Audio Access Available Above
“A Tale Of
Three Men” • 5.31.20 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday
Morning Service (Covid-19 #15)
Intro.
Text
• 3 John 1 : "The Elder, to the beloved Gaius,
whom I love in truth:" : As with Second John, so with this third letter.
John introduces himself as "The Elder."
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He is an Overseer, who is also the oldest member of their community in age and
in faith.
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II John is a letter that is more
than likely directed to a church. III
John is a personal letter directed to an individual that John holds in high
regard.
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We aren't sure which Gaius this is. There are three mentioned in the
scriptures. Acts 19 and 20 mention two and there is a third is
mentioned in Romans 16 and I Corinthians 1.
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What we learn from this is that Gaius is a very common ancient name. To the
Apostle, this man was incredibly dear.
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I'd suggest from the context that he is a direct spiritual descendant of
John's! We'll address that a bit more in verse 4. John loves this man in the truth.
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He loves him because of the truth and because of his commitment to the truth!
There isn't a greater connection that can be had than when two are connected by
the truth! Verse 2.
• 3 John 2 : "Beloved, I pray that you may
prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers." : John's greeting to Gaius is unique to our ears, but this was a
very common greeting toward the end of the first century.
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According to scholars, there is a multitude of papyri that have been uncovered in
recent years that record this exact greeting.
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In fact, it was so common that it is abbreviated in many of the letters that
have been discovered! It would be similar to our "S.W.A.K." This is
how common it was.
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It fills the place in a letter when we say to one another, "I hope this
finds you well," though I'd much rather have a person express this hopeful
greeting to me.
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John says that he "prays" this, but it's not quite the word used. Other
translations use words like "wish," (KJV) "hope," (NLT) and
"desire." (YLT, DBY)
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When John comes to the Lord thinking of Gaius, he prays with this passion for
his brother and it just overflows in his words.
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What if someone told you that they prayed this for you: "My greatest
desire is for you to prosper in everything, be in health, in the same measure
as your soul has prospered!" Beautiful!
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This is how John was presently praying for Gaius. In all things. Through
everything that is happening around him, John prays for his prosperity and his
health.
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Many of us wish that he had chosen to use a different word in his greeting to
Gaius!
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Prosperity is of course, the buzz word of a whole generation of spurious
theologians. Their life verse, their justification for an entire system of
theology stems from this common greeting.
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How one could deduce that God wants you to always be prosperous and always be
in health from this verse is beyond me and beyond any kind of sound
hermeneutical teaching!
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To absolutize this personal desire between friends, making it applicable to
every one in every season, is a genuine hijacking of it's meaning!
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The actual idea behind the Greek word for "prosperity" is simply to
be be "helped along the way." "Have a successful journey,"
meaning that you made it there and back again.
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You had what you needed to get there, you had what you needed while there and
you had what you needed to return home!
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With regard to his health, John uses the word related to our word
"hygiene." It refers to being thoroughly sound and whole, not
encumbered by illness.
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It is never wrong to pray for God to meet our needs or to touch our bodies so
that they can participate in all that God calls us to.
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It is always wrong to expect, on the basis of this verse, that God will provide
for our greeds and never allow our bodies to be subject to illness because of
our great faith!
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If anything, this is almost the exact opposite of how the faith teachers
operate! They teach that if you are spiritual it will show in your physical.
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What John is saying here shows why he can appropriate such a common saying
because it represents spiritual truth. It is consistent with God's operation in
our lives!
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People on this planet orient themselves to their physical condition or
conditioning. God wants His people oriented to their spiritual condition or
conditioning!
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Let me put it this way: As we know, God looks at, judges things according to
our hearts. If you were to be inverted, soul and spirit first, what kind of
shape would be displayed?
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In the case of Gaius, if his journey in life and physical body could match the
way that God was helping him navigate his spiritual journey, he'd be doing
wonderfully! How about you?
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I can only beg you to consider that your spiritual life is far more valuable to
cultivate than your physical life, especially since who you are spiritually
will last for eternity!
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It seems doubtless to me that John had watched a man grow in the grace and
knowledge of Jesus Christ and there had had seen reports of wonderful fruit. Verse
3.
• 3 John 3,4 : "For I rejoiced greatly when
brethren came and testified of the truth that is in you, just as you walk in
the truth. I have no
greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." : What can make an 80+ year old Christian sense an overflow of
joy? To see the truth of Christ lived out in the lives of another generation!
