Tonight we start a new letter written by John to a Christian lady. In it we will have many of the truths we learned in 1 John repeated and demonstrated.
“This epistle is more remarkable for the spirit of Christian love which it breathes than for anything else. It contains scarcely anything that is not found in the preceding; and out of the thirteen verses there are at least eight which are found, either in so many words or in sentiment, precisely the same with those of the first epistle.” (Adam Clarke)
When Tim and I attended Providence Church, we went through a counseling course called Equipped to Counsel. At the end of these weekly lessons we would have different real life case studies to read about and review and to discuss that had to deal with that week’s lesson so that we could see how these truths we had learned played out in real life. I think these two small letters 2nd and 3rd John act as case studies for us to apply what we have learned. They demonstrate very well the truths that John would teach us.
1 The elder to the elect lady and her children,
The Greek word for elder here is “presbuteros” (pres-boo’-ter-os). It is where we get our English words ‘presbyter’ and ‘Presbyterian’ which simply mean senior or older. It is believed that John would have been in his 90’s at the time this letter would have been written. Being in his 90’s, and being the last living disciple, John was the elder of the elders during his time. He was the last living disciple who had actually walked and talked with Jesus. He had a powerful position to protect the gospel of Christ in a time when many false teachers and much false teaching prevailed.
John once again remains nameless in this letter, only referring to himself as “the elder.” Yet the identity of John being the author of this book is hardly disputed because the language and style is so similar as you will see to the book of 1 John and the Gospel of John. John uses the same phrases. “I am not writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning – that we love one another.” (2 John 1:5)
Once again we are called by John to remember what we heard from the beginning that we are to love one another. This once sentence has the name of John written all over it. He is so easily recognized that he really has no need to identify himself in his writing. His writing itself identifies him and acts as his signature.
John’s fatherly, overseer’s heart is once again displayed in his letter writing. In 1 John, John would continually refer to his audience as “My little children”, “children”, “beloved” and “little children.” He had a deep and genuine concern for the children of God that they would grow into maturity in their faith by learning to walk in the truth they heard from the beginning. In calling his hearers to remember what they have heard from the beginning over and over again in the letter of 1 John, John attempted to protect the message and word of God in a time when everyone wanted to dress it up, add to it and take away from it. It is the same calling that Paul gave to Timothy in 2 Timothy when he called him to “guard the good deposit entrusted to you.” (1 Tim. 6:20, Tim. 1:14)
So we too are called to guard the good deposit entrusted to us. We too are called to guard the gospel to protect it in our own generation from those who would twist it, distort it, take away from it, add to it. We aim to defend it and to present it purely. God’s word is perfect as it is; we are to present it as it is. Not try to apologize for it. Not try to make it more acceptable or more popular. God has given his word to us, just as He wanted his word to us to be communicated. Who are we to correct Him? Who are we to try to justify Him? God’s word speaks for Himself. He is powerful and effective.
As a fatherly overseer, John wanted his listeners to learn how to walk in Christ. He wanted them to put into practice what they heard. Not just to listen to the word but to do what it says. John worried about the false teachers and false teaching that was always prevalent, so he would continually warn his little children to be grounded in the truth so they would not be deceived by false doctrine.
We saw this in John’s first letter in 1 John, which we believed to be addressed to the church in Ephesus. We see this also in John’s second letter recorded in 2 John, because his heart has not changed. His message in 2nd John is very similar as he now writes to the “elect lady and her children”
Who is this chosen lady John writes to? She is nameless as John is nameless. The Greek word for “lady” used here is kuria (koo-ree’-ah). There are some who believe that the name of the lady to whom John is writing to is actually Kuria or Cyria, which is the actual Greek word used and could be an actual Greek woman’s name. The word kuria itself means a Christian woman and is only used twice in the bible here and in 2 John 1:5. If this is true then this Christian lady is probably a well-known, respected and highly influential woman like Priscilla in Acts 18 and Lydia in Acts 16. There is no mention of her husband, yet she has children so perhaps she is a widow or her husband is a nonbeliever.
