Quinto's Rambling

James Week 1: An Introduction

2012-01-26T08:29:00.000-06:00

January 25, 2012

Pray

Read James 1:1

We are diving into to theLetter of James. So we need to learn a little bit of the background on whowrote the letter, who it was written to, the situation of the times and why itwas written.

First let’s look at whowrote it.

James the brother of Jesusis commonly accepted as the author of this letter. We see evidence of James,the Brother of Jesus, and his prominent role in the early church in the book ofActs (Acts 15:13-21). He was a big part of the church in Jerusalem andtherefore it fits with who the book was written to.

The letter was written tothe 12 tribes in the Dispersion. A little history, once Christ was crucifiedand the church began to form, there were many who did not like it. Jews, Romansand any number of other peoples and religions did not like what Christianitystood for. Saul (later renamed Paul) was among those that were present whenStephen was martyred. After this the Christians went into hiding or leftJerusalem to avoid persecution and were scattered abroad. That is what is knownas the Dispersion. James was not writing to those in Jerusalem, or to aspecific church as Paul did many times. James was writing his letter to allChristians no matter where they were. His reasoning behind this is that hewanted to identify all Christians as the children of God. The nation of Israelwas the people of God. Now all Christians held that title.

James was writing thisletter to these Christians to encourage and admonish the church. “This letteris intended to confront members of the church with the responsibilities of theChristian life.” This is not a letter written pleading with unsaved people tocome to a knowledge of Christ, rather it is a letter written to those who wouldcall themselves Christians addressing issues that have risen up in the church.The church that James was writing too fell into some sin, just like we all do.The church was consumed with a worldly lifestyle not putting it’s faith intopractice, fighting amongst itself. James deals with suffering, sin, our view ofChrist, the poor, and wisdom. James is a very practical book, but it is also avery blunt book some would even say harsh at times. James doesn’t sugar coatthings or pull punches. He will also call us as the church to live in truecommunity with one another.

v.1 - Wehave already dealt with much of verse 1 in going over the background of thebook of James. But to be thorough so we don’t miss anything let’s just look atthe few points we missed. James identifies himself to the readers as a servantof God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is basically James’ qualifyingstatement about why he has the authority to write this letter and why he shouldbe listened to. He didn’t want people to listen to him because he was thebrother of Jesus, so that is no how he introduced himself. The term he used canbe interpreted slave. Not a modern dayversion of slave but a new testament form of slave. Many slaves were dedicatedto pleasing their masters because of the reward that awaited them if they did.James is a servant of God, in the Old Testament when a person was referred toas a servant of God it meant that they were chosen by God to do His workbecause of their loyalty and humility before Him. This is James. God has givenJames authority to write this but James does not abuse this authority insteadhe has the mind of Christ and serves others with his calling.

The letter of James is onethat can hold great meaning in the life of a believer today. My hope is thatover the next 14 weeks we will be able grow as we uncover the truths that Jameswrites down for us.

Worship through Obedience

2012-01-19T08:37:00.000-06:00

So far in this series we have talkedabout how we worship through singing. Tonight I want tofocus an aspect of worship that if we understand, then as Christians we willbegin to really get it.

When we think of worship what do wethink of? Coming to church and singing songs, praying and listening to someonespeak. That is our modern definition of worship. I want to look at somethingthat we don’t think of much. Worshipthrough obedience. This in my opinion is true worship. Obeying what God hasfor us to do is our act of worship. When we sing praises to God, we canworship; when we pray to God that is worship. But above all else I think thatwhen we obey God that is worship. Let’s take a look at a couple of people inthe Old Testament who show us a great picture of how our obedience to God istrue worship.

1. Genesis 22:2-12 – Abraham willing tosacrifice Isaac (Hebrews 11:17-19)

2. 1 Samuel 15:10-23 – Saul disobeys andis rejected as king

Jesus says in John 14:15, “If youlove me keep (obey) my commandments.”

If we want to understand andexperience true worship, the only way to do that is to obey what Christ hastold us to do. So what has He told us to do? I want to focus on something thatChrist gave us as His last command before He ascended into heaven.

Matthew 28:16-20 – The Great Commission

People’s last words are important. Itis often what they want to be remembered by after they are gone. Here Christgives us a glimpse of what His life on earth was all about, and what our livesneed to be focused on.

If obedience is true worship, that iswhat our lives need to be about. We need to be about bringing others to knowwho Christ is, and what He has done for us and wants to do for them. That istrue worship, and that should lead us into the other forms of worship we havealready talked about.

Worship

2012-01-17T08:52:00.000-06:00

January11, 2012

What is worship, worship is celebratingGod. Being excited about what He has done in your life to the point that youdon’t know any other way to express it but to tell Him what He means to you andhow great He is. Now I know all of us don’t worship the same. I loveworshipping through song. I love singing praises to God. That is one of theways you can worship. But worship isn’t only about singing. Worship is firstand foremost living an obedient life to Christ. Your life should be how you worship. Believe me it is hard to do. Mylife isn’t always a good example of worship. It is hard to live a life ofobedience to Christ, but that is our true act of worship. In Romans Paul saysit this way:

Romans 12:1– “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer yourbodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritualact of worship.”

Since I have been working withstudents I have noticed something. Studentsare a very distracted group. I know you have school and work and homework andsports and any number of things that you have to do, throw church two days aweek on top of that and you are swamped. Not to mention after all of the stuffyou “have to do” you still have a social life. Man it can get crazy. So a lotof times when you get done with everything you have to do and get to the stuffthat you can or can’t do, according to your parents and the government, formany of us church doesn’t fall under the things we have to do. So whether wechoose to come to church on our own or are made to come by someone else, wecome very distracted. How many times have gotten your cell phone taken up inclass because we were texting or it rang? I have. So when we are here atchurch, worshipping God, a lot of times, our attention isn’t on God. Ourattention is on the person next to us, or the game we lost last week, or thegirl we plan on talking to tomorrow, or our phones that just vibrated in ourpockets. We are distracted. If when Courtney and I were dating, and I calledher and we were on the phone and then I got a text message and I started havinga conversation through text to a friend and ignored Courtney, if I were abetting man I would bet that we wouldn’t be married today. You know where your heart is by what you pay the most attention to.If I didn’t pay attention to Courtney and do things for her and treat her anydifferent than any other girl well, there wouldn’t be much of relationship totalk about now. I gave her my time and attention. The same goes with God. Whenyou go throughout your week and don’t spend time with God any other time thanSundays and Wednesdays and when you are at Church you aren’t focused on Him,what does that say about your relationship with God, or about my relationshipwith God? When we come to church it is a time for us to put everything elseaside, not to be worried about all our homework or the bad game we had oranything like that. When we come to worship God we should come and lay down ourburdens at His feet and then when we have taken care of that, praise Him forwho He is, and what He has done for us. The fact that we woke up this morningis evidence of God’s love, because we are never promised tomorrow. Worship isour offering to God telling Him how much He means to us.

In Hebrews 13:15 the authorsays “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise toGod, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.”

Worship is our expression of thanksand praise to God. When we worship it isn’t about us. It isn’t about how goodor bad you sing or anything like that. It is about God and our response to Him.People respond to Him differently. Some like to sing others don’t. There are other things you can do if you don’t like to sing. Readthe words of the songs; think about what they mean, apply them to your life.Make sure your heart is right with God so you can come before Him and worship.There are plenty of things that you can do to worship God without having tosing. I am easily distracted during worship. Whether it is a phone ringing orsomeone talking, or me wondering what others are thinking about me as Iworship. I am sure all of us are easily distracted. That is not something Iwant to do during worship though. I don’t want to hinder God moving in someone’slife because I am talking to them or to someone else. Worship prepares our hearts to hear themessage. Worship gets us in the mood to sit down and listen to God speak andmove in our lives. If you distract someone during the ‘worship’ part of theservice, it very well may carry over to the teaching part of the service anddistract them from hearing from God at that time. However being reverentdoesn’t mean you have to stand there with your arms crossed and not move orshow emotion. Emotion and expressions can be a big part of worship, as long asthey are not for show and they are from God. Not saying that you have to hear avoice from heaven to tell you to lift your hands or close your eyes oranything. I want you to understand that if you feel like you need to fall onyour knees and pray during worship, you are free to do it. If you want to jumpup and down and raise your hands, then do it. But not so others will look atyou, but as an extension of your worship. I don’t want you to feel either thatyou have to do those things because if you aren’t comfortable raising yourhands or clapping then you don’t have to do that. However you praise God thendo it. You may say that if someone isalways raising their hands that it will distract you. I say that if you werefocused on worshipping God you wouldn’t be distracted by what someone else isdoing.

WhatI want for myself and for all of us is to see worship as a time to praise Godfor what He has done in our lives and thank Him for who He is. I want us to meetWith God and be changed by Him every time we are together, every time we liveout our worship. Whether we sing or dance or play football or make good grades,my hope for all of us is to worship God with excellence. To show Him our loveand thankfulness, to be reverent and obedient no matter what situation we arein.

Intentionality of Christ

2012-01-05T13:12:00.000-06:00

January 4, 2012

When we think of Jesus, as AmericanChristians, what do we think of? I know I think that He was loving, kind, aservant, and the list could go on. But there are some traits that Jesuspossesses that we don’t often think about. I want to talk about the intentionality of Christ in Hisrelationship with His father.

Read Matthew 21:23-46

In thispassage the Pharisees question Jesus about his authority to do the things hehas been doing. Now setting aside the fact that Jesus is God and thereforeknows all, Jesus was also man. He grew up in a Jewish household; he learned tokeep his parents faith just as any Jewish child would. He knew the law; he knewscripture. When His authority was questioned, Jesus didn’t fumble around withHis words and have a hard time giving his answer. He was intentional, he knewthat he was being tested, and He was prepared for it. Just like when someonequestions our faith or, asks us about it, we should be intentional, andprepared and come at it with a deliberateness that lets others know we arestriving to be like Christ.

Theargument of Christ being omnipotent and knowing all is irrelevant. If we are tobe like Christ, which is what being a Christian is, being a little Christ, thenwe need to be like Christ not only in loving others and stuff like that, but weneed to be deliberate in our faith, not passive and not uninformed. Christ wasnot simply omnipotent, Christ was dedicated and fully devoted to His Father,therefore He knew His father’s will, He knew that He was going to bequestioned, as are we. As Christians we are going to be tested, our faith isgoing to be questioned. 1 Peter 3:15says, “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being preparedto make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is inyou; yet do it with gentleness and respect”. That is what we are supposedto do. Always be prepared even on the tough questions. That is how Christ was.Christ was deliberate and intentional in all that he did. He never randomlysaid something, or went somewhere. There was a method to his madness. Like itsays in 1 Peter we need to be prepared to give an answer to those who questionus, and are searching. We need to be constantly searching ourselves to betterunderstand what we believe. Jesus constantly quoted scripture, when he wastempted in the desert, the way he combated those temptations was withscripture. Jesus knew His stuff. I have a friend or two that I go to when Ihave questions that I don’t know answers to about Christianity, or even otherreligions because they have been deliberate and intentional in their faith,they have made sure that they know and are prepared to give an answer to allthose who come to them, whether it is to test them or to gain information aboutthings. I amamazed and challenged at the same time by these couple of guys and their faith.I want to be someone who others come to, not for the recognition, because thatis not what Christ did, but I want to be dutiful and intentional in my faith, Iwant to be like Christ.

