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"Beloved, do not imitate what is evil..."

Text: 3 John 11

DISCERNMENT NEEDED

The Apostle John was deeply concerned that Gaius might be adversely affected. After all, Diotrephes was a powerful church leader! John sought to help him to have greater discernment.

“Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good.
He who does good is of God,
but he who does evil has not seen God.”
3 John 11

1. “Beloved”

a) John continues to show deep affection towards Gaius.

b) He was aware that Gaius may have already been somewhat affected by Diotrephes.

c) Nevertheless, his love prevailed.

2. “Do not imitate what is evil”

a) The word “imitate” simply means “to mimic” or “to follow”.

b) John’s assessment of the actions of Diotrephes was that it was “evil”.

c) What was evil?

i) Speaking bad and untrue things is evil.

ii) Abuse of church authority is evil too.

iii) Putting people out of the church was definitely evil.

3. “But what is good”

a) Gaius’ generosity was good.

b) John’s love for the Lord and the brethren was a good thing to imitate.

4. “He who does good is of God”

a) Gaius must learn to discern clearly what is good and what is evil.

b) The person who does good is of God.

c) The ecclesiastical position of an individual does not mean that he is of God.

d) The individual could have just manipulated his way up the ecclesiastical ladder.

5. “But he who does evil has not seen God”

a) A person’s knowledge of God is best seen in the way he does things.

b) If a person persists in doing evil, then it is obvious that he has not seen God.

c) This discernment is most important to possess.

d) Gaius must discern that Diotrephes had not seen God or he would not continue to do evil things.