Podcasts about here paul

We need help knowing how to apply the gospel to our everyday lives. Here Paul breaks down the church into age-and-stage groups, and tells each one of us what godly living in accordance with the truth looks like. What practical teaching—and how badly we need it!

The word of God's grace is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. We trust God is using the Unchanging Word Bible Broadcast to build you up and to give you His grace for your everyday life. This study in Acts begins at chapter 20 verse 31. Here we have the apostle Paul's overview of God's sufficiency in providing him with the necessities of life and ministry by his own labor from which he was able to show generosity. Here Paul quotes the words of the Lord Jesus who said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Luke in chapter 21 again includes himself in the ensuing journey to Jerusalem writing the Holy Spirit's warnings to the apostle. Let's open our Bible and join Dr. Mitchell, Acts 20:31 on the Unchanging Word Bible Broadcast --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/unchanging-word/message

We need help knowing how to apply the gospel to our everyday lives. Here Paul breaks down the church into age-and-stage groups, and tells each one of us what godly living in accordance with the truth looks like. What practical teaching—and how badly we need it!

Still being home on quarantine last night, I did not have an opportunity to deliver the second sermon I prepared for the Preaching & Teaching class at Summitview Community Church, though I did prepare a sermon. However, being home as we were yesterday morning, I did preach both the first and second sermons for class to my wife and children over breakfast, and it is a funny thing to realize that even preaching to your own family can induce feelings of nervousness. To hear the first sermon, you can go back to the episode I recorded last week titled 'The Breath of God' concerning 2 Timothy 3:16-17. But in this episode, I would like to share with you the second sermon concerning 2 Timothy 2:14-15. Here Paul tells Timothy, “Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” Feeling convicted as I did after teaching my children and wife such yesterday morning, I went back and listened to my episode from yesterday with fresh ears, and I heard myself saying some things which I was not convinced could be called "rightly handling the word of truth." So I went back and edited the audio to remove the offending part. If we are servants of God, we are not to be quarrelsome, about words or any other thing. Nor are we to embrace "irreverent babble" as Paul calls it in 2 Timothy 2:16. Rather, we are to avoid such, even as we strive to rightly handle truth and present ourselves to God as approved workers who have no need to be ashamed. That said, some of us say things which are not good in other ways. And just because I sometimes offend in saying things which are true but delivered too harshly, and I need to get better at that, the mainstay issue confronting many American Christians today is an undue deference to claims and practices which God's Word says are false and evil. As Isaiah 5:20 puts it, "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!" And let it not be said of us that we do any such thing ever, whoever we might offend, and whatever temporary benefits or security we might desire by flattering. We must not confuse flattery for gentleness, or ambiguity for humility. Rather, we must be bold in telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help us God. "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable," therefore we must "do [our] best to present ourselves to God as workers who need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/garrett-ashley-mullet/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/garrett-ashley-mullet/support

This Sunday we will conclude our journey through the letter of Ephesians, focusing our attention on selected verses from chapter six. Here Paul reminds us that our struggle is not against enemies of “blood and flesh.” Contrary to the divisive and dehumanizing rhetoric and behavior that occupies too much of our common life, we're not at war with or seeking to defeat or destroy those individuals with whom we disagree or are in conflict. Rather, our struggle is with what Paul often terms the “principalities and powers”. The powers are known by various names - racism, toxic politics, sexism, unjust economies, and more. Paul affirms that Christ has defeated and is Lord of the powers. As such we have been set free to live differently. Part of this different way of living entails putting on the armor or truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and God's word, and naming and resisting the “rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers” that seek to dominate and control individuals, institutions, and systems. This is, in part, what it means to be the body of Christ in the world.

362 Live Peaceably with Everyone, A Guided Christian Meditation on Romans 12:17-19 with the Recenter With Christ app I'm Chaplain Jared and I work as a hospice chaplain and an ICU chaplain, my purpose in making this podcast is to help you find more peace in your life and to be more open for your heart to be changed by the Spirit of God. By using centuries old form of Christian Meditation named Lectio Divina: Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation and Visualization. Get into a place where you can sit comfortably and uninterrupted for about 20 minutes.You should hopefully not be driving or anything tensing or unrelaxing. If you feel comfortable to do so, I invite you to close your eyes. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: Breathe and direct your thoughts to connecting with God. Let your stomach be a balloon inflate, deflate. Bible verses for Meditation: Romans 12 NIV 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. KJV 17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Meditation on Scripture: Vengeance is an experience that has been present since the earliest days of human existence. It's intoxicating lire can be tempting for all of us who have been harmed by someone. It temps is to intentionally hurt another for nothing other than the enjoyment of that pain. It is a sort of directed masochism. Here Paul says it is paying evil for evil. In a more clear statement, revenge is evil. Most of the time it is understandable why we feel the dramatic pull toward revenge but that is not our place to cool claim that it should be welcome in our heart. When we let those feelings hold sway in us, it negatively impacts us. Even we feel unable to let go of the feeling, we can begin by at least wanting the feeling to leave instead of nurturing it. We can trust our all powerful God who will ensure that justice is done. God knows exactly how and when to give mercy and justice. His decision are infinitely better than ours. As our faith in God grows so does our faith that All that is wrong and evil will be avenged. The great irony comes when we consider our need for mercy from the offenses we have done to others. Those same acts that may have instilled feelings of revenge in others. True faith in God grows into an understanding that His grace and forgiveness should not apply only to us, but to all those who come to him and repent through faith. Thankfully God is not as vengeful as we may occasionally deserve. Thanks be to God for His unending grace. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready ask God for understanding you desire from Him. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: I invite you to sit in silence feeling patient for your own faults and trials. Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life: This is a listener funded podcast at patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast Updates: Final Question: What does the rest of the Lord look like? Final Thought: FIND ME ON: Download my free app: Recenter with Christ Website - ChristianMeditationPodcast.com Voicemail - (602) 888-3795 Email: jared@christianmeditationpodcast.com Apple Podcasts - Christian Meditation Podcast Facebook.com/christianmeditationpodcast Youtube.com/christianmeditaitonpodcast Twitter - @ChristianMedPod  

Our study in the book of Acts resumes in Chapter 19 where Dr. Mitchell marks off three sections beginning first at vss 8-12 - the Gospel's power. Here Paul speaks out in the synagogue in Ephesus for three months. But there was opposition to the message. So Paul gathering those who believed the message took them to a school where he reasoned with them for two years. The second - vss.13-16 is the Gospel's opposition. Seven sons of an high priest tried to imitate the power of the gospel by casting out a demon. Since they did not know the Lord Himself, the demon over powered them. The third - vss.17-20 is the Gospel‘s fruitage. The Word of the Lord produced cleansing in all who believed and grew. We are in Acts 19:8-20 with Dr. Mitchell on the Unchanging Word Bible Broadcast. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/unchanging-word/message

Jesus has drawn us into a family relationship with one another, and He desires that we pray for one another. This requires an investment of time- we need to get to enjoy fellowship and get to know one another so that we know how to pray for each other. Christ desires that we should not be partial towards any of our brothers or sisters, by interacting with or greeting only those whom we like. --Here Paul also reminds his readers to make sure that his Epistle is read to all the people in the church at Thessalonica. This is a reminder to us that we are to be -people of the Book,- who hear and love God's Word. The reading of the Word is part of our worship. In its pages, life is found. In the Gospel, we find comfort in times of trouble---Let's pray for grace so that our church may be one that clearly manifests the practice of prayer, love among the brethren, and a focus on the Scriptures.

