3 John

The battle for truth and against apostasy is fought not only in the home (2 John) but especially in the local church, and that is where 3 John comes in. This little letter (the shortest New Testament epistle in the original Greek) gives us a glimpse into an early assembly, its people, and its problems. As you read this brief letter, you find yourself saying, “Times have not changed very much!” We have similar people and problems today!

One of the key words in this letter is witness (3 John 3, “testified”; 3 John 6, 12, “report, bear record, record”). It means not only the words that we say but also the lives that we live. Each Christian is a witness, either a good one or a bad one. We are either helping the truth (3 John 8) or hindering it.

This letter was addressed to Gaius, one of the leaders of the assembly. But John also discussed two other men in these verses—Diotrephes and Demetrius.

Wherever there are people, there are problems—and the potential for solving problems. Each of us must honestly face the question

“Am I a part of the problem or a part of the answer?”

Consider the three men involved in this letter and note the kinds of Christians they were.

1. GAIUS (1–8)

3 John 1–8 CSB

1 The elder: To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth. 2 Dear friend, I pray that you are prospering in every way and are in good health, just as your whole life is going well. 3 For I was very glad when fellow believers came and testified to your fidelity to the truth—how you are walking in truth. 4 I have no greater joy than this: to hear that my children are walking in truth. 5 Dear friend, you are acting faithfully in whatever you do for the brothers and sisters, especially when they are strangers. 6 They have testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God, 7 since they set out for the sake of the Name, accepting nothing from pagans. 8 Therefore, we ought to support such people so that we can be coworkers with the truth.

There is no question that the apostle John dearly loved this man! He called him “the well beloved” in his greeting, and “beloved” in 3 John 5. Third John 4 suggests that Gaius may have been one of John’s converts, and, of course, those we lead to faith in Christ are especially precious to us. However, the beloved apostle looked on all the believers as his “little children” (1 John 2:1, 12, 18), so we must not press this too far.

If Gaius were a member of a church that I pastored, I would certainly have no trouble loving him! Consider the personal qualities of this excellent man.

Spiritual health (v. 2). John may be hinting here that his dear friend was not well and that John was praying for restored health: “I want you to be as healthy in body as you are in soul!” If this is the case, then it is evidence that it is possible to be spiritually healthy and physically sick. However, this kind of a greeting was very common in that day, so we must not build too much on it.

It is clear that Gaius was a man whose spiritual health was evident to all. “Though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day” (2 Cor. 4:16). Physical health is the result of nutrition, exercise, cleanliness, proper rest, and the disciplined order of a balanced life. Spiritual health is the result of similar factors. We must nourish ourselves with the Word, and then “work out” that nourishment in godly exercise (1 Tim. 4:6–7). We must keep ourselves clean (2 Cor. 7:1) and avoid the contamination and pollution that is in the world (2 Peter 1:4; James 1:27). While exercise and service are important, it is also important that we rest in the Lord and gain new strength through fellowship with Him (Matt. 11:28–30). A balanced life is a healthy and happy life, a life that honors God.

A good testimony (vv. 3–4). Gaius was recognized as a man who obeyed the Word of God and “walked in truth” (see 2 John 4). Some of the brethren had made several visits to John, and they had joyfully reported that Gaius was a glowing example of what a Christian ought to be.

In my own pastoral experience, I must confess that I have often been a bit on edge when people have said to me, “Is Mrs. ___ a member of your church?” Or, even worse, “I know one of your members quite well!” John never had to fear when Gaius’s name came up!

What made Gaius such a good testimony? God’s truth. The truth was “in him” and enabled him to walk in obedience to God’s will. Gaius read the Word, meditated on it, delighted in it, and then practiced it in his daily life (see Ps. 1:1–3). What digestion is to the body, meditation is to the soul. It is not enough merely to hear the Word or read the Word. We must inwardly digest it and make it part of our inner persons (see 1 Thess. 2:13).

It is clear that Gaius’s entire life was wrapped up in the truth. True living comes from the living truth. Jesus Christ, the truth (John 14:6), is revealed in the Word, which is God’s truth (John 17:17). The Holy Spirit is also truth (1 John 5:6), and He teaches us the truth. The Spirit of God uses the Word of God to reveal the Son of God and then to enable us to obey the will of God and “walk in truth.”

Practical ministry (vv. 5–8). Gaius was also a “fellowhelper to the truth” (3 John 8). In practical ways, he assisted those who were ministering the Word. We have no indication that Gaius himself was a preacher or teacher, but he opened his heart and home to those who were.

