Remain true to your profession
I have written these things to you concerning those who are trying to deceive you. As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you don’t need anyone to teach you. Instead, his anointing teaches you about all things and is true and is not a lie; just as it has taught you, remain in him. 1 John 2:26-27 CSB
John reiterates to the believers that everything he has been writing in this letter is to protect them from the deceiving words of the antichrists. John used a parenthetical remark, “I have written these things which also appeared in v. 20, to remind the readers that they are not ignorant about salvation and since they have made the decision to receive Christ in their lives, they have to remain in Him and His Word. In the Greek, the way the sentence is structured emphasizes how dangerous the antichrists are. We have read from verse 19 that they were even successful in infiltrating their midst: “They went out from us, but they did not belong to us; for if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. However, they went out so that it might be made clear that none of them belongs to us.” They went out of their midst for they do not belong to Christ and their lives had proven that they do not really know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. As opposed to the false teachers and their message that spread doubt about salvation, John assures the believers that “the anointing” or salvation, “you received from Him (Christ) remains in you.” Once saved, always saved. John 10:28, Jesus states this truth, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. (NIV)” The next part of “you don’t need anyone to teach you,” doesn’t mean that once you are saved, you instantly know everything. Instead, as a group of believers, there is no need for additional information regarding salvation that needs to be taught to them, such as the false teachers claims of mystical revelation. “Instead, his anointing teaches you about all things and is true and is not a lie.” The Holy Spirit living in the lives of believers will “guide [them] into all the truth” (John 16:13). Jesus’ message of salvation is clear and enough to be saved. There is no need to do anything else additional to accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior in order to be saved. In light of that, “remain in Him,” meaning to continue to grow and produce fruit, as Christ is the vine and we are the branches (see John 15:1-8).
Blessings,
Isaac De Guzman
