Theological Commentary: Click Here
2 John is a
letter from a man named John to a prominent lady in one of his churches. There is a single theme running throughout
this letter. The theme is love, much
like what was seen in 1 John.
2 John also
connects the theme of love to obedience.
We know love when we are obedient to God. Since God is love, when we are obedient to
Him we will demonstrate love in our obedience.
This is a
very unique perspective on love. Most
people, when thinking of love, think of things like passion, spontaneity,
romance, and intimacy. When John thinks
of love, He thinks of obedience. True
love is not a romantic feeling but an obedient state of mind. True love is positioning the heart so that it
is prepared to listen to God and respond.
In 3 John,
we hear a letter from John to a Christian brother named Gaius. This letter, unlike the two that came before,
it is not overtly about love. Instead,
John speaks to Gaius about receiving Christian brothers who have gone out to
spread the Gospel of Jesus. John asks
Gaius to receive them. In fact, he says
that in extending hospitality to brothers and sisters in Christ – even unknown
brothers and sisters – we are obedient to God and demonstrate our desire to
work together.
In a sense,
though, this is about love. What is
hospitality except a form of love? When
we embrace fellow followers of Christ, are we not showing God’s love? When we work together with fellow believers, are
we not obedient to God’s will? This is
why John concludes the third letter with a talk about doing good. When we do good – when we are obedient to God
– we demonstrate that we are from God.
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