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Much like his second epistle, John had run into some people that had come to
him, who reported and confirmed what he had already known. Gaius was in the
truth and he walked in truth.
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There was slow and continual progress that was evident in Gaius' life! People
could tell that the truth was in him. There was no mystery. Everyone knew what
drove and motivated him!
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Additionally, his movement in life was predictable. He had settled himself in
the truth! You would always know where to find him and you were never
surprised!
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There isn't anything better for John than to see and to hear the report of his
own children walking in the truth of scripture, God, Jesus and eternal life!
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This seems to point to the fact that Gaius was a direct spiritual descendant of
John's and beyond the blessing of a conversion, John had the joy of watching
this man mature!
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I cannot tell you how much my heart rings with that truth! I love watching you
embrace truth, expel fear, and endure in your faith.
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As great a joy as that is, there is the opposite for those that turn. Please be
one that chooses to bring joy by continually progressing in truth! What made
Gaius' progress so impressive? Verse 5.
•
3 John 5-8 : "Beloved, you do faithfully whatever
you do for the brethren and for strangers, who have borne witness of your love
before the church. If you send them forward on their journey in a manner worthy
of God, you will do well, because they went forth for His name’s sake, taking nothing from
the Gentiles. We
therefore ought to receive such, that we may become fellow workers for the
truth." : Verse 5 is an oddly translated verse in the NKJV. Everything that Gaius
was doing, "poieo" was related to his faith in the Lord. These are
Christian activities.
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He did them as a result of his faith in the Lord and he did them reliably,
steadily!
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He did these works, "ergon" for those that were already known members
of the church, as well as for strangers that would happen by.
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The church in these ancient times were not known by their large buildings.
These fellowships were a bit more localized than centralized, more home
fellowship than corporate gathering.
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It wasn't an odd occurrence for the church to bring people that they had been
evangelizing throughout the week, to these home gatherings.
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In addition, there were members of the church from other provinces and cities
that would minister for the sake of the gospel, who would also find themselves
in this company.
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Gaius was mindful of that and the church that had reported to John, spoke
highly of the love that he had shown in front of the church.
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"No matter who comes in, Gaius treats each and every one with the love of
God!"
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This has been our goal since day one and may it always be! In these days,
because of the transitory nature of these encounters, there was an expectation
of sending a person on their way.
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The church in these days had a much more integrated worship day. Sunday is
God's DAY. It seems that most people count Him lucky to get an hour and a half
of their time!
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In this day, you sat together for the whole day and ate a meal commemorating
communion that evening. The next day, it was the church that helped to provide
for travel need.
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To send them forth was to make them fit for their journey, not just in a
worldly way, but a godly way, or in a way that their God would send the person.
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Said another way, the church was to treat these people as if they were attending
to God Himself! Wouldn't that change the way you respond? It should!
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The church understand that they were extensions of God's mercy and provision.
If they did this, the church would be doing "well," a word that is
defined by excellence and honor.
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To treat people in this manner is honorable and excellent to God! Why? Because
these people would not need to seek the aid of the Gentiles.
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Can you imagine someone going out to do work for the Lord among unsaved people,
turning to those unsaved people and asking THEM to pay for it!? What a tragedy!
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These traveling ministers would be traveling for the Lord's sake, not needing
to borrow or beg from the people groups that they were about to encounter.
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itinerant workers were working for the Kingdom. To prepare them on their way,
to send them forth in a manner worthy of God, made them actual partners for
God's truth to expand!
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God counts our support in the same way that He accounts their faith to actually
go! Don't believe me. Listen to scripture! Turn if you will, to I Samuel 30:23-25.
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After being summarily dismissed by the Philistines, David and his men returned
to Ziklag, only then to discover that the Amalekites had raided their homes and
carried away their families!
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Already tired from their trip home, they took off in haste in pursuit. Some men
could not continue, but stayed with the equipment.
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When David returned, not only with their possessions, but with great spoil
beside, the men that were with him refused to share with the men that remained.
Here is the King's response.