Jesus went off by himself often, tomeet with God and pray. We need to do some of the same. When Jesus went off byhimself to pray and be with His Father, he did it intentionally. Before He wascrucified Jesus went to the garden and prayed, His disciples came with Him buthe left them and prayed alone. He did it to ask for strength. When you getalone with God and are doing your quiet time, do it with intentionality. Don’tdo the open the Bible and flop thing. Have a plan, have something in mind youwant to study. Start by reading all the gospels, or try reading the whole biblein a year. There are tons of different studies that you could do on your own.But when you have your quiet time, and you need to have a quiet time, make sureit is done with deliberateness. Also when we pray we need to be intentional, weshouldn’t beat around the bush. Before His crucifixion Christ prayed for God tonot have Him go through with it. He did not tell God anything but what was onHis mind. We should be the same way. If we want something ask, if we have donesomething we shouldn’t, ask for forgiveness. Don’t try and butter God up. Jesusdidn’t, He always went straight to the point and we need to do the same. Christwas deliberate and intentional in all He did, we need to be the same way, soour challenge is to be more like Christ – to be deliberate in our faith.

The Incomprehensible Knowable God

2011-12-01T08:41:00.001-06:00

November 30, 2011

Incomprehensible

Read: Psalm 145:3; Job 26:14; Isaiah 55:8-9; Romans 11:33-34

Why can we not know God Fully?

1. God is infinite and His creatures are finite

2. The perfect unity of God’s attributes is far beyond the realm of human experience

3. The effects of Sin – Romans 1:18-26

• An infinite trespass against an infinite being must be paid with an infinite price = Jesus

4. God in His wisdom has chosen not to reveal some things - Deuteronomy 29:29
When we seek God we should always do it in humility, knowing that we will always have more to learn about God. Knowing that God is so much higher than we are shouldn’t give us any doubt about our salvation or our faith. If we could know everything about God then would He be a god worth serving? As a Christian we should continually seek God even though we know that we will never fully understand Him. It should be our hearts desire to know our God as fully as humanly possible.

Knowable

Read: 2 Peter 1:2-3; Jeremiah 9:23-24; 1 Corinthians 2:2; John 17:3; Hebrews 8:11-12; 1 John 4:7-8

We can know God Truly, Personally and Sufficiently

The God we serve is a personal God. Jesus when he was here on earth developed relationships with people, and still wants to have a relationship with all of us (Read 1 Timothy 2:4). Jesus is the Truth and we have been given the opportunity to know Him. He is revealed to us through the working of the Holy Spirit and we have the choice to enter into a relationship with Him or turn our backs and ignore Truth. Other religions attempt to focus only on the Incomprehensibility of God as a means of putting Him out of our reach. But the truth is that God desires to know us. He wants all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of Truth.

We can know God sufficiently for our needs (2 Peter 1:2-3). We may never be able to understand how God can be at all places at all times or how he spoke and the world was created. But we can know all things that pertain to life and godliness. In Jeremiah we read that we should not glory in anything except that we glory in knowing God. Knowing all the stats for your favorite team is great, but knowing God is the best thing. Not just knowing about God, but knowing Him and having a relationship with Him.

To know Christ in His saving grace should be our greatest delight. (1 Corinthians 2:2). Knowing Him is the basis to having eternal life. This is the first step in beginning to know who God is through Christ. (John 17:3). If you want to know how to get to know God, it starts with Salvation. Then as we grow closer to God we begin to love more like Him. (1 John 4:7-8).

God can never be known absolutely, but we can know things about Him that are absolutely true, so much so that we can be willing to live and die for those beliefs. God has provided knowledge of Himself that is personal, relational, and sufficient for fruitful, faithful, godly living. No one will ever be able to say that they lacked the necessary revelation to know God and to start living as God intends.

Since we can know Him in all the ways that we need to, that should encourage us and spur us on in our relationship with Him. God has chosen to reveal Himself to us in ways that we would never have imagined. We have the opportunity to be best friends with the creator of the world. The depth of our relationship with God depends on us. He wants to know us and for us to know Him, but it takes effort on our part and a willingness to strive to know Him more every day.

Thankful

2011-11-22T14:46:00.001-06:00

I know what you're thinking, and yes I am doing a post on being thankful 2 days before Thanksgiving. I am thankful all the time, at least I try to be, but it seems that with when I am made to look at my life there is just so much that God has done recently that I would like to thank Him for.

I am amazed at God's leading and provision in my life. I am thankful that I can rely on Him and that He is never changing. He has my best in mind even when I don't realize it. God is sovereign over all life and sees the bigger picture and so when I don't understand things it is great to know that God, who has proven Himself faithful in my life in the past, never changes and will continue to work things out for my good.

I am thankful for the opportunities He is opening up for me and the ministry that He has called me to. I desire to be used by God to make His name great in this world and to bring glory to Christ. The fact that God has seen fit to use a sinner like me to do this is baffling. I am simply unworthy of this and quite frankly not capable to do it on my own. I thank God that He hasn't left me by myself, that He walks with me and has seen fit to bring good Godly people in my life to help me in this endeavor. I would list everyone but I have been blessed with so many teachers, mentors, leaders, friends, and family that it would be impossible to get everyone. You know who you are, thank you.

I am constantly amazed that God has given me a wife that I don't deserve and a son that brings more joy to my heart than I ever thought possible. My life is better because of Courtney. She loves me through my flaws and inspite of my inconsistencies. She is more patient and kind and gracious with me than I deserve. God knew it would take a special woman to be my wife, my helpmate, in this life and I thank Him for preparing Courtney long before we met. I am blessed that we will be sharing the joys, triumphs, struggles, and pains of this life together. Bryson is the greatest kid ever. I know every parent is supposed to say that but I truly believe it. His ability to make me laugh while frustrating me is astounding. His heart is so sweet already, he is kind and thankful. He is stubborn and strong-willed. He is so much like me it is scary. I am thankful that God has entrusted him to me and I pray I can be a good father. I am thankful for the challenge and pray I can lead Bryson to the feet of God and teach him to be a Godly man.

I could literally continue this list for a very long time. The fact I live in America and can type this on one of the 3 computers and 2 iPhones I have at my disposal is testament to the blessings that God has heaped on my life. I pray I don't take them for granted and that I never get comfortable or complacent. Proverbs 28:20 says, "A faithful man will abound with blessings, but he whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished." I pray I will be faithful with what God has blessed me with.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Jonah Week 8

2011-11-17T08:50:00.001-06:00

November 16, 2011

Pray
Read Jonah 4:6-11

v.6 - So now we finish our story. The once mighty prophet Jonah who ran from God, almost died at sea, was tossed over the side of the boat, swallowed by a whale, vomited on to dry land, delivered the message of God to the people of Nineveh is now pouting on a hill outside this great city hoping that God will not be merciful to his enemies. So now is when Jonah learns his lesson and they all live happily ever after, right? Wrong. Jonah still doesn’t understand the nature of God when it comes to His grace. Jonah is still making his decisions based on his cultural bias toward the Ninevites. Jonah’s attitude towards the Ninevites being forgiven is still not where it should be. So God decides to try one more time to teach Jonah more about who He is and where His heart lies when it comes to the Ninevites. God, in His mercy and grace towards his belligerent prophet makes a plant grow out of nowhere to help shade Jonah from the sun and heat. This makes Jonah happy. This plant, as insignificant as it is, brings Jonah joy. 2 verses ago Jonah wanted God to kill him, now because this plant is making Jonah comfortable he is exceedingly glad.

v.7-8 - We see here the desire of God to teach His children and the patience that he exhibits with even the most stubborn ones. God sends a worm to eat the plant and make it whither and then to add to Jonah’s discomfort God sends a scorching east wind to bring the heat and amplify Jonah’s discomfort even more. God sending the shade for Jonah is a demonstration of the love God has for him, but so too are the worm and the wind. You see God is taking on the role of father to Jonah. In Hebrews 12:6 it says, “The Lord disciplines the one He loves and chastises every son whom He receives.” As a loving father, God is disciplining Jonah. God is not disciplining Jonah despite His love for him, but because of His love for him. Sometimes when a child doesn’t learn from being taught something, you have to punish them to get them to understand. Your parents punish you because they love you. They have rules not to make your life boring but to protect from things you don’t even know you need protecting from. God is teaching Jonah through wind and the worm. And what is Jonah’s response? He asks God to kill him again.

v. 9 - Just as God questioned whether Jonah was right to be angry when He didn’t destroy the Ninevites, God asks the same thing in regards to Jonah’s anger toward the plant being taken from him. God is attempting to help Jonah look at his heart and compare it to His own. Jonah’s hard head does not get it still and he justifies his response.

v. 10-11 - So God puts Jonah’s feelings toward the plant into perspective for Jonah. He compares Jonah’s love for the plant with His love for the people of Nineveh. You see Jonah had nothing to do with that plant growing or dying yet he was so distraught over it he wanted to die himself. God on the other hand has a heart full of love for the Ninevites who he created and wants to see come into a relationship with Him. You see God loves people. Good people, bad people, skinny people, fat people, tall people, short people. God loves His creation, we are created in the very image of God and He loves us so much that He sent Christ to make a way for us to be with Him. God loves people. That’s what Jonah didn’t get. Jonah knew God loved Israel, but he missed the fact that God loves everyone, even the Ninevites. Because of this love for others, God sent Jonah to proclaim His message to the worst people on the earth.

It is amazing to me that we as Christians can be so narrow-minded when it comes to matters of grace and extending it to others. If you are a Christian and you have issues with sinning, which we all do, you probably have experienced a deep longing for grace. Jonah experienced the height of God’s grace and mercy even after he openly defied God by running God was still gracious. Even after he disagreed with God, God was still gracious. Jonah had no desire to extend this grace to others. We are the same. We lean on the grace and favor of God in our lives but when someone wrongs us, or someone we don’t like needs grace, we are quick to point out their flaws and we want God to reign down punishment, not mercy. The root of the problem is that we don’t understand the heart of God when it comes to His children. God is overjoyed when we as individuals respond to His call in our hearts and make Him Lord of our lives. But if His goal is for a few to be saved, then why don’t we go to heaven right after we are born again? It is because God’s heart is for the multitude, He isn’t satisfied that the “Churchy” people get it. This book ends abruptly and without making a neat tidy fairytale happily ever after ending. So it leaves it up to us to interject how we think Jonah responded to God’s final lesson. And it is up to us to examine our hearts and find where we don’t match up with God’s and fix that in our own lives.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Jonah Week 7

2011-11-10T09:20:00.001-06:00

November 9, 2011
Pray
Read Jonah 4:1-5

v.1 - All is well in the city of Nineveh. The people repented, and God relented of his wrath towards them. Which makes verse 1 seem a little out of place. Jonah is angry; all that God did for the Ninevites seems evil in the sight of Jonah.

v.2 - Finally we get a clear picture into Jonah’s head when he first decided to run from God. Jonah wasn’t so much afraid of failing the mission that God had given him, or even afraid for his life. The main reason he fled from God and headed to Tarshish was because he knew the nature of God and didn’t want to see how God would respond in the event that the Ninevites repented of their sins and turned to God. Jonah was afraid that he would be successful in his mission. Jonah knew from the start that the reason he was being sent from Jerusalem to Nineveh was so that God could change them and so that they would turn and worship Him. And Jonah hated that. You see Jonah was a Hebrew, an Israelite that was how he identified himself to the sailors when he was questioned. He took pride in his heritage and his people so much so that when God wanted to use him to help the enemies of the nation of Israel, this offended Jonah greatly. Jonah knew the character of God. He tells us some of God’s qualities here in verse 2. God is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love and relenting from disaster. This is the God that Jonah serves, and this is why he ran. You see even after God had shown Jonah mercy by not killing him when he fled, sending a whale to rescue him from the waters, and using him despite his disobedience Jonah hadn’t really learned much. Jonah wanted God’s mercy and grace and love and patience all to himself. Jonah had a picture of God and that picture was distorted. Jonah wanted God to be the God of Israel and no one else, but we see here that God had the desire to save those outside Israel and that didn’t fit with Jonah’s picture of God.

v.3 - So how does Jonah respond to God? He asks God to kill him because he doesn’t want to live in a world where God is merciful to those whom he does not want God to be merciful. Remember when Jonah was in the whale, he was thanking God for saving his life, now he is asking God to take his life. The contrast in Jonah’s prayer in the belly of the whale and his prayer here are crazy.

v.4 - Then God responds to Jonah and his anger in a fashion that we might not expect. In other instances when questioned about His actions, God has responded very differently. When Job was questioning God for allowing his entire life to be destroyed God rebuked Job and asked him why he thought he had the right to question Him. Instead here God does not rebuke or chide Jonah, he simply asks him to think again about how he is responding to God’s judgment on Nineveh. By asking Jonah this question God is making Jonah think about the circumstances and whether he is making an appropriate response to them.

v.5 - So what does Jonah do? He leaves Nineveh, goes up on a hill sets up his tent to wait out the remainder of the 40 day period set by God to see if God will not change his mind and wipe Nineveh off the map. Jonah still isn’t getting it.

