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"Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either..."

Text: 1 John 2:23

DENIAL OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST

The Apostle John singled out a major doctrinal challenge. It is essentially a Christological problem. It centred in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

“Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either;
he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”
1 John 2:23

1. “Whoever denies the Son”

a) In the gospel of John this problem was carefully noted.

b) The following sectarian groups had difficulty with believing that Jesus was indeed the Son of God:-

i) The Scribes

ii) The Pharisees

iii) The Sadducees

c) They actively denied that Jesus was indeed the Son.

2. “Does not have the Father either”

a) This was John’s very strongly worded view.

b) To deny the Son has serious implications!

i) The claim to know God as Father is seriously challenged.

ii) To deny Jesus as the Son is the same as not having knowledge of God.

3. “He who acknowledges the Son has the Father also”

(Some manuscripts do not have this statement)

a) The word “acknowledge” may also be translated “confess”.

b) The focus is on verbal confession rather than mere intellectual assent.

c) The person who confesses Jesus as Son of God obviously has knowledge of God the Father.

MODERN DAY DENIAL OF THE SON

As in the days of the Lord Jesus Christ, we also have people who have severe Christological problems.

1. Liberal Scholars

a) They distinguish between Jesus and the Christ.

b) Jesus is called “The historical Jesus”.

c) Christ is called “The Christ of faith”.

2. Do they really have the Father?

The Apostle John would have serious doubts!