1 John 2:24 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father.

NIV: As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.

NASB: As for you, see that what you heard from the beginning remains in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.

CSB: What you have heard from the beginning is to remain in you. If what you have heard from the beginning remains in you, then you will remain in the Son and in the Father.

NLT: So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father.

KJV: Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.

NKJV: Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.

John appeals to the message these believers had first accepted. The original message they had received was the true gospel; this is to abide or remain in them. John's focus on the importance of "beginnings" is evident in this letter (1 John 1:1; 2:7, 13, 14, 24; 3:8, 11). The claims of false teachers are not to be rejected simply because they are new, but because they don't agree with the original message John and other early church leaders proclaimed.

John also adds that those who reject the message of these antichrists can continue in fellowship with God. Accepting these false teachings will destroy the relationship we are supposed to have with Christ. Unlike the antichrists or false teachers who did not abide, these believers did remain faithful. They "abided" in the Son and the Father. They did not reject one or the other, but remained true in their beliefs regarding both God the Son and God the Father.

First John 2:18–27 warns against those who oppose Christ in their teachings. These ''anti-Christs'' deny that Jesus is God. They reject Him as part of the Trinity, or claim He did not appear in the flesh. John again makes reference to truth ''abiding'' in someone, encouraging his readers to hold to the gospel that saved them.

Chapter 2 explains the fellowship Christians have with God. Christ is our advocate, even when we sin. Christians are not to love things of the world, or to love the world. Instead, we are to live, love, and act like Christ. False teachers, and those who deny Jesus are called ''liars.'' Those who demonstrate a Christ-like behavior are ''born of'' God.

Chapter 1 introduced the primary themes of John’s letter. Chapters 2 and 3 lay out a detailed description of how Christian conduct is meant to be marked by obedience to the truth. Christians are called to live like Christ. Therefore, those who do not (live that way) do not have ''the truth'' in them. Later chapters of this letter will fill in how Christian love and conduct give us confidence in our daily lives.

First John seems to assume that the reader is familiar with the gospel. Rather than re-state these facts, John is concerned with building confidence in Christian believers. At the same time, his words encourage believers to examine their own lives for signs of their relationship with Christ. This letter also challenges false teachers and their incorrect claims about Jesus. Many themes are shared with the Gospel of John.