Two Examples

A comedian shared a story some time ago about his first day of school, when his overprotective mother accompanied him to class.

As they entered the classroom, the mother flagged down the kindergarten teacher to give her instructions on how to instruct her son.

As she reached the long list of do’s and don’ts, the mother said, “There’s just one more thing.”

“What is it?” the teacher asked.

“If my little boy misbehaves, please punish the boy NEXT to him.”

“Why on earth would I do THAT?” the teacher asked, surprised.

“Well, my little boy learns by EXAMPLE,” the mother said.

We might all wish that our youthful punishments had been doled out to the person next to us.

But I think we can all agree — at least now that the kids aren’t here to object — that we would have failed to learn some important lessons in life if we’d not been directly disciplined for misbehaving when we were young.

And yet, there IS truth to the idea that we learn by example.

When I started work as a cub reporter at my first newspaper, I sat next to a grizzled old retired Marine. He’d been a journalist for the Marine Corps in the Vietnam, and he was now the lead reporter for this paper in Franklin.

I remember paying close attention to the kinds of questions he asked and to the notes he took during interviews. And then, I’d read his stories to see how he’d arranged all the information he’d gotten into coherent stories.

I learned much of what I know about being a journalist by watching HIM be a journalist.

I also learned much from the publisher at that paper. He was a character right out of central casting for old-fashioned journalists.

Three days a week, he would celebrate the paper getting onto the press with a glass or three of bourbon in his office. He used sexist and degrading terms for the women who worked in the building.

And, whenever it looked as if I might miss deadline, because I was learning to type while on the job, he’d stand behind my shoulder as I hunted around the keyboard and curse at me as loud as he could.

What I learned from him was NOT to be like him. Even though he published a good newspaper and was well respected in the industry, I knew I didn’t want to be the kind of boss he was whenever I moved up the ranks in that industry.

It’s been said that you can learn SOMETHING from ANYBODY. And my experience at that newspaper proved it was true. I learned from both the good example and the bad one.

Today, as we begin a new series of messages from the letters of the Apostle John, we’re going to see John put that principle into play as he writes about two different men in one Asian church near the end of the first century.

We’ll be spending most of the next several weeks looking at 1, 2, and 3 John. But we’re going to go backward, starting with 3 John. And there’s a couple of reasons for that.

First of all, 2 and 3 John provide some context for helping us get the full message of 1 John. In 1 John, we’re going to hear a lot about truth and love, and 2 and 3 John make important statements about the relationship between these two things.

Second, I think it’s likely that these three letters were written to an expanding circle of believers. The one we’ll study today — 3 John — was written to a believer named Gaius, who probably lived in the Roman province of Asia. Basically, what we know as western Turkey or Asia Minor today.

2 John seems to have been written to a particular church in that province — and very possibly to the church where Gaius worshiped.

And 1 John seems to have been intended to be circulated amongst all the churches of Asia Minor. So we’ll go from specific to general in our look at John’s letters.

And finally, we’re going to look at 3 John first, because there is an important message within it regarding the support of missionaries.

And during the next four weeks, our focus — in addition to these letters — will be on missions and evangelism.

We’ll hear from members of the Missions and Evangelism Committee next week about some of the ministries we support, both financially and through our hands-on efforts.

And on May 7, we’re going to hear from a Portugese missionary about his church-planting work in that European nation.

By then, we’ll have completed our look at 3 John and 2 John, and you’ll have seen one of the texts that endorses this church’s strong commitment to missionary support.

You’ll also have seen one of the texts that calls us to be discerning about who receives such support.

At the core of all of these messages will be the ideas of truth and love. So, before we read today’s passage, let’s make sure we understand what John means by these words.

For John, truth is the message of the gospel. The message that God Himself came in the person of His unique and eternal Son, Jesus, to live among us as a man, except without sin; that He gave Himself as a sacrifice at the cross, where He took upon Himself the sins of all mankind and their just punishment so that all who turn to Him in faith can have eternal life; that He was raised from the dead on the third day; that He ascended back to Heaven, where He sits at the right hand of His Father; and that He will return again one day to physically raise all who have followed Him in faith and take them with Him to heaven.

John quoted Jesus as saying, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” So, for John, Jesus is the ultimate truth. He is the truth against which all that claims to be truth is measured.

And, as we’ll see when we look at 1 John, for this Apostle, “love” is the very essence of God Himself — so much so that John could write this in 1 John 4:7-8.

