front:intro gtn1 0 # 3 John Study Questions\n\nThe Apostle John probably wrote this letter to a man named Gaius in one of the churches for which John was responsible. A man named Demetrius was a leader in that church, but he refused to show hospitality to the believers who were sent out to minister to other churches, or to allow other members of the church to support them. John was very upset by this, and assured Gaius that he would come soon and rebuke Demetrius in the presence of the whole congregation. In the meantime, John urged Gaius to continue to help these believers.\n\nYou can discover John’s teaching concerning each of these things by carefully reading this letter. Ask yourself questions about what you read, and pray to God that he will open your eyes to see clearly.
1:1,3,4,8,12 basic,interpret ἀληθείᾳ & ἀληθείᾳ & ἀληθείᾳ & ἀληθείᾳ & ἀληθείᾳ & ἀληθείας 1 Why do you think John refers to **truth** six times in this short letter?
1:1 r5x7 advanced,interpret ὃν ἐγὼ ἀγαπῶ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ 1 What does it mean to love a fellow believer **in the truth**?
1:1 lab1 advanced,interpret ἀληθείᾳ 1 What is the **truth** that was guiding John’s love for Gaius?
1:2 rj9f advanced,interpret εὔχομαί σε εὐοδοῦσθαι 1 In what ways do you think John was praying for God to prosper Gaius?
1:2 z3yq advanced,interpret καθὼς 1 John wants Gaius to prosper physically in the same way his soul prospers. Why would John link these two things together?
1:2 ww9a basic,apply 0 Would you be satisfied if your physical health was no better than your spiritual health?
1:2 at5s basic,interpret εὐοδοῦταί σου ἡ ψυχή 1 In what way might a person’s **soul** **prosper**?
1:3 h97z basic,observe ἐχάρην & λείαν 1 What caused John to rejoice?
1:3 m89w basic,observe ἐρχομένων ἀδελφῶν 1 Who was it that came to John with news about Gaius?
1:3 sxc7 basic,interpret ἀδελφῶν 1 Who were the people whom John called **brothers**? Why did he use that title?
1:3 z85a advanced,interpret ἀληθείᾳ & ἀληθείᾳ 1 Why do you think John referred to **truth** twice in this verse?
1:3 v8bl advanced,interpret ἀληθείᾳ & ἀληθείᾳ περιπατεῖς 1 What is the difference between **truth** and **walking in truth**?
1:3 e6el basic,apply ἀληθείᾳ περιπατεῖς 1 Would someone who knows you well describe you as **walking in truth**?
1:4 c7pa basic,observe μειζοτέραν τούτων οὐκ ἔχω χαράν 1 What is the cause of John’s greatest joy?
1:4 dx6p advanced,interpret τὰ ἐμὰ τέκνα 1 Why does John refer to Gaius as one of **my children** when Gaius is not John’s son?
1:3-4 rnp6 advanced,interpret ἐρχομένων ἀδελφῶν & ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ περιπατοῦντα 1 Why is **walking in the truth** so important to John that he repeats it in both verse 3 and verse 4?
1:4 r2l5 advanced,interpret περιπατοῦντα 1 Here **walking** is a metaphor for the way Gaius lives. Why do you think John chose to use that image?
1:5 mdc8 advanced,interpret πιστὸν ποιεῖς ὃ, ἐὰν ἐργάσῃ εἰς τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς 1 Why is it **a faithful thing** to **work for the brothers**?
1:5 zfp4 advanced,interpret ἀδελφοὺς & ξένους 1 Why is it significant that John calls these men both **brothers** and **strangers**?
1:5 is3p basic,apply 0 Have you ever met strangers to whom you felt a closeness when you learned they were fellow-believers?
1:5 b5wy basic,interpret ξένους 1 Why is Gaius working faithfully to help **strangers**?
1:6 n5ql basic,observe οἳ ἐμαρτύρησάν σου τῇ ἀγάπῃ ἐνώπιον ἐκκλησία 1 To what quality of Gaius have these brothers testified **in the presence of the church** where John is located?
