3 John

Truth Is Received at an Open Door

Truth in 3 John is something people can report seeing. Gaius receives praise because brethren have watched him “walk in the truth,” and that walk becomes tangible when he welcomes traveling believers, including strangers, and helps them continue their journey. The letter calls such support becoming “fellowhelpers to the truth,” giving a quiet household a share in work happening on the road. Diotrephes turns the same issue of reception in the opposite direction. His love of preeminence becomes malicious speech, refusal of the brethren, interference with willing hosts, and expulsion from the church. Demetrius then appears with a good report resting on witnesses beyond himself. The chapter closes by refusing to let correspondence replace presence: the elder has more to say “face to face,” sends peace, and asks that the friends be greeted “by name.”