1 John 4:7–8 NASB95

7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

Jesus, as the incarnated image of God, showed us in His every interaction here on earth what love looks like.

Biblical love isn’t simply an emotion, though emotion might be a part of it sometimes. Biblical love is a choice to seek the best for someone else, even if doing so might require a sacrifice on our part.

Biblical love chooses to love another, whether that person deserves it or not, and whether that person reciprocates or not.

This is the way Jesus loved, and this kind of love was on display for all the world to see as He hung on a cross, taking upon Himself the penalty for all our sins, including the sins of the very ones who nailed Him there.

So, with these definitions in mind, let’s take a look at today’s passage, beginning in verse 1 of 3 John.

3 John 1–4 NASB95

1 The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth. 2 Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. 3 For I was very glad when brethren came and testified to your truth, that is, how you are walking in truth. 4 I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.

It’s interesting to note that the words “love” and “truth” and their derivatives both appear seven times in this letter. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. John considers both love and truth to be foundational to the Christian walk. One cannot stand without the other.

Indeed, the message of this letter is that understanding and accepting the truth of the gospel should RESULT in the kind of love that Jesus demonstrated. “Brotherly love [— Christian love —] is the product of abiding in the truth.” [Tom Constable, Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Galaxie Software, 2003), 3 Jn 1.]

John talks about being encouraged to hear that Gaius has been walking in truth, in other words, in Christ. That Gaius has been living a life that reflects the character of Jesus.

And he talks about how much joy it brings him to hear of his children — in other words, those who have come to a saving knowledge of Jesus by John’s witness — walking in truth, reflecting the character of Jesus.

As a pastor, there is nothing that brings me greater joy than to see members of my flock walking in the truth. To see them not just learning more about Jesus but becoming more like Him. This is what brought joy to John regarding Gaius and some of the people of his church.

But John didn’t just make this general statement about Gaius walking in truth. He followed it with an example of how Gaius was doing that. Look at verse 5.

3 John 5–8 NASB95

5 Beloved, you are acting faithfully in whatever you accomplish for the brethren, and especially when they are strangers; 6 and they have testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God. 7 For they went out for the sake of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. 8 Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers with the truth.

When we are walking in truth and not just learning truth, we begin to act faithfully. In other words, we begin to act in a way that corresponds to our faith. We begin to do the things that Jesus modeled, the things He told us to do.

It’s one thing to be able to recite Bible verses or explain theological concepts or relate Bible stories. But it’s quite another thing to allow those verses and concepts and stories to CHANGE you and to motivate you to action.

Gaius seems to have been motivated to action by the things he had learned under John. In particular, as John writes here, he had supported the brethren, the itinerant preachers of the gospel who had visited his church, even those who were strangers to him.

In fact, Gaius had been so generous in his support that whenever those itinerant preachers had wound up back at John’s church — probably in Ephesus — they had told John just how generous Gaius had been.

They had told John how Gaius had demonstrated his love for Jesus and for them by giving them what they needed to continue their ministries.

He had sent them on their way in a manner worthy of God. In other words, he had blessed them in a manner that reflected the generous nature of God. As God had blessed Gaius, so he blessed these traveling preachers and missionaries.

And this was important, because as these early missionaries went out with the gospel, they couldn’t expect support from the Gentiles, from the unbelievers.

Indeed, they wouldn’t SEEK or ACCEPT help from unbelievers, because it is the CHURCH’S responsibility to spread the gospel.

This is one of the reasons I’m not a big fan of fundraisers to build the church’s missions funds — or to meet pretty much any other church need, for that matter.

Many of you will have noted that we haven’t held such fundraisers since I came aboard here.

I strongly believe that God will provide the means and the resources for us to do the work He gives us to do. For me, this is a matter of faith.

And I believe that we’ve seen during the past few years just what God can do with such faith. As you will hear next week, we are now spending more on missions and evangelism than this church has spent in a very long time.

We are now contributing 20 percent of this church’s annual income to missions and evangelism and have been doing so despite COVID, despite fewer people in the seats on Sundays, and without negative effects to the church’s budget. All the bills are getting paid. All the repairs are being made. All the checks clear the bank.

PRAISE THE LORD!

When we act faithfully by supporting the men and women who are sharing the gospel in Haiti or in Africa or with the Jews or with scared pregnant mothers, we are following the good example set by Gaius.

And when we do this, we become, as John puts it in verse 8, “fellow workers with (or for) the truth.”

