Scripture: 3 John 1:1-14
1 The elder,
To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth.
2 Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. 3 It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. 4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
5 Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. 7 It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. 8 We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth.
9 I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us. 10 So when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.
11 Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. 12 Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone—and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true.
13 I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink. 14 I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face
Observation:
“Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God.” (3 John 1:11)
Application:
It seems that even in the early church there was division and jealousy. After all, we are still human and we are capable of wrong decisions. John, however, recommends that we stay close to God and not imitate that which is evil, instead we should be imitators of Jesus.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, the bible reminds us that we have all fallen short of your glory and not one of us is good in our own righteousness. Help us then to continue to imitate your son, our Lord Jesus. Help us through your Holy Spiri, that is with us and in us, to remain in your love and therefore be lovers of the others in our lives. Help us not to imitate evil and jealousy for they are not of you, but help us to follow Jesus. Amen.