As we come to the last few books of the Bible in our reading project we will be covering some of the shortest books in the Bible. The title I gave to 2nd John is, Love is Obedience. As the key verse I chose verse 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.”
If Christians were guided by one principle, it should be that “we love one another.” In a very real sense love fulfills the whole law. It enables us to fulfill the law, not grudgingly or of necessity, but gladly. To love God means we obey Him in every detail of what we believe is His will for us. We prove and portray our love by obeying. As a child’s obedience makes a parent’s heart merry, so obedience to God makes Him glad.
True love is jealous for the honor of the one loved. If we truly love the Lord Jesus Christ we will be jealous for His honor. Doing what is contrary to God’s will inevitably leads to catastrophe in the Christian life. Never take a chance!
John assured the recipients of this letter that hearing about their love expressed in obedience brought him great joy. He wanted them to continue their walk of loving obedience and indicated he was hoping to visit them soon. That would provide the opportunity to witness their walk face to face, which would give them both even greater joy.
Make God’s heart glad by your love, tangibly expressed in obedience. That will also please Him.
