No Greater Joy!

3 John 1–2 HCSB

The Elder: To my dear friend Gaius: I love you in the truth. Dear friend, I pray that you may prosper in every way and be in good health physically just as you are spiritually.

3 John 3–4 HCSB

For I was very glad when some brothers came and testified to your faithfulness to the truth—how you are walking in the truth. I have no greater joy than this: to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

3 John 5–6 HCSB

Dear friend, you are showing faithfulness by whatever you do for the brothers, especially when they are strangers. They have testified to your love in front of the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God,

3 John 7–8 HCSB

since they set out for the sake of the Name, accepting nothing from pagans. Therefore, we ought to support such men so that we can be coworkers with the truth.

3 John 9–10 HCSB

I wrote something to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have first place among them, does not receive us. 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 the brothers himself, but he even stops those who want to do so and expels them from the church.

3 John 11–12 HCSB

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. Demetrius has a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself. And we also testify for him, and you know that our testimony is true.

3 John 13–14 HCSB

I have many things to write you, but I don’t want to write to you with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. Peace be with you. The friends send you greetings. Greet the friends by name.

Point: What brings you no greater joy? To know and see your loved ones imitating God by loving, living, and walking in the truth of God.

Love is defined by truth. If one truly loves another, truth will be at the foundation of that relationship.

Hospitality in all its forms ought to flow from a Christian as an acknowledgment of God’s hospitality toward us. We were not “good guests” but he took us in and lavished us with love, mercy, and abundant provisions, even making us members of His own family. Do we wrestle with an unwillingness to show the same sort of loving kindness to others? Then we ought to pray that God will soften our hearts and remind us of what we have received from Him; teaching us to love as He loves.

The challenge for us is to recapture a vision of hospitality that moves us beyond our comfort zones. Since Covid how many people, how many couples, how many families have you hosted in your home? How many people have you welcomed that you really do not know? One thing that Covid has done, or attempted to do, is make us strangers amongest one another. Unity is never cemented amongest strangers. Community is never accomplished amongest strangers. Love does not flourish where love is not encouraged.

Shortly after our arrival here in Leduc, I was labelled as a “country pastor”. I suspect it was/is because I preach love and community. Love for God, Love for one another, and simply to love well. Why would one not, when the two greatest commandments, that Jesus commanded believers to be and do, are to love God and love your neighbor as you love yourself (Mt. 22:34-40)? The only way you can love well is to love in community. Without love, a follower of Christ is nothing but a gong, a horn, an unpleasant gnat that annoys you with their pestering. All one’s knowledge and intellect of truth does not matter unless one loves, and loves well.

The Apostle John’s greatest delight is that his children are walking in the way of God, in the way of truth (v.4). Gaius is a true believer, a true follower of Christ because He walks in the truth of God and exercise that truth in love. Strangers come to Gaius, known by John, sent by John, and Gaius has welcomed them and loved them as family (v.5-6). Diotrephes, a leader in the church, who loves to be first, does not walk in the truth, nor love in truth. He refuses brothers, maligns brothers, and stops the church from welcoming brothers and sisters in the LORD (v.9-10). He even expels those who love in truth and deed from the church! Why?

Is Diotrephes a false teacher? Is he teaching some “secret knowledge”? Is he seeking revenge for the false teachers, his pals, possibly, who were ordered to be denied hospitality by John? If these teachers and preachers of John are denied lodging they cannot stay in the area, they have to move on, and the truth of the Gospel can take no hold. Diotrephes is an opponent of the Gospel, of John, one lead astray by false teaching.

John’s attitude toward Diotrephes is one of love, he opposes him because of love for the congregation. Someone who does not love God, nor His children, should not be leading God’s people. He will lead them away from God, for God is love. An unloving leader will warp the peoples knowledge of God. It is because of His love for his brothers and sister that John takes action against the bad leader. Being “nice” to everyone all the time is not always the most loving disposition, but can be harmful in the end. Tough love at times must be exercised but with grace, humility, and a sturdy backbone.

