But They Were Not of Us

“Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore 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 it might become plain that they all are not of us.” (1 John 2:18-19 ESV)

Now, this is important that we understand what this is saying here, for far too many people are misinterpreting what this is saying, and they are applying it in ways not intended and which are harmful to the body of Christ. So, first of all we must understand that the “us” mentioned here are those of genuine God-persuaded faith in Jesus Christ, who have been crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but as slaves to God and to righteousness.

We, collectively, form the body of Christ, the body of genuine followers of Jesus Christ, his church. And the church is not a building called “church,” and it is not an institution of human-making, nor is it a business incorporated under the state, nor is it a social club nor a civic center nor a “church” denomination. It is the universal (worldwide) body of Christ, i.e. those of genuine walks of faith and obedience to our Lord and to his commands in holy living who are following the leading of the Lord in our day to day lives.

So, this is not about people leaving the “institutional church,” much of which today, especially here in America, are just businesses incorporated under the state being marketed to the world just like other businesses. But this is about people departing from the faith, from genuine relationship with Jesus Christ and thus from the body of Christ. So this “going out from us” is not necessarily physical in nature since we have so many charlatans and wolves in sheep’s clothing today within the gatherings of what is called “church.”

This “going out from us” has more to do with departing from genuine fellowship with Christ and with his true body than with a physical departure from an institution, for it has to do with becoming antichrist in nature, and there are many of those antichrists who are still within the gatherings of the institutional “church” (businesses), many of whom are serving in leadership positions within those gatherings. And there are many genuine followers of Christ who are no longer party to these modern market-driven “churches.”

“But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us—eternal life.” (1 John 2:20-25 ESV)

And to deny Christ is also not just verbal, with lip service only. But we deny Christ by how we live our lives if our lives are given over to the flesh, and if we are not being led by the Spirit in holy living in walks of obedience to our Lord in daily practice. For it is possible to confess Jesus with our lips but to deny him by our actions, which is hypocrisy. It is possible for pastors of “churches” to profess faith in Jesus with their lips but to deny him by their lifestyles of choice and by the things that they teach their people.

And, as mentioned before in other writings, this word “confess” is not just a verbal acknowledgment of something. It means to speak to the same conclusion as God, to be in full agreement with God, to align with him and with his words and to speak the same thing as he speaks. So it is not enough to just make a verbal confession of Christ as Lord and as Savior of our lives, for many wolves in sheep’s clothing do that exactly. We must align with him in what he teaches, which is evident by our obedience to him.

So, we need to see all of this not from a surface level but from a spiritual level, and not from an outward perspective that may be hypocritical in nature, but from an inward perspective with regard to what is really in the heart of someone, which is evidenced by their speaking, attitudes, and by their actions (habits, behaviors). For many profess Jesus with their lips who by their actions deny him. So don’t judge a book by its cover. Look at what is inside the book and read it from cover to cover, and you will see truth.

Thus, in summary, we must not judge any of this by outward appearance only. Just because certain people depart from the “institutional church,” which is incorporated under the state and is being market-driven, it is not any indication at all that they have departed from the faith nor from the gatherings of believers in Christ in true fellowship. And just because someone confesses something outwardly is not a true sign of what that person really believes, in daily practice. So judge rightly and biblically.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-24; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-11; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

Pie Jesu

Songwriter: Andrew Lloyd-Webber

Merciful Jesus, 

Pie Jesu, 

Who takes away the sins of the world

Qui tollis peccata mundi

Give them rest, grant them rest

Dona eis requiem, dona eis requiem

Lamb of God 

Agnus Dei, 

Who takes away the sins of the world

Qui tollis peccata mundi

Grant them eternal rest

Dona eis requiem

Forever

Sempiternam

Requiem

Requiem

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkVJVgxe4_U

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