Through the Bible - 3 John

Father, I do ask that You would open our hearts and minds right now. We have been told in Your Word that we are to love You with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. I pray that this time dedicated to You, however long we have here tonight, would be filled with love for You, Lord, as we study Your Word, studying to show ourselves approved unto You.

As we consider the days we are living in and the holidays we are celebrating this week, I am reminded once again that we are to pray, "Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." We do pray tonight, Your kingdom come. We look forward to the day when we will see You face to face. Your Word says that when we see You, we shall be like You. I believe it is the cry of every heart here that that day would come quickly.

We know Your Word says that the whole of creation groans for the manifestation of the sons of God, and we are a part of that groaning tonight. Until You come, I pray that You would cause us, by Your Spirit, to be strong in faith and to stand upon the truth of Your Word. For we ask it in Jesus' name, and all God's people said, Amen.

How many of you read through 3 John this week? Just a few of you. Listen, you are going to meet John someday, and he is going to ask you if you read these 14 verses. It is a very short letter, likely written around the same time as John's second letter, his second epistle. Most likely, it was written from the city of Ephesus, a city where John spent the latter years of his life before he went to be with the Lord.

You'll remember, and we will talk about this more when we get to the book of Revelation in just a few weeks, that it was there on the island of Patmos that John received the revelation of Jesus Christ while he had been exiled there during the time of Domitian.

The emperor of Rome was a wicked man who was set against the church. After John's release, he went back to Ephesus and lived the remainder of his life there. It is very likely that he wrote this letter during that period of time, somewhere in the early 90s AD.

Both of these letters, the last two letters of John—Second and Third John—are written in an interesting way. The last one we saw last week was addressed to the elect lady and her children. I mentioned last week that I lean toward the belief that he was writing to a church, specifically a persecuted church. He may have also been writing to a family, a lady and her children. This interpretation is valid, and I don't think you'd be wrong to see it that way. However, I also believe that it was during the time of Domitian's reign, when he was bringing intense persecution. Therefore, I think John may have been writing to the persecuted church.

In this letter, which consists of just 14 lines or verses, you can see that it is very short and to the point. He also mentions, as he did at the end of his last letter, that he desires to see them shortly so that he can speak face to face. He didn't want to send a long letter to Gaius, who is mentioned in verse 1.

John begins the letter just as he did his first letter, addressing himself as "the elder." By this time, he was likely the only apostle still alive, the only one of the followers of Jesus. He had followed Jesus for a very long period. Tradition holds that he was the youngest of the disciples when Jesus was on earth, and he had a real passion and zeal for God, which we see in the Gospels.

When you read through the Gospel that he wrote, the Gospel of John, you notice that his perspective on the things Jesus did is different from that of the other three Gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke—often referred to as the synoptic Gospels. The form, structure, and focal points of their Gospel ministry differ significantly. John's Gospel, however, provides a glimpse into some of the more intimate encounters with Jesus. John was present during many of these encounters; he was with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration in Matthew chapter 17, where he saw Jesus glorified before him. He was also there on Golgotha as Jesus was crucified.

I believe that as you go through the Gospel accounts, it would appear that John was the only one of the disciples, the apostles, to be there. He watched Jesus on that mountaintop in another kind of glorification, a powerful glorification as He died there. John saw Jesus raise Jairus' daughter from the dead. He was one of only three—Peter, James, and John—who were present for that event. He was closest to Jesus, along with Peter and James, in the Garden of Gethsemane.

You see that John was with Jesus quite a bit, and he also spent time with Jesus after Jesus ascended into heaven. We will see that in the Book of Revelation in just a few weeks. At this point, John definitely would have been looked up to within the body of Christ. Yet, it's interesting when you read through this letter that there was an individual he will talk about in verse 9 who didn't really care for John or spoke in a wicked way about him. This is hard to believe and hard to imagine, yet it was still happening at that point in time.

