Thursday, December 28, 2023

3 John 1–4 walking in truth


Jesus Christ is the Word of God made flesh and the only way to the Father. God’s unmerited and undeserved grace  was given to us through Him. 


Faith plus nothing equals a lifetime of being taken into the Body of Christ and fellow heirs of the promises of God.


True  faith will work by love.


Colossians 2:14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.


He has forgiven ALL our trespasses. Every sin committed by humanity was forgiven in His crucifixion. We can only enter into His salvation by faith. 


Under grace God blotted out the ordinances against us. The Law was was nailed to His cross. The Law provided guidance for how man should live but no power to keep them. Jesus fulfilled all the law and crucified them now we naturally through love do them in the indwelling of Holy Spirit. We are not under condemnation but under grace.


We become dead to the law by the power of Holy Spirit that we should bring forth the fruit of the Spirit in us.


Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.


Galatians 5:1 5 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.


Grace is the unmerited and undeserved favor of God. We now stand fast in the liberty where Christ has made us free. Don’t be entangled again in the law but go boldly to the throne of grace. Only by Christ are we saved. All the doctrines of man are useless and powerless to save anyone.


When speaking to His disciples before He was betrayed, arrested and crucified, He declared, "In the world you will have tribulation" (John 16:33). Elsewhere Scripture tells us not to be surprised about trials and tribulations that come our way but to rejoice that we get to share in the sufferings of Christ (1 Peter 4:12-13).


We can learn to rejoice in the midst of our trials because of what they are doing in us: developing steadfast perseverance, endurance, character and hope (James 1:2-4;  Romans 5:3-5). And we can remember that Jesus not only said we'd face tribulation … He also declared, "But take heart; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33c).


May even the hard times of life draw us closer to God, making us more like His Son. First 5


3 John 1–4

1 The Elder, To the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth: 2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. 3 For I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the truth that is in you, just as you walk in the truth. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. The New King James Version


The author commends Gaius for his commitment to the truth of the gospel and for showing hospitality. Faithlife Study Bible


The Elder is the apostle John. The Gaius to whom John wrote was a Christian in one of the churches of Asia Minor. 


The reason for John’s prayer is the testimony of others that Gaius walks in the truth. Truth here refers to the body of truth given to the church through the apostles and prophets, that is, the Scripture. Gaius walks according to the Word of God rather than the ways of the world.


To walk in truth means to walk according to God’s Word, the revelation of His truth. 


In these verses John affirms Gaius’s responsibility to assist Demetrius despite the opposition of Diotrephes and his expulsion of those who received traveling missionaries. In the first part of this section John says that Gaius’s support of itinerant preachers should be continued in order for him to be a fellow worker in the truth. In the last part of the section John promises that Diotrephes’s opposition will be addressed by him when he arrives. Meanwhile, John endorses Demetrius as a legitimate teacher who is deserving of shelter and support. The NKJV Study Bible


1 Corinthians 4:14 I do not write these things to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you.


Galatians 4:19 My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you,


2 John 1 The Elder,To the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all those who have known the truth,


2 John 4 I rejoiced greatly that I have found some of your children walking in truth, as we received a commandment from the Father.


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