Love God | 2 John 1-3
Good morning, Main Street Church, it’s good to be with you all this morning. I want to start off with a question: when you think of the most well-known motto or slogan, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Maybe it’s Nike's “Just do it”, Ryan’s favorite McDonald's “I'm lovin' it”, my mind immediately goes to one of my favorite scenes of all time in television, when Andy Bernard says Give me a break, give me a break, break me off a piece of that… Andy can’t remember, Jim immediately says Nobody tell him!! Andy then getting increasingly frustrated, goes applesauce, chrysler car, football cream and Micheal says its football cream its f’s football cream… one of my favorites that Eli and I quote way too often.
But my connection here is that we have a motto or a mission here at Main Street, and if you aren’t familiar with it, or haven’t heard us talk about it, or seen it on the front doors, our mission here at Main Street is to Love God, Love Others, and Make Disciples of Jesus. And while Ryan is taking us through the book of Genesis, Demer through Jonah, I will be going through 2 John, which has 3 very clear sections that line up very well with Love God, Love Others, and Make Disciples.
I think it’s easy for a church's mission statement to become something we just walk past on the wall each Sunday. But this one is meant to shape everything we do, our homes, our friendships, our priorities, even the way we handle conflict. In a world that’s constantly redefining what love means, this mission grounds us. It reminds us that we don’t invent love; we respond to the love God has already shown us. Over these next few times I am up there, I want us to not just know the mission, but live it out together.
So, like I said, when I am up here, we will be going through our church mission, starting today with Love God, in 2 John, and how we will do each of these things, how we should be walking as Christians in this “in between” time.
I want to give a little background on 2 John just to set some context for us, it’s only 13 verses so I feel like some of us might be familiar with the book but not know it super well.
There is a little bit of controversy about who wrote the book because it does not explicitly say; however, we see in verse 1 that this is from “the Elder,” and most scholars believe, and my personal conviction is that this is written by John, a disciple of Jesus, the same man who wrote the gospel of John. One of the big supporting arguments is that a lot of the same language is used in 2 John as the gospel of John, one of them being how John addresses himself, one of my favorite verses in the Bible comes in
John 20:2-4
So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
We also see in verse 1 that the letter is written to “the elect lady and her children.” Again, there is some debate on who this is written to; did we just happen to stumble across a love letter from John to his wife and kids?! I don’t think so. Most likely, this book is written to a specific local church, the wife, we see many images around scripture of the church being referred to as feminine. And it’s children, being the members of the congregation, and to all other Christians, including us.
And today, just covering verses 1-3 of 2 John, the greeting, I feel like it’s easy, at least for me, to say, “It’s just the greeting.” I don’t need to pay any attention to that! We can tend to skip over these verses because we don’t think they are saying anything substantial, but they are! And I hope this morning we can unpack what God is saying to us, through John here.
So we are going to talk about loving God today, and not just loving God, but loving God in truth. That is our main theme for this Sermon today. We see this word truth pop up 4 times in the first three verses, and anytime a word is repeated that much, it is worth paying attention to. Hearing the word truth so much in a section of scripture about loving God reminded me of the Woman at the well. In John’s gospel, we see a Samaritan woman come to get water from Jacob’s well, where Jesus asks the Samaritan woman for a drink. She is surprised because Jews and Samaritans didn't associate with each other, and she came at midday to avoid other villagers due to her poor reputation (she had been married five times). Jesus reveals his knowledge of her past and offers her "living water," promising eternal life.
And then says in verses 23 and 24
But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
John 4:23-24
Worship God or Love God, in Spirit and Truth.
This melding of spirit and truth in worship is summed up well by Jonathan Edwards, the 18th-century American pastor and theologian. He said,
“I should think myself in the way of my duty to raise the affections [emotions] of my hearers as high as possibly I can, provided that they are affected with nothing but truth.”
Edwards recognized that truth and only truth can properly influence the emotions in a way that brings honor to God. The truth of God, being of infinite value, is worthy of infinite worship or love.