John mentions that there are three Gaiuses in the New Testament. One of them was a fellow laborer with Paul, and we see him mentioned in the Book of Acts twice. This name Gaius is brought up once in Acts and once in Romans 16, I believe, and now also here in 3 John. We don't know if these are three different Gaiuses or if they are all the same individual. Whatever the case, this seems to be a fairly normal name. It was a common name among the Greeks at that time, just as John might be in our day, or Charles, for example.

John writes, "To the well-beloved Gaius, whom I love in the truth." This man, whoever he was, was a follower of the Lord and walked in the truth. We see that down in verse 4, where it states that he was one who walked in the truth. John expresses, "Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers."

This is an interesting statement that John makes in this second verse. He wishes above all things that Gaius would be healthy. We don't know if perhaps Gaius was suffering or going through some sort of illness or if he was having physical difficulties during that time. John says, "I wish above all things that you would prosper and be in good health." So, it is possible that he was going through a trying time physically. I know there are several people in our fellowship, and some even here in this room tonight, who are going through physical difficulties.

And yet we see in this man, Gaius, who perhaps was going through a physical infirmity or a hard time, and yet he still walked in the truth. It is a devastating thing sometimes when you see people who have walked with the Lord for their entire lives, and then they get an illness that sidelines them from their walk with the Lord. It becomes such a distraction that it almost breaks apart their relationship with Him. I have seen people, in the time that I've walked with the Lord, who became ill after they had run the race for so long, with such great strength in their relationship with the Lord. Yet, they became ill with some sort of sickness, and it kind of sidelined them from ministry, which is devastating.

However, this man, Gaius, if he was going through a physical sickness, which it appears he may have been, still walked in the truth. We need to be those who finish well. We have gone through 1 and 2 Timothy as we have been studying the entire Bible here on Saturday nights. You will remember in 2 Timothy, Paul's last letter, that he says, "I have run the race. I have fought the good fight. There is now laid up for me in heaven a treasure." He was ready to go, but he had run that race strong until the end. It really has nothing to do with how we start; it has to do with how we finish.

I am one who wants to finish well, and we have great examples of people, even in our own day, who are running the race with endurance and finishing well. When I think of that, I automatically think of Billy Graham, a man of great strength of character and integrity, a follower of God and a preacher of righteousness for all of his life. Here he is, in his 80s now, and yet if he could, if he had the strength, he would still be doing crusades every single week and traveling all over the world. He is still fighting the good fight, and he will finish well.

The same goes for Pastor Chuck. Those of you who were here today for the Epicenter Conference heard Pastor Chuck share, as he always does, with that big baritone voice that reverberates. There were a few more pauses this time than maybe ten years ago, but you know what? He is still speaking the Word of God with truth. When you hear him on the radio, especially on Pastor's Perspective, it always blows my mind how he is able to grab these questions and give the answer right there on the spot. Sometimes the answer leaves me wondering, "Where did you come up with that?" But he is a man who has run the race with endurance, and he will finish well.

I am sure that men like Billy Graham and Chuck Smith have physical difficulties and hard times. They probably desire to go be with the Lord just as Paul did, yet they recognize the importance of finishing the race.

It is more needful and necessary that he is here during this time, but he is still running the race. Gaius was one who was in the truth, and yet he may have been in the midst of an infirmity and some sort of sickness. John says, "Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health even as your soul prospers."

Now, that's another interesting thing to consider. This was a man who was strong in soul. He may have been weak in body, but he was strong in soul. What a testimony that is! We may be completely weak in body, and yet to have a strong soul and a strong spirit in the Lord is so much better. I think of Joni Eareckson Tada, and some of you know who she is and the ministry that she has had. Weak in body, but a giant in faith. There have been many like her, and there are people all throughout the world who have that same testimony: weak in body, but strong in soul.

That is the better thing because we are not going to live eternally in this body, are we? How many of you are thankful for that? Boy, is that the truth! We are not going to live eternally in this body, so it is so much better to strengthen our souls. Paul talks about that in 1 Timothy. If you want to flip over to 1 Timothy, just for a moment, chapter 4.