•
I Samuel 30:23-25 : "But David
said, 'My brethren, you shall not do so with what the Lord has given us, who has preserved us
and delivered into our hand the troop that came against us. For who will heed you in this
matter? But as his part is who goes down to the battle, so shall his part be
who stays by the supplies; they shall share alike.' So it was, from that day forward;
he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day." : If that is what the King foreshadowing Jesus thinks, how much
more do you think Jesus will mean this! Verse 9.
•
3 John 9,10 : "I wrote to the church, but
Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us. Therefore, if I come, I will call
to mind his deeds which he does, prating against us with malicious
words. And not content with that, he himself does not receive the brethren, and
forbids those who wish to, putting them out of the church." : Part of why John was writing to Gaius personally seems to be
revealed here in verse 9 as, he
introduces this new character.
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John had written to the church, but the letter was never allowed to be read. In
that sense, we are probably reading 4th John! Why don't we have it?
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There was a man named Diotrephes there who did not welcome the Apostles
influence.
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Scripture doesn't provide any further information about Diotrephes, save what
is preserved here by John. The Apostle's assessment of him is not very
flattering.
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Diotrephes loved to have the "preeminence" among the church.
Literally, he loves being first! He loves "being the leader" (NLT)
and loves to "put himself first." (ESV)
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Notice that he does or does not have the preeminent position. It's that he
either loves the idea of it and sees it as attainable or he loves having it
more than the purpose for it!
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Naturally, a man of that character would not welcome the leadership of the
Ephesian church! The idea is that he is not hospitable toward them. He will not
have them as a guest.
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It isn't decided that John will be able to come, but if he does, he has the
obligation to confront Diotrephes. What does he plan to do?
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When John says that he will call to mind his deeds, it doesn't mean that he is
simply going to bring into his own mind or memory the things that Demetrius
did.
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The idea here is that Demetrius has done things that needed to be accounted for.
It's not as though these were committed in the past and he repented. They were
still happening!
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Diotrephes had continued to act the way that he had been acting and continued
to speak as he had been speaking! Diotrephes made a habit of
"prating" against the leadership of the churches.
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This refers to uttering nonsensical, empty and false charges. The substance of
those charges was of course false, and is not given any report or retort here.
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All John will say is that everything that was said, was said with malicious
intent. John uses the same term for the word that is elsewhere translated
"evil."
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This connects itself naturally to the "evil one!" I've mentioned
before that there are two words used in Greek to describe "evil."
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The one used here is the one that describes an intent to incite more evil. His
desire for preeminence made his heart like Satan's.
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However it is that Diotrephes came into leadership, somewhere along the way, he
began to use his tongue as a dedicated tool for Satan! And believe me when I
say that it never stops there!
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Look at what John says next: "And not content with that!" Diotrephes
wasn't satisfied with the results of his smear campaign. He had to control who
could influence the church!
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He was personally unwilling to allow any hospitality toward Christians that
would come into town. To the minds of the early church, hospitality wasn't
merely a show of kindness or welcome hug.
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In these days, there weren't hotel or motel chains that offered a room to
recover from your travels. In fact, when public places that were available,
they were essentially houses of shame!
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Consequently, the church offered their own homes to those that called on the
Name of Jesus. This was the standard practice of the early church.
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It's not that it would have been a surprise visit or some unexpected kind of
act. This was common courtesy, worthy of the Lord's people!
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Since Gaius was one that practiced this freely, it would have been that much
more offensive to hear about this behavior.
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John had made it clear in the grammar that this was his habit but it wasn't
just his own predisposition. Diotrophes bullied his congregation into following
his wicked lead!
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These were members of the church that were willing to serve God's people in
this manner! He prevented them from acting upon their faith! That would have
been bad enough!
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Unbelieveably, he did this by threatening and then actually excommunicating
them from the church! Can you imagine that!?
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They were put out of the church, not because they were heretics or had committed
egregious acts of sin. He put them out because their godly action contradicted
his wicked actions!
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He put them out BECAUSE they were acting like Christians! What spirit does this
sound like?
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Do you not recall just a few months ago, when we studied the actions of the
Pharisees, who were willing to kick people out from the synagogue for acknowledging
Jesus!? (John 9:22)
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Diotrephes was trying to make himself as authoritative and domineering as the
Pharisees were! Apparently, those were his models of ministry! How sad! John
picks upon this in verse 11.
•
3 John 11 : "Beloved, do not imitate what is
evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has
not seen God." : John doesn't mince words.
