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Well, good evening. You can turn 
with me in your Bibles to 1 John 2. We're returning to 1 John 
2. We're going to look at verses 18 through 23 this evening. First John chapter 2, we're going 
to read verses 18 through 27 to set the context for us. Begin 
reading at verse 18. Little children, it is the last 
hour, and as you have heard, the Antichrist is coming. And 
even now many Antichrists have come, by which we know that it 
is the last hour. They went out from us, but they 
were not of us. For if they had been of us, they 
would have continued with us. But they went out, that they 
might be made manifest, that none of them were of us. But 
you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things. 
I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but 
because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth. Who is 
a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist 
who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does 
not have the Father either. He who acknowledges the Son has 
the Father also. Therefore, let that abide in 
you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard 
from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the 
Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that 
He has promised us, eternal life. These things I have written to 
you concerning those who try to deceive you. But the anointing 
which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do 
not need that anyone teach you. But as the same anointing teaches 
you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and 
just as it has taught you, you will abide in him. Amen. Well, 
let us go to our God in prayer. O Lord God Almighty, we thank 
you for this time that we can gather together. We thank you, 
O God, we can come into your house. We can sing praises to 
you, O God, for you are the great God of heaven and earth. We thank 
you, O God, that you are Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. How we 
worship the Father through the Son by the Spirit. And those 
who know the Son, know the Father. And those who know the Son, see 
the Father through the Son. We thank you that we have the 
Holy Spirit, who illumines our hearts and minds concerning the 
things found in your Word, as you reveal yourself to us in 
your Word. And Father God, we thank you 
for the work of Christ, who lived, died, and rose again, who did 
come in the flesh to die on behalf of His people, that His people 
may have everlasting life. We thank you, O God, that we 
have your word concerning him. We pray that we would better 
understand these things, for in your word you do not seek 
to deceive, but you seek to set forth your truth as it's found 
in your word. Father God, we pray that you 
help us to better understand the Lord Jesus Christ, to better 
ponder him, better ponder what he has done, who he is, how he 
is one person in two natures. Help us to better understand 
and dig deeper into what Your Word reveals concerning the Trinity, 
O God, one God in three Persons. O God, these are great mysteries, 
but help us to understand these things as they are revealed in 
Your Word, O God. and help us to understand sound 
theology, sound doctrine, that when those who come who do not 
know the truth, who do not know sound theology, we might be able 
to refute them and deal with them quickly and spot them, oh 
God. And we thank you that you would 
give us your word to know the truth, to know the things found 
in your word. We pray that you would help us to understand the 
truth. We pray that you would illumine our hearts by the Holy 
Spirit. As we study divine things, as we study divine matters, oh 
God, we need your spirit to be with us. So we pray that Your 
Spirit would be with us. Help us, O God, help us to understand 
the things found in Your Word. Help us to understand the truth 
about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, that we might better 
know Him and better understand Him and wrestle with the reality 
of knowing Him. For in Him is eternal life, O 
God. We pray for those that do not know Christ, that you would 
work in them by your Spirit, that they might see that only 
eternal life is found in Christ, that they might find saving knowledge 
in Him, find everlasting life in Him, and be saved through 
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And Father God, we pray that 
you'd help us now by your Spirit. Amen. Well, as I said every time 
I preach through 1 John, the primary theme of 1 John is to 
assure his hearers that they know that they have eternal life, 
that they know the Lord Jesus Christ. We are still in John's 
first point of his sermon, because 1 John is structured like his 
sermon, living in the light. And one of the ways we can live 
in the light is we have to know who the light is. Who is Christ? 
Who is God? Who is this light? It is the 
Lord Jesus Christ. And the main issue throughout 
1 John, the main issues found in it, is he's dealing with those 
who have a false Christology, who teach false things concerning 
Jesus Christ. He said there were some that 
John is dealing with who denied that Jesus is the Christ. And 
not only that, they also denied that Jesus came in the flesh. And so he writes to deal with 
this problem, he writes to combat that, that they might know who 
the true Christ actually is. And as we think about this text, 
the word Antichrist comes up in 1 John 2.18. And many today 
ask the question, who is the Antichrist? As we think through 
that, I think that's the wrong question to be asking. Because, 
as John highlights for us, many have come. Not only the question 
we should ask, not who is the Antichrist specifically, looking 
at a specific person, but the question we need to ask ourselves 
is, do you know the Christ? Do you know the true Christ? 
