October 22, 2026 | Be Connected
Remaining in the Son
Scripture: 1 John 2:24-27(NIV)
24 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. 25 And this is what he promised us—eternal life.
26 I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. 27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.
Devotional
In these verses, John continues to poke holes in the teaching of the false prophets who were leading some of the believers astray. But they should not be dismayed, for they have an anointing. A few verses earlier he said, “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth” (1 John 2:20). Then in verse 27 he wrote, “As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.” Read this paragraph again, emphasizing the word anointing.
Our anointing is our salvation in Jesus Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. First, our best defense against false teachings is a good offense by staying steadfast. Jesus Himself said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Faithfulness is never measured by how you start a relationship; rather it is measured by how you remain in that relationship.
Another means of resisting false teachings is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Just after Jesus told His followers to remain in Him, He promised, “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me” (John 15:26). Jesus followed that by saying, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come” (John 16:13).
John was writing this letter fifty years or so after Jesus’ resurrection. Already people were deceiving believers with false doctrines. Nothing has changed now that we are two thousand years after Christ. The call to remain in Jesus is still the word we need to hear.
How is the Lord challenging you to remain in Him?