Loving God begins with knowing the truth, leads to enjoying the truth, and continues in abiding in the truth. So I want to ask the question,
What does it really mean to love someone, or love God?
Some of you know my fiancée, Megan. I would definitely say that I love Megan, and if you were to ask me to describe Megan to you, I would say she is about 6 feet tall, blonde hair, blue eyes, played basketball in college, works in sales, and HATES coffee and Coke Zero…
And if I were to say that, you would say to me, Jack, you definitely don’t love Megan because she is about 5’6, brown hair with some blonde highlights, green eyes, played softball in college, works as a nurse, and LOVES coffee and Coke Zero.
When Megan and I first started dating, I thought I knew everything about her. We would talk on the phone for hours and hours, so after just a few months, I thought I knew pretty much everything there is to know about her, and then I learned just how wrong I was about some of the details. I realized that to really love her, I needed to know her, and that doesn’t just happen overnight. The same is true in our relationship with God. We can’t love Him deeply if we don’t truly know who He is.
How can we truly love someone if we do not know them? The same goes for our friends, our children, our coworkers, and especially our God.
Yes, loving and worshiping God comes from the spirit, an internal attitude, not an outward performance or some ritual. Worship that comes from the heart, spirit, and a relationship with God. However, it also comes from truth, a correct understanding of God and his character. Worship and Love that is grounded in the real and true God.
Our first of 3 points today on how we should better love God in truth
Know the Truth
Well, first, what is truth? Pilot asks Jesus this question while he is on trial in
John 18:37-38
Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” 38 Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”
John begins this letter by saying “I love you in truth”
John’s love for who he is writing to is genuine and grounded in the truth of Christ, but it is not just about sincerity; it is about a shared belief. John’s love is “in the truth,” meaning it flows from a common understanding of who Jesus is and what He has done.
And this Truth, in Scripture, isn’t an opinion or perspective.
It’s absolute, eternal, unchanging, rooted in the character of God and embodied in Christ Himself. We see in John 14:6, Jesus says the famous words “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
Arthur Holmes, an English philosopher, once said, “All truth is God’s truth.” So to know truth is to know God, and to reject truth is to reject Him. That’s why loving God starts here, with a right knowledge of who He is. Our love for God cannot rise higher than our understanding of His truth.
So, what is truth? Truth is knowing God! Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. John 17, eternal life is to KNOW God 3 And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
We can’t love a God we don’t truly know. So, Study His Word. Let scripture and his words fuel your devotion to worshiping God. Don’t settle for vague spirituality; love God with a well-informed faith. Study the word with friends! Go through the books of the Bible together! If you don’t know where to start, ask, if you have questions, ask!
We have a living, breathing word from our God, the creator of the universe and everything in it, to not read it daily and desire to grow in His truth is wasting a gift from God.
Maybe that means setting aside just ten minutes each morning this week to read a psalm and ask, “What does this teach me about who God is?” Or joining a small group where you can ask questions of each other and talk about scripture openly. Maybe for some, you could try memorizing one verse that reminds you of God’s truth. Small habits like these may seem simple, but over time, they build a heart that loves God deeply.
As I said before, our affection for God will only rise as high as our understanding of Him. The more you know His Word, the more you’ll love His heart. The more you grasp His holiness, the more you’ll adore His mercy. Loving God begins with knowing who He really is.
Ask yourself the question:
Am I growing in the knowledge of God through His Word?
How can I grow in my understanding of God today?
Is my love for God shaped by truth or by convenience?
Again, I want to make sure no one is hearing that we only need to focus on the intellectual side of our faith, for some people I know that is very easy, but for some, I know that is hard. It's like going to the gym, some people love lifting heavy theology, and others are just trying not to pull a muscle opening their Bible.
We need both spirit and truth, but loving God starts by rightly knowing his word and his character.