Title: For Honor Text: II Timothy 2:20-26 FCF: We often struggle meeting the purpose of our calling. Prop: Because we have been seta apart to be useful and ready for good works, we must flee sin and be like Christ. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to II Timothy chapter 2. Last week, Paul began his instruction on how to deal with these false teachers in Ephesus. He told Timothy not to engage them in their disputes about nonessentials or profane chatter, but instead to focus on being a diligent, approved, unashamed, and accurate truth teacher. This was his opponent's failure. They strayed from the truth, and they have led themselves and others to ruin. But then Paul gives the comfort and exhortation. The tension between God's sovereignty and human responsibility. God knows and keeps those who are his AND everyone who names the name of the Lord must turn away from evil. Although a paradox both of these are absolutely true. God's keeping work does not negate our responsibility to obey. In many ways, Paul restates this exact point again in different words to finish out this chapter. But rather than stay in the realm of the non-specific… Paul moves directly to how Timothy and all Christians should deal with all men. Those in the church, those who are in the church but we are not sure of their spiritual state, and those who oppose us. How do we then live toward these people? Paul says all this and much more in our passage today. I am in II Timothy chapter 2. I'll begin reading in verse 20 from the CSB, but you can follow in the pew bible on page 1343 or whatever version you prefer. If you do not have a bible of your own, you are free to take a pew bible home with you. Transition: Unfortunately, our first step into the text this morning poses for us a perplexing problem. So let's dive in straight away. I.) Since we have been set apart to be useful and ready for good works, we must purge ourselves of dishonorable things. (20-21) a. [Slide 2] 20 – Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also those of wood and clay; i. Paul presents a metaphor to Timothy. Here is the difficulty with metaphor; unless it is fully explained, many times metaphors are not easily understood. ii. So, we face a difficult challenge here. How far do we press this metaphor? Does every component in the story correspond to a present reality? Does every detail need to be included? iii. If Paul does not spell out each detail and what it means in real life, how does that effect how dogmatic we can be on the understanding of the text? iv. The answers to these questions are not easy ones. However, there is an interpretive principle that I do think helps us here. v. [Slide 3] Context is King. If we can understand what Paul has been saying and will be saying, it should help us understand how far we can or should press this metaphor. vi. [Slide 4] First let's understand the metaphor plainly and then we will attempt to grasp its components. vii. Paul speaks of a wealthy home. In wealthy homes, there are bowls, utensils, vases, plates, and other household items that are made of precious metals. But even in a wealthy home, they do not use expensive vessels only. They also use vessels of clay and wood. viii. If we were to put this in our understanding we could say, In a rich man's home, not everything is a top dollar item. There are some things there that a common person would own too. Rich people still buy toilet paper. Perhaps even the same brand you do. They still buy plastic trash bags. They still buy Drain-O. They still buy furnace filters. No matter how wealthy they are, they still need common household items. ix. Why? b. [Slide 5] Some for honorable use and some for dishonorable. i. No matter how you spin it, there are some uses of utensils that all of us have. ii. There are honorable uses for vessels of precious metal. We probably would not eat hot dogs and hamburgers with silver forks and China. We would probably not buy a gold-plated plunger for our toilet. Nor would we use leather for our trash bags. iii. Typically, the dirtier, and more disgusting the job, the less money you want to spend to accomplish it. We use plastic bags for refuse and water to flush our toilets. These are relatively inexpensive things to deal with a really gross problem. iv. In fact, in the first century, by wood and clay vessels, Paul is probably referring to chamber pots for collecting human eliminations. v. Even wealthy homes had these. vi. So here is our challenge with this metaphor. What is the house, what are the vessels (precious and common), what is honorable and dishonorable use mean in real life? And we have even another layer here. Paul uses a similar metaphor in two other places in his corpus of writing. And both of those writings had already occurred. vii. II Corinthians 4:7 – Paul compares God's people to earthen vessels in which God has placed His treasure. viii. Romans 9:21-24 – Paul contrasts God's people as earthen vessels meant for special purposes, which were formed form the same lump of clay molded into jars meant for common purposes. ix. So, in the limited pool of Pauline metaphors – Not only are God's people always earthen vessels, but the precious vessels are never mentioned. x. Let's let all these questions hang for now. Let's get to how Paul applies this metaphor. c. [Slide 6] 21 – So if anyone purifies himself from anything dishonorable i. Paul now, utterly shatters that metaphor. How so? ii. Although today we do have self-cleaning toilets that reasonably keep the inside of the bowl clean, they are quite expensive and do not clean the outside of the toilet. iii. And certainly, in the first century, there was no such thing as a self-cleaning chamber pot. Even to empty it, they would need to go to the river to do so, or at least bury it in a field. iv. Even gold and silver vessels could not clean themselves if they were to get dirty or be ill fit for their purpose. v. So the metaphor steps into comedy as we imagine a bowl scrubbing itself thoroughly to rid itself of any remnants of dishonorable things. vi. What is clear here is that although Paul's previous metaphor in verse 19 had God's sovereignty first and human responsibility last – Here Paul flips them. vii. Paul first establishes human responsibility. viii. He tells Timothy, if anyone would wash himself thoroughly from dishonorable things… d. [Slide 7] He will be a special instrument i. You will be (future tense) a vessel or instrument used for a special purpose. ii. This phrase depending on which pot we are talking about strikes us rather odd. iii. For a golden vessel or clay pot to clean itself is odd enough. Now we have this pot being cleaned to the point that it is fit to be used in the future for a great purpose. iv. But if we are talking about wood or earthen vessels used for human eliminations, this seems quite odd within the metaphor. v. I don't mean to turn your stomachs this morning – but how clean would your toilet have to be for you to use the seat as a plate to eat your next meal? Or the toilet bowl for your bowl of cereal? Could you ever get it clean enough? vi. This is perplexing indeed. vii. So, for now, let's leave this and move forward. e. [Slide 8] Set apart i. Try though I did, I cannot for the life of me understand why there is no translation that does not render this “having been made holy” or “having been set apart” ii. This is a perfect passive participle. Much like in verse 26 where the text says “who has taken them”. Same exact morphology but is not translated “taken” iii. For me, the proper understanding of this word greatly helps us to interpret this passage. iv. So it should say - “if anyone would cleanse themselves of dishonorable things, they will be a vessel for honor having been set apart.” v. If all that is maintained we have a present condition, promising a future use, based on a past work done to us. Which looks exactly like verse 19 only backward. f. [Slide 9] Useful to the Master i. Diving back into the metaphor ever so slightly, we see that an instrument, set apart for something honorable, that cleansed itself from dishonorable things, is now useful to the master for the purpose for which it was set apart. ii. Meaning that unlike the passages in II Cor 4 and Romans 9 – Paul is not saying that believers are wood and earthenware. Rather those are Hymenaeus and Philetus. How do we know they are vessels meant for dishonorable use? Because that is what fills them. Dishonorable things. iii. God's people in this passage are the gold and silver vessels. Set aside for noble purposes. And as long as they cleanse themselves of dishonorable things, they will be used this way. g. [Slide 10] Prepared for every good work. i. Again, we can add to this participle “having been” prepared for every good work. ii. Finally, we understand what dishonor and honor means. Blurring the lines between metaphor and reality Paul has said what this vessel's special use is. A vessel that has been set apart, that cleansed itself of dishonor, its special use is to bear fruit. It is to hold good works. iii. We have been made to be golden Spiritual Fruit bowls – Displaying the grace and power of God in our lives. h. And so even though this metaphor can perplex us, it seems that Paul is simply restating what he did in verse 19 only in backward order. Yes, God knows who are His, but also all who call on his name must depart from evil. i. In the same way, all who purge themselves of evil, will be those used of Him, because He has set them apart for honor. j. [Slide 11] Passage Truth: So, Paul reveals a truth here that endures to the end of this passage. That truth, is that God's people have been set apart, so they can be useful to their Master, and prepared to display good works. In response to that truth, what is Timothy's responsibility? k. Passage Application: Timothy must purge himself of all uncleanness. He must actively depart from all that is dishonorable. Paul will continue to open up to us exactly what that looks like – but at this point that is where Timothy must begin. l. [Slide 12] Broader Biblical Truth: Zooming out to the whole of scripture, this is essentially the same thing he says in Ephesians 2:8-10 where Paul shares that God saves us by grace through faith, not of works, but as a gift so that we can do good works which God has prepared for us to do before time began. This is the entire purpose of God selecting and working within the line of Seth, through Noah, to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, David, and then finally Christ. God's divine appointment and setting apart for His service is His side of the equation. m. Broader Biblical Application: Our side is this…. we must be cleansed of dishonorable things. Although we only have a hint of what this means, we can reasonably conclude that if good works are what is to fill our cup, then dead works and evil deeds are what must be purged. Experientially we know that this is an ongoing process to stay pure and remain pure. We must continue to turn away from evil teachings, lifestyles, and those who preach and practice them. Transition: [Slide 13(blank)] But it seems like we need a little more specificity here. This is the second time in a few verses that Paul has referenced a purging or opposition to evil things. But what specifically ought we to purge? And what are these good works that should go in its place? Paul addresses both in the next two verses. II.) Since we have been set apart to be useful and ready for good works, we must flee sin and pursue holiness. (22-23) a. [Slide 14] 22 – Flee from youthful passions, i. Up to this point in this passage most of Paul's words have been conceptual. ii. He speaks of working hard, reminding, being diligent, being committed, playing by the rules. iii. For many of these Paul simply said – I trust the Lord will give you understanding on all this. iv. And most recently he told Timothy that God's true people oppose evil and purify themselves of dishonor. But what does that mean? v. So, Paul gets practical. vi. Flee. Youthful. Passions. vii. What are young people consumed with today? I think our answers could be quite varied. Everything from sex, drugs, and rock and roll to entitlement, rashness, laziness, arrogance, seeking praise and a following, and desiring to fight and argue. viii. If it is a normal young person's lust… it is a good bet that it is not worthy to be pursued by anyone who claims the name of Christ. ix. These are the dishonorable things that must be shed. b. [Slide 15] And pursue righteousness i. Rather we should be pursuing righteousness. Holiness, and godliness. ii. Jesus said that the Kingdom of God and His righteousness ought to be our first pursuit. And Paul, as he should, agrees with His Lord. c. [Slide 16] Faith, i. Just as righteousness is God's and must be obtained from Him, so also faith is not something conjured from within but is rather a grace of God to us. ii. Faith that believes His word and trusts Him without faltering. iii. This is what Timothy must pursue. It is the true antidote for his timidity. It is faith and hope in what God has said and what God has done. d. [Slide 17] Love, i. An attribute of God. One in which we have no part unless He loves us first. ii. For us to pursue this love is not in the sense of being lovable to God. For that is not possible and is ultimately ineffectual. iii. Rather it is the pursuit of God's love. That we may have His love for Him and for one another. e. [Slide 18] And peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. i. Peace could certainly be used here as a cessation of hostility between God and man, but to pursue this is impossible. Rather as with the others this seems like the pursuit of something God grants in His Son through His Spirit. ii. It makes sense then to combine it with the following phrase as it explains the true focus of that peace. iii. It is toward and with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. iv. We might remember the last time Paul mentioned this where there is some uncertainty that not all those who call on the name of the Lord are truly His people. And yet, Paul makes plain his meaning. It is those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. It is those who have been set apart. It is those whom the Lord knows are His. v. The word pursue continues throughout the text as the command for all these qualities. vi. Indicating that they are in fact – as with the fruit of the spirit – 1 pursuit not many. vii. We cannot divorce righteousness from faith, or love, or peace with our brothers and sisters. viii. Indeed, to have all but one is to fail them all. ix. And so youthful passions are the dishonorable things we must clean from our silver vessel and these things must go in. These are what we have been set apart to be and do. f. [Slide 19] 23 – But reject foolish and ignorant disputes, because you know that they breed quarrels. i. Again, Paul makes mention of this to Timothy in the discard pile. ii. Based on the two kinds of discussions Paul references in verses 14 and 16 it seems like he has combined both of these into one. iii. Foolish disputes would go along well with profane chatter since they are ungodly. And ignorant or silly disputes would go along with the wrangling of words. iv. All of these things, avoid them, stop them, reject them. Why? v. All they do is start fights. That is the opposite of being at peace with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. g. [Slide 20] Passage Truth: Once again, the primary backdrop of truth for this whole discussion is that God has set apart His people to be useful and prepared to do good works. So, if Timothy is truly a child of God, what will he do? h. Passage Application: He will discard the attitudes and actions of immature people living lives ruled by their passions, and will instead pursue heavenly virtues that can only come as gifts from God. He will receive these in order that he may minister to the body of Christ with them. i. [Slide 21] Broader Biblical Truth: Zooming out from our text, we know that God has this mega theme throughout scripture with the expectation of His people living differently than the world around them. j. Broader Biblical Application: And so for us at CBC, we must not be controlled by our culture. Rather, we should flee passions bred in immaturity. Not just sexual dalliances but even disputes, arguing, a critical and judging spirit, arrogance and vain glory. All of these ought to be washed clean from us by the blood of Christ. Instead we should see holiness, love, faith, and peace with all people who are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are the body, and we ought to be united. Not in arbitrary “get-alongedness” ignoring failings or false teachings. But unity in holiness, truth, love, and peace. Transition: [Slide 22(blank)] So we have seen some applications of this teaching that we must purge ourselves of sin and be ready for good works. We have even seen what some of those good works are… but Paul has one more set of put off, put ons for us here. III.) Since we have been set apart to be useful and ready for good works, we must not quarrel but meekly instruct our opponents. (24-26) a. [Slide 23] 24 – The Lord's servant must not quarrel, i. Remember, context is King. ii. Paul has been talking about people who died with Christ, who endure vs those who deny and are without faith. iii. He compares the message of truth with the word-war, ignorant, foolish and profane discussions of the group of Hymenaeus and Philetus. iv. He specifically calls on Timothy to be at peace with God's true people. v. Now he says that the Lord's servant – which could be applied to all Christians generally, but is surely applied specifically to Timothy as a Spiritual leader. vi. He must not quarrel. vii. But with who is Paul referring? In some sense, he has already spoken with reference to those who are true believers. So who else is the Lord's Servant and minister of the gospel not to quarrel with? b. [Slide 24] But must be gentle to everyone i. Everyone. All men. ii. The minister of the gospel ought not be quarrelsome to any. Indeed, it is a qualification of an Elder to not be quarrelsome. iii. And this is not just to those within the church, it is not just to those of whom it is evident that they are believers. It is with all men. iv. Those whom it is not evident that they are believers. They have made a confession but their lives are suspect. They are in this list. It is not the place of the minister to quarrel with them. v. What about those with bad theology? What about those with clear contradictions in their lifestyles? vi. Well, quarreling with them is NEVER the answer. vii. What is? c. [Slide 25] Able to teach i. A true minister of the gospel should relish the opportunity to take someone from ignorance to understanding. To train up someone in the ways of the Lord. ii. A minister of the gospel should chomp at the bit to have the chance to deepen the understanding and wait for God to click the lights on for the slow of hearing. iii. This includes not just instruction but rebuke, reproving, correction, and instruction in righteousness. iv. And this kind of teaching without leading to quarreling takes what? d. [Slide 26] And patient i. You betcha it does. ii. Do you know what the single most consistent theme of my 11 years of ministerial teaching and counseling is? People do not listen. iii. By the grace of God, for the most part, I have yet to become cynical and assume it of people. I remain hopeful that they will listen. But by and large – people don't. iv. At first. v. But God is gracious in that he has, at times, had people I have counseled, people who have rejected my advice initially, come back and thank me for it later. vi. I can tell you that is a gift from God. Because sometimes it feels like you are wasting your time trying to teach people His truths. And usually just when you start to think such a selfishly sinful thought… it is just then when people come with thankfulness for your input in their lives. vii. That gives me as a minister of the gospel of Christ, the patience to continue on, without being quarrelsome and beating people over the head… viii. But what about those who don't even claim to be Christians. What do you do with them? e. [Slide 27] 25 – instructing his opponents with gentleness. i. Gently, in love and humility, with the great authority of the scripture alone, instruct ignorant, profane, and ungodly people. ii. Those with whom you disagree so sharply. If you are not careful you can either attack them to undermine their argument, or even dismiss them without dignity of their person. iii. My friends, even those who we think do great damage to the gospel with their foolish arguments, will have no effect on it in reality. Christ's gospel will go on unimpeded iv. So, what then? Shall we attack someone who has no power to overthrow the truth? Can we not see them for what they are, for what we once were? Blind and dead? v. Even the greatest opponents of the gospel of Jesus Christ deserve to be instructed with gentleness. Corrected… with meekness. vi. Some say, but Jesus did not instruct the Pharisees in this way. Surely there must be an occasion for us to speak harshly to our opponents as Jesus did to His. vii. We forget that Jesus knew something about His opponents that we do not know about ours. viii. What is it? f. [Slide 28] Perhaps God will grant them repentance leading them to the knowledge of the truth. i. Jesus knew that the Pharisees had committed the unpardonable sin. ii. That they were opposed to the teaching of Christ even though they believed it to be true. iii. Jesus knew each and every Pharisee He rebuked, would never repent. And so, He spoke harshly to them as having the keys to the kingdom yet denying others entry and not going in themselves. iv. But our opponents – we cannot see their heart. v. Some of the most aggressive opponents of the gospel of Jesus Christ, have been changed by grace to believe. From Lee Strobel, to Augustine of Hippo, to Paul the Apostle, to the thief on the cross. These men, all of them, tried to make a mockery of Christ. vi. And they failed utterly. In the end, they were broken and empty and repented of their sin. vii. We do not know whether the person we see today, uttering insults on the name of Christ, may yet be our brother or sister in Christ, foreordained and predestined before the foundation of the world, chosen in Christ, having been set apart for honorable use. viii. How could such a person be called for honor? ix. Because all men who repent, and are led to a knowledge of the truth are granted both repentance and knowledge of the gospel by God Himself. x. Repentance and knowledge of the truth are not things that we innately possess nor have the ability to do. God must grant them to us. And up to the very moment He does – that heart can be black as oil and spout venomous attacks on their God and King… but when God breaks a man… there is no turning back! There is no unseeing what has been revealed. xi. Paul was on His way to kill Christians. Lee Strobel to disprove Christ, Augustine to spit on his upbringing and the thief had already mocked Christ to His face– and God said… ENOUGH! You. Are. Mine! xii. My friends, these stories not only give us hope for all men – no matter how far gone they appear – but they also reveal to us the foolishness of dealing harshly with opponents. xiii. For all that separates them from us is God's granting of repentance. xiv. And what is the fruit of repentance? g. [Slide 29] 26 – Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, i. They must come to their senses. Why? ii. Because they don't even know they are in a trap! iii. They have been lulled to sleep in a perfectly comfortable prison. iv. There are cracks on the walls – but they do not see them. v. They are blind! They are dead! But when God grants them repentance and a knowledge of the truth- all of a sudden the lights are on! They realize that they are headed for hell. And they need a savior. vi. They are trapped. vii. My friends we cannot deal harshly with opponents of the gospel. Why? h. [Slide 30] Who has taken them captive to do his will. i. They are just obeying their master… like we are. ii. We clash because our masters are different not because we are better or they are worse! iii. And God through Christ has made a way to be free of the slave master Satan with his traps of sin and death. iv. Christ has conquered sin and defeated death. v. Mankind is naturally a slave to the will of Satan. But when God opens their eyes and pulls them out of that trap, when he grants them repentance and understanding of the gospel – vi. They have a new master…. vii. And that my friends, truly, is the only difference between the elect of God and present-day unbelievers. viii. And this is why we must instruct. We must correct. We must teach the truth meekly. With power but in control. Not attacking the person but their false beliefs. Being kind and gentle. Perhaps God will grant them in our speaking or after – repentance and faith. i. [Slide 31] Passage Truth: As is hinted with his opening remark, God's servant must behave in certain ways. This is because they have been set apart for this use by the Lord. j. Passage Application: Timothy, as a minister of the gospel, must not be quarrelsome but rather instruct patiently and meekly, especially toward those who are his opponents. k. [Slide 32] Broader Biblical Truth: Zooming out, all of scripture points to this truth. That we are to be remade image bearers. Not due to our creation by God, but rather our re-creation by God in Christ. That has propelled us as set apart people to not only be able to do what God has asked, but to succeed in doing what God has asked. l. Broader Biblical Application: So we must teach the truths of the gospel and correct, rebuke, and exhort with gentleness, and love, and kindness… knowing that God is the one who works in the hearts of men. We must not fight with people to prove our point true or their point wrong. Why? Because we know that ultimately it is GOD alone who grants repentance to men. Why? Because they are enslaved to the Devil unable to see the trap they are in. And there are no words of ours that could ever shake them of this… unless the Lord does to them grant… eyes to see and ears to hear. So why fight with them? Will all our thrashing do more for them than God can? Will all our slices with harshly spoken words aid God in His work? God forbid we think it does! A soft word spoken with authority of God's word is what God requires of His people. Not because it will guarantee His work… but because we have been set apart for this purpose. Conclusion: [Slide 33(end)] So what can we do today CBC with such a passage? As far as applications go there are, depending on how you see it, around 7 or 8 applications here. Shall I conclude with an 8 point rehash of all that Paul has said to Timothy? Or shall I just say this. God knows who are His. And all His dear children have been set apart to be useful to Him and prepared for good works. All His true children are golden and silver vessels designed for a noble purpose. His children have been chosen in Christ, not only to display the excellencies of His grace in this life, but forever in the life to come. We are made For Honor. So friends, If you name the name of Christ… why are you wasting yourself on youthful passions? Why do you continue to fight and dispute, and argue and quarrel over nonessential or ungodly things? Why do you continue to pursue the gratification of putting people in their place? Why must you be right all the time? Why must you be first all the time? Why do you continue to complain and grumble when things are not done the way you would have them done? Why are you filling your golden serving bowl with garbage and dung? Dump it all in the fire! Even our opponents do not deserve this vitriol and rage. We were once just like them. But… God. Only when your golden dish is empty and cleaned thoroughly, can it be used for its intended purpose. To display the manifold graces of God, in holiness, faith, love, and peace. Not quarrelsome. Not arrogant. Not always insisting on your way. Not selfish. Not lewd. Not out of control. But godly. My friends… We as God's people were made for honor! So, clean out your bowl… and fulfill your purpose!

Thursday July 22nd Science, Scriptures and The Supernatural 4 The dictionary defines science as a particular discipline or branch of learning, especially one that deals with measurable and systematic principles rather than intuition or natural abilities. In other words science is not guesswork but something based on laid down principles and guidelines. Everything that is science has some procedure to it. The Bible clearly is not a book that was written without procedures and well tailored guidelines. It is not a book of someone's intuition. Paul being a doctor of the Jewish law has this to say in Romans 1:20 (NKJV) For since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things he has made even his eternal power and Godhead so that they are without excuse. Here Paul tells us that we see the essence of God in every creation of his. If we take our time to observe, we will definitely see the hand and touch of God imbedded in the very fabrics of God's individual creations. It therefore means that as we look keenly into God's creation by studying them, we can begin to appreciate the systematic complex investments of a higher intelligence. In the book of Genesis we can see and appreciate the manifold Wisdom and mercy of God, in that he needed to clothe man because he was naked. So God killed an animal and from there he made clothes for them. This was a show of expertise and dexterity. God knew the right dimensions to produce what fits. Secondly when God was about to save Noah from the flood, God asked him to build an ark; and God gave him specific dimensions with which he was to build. Anything outside God specification, would have been wrong. Another figure in scripture that applied the systematic approach was Luke the medical doctor. Apart from being a doctor, he was a prolific writer and we can see that in his approach to detailed writing, with which he wrote the Acts of the apostles and the Gospel of Luke. However these were not just writings but we could see the power of God flowing out from his writings showing at the presence of the supernatural in those written words are very real. God wants us to maximize everything that he has provided for us in this Life, by understanding how science, scriptures and the supernatural work together. This understanding with Birth a revival in the world that would put Jesus at the Pinnacle of influence in every area of society; whether it be in the arts sciences, politics and industry. Science, scripture, and the supernatural working together would bring the glory and power of God to manifest here on Earth to God's glory. God bless you and enjoy your day.

Things are not all sunshine and rainbows in Thessalonica since Paul left, but you might think that up to this point in the letter. Here Paul addresses the storms that have hit and tells the church how to deal with them.

Part of our new life in Christ means taking off our old life and putting on the new one. Here Paul uses the imagery of taking off and putting on clothes.

Here Paul begins to explain what it means to possess true freedom in Christ. What does true freedom look like in the life of the believer and how should we use our freedom in Christ-

As a young church developing in Thessalonica God was blessing them with a particular gift, leadership. God had given the church elders to lead the people of God. As the king of his church God has ordained a structure for governance. Here Paul tells the church to respect their leaders, to esteem them in love, and to live at peace with one another.

