“I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church. Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God. Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself. We also add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true. I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. Peace be to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends, each by name.”

No Fellowship Between Light and Dark

1. The Unrestraint of Lawlessness

“I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church. Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good”

I’ve been listening to a series of seminars on the book of Exodus recently. There’s a panel of scholars discussing their way through the book, some of a more agnostic mindset, some Anglicans, one member of the Greek Orthodox church, and notably among the contributors, a practicing Jew. A remark he made in the most recent discussion was that he has no belief in demons, or specifically in the individual person of the Devil or Satan. This sounds very strange, especially to Christian ears, as we know through the teaching of Scripture overall, but especially in the clarifying points of the New Testament, that both Satan and demons are very real. For an observant Jew, I don’t know how they might reconcile the individual entity of the serpent in the garden in Genesis, but I do at least understand how this vaguery around the idea of Satan could come up. The first place we see the word “satan” in the old testament isn’t in reference to the serpent, or the devil, or anything evil at all. We see it in Numbers 22:22, where the prophet Balaam went to do works on behalf of the enemies of Israel,

“But God’s anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as his adversary. Now he was riding on the donkey, and his two servants were with him.”

The word used for “adversary,” describing an angel of the Lord is “satan.” When not used as an identifying name, this is what satan means in Hebrew – “the adversary,” or “the accuser.”  It, in and of itself has nothing to do with darkness or evil. However if we look at other uses where the word is given as a singular identifier and used as a name, we can grasp the context we’re familiar with. 1 Chronicles 21:1 says,

“Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel.”

And Job 1:6 tells us,

“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.”

To be an indefinite adversary is one thing, but to see the title given in regard to being in opposition or accusation of God’s people, or of God Himself is undeniably, definably evil. Revelation 12:9 helps us understand the connection of the varied names, and the role this figure has played since the fall,

“And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”

I make a point to address this because, if we’re vague about our enemy, if we have this Jewish take that there is no singular figure of rebellion in opposition to Holy God, then we fail to acknowledge and comprehend the vast and pervasive role that Satan plays in the wickedness of the world. There is often the mistake of blaming the Devil too much, which may also sound strange. James 1:13–15 says,

“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”

Notice that this doesn’t say that we’re lured and enticed by the enemy, but by our own desire. Remember that we were born in our flesh in the nature of Adam, that sinful nature and corruption are woven into who we are. Ephesians 2:1–3 says,

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”

And Jesus says to the religious rulers in John 8:42–45,

“… If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.”

Understand what this means – you cannot look to your sin and say, “the Devil made me do it,” however you can and must look at your sin and say, “I have served the enemy in my transgression.” You either serve God, or you serve the Satan, the adversary, the wicked one with the twisted audacity to stand and accuse Righteous and Holy God – there is no middle ground, and there is no in-between. This is the concept that John has repeated again, and again throughout his gospel account and letters, summed up in 1 John 3:10,

“By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.”

This is relevant as ever as we look at this week’s passage and close out 3 John, before stepping into his final writing of Revelation. We pick up in the brief letter of 3 John, looking at the person Diotrephes. Diotrephes is an enemy of the church, of God, and is a child of Satan. We know this from the evidence of his works that John brings against him. This is a man who “likes to put himself first.” When the disciples begin to bicker among themselves, after John and James have asked (or rather had their mother ask for them), to sit at the right and left hand of Jesus once He comes into His kingdom, Jesus tells them all in Matthew 20:25–28,

“… You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

After Jesus washes the disciples feet before the Last Supper, He tells them in John 13:12–17,

“… Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.”

And Jesus teaches during the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:31–33,

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

In no way is a child of God called to put themselves first, rather to come last, to crucify their flesh and its desires, and seek the righteousness of the kingdom of God above all else. Diotrephes doesn’t seem to be an outside persecutor, but rather a far more devious, festering source of hypocrisy from within the church itself. There can be some nuance to this, as we have examples like Demas who appears in three of Paul’s letters – first in Colossians 4:14,

“Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas.”

Next in Philemon 23–24,

“Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you, and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.”

And finally, under very different circumstances in 2 Timothy 4:9–10,

“Do your best to come to me soon. For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.”

It seems that Demas started out well, a fellow worker alongside Paul, but as with the seeds that fell among the thorns in the parable of the sower (Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 8), those in favor of the cares of the world, he abandoned his brother and his work in Christ. We don’t know if Diotrephes mirrors this situation, someone who started out doing good work and grew away from the true mission over time, or if he was corrupt from the start, but it ultimately doesn’t matter. Whether it was so from the start, or if it developed over time, he has come to embody what Jesus warned about in Matthew 7:15–16

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?”

And Peter wrote of in 2 Peter 2:1,

“But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.”

Because the second charge that John levels against this man is that he “does not acknowledge our authority.”

Something that I addressed a couple weeks ago was the matter of Charlie Kirk’s assassination. I discussed the point that, if a man’s message is his own, then that message dies with him, or else fades rapidly with the passage of time – however when a message is divine, when it stands upon the Truth of the Word of God, it cannot be extinguished or destroyed, but will endure. Peter makes an appeal to the legitimacy of his message in 2 Peter 1:16–20,

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,’ we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation.”

Peter’s message isn’t his own, but is simply a communication of the Truth given by God. The consistent undercurrent of opposition to Gnosticism in 1, 2, and 3 John would suggest that Diotrephes may be bringing Gnostic teaching into the church with his “wicked nonsense,” that he’s speaking against those who teach the Truth of Christ – but again, it doesn’t really matter. Whatever his angle, whatever his heretical teaching and blasphemous words may be, they are in opposition with Truth, and are therefore in step with the spirit of Satan. John’s words against Diotrephes are not as harsh as what Paul says of some of the false brothers he quarrels against. He writes in 1 Timothy 1:18–20

“This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.”