We, like Jonah, many times are this way. We want God to look on us with grace, mercy, and love when we do wrong, but the first sign of someone else messing up we think God should immediately annihilate them from the planet. We are quick to receive grace but not quick to give it. James 1:20 says “the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” We have no right to look at others and be there judge and expect God to get them for what they have done. If that is our response when presented with these kinds of situations then there is a problem with our hearts, between us and God that needs to be remedied before we continue on.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Jonah Week 6

2011-11-03T11:16:00.001-05:00

October 26, 2011
Pray
Read Jonah 3:3b-10

v.3b - We see Jonah now, the picture of obedience, going into the proverbial Lion’s Den. Into the mouth evil. Nineveh is a great city. Nineveh is an evil city. Jonah is tasked with going into this place and speaking against it. The atrocities performed by the Assyrian empire to this point in history are legendary. They use the shock and awe method of warfare, the more grotesque the killing the more fear will spread throughout the world and the enemies of the Assyrians will think twice about standing up to this sadistic empire. I would go into detail but we need to keep this PG. Suffice it to say that they did a whole lot worse than slapping people with fish. Not only was it evil it was great, huge, and monstrous, in size. Nineveh was like the New York City of it’s time. It says in verse 3 that it took 3 days get across the city with the message that he had to proclaim. This measurement probably included the city of Nineveh and the surrounding cities that made up the metropolitan area. So Jonah goes to this great city to proclaim the message that God has given him.

v.4 - For Jonah, an Israelite, the message he was proclaiming filled him with joy. Nineveh, the most prominent city in the empire of their greatest enemy was doomed for destruction. In fact, Jonah’s message is simple and to the point. Jonah doesn’t give the Ninevites an option. All he says is that the in 40 days Nineveh will be overthrown. Forty is a significant number in the Bible. 40 days & nights rain fell in Noah’s day as judgment for the wicked in the world. Israel was sentenced to wander in the desert for 40 years for their disobedience. We read that a person is to get 40 stripes with the whip as penalty for a guilty man. Forty is a significant number in the Bible especially in regards to punishment. Jonah knew that God was serious about destroying this ungodly city.

v.5 - As Jonah proclaims his message the unthinkable happens. The Ninevites believed God. They began to repent for their sins from the smallest to the greatest. This was no doubt the opposite response Jonah thought would take place. But his is what happens when the people here from God. Notice how it says that the people of Nineveh believed God, not Jonah. They recognized the voice of God through His prophet. What’s crazy is nowhere in Jonah’s message did he call for this response from the people. He didn’t say anything about repentance or hope, all he said is that Nineveh would be destroyed. Yet these people after believing God began to fast and put on sackcloth. Fasting is a means of seeking God’s mercy while sackcloth is a symbol of repentance. When we hear the voice of God it will always cause us to repent and seek Him.

v.6-9 - When the city of Nineveh was a stir with what this prophet was saying word reached the king of Nineveh and the miraculous response to God continued. The king of the greatest empire the world had ever known got off his throne, took of his royal robe, covered himself in sackcloth and sat in ashes. This is unheard of for a ruler to humble himself so. The Assyrians saw their kings as gods and worshipped them as gods, so for this king to humble himself before God was a huge deal. The king then took the peoples repentance up a notch. He had them fast from food and drink and all wear sackcloth, even the animals. Commanded them to call out to God and repent of their evil ways in hopes that God may turn and relent from His anger toward them. Once again it amazes me that this happened without any prompting from Jonah. There was no reassurance that these actions would bring about the desired effect, no message from Jonah saying repent and be spared. No indication from this prophet that anything but doom and destruction were coming. But the king had heard from God and he responded the only way a person can when they come face to face with God.

v.10 - Many people will say that God is a wrathful God in the Old Testament and a loving God in the New Testament. While many times God’s wrath is portrayed in the Old Testament, here is a glowing example of the love and mercy that God showed even before Christ. When God looked down and saw the response of the people of Nineveh how they turned from their evil ways He decided not to overthrow this great city, at least not the way Jonah and the Ninevites thought He would. You see the city of Nineveh was overthrown, but they were overthrown by the love of God and spared His wrath because they repented and turned to Him. In order for us to be saved our lives must be overthrown by the love of God and we must call out to Him, fasting and in sackcloth, with a repentant heart. Then we, like Nineveh, will receive the mercy, and grace of the love of God and be saved by Him who sent His son into the world to die for us. God spares no expense to rescue us from ourselves.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Jonah Week 5

2011-10-27T10:11:00.001-05:00

October 26, 2011 Pray
Read Jonah 3:1-3

v.1-2 - We left Jonah on the beach after being thrown up out of the belly of the whale. Wet and stinking Jonah now hears from God again. By all rights Jonah probably was surprised by God speaking to him again. He didn’t deserve the salvation by whale that God provided him, and for God to speak to him after his disobedience is the ultimate act of Grace that God could show Jonah. Not only does God speak to Jonah with the desire to use him, but he is given his exact same task again, go to Nineveh and give them the message that God has for them. Jonah was given a second chance to be obedient to what God had called him to do. Many times in our lives when we disobey God we are brought back through a storm and perhaps even a whale to the place that we began with the opportunity to follow God from our previous starting point. This should encourage us and give us hope, that even when we mess up and miss out on what God has for us, many times he will desire to bring us back to that same task and give us a second chance at obeying Him. God responds to great sin with great mercy! Jonah did not know what the message that God would have him proclaim to the Ninevites was but he now knew that God was set on using him to bring the message to the Ninevites and hopefully change them. This was the second time God told Jonah to go to Nineveh. When we see things repeated by God that is when we know that God will bring it to pass. (Genesis 41:32). Nineveh is a great city and God has plans for this great city.

v.3 - The opening verses in chapter 3 parallel the opening verses in chapter 1. We see the similar call in verses 1-2 of each chapter, but when we get to verse 3, Jonah’s response, they begin to differ. I mean after all, the first time Jonah’s response was to flee from the presence of God. But after the storm and the whale Jonah’s response to God after being called a second time to go to Nineveh is drastically different. Instead of fleeing from God, he turns to God and all that God has planned for him. He responds to his second chance appropriately. Jonah is obedient to the will of God. Sometimes however when we disobey God, we are not afforded a second chance. Take for instance Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5), or Lot’s wife (Genesis 19), or King Saul (1 Samuel 15:22-23). But occasionally, like in the case of Jonah, God will give His children a second chance to obey His voice.

We see in God’s response to Jonah by giving him a second chance to go to Nineveh and obey Him a glimpse into the character of God and the grace that he shows us. We need to be thankful beyond measure that for Jonah and for us, God does not hold grudges. That is the essence of the gospel, the good news that despite our continual efforts to push God out of our lives He continues to pursue us and doesn’t hold our sin against us. For many of us, the relationships we have with others get messed up because we end up holding a grudge against them for things they did to us in the past. Not God. He doesn’t look at our sins anymore once we have Christ. In His infinite mercy, God exchanged our corruption and sin for Christ’s righteousness and perfection. We have a relationship with God today because instead of holding our sins against us and expecting us to make it right, God allows the perfection of Christ to be all that He sees when we are born again into a relationship with Jesus. We also see that God does not give up on us. God could have very well let Jonah sail away to Tarshish and brought up another more obedient prophet to go to Nineveh. But one remarkable thing about God is that He is more interested in us than in what we can accomplish. We cannot do anything for God. He does not need us for anything. Yet He chooses to use us because He wants to work on us and bring us closer to Him. God loves you, not for what you can do for Him, but He simply loves you. Period.

Jonah Week 4

2011-10-13T08:52:00.001-05:00

Pray
Read Jonah 1:17-2:10

v.17 - Here is where things get interesting. We could spend some time here talking through verse 17 and how God appointed a great fish to be precisely where Jonah was getting tossed overboard at the exact time it was going to happen, or how a human being could survive inside the stomach of a whale for 3 days and 3 nights. These are miracles that only could be orchestrated by God. But the text doesn’t spend much time addressing these miracles. Perhaps it is precisely because we could easily talk about the miracle of the fish and focus on that and forget about where the story really goes, it isn’t about Jonah’s physical survival, but about His spiritual revival and the renewal of his relationship with God.

v.1 - When we come to the end of ourselves and there is nowhere left for us to turn, that is when most us turn to God. I think we can safely say that Jonah is at the end of himself. He got thrown of a boat in the middle of the worst storm he had ever seen and is began sinking to the bottom of the ocean only to be swallowed by a great fish. Jonah is finished, done. So like many in scripture, he turned to God and prays. Like David - (Psalm 34:6), like Hannah - (1 Samuel 1:10), like Jeremiah - (Lamentations 3:54-56), and like Jesus - (Luke 22:44).

