Lester Kamp
I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not. Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with malicious words: and not content therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and casteth them out of the church (3 John 9-10).
No more than that which is contained in these two verses is known about this man Diotrephes. Whether he was an elder or not we are not told. The case of Diotrephes is “an illustration of the bad influence of one ambitious and arrogant man in a church. It is often in the power of one such man to bring a whole church under his control, and effectually to embarrass all its movements, and to prevent all the good which it would otherwise accomplish” (Barnes Notes). His desire was to rule by whatever means. He wanted the congregation. He desired to determine who would preach and, therefore, what would be preached. In his own mind, his way was more important than any other way—including the Lord’s way. The desire to keep the church pure may have been his stated purpose, but the reality was that he may have had some secret dislike for John or some private grudge. The real truth was that he did not want the “interference” of even an inspired apostle in determining the course of the church where he was. He loved to have the preeminence! The local congregation was under his influence.
He may have accomplished this dominance in the congregation in a variety of ways. It is possible that Diotrephes was a man of wealth. He may have been a very “big giver,” and he made sure that the rest of the congregation knew what he gave and how much the work of the congregation depended on his generosity. Money talks so loudly to so many! [Jesus’ words show the reality of such giving: “But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly” (Matt. 6:3-4). In fact, earlier, Jesus had stated that those who give to be seen of men have received their only reward when others “see” their gifts.
He may have obtained his heavy hand by his hospitality. He may have had many in his home and shown them a wonderful time. Everyone likes to be liked. Everyone likes to be entertained. But sometimes good things are used for evil purposes, and Diotrephes may have used such occasions to achieve loyalty to him and his ideas. He may have been able, through church politics, in these circumstances to garner his own followers impressed with his graciousness. Many evil works are initiated privately. The political maneuvering necessary to achieve his place of prominence likely took place in private settings. Those influenced by him may not have recognized his behavior as being a means to the end of accomplishing his own preeminence. He seemed like such a likeable fellow and so concerned about the church. He may have used “good words and fair speeches” (Rom. 16:18). He may have read from the comments of good, righteous men to make some valid points in his discussions of Scripture. He may have impressed many with his reading and wisdom because he seemed to know so much about so many Biblical topics. He made sure that others knew how many he knew in the brotherhood and how many books he had in his own library. He would, in fact, on many occasions bring these books and read from them in classes and on other occasions so everyone could see. Some people are impressed by books and someone who can express wisdom even when that wisdom was written by someone else.
John does not tell us how Diotrephes had risen to his place of influence, but the methods suggested above have been used by Diotrephes’ kind in generations since John wrote. The Diotrephes that John addressed is certainly not the only one within the church who has loved to have the preeminence. There are far too many of his kind in the church today in far too many places.
John tells us that he was “prating against us with malicious words.” Prating suggests the use of many words. He was speaking incessantly against John and others who proclaimed the Truth. The fact that what Diotrephes was saying were “malicious words” indicates that he was trying to injure John by undermining his influence and injuring his character. Diotrephes tried to make himself look better by destroying the character of John. John and the others who proclaimed the same message of Truth were a threat to Diotrephes. He feared exposure (see John 3:19-20), and he feared the loss of his influence. He did not want anyone to listen to John and the others. He used his influence to forbid the brethren from receiving proclaimers of Truth and cast out the brethren who would receive them. Of course, he did not reveal his real motives to the brethren. He would suggest that he was merely trying to protect the church and trying to keep it pure.
John did not look favorably upon Diotrephes. John said, “If I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth.” John was going to deal directly with this one who attempted to control that congregation. The problem here was not false doctrine in the sense of teaching error; the problem was the acceptance of false authority—the authority of a mere man had superseded the authority of Christ. The congregation had become the “church of Diotrephes” and not the church of Christ. The preeminence in the church that was purchased by the blood of Christ belongs only to Him. “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence” (Col. 1:18).
It is just as damnable to follow the wrong authority (the authority of a man or men) as it is to follow and/or teach false doctrine! Paul wrote, “For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ” (Gal. 1:10). Let us follow Christ and not allow Diotrephes and his kind to lead us astray.
