That you may receive a full reward.

2 John from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Walk According to His Commandments

The elder to the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in truth; and not only I, but also all who know the truth, ² for the sake of the truth which abides in us and will be with us forever: 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, just as we have received commandment to do from the Father. ⁵ Now I ask you, lady, not as though I were writing to you a new commandment, but the one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another.⁶ And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.

⁷ For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. ⁸ Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward. ⁹ Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he 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 house, and do not give him a greeting;¹¹ for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds.

¹² Though I have many things to write to you, I do not want to do so with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you and speak face to face, so that your joy may be made full.

¹³ The children of your chosen sister greet you.

John’s message in this his second letter really does not deviate much from the first. He says:  I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, just as we have received commandment to do from the Father. Now I ask you, lady, not as though I were writing to you a new commandment, but the one which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another. And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.  Often people tend to over complicate the gospel message, adding more to its simple requirement. Or they change the message to suit the audience. It has been said that the churches reluctance to adapt the gospel to the standards of the day is the reason that it is becoming irrelevant to people today. The truth is, Jesus Himself did not come to fit in; to adjust to and adapt to the culture of His time. He didn’t come to make God more acceptable to the world. He came to reconcile the world and sinners to God. He came so that sinful people could be acceptable to God.  It is neither God nor His commandments that Jesus changed. Rather He changes people.

John says:  Many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward. Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son.   In John 3:16 Jesus says:  “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”   Believing in Jesus as the Son of God is what salvation is based on. There are many people who fail even at that basic level. They do not acknowledge that Jesus came in the flesh and that He died for our sins. Salvation comes by believing. Ephesians 2:8-9 says:  By grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.  Faith, believing in Christ as Savior results in salvation apart from our own works. John says: Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son.   Verse 10 of Ephesians 2 says:  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.   So our salvation is a result of faith and grace, but our believing also has another result. It results in obedience; in doing what Jesus says; in doing the good works God prepared for us to walk in. John says anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ…   There are many today, many deceivers, who teach that grace allows us to continue in sin, doing away with the consequences of sin, rather than causing us to change to become obedient to the teachings of Christ. To continue in sin because of grace is going too far. Grace must lead us to obedience to God and Christ. In John 14:15 Jesus says:  “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”  In Matthew 7:21-23 Jesus says:  “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”     So while salvation is based on the knowledge or the acknowledgment that Jesus is Lord, head knowledge is not enough if it does not also result in a change of heart, evidenced in obedience to God and Christ.

John says:   Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward.   Our full reward is not only that we are saved for eternal life in heaven, but also that we also walk in truth, in obedience; doing the good works God prepared for us in Christ.

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit thank You for the truth of Your unchanging gospel; that Jesus came in the flesh to die for our sins, that we could be saved by Your grace. Believing, I choose to walk in Your truth; in obedience to Your commandments. I want to walk in the good works You have prepared for me and prepared me for, in Christ.   Amen.