Title: Dare to be an Onesiphorus Text: II Timothy 1:15-18 FCF: We often struggle being aware of the danger of apostasy. Prop: Because it is not certain who will depart the faith, we must hold fast and keep the good thing entrusted to us. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to II Timothy chapter 1. As we close out this first chapter of II Timothy today, and knowing that the start of chapter 2 will be a passage requiring more time for us to expound, I think I'll take the opportunity now to review what we've learned so far in II Timothy. For the book itself, we know that it is a few years separated from Paul's first letter to Timothy. Much has happened in that time. First, Timothy has had some success in forming the church there in Ephesus around the gospel of Christ. He is not failing what is mentor asked of him only a few years prior. However, what we do know is that hostility and opposition to the gospel is growing in the area. How do we know that? Well Paul has been arrested once again. This time is different though, and Paul knows it. What is so different? Well, Paul is not going to be released. Whether by intuition or by revelation from God, Paul knows that he will not make it through this imprisonment. He will be executed soon. And so, Paul's primary reason for writing this more personal letter to Timothy is to encourage him to take up Paul's mantle and carry on in the ministry. Paul's concern for Timothy is that he not give in to timidity or fear but that he would fully rely on the power of the Spirit of God which is in Him, to continue to boldly proclaim the gospel, and to hold fast and persevere through persecution. Paul encourages Timothy, and believes Timothy can do this, first because he has been convinced that Timothy's faith is genuine. And if his faith is genuine, Paul knows that the Spirit of God is with Timothy to accomplish all that God would ask of him. Paul knows this to be true, because Christ and the Spirit have kept and protected him in his ministry. So Paul lifts up the glorious gospel of God's saving power and grace, gifted in Christ, before time began. It is for this gospel that Paul now suffers, and it is for this gospel that Paul is preparing Timothy and the church there to continue to cling to and suffer for. We left the text last week with Paul imploring Timothy with that common tension in the scriptures. A command given with the expectation that God will see it done. Paul keeps the gospel with which he has been entrusted by the faith and love that are in Christ. And he calls Timothy to keep that same gospel in the power of the Spirit of God. And so, shines brightly, the common conundrum. Humans are called to do something for the Lord, but are unable to do it without first being what God has made them to be. With God all things are possible… but with man it is impossible. And so now Paul concludes his thoughts on holding fast and protecting the gospel with examples. 1 verse of many bad examples, and 3 verses of 1 good example. If you look closely, you will also note the primary theme of the Pastorals flowing through this text. Doctrine received in true faith produces people conformed to Christ. We'll see people here, who although not denying or affirming a confession, do deny or affirm the doctrines by whether they are or are not conformed to Christ. It should be a powerful and interesting albeit short message for us today. I am in II Timothy chapter 1 starting in verse 15. I am reading from the NET which you can follow on page 1342, or in whatever version you have. Transition: Let's dive in this morning to see these examples of those who hold fast, and those who do not. I.) There are many who look like Christians who will depart, so we must hold fast and keep the good thing entrusted to us. (15) a. [Slide 2] 15 – You know that everyone in the province of Asia deserted me i. “Province of” is added for clarity in the text. The NET does not wish us to think the whole of Asia is in view. ii. We saw this when we looked at Tychicus who was from the province of Asia. iii. This refers to the southwestern part of Asia minor, probably around the Aegean coastlines. iv. Now when Paul says that everyone in the province had deserted him, does everyone mean everyone? v. This seems extreme. vi. Furthermore, Timothy and Onesiphorus (On-uh-siph-or-us) whom Paul names in this text, have not deserted him, and they are certainly from Asia or in Asia at this time. Therefore, we must put a limit on what Paul means by everyone. We see two options. vii. Either that Paul is saying that those in Rome from Asia have deserted him, or more likely Paul uses hyperbole to emphasize that many had deserted him from the province of Asia. viii. Finally, what does it mean that he was deserted? Are we talking about apostasy or just that they are ashamed of Paul's imprisonment? 1. In favor of this being a personal abandonment we have a few points. a. Paul calls out several people in this book for departing the faith. b. In each case, Paul speaks clearly about their defection from the gospel itself. c. Here Paul makes it clear it is a defection from him. d. Furthermore, the two men he mentions are not included later for having apostatized. 2. In favor of this being both personal abandonment and apostasy, we have a few points. a. Paul has already linked his imprisonment with the gospel of Christ in verse 8. b. Paul has historically had issues with people rejecting his apostleship and therefore his teaching. And if we remember from I Timothy – this was probably the case in Ephesus. c. The preceding and following context of this seems to indicate that what Paul is offering to Timothy are two examples of what not to do and what to do. And in the preceding verses it is clear that Timothy must hold fast to the gospel. d. And in keeping with the overall scope of the pastoral epistles in general – we know that to cite unchristlike lifestyles would be the same as citing apostasy to a certain extent. Not all denials of the faith are by our words or affiliations. Some of them are from our lifestyles. ix. All this considered, I think given the context, it seems best to understand that Paul means that these people have deserted him and by extension, his gospel. b. [Slide 3] Including Phygelus (Fih-Jel-us) and Hermogenes (her-mah-joe-knees). i. What is clear in this text is that when Paul singles out these two men as those who have abandoned him and the gospel, it should be shocking to hear. ii. What is not clear in this text is anything else about these men. iii. This is the only mention of their names in the New Testament. iv. So all we can do is draw upon this text, and here is what we know… v. These men appeared to be loyal to Paul and the gospel – but when the going got tough, they deserted Paul and his gospel. c. [Slide 4] Passage Truth: Int his first verse, Paul teaches Timothy with examples. He shows two men who were loyal to Paul before, along with many others in the province of Asia. And what is clear is that no one saw their desertion coming. And yet, here they are. They have used this opportunity to desert Paul and even his teachings for another gospel. d. Passage Application: So Timothy's imperative from the previous section endures. He must hold fast and keep the truth of the gospel with which he has been entrusted. e. [Slide 5] Broader Biblical Truth: Zooming out to the rest of scripture, unfortunately we see countless examples of those who were thought to be loyal to God and His servants, turn and go after other gods. Before Christ was revealed many Israelites abandoned Yahweh in favor of Baal, Ashteroth, and other would-be gods. And even after the cross, we see people know the truth and walk away. I'd like to say that this doesn't happen anymore – but alas, it happens often. Either by their words or actions, many high-profile Christian leaders have rejected the gospel of Christ, either replacing it with Christ plus something, or rejecting Christ altogether. I say all this, not to worry you, but to help you to realize that apostasy is not something that is uncommon. f. Broader Biblical Application: What does that mean for us at CBC? Every single person Paul has mentioned and will mention has made a profession of faith, has served in the church, and were considered part of the covenant community. Yet when Paul was thrown into prison for his teachings – they abandoned him and his teachings. It is not enough for us to confess what we believe one time and rest in that confession. The Lord Himself tells us that those who deny Him before men, He will deny before the Father. True, genuine, saving faith, is one that endures. And while that doesn't mean perfection or even that we will never doubt, it does mean that God's true people will not permenantly walk away from the faith – no matter how hard they are pressed. Therefore, my friends, we MUST hold fast and protect the truth of the gospel that we have been entrusted. Do not listen to men who talk about the bible – listen to the bible. Even me. Don't take what I say without pause. But search the scriptures. Not what someone says about the scriptures, but the scriptures themselves. Then consult what the church has taught down through the ages. If what you believe has been taught as orthodoxy, and has been widely accepted, then you must hold fast to its teachings! There are teachings that are widely accepted in Christendom today that have no history in the church before the 1600s and some even more recent. Meaning that just because you have always been taught it, doesn't mean it has always been taught. How could this have happened? People neglected to hold fast to what they were taught and instead invented novel doctrines to assuage their itching ears. And they passed those novel doctrines to more and more people. And it spread like gangrene. But we must hold fast to the truth that we have received from the apostles. And as Paul said earlier, we can only do this through the indwelling of the Spirit and love and faith found in Christ. Transition: [Slide 6 (blank)] We have seen Phygelus' and Hermogenes' negative example of those who did not endure in belief and good works. But is there a positive example that we can look to? Certainly Paul, but is there no one else who is enduring? II.) There are some who will continue to endure in faith and good works, so we must hold fast and keep the good thing entrusted to us. (16-18) a. [Slide 7] 16 – May the Lord grant mercy to the family of Onesiphorus (on-uh-siph-or-us), i. So the first question is, obviously, who is Onesiphorus? ii. And, again we have to say – we don't know. iii. Here is what we do know. Later in the letter – like at the end – Paul tells Timothy to greet the family of Onesiphorus. So, we know that Onesiphorus is from Ephesus. iv. Here Paul asks the Lord for mercy to Onesiphorus' family. Why? b. [Slide 8] Because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my imprisonment. i. Because we know absolutely nothing about this man it is difficult to understand what Paul means here. ii. But as Paul continues it becomes clear. c. [Slide 9] 17 – But when he arrived in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found me i. Paul asks for mercy on the family of Onesiphorus because he was not ashamed of Paul being imprisoned for the sake of Christ. ii. Not only was he not ashamed, he came to Rome, sought out Paul and ministered to his needs there with Luke. iii. This is the first indication that Paul's imprisonment was not like his previous house arrests. Since he was difficult to find in Rome, it seems that he was probably in a cell somewhere obscure. iv. But Oneshiphorus sought him to the extent that he would find him. v. For all of this Christ-like love, Paul desires that all his family would be blessed by God while he is away serving Paul. vi. But the temporal needs of his family is not Paul's only wish for Onesiphorus… d. [Slide 10] 18 – May the lord grant him to find mercy from the lord on that day! i. A couple things here. 1. Mercy here most assuredly refers to God's chief mercy in salvation. However, this poses a problem for us. a. After all the glowing words about this man, why would Paul put this in wish or prayer language? Shouldn't he be surer about the nature of Onesiphorus' faith? b. Consider the context. He is sure and has been persuaded about Timothy's faith. But there are many others who he thought were legitimate and have since walked away. c. It is not wrong, and perhaps intensely biblical for us to always hopefully pray for the endurance of someone's faith. This sounds like a slight and maybe even doubting Eternal security… but in reality, we must understand that true believers endure to the end. And there are many who do not endure to the end. d. So Paul's prayer, really, is that Onesiphorus is a true believer. Which should be our prayer for one another. 2. Secondly, it is good to take note that in order for Onesiphorus to find mercy on the day of judgement, the same Lord who will be his judge must grant that ability to him to find it. I don't want to delve too deep into that because that isn't Paul's point here – but it is worthy to note the phrasing there. That to find mercy from God, God must grant us to find it. Our searching will do us no good until God allows us to find it. e. [Slide 11] And you know very well all the ways he served me in Ephesus. i. Finally, Paul as an aside to Timothy stresses again the history of this man with reference to serving Paul. ii. While Paul was in Ephesus or Rome – Onesiphorus was there to help him. iii. This is what true children of God do. f. [Slide 12] Passage Truth: So Paul gives Timothy a second example. This time he gives a positive example of who to emulate. Just as abandoning Paul meant abandoning the gospel, so caring for Paul means caring for the gospel. Further we are reminded of the overall teachings of all the Pastoral epistles. That doctrine, received in true faith, produces people conformed to Christ. What Paul is saying is that Onesiphorus is conformed to Christ – therefore, he seems to have received doctrine by true faith. g. Passage Application: And so, before, Timothy was encouraged to take up Paul's mantle and follow his example. Now he is encouraged to follow the example of Onesiphorus as well. A true servant of Christ and is holding fast to it. Timothy must hold fast to His confession and keep the gospel pure both in belief and action. h. [Slide 13] Broader Biblical Truth: As we saw in I John, as Eric, CJ, and Jerry preached as I was away, and as the whole of scripture affirms – the only way to have assurance of our faith being real and genuine is to observe the fruit of that faith. When Christ uses parables to speak of crops bearing fruit and a harvest that is coming where the wheat and tares are separated – the harvest is the final judgment. A man's life will be measured by all that God does through Him. He must finish the race. He must fight the good fight. He cannot produce fruit for a time and then be barren at harvest time. Such fruit would be useless to the famers to which Christ told the parable. Rather, the only crop that is useful, is one that bears fruit until harvest. Certainly, whoever is God's true child can never lose that status. God knows who are his. But, how do we know we are His? It is only by our love, faith, power, self-control, and general outpouring of the Spirit's power in us. i. Broader Biblical Application: So at CBC, we must understand that holding fast to our confession is certainly to continue to believe the right things, but it is not this in exclusion. But it is also continuing to bear the fruit from a heart invaded by the Spirit of God. There have been many pastors, preachers, evangelists, and apologists through the ages and recently who have believed all the “right” things. But lived lives of unrepentant sin. They will be numbered among those who cry out “Lord, Lord – have I not prophesied in your name, and in your name cast out demons and done many miraculous works.” And He will say to them “Depart from me, lawbreaker, for I never knew you.” My friends, we must hold fast to our confession, we must keep the good thing entrusted to us, not just by continuing to believe, but also by continuing to obey. Conclusion: So what does this mean for us here at CBC? Well let me give you a little “state of orthodoxy” update. [Slide 14] 3/2018 – Christian band underoath – openly walked away from Christianity 5/2019 – Christian of 40 years, Pastor of 20 years - Dave Gass – Left his wife and denied Christ 7/2019 – Well-known Christian author – Joshua Harris- separated from his wife, apologized to the LGBTQA+ community, denied Christ 8/2019 – Hillsong Worship Leader - Marty Sampson- Denied Christ 2/2020 – Social media personalities - Rhett and Link or The Bently Brothers – Denied Christ 5/2020 – Singer in the band Hawk Nelson – Jon Steingard – Denied Christ 2/2021 – Christian Apologist for more than 40 years – Ravi Zacharias – Had deep sexual appetites and addictions that he failed to repent of and succeeded to hide until his dying breath. 4/2021 – Contributor to Desiring God Ministries – Paul Maxwell – Has denied Christ. These folks are either the same as Phygelus and Hermogenes or the opposite of Onesiphorus. Some of them have been in ministry longer than I have been alive. And yet by their confession and their lifestyles, they have proved their faith to still be a dead faith. All these details about our world today are both shocking and discouraging. Not just for the body of Christ and the testimony of Christ in the world, but also because we look inward and wonder – if they fell, how can I not? If it were possible for someone to work in ministry for decades, and still fall away, how can I hope to be saved? [Slide 15 end) Read the words of Paul. I know whom I have set my faith and he is able to protect what has been entrusted to me. So keep the good thing entrusted to you through the Holy Spirit's indwelling. My friends, if it was only you, you could not hope to hold fast to the confession and protect the gospel. But if the Lord is with you, if He is in you, if you are in Him – then my friends there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God. He is able to keep us from falling! Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. You say, but everyone thought that these people had that same Spirit in them. They even thought they had that Spirit in them. How can I be sure that He is in me? Hold fast! Endure! Bear Fruit! Obey the Lord. Work out your own salvation. Not in your own strength. Not in your own effort. Not in your own gumption. But in fear and trembling. In humility. In awe. WHY? Because God is the one in you, giving you power and desire to be and do all that He has asked of you. But my friends… it is not a sprint. It is a marathon. My friends… it is not a playground slap fight. It is war. How do you know you have the Spirit? Believe God and keep believing God. Obey God and Keep obeying God. If you are able to do this… then the Spirit is in you. Why must that be our conclusion? Because we do not wrestle against flesh and blood… but against unholy, ungodly, powerful beings in this dark world. To endure… it cannot just be us. For if it is… we will fall. But greater is He who is in us, than He who is in the world.

All the way through Galatians we have seen the difference between the true gospel and the false gospel. Here Paul uses the illustration of Hagar and Sarah to compare and contrast the two "gospels" - only one of them is true, and yet we often find ourselves on the wrong side!

The Church has to-must deal with the influence of the world, but we must also remember that the Church is altogether different from the world. The Church itself is not here to change the culture, but to faithfully preach the Gospel. Those who hear and believe then go out and change the world. Here Paul defends the Church. The question should be asked- Are we being biblically faithful, so that the Church does not lose its way--All cultural ideas have a moral root, so we must ask the right questions of the culture.-Remember at all times that the Church is a place of Grace and the Church belongs to God and He will protect it.