Jonah begins his prayer and if you look closely you will see that it resembles some older scripture that Jonah would have been familiar with being a Hebrew and a prophet of God. Jonah’s prayer is in the fashion of the Psalms of David, in fact we will see some great parallels between Jonah’s prayer and many of David’s prayers in the book of Psalms. Jonah shows us that he knows God’s word and that he returned to it and embraced it even after he ran from God. I can’t stress enough how much we need to be in the Word and KNOW the Word. It will be what you cling to in times of trouble, when things are bad. The more you familiarize yourself with the Word the more you will be able to draw on its truths to comfort you in those times, just like Jonah, who probably forgot his copy of the scriptures on the boat, recalled those same scriptures which then inspired him to turn to God and pray.

v.2 - We notice a pattern here that Jonah describes his troubles and Gods response. Jonah doesn’t simply dwell on his troubles and say “oh poor, poor pitiful me. “ He sees his circumstances and instead of seeing the bad, he sees how God has delivered him from death.

v.3-4 - In these verses Jonah describes his thoughts, and his hope to be restored. Jonah is under no pretentions about who it was that is responsible for him being thrown in to the sea, it was God. Jonah doesn’t run from this point, he embraces it and this is where his hope comes from. He sees this as God’s provision rather than His punishment. We should look at our valleys in life and examine them and see if it is God pushing us to Him through a storm, which if we are His children there is a good chance that is what is happening. God is in control in the midst of our storms.

v.5-7 - Jonah gets graphic with his description of what happened. Drowning is a scary thought. Being pulled down to your death, waves crashing over you have to be terrifying. But God saved Jonah and God pulls us out of the depths of our despair when we feel that we are drowning under the pressure of all that life throws at us. In verse 7 Jonah summarizes his situation. There is something that happens when we realize that we have nowhere to turn but to God. God uses storms in our lives to give us a clearer vision of our circumstances. When we see all that God has done for us it changes our perspective on things. We see this in the book of Genesis. Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed, he prayed to the Lord, “Deliver me” (Genesis 32:7-11) and that very night he encountered God as never before. When we are at our end and we turn to God and see that we must rely on Him only for all of our needs to be met then He can really move in us.

v.8-9 - Jonah now thinks of those he left behind, the sailors, maybe even the Ninehvites as he speaks of those who worship idols because they have no hope in the steadfast love that those who follow God have. This “steadfast love” is the Hebrew word hesed, the ancient covenant term for God’s unfailing mercy and lovingkindess. Then he brings it back to God and his commitment to serving God again. He ends his prayer by saying something that was controversial then and is still controversial today, “Salvation belongs to the Lord!” Jonah here isn’t simply referring to his salvation from the waves by the whale but we now see so much more in these words. Jonah is saying that there is no other way to have salvation than through the Lord, the God of Israel. For us today that means one thing. We have no hope of salvation except through the Life, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. There is no other way, not many roads to God, only one, Christ.

v.10 - Even if you didn’t know this story from Sunday school in 1st grade you had to know this was coming. God can’t just leave this guy in the whale; he has had a change of heart and is back on God’s mission. So he gets vomited out of the great fish onto dry land. After 3 days and 3 nights in the belly of the whale, Jonah is given a new life. Sound familiar?? Jesus, in Matthew 12:40 says this, “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” You see even here, in this story of a disobedient prophet, we are being pointed to Christ, our hope and salvation. We can have new life too, a new birth given to us by faith in Christ.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Jonah Week 3

2011-10-06T13:49:00.001-05:00

October 5, 2011
Pray
Read Jonah 1:7-16

v.7 - we pick up Jonah’s story in the midst of the storm. The sailors had done all they knew to do in order to save themselves. They are now so desperate they are asking even Jonah to pray to his God that they might not perish. So they do the only thing that is sensible to them, nothing else is working, so they cast lots to find out who is the cause of this terrible storm.
Casting lots was a way in ancient times for the people to determine the will of the divine. Those who feared God, Israelites, believed that when they cast lots, God determined the outcome (Proverbs 16:33). And in this case God did influence the outcome, the lot fell on Jonah.

v.8- Once the lot was cast and it fell on Jonah the sailors began to question him, this man who needed to get away from something, this man with the shady look in his eye. What had he done to bring this storm down on them?

v.9 - When Jonah answers the men, he starts by stating his nationality. He is a Hebrew. This will be important as we continue in this book. Then he goes on to say that he fears the Lord, the God of heaven who made the sea and the dry land. Jonah is servant of the God who can fix their problem, this revelation shocks the men.

v.10 - The men go from being afraid to being exceedingly afraid. This was not the answer they wanted to hear. Jonah had obviously upset this very powerful God, so much so that all their prayers to their false gods were useless to sway the will of Jonah’s God. They get pretty upset at Jonah exclaiming, “What is this that you have done!” The men now knew the extent of the danger they were in my letting this man who is fleeing from God on their ship.

v.11 - After identifying the culprit, the sailors know that something must be done to assuage the wrath of this omnipotent being because the sea is growing more tempestuous. They ask Jonah, the fleeing prophet, what they should do. Instead of instantly taking a rash course of action and killing Jonah for bringing this on them, they show love and kindness not expected from pagan people. They don’t want to do anything to this man that would bring down any greater wrath from God.

v.12-13 - Jonah tells them that they must hurl him into the sea. Just as God hurled the storm and the sailors hurled the cargo, now they must hurl Jonah overboard to save themselves. Still the sailors want to try and save Jonah. Instead of immediately throwing him off the ship they try to row back to shore again. But the sea grows more tempestuous, they can’t make it back.

v.14-15 - Still the sailors show us more of their character than Jonah has this whole time. They turn their backs on their own gods and now call out to the Lord. They see that God has acted how he pleased to get the attention of his prodigal prophet. So they beg God to not hold this man’s life against them, they hurl Jonah into the sea, and the sea stopped it’s raging.

v.16 - Now we see an amazing thing happen. These unbelieving pagan men now believe in and fear the Lord. They went from being mildly afraid, to exceedingly afraid and now that fear has transformed into the fear of the Lord that leads to faith. These pagan worshipping men, after experiencing the full fury of the Lord are now believers in Him and make sacrifices and vows to God.

We see in these verses in Jonah a sharp contrast between 2 different types of people. The first group of people is the pagan sailors. These men did not have anything to do with God. They were perfectly content with their lives away from Him. Then we have Jonah, this man who is supposed to be a follower of God, a prophet who fears and obeys. Both of these are examples of people running from God, Jonah’s “morality and correct religion have brought him no closer to God than the sailors’ worldliness and false religion.” We see that even those of us who are born again have the potential to be as rebellious and wrong in our actions as the person who had never heard the name of Christ. Our response to God in the midst of our rebellion is what makes the difference. “Whenever we try to run from God, He’s committed to making our lives miserable--for our sakes. And so often He’ll use some kind of storm to do it, not to punish but to mercifully intervene.” The sailors responded rightfully, with fear and eventually worship for God. Jonah did not respond well. He ran from God in the good times in his life when things were looking up. Jonah was afraid that God’s plan for his life would mess up his perfect life. So he ran. He did not respond with fear and obedience when God commanded him to go. And he ends up drowning in the ocean because of his disobedience.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

An Update

2011-09-29T15:03:00.000-05:00

Well I haven't posted in a while and that's because my normal posts (my previous Wednesday nights notes) have been off because of some different things happening for the last 2 Wednesday nights. So I figured this would be a good time to give an update on how things are going for the Quinto family since moving to Huntington, TX.

We have been here for almost 8 months now and the time has flown by. We have already been through our first graduation, summer, camp, and new school year starting with the youth here in Huntington. Let me just say that things here are not exactly what I have expected. I really thought that when we moved here we would know everyone, all the students, parents, etc. in Huntington by now. That is just not the case, at all. We are just scratching the surface in getting ourselves established in the community.

Things have been great with the youth. The summer really afforded me with some time to develop relationships with some of the students and it was a wonderful summer. God has really opened up some opportunities for me to really pour into a few of these youth and that is what I feel God has called me to do. My desire is to disciple these students and really get them to see that their walk with God is more than just a surface thing, but that it is a struggle, and requires deep commitment and time from them. I have seen God grab a hold of some of these students and He has allowed me to come along side them and encourage them in their walk with Him.

Courtney and Bryson seem to be adjusting well. Bryson has made some friends and he loves the youth. Sometimes it seems he likes them more than me....oh well, he'll grow out of that, right? He is getting HUGE! Everyday he just grows and gets smarter. He definitely is going to be a handful for many years though. But all in all he is a great kid and I can't wait to seem him grow up in the Lord. Courtney is making friends and re-decorating our house every other day it seems! She is starting to sell Willow House home interior stuff and she is really excited about that, (hence all the re-decorating). So she is doing great as well!

So that is really about it. I don't know if this is of any interest to any of you but I really thought I would like to let people know what our lives are like these days. Thanks for reading and I would love to get some comments from you guys. Let me know what's up in your world, thanks again!!

Jonah Week 2

2011-09-15T08:50:00.002-05:00

Pray
Read Jonah 1:4-6

In preparing for this study I had some help. first of all if you are interested in digging deeper into the story of Jonah I would encourage you to pick up the book "Surprised by Grace" by Tullian Tchividjian. Secondly thanks to my good friend Dan Adams for helping me with this study as well. So let's get started.

v.4 - We pick up the story of Jonah right after he gets on the boat to head to Tarshish as he is fleeing from the presence of the Lord. It says that God hurled a great wind upon the sea and there was a mighty tempest. This was no small storm. Jonah was most likely on a ship that was tested and tried on the open waters, well-made and crafted to handle the days out at sea even through the storms. But we clearly see that the ship was in danger of being torn apart by the wind and waves. God was fiercely trying to get Jonah’s attention. By going to these lengths to gain Jonah’s attention, God was also gaining the attention of the others on the boat.

v. 5 - We see the affect this tempest was having on the sailors. We have to understand that these were not first time sailors, they were hardy, seasoned men who had weathered many a storm on this very ship, yet they were afraid. So afraid that they were praying to their own gods, with no response, and jettisoning the very cargo they were probably being paid to transport. A light ship sits higher on the water and can ride out a storm easier. So they were tossing everything not bolted down, they were taking desperate measures to stay alive throughout this very dangerous, very scary storm. So where is Jonah in the midst of this storm? Well, Jonah, while everyone else is scared for their lives, is down in the bottom of the ship, sleeping. We notice here a trend in the life of Jonah. He is literally on a ‘downward spiral’. Jonah went “down” to Joppa; he went “down” to the ships hold and lay “down” to sleep. Jonah is making his way further from the presence of the Lord and down to the pit. We can contrast Jonah’s reaction in the midst of the storm with the Apostle Paul’s reaction in a storm on the Mediterranean sea. Paul in Acts 27 encounters a bad storm as well. Paul, in the midst of the storm, “encourages the crew, speaking boldly and convincingly of God’s assurance to him that all of them will indeed come out alive. He steps into a leadership vacuum to direct the ship’s officers and mean and ultimately helps save every life on board.” Jonah was not the man of God that he should have been in the situation. Jonah did nothing to encourage or help those he was sailing with. He became useless in light of the circumstances, far removed from his glory days as prophet of Israel Jonah hid in the bowels of the ship trying to get away from his God. Because of his actions Jonah put others in danger and he was not willing to accept that at first.

v.6 - The captain of the ship comes down, probably looking for more cargo to offload, and finds Jonah sleeping and he tears into him. The captain was probably a bit upset that this man was sleeping while the rest of the men were praying like never before and doing everything in their power to keep the ship afloat. So the captain wakes Jonah and demands that he pray to his God. This was no mere suggestion, the captain was adamant that Jonah wake up and join the others in praying for their rescue.

