III
John Chapter 1
Memory
verses for this week: Eph
4:23 And be renewed in
the spirit of your mind;
Eph 4:24
And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in
righteousness and true holiness.
Introduction:
Last week, as we finished up II John, we saw some scriptures
that made it very clear that there are many false teachers in the
world. And we
need to know the truth of God’s word and be able to identify those
who are teaching false doctrine.
This week we conclude our studies of John as we cover III
John.
I.
Personal Greetings
3
John 1:1 The elder unto
the wellbeloved Gaius, whom I love in the truth.
3
John 1:2 Beloved, I
wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health,
even as thy soul prospereth.
We see this letter was from the Apostle John to his good
friend Gaius. He
must have thought highly of the man as he calls him the ‘well
beloved’ Gaius whom he loved in the truth.
Perhaps from verse 2 Gaius had been ill.
He says he hopes that he might prosper financially and that
he might have good health.
Many times we do not realize what a blessing our good health
is to us until we are faced with a sudden illness.
God help us to remember to thank the Lord for the blessings
of good health each day.
Sometimes our souls (or spiritual man) do not grow during
times when we prosper financially.
We need to stay close to the Lord no matter what our
financial position is in life.
As the song by the McKameys said, “God is still God in
valley as well as on the mountain top.” God does not change, but our viewpoint of him and our
faith wavers as we go through life.
To truly be healthy spiritually is holiness; it is to be
growing in grace and in the knowledge of Christ.
The one thing we can have confidence in is that no matter how
bad our finances are, God has promised to meet our needs.
If God takes care of the birds, he will surely take care of
us.
Mat 6:25
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what
ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye
shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than
raiment?
Mat 6:26
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do
they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth
them. Are ye not much better than they?
3
John 1:3 For I rejoiced
greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is
in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth.
3
John 1:4 I have no
greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.
John was very pleased with two things in verses 3 and 4.
He says he was joyful when he heard from others that Gaius
had the truth in him, and not only knew it, but walked in it.
Any pastor wants to see his congregation grow in truth, and
then apply those truths. Application
of biblical truths and knowledge will lead us unto wisdom.
It is one thing to know the truth, but a whole different
thing to walk it the truth. It
made John very happy to hear that those whom he had won to Christ
were walking in the truth.
Adam Clarke in his commentary made a comment about Gaius that
most likely was true.
To hear that my
children—From
this it has been inferred that Gaius was one of St. John’s
converts, and consequently not the Corinthian Gaius, who was
converted, most probably, by St. Paul.
We have to remember that many had the same first name in the
bible and we need to be sure we relate the proper man or woman to
the one who is being referenced.
Many think the Gospel of John and these books here in I, II,
and III John were penned by John the Baptist.
This was the apostle John.
John the Baptist was beheaded several years prior to
Christ’s death.
II.
A Proper Attitude Toward Missionaries
3
John 1:5 Beloved, thou
doest faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the brethren, and to
strangers;
3
John 1:6 Which have
borne witness of thy charity before the church: whom if thou bring
forward on their journey after a godly sort, thou shalt do well:
John commends Gaius for his hospitality to certain
missionaries. Some of
these men to whom Gaius had ministered unto were strangers, but he
had helped them along the way.
These men had borne witness of Gaius’ charity to the others
in the church. My wife
Denise and I have been so blessed by missionaries who have stayed
with us in our home. Back
when we lived in the large house out west of Iowa Park, it was so
easy for us to have a whole missionary family come and stay.
One of my dearest friends, Missionary Greg Smith, one of the
missionaries we support in Cancun, Mexico, was met by us having him
stay with us while he was on deputation several years ago. Greg is a faithful man, and has been through a lot in
his cause for the Lord. He
has had life threatened, been beaten, and suffered many things in
his work there in Mexico. Yet
he keeps on and rejoices that he is in the service of the Lord.
I’ve told Greg that he is one of few men I know living
today that remind me of the apostle Paul, due to his determination. In our text Gaius was a man who loved missionaries and
those who loved the Lord.
