²⁰But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know. ²¹I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie is of the truth.

The richness of John’s writings is in his appeal to the genuineness of the converted soul. He does not base his teaching on philosophical argumentation or detailed reasoning. He and the other apostles “testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us” (1 John 1:2). And he expects this truth will resonate in the hearts of true believers. When people truly come to faith, the Holy Spirit takes up residence within them; they are new creatures in Christ. They were spiritually dead in their sins before; now they are alive in Him. They have moved from darkness into life. These are not just rationalistic or ecclesiastical terms with unreal or otherworldly meanings. No, these are a present reality. God looks at believers as entirely different from nonbelievers—because they are different.

So John clearly understands that we know intrinsically what he has written about is true. Not just the teaching about the antichrist, his current writing topic, but the truth in general. And that is because we have the same Holy Spirit of God as he does. John assumes, so his teaching resonates in our hearts.

Notice, John identified earlier that he was writing to new believers, believers in their prime, and older believers; all have already been taught the truths of what he is writing. They may have already read his gospel account, or their knowledge came through his personal teaching or that of the other apostles. He is engaging in the ministry of reminding, that is, emphasizing what they already know.

Too often, Christians seek new ways of framing theology, more up-to-date teaching methods, popular preaching that seems to apply old truths in new and fresh ways. These are all good, but we must be careful in our search for new methods and practices that we don’t stray from the solid foundation of truth. We must continually remind ourselves. This is especially true today with the plethora of entertainment options, all seeking to grab our attention with the latest trends, excitements, and amusements. The desire to make our Christian experience more appealing to the “with it” crowd can easily yet inadvertently create a fog that will obscure what we know to be true. We must listen only to the Holy Spirit, who brings truth, rather than the world laced with its lies and distortions of the truth. The way to do this is to constantly return to the Word, reading it over and over again.

PRAYER: Lord, I will keep going back to the things I know, shoring up the foundation.