Drinking Poison

I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us.
3 John 9

Actress Carrie Fisher got it right when she said, “Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” Resentment eats away at our joy. It is a thief that must be removed from the premises of our hearts. Resentment caused Cain to kill Abel, enraged Saul against David, pitted Jonah against the people of Nineveh, caused Herodias to seek John’s head on a platter, prompted Judas to betray Jesus, and bedeviled Paul by those who resented his prominence.

The apostle John, too, faced resentment from those who wanted to feel self-important. In the little book of 3 John, we have thumbnail profiles of three men. The first, Gaius, was known for his generosity (verses 1-8). The last, Demetrius, was known for his good testimony (verses 12-14). But between the two was Diotrephes (verses 9-11) who resented John and wouldn’t let him minister in his church. Imagine! Turning away the venerable apostle John! That’s what resentment will do to you.

Do you harbor any resentment toward another person? Confess it to God and let Him wash the poison from your heart. Let His love rule the day.

[God] bears no grudges. The Lord would not have His people harbor resentments, and in His own course of action He sets them a grand example.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon