June 7, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Converts and Covenants

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Converts and Covenants

Matthew 23:15 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁵ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.”

Who does Jesus say “woe” to (verse 15)?

How does He describe them (verse 15)?

Where are they willing to go to win a convert (verse 15)?

In your opinion, why do they make the convert into “twice as much a child of hell” as they are (verse 15)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 23:15 show us about the Great Commission?

Genesis 17:3-14 - New International Version (NIV)

³ “Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. ⁵ No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. ⁶ I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. ⁷ I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. ⁸ The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”

⁹ Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. ¹⁰ This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. ¹¹ You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. ¹² For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. ¹³ Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. ¹⁴ Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

What was Abram’s reaction to God (verse 3)?

What is God’s covenant with Abram (verse 4)?

Why did God change Abram’s name to Abraham (verse 5)?

Who will come from Abraham (verse 6)?

In your opinion, why did God establish His covenant with Abraham as an “everlasting covenant” (verse 7)?

How is the “whole land of Canaan” presented to Abraham (verse 8)?

When are Abraham and his descendants to keep the covenant (verse 9)?

What is the covenant (verse 10)?

When are the males to be circumcised (verse 12)?

Does it matter if the males are “born in your household” or if they are “bought with money from a foreigner” (verse 13)?

How will the uncircumcised male be treated (verse 14)?

In your opinion, should the “teachers of the law and Pharisees” to whom Jesus was speaking in Matthew 23:15 require every male they convert to be circumcised as required by the covenant with God revealed in Genesis 17:3-14?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Genesis 17 show us about the Great Commission?

Galatians 5:2-6 – New International Version (NIV)

² “Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. ³ Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. ⁴ You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. ⁵ For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. ⁶ For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.”

What does Paul tell the Galatians that being circumcised would do to the value of Christ to them (verse 2)?

How does a person’s relationship to the law change if they let themselves be circumcised (verse 3)?

Where do you fall away from if you try to be justified by the law and are therefore “alienated from Christ” (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why is it “through the Spirit” that we “eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope” (verse 5)?

In your opinion, why does “neither circumcision nor uncircumcision” have any value in Christ Jesus (verse 6)?

What is the only thing that counts (verse 6)?

In your opinion, how do we reconcile the command by God in Genesis 17:3-14 that to participate in the covenant every male must be circumcised with the adamant opposition to circumcision that Paul, who had been a Pharisee, has in Galatians 5:2-6?

In your opinion, what does the statement of Paul in Galatians 5:2-6 that “you who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace” help explain why Jesus in Matthew 23:15 said to the teachers of the law and Pharisees that “You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are”?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Galatians 5 show us about the Great Commission?

Hebrews 12:18-29 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁸ “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; ¹⁹ to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, ²⁰ because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” ²¹ The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”

²² But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, ²³ to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, ²⁴ to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

²⁵ See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? ²⁶ At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” ²⁷ The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain.

²⁸ Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, ²⁹ for our “God is a consuming fire.”

What kind of mountain does Paul say that Jewish converts to Christianity have not come to (verse 18)?

In your opinion, why did people who heard the voice beg “that no further word be spoken to them” (verse 19)?

How was “even an animal” that “touches the mountain” to be treated (verse 20)?

Why did Moses say “I am trembling with fear” (verse 21)?

What have they come to (verse 22)?

How are the “thousands upon thousands of angels” described (verse 22)?

Where are the names of the members of “the church of the firstborn” written (verse 23)?

How is God described (verse 23)?

What has happened to “spirits of the righteous” (verse 23)?

How is Jesus described (verse 24)?

What kind of word does the sprinkled blood speak (verse 24)?

In your opinion, why do we need to “not refuse him who speaks” (verse 25)?

What is the new promise of the One whose “voice shook the earth” (verse 26)?

In your opinion, once the “created things” are removed what will the “what cannot be shaken” consist of (verse 27)?

What are we receiving that we should “be thankful” and “worship God acceptably with reverence and awe” (verse 28)?

How is our God described (verse 29)?

In your opinion, how do we reconcile what Paul says in Galatians 5:2-6 about eagerly awaiting “by faith the righteousness for which we hope” with the quotes from Hebrews 12:18-29, where God says “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens”?

In your opinion, how does the covenant of God with Abraham in Genesis 17:3-14 prepare us for the new covenant that Jesus is mediator of in Hebrews 12:18-29?

In your opinion, how does the prophecy that “once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens” followed by the explanation that “the words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain” in Hebrews 12:18-29 help us to understand the “woe” that Jesus proclaimed to the teachers of the law and the Pharisees in Matthew 23:15?

In your opinion, how does the “convert” of the teachers of the law and the Pharisees in Matthew 23:15 compare “to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven” of Hebrews 12:18-29?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Hebrews 12 show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 23:16 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

May 31, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Doors and the Key of David

  

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Doors and the Key of David

Matthew 23:13 – New International Version (NIV)

¹³ “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.”

Who does Jesus say “woe” to (verse 13)?

How does He describe them (verse 13)?

