John, the apostle of Jesus who also wrote the fourth gospel, wrote these three letters as late as 90 A.D. The first letter warns about false teachers who were saying Jesus wasn’t God. It also encouraged Christians to have faith and love. The second letter followed with similar themes and urged discernment when traveling evangelists showed up with messages for the church. This last epistle needs some background explanation. It was written to a church leader, Gaius, telling him about the lack of hospitality for itinerant teachers shown by Diotrephes and urging Gaius to welcome another traveling teacher.

Here are some things to consider as you read this final letter of John’s. Read between the lines. What do you learn about Gaius? Look for similarities with 1 John to determine if this is the same author. Compare verse 11 with 1 John 3:6 and 4:20. How does this letter reflect the ideas in 1 and 2 John? See verse 8. How is this a theme for the letter? Both 2 and 3 John are extremely short. What value do they have for Christians?