We are a nation above every other nation that is focused on the physical. You see that in the fact that we have so many gyms and gym memberships in our nation. You don't find that in any other nation in the world. I have had the opportunity to travel around the world, and I remember when I was living in Germany. I asked someone while I was living over there, because it is very cold and I really loved to run. I didn't want to go and run 5 or 10 miles in the 30-degree weather or in the snow or the rain. So, I asked someone, "Is there like a gym around here?" The guy looked at me like I was crazy. "A gym? What do you mean?"

He said, "Yeah, we've got one of those. There's a small one down the street." It wasn't really much of a place, but it just wasn't the mindset over there. Here, it is like the big thing. These places, 24 Hour Fitness, LA Fitness, and all these different gyms make lots of money.

I got called out with the fire department last week. When I finished the call in the middle of the night, it was almost 2 in the morning, and I had to fill up my tank with gas. I drove down Rose and passed that new 24 Hour Fitness. I was surprised to see guys in there at 2 in the morning on the treadmill. I thought, "You've got to be kidding me!" Even if I wanted to go and run, I wouldn't be doing it at 2 in the morning. But, you know...

In 1 Timothy chapter 4, we read a very interesting verse. As Paul says in verse 8, bodily exercise profits what? Profits some or profits little? It does have a profit. In fact, at the Bible College, they have a little gem, and I think they used to call it "profits little gem." Do they still? Yes, "profits little gem."

Bodily exercise profits little. But notice this: godliness is profitable unto all things, having the promise of life that now is and of that which is to come. Isn't that cool? Godliness is profitable both for this life now and for the life that is to come. Bodily exercise does not profit in that way, but godliness does. Exercising yourself towards godliness is profitable in this life and the life to come.

You could be the strongest and most fit person in the world, exercising yourself almost to death and having the best nutrition. I'm not speaking against having good nutrition; I think it's important. However, you could do all those things, walk outside, and get hit by a truck, and it really profited you little. Yet, if you're not exercising yourself towards godliness, you may have the strongest body but the weakest soul. On the day of Christ Jesus, only one thing is going to matter, and it isn't going to be your biceps.

It is much more profitable to exercise yourself towards godliness. Bodily exercise profits little, but godliness is profitable unto all things, having the promise of the life that now is and that which is to come. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. Therefore, we both labor and suffer reproach because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially those who believe.

Notice that this is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. Therefore, we labor. We press on. We run the race spiritually in Christ so that we may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold of us.

Gaius is a man we know very little about, yet he may have been weak in body but was strong in soul. Why was he strong in soul? In verse 3, Paul says, "For I rejoiced greatly when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walk in the truth." Notice that: why was he strong in soul? He walked in the truth.

So this man, weak in body, was strong in soul and strong in his walk. Just as we saw in 2 John, the word "truth" is coming up quite a bit here.

As he begins to really focus on this aspect of truth, we must remember that during that time, and going into the second century AD, the truth of Jesus Christ was already under attack. It was under attack by many different forces, but one specific challenge was Gnosticism, which diminished the humanity of Jesus. This heresy came against the truth of who He was.

As we discussed last week and have been talking about quite a bit, in the first century, the heresy that emerged primarily questioned Jesus' humanity. Many had no problem believing in His divinity because He performed marvelous works, and there were eyewitnesses to those works. However, in our day, which I believe to be the last century of the church, it is not the humanity of Jesus that is in question; it is His deity that is being challenged today.

There will always be forces coming against the body of Christ, just as there were during the early days of the church. Therefore, we must be strong in the truth, just as Gaius was, if we are to stand against these challenges. The only way to be strong in the truth is to exercise ourselves toward godliness and to walk in the truth.

Walking in the truth means that it must be applied in our lives. As James said, we cannot be hearers of the word only, because if we are, we deceive ourselves. We must also be doers of the word. There are many who receive a lot of Bible teaching; they may listen to it on the radio, listen to tapes, read books, and attend Bible studies. Yet, if they are not exercising this knowledge in their lives, if they are not making it a part of themselves by practically using what they learn, then they are not truly digesting God's word.