But what flows from knowing God’s truth is
2. Enjoying the Truth!
God is meant to be ENJOYED. On Thursday morning, I was at coffee with my men’s small group. I was giving them a little outline of my sermon and got to this section that we get to enjoy the truth, and Mike Rippee said, “You know, up until a few years ago, I had never heard of the concept of enjoying God,” and what a bummer it is to have missed that for so much of my life. And I think Mike is probably not alone in that; maybe today is even the first time that you are hearing the concept that God is meant to be enjoyed.
If we understand knowing God as knowing him rightly and a real relationship with him, we get to enjoy that from God, and John describes that in verse 3 as
“Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love.”
John moves from knowing God to enjoying him! The foundation of truth is the blessings that flow from truth. Truth isn't cold or distant; it brings joy, comfort, and peace! We all enjoy things: a good cup of coffee, a great TV series, or finding an open Chick-fil-A drive-thru on a road trip. But the kind of joy that comes from knowing God doesn’t fade when the episode ends or the fries run out. Notice that he says Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father. It is a promise, not a wish.
He shows us that Grace, Mercy, and Peace are compliments of truth, the things that we get to enjoy if we truly know God.
Grace is God doing for us what we do not deserve (unmerited favor and divine kindness).
Hebrews 4:16
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Mercy is God not doing to us what we do deserve (God’s compassion, pity, and tenderness).
Titus 3:5-7
He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness. Still, according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Peace
Romans 5:1
Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
I think the best example of learning how to receive peace from God in my life is from about 4 or 5 years ago. It was the summer before my senior year of college, and I was getting my degree in business administration, but I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do. I really just knew I wanted to stay in Boise after graduation.
That summer I worked at a Younge Life camp for about a month, it was a blast, one of my favorite summers of my life, I got to become really good friends with some of the other college students that were on staff. My job was to work on the go karts, and we would HAVE to test them out every morning by racing them around, I know, such a bummer.
But we had these other workers that were there the whole summer interning at the camp and I got to know the guy who was in charge of the go karts pretty well, we had similar interests and both going into our senior years of college, both not really knowing what we were going to do afterwards.
I remember near the end of that month, he and I were talking after dinner one evening, and I was telling him how, honestly afraid I was, that I had no clue what I was going to do. Did I just waste a summer not getting an internship? I told him a lot about the youth group at my church back in Boise and how much I enjoyed volunteering there, and I said sometimes I have these thoughts about doing full-time ministry, but doesn't everyone have those thoughts?
And all he told me was “Jack, why would you be scared to trust God, that should give you so much comfort that you don’t have to make this decision and do this on your own. That God has a plan for you that is greater than you could ever imagine, and all you have to do is trust him and he will bring you peace.”
And I started reading Proverbs 3:5-6 and John 14:27 over and over again.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 14:27
I learned what it meant to trust God and receive his peace in a whole new way. And at the end of the camp, that intern, his name is Jacob, he wrote me a letter that I opened when I got home and he said how much fun he had getting to become friends with me, how he hopes to visit Boise and golf soon, and at the end, the pursue the Lord passionately and not to forget about the friends I made there when I am leading a youth group someday.
It was maybe the first time that I understood what it meant to pursue God and enjoy, specifically the peace that he gives us.
For us to love God, we must first know him and then enjoy the things that he offers to us, his followers.
John Piper’s most famous quote sums this up well
“God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.”
Joy in God is not optional; it’s essential to true worship. To love God is to enjoy Him. The difference between every other religion and our relationship with God is delight, delight in a personal relationship with God! Other religions obey out of duty; A relationship with Jesus obeys out of joy.
We don’t honor God by serving Him with a grim face. We honor Him by showing that He is better than everything else. The goal of truth is joy.
So ask yourself:
When was the last time I simply enjoyed being in His presence?
Does my heart take joy in God, or just relief in His forgiveness?
Before we get to number 3, I did want to point out something quickly, which I think is cool.
Let’s look at how John closes his greeting here in the end of verse 3
That Grace, Mercy, and Peace are from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father's Son, in truth and love.
