1 JOHN 5:9-10

As John summarizes his teaching, he comes back to the topic of lying again. True to the rest of this letter, he leaves no place for dissenters to hide. He notes, in no uncertain terms, that the real lie being perpetrated, by those who deny the teaching of the Holy Spirit is a lie against God the father. This is both consistent with Trinitarian doctrine and the teaching of Jesus himself. Jesus taught something similar about himself to John directly. He noted that our testimony about the Son is the same as that of the Father. This is an important point to make because people trend toward separating aspects to justify their lies. John removes that possibility again. He also notes saliently that those who can’t believe in God’s own testimony can’t actually know God or his truth. As is today, the problem of Christians seeking to know God for all the benefits he brings, without knowing any meaningful nuance of his character, started in the early church. It continues to be a problem. And it is the main contributor to a lack of real love in his body. It is not simply a lie, but it is blasphemy. It t is the reason John coined the term Antichrist and that special heresy should be especially guarded against in the midst of our communities.