And in 2 Timothy 2:16–19, seemingly addressing one of the same men,

“But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have swerved from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some. But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.’”

It’s not that condemnation is absent from John’s words about this one who has betrayed the calling of the Truth – it’s certainly present, but his call is to the same thing that Paul ends the above 2 Timothy passage with,

“But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.’”

“Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good.”

This man, Diotrephes is selfish, he disregards the authority of the elders who teach the Truth, he bars the door against brothers who come to minister, and when others attempt to welcome them, he drives them from the church as well. This isn’t something absent from our world today – “churches,” or “ministries,” where a leader or influencer props themselves up on bad teaching and then, to secure their position, bars and exiles anyone who opposes them. John’s solution in the face of those who oppose the Truth in the service of Satan, is that we as Christians, as born-again children of God, continue to walk in the Truth we’ve been delivered to, that we imitate and delight in the good works of our Father, not falling in step with the sway of worldly teaching. This Diotrephes is not unique, but rather is cut from the same cloth, cast from the same mold as every enemy who has ever opposed the Truth.

2. The Straight and Level Path of Truth

“Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God. Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself. We also add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true.”

The Truth does not deceive, it does not bend, it does not compromise, or yield. It is infallible, indestructible, and eternal. Matthew 3:1–3 speaks of the days just before Jesus’ ministry began, when John the Baptist came as the forerunner,

“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.”’”

The cited passage from Isaiah 40:3–5 says in full,

“A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.’”

Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, He is the Light of the world, the Light that drives out the darkness. Darkness exists at the edges, occupying shadows, filling in the gaps wherever it may, seeking to hide and obscure, until the day of its utter destruction. The lies are many, the Truth is One, and this principle is affirmed by John again in the simple statement,

“Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God.”

The children of God cry out with a single message, a single Truth. We see this kind of unified message and spirit in the testimony received by Demetrius. Commentary suggests that Demetrius is likely the courier of the letter of 3 John (possibly all three letters of 1, 2, and 3 John), meaning that he would be someone John deemed reliable. This is someone who’s trustworthiness has been attested to by “everyone,” but removing any idea that this man’s merit is based in any way on popular opinion John clarifies that Demetrius’ good testimony has also been received by “the truth itself.” Diotrephes, who we read about at first can be seen playing in the shadows – he’s driving a smear campaign against the sound teaching of the gospel, he’s driving out those who might contradict or discredit him, and he’s doing all this in the service of himself. Demetrius on the other hand is testified to in good standing by the church, the Truth, and John’s own personal eyewitness testimony that he brings to all his writings. The contrast is painted vividly between these two men – between Truth and lies, Light and dark, between the discord of sinful chaos, and the firm and level path of the righteousness of God.

3. The Unity of the Children of God

“I had much to write to you, but I would rather not write with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. Peace be to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends, each by name.”

John closes this letter much the same way he closed 2 John, saying in 2 John 12,

“Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.”

I’ve heard the statement, “You don’t have to go to church to be a Christian,” literally more times than I could possibly count, and you know what? Everyone who’s said it was right. You don’t have to go to church to be a Christian, there’s nothing salvific in and of itself about being present for a worship service, about singing hymns, or dropping a few dollars in the offering plate. There is however a massive precedent in Scripture for the gathering of believers, for our shared unity in a world that so desperately wants to destroy us, and an undeniable, non-negotiable call to praise and worship God, our Father. While you might not have to go to church to be a Christian, all this begs the question, if you’re a Christian, why aren’t you going to church? What’s your motivation for not congregating with your fellow believers? I freely admit that for many years my attendance was sparse – I went sporadically, sometimes months apart, and then after COVID, with watching online being so accessible, that became my default. Around the time I got back in the swing of showing up in person, some health issues put me back to watching from the couch for around two years… There are a lot of reasons not to go to church – there aren’t very many good reasons not to go to church. We see John, the last of the Apostles, because all the others have been martyred (and if church history is accurate, they tried to kill John too, allegedly boiling him in oil, only to find it had no effect). He’s an old man, even by today’s standards, with historical accounts putting him in his 90s around the writing of this letter. We’re talking about an old man, of a persecuted people, in the first century. Travel was not as simple as getting everyone piled into the station wagon and swinging by the convenience store to grab snacks before hitting the road. Even the luxury of something like a carriage or wagon pulled by a horse or donkey would have likely been too extravagant for a man of John’s means. If he’s going to visit a church, he’s most likely walking. Why is this relevant? Because if John, the beloved disciple, the last Apostle, the elder of the church, and the world’s first senior saint is longing to venture to these churches, to be with his beloved little children, so much so that he would brave the dangers of first century travel – rain, floods, wild animals, bandits, and the ever-present iron rule of Rome, then what could compel us to stay away from gathering with our brothers and sisters? In the world we know no peace, yet in Christ we are delivered into His perfect peace. This is something the world cannot share in, something that it can’t comprehend – but we share in this with those who like us have been transformed and made new in Christ. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 6:14–18,

“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, ‘I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.’”

We don’t have to go to church to be Christians, but we do have to love one another – yes we love our enemies, but we love our brothers and sisters all the more. How then can we live as Christians and not seek to engage with our fellow children of God? We are called, not out of obligation, but out of joy, to gather with our brothers and sisters, to engage in the unity we share with fellow Christians, and lift one another up in the Truth of our faith.

Pastor Chris’ sermon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xilXzbJAC_Y