There are a couple of thoughts who this lady is whom John is writing to. The first popular opinion is that John is writing to a Christian woman who has children and is the sister to another Christian woman whom John knew or perhaps he knew her sister’s children. If you notice the way John ends the letter, he ends it with, “The children of your elect sister greet you.” It is as if at the time of writing the letter John is with or nearby this woman’s extended family. Perhaps it was the this woman’s sister’s nieces and nephews who asked John to write this elect lady after sharing with them their concern regarding the false teachers who were in her area and possibility that she had taken into her home either in the present or in the past. John could have been a longtime friend of the entire family.
The second school of thought is that the word lady used here is more symbolic and used in reference to a church body. The church is often referred to as the bride of Christ. The Greek word kuria is from the root word and is the feminine form of the Greek word kurios (koo’-ree-os) which means having power, one supreme in authority, a lord, controller or master. It is used 687 times in the New Testament and is most often translated as lord. It is entirely possible that John is writing to another church and to that church body as her children. Either way is a possibility, but the letter does seem kind of short to be writing to an entire church body and does seem to be more personal in style. I personally lean more towards that it is written to a Christian woman whom John knew or was acquainted with through her sister’s children. There is no first name greeting used showing familiarity but this could be because of the persecution during the time, John wished to hide her identity in case the letter was confiscated in its delivery.
Either way, John is writing to those he would see as the children of Christ with the heart of a loving father and overseer wanting to encourage them to live and love in the truth during some perilous times. In this, he also writes to us.
whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth,
John loves the lady he is writing to and her children, with a genuine love that is based on truth. If John hasn’t met this Christian woman or if he is only barely acquainted with his Christian lady, you may wonder how he could possibly love her in truth. Yet it is because she is a Christian woman and belongs to the truth that John loves her as he loved all the brothers and sisters in Christ. And not only John but also all who know the truth. Even as we read this letter written to a Christian woman we have never met and will never meet separated by distance and time, our hearts are stirred up to love her also, and to root for her obedience and victory, because as John says, ‘because of the truth that abides in us and will be in us forever” is the reason we love her too. This is an automatic love that is found in the family of faith that goes out to all those who are of the faith. It is because we are of the same spirit, of the same family, share the same Father, share the same hope, love and defend the same truth and the share the same sufferings that we can easily love other Christians we have not met but only heard of. We hear of our missionary brothers and sisters and our hearts go out to them. We love them in truth. There is a part of us that knows them, even though we have never met them simply because we do share the same spirit.
The foundation for all Christian fellowship is truth. I personally liked the way John MacArthur puts it when he said in a sermon of his,
“Sound doctrine is the test of fellowship. You join with those who believe the truth and you separate from those who do not.”
We have fellowship tonight this bible study and we find fellowship in our home churches and church denominations because we are united through truth.
John makes a big emphasis about truth in his opening of this letter. In just 4 verses, he repeats the word truth 5 times emphasizing its importance and centrality. Our fellowship with one another is based on truth. The church exists to be a beacon of light, a pillar of truth that stands in a dark world. In this world, you are governed by either lies or you are governed by truth and we must always be on our guard to which we are following and obeying at any given time. Satan would deceive us and have us believe a lie. He would have us trust in a lie, take shelter behind lies, take counsel and comfort in lies instead of the truth.
The gospel of John opens up in chapter 3 with:
“And this is the judgment; light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out by God.” (John 3:19-21)
One of my favorite quotes by Matt Chandler at The Village Church Flower Mound, TX is “The closer you come to Jesus, the closer you come to reality, the way things really are.”
