The Second Epistle of John is a short letter, full of interesting possibilities. He wrote it to one of his oldest surviving friends, and it’s someone who may surprise you. (It surprised ME!) In his letter, he offered some fascinating advice about love and obedience, and it might even connect some dots in Scripture for a story you may know.
“It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 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. 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.” (2 John 1:4-6)
A Surprising Connection?
There’s an interesting note on this, one of the shortest books of the Bible. John writes to a dear friend, and he addresses her as kyria (which is translated generally as “lady”). The Chaldean word for Martha is the feminine of “moro” or “more”, meaning “lord,” or “master.” This is the same root as maran in the well-known phrase Maran-atha, “The Lord cometh”. The Greek equivalent for MARTHA is Kyria, the feminine form of kurios, or “Lord”, so some scholars believe that John may have been writing to Martha, sister to Mary and Lazarus.
If that’s the case, John might just be reminding her of the time she was bustling around the house and became frustrated because Mary was just sitting with Jesus, soaking it all in. To me,it’s nice to consider that years after she was gently rebuked by Jesus for being too busy, Martha’s children were obedient and walking in the truth, and that these old friends had stayed connected. John reiterates what Jesus said in the upper room: Love one another.
John knew something about love. After all, he spent three-plus years with the Master who taught John and his friends a whole new definition of the word. It changed his heart and it changed how he saw the world. John was so appreciative of those lessons that when he wrote his Gospel, he never referred to himself in the first person, but always as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” (John 13:23, 20:2).
An interesting Equation
He also recalls exactly how Jesus said we should do that in John 14:21: “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
According to Jesus (as quoted by the disciple whom Jesus loved!), the equation looks like this: Love = obedience. Put another way, Love = recognizing the authority of the Lord and then submitting to it. (Perhaps the way Martha and kyria offer a play on words reinforces John’s point. Loving Jesus is more than being busy for him, it is about being His .)
We all sing the song, “Jesus loves me”, and of course we know that’s true; as a child, it comforted me to think that Jesus loved ME. But, was there a song that spoke of reciprocation? Can we sing a song that says WE love JESUS? Here’s a circular summary of John 14:21 about having commandments and keeping them: How many of Jesus’ commands do you HAVE (possess, know)? First, read the stuff Jesus said to do. All of it, not just the best-known quotes. We’ve all done that, haven’t we?
Second, to express your love for him, be OBEDIENT to his commands. Third, feel the love from the Father, and then you will learn more about who Jesus is because He will show more of himself to you. He showed us what true love looks like. Now, with your new knowledge and awareness of Christ, Love Jesus by loving others. LOVE. LEARN. BE OBEDIENT. LOVE. Repeat.
Love Equals What?
Jesus told his followers, “It’s plain enough to see
That he who keeps my commandments is he who loveth me.
To keep them, you must HAVE them. So, remember what I say,
And exercise obedience to me every single day.”
It’s not about the works you do, or what the law requires:
Obedience equals love! I may be preaching to the choir,
But it’s more about the way you love, and what His love inspires.
The law will beat you down: His love will always lift you higher.
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