Heart to Heart
Our grandson just completed seven weeks of summer camp at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and starts academics today. Needless to say, we are grateful, proud, and blessed to pray for him every day. It has been a great joy to have him call a couple of times briefly, but to see a letter in the mailbox from him twice was a thrill! They had no computers or cell phones during the summer except for a limited time on various Sundays, so we felt privileged to receive those calls, and even more so the letters, knowing how busy and tired he was.
I love handwritten letters or notes because they are so rare in our technology-driven culture, but John didn’t have email, texting, or social media, so he said he’d rather talk face to face. We know that Gaius and John were good friends, and brothers in Christ, and nothing is better than a heart-to-heart, face-to-face talk with a best friend.
In the office, I often abandon “chat” and email and talk to my coworkers in person. That way we can have an exchange where we see each other’s eyes and body language. Text or chat messages are fine most of the time, but some things are just better talked about face to face. Why, because sometimes texted words are easy to misconstrue or misinterpret. In this case, I believe John just wanted to catch up with his good friend Gaius in person to share more than he could in writing.
Last Friday evening, my phone rang, and it was a Facetime call from our grandson! I was so happy to see his face and hear all about his experiences. We even got to see his new room and some of his bunkmates! It just made my heart so happy, full, and grateful for this technology and our grandson. Will I still treasure those two handwritten letters? Yes, I will! They are special, but there is nothing quite like looking into the eyes of the person you care about. I’ve learned the blessing it is for both parties when I take the time to call, write a note or just show up for someone. We’ve been talking about hospitality, welcoming strangers, and now the value of friendship. “We are all so busy being busy” as my dad used to say, and we need to make the choice and take time to reach out to one another and those maybe we don’t know so well. We find or make time for those people or things most important to us, and this chapter reminds us that every one of his children is important to Jesus.
Deb Hill
A Better Word Our Reputation in Christ
I can’t think of a more consistently gratifying feeling than carrying a good reputation. To hear encouragement from a brother or sister is truly a blessing. Moreso, to be well spoken of by others when you’re not around is an even greater gift. A good name is not easily earned. Honor is a messy, complicated road to walk down. We can learn a lot about holding notoriety from the Apostle John’s letter to his friend and accomplice, Gaius. John has many things to say of the reputations of some prominent church-goers in Asia Minor, some great, and others not so much. Take the character of Diotrephes for example, a name of disrepute. He was known to be a troublesome, unwelcoming person of influence within the church, withholding the apostles from coming to his church and “[putting] himself first”. (3 John 1:9) However, read what John had to say of Demetrius in contrast.
“Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself[...]” 3 John 1:12 ESV
Not only does the Apostle John point out that Demetrius receives high praise from everyone around him, but John makes a deeper claim that even the Truth speaks better of him. We know Jesus Christ to be the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This same Truth speaks a better word over us. His work, His sacrifice speaks well of us, as we read in Hebrews 12.
“[...] to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel[...]” Hebrews 12:24 ESV
The blood of Abel cries out for justice and punishment, while Christ cries for peace and grace. One demands restitution, the other pours out mercy. Jesus’s work testifies before God on our behalf, clothing us in the righteous life He lived. He is our mediator and mighty Savior. And now in God’s eyes, we inherit Jesus’s reputation. He is the first of many to be made in the likeness of His image. He took on our disgrace, and we took on his faultless image. This is what the Truth testifies of us; a better word.
Demetrius is not the only one whom the Truth speaks well of. By the grace extended to us beyond the borders of the chosen nation Israel, we receive a better name, an infinitely greater reputation in Christ than we would have on our own. How sweet it is to have a reputation that does not fade or perish, one that was earned for us, and that cannot be taken away. How great it is that in the courts of heaven, our Messiah speaks a better word of us when we’re not around. Amen.
Jared Benjamin Graf
A Stand for Those Who Can’t
“I will call attention to what he is doing…” 3 John 10
Albert Einstein noted that “the world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.” Martin Luther King, Jr. pointed out that “the ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people, but the silence over that by the good people.” John Stuart Mill said that “bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing.”
In Matthew 18, Jesus gives us a great principle for how to deal with someone who has sinned against you personally. He instructs us to
“. . . go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone.… But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you…. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (Matthew 18:15-17)
There is a clear progression that gets wider and wider in its scope with each step of the person’s closed ears. However, what if someone sinned publicly? Does that mean that we still ought to go to the offending party personally? Or does a public sin necessitate a public rebuke? Clearly, every individual situation is going to take wisdom to determine the right answer, but in this passage, the Apostle John has decided that the sin of Diotrephes necessitated a public rebuke. John decides to “call attention to what he is doing” in a letter addressed to the entire church! This is a big deal! What John is doing is standing up for what is right for the sake of those who don’t have the status within the church to stand up for themselves. These were people who were not being welcomed into the church because of the wickedness of one man.
Let’s be a church that stands up and fights for this church to be a welcoming place. Let’s be the first to repent of ways that we have not been welcoming and let’s call attention to anything that we see that hinders one of God’s loved ones, made in his image, from being offered a place in His house.
Josh Rose
Discipleship Pastor
Wrong Way Leadership
Controlling. Domineering. Authoritarian. These are just a few words in current leadership circles some use to describe an effective leader. And what’s even worse is these are words some in the church use to describe an effective leader. (We know this to be historically true because Diotrephes embodies them and because there is a church full of people following him. We know this to be true today because we can look around the evangelical world and read stories of pastors and church boards living by these same standards and values.) What was true of some back then is true of some today.
So what does Diotrephes do that is so wrong? How does he exhibit “Wrong Way Leadership”? Perhaps his main error is stated in verse 9 when John writes, “but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us.” In five simple words John lets us know Diotrephes is not a servant- leader and is therefore not modeling the way of Jesus.
But what is the way of Jesus? In Mark 10:45 He says, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” This is quite a remarkable statement considering 1) Jesus doesn’t have a lot of followers at this point in His life, and 2) He has all the power in the world. (Some things to think about here are - 1) Do good leaders have to have a lot of followers to be good leaders? That depends. Is leadership based on influence or followers? We all may not have followers, but we all have influence. 2) What do you do with the power you have? Do you draw on it to impose your will on people, or do you lay it aside and serve them in love?)
The pull and draw of the world you are about to go into today will entice you to a “wrong way” kind of leadership. Let the words of Jesus draw you back and redirect you to focus on leading well by serving the people He has given you to influence.
Question: Who is one person you can serve today? How will you do this?
Pastor Scott Smith
Friendly Reputation
Series: Mi Casa Es Tu Casa
Text: 3 John 9-14 | Speaker: Pastor Esteban Tapia
On Sunday, August 28, Spanish Language Ministries Pastor, Esteban Tapia, completed our short teaching series from the book of 3 John, Mi Casa Es Tu Casa. In his message, Friendly Reputation, we looked further at the subject of being more welcoming to people we don't know. Through the truth of God's word and his people, practicing hospitality has the power to turn strangers into friends.
Welcoming Strangers
Series: Mi Casa Es Tu Casa
Text: 3 John 1-8 | Speaker: Pastor Esteban Tapia
On Sunday, August 21, Spanish Language Ministries Pastor, Esteban Tapia, began a short teaching series from the book of 3 John, Mi Casa Es Tu Casa. In his message, Welcoming Strangers, we looked more closely at the subject of being more welcoming to people we don't know. The truth of God's word, through the practice of hospitality, has the power to turn strangers into friends.