1

The First Letter of St. John

Chapters 2 and 3

2

“My Little Children…”

τεκνιον teknion tek-nee'-on = darlings

Repeated 6 times in this letter and seems to show St. John’s pastoral responsibility and strong Christian love.

3

Conscious of our Sinfulness

St. Josemaría Escrivá: [Jesus] wants us to make an effort to climb a little each day. He seeks us out, just as He did the disciples of Emmaus…[He] is always waiting for us to return to him; He knows our weakness.

4

What is a Christian?6whoever says, “I abide in him,” ought to walk just as he walked.

St. John assumes that we all know how Jesus walked.

5

A “New” (old) Commandment

“I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34)

6

I Am Writing to You…

Writing:

Exhorting or insisting

The repetition bears out this meaning.

7

The AntiChrist is Coming

Jesus said to them in reply, “See that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and they will deceive many.” (Mt 24:4-5)

8

The AntiChrist is Coming

In the New Testament, the only use of the term “antichrist,” is in the Johannine epistles. 1 John 2:18 speaks of the antichrist who is the great enemy of God and, in particular, antichrists who precede that great enemy.

9

The AntiChrist is Coming

These antichrists were human teachers who had left the church. Such antichrists deny the incarnation (1 John 4:3) and Christ’s deity (1 John 2:2).

10

The AntiChrist is Coming

In 2 John 7, the antichrists are identified as deceivers who teach that Jesus Christ did not come in the flesh. The concept of the antichrist appears in the term “false Christ” (pseudo christos) (Matt. 24:24; Mark 13:22). 

11

The AntiChrist is Coming

Mark and Matthew apparently expected a Roman ruler to once again enter the Temple as did Antiochus and Pompey.

12

The AntiChrist is Coming

In Revelation 13:3, the beast from the sea is often viewed as an antichrist figure. There John may have looked for a return of the emperor Nero.

13

The AntiChrist is Coming

In 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, the antichrist figure is armed with satanic power and is fused with Beliar, a satanic being. In this passage the Roman government is viewed as restraining its power. In Revelation, the Roman caesar is the evil force.

14

Divine Filiation

The marvelous gift from God that makes us “children of god”.

15

Sin is Lawlessness

Man is a creature of God and is totally dependent of Him. Thus, sin is “pretentious” – ignoring God’s will to be more important than He.

16

Sin is Lawlessness

John does not mean that we are not capable of sin. Rather, he means that we cannot justify our own sin by claiming to be a child of God.

17

Brotherly Love

St. Augustine: “If you love your brother whom you see, you will also see God, because you will see charity and God dwells within it.”

18

Take Heart

God knows everything: Our sins and faults; but He also knows our repentance and good desires and He understands and forgives us.

19

Questions• What’s the difference between the world God

loves (Jn 3:16) and the world we are forbidden to love in 1 Jn 2:15-17?

• What is the anointing that teaches you everything? (2:26-27)

• Is the call to holiness something only saints can achieve?

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