I think I heard him say this 5-6 years ago and it has always stayed with me because I have seen some crazy religious people. I mean some crazy religious people. Spiritual fanatics most would call them. So heavenly minded that they are no earthly good some would say because they seem so out of touch with reality. I use to fear becoming passionate in my faith, showing my faith because I feared being seen as or becoming a religious fanatic which held no appeal to me. I would have rather dropped religion all together then to risk becoming out of touch with reality. Here is where God met me, comforted me, guided me, protected me with his truth. God began to introduce me to such men as Matt Chandler, Barry Keldie, Jonathan Edwards, David Bernard, John Piper, Andrew Murray, men who were passionate for God and more firmly grounded in reality then anyone I had ever heard or met. They were grounded in truth. They were loving. Their faith in God and love for Jesus was so attractive and appealing to my heart that my heart began to pray, “Lord, whatever it takes. I want to be like them. I want a double portion of their spirit.” The closer you come to Jesus, the closer you come to reality, the way things really are. I still pray every day, Lord, draw me closer to your reality. Open my eyes, and help me to see the world as you see it. Help me to see others as you see them. Help me to see myself as I really am. Keep me from deceiving myself and believing a lie. Draw me closer to your reality. This is my daily prayer.” I like to pray with an acrostic: P.R.A.C.T.I.C.E G.O.D.L.I.N.E.S.S. to remember to pray for some key attributes in my life and in other’s lives and that second letter “R” in Practice stands for reality. Truth. It is our back bone and what grounds our faith in this world.
If you have spent 5 minutes with God, you know that he is always testing your reality. He is always testing your faith. He is always turning your world upside down and showing you that your perspective of the world is quite upside down. “Blessed are the poor, blessed are the meek, rejoice when you are persecuted, anyone who would find his life must first loose it, you have to die to live.” God is always showing us his thoughts are not our thoughts and his ways are not our ways. The first step in coming to God is looking to God to reveal to us what is truth. It is in knowing that God is truth. It is accepting his word as truth and allowing it to guide us especially when we doubt.
This is how the world lives. This is how we once lived. Perhaps there was a time when you too feared the truth, hated the truth, tried to hide and destroy the truth instead of run to it for shelter and protection even if it would destroy you by doing so. There are a million reasons why people hide from the truth and can’t deal with reality, the primary reason is pride. Apart from Christ who can deal with truth and sin nature? We all want to be a good person but the truth is we are not good people. We are all sinners. We have all done some awful things that we are ashamed, absolutely ashamed to come into the light with. It would kill us. We choose to live in a false reality where we can believe and pretend that we are good even though in our heart of hearts we know it is not true and if anyone really knew us, if anyone could read our minds at any given time as God can, our game would be up. So we hide in the dark, we avoid the light. This is how we once lived before Christ. This is how we are sometimes tempted to live and put to death as Christians we strive continually to walk in the light. To walk in reality, according to truth even when we don’t like it much.
John knows that all genuine love is based and founded upon truth as all Christian relationships are founded upon truth. Apart from walking in the truth, we have no true fellowship with one another. Remember 1 John 1.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son, cleanses us from all sin. (1 John 1:7)
Lesson one that we learned in 1 John chapter 1 was that true fellowship is enjoyed though walking in the light. This means being honest with one another. It means not walking in the dark or having a secret side, a secret life. Perhaps we are still walking in a life of sin that we prefer to keep in the dark, but God calls us to walk in the light, to love one another in truth. We can’t love one another in truth if we deceit remains in our lives.
1 Cor. 13 tells us that love always rejoices with the truth. We may not always like the truth but there is something in our hearts that always rejoices with the truth when it comes out. There is a true fellowship in it even if it is a difficult fellowship to deal with at the time if it is a difficult truth. Truth is the foundation of fellowship.
There is something in us as Christians, the Holy Spirit in us, who loves the truth and loves the spirit of truth when we see it displayed in others. It’s easy and natural for us to love other Christians because it is as if we are loving ourselves. It is almost the same context where Paul commands husbands to love their wives because by doing so they are loving their own body. He who loves his wife loves himself. (Eph. 5:28) It is the same with us as Christians because we are of the same body of Christ as siblings in Christ. How can we not love one another? How we hurt ourselves by our failure to love one another as Christ has commanded.
not only I, but also all who know the truth,
The same spirit that is in us is easily recognized in other Christians. There is an immediate familiarity and recognition of the indwelling Spirit of Christ that our heart loves. There is an immediate feeling of unity and oneness shared in the Spirit.