After these few verses we see the depths to which Jonah has decided to go to flee from God and the lengths to which God is willing to go to pursue those who are running from Him. When we run from God our actions don’t just affect us. They affect those around us. They affect those who love and care for us. When we run from God, we put ourselves in a place that we don’t want to be and more often than not we drag others there with us as well. We will pick up and finish the rest of chapter one next week.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Jonah week 1

2011-09-08T10:36:00.002-05:00

Read Jonah 1:1-3
Pray

In preparing for this study I had some help. first of all if you are interested in digging deeper into the story of Jonah I would encourage you to pick up the book "Surprised by Grace" by Tullian Tchividjian. Secondly thanks to my good friend Dan Adams for helping me with this study as well. So let's get started.

v.1 - We open up the book of Jonah with a very common phrase when it comes to the prophets. The readers of the time would have recognized that this is a phrase attached to other big name prophets in the Old Testament like Samuel and Elijah. We know from this opening in verse 1 that Jonah was a prophet, but did you know that we hear about Jonah earlier in the Bible? In 2 Kings 14:25 we read “He restored the border of Israel from Lebo-hamath as fat as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from Gath-hepher.” Actually Jonah was probably well known and liked amongst the Israelites because his prophecy in 2 Kings was a benefit to Israel, and it came true quickly. Jonah was not new on the scene; he was an established trusted prophet.

v.2 - This was a huge deal. Many other Old Testament prophets were asked to speak against other nations but they were never told to go to those places and tell them what they were doing was wrong. Add to that the place where he was called wasn’t very pleasant. Nineveh- As the ESV Study Bible notes, sat on the east bank of the Tigris river, about 200 miles north of present-day Baghdad and over 500 miles northeast of Israel. Nineveh was at least a major city, if not the capitol, of the Assyrian Empire, the very same empire who would later sack Israel. God calling Jonah to Nineveh would be similar to being a Jew called to Germany right before WWII or something along those lines. The evil of the city as so great that it warranted God calling a prophet to go there and to speak against them. God often calls us to many different types of tasks. Often we think of calling as what will do in the future, like “What is my calling in life?” There is another sense in which we have many callings. We’re called to be good children, good students; we are called to be children and worshipers of God. Some things we are called to are easy and can be great blessings to us and those around us. Other times we are called to more difficult things, things that push and stretch us

v.3 - Here is where things begin to go downhill for Jonah. Verses 2 and 3 are in strict contrast with one another. We see the call of God on the life of Jonah, we know that he has already been established as a prophet and so he knows when he is being spoken to by God. But unlike his last message from God, Jonah doesn’t like or agree with this message. We actually aren’t told why Jonah is fleeing, just that he flees. We really won’t find out the real reason until later in the book. If you were to look at a map and see where Nineveh is and look where Jonah was trying to go, Tarshish, you would see that they are basically in the complete opposite direction. It’s not like Jonah made a slight detour, he intentionally picked a place that he could go that would take him away from God. He even makes a point to go to Joppa, a non-Israelite town on the coast to sail to Tarshish from. Jonah is doing everything he can to distance himself from God, including avoiding the people of God. It can be easy to look at Jonah and mock him because of his foolishness. Often we fail to see that we are often in the shoes of Jonah. We may not literally flee to someplace like California to avoid God, but there are many times in our lives that fail to comply with God’s commands for our lives. How often have we felt called to speak into the life of another that was maybe “lower” on the social totem pole from us? We are much more like Jonah then we wish to believe.

Jonah’s radical disobedience of God’s direct command is shocking to us, and when we begin to realize that we too are like Jonah, it leaves us in longing; longing for the one who has obeyed the word of the LORD perfectly. This is found in Christ. We often emphasize Christ’s death on the Cross, but almost to the point that we’ve forgotten his perfectly lived life. He did what we could not and gave it to us! Tim Keller “Jesus lived the life we should have, and died the death we should have.” We should desire to imitate Christ, which is why we still strive. Though we cannot follow the law perfectly, because we desire to be like Christ, we still strive. Not out of need to justify ourselves by our actions, but because of the love that we have for our great redeemer.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Are You a Scoffer?

2011-09-01T08:42:00.002-05:00

So we are finishing up our series on wisdom and the three types of people that we find in proverbs. The first type of person we looked at was the wise person, and then last week we looked at the fool. Tonight we will take a look at the worst of the three, the scoffer.

First let’s review what we have learned so far.

A wise person:

1. Make good decisions
2. Live a long life
3. Be attractive to others
4. Will prosper
5. Will be persuasive
6. Will be prepared for the future
7. Will be sought after by those of power and influence
8. Will ultimately rise to a position of power
9. Will be kept safe from harm
10. Will be a good counselor for others

A fool:

1. repeats his folly
2. thinks he knows everything
3. open his mouth and prove what he is.

4. confident in their own knowledge and do not seek wisdom.
5. You are who your friends are.
6. the fool will be servant to the wise
7. foolish choices is a matter of life and death
8. trusts in his own understanding

Tonight we look at how we distinguish between a fool and a scoffer. A fool knows the difference between right and wrong and chooses to do wrong, so what could be worse than that? Well in that respect a scoffer is the same as a fool. They both know what is right and what is wrong but the scoffer criticizes those who choose to do right, they criticize the wise. You know who these people are. When you look for scoffers you can spot them pretty easily. They are the ones who think they are too cool to worship. They sit on the outskirts of bible study and don’t participate, and then they look for opportunities to make fun of the students who do those things. Scoffers are arrogant, smart-mouthed, and condescending. They consistently ridicule the people who are trying to do what is right. Let’s look in proverbs and see what Solomon has to say about scoffers.

Proverbs 13:1 –
• a scoffer doesn’t listen to correction

Proverbs 14:6 –
• A scoffer seeks but does not find because they don’t seek the right thing and they don’t know how to seek it correctly

Proverbs 15:12 –
• When a scoffer looks for wisdom it is nowhere to be found because they have distanced themselves from wise people

Proverbs 19:29 –
• We will all be judged but punishment awaits those refuse wisdom

Proverbs 29:8 –
• Scoffers purposefully stir up trouble. They look for opportunities to cause mischief

Proverbs 22:10 –
• A scoffer causes problems wherever they go, if you get rid of a scoffer many problems will cease to exist within groups.

Being a scoffer is nothing to scoff at. Worse than being a fool a scoffer takes the rejection of wisdom to an entirely different level. Scoffers know what they are doing and how wrong it is but they relish the opportunity to make things hard on others, to reject wisdom and understanding. A scoffer is almost a lost cause. They are people who have no desire to change what they are doing. But we can’t give up hope for those who are scoffers. We must love them and do our best to teach them and instruct them to better live their lives and how to correctly seek wisdom. Proverbs 21:24 says “Scoffer is the name of the arrogant, haughty man who acts with arrogant pride.” It is hard to minister to one who is arrogant and thinks they know better than you, but we must try because they need Jesus too.

Are You a Fool?

2011-08-25T11:01:00.000-05:00

With the new school year there will come choices that you will have to make that are not going to be easy. This week I would like to talk about the second type of person that we have the choice to be. The last few weeks we’ve talked about being a wise person and making wise choices and what would happen to you if you live a life that is truly seeking God. Today we will talk about the opposite of that. I want us to look at what a fool looks like.

The Fool

In Proverbs 1:7 we find the simplest definition of what a fool is. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

A fool knows what is right but decides to do the opposite. By this definition we are all fools. We all know right from wrong. Since we all know that and at times we all decide to do what is wrong, we are all fools. But thankfully that is not the only qualification. Fools choose to do what is wrong. They follow their desires and live for the moment. Here is what the book of Proverbs has to say about fools.

Proverbs 29:11 -
• A foolish person does not think before they act. They give into every passion and desire they have without considering the consequences

Proverbs 26:11 –
• How can you tell a wise person from a fool when we all sin? A fool repeats his folly; a wise person repents and turns away.

Proverbs 26:7 –
• A fool thinks he knows everything therefore teaching them is worthless.

Proverbs 17:28 –
• It is better to let people think you are a fool than to open your mouth and prove that you are.

Proverbs 14:16 –
• If you don’t think about your decisions and how they will affect you in the long run, you are a fool

Proverbs 13:20
• You are who your friends are and the actions of your friends will directly affect you and the way people perceive you.

Proverbs 12:15 –
• Fools think they have all the answers and do not listen to wisdom. They are confident in their own knowledge and do not seek wisdom.

Proverbs 11:29 –
• If you are foolish you will always be in a position under someone

Proverbs 9:6 –
• Making foolish choices is a matter of life and death

Proverbs 28:26 –
• Even though we mess up and do what is wrong, if we trust in God and walk wisely we will be delivered.

As a Christian we are called to something more, the world will tell you if it feels good do it, whether it has to do with drugs, alcohol, sex, popularity, or any other thing that feels good at the moment; that kind of thinking is foolishness. We are called to something more, we are called to live a life that is made up of wise choices. You may think that it is impossible. That being in middle school or high school means that you can’t make wise choices because it is too hard. We were never promised an easy road. Making wise choices will be hard. Not being a fool is not easy, but it is vital to walking with Christ.

Even though you may not know as much as some others, you can still live a life that is not wrapped up in foolishness. When we talked about making wise choices we determined that it is possible. It is hard to do, but if you put everything in your life in its proper place of priority and seek Christ above all else, there is no doubt in my mind that you will stand a better chance of not being a fool.

Are You Wise?

2011-08-19T10:38:00.000-05:00

August 16, 2011
Tthe word wise is mentioned in the book of Proverbs a lot. That is when you say how many times? I counted, 67 times give or take a few. That is a lot, that is on average more than 2 times per chapter that the word wise is mentioned in proverbs. Can you see the main theme? Out of those 60 some odd mentions of wise people I want to focus on 10 things that some of these verses show us. Each of these verses will paint a picture for us about what a wise person looks like and what a wise person will look like if they walk in wisdom.

1. Make good decisions - Proverbs 1:1-5

   • A person who is wise obtains wise counsel, what they hear they will apply.

2. Live a long life - Proverbs 9:11

   • A person, who makes wise decisions, will have a longer life.

3. Be attractive to others - Proverbs 11:30

   • Not physically attractive, but others will want to be around a wise person
4. Will prosper - Proverbs 14:24

   • A person who makes wise decisions will do so with money as well

5. Will be persuasive - Proverbs 16:23

   • With wisdom comes the ability to lead others in the right direction, to persuade them to follow the right path

6. Will be prepared for the future - Proverbs 19:20, 21:20

   • If you listen to wise people and make wise decisions, then you will know how to understand and use what God gives today and in the future

7. Will be sought after by those of power and influence - Proverbs 14:35

   • The best way to make a change in this world is to be wise

8. Will ultimately rise to a position of power - Proverbs 17:2

   • A wise person will be placed in a position to change things because their decisions will be made with wisdom

9. Will be kept safe from harm - Proverbs 28:26

   • If you make wise choices you will be kept out of trouble

10. Will be a good counselor for others - Proverbs 27:9

   • If you make wise choices your friends will ask for your help and you will be able to give good advice.

Making wise choices in your life today will reap you benefits now and in the future. We need to understand that walking wisely is important. If we choose not to make wise choices we are by default choosing to make unwise choices. We need to see that as Christians this isn’t just about our life or others lives here on earth. As Christians, our choices will affect others eternal destinations. If we do not make wise choices we will hurt our witness, and that can possibly push some away from Christ all together.

