3 John

I never noticed this before but 3 John was written to a man named Gaius but the purpose was to criticize if not condemn a man who was the local leader of a church who would not allow fellowship with other Christians.

He appointed himself sole arbiter of what was right and proper. He did not want other input. Specifically he rejected the pastoral authority of John himself.

Now John was all about fellowship with other Christians. And as Christians we need the encouragement and fellowship of one another. "Brothers, let us love one another." And "He who does not love his brother does not know God." This man who would not love and accept other Christians was not loving his brother and did not know God, in the view of John.

Surely this is a corrective for today. A man who is leading a fellowship should never allow himself to think he does not need the help of others. And he should never be so insecure as to not allow his church members to go elsewhere to receive wholesome teaching and preaching. In the great fellowship of the universal church we need one another. We need to stay in communication. There will be differences that are annoying at times. But nevertheless we must strive to stay in fellowship, in communication with all Christians, no matter how different their styles of worship and the terms they use to describe belief systems.

This applies to church bodies but also to individuals. It is so easy to avoid Christians from other traditions because the differences make us uncomfortable. It is important to accentuate the commonalities and only discuss the differences if it can be done in a friendly manner. Discuss ministry and not theology. Let us hear about the fruits in each other's ministries.