“He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”- James 4:5
James 4:5 tells us God’s spirit yearns covetously, enviously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us. It is his own spirit. God loves his own spirit, as we love his own spirit. You can almost sense the divine heavenly pull as God’s spirit pulls at the spirit he has made to dwell in us and our spirit yearns back from us for Him. This really does play out when come into contact with other Christians, our spirit leaps inside when we come around other Christians yearning earnestly for God’s own spirit he has made to dwell in us as Elizabeth’s baby leaped in her womb at the voice of Mary carrying the baby Jesus.
And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. (Luke 1:41)
2 because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:
Why does John love this Christian lady in truth and why do all who are of the truth love her also? Because the same spirit of truth abides in us that abides in her and all other Christians. We naturally love other Christians. It should be unnatural for us not to. This is what John taught us in his first letter as he wrote about it in great lengths. In 1 John 4 we were called to love one another, meaning Christians for John was writing to and addressing believers, because God himself is love and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Over and over again, John has emphasized the importance and absolute necessity for us to love one another and to excel at loving one another as Christians.
The Christian life is a call to love ourselves less and to love others more, specifically the body of believers first. We love the body of believers first as we love God first because God lives in the body of believers. Christ is the head and we are the body. This Spirit of truth dwelling in us will be in us forever. Our love will never be reduced.
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.
John’s greeting is similar to other New Testament standard greetings. Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us. This is almost an extended transition of the thought from verse two. God’s truth that abides in us forever will be with us. So will God’s grace, mercy and peace will be with us. They are with us and we can have confidence that they will be with us in the future and remain with us forever as God is with us forever. We have no fear of ever being without God’s grace, ever being outside of God’s mercy and not having God’s peace. They belong us as we belong to God.
Grace, mercy, and peace are from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son. Once again John emphasizes the deity of Christ in making a point that he Jesus is the Father’s Son.
Grace, mercy, and peace are also founded in truth and love. They cannot be separated from truth or love nor can truth and love be separated from them without changing their essence. There are imitations galore of love in this world, of grace, mercy and peace, cheap imitations that Satan would extend but they are not founded in the truth. They are not genuine. What we would call grace and extending grace to others may not always be true grace. What we would call mercy and merciful towards others may not in truth be merciful. What we would call peace, may actually be a false peace that only deludes us and will not be with us forever as God’s peace is. And often what we would call showing love towards others, is not love at all because it is not founded in truth, God’s truth. Anything that is not founded on God’s truth is a lie, a delusion and a false reality.
4 I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father.
John rejoices greatly when he finds some of this ladies children walking in the truth. I am sure she did too to hear that they were walking when she is not around. As a mother, I know I have no greater joy then to see and hear that my own kids are walking in the truth, obeying God and loving him when I am not around. There was a time when the only time a couple of them went to church was if we made them. To see your children going to church on their own. Obeying and seeking God’s will on their own. Walking in the truth on their own without you holding their hand or being present. That is exciting. That is something a mother and father rejoices in greatly.
As a bible study teacher, and I am sure as a pastor it is also exciting to see Christians walking in obedience to Christ. Doing what God has always called them to do. Loving one another. Serving one another. Worshiping the Lord. Yearning for the Lord. Putting to death sin in their lives. Practicing righteousness. It’s exciting when you see God’s children walking in the truth just as God has commanded us.
It seems like there is always a new truth for us to learn and for us to walk in and obey so we never really loose that first step excitement because there is always another first step ahead of us to take in coming closer to God and in putting off sin.
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.
What is love? We live in a world that would tell us what true love is and define it for us. As we have studied, God Himself is love. Love is not God but God is love. God defines what love is, but love does not define who God is. This is a major difference. God defines loves and has defined what love looks like for us so that we would know love. Our definition of love and God’s definition of love are worlds apart. This goes back to what we were saying earlier about how God changes our perspective and worldview completely upside down with his truth. Before Christ, we would not always recognize love. We would call discipline cruel, not loving. We would call premarital sex, adultery, orgies even as love, God would call it lust and unloving. We would call idolatry, homosexuality, addictions, abuse, murder, pedophilia, even as love. God’s truth turns our world upside down and says this is not love. God himself shows us what true genuine love is.
