Welcome to another edition of the Weekend Sermon. I am glad that you stopped by to read the sermon this week, and I hope and pray that everyone is doing well.
This week, I started a new writing project. I am putting the finishing touches on my religious book, and now I am going to work on a novel that I've been planning out for quite some time. I also worked on some poetry recently, so writing is going well, and this always makes me happy.
In prayer this week, please continue to pray for those who have suffered as a result of the natural disasters around the world. People in the United States and Haiti are still recovering from the hurricane, and there has been earthquake damage in Japan. Pray that people will receive the aid that they need.
Also, let us continually pray for peace. Syria and Iraq are especially on my mind. Pray that these two war torn countries will have peace.
I heard a report this week about the persecution that the Christian community is facing in Pakistan. Pray that believers in Pakistan will be strong in the faith and that many people in that nation will respond to the message of Jesus.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for Sierra Leone and Myanmar. Pray that many will hear the Gospel in these two areas.
For the last couple of weeks, we have been in a series of messages on some of the less well-known people in the Bible. Last week, we focused our attention on Matthias and Justus. This week, we will turn our attention to III John and focus on Gaius and Diotrephes. These two men present quite a contrast.
III John was written by the Apostle John to a church that he had founded on one of his missionary journeys. This third epistle of John is written to a man by the name of Gaius who was a prominent member of the congregation.
In the opening verses of III John, John expresses his wish that Gaius would be in good health and prosper just as Gaius' soul prospered. This tells me that Gaius was a man who was a committed follower of Jesus. His soul prospered because his soul was filled with the peace of Christ, he had received the eternal and abundant life that only Jesus can bring.
III John 4 says that Gaius was someone who obeyed the truth. In other words, he was man of sound doctrinal belief. Gaius knew what was right, and he followed it. He followed John's instructions. Of course, John taught the teachings and commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Gaius received commendation from John because Gaius was a man that showed hospitality to those who were traveling preachers. In the time when III John was written, traveling ministers would go from city to city spreading the message of Jesus. They would rely on the support of other Christians to help them carry out their mission for the Lord. Gaius helped these traveling ministers so that they would be able to continue with their missionary endeavors.
Now, John had a lot of good things to say about Gaius, but that is not the case with a man named Diotrephes. John said that Diotrephes was man that liked to be leader, and he would not listen to what the Apostle John had to say. Diotrephes was an authority unto himself, and he thought that his knowledge was greater than that of the Apostle John.
Diotrephes not only attacked John's leadership, Diotrephes didn't show hospitality to the traveling ministers. Instead, he threw the missionaries out of the church. Diotrephes didn't want anyone else preaching in his church or getting any support from it.
So, what can we learn from these two men. For one thing, from Gaius we can learn the importance of following the truth and obeying the truth. The Lord has called all of His followers to be obedient to His teachings and commandments. Jesus said that we would be called His friends if we did those things that He commanded.
From Gaius, we can also learn that we need to be hospitable to others and we need to aid others as they seek to spread the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. There are billions of people on this planet who have not accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord. The church needs to send more missionaries and evangelists out into this world, and these individuals will need our support to reach this world. As the Lord has enabled each of us, let us give to help spread the message of the Gospel.
Only 30 percent of the people in this world are Christians of any type. That means that at least 70 percent of the people in this world are a mission field. Jesus said that the fields are white unto harvest, but the laborers are few. Let us support those who are willing to labor in the harvest field for the Lord.
Let us also not forget that Jesus has given a Great Commission to each of us to spread the Gospel. We all have a duty to tell others about the love, forgiveness and salvation offered by the Lord Jesus.
Now, what can we learn from Diotrephes. We can learn not to think more highly of ourselves than we ought to think. Instead of being like this man, we need to be people who exhibit a spirit of humility in imitation of the humility of the Lord Jesus. Diotrephes shows us how not to behave. Don't be like him.
One think that strikes me from III John is the fact of how I want to be remembered. Since III John was written almost 2,000 years ago, Gaius has been remembered for faithfulness and obedience while Diotrephes has been remembered for his arrogance and his opposition to an Apostle of the Lord.
We need to think about how we want to be remembered. We need to think about our reputation. If someone should write an enduring work about our lives, I hope that each of us can live such a life that we will be commended like Gaius and not criticized like Diotrephes.
In III John 11 John writes, "don't imitate the evil deeds of others, but follow the example of people who do kind deeds. They are God's children, but those who are always doing evil have never seen God." This is a good word for us all. Let us be people of kindness and goodness who flee from evil and always seek to imitate and follow Jesus Christ.
Maybe you are reading this message and you have never put your faith and trust in Jesus. Jesus died on the cross to save you from your sins. He bore our sins in his body on the cross. He received the punishment that we deserved. Jesus took our sins on the cross, and He defeated the consequences of sin when He rose bodily from the grave.
Jesus invites you to call upon Him and ask Him to forgive you of your sins. He asks you to believe in His resurrection and to accept Him as the Lord of your life. If you have never asked Jesus into your life, I hope that you will do so today.
Next week, I will post the verses on Monday. I will have a review on Wednesday, and we will continue with our series on less well-known Bible characters on Friday. May God bless you all. Amen.
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