2 John

-

2 John

1 The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth, 2 because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:

3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.

4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father. 5 And now I ask you, dear lady—not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning—that we love one another. 6 And this is love that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it. 7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for but may win a full reward. 9 Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, 11 for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works.

12 Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.

13 The children of your elect sister greet you. [1]



            Second John is probably one of the least talked about letters in the New Testament. It contains the fewest words in the Greek text version. (3 John is the shortest in the English versions.) Its main themes are truth and love. Themes that dominate all of the apostle John’s writings. Unlike 1st John this is in the form of a letter with a greeting and a closing section.

            The greeting is from someone who calls himself the “elder” such a title could well be applied to John who by the time of this writing (90 AD) would have such by title and age. It is written to the “elect lady and her children”. It is not known for certain whether this is an actual lady or if it is John’s way of referring to a church and its congregation. Either way it is a warm greeting encompassing John’s favorite greeting “whom I love in truth” setting the stage for the themes of the letter.

            In verse 3 John wishes them “grace, mercy and peace” it may sound like some kind of standard greeting, [2]but John really wishes and indeed prays for his readers.

            When we read epistolary greetings such as 2 John 3 we should not skip over them as though they are vacuous idioms, like asking “how are you?” when we do not really care to know the answer. The elder’s greeting is rich with meaning and significance. Through truth and love, God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ have bestowed to us grace, mercy, and peace. These gifts are assuredly ours now and into the future and continue to shape and define us as the people God wants us to be.2

            Verse 4 John rejoices that some of his people are walking in the truth. But what does walking in the truth entail? Walking conveys conduct under God’s oversight. It is not simply wandering around aimlessly; it is God-conscious living.3 Then John mentions as he always does the commandment to love one another. The reason this is so urgent is that there are deceivers walking among them who teach things that are simply not true and not from God. John warns that the church should not welcome or even greet people like this. These people teach that Jesus did not come in the flesh and that they have secret knowledge beyond what Christ taught us. We are not to even acknowledge such people. This is a harsh word but a persons very lives both here and in eternity are at stake. It is of the upmost importance to get this teaching right.

            John then closes his letter by saying that he has more to say to the elect lady but would rather not do it in a letter but face to face.


[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 2 Jn 1–13.
[2] Campbell Constantine R. 1,2, and 3 John (The story of God Bible Commentary) (p.191) Zondervan Academic, Kindle Edition.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Welcoming the Unwelcome

-
  Scripture: Luke 7:36-38 (NIV) 36  When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37  A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38  As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them, and poured perfume on them. Devotion:             First of all, some warnings to my readers. This post will exceed the 500 words I try to limit my posts. Second, this post will contain content people may find offensive or otherwise unfit for print. Please understand that my purpose is neither to offend nor upset but to provoke thought and, hopefully, respectful dialog.             We will use Luke chapter seven as an aid to interpreting the events that occurred last Thursday at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. On that da
Read more

Father Forgive Them

-
  Scripture: Luke 23:33-34 (ESV) 33  And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34  And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Devotion:             The situation Jesus finds himself in here in today’s scripture is difficult for us to even imagine. A sham trial, no credible accusations of any kind, let alone any deserving of death, and yet here he is. A brilliant Rabbi, a teacher of the people who never led even one person astray from God’s will. This Holy One of God soon to be food for vultures.             This man who had done nothing wrong had no one in all the crowds who would speak up in his defense lest they be next to face the cross. An innocent man hung between two scoundrels. No voice from heaven declaring that this was the man that they were killing was actually the true Son of God. (See Matthew 3:17, Matthew 17:5, John 12:28) No the heaven
Read more

Transgenderism letter

-
  This is a copy of my letter to my senators, representative, and President Biden. January 15, 2024 Dear President Biden, Senators T. Duckworth, R. Durbin, and Representative D. LaHood             I am writing to you because I am concerned about the situation affecting our children and grandchildren, namely transitioning them from one gender to another. This nation must adjust course concerning these “interventions” because they are dangerous, irreversible, and life-changing. Our country should not be permitting these procedures on minor children under any circumstances. We must also make sure that adults who seek this care are given informed consent as to the risks versus benefits of sex reassignment treatments.             There are many drawbacks to gender-affirming care for minors. Besides the loss of any ability to give or receive sexual pleasure and sterility these treatments cause, there are social and psychological effects that we have no way of identifying because these
Read more