Do you know the truth that is found concerning Him? And that 
is the question we are going to seek to answer as we go through 
1 John 2.18-23 this evening. We will look at the three headings 
I have are, first of all, the time of Antichrist, Second of 
all, the remedy against Antichrist. And thirdly, the lie of Antichrist. And you heard that correctly. 
I don't have a the there for a reason. The time of Antichrist, 
the remedy against Antichrist, and the lie of Antichrist. And 
I think the reason for that will be made evident as we go through. 
But notice in verse 18. John says, little children, it 
is the last hour. And as you've heard that the 
Antichrist is coming, even now many Antichrists have come, by 
which we know that it is the last hour. So little children, 
he's addressing his hearers in this term of endearment that 
we've seen before in 2.14. And he's writing to warn them, 
as a father would to a child. When a child looks to touch that 
burning stove, and you tell them to go away, he's warning them 
against these people that are coming and have come. And notice 
the time of the Antichrist. It is the last hour. You know, many evangelical Christians 
today ask, are we in the last times? Is Christ's return imminent? Is it the reality that because 
of what's going on in our time, is it true that Christ will come 
soon? And I'm going to exaggerate with 
what I'm about to say, but most theologians in many different 
eras, thought that Christ's return was imminent in their time, in 
those times based on what they were seeing. But as we see with 
what John's saying, he's saying it is the last hour. Because you see, it's true to 
some extent. We are in the last hour, brothers and sisters. We 
are in the last times, brothers and sisters, but so was John. So were the apostles. So was 
the hearers of 1 John. Little children, it is the last 
hour, because what last hour refers to is the time between 
Christ's two comings. Last times, last days, last hour, 
last time, singular, all refer to the time between Christ's 
two Advents. That's what last hour refers 
to. And that's exactly what he's 
highlighting. It is the last hour, brothers and sisters. And 
he goes on to highlight how we know that it is the last hour. Notice what he says. As you have 
heard, the Antichrist is coming. And then he says, even now many 
antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. 
We know that it is the last hour because many antichrists have 
come. Now, many use this text to teach 
that there is one major giant eschatological meanie, as Pastor 
Butler says, who's coming soon, who's coming before Christ returns. 
This giant figure who is the antichrist. Some Reformed theologians 
Do hold that what is going on in 1 John 2.18 is that Antichrist 
is, there is an actual Antichrist coming. And that this Antichrist, 
that these many Antichrists serve as a forerunner to the coming 
Antichrist. John Gill was one of those who 
held to this. But I don't think that's the 
point of the text. You see, he's not drawing out 
for us a personal figure, but he's trying to draw out that 
many antichrists have now come. He's trying to draw that antichrists, 
plural, have come. I don't think it's referring 
to a personal figure. As Stephen J. Nichols highlights, 
it's not improbable that's referring to that a big meanie could come, 
but it's not the point of the text. It's not what John is dealing 
with. It's not what John is highlighting. 
And even as some of these Reformed theologians teach this one who 
would come, they never ask the question who it is. They don't 
think to go, well, is it this person? Is it that person? As 
we look in our day and age, as some people like to muse about 
figures that arise up in the political sphere, specifically 
in one instance, that's not the point of the text. Because I 
think even as Warfield highlights, John is writing to clarify. It's not an individual, but a 
multitude. Because notice what he says. 
He says, you have heard that the Antichrist is coming. What 
that could be saying, or what he could be doing here, and it 
works grammatically, and what Warfield is highlighting, you 
have heard, quote, Antichrist is coming." That is, some have 
been teaching that an Antichrist is coming, that it's in the future, 
that it's a long ways away until this Antichrist would come. That 
works in the context. So then John is trying to clarify 
that it's not in the future, but many Antichrists have now 
come. And sometimes there's even a 
variant reading with respect to the, should the even be there? that I don't think so. And as 
you've heard, at Antichrist is coming. And even as the word, 
as the grammar highlights for us, there's a comparison, just 
as you heard. the Antichrist, or Antichrist 
is coming, even now many Antichrists have come. So he seems to be 
clarifying, he seems to be highlighting, he seems to be speaking in generalities, 
not some specific person. And John does that in the other 
parts in John. You see, Antichrist is only mentioned 
in John. It's not to say that Antichrist 
concepts couldn't come up in other places, but John is the 
only one who mentions it. He mentions it here in chapter 
2. He mentions it in chapter 4, and he says in verse 3, And 
every spirit that does not confess that Jesus has come in the flesh 
is not of God. And this is the spirit of the 
Antichrist, which you've heard was coming and is now already 
in the world. And then also in 2 John 7, So 
he seems to be speaking in generalities. He seems to be speaking as referring 
to many different antichrists, not some specific person. But we will draw this out a little 
bit more under point three and even further as we go. So the 
time of the Antichrist, it is the last hour. But notice the 
origin of the Antichrists in verse 19. They went out from 
us, but they were not of us. As John says in 1 John 4.2, he's 
highlighting that they are false prophets, false teachers. These 
men, as we've been highlighting as we've gone through 1 John, 
claim to be Christians, claim to be part of the church, and 
so they say they are part of the church, but notice, they 
went out from us, but they were never of us. Notice, for if they 
had been of us, they would have continued with us, but they went 
out that they might be made manifest that none of them were of us. That was the purpose of their 
going out, to show that they were never part of the church. 
