2 John 5-6

 “But now I ask you, lady (not as if I were writing a new commandment to you, but the one we have had from the beginning), that we love one another. (Now this is love: that we walk according to his commandments.) This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning; thus you should walk in it.”

— ‭‭2 John‬ ‭1‬:‭5‬-‭6‬‬

Commandment and loving others seems parallel throughout John’s writings, whether gospel or letters. 

John’s opponents had wrong view of Jesus, proto-Gnosticism, and some practical ways to identify were their hatred for believers and leaving the church. See 1 John 2 and 3. 

Here John reemphasizes that these believers had heard from beginning (presumably from Jesus or apostles ministry) that sacrificial love was essential.

Matthew 7:24-27

 ““Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them is like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the flood came, and the winds beat against that house, but it did not collapse because it had been founded on rock. Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the flood came, and the winds beat against that house, and it collapsed; it was utterly destroyed!””

— ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭24‬-‭27‬‬

Clearly correlation between knowing/believing and obeying. 

“Words of mine” is the sermon as whole, or Jesus’ reinterpretation of Torah. New kingdom ethics.

Living as citizen of kingdom is way of wisdom.

Sermon classifies as wisdom literature. Yes commands but this is classic wisdom language. 

James has echoes of sermon throughout James and he has this portion in chapter 1. Doers of word…