We have learned from John’s second letter the importance of Christian hospitality in that day. John warned the “elect lady” against entertaining false teachers (2 John 7–11), but in this letter he commended Gaius for showing hospitality to the true ministers of the Word. Gaius was an encouragement, not only to the brethren in general, but especially to strangers who came to fellowship with the church and to minister (see Heb. 13:2).

In this day of fear and violence, it is not easy to welcome strangers into our homes. Of course, in the early church, traveling ministers carried letters of recommendation from their own assemblies (Rom. 16:1); so it is important that we know something about the people we plan to entertain. However, it does take faith and love. As much as my wife and I enjoy sharing our home, we must confess that there have been times when bidding our guests good-bye brought a sense of happy relief! For the most part, however, our guests have truly been “angels unawares” whose presence was a blessing in our home.

Gaius not only opened his home, but he also opened his heart and his hand to give financial help to his guests. The phrase bring forward on their journey means “to assist on their journey.” This could have included providing money and food as well as washing and mending clothing (see 1 Cor. 16:6; Titus 3:13). After all, our faith must be proved by our works (James 2:14–16), and our love must be expressed by deeds, not just words (1 John 3:16–18).

What is the motivation for this kind of practical ministry to the saints? First of all, it honors God. The phrase after a godly sort in 3 John 6 means “worthy of God, as befits God.” We are never more “godlike” than when we are sacrificing to serve others. “That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing” (Col. 1:10). Since these itinerant ministers were representing the name of the Lord, any ministry to them was really a service to Jesus Christ (Matt 10:40; 25:34–40).

A second motive is that the support of God’s servants is a witness to the lost (3 John 7). Keep in mind that there were many wandering teachers in that day, sharing their ideas and begging for money. While the Lord Jesus taught definitely that God’s servants deserve support (Luke 10:7), the standard in the New Testament is that this support comes from God’s people. “Taking nothing of the Gentiles” means that these itinerant workers would not solicit help from the unsaved. Abraham had this same policy (Gen. 14:21–24), though he did not force his associates to adopt his policy. Many pastors make it clear, when the offering is being received, that they are not asking anything from the unbelievers in the congregation.

When God’s people adequately support God’s servants, it is a powerful testimony to the lost. But when ministers, churches, and other religious organizations go about soliciting from unsaved people and various businesses, it makes Christianity look cheap and commercial. This does not mean that God’s servants should refuse a voluntary gift from an unconverted person, as long as the person understands that the gift will not purchase salvation. Even then, we must be very cautious. The king of Sodom’s offer was voluntary, but Abraham rejected it (Gen. 14:17–24)!

The third motivation for serving is obedience to God. “We therefore ought to receive such” (3 John 8). This ministry of hospitality and support is not only an opportunity, but also an obligation. Galatians 6:6–10 makes it clear that those who receive spiritual blessings from the minister of the Word ought to share with him in material blessings; 1 Corinthians 9:7–11 further explains this principle. As a deacon expressed it to me in the first church I pastored, “You pay your board where you get your food!” It is unbiblical for church members to send their tithes and offerings all over the world and neglect to support the ministry of their own local church.

John gave a fourth motivation in 3 John 8: “That we might be fellowhelpers to the truth.” Gaius not only received the truth and walked in the truth, but he was a “jointworker” who helped to further the truth. We do not know what his spiritual gifts were or how he served in the congregation, but we do know that Gaius helped extend and defend the truth by assisting those who taught and preached it.

It is one thing to fight apostasy and refuse to entertain false teachers but quite another thing to open our homes (and wallets) to promote the truth. We need both the negative and the positive. We need more people like Gaius who are spiritually healthy, obedient to the Word, and sharing what they have for the furtherance of the truth. But, alas, not everybody is a Gaius! We turn now to an entirely different kind of Christian.

2. DIO-TREPH-ES (9–10)

3 John 9–10 CSB

9 I wrote something to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have first place among them, does not receive our authority. 10 This is why, if I come, I will remind him of the works he is doing, slandering us with malicious words. And he is not satisfied with that! He not only refuses to welcome fellow believers, but he even stops those who want to do so and expels them from the church.

It seems like many churches have members who insist on “being boss” and having their own way.

Diotrephes was motivated by pride. Instead of giving the preeminence to Jesus Christ (Col. 1:18), he claimed it for himself. He had the final say-so about everything in the church, and his decisions were determined by one thing: “What will this do for Diotrephes?” He was most unlike John the Baptist who said, “He [Jesus Christ] must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). The Greek verb indicates that it was the constant attitude of Diotrephes to promote himself.

Whenever a church has a resident dictator in its membership there are bound to be problems, because people who are spiritually minded will not tolerate that kind of leadership. The Holy Spirit is grieved when the members of the body are not permitted to exercise their gifts because one member must have his own way. At the judgment seat of Christ, we will discover how many hearts have been broken and churches destroyed because of the arrogant “ministries” of people like Diotrephes.

