Today I start a new blog with the joy of digging into a new portion of Scripture. John, the disciple of Jesus wrote the Gospel of John and also the Book of Revelation. But between these two mammoth texts, he also wrote three letters. The first letter tends to get good air time. But how many of us have read, or even studied, or even heard extensive preaching on 2 John and 3 John? That's part of my motivation. These two little letters have been sadly neglected by 'yours truly' and possibly by you. So let's correct that. What's the big deal about 2 John? We get sense of that by reading it through. It doesn't take long. There are thirteen verses.
Well we could summarize the letter by saying that the letter says something of Christians loving one another but at the same time Christians are not to accept those who teach wrong things about Jesus Christ. Let's dig in by looking at just two words. The letter starts this way: Ὁ πρεσβύτερος ἐκλεκτῇ κυρίᾳ καὶ τοῖς τέκνοις. I point you to the original language to note that like our English bibles translate it, the letter starts with these simple words: The elder (Underlined in the Greek phrase.)
That word πρεσβύτερος is pronounced in English, 'pres·boo·ter·os' meaning, presbyter or elder. Scholars are confident that the author is John. "The style, diction, and content of 2 John mark it as written by the same author as 1 John and the Gospel of John. This author has been traditionally identified as the apostle John, son of Zebedee, and no more plausible ascription has been proposed." [1]. So why would an apostle (one of the infamous Twelve) refer to himself in the salutation of this letter as simply: The Elder? "'Elder' was a common term for pastoral leaders of local congregations in the early church. In calling himself 'the elder,' John is simply affirming his pastoral role, as Peter also does ('fellow elder,' 1 Pet. 5:1)," [2]
[Note below further discussion about the relationship of elders and pastors.] [3]
This teaches us a couple important things -- not the least we should recognize the transition that at least two of the original Twelve expressed in their lives. As the Gospel went out into the world and people were saved, churches started. These churches over time must have taken on a degree of form and substance. One of the major changes was that elders were appointed as spiritual leaders of the congregation instead of the Apostles. There is no hint of priests or even the Twelve. A plurality of elders now served the church. But secondly we should recognize that this John who had been given a unique and impressive calling with great authority, is not writing on the basis of his apostolic position, but on the basis of his mature and heart-felt concern for the flock of God.
Lastly, this author was known to the recipients. He simply had to introduce himself as The Elder. For those of us who are pastors, we recognize the deep affection and trust in those words. When the Church simply refers to you as "pastor"; when you kindly reflect on the wonder, that in God's grace, you get to be their "pastor;" what a blessing this is! There is no title that evokes the same feeling of love and affection as "pastor". Some call the same person "preacher". Some call him "reverend". But there is no more biblical and no more pregnant title in Scripture of the one who loves, feeds, cares for and seeks to nourish the Church than simply "Pastor".
Father, I have had the deep and abiding honor of being called Pastor now for these 25 years. The honor bounces in two directions. One is that ultimately Jesus Christ is the Shepherd of His Church and I am simply an under-shepherd -- and under-pastor. I am not an associate. I am not a partner. I am a servant of Christ Jesus. He is my Pastor. He is our Pastor. But secondly the honor goes elsewhere because I am truly only a pastor when I am truly pastoring. I am neither a professional, nor am I a CEO. I am not a coach nor am I a strategic leader. I am a pastor. Help me today to keep that focus. Help me today to really be who I am. May my joy of pastoring, manifest the great Shepherd of the sheep. May He alone receive the glory and the praise. Amen.
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1. Whitlock, L. G., Sproul, R. C., Waltke, B. K., & Silva, M. (1995). The Reformation study Bible: Bringing the light of the Reformation to Scripture: New King James Version (2 Jn 1). Nashville: T. Nelson.
2. Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (2439). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
3. Elders (v. 1) are entrusted with the responsibility to shepherd the flock (Gk. poimainō, “to tend sheep; to act as a shepherd”; cf. John 21:16; Acts 20:28; Eph. 4:11), from which the English verb and noun “pastor” is derived (Latin pastor means “shepherd”). Elders are also entrusted with exercising oversight (translating Gk. episkopeō), which is the verb form of the noun “overseer” (Gk. episkopos), which is another title for those who serve as elders (cf. Acts 20:28). The terms “shepherd” and “exercising oversight” emphasize the function of elders (i.e., they are to feed and watch over “the flock”), while the title “elder” focuses on the office. [Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (2412). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.]