It is almost as if they are spiritually bulimic; they chew it up a little and then throw it up. We need to be those who take in the word of God and allow it to permeate our lives so that we truly digest it. The only way that happens is when we begin to work it out. That is why Paul told the church at Philippi to work out their salvation with fear and trembling.

This is something we actually need to walk in. James warned that the person who is merely a hearer of the word has deceived themselves. It is like looking into a mirror and then walking away, forgetting what kind of individual they are. They do not allow the mirror to reveal the areas of their lives that need to be changed and transformed. The word of God is capable of doing that; it is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. As you all know from reading through the word of God, it has a way of revealing the truth.

Reading the Bible can offend you, upset you, discourage you, or make you angry, but hopefully, it transforms you. It is God's desire to transform us; He does not want us to stay the same. If you've walked with the Lord for ten years, hopefully, you've seen that transformation, and others have seen it as well. However, if you are still struggling with the exact same sins that you struggled with ten, twelve, or fifteen years ago, then perhaps you're not applying the things that the Scriptures have to say.

I'm not saying that I, after walking with the Lord for a number of years, am perfect and do not sin. If you think that, ask my wife. She'll be very quick to tell you that is not the case. The sins that I struggle with today are not nearly the same as those I struggled with five or ten years ago. As we walk with the Lord, the things I consider to be sin in my life may seem trivial to you. You might say, "That's nothing; let me tell you what I'm having a hard time with." Whatever it may be, you might look at it as something small, but that is the Lord's refining work that He is doing in each one of us. He is transforming us and seeking to do so more and more into the image of His Son.

Remember, Jesus, as Hebrews tells us, is the express image of God. He is exactly as God because He is God, in nature and character. God wants to change our nature and character more and more so that it reflects the image of the Father and the Son. This means that He wants us to walk in holiness. By His Spirit, we can lean upon Him, and He can strengthen us to do so. We will fall; we will trip up and sin. But as we saw in 1 John, when we sin, we go back to where? 1 John 1:9, that's right. If we sin and confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse us. The word "cleanse" is the same word used in John 15, which means to prune. God wants to prune those wicked works from us.

This is the exercise of ourselves toward godliness, which is profitable in this life and the life to come. John says, "I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the truth that is in you." It appears that there were people who passed through wherever Gaius was. He probably lived in a different city than John did; John was likely in the city of Ephesus. There were some traveling missionaries and teachers even at this time. Early in the church, men were already traveling out from Ephesus to teach the Word of God, perhaps what they had learned from Paul. Remember, Paul spent two years...

In Ephesus, he taught in their synagogues and in some of the schools there. There were probably disciples being sent out from Ephesus to teach in other places. They had come to a place where Gaius lived, stayed with him, and brought back word to John, testifying of the truth that was in him and that he walked in the truth. It wasn't just that he had a knowledge of the truth; he exercised himself in the truth.

Notice verse 4: "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." When I was about 14 years old, I went to my first youth camp at Calvary Chapel, the Green Valley camp. I remember it was the first time I realized that there are more Calvary Chapels than just Calvary Chapel Escondido. Pastor Chuck came and shared there, and I remember what he talked about. He spoke from the book of Ephesians, discussing not meandering but knowing the will of God and walking in God's will.

After that, being the kid that I was at 14 or 15 years old, I went up to Chuck and asked, "Can I have your autograph?" He took my Bible and wrote in the back, "Pastor Chuck," along with this verse: "3 John 4, I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in the truth." The longer I walk with the Lord and the more opportunities I have to disciple others and invest in people, especially now that I have a son, the more I understand this verse.

John, after walking with the Lord for so long, had undoubtedly ministered throughout the known world at that time. He probably had children in the faith all over the place, and he was so strengthened and encouraged in the latter years of his life by receiving testimonies that, you know, that kid is walking in the truth. I remember my parents always wondered because, at home, when we kids were there, we may not have been the most polite. I'll admit it; I'll confess.

