Today we’ll take a look at three themes from the books of 2 & 3 John. Two of these themes work well to summarize the two major themes of 1 John.

The most important theme in all of John’s books is that of Christology; John is writing in order that you have a right understanding of who Jesus is and what He has done.

Christ Jesus, the Son of God, has done the work of salvation for us with His life and His death. At every moment of His life, He lived a perfect and holy life according to the commandments and will of God; And then He dies a sacrificial death in our place and for our sins. In Him your sins are forgiven; you are declared righteous and holy in God’s eyes. Salvation is by Christ alone, through faith alone, because of God’s grace alone.

For the Apostle John, this is the most important thing. Understanding and believing the truth about Jesus is everything! You could say that all of John’s writings are written in order that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing in Him you will have life in His Name (John 20:31).

A second theme in these two books of 2 & 3 John is that of love for your neighbor. God has loved us in His Son Jesus, and in response, we love one another.

For the Apostle John, loving your neighbor is the most important sign of faith. We love others because God has first loved us in His Son Jesus Christ. In faith, and as a fruit of the Holy Spirit, we can love others with a self-sacrificing kind of love. You can be patient and kind with other people. You can obey His commandments when it comes to your interactions with other people. Jesus said, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35)

These two themes — accurate Christology and loving one another are the two major themes woven throughout John’s epistles.

May you learn, study, and understand Biblical Christology; and may you always love your neighbor as Christ has loved you. Amen!