Oak Valley Baptist Church SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES • HOSPITALITY • 3 JOHN 1:1-12 • 5/2/2021 MAIN POINT Showing hospitality to others is a vital part of engaging with God and growing in relationship with Him. INTRODUCTION As your group time begins, use this section to introduce the topic of discussion. Do you enjoy hosting people who come to stay in your home? Why or why not? How long is too long to stay? How would you define hospitality? Who is someone you know that demonstrates a lifestyle of hospitality? Explain. Have you ever been the recipient of someone else’s gracious hospitality? What made you feel most at home? Who in your church family shows great hospitality? How does he or she make others feel welcome? When it comes to hospitality, people either really enjoy it, or they don’t enjoy it much at all. However, all Christians are called to extend hospitality. In the Epistle of 3 John, the apostle addresses the concept of Christian hospitality. Christians walk in truth when they provide for those who are involved in vocational Christian service. UNDERSTANDING Unpack the biblical text to discover what the Scripture says or means about a particular topic. HAVE A VOLUNTEER READ 3 JOHN 1-8. Page 1 of 7 How did John refer to himself in the letter? To whom did John address the letter? What did John identify as the thing that gave him great joy (v. 4)? John identified himself in this epistle in the same manner he did in 2 John. Rather than using his personal name, John referred to himself as the elder. John wrote to Gaius, whom he referred to as “the beloved,” a term that communicated his warm affection for this Christian friend. Gaius was a common name in the Roman Empire. From the way John wrote, it is likely that Gaius occupied an influential role in the local church. John emphasized that he could have no greater joy than knowing his children were walking in the truth. This designation may imply that John had led Gaius to faith in Jesus Christ. On the other hand, it may refer to people under John’s pastoral care to whom he demonstrated fatherly concern. John commended Gaius for showing faithfulness. What did Gaius do that demonstrated faithfulness? John commended Gaius for showing hospitality to visiting Christians even though they were strangers. When John wrote this epistle, travelers often relied on the hospitality of other people because hotels and restaurants were scarce. When Christian preachers traveled to share the gospel, other Christians were expected to support their ministry by offering them hospitality. HAVE A VOLUNTEER READ 3 JOHN 9-12. In verse 9, John shifted to the topic of a man named Diotrephes. Why was Diotrephes a problem for John? John informed Gaius that he had written a letter to the church, but Diotrephes had refused to accept it. Diotrephes’s identity is unclear, but it’s possible he was a leader in the same church as Gaius’s. It’s likely that the letter in question included some instruction on receiving traveling missionaries. It is probable that Diotrephes either destroyed the letter or refused to share the instruction with the church. Either way, he rejected John’s authority to offer hospitality to traveling missionaries. Why are Christians called to abandon selfish ambition for the work of the gospel? John declared that if he came in person to the church, he would call attention to Diotrephes’s behavior. John realized the circumstance called for some kind of disciplinary action. Such conduct on the part of one of the church’s leaders posed a threat to people’s reception to the gospel. John was prepared to exercise authority in the matter and confront Diotrephes. Page 2 of 7 How is “walking in love” a great witness to the gospel? Sins such as selfish-ambition, pride, jealousy, and slander still cause problems in the church. When leaders make a habit of encouraging sin and discouraging right actions, the situation must be addressed. Arrogantly proud Christians who oppose faithful Christian workers must be rebuked. A genuine Christian leader does not dictate, but serves. It is crucial that Christians be hospitable and kind to all people. ASK A VOLUNTEER TO READ 1 PETER 4:7-11. What is the connection between the end of all things and hospitality? Peter began verse 7 with the reminder that “the end of all things is near.” We pray, act in love, and practice hospitality because time is of the essence. To live lives of hospitality, we must begin with prayer. When we pray, we recognize that we are incapable of doing, providing, or manufacturing something on our own. In prayer, we express our reliance on God as our Provider. In prayer, we acknowledge that our selfishness and commitment to our own desires are what keep us from sacrificially serving and loving others in the most practical of ways. What does the phrase, “without complaining” tell you about the difference between hospitable acts and true biblical hospitality? Love is not a feeling; it’s a deeply held commitment for the good of another that is always worked out in tangible, practical ways. That’s why hospitality is one of the most concrete signs of love. It’s a physical, practical way we serve someone else that also costs us something personal. How does hospitality demonstrate the gospel to others? In the ultimate act of hospitality, God provided a way to welcome us through the death of Jesus Christ. Therefore, hospitality is a characteristic built into the spiritual DNA of all those who have experienced God’s divine hospitality. Hospitality, then, compels us to put aside our own interests, lay down our own desires, and welcome the needs of others ahead of our own. Jesus did that for us, and we’re to do likewise. From verse 11, what is the end goal of hospitality? God gives His children spiritual gifts—not for our own sake, but for the sake of building others up so that God may be glorified in everything. He gives us gifts to be used in service. When we exercise our gifts for the sake of the body of Christ, we can do so with confidence, knowing that Page 3 of 7 God will give us what we need to do so. The power and provision is God’s responsibility; He does all the enabling we will need. But we have a responsibility as well. Rather than being passive bystanders to God’s enabling power, we must act in faith to make the most of what God is providing. APPLICATION Help your group identify how the truths from the Scripture passage apply directly to their lives. What obstacles can prevent us from demonstrating hospitality? Why isn’t personality a good excuse to not practice a posture of hospitality? Would outsiders looking in say that we are hospitable? How can we improve in this area? PRAYER Thank God that He has welcomed us into His family. Ask Him for the wisdom and insight to welcome others in the same way. Ask God for opportunities to show hospitality. COMMENTARY 3 JOHN 1:1-12 1-2. The elder, the apostle John, wrote to Gaius, his dear friend whom he loved. This reveals an intimate, personal relationship between the author and the recipient. He loved him in the truth, a phrase identical with 2 John 1, perhaps meaning not only that he truly loved him, but that he loved him as a fellow believer, as one who believed the truth and was committed to it. John was pleased with the spiritual condition of Gaius, and he wished that he might do as well physically. 3-4. John greatly rejoiced to learn from some brothers about Gaius’ faithful Christian life. Possibly the “brothers” who brought this testimony to John about Gaius had benefited from his hospitality. John was overjoyed to hear that his children were walking in the truth. This wording is similar to 2 John 4. Perhaps Gaius was a convert of John’s, or perhaps John just had a paternal perspective toward Gaius, a younger fellow believer. 5-6. In John’s day, travelers generally depended on the hospitality of other people rather than commercial inns or eating places. Christian preachers and teachers often traveled to spread the Page 4 of 7 gospel and so depended on the generosity of other Christians. Gaius was hospitable toward such traveling preachers. His conduct was praiseworthy because it was an act of faithfulness to the truth of God. In Gaius’ case, walking in truth was synonymous with walking in love. He showed visitors Christian love, and his reputation was well known. His example encouraged many others, and he was worthy of the God whom he served. His hospitality reflected God’s own kindness. You will do well is idiomatic in Greek and equal to “please.” To send ... on their way suggests making adequate provision for guests at the time of departure, as well as during their stay. Nothing less than such open generosity would be worthy of God, who is ultimately generous to us, and who intends to meet the needs of others through us. 7-8. The traveling ministers went out to spread the message of the gospel. They were determined not to seek support from those who did not honor the Name. Perhaps this suggests a caution, even today, for ministries to seek money only from fellow believers—not from the unbelieving people to whom they preach God’s free salvation. In this way, both minister and hospitable laity join together in spreading and living out God’s truth.