1 John 2: 27, “Now as for you, the anointing that you received from him resides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things, it is true and is not a lie. Just as it has taught you, you reside~~ in him.”
Since the beginning of time, and especially in the age of the church, the evil one has sought to lead God’s people astray. Jesus warned the disciples that “many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and deceive man” (Matt 24:4–-5). John’s readers were not deceived yet, but deceivers were active.
The readers were assured that the “anointing that [they] received from him resides in [them].” All believers have received the “anointing”—-that is, the Holy Spirit—-at the time of their conversion. Paul clarified this in Romans 8:9: “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”
In 1 John 4:1, John wrote to “test the spirits” in order to discern the true from the false teachings. All believers have the same capability. A key test is to recognize whether the new teaching contradicts the inspired word of God as already revealed in the Bible.
The power of the gospel (Rom 1:16) is the ability of the Holy Spirit to “convict” or “convince” the world of sin (Jn 16:8). The Spirit can teach even the unsaved of their need of a Savior.
False teachers will become more prevalent in the end times according to 1 Timothy 4:1–-2: “Now, the Spirit speaks expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils, speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.” Demons can whisper into a receptive mind ideas that appear to be new insights or revelations.
Following the declaration that the “anointing . . . resides in you” comes the command to “continually always be residing in him [or it].” The latter pronoun could be rendered “it”—-that is, as the Spirit convinces you of what is true, abide in it. Do you consciously decide to live by what you learn in His word each day?
“My life has been given to You. By day and by night Your presence is my joy and satisfaction. Your word teaches me all about You, and I want to live in its light today.”