1 Peter week 16

2011-08-04T14:21:00.000-05:00

August 3, 2011 Pray
Read 1 Peter 5

v.1 - Peter is closing out his letter to the churches in Asia Minor, making sure to hit on a few things first. He puts himself in the same position, as elder, letting those whom he is writing to know that he doesn’t hold himself up above any of them, though he very easily could being that he was one of the 12 disciples that Jesus chose which meant he was an eyewitness of Christ and what he said was to be respected. Peter was humble, which he calls us too later in this chapter. Peter is asserting that he is in the same boat as these men who are leading the church.

v.2-3 - He calls these older men to be shepherds of the people of God. We get our English word ‘pastor’ from the Greek word for shepherd. To shepherd a flock means to watch them and protect them, guide them and help them to grow. Peter is basically telling these men that they are to be the leaders of the church, to exercise oversight within the group. Elders are to shepherd the flock willingly not having to be forced to do so as God would have it. Peter is encouraging us to shepherd others with the right attitude. Another encouragement that Peter gives those who are leaders in God’s house is that they are not to do it with money in mind. Money should not be the sole motivating factor in why you shepherd others. Jesus did not have a church that wrote Him checks every week. But still someone had to support Him and He relied on God’s provision as He walked this earth. He did not walk into a place and say ‘as long as you pay me I will teach you about God’. No He trusted God to provide for Him and he ministered everywhere He went. The third way a shepherd is supposed to serve is that they are to lead by example. They are not supposed to hold to the saying of ‘do as I say not as I do.’ Actually they are supposed to do ministry the exact opposite. As shepherds we are to say to those who we are in charge of, ‘follow me as I follow Christ.’

v.4 - when Christ returns, we who have been faithful to shepherd His flock like we should, will be given a crown of glory, but we must remain faithful and live our lives shepherding those with whom we are entrusted.

v.5-7 - Peter now switches gears to speak to those who may need to learn to be humble, he is speaking to those who are being shepherded. Those who are younger are subject to the elders. There is always someone who we can learn from and be guided by so this is an exhortation for all of us. We need to understand that we will never have all the knowledge or wisdom that this world has to offer. We will never know all there is to know about our God. We are all in some way ‘younger’ in our faith to others and we need to clothe ourselves with humility and accept that we may need to be taught some things about our faith. When we have humility we can learn better, we treat others better. If we really understand grace and all that God has done for us we will not be proud, but we will be humble. When we humble ourselves before God it is easy to rely on Him for all that we need. In verse 7 it says to cast all cares on Him because He cares for us. We can only do that when we are humble, not when we think we can fix it all by ourselves.

v.8-11 - Peter tells us here that we need to be watchful and vigilant, looking out for the devil. He encourages us in that we CAN resist the devil and that we are not alone in our suffering in this world. Peter also encourages us that God himself walks with us and in the end will restore us and help us through all of our suffering.

v. 12-14 - Here is Peter’s final greeting, stand firm in the true grace of God.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 Peter week 15

2011-07-21T11:30:00.000-05:00

July 20, 2011

Pray
Read 1 Peter 4:12-19

v.12 - Peter has hit on this so much that we might just be a little sick of hearing it by week 15. But we have to remember that one of the main things the churches in Asia minor were dealing was persecution, they weren’t accepted in society, so Peter, now that he is close to ending his letter, is exhorting them once again that they will suffer. This isn’t some strange thing happening to them, rather they should expect it. I would even go as far to propose that if we are not suffering are we really living the way we should as Christians? Think about it, Peter is not saying that they might suffer, but that they will. Christ said the same thing in John 15:20. James tells us to rejoice when we go through trials, not if, but when. So I ask again, if you are not suffering, going through trials, are you living your life for Christ?
v.13 - Once again, Peter tells us to rejoice when we suffer. Our lives are tied to Christ and we will, if we follow Him, have the same pattern for our lives and our attitudes when it comes to persecution. We get to participate in the sufferings of Christ; we bond with Christ through our sufferings. Just like a team that comes together through adversity grows closer together, so it should be with us and Christ when we suffer. We are suffering with Christ and that should draw us closer together.
v.14-16 - Peter gives us some encouragement about how we are supposed to suffer. When we suffer we need to be sure that we are not suffering for doing wrong. If we suffer for doing what is wrong, it does not bond us with Christ and it does not help us grow in our faith. Only when we suffer for Christ are we blessed. When we suffer for Christ Peter tells us that the Holy Spirit rests on us at that time. This is the same Spirit that rested on Christ. The Holy Spirit is with us when we suffer, we are not suffering alone, and we are blessed by God with His Spirit to help us through times when we suffer for His name. We forget that and try and rely on our own strength and fall. We can suffer well with the help of the Holy Spirit. Verse 15 is pretty simple in its meaning. Don’t suffer for doing evil. Verse 16 tells us to suffer as a follower of Christ so that we bring glory to the name of God. This is the only time in the New Testament that the term ‘Christian’ is not used as an insult against those who are followers of Christ. This is the only instance in the New Testament that followers of Christ accept and use this term since it was originally used to insult not build up. We shouldn’t be ashamed when we are called Christians, but we should readily accept others associating us with Christ.
v.17-18 - Peter reminds us that we as Christians are safe through judgment, but we are saved in spite of our sins and in the midst of our sins through the washing of the blood of Christ. Those without Christ do not have the same hope. If we as Christians still need the purifying touch of Christ, how much more do those without Christ need to be purified. We all have to answer to God and be judged. God will judge us, His family, first. When we stand before God as His sons and daughters we still must be judged. Some who claim the name of Christ in this life will be exposed to be frauds and their true heart will be revealed and they will be turned away. Peter shows us that part of the reason for our suffering is so that God can purge us and reveal our hearts. If when you suffer you fall away from God you might not know God at all.
v.19 - In light of the last few verses, Peter tells us in verse 19 how to live. When we suffer for living for Christ we need to entrust our souls to God who is faithful. If it is God’s will for us to suffer (and I would say that it is) then we are to surrender our lives to Christ and live a life that is honoring to God in the midst of suffering.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 Peter Week 14

2011-07-07T10:05:00.000-05:00

July 6, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 4:7-11

v.7 - As Peter writes this letter, he sees that all the major events in the great plan of salvation that God set forth, through prophecy and scripture, had already come to pass. The messiah had come, Christ died was buried and has been raised from the dead and ascended into heaven. All that is left, according to prophecy and Christ’s own word is for Him to come again and usher in the end of all things. Peter knew that all this had come to pass and so at any minute in Peter’s life, and now at any minute, Christ could return. So when Peter writes that the end of all things is at hand, he was correct then and is correct now. But why is it important for us to understand this fact? It is because of the urgency with which we should live in light of this. Peter tells us to be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of our prayers. We are to live like Christ is coming back today, making sure we hare self-controlled and clear headed in regard with the way we present ourselves to the world. If we knew with 100% certainty that Christ was coming back tomorrow we would more than likely live differently. We would act different, think different, talk different. We would tell people about Christ and beg them to see the light if Christ was coming back tomorrow. That is how we are to live our lives today so that we are devoted to prayer and to maximize our usefulness in this world for Christ.

v.8-9 - The most important thing for us as Christians to remember is love. Peter says, above all we are to love one another earnestly. This isn’t just an ‘I love you because I’m supposed to’ type of love. This is a work hard at loving you in spite of your weaknesses and faults type of love. There are enough people in the world who are not loving that to be the church means that we need to love above all else. Verse 8 continues and says that love covers a multitude of sins. This simply means that when you love someone, when they sin against you or hurt you, you are more likely to forgive them and look past the sin or hurt. This does not however give anyone license to sin or hurt someone in the church, but when that happens, if you have been working at loving one another above all else, you will be able to forgive the wrong of you Christian brother or sister. Verse 9 goes on to tell us that we are to show hospitality to one another without grumbling. This is the backbone of Christian community. Without showing hospitality to each other we aren’t really showing each other love. Invite each other over for dinner, or to watch a movie. Invite the youth pastor and his family over for steaks and baked potatoes and homemade brownies. That is what hospitality is all about, being open to share your home, your life, with those who are Christians in your life.

v.10-11 - each Christian has received at least 1 spiritual gift from God (Romans 12:6-8; 1 Cor. 12:8-10; Ephesians 4:11). These gifts are not for your personal benefit. They are meant to be used for the mutual benefit of the church. If you are not using your spiritual gift(s) to build up the church, then you are not doing what is right and you are not being a good steward of what God has given you. We are called to serve one another with our gifts and that is what we should be doing. Peter here divides spiritual gifts into 2 categories, speaking gifts and serving gifts. Those who speak should speak God’s word, those who serve must not rely on their own strength to serve others, but rely on God and draw on His strength so that God will be glorified in there service. A funny thing can happen in churches sometimes. We can have a worship service or an outreach program and God can be left out of the picture. If we do things, speak or serve, out of our own strength or will, then God will not be glorified and we will be wrong for that. Our ultimate aim is that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, and we are to preach Christ and everything we do should point to Christ and through that bring glory to God the Father.

1 Peter Week 13

2011-07-07T10:04:00.002-05:00

June 22, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 4:1-6

V.1-2 -Peter begins this section of his letter by first pointing us back to our example of Christ; he tells us that since Christ suffered while He was here in the flesh, we are to arm ourselves in the same way of thinking. We are, to once again, have the mind of Christ especially when it comes to us suffering. One benefit of suffering is that it helps us to grow stronger in our faith. We learn to obey when we suffer for Christ. When you suffer for Christ it is evidence that your faith is real and that can lead to you being strengthened in your walk with Christ. But we have to have the same mind that Christ had when we suffer. When Peter says that, whoever suffers in the flesh has ceased from sin, he doesn’t mean that if you suffer you will no longer sin, but that when we suffer for doing what is right, it causes us to see the benefit of our right actions and to no longer focus on sin. Sin isn’t what controls you rather your relationship with Christ is what now drives you as a Christian. Verse 2 continues this thought, as a result of our change of focus from sin to Christ, we will no longer live for human passions but for the will of God. Everything we do, after our new life in Christ, should be focused on the will of God. What we wear, eat, read, watch, say, and do should be in line with the will of God.

V.3-4 - Peter says in verse 3 that what was done before these people became Christians was enough sinning. Before Christ in their lives, these people didn’t have any concept of what a Christian was supposed to live like so they lived contrary to Christ. Each of us is the same, before our life with Christ we live opposed to the Word of God, living for ourselves and no one else. After our new life with Christ, people should see a marked change in us. In verse 4 Peter tells us that the people that these Christians in Asia Minor hung out with before are now surprised at the new life that they have in Christ. This is biblical backing for the fact that sometimes as a Christian you have to leave some friends behind to stay in the old way of life so that you can live your new life for Christ. This isn’t an easy thing to do; in fact Peter tells us that for some of these Christians in Asia Minor, their old friends heaped abuse on them. When you begin to live life differently than you have in the past, there will be consequences, both good and bad. That is when we have to remember what we read in verse 1. That we need to have the same attitude and mind that Christ had during His suffering and we need to take heart and know that we wouldn’t suffer if we weren’t being like Christ.

v.5-6 - Peter tells us in verse 5 that those who do not turn from their ways and follow Christ, those that treat you badly for following Christ, they will have to give account to Him who judges both the living and the dead. So rest in the fact that if you are mistreated in this life, whoever mistreats you will have to answer for that in eternity. Peter then tells us in verse 6 that the gospel was preached to those who are alive now and those who have died so that when they are judged in the flesh, or die physically, they will live in the spirit the way God does. Verse 6 tells us that we preach the gospel so that when people die which is inevitable, they will be able to spend eternity with God in heaven.

In these verses peter wants us as Christians to understand that we will suffer, a theme that he has emphasized a lot in this letter, but that when we suffer we need to have the same mind and attitude that Christ had in His suffering because when we suffer we will be built up in our faith. Our suffering will also help us to purge the lifestyle of sin from ourselves so that we no longer are controlled by sin but rather in everything we seek to do the will of God. People should see the change in us from before we were living for Christ to after we were living for Christ and sometimes we need to leave some friends behind who no longer hold the same values as we do. And even when those some friends hurt us now because of our faith, we know that Christ will judge them and we will be vindicated in the end.

