2 John 1:1–4

Every careful reader of Scripture should find it remarkable that we have an apostolic letter openly addressed to a lady and her children. In the Third Epistle John names the man he writes to. But in the Second Epistle before us he speaks of the lady simply as such, without any mention of her name. In this we may see a delicate fitness. The letter no doubt met her need, yet it spared her needless pain and publicity. Yet the letter itself is inspired and of the greatest value, for God's people then and at all times.

The Second Epistle of John is addressed to "the elect lady" (Greek eklekte kyria). There has been much speculation over this greeting. Was it the simple greeting of a Christian widow, or of a lady with an unbelieving husband, or was it simply her name? Or was it, as various researchers have assumed — probably incorrectly — the greeting of a local church?

"The elder," says the apostle. So he steps down from the first place in the church of God, a place he had every right to fill. But love naturally takes the more excellent way, and here the Holy Spirit inspired it for the special need.

He does not slight her position, but what both of them valued was the title of divine grace, not what she owed to providence. She was elect of God, one chosen in Christ by and for God Himself. God had chosen her out of all her natural connections, and the apostle delights to see that God brought her, even on earth, into new and divine ones.

The truth formed the love John had for this godly saint and her children, and the truth set its limits — if we can speak of limits when the subject is infinite. That truth is the revelation of God in Christ. Outside this blessed circle the apostle's heart did not, and could not, flow, so far as the Holy Spirit controlled him. We see this at once when John adds, "but also all who know the truth." Every heart that cherishes the truth must love those who are also under its power.

Notice the moral fitness of the words chosen here. In writing to a lady, John does not use the words "well beloved" and "beloved" as he does to Gaius. It is certainly not that he loved her less, but John is careful to give no one any occasion for wrong impressions. Yet she is "the elect lady" whom he says he loves "in truth." Her being chosen by God is the reason for his love toward her, a love shared by all those who have known the truth.

Very early in the church's history the citadel had fallen to the enemy, and the flag of truth had been hauled down and laid in the dust. Had it? Perhaps that was true of the majority, who had yielded to some other authority than the Lord's and had compromised the truth. But this lady and her children had not given in to the adversary. They were keeping the flag flying. When the church failed, the Christian household stepped into the breach. Its answer to the enemy was "No surrender!" and it held the fort for the Lord and the truth.

In verses 1 and 2 John puts the strongest possible emphasis on truth. The letter itself tells us what we must do to defend the truth. The first thing we find is that truth is the foundation of every Christian relationship and affection, and truth is to govern them. The love that belongs to Christians is "in the truth", because it grows as the fruit of our having been born of God.

And this is how we judge it: "because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever." The apostle loved the lady and her children, but he loved them because of the truth. Where that was absent, there could be no divine love.

John's love for this godly woman and her children was both formed and limited by the truth — by the revelation of God in Christ. Every heart that treasures the truth must love those who are also under its power. That love will show itself "because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever." Human affection springs from our favourites and preferences, and people often mistake it for divine love. A scripture like this gives the test and the correction we need.

That points in two directions. The love must be sincere, free from the favouritism that is so natural to the flesh. It must also refuse to tolerate evil, since truth and error can never agree. This letter states the second of these two points. The third letter deals with the first.

The Spirit who lives in us is the Spirit of truth, and so the truth lives in us. Forever we shall be with Christ, who is the Truth, and so the truth shall be with us forever. This truth lives in us because we have the Spirit of truth. It is meant to mark our character and find proper expression in us. Others should be able to see it, and to testify to it if that is needed.

It is precious to see here that the truth dwells or abides in believers. It is not just an occasional visitor. And it abides with us forever. It is living and permanent, and there is no possibility of a child of God losing it.

The Spirit of truth will abide in us forever. His truth is not subject to the changing moods of time. It is unchangeable and unalterable. There is no development. It is not subject to an evolutionary process. The truth is "the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3). This indwelling truth within the believer is the great preservative against error.

Here we find another principle of life... that which dwells in us characterizes our walk. If Satan's lie lives in us, we are bound to walk in falsehood and crookedness in our dealings with God. When the Spirit of God puts truth in us (as we saw in 2 John 2), we shall walk in the truth, even while we walk in the middle of this crooked world. The walk of a Christian is to be light in the middle of darkness, and truth in the middle of error.

"I rejoiced greatly," he continues, "to find some of your children." He says some, not all. Why? Because there may have been one or more of them who had not yet confessed the Saviour and Lord. Possibly one or more might have slipped under the bad influence of the misleaders. For some good reason he goes only so far as to say "some of your children walking in the truth." This is the main point, and there is a necessary limit even here. It is not merely knowing the truth but walking in it — or as the same apostle says in the Gospel, "whoever does what is true" (John 3:21).

Now John records his great joy: he found some of this sister's children walking in truth. He does not say "walking in love," for at this time he had to emphasise the truth. He could not say it of all her children, yet of some it was true, and for each one we may well rejoice. This was according to the Father's commandment — not the legal commandments of the law of God, but the commandments that belong to a Father's living relationship with His children.

We may call walking the simplest and most basic activity of the human race. So it naturally stands for activity. To walk in truth is to have all one's activities — one's thinking, speaking, going, doing, every movement of mind or body — governed by one whole world of reality, and in keeping with it. That reality has its centre in God Himself revealed in the Lord Jesus, and its outer edge in the furthest reaches of His will and word. This is a high standard, truly, yet not too high, and not out of reach. We may walk through a world of unrealities governed by realities which are divine.

Walking in truth is the result of having the truth. The truth produces truthfulness. The man who has not got the truth cannot possibly walk in truth, and will not keep up the appearance of it for long. Walking like this was the effect of knowing the truth itself: they walked in truth, "just as we were commanded by the Father."

In the next verse, again, we have "from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love." "I rejoiced greatly that I found of your children walking in truth, as we have received a commandment from the Father." Now he brings in obedience: it is a commandment from the Father. He will have the Son honoured, even as Himself.

Now we thankfully receive a commandment of the Father. Is there anything good that is not based upon divine authority? And the blotting out of divine authority would be an unspeakable loss. No doubt there is more than authority; there is divine love. Love was always in God, and He showed it to us while we were godless and evil. Yet when we are converted we always begin with divine authority and a submissive heart, horrified at our old rebellious spirit.

The positive appreciation of the walk of the children of "the elect lady": they walked in truth (v.4). This seems to confirm that the primary responsibility for a believing mother is the walk of her own children. What joy it is for a mother to see her children walk with and according to the Lord!