Consider what this man was doing.

He would not receive John (v. 9). It is incredible to think that a church leader (Diotrephes may have been an elder) would not have fellowship with one of our Lord’s own apostles! How much Diotrephes could have learned from John! But Jesus Christ was not preeminent in his life, therefore Diotrephes could afford to treat the aged apostle this way.

Why did Diotrephes reject John? The obvious reason seems to be that John challenged the man’s right to be dictator in the church. John was a threat to Diotrephes, because John had the authority of an apostle. John knew the truth about Diotrephes and was willing to make it known. Satan was at work in the church because Diotrephes was operating on the basis of pride and self-glorification, two of the devil’s chief tools. If John appeared on the scene, Satan would be the loser.

He lied about John (v. 10a). The phrase prating against us with malicious words means “bringing false and empty charges against us.” What Diotrephes was saying about John was sheer nonsense, but there are people who love to hear such talk and who will believe it! Apparently, Diotrephes had made these accusations against John at one of the church meetings when John was not present to defend himself. But John warned that the day would soon come when he would settle accounts with Diotrephes the dictator.

Christians must be careful not to believe everything that they read or hear about God’s servants, particularly those servants who have a wide ministry and are well-known. I have quit reading certain publications because all they print are undocumented accusations about people whose ministries God is blessing in a singular way. I mentioned a certain publication to a friend of mine one day, and he said, “Yes, I know the editor quite well. He’s like a blotter: He takes everything in and gets it backward!” We would all do well to filter these reports through Philippians 4:8.

He rejected John’s associates (v. 10b). Diotrephes would not even receive the other brethren because they were in fellowship with John! It was guilt by association. It is impossible to practice this kind of “separation” with any degree of consistency, because nobody can always know all that he needs to know about what his brother is doing! If I refuse to fellowship with you because you have fellowshipped with somebody I disapprove of, how do I know the extent of your fellowship? How can I keep track of what you have done? A person would need a computer and a full-time staff if he ever hoped to do a good job of keeping his associations pure!

Scripture makes it clear that we should have no fellowship with apostates (we studied this in 2 Peter), and that we must refrain from entangling alliances with unbelievers (2 Cor. 6:14ff.). We must also avoid those whose doctrinal position is contrary to Scripture (Rom. 16:17–19). This does not mean that we cooperate only with those believers who interpret Scripture exactly as we do, because even good and godly people disagree on some matters such as church government or prophecy. All true Christians can agree on the fundamental doctrines of the faith and, in love, give latitude for disagreement on other matters.

However, to break personal fellowship with a brother because I disagree with his circle of friends is, to me, going beyond Scripture. Diotrephes rejected John, and then rejected the believers associated with John! But he went even further.

He disciplined those who disagreed with him (v. 10c). The church members who received John’s associates were dismissed from the church! Again, it was guilt by association. Diotrephes had neither the authority nor the biblical basis for throwing these people out of the church, but he did it. Even religious dictators have to be careful lest the opposition become too strong!

The New Testament does teach church discipline, and these instructions ought to be obeyed. But church discipline is not a weapon for a dictator to use to protect himself. It is a tool for a congregation to use to promote purity and glorify God. It is not a pastor “throwing weight around” or a church board acting like a police court. It is the Lord exercising spiritual authority through a local church in order to rescue and restore an erring child of God.

Church “dictators” are dangerous people, but fortunately, they are easy to recognize. They like to talk about themselves and what they have “done for the Lord.” They also have the habit of judging and condemning those who disagree with them. They are experts in putting labels on other Christians and classifying them into neat little categories of their own intention. They base their fellowship on personalities, not the doctrines that are fundamental to the faith. The tragedy is that these “dictators” actually believe that they are serving God and glorifying Jesus Christ.

It has been my experience that most of the distress and division in local churches, and between churches, has resulted from personalities more than anything else. If only we would return to the New Testament principle of making the person and work of Jesus Christ our test for fellowship, rather than associations and interpretations of nonessential doctrines. But people like Diotrephes will always have their enthusiastic followers because many sincere but immature and untaught believers prefer to follow such leaders.

3. DEMETRIUS (11–14)

3 John 11–14 CSB

11 Dear friend, 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 Everyone speaks well of Demetrius—even the truth itself. And we also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true. 13 I have many things to write you, but I don’t want to write to you with pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.

According to the dictionary, an exemplar is “an ideal, a model, an example worthy to be imitated.” Demetrius was that kind of a Christian. John warned his readers not to imitate Diotrephes. “If you want to imitate an example, then follow Demetrius!”

