“Love Jesus, Love His Ways”

Scripture: 2 John 1:4-11

For the past three weeks, we have been considering the impact that Jesus’ resurrection and subsequent appearances had on his disciples. Every one of those reunions was a total surprise to the faithful, and in every one of them, Jesus revealed himself through some personal “gift” to each person.

And if we are honest, Jesus has always been in the business of giving gifts – even to us - to reassure us when we are totally overcome with surprise at his entry into our lives. That is Jesus’ approach to us, and it’s his perfect understanding of what we need if we are to eagerly follow his lead. But what about our approach to him? What is it that Jesus might need from us?

I know, I know, you’re trying to imagine what in the world Jesus could ever need from the likes of us! After all, we’re talking about the King of Creation! He could have anything that he could ever want, simply by speaking it into being. How could Jesus ever need anything from us?

The truth is that at creation, God did create all that is necessary, but some of it was intended to be hidden until the right moment came for its revealing. And one of those things, love, was hidden within our soul.

Read 2 John 1:4-6

Our text begins with a description of the character that comes from living the Christian life. In John 3:29, John the Baptist also addresses this issue, and describes it as “joy” when the “bridegroom” came into his life. And in John’s epistle, he says that the joy of Christ comes to him when he realizes that others have begun to know and live in the truth of faith.

For both the Baptist and the Evangelist, the fullness of Christian joy is all based on living and walking in the light of Jesus Christ. This growth in faith occurs when we begin to exhibit the image of Christ in an outward and obvious way. Faith that is internal is a good beginning, but until our love of Christ begins to blossom and reflect his love to others, it is only a half-faith.

The letter continues with a request to love one another, and in order to do that, our author says that mutual love is all based on following the commands and teaching that Jesus has given. After all, love is the basis for the two greatest commands – Love God and Love Each other. (Matthew 22:34-40) And that brings up an interesting issue – loving God, as well as our neighbors, requires that we follow all of the Lord’s commandments. Not just the ones we like; not just the ones that are comfortable – all of them.

Truth – Commandment – Love. All connected. All interdependent. A “trinity of heart”, if you will, that sustains and completes us in faith. The only question that might remain is just who is this “dear lady” that the letter was written for? Is our author commending a faithful female friend to the love of Christ, or is it more than that?
This “lady” could certainly be a person, but the tradition of the epistles, regardless of who writes them, is that they are written to a church or group of churches. The Church is being called to that “trinity of heart” – to live a Christ like life. It’s never easy, but it is necessary if we want to be Christ’s representatives on this earth.

Read 2 John 1:7-11

And here is the gist of John’s letter – a warning that false teachers are becoming more and more prevalent, and are beginning to be a problem for the church. And the problem? That some of the aberrant teaching is that Jesus’ presence on Earth wasn’t all that it seemed to be. This was a fairly common problem in the early church, and actually revolved around an issue that has plagued the Church for 2,000 years – and that is our human attempts to explain God and his plan away, to make it more compatible with our physical laws and human capabilities and limitations.

Personally, I don’t understand why anyone would want to worship a Divine Being who was subject to the same restrictions as we are. But that is exactly what people are always trying to do – make God more personal by humanizing him. Genesis 1:26 tells us that we were make in God’s image – not the other way around! We don’t get to recreate the Lord to suit our purposes!

We read “… do not lose what you have worked for.” The only truth that we can depend on is that which comes to us from the Lord through his word. We can’t add to it, and we can’t take anything away. Our job is to understand it and accept it. And that is what our “work” is for – accepting the truth that Jesus taught, sorting out which commandments come from God, versus those that come through the Law of Moses, and learning what divine love is all about- that it is loving the individuals, not the things they do.

And how about that caution against running ahead of Christ’s teachings? Have you ever thought that you knew exactly what God wanted you to do, and decided to start doing it right away? Getting ahead of the Spirit’s leading will always lead to problems. When we take the lead, life begins to be lived on our terms, not the Lord’s, and we lose all that faith has ever brought to us.
Following Christ’s way, loving in Christ’s way, accepting his truth and commandments as the only acceptable approach to faith, is the fulfilling that John is talking about. And he tells us that if anyone comes to us teaching anything that is contrary to that of Christ’s, send him packing, and don’t ever become involved in his “wicked work”.

United Methodism is going through that very same struggle today. Oh, we aren’t disagreeing over whether Jesus came in the flesh or not (I don’t think!), but our area of disagreement is just as critical. And the issue is - will we accept the authority of God’s Law as contained in scripture, or will we run on ahead of him, and begin creating our own understanding and standards for faith?

I have heard that the Council of Bishops and the Commission on a Way Forward are politicizing the alternatives that will be offered to the Special General Conference in February next year. Originally, there were to be three options to vote on – one that would recognize the authority of scripture and would create accountability for all who violated that authority; another that would liberalize the Church in many ways; and a third that would allow Annual Conferences and individual churches and pastors to choose one of three ways – liberal, conservative, or blended.

The first option, as I understand it, the only one that would restore accountability and authority to scripture, will be dropped from the proposal for reasons solely based in church politics.

And if that isn’t enough cause for concern, there is also an effort underway to rewrite our Social Principles that has been underway for five or six years. I recently received an email that the Commission on Church and Society, the agency who has been charged with the rewrite, has put out a preliminary draft of their work, and is requesting comments from the church on their approach. I haven’t had time to study the draft in depth, but from a rough glance at several of the sections, it, too, is being liberalized even further than it already was.

It appears that John’s letter of caution, written in the late first century A.D., has never been taken to heart. You would think that in 1,900 years, we might have learned the lesson that he was presenting, but apparently not. Some believe that Truth is still relative, and that Christ’s truth is just one of many that we need to consider. Some believe that his commands are only suggestions, and that each and every individual has the right to make their own interpretations of the meaning behind all that he taught. Some believe that the command to love implies the acceptance and support, and love, of all that people do, and not just of their being.

You may notice that the above is nothing less than the humanization of God’s will, which it never could be and never will be. We need to walk in the truth of God, regardless of what the world may think, and regardless of pressures that may come against us. Truth – Commandment – Love in Christ’s way is the only way we can ever enjoy the grace and passion of our Almighty God. We must not lose everything that faith in Christ has brought to us.

It’s time that “the dear lady” who this letter is written for, the church of Jesus Christ, begins living like God intended us to. It's time for the Church to start acting like one who truly does love both God AND neighbor!