But I remember one time my mom received a testimony from one of my friend's parents that Miles is so polite when he's over at their house. She was so blessed by that because she thought, "Really? He isn't when he's at our house." Just hearing that testimony, that he was so polite, was a great joy to John when he heard that Gaius walked in the truth.

Verse 5 states, "Beloved, thou doest faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the brethren and to the strangers." It appears that these traveling teachers had come through the town, the city, or the village where Gaius lived. When they arrived, Gaius took care of them. He faithfully cared for the brethren, but he also took care of strangers or foreigners.

Remember what we were told in many places in the Old Testament. It was one of God's laws to His people that they be hospitable and show good hospitality to strangers and foreigners. Over the last several years, I have had the great joy of getting to know Dr. TV, and some of you have gotten to know him as well. He has been such a blessing to our ministry as he has shared some of his writings and discipleship materials with us.

One of the things we now use as the focus of our discipleship here at the church was developed for an international student ministry. When Dr. TV and his wife moved over here from India, they went to Indiana University. He was already a believer and a strong Christian, working on his graduate studies to obtain his PhD. He became involved with an international student ministry.

Perhaps you don't know this, but people from all over the world come to our nation to be educated. They come from every nation to receive an education, and they often return to their own countries, where they become the leaders of their nations. Dr. TV recognized a desire within this ministry to reach out to those international students, to disciple them, and to bring them into the truth. This way, when they return to their own countries, they would be missionaries in their own nations.

If you know anything about missions, you understand that it is much better to have a national missionary ministering in their own nation than to send people from outside. It is much harder for us to adapt culturally and to navigate the challenges of sending people, such as obtaining visas and funding. Dr. TV was involved with a ministry called ISI, which stands for International Students Incorporated. Their whole focus was to minister to international students, bring them to faith in Christ, and disciple them. He wrote the discipleship material we now use for the intended purpose of that ministry. They asked him to put it together, and he did, with the whole focus of being hospitable to these students.

It was very interesting because just today, in the conference we had here with Joel Rosenberg and others, they were talking about this very same thing. Joel Rosenberg mentioned a family, a couple that came over from Iran in the early 80s. They arrived in San Diego as hardcore radical Muslims, and when they got here, they were trying to work on their graduate studies. They experienced culture shock; the weather was different, the food was different, and the people were different. How did they end up coming to the knowledge of the truth and the Lord? Someone reached out to them with hospitality, invited them into their home, and took care of their needs. They were in a new and scary place.

I remember coming back from Germany one time and standing in the airport in Frankfurt. There was a gentleman there who clearly felt out of place. He started talking to me; he had a very thick accent and was from South Africa. He had never been out of South Africa before, but he was on his way to America, specifically Florida, where he would be working with one of the cruise lines. The interaction with Americans at the airport, who were getting ready to return to the States from Germany, seemed to scare him half to death.

I always find it interesting when I travel back from a foreign country and see foreigners on the plane. When we go through customs coming into America, the American personality and our loud, boisterous nature, which we don't think much of, can be intimidating to others. You can watch the faces of these internationals coming into this country for the first time; they look worried. If you can reach out to them with love and minister to them in a caring manner, you will be a great blessing to them. Oftentimes, this also provides an opportunity to share the Lord with them.

There are many internationals who come here, the strangers among us, and that is why the Lord told us to be hospitable to them. Hospitality is becoming a lost trait in our nation. While we are still a pretty hospitable people for the most part, it is not like in some other countries. This is a great area where we can minister to people.

If we consider the fact that there are, even within five minutes of here, two big colleges—Cal State San Marcos and Palomar College—along with many international students, we have a huge mission field open to us. I have been praying for a while that the Lord would begin to raise up people to reach out to these students.