This episode looks at 2 Timothy 2:14-19. Here Paul exhorts Timothy to value truth and study God's Word in order to be able to not only understand what is truth but to be able to skillfully and clearly communicate truth to others. God's Word is truth and is the foundation upon which believers must stand. If we err from the truth, not only will we fall away, but our erroneous teachings will cause others to fall away also. We learn from this lesson that to know Jesus in His fulness, we should be diligent in studying God's Word.For those who use Word Aflame Curriculum, the Bible passage focused on in this episode comes from Lesson 2 of The Living Word, Summer 2021, entitled, "Rightly Dividing the Word" (June 13, 2021). This episode is produced by the Pentecostal Publishing House and is hosted by Jonathan McClintock. Visit us at www.pentecostalpublishing.com

Dissension in the Body of Christ. Bible Study with Jairus - 1 Corinthians 4   Rivalry in the Church. In 1 Corinthians 4:6, Paul urged the Corinthians not to idolize him or his coworker, Apollos. Paul said, "I have applied all these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, brothers, that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another." As I read this passage, the Holy Spirit highlighted the words puffed up. Why did Paul say that the Corinthians who picked sides, favoring Paul or Apollos, were puffed up?   In politics, we often see one politician exalt another for his own personal gain. Those who exalt others usually have ulterior motives. Their purpose is to use the people they exalt to achieve their goals.   Unfortunately, such scenarios also exist in the church. People who exalt others in the church often use the people they exalt to increase their own influence. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1:11-12, "For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. What I mean is that each one of you says, ‘I follow Paul,' or ‘I follow Apollos,' or ‘I follow Cephas,' or ‘I follow Christ.'”   Paul pointed out that there was rivalry between the Corinthian believers. These rivalries stem from the flesh. Paul clearly states in Galatians 5:20 that rivalry is an act of the flesh.   What is the purpose of a rivalry? The purpose of a rivalry is to pursue leadership, authority and influence. The people who were rivals in the Corinthian church were not really trying to exalt Paul and Apollos, but to gain their own influence. Paul and Apollos were just tools in their hands.     Stages of Church Decline. Why did some Corinthians exalt Paul and Apollos to advance their own status? To answer this question, we need to cite a pastor Ernest B. Gentile. In his book, Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy: Prophetic Gifts in Ministry Today, he analyzed the famous German sociologist Ernst Troeltsch's theory of the degradation of the church. Based on his own experience, he proposed his own research on the "model of the degradation of the church." This model includes four stages.   The first stage is "an aggressive sect." At this stage, the leaders of the first generation of churches or denominations are usually very focused on God's mission and actively devote themselves selflessly to the Lord. The leaders and believers of the first generation are also full of energy. Leaders of the first generation often have prophetic guidance. They create new churches and are actively committed to correcting the mistakes of the past churches, purifying the ranks of believers, and actively playing the role of the church in society. There is often external persecution, but the persecution does not restrict them but instead makes them work even harder. The church achieves great growth and the number of people increases. The church achieves widespread gospel influence.   The second stage is“ an evangelistic movement.” At this stage, the church continues to expand and multiply. Not only do they maintain their enthusiasm for the gospel, but they also continue to maintain their uniqueness in preaching of the truth. This is a period of consolidation. Because the ministry has expanded, it is necessary to establish a certain organizational structure for management. After such an organizational structure is established, it gradually loses the flexibility of the first generation and instead relies mostly on organizations and institutions for management. At this time, prophetic experiences begin to become less common. Through the efforts of the first and second generations, vivid spiritual experiences and practices gradually morph into sectarian rules and traditions.     The third stage is "a recognized denomination.” People of the first generation usually lack a management structure. The management structure established by the second generation has begun to help the church or denomination continue to grow, but in the third stage, it will become a limit to the growth and spiritual vitality of the church. The church and believers begin to lose the enthusiasm of the first generation and begin to be more influenced by the world. At first, the church attached great importance to paying attention to the poor, but now the church and believers have become rich and gradually forget this mission. The church begins to focus on more academic and theological teaching and begins to ignore the use and practice of gifts. At this time, prophetic words and gifts begin to be gradually ignored. The church pays more attention to knowledge and reason.     The fourth stage is "A Spiritless Monument." In the fourth stage, the church slowly becomes a monument to the glory of the past, and the spiritual reality has been lost. Believers do not know and desire God as the believers did in the beginning. The church's interest in the gospel and ministry has also gradually declined. The Holy Spirit gradually loses any freedom, so the Holy Spirit leaves this church. The church continues to operate according to tradition and organization.     Ernest B. Gentile said that this cycle has been operating throughout the history of the church. After the fourth stage, the Holy Spirit will raise up a new apostolic church movement and start the cycle all over again. Because new wine can't be put into old wineskins and new spiritual movements often contain new wine, believers in traditional churches begin to leave the traditional church to seek the richness of God.[1]               The Arrogance of the Corinthian Church Although Ernest B. Gentile's observations apply to current-day Charismatic and Prophetic churches, the insights may apply to many churches, and even to Paul's ministry. Paul and Apollos were the first leaders of the Corinthian church. They both served in the Corinthian church. But the Corinthian church faced a difficulty: Paul and Apollos were not present in the church as permanent pastors.   We don't know who the pastor or leader of the Corinthian church was. But because Paul and Apollos were no longer there, nobody had enough authority to make others obey. Therefore, there were different leaders trying to exalt Paul and Apollos, using Paul and Apollos to establish their own leadership in the church. Fortunately, after Paul learned of these circumstances, he promptly wrote a letter to correct the situation. But we know that his letter did not prevent the eventual decline of the church. Perhaps the fall of the Corinthian church was delayed because of Paul's intervention. But in his later years, Paul said that all the Asian churches had abandoned him (2 Timothy 1:15).   One of the difficulties of the Corinthian church is that Paul was not there. Paul even mentioned that “Some are arrogant as though I were not coming to you.” (1 Corinthians 4:18). Here Paul clearly pointed out that the reason why some people are "arrogant" is that they think Paul will not go to the Corinthian church. A Chinese proverb says, "When there are no great tigers in the deep mountains, even a monkey can become king." This proverb describes the situation in the Corinthian church very well. Since Paul was gone, sin and rivalry were running rampant. “When the cat's away, the mice can play.”   Paul said in verse 19, "But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power." In this book, the word “arrogant” is used three times (verses 6, 18, and 19). This shows that Paul was very concerned about their arrogance. God wants to teach us something through this word.   Why are these people arrogant? Rodney Hogue, a teacher in the "Deliverance Ministries,” will answer this question very well in his commentary on 1 John 2: 12-14. These verses say, “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”   Rodney Hogue said that from a spiritual perspective, there are three types of people in the church: children, young people, and old people. Older people are the spiritual fathers. They know the God who has existed from the beginning. What they care about is knowing God and who he is. To them, “being” is more important than “doing.” They will never be jealous of the spiritual progress of young people and children, but are instead happy for them.   Young people are those who have overcome evil to a certain extent. They are strong, know the word of God, and eagerly hope to do something for God. But their weak point is their jealousy when they see the progress of other children. They are not fathers, but elder brothers. They will be jealous of younger believers' progress. They resemble the older brother in Luke 15 who was jealous of the prodigal son. These kinds of people are characterized by an active desire to do things for God, and they care about their ministry (doing). The third type of person is a child. On the one hand, they simply trust the Heavenly Father. Because their sins have recently been forgiven, they urgently need the love of their spiritual brothers, and to be fed by their spiritual parents. They are characterized by the need to humbly accept spiritual offerings (receiving). Rodney Hogue said that the church needs spiritual fathers. Unfortunately, the church is full of spiritual brothers but lacks spiritual parents. On the one hand, these elder brothers are a little more spiritually advanced than the children, but they are often jealous of others because their lives have not matured into the mindset of spiritual parents. Many pastors and even elders are still at the level of elder brothers.     The situation in the Corinthian church resembles the plight of many modern churches. Why are some people arrogant? They are spiritual young adults. On the one hand, they aspire to be leaders of the church and accomplish more for God. But when they encounter opposition and interference from others, there will be rivalry. When they see that others also want to be leaders, they will feel jealous.   Paul knew their situation well. Paul longed for them to grow into spiritual parents. He knew that the way to become spiritual leaders was to help the Corinthians mature into spiritual fathers. Paul said, "I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. I urge you, then, be imitators of me.” (1 Corinthians 4:14-16)   Paul knew that the growth of the church required leaders, but the creation of leaders required maturity. The church leader must be a spiritual father, not a spiritual young person who will rival and contradict others at every turn. Paul was a spiritual father, so he said, "Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you!" (1 Corinthians 4:8) Although Paul was mocking them, Paul's heart really yearned for them like a father who had matured into spiritual life and reigned in a glorified spiritual abundance.     However, the lives of the rival Corinthian believers had not matured to this point. On the contrary, they were young people. Paul used himself as an example to let the Corinthians learn how to be a spiritual father.   He also sent Timothy to the Corinthian church. Paul specifically mentioned, "That is why I sent you Timothy my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ as I teach them everywhere in every church" (1 Corinthians 4: 17). Timothy would follow Paul's example as a spiritual father. Therefore, Paul's purpose in sending Timothy to the Corinthian church was to get them on the path to becoming spiritual leaders. He wanted them to imitate himself, just as he imitated Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1).   Living in God's Power When Paul talked about arrogant people in verses 19-20, he evaluated their spiritual power, rather than just looking at their words. Paul said, “For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power."   A man asked, “What does power mean here?” In my personal opinion, the power includes the power to cure the sick and cast out demons, but that is not the only power in view here. The real power lies in being able to give birth to other believers, just as Paul gave birth to the Corinthian church in Christ. Abraham's power lay in his ability to have as many descendants as the stars in the sky, and our power lies in fathering spiritual children.   I grew up in rural China, where we often dried food on the roof. We would tie a rope to a bucket so we could lift the grain to the roof. This task requires a lot of power. When I was a child, I didn't have enough muscle power to pull it up, and I needed to ask an adult to help me.   The Local Church Movement (LCM) often uses this metaphor to explain how you should not marry unbelievers because the Bible teaches that believers and unbelievers should not work closely together (2 Corinthians 6:14). A close association with an unbeliever could pull you down into sin, rather than pulling the other person up to salvation.   To illustrate, one man would stand on a chair, and another man would stand on the ground. One man tried to pull the other off the chair, and the other tried to pull the man up onto the chair. As a result, the person standing on the ground tended to pull down the person standing on the chair.   The person who gave this example said that it is very difficult for us to lift people up spiritually, but it is very easy to be dragged down by the world and sin. When two people get married, if one is an unbeliever, it is difficult for you to pull the other into belief, but the other person can easily pull you into unbelief. This is a good analogy.     In the same way, the real power lies in removing yourself from the attraction of possessions, the temptation of physical sin, and the uncleanness of the soul and life. Remove yourself from influences that will complicate your journey to heaven.   You can only lead someone to a place you've been yourself. If you're living in intimate fellowship with God (as if you were in the Holy of Holies), you can bring others with you into God's presence. If you're living at a distance from God (as if you were in the outer court), you can only bring people into the Outer Court.   Therefore, Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 4 demonstrate great power. He not only pointed out the spiritual problems of the Corinthian church, but also regarded himself as an exemplary spiritual father. He told the Corinthians that they must become spiritual fathers like himself in order to become the spiritual leaders of the church.   Becoming the spiritual leader of the church does not lie in exalting Paul or Apollos, but in the maturity of your own life. If your life is mature enough to resemble Apollos, you will have Apollos' authority. If your life is as mature as Paul's, you will have Paul's spiritual authority. The true power comes from the spiritual authority we receive from God after we mature in the spiritual life.   The book of 2 Corinthians tells us that the Corinthians repented and worried over their downfall, and Paul comforted them himself. This tells us that Paul's message to the church did its job and was effective. Later, the church in Asia rejected Paul, but the Corinthian church did not reject Paul.   Parallels in Today's Church. While studying this passage, a man asked, “What is the state of the church today? Is today's divided church puffed up, as well? Do you see situations in our current church today that mirror the situation in 1 Corinthians 4?” I said, “Yes, I do.”   In the church where I was saved, I saw Ernest B. Gentile's principles at work. The first generation of leaders experienced many struggles, and the second generation became more established. However, in the third generation, rules and regulations inevitably entered the church and slowly hindered the work of the Holy Spirit.   Therefore, some people began to seek more guidance from the Holy Spirit. Because of this situation, I began to study in the Charismatic Movement and the Prophetic Movement. Once I got in touch with the Charismatic Movement and the Prophetic Movement, I learned that the Holy Spirit has a lot of freedom among them and has done a lot of things.   According to Ernest B. Gentile, when the leaders of the second or third generation of churches are not trying their best to open themselves to the Holy Spirit's prophetic guidance, people will lack the manifestation of the authority and power of God. This makes it difficult to establish trust in the church. At this time, the leaders of the second or third generation will hold high some of the views or propositions of the leaders of the first generation. On the one hand, it solidifies the teaching of the first generation of leaders, but on the other hand, they use it to establish their own authority. Because they cannot get fresh prophetic revelation from the Holy Spirit and direct authority from God, their authority is often based on the inheritance and consolidation of the teachings of the first generation of leaders. Furthermore, they usually don't dare to break the restrictions taught by the first generation of leaders. Thus, they lack the ability to create a major breakthrough in the future. This pattern is not only found in the Charismatic and Prophet Movements as observed by Ernest B. Gentile, but also in many different denominations.     In addition to difficulties within a sect, there are often disagreements between sects. The struggles of different factions within denominations are often not necessarily known to outsiders. But the struggles between denominations are easily visible to the world. Struggles within churches and groups are often concealed in the name of unity. However, the struggles between sects can be seen by the world.   Both are from the flesh. Different denominations are like different brothers in the body of Christ. One group said that they belonged to Paul, and the other said that they belonged to Apollos. The struggle in the Corinthian church represents a struggle within a church, but the struggle between denominations represents an internal struggle with the universal church.     Imagine Paul speaking not only to the Corinthian church, but to the entire body of Christ. Imagine that the Apostle John was not speaking to the fathers, young people, and children in one particular church, but to the fathers, young people, and children in the entire body of Christ. We can see that the situation of the global church is similar to that of the Corinthian church. There are not many people who are truly fathers like Paul was. Most of them are young people or children. The problem with young people is that they cannot accept others. But spiritual parents can accept others. The brother in Luke 15 could not accept the prodigal brother, but his father was able to accept the return of the prodigal son.     Our God is our Father. Every snowflake he created is different. Everyone has a unique call from God. Every sect is born out of a truth received from God that the group adheres to. None of us are complete without our fellow believers. When we criticize each other and condemn other denominations, we make our Heavenly Father sad, just as the rivalry within the Corinthian church made Paul, their spiritual father, sad.   The Chinese church has experienced similar dissension. Many evangelical pastors, such as Pastor Stephen Tong, fight against the Local Church Movement (LCM), and neither Chinese evangelical churches nor LCM churches accept Charismatic churches. My personal study in both the LCM churches and the Charismatic churches, as well as my contact with churches under Tong's influence, has shown me that the teaching and practice of the LCM would be very helpful to ordinary Chinese churches and Charismatic churches. The LCM can provide insight into the importance of life maturity and spiritual practice, which can help many believers in the Chinese evangelical churches and Charismatic churches to grow up spiritually. In addition, the practice of Charismatic churches can inject more vitality into the LCM and other evangelical churches, giving them more freedom in the Spirit and keeping them from dying.   Because Tong strongly criticized the LCM and Charismatic churches, many believers were unable to learn the truth from these two groups. In addition, the LCM refused to accept the baptism of the Holy Spirit and tongues. They have not accepted God's work in other churches, especially Charismatic churches. Charismatic churches have weaknesses of their own. They generally tend to be immature and place too much emphasis on miracles and marvels, lacking pastoral teaching on the deeper spiritual life.   We should be eager to humble ourselves and learn from each other. God's calling for our time is to bring together different denominations and sects. As we come together, we can learn from each other's strengths.   Another controversy in today's church is the Hyper Grace Gospel. Many evangelical Chinese churches in China strongly oppose the Hyper Grace Gospel. A woman who studied the Bible with us was deeply hurt by legalism in her evangelical church. She said that her church taught her that she must always condemn herself for not repenting enough and not working hard enough. It was very painful for her to condemn herself over all those years.   As a result, she found that Pastor Joseph Prince and his message on the Gospel of Grace helped her. Joseph Prince is often accused of being the leader of the Hyper Grace Gospel. It's true that some believers go to extremes, overemphasizing grace and ignoring the law of God. However, the reason the Hyper Grace Gospel has become so popular in China is that in many traditional churches, legalism prevails. For believers who have been wounded by legalism, it is particularly easy to accept the teachings of the Hyper Grace Gospel. Because many evangelical churches in China have legalistic tendencies, the message of the Hyper Grace Gospel is like a cool breeze on a summer day for believers who have suffered from legalism.   This controversy has caused internal disputes in many churches, causing many church members to become estranged. The backlash from the church has been fierce, condemning the Hyper Grace Gospel as heresy.   But there is something commendable in the Hyper Grace Gospel, especially for believers who have been harmed by legalism. The Hyper Grace Gospel finds fertile ground for spreading widely in China. To a certain extent, this is due to God's desire to correct the mistakes of legalism.   Joseph Prince also had a great influence among American Charismatics. Therefore, some Charismatic leaders have begun to worry. For example, a Charismatic and Jewish spiritual leader in the United States, Michael L. Brown, raised concerns that the Hyper Grace Gospel was preaching the grace of God too much and ignoring the law of God. Therefore, he proposed a peaceful meeting with Joseph, and the two men had a genuine dialogue. But I don't know whether their dialogue had any specific positive effects.   Personally, I believe that the message of the Hyper Grace Gospel will be helpful to a person whose strict basic theological training has focused on legalism and external behavior. It will not cause them too much harm, because they need this strong correction to the teachings they've heard all their lives. But believers who have not received strict basic theological teachings will be more prone to extremes if exposed to the Hyper Grace Gospel.     There is an extreme example of the Hyper Grace Gospel circulating on the Internet. I have no way to know if it is true or not, but I have heard many similar reports among Chinese Christians. The Facebook post reads: "Now the Hyper Grace Gospel from Singapore has flooded China. They believe that once they are saved, they can never lose their salvation. There is nothing wrong with sin. A female Christian who keeps having an affair talked to a pastor, and the pastor asked her to repent. She told him that according to the teachings of the Hyper Grace Gospel she had received, this is not a sin. Even the Gentiles know that immorality is a shame! The Hyper Grace proponents regard Jesus as a consumer product, giving them heaven for free without holiness and repentance. It's a highway that leads straight to hell." [2]   People who have heard the Hyper Grace Gospel first-hand have told me similar stories. I don't believe that Joseph Prince truly teaches these extremes, but some of his followers excessively expanded the grace element of the gospel and ignored the teaching about repentance and confession of sin.   We must look at the Hyper Grace Gospel in a balanced way. The Hyper Grace Gospel is like any other movement. If it is not from God, it will not gain much traction. But Satan tries to destroy God-given movements by pushing their teaching to extremes, thereby stigmatizing these practices. This is Satan's, usual trick and it is called the Straw Man Fallacy.   Let me give another example of this tactic. Witness Lee, the leader of the Local Church Movement where I was saved, advocated "calling on the Lord's name." The practice of calling on the name of the Lord helped believers pray by meditating on the name of the Lord. This is a very good spiritual exercise, and I have benefited a lot from it.   But the enemy has tried to destroy this movement by raising up people in mainland China who twisted Witness Lee's teaching. Some heretical groups in China stole this practice. Instead of calling on the name of the Lord, they call on the name of "Witness Lee" as if he were a god. This is not Witness Lee's teaching or the LCM. The enemy has harmfully distorted this practice in order to discredit it. Unfortunately, because of the enemy's destruction, not only the practice of "calling on the Lord's name" was stigmatized, but the LCM and Witness Lee were also stigmatized. Similarly, the Hyper Grace Gospel may contain truth from God's word, as well as areas that need to be corrected. Believers who support the Hyper Grace Gospel, believers who oppose the Hyper Grace Gospel, and the church as a whole need to be humble enough to dialogue with one other. In some places, these conflicts are already very intense. Those who oppose the Hyper Grace Gospel call the Hyper Grace Gospel heresy. But perhaps those people should reflect on the legalism of the church. Believers of the Hyper Grace Gospel should also reflect on how to avoid the extremes shown in the above examples.     Instead, the two parties who support and oppose the Hyper Grace Gospel have become emotional and are unable to resolve the contradiction. Like in the Corinthian church, the modern church struggles with rivalry and division. Remember, when believers are immature, they will experience these contradictions and rivalries. True spiritual fathers imitate Paul, who can look at problems from different perspectives.   On the one hand, Paul was able to accept weak believers, and on the other hand, he was able to feel joy in seeing believers' progress. We must also look at this issue from both perspectives. Too much emphasis on grace and too much emphasis on the law are both wrong aspects. Legalism will harm believers and prevent them from fully realizing God's grace in Christ; the extreme Hyper Grace Gospel also hurts believers, preventing believers from understanding God's holiness and strict discipline. These two aspects of truth need to be held in balance.   [1] [1] Ernest B Gentile, Your Sons & Daughters Shall Prophesy-Prophetic Gifts in Ministry Today, (Chosen Books, Grand Rapids, MI), 1999, 247-249 [2] https://www.facebook.com/godjesusloveme/posts/2371476159599706/    