It was a great testimony of his dedication to following his
Lord in all ways he could.
Matthew Henry said this about Gaius.
Title:
Matthew Henrys Commentary on the New Testament
Author:
Henry, Matthew
The
report the apostle himself gives of him, introduced by an endearing
appellation again: Beloved,
thou doest faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the
brethren, and to
strangers, v. 5. 1. He was hospitable, good to the brethren,
even to strangers; it was enough to recommend them to Gaius’s
house that they belonged to Christ. Or he was good to the
brethren of the same church with
himself, and to those who came from far; all who were of the
household of faith were welcome to him. 2. He seems to have been of
a catholic spirit; he could overlook the petty differences among
serious Christians, and be communicative to all who bore the image
and did the work of Christ. And, 3. He was conscientious in what he
did: “Thou doest faithfully
(thou makest faithful work of) whatsoever
thou doest; thou doest it as a faithful servant, and from the
Lord Christ mayest thou expect the reward of the inheritance.”
Such faithful souls can hear their own praises without being puffed
up; the commendation of what is good in us is designed, not for our
pride, but for our encouragement to continue therein, and should be
accordingly improved.
3
John 1:7 Because that
for his name's sake they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles.
3
John 1:8 We therefore
ought to receive such, that we might be fellowhelpers to the truth.
To be able to help missionaries is a good work that we know
the Lord will bless, whether we do it individually as Gaius did it,
or if we help as a church.
Missionaries that go out do it because they love the Lord,
and do it for His names sake. These
had not taken anything from the Gentiles (this reference was to
those who were unsaved). They
had not looked to find help from those of the world, but rather to
the saints of God. Their goal was to reach those who were lost, not seek
support from the unsaved. As
we know, the responsibility to reach the lost with the gospel was
given to the New Testament churches.
In verse 8, John points out that those who know Christ,
should welcome, entertain, and set forward these men worthily on
their way. By helping
them, we further the effort to carry out the Great Commission and we
become fellow helpers of putting forth the truth.
Albert Barnes in his notes on the New Testament said this
about helping missionaries.
We therefore ought to receive such—All of us ought hospitably to entertain and
help such persons. The work in which they are engaged is one of pure
benevolence. They have no selfish aims and ends in it. They do not
even look for the supplies of their own needs among the people to
whom they go to minister; and we ought, therefore, to help them in
their work, and to contribute to their support. Doubtless, the
apostle meant to urge this duty particularly upon Gaius; but, in
order to show that he recognized the obligation himself, he uses the
term “we,” and speaks of it as a duty binding on all Christians.
That we might be fellow-helpers to the truth—All
Christians cannot go forth to preach the gospel, but all may
contribute something to the support of those who do; and in this
case they would have a joint participation in the work of spreading
the truth. The same reasoning which was applicable to that case, is
also applicable now in regard to the duty of supporting those who go
forth to preach the gospel to the destitute.
III.
The Attitude and Actions of Diotrephes
3
John 1:9 I wrote unto
the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among
them, receiveth us not.
3
John 1:10 Wherefore, if
I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us
with malicious words: and not content therewith, neither doth he
himself receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and
casteth them out of the church.
It appears that this church was under the domination of this
man Diotrephes. He was
one seeking vain glory, and wanted to have the preeminence in the
church. We are
not to place too much glory on man, but rather give the preeminence
to the one to whom it is deserved, Jesus Christ.
Col 1:15
Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every
creature:
Col 1:16
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and
that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones,
or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created
by him, and for him:
Col 1:17
And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Col 1:18
And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the
beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in
all things he might have the preeminence.
Col 1:19
For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness
dwell;
Col 1:20
And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him
to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be
things in earth, or things in heaven.
Col 1:21
And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your
mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
Col 1:22
In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy
and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:
Col 1:23
If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not
moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and
which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof
I Paul am made a minister;
It says that Diotrephes did not receive these missionaries or
apostles. He forced the
church to reject the apostolic letter, parting against them with
wicked words. And even
this was not enough, he forbade any individual member of the church
from receiving them. It appears that since Gaius had received them, Diotrephes had
him excluded from the church.
