Hi James and Ellen,
2 John is a letter that was penned by Apostle John. Apostle John penned this communiqué to urge and warn the guys and gals who were in house fellowships of Christ-followers in the city of Ephesus to exhort and caution each other. Between 85 A.D. and 95 A.D – which is when Apostle John penned his 2 John dispatch, evangelists and teachers were traveling throughout the region of Asia Minor imparting the new belief paradigm that Apostle John had personally witnessed being jumpstarted. This new dogma that Christ-follower evangelists and teachers were conveying and elucidating eliminated works from and it made faith the key to obtain eternal life. This new doctrinal path for being perpetually imbued with an interminable hope superimposed the mandates of the Mosaic Law which God – when He met with Moses on top of Mount Sinai, passed on through Moses to the Israelite people group guys and gals – who are His specially chosen guys and gals, over 1,500 years earlier. This emergent theological teaching focused on the life, death, resurrection and ascension into heaven of an incarnate man – Whose name is Jesus Christ. About three years before He was callously hung on and nailed to a cross, Jesus Christ began to arbitrarily select an eclectic band of guys to disciple. Fisherman John was one of the first of the twelve dudes who Jesus Christ – without any apparent rhyme or reason, chose to mentor. During the last three or so years that Jesus Christ spent meandering from one place to another in the land of Israel’s departments of Galilee, Samaria and Judea, disciple John became one of Jesus Christ’s closest companions. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ articulated through what He taught as being the way to hope. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ acted out His teachings through how He showed mercy on guys, gals and kids who were crippled, sick, orphaned, widowed, downtrodden, marginalized, etc. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ was betrayed for 30 pieces of silver by Judas Iscariot – who Jesus Christ chose to be one of His twelve disciples. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ – after Judas Iscariot did his act of disloyalty, was mercilessly whipped and unmercifully humiliated by Roman soldiers. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ – because of the incessant, angry clamoring of his very own Israelite/Jew people group of guys and gals was inhumanly hung on and nailed to a cross on which He suffered an agonizing death. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ – when it was clear after a soldier pierced Jesus Christ’s side with his sword that He had died, was entombed in Joseph of Arimathea’s never used before crypt. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ appeared in human form once again to guys and gals who knew Him. Disciple John was there when Jesus Christ ascended into heaven. Apostle John was there when God – as God the Spirit, arrived on planet Earth like the sound of a mighty rushing wind and as tongues of fire. Disciple John came to know Who Jesus Christ truly is – that He is the Lord and Savior of each guy, gal and kid who Jesus Christ’s Father – God the Father, before planet Earth was molded and centered in the universe elected/chose to adopt for the eternal enjoyment of His Son – God the Son.
Because Apostle John knew that there were guys diametrically opposed to the Good News teachings because of their perception that these teachings were heretical to the Torah, Apostle John used what became known as 2 John to warn Christ-follower guys and gals who read this one chapter memorandum to stay clear of these bogus teachers. Because Apostle John also knew that there were other guys who were trying to deceive Christ-follower guys and gals by using self-serving teachings in order to augment their personal pride through being given positional power and for personal gain through being given pecuniary gifts, Apostle John told his 2 John readers to not to welcome any of these guys into his or her house because if he or she did, that he or she would be sharing in the devious ways of the antichrist. Apostle John’s life bar was foundationally built on Jesus Christ. Apostle John let the truths that are central to the life and teachings of Jesus Christ drive what he did and said.
Something else that Apostle John knew was that during the time of being disciple John that he always felt unconditional love from his life coach – Jesus Christ. Because of being hardwired to be able to assimilate true love, Apostle John wanted every Christ-follower guy, gal and kid to experience this same heart-filling joy of knowing what it is like to be loved. Because Apostle John knew that true love can only be experienced through a mandate that he had heard His mentor probably mention over and over again – which is to proactively show authentic love to others, Apostle John took on love as his core mantra in his writings. Your grandpaa believes that when Apostle John penned in his letter to not to be hospitable to a misguided lecturer or maligning naysayer that Apostle John was not negating another Jesus Christ mandate – which was to always demonstrate sincere love, but that Apostle John in reality was encouraging tough love which is a love that stands up to and pushes back against an evil desire of a guy or gal. Harbingers today clearly indicate that just as God – as God the Father, over 2,700 years ago ravaged His specially chosen guys and gals because . . . God – as God the Father, is doing the same to United States – which started out as a God-centered nation, because so many guys and gals are now rejecting Apostle John’s admonitions.
2 John