Here Paul is telling the Thessalonian Congregation that the letter they received was false and not to believe false prophets. Paul once again informs them about the rapture. Hopefully this was cleared up for you too! He goes on to praise them for walking with Jesus during their hard times. Listeners, these books of the Bible are to teach you how to walk in Jesus and to continue throughout your trials, so listen closely. Send us a message to me at: thewaypod@gmail.com Website: https://vickitroupministriess.org ***Join the forum @the_way_podcast #the_way_podcast --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/vickitro/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/vickitro/support

Title: Graced Public Relations Part 2 Text: Titus 3:8-11 FCF: We often struggle insisting on what we ought to hold loosely and holding loosely what we ought to insist on. Prop: Because the gospel preached and lived is profitable for all men, we must teach and live the gospel and excommunicate all who refuse. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Titus chapter 3. I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to be back in Titus. However, I must admit that I am a little embarrassed that we are just now coming back to part 2 of this sermon. It has been over a month since you heard the first part of this message. I trust you were able to go back and listen to the previous sermon, but just in case you didn’t, I’ll take a little time to review what we saw from the first 7 verses of this passage. Paul is in the midst of telling Titus what to teach the people there on the island of Crete. In chapter 2, Paul explained how the gospel produces certain lifestyles in those who have truly received it. Lifestyles aimed at those within the church. Older men and women being examples and mentors to those younger men and women. Younger men and women teaching and Discipling their families. Paul hangs all of this on the fact that God’s grace, when it appears, saves His people to the uttermost. It does not provide a potential salvation, but rather a certain salvation. Those who experience His grace are set free from lawlessness and become eager to do good. Therefore Titus should insist on this kind of lifestyle in the church toward one another. In chapter 3 Paul turns that same message toward the unbelieving world. He begins by telling Titus to remind the Cretan Christians to submit to their ruling authorities, to be obedient, and generally to live holy lives of love and honor toward those who are outside the church. Why should Cretan Christians do this? Because they too were once the same way as the unbelieving world. They were foolish, slaves to sin, not desiring to seek God, nor even being capable of seeking God. But God invaded their life with his love and kindness. He saved them not by something they did but by His mercy, sending the spirit to wash and renew them, all made possible by the work of Christ. This declared righteousness comes by the grace of God and produces a confident faith in eternal life. They should live holy lives toward unbelievers because they have no room to boast. They would be exactly the same, if it were not for God doing something. So with that backdrop, let’s start our reading in verse 1 again and we will read through verse 11. I’ll be reading from the ESV today which you can follow in the pew bible on page 1346. Transition: Today, Paul will continue to show the Cretan Christians, how the gospel should be preached in purity and lived out in conduct. When they do this, it benefits all men. But for those who do not, action must be taken. I.) The gospel preached and lived is profitable for all men, so we must teach and live the gospel. (8) a. [Slide 2] 8 – The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, i. So right off the bat we have to wonder which saying this is talking about. ii. First, we must consider is this pointing back at what precedes it, or forward in what follows? iii. To answer that question, we need to go forward in the text a bit and see if there is anything that would be counted as a “faithful saying.” In order to be a faithful saying it needs to be something that is doctrinally full and somewhat memorable. Something that could be repeated like a Catechism or creed. iv. As we do that, we don’t really find anything. In fact, of all the “Faithful sayings” texts in the Pastoral Epistles, this seems to be the clearest when it comes to direction. It seems to very obviously point backward. v. However, that doesn’t fully answer our question. How far back does it go? Well what are our options? 1. [Slide 3] It is possible that it goes all the way back to verse 1. a. Chapter 2 ends with Paul telling Titus to not allow people in the church to dismiss His teaching. b. Then in chapter 3 he continues to instruct him what to teach. c. So, all he has said since verse 1 could be this saying. d. There are some reasons to doubt this though. i. Length is one of them. This is quite a “saying” if it encompasses these 7 verses. It seems a little long. ii. Paul’s words in verse 1 seem to be personal instruction to Titus and not a general saying for the whole of Christendom. Not that there is no application there, but it doesn’t seem to fit the mold of a “faithful saying” 2. [Slide 4] It is possible the saying goes back to verse 3. a. Here Paul turns to speaking truisms or stating theology or doctrine. b. He begins with man and who we are and ends with God’s work toward all who are His people. c. However, there are a couple issues with the saying going back this far. i. Again, length. It seems to be a little long to be a truism or statement of creed or confession. ii. Although Paul includes himself, and all Christians in this statement, it seems to hinge directly on the preceding verses. 3. [Slide 5] It is possible the saying goes back to verse 4. a. This is a much stronger possibility. b. All of what Paul says in these verses are said to “we” or “us” meaning Christians in general. c. It speaks of God and what HE does which makes for much better confessional or creedal material. d. It is a connected sentence with dependent clauses hanging on one another. You cannot really separate anything from 4-7 from each other. e. Really the only reason that this wouldn’t be the faithful saying is that it is lengthy. 4. [Slide 6] Finally, it is possible that the faithful saying is only verse 7 “being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” a. This is far shorter and encompasses great teaching. b. However, there are actually a couple problems here i. It may be too short. Verse 8 says that Titus should insist on these things. And with such a short statement, there isn’t a whole lot there to insist on. ii. This is very much a part of what was said previously to the extent that to divide it off seems to cut off part of what the saying is referring to. vi. [Slide 7] And so, I believe the best option, despite its length, is to go back to verse 3, especially since all that he says about God and His work in salvation is predicated upon man’s utter inability to save himself. vii. In this, Titus is to insist on these truths. He is to make it plain that these things MUST BE accepted as absolute truth of the church. viii. But why? Why are these things necessary to believe? b. [Slide 8] So that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. i. Ok. What is the connection here? ii. The summary of this statement of truth is what? That God does everything for our salvation and that we do nothing, because we can do nothing. His kindness, love, and grace appears and when that happens he saves us based on his mercy alone through Spiritual resurrection by the Spirit whereby he brings what was dead to life, all of which is made possible by the work of Christ. iii. In all of this the only thing we bring to our own salvation is the sin which made it necessary. iv. But how does that correlate with this statement – “so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works.” v. Well let’s break it down. What does it mean to “believe in God” here? vi. It does NOT mean to believe in His existence. It does not mean a simple assent to the truths mentioned in the statement. Instead, it is someone who has not only confessed that these things are true, but is depending on these things being true. vii. Believing in God is hoping exclusively in the fact of His work alone in our salvation – apart from anything we have done, including our own faith and good works! viii. Ok so what does “may be careful to devote themselves” mean? ix. “To be careful” means to put much thought, energy, time, and attention into something. x. “To devote” means to preside over or to appoint. However, this is in the middle voice, which is complicated to understand but it does change the meaning slightly, in that typically in the middle it is an action you are doing to or for yourself. And so, you are appointing yourself over. xi. What that does to the meaning is that it takes on a devotion. So, ways to translate it would be “to undertake resolutely” or “to practice diligently” or “to maintain the practice of” xii. Let’s put it all together. xiii. We must believe all that Paul has taught since verse 3. Why? xiv. So that those who were unable to seek God and are depending on God alone to save them, would put much thought and energy into diligently and resolutely practicing good works. xv. This amounts to the same thing from Galatians 5. Whom the Son has set free, is free indeed, but use your freedom for good works. Or Ephesians 2, where God’s gift of grace leading to faith and salvation, produces a person doing good works that God the Father has laid out for them before the foundation of the world. You see we must understand that before Christ we were wretches unable to do good works to the standard of God (who by the way defines all that is good, since he is the definition of good). Jesus said to the rich young ruler – why do you call me good? There is none good but God. But by God alone we are changed. And that truth we receive in faith, frees us from ever attempting by works what we could never earn. But it also frees us to be godly people and to live righteously. We are now able to devote ourselves to good works, but before God’s grace we were doomed to be judged by our works. xvi. The only path to a life that may be careful to devote itself to good works, is a life where it was once dead and God made it alive in Christ. xvii. So, we have our bookend. Paul began this chapter exhorting Titus to remind the people to live holy lives toward unbelievers, why? Because of doctrine. Because of what we believe about ourselves and our salvation. And what will right doctrine produce? Holy lives toward others. xviii. Paul continues… c. [Slide 9] These things are excellent and profitable for people. i. What things? ii. Good works? Or the truths from the faithful saying? iii. Certainly, the good works of believers are excellent and profitable for people. iv. Certainly, we are a city on a hill, we are salt, our good works will drive people to glorify God. All this is true. v. However, Paul is not focused on the result of our good works, but rather the cause of them. vi. Indeed, the root cause of our good works and all good entirely is God’s lovingkindness which He lavishes on those who are His people. That love is excellent and profitable for people. vii. Even unbelievers benefit from God’s goodness to His elect. Even unbelievers profit from the truths of total depravity and God’s acting alone to save His people. viii. How do we know this? Well, we live in a society that has rejected the concept that man is inherently evil and wicked. We live in a world where man is good from birth. Not simply neutral which would be were Pelagian the heretic would have landed. Not potentially good which is where Jacobus Arminius would have landed. No. We have progressed now to mankind being born good. ix. So, question… has this worldview been profitable and excellent for people? x. Christianity in America has been overtaken with the belief that man can actually do something to get salvation from God. From as much as sacraments, penance, and ritual to as little as belief, most of Christianity in America believes that man must do something in order for God to give him salvation. He must cooperate with God in order for God to forgive him of sin. xi. So, question… has that been profitable for the visible church? Has the visible church been growing with true disciples? Or is it shrinking? xii. Indeed, if the church in America would only grasp and understand these concepts – that man is wicked and that God alone acts to save them from the slavery of their sin… the visible church would be very small – but it would also be quite healthy with far fewer fake Christians. d. [Slide 10] Passage Truth: So Paul tells Titus that faith in these teachings, the teachings of the gospel, produces what we need to devote ourselves to good works. The gospel flows naturally to good works. And the gospel which flows naturally to good works, is excellent and profitable for all people. e. Passage Application: So in application Titus must insist upon these teachings. He must not allow any wiggle room here. The teachings of man’s depravity and God acting alone to save him from it are absolute necessities if the gospel is to remain untainted and effective. f. [Slide 11] Broader Biblical Truth: Zooming out from this text to the whole of scripture we arrive at the exact same conclusion. The gospel of Christ, whispered in the 3rd chapter of Genesis, Loudly proclaimed in the final words of Revelation, and expounded through the pages in between, this gospel, when applied to the heart of a man, does irrevocably change that man to be a doer of good. A keeper of the law. A fruit bearing Christ imitator. And through history in the scriptures and beyond them, we’ve seen the profitability for all mankind when the true gospel is believed and lived by God’s people. g. Broader Biblical Application: Therefore, it is absolutely imperative that we INSIST upon this teaching. Verses 3 through 7 are not questionable teachings. They are not grey areas we must agree to disagree on. No. They are the core of the gospel. That mankind – all mankind – are slaves to sin, unwilling and unable to seek God, and that God alone, apart from any effort or work of man, does save men to the uttermost. If you struggle with either of these teachings… you need to come talk to me. You need to get this right. This is the gospel, and you cannot walk through this life disagreeing with the core of the gospel while thinking you still have it somehow. The true gospel is what brings forth life in us. Make sure you have it! Transition: [Slide 12] So, we have seen that the gospel when preached and lived, has a positive effect on the world. That means it is all the more important that we insist on these teachings and live them out. But what if someone doesn’t? What if someone is less interested in insisting on the gospel and more interested in insisting upon their own opinions or teachings? What do we do with these teachings? What do we do with them? II.) The gospel preached and lived is profitable for all men, so we must excommunicate those who refuse. (9-11) a. [Slide 13] 9 – But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies., dissensions, and quarrels about the law, i. As we’ve seen, this entire section focuses on the gospel being lived out toward different groups of people. ii. First to the church in chapter 2, then to unbelievers in chapter 3. iii. Now it seems that Paul may be moving to a third group. iv. Well, if we are talking about those in the church and those not in the church – who else is there? v. What about those who are false teachers? Those who are causing trouble in the church. The reason these people don’t quite fit into the church or those outside the church is because they seem like they are a part of the church but they are teaching things that are worthless and unprofitable. vi. Paul advises that true gospel believers, people whose lives have been radically changed by the gospel will do what? vii. They will not seek out and engage in foolish controversies. viii. So, what constitutes a foolish controversy? ix. This is fairly difficult to try to define. x. And I think we are tempted in two different directions. 1. We are tempted to under-interpret this. Meaning that there is no such thing as a foolish controversy over anything in the scripture. So, everything in scripture is worthy of controversy and integral to the gospel. Therefore, it must be defended. If we interpret foolish controversies this way – we will always be fighting with one another. Such people bounce from church to church having been “run out” of every one because “the church was not concerned about the scriptures.” 2. On the other hand, we can be tempted to over-interpret this. Meaning that almost everything in scripture is not worth defending. If we interpret foolish controversies this way. key doctrines start falling by the wayside. This results in people rejecting the inspiration of the bible, the 6 day creation, the law of God, original sin, and pretty soon you have a church that stands for very little except a vague notion of Jesus that is not quite found in scripture. xi. So how do we strike that balance? How do we make sure we are not engaging in a foolish controversy, but that we also defend the things that actually matter. I think Paul has given us some clues in this very text. Both from what came before and what comes after. 1. First, he told Titus to insist upon the truths of the faithful saying. That mankind is wicked and depraved, slaves to sin, and unable to seek God – that seems like something that is not a foolish controversy. If that teaching is under attack – defend it. That God the triune does act alone to save a man from this state is also a truth worthy of defense. Even separation. Paul says – insist on these things. 2. Second, earlier in chapter 2 he tells Titus to not allow people to ignore his teaching, about what? The fact that God’s grace radically changes us to be free of lawlessness and to become a people who are eager to do good. So clearly Paul puts this in the “defend this teaching” camp. 3. Finally, in the things that follow we see some common threads. a. Genealogies. What is meant by this? Well in I Timothy we saw how at this time genealogies were used to add legends to or mythicize the scriptures. Turning them into words to build upon. So generally, any teaching that adds to the plain teaching of scripture, and does not attack the truths we just mentioned, should be something we avoid being drawn into fights over. b. Dissensions. Things that cause people to lose their tempers, or become needlessly heated are indications of things that ought to be avoided. If something is the truth no matter who believes it, it is easier to remain calm when defending it. If something is what you believe, it almost becomes a defense of yourself when someone attacks it. Therefore, instead of defending, you attack. That is a clue that it may be something to avoid fighting over. c. Quarrels about the law – This probably refers to the level to which someone should conform to the law of Moses. How Jewish does a Christian need to look? It is important to note that this is not in a pre-conversion context. In that, people need to be Jewish before being a Christian. Such a controversy would be worth defending the truth, as Paul does in Galatians. But, after becoming a Christian and then quarreling over the dietary laws, or meat offered to idols or other such things… this is what Paul is referring to. And so, controversies about things that concern practice and are somewhat grey in scripture – are to be avoided. When they aren’t avoided, they divide people and the diversity of the church diminishes. And by diversity I am not referring to race, but rather to perspective and practice. Christian metal enthusiasts and Hymns only Christians should be able to worship together. Sadly – they do not. And many churches actually separate the services so they don’t have to see each other. What a shame. b. [Slide 14] For they are unprofitable and worthless. i. Such conflicts over things that do not matter are wholly worthless and unprofitable. No one grows by them, no one learns by them, and all leave wounded from them. ii. This stands in direct contrast to the excellent and profitable nature of the truths in the faithful saying from verses 3 through 7. iii. So, Paul has shown what true believers are to do with the teachings of these people. Namely, they must avoid the teachings and the controversies. But what about the people themselves? c. [Slide 15] 10 – As for a person who stirs up division, i. So again, these are folks who appear to be a part of the church, but have come in and starting insisting on these foolish controversies, raising up strife, and ultimately not profiting the church or the watching world around them. ii. It should be noted that a person does not necessarily need to be a false teacher or promote a worthless or unprofitable teaching in order to be one who stirs up division. iii. Certainly, this seems to be where Paul is going – but the principle is sound and should be applied to all who stir up division. iv. So, what should the Cretans do with such a person who is stirring up division? d. [Slide 16] After warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, i. Three strikes and you are out. ii. What is going on here? iii. This gives us a pattern for how to deal with those who wish to insist upon controversial or foolish disputes. iv. First, the church as a whole, probably the leadership themselves will warn the individual that such teaching to which they are so aggressively clinging, is not excellent or profitable. It is not something that conforms to the level of faithful truth that we should insist upon and cling to. v. Therefore, they should stop insisting upon this teaching and stop stirring up division. vi. Applying this to any sort of division making, we can follow similar rules as it conforms to the general pattern for church discipline. Except of course that it is already a public matter. vii. After a second warning, the church is to excommunicate the individual if they persist. viii. This seems harsh right? Why should the church do this? e. [Slide 17] 11 – knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned. i. A person who is unwilling to listen to the warnings of the church leadership and the church body… ii. A person who is so tied to his own opinion that he is willing to stir up division in the church over it… iii. Such a person is both full of sin and twisted. They are self-condemned. What does this last part mean? They are self-condemned? iv. Their desire for division and to be always right is what condemns them to excommunication. Although the church actually puts them in the “nothing to do with” category – ultimately the divisive person has no one to blame but themselves. f. [Slide 18] Passage Truth: Paul continues to put forward the idea that the gospel preached and lived is profitable for all men. But not only must Titus insist upon these teachings… g. Passage Application: Titus must insist on these teachings to the extent that any who continues to oppose and divide the church over other teachings, are excommunicated. h. [Slide 19] Broader Biblical Truth: Again we don’t need to look far to find that the true gospel preached and lived is impacting on the church and the world around us. i. Broader Biblical Application: But the other application in this text from this truth, is that the gospel’s purity and living needs to be kept to the extent that those who would cause division would be excommunicated from the church. This applies to any who would overemphasize teachings that are not the gospel, or underemphasize teachings that are, or teachings that cast aside good works. The overall perspective is a submission to the apostles teachings and the gospel given down through the church age. Any who would divide over the clear gospel, must be warned twice and then excommunicated. Conclusion: [Slide 20]So how can we apply this text to our lives today at CBC? What should we as a church take away from all this? Actually, this message today is extremely applicable to the state of the universal church in America and our church locally. I know – you are so shocked right?

