READ: 2 Tim. 4:1-8
You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this, we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.- 1 John 4:4-6
The apostle instructs the members of the church as a father guides his children. You, beloved children, are from God. Quite unlike the antichrists and their followers, they belong to God and are born of God. They have indeed overcome the antichrists by not following them but rather Christ.
Their victory is credited to Christ, Who worked this in them through His Spirit. By continuing to believe in Christ, Who is greater than the evil present in the world, and persevering in this belief, they have repelled the attack.
In the battle against the spiritual forces, the powers of the air, the Holy Spirit has helped the members of the church stand firm. They have put on the full armor of God and have been able to fight with the Word as the weapon of the Spirit (Eph. 6:10-17). Thus, they have achieved victory in Christ.
The world stands for the sinful world, which along with the devil and one’s own flesh, are the three major enemies for believers. The false prophets are “from the world,” offspring of the serpent. They speak from the world: their intentions are not sound, their teachings oppose the sound doctrine, and they present it with a semblance of truth. However, with the truth of God’s Word, this doctrine can be unmasked.
Those who accept their teaching choose against God and Christ and belong to the world. However, believers are “from God,” and therefore offspring of the woman. A choice must always be made: for the spirit of truth or the spirit of error. Not only does false teaching separate and purify, but also proclaiming sound doctrine separates and purifies: You are either for or against.
Have you ever fought against false teachings yourself?
Singing: Ps. 1:1