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1JOHN REVIEW
2JOHN PREVIEW
LESSON #13
1 JOHN REVIEW AND 2 JOHN INTRODUCTION
MEMORY VERSE: 2JOHN 10
REVIEW OF 1JOHN:
WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT YOU LEARNED IN THE WHOLE BOOK OF 1JOHN?
WHY IS THAT IMPORTANT?
WE HAVE SEEN THREE MAJOR THEMES IN THIS SMALL BOOK:
THESE THREE THEMES ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE CHRISTIAN.
LOVE, LIGHT, LIFE.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE SPIRITUAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THESE THREE THINGS?
WE HAVE SEEN THREE WAYS TO TEST A RIGHT RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD:
TEST #1 OBEDIENCE TO THE WORD OF GOD
TEST #2 FELLOWSHIP WITH OTHER BELIEVERS
TEST #3 CORRECT DOCTRINE
PREVIEW OF 2JOHN
BOTH 2JOHN AND 3JOHN ARE VERY SHORT LETTERS. THEY ARE OFTEN NEGLECTED IN CHURCH BIBLESTUDIES. IN FACT, THEY HAVE ALWAYS BEEN NEGLECTED THROUGHOUT CHURCH HISTORY. IN FACT,THERE WAS A LOT OF DISPUTE EARLY IN CHURCH HISTORY THAT SAID THEY SHOULD NOT BE PART OFSCRIPTURE. THE MAJOR REASON FOR THIS DISPUTE WAS BECAUSE THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE TOAUTHENTICATE JOHN AS THE AUTHOR. DESPITE THAT LACK OF EVIDENCE, NO OTHER NAME FOR THEAUTHOR HAS EVER BEEN SUGGESTED.
JOHN, THE DISCIPLE, THE AUTHOR
INTERNAL EVIDENCE FOR JOHN AS THE AUTHOR:
THE THEMES AND VOCABULARY ARE VERY SIMILAR TO 1JOHN.
2JO 1 AND 3JO 1 MENTION THE AUTHOR AS “THE ELDER”. THIS COULD REFER TOJOHNS ADVANCED AGE, OR IT COULD REFER TO HIS ADVANCED STANDING AMONG THE CHURCHES OFJESUS CHRIST.
WRITTEN TO:
2JOHN IS WRITTEN TO A LADY AND HER CHILDREN.
THE NAME OF THIS PERSON IS UNKNOWN. BECAUSE OF THAT SOME SCHOLARS THINK IT WAS WRITTENTO A SPECIFIC PERSON WHILE OTHERS THINK IT WAS WRITTEN TO A CHURCH. MOST LIKELY IT ISBOTH.
IT WAS VERY COMMON TO HAVE A CHURCH MEET IN A PERSONS HOME. MANY EARLY CHURCHESWERE STARTED BY AND RUN BY WOMEN. 2JOHN WAS PROBABLY WRITTEN TO THIS KIND OF WOMAN WHOHELD CHURCH SERVICES IN HER HOUSE. “HER CHILDREN” MAY MEAN HER NATURAL BORNCHILDREN OR IT MAY REFER TO THOSE WHO WERE BORN AGAIN THAT ATTENDED CHURCH IN HER HOUSE.
THE EVIDENCE FOR THIS INTERPRETATION IS THAT JOHN SWITCHES BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN THEGREEK “YOU”, SINGULAR, AND “YOU” PLURAL. THERE ARE NO VERYPERSONAL REFERENCES TO THIS WOMAN IN THIS LETTER.
REMEMBER THAT JOHN WRITES TO THE FAMILY OF GOD. WE SAW THIS ASPECT OFJOHNS WRITING IN THE BOOK OF 1JOHN.
INCIDENTALLY, PAUL WRITES TO THE CHURCH OF GOD AND PETER WRITES TO THEGOVERNMENT OF GOD.
DATE:
THE DATE JOHN WROTE THIS BOOK IS HARD TO DETERMINE EXACTLY. HOWEVER, BECAUSE OF THECONTENT, JOHN PROBABLY WROTE IT AFTER 1JOHN AND MOST LIKELY VERY SOON AFTER. (ABOUT 85 -95AD)
KEY WORDS:
TRUTH
LOVE
WALK
THEME AND PURPOSE:
JOHN DOES NOT STATE A SPECIFIC THEME FOR 2JOHN. HOWEVER, FROM THE CONTENT OF THELETTER, WE CAN SEE HIS PURPOSE FOR WRITING 2JOHN.
