sin-sick than a distressed, stricken patient, and God alone can heal you. Everything depends on you moving Him by your earnest prayers. He can handle all of this: but remember that He wills to act when He is asked earnestly and sincerely for real needs.

Once you let this reality permeate your mind, read daily devotion or thoughts for meditation, either in the Holy Scriptures or a book you may be using. Pause after a verse or two, write down whatever impressions God’s Spirit might put into your mind. Then, for the words to motivate you forward, to stimulate your mind from its normal state of inattention, you would do well to thank Him for His Word, the revelation by which He teaches us His will, and for His willingness to teach us. Finally, it would be well first to humble yourself. Confess that you have not heeded all His teachings that could have benefitted your spiritual condition. In particular, examine which guidelines you neglected or are still not heeding, and how far your life has come in conforming to God’s will or in opposition to it.

Write the things the Spirit brought to your mind on a piece of paper. Lay it down before you on the bed or chair before which you kneel. Then reflect on the occasions or conditions which caused you to commit these faults and the best means of avoiding or remedying them. Consider what the Lord justly requires of you, that you may keep from such falls and repent of the past. Think of how critically it is to obey Him, however hard it may seem, how it will benefit you if you do follow through, how disgraceful and dangerous it would be to leave it undone.

Remember that we are the definition of weakness itself, as daily experience proves, and offer yourself to Jesus the Anointed One. Detest your carelessness and faithlessness and ask Him to fill your heart with everything that’s missing. Ask Him to strengthen your will so that you may go on doing better. Trust in His goodness and His earnest promises never to forsake you in time of need. Lean upon His words and rest in the hope that he will confirm what He has done in you so far. However, all of this will end up being worthless unless you are honest and sincere, and willing to open your heart and mind to His Spirit’s coaching, counseling, and comforting.

__Written over 450 years ago

Vocabulary redacted by Dr. Robert R Seyda

• 

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

By Dr. Robert R. Seyda

FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN

CHAPTER TWO (Lesson LXIV) 06/18/21

^2:22 So who is the liar? It is the person who says Jesus is not the Messiah. Whoever says such a thing is a sworn enemy of the Anointed One – someone who does not believe in the Father or His Son.

Raymond E. Brown (1928-1998) points out that of all the times, John used the Greek noun pseustēs (“liar”); this is the only place with the definite article “the.”^[1] It is usually a sign that the author is speaking of a known person. Rhetorically, we could phrase it, “Who is the one telling lies?” While John has not mentioned anyone in particular, he has identified a group known as the traitors, those who left the congregation to go out and preach an antichrist doctrine. They are the ones going around telling lies about the Anointed One – He is not God, nor His Son, nor the Messiah.[2] ^[3]

Judith Lieu (1951) makes an interesting point about the antichrist. We can all presuppose that those were members of the congregation who were against Jesus identified as the Messiah, the Anointed One. But it doesn’t make sense that they were part of the flock and had such an irreverent attitude against the One who died and gave Himself to save the world. So, there must have been something else they were against that caused John to label them antichrists. John leaves no room for any other interpretation than this: “The antichrists are those who will not accept the Father/Son relationship between Jesus the Messiah and God the Father.”^[4]

2:23a Furthermore, anyone who denies the Son cannot say they are in union with the Father. But anyone who confesses their faith in the Son acknowledges the Father also.

EXPOSITION

John notes that this was one of the first things Jesus told the skeptical Jews about His claim to being sent from God.^[5] Then, on another occasion, the Master pointed out that the Father did not plan to say who is guilty. He gave that to the Son to do. He does this so that all people will honor the Son as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not accept the Son does not glorify the Father who sent Him.^[6]

Perhaps this inspired John to write in his second letter that anyone who goes beyond the Anointed One’s teaching and does not remain faithful to what the Messiah taught does not have God. But whoever continues to follow the teaching of the Anointed One has both the Father and the Son. If someone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not welcome or accept that person into your home. If you welcome such a person, you share in their evil work.^[7]

COMMENTARY

Bede the Venerable (672-735 AD) says that John looks for a confession of faith that involves the heart both in word and deed. He says the same thing the Apostle Paul wrote: “No one can say that Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit,”[8] which means that unless the Holy Spirit gives us the power to do so, we cannot serve the Anointed One in faith and action. ^[9]

John Calvin (1509-1564) speaks about redemption found only in the Anointed One for the lost sinner. The Apostle John joins the Apostle Paul in reminding the Jews that the prophets’ words were spoken to motivate them to acknowledge deliverance in the Anointed One.[10]

Jewish scribes clouded what the Prophets taught about the Redeemer with false explanations, yet the Anointed One was assumed to be a fact. It was received, as it were, with public consent, that there was no other remedy for the world’s desperate circumstances; there existed no different delivery method than the manifestation of the Mediator. So, until He brings us into the eternal inheritance of His kingdom that is undoubtedly coming, there is no saving knowledge of God without the Anointed One. The Anointed One was to God’s elect the object of their faith and confidence from the beginning.