There is a proper procedure for excluding a member, but you
are to follow the rules, and they certainly should have done
something worthy of exclusion, and been un-repentant in their
action.
We have record of how this should happen in Matthew Chapter
18.
Mat 18:15
Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and
tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear
thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
Mat 18:16
But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two
more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be
established.
Mat 18:17
And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the
church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee
as a heathen man and a publican.
Mat 18:18
Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth
shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth
shall be loosed in heaven.
Mat 18:19
Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth
as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them
of my Father which is in heaven.
3
John 1:11 Beloved,
follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth
good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.
These things spoken about Diotrephes should be a warning to
every child of God. The
things he did were evil in the sight of God, and very displeasing. We as Christians should follow not after evil, but after
good.
J. Vernon McGee said this about people like Diotrephes.
He had over a page and a half on this topic, but I want to
read you just a few of the paragraphs.
Diotrephes wanted to be the first exalted ruler of
the church. Woe unto you if you attempted to oppose him. If he was a
layman, I sure feel sorry for his pastor. I am of the opinion he
tried to keep his pastor under his thumb in order that he could
preside. He wanted to be the one to be heard. Diotrephes was a man
who was self-opinionated. He was self-exalting instead of
self-effacing. I am sure that he would have claimed to have been a
self-made man instead of having let the Holy Spirit make him over.
He was self-sufficient, and I think he was guilty of self-admiration
also. He was self-willed, self-satisfied, and self-confident. He
felt that he could do all the teaching and preaching and that he did
not need these other men to come and minister.
As I am saying all of this, I wonder if you recognize
this fellow. In many churches today, there are men like Diotrephes,
men who want to run the church. I am no longer a pastor of a church,
and I can say frankly what I think and what I know to be true. I’m
not speaking of any theory whatsoever but of what I know from
experience over the years. I have met men who, although they put up
a very pious front, have tried to run the church. I have known men
like that in churches I have served but, thank the Lord, I never had
much trouble with them. Sometimes it is a little clique which will
do anything in order to rule. I have watched such people wreck
church after church—a little group or an individual like
Diotrephes who loves to have the preeminence.
I am going to say something now that may be very harsh. There
are many men who may mean well but who enjoy leading in the church.
They enjoy being up before a group of people. For the most part, the
ones I have met are almost Bible ignoramuses—they know very little
about the Word of God. But they love to talk, and their talk has
actually sometimes caused me to bow my head in shame as I was
sitting there on the platform. Some of the things they say are
totally unscriptural, totally beside the point, and dead as a
doornail. Then they wonder why their church is losing members. They
wonder why people are not coming. It is very evident why. There are
many who ought to keep quiet in the church. Remember that Paul said,
“Study to be quiet” (see 1 Thess. 4:11). Instead of trying to
teach young people to talk, we ought to teach them to keep quiet
because we have many older ones today who talk too much. My friend,
we ought not to talk in church unless we have something to say,
unless we have something from God to say.
[1]
IV.
A Good Report of All Men
3
John 1:12 Demetrius
hath good report of all men, and of the truth itself: yea, and we
also bear record; and ye know that our record is true.
It appears that John sent Demetrius with this letter to
Gaius. Demetrius
was someone who really loved the Lord, and he had a good report of
all men and the apostles. If
we are walking consistently for Christ, our report will be
consistent, and it will be good.
3
John 1:13 I had many
things to write, but I will not with ink and pen write unto thee:
3
John 1:14 But I trust I
shall shortly see thee, and we shall speak face to face. Peace be to
thee. Our friends salute thee. Greet the friends by name.
Again John mentions his desire to speak face to face with
those there in the church.
He says that he trusts that he shall shortly see them. He closes wishing them peace.
Each of us certainly need God’s grace an peace each day of
our lives.
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Prov 4:18
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