HIS CONCERN IS FALSE TEACHERS AND THE SPREAD OF FALSE DOCTRINE AMONG BABY CHURCHES. HE,THEREFORE, GIVES A WARNING ABOUT HOSPITALITY THAT IS INTENDED TO RESTRICT THE SPREAD OFFALSE DOCTRINE.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:
WITH THE ABUNDANCE OF WEALTH IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE AND A LONG PERIOD OF ROMAN PEACE WITHFOREIGN ENEMIES, THE ROMANS CONCENTRATED ON BUILDING GREAT CITIES AND GREAT ROADS TOCONNECT THESE CITIES. THE NETWORK OF ROMAN ROADS MADE TRAVEL MORE EASY. THE EASE OF TRAVELALSO ENABLED THE CHRISTIAN GOSPEL TO SPREAD TO ALL PARTS OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE. HOWEVER,THERE WERE NO HOTELS OR MOTELS. THERE WERE A FEW INNS, BUT THEY HAD BAD REPUTATIONS.EITHER THEY WERE INNS FOR DRUNKENNESS AND PROSTITUTION OR THEY WERE FILTHY PLACES TO STAYAND SUBJECT TO TRAVELLING HIGHWAY ROBBERS. THEREFORE, USUALLY TRAVELLING PEOPLE STAYED INTHE HOMES OF FRIENDS OR RELATIVES. THIS KIND OF HOSPITALITY WAS ENCOURAGED AMONG THECHRISTIAN CHURCHES AS A MEANS OF PROTECTION FOR TRAVELLING CHRISTIANS.
JOHN IS CONCERNED WITH THE EASY SPREAD OF FALSE DOCTRINES THROUGHOUT THE ROMAN EMPIRE,AS WELL AS THE MISUSE OF CHRISTIAN HOSPITALITY.
OUTLINE:
I. LOVE EXPRESSED IN THE BOUNDARY OF TRUTH (1-6)
II. LIFE IS AN EXPRESSION OF THE DOCTRINE OF CHRIST (7-11)
III. PERSONAL GREETING (12-13)
2JOHN
READ 2JO:1:1-13
FOR WHAT GOOD THINGS DOES JOHN COMMEND THIS CHURCH?
WHAT CHURCH PROBLEMS DOES JOHN DISCUSS IN THIS BOOK?
LOVE AND TRUTH (1-3)
TRUTH AND LOVE ARE LIKE THE NORTH POLE AND THE SOUTH POLE. THEY ARE FAR APART, BUT ONTHE SAME PLANET. IN THE BOOK OF 1JOHN, WE STUDIED LOVE IN GREAT DEPTH. WE ALSO TALKED ALITTLE ABOUT TRUTH WHEN WE STUDIED FALSE DOCTRINE. IN THE BOOK OF 2JOHN, WE WILL SEE THATIS POSSIBLE FOR LOVE AND TRUTH TO COLLIDE. WHEN THAT HAPPENS, JOHN GIVES AN ANSWER TO THISPROBLEM.
JOHN SAYS HE LOVES THIS CHURCH IN THE TRUTH (1)
WE MUST KNOW THE TRUTH.
IN OTHER WORDS, HE LOVES THIS CHURCH BECAUSE THEY HAVE THE TRUE DOCTRINE OF JESUSCHRIST AND THEY ARE BORN AGAIN. THEY BELONG TO THE FAMILY OF GOD AS TRUE BELIEVERS INJESUS CHRIST.
“FOR THE TRUTHS SAKE” (2)
THIS PHRASE LITERALLY MEANS = “IN DEFENSE OF THE TRUTH” THAT DWELLS IN TRUEBELIEVERS.
JOHN IS CONCERNED ABOUT DEFENDING THE TRUTH AGAINST THE FALSE GNOSTIC DOCTRINE.
HOW DO WE KNOW THE TRUTH?
JOHN MENTIONS IN VERSE 3 A GROUP OF LITTLE WORDS COMMON TO THE CHRISTIAN LIFE THAT WENEED TO BE SURE WE UNDERSTAND.
