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BIBLE
STUDY LESSON
For
the week beginning Sunday August 11, 2019
LIVE IN THE TRUTH
(Watch out for deceivers)
2 John
In
the Apostle John’s second letter to the Christian Church he expresses the need
for Christians to beware of false teachers and teachings that arise out of the
antichrist influence that has long existed in the world. In fact the antichrist
influence predates the creation of mankind, as satan himself, has inhabited the
earth since being ejected from Heaven by GOD the FATHER, long before HE created
any other living beings on this planet.
The purpose of this letter is to encourage
true Christians to continue in love, as well as to warn them against those
whose job is to deceive believers in matters concerning their faith. Here John
charges the believer not to participate in those evil things that deceivers
bring into the Church from the world, under the guise of saying that “they are
trying to attract people to CHRIST” by employing a “worldly familiarity”, or
method.
CHRIST does not have, recognize, or endorse
any worldly way of doing things, HE only recommends those GODly strategies that
are already laid out for the Church in biblical literature. There is no room
for “human ingenuity” in the Church (John 6:63b). Things that contradict the
SPIRIT of GOD should be left outside the Church when people join, and those who
pledge themselves to CHRIST must also pledge themselves to living “a changed
life” that coincides with the teachings of JESUS CHRIST, the LIVING WORD.
Those who choose to come to CHRIST must do
so by accepting the GODly idea of “katharisomen” into their spirit.
Katharisomen is a Greek term that means, “separation from all people and things
that defile”. It is a term that is discussed more in debt in 2 Corinthians
6:14-7:1. When we join the Church where Christ JESUS is the head, we make a vow
to change and no longer live as partners with those people that are intent on
doing and promoting the lifestyles that GOD deems as evil. We must come to the
Church, through the bible, as CHRIST had HIS disciples do in the first century,
and not, the other way around. HE taught them the true Word before HE ever sent
them to work in the Church, or to evangelize the world.
In the first century and beyond, heavy
persecution dictated the Churches use of “code words, or expressions” whenever
they communicated to each other in the various towns and cities where they had
established Christian congregations (mostly house churches in hidden
locations). Here in this letter, in verse one, we find the code words “favorite
mistress”, or “chosen lady”, in the Greek “eklektos kyria”, and her “children”,
in the Greek “teknon”, being used to hide the identity or exact location of the
church from those who sought to infiltrate it with worldly ideas and false
teachings, to the ends that the Church might be destroyed before it could take
roots. GOD does not wish for us to mix the “holy” with the “profane” (i.e.
“miming” with “praise dancing” in today’s Church), and the early Church went to
great lengths to keep that from happening.
John begins the letter (v.4) by expressing
his joy in how the newly founded church had been dedicating themselves to the
righteous living and truth that they had been introduced to through the Word of
GOD. Apparently John had recently met with some members of that particular
church, and wanted to express how pleased he was with their Christian behavior
in a public forum. He reminded the church to also stay in keeping with the
commandment of CHRIST JESUS that we “love one another”.
John also reminded the church of how some
had gone out of the church, who, did not truly believe their reports about
CHRIST, and were giving the world a bad impression of how true Christian really
behaved. They did not believe the “human example of perfection” that was
presented by CHRIST during HIS life here on earth, which was intended to show
the world that “Christianity really does produce the best men and women”. In
this letter, John urged the church to be diligent so that they might receive
the full reward that they had worked so hard for (v.8). He tells them that they
must never wander away from the teachings of CHRIST, and always keep their
fellowship with GOD, and CHRIST, intact (v.9).
In verse 10 John warns Christians that if
anyone comes to their church and does not teach the truth about CHRIST, don’t
even invite them into your house, or encourage them in any way. JESUS perfectly
obeyed GOD as a 100% human being and HIS very life tells us that we should too.
Anyone who encourages a deceiver, or false teacher, becomes a partner with them
in all their evil work.
All of the central teachings of
Christianity hinges on the 100% humanity and 100% deity of JESUS, our LORD. HE
is the one and only “Hypostatic Union”, and the only way to GOD. HE is the one
and only truth, and the one and only source of “eternal life”. No one, who
doesn’t teach the humanity and deity of JESUS CHRIST, can ever be held up as a
teacher of the Christian Faith.
A Sunday school lesson
by,
Larry D. Alexander
LARRY D. ALEXANDER- Official Website
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