12/30/2024
Howard's 2025 New Year’s resolution: DON’T BE LIKE DIOTREPHES
Most of us don’t know Diotrephes personally so you might think it difficult to avoid imitating him. But the Apostle John knew him well and, in his third letter, tells us exactly what behavior to avoid: “I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not accept what we say. For this reason, if I come, I will call attention to his deeds which he does, unjustly accusing us with malicious words; and not satisfied with this, he himself does not receive the brothers either, and he forbids those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.” (3 John 9,10 NASB)
I believe the behavior, from which the Apostle John exhorts us to abstain, can be summarized in two characteristics:
1>Don’t demean other Christians - certainly not speaking maliciously of them and counting them as less worthy than yourself. Don’t seek to elevate yourself by putting them down.
2>Don’t exclude them from your fellowship because of doctrinal differences as you just might learn still learn something from them. You can disagree without being disagreeable.
With a more positive tone, I resolve in 2025: “… to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Paul to the Ephesians 4:1-3 NASB)
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