We would not know what genuine love is, were not shown to us by God. By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us and so we also ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. (1 John 3:16) Jesus himself demonstrated to us what genuine love looks like through keeping God’s commandments perfectly and laying down his own life for us. Love is not demonstrated in our seeking our own happiness and benefit but in laying down our life and seeking the well-being and benefit of others at the expense of our own. This is love. It is unconditional we learned.. It’s not based on how others treat us, but we love because God first loved us. We love because Jesus laid down his life for us. We love because God has commanded us to love. We love because we have been born of God and have his indwelling Spirit in us.
John reminds us here that this is love – that we walk according to God’s commandments. God’s commandments define to us what love is. They tell us to put God first. To have no idols beside him. They tell us not to lie, steal, murder or covet. Before Jesus, they defined love to us. They are for those who are not ruled by the spirit but need the law to rule them. We no longer need the law to rule over us now because we have God’s spirit of love dwelling in us. We don’t need the law to tell us not to steal or not to murder because we love others. The spirit leads and directs us instead of the law.
Do you want to know if an action is loving or not? Simply ask is it according to God’s commandments? Does God speak against it anywhere in his word? God wants us to know what love is. God wants us to enjoy genuine love and to be agents of genuine love but this love only comes from him and through him. If are to know what love is, we must go to Him.
Once again John reminds us that this is the commandment we have heard from the beginning, that we love one another. John isn’t commanding anything of himself but what God has already commanded. John is simply presenting God’s word, God’s commandment as it were originally given to him by God through Jesus.
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. (John 13:35)
This was and is Jesus’ command to his disciples and to us as his disciples. This is what we are called to walk in as our truth. We can ask ourselves, how can I show more love to my brothers and sisters in Christ? In what ways do I struggle to show love right now? What is the root sin, the root cause of my failure to love? How can I turn this into a daily prayer to overcome?
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.
Why does John need to define what love is to this Christian woman and to remind her of Christ’s commandment for us to love one another and emphasize that the foundation of our love is in truth? For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. This is a specific warning against showing love to those and embracing those in fellowship and hospitality who are not of the truth.
John speaks very plainly. Many had “entered” or “gone out” into the world who were nothing but deceivers. He does not say you notice, “gone out into the church,” but “into the world.” He alludes apparently to the same kind of people as those that he warned us against in chapter 2 of his first Epistle. Those, he said, “went out from us,” giving up all pretense of being connected with the church. They turned their backs, it appears, upon the church of God, and they went forth into the world as missionaries of greater “light” than any which the church had possessed. Influenced by the powers of darkness they became heralds of notions which were a skilful blend of heathen philosophies and Christian terms. They still talked about Christ, but their “Christ” was not the Christ of God. (F.B. Hole)
These deceivers confessed to be Christians but they did not walk in the truth for John says they did not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Their teaching was not in accordance with sound doctrine. They were false believers and probably of those who John warned the church of Ephesus about in 1 John 2:18-24 and 4:1-6:
18 Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. 20 But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. 21 I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. 24 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. (1 John 2:18-24)
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” (1 John 4:1-6)
Paul warned the Corinthians about:
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds. (2 Cor. 11:13-15)
Over and over and over again the disciples write letters to the churches warning them about false teachers and wolves in sheep’s clothing that would come in among them and destroy their flock. The warning is no different for us to today. Both Paul and John would say to us in this room right now, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world”. If that was true then how much more so now.
How do these men, these false teachers gain entrance to the church and to the body of believers?
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6 For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7 always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. 8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. 9 But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men. (2 Tim. 3:9)
Such men gain entrance into the church through creeping into households. And unfortunately they often find an open door through women in the church. They prey on them because many times they can find a weak one who is burdened with sin and led astray by a passion and all they have to do is twist the truth to something that is a little more acceptable that gives them the ability to maintain their passion and not be so burdened by their sin. They may tell them that they are neglected, that they deserve this, they are under appreciated, they should be leaders, they tell them what they want to hear, what their flesh wants to hear and they win their support.
In the times when this letter would have been written, they did not have hotels and motels like we do now. They did not have 2 hour instant transportation. Traveling was difficult and travelers were often dependent upon the hospitality of others. The disciples themselves when they went out preaching were dependent on the hospitality of others.