Within our own body, we can be like Gaius and be hospitable to strangers. We love to be hospitable to our brothers and sisters in the Lord. I have experienced some of your hospitality as you have invited me and my wife into your home. The hospitality of our church is great, but a lot of times we don't reach outside of the body of Christ. It is important to be hospitable to those who are the brethren, part of the body of Christ, but also to strangers. Gaius exemplified this, and the testimony of his hospitality had gotten back to Ephesus. It reached John, and what a good testimony to have! I believe it brings great joy to our Father in Heaven when He sees His children walking in this truth and exercising ourselves in godliness in this manner.

As you read through the Old Testament, you see that the children of Israel were judged for this very issue: they were not hospitable. There are numerous instances in the Old Testament that illustrate this. However, Gaius was not like that. He was commended for his faithfulness to the brethren and to the strangers who had borne witness of his charity. In some translations, the word "charity" is translated as "love." This refers to the Greek word "agape," which is described in 1 Corinthians chapter 13. That love suffers long and is kind; it is not boastful or proud. The greatest of these is love, as stated at the end of 1 Corinthians chapter 13.

Those who witnessed Gaius's actions testified of his love before the church. They didn't just tell John; they came before the whole body of Christ in Ephesus and said, "Listen, this guy Gaius from the city we just came from is filled with agape." He was filled with the fruit of the Spirit, which is love, agape. The fruit of the Spirit was evident in his life, and it served as a testimony before the body of Christ.

John wrote, "Whom if thou bring forward on their journey after a godly sort, thou shalt do well." He acknowledged that Gaius was doing well in the things he was doing. For the Lord's namesake, those who went forth took nothing from the Gentiles. A group of people had gone out from Ephesus to spread the word of God, and they did not want to rely on the Gentiles for support. Gaius was one who refreshed and took care of them as they came. Therefore, we ought to receive such individuals.

That we might be fellow helpers of the truth. What we don't recognize is that when we're aiding in the ministry of somebody else, we are actually a fellow laborer, a fellow helper with them. The Scriptures very clearly reveal that the Lord accounts that to us. The fruit is accounted to us. We see that in the book of Philippians as well. The church at Philippi took care of Paul quite a bit, meeting his needs as he traveled. In fact, all the churches of Macedonia were very giving to Paul's ministry during his missionary journeys. The church at Thessalonica was going through difficult times themselves, yet they were still very generous.

I think that serves as an exhortation for our own nation and the church in our nation as we are going through difficult economic times. That should not diminish our willingness to give. Now, it may diminish the amount that we can give because we give in proportion to what we have, as the Scriptures reveal. The amount may be different because it's a different proportion or a greater amount that we're taking from to give. Yet, it shouldn't diminish the heart behind it.

One of the things that we have seen, and I will just say to you, it's a great testimony for me to bear witness that in this economic difficulty, our own giving at our church has not gone down. I look at that and say, well, it's proof to me that it's a work of God and that God is working in the hearts of the body here at Calvary Chapel of Escondido. It's a real blessing for me to see that.

In fact, the last time I was shown anything regarding our situation, we don't have another meeting here for a couple of weeks, but the last thing I saw was that we're actually up this year over last year at this time, which is amazing to consider. Even in the midst of this difficult economic time, people are facing challenges as our nation and the world have lost somewhere between 40 and 45% of wealth, as was mentioned at the conference today. When you consider that, to see that the body of Christ is still giving is a real testimony of who God is. He is our Father, and He has given us everything liberally, as we see in James chapter 1.

The people at Thessalonica and the people in Philippi continued to give, and it was beneficial to their account, as the Lord said. Paul revealed that it was fruit to their account. The same sort of thing applies here. There were people who went out in the name of the Lord. They did not want to rely upon the world to take care of them. We are supposed to receive such people who are ministering because we are fellow helpers in the truth.

Now, verse 9 kind of changes the topic.

The direction and the tone are important. I wrote unto the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, receives us not. How would you like to have this testimony written about you in the Scriptures for all to read and consider? Diotrephes loves to have the preeminence among them. He wants to be supreme.

