10 key words in 2 John #5: truth

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: truth

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

Today’s word: truth

Truth: noun: the quality or state of being true.
‘he had to accept the truth of her accusation’

– that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality.
‘tell me the truth’

– a fact or belief that is accepted as true.
‘the emergence of scientific truths’

Truth and love: these two words are inextricably linked in this passage. Both matter. One without the other is not the whole picture. Jesus, who described himself as the way, the truth and the life, came to earth in human form to reveal the truth of who God is to us. Jesus, during his life on earth, lived a life of love in action and commanded us to do the same.

Love and truth.

John states that as believers, the truth lives in us and will live in us forever. The truth is interchangeable for Jesus here. Jesus is the truth: the true way to live in relationship with the one true God. We have access to the truth if we follow Jesus. The truth is within each one of us. Jesus will be with us in truth and love: that is the promise.

When we hear or see something that resonates with us, it rings true – it resonates with the truth that is within us. We need to learn to recognise and trust that discernment/insight/intuition/wisdom, call it what you will, and act upon it. You know that saying ‘if it feels right, do it’: to me, that isn’t a permission slip to do whatever we want whenever we want to. It’s about tuning into that inner deep truth that can inform and guide us on the right path through life. This is what it looks like to walk in the truth.

John and all the believers love this chosen lady of God in truth. They love and admire her for all the right reasons. This love is pure and it is of God. This is how we should be loving one another.

The two definitions of truth above are interesting: similar and yet slightly different. The first is proved to be true, the second is accepted to be true. Within our faith, there is room for both. Sometimes we can feel that we are short of proof. We weren’t walking the earth at the same time as Jesus. We didn’t sit with him and speak with him. And even if we had, how can you prove that someone is the son of God? Stuff that belongs in the spiritual dimension is really hard to prove. That’s where faith comes in. We have to make a choice to accept the truth, not because we have definitive concrete proof, but based on that resonance deep within that I was talking about before and the evidence of lived experience.

The more we walk with Jesus and get to know him as the way, the truth and the life, the more sure we will become that this is the truth we have been searching for. Jesus has all the answers. He really does.

So if you have a chance, take a few minutes today to reflect on Jesus’ words and what they mean in your life right now.

Jesus said ‘I am the way, the truth and the life.’