Resumo de Third Epistle Of John

3 John is an epistle written in a time of Roman persecution
of the Christian church,

and in being such a time, the author only refers to
himself

as the Elder. He does this to avoid detection from Roman

authorities in order to safeguard himself and the

congregation he was writing to in case the letter was to

fall into wrong hands. We summarize that the author is
the

apostle John because we contrast his writings in 1,2
John

and Revelation with 3 John and they hold similar styles
and

techniques. Furthermore, 3 John was written during the
life

of the apostle John, which also supports the basis of
his

having written 3 John.
This epistle is addressed to

Gaius, but no specific mention is given of whom Gaius
might

be, and, at the time, Gaius was one of the most popular

names in the Roman Empire making it difficult to deduce
the

person of Gaius. This also purports discretion used by
the

apostle John in his writing of the letter. However,
knowing

the identity of Gaius plays no part in the central
message.

Of the commentary researched, it was concluded that
this

epistle of John?s was a letter of contention and
conflict,

contrasting behaviors and showing which behaviors are

correct, but it ends in a wish of peace for the church
and

Christians he is writing. Overall, the basic teachings
were

on hospitality, pride, and faithfulness:

Hospitality-

John praises Gaius for his hospitality, since this is
the

essential outworking of our command to love one another

(John 13:34). John says that through showing people

hospitality, we show them the love of Christ and through

this people will come to know Christ personally.

Pride-

Diotrephenes, a man John writes about, refuses to offer

hospitality, but, instead, sets himself up as a church

?boss?. Because of his pride, he doesn?t offer
hospitality,

so he was not qualified as a church leader because of
his

neglect for Biblical teachings. John goes on to imply
that

the best leaders are always the best servants, and that
is

how every Christian should act.
Faithfulness- John

commends Gaius and Demetrius, a fellow Christian, for
their

diligent work in the church. He sets them up as examples
of

faithful, selfless servants for others to imitate in
their

Christian walk. John goes on to say that we should
encourage

faithful workers so they don?t grow weary of serving
Christ

through serving their fellow man. He concludes with his

faithfulness topic in saying that in whatever one does,
let

him do it faithfully and to the glory of God. This final

word of John?s on faithfulness plays reference to
Christ?s

Parable of the Talents when the lord commends the
servant

that was faithfull with his few talents in saying,
??well

done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over
a

few things, I will make you ruler over many things.
Enter

into the joy of your lord (Matthew, 25:21, NIV).
?
John

teaches through examples of good and bad, pointing out
the

differences and why the examples are good and bad. While

there are several points made in 3 John, even though
it?s a

small book, the central theme of the book is summed up
in 3

John 1:11:
?Follow only what is good?
Through
knowing

this verse and using it in accordance to the rest of the

Bible, we come up with a good common sense rule of thumb
for

daily life.
In being a small book, many readers
overlook

3 John, along with small books in the Bible, and miss
simple

yet strengthening examples of Christian practices. Such

examples may clarify a misunderstanding gained from
other

books. So, in 3 John we can take a lesson as to the

importance of the entire Bible, even the small books.

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