Day 338: 3 John 5–14

I wrote something to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have first place among them, does not receive us (v. 9).

John drops several names in this one-chapter letter of his. Gaius appears as John’s dear friend. Diotrephes is seen as one who loved to be first and excluded others. Demetrius bears a good name so that not only others but even the truth speaks well of him.

Imagine being named in a letter that turned out to be inspired Scripture for all the world to see! Whether in commendation or criticism, having your name immortalized in Scripture is a heavy thought!

When I see a portion of Scripture with brief testimonials, I almost shiver. A number of times in my life, I would have been anywhere from devastated to humiliated over what might have been written in a one-sentence statement about my life. That’s why I love knowing that as long as we’re kicking and breathing, we can still change our testimonies. God hasn’t put a period at the end of our sentences yet.

But take note: that tiny little dot doesn’t take long to jot. We may think we’re only mid-sentence when we’re not. Attending as many funerals as I do is a constant reminder to me. Let’s not put off working toward what we hope God’s testimonial for our lives will state. As the writer of Hebrews said, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion” (3:15 hcsb).

Like poor Diotrephes. You’d think with a name like that, he wouldn’t have wanted to be first. Can you imagine such a one-sentence testimonial? “Beth loved to be first and didn’t like to have anything to do with the common folks.” Egads! The hair on the back of my neck is standing up!

Notice John didn’t say the man was lost, however. Diotrephes was obviously a member of the church. Though his actions weren’t loving, he could easily have been a Christian. Let’s admit, if gossip and divisiveness are unquestionable signs of “lostness,” the few folks who do go to heaven are liable to have considerable elbow room.

Thank goodness we won’t have hard feelings and conflict in glory. Otherwise, I could almost imagine Diotrephes saying to John, “Did you have to go and write it down? Why couldn’t you have just gossiped like I did?”