Following Jesus should impact every area of our life. It changes the way we work and how we spend our money. It shapes the way we treat our neighbors and the way we address conflict in our own homes and marriages. But in this portion of Paul’s letter, he addresses a topic that may not always be talked about in the church: sexuality. Here Paul speaks frankly and strongly against all forms of sexual immorality. He did so in part because sex played a large role in pagan religions in Thessalonica. But he also did so because sexual purity is an important part of holiness in general. As Paul did (1 Thess. 2:4), we should live to please God alone—and God is perfectly holy and righteous. The apostle had wanted to teach the Thessalonians more about the Christian life, and although he couldn’t do so in person, he could write this letter (vv. 1–2). Human sexuality was a key area of temptation for the Thessalonians because sexual purity or faithfulness was not a prevailing moral standard in that culture. Unlike the pagans, Christian believers were to avoid all forms of sexual immorality (vv. 3–6). If they could not control their own bodies, they would be slaves to their “passionate lust” or desires. If they acted on these selfish and out-of-control desires, they would hurt others. That is to say, commit- ting sexual impurity might mean committing violence against a brother or sister in Christ. God’s will for them, by contrast, was that they should be sanctified and live holy lives (vv. 3, 7). This included acting with self-control and honor in regard to their own bodies, and with holiness and love in regard to others. This aren’t merely human standards, but God’s commands (v. 8; see also 1 Cor. 6:18–20). >> Sexuality can also be an area of challenge for today’s Christian. Compare today’s attitudes and problems with those facing the Thessalonians. How is it similar? What is different?

Here Paul begins treading into deep theological waters in an effort to help the Galatian Christians understand why it was necessary that Christ had to die on a cross in order to redeem a people to himself.

Robert Munger, a Presbyterian minister, once wrote a small booklet titled “My Heart, Christ’s Home.” In story form, he depicts Jesus being welcomed into our heart as a guest. As Jesus explores each room, and even the hidden hall closet, Munger makes the case that when believers invite Jesus into their lives, He ought to occupy every aspect of it. Munger asks, “If your heart were a home, would Jesus Christ be an honored guest or would he be a permanent resident?” In chapter 3 of Ephesians, Paul prays that Christ takes up a permanent residence in their hearts and in their church. How are we supposed to pray for the church? We know we should, but what should our prayers be like? Here Paul shows us how. He asks that the Ephesians be strengthened with power through the Lord’s glorious riches. He acknowledges that if a church is to be strong in the midst of adversity and attacks by the enemy, it can only happen by God’s strength and power (v. 16). He then moves to pray for the church which is the inner being, or inner self. Some portions of Scripture emphasize prayer for our physical self. Here, Paul prays for something deeper. He prays that Christ may dwell in their faithful hearts (v. 17). The word “dwell” connotes the idea of abiding forever. Paul prays that these believers will be rooted and established in love (v. 17). Using both an agricultural and an architectural term he drives home the point: the deeper the roots the higher the tree. The stronger the foundation the more fortified the structure. He concludes by praying that the depths of the richness of God’s grace, love, and greatness be lifted high in the church and throughout all generations (vv. 18–21). >> The text of Robert Munger’s booklet is available online. Read it and spend time in prayer, asking Christ to dwell in your life and in the life of the church. Pray that He will not be just an honored guest but a permanent resident.

READ: 1 Corinthians 11.27-28 NLT 'So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup.' If you are employed then you probably have the delight of an annual appraisal. The intention is to stand back from how things are going in order to acknowledge what went badly and what went well, and to reflect on how things could be strengthened for the year ahead. Conducted well, appraisals can be a great blessing and I have always been grateful for the ones that I have had. Here Paul is suggesting that we need to conduct a self-appraisal on a regular basis before we meet together to celebrate Christ’s death for us on the cross. The Corinthian church had clearly made a huge mess of their services. When they had a meal together to celebrate Jesus’ death some of them ate so much that there was nothing left for others. It makes their services sound like a riot! Paul concluded that their services actually did more harm than good. That’s a very severe conclusion and although I have been to many different Christian services over the years, I have never had to be as harsh as that! For Paul, this special service was so important that everyone needed to prepare carefully for it, and crucial to that preparation was self-examination. When we examine ourselves we need to be ruthlessly honest. This is a very serious business. No-one would want to be found guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. As we look hard at our lives we are not looking for perfection, because we will all fail that test. What the Lord wants to see in us as our honesty. As we shine the light on our lives we need to acknowledge our failings and seek his forgiveness and renewal as we rededicate our lives to him. We come with empty hands so that he may fill us again with his blessings. QUESTIONS: When and how do you examine yourself before God? PRAYER: Dear Lord, help me to be totally honest with you as I look at my life. I seek your forgiveness and ask you to fill me afresh with the gift of your Holy Spirit. Amen

One extension of being a product of grace is extending grace to others. Here Paul tells us to restore sinners bearing one another's burdens with gentleness.

On this podcast of Sonshine USA our Bible study teacher Warren Landis expounds from Acts Chapter 17. Here Paul travels from Thessolonica To Berea To Athens. Paul faces a challenge at every stop, but Paul is determined to press on for the Lord! --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/warren-landis4/support

This week we reviewed Chapters 1 and 2 with Vicki. We went into the study of Chapter 3. Here Paul could no longer stand not knowing the state of faith of the Thessalonians so he sent Timothy. Verse 11 confirms the deity of Jesus Christ as well as verify that there's more than one person in the Godhead. This chapter ends with a reference to the rapture. ***Review and Share with 3 people*** ***Review and Share with 3 people*** ***Review and Share with 3 people*** --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/vickitro/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/vickitro/support

Are there better options for engaging with the world than naive optimism or pessimistic realism? We continued our new series UnStung by looking at a powerful passage: 2 Corinthians 5:16-21. Here Paul is writing to a church in turmoil, and he urges them on with a powerful message about the power of Christ to reconcile and make new. We looked at what Dallas Willard meant we he said, "Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning." Our redemption is grace all the way down, but it empowers effort on our part to grow in the love of God and neighbor. And this is the first way God transforms the world: by transforming people. Bottom line: God begins the restoration of all things by offering reconciliation to all people. We also announced the name and location of the ZOE Empowers group with whom we are partnering. Learn more about ZOE here.

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The experience is worth the visit!#SanAugustinePizzaRestaurant#SanAugustineLumber#SanAugustineCoffeeShop#SanAugustineHardwareTranscript THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH Gal. +3:11Morning Meditation +11/14/2013 Verse 11 says, “But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.”There are at least seven things that is said about faith in Galatians two and three that I want us to look at in this meditation.Paul talks about the hearing of faith: Chapter 2 and verse 2 says, “This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” Romans +10:17 says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Faith does not create its own things to believe. We are believers as a result of what we have heard. But the hearing of faith is more than just hearing. It is believing what we hear. This is true of the gospel message that brings us to Christ. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” What about those who hear and don't believe? It is not just hearing the message and knowing it is from God. It is called “the hearing of faith.” Paul writes to the church at Thessalonica and goes over what happened there when he came and preached the gospel. He says in 1 Thess. 2:13: ”For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.” It was received by them as the Word of God. It worked effectively in those that believed. It illustrates the hearing of faith.Then there is the prospect of faith in Gal. 3:24: “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” Here Paul pictures the law of Moses as a schoolmaster that brings those under the law to Christ. One could never be justified by the law ( +2:16) he is only condemned by the law. But a condemned man is ready to listen to anything that will get him off death row. So the Law says, “I have done my job. I have justly condemned you. I have had no mercy. It is not in my makeup to have mercy. But there is one who has been successful in setting men free whom I have condemned.” Would that be good news to you if youhad been condemned and left on death row to await execution? This is the good news that is offered to every man. The words of this verse that say, “that we might be justified by faith.” This is the good news of the gospel. The words “might be justified” is an aorist passive subjunctive verb. The subjunctive mood is the mood of possibility. That means there is hope for the one condemned by the law even thought that condemnation left him on death row. The aorist tense is a point tense and it means that this justification is possible at some point in time in the future since it hasn't happened yet. It is possible. At what point of time? At the point that you believe. The words “that we might be justified by faith” give us the message of the point of time. This is the prospect of faith.Then there is the exercise of faith. Paul brings this out in chapter two and verse sixteen: “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.” The exercise of faith is in the person of Christ. Our justification is based on his faith. He is the only one who had perfect faith in the Father. There was no fault in him including his perfect faith. We put our faith in him and as a result we are justified by the faith of Christ. Our faith is not in our faith it is in him and his faith. Most modern translations of the Bible do not translate this verse right. The King James Bible translates the Textus Receptus exactly as it is. “. . . even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ. . . .” I am convinced that the verbal inspiration of the Scriptures is always right and that God the Holy Spirit is the Author of this statement. If we were justified by our faith we would have something to boast about. But here we have a definitive statement concerning faith, it is the faith of Christ that justifies and again all the glory goes to him.Then we have the family of faith. Paul brings this out in chapter three and verse twenty six: “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” The entrance into God's family is the same for all. Someone has said the ground is level at the cross. We are all the same. That is certainly true when it comes to faith. We must come as a child simply believing that Jesus is God's answer to our sins and that he had to die and that he was raised again the third day. Jesus said in Matthew 18:4, “ Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Man would like to come before God with something great to offer. But the rich and the poor, the brilliant and the ignorant, the cannibal and the moralist must all come the same way. All enter God's family and are children of God by faith in Christ.Then there is the life of faith. Paul says in chapter three and verse eleven: “But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.” This versesays two important things. First, no man is justified in the sight of God by keeping the law. That does not mean he cannot be justified in the sight of man. I have heard drunkards preached into heaven by the moralist who believe this man was good enough because he was a member of their organization (the Masons) and I happen to know that the man died because he drank himself to death. We are to live by faith. Not only are we to get into God's family by faith but we are to live by faith after we enter. There is no way to live by faith without the Bible being the very life of your life. Jesus said in John chapter six and verse sixty three, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” No one lives by faith if he does not live in the Word of God. Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. I do not mean to hurt anyone when I make statements like this. But the moralist needs to know that. It is faith and faith alone that justifies in the sight of God and if one does not live by faith then it is evident he didn't get in by faith. And if he didn't get into God's family by faith he will not go to heaven with God's family.Then there is the power of faith. Paul says in chapter three and verse fourteen: “That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” The promise of the Spirit is the promise of power. For this read Acts 1:8 and 2:39.Then there is the Source of faith. Paul says in Galatians chapter two verse twenty: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” It is living by the faith OF the Son of God. . .” He is the source of all true faith. Paul says, “The just shall live by faith.” Amen.