They never held fast to sound doctrine, never held fast to 
the truth. So the origin is they come out 
from the church. That's the point of John. And 
this is why I don't think that, well, some people would highlight 
that the man of lawlessness in 2 Thessalonians 2 and the beasts 
of revelation in Revelation 13 and the Antichrist all highlight 
the same figure. I don't think it's that clear, 
brothers and sisters, because in Revelation 13, speaking of 
the beast of the sea and the earth, most commentators highlight 
that John is referring to anti-Christian government and anti-Christian 
religion. What's going on in 1 John 2? 
They went out of us, but they were not from us. Or they went 
out from us, but they were not of us. So the origin is a little 
different. And then in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, he's dealing with 
different issues. In 2 Thessalonians 2, he's dealing 
with an over-realized eschatology. That is, they were taught that 
Christ had already come. So he's combating saying, no, 
Christ has not come yet. Christ's second coming has not 
happened, and thus you have to wait for something in order for 
that to happen. And not only that, as we'll see, 
the primary identifier of an antichrist refers to how they 
understand the true Christ. And Paul doesn't seem to be dealing 
with that in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. But even if it were 
true that 2 Thessalonians 2 was the same as the Antichrist, it 
says in 2 Thessalonians 2 that the man of lawlessness will be 
revealed in his own time. We're not supposed to ask who 
He is. We're not supposed to think about that. We're supposed 
to think of the true Christ. Understand who the true Christ 
is, what we think concerning Him found in the Word of God. We must realize, brothers and 
sisters, we must hold fast to what is found in the Word. Not 
go searching after who these other guys could be. What does 
the Word say about them? In a lot of ways we're going 
to answer further who the Antichrist is. Anyone who denies that Jesus 
came in the flesh, that's Antichrist, brothers and sisters. But what 
I think John is highlighting here for us with respect to the 
time of the Antichrist is that even now you and I live in the 
last times. And the question, again, we should 
not be asking is, who is the Antichrist? Or do we live in 
the last times? Because we do. But are you ready, 
brothers and sisters? Are you ready for Christ's second 
coming? Are you ready for the fact when 
Christ will descend out of the heavens and call forth his people? That's the question we need to 
be asking ourselves. You see, as the scripture highlights, 
we're in the last times. Christ could come. Are you ready 
for Christ to come? That's the important question 
we need to be asking ourselves. And if there is some end-time 
eschatological meaning that would come, so what? We have the true 
Christ. If you believed on Christ, you 
have everlasting life. And when Christ comes, we will 
be taken up and ushered into the new heavens and the new earth. 
So what if some big meanie comes, if that were true? I don't think 
so, but if that were true, it should not change our view of 
how we understand our Lord and as we look for his coming. So these antichrists have come. 