GRACE, MERCY, AND PEACE, FROM GOD
TRUTH AND LOVE
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE GRACE AND THE MERCY OF GOD?
WHAT IS THE PROBLEM WITH LOVE AND TRUTH?
WHEN WE STUDIED 1JOHN, WE GOT A GLIMPSE OF THE PROBLEM BUT WE SEE IT HERE IN 2JOHN MOREEASILY.
IN 1JOHN WE WERE TOLD TO LOVE OTHER PEOPLE IN THE CHURCH. THERE IS NO PROBLEM AS LONGAS EVERYONE IN THE CHURCH IS A TRUE BORN AGAIN CHRISTIAN. HOWEVER, AS SOON AS YOU HAVENON-BELIEVERS IN THE CHURCH, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.
ARE WE SUPPOSED TO LOVE NON-BELIEVERS?
YES, IF THAT LOVE MEANS WE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR ETERNAL DESTINY AND INCLUDESPREACHING TO THEM THE GOSPEL. THE BIBLE DOES NOT SAY WE ARE TO LOVE NON-BELIEVERS IN THESAME WAY WE ARE TO LOVE BELIEVERS.
IN CHRISTIAN CIRCLES WE CALL INDISCRIMINATE LOVE “SLOPPY AGAPE”.
THE BIBLICAL PRINCIPLE TO AVOID “SLOPPY AGAPE”:
LOVE MUST BE BOUNDED BY TRUTH AND NEVER BE PUT ABOVE TRUTH..
THE BIBLE SAYS WE ARE TO WALK IN TRUTH.
THE BIBLE SAYS WE ARE TO WALK IN LOVE.
YOU CANNOT POSSIBLY WALK IN TRUTH IF YOU ARE ACCEPTING EVERYONE IN LOVE INCLUDING THEIRFALSE DOCTRINES, BLESSING THEM, AND ENCOURAGING THEM IN THEIR WRONG LIFESTYLE.
WHY DO WE NEED THIS BIBLICAL PRINCIPLE OPERATING IN OUR LIVES?
THE NON-BELIEVER NEEDS TO SEE THAT THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LOVE INSIDE THEFELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTAINS AND LOVE OUTSIDE THE FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIANS. IF HE DOES NOT SEETHE DIFFERENCE, HE IS NOT DRAWN TO RIGHT DOCTRINE. IF YOU MAKE LOVE THE TOP PRIORITY, YOUSACRIFICE TRUTH.
JOHN PRAYS THAT THEY WOULD HAVE GODS GRACE, MERCY, AND PEACE.
IN OTHER WORDS, THAT THEY WOULD BE SURE THAT THEY KNOW TRUE SALVATION.
WE HAVE PEACE WITH GOD THROUGH HIS MERCY BECAUSE BY HIS GRACE GODSENT HIS SON, JESUS CHRIST, TO BE OUR SAVIOR.
JESUS IS EQUAL WITH GOD (3)
JOHN JOINS JESUS NAME WITH THE FATHERS NAME TO EMPHASIZE THE BASIS OF TRUEBELIEF.
HOMEWORK
2JOHN 1:4-13
THIS IS A SELF-STUDY. PLEASE DO NOT SEND HOMEWORK ANSWERS TO THE TEACHER FORCORRECTION.
APPLICATION OF PREVIEW OF 2JOHN:
CONSIDER YOUR DEALINGS WITH NON-BELIEVING PEOPLE. DO YOU PRACTICE “SLOPPYAGAPE” OR DO YOU DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN BELIEVERS AND NON-BELIEVERS? EXPLAIN YOURANSWER.
PREPARATION FOR 2JO1:4-13
READ 2JO 1:4-6
IN WHICH VERSES DOES JOHN TALK ABOUT TRUTH?
IN WHICH VERSES DOES JOHN TALK ABOUT LOVE?
READ 2JO 1:7-13
WHY IS IT DANGEROUS TO GIVE YOUR MONEY TO SUPPORT SOME MINISTRY THAT YOU DO NOT KNOWANYTHING ABOUT? (11)
HOW DO YOU THINK JOHN WOULD RESPOND TO THE MORMONS WHO CAME TO HIS DOOR?
MEMORY VERSE: 2JOHN1:4
