The true love test

1 The elder: To the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth – and not only I, but also all who know the truth –  2 because of the truth that remains in us and will be with us for ever. 3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love. 4 I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, in keeping with a command we have received from the Father. 5 So now I ask you, dear lady – not as if I were writing you a new command, but one we have had from the beginning – that we love one another. 6 This is love: that we walk according to his commands. This is the command as you have heard it from the beginning: that you walk in love. 7 Many deceivers have gone out into the world; they do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch yourselves so that you don’t lose what we have worked for, but that you may receive a full reward. 9 Anyone who does not remain in Christ’s teaching but goes beyond it does not have God. The one who remains in that teaching, this one has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your home, and do not greet him; 11 for the one who greets him shares in his evil works. 12 Though I have many things to write to you, I don’t want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come to you and talk face to face so that our joy may be complete. 13 The children of your elect sister send you greetings.

2 John

Introduction

Why are there no T.D. Jakes books on our church library shelves? Nor any Joel Osteen books? No Benny Hinn books? And no Joyce Meyers books? Why did we remove all the Bethel and Hillsong songs from our Sunday set list?

I’ll admit it’s a provocative question. Because some of you noticed. And some of you have questions. And some of you wondered. And some of you disagreed. And that’s fine.

The decisions to remove them weren’t made lightly. But these authors and artists, in different ways, and to different degrees, drifted from the confession of the person and work of Jesus Christ. They blur the line enough to deceive. And a church that loves truth and each other refuses hospitality to deceivers.

Here’s what I want you to get this morning. Curated shelves and trimmed set lists are not about preference. They are for the sake of love. For the love of the flock. For the love of the gospel. For the love of the real Jesus.

Here is my argument. True love demands gospel fidelity. Faithfulness to the Jesus who actually came in flesh, actually died, actually rose.

We will see this in 2 John. Four movements. The ground of true love. The walk of true love. The test of true love. The goal of true love. By the end, you will understand why guarding the church library and the Sunday worship set is an act of pastoral love.

Let me show you the ground first.

1) The ground of true love (2 John 1-3)

My dad kept the first letter I ever wrote him. I was in Sub B or Standard 1. Dear Dad, Thank you for the card you sent me. I saw a film on weasels, minks, otters, and skunks last night. Lots of love, Mark. Not a masterpiece. Here’s why I read it. Letters have structure. Mine has an introduction, body, and conclusion. 2 John is a letter. It has an introduction, body, and conclusion.

The first three verses are our introduction. The author is 1 The elder. The apostle John. The last living eyewitness of Jesus. He does not need to name himself. Everyone knows who he is.

To the elect lady and her children. This is a little tricky. John’s is not writing to a single woman. The pronoun, translated you, for her in verses 6, 8, 10, 12 is plural. She’s not a single woman, she a collection of people. John is writing to a local church. The elect lady is a congregation. Her children are her members. And the apostle loves this church in the truth. Not sentimental affection. Not mushy loyalty. Love rooted in shared conviction. And not only John. All who know the truth love those that are in the truth too. Truth unites us all. Why do believers have a common love for one another? 2 because of the truth that remains in us. Truth abides in us all. And truth will be with us for ever. We are unified by the Spirit of truth in common bond with one another.

Then he conveys a blessing. 3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father. Three gifts. Grace. God giving what we do not deserve. Mercy, unlike Paul who partners grace and peace, John add mercy to his introductory prayer. Mercy, God withholding what we do deserve. And peace. The wonderful result of grace and mercy in our lives is that we have peace with God and man. And notice how these gifts travel. In truth and love. Truth and love are not opposites. They are twin sisters walking down the road hand in hand. They cannot be separated.

Here is the main idea of 2 John 1-3. The elder writes to a local church in truth and love. And here is how it contributes to the whole letter. Because truth and love are inseparable, a church cannot claim to love while abandoning truth.

That is the ground. Now we need to see the walk.

2) The walk of true love (2 John 4-6)

John has laid the ground. Truth and love. Twin sisters. Inseparable. Now he notes how this church is walking.

He writes, 4 I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, in keeping with a command we have received from the Father. Did you catch the shadow fall across the text? Some of your children. Not all. Some walk in truth. Others do not. That is the pastor’s heart. Joy mixed with grief. Gladness tempered by concern. The truth is proclaimed. The command is expounded. But not everyone walks in it. Not all of you live it. It grieved John. It grieves me.

