My Dear Precious Child,
In John's second letter to the believers in the churches John sent greetings to a lady and her children, referring to the body of Christ in the church who were receiving his letter. He referred to the church as being a lady, and her children as being the believers in the church. He had great respect and Christian love in the truth, and he mentioned that she, meaning the church to whom he wrote, was one chosen one by Me. He said that he wasn't the only person who loved her in the truth, referring to the entire body of Christ, because so did everyone who knew the truth. He said that they loved her because of the truth that lived in them and will be with them forever. He professed that in their life of truth and love means that they would have grace, mercy and peace from Me and from Jesus Christ, My Son. (2 John 1-3)
He also wrote that it brought him great joy to find that the children of the believers had been living the life of truth as they were all commanded to do by Me. John's reason for sending the second letter was not to give the believers a new commandment but to emphasize the one that they were given in the beginning and to plead with them to love one another. He even wrote that to love everyone is to live according to My commandments, just like Jesus Christ taught, even loving their enemies. He repeated again that this is the commandment that they had heard from the beginning, that being to live a life of love. To John life in the Holy Spirit was simple, that being to love everyone as I love everyone and the world that I created. (2 John 4-6; John 3:16-17; John 13:34-36)
John's two main themes in all of his letters were to encourage the believers to love everyone just like I love them, and to allow the Holy Spirit to discern the deceivers who are sent from hell to lead My children astray by returning to the old covenant Law as their only means of salvation, thus rejecting Christ Jesus and My means of salvation. He reiterated in his second letter the same truth about the deceiver, that being that the spirit of antichrist whom Jesus Christ had taught to His disciples was already in the world when He ministered the truth, and John wanted them to know that the antichrist spirit was still in the world when John wrote his letters to the churches. He said for them to watch themselves for the deceiver because all of the work of the apostles would be lost and they would not be able to receive the rewards which I had for their works if the believers were to return to Mosaic Law. His warning increased when he wrote that if anyone does not keep within the teachings of Jesus Christ but instead goes beyond it, or adds to it, that the person does not have Me within him; that only those people who keep to what Christ taught can have My life and the life of Christ inside of him or her.(2 John 7-9)
He was more restrictive than Peter and Paul. He told the believers that if anyone came to their houses bringing a different doctrine, that they must not receive the person into their houses or even give a greeting to the false prophets. He went on to say that to merely greet the false prophet would make the believer a partner in the wicked work of the false prophet. (I John 10-11) John's strictness derived from his knowledge that the believers were young in the knowledge of spiritual things and their inexperience would make them vulnerable
In that short letter John wrote what was the most important thing to him in the body of Christ, that being that they live a life of love and that they watch for the deceiver who is anti Christ, refusing to believe that Jesus Christ was the One in whom they had waited to be their Savior. He said that there were several other things that he had to tell the believers, but he thought it best not to trust the matters to paper and ink. He hoped to talk to them personally about the matters when he visited them personally, assuring them that their joy would be complete when He arrived. (2 John12)
John issued greetings to the believers from those whom he called the children of their sister, which referred to the believers in the local church from which his letter was sent. (2 John 13)
Your Father of Simple But Productive Truths
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