The second doctrine upon which the verse throws light is that of the church for it gives warrant for a distinction between the visible and the invisible church. It must be granted that Christians should pray that the church be as pure as it is possible for the church on earth to be, and work toward that goal. But when this is said, it must at the same time be acknowledged that the church on earth will always contain tares as well as wheat and that Christians must exercise the utmost care in how they deal with them. The great temptation, particularly for those who are most serious about the church and its doctrine, is to root up the tares. But those who incline to this must remember that in Christ’s parable (Matt. 13:24-30) it was precisely this course that was forbidden to the householder’s servants. They asked him, “Wilt thou, then, that we go and gather them up [that is, the tares]? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.” The time for separation was to be at the time of the final harvest when the wheat should be gathered into barns and the tares burned.
The implication of Christ’s parable and John’s statement is that some Christians are so much like non-Christians and some non-Christians so much like Christians that it is impossible to tell the difference between them in this life. Moreover, in Christ’s judgment the protection and nurture of all His followers within the church, regardless of their outward appearance or degree of sanctification, is of such value that he would rather tolerate an impure church than forfeit them.
Over against the antichrists who have left the church John sets God’s true children. These are distinguished by two essential characteristics: first, they have been anointed by the Holy One and second, they all know the truth centered in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The contrast that John makes is far sharper in the Greek language than in any English version, for the effect of his wording is to say that the Christians to whom he is writing are true “Christs” as opposed to the “false Christs” who have left their number. We must remember here that the word “Christ” or “Messiah” means “anointed one” and that, to view it from the other side, the word that lies behind the word “anointed” in the phrase “you have been anointed by the Holy One” is chrisma, which is closely related to the word “Christ.” So to say that the believers have all received an anointing (literally, “you have an anointing”) is in some sense equivalent to saying that they are now Christs in this world. This may be applied personally by all believers, for all who have truly been anointed by God are as Christ and must act as Christ in their own situation.
John also says that those who are truly God’s children “know,” by which as the next verses show, he means that they know the truth concerning Jesus Christ with all its consequences. The Authorized Version gives an unfortunate translation at this point, being based as it is upon what is probably a faulty Greek text. The Authorized Version translators read the Greek word panta, which means “all things,” and therefore derived the translation, “and ye know all things.” Actually, the word should probably be pantes, meaning “you all,” and the translation should therefore be as the Revised Standard Version, the New English Bible, the New International Bible, and other more modern versions have it; namely, “you all know.” The point is not that Christians know everything. They certainly do not. But rather that all who are Christians at least know the full, absolute and reliable truth concerning Jesus. Whatever their other doubts may be, they at least have no doubt at the point that concerns Christ’s person. Once again we should notice that John’s purpose in writing is not to impart fresh truth but rather to bring his readers to the point of using more effectively that which they already know.