Thoughts From 3John - part 3

Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. 7 It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. 8 We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth. 3John 5-8

          John has a strong sense of black and white in his writings that often seems harsh in our Western thinking. He's big on darkness vs. light, children of God vs. children of the Devil, Spirit of God vs. Spirit of the antichrist, saved vs. condemned, among us vs. not one of us, and in this passage brothers and sisters vs. pagans. The Webster's definition of pagan is "one not holding to the religious beliefs of the recognized religion", which is interesting considering that in actuality the burgeoning Christian faith would probably fit better under the definition of pagan. It's like in a group of 100 people, only one would be a follower of Christ and that follower would consider the 99, pagans. What gall! - unless there is only one "recognized religion" and that is what John would call "the truth."

           This is why James would say in Chapter 4 of his epistle,

 "You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. "

If we think that we can somehow be popular, loved, endorsed, financially supported by a system that is opposed to God, we are sorely mistaken or else our beliefs have become so watered down that we have lost the difference between us and the world and Satan is glad to keep us stuck in his web.

        When you received Christ, did you realize that it would pit you in an us versus them reality. How do we battle? With love only, no other weapon than that. When they persecute, we love back. When they hate, exclude, mock we love back. But recognize we are on the side of truth no matter how in the minority you might feel and don't back down.