Dear Pastor John,
I’ve just finished reading the part called “The Spirit of Antichrist” from your New Birth Series and I am in shock. Pretty much from the beginning of my Christian life I felt that something is not right about the doctrine I received about Holy Spirit baptism. Reading the Bible I saw that if it’s a real thing it must be much more important than what it is taught to be. 3 years ago I received the Holy Spirit myself and it changed my life and my view about God and walking with Him. Then the teachings of David Pawson’s helped me realize that the Holy Spirit baptism is the seal of the Lord, it is being born of the Spirit, though I never dared to openly tell it to anyone because I knew that even my charismatic friends wouldn’t accept it. But I start to see now that it must be said openly, it must be preached. I feel that this truth is setting me free. And I start to understand so many things that have happened in my last 13 yeas since I first put my faith in Jesus. I can see now why I never had peace about the thought that we receive the Spirit twice.
I have a question though about your interpretation of 1 John 4:2-3. I was taught that John was saying these things because a Gnostic doctrine started to come into the church saying that Jesus didn’t have a human body, he was only a ghost or a phantom. So, they say, John here is referring to these teachings and saying that the Spirit of God does confess that Jesus was here on earth in a human body, and the spirit of antichrist is not willing to confess it. What do you think about this interpretation? Does the original Greek text support your interpretation of these verses?
Thank you for your answer! God bless you! Zoli,
Hungary
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Hi, Brother Zoli,
Yes, the Greek text supports what I am saying about the Spirit of antichrist. The idea that John was talking about Gnostics is guesswork by scholars who do not know what else to think. The few who taught such a thing would have presented no challenge to the faith of the saints and certainly would not have earned them the title “antichrist”, as though they were especially dangerous to the body.
Please stay in touch. I hope you always feel as welcome as you are to ask us anything that comes to mind about what we are teaching or doing.
Pastor John