Those who know the truth, love in truth.

2 John 1 The elder to the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in truth; and not only I, but also all who know the truth, We begin our study through John’s second epistle today with a profound encouragement to live to love with Jesus. The elder is the apostle John and the chosen lady and her children are more than likely personifications of a community of believers who recognized his eldership. The letter has no personal addresses, and plural pronouns indicate John had a group of people in mind. With that said, we take our encouragement today from the relationship John described between he, other believers, and the church. He wrote that he loved them in truth, meaning in reality, but he used an article the truth at the end of this verse and beginning of the second verse, so he could have and probably was stating the quality that unified them—namely, the truth that Jesus Christ is God in flesh who has united them in love. We remember that John recorded Jesus saying, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” in John 14:6. Jesus is the reality of God in human form. All who believe are “in” that great truth—really. Not only are those beloved of Christ Jesus loved by John, they are also loved by everyone who knows Jesus in truth. It is the love for Jesus and the love of Jesus that unites all true believers. The community of believers should be known by their love for one another because they believe in Jesus as the Christ. John will state that explicitly in this letter, in verse 5. As we learned from 1 John 4:19. We love each other because He first loved us. The beloved of God love God by loving each other with Jesus. May we be filled today with the love of God for our brothers and sisters in Christ whom our Father puts in our paths. If you are married to a believing spouse, then he or she should be the first in the line of those you have the privilege to love. Do you have believing children? Then they are in the line. Hopefully you have work associates who are children of God who are loved because they also are in the truth. May we enjoy living to love with Jesus today as we remember: those who know the truth, love in truth.