1 Peter Week 12

2011-07-07T10:04:00.001-05:00

June 15, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 3:18-22

v.18 - Peter closes chapter three with a few verses of how Christ lived and how His example is one for us to follow. In verse 18 Peter reminds us that Christ suffered for sins, though He had not sinned. Though He was perfect He suffered and bled and died for our sins. He was righteous, we are unrighteous. We deserved death, Christ died in our place. Sometimes I think we forget that. Sometimes I believe that we think we deserve grace, and love, and mercy from God. When in reality we deserve none of those things. This verse is an example great explanation of Substitutionary Atonement. Christ was our substitute and payment for our trespasses against God. He was the only worthy payment that God could accept. Because our sin is an infinite trespass against God, we need a payment that is infinite. Christ death for us on the cross, because of His perfect sinless life, allows us to be brought before God holy and blameless, just like Christ.

v.19-20 - these next few verses are some of the most hotly debated and controversial texts in the new testament. We will look at what they say remembering the context in which they were written. Verse 19 is hard to understand. Biblical scholars debate what Peter means by ‘spirits in prison.’ The most widely accepted view is that Peter is speaking about those who were unsaved during the time of Noah. Christ, through Noah, proclaimed the good news to these people but they did not obey and so are now suffering judgment, in prison (hell). God provided a way of salvation for the people of Noah’s day, but they did not listen and so out of the entire population of the world only 8 people survived God’s wrath against sin in the world. In the same way God has provided for us a way of salvation, not through an ark, but through His son Jesus. The end result for those who do not obey is still the same, death.

v.21-22 - Verse 21, if taken out of context, can really mess up what you believe as a follower of Christ. Let me say this plan and clear. Being baptized does not save you. Peter references baptism because, like Noah and his family believed in God and had faith enough to have an outward manifestation of that faith which for them was to build an ark, we too have an outward manifestation of our inward faith and that is through baptism. Baptism does not save and that is what Peter means when he says that it is not a removal of dirt from the body, meaning it does not do the cleansing, it is just the outward representation of our clean and repentant heart. It is only through the resurrection of Jesus Christ that we have salvation. Verse 22 gives us hope. We have a savior who was crucified, and raised from the dead, never to die again but to sit at the right hand of God the Father and who has all authority over angels, authorities and powers. Christ, whom we are co-heirs of the kingdom with, has authority over everything, both in the physical world and in the spiritual world. And if He died for you, don’t you think that in this life He wants to lead you to what is best? Christ loves us and desires our best and we can rest in the fact that He is with us through everything we go through

1 Peter Week 11

2011-07-07T10:03:00.000-05:00

June 8, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 3:13-17

v.13-14 - We pick up in verse 13 where we see Peter describing to us a way in which we can suffer well. If you will remember Peter has established that we as Christians are bound to suffer for the name of Christ in this world. We will suffer if for no other reason than the fact that our example, Jesus Christ, suffered. If we are to be like Him then we will suffer like Him. Christ suffered and remained perfect. Too often when we suffer, when we feel like we have been wronged or mistreated, we choose to respond in an inappropriate way. As Christians the way respond to suffering will be watched very closely by those around us. In verse 13 Peter encourages us to live for what is good. To be zealous for what is good. The reason behind this encouragement is that if we do what is right who is there that can harm us? Peter is encouraging us as Christians to live rightly in the eyes of men in hopes that they will see the way we live and not find anything to be upset with us about. But, Peter goes on in verse 14 to say that even if we should suffer, even if all we do is right and we still experience suffering, we will be blessed. Remember Christ lived a sinless life and suffered even to the point of death because what He stood for was different than what everyone else stood for. We as Christians should expect no less. But if we suffer for righteousness sake we will be blessed. We are to have no fear of those who persecute us, our life here on earth is to be lived out with heaven in mind. Our reward, our blessing is greater than anything here on earth. Our reward is heaven and that is truly worth living righteously for here on earth and suffering any persecution that may come our way.

v.15-17 - Peter goes on to tell us how we are to respond to those who would question us on the hope that we have in us. First in verse 15 Peter tells us to honor Christ in our hearts as Lord. Everything else that comes after this cannot happen if what Peter tells us here isn’t where we are. In order to endure suffering to be able to explain to those who ask us questions why we have hope, we have to first and foremost put Christ in His proper place as Lord of our lives, not allowing anything to supplant His reign and rule over us. Christ is Holy, set apart, and we are to honor Him by living the same way, being holy ourselves. Peter continues in verse 15 and says that we are to “always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” We are to always be prepared to tell others about Christ and the hope that He brings those who follow Him. That means that you can’t just wait until you know all the right verses or can study all the proper theology. Those things are important, but you are to be ready today to tell anyone who asks you the reason for the hope that is in you. If you can’t tell them, there is something wrong. Why do you have hope? What is it about a relationship with Christ that is better than other religions, other beliefs? You need to be able to articulate that hope in a gentle and respectful way. By doing so you will have every opportunity to bring others to the knowledge of the hope that is in you, you will be able to show others Christ and all the good that goes along with a relationship with Him. Peter continues in verses 16 & 17 to tell us more reasons why we should live righteously before men. I n verse 16 Peter says that if you live to where you can have a good conscience when you are slandered, or persecuted, those who are persecuting you will be put to shame when it is seen that you live rightly in all that you do. If you don’t do anything wrong those who accuse you will look silly when they try to get you in trouble because you haven’t done anything wrong. Peter goes on to say that it is better to suffer for doing good if indeed you are to suffer, than for doing evil. As a Christian it makes sense that if we are going to suffer, which we will, then isn’t it better to suffer for doing good than evil? For Matthew 5:10 blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

1 Peter Week 10

2011-07-07T10:02:00.000-05:00

May 11, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 3:8-12

v.8 - Peter is wrapping up his exhortation on how a Christian is supposed to act in the world. He has talked about the way a Christian is to handle the Government, how Christian servants, wives, and husbands are to act; now he is giving a general call to all Christians on how we are supposed to live and conduct ourselves in the world. Peter begins in verse 8 by telling us to have a unity of mind, to be sympathetic towards each other, to love one another with a brotherly love, to be tender hearted and humble. If we as Christians can accomplish these things within our churches, then they will carry over into the rest of our lives and whether we are accepted by the majority of those outside the church, or not, we will be able to win over those who are far from Christ by the way we live our lives. Remember, being a Christian isn’t about you; it is about making God known to all people. This does not exclude you from sharing the good news with your mouth. But the way we live needs to back up what we say Christ has done in our hearts. The Christian church should be the number one example of a harmonious, loving, righteous and peaceful community. Even our disagreements within the church should be peacefully, lovingly, and graciously. Our example of the way we live together within the church should encourage, not discourage non-Christians to become a part of our fellowship.

v.9 - Peter continues in verse 9 by telling us how we should respond when other people attack us. Peter sees the Christian response to pressure from the outside world as one of passivity and grace, not aggressive retaliation. If we respond the way Christ would respond as we are called to do, we will obtain a blessing from God. This doesn’t mean that if you don’t retaliate when someone wrongs you that you will get a fat check in the mail. But you will be blessed, if by nothing else you will be blessed by a good reputation and the ability to continue to share Christ with others because you set a good example that indeed is a blessing!

v.10-12 - Peter quotes from the book of Psalms chapter 34:12-16. He continues on the theme of blessing, through these verses from Psalm 34. If you desire to love life and live long and see good days, you need to keep your tongue from evil and keep your lips from speaking deceit. You will live a blessed life if you turn away from evil and do good; and seek peace and pursue it. For God is watching. God sees and hears all that we do. Sometimes we forget that. We need to remember that if we want our lives to go well, we need to do good things. God will bless us if we do. It may not be financial blessing but, God will bless your life with good friends, family and other things if you follow Him. To end verse 12, the quote from Psalm 34 says that the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. In Hebrew thought, when this psalm was written, when someone talked about the face of the Lord they were talking about the presence and person of God. They were talking about all of God, His entire being, not just His face. So when it says that the face of the Lord is against those who evil means that the entire person of who God is, is against the person who does evil. That is some pretty heavy stuff. If there is one person that I can think of that I wouldn’t want their entire being set against me, that would be a person who is omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, creator, judge, final authority, God. God will judge, and we as Christians need to remember that He will judge those who do evil, it may not look like it in this life, but in the end, the final judgment, He will judge and Christians will come out on top, those who have turned their backs on God will receive their punishment for the things they did here on earth.

A Disciples Call

2011-07-05T08:45:00.000-05:00

July 3, 2011
Pray
Read Matthew 28:16-20

We seem to have some issue in the American church when it comes to the word disciple. We are a little confused with what should happen in our lives after our new birth in Christ. We readily accept the conversion, but we don’t seem to have much life change. I mean we want all the things that benefit us; no condemnation, heaven, God’s provision in this life. All of those are good things, but that is not what being a disciple is about. The church does not exist so you can get something out of it. The church exists solely to spread the gospel to all nations, to make the Glory of God known to all peoples. That is the call placed on us as disciples, as followers of Christ. This is not a sermon on evangelism and missions. This is a sermon on life and how it should be lived once we are born again. We look at what Christ has to say to us in the great commission for our answers to this interesting phenomenon.

v.16-17 - The 11 disciples (12 minus Judas) and those who followed them, listened to what Jesus had told them in verse 10, they went to Galilee, there they worshipped Christ. The first mark of a disciple that we see here is that they obey. A disciple will obey what his teacher tells him.
1 John 2:3-6 says that “And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. Whoever says ‘I know Him’ but does not keep His commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps His word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.”
We are to obey when we here our Teacher. When we feel moved by the Holy Spirit, we are to obey. In order to do that we have to know what His Word says. We have to be diligent every day in spending time getting to know our Father, developing a relationship with Him. Without knowing what He expects of us and without our obedience we can’t truly say that we know God, that we are a disciple of Christ.

v.18 - Jesus tells His disciples that all authority is His. This is significant to our mission and our understanding of how we are to live as Disciples of Christ. Our call to live different does not come from a prophet, a good teacher, or a good man. Our new birth is only through the death and resurrection of Jesus who sits at the right hand of the Father and has authority over all. Christ is our Lord and our King. His position alone demands our obedience and love yet He allows us to choose, wishing to have our allegiance of our own free will. What Christ commissions us to do in the next 2 verses stems from His desire to accomplish the will of God in this world. We should submit to our King and follow Him whole heartedly. A disciple knows who it is that He serves. Sometimes I don’t think we really understand who Christ is. I mean after all in America we pride ourselves on being independent and capable. Once again we run into the problem of wanting the things that a relationship with Christ offers that seem good to us, but to allow Him to be Lord in our lives is not on that list. The church exists to make much of God. But you wouldn’t know that just by looking at us. I think that is a problem because as a disciple of Christ we should reflect Him and His values. We can’t do that if we don’t know who it is that we are serving.

v.19 - I think that we too often misread this verse. This verse is not about going out and holding huge evangelistic outreaches and having thousands walk the aisle and come to the altar. If we look at the way Jesus discipled, we see something very different. Jesus took 12 men and poured His heart and soul in to them. And out of those 12 He had three that we see repeatedly see Him spending more time with than the others. Yes Jesus had big crowds around Him all the time, I mean He was Jesus. But when you look, you never see Jesus telling His disciples to go and gather all the people that you can find and have them set out the chairs and turn on the mics and have a service. No, Jesus had people follow Him. He repeatedly sent the multitudes away. To make disciples takes more than a one shot message, hoping that God gets a hold of someone. To make disciples takes intentional relationship, to make disciples takes time and energy and is a slow process. A disciple is a learner and delights in learning, a student who follows a teacher and listens to instruction both by word and deed. A disciple delights in learning who they are in Christ.

v.20 - A disciple multiplies there influence by discipling others. This is why I say that in order to be a true disciple it takes more than setting up an evangelistic conference every year. When it says that we are to teach them, those disciples who are under us, it is an intensive one on one type of relationship. Genuine discipleship involves older men and women teaching the younger members. This includes but is most definitely not limited to your children. While at camp this summer our speaker said something that was very true. He said that if you have been a Christian for 7 or 8 years, you should be discipling those who are younger in their faith than you. Is this true in your life? Are you perpetuating your faith in Christ by taking someone younger than you under your wing and teaching them all that Christ has commanded? If you aren’t, how can you call yourself a disciple of Christ? Yes we are to take this message to the nations, that is clear from scripture, but we cannot neglect to disciple those who are in our church. The end of verse 20 is an amazing thought. Being a disciple is hard, but Christ said, and we can find hope in this that He will be with us always.

