3 John
Walk in Light • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Transcript
Opening
Opening
Good morning/evening church
I hope you have been walking in the light as the apostle John has been challenging us with his letters the last six weeks.
• We’ll be in 3 John as we close out our series today
Pastor Josue took us through the books of 1 and 2 John and Josue also wrote the majority of today’s sermon, which he originally planned on preaching.
So if you like it, great! If you don’t you can email Josue@centerpointchurch.church
• In his first two letters, John called the church to proper fellowship with God… so that we can live as Jesus did.
• John reminded us of the many reasons we have to walk in light.
Last week, we learned that not only are we to know the Truth of Jesus, but we are also called to protect it or in Josue’s words, to be “on guard.”
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It’s interesting as we examine John’s three letters and the audience to whom he was writing, we see that with each letter he zooms in more and more.
• First John is the most general. There is an almost 30,000 foot view of the global church
• Second John hones in on the local church
• And finally third John is written to a specific person in the church
BIBLES
BIBLES
So before we go any further, let’s get some Bibles in your hand…
• If you need a Bible please just raise your hand and one of our ushers will bring you that Bible
• We are in the book of 3 John. Near the end of the New Testament - about 2 pages before Revelation
If you are using a church Bible we are on page 1059
Book
Book
Though 3rd John is the shortest book of the Bible (15 verses) … don’t think that means you’ll get out early today! There are important themes for us to cover.
• John addresses a relevant topic for us - which is the reputation of the church!
• Have you noticed how the church is constantly under scrutiny from the world?
Considering that unbelievers hate when they feel judged by Christians, they sure like to judge us too!
The English Preacher, Charles Spurgeon once put it like this…
The eagle-eyed world acts as a policeman for the church.… [It] becomes a watch-dog over the sheep, barking furiously as soon as one goes astray.… Be careful, be careful of your private lives … and I believe your public lives will be sure to be right.
› Daniel L. Akin,
Exalting Jesus in 1,2,3 John (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2014), 164.
We’ve all seen this when a high profile Christian or pastor stumbles into sin. They are all over the news!
We all get criticized too, even for little things.
Are Christians the only ones in the world who are hypocrites? How about the only ones who are judgy? Fill in any shortcoming and all people are guilty.
BUT, this is not an excuse for bad behavior!
We should be careful to practice what we preach. As Spurgeon said, careful even in our private lives. Because whether we like it or not we are reflecting on Christ and the church.
Though sometimes we are criticized even when we’ve done nothing wrong.
I used to work as an online student advisor for Cal Baptist University. And one of my tasks was reaching out to students when their accounts were not paid for the semester before they would be dropped from their classes.
One time I called a lady who was behind on payment and I had the best intention of helping her and working through options, but I think she got the wrong idea and she immediately attacked my character as a believer.
She sarcastically said “oh what a great Christian man you are.” I was shocked, but before I could even say anything, she hung up on me.
The point is that there are people who will use our faith against us.
• It was an issue for the early church and it continues to be an issue for the church today
Well let’s dive in and see what John has to say about it as he writes to a good friend.
The elder,
To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth.
Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
Gaius was a dear friend of John’s. Like a son to him.
• John prays that his friend would have great physical health just as his soul is spiritually healthy
What an interesting idea to consider…
• How would you and I look if our physical health reflected our spiritual health?
• Would we be well? Would we be sick? Would we be on life support?
• Some of the most physically frail among us would be the strongest. And vice versa
If you’re not spiritually healthy - today is the day to start working on it!
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Well, John goes on to commend his friend for setting such a good example to fellow believers and to the local church!
• That takes us back to all we’ve talked about over the last several weeks
• Gaius was walking in light! He is an example for us to model.
• He was obeying God’s commands to love one another
• The same command they had from the beginning…
• Gaius was both walking the walk and talking the talk!
And you can clearly hear John’s joy… nothing makes a pastor happier than to see his congregation, faithfully following the ways of the Lord!
• But, the unfortunate truth is that, this is not always the case
• Just because someone is part of the church, even a member of a church… does not mean that they will necessarily represent the church or the Lord well
• John loves the church so much that he wants her reputation to be untarnished. And His third letter gives us a good word for this.
We’re going to examine today, 5 things the church should look like for a great reputation
And the first is this . . .
The Church should look like . . .
