II John 6 “And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.”
“And this is love.” The dictionary gives lots of words to define love. It’s hard to nail it down. Love is not by vocabulary; it’s by demonstration. Love is not something you say; it’s something you do. Love is not something we have but something we must be willing to give. It’s not something we attain but something we fall into. Love is who we are, what we have been made.
Think of the limits of our love before Christ. When we became a new creature in the Lord we received divine love. The miracle of salvation is that God made us a person of love. We have had diverse histories, but we are one because of God’s love in us. John tells us this. Verse 6 says as we’ve heard, we should walk. We are to walk after and follow God’s commandments. It is our response to the Word of God.
In his writings John often refers to the Word of God as Truth. Here he connects love with Truth. We were saved because of the Truth. The Bible was written by hands of holy men as they were inspired by the Lord. Jesus was Truth manifested in the flesh. He’s the key to understanding the Old Testament; he follows it through in the New Testament. JESUS is the NEW TESTAMENT. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell us all about Jesus. Acts is the evangelizing—all about Jesus. The epistles to Revelation give us the details of salvation. We learn how to get saved, how to live, and where we fit in time, space, and eternity.
Some books are written and sit on the shelf. There is only one book that has been perfect for every generation down through time. It’s as if the Bible was written for us today. It’s written for us, for the person in England, in China, in India and all over the world. By in large it is rejected, but in spite of that it remains the Truth. We have the choice to do what we want. When we perceive the Truth we share it with each other. Cultures are different; languages are different, yet the hardships, the anti-christs of this world can’t overcome the love in the Lord. The source of Truth is not in the writings of Plato or a government document. Truth begets the product of love. It’s disturbing and heart changing brought about by the destruction and reconstruction of us by the washing of the blood of Jesus. Love is a fruit of the Spirit and by it we have peace, joy, longsuffering, and the list goes on. By desiring Truth we have the opportunity to know and have love.
What has stood the test of time? LOVE! It’s the bond that forces evil, vanities, destruction and wickedness away. In Truth we remain in the light and show love. The sun provides light and gives us warmth. In Truth we will live in the light and see clearly through this world of darkness. What more can we attain in life beyond Truth and love, a love in innocence and respect in heart. We walk in love with God’s arms leading us through.
John said he has no greater joy than to hear the children walk in Truth. It will keep us until the Lord comes after us. I love the Lord not because I have to but because I want to. I thank God that he loves me, that he loves each of us.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 