How do we deal with all these antichrists? The remedy is know 
the truth. And so this is our second point, 
the remedy against antichrist, verse 20 and 21. Notice he says, 
verse 20, but you have an anointing from the Holy One. Holy One here 
refers to the Lord Christ, and the anointing refers to the Holy 
Spirit that is given by the Lord Christ. We have the Holy Spirit, 
as 2 Corinthians 1.21 highlights, referring to this language of 
anointing. Paul says, Now he who establishes us with you in 
Christ and has anointed us is God, who has also sealed us and 
given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. But Christ speaks 
of this in John 14.26 with respect to the coming Lord, 
the ascending of the Spirit. He says in 14.26, But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, 
whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all 
things and bring you to your remembrance all things that I 
said to you." Now in the instance he's speaking to the disciples, 
and certainly the Holy Spirit would guide the disciples in 
all manner of truth, as the Holy Spirit guide them with respect 
to the Scriptures, with the inspiration of the Scriptures. But that doesn't 
mean, brothers, that we don't need the Holy Spirit to help 
us to understand the truth. to help us think through the 
truth, to illumine our hearts and minds concerning the truth. We need the work of the Holy 
Spirit as He works with the Word. The London Baptist Confession, 
Chapter 1, Paragraph 6, highlights this. Nevertheless, we acknowledge 
the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary 
for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed 
in the Word. and that there are some circumstances 
concerning the worship of God and government of the church 
common to human actions and societies which are to be ordered by the 
light of nature and Christian prudence according to the general 
rules of the word which are always to be observed. But it's that 
section. Nevertheless, we acknowledge 
the inward illumination of the spirit to be necessary for the 
saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the 
word of God. The Holy Spirit must work in 
the hearts of dead sinners to show them their need for Christ. 
And the Holy Spirit must continue. We still need the Holy Spirit 
to help us understand the truth, don't we? As we read the Word, 
as we study theology. Notice what John says in 2.27 
of 1 John. But the anointing which you have 
received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone 
teaches you. Now this isn't a charismatic 
text, brothers and sisters. I think it's a redemptive historical 
text. I think he's got Jeremiah 31-34 
in the background. In Jeremiah 31-34, as he's describing 
the new covenant, Jeremiah prophesies and says in verse 34, Notice 
what he's saying in verse 20. You have an anointing from the 
Holy One and you know all things. It's because of the Holy Spirit. 
It's because we live, and even as Jeremiah prophesied, in those 
days, we live in those last times, brothers and sisters. We live 
in the age of the Messiah, and the Messiah has poured out His 
Holy Spirit that we might understand things concerning the Messiah. 
We need the Holy Spirit, and we have the Holy Spirit. Remember, 
John is writing to assure his hearers that they know that they 
have everlasting life. But you have an anointing from 
the Holy One, and you know all things. And even as we think 
about know all things, we know the truth of the gospel as it's 
set forth in chapter 1 verses 1 through 4. We have the word 
of life. We know the true gospel. We know 
that Christ actually did come in the flesh. We know the message 
that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 
And we also know that our true spiritual state is found in 12 
through 14. We have our sins forgiven, brothers 
and sisters. We know Him who is from the beginning. 
We have overcome the wicked one. We know all things, but especially 
we know all things as they are tied to our Christ, and even 
as they are tied to our God. As we'll go on to see, with respect 
to the lie against Antichrist, we need to know who God is and 
we need to know who Christ is. We need to have a robust theology 
proper and a robust Christology concerning our Christ. And so 
we know the Lord Christ, we know the truth, the remedy against 
Antichrist is we have the Holy One. But not only that, we have 
the truth. Notice verse 21. I have not written to you because 
you do not know the truth, but because you know it. And that 
no lie is of the truth." Again, assuring them that they have 
the truth, assuring them that they have the gospel. The remedy 
against any lie is that of the truth. So the hope for us, brothers 
and sisters, is to hold fast to the truth. Study it. Ponder it. Read sound theology. Read the Word of God. And when 
we read sound theology, we must remember it's not just an intellectual 
endeavor. Well, we are using our minds. 
Well, we are thinking about those things. We need the Spirit to 
help us understand those things. How often, personally sometimes, 
I get up to read a theology book, I forget that we need divine 
aid. Don't we? We're studying divine 
matters for the glory of God and for our good. Should we not 
seek and call upon our God in prayer to help us understand 
those things? Know the truth. Hold fast to 
the truth. Because why do we need to know 
the truth? Because it helps us figure out who the Antichrists 
are. Which is the last point, the lie of Antichrist in verses 
22 and 23. Notice he says, who is a liar 
but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? Anyone that says 
Jesus is not the Messiah is a liar. If Peter had not confessed that 
you are the Christ, the Son of God, and if he said he was not 
the Christ, he would have been a liar. But thankfully, we saw 
how God revealed to Simon Bar-Jonah that Christ is the Christ. Jesus 
is the Christ. Christ is the Christ. Jesus is 
the Messiah who has come into the world to save his people 
from their sins. Who is a liar but he who denies 
that Jesus is the Christ? and evidence that they are liars, 
that they do not know the Christ. The clear indication of an Antichrist 
is anyone who has false teaching. Again, the general focus found 
in 1 John and 2 John concerning Antichrist is general. Anyone 
that denies that Jesus is the Christ, anyone that denies that 
Jesus has come in the flesh, they are antichrists. And another 
reason I think John is very general with respect to how he refers 
to antichrist is his disciple Polycarp takes it generally as 
well. In Polycarp, when he's writing 
to the letter to the Philippians, he is the immediate disciple 
of John. He says, everyone who does not confess Jesus Christ 
to have come in the flesh is antichrist. It's general, brothers 
and sisters. We aren't supposed to look for 
some one person in the future. We can say then that there aren't 
any antichrists present even now. So now even many antichrists 
have come, and they are known by their theology. They are known 
by what they say concerning the true God. How do we know a false 
prophet in Deuteronomy 13? One who does miracles, potentially, 
but then says, let us go worship Baal. The same is true now. If 
someone says, I am a believer, but they say, Jesus did not come 
in the flesh, Jesus is not the Christ, Jesus is not God, Jesus 
is just a mere man, they are antichrist, brothers and sisters. 
