"Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. ¹⁹They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. ²⁰But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. ²¹I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. ²²Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist--he denies the Father and the Son. ²³No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also."

This is a word from God for all of us, but it is like a confirmation address for our young Christians as they begin a new level of commitment serving Jesus Christ. Each generation has to contend for the faith against those who would distort the faith, deny the faith or destroy the faith. You confirmands need to learn this now and we all need to be reminded of our responsibility as witness.

From the days of the early Church through today, Christianity has frequently been under attack from people advocating false ideas about Jesus, salvation, and the nature of the church. Paul, Peter, James and others in the Bible wrote to counteract these heretical teachings and to keep the Church on the faithful path. Today, one of our challenges is against the distortions and fabrications of "The Da Vinci Code" book and movie.

I. Be aware of the antichrist spirit today. (vs. 18-19)
Vs. 18 says, "Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour." The New Testament writers refer to "the last hour" as the time between Jesus' first coming and His second. Some thought that this might be a short time and some a longer time. But it was a time of anticipating the return of Jesus Christ, the Lord of everything!

In those "last days" there are people who express the "spirit of the antichrist." That is, they try to divert attention away from the true source of salvation, Jesus Christ, and put it somewhere else-in some other action or person. Some people expend a lot of time and energy looking for "The Antichrist". We would be more fruitful using our time looking for any place we see the "antichrist spirit" dishonoring Jesus and taking a stand against it.

In Galatians, Paul defended the Faith against people called the Judiazers, people who said Christians also need to become Jews and obey the Jewish laws as well as accept Jesus as risen Savior and Lord to be a Christian. In other words, "You men need to be circumcised and no more ham sandwiches for anyone." So salvation is Jesus +.

The Gospel of John and 1, 2, & 3 John to defends Christianity against t he "Gnostics." Gnosticism said that one needed a special "secret" knowledge to be a Christian. They said that Jesus was not God and in fact, the God we normally think of as God the Father-was a "lesser God" who created everything, but was not the ultimate God. A special group of Gnostics claimed that because human flesh is sinful, Jesus could not have become really human-he only appeared to be real and on the earth.

Similar attitudes that against Jesus surface today. When they do, they must be resisted afresh for our generation. There is always a temptation to deny Jesus and to replace Him with something else. We must maintain a faithful presentation of Jesus to a thirsty and starving world.

• Jehovah's witness in our day believe the same thing-that Jesus is a created being, less than God. They reject the incarnation and divinity of Jesus.
• PCness calling us to leave Jesus single uniqueness. Jesus is only "a" lord, not "the" Lord. The Bible tells us in Philippians 2:10-11 that "Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord."
• "The Da Vinci Code" book and movie. It says it is fiction, but claims that it is all based on facts.

The antichrist spirit has not skipped our generation-but is alive and pulling at people's minds and hearts-trying to get them away from the Savior. Be aware-Be alert-and Be informed.

II. Hold on to God's truth. (vs. 20-21)
"²⁰But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth." John wrote that his church had received the only anointing, and had the only knowledge of salvation that they needed-the anointing and salvation of Jesus. He was encouraging them to hold on to God's truth in a challenging world.

To hold on to God's truth, you need to have an informed faith-a knowledgeable faith. This is best for God, for you and for your ability to help others. The neat thing about Christianity is that it is based in reality-it is historic as well as spiritual. That is why John wrote in 1 John 1:1 - "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched--this we proclaim concerning the Word of life."

We are warned in 2 Tim. 4:3-"For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear."

Indeed, in his writings, John uses 42 times the two Greek words ordinarily translated "know." One of these verbs is related to the name of the Gnostics, the heretical sect that claimed to have a special knowledge of God.

• John 1:1 - "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Also, John 1:14
• 1 John 4:2 - "This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,"
• 2 John 1:7 - "Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist."

The Da Vinci Code book and movie are a challenge to God, but can become an opportunity for God-but if you know the truth of God. From the beginning it was believed and proclaimed by Christians that Jesus is God who for a while became a real human being so that people would finally be able to be with God forever. The Bible accurately transmits Jesus' life and message through the passage of time. No accredited scholar will deny the faithful transmission of the Bible text. Don't let go of the faith delivered to the apostles!

III. Respond to the antichrist spirit in the world.

It's a lie to deny that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world-and cut you off from the presence of God. That is one of the dangers of presentations like the "Da Vinci Code." This is a great opportunity to:

• Demonstrate love: We hear, "You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar." Treat their questions or comments, not as a threat, but as a precious gift through which you may take them one step closer to understanding and accepting Jesus. Respond to their derision with the attitude of their being open finally to talk about spirit matters. Respond with the spirit of Jesus' love.
• Inform: That means you better had done some reading, thinking and have some facts. That is why I am helping you this morning. Laura and I can't be everywhere, but through your help we can. Stay tuned as the "Da Vinci Code" movie comes out - I want to offer the opportunity for us to get together, discuss and learn the truth the move is trying to cover-up. Be informed!
• Challenge and convert: You and I, with God's leading, should offer a challenge and then as God provides, help God's birthing process as people realize who Jesus is and their desire for Him. Having had a chance to show them the truth of our faith history, you can say something like, "Now you see, Jesus IS the real thing. What you do with Him eternally matters. What will you do with Him?"

What will you do now?

• Open our eyes spiritually and be careful about what is being said by your friends and associates. Don't get swept up in something.
• Conformation is over but learning continues.
• Defend Jesus' reputation even as you would the reputation of a loved family member or friend. In so doing, we will start to overcome the antichrist spirit in our generation. Amen.