So John exhorts. 5 So now I ask you, dear lady – not as if I were writing you a new command, but one we have had from the beginning – that we should love one another. Not a new command. The world loves novelty. False teachers love to peddle fresh ideas. But John will not innovate. He returns to the beginning. The words of Christ to His disciples, Love God. And love one another. This is not sentiment. Vague kindness. This is our Lord’s command. Received. Fixed. Binding.

Then John defines love. 6 This is love: that we should walk according to his commands. This is the command as you have heard it from the beginning: that you should walk in it. Here is the shape of love. Not feeling. Not mere affection. Obedience. To love God is to obey God. To walk according to his commands.

My son Thomas is learning maths. Perimeter, they tell him, is the outside of a shape. The measure of the boundary. The Greek word here is peripateō. Peri. Around. The word means to walk. Walking is not about a single step. Walking is a habitual way of life. And love marks the walked perimeter of the Christian life. Everything happens inside the shape of love. Love is defined by walking according to his commands.

So here is the main idea of 2 John 4-6. John rejoices that some walk in truth. Then he exhorts the whole church to practise the command to love. Obedient love is the path truth travels. And here is how it contributes to his argument. A church that loves truth walks in love with God and with one another.

That is the walk. Now we need to see the test.

3) The test of true love (2 John 7-11)

John has laid the ground. He has shown the walk. Now he gives us the test.

7 Many deceivers have gone out into the world; they do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. Do not miss the weight. These false teachers undermine the person of Jesus. They deny the incarnation. They attack His person. And they attack His work. The coming in the flesh is not merely a birth. It is the whole mission. Life. Death. Resurrection. No incarnation, no salvation. So John names them. Deceivers. Antichrists.

Then the imperative. 8 Watch yourselves. Stand guard. Why? So that you don’t lose what we have worked for, but that you may receive a full reward. The fruit of gospel ministry. A full reward is at stake. Not salvation. Reward. John had sowed. Others planted. Now these false teachers threaten to steal their harvest.

Here is the doctrinal line. 9 Anyone who does not remain in Christ’s teaching but goes beyond it does not have God. The one who remains in that teaching, this one has both the Father and the Son. To go beyond what is written is to depart. To remain in what is written is to abide. There is no third option. You cannot add to Christ. You cannot subtract from Christ. You either have Him fully, or you do not have Him at all.

Then the hardest command. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your home, and do not greet him; 11 for the one who greets him shares in his evil works. This is not rudeness. It is protection. Hospitality was the engine of early church mission. To receive a teacher was to endorse him. To fund him. To say, This man speaks for God. And John says, Do not do that for deceivers. Love for the flock requires a closed door to wolves.

So here is the main idea of 2 John 7-11. John warns the church to guard their reward and refuse hospitality to false teachers. And here is how it contributes to his argument. A church that loves truth and each other refuses hospitality to deceivers. Because true love protects. True love tests. True love shuts the door on those who would destroy.

That is the test. Now we need to see the goal.

4) The goal of true love (2 John 12-13)

John has given the ground. The walk. The test. Now he shows the goal.

He writes, 12 Though I have many things to write to you, I don’t want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come to you and talk face to face so that our joy may be complete. Paper and ink are poor substitutes for presence. John could write more. He could fill pages. But he longs for something better. Face to face. Eye to eye. The goal of all his truth-telling and love-commanding is not distance. It is joy. Complete joy. Shared joy. Joy that only comes when a shepherd stands among the sheep.

Then the final line. 13 The children of your elect sister send you greetings. A sister church. Same election. Same truth. Same love. They send greetings. This is not small talk. It is solidarity. You are not alone. Another congregation stands with you. Same battle. Same confession. Same hope.

I saw in the news Christopher Nolan is bringing out a new version of the Odyssey. The story of the Trojan War. In that war, the Greeks built a giant wooden horse. They left it at the gates of Troy. Then they sailed away. The Trojans looked at the horse. It looked like a fancy gift. A symbol of peace. So they opened the gates. Dragged the horse inside. That night, Greek soldiers climbed out. Opened the city gates. And Troy fell. Not because the enemy was strong outside. Because the enemy was welcomed inside.

John says, Do not drag the deceiver into your church. Not because you are unwelcoming. Because you love your city. And church that loves truth and each other refuses hospitality to deceivers. Our closed door to heresy is not hate. It is loving protection of our flock.