1. Home
1. Home
Not a dysfunctional home, but a place that people are proud to call Home.
Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you.
• Throughout the church’s early days it was very common to have traveling teachers, prophets and even missionaries stop by a home and stay there with them the whole time they were doing their work
We have many examples of this with the prophets of the Old Testament
• Jesus himself demonstrated this custom with Zacchaeus in Luke 19
• In fact, if you back up a page in your Bibles, you’ll see we talked about this last week in 2 John
Though in that context, John cautioned the church to be mindful of those they welcome into their homes!
• If it was teachers it ought to be those who taught the Truth! In other words, it’s not “home” to those who are leading others astray.
• But when we create a home away from home for others in such a way that is furthering the gospel . . . that’s good stuff!
Apply:
Apply:
• Last year when one our Missions partners was in town . . . someone in our church welcomed her into their home and another loaned her a car to get around! That’s awesome!
Some others here have let people stay with them when they’ve needed a safe place to go
And you know, maybe you don’t have the means to welcome some one into your home…
• That shouldn’t stop you and I from making someone feel at home!
• We all have that responsibility here!
• That is the second part of our mission statement… we want you to belong to the family!
We all have a role to play in helping people to belong.
So If I can challenge you a bit today… help someone to belong.
• Shake their hand and ask for their name… get to know them, make them feel welcome!
Treat them to a donut and coffee if you have the means
• Take a little time before and after the services to make someone feel welcomed and at home!
• Just as John says the guests reported back to the church… the same thing happens here!
• We often get feedback from visitors that they immediately felt welcomed! and that “Everyone is so nice!”
I promise you church, it does not go unnoticed!
The church should look like Home!
#2. The church should look
2. Helpful
2. Helpful
John goes on in verse 6 saying…
They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth.
So there again he emphasizes hospitality - making them feel at home, but he also mentions providing further help - aka financial assistance.
• Gaius and the church had done pretty well in this category . . . and John is courageous enough to ask for even more!
He’s saying . . . let’s see you go above and beyond for the sake of the Name!
Who is the “Name?” . . . Jesus!!!
Because if they do the gospel is going to go further and lives changed in Jesus’ name
Apply:
Apply:
Like Gaius and his church . . . Centerpoint family . . . your generous giving has been helpful to our missionary brothers and sisters abroad.
You have also helped our local partners like the City Mission and Pregnancy Resource Center.
Not to mention how you have helped your own church family here.
Has God positioned you this season to be able to go above and beyond?
Maybe that is financially. If you cannot this season, that is okay. We never want you to feel obligated or put you in a position where you cannot afford to live.
• Maybe you can be Helpful with your time
• Helpful with your strength
• Helpful with your gifts and skills
• I know several of you who regularly offer up your vehicles to help get people where they need to go!
• Some of you have offered up your business to help those in need
However you are able, we as the church should look helpful!
#3 The Church should look . . .
3. Humble
3. Humble
Gaius has been setting the positive example. Now John will mention someone who gives us a lesson in what NOT to do.
I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us.
The ESV version says Diotrephes, who does not acknowledge our authority
It seems that this man was a leader in the church - perhaps he started out fine, but then he became prideful
How crazy that he would not welcome in or respect the authority of the apostle John.
Was Diotrephes among the 12 men who walked with Christ? Did Diotrephes personally witness all the miracles of Christ, His Transfiguration, His crucifixion, and Resurrection?
Did Diotrephes write the Gospel of John, the three epistles of John, and the book of Revelation; which all became part of the canon of Scripture?
How arrogant this man was!
• We all know people like this
He is the guy that walks around saying “I’m in charge, you have to listen to me”
• Anyone who didn’t listen to Diotrephes was shut down
• Which explains why the letters that John sent were both ignored and disregarded
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So John is using the tool of compare and contrast
• Gaius - Good
Diotrephes - Not Good
Apply:
Apply:
Church, we are called to be humble.
When we do this we are living like Christ, who humbled himself for our sake
• It’s the “Diotrephes” of the church that cause her to be dragged into the mud or into scandal after scandal - who cause unnecessary division in the church
If the church’s desire is to look like Christ then we must be fundamentally humble!
• Jesus himself said…
“Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.”
If you want to gauge how humble you are. Ask yourselves these questions …
Is there anyone that I refuse to serve that Christ has called me to serve?
