The authority of the First Epistle of John having been established, and the opinion of those who read and considered the language of John 1 are of agreement that 2nd and 3rd John most definitely were written by the hand of John. There were some rather weak doubts by the early church but they were not able to keep these two books out of the final canonical line-up. Nuff said about that let’s get to the book. John is now much older and it is believed that he would have been about 90 when he put pen to scroll an wrote “greetings, from John the elder” and he meant it to designate his advanced age…not to be taken as a sign of office. By now John would have been the oldest of all the apostles and the only one to die a natural death. A few key things that give us an insight to very short book.

Right off we find ourselves with a set of uncertain facts and that my friends is a whopper of a conundrum. We do not know who the lady is John addresses or the city where she lives. What we do know is by deductive reasoning, she is a lady of distinction, brought about by her devotion and services to the church and it is also possible that church services were held in her house. Many believed that the title given her by John, which also he bestowed upon her sister at the end of this Epistle was in recognition of their extraordinary piety. He also recommends to her and her family not to have anything to do with the heretics of that day, for they do not believe that Jesus Christ has come among us in the flesh. John refers to them as deceivers and antichrists and this should reinforce for us in these days the importance of a faith based on the divine truth and promises of Jesus Christ. His love for them is of a Christian nature to always love one another and leaves them with his apostolical benediction. A note for us of this day…John was very happy to meet some of her children and to find them living just as the father has commanded…Are we raising our children today to have a love of God and passion for the work of the church? John makes use of this encounter by reminding them that we are commanded to always love each other…this was not a new commandment but it has been present from the very beginning. He expands on that by reminding them that love means doing what God has commanded us to do. Verses 7,8 and 9 contain warnings, instructions and a mention of a reward. The deceiver’s  have gone out into the world, continuing to deny that Jesus Christ came among us in a real body. They are of the antichrist do not allow them to mislead you and take from you all you have worked so hard to achieve. Remain with your teachings and continue to have a relationship with both the Father and son. Here in verses 10 and 11 we see the practice of shunning, encouraged by John…have nothing to do with these people, give them no encouragement…least you become a partner in their evil work. In verse 12 and 13 John sends greetings from the children of your sister, chosen by God. Most likely meaning here would be the members of you sister church. In closing John tells them that there is much more he would like to share with them but would prefer to do so face to face… “then our joy would be complete.”

A neat little book of warnings, encouragement, and practical instruction. Hope you have enjoyed this series of the five shortest books of the Bible and will join us in the Pew next week.

Life is Good

jk