NOTES for Jo2 1:3-9

Today the apostle John reminds us of a rather unpleasant possibility: it turns out that everything we labor over in the Church, our relationship with God, can all be lost. One so wants to sit down and relax... but one cannot. The apostle John says that in order not to lose what has been attained, one must watch oneself. How can this be? Grace is given forever, and God does not take back His gifts... This is true, but not the whole truth. There is not only He who is unchanging, but also we who change, and not always for the better. This is what John is talking about: one must constantly check one's inner state against the basic criterion - His commandments