They teach false things concerning the Lord Christ. But then some 
of you might say, Mike, what about London Baptist Confession 
26.4, when the writers say that the Pope is that antichrist, 
that man of sin, that son of perdition, that exalted himself 
in the church against Christ. If you notice, first of all, 
it's not capitalized, that Antichrist, but also as Dr. Renahan highlights, 
it's not referring to an end times Antichrist, but an ecclesiastical 
or church Antichrist. One who sets himself up as the 
vicar of Christ instead of Christ, as we saw this morning where 
Christ himself is the head of the church, not some pope. That's 
what they are dealing with when they say he is that Antichrist 
because he sets himself up in the place of Christ. But anyone 
who denies that Jesus is the Christ, or even anyone who sets 
himself up as the Christ, is an Antichrist, brothers and sisters. Who is the Antichrist? Anyone 
who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Notice what he says. 
In verse 22, He is Antichrist who denies the Father and the 
Son. Notice the Trinitarian connection, 
brothers and sisters. The importance of understanding 
the Trinity as God has revealed Himself with respect to His Word. Because the Trinity is a great 
mystery, isn't it? One God, three persons? One God, or as the Confession 
says, three subsistences? What does that even mean, brothers 
and sisters, other than what's been found for us or delivered 
to us and defined for us in the Word and also through men throughout 
history who define these things so precisely that we have a robust 
understanding of the Trinity? Because as John says in 2 John 
9, whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of 
Christ does not have God. Whoever denies the Father then 
denies the Son. Notice, whoever denies the Son 
does not have the Father either. And as John says in John 5.23, 
as Christ says with respect to His relationship with the Father, 
as they are Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 5.23. Verse 22 of John 5. For the Father judges no one, 
but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor 
the Son, just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor 
the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Or in John 10, 
when he's talking about himself as the Good Shepherd. In John 
10 verse 28, And I give them eternal life, and they shall 
never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My 
Father who has given them to me is greater than all, and no 
one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and my 
Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones 
again to stone him. Why? Because he's equating himself 
with God. Anyone who denies the Father 
denies the Son. And many of our forefathers defined 
our Lord Christ very well. In the Creed of Nicaea, they 
say, and in one Lord Jesus Christ, or we believe in one Lord Jesus 
Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father 
before all worlds. God of God, light of light, very 
God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance 
with the Father, by whom all things were made. I love how, 
oh come all ye faithful, the second stanza is God of God, 
light of light, right out of the Nicene Creed. Isn't that 
wonderful? We have this Lord Jesus Christ. 
If we deny the Father, or we deny the Son, we deny the Father. But notice, in verse 23, he who 
acknowledges the Son has the Father also. You see, eternal life hinges 
on true Doctrine. Eternal life hinges on true Christology, 
who Christ actually is. Eternal life hinges on how a 
proper and robust understanding of the Trinity, brothers and 
sisters, when we see and even as we see the mission of the 
Son and the mission of the Spirit, the mission of the Son and the 
Spirit reveals something concerning the Trinity. Trinity, brothers 
and sisters, as we see Christ coming out of the waters of baptism, 
the Father speaking, the Son coming out of the waters of baptism, 
and the Holy Spirit descending, all three Persons, one God, three 
Persons all working together for the salvation of God's people. 
How does that even work? But if we know the Christ, then 
we know the Father. And notice, as the Athanasian 
Creed says, and the Catholic faith, that is Catholic in the 
good sense of the word, is this, that we worship one God in Trinity 
and Trinity in unity, neither confounding the persons nor dividing 
the substance. For there is one person of the 
Father and another of the Son and another of the Holy Spirit. 
