Articles
Truth and The Disciples in 2 John
Truth and The Disciples in 2 John
John heard from Jesus, that Jesus IS the truth, (John 1:14; 14:6), promised the Spirit would guide the apostles into all truth (John 16:13), and was the word of God (John 17:17). Now, as he has become an old man, he writes to the disciples about such truth, speaking of it 20 times in these 3 letters.
In 2 John 1-4, John affirms at least 4 things concerning truth: it was KNOWN (vs. 1), it abides in disciples (vs. 2), it is eternal (vs. 2), and it is to be obeyed (walked in) (vs. 4).
God has revealed His word of truth and has preserved it, thus making it available to those who desire it today. Peter said that he wrote so that we could know these things after he had died (2Pet. 1:12-13). He also spoke about “the word of the Lord endures forever." And this is the word which was preached to you” (1 Peter 1:25).
It not only IS knowable, God’s people are instructed to know it. John could write to these early disciples and speak of what they did know or should know some 40 times in 1 John! Peter instructed us to ‘grow in grace and knowledge’ (2Pet. 3:17). Paul wrote that we are to “not be foolish, but understanding what the will of the Lord is” (Eph. 5:17).
It is to be internalized, it is to become part of us; it must ‘abide in us’. “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:16). As the Psalms said: “ Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You” (Psalms 119:11).
Then it must be lived out in our lives. John writes about our ‘walk’ as Christians some 10 times in these 3 letters! We walk in the light; we do NOT walk in darkness; we walk in the manner Jesus walked, we walk according to His commandments, we walk in the truth (see 1John 1:7, 2:6, 11; 2John 4, 6; 3 John 3, 4).
So, John, seeing this in the disciples, wrote: “I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we were commanded by the Father” (2 John 1:4).
What would John write about your life?
Hugh DeLong