9 Acquire no gold or silver or copper for your belts, 10 no bag for your journey, or two tunics or sandals or a staff, for the laborer deserves his food. 11 And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart. 12 As you enter the house, greet it. 13 And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. (Matt. 10:9-14)
False teachers and evangelists traveled by foot into homes and towns just like the true gospel teachers and evangelists. As Christians, one would want to show them hospitality and invite them in to feed them, give them a place to sleep, rest and clean up a bit from the road. It is the Christian thing to do. The bible itself teachers us to practice hospitality.
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. (Heb 13:2)
Hospitality is a Christian virtue. But all Christian virtues are to be practiced with prudence in the truth. As we are to love others in truth, showing obedience to God’s commands; and as we are to show grace, mercy, compassion in truth, also showing obedience to God’s commands so we are also to practice hospitality in truth, showing obedience to God’s commands in our hospitality.
How would we risk being disobedient e to God’s commands by practicing hospitality with strangers? How would we be unloving toward God and toward our fellow believers by practicing hospitality with strangers who do not confess the truth?
Showing hospitality to someone who does not confess the truth is core here. If they confessed the truth they would be considered our brother or sister in truth, and we would not be having this conversation. But in this case example, they have in some way revealed themselves to be not our brothers and sisters in truth. Do we still show them hospitality? Is this the loving thing to do?
The Word of God says no. Remember sometimes loving actions can appear most unloving to the world and sometimes the most unloving actions are the most loving. The way the world views things and the way God has opened our eyes to view things are totally opposite one another. We must look at this situation not through the world’s eyes but through God’s eyes. God’s eyes tells us that this is love that we walk in God’s commands and God’s commands command us to love Him and our Christian brothers above all before we show love to the world. It is for the glory of God and the benefit of our Christian brothers and sisters that we look out towards.
For this Christian woman to invite these false teachers into her home under the guise of showing them hospitality would be most unloving to God and to her Christian children. It is unloving to God because what does light have to do with darkness? She would be aiding and supporting those who promote false teaching. It would be unloving towards her Christian children because she would be exposing them to false teaching. Who knows their spiritual maturity level to be able to discern their tactics? It would be unloving to her friends and to her church because it was by this method they would be introduced to the community, like a germ and spread throughout the region. The most loving thing to do in such a circumstance would be to avoid such people. Not to put her children or her church or even herself in such danger.
8 Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward.
John would warn us to test the spirits. Peter would too. Peter tells us, “Be sober-minded, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
Satan would enter our homes through the guise of hospitality, the guise of Christian kindness and love. For those who are not watchful, who would just throw open their doors and invite people in they are in much danger and putting others in much danger.
In Revelation 3:11 you may remember from our last study, Jesus warned the small church of Philadelphia, meaning the church of brotherly love which is what we aspire to be, “to hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” This is a similar warning by John here in verse 8, to “Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward.”
This is a warning that someone is going to try and snatch our faith away. Someone is going to try to steal something away from us that is already ours. A certain thief who has come only to steal and to kill and to destroy. This is what Satan Himself does, he snatches the word of God away from us any opportunity he has. He seeks to steal from us every opportunity he gets.
Matthew 13:19 – When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path.
We are exhorted to hold fast to God’s word, to keep it; which takes strength to intentionally grip it and retain it because we have an enemy who wishes to snatch it away from us.
There are many who have begun the Christian well, only to have ship wrecked their faith.
You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion is not from him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump. (Gal. 5:7-9)
No, we cannot lose our salvation, but we can lose our rewards when they are tested by fire. We want to be sure that we are not of those who went out showing that they never truly belonged to the body to begin with. Believers persevere. They make it to the end. They may be beat up, worn out and tired looking like something that cat drug into heaven but they persevered in truth through Christ. If we are fiddling with sin, if we are looking for an excuse to justify our sin, Satan will provide it. We have to be willing to throw off everything that tangles, hinders and slows us down in our pursuit of God.
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.
There is no dispute here. There are many who would call themselves Christians who do not belong to Christ because they do not abide in the teaching of Christ. They do not walk in obedience to his commands. This goes right back to 1 John 2:3-6:
And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
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.