Where do they shut the “door of the kingdom of heaven” (verse 13)?

In your opinion, why do you think that they do not enter the kingdom of heaven (verse 13)?

In your opinion, how do you think they keep “those who are trying to” enter the kingdom of heaven out (verse 13)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 23:13 show us about the Great Commission?

Isaiah 22:20-25 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁰ “In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. ²¹ I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. ²² I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. ²³ I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will become a seat of honor for the house of his father. ²⁴ All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars.

²⁵ “In that day,” declares the Lord Almighty, “the peg driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The Lord has spoken.”

How is Eliakim son of Hilkiah described (verse 20)?

What will be handed to him (verse 21)?

Who will he be the father to (verse 21)?

What will be placed on his shoulder (verse 22)?

In your opinion, what does it mean to say “what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open” (verse 22)?

What will he be driven like a peg into (verse 23)?

What will hang on him (verse 24)?

When will the “peg driven into the firm place” be sheared off and fall (verses 24 and 25)?

In your opinion, why are the teachers of the law and the Pharisees that Jesus is speaking to in Matthew 23:13 only able to “shut the door” but the holder of the “key to the house of David” from Isaiah 22:20-25 is prophesied the much greater promise that “what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open”?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Isaiah 22 show us about the Great Commission?

Acts 5:17-32 – New International Version (NIV)

¹⁷ “Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. ¹⁸ They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. ¹⁹ But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. ²⁰ “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.”

²¹ At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people.

When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin—the full assembly of the elders of Israel—and sent to the jail for the apostles. ²² But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported, ²³ “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” ²⁴ On hearing this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss, wondering what this might lead to.

²⁵ Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.” ²⁶ At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.

²⁷ The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. ²⁸ “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”

²⁹ Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! ³⁰ The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. ³¹ God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. ³² We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

What filled the high priest and all his associates (verse 17)?

Who was arrested and put into the public jail (verse 18)?

When did the angel of the Lord open the doors and bring them out (verse 19)?

Where did the angel tell them to stand and “tell the people about this new life” (verse 20)?

When did they enter the temple courts and begin to teach the people (verse 21)?

In your opinion, why did the high priest and his associates call the Sanhedrin together (verse 21)?

What did the officers find when they got to the jail (verse 23)?

How did the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests respond to the news (verse 24)?

Where were the “men you put in jail” (verse 25)?

Why did the captain and his officers not use force to bring the apostles (verse 26)?

Why were the apostles brought before the Sanhedrin (verse 27)?

In your opinion, what caused the high priest to think the apostles were “determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood” (verse 28)?

Who did Peter and the apostles say they must obey (verse 29)?

Who “raised Jesus from the dead” (verse 30)?

Why had God “exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior” (verse 31)?

Who are the “witnesses of these things” (verse 32)?

In your opinion, what is the difference between the high priest and all his associates who have the apostles arrested and put into jail in Acts 5:17-32 and Eliakim son of Hilkiah in Isaiah 22:20-25?

In your opinion, what does it mean that some of the teachers of the law and the Pharisees who Jesus said “shut the door of the kingdom of heaven” in Matthew 23:13 were probably part of the Sanhedrin in Acts 5:17-32 who Peter told “the God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead”?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Acts 5 show us about the Great Commission?

Revelation 3:7-13 – New International Version (NIV)

⁷ “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:

These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. ⁸ I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. ⁹ I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. ¹⁰ Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.

¹¹ I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. ¹² The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. ¹³ Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Who is John instructed to write to (verse 7)?

How does Jesus describe Himself (verse 7)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that Jesus “holds the key of David” (verse 7)?

What has Jesus placed before the church in Philadelphia (verse 8)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus link the fact that the church in Philadelphia had “little strength” with the fact that “you have kept my word and have not denied my name” (verse 8)?

What will “those who are of the synagogue of Satan” do (verse 9)?

Why will Jesus keep the church of Philadelphia from the “hour of trail that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth” (verse 10)?

When is Jesus coming (verse 11)?

How will the “one who is victorious” be rewarded (verse 12)?

Who will speak to the churches (verse 13)?

In your opinion, what can we learn from the comparison of the angel of the Lord opening the door to the jail and bringing out the apostles in Acts 5:17-22 and the promise to the church of Philadelphia that an open door that no one can shut has been placed before them in Revelation 3:7-13?

In your opinion, how does knowing that the “key of David” once held by the Eliakim son of Hilkiah in Isaiah 22:20-25 is now held by “him who is holy and true” in Revelation 3:7-13 bring perfection to the idea that “what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open”?

In your opinion, how are the limited actions of the “teachers of the law and Pharisees” in Matthew 23:13 in shutting the door to the kingdom of heaven and not letting people enter similar to those of the synagogue of Satan in Revelation 3:7-13 and how is the promise of “an open door that no one can shut” the perfect response by God in this situation?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Revelation show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 23:14 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

May 24, 2015 – The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew – Being First or Being Exalted

Matthew 28:18-20 – New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission

¹⁸ “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Being First or Being Exalted

Matthew 23:1-12 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ “Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: ² “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. ³ So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. ⁴ They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.

