3 John.    In his second letter, John had encouraged believers not to associate with deceivers who taught new things.  In this third letter, he deals with the opposite problem.  Diotrephes – apparently a leader in the church John writes to – has refused to accept a legitimate ministry.  He used his position in the church to deny support to others, seeking to narrow the people’s attention to only himself.

Today, we need to learn the same lesson.  There are some false teachings we ought to shun.  But there are lots of legitimate ministries we ought to be accepting and supporting.  Finding the appropriate balance will require discernment.

LORD, help us support legitimate manifestations of your Holy Spirit, while avoiding counterfeits.