Pastor David Watson · Touch Grass, Week 3 · 1 John 2:18-28
The audio of this teaching is available on Spotify.
Living Today Like You’ll Live Forever
Bear Creek Community Church, Lavon, TX
If you knew the future, would it change the way you live right now? In week 3 of our Touch Grass series through 1 John, Pastor David teaches from 1 John 2:18-28, where John tells the church, “it is the last hour.” This message isn’t about predicting dates. It’s about how the promised return of Jesus should shape the way we live today.
What does 1 John 2:18-28 mean?
John wrote this letter around AD 85 to 90 to the church in Ephesus, a church being shaken by false teaching. In verses 18-28, he warns that “many antichrists have come,” people who once seemed part of the church but walked away from the truth about Jesus. John’s response isn’t panic. He reminds believers that they already know the truth, that the Holy Spirit lives in them, and that they can remain in Jesus with confidence until He returns.
What does “the last hour” mean in 1 John?
When John says “it is the last hour,” he’s describing the era between Jesus’ resurrection and His return, what the New Testament calls the “last days.” John wrote those words about 1,900 years ago, which means we are even closer to that day now. The point isn’t to calculate a date. Jesus said only the Father knows the day or the hour. The point is urgency: time is short, and the truth matters more than ever.
Who is the Antichrist according to 1 John?
John mentions both “the Antichrist” who is coming and “many antichrists” who are already here. In 1 John 2:22, he defines an antichrist as anyone who denies that Jesus is the Christ, denying both the Father and the Son. Pastor David points out that this can look like open opposition to Jesus, but it often looks like being “Jesus adjacent”: using Christian language while claiming Jesus didn’t really mean what He said, or that what we do with our bodies doesn’t matter.
Is truth a set of facts or a person?
In this passage, John treats truth as personal. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” The false teachers in Ephesus likely believed facts about Jesus, even His miracles, while rejecting that He is the Son of God. As James 2:19 notes, even demons believe facts about God. Saving faith means confessing Jesus as who He claimed to be.
Should Christians be afraid of the end times?
No. The New Testament references the return of Jesus more than 300 times, and none of those passages are meant to create fear. They call believers to encourage one another, stay prepared, and live with purpose. As Pastor David puts it, the future isn’t meant to cause panic. It’s meant to produce urgent, passionate, and prepared followers of Jesus.
What does Psalm 90 teach about numbering our days?
Pastor David connects 1 John 2 with Psalm 90, written by Moses during Israel’s 40 years in the wilderness. Moses contrasts God’s eternity with the shortness of human life and prays, “Teach us to number our days” (Psalm 90:12). He isn’t asking for the date of his death. He’s asking for wisdom to use this one life well, because the soul lives forever and what we do now matters.
When does eternal life begin?
Many people think of eternal life as something that starts after we die. But John says in 1 John 2:25 that eternal life is God’s promise to us now, and 1 John 5:11-12 says this life is found in the Son. Every person was created with a soul that lives forever. Eternal life with God begins the moment you place your faith in Jesus, which means how you live today really counts.
How do you live today like you’ll live forever?
From 1 John 2:18-28, Pastor David draws out three practical steps:
1. Confess that Jesus is Lord
“No one who denies the Son has the Father; he who confesses the Son has the Father as well” (1 John 2:23). Romans 10:9-10 says that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. And according to 2 Peter 3:9, God’s patience may be the very thing delaying Jesus’ return, waiting for more people to come to Him.
2. Belong to God’s family
John calls his readers “children” and “little children.” Through the gospel, God adopts us into His family. Romans 8:15-17 says we have received the Spirit of adoption and are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ. Belonging isn’t earned. It’s a gift God gives when we confess the truth.
3. Abide in Jesus
“Remain in Him, so that when He appears we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming” (1 John 2:28). Abiding is the harder, ongoing work of staying connected to Jesus through prayer, Scripture, and Christian community. Jesus describes this in John 15 as remaining in the vine. We don’t do it alone. The “anointing” John mentions is the Holy Spirit, who teaches us and reminds us of everything Jesus said (John 14:26).
Reflection questions
Have you confessed that Jesus is Lord?
Do you know that you belong to God’s family?
Are you doing the hard work of abiding through prayer, God’s Word, and community?
Scripture references
1 John 2:18-28, 1 John 1:3, 1 John 3:10, 1 John 4:15, 1 John 5:11-12, Psalm 90:12, Romans 8:15-17, Romans 10:9-10, 2 Peter 3:8-9, John 14:6, John 14:26, John 15:1-8, James 2:19
About the Touch Grass series
Touch Grass is a sermon series through the book of 1 John about holding fast to unchanging truth in an ever-changing world. The series explores three big questions John answers: Who is Jesus? Does morality really matter? Are we really sinners?
About Bear Creek Community Church
Bear Creek Community Church (BC3) is a church in Lavon, Texas, serving families in Lavon, Wylie, and the surrounding Collin County communities. If you have questions about faith, Jesus, or what it means to belong to God’s family, we’d love to talk with you.