Profession of true faith
And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 1 John 2:22-23 NLT
John continues to provide the contrasting image of a person who made a true profession of faith in Jesus as compared to those who denies Jesus as the Christ. He is not just questioning an individual who misrepresents the claim of Jesus as the Christ but also who questions the validity of the gospel. He is confronting the individual whom he refers to as the “antichrist” who is bent in turning the truth about Jesus’ humanity and deity into lies. The heart of the Christian faith is that Jesus is both God and man. The false belief claims that Jesus died and did not resurrect from the dead for He is just a mere man. The lie that was perpetrated was that during the life of Jesus here on earth, the Christ descended upon Him. But after His suffering and eventual death at the cross, the spirit of Christ left. So, John says that this person who promotes such false teaching is not only a liar but an antichrist. True profession of faith is knowing Jesus as the One sent by the Father so that in His death at the cross, sinners will be redeemed. Jesus is who He claims He is. John says in the Gospel, “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God” then John went on and said, “So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son” (John 1:1, 14). If a person rejects Jesus as the Christ, John says, that person also rejects the Father. Not only that this person nullifies the message of the gospel but also an antichrist. John’s admonition in the epistle is that those who will profess Christ as Lord and Savior should acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God who shed His blood to cleanse us from all sin (1 John 1:7). Jesus the son of God promises eternal life to those who place their faith in Him (1 John 2:25). Jesus the Son of God appeared so He can destroy the devil and his works (1 John 3:8). We should not be afraid to declare that we have placed our faith to Jesus the Son of God. Those who believe and profess true faith in Jesus proclaim who He is and they enjoy fellowship with others who have the same profession of faith and have fellowship “with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:3).
Blessings,
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