There’s a sense in which our contributions to these worthy gospel efforts make us people who are working alongside the missionaries we support in their efforts to share the truth of a savior whose sacrifice at the cross brings forgiveness to all who believe in Him.

And, as John puts it here, that’s just what we OUGHT to be doing.

We may not all be able to hop on a plane and go to the ends of the earth — though I hope that some of you will join me in doing so within the next year or so. But we can all be part of that work by contributing to help send those who CAN go.

So, in Gaius, we see the positive example. Now, let’s look at the negative example. Look at verse 9.

3 John 9–10 NASB95

9 I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not accept what we say. 10 For this reason, if I come, I will call attention to his deeds which he does, unjustly accusing us with wicked words; and not satisfied with this, he himself does not receive the brethren, either, and he forbids those who desire to do so and puts them out of the church.

We don’t know who Diotrephes was, but it seems that he held some position of power — whether official or unofficial — in Gaius’ church.

There’s a very good chance that the thing John wrote that Diotrephes wouldn’t accept was the letter we know as 2 John.

As we’ll see in two weeks, in that letter, John calls on the church to demonstrate love and to be discerning about those it would support.

But Diotrephes had rejected John’s message. He spoke evil about John and the his associates. He refused to welcome those who came to this church with words of truth.

And he even went so far as to excommunicate the Christians there who wanted to support these traveling preachers of the gospel, the missionaries who visited that church.

Now, there is a place for discernment when it comes to supporting missionaries and others who might want the church’s attention. In fact, that’s a big part of what John talks about in 2 John.

But Diotrephes wasn’t exercising discernment. He was exercising pride.

Do you see it there in verse 9? He loved to be first among the church. He demanded his OWN way, and he was willing to hurt others to get it.

This is the OPPOSITE of Christian love. And it was evidence that Diotrephes was not walking in truth.

John didn’t accuse this man of not being a follower of Christ. He may very well HAVE been a Christian. But he wasn’t ACTING like one.

And in failing to ACT like the Christ whose name that church proclaimed, Diotrephes was bringing shame to the name of Jesus.

And his very public sin called for a public rebuke, which John promised to give when he visited Gaius’ church in the future.

When we’re walking in the truth, our actions will show it. And when we’re NOT walking in the truth, our actions will show it then, too.

The difference between these two things is entirely a function of our fellowship with God in Jesus.

The closer we are to Jesus — the closer we are to God through prayer and Bible study and allowing the Holy Spirit to make us more like Jesus — the more HIS truth will result in our love for one another and for those who are doing the work He has given us.

On the other hand, the further we are from Jesus, the less we will look like Him, the less we will exhibit love for one another.

We can be like Gaius, or we can be like Diotrephes. We can imitate the good example, or we can follow the bad example. Look at verse 11.

3 John 11–15 NASB95

11 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God. 12 Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself; and we add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true. 13 I had many things to write to you, but I am not willing to write them to you with pen and ink; 14 but I hope to see you shortly, and we will speak face to face. 15 Peace be to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends by name.

Don’t imitate the evil of Diotrephes. Imitate the good of Gaius. Those who do good things reflect God’s character. But those who do evil things aren’t even looking at God to know HOW to reflect His character.

So, walking in truth, reflect the character of God in love and generosity. Just like Gaius. And, significantly, just like Demetrius.

Now, Demetrius was probably the person who delivered this letter. Why do you think John would have said such good things about him? That he had received a good testimony — to such a degree, in fact, that the gospel was evident in his very behavior?

Well, Demetrius had to face Diotrephes when he arrived at this church. And the people there would have to decide whether to welcome him or allow Diotrephes to send him packing.

And so, whether he was welcomed at this church or sent on his way would be a test of how well they’d learned the lesson John was teaching in this letter.

And we don’t know what happened. We don’t know whether the truth prevailed in this church or whether it was shipwrecked by the pride and arrogance of a man who no longer walked in truth.

What we DO know is that the lesson John teaches here wasn’t just for Gaius. The lesson is for all of us who follow Jesus in faith today.

Will we walk in the truth of the gospel? Will we not just HEAR the truth on Sundays but also allow it to CHANGE us? To make us more like Jesus? To make us more loving and generous to one another? To see a need and step in and help, however we can, even if that means we have to sacrifice something to do so?

Or will we be like Diotrephes? Will we pridefully demand OUR way, even if that hurts someone else?

The church needs more Gaiuses and fewer Diotrepheses. The church — the WORLD — needs more positive examples and a lot less negative ones.

Let’s be like Gaius.