⁵ “Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; ⁶ they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; ⁷ they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others.

⁸ “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. ⁹ And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. ¹⁰ Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. ¹¹ The greatest among you will be your servant. ¹² For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Who was Jesus speaking to (verse 1)?

Where do the teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit (verse 2)?

In your opinion, what does Jesus mean when He says “so you must be careful to do everything they tell you” (verse 3)?

What are the crowds and Jesus disciples not to do (verse 3)?

In your opinion, how do the teachers of the law and the Pharisees “tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders” (verse 4)?

Why do the teachers of the law and Pharisees do things (verse 5)?

What do the teachers of the law and Pharisees love (verses 6 and 7)?

Who is not to be called Rabbi (verse 8)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus tell the crowds and the disciples no to “call anyone on earth ‘father’” (verse 9)?

Who is our one Instructor (verse 10)?

Who is the greatest (verse 11)?

What will happen to those who exalt themselves (verse 12)?

In your opinion, how do those who will be exalted humble themselves (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 23:1-12 show us about the Great Commission?

Deuteronomy 11:13-21 - New International Version (NIV)

¹³ “So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul— ¹⁴ then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. ¹⁵ I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.

¹⁶ Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. ¹⁷ Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and he will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you. ¹⁸ Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ¹⁹ Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ²⁰ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, ²¹ so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth.”

What commands is Moses asking the people to “faithfully obey” (verse 13)?

Why will the Lord send “rain on your land in its season” (verse 14)?

How will people be after they eat (verse 15)?

In your opinion, why would people who “love the Lord your God” and “serve him with all your heart and with all your soul” “be enticed to turn away and worship other gods” (verse 16)?

How will the Lord respond if people worship other gods (verse 17)?

What is God’s recommendation on how to avoid turning away (verse 18)?

When should the children be taught (verse 19)?

In your opinion, why should the words be written on the door frames and the gates (verse 20)?

How many days will the people and their children be in the land if they “fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds” (verses 18 and 21)?

In your opinion, are the phylacteries that Jesus was talking about in Matthew 23:1-12 an appropriate response to the commands of God in Deuteronomy 11:13-21?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Deuteronomy 11 show us about the Great Commission?

1 Timothy 4:7-10 – New International Version (NIV)

⁷ “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. ⁸ For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. ⁹ This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. ¹⁰ That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.”

In your opinion, what are “godless myths and old wives’ tales” (verse 7)?

Where should we focus instead of “godless myths and old wives’ tales” (verse 7)?

What has “value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come” (verse 8)?

Why do “we labor and strive” (verse 10)?

Who is the “living God” (verse 10)?

In your opinion, what is the difference between the instruction of Deuteronomy 11:13-21 to “faithfully obey the commands I am giving you” and the message in 1 Timothy 4:7-10 to “train yourself to be godly”?

In your opinion, what are the similarities between the wide phylacteries and long tassels that Jesus talked about in Matthew 23:1-1-12 and the “godless myths and old wives’ tales” that Paul warns Timothy of in 1 Timothy 4:7-10?

In your opinion, what does this passage from 1 Timothy show us about the Great Commission?

3 John  – New International Version (NIV)

¹ “The elder,

To my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth.

² 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 It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. ⁴ I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

⁵ Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you. ⁶ They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. ⁷ It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. ⁸ We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth.

⁹ I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us. ¹⁰ So when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.

¹¹ Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. ¹² Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone—and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true.

¹³ I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink. ¹⁴ I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.

Peace to you. The friends here send their greetings. Greet the friends there by name.”

Who does John describe Gaius (verse 1)?

What does John pray for (verse 2)?

How did John find out about the faithfulness to the truth of Gaius (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why would John have “no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth” (verse 4)?

Who is Gaius “doing for” (verse 5)?

How should he “send them on their way” (verse 6)?

Why did they go out (verse 7)?

Why should we “show hospitality to such people” (verse 8)?

In your opinion, what can we learn about Diotrephes by reading that he “loves to be first” (verse 9)?

What does Diotrephes do to those who want to welcome other believers (verse 10)?

Where is “anyone who does what is good” from (verse 11)?

Who is “well spoken of by everyone” (verse 12)?

In your opinion, why would John not want to write Gaius “with pen and ink” (verse 13)?

What blessing does John bestow on Gaius (verse 14)?

In your opinion, what are the similarities between the “godless myths and old wives’ tales” that Paul told Timothy to avoid in 1 Timothy 4:7-10 and the “malicious nonsense” that Diotrephes was spreading in 3 John?

In your opinion, how does the command in Deuteronomy 11:13-21 to “be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them” possibly help us understand the actions of Diotrephes in 3 John?

In your opinion, how are the actions and the indictment of Diotrephes in 3 John an example of the statement of Jesus in Matthew 23:1-12 “those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted”?

In your opinion, what does this passage from 3 John show us about the Great Commission?

Next, back to Matthew 23:13 – (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)