Paul was literally killing Christians when God called him in grace. You can read the story in Acts 9. Here Paul reminds the Galatians of this story in order to remind them how he received the gospel - it wasn't from man.

In this episode we look at Galatians 1:1-2. Here Paul reminds the Galatian that his calling is from God not man.

January 31, 2021Nicki NickersonIn this episode we are continuing our series in Acts chapter 17:16-31. Here Paul gives a model for us on how to contextualize the Gospel and the way in which we should engage in conversation with non-believers. Two questions I want to ask and explore are: How do we engage in non-combative conversations about crucial topics? Furthermore, how do we share the Gospel and engage in the secular world that we live in?

In Acts 26, Luke provides the third account in this book of Paul’s conversion (compare Acts 9 and 22). Each has a different aim, of course. Here Paul is defending himself before the Roman Governor Porcius Festus and Herod Agrippa II of Galilee. Important highlights include the following:(1) As in earlier defenses, Paul stresses his continuity with his past in conservative Judaism: he shares with unconverted Jews a “hope” for what God promised to their fathers and an anticipation of the final resurrection (e.g., Acts 24:15; 26:6–7).(2) Paul’s remarkable rhetorical question in Acts 26:8 therefore accomplishes several things at once. He asks: “Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?” To Jews who are in the court, the question establishes Paul’s agreement at this point with the Pharisaic strand of Jewish tradition. Implicitly, it also hints that if they have a category for God raising the dead at the end, why should it be thought so impossible that God raised Jesus from the dead in anticipation of the end? To a man like King Agrippa, well acquainted with Jewish beliefs, the question was reinforcing categories with which he was already familiar. To a man like Festus, the question aimed at lessening the skepticism of his sophisticated pagan background. To people with naturalistic outlooks today, the same question remains a challenge: dismissal of the category of resurrection stems from an earlier dismissal of the God of the Bible. Granted the God of the Bible, why is the category of resurrection so difficult?(3) Paul addresses himself primarily to King Agrippa (Acts 26:2, 13, 19), that is, to the ruler most familiar with the Jewish heritage and the Bible. For his part, Festus acknowledges he is at sea (Acts 25:26–27); and for all that he recognizes Paul’s learning, he judges Paul’s claims so bizarre that they only demonstrate he must be insane (Acts 26:24). Had Paul addressed himself most immediately to Festus, perhaps he would have used an approach like that in Acts 17:16–31, the Mars Hill address.(4) Paul’s direct appeal to King Agrippa (Acts 26:25–29) is openly evangelistic and wonderfully direct while remaining perfectly respectful. Paul’s “defense” is not at all defensive; his address reads more like an evangelistic offensive attack than the plea of a frightened or cowed prisoner. Yet just as his “defense” is not defensive, so this “offense” never becomes offensive.(5) Both Festus and Agrippa perceive that, whatever they make of him, Paul has done nothing worthy of death or imprisonment (Acts 26:31). Had this taken place before the events of Acts 25:1–12, Paul would have been released. As it is, appeals to Caesar cannot be undone, so in God’s providence Paul is transported to Rome. This podcast is designed to be used alongside TGC's Read The Bible initiative (TGC.org/readthebible). The podcast features devotional commentaries from D.A. Carson’s book For the Love of God (vol. 2) that follow the M’Cheyne Bible reading plan.

Perrier is the iconic French sparkling water. And on each label of the green bottles, it says, “Source: Perrier.” The Perrier spring is a naturally pure spring in southern France that produces carbonated water. This spring has been known of since the Roman period and in the last century, it has become the premier bottled sparkling water. Central to its popularity is the purity that is achieved by drawing the water directly from this particular spring. No one would be interested in sparkling water that was sourced from David’s backyard hose. However, since each bottle of Perrier comes directly from a known pure source people trust its purity. In our passage for this week, the Apostle Paul continues his defense of the gospel against the false gospel of the Judaizers. Here Paul argues that the Galatians can have confidence in the gospel because it comes from the purest of sources, God himself. And what we will see is that we can have great confidence in the gospel because it comes directly from the source of all truth, the Lord Jesus Christ. To come prepared for the sermon, take time this week to read and to meditate upon Galatians 1:11-17, 1 Thessalonians 2:13, 2 Timothy 3:16, 1John 5:9, and Westminster Confession of Faith 1.4.

Read Romans 9:1-5 We return to the letter to the Romans, and beginning at chapter 9-11 we come to the difficult doctrine of Election and see how important it is to the gospel and saving purposes of God. Here Paul laments that with all the privileges Israel had, they were largely hard-hearted to the message of the gospel.

To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/1258/29 Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), so that it may turn out well for you, and that you may live long on the earth. (Ephesians 6:2-3) Here Paul quotes from the Old Testament Law, instructing the Ephesian children to honor their parents. Why does Paul use the Law? Does this mean that we Christians are still under the moral Law today? This was Jamals question when he called in to our program. In this video clip, I share the truth about the commonly held idea of Christians being under the moral Law.

God With Us: Letters, Week 26 Living like a Citizen of Heaven Colossians 1&2 were focused on doctrinal issues, particularly related to the supremacy of Christ. Colossians 3&4 focus on “duty” issues, how we are able to live, and should live, in light of our connection to Christ. Here Paul covers many of the same ideas found in Ephesians 4-6, yet with some unique emphases. While Ephesians emphasized the believer’s duty to “walk worthy of your calling” (4:1), Colossians calls believers to “live in light of your true position in Christ” (3:1,2). Ephesians calls us to respond to the many blessings that God has given to us. Colossians calls us to respond to the new position we have as a result of our union with the risen and glorified Lord. This message is part of our God With Us series where Pastor Bob walks us through the entire Bible.

Hello and welcome to season 3 episode 4 of The Berean Manifesto; 10 minutes or so a week of faith, hope, and love for the modern Christian.  I'm Pastor Bill of The Ekklesian House and in this installment we are going to take a look at rejecting death while embracing righteousness and life. In the last episode we talked about the great commission and the right way to go about doing ministry.  We talked about what Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:22 CSB, “[22] Flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”  Here Paul is telling Timothy to get himself in order before he steps into ministry.  To take a self assessment to ensure that the Gospel is delivered undefiled. Then we talked about favoring friendship evangelism and discipleship over bullhorn conversions.  One of the questions that's asked a lot surrounding friendship evangelism and discipleship is what that looks like and how to do it.  Unfortunately, there is no cookie cutter answer, so it's going to look different from person to person and relationship to relationship. What you can do is continue in the time of working on yourself and preparing for ministry and then when you step into friendships with others who need the Gospel you will be the city on the hill that cannot be hidden for them.  Proverbs 12:28 says, “There is life in the path of righteousness, and in its path there is no death.”  We're going to read Romans 5 and a passage from Romans 6 as we look at this idea of rejecting death while embracing righteousness and life. Romans 5 CSB, “[1] Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. [2] We have also obtained access through him by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we boast in the hope of the glory of God. [3] And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, [4] endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. [5] This hope will not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. [6] For while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. [7] For rarely will someone die for a just person—though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. [8] But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [9] How much more then, since we have now been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath. [10] For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. [11] And not only that, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received this reconciliation. [12] Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all people, because all sinned. [13] In fact, sin was in the world before the law, but sin is not charged to a person's account when there is no law. [14] Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin in the likeness of Adam's transgression. He is a type of the Coming One. [15] But the gift is not like the trespass. For if by the one man's trespass the many died, how much more have the grace of God and the gift which comes through the grace of the one man Jesus Christ overflowed to the many. [16] And the gift is not like the one man's sin, because from one sin came the judgment, resulting in condemnation, but from many trespasses came the gift, resulting in justification. [17] If by the one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive the overflow of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. [18] So then, as through one trespass there is condemnation for everyone, so also through one righteous act there is justification leading to life for everyone. [19] For just as through one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. [20] The law came along to multiply the trespass. But where sin multiplied, grace multiplied even more [21] so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace will reign through righteousness, resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” We have to wrap our minds around what Paul is writing here.  We just read in Romans 5 that Christ died for us while we were ungodly sinners.  If Christ was willing to die for us when we were his enemies, why now do we torture ourselves with old sins and let them rule our hearts?  Why do we continue to think like those who are slaves to sin? Romans 6:20-23 CSB says, “[20] When you were slaves of sin, you were free with regard to righteousness. [21] So what fruit was produced then from the things you are now ashamed of?  The outcome of those things is death. [22] But now, since you have been set free from sin and have become enslaved to God, you have your fruit, which results in sanctification – and the outcome is eternal life! [23] For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  What I'm trying to say is that while working on yourself, preparing for ministry, take an inventory of those things that you're ashamed of and make plans to avoid them.  Don't go hapless through each day with a blindfold on waiting for your old sins to ambush you.  Identify the paths of death that you used to walk on and choose to walk a different path. Choose to embrace righteousness and life. This is Pastor Bill saying, “Until next time…”

In our exploration and discussion of Paul's more challenging and difficult to understanding passages, our studies take us to Romans 1:26-27. Here Paul addresses the issue and problems associated with homosexuality (i.e., the LGBTQ Community), which seems to run contrary to the popular-modern acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle. We look at and discuss the final word on Paul and the LGBTQ Community from a Messianic Perspective. 

Here Paul shifts the focus onto yet another relationship in which to demonstrate the gospel. He addresses servants by encouraging them to obey their masters as they would Christ. He then goes on to address masters by pointing out that servants have no less value than they do and he urges them to treat their servants well. The same applies to our employer-employee relationships today. Now that we belong to God, whether we are in situations of justice or injustice, we are called to serve others with sincere hearts as we serve Jesus. By doing this we are participating in the will of God and as a result will be rewarded as good and faithful servants for honoring Christ and displaying his glory.

Here Paul shifts the focus onto yet another relationship in which to demonstrate the gospel. He addresses servants by encouraging them to obey their masters as they would Christ. He then goes on to address masters by pointing out that servants have no less value than they do and he urges them to treat their servants well. The same applies to our employer-employee relationships today. Now that we belong to God, whether we are in situations of justice or injustice, we are called to serve others with sincere hearts as we serve Jesus. By doing this we are participating in the will of God and as a result will be rewarded as good and faithful servants for honoring Christ and displaying his glory.

https://vimeo.com/467322271 Series: Underserved GraceScripture: Titus 1:5-9 (Main passage); 1 Peter 5:1-4; 1 Tim 3:1-7Title: Choosing Your EldersBottom line: Choose elders who are blameless under-shepherds where they live, work, learn, and play.From Danny Akin: “God believes leadership of the local church is so important that He addresses the issue in detail four times in the NT: Acts 20:28-38, 1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; and 1 Peter 5:1-4.Emphasis in each list falls on a leader's personal character and theological competency. God is primarily interested in who you are and then what you do. He well understands that the latter will flow from the former.Ultimately, pastors are to be examples to the church of how the gospel produces godliness.” P. 234Episodes:Context (5)Blameless (6a, 7a)The Elder as Husband (6b)The Elder as a Father (6c)The Elder as a Christian Man (Personal qualities) (7-8)Not...But...The Elder as a Theologian (Pastor/under-shepherd) (9)Our process at Grace CF.Pray.Pursue someone you feel led to ask. Ask. If they decline, you're done.If they agree, share their name with the elders. The elders meet with.Candidates put on ballot if no serious issues.Church votes; super majority of members who vote required.Next steps: Pray, Prepare, Partner, and/or PursuePray for our current and future elders.Paul and Barnabas appointed elders[a] for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. (Acts 14:23)Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you. (Heb 13:17)Prepare yourself or help him prepare.”To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ's sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2 Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be;not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away” (1 Peter 5:1-4)Partner with current elder/pastor (apprentice).Pursue becoming an elder. Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task. “Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task.” 1 Tim 3:1 NIVNotes from Bible Knowledge CommentaryTitus 1:5–16 (BKC):II. Qualifications of the Elders (1:5–9).1:5. As with Timothy in Ephesus (1 Tim. 1:3), Paul had left Titus behind to provide leadership to the fledgling church in Crete. Now the apostle reiterated his previous instructions, both for Titus' sake and for the congregation's. The organization of the Cretan church was unfinished due to the brevity of Paul's visit. Thus Titus was to straighten out (lit., “set in order”) the situation by appointing elders in every town. Titus was now acting as an apostolic agent (cf. Acts 14:23) in Paul's absence. His authority in the Cretan church was an extension of Paul's own. Such authority ended with the close of the Apostolic Age.1:6. As in 1 Timothy 3:2–7 Paul listed the qualifications for elders (cf. comments on 1 Tim. 3:1). There the list numbered 15; here 17. Yet both lists cover essentially the same qualities: (1) the elder must be blameless (anenklētos, “unreprovable”). In 1 Timothy 3:10 Paul used this same word of deacons, while in 1 Timothy 3:2 he used anepilēmpton to express the same thought of the elders. (2) Husband of but one wife probably means that the elder should have been married only once (see comments on 1 Tim. 3:2). (3) The elder must have his own household under control. This involves not only the matter of discipline (1 Tim. 3:4–5), but also positive spiritual influence as well. His children must be believers who are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. The apostle had explained why this requirement is important (1 Tim. 3:5).1:7. Here Paul switched from the term “elder” (presbyteros) to overseer (episkopos). The two words are plainly interchangeable in the apostle's thinking, referring to the same church office. The term “overseer” is singular here, but this certainly does not mean that there must be only one episkopos per congregation. Rather the word is used here in a generic sense. Paul was simply affirming that these qualifications are required of all overseers.The need for blamelessness is repeated from verse 6. The reason this quality is so important is that an overseer serves as a steward of God. Damage to a church leader's reputation is damage to God's reputation.Then Paul resumed his list with five vices which must not characterize an overseer: (4) not overbearing, not arrogant and self-willed; (5) not quick-tempered (cf. James 1:19–20); (6) not given to much wine; (7) not violent (cf. 1 Tim. 3:3 for this and the previous vice); (8) not pursuing dishonest gain (cf. comments on 1 Tim. 6:5).1:8. Whereas verse 7 lists negative characteristics to avoid, verse 8 lists positive qualities to be sought. The elder must be (9) hospitable (cf. 1 Tim. 3:2); (10) one who loves what is good (cf. Ps. 15); (11) self-controlled, or temperate and sensible (sōphrona; cf. Gal. 5:23; 1 Tim. 3:2; Titus 2:2, 4); (12) upright (dikaion, “just”); (13) holy (these last two are, with blamelessness, two of the characteristics Paul himself had modeled [cf. 1 Thes. 2:10], but neither is mentioned in 1 Tim. 3); and (14) disciplined (in contrast to the vices of Titus 1:7; cf. 1 Tim. 4:7–8).1:9. Not only must an overseer meet moral and spiritual standards in his personal life, but he must also be a reliable man of the Word. (15) He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught. This last clause, “as it has been taught,” actually comes first in the Greek, for emphasis. According to Paul, an elder is a conservator of the truth, one who must understand it, hold it fast; (16) encourage others by teaching it; and (17) refute those who oppose it. To be qualified as an elder a man must be a capable handler of the truth (cf. comments on 1 Tim. 3:2).Notes from Warren Wiersbe's BECTitus 1:5–9 (BEC): Ordain Qualified Leaders (Titus 1:5–9)One reason Paul had left Titus on the island of Crete was that he might organize the local assemblies and “set in order” the things that were lacking. Titus 1:5–9 (BEC): That phrase is a medical term; it was applied to the setting of a crooked limb. Titus was not the spiritual dictator of the island, but he was Paul's official apostolic representative with authority to work. It had been Paul's policy to ordain elders in the churches he had established (Acts 14:23), but he had not been able to stay in Crete long enough to accomplish this task......Titus 1:5–9 (BEC): The fact that these standards applied to Christians on the island of Crete as well as to those in the city of Ephesus proves that God's measure for leaders does not fluctuate. A big-city church and a small-town church both need godly people in places of leadership.“Titus 1:7a (BEC): The steward of God” (v. 7a). A steward does not own but manages all that his master puts into his hands. Perhaps the most famous steward in the Bible is Joseph, who had complete control over all of Potiphar's business (Gen. 39:1–9). The most important characteristic of a steward is faithfulness (Matt. 25:21; 1 Cor. 4:1–2). He must use what his master gives him for the good and glory of his master, and not for himself personally (see Luke 16:1–13).Titus 1:7a (BEC): The elder must never say, “This is mine!” All that he has comes from God (John 3:27) and must be used for God. His time, possessions, ambitions, and talents are all loaned to him by the Lord; and he must be faithful to use them to honor God and build the church. Of course, all Christians ought to be faithful stewards, and not the pastors only!Notes from “Opening Up Titus” commentary"The third title, steward, is hidden by the NIV translation of verse 7. A more literal rendering would be, ‘an overseer must be blameless as a steward of God'. The steward was the man whom a wealthy master would put in charge of his household or business. It was a position of considerable trust. It required someone who was wise and faithful and trustworthy. And here Paul says that an elder is a steward. He is to manage the affairs of God's house, ensuring that the work of his divine Master gets properly done and caring for his Master's servants.""Elder, overseer, steward—these are the words Paul uses for the leaders who are to be appointed in our churches. Singly and together they mark the position out as one of considerable responsibility. Evidently a Christian of high calibre is required""Clearly, Paul's description is of considerable use to those who already are elders. It calls us to self-examination and to seek by the grace of God to be far more the Christian leaders that God intends us to be. The primary concern of these verses, however, is not with being the right kind of elders, but with appointing them. What kind of men should your church be setting apart for eldership? What kind of men does God want in that office? Here in Titus 1 we have a very clear answer!“"Summing it all up at the startThe apostle begins with a summary word and later on, in verse 7, repeats it. It is the word blameless, and it gathers into one the various elements of the apostle's description.We do have to be careful here not to impose on this word a meaning that it is not intended to bear. ‘This does not of course mean,' writes John Stott, ‘that candidates must be flawless or faultless, or we would all be disqualified.' The idea is rather that of being ‘above reproach'. Morally and spiritually, the elder is to be exemplary. No one should be able to accuse him of either serious misconduct or a general pattern of inappropriate behaviour. He should have a good reputation among outsiders and within the church as well. And as far as doctrine is concerned, he should be sound."The commentator breaks these qualifications down into these categories:The Elder as HusbandThe Elder as a FatherThe Elder as a Christian Man (Personal qualities)The Elder as a TheologianThe Elder as a Father"Paul has more to say about the elder's home life. Not only must he be a faithful husband; he must be a good father, one ‘whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient'. Something needs to be said here before we come to the details. It has to do with the previous point as well. Paul is not saying that a single man, or a widower, or a man who has been divorced on biblical grounds, or a man who has no children, or a man who has only one child cannot be an elder; that in order to be an elder a man must be married with children. What Paul is doing here is focussing on the norm. For the most part, the men in the church who would be eligible for eldership would be married men with children. It is this general situation that he has in mind.As far as the elder's children are concerned, Paul insists that they ‘believe' (NIV). In other translations these children are described, not as believing, but as faithful—faithful in the sense of submissive or obedient to their father's will. This is a preferable understanding. What is in Paul's mind is not belief but behaviour. He is not saying that an elder's children have to be Christians. But he is insisting that they be under their father's control and ‘not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient'. In his first letter to Timothy the apostle makes the same point: ‘The overseer … must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect' (3:4). Then follows the reason: ‘If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God's church?' (3:5). If a man cannot look after his own household it cannot be expected that he will be able to take care of God's church. Failure in the one area will lead to failure in the other."The Elder as a Christian Man..."Moving now to the positive, an elder ‘must be hospitable'. The word ‘hospitable' comes from one which means ‘love of strangers'. It is primarily about caring for and welcoming into our homes those who need hospitality or would greatly benefit from it. Examples in our day would be visitors to our congregation, believers who have recently joined us, the lonely, the needy, the singles who are away from their families, etc. Hospitality is a duty that devolves upon us all. Paul makes that clear in Romans 12. And in Titus 1 he tells us that it is one of the qualifications for eldership"