1:6 ki6h basic,interpret οἳ ἐμαρτύρησάν σου τῇ ἀγάπῃ ἐνώπιον ἐκκλησία 1 Why do you think these brothers were reporting to John’s church?
1:6 f3g1 basic,observe οὓς καλῶς ποιήσεις, προπέμψας ἀξίως τοῦ Θεοῦ 1 What did good thing can Gaius do for these brothers?
1:6-7 ux1x basic,interpret προπέμψας 1 Was the **journey** the brothers were taking a personal journey, or were they going out to do ministry?
1:6 yi1f basic,interpret ἀξίως τοῦ Θεοῦ 1 In what way exactly should Gaius send these brothers out **in a manner worthy of God**?
1:7 u1cq advanced,interpret ὑπὲρ γὰρ τοῦ ὀνόματος ἐξῆλθον, μηδὲν λαμβάνοντες ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνικῶν 1 The word **because** indicates this verse gives the reason why Gaius should help send the brothers on their journey. What is that reason?
1:7 gnu7 advanced,interpret τοῦ ὀνόματος 1 Whose **name** is John here referring to? Why is that significant?
1:7 j96v advanced,interpret μηδὲν λαμβάνοντες ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνικῶν 1 Why do you think these brothers did not received any support from the unbelieving Gentiles?
1:7 s4bm advanced,interpret μηδὲν λαμβάνοντες ἀπὸ τῶν ἐθνικῶν 1 John praised the brothers for not receiving support from unbelievers. What does that tell us about the responsibility of believers to support those sent out for ministry?
1:8 mm2f basic,interpret ἡμεῖς 1 Who is the **we** to whom John addresses this admonition?
1:8 h7nu basic,apply ἡμεῖς & ὀφείλομεν 1 The word **ought** means we have a responsibility to help these men. How have you fulfilled that responsibility in your life?
1:8 f5x9 basic,interpret ὑπολαμβάνειν 1 The phrase **to welcome** means much more than simply to greet. What other actions are included in this term?
1:8 sz5b basic,interpret συνεργοὶ γινώμεθα 1 In what way do we **become fellow workers** by welcoming brothers such as these?
1:9 h38h basic,observe ἔγραψά τι τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ 1 To whom had John previously written about this topic?
1:9 igg9 basic,interpret ὁ φιλοπρωτεύων 1 Is it a good or bad trait when someone **loves to be first**?
1:9 hbv6 basic,interpret ὁ φιλοπρωτεύων 1 What does a person who **loves to be first** act like?
1:9 gqv3 advanced,interpret Διοτρέφης 1 What can we tell about the role of **Diotrephes** in the church that Gaius attended?
1:9 r15v advanced,interpret οὐκ ἐπιδέχεται ἡμᾶς 1 What might John have referred to when he said Diotrephes **did not accept us**?
1:9 c69s basic,interpret ἡμᾶς 1 Who do you think John included, besides himself, in **us**?
1:10 wzy3 basic,observe ἐὰν ἔλθω 1 Where did John plan to go?
1:10 rn72 basic,interpret ὑπομνήσω αὐτοῦ τὰ ἔργα 1 To whom will John **call attention to** Diotrephes works?
1:10 tbu2 basic,interpret ὑπομνήσω αὐτοῦ τὰ ἔργα 1 Does the phrase **call attention to his works** here represent praise, or rebuke? Why?
1:10 u8z3 basic,observe αὐτοῦ τὰ ἔργα, ἃ ποιεῖ 1 What **works** of Diotrephes does John list in this verse?
1:10 szu6 basic,interpret λόγοις πονηροῖς 1 What motive might Diotrephes have to speak **evil words** about the Apostle John?
1:10 wk7u basic,observe οὔτε αὐτὸς ἐπιδέχεται τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς 1 What is Diotrephes doing that caused John to say Diotrephes **does not receive the brothers**?
1:10 uvc1 basic,observe τοὺς βουλομένους κωλύει 1 How does Diotrephes stop other believers in his church from receiving the brothers who have gone out from John?