But is it right for us to imitate human leaders? Yes, if they in turn are

imitating Jesus Christ. “Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an example” (Phil. 3:17). “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1). You and I cannot see God, but we can see God at work in the lives of His children. The godly life and dedicated service of another believer is always an encouragement and a stimulus to me. By our good example, we can “consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works” (Heb. 10:24).

Demetrius was a man worth imitating because he had a “good report” (witness) from the church fellowship. All the members knew him, loved him, and thanked God for his consistent life and ministry. While it is a dangerous thing when “all men shall speak well of you” (Luke 6:26), it is a wonderful thing when all the believers in a local church can agree to commend your life and testimony. If all men, saved and lost, good and evil, speak well of us, it may mean that we are compromising and masquerading.

But Demetrius not only had a good witness from the believers in the church; he also had a good witness from the Word (truth) itself. Like Gaius, Demetrius walked in the truth and obeyed the Word of God. This does not mean that either of these men was perfect, but it does mean that they were consistent in their lives, seeking to honor the Lord.

Both the church and the Word bore witness to Demetrius’s Christian life, and so did the apostle John himself. (This meant that Demetrius would be in trouble with Diotrephes!) The beloved apostle knew firsthand that Demetrius was a man of God, and John was not ashamed to confess it.

John had warned that he was going to visit the church and confront Diotrephes (3 John 10), and no doubt both Gaius and Demetrius would stand with John in opposing the “dictator.” They were the kind of men who would support the truth and submit themselves to authentic spiritual authority. Because they followed the truth, they could safely be imitated by other believers.

The conclusion of the letter (3 John 13–14) is similar to the conclusion of 2 John, and perhaps was a standard way to end letters in John’s day. The apostle planned to visit the church “shortly” (soon), which certainly was a warning to Diotrephes and an encouragement to Gaius and Demetrius. The beloved John had “many things” to discuss with the assembly and its leaders, things he would prefer to deal with personally rather than by means of a letter.

“Peace be to thee” (3 John 14) must have been a benediction of real encouragement to Gaius! No doubt his own heart and mind were distressed because of the division in the church and the unspiritual way Diotrephes was abusing its members. George Morrison of Glasgow wrote, “Peace is the possession of adequate resources.” The believer can enjoy the “peace of God” because he has adequate resources in Jesus Christ (Phil. 4:6–7, 13, 19).

John was careful to send greetings from the believers in the assembly with which he was associated at that time. “The friends here send their greetings” (NIV). What a blessing it is to have Christian friends! When Paul arrived near Rome, some of the brethren went to meet him, “whom when Paul saw, he thanked God, and took courage” (Acts 28:15). Both Paul and John were not only soul winners, but also friend makers. Diotrephes was so dictatorial that he had fewer and fewer friends, but John had more and more friends as he shared the love of Christ.

“Greet the friends by name” (NASB). The aged apostle did not want to write a long letter; besides, he was planning a visit. Paul sometimes ended his letters with a list of personal greetings (see Rom. 16), but John did not do this, at least in this letter. He wanted to have Gaius convey his greetings to his friends personally and individually, as though John were doing it himself. John was not concerned about a church only, but also the individuals within that church.

It is interesting to contrast these two little letters and to see the balance of truth that John presented. Second John was written to a godly woman about her family, while 3 John was written to a godly man about his church. John warned the “elect lady” about false teachers from the outside, but he warned Gaius about dictatorial leaders inside the fellowship. The false teachers in 2 John would appeal to love so that they might deny truth, while Diotrephes would appeal to truth as, in a most unloving way, he would attack the brethren.

How important it is to walk “in truth and love” (2 John 3) and hold the truth in love (Eph. 4:15)! To claim to love the truth and yet hate the brethren is to confess ignorance of what the Christian life is all about.

When God’s people love Him, the truth, and one another, then the Spirit of God can work in that assembly to glorify Jesus Christ. But when any member of that assembly, including the pastor, becomes proud and tries to have “the preeminence,” then the Spirit is grieved and He cannot bless. The church may outwardly appear successful, but inwardly it will lack the true unity of the Spirit that makes for a healthy fellowship.

What we need are more people like Gaius and Demetrius—and fewer like Diotrephes!

QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION

1. Are you spiritually healthy?

2. In what practical ways can Christians support God’s servants?

3. How can Satan use a proud member (or a group of them) to destroy a church?

4. Which has been more dangerous to churches you have been involved with— false teaching or pride?

5. How should a church deal with a “problem personality” such as Diotrephes?

6. Have you ever acted or felt just a little like Diotrephes?

7. What kind of attitude do you want to have toward your church?

Next Week: Jude 1-7