Today’s Verse: Galatians 3:1-5 Today’s Song: As The Deer  Notes:  Don’t be bewitched!  Here Paul challenges the Galatians with one forceful question: did they receive the Spirt by works of the Law or by hearing with faith?  As far as Paul is concerned every aspect of the Christian life grows out of and revolves around…

Today’s Verse: Galatians 2:15-16 Today’s Song: O Holy Jesus  Notes:  Today we dive into Galatians 2:15-21. This is one of the most compressed and dense sections of all of Paul’s letters.  Here Paul explains why he publically rebuked Peter and gives us the key steps to relational reconciliation.  Step 1: Embrace the “we” Step 2: Confront what…

Acts 17:13-17 In Acts 17 Paul is whisked away from Berea to Athens where he waits for the rest of his friends to join him. Here Paul has a chance to see one of the most wondrous cities in the world - a cultural, religious and academic epicenter. But as Paul sits and takes in this great city, he isn’t filled with wonder but concern for their lostness and idolatry. Are you stirred for your city? What does your conviction compel you to do?

Prayer to Know More of Jesus and These Blessings Ephesians 1:15-23 August 16, 2020 I. Introduction: A. We live in a day and age where out of the sincerity of our hearts to live out God’s truth and not just study it the first question we ask ourselves is, ”What do I need to do with this truth?” 1. We have been learning some of the most amazing truths in the Bible over the past number of months, blessing upon blessing that God has given to us in Jesus Christ! 2. This morning Paul answers for us the first thing we need to do with these truths, and what he does with them may surprise many of us. Actually too often, we skip over this crucial first step in the process as we rush to put God’s Word into practice in our lives. B. We find the answer to this starting in v15 of chapter 1 as he says, “for this reason” 1. Simply he is connecting what follows with what has gone before. He tells us the very reason he is going to do what he does next is because of all these blessings in Christ we just learned about in v3-14. 2. Just like v3-14 was all one long sentence closely tying it all together so v15- 23 is also just one sentence closely tying it all together. C. Before I read, let me tell you what the heart of this section says so you can watch for it as I read – simply he prays for them to know more of Jesus and these blessings! 1. The structure to the prayer is as follows: a) V17 he prays that God would give them a fuller, more practical and more intimate knowledge of Jesus b) In v18 -19a he prays that God would enlighten our hearts to fully see and grasp three specific blessing God gives us – His calling, His inheritance and His power c) Then in v 19b-23 he shows us three ways in which His power towards us right now is manifested and in agreement with the power that was manifested in Jesus when He was resurrected, when He was ascended into heaven and seated at God’s right hand and finally when He gave Him as head over all things pertaining to the church! 2. Watch for these as I read D. Paul’s first response to all these amazing blessings, the first thing he does is to pray! Pray that we would know more of Jesus the one whom all these blessings are in and that we would know more of the blessings themselves! • Before I jump into the text I just want to say a few things about II. Prayer in general A. We have learned before that prayer is the means to receiving in God’s kingdom. 1. Often as a last resort we say to people in tough times, when there is nothing else we can do we say, “All I can do is pray!” 2. Actually prayer should be the first thing we do and the best thing we can do as prayer allows us to put one hand on the person and their situation and the other hand on God and bring the two together! 3. Prayer is the first thing that Paul does with these amazing life-changing truths! It really is the first thing we should do B. We have been talking lately in staff about the restarting of our ministries here at MVC in this unique day of restrictions and MVC scattered all over the place. 1. As we look at the way that Jesus did ministry we have been reminded how Jesus started His ministry and daily met with the Father in prayer. 2. Jesus said He did nothing of Himself; His teachings and words were not His own, His works were not His own, His will was not His own but they all were from and initiated by the Father. 3. If we do not go to the Father first and regularly in prayer then at best we will be working out of our best ideas or copying and pasting what others are doing rather than hearing directly in a life changing and empowering way what God wants us to do. 4. What we learn from this passage is that God does not want His truths from the Bible just to go from our heads to our feet and hands but rather from our heads, through our hearts where it is anointed by the Spirit then out through our hands and feet! C. Finally, we see in this passage that Paul prays God’s word and truth. 1. So often, we will read God’s word when we end with our prayer time, when we begin to pray for our needs, friends, and ministry but never breathe a prayer about what we just learned in God’s word. 2. It is like sitting at the breakfast table with Kim and she talks to me about something on her heart she wants me to know then I respond by telling her about what happened in the ballgame yesterday! There is no connection and no two way conversation 3. Here Paul is praying about what we just learned in God’s word – to know more about Jesus, the one in whom are all these blessings and to know more of the blessings themselves in a life changing way! 4. This is the prayer we all should be praying for each other and ourselves in these days. • So the rest of today my goal is simply to introduce you to this prayer and then the next two weeks we will look into it more specifically. In v17 Paul prays that we would III.Know more of Jesus A. The key word here is knowledge – it is the Greek word “epignosis” which indicates a personal, intimate, and progressively growing knowledge of Jesus! B. As I reread this verse note three things: 1. This is something that God gives, something that originates with God, not something we work out by our efforts 2. He wants them to know more in a practical way – that is what wisdom and revelation basically means 3. Then finally that growing, practical knowledge is in the particular area it is in. The area of a personal, experiential and intimate relationship with Jesus 4. Read C. This same idea is pictured and the same word is used in Matthew 16 for us to get a picture of what this is like. 1. Context, Jesus had been on the scene and doing amazing miracles and saying things that amazed some and angered others. 2. Those whom He angered said He was from the Devil and those who were amazed knew He was someone very special as they thought he was John the Baptist raised from the dead or Elijah or Jeremiah or one of the other prophets raised from the dead. 3. Then Jesus said this to Peter a) Read Matthew 16:15-17 4. Like we see in this passage a growing more intimate, experiential and practical knowledge of Jesus is not something that comes from man’s efforts, observations, or even being around Jesus, like so many of them were. Rather it is a supernatural revelation – an unfolding to us by God where God discloses this to us in the core of our being! D. This is not just head knowledge or even just Bible knowledge about Jesus but it is the truths of the Bible coming to life within my heart by the power of the Holy Spirit! 1. This is not just reading, studying, memorizing and knowing the big idea the twenty third psalm that teaches us that God, specifically Jesus, is our personal shepherd but rather it is the daily experience in the grind of real life on the streets where we experience Jesus shepherding us through every situation we face. 2. It is not just knowing about Jesus in my head but rather knowing Jesus deep within the core of my being in a life giving, life changing way! • The second part of this prayer is that we would IV.Know more of these blessings A. The key word here is know – it is the Greek word “oida” which indicates an I see something and I get the significance of what that is. It is the knowing from observation but knowing in such a way that you grasp the significance of what you know! B. Let me reread v18-19a C. Again, we see these are things he does not just want us to have head knowledge about but he wants it to go to the core of our being, so they flow out of our lives as naturally as blood flows out of our hearts! When the Bible speaks of the heart it is speaking basically of the inner person, that part of us that lies deep within us, the immaterial part of our lives 1. In the Bible, it speaks of the heart as a place where we imagine, think and reason, a place where we have desires, affections and grief, a place where our conscience and will is, a place where faith resides. 2. Here it talks about the heart having eyes – figuratively speaking that means the ability to see. D. But like everyone who sees we need to have light to see – so his prayer is that the eyes of our hearts would be enlightened. That the Holy Spirit would shine light down in our hearts so we can see and know these wonderful blessings that God gives us! V. Application A. So everything that follows are works of God deep within our hearts that come in the context of prayer so that God’s Word would become a living reality in and through us! B. So from the core of our beings we would know and experience deeply the hope that comes from His calling, the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints and what is the surpassing greatness of His power towards us. Close in prayer – John Hurley

During the Vietnam War, for the first time, people had the opportunity to visually “see” the realities of war. The nightly news showed footage of each day’s violence, and suddenly war became up close and personal. Horrified by what they saw, people wanted to take action. Fast forward fifty-five years, and we may seem almost complacent to the world’s tragedies. With technology’s steady stream of society’s most horrific images coming at us through our phones, computers, and television, our minds can easily become numb to the horrors around us. In Romans 12 the Apostle Paul warns believers that it is very easy to become “conformed” to the world and its thinking (v. 2). But Paul also describes the “transformation” characteristics of a mind intent on serving and knowing the will of God. We are able to renew our minds in serving Jesus Christ. Verse 15 specifically describes how a Christian can and should respond with empathy toward others: “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” In other words, we are to let our actions and reactions genuinely support those around us, whatever state they may be in. To do so, though, we must be aware of their joys and trials. We must be willing to place ourselves in situations where we will have the opportunity to rejoice and weep with others. We are not called to complacency. In rejoicing and weeping, God calls us to choose relationship and action. Romans 12 could be titled the “Empathy Chapter” because it shows Christian love in action. Here Paul gives multiple and practical ways to demonstrate empathy. >> God will likely bring someone into your life who could use a little empathy. Read Romans 12 and prayerfully ask God to reveal who that might be and pray that you will, indeed, be ready to respond with love in action.

ONENESS the theme of this section is about a vertical relationship.WE looked at a horizontal relationship in he last section. That was the breaking down of hostility between the gentiles and the jews in the body of Christ.Here Paul addresses looking upward to he who ascended after previously descending.We are to mature with each other, hold each other accountable, support and love each other.When we do that we look upward to his command to love each other and we do it out of obedience. We do it for Him. We are able to do these things because the Holy Spirit is our generator of great power.We are encouraged to do that by receiving his blessings for obedience as we unite with each other.We are ONE with Him because we are ONE with each other in allegiance, in work, in support … we want all to get to the same place (Heaven).WE all walk together to get where we are going.Walking together (Unity), walking together shedding ourselves fo our sin baggage (purity), walking together in fulfilling our purposes as spouses, parents, employees, friends, associates )harmony),Walking together to overcome a common enemy (victory). 

While it is easy to show young investors how to make an extra million dollars over the course of 50 years or more, it’s not so easy to do for retired investors looking at 10 to 30 more years. But there are ways! Here Paul suggests 10 different ways to add a million dollars or more to the portfolio of an investor near or in retirement. Paul references Fine Tuning Your Asset Allocations and Fixed and Flexible Distributions in Retirement. The following tables are part of the presentation: Table 1: Fine Tuning Your Asset Allocation: S&P 500 4-Fund Combo Equity Portfolio Table Fine Tuning Table: 4-Fund Combo Equity Portfolio Table 7: Fixed Distribution Schedule S&P 500 ($30,000/yr + inflation) Table 8: Fixed Distribution Schedule S&P 500 ($40,000/yr + inflation) Table 9: Fixed Distribution Schedule S&P 500 ($50,000/yr + inflation) Table 8a: End of Year Fixed Distribution Schedule S&P ($40,000/yr + inflation) Table 27: Flexible Distribution Schedule S&P 500 (3%/yr + inflation) Table 28: Flexible Distributions Schedule S&P 500 (4%/yr + inflation) Table 29: Flexible Distributions Schedule S&P 500 (5%/yr + inflation)) Table 54: Fixed Distributions Schedule 4-Fund Combo ($30,000/yr + inflation) Table 55: Fixed Distributions Schedule 4-Fund Combo ($40,000/yr + inflation) Table 55a: End of Year Fixed Distribution Schedule ($40,000/yr + inflation) Table 58: Flexible Distribution Schedule 4-Fund Combo (3%/yr) Table 59: Flexible Distribution Schedule 4-Fund Combo (4%/yr) Table 60 Flexible Distribution Schedule 4-Fund Combo (5%/yr) Check out new videos at paulmerriman.com including Paul’s “12 Million-Dollar Decisions Guaranteed to Change Your Financial Future” and Chris Pedersen's “Two Funds for Life in Pre and Post-Retirement”. AND subscribe to Paul’s free newsletter!