Diotrephes was an evil man and he was not an example to imitate, our word for "mime."
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Don't act out evil. Don't make that your example. Imitate what is good! Who do
you see in your life that is godly? What do they listen to? What do they read?
What is their practice?
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That person who does good is of God and the person who does evil hasn't made a
practice of staring at God. They haven't take the time to consider who He is!
They can't tell what He cares about!
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They might be important. They are likely charismatic and gifted. They may have
a following. They may even produce visible results. It's not necessarily true
in this world, that they know God!
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Why would a person imitate such a person? Because of everything I said before I
said that they might not know God! Look instead to the ones that do go!
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I know that such a reality in this life can make one cynical. I've seen it with
my own eyes! One leader reveals himself to be a wicked person and the
conclusion is that they are all hypocrites!
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That is why John brings another man to Gaius' mind. Verse 12.
•
3 John 12 : "Demetrius has a good testimony from
all, and from the truth itself. And we also bear witness, and you know that our
testimony is true." : Amazingly, there is only a
single verse about Demetrius. Do notice a few things though. Both Diotrephes
and Demetrius are Gentile men.
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Both are named after or in relation to pagan gods, Diotrophes to Zeus, and
Demetrius to the pagan goddess of agriculture, Demeter.
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Both are known to the church and are likely first generation Christians. One is
serving the church and the other is seeking to have the church serve him!
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Both will exist in this world. Our responsibility is to seek after people like
Demetrius. He is first a man with a solid reputation! Everyone spoke well of
him.
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In fact, the truth spoke well of him! What does John mean? The truth of God's
word being the center of his life came out in his practice! He lived a life
that embodied Christian doctrine!
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Finally, John tells Gaius that the leadership that he represented could vouch
for this man as well! Gaius implicitly trusted them, especially as John was likely
his spiritual Father!
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It's interesting that men like Diotrephes take up verses and verses, while the
men like Demetrious are simply walking the way that they should!
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In the life of a godly person, that is all they could ever want! My prayer and
yours should be "Lord, let my normal life bring you glory!" and
"Never let my life detract from you!" Verse 13.
•
3 John 13,14 : " I had many things to write, but I do not wish to write to you
with pen and ink; but I hope to see you shortly, and we shall speak face to face. Peace to you. Our friends greet you.
Greet the friends by name." : Just
like II John!
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Whatever more the Apostle wants to communicate, he finds it better to table his
statements, opting instead for a face to face meeting. Christians take their
communication seriously.
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It's good to be slow to speak and one that is determined to study how and when
to answer.
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It's an art form to know how to graciously communicate and John's intention was
to do just that. He didn't want to leave anything unsaid, but he couldn't leave
anything unclear!
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Gaius was to have God's peace and a reminder of friendship. He wasn't alone!
And while he might be among those that were not walking with the Lord
correctly, he still had friends abroad!
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The leadership at this time, might have been a mess, but the church is more
than it's leaders! There are godly people around you that are worth remembering
and clinging to!
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This is why we stress home fellowship meetings, that you might bond with other
Christians. If the leadership ever went bad, you'd still have the life of your
church!
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Gaius had friends where John was and there were friends with him who were also
friendly toward John. The Apostle wants Gaius to focus on that. The church is
more than it's leadership!
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In times of crisis, as when a leader goes off the rails or when he simply goes
off into a new locale, God's people alway have one another to take shelter in!
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"Gaius, don't be cynical about leadership because there are leaders like
Demetrius. Don't continually focus on Diotrephes' failure. Focus on those that
are living for Jesus!"
Conclusion
- The Lord leaves us with a portrait of three men of the last century that John knew and introduces us to.
- The Lord leaves us with a portrait of three men of the last century that John knew and introduces us to.
- The first, Gaius, is known for his
hospitality, love and loyalty to the things of God. He's one who walks in the
truth and faithfully attends to his duties.
- The second, Diotrophes, is known for his
hostility, pride, and micromanagement of the people of God. He walks in
arrogance, freely speaks lies and leads by intimidation.
- The final man, Demetrius, is known for being
and doing good. Everyone appreciates the Lord in him. His life looks like
scripture and the leaders of the church commend him.
- May the Lord instruct our hearts specifically
to attend to the lesson that we are to receive today! May he produce more like
Gaius and Demetrius out of our ranks!
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