John repeats “from” here to emphasize God the Father and Jesus the Son as both equal and distinct as God. If God the Father was higher than Jesus, John might have said from God the Father, and then Jesus, or something like that.
Trinitarianism is a big topic for another sermon, but I do think it is important to point out that John is mentioning both God the Father and Jesus the Son as distinct yet one, different in role but one in divinity.
Our last point today, after we know the truth, we can enjoy the truth, then we
3. Abide in the Truth
This order is important: we cannot truly enjoy God unless we first know Him. Without knowing Him, we may think we are enjoying God, or we may find pleasure in other things, but it will not be genuine. In the same way, we cannot abide in the truth unless we first know the truth and learn to enjoy it.
Abide means “Dwelling with, to remain, continue, a relationship with”.
Some of us can abide in a TV show for 8 straight hours. Netflix even has a skip the intro option!! Or on Instagram or hobbies. But abiding in God’s Word for 8 straight minutes feels like a test.
John says in verse 2 of 2 John:
because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us forever:
Knowing God and enjoying God do not mean as much or carry the same weight if it does not sustain and last.
Truth from God is not temporary; we see in
Psalm 1:1-3
Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
3 He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
This blessed man that is being described here is one who abides in Christ.
And John, back in his gospel, says in chapter 8 verses 31-32
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
What does that mean to abide in Christ?
It means to let Christ, the Truth Himself, shape every part of your life. It is more than just enjoying him one time and then going back to your own ways, it is enjoying him and being with him forever.
Andrew Murray was a South African writer that wrote the book Abide in Christ, a fitting title, and said “Abiding in Jesus is nothing but the giving up of oneself to be ruled, taught, and led, and so resting in the arms of everlasting love.”
We often are resistant to being ruled, taught or led but when we truly know and enjoy Jesus, the truth, we are able to rest in what he has done for us.
Abiding in Christ produces fruits of the spirit
Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
John reassures his readers that no false teaching, no cultural shifts can uproot what God has planted. The truth “will be with us forever” because Jesus will be with us forever.
We are able to Abide in truth because of what God did to bring us back into relationship with him through his son Jesus.
Even though we have sinned against him, turned our backs and followed our own way, God still sent his son Jesus to die for our sins and bring us back into relationship with God so that we can know God, enjoy God, abide in God and LOVE God forever!
That is truth worth abiding in and giving up everything for.
What are things you can do today to abide in Jesus?
Stay rooted. Keep returning to Scripture. Returning to community
Let truth be not just what you know, but how you live. Every day
Conclusion
As we wrap up this morning before we get a chance to sit and respond, I want to remind you that this is the first part of this series through 2 John where we are going to cover our church's mission statement: Love God, Love others and make disciples of Jesus.
I hope we remember today that you can’t love what you don’t know. You won’t enjoy what you don’t trust. You can’t abide in what you don’t believe. That’s why John begins this letter right here: Love God, in truth.
Our Mission to Love God is a relationship with him, not just love his words or an emotion or a feeling towards him. But Loving God in truth is about knowing him rightly, continuing to want to know him more and building our relationship with him.
Know the truth
Love God with our mind
Be in the word daily!
Pray to him often!
If you have questions ask!
Take notes during sermons
Learn about God in community
Enjoy the truth
Love God with your heart
Let His grace, mercy, and peace bring joy
Delight in Him above all else.
Abide in the truth
Love God with your life
Let Christ’s truth guide your decisions
Your relationships
Your work
Your rest
Let His Spirit produce fruit in you.
This week, I challenge you to take one of these steps and make it personal. Spend time really knowing God, not just hearing about Him. Let yourself enjoy Him, not just obey Him. And begin to abide in Him, letting His truth shape every part of your life.
Because here’s the promise: the truth of God is not temporary. It is eternal. It abides with us, in us, and through us. And as we live in that truth, we grow in love for the One who first loved us.
I am going to invite the band up here to play some instrumental music while we take a minute or two just to sit and reflect in what God has done for us today.