If anyone comes to you and does not bring sound doctrine, than we are not to receive that person or welcome them into our homes. We do not host traveling evangelists and teachers like they did back in the day. It is a bit different for us today since we live in a world of hotels and motels and most false teachers are quite rich. They are not looking for a place to stay except through our churches, our televisions, our radio shows. There we do not have to invite them in.
Many people would apply this verse to Jehovah witnesses or Mormons coming to your door. This is a little closer to home because this verse has to do with false religious teachers coming to your home. We are still to take care of the poor, the strangers, our neighbors. It is those would are looking to spread their false teaching that we primarily shutting our door on so that we do not become an avenue to spread their corruption to our families.
Once again we must exercise prudence. There is not a law that we should follow about sharing the gospel with them or not answering the door. Instead, we should be led by whatever we decide to do by the spirit of love towards Gods and towards our brothers and sisters in Christ, our children in Christ. If we have family members around then we may not wish to expose them to the dangers of their false teaching. It is dangerous. Many have been misled by these false doctrines. In such cases if our conscience convicts us this is the most loving action to put our family first so we should. If we do not feel confident in our ability for apologetics we may not want to engage in this kind of direct warfare. We may just want to pray for them as we see them walking down the sidewalk to the next house. And we would want to pray for our neighbors that way too that their false teaching would be evident. Perhaps we have a past in being a Mormon or a Jehovah witness. Perhaps we don’t have any small children to worry about protecting. Perhaps we are strong in our faith. The Lord may easily lead us to plant a seed or two by sharing the gospel with them.
The idea here is not to enable them. Not to offer our support in their efforts. Not to help in furthering their message or giving them any encouragement in spreading their message. This is the most loving thing we can for them. To do otherwise would be to take part in their wicked works. That is the last thing we want to do.
Verse 10 says that we do not want to give them a greeting, this means neither bid him God speed. Do not wish him joy, or salute him, or bless him. This would be like wishing him success in his work. And although we do care about his personal wellbeing and welfare in our call to love all men, we do not wish him success in his work or current endeavors to spread a false gospel. We can’t wish anyone success when they are pursing the promotion of sin and error as their career. We want no part of that.
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.
John still feels like has much to say. Compared to his last letter this is a very short letter. It is very much to the point of his encouraging this Christian lady and her children to love one another in truth and being on guard against the false teachers.
John prefers the face to face conversation for his teaching but as we mentioned travel back then definitely was not as easy as travel is for us today. But we are blessed that it was not. If it were, we may not have been left with all of these wonderful letters left behind that could have been face to face conversations.
John finds the completion of his joy in Christian fellowship. This was the reason John wrote the letter of 1 John if you remember. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. Teaching others and seeing others walk in the obedience of God’s commands brought John and the rest of the disciples much joy. It brings us joy too. It has brought me much joy to be able to study the book of 1 John with you all face to face each week these past several weeks. There is a sense that at finishing this book that my joy has been made complete by sharing with you all the joy God has given through teaching me about fellowship with him and with others through this letter. I pray you will always remember what you heard from the beginning. Our call to love one another in truth.
13 The children of your elect sister greet you.
Here the children of this ladies sister send greetings to their dear aunt. There is no mention of her sister so perhaps her sister has died or lives someplace else. It is believed that John may have been writing this letter from Ephesus.
“The last sentences of this letter to the elect lady remind us that it is what it professes to be a letter to a friend; that the friendship was the more natural and human because it was grounded on the truth; and that other ladies also elect were, like this one, not nuns, but mothers” (Maurice).
FINAL REMARKS ON THIS EPISTLE.
BY A.BARNES
In view of the exposition of this epistle we may make the following remarks:–
(1.) It is desirable for a family to have a character for piety so consistent and well understood that all who know it shall perceive it and love it, 2Jn 1:1. In the case of this lady and her household, it would seem that, as far as they were known, they were known as a well-ordered Christian household. Such a family John said he loved; and he said that it was loved by all who had any knowledge of them. What is more lovely to the view than such a household? What is better fitted to make an impression on the world favorable to religion?
