Father, thank You for the gift of today, may I use it wisely. May the way I use it bring You joy. Amen.

1 John 2:18-29 (<<click here)

Lord, it’s interesting to me that John, a part of the first century church, is already addressing, what he labels as, antichrists. He acknowledges in verse 18 that the Antichrist is coming but that “already many such antichrists have appeared”. Here it is, more than 2000 years later, and we still are dealing with them in and about the church.

The name says it all, antichrist. Many in our world, Lord, refuse to believe that You are who You are. They may accept Your humanity from a historical basis – You lived and taught here many years ago. But the whole deity thing? Uh…no. And that is where the line is drawn.

A traditional creed of affirmation going all the way back to 381 A.D. is referred to as the Nicene Creed. It was written in part to stand against what antichrists were tearing down. I, personally, believe these things to be true.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
and became truly human.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.

Lord, You are fully God and fully man. May I embrace these truths as they are found in Your word. May I remain true to You each day. Amen.

Apr 21st, Fri, 5:14 am