1:10 c7hp basic,interpret ἐκ τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐκβάλλει 1 What does it mean to put someone **out of the church**?
1:10 dxr6 advanced,interpret 0 The main thing Diotrephes is doing is doing is keeping his church from supporting brothers who are sent out to minister to people in other region. Why is John so concerned about this?
1:11 gw8y basic,observe μὴ μιμοῦ τὸ κακὸν 1 What is the specific **evil** thing that John does not want Gaius to imitate?
1:11 ddr2 basic,observe τὸ ἀγαθόν 1 What is the specific **good** thing that John does want Gaius to imitate?
1:11 ly68 basic,interpret ὁ ἀγαθοποιῶν 1 According to John’s instructions in this letter, who is **the one who does good**?
1:11 k9xu basic,interpret ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστιν 1 What does it mean to be **from God**?
1:11 x2wl basic,interpret ὁ κακοποιῶν 1 According to John’s instructions in this letter, who is **the one who does evil**?
1:11 r14e advanced,interpret οὐχ ἑώρακεν τὸν Θεόν 1 Although Diotrephes has authority in Gaius’ church, what does this verse say about his true spiritual condition?
1:11 u971 advanced,interpret 0 According to this letter, is a person’s spiritual condition in any way dependent on his status in the local church?
1:12 fvv6 basic,observe Δημητρίῳ μεμαρτύρηται ὑπὸ πάντων 1 John introduces a new person named **Demetrius**. Is he a good or a bad person? How do you know?
1:12 ec9q basic,observe Δημητρίῳ μεμαρτύρηται 1 In this verse, who, and what, does John say bears witness to **Demetrius**?
1:12 tlv5 basic,interpret ὑπὸ αὐτῆς τῆς ἀληθείας 1 John uses a metaphor in which **the truth itself** is able to testify as to what kind of person Demetrius is. What does this image teach you about truth?
1:12 n8ac basic,interpret καὶ ἡμεῖς & μαρτυροῦμεν 1 Who is the **we** to whom John is referring when he says **we bear witness**
1:12 a8pm basic,interpret οἶδας ὅτι ἡ μαρτυρία ἡμῶν ἀληθής ἐστιν 1 Why should Gaius believe that John’s **testimony** is **true**?
1:13 dv6h basic,interpret οὐ θέλω διὰ μέλανος καὶ καλάμου σοι γράφειν 1 Why might John prefer not to tell Gaius the additional things via a letter?
1:13 e9pj basic,interpret διὰ μέλανος καὶ καλάμου 1 John uses **ink and pen** to refer to a written message. What other means might we use to send a message to someone today?
1:14 v89u basic,observe ἐλπίζω δὲ εὐθέως σε ἰδεῖ 1 Why was it unnecessary for John to write everything to Gaius in a letter?
1:14 jb2g basic,interpret στόμα πρὸς στόμα λαλήσομεν 1 In what circumstances might it be much better to speak to a person directly instead of writing them a letter?
1:14 pil3 basic,interpret στόμα πρὸς στόμα 1 Here **mouth to mouth** is an idiom that means John will come to speak to Gaius in person. How might you best express that same idea in your language?
1:15 hw81 advanced,interpret εἰρήνη σοι 1 This was a normal greeting for believers at that time. But how might Gaius have been especially in need of **peace** in light of what Diotrephes was doing in his church?
1:15 j4ni advanced,interpret οἱ φίλοι & τοὺς φίλους 1 John formerly referred to the believers as “the brothers,” but in this closing verse, he calls them **the friends**. What does this additional title tell you about these believers and to how they related to one another?
1:15 vs4a advanced,apply ἀσπάζονταί σε οἱ φίλοι. ἀσπάζου τοὺς φίλους 1 It was common in that day for the believers to send greetings to one another. Why might that have been important to them? Is this still important to you? Why?
1:15 g3ja advanced,apply κατ’ ὄνομα 1 The phrase **by name** can mean the believers knew each other well enough to know their names, or it might mean they should greet one another individually instead of only as a group. How should those meanings affect the way you interact with other believers?
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