(2.) It is a matter of great rejoicing when any part of a family becomes truly religious, 2Jn 1:4. We should rejoice with our friends, and should render unfeigned thanks to God, if any of their children are converted, and walk in the truth. No greater blessing can descend on a family than the early conversion of children; and as angels rejoice over one sinner that is converted, we should rejoice when the children of our friends are brought to a knowledge of the truth, and devote themselves to God in early life.
(3.) It is our duty to be on our guard against the arts of the teachers of error, 2Jn 1:7. They abound in every age. They are often learned, eloquent, and profound. They study and understand the arts of persuasion. They adapt their instructions to the capacity of those whom they would lead astray. They flatter their vanity; accommodate themselves to their peculiar views and tastes; court their society, and seek to share their friendship. They often appear to be eminently meek, and serious, and devout, and prayerful, for they know that no others can succeed who profess to inculcate the principles of religion. There are few arts more profound than that of leading men into error; few that are studied more, or with greater success. Every Christian, therefore, should be on his guard against such arts; and while he should on all subjects be open to conviction, and be ready to yield his own opinions when convinced that they are wrong, yet he should yield to truth, not to men; to argument, not to the influence of the personal character of the professed religious teacher.
(4.) We may see that it is possible for us to lose a portion of the reward which we might enjoy in heaven, 2Jn 1:8. The rewards of heaven will be apportioned to our character, and to our services in the cause of religion in this life, and they who “sow sparingly shall reap also sparingly.” Christians often begin their course with great zeal, and as if they were determined to reap the highest rewards of the heavenly world. If they should persevere in the course which they have commenced, they would indeed shine as the stars in the firmament. But, alas! their zeal soon dies away. They relax their efforts, and lose their watchfulness. They engage in some pursuit that absorbs their time, and interferes with their habits of devotion. They connive at error and sin; begin to love the comforts of this life; seek the honors or the riches of this world; and though they may be saved at last, yet they lose half their reward. It should be a fixed purpose with all Christians, and especially with such as are just entering on the Christian life, to wear in heaven a crown as bright and studded with as many jewels as can possibly be obtained.
(5.) We may learn from this epistle how to regard and treat the teachers of error, 2Jn 1:10. We are not to do anything that can be fairly construed as countenancing their doctrines. This simple rule would guide us to a course that is right. We are to have minds open to conviction. We are to love the truth, and be ever ready to follow it. We are not to be prejudiced against anything. We are to treat all men with kindness; to be true, and just, and faithful in our intercourse with all; to be hospitable, and ever ready to do good to all who are needy, whatever their name, color, rank, or opinions. We are not to cut the ties which bind us to our friends and kindred, though they embrace opinions which we deem erroneous or dangerous; but we are in no way to become the patrons of error, or to leave the impression that we are indifferent as to what is believed. The friends of truth and piety we should receive cordially to our dwellings, and should account ourselves honored by their presence, (Ps 101:6; Ps 101:7;) strangers we should not forget to entertain, for thereby we may entertain angels unawares, (Heb 13:2;) but the open advocate of what we regard as dangerous error, we are not to receive in any such sense or way as to have our treatment of him fairly construed as patronizing his errors, or commending him as a teacher to the favorable regards of our fellow-men. Neither by our influence, our names, our money, our personal friendship, are we to give him increased facilities for spreading pernicious error through the world. As men, as fellow-sufferers, as citizens, as neighbors, as the friends of temperance, of the prisoner, of the widow, the orphan, and the slave, and as the patrons of learning, we may be united in promoting objects dear to our hearts, but as religious teachers we are to show them no countenance, not so much as would be implied in the common form of salutation wishing them success. In all this there is no breach of charity, and no want of true love, for we are to love the truth more than we are the persons of men. To the man himself we should be ever ready to do good. Him we should never injure in any way, in his person, property, or feelings. We should never attempt to deprive him of the right of cherishing his own opinions, and of spreading them in his own way, answerable, not to us, but to God. We should impose no pains or penalties on him for the opinions which he holds. But we should do nothing to give him increased power to propagate them, and should never place ourselves by any alliance of friendship, family, or business, in such a position that we shall not be perfectly free to maintain our own sentiments, and to oppose what we deem to be error, whoever may advocate it.