In this same sense, Irenaeus once said that the Father, boundless in Himself, is bound in the Son. He became one of us so that the immensity of His glory would not swallow up our minds.[11] Look at what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration.[12] Liberals who ignore the incarnation distort this helpful insight into an irreverent dream. It’s as if the Anointed One only shared in the Godhead as a part taken from a whole. In contrast, the meaning is to point out that understanding God comes through the Anointed One alone. The saying of John was always right, “whosoever denies the Son; does not have the Father.”^[13]

In James Arminius’ (1560-1609) lecture on theology, he points out that according to verse twenty-three, Jesus the Anointed One is so by the declaration of the Father’s promise and covenant. Also, according to Scripture, He is established as Savior of all that believe in Him: ^“In this way, God qualified Him as a perfect High Priest, and He became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey Him.”[14] Therefore, anyone who denies that Jesus is the Son of God cannot be a child of God. It is why Gentiles without the Anointed One are said to be “living without the Anointed One. The Jewish people who belonged to God had nothing to do with you. The promises He gave to them were not for you. You had nothing to hope for in this world. You were without God.” For once, you were full of darkness, “but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!”[15] Therefore, it is necessary that we earnestly stand for the necessity of Christianity as the altar and anchor of our salvation. We do not want, after we accept the Son, to have Him taken away from us and our faith and deprive us of the Father’s presence and availability through Him.”[16]

In a later sermon, Arminius discussed the disagreement among Christians. He points out that those often caught up in such discord are those raised to rely on the sacred rites of the Church. They will not permit any neutrality. Either you are for them or against them. Without any advances toward understanding both sides, it forces an undecided individual to accept one of four options: 1) Seek the third opinion as a compromise. 2) Look for religion with less complicated issues. 3) Place Christianity on a level with all other religions and, therefore, not crucial for heaven. Or 4) disregard Christianity and all other forms of religion as the product of human thinking, and thus not a divine revelation.

The fact is, says Arminius, a third party will not be neutral but become part of the dispute. Looking for another religion or placing Christianity on a level with them ignores the saying that, “If it is true, then it alone is true.” Christianity is not as accommodating as paganism in joining hands with other religions. Christianity admits no other system as its associate. Rejection of what the Bible teaches only makes you an infidel or atheist.^[17]

John Owen (1616-1683)  tells us a distinct honor was ascribed in verse twenty-three to God’s Son as a person according to His oneness in nature with the Father. And our duty is pressed with the highest enforcement; he that honors not the Son honors not the Father. “He who denies the Son has not the Father.” Later on, John says, “This is the word He spoke: God gave us life that lasts forever, and this life is in His Son. ¹² He that has the Son has life. He that does not have the Son of God does not have life.”[18] If we fail in recognizing this, whatever we pretend to do, we do not worship nor honor God at all. And there is reason to give this warning – the fear that this great fundamental principle of our religion is, if not disbelieved, is not taken seriously by the world.^[19]

Owen goes on to talk about the Anointed One’s love and mercy. He says that God’s pardoning mercy, or grace, would be of little value without His love. Therefore, Love and Mercy are those properties by which we know God. No one can obtain a single glimpse of God through or by the Anointed One without these principles. Some try to know God through icons or idols. There is no way to know God except by the Son. If you do not know the Son, you do not know the Father. To know God through the Son is to know His love and the pardoning mercy of the Anointed One.

The Apostle John received this revelation from the Holy Spirit: “We know God’s Son has come. He has given us the understanding of knowing Him, Who is the true God. We are joined with the true God through His Son, Jesus the Anointed One. He is the true God and the life that lasts forever.”[20]  

Now, says Owen, these virtues of God were revealed by the Anointed One in His teachings. In this revelation, God used the Apostle John as a prophet of the church with these words of Jesus: “I have revealed You to the ones You gave me from this world. They were always Yours. You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your Word.”[21]

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[1] KJV has “a” liar, and the NIV has “the” liar.

[2] See 1 John 2:22-23

[3] Brown, Raymond E., The Epistles of John, op. cit., p. 351

[4] Lieu, Judith, I, II, III John, op. cit., pp. 105-106

[5] Matthew 11:27

[6] John 5:22-23; See 8:19; 10:30; 14:9-10; 15:23-24

[7] 2 John 1:9-11

[8] 1 Corinthians 12:3

[9] Bede the Venerable: Bray, G. (Ed.), op. cit., 1-3 John, p. 190

[10] See Hosea 1:11, 3:5; Micah 2:13; Amos 9:11; Zechariah 9:9

[11] Iraneaus of Lyons: Against Heresies, Bk. 4, Ch. 6

[12] See Matthew 23

[13] Calvin, John: Institutes of the Christians Religion, Vols. 1-4, Ch. 6, pp. 358-365

[14] Hebrews 5:9 – New Living Translation (NLT)

[15] Ephesians 2:12; 5:8

[16] Orations of James Arminius: Oration 2, The Object of Theology, p. 63

[17] Ibid. p. 128

[18] 1 John 5:11-12

[19] John Owen: Vol 2, Christologia, Ch. 9, pp. 141-142

[20] 1 John 5:20

[21] John 17:6