But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit 
is all one, the glory equal, the majesty co-eternal. How do we combat these antichrists? We know Christ. How do we combat 
these false teachers? We know theology. How do we combat 
these men? We know what the Bible says concerning 
Christ. We know what the Bible says concerning 
theology. We must have a sound Christology. 
The whole point of this text is not to look for some antichrist, 
but to look at the Christ, brothers and sisters. If we spend all 
our time musing and thinking about what this person is, or 
if this person is that or not, we take our eyes off the Christ, 
don't we? There's one thing I've taken 
away from Pastor Butler, and there's many things I've taken 
away from Pastor Butler, is I need to read the best books on various 
subjects. And we need to read the best 
things concerning Christ. We don't need to spend our time 
reading about those things. Because if we know the Christ, 
when those antichrists come, we go, no, not going to happen. We should strive to know Christ 
so well, know the intricacies of theology, thinking of those 
things, what the Word says, so that when someone comes along, 
we just look at them and go, no. Because it's just not going 
to happen, brothers and sisters. Because we know it so well. When 
they say those things, we just go, definitely not. Certainly, 
we could probably do a little bit more than just say no to 
them. But you know what I mean. Know the Christ well. Many antichrists 
have come. Many antichrists will continue 
to come. Combat them with sound theology. For anyone who denies that Jesus 
is the Christ is antichrist. So as we conclude with the same 
question we asked at the beginning, do you Know Christ. Have you owned Christ as your 
Savior? Have you believed on Him? Have you looked to Him? Have 
you confessed that He is the Christ, the Son of God? If you 
do, praise God. If you know this one, continually 
study Him, continually look to Him, and always be ready, because 
He will come, brothers and sisters, and we look forward to that day 
when He comes, don't we? Some of us now are ready to go, 
aren't we? When men get sick, we're ready to go, aren't we? 
We become little wimps when we get sick, don't we? We are ready 
for Christ to come back. And as John says in verse 24 
of 1 John 2, And this is the promise that He has promised 
us, eternal life. If you know Christ, you have 
eternal life. But if you don't know Christ, 
you don't have eternal life. And if you don't know Christ, 
believe on Christ. Confess your sins. Look to Him. Do not deny that He has come 
in the flesh, as many do. Do not deny that He is the Christ, 
because He is. Look to Him and live, and you 
shall be saved. Believe on Him, and you shall 
have everlasting life. Believe on Him, and you shall. 
be in eternity with Him. As John says at the end of his 
epistle in 520, This is the true God and eternal life. He is God, and He is eternal 
life, and only in Him is there eternal life. Believe in Him, 
and you shall be saved. Brothers and sisters, do you 
know the Christ? Let us pray. O Lord God Almighty, 
we thank you for this time that we've gathered together. We thank 
you, O God, that you are pleased to show us the truth. We thank 
You that You revealed Your truth in Your Word and You help us 
and aid us by Your Holy Spirit to understand these things. We 
thank You, O God, that Your people will know the truth. But, Father 
God, we do not know who those people are, and we pray that 
You would call many of them out of darkness to believe on the 
truth, that they might believe on the Lord Christ. Work in them, 
God, by Your Spirit. Father God, we thank You for 
many of us who have believed. We thank You for the assurance 
that we have in Christ our Lord. We thank You, O God, that we 
know Christ. May we never stop seeking to 
understand Christ, to look at what Your Word says concerning 
Him, to study these things, O God, that we might know more and more 
concerning our Savior. Not only know more and more concerning 
our Savior, but seek to resemble Him all the more, O God. We thank 
you that you've given us your word, and we thank you that you've 
given us many men who've gone before us, who've studied these 
things in depth, who've worked through these things, and you, 
by your providence, caused them to write concerning these things. 
We pray that you would give us divine aid and divine help and 
divine strength to understand these things, O God, for they 
are great mysteries. How is it that there is one God 
in three persons? And how is it that the second 
person is one person in two natures? Yet these things are vital. These 
things are necessary. We need these things for everlasting 
life. We thank you, O God, that you are pleased to reveal these 
things in your Word. We pray that you would again 
help us understand these things. And may we ever seek to look 
to our Savior, ever seek to love our Savior. And we pray that 
you'd help us now by your Spirit. In the name of Christ, amen. 
We will close with a brief time of meditation, then you're dismissed.