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Commentaries disagree on the
identity of the “Elect
lady”. Many suggest she is a specific woman (along with her sister) while others suggest the term refers to a
specific congregation while her sister refers to another congregation.
I believe it’s the latter…simply because
the Apostle Paul uses the term “elect”
several times to refer to Christians in general. Either way…the message remains
the same.
When John says “I was very glad to
find some of your children
walking in truth” we are confronted with a sobering truth…that every
member of a Christian congregation may not be walking in the truth.
By which we mean…obeying
God’s commandments.
Already…within a
generation of Jesus living among them…people who claimed to be followers were
denying core truths about Him. Docetism, the belief that Jesus only seemed to have a
physical body and to physically die, but in reality he was a pure spirit, and
hence could not physically die,
was emerging and affecting the Church.
The big problem…Docetism denies
the Trinity…a doctrine always accepted by the apostles. So, why would anybody
want to change what had been generally accepted from the beginning?
Maybe because the truth is difficult to believe?
I concede. Much of what
we believe about Jesus is difficult to accept…in human terms. This, of course,
is why salvation comes to us by faith…not by sight. However, our inability to
stand firmly (and confidently) on
faith does not privilege us to fiddle with what God has proclaimed. John tells
us not to even let this teaching enter our houses. He says “anyone who goes too far and does not abide in
the teaching of Christ does not have God”.
John reminds us. When we
struggle with our faith the best response is to remain obedient to God’s Word…not
well-intentioned friends and neighbors.
Live
boldly out there today…
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