Hi James and Ellen,
3 John is a brief personal letter. Apostle John penned the 3 John letter. The 3 John letter was probably penned by Apostle John sometime between 85 A.D. and 95 A.D. when he was in the city of Ephesus. Apostle John starts out his 3 John letter by addressing this letter to ‘my dear friend’. Apostle John’s ‘my dear friend’ was a guy by the name of Gaius. Apostle John eulogizes Gaius in his 3 John letter by remembering Gaius as a guy who walks in the truth and who shows hospitality to itinerant preachers and traveling evangelists who show up to do their life calling in emergent Christ-follower fellowships in the city of Ephesus. Apostle John going on 2,000 years ago was an advocate for itinerant preachers and traveling evangelists to be emissaries for passing on the Good News message of hope that is found through believing in Jesus Christ. It seems to your grandpaa that it was really important to Apostle John that Christ-follower communities wholeheartedly accepted itinerant preachers and traveling evangelists who he knew personally and supported. Apostle John had Demetrius – who was a much respected friend, deliver his 3 John letter to Gaius. Apostle John assures Gaius in his 3 John letter that Demetrius has an unimpeachable testimony in that he is a great example of a guy who is living out in his life the Good News message of hope through knowing Jesus Christ.
Apostle John had a motive for sending Gaius what is now known as the 3 John letter. Apostle John had gotten wind of an overbearing, bloviating guy in Gaius’ Christ-follower fellowship who was not okay with letting itinerant preachers and traveling evangelists minister in his Christ-follower fellowship. Diotrephes’ domineering, contentious personality was purportedly hindering the growth of Gaius’ Christ-follower fellowship. Even though Apostle John is known for being a compassionate, considerate guy – as Apostle John’s book and letters are filled with references to always practice acting in love, Apostle John seemed to have a no-nonsense side to him as well. Apostle John to call a guy a malicious gossiper – as Apostle John does in his 3 John letter to describe Diotrephes, is not someone who is showing a whole lot of tolerance for someone else. Apostle John’s perspective of Diotrephes is that Diotrephes’ pompous attitude and actions are never to be imitated by Christ-follower guys and gals. Apostle John’s bottom line in his 3 John letter is that Gaius and his fellow fellowship Christ-followers needed to tell Diotrephes to leave their Christ-follower fellowship. Apostle John goes on to reassure Gaius in his 3 John one chapter letter that he has his back when he says that he is really hoping to see Gaius soon and that they will talk face to face at that time about Diotrephes’ arrogance and insolence. Apostle John for one reason or another had his ability to demonstrate love to Diotrephes totally tapped out by Diotrephes’ ongoing self-seeking attitude and self-serving actions.
Your grandpaa is convinced that the vast majority of Christ-follower fellowships have a Diotrephes plant. A Diotrephes is a Satan minion. A Diotrephes’ identity is in the position, prestige and power that he or she has in a Christ-follower fellowship. A Diotrephes will usurp Christ-follower fellowship leaders in order to gain position, prestige and power. When your grandpaa was informed during an OC International annual meeting – that was held in Brazil in 2002 with the Latin America field missionary team leaders, by the guy who would become months later the President of OC International that a decision had been made to replace your grandpaa as the Guatemala field missionary team’s Equipo SEPAL/OC International’s Field Director with a guy who had been a missionary on the Equipo SEPAL/OC International’s Guatemala field missionary team less than two years, your grandpaa was not a happy camper. The guy who would become months later the President of OC International decided that the guy who would replace your grandpaa was a guy who he had personally ordained. Because your grandpaa had balked several years earlier about continuing to put up with all the responsibilities that come with being a Field Director resulting in your grandpaa being forcefully told by the same guy who would become OC International’s President that he was going to remain being the Field Director for the Guatemala Equipo SEPAL/OC International field missionary team because he said so, your grandpaa asked the guy what led him to decide to replace him. Your grandpaa was told that he was being replaced because he did not like OC International’s format on how to remit annual goals and quarterly reports – which was true as your grandpaa argued to remit reports that were germane versus reports that filled in blanks, that he did not like the teachers who were on the OC International field missionary team who taught at the Christian Academy of Guatemala – who your grandmaa and grandpaa were intentionally regularly getting together with and that he had yelled at Jaime – which your grandpaa could not remember ever doing to the Jaime who is a missionary on OC International/Equipo SEPAL’s field missionary team until he remembered a Jaime who he had to become very firm with because he insisted that your grandpaa had to give him the telephone number of a field team missionary who was in the United States – which he was not allowed to do, that when this guy – who was the guy who . . . was at OC International’s headquarters, your grandpaa believes that this guy got his way to replace your grandpaa as OC International/Equipo SEPAL’s Guatemala field missionary team’s Field Director via undermining.
3 John