Daily Bread 2010 - 2 John 1

Daily Bread 2010 – 2 John 1

2 John 1
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.

Unlike the Gospel of John, the letter of 1 John is ascribed to an “author”, “the elder”, and written to an audience called, “the lady”. An “elder” is the same term for our word “presbyter” or “overseer”. Sometimes in traditional churches this is a bishop. And the “lady” is most likely referring to the “Bride of Christ”, or the Church.

Much like the Gospel of John, there is a strong emphasis on the “Truth”. This is not just an intellectual body of writing or assertions, but the Truth is from God and Jesus has come to show us the Truth. This is the Truth about God, and the Truth about us. Sometimes we want to have the Truth to use it for our benefit or to exert power over others, but in the case of 2 John, the Truth shapes and molds and exercises power over us, not visa-versa.

And of course the Truth is teemed with another powerful force, Love. Like Truth, Love is from God too. Jesus embodied both Truth and Love. As we follow Jesus, we walk in the Truth. And the truth is made perfect, as we love one another. That is why honesty is so important in a relationship. You cannot be in a relationship with someone who is not telling the Truth. Dishonesty creates a chasm in a relationship, which only can be bridged by telling the Truth, and if necessary confession and forgiveness.

Jesus came to bring the Truth which convicts us when we are wrong, but as important is bringing God’s love and mercy, which enables us to confess our sins to God and each other and have our relationships restored.
Who do you need to speak the truth in love today? Have you had an honest conversation with God lately? Meaning have you shared the Truth about yourself with him realizing that you are safe to do so because of His Great Love for you as shown in His Son!

Dear Jesus we confess our sins to you. We know that you know the Truth anyways, so we can’t hide anything from you. Forgive us for not always walking in the truth, but often preferring to walk in the darkness. Help us to confess our sins to each other when we are wrong and have our earthly relationships restored by the same grace you have given us. Amen.

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