Now, we all know and recognize who is to be preeminent or supreme in our midst: our Lord. If we know the Lord, and if we know His teaching and have learned from Him, then we recognize that He has called us to be the less, to lay our lives down, and to humble ourselves. Diotrephes is revealed in the Scriptures as both proud and selfish. Right here in this one verse, verse 9, he is shown to be proud and selfish. He wanted preeminence and did not want them to receive the ministers who were going out from Ephesus or from other places, taking the Word of God.

I wrote unto the church, but Diotrephes, who loves the preeminence among them, receives us not. He did not want to receive what we had to say. Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds, which he does, pratting against us with malicious words and not content therewith. He says, "Hey, I'm going to remember this guy, and if I come, I want to have a talk with him."

How would you like to have the Apostle John come knock on your door and say, "I want to have a word with you"? This is the same John who, in his youth, wanted to call down fire on one of the cities of Samaria. I can imagine that John was not some slouch. He was a fisherman by trade when he was a young man, so I figure he was no little 90-pound wuss. He was probably a force to be contended with, but not just on that level—on a spiritual level as well.

Diotrephes was a man who was pratting against them with malicious words. He was speaking against the Apostle John and against those who were disciples of John or had gone out from him, taking letters from John. He was speaking against them with malicious words and was not content therewith; neither did he himself receive the brethren. He didn't receive the brethren at all. Gaius was commended for receiving the brethren and the strangers, but Diotrephes was condemned because he wouldn't even receive the brothers.

That were sent out. Neither does he receive the brethren, and he forbids those who would, casting them out of the church. This is heavy. He had some sort of leadership position; he had some sort of place of authority within the church—Diotrephes. He said, "We're not going to receive these guys, and if you receive them, I'm going to kick you out of the church." Man, that's pretty heavy. The guy was using his authority for himself, using his position for himself. He was slandering the work of God; he was proud and selfish. He said, "If you receive these people, then I'm kicking you out of here." That's pretty heavy.

In verse 11, he says, "Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good." Basically, what he implies here is that Diotrephes was one who was evil. He says, "Don't pattern your life in this way; don't follow this manner of life; don't be like him." He that does good is of God, but he that does evil has not seen God. Not only does he say that what this guy is doing is evil, but he's also saying, "Hey, this guy doesn't even know the Lord." Yet, he had some sort of privileged position within the body of Christ.

As you can see, even early on within the body of Christ, there were false teachers and false prophets—guys who had come in slyly, maybe through the back door. They didn't even know the Lord, and yet they were there, holding prominent positions. There are people even today within the church, so to speak, who have prominent positions, and yet they are false teachers.

I saw one of them just last week. Maybe you saw this a week or so ago on Nightline. They had a debate on the question of whether Satan exists. In the debate was Mark Driscoll, Pastor Mark Driscoll from Mars Hill Church in Seattle. He's a right-on Bible teacher, except for the fact that he's a very strict five-point Calvinist, and I disagree with him on that. But Mark Driscoll is a great Bible teacher, and he was on the side of "yes, Satan does exist."

Alongside him was another lady who had come out of a background as a prostitute. Now she had come to know the Lord, and they were saying, "Yes, there is a true, real Satan." On the other side of the group was Deepak Chopra, whom some of you may know from India. He is an MD and has become very well known.

Especially among those who don't know the Lord and are into New Age thinking, there was a man by the name of Bishop Carlton Pearson. He is a very interesting character who does not believe that there is a real Satan, does not believe in the inerrancy of Scripture, and questions much of the Word of God. As he was speaking, you can watch this on Nightline's website, abc.com slash nightline. The entire thing is over an hour long, and there's a link to it on my website.

As you listen to the things that this man had to say, it is clear that he holds a prominent position in a church. He is called a bishop, and people look up to him as a reverend. Yet, let me tell you, he is a heretic. There is no question in my mind that he has not seen God. Although he had a quick wit and knew the Scriptures well, he did not know God. This is similar to the man mentioned in verse 9. Unless a man like Bishop Pearson repents and turns to the Lord, his name is written in a book, but it is not the Book of Life.

