One of the beautiful things that 3 John does is to paint a practical picture of everything John has admonished us to do—cling to truth, love the children of God, and encourage others in holiness. One of the sobering things about this short letter is how plainly it depicts the behavior that John has warned against. We may not consider ourselves hateful people, but we all struggle with feelings of pride and self-centeredness. We need to be careful to follow the example of those like Gaius, whose words and actions align with the Word of Truth. And we are to beware of others, such as Diotrephes, whose behavior is far from the truth and example taught by Jesus. We need to surrender our pride and pursue the profound love of God and love of others.