3 John 1:11

3 John 1:11. Beloved, imitate not that which is evil, but that which is good: this is characteristic of St. John, to trace all conduct to its highest source. The spirit and acts of Diotrephes, and those like him, are not of God, not fruits of regeneration: he that doeth evil hath not seen God, hath no spiritual knowledge of Him. Writing to Gaius, and writing to all who might possibly be swayed by such influence as that of Diotrephes, the apostle utters a strong warning: to what extent needed by Gaius we can only conjecture.

3 John 1:12. The good to be imitated has its example in Demetrius, whose report had reached St. John concurrently with that of Diotrephes: ‘ Demetrius hath the witness of all who know him, and of all my reporters: and of the truth itself: for the truth of the Gospel reflected in his character is before yourself.' Yes, we also bear witness: the very strong testimony to Demetrius was doubtless of the greatest importance at this juncture, and the apostle adds his own witness to that of men and to that of the truth itself: and thou knowest that our witness is true is an affecting appeal to his own personal authority, accepted, if not by Diotrephes, yet by Gaius. St. John probably knew Demetrius, who receives from him as high a commendation as is received by any individual in the New Testament. These men stand here as individuals, to whom the apostle gave his testimony, not only from the evidence of their works, but also from his sure discernment of their character. But they are also representatives of men like-minded who play their part in every age and in all communities. The apostle's warning, commendation, and exhortation therefore are, and were meant by the Spirit to be, for all the future. And this gives our Epistle its permanent value.