Am I willing to listen when corrected?
• Or is my way the only way?
Would the people I lead and work with say that I’m humble or arrogant?
The Church should look humble.
#4 The Church should look
4. Honorable
4. Honorable
Still speaking of Diotrephes, John says…
So when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.
So Diotrephes is not only prideful…
He also spreads slanderous lies of those in authority
• He’s turned this local church into an exclusive club with only the members he hand picks
• And if anyone dares to speak up against his behavior and “policies” he excommunicates them… he kicks them out of the church
Apply:
Apply:
Diotrephes knows nothing about honor
He is a gossip, stirring the pot to divide the church.
We should never look like him. Rather than gossiping we should be protecting. Honoring means respecting individuals even when they are not present.
Rather than refusing to welcome other believers, we should receive everyone who truly comes in Jesus’ name
So don’t be a Diotrephes
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Now what about dealing with people like Diotrephes?
You gotta love the apostle John. Remember he and his brother James were nicknamed the “Sons of Thunder.”
• John could be hot blooded, prone to having a temper at times. And in the past that got him into trouble.
Luke 9 records him asking Jesus to rain down fire from heaven on some people, to which Jesus rebuked him.
John has matured, yet he also isn’t about to tolerate wicked behavior in the church.
So he says, “when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing”
John is honorable
He is not compromising his character and witness by attacking Diotrephes
John had the clout to do it if he wanted to, but he is holding back.
In Matthew 18, Jesus gave instructions for how to deal with sin in the church. The first step is to go to an individual with a one on one conversation. Then slowly bring in others to address them as necessary. The goal is to deal with sin and restore the person without shaming them in front of everyone.
Remember this is not originally an open letter to the church, rather it was to one person - Gaius.
This is why John will address Diotrephes directly
Church when we as Christians act out of anger… we dishonor ourselves and Christ!
• But when we respond in love and self-control we bring honor to the Lord
• Ask yourself… am I honoring the Lord today?
• With my words, with my actions, with my thoughts, etc.
When the world looks to the church, are they seeing an honorable group of people who love the Lord?
• Or are they seeing an arrogant group of people who just love themselves?
One commentator put it like this…
Prideful ambition, pompous arrogance, perverse accusations, and profane activity are all very real dangers for Christians and church leaders. Therefore, we must watch our motives, watch our decisions, watch our tongues, and watch our actions.
› Daniel L. Akin,
Exalting Jesus in 1,2,3 John (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2014), 170.
The church should look like honor
Closing
Closing
John continues
Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God.
This language is very similar to John’s first letter
• There is evil and there is good
• And whether we like it or not… we all imitate one of these
And from God’s perspective there is no middle ground.
• If we do what is good, we are from God
• If we do what is evil, it’s as if we have not even seen God
Church, we must walk in the light! Are you for Christ? Then surrender to Him and rid yourself of any evil in you life.
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So we’ve seen Gaius… Yay!
• We’ve seen Diotrephes . . . Boo!
• And John introduces one more person as he prepares to close his letter…
Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone—and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true.
Demetrius was very likely the letter carrier…
• The one who brought this letter to Gaius
• And John uses this opportunity to show Gaius just another example of a godly person
It is neat that everyone speaks well of Demetrius, including the apostle John.
Even the truth testifies to Demetrius.
Here is a man who is honorable.
I want you to be encouraged by this. There are people like Gaius and Demetrius out there who keep a good reputation
It is possible for you to do the same and it is possible for the church to look like these things!
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John concludes the letter by saying . . .
I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.
Peace to you. The friends here send their greetings. Greet the friends there by name.
It’s always ideal to be together in person! We gather together often to build each other up and to fellowship in Christ. Continue to prioritize meeting together!
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One final point of what the church should look like . . .
This one sums it all up
The church should look like . . .
5. Jesus
5. Jesus
Jesus is all of these things…
• Jesus is our Home - our shelter, our peace, our rest, everything a good home can be
• Jesus is Helpful - He provides all we need, He has equipped us in every way, He is with us always
• Jesus is Humble - from his birth in a manger to to his death on the cross He modeled humility
• Jesus is Honorable - every interaction left people transformed for the better
The closer we follow him, (both as individuals and as His church) the more we will look like Him
• So church let us continue to walk in the light… as He is in the light!
