2, 3 John1st Feb 2015

Read 2 & 3 John

3 JohnShortest bookLetter to an individual, Gaius…

Written in the 90ADs; first centuryJohn was probably in Ephesus. It was believed that John took Mary, the mother of Jesus with him, since Jesus told him to take charge of her at the cross.

1. Feel ChosenChosen lady…An unknown “sister”, wife of an elder?A known influential female church leader?Or…

The local church…In verse 13, her chosen sister send their greetings.

In verse 5.. “dear lady”.

If lady is the local church then who are the children?

Collectively we make up the bride of Christ; a chosen lady.

Individually we are also his children.

How do we view other churches in the SEA Region? Not like offices of another company.

:13 – chosen sister…Feel special, not unwanted.

2. Really Love One Another Walk in love of his command.Obedience is God experiencing you as you walk and experience God. This is the Yadá…(experiential knowledge)

2 John :5-6; 3 John 5 – loving one anotherUkraine vs Russia -

3. Walk in the Truth for Your Soul“Walking in the truth” is strong theme in both books…Walk in obedience allows God to experience us. Part of us

knowing Him.

2 John :1, 3-4; 3 John :3-43 John :5-6

Best safeguard, fuel for perseverance is the level of love for one another.

Gaius and others did well by walking in the truth, and was commended by John

:2…John distinguished between well being of Gaius health and his soul.

End Good things…In life we have too much life…Get distracted and it affects our walk in the truth.

The life on earth gets priority while soul does not.

Cut our unnecessary tasks, responsibilities, relationships…

Henry Cloud: “Necessary Endings” (2011)

No.1 enemy to soul getting well is because of a lack of priority given to it.

Necessary endings to some good things that gets in the way…Infancy, toddlerhood, childhood, adolescent, adulthood…Change of career, jobs, home…Change in diet, exercise…Seasons…Break up BGRs, abusive relationships,

It is always not about what logically needs to end, but peoples’ internal issues.

When you don’t face them, they don’t end…

Good cannot begin until bad ends…E.g. Rose buds

Pruning on three areas purposefully by gardener:1. Healthy buds or branches that are not the best ones2. Sick branches that are going to get well3. Dead braches that are taking up space needed for

the healthy ones to thrive.

Life has a way of producing too much life…

Why pruning works? By eliminating old and weak growth, the plant’s energy can go toward producing beautiful roses.  

Pruning also lets in more sunlight which helps the bush to grow.

Photographs taken from Our Rose Garden, University of Illinois Extension,http://urbanext.illinois.edu/roses/prune.cfm

Pruning

With pruning God wants to see this…

Photographs of roses taken from The Perennial Farm, http://www.perennialfarm.com/whatdowegrow/knockoutroses.html

Knock Out Roses

Photographs of roses taken from Evergreen of Johnson City, http://www.evergreenofjohnsoncity.com/KnockOut%20Rose%20Pruning.htm

Photographs of roses taken from The Perennial Farm, http://www.perennialfarm.com/whatdowegrow/knockoutroses.html

Difference between hurts and harm…E.g. Sonia – Adding drama to school, tennis, church, social life…

Many ECAs – You can try anything but you can’t do everything.

There is a difference between , “Pain with a Purpose and Pain for No Good Reason” (Cloud, 2011).

Sister Mel…

Why aren’t you using your talents to serve? What are you still chasing? Status, wealth, fame?

Neighborhood couple – Husband, kids, two jobs, chasing…Need “Necessary Endings”. He was unwilling…

End hurting relationships…Here John admonishing people to love one another yet he drew lines with Diotrephes…why?

:9 John singled out Diotrephes…He gossiped about others.He must have been destructive over and over until John the apostle had enough and put this to an end.

Difficult? Painful?

Did John the elder also gossip? Definition?

Gossip:“casual or unconstrained conversation or reports about other people, typically involving details which are not confirmed as true.”

When you talk freely to those who are neither part of the solution or the problem…and you don’t know if it is true.

Confidentiality – Break if you are going to cause harm to yourself and or others. Concerned about the well-being of souls.

Perseverance; :1, 8 – Be faithful till the end.

4. Power of Face to Face2 John 12, 3 John 13Takes humility, courage and being vulnerable.