10 key words in 2 John #6: Jesus

Introduction:

These three short letters – 1,2 and 3 John – are traditionally thought to be written by the author of the Gospel of John, known as John the Evangelist. 1 John is written to a group of early believers, some of whom were losing sight of the truth to be found in Jesus Christ. This letter – 2 John – is written to an individual – and this individual is a woman!

This month’s approach is to pick out 10 key words from the letter and unpack those words to see what message they contain for us today. So I suggest that each day, you read the whole letter, then read my thoughts on a particular key word and then take that word with you to reflect on throughout the day.

The whole of 2 John:

1 The elder,

To the lady chosen by God and to her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I only, but also all who know the truth— 2 because of the truth, which lives in us and will be with us forever:

3 Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.

4 It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5 And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.

7 I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. 9 Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them. 11 Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work.

12 I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.

13 The children of your sister, who is chosen by God, send their greetings.

The 10 key words: Jesus

• lady
• chosen
• children
• love
• truth
• Jesus
• joy
• command
• deceiver
• teaching

Today’s word: Jesus

Jesus (c. 4 BC – c. AD 30 / 33), also referred to as Jesus of Nazareth and Jesus Christ, was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the central figure of Christianity. Most Christians believe he is the incarnation of God the Son and the awaited Messiah (Christ) prophesied in the Old Testament.  Wikipedia definition

Jesus is the centre of John’s writing because Jesus is the centre of John’s world. Remember, John met Jesus. He knew him as a human being, but also recognised him as fully God. There is absolutely no doubt in John’s mind that Jesus is the Son of God. For John, everything that Jesus said was true; everything he did pointed the way to fullness of life.

Therefore for John, the followers of the Way, the early Christians, also had to fully accept the centrality of Jesus in their faith. For him, there was no compromise. We saw yesterday how for John, the words truth and Jesus were interchangeable, one and the same thing. If we seek the truth, we will find it in Jesus.

Jesus lives in us through the presence of the Holy Spirit. His truth and love are within us. As are his grace, mercy and peace. Because the Father and the Father’s Son are one, so what the Father showers upon us, so does the Son.

I’m working my way back to Jesus as the centre of my faith. I have been distracted over the years and lost sight of how key Jesus is to my faith. I’m not talking about his death on the cross: we focus on that every Sunday in our services. I mean the whole of his life and teaching and ministry and path towards his death and his powerful resurrection. The movement called the Red Letter Christians focuses on the words of Jesus above all else. His words are in red in their Bibles, because his words really do come directly from God because he is God.

The writer of this letter, John, knew the truth of this. He focuses in on one command, and that command came from the mouth of Jesus. Love one another. Do that and everything else will follow.

It is by living in the teaching of Jesus Christ that we can ‘have God’, have the presence of God within us at all times. Our faith without Jesus at the centre is nothing. It is empty, simply words. It is Jesus who breathes life into our faith.

Jesus, be the centre.

Do you need to remind yourself of the centrality of Jesus to your faith? In what ways could you begin to do this?