How Are the Letters of John Relevant to Us Today?
- Sarah Frazer Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer
- Updated Apr 28, 2022
When I was a little girl, I went to a Bible camp. At the end of the week, all the girls in our cabin exchanged mailing addresses. Because I was a budding writer and wanted a pen pal so bad, I wrote to every single girl on that list.
After a few weeks, I got a few responses, but only one girl continued to write back months later. I’m not sure if she kept my letters but I kept all of hers! I recently sent her a message and asked if we could exchange our letters as my kids would probably love to see what I wrote as a 10, 11, and 12-year-old. And I’m sure her kids would love to see her letters, too.
Letter writing isn’t as common as it was then, but even twenty-five years ago letter writing was the same as it was two thousand years ago. During the time after Jesus’ birth, ministry, death, and resurrection, letter writing was more than a means of communication. It is one of the ways God used to spread the Good News of the Gospel.
How do these letters impact our lives today? And specifically, how are the letters of the apostle John completely relevant to our modern world? As we take a sweeping overview of the three letters of John, I hope you will that although they were written 2000 years ago we can find so much truth, hope, and insight into our world today.
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Background of 1, 2, 3 John
The author of these three short letters is the Apostle John. He is also known as the Beloved Disciple, one of the Sons of Thunder (Mark 3:17), and John, son of Zebedee. We first meet John in Matthew 4:21-22. He, his brother, and Peter have been fishing all night and caught no fish. Jesus calls out to them from the shore to put their nets on the other side of the boat. They do it and suddenly they have caught hundreds of fish! This is one of Jesus’ first miracles and probably what caught John’s attention to the Messiah. It could be also that John was a disciple of John the Baptist. (John 1:35-42a)
John was one of the three disciples Jesus chose to stay close to Him throughout His earthly ministry. Peter, James (John’s brother), and John are considered part of the “inner circle” of Jesus while on earth. At Jesus’ crucifixion, John was the only one to stay by Jesus’ side at the cross. After Jesus’ resurrection, He raced Peter to the tomb. John was the first to enter to see the empty tomb. After Jesus’ ascension into heaven and during the beginnings of the church, John stayed in Rome to be a pillar in the early church. (Galatians 2:7-9)
John is writing to three different audiences. For 1 John the audience is the general church, scattered throughout the world. Second & third John reference two specific people. An “elect lady” is probably a woman hosting a church in her home. The second is a man in leadership in a church named Gaius.
These letters were probably written when John was very old, maybe even from the island of Patmos. John was exiled to this island as a punishment for preaching about Jesus. Knowing that John was probably older, almost ready to die, affects how we read these letters. As we grow nearer to death, we want those around us to remember not just us, but what is most important to us. John wants his readers to know these things we find here. These are the most important things to John at the end of his long life.
1 John 1:4-5 says “And these things we write to you that your joy may be full. This is the message which we have heard from Him.”
1 John 5:13 says “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.”
John shares this particular message so that they will know the information they have heard from John and the other apostles is true. Not only that the believers (and us) can know John’s message is the truth, but in that truth, we can have confidence and continue believing!
What Is Truth?
False teaching and those that teach something other than the gospel from the apostles is a key idea to remember. The themes are all centered around the idea that these false teachers should leave, but also that we should be confident in the apostle’s teaching. Be confident that what we believe is indeed the truth. How? We walk in the light. We love our brothers and sisters in Christ. This is the “proof” we need in order to have the assurance that we indeed have the truth.
When my Sunday School class went through the book of John almost 10 years ago, I remember our pastor, who was our teacher, said this: “What do you believe about God today?” As Christians, it is common to doubt our salvation. Are we really saved? Do we really have the truth? When those thoughts come, I ask myself, “What do I believe about God today?” And then I read 1 John. This letter (and the other two) was written so we can have the assurance of our salvation. We do not have to dwell on our doubts. When they come, we can speak truth to ourselves.
Today our modern world questions truth. Things that have been long accepted as truth, like what is a woman and what is a man, are no longer accepted as truth. For the world today, even within the Christian circle sometimes, truth is whatever we want it to be. We want the truth to make us feel good. Truth does not have a solid foundation anymore in our world. So, let’s look at John’s letters to build our foundation.
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3 Truths to Build Your Life On
John’s letters point us in the right direction to find real truth. Here are three things John talks about in his letters that we must build our faith on. The first is the idea of light. John talks a lot about light and darkness.
1 John 2:8 says Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.
God’s kingdom is one found in the light. Satan’s kingdom is associated with darkness. As we read, we see that the ideas of love and hate reflect the two different kingdoms. Which will we belong to? There is no middle ground when it comes to God and the Gospel. You are either an enemy or a friend.
Many people would like to believe in Jesus and something else. Or some people would like to say they believe there are many ways to God. According to the Bible, you cannot ride the fence. The truth is we must pick a side. There are two forces at play in this world. God is part of the kingdom of light. We can trust this to be true.
The second truth is that the only way to experience and know love is through God. Today love is found around every corner in our world. Love is found in food, drink, people, or adventure. Love is not any of those things nor can we expense love outside the realms of God’s design.
1 John 3:16 says, “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”
1 John 4:7 says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.”
Not only do we know love through God we learn how to love others from God. 1 John 3:23 says, “And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.”
One of the ways you can know you are in the truth is how you love others. Is there bitterness? Is there a separation between you and other believers? God says this is not truth. This is not the way to God. Loving others is the way to find God.
Finally, John also talks about the idea of abiding in Christ. This idea of “abiding” is found throughout all of John’s writings, especially in John 15. It means we are dwelling or finding our home in Christ. How do we do this?
3 Ways to Abide in Christ
First, we love others. 1 John 2:10 says, “He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.” So, loving each other, especially other Christians, shows we are abiding.
Next, we continue to believe. 2 John 1:6 says, “His is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.” We continue to believe the truth. That’s right. Truth doesn’t change, but we can. And we might shift our thinking, but John warns us. Don’t shift from the truth. Keep believing what you heard from the beginning. What is that? What the apostles taught. What Jesus taught.
Finally, we obey God’s commands. 1 John 3:24 says, “Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this, we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.” We not only love other Christians and keep believing the truth, but we should also do what God commands. Do you want to know what God wants for your life? Do what you do know. By this I mean, you know some basic things like read your Bible and pray. Serve in your church and witness to your neighbors.
True Christians must stand firm on the idea that there is one truth, and we can know that truth. Scholars and theologians have tried to dissect the Bible to pull out the “truth” they want to see by ignoring the parts of the Bible they don't’ like. Truth must be what we anchor our hearts on because feelings and changes in society will try to topple our beliefs. Truth can be a solid foundation when building our Christian life.
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