1. Letters of John An Overview

2. Occasion for the Letters  Trouble in a Congregation:  Leadership Disputes tied to Conflicting Teachings:  “The Elder,” Gaius, Demetrius, and the Church vs.  Diotrephes, False Teachers, Former Allies, “Antichrists”  Probably somewhere in Asia Minor not too far from Ephesus

3. Literature of the Correspondence 3333 John: CCCCover letter to Gaius commending Demetrius who represents “The Elder” 2222 John: IIIIntroductory letter to the congregation encouraging faithfulness 1111 John: BBBBrief teaching about correct and incorrect theologies

4. Relation to the Gospel of John  Very similar:  Similar vocabulary  Many nearly identical statements & phrases  Same worldview  Very likely the same author  So who is “The Elder”? Usual choices:  The Apostle John himself  His successor who carried on John’s ministry  Where was it written?  Oldest attestation is in Asia Minor  Likely from John the Apostle, from Ephesus, around 80 (prior to Patmos exile) or 97 (after Patmos) A.D.

5. What Is the Heretical Teaching?  We don’t have the actual heretical writings  So we need to read it backwards through John’s main points of emphasis:  Continuity between Old & New Testament Ages (1:1-4)  Recent new revelation (Jesus) (1:2-3)  Only one God, unified in character (1:5)  Reality of sin (1:6-10)  Reality of blood atonement (1:7, 2:1)  Unity of Theology & Ethics (2:3-6)  Necessity of physical concern for others (2:9-11)  Need to deny worldly desires that plague us (2:15-17)  Necessity of love expressed in relationships (3:10-15, 4:21)  Reality of Jesus’ atoning death (3:16, 4:10)  Identity of the Holy Spirit as one with the Father & Son (3:21-4:6)  Jesus is flesh & blood (4:2, 5:6-8)

6. What Is the Heretical Teaching?  John seems to be reacting to early Gnosticism  What are the features of Gnosticism?  Cosmological dualism:  Physical = bad  Spiritual = good  Non-relational (impassive, unchanging) transcendent deity  World created by the Demiurge  Old Testament god is bad, like or derived from Demiurge  Most humans are evil joke: divine spark (good) trapped in human flesh (evil)  Jesus comes to release us

7. What Is the Heretical Teaching? WWWWhat are the features of Gnosticism? BBBBut since Jesus is spirit (divine, good), either: DDDDocetism (Jesus only seemed to become flesh) AAAAdoptionism (Human Jesus was adopted for ministry time by deity through infusion of divine spirit—received at baptism, released at crucifixion) HHHHuman need: KKKKnowledge (“gnosis”) by way of a transcendent teacher (Jesus?) RRRRituals of purification to transcend evil flesh, purify spirit RRRRelease (by death) of divine spark HHHHow should humans deal with current situation? WWWWe cannot transform (evil) flesh, so we might as well allow gross sensuality WWWWe should not try to help others, for that is deceptive (masking fleshly evil) BBBBesides, if we “know” and they don’t, we are better and they can’t be helped

8. So What Is the Point of John’s Instruction?  The God of the Old Testament is the true Creator God  There is no cosmological dualism  Evil is an intrusion, not co-eternal with good  Jesus actually came in flesh and blood  This counters Gnostic ideas about the Teacher  This is the critical test of which teaching is true  Since God cares about us as flesh and blood, we ought to care about each other  Salvation is both physical and spiritual  Love is the highest moral good, and the expression of “Light” over against “Darkness”

9. Auxiliary Note: “The Gospel of Judas”  Found near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, the site of a colony of Gnostics (including Gnostic library)  Clearly a Gnostic retelling of Jesus’ Last Supper  Judas is the only disciple truly aware of Jesus’ identity and fully understanding his teachings  Jesus needs Judas to release him (Jesus) from his physical prison (his body)  Jesus and Judas have secret conversations that the others cannot hear and do not understand  Judas will be reviled by the others for his “betrayal,” but he will be honored by those who truly “know”