Another man is mentioned in verse 12: Demetrius. Demetrius has a good report. In contrast to Diotrephes, there is Demetrius, who has a good report of all men and of truth itself. John states that he also bears record, and you know that our record is true. John gives a good endorsement for this man, Demetrius. Perhaps Demetrius was the one carrying this letter to Gaius as he was going to see this man within the body of Christ, whom John appears to have wanted to visit, as we will see down in verse 14.

We have this contrast of three individuals in this book. Gaius was strong in soul and strong in his walk with the Lord. He was good and strong in love, exercising love towards the body of Christ. Then we see Diotrephes, who was proud, selfish, and a slanderer. His name is written in this book, but not in a good way and not for a good report. In contrast, Demetrius has a good report of all men and of truth itself. He was also one who walked in the truth. John says, "I bear him record. I'm going to speak on his behalf for you."

And you know that our record is true. I had many things to write unto you, but I will not with ink and pen write unto you. However, I trust I shall shortly see you, and we shall speak face to face. Peace be to you. Our friends salute you. Greet the friends by name.

Now again, I find it interesting that he does not list out all these different friends that he is greeting. Perhaps this was during a time of persecution and difficulty, and he didn't want to list all the names of the people who were there within the body of Christ wherever Gaius was living. But he says, "Our friends salute you. Greet the friends by name." Go and let them know. You know who those friends are, who those brothers and sisters are in the body of Christ. Greet them in the body of Christ.

This is a very interesting short letter, just 14 verses, and yet here in these 14 verses, we see some very good things that we should consider and apply in our own lives. Although a person may be weak in body, we should be those who are strong in soul. We are strong in soul only as we have exercised ourselves towards godliness, which is profitable in this life and in the life to come. We are strong in soul because we are strong in our walks with the Lord. We walk in the truth, which brings God joy, and no doubt it brings our brothers and sisters joy as well.

We should be strong in love. Strong in soul, strong in walk, and strong in love. Not selfish, not proud, not a slanderer like Diotrephes, but one who has a good report written in the book of life and God's book in heaven. We saw in the book of Malachi that God keeps a record of those who walk in Him. The last chapter of Malachi reveals that God is keeping a book, a scrapbook almost, of those who are sharing about the Lord and are joyful in the Lord. He keeps a record just as John kept a record here of Gaius, Demetrius, and also Diotrephes.

May we be those who have the testimony of Gaius. Let us look outside of ourselves and around our own community, maybe on our own street, where there are people who don't know the Lord. This week, as we prepare for the services here for Easter, consider knocking on one of their doors and asking, "Hey, do you go to church?" If they say no, invite them to come out on Easter so they might know the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords.

God desires, I believe, that we recognize we are not just missionaries in other countries, but we are missionaries right here on our own street, in our own neighborhood, in our own city, looking for opportunities.

To be loving, showing charity, and demonstrating the true agape love of God to those who are both strangers and brethren, we might, by all means, win some. Amen?

Let's stand and pray. Father, I thank You for this short book that is packed with little nuggets of truth. Lord, I pray that You would help me to apply these things in my life as well. I ask that You would help me to see with Your eyes as I go about my day here in Escondido or wherever I am.

Help me to see those who are hurting, those who need Your word, and those who may need help with very practical things. Perhaps someone has a flat tire on the side of the road, or someone looks lost. Lord, I think of the students in our area who are from another country and feel completely lost because they are away from their home, their family, and everything they know.

I pray that You would open a door so that we could be a great blessing to them and bring the truth to them. We know that there is coming a day when we will stand before You, and You will say to us, "Blessed are you, because when I was thirsty, you gave me a drink; when I was hungry, you gave me something to eat; when I was naked, you clothed me; when I was in prison, you came and visited me; when I was sick, you took care of me." You will tell us to enter into the joy of the Lord.

Father, You are watching how we love, and You are taking note. I pray that You would help us to stand upon the truth, to walk in the truth, and to bear much fruit, especially the fruit of the Spirit, which is love. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

I was trying to tell you about your memory and how you are. Thank you.