So here is the main idea of 2 John 12-13. John expresses his desire to come personally, and he relays greetings from a local church. And here is how it contributes to his argument. A church that loves truth and each other refuses hospitality to deceivers. But refusal is not isolation. The door closes to wolves. It stays wide open to faithful brothers. The goal is not a fortress. It is a family. Face to face. Joy complete. Greetings exchanged. That is the goal.

Now we need to connect this to the gospel.

Connect to the gospel

We have seen the ground. Truth and love, twin sisters, inseparable. We have seen the walk. Obedient love, the perimeter of the Christian life. We have seen the test. Shut the door to deceivers who deny Jesus came in the flesh. We have seen the goal. Face to face joy, wide open to faithful brothers. All of this rises to one claim. A church that loves truth and each other refuses hospitality to deceivers.

But why? Why such a hard line? Because the deceivers deny the front door of the gospel itself.

Look at verse 7. They do not confess Jesus Christ come in the flesh. That is heresy. God’s Word teaches that the eternal Son of God actually took on human flesh. Real body. Real blood. Real death. Real resurrection.

Without the incarnation, there is no salvation.

The gospel does not merely support John’s command. It supplies the content of the test. You cannot know who is a deceiver unless you know what the gospel is. Loving the church means protecting the gospel itself. False teachers do not have a different opinion. They deny Jesus. Hospitality to them is not kindness. It is consorting with the enemy.

Here is the wonder. The same Jesus who came in flesh died for flesh. Your flesh. My flesh. He took our sin. He bore our judgment. He rose from the grave. That is not a metaphor. That is history. That is the gospel.

So the closed door is not hate. It is love for the true sheep. It is fidelity to the true Saviour. And that is my argument. True love demands gospel fidelity.

Now let’s talk about what that looks like on your Monday morning.

Application for believers

True love demands gospel fidelity. So let me ask you. What are you feeding your soul?

Audit your inputs. The books on your shelf. The podcasts in your ears. The teachers you fund with your attention and your wallet. Every click, every subscription, every share either builds gospel fidelity or undermines it. Love for the church means turning off teachers who deny the incarnation. Not because you are narrow. Because you love the sheep.

Test before you welcome. Before you share a podcast, recommend a book, or invite a teacher into your home or small group, ask one question. Does this person confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh? True love demands truth testing.

Anchor love in the Word. You cannot love what you do not know. You cannot protect what you have not treasured. Daily study. Open the book. Learn to recognise the true Jesus. His voice. His shape. His gospel. Only then can you love Him faithfully. Only then can you love His church well.

Application for unbelievers

True love demands gospel fidelity. So I am asking you directly. Stop chasing a false Christ.

The cultural Christ is a dream. All affirmation. No incarnation. No cross. No blood. No judgment. That Christ cannot save you. He is not real. He is a mirror reflecting your own wishes. And a mirror cannot die for your sins.

Look to the real Saviour. Jesus actually came in flesh. He actually lived a perfect life. He actually died under the weight of your rebellion. He actually rose from the dead. That is not myth. That is history. That is the gospel. And the love that demands fidelity to this Jesus is the only love that will not fail you.

So come. Come to the one who is true. Stop floating in sentimentality. Bow your knee to Him today. He will not turn you away. He came in flesh to save flesh. Yours. Believe upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.

Conclusion

Those books on our library shelf. Those songs we used to sing. We did not remove them because we are petty. T.D. Jakes teaches denies the Trinity, and therefore the eternal Son who became flesh. Joel Osteen preaches self-help, not the cross, denying the work of Christ. Benny Hinn has preached modalism and denied a finished atonement. Joyce Meyer denies penal substitution, saying God did not punish Jesus. Bethel practices grave-sucking and teaches that Jesus’ work was incomplete. Hillsong harbours wolves and blurs the line. We removed them because true love demands gospel fidelity.

We saw the ground. Truth and love, twin sisters, inseparable. We saw the walk. Obedient love, the perimeter of the Christian life. We saw the test. Shut the door to deceivers who deny Jesus came in the flesh. We saw the goal. Face to face joy, wide open to faithful brothers.

In light of this text, believers, audit your inputs, test before you welcome, anchor your love in the Word. Unbelievers, stop chasing a false Christ. Look to the real Saviour. Bow your knee to Him today.

Let’s keep wolves out and welcomes shepherds in. Let’s protect the flock for love’s sake. True love demands gospel fidelity. And that fidelity leads to joy. Joyful and loving unity.

Now go. Love the truth. Love each other. Shut the door to deceivers. Open your homes to the faithful. And keep your eyes on the Jesus who came in flesh, died for your sins, and rose for your life.

Amen.