John’s final word to Gaius is to imitate what is good, not what is evil (v.11).

3 John 11 HCSB

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.

How do you know one who has seen God and is of God? By the fruit they bear. Jesus says,

Matthew 7:17–20 ESV

So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

John is blunt, so is Jesus: good trees bear good fruit and are of God. Diotrephes is not a good tree because he is bearing bad fruit. Hospitality is good fruit. The one who bears hospitality has seen God, the one who does not, has not seen God, does not know God. Hospitality is not only to be shared in good times, but in bad times; not only in safe times, but at all times. Hospitality is the mark of God’s people. It is to imitate the good.

Should one extend hospitality in all circumstances? The Apostle Paul, quoting the Greek poet Menander says, “Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”” (1 Cor. 15:33). Likewise Proverbs 22:24-25 says,

Proverbs 22:24–25 ESV

Make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with a wrathful man, lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare.

So do not have a friendship with someone who gets angry? We would have no friends with anybody. No, what the proverb means is to not be a friend with a person who is ruled by anger and wrath. Jesus rules by love and truth, so we should be ruled in our lives by His love and His truth, not by anger and wrath. Those given to be ruled by anger and wrath, fear and falsity, we need to be aware of and keep our distance. We need to exercise discernment with those who block out the life and light of Jesus.

But…how does light overcome darkness? By being light in the darkness. Jesus was the Light that came into the darkness. John was the light coming into the darkness. Demetrius was light in the darkness. Gaius was light in the darkness. Imitate the good. Those in darkness need the light and we are to be that light. We are not to avoid unbelievers, but are to love unbelievers with the truth of Jesus. This means contact.

When Jesus was ministering in our world he often withdrew to do what? To reconnect to the father. To pray. To fast. To eat. To teach. To fellowship with His disciples. To rest. Jesus withdrew to refresh. There was a cycle of work, rest, and reconnect. If we do not reconnect and rest, with Christ, we will not do our work effectively, we will not love well the people God is wanting to reach, those God wants us to love. We keep bad influences at bay, but we also are working to influence the bad to good, to God.

So, we are imitate the good of God, the good of Christ. Do you have a good role model in your life? Do you have a good role model for each stage of your life? We have all heard the stats and the results of not having a good father present in the home for children. Broken homes, broken lives. Young men seeking to learn and know what a good man is, a good father. Young women desiring to know and experience the right love of a man, without a father in their lives. The world is broken because the role models we look to are broken or not there.

But there is a role model there…the Role Model that matters above all, we just have to turn to him, like the Apostle Paul encouraged the Romans in Romans 1. Jesus is that Role Model through whom we see what a Father is truly to be like. We see Jesus, we see the Father (John 5:19; 10:30). I have so many books in my life because I need lots of role models who reflect Jesus. But I have only one book that shows me Jesus, that shows me the Father, the real Role Model, the Bible.

I have a few men in my life, that I call friends and close friends, because I consider them role models who refect Jesus. I have many men in my life that I call friends, and close friends, because I am being a role model to them, hopefully reflecting Jesus. I have many friends upon whom we are sharpening iron upon iron with one another, working to reflect Jesus. Do you? One can only sharpen iron when you are living in community with one another, being united in God’s truth and love. As the Apostle Paul said to the Corinthian believers,

1 Corinthians 11:1 HCSB

Imitate me, as I also imitate Christ.

To be pursuing and living out the truth and love of Christ is to be one looked upon with the joy of the Father, as John looked upon Gaius and the church. When you see a tree that is producing bad fruit, but should be producing good fruit, the loving action is to prune and rebuke, to protect the family from going wayward. In all things, we should always imitate the good of God and what we see of God. Influencing men and women to the good of God. This will bring great joy to our Father in Heaven. Amen.