The Big Read – 3 John

Powerpoint Pictures: People doing exercise; Someone drinking water; Child with a plate full of vegetables; Bottle of Vitamins; Someone asleep

Looking after your body is important.  What are some of the things we can do to stay fit and healthy? [Exercise; Drink Water; Eat your Green’s; Vitamins; Get a good night sleep]

3 John is all about keeping healthy.  Staying healthy as a Christian.

“Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.” (3 John 2)

John is writing to a man called Gaius and he’s a healthy Christian.  He loves Jesus and is showing that he loves Him by what he does – in particular, giving hospitality to travelling preachers or missionaries.

But John is worried that Gaius will stop doing this and stop being healthy because someone called Diotrephes, who wasn’t a healthy Christian, was kicking out of the church anyone who was doing this.

So John writes to encourage Gaius to stay healthy, and says there are 2 things he can do: 1) Keep serving other Christians because as you do you’ll be like Jesus who served us in the most amazing way by dying on the cross. 2) Keep spending time with people who are like Jesus – other healthy Christians – and follow their example.

These are also two ways that we can stay healthy as Christians too.