Scripture Studies: 3rd Epistle of John
Bible study time.
Transcript
00:00Shalom brothers and sisters. Today I want to talk about 3rd John, the letter. I want
00:07to talk about that, and I'm going to read the letter to you. First off, I want to thank
00:13you again for tuning in, but 3rd John was probably written near the time of John's evangel
00:20about maybe around 90, the common era. While John's name is not mentioned in the three
00:26epistles, several early church fathers point to John as the author, as is also evident
00:33from many stylistic similarities in the writing. As with 2nd John, this epistle is likely written
00:42as a letter for general circulation. Its message was to remain faithful to the original doctrines
00:48as delivered by the apostles and to watch out for false teachers. The letter mentioned
00:56three specific names, likely ministers or evangelists. While Gaius and Demetrius were
01:04noted for their faithfulness, Diotrephes was guilty of malicious behavior against the faith
01:10of the apostles. Making this distinction between truth and error is necessary for all the assembly
01:18as we find in this epistle and throughout the New Testament, those who reject the message
01:22of truth, especially those who are once enlightened, are to be removed from the body. To ignore
01:31this action is to allow corruption to take root and permeate the assembly. You know,
01:36it's like a seed of evil, which hatches and grows and grows and grows. Now, here's some
01:43scripture to look up and get, you know, look up and get your Bibles out and look these
01:48up. Matthew 18, verse 17, Romans 16, verse 17, 1st Corinthians chapter 5, 1, 5, and then
01:58skip to 9 to 11, 2nd Thessalonians 3, 14 through 15, 1st Timothy 1, verse 19 to 21, and then
02:112nd John, 2nd John to be verse 7 through 11. Now, you know, these letters, even though
02:21they might be short, they're very inspired and very, very important. And we could take
02:27a lot out of this. We could learn a lot. Even if the letters are little, we could learn
02:32from it. Now, I'm going to, I'm going to read this small letter.
02:38The Elder unto the well-loved Gaius whom I have loved in the truth. Beloved, I wish above all
02:48things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. For I rejoiced
02:55greatly when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee even as thou
03:00walkest in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. Beloved,
03:08thou dost faithfully whatsoever thou doest to the brethren and to the strangers,
03:16which hath borne witness of thy charity before the assembly, whom if thou bring forward on
03:23their journey after a righteous sort, thou shall do well. Because that for this his namesake,
03:32they went forth taking nothing of the Gentiles. We therefore ought to receive such that we might be
03:41fellow helpers to the truth. Truth be told. Okay, now it says, I wrote unto the assembly,
03:49but theatrophies, who loved having preeminence among them, receive us not.
03:59Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds, which he doeth, pratting against us
04:06with malicious words and not content. Therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren
04:13brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and casteth them out of the assembly. So, this guy,
04:20he's talking bad about the apostles, and he's casting out people that are sticking up for the
04:25truth, and the apostle, and Yeshua. This guy, he loves himself more. He put himself on a pedestal.
04:31You know, hey, I'm a pastor. I'm a preacher now, you know, and I'm high and mighty. I know
04:37everything. I'm better than all these people. It's kind of like a pride cockiness and envy.
04:43Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of Elohim,
04:50but he that doeth evil has not seen Elohim. Demetrius has good report of all men, and of
04:58all the truth itself. Yeah, and we also bear record, and you know that our record is true.
05:05I had many things to write, but I will not with ink and pen write unto thee, but I trust I shall
05:13shortly see thee, and we shall speak face to face. Peace be to thee. Our friends salute thee.
05:20Greet the friends by name. So, we gotta, you know, can't put up with, you can't put up with
05:28wickedness, evil. You can't put up with pride or anything with people. You gotta, you gotta boot
05:34them out. You gotta excommunicate them, disfellowship these kind of people, because it's
05:42not good for the, it's not good for the assembly, and this guy here, he is so full of himself. He
05:50thought he took it upon himself. He thought he had the authority to kick out anybody he wanted to,
05:55you know. No, it should have been the other way around, and he should have been kicked out,
06:00and he probably was. If John went there, he probably went there, and he probably removed
06:06him from office, or maybe he repented. Maybe he repented, saw the error of his way, and,
06:13you know, and did a complete turn. I mean, I hope he did. I really hope he did, but
06:19scripture didn't get into that details, but, you know, that's a lesson learned, you know.
06:24You know, one little, one little leaven right over there, you know, leaven a puff up, you know,
06:31like the Old Testament says, you know. It messes up the whole, the whole loaf, but,
06:37you know, that's all I want to say, you know. I just want to share that, because I do, I do believe
06:41these little letters are important, even though these, you know, like Jude and the three, the
06:46three Johns, you know, they're in the back, back, and Peter, they're in the back of the,
06:51it doesn't mean they're less important. They're just as important as any of the
06:54other scriptures, and, you know, it's nice that they came down to us, so we could actually
06:59read them, study them, and take something from them. So, that's all I've got to say about that,
07:05and thank you again for, you know, watching me, and please subscribe, and hit the notification
07:11bell, and like, like me, like and watch my other channels, share this with other people,
07:16comment below. I'll appreciate it, love to hear from you,
07:20and with that said and done, I thank you, and peace out. Shalom.