Numbers

2011-06-20T15:22:00.003-05:00

Numbers aren't everything in ministry but they always seem to pop up. I am particularly big on keeping numbers in our youth group, not so I can say look how many youth we had last week, but because if are numbers are growing that means we are doing something right and we are reaching more youth with the word of God.

I've only been at my current church a little over 4 months now so this is my first summer at this church. I'm still adjusting and trying to figure out all the intricacies and nuances of this particular ministry. We had youth camp with Student Life the 1st week of summer and I just knew that would be a spring board to launch us into what would be a great life changing summer. Then we met for the first Wednesday night of the summer and I was blown away by the lack of youth who had showed up. I mean I know that summer is a time that families go on vacations and there are sports camps and band camps and any other number of camps, but I was not expecting this.

Like I said before numbers aren't everything. I have to admit this has upset me some. More than likely it is just a pride issue. I mean I would like to think that I am doing a good job and the youth are enjoying what I am doing and that they want to be there. I have allowed this to weigh heavy on my mind for the last few weeks. I know that God will use me and that in His time and in His way we will grow, that may not mean numerically. All I am responsible for is to be faithful to teach the Word of God and disciple those who choose to come each week. That takes some pressure off of me. In the end I just have to put aside my pride and trust God. Here's to hoping I can pull that one off!

1 Peter Week 9

2011-05-05T09:39:00.000-05:00

May 4, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 3:1-7

v.1-2 - Peter starts of this section of his letter by addressing the way women to act within marriage and especially how a Christian woman should act when her husband is not a Christian. Let start off by saying this is not grounds for you to go out and date that hot guy or girl who isn’t saved. 2 Corinthians 6:14 tells us to not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. If you are a Christian you should not date or marry a non-Christian. It will simply lead to problems and more than likely cause you to stumble and waver in your commitment to God. What Peter is addressing here is when a woman who is married converts to Christianity and her husband does not. She should live a certain way. Peter says in verse 1 that women are supposed to live in such a way that by their actions they might win their unbelieving husband to Christ. Ladies, Peter is saying here that even though you may not realize it, you have great influence over guys. The way you live your life, whether you honor God in all you do or you live for yourself, can influence guys. Peter exhorts women here to live for Christ and so influence others by their respectful and pure conduct. When Peter says submit, he does not mean that women are to be the door mat in the relationship. Women have a voice; women and men were created in the image of God. Girls, live your life according to the scriptures so that you may be an influence in all that you do.
v.3-4 - Peter now moves on to something a little different. A woman cares far more about her outward appearance than a man does, in general. Women wear makeup, do their hair, wear nice clothes, new shoes. For women in the 1st century and today, appearance was a big thing. But Peter teaches here that this should not be your focus as a young woman of God. Your main concern in life shouldn’t be to keep up with the latest fashion, to where the cool clothes, or have your hair done in the hottest trend. People should not know you as the girl with the best clothes or nice hair. People should know you as a godly girl. There is a popular quote on many peoples Facebook page that rings so true to the way a young Christian woman should live. “A woman’s heart should be so lost in God that a man must seek Him in order to find her.” A guy shouldn’t notice your looks before he notices your heart. You should be more concerned with pleasing God with the way you live your life than with pleasing other people, especially guys, with the way you look.
v.5-6 - Peter gives us examples of Godly women who live first to please God and second to please others. Sarah submitted herself to God by being subject to her husband Abraham. For you girls who are not married, the man you are to submit to is your earthly father and your heavenly Father. By doing this you will prepare your heart for your future husband and be ready to submit to him when you become his wife. Doing all of this because you love and honor and submit to God.
v.7 - guys don’t worry, you aren’t getting left out. Peter finishes up in verse 7 telling us how to live as godly men honoring our wives. Ladies, just because Peter has 6 verses here devoted to you and only 1 to guys, doesn’t mean that you need more work or that guys are better. Peter, like he did with slaves last week, addresses those who may be mistreated and have a harder time living a Christian life when their opposite is not saved. Guys we are to live our lives, still under the same conviction and same level of quality as always. We are to live our lives for Christ and follow His example. Christ died for the church, to save us. We as men are to protect women, who are physically weaker than us, and to honor them and to treat them with the utmost respect. Peter is not saying that women are less than men. Just like crystal, which is beautiful and valuable is more breakable than concrete, so women are to men and we as men should not take advantage of our strength and mistreat or threaten women, but we should use our strength to help and protect women. This is our call as Godly men, to love honor and protect all women, but especially our mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters.

These principles are beneficial for our lives today and the practice of living as Godly young women and Godly young men now, will prepare you to live the way God intends for you to live when you finally become someone’s wife or husband.

1 Peter Week 8

2011-04-28T11:38:00.000-05:00

April 27, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 2:18-25

v.18 - We begin tonight with Peter talking about the slave/master relationship. This seems very foreign to us. Besides reading about it in history books or watching about it in movies, most of us are not directly affected by slavery today. Most of us don’t even have any living relatives who were slaves. That time is long past. So for anyone to say they understand this example is wrong. Not only that, but slavery in the 1st century was so much different than the type of slavery we think of as Americans. The slavery Peter is referring to looked very different, racial factors were not involved, education was encouraged among 1st century slaves (some slaves were even better educated than their masters), slaves could own property, they could practice whatever religion they wanted, and the majority of slaves could gain their freedom by the age of 30. So slavery was different, but the thrust of Peter’s message is still applicable for us today in a place where slavery isn’t a real threat. Peter here is encouraging his readers who are slaves to be subject, or live under the order of their masters respect them no matter how they are treated in return. Peter is saying that those who are slaves need to live so differently that people will only be able to attribute their way of life to something higher than them. They are to live in a way that other people see Christ, even if their masters are cruel. For us today, not having the yoke of slavery pressed upon us, we need to transfer this into other realms of our lives. We as Christians are to be subject to our bosses, our teachers, and our parents, in such a way that, even if they are cruel to us and mistreat us, we can show them the love of Christ by the way we live.
v.19-20 - Peter then goes on to give us a motivation for living life this way. God is pleased when we suffer for doing what is right. God isn’t pleased by our suffering if we suffer for doing wrong. If you don’t turn your homework in and you fail because of that, your suffering does not honor Christ. But if you turn your homework in and your teacher “misplaces” it because they know you are a Christian and you live your life for Christ and they don’t like that, and then you fail your class, God is pleased by that suffering because it brings honor to Him. If we suffer in a submissive condition, then it is God’s will we should suffer, if we suffer for insubordination, then we are acting outside of God’s will for us.
v.21-25 - Peter continues with our foundation, what we can rest this truth on. Peter says that we have been called to a life like this, a life full of suffering for Christ’s sake, because Christ Himself suffered. Too often we expect only good to come from our relationship with Christ, we have our minds set on the false belief that once we are saved everything is going to be easy, smooth sailing. Nothing is further from the truth. If we truly live for Christ in this world, our lives will be so different that we will suffer because of it. We may never suffer to the extent that slaves suffered at the hands of their masters, but we will suffer for the name of Christ. We are to follow in the footsteps of Jesus that includes His suffering. Jesus never sinned and nothing untrue came from His mouth, when people made fun of Him he didn’t think of a witty comeback, when He suffered he did not threaten to get even with His oppressors, He trusted in His Father who will judge everyone rightly. Christ died for us on the cross and bore our sins so that we might die to our sins and live righteously. Christ had the power and authority to call down angels to rescue Him from the cross and strike down those who put Him there. But He knew that in the end, God will judge all, and every wrong ever done in this world will either be covered by the blood of Christ or repaid justly by God at the final judgment.

HFBC Youth Holy Week Services

2011-04-27T15:16:00.002-05:00

This year I decided to do Holy Week services with our youth. I had never done them before but I was inspired by what I have seen some other churches and youth groups do to celebrate Holy Week. I was very excited to do this, it brings more focus on to the last few days in the life of Christ and His crucifixion and His resurrection.

We started out our Holy Week celebration on Wednesday night. We had a service dedicated to prayer and preparing our hearts for the rest of the services during the week. We lit "The Attic" (our youth room) with candles and lamps. We had 5 different prayer stations that we set up in the different Sunday School classrooms where the students could spend time praying for our church leaders, the adult leaders in our ministry, the youth group and our upcoming activities, their friends who don't know Christ, and an opportunity for them to be prayed with. Over all I think that Wednesday night went well, I think the students got to spend some much needed time in prayer focusing not on themselves but on others.

Thursday night we had our Maundy Thursday service. This is a traditional service celebrated the Thursday before Good Friday. We talked about the last night of Christ, how he washed His disciples feet and instituted the Lord's Supper. We celebrated both of those events, some Youth Workers washed the feet of the students while I gave led them individually in the Lord's Supper. It was a great night of worship and understanding a little more of what Christ's last night was like.

Of course we celebrated Good Friday on Friday night. We had some guest worship leaders lead us to Christ and we spent time reading some passages of scripture that many are familiar with but that many don't spend much time with. We read Isaiah 52:13-53 the Suffering Servant passage, and then we read the crucifixion story from Christ's betrayal and arrest to His burial in John chapters 18 & 19. We closed with a responsive reading and reflection on the death of Christ. All in all it was a great celebration of Holy Week and something I definitely plan on doing again next year!

1 Peter Week 7

2011-04-14T08:59:00.002-05:00

April 13, 2011 Pray Read 1 Peter 2:11-17 v.11-12 - In verse 11 Peter continues with the theme of these Christians in Asia minor being aliens and exiles. He reminds them that they do not belong to this world, they are different from the world, and this is not their home. Because of this they need to live differently. They can no longer live like those who are around them, fulfilling the passions of the flesh. We as Christians are to abstain from the things that are contrary to what is taught to us in the Bible. We are not to gratify the desires of the flesh. But we need to be conscious of the fact that even though we are followers of Christ, that doesn’t mean we are immune to the desires and temptations of this world. Peter tells us that the passions of our flesh wage war against our soul. Every day the world is tempts us to become lax on our convictions and to fall into temptation. It is a war, a battle that we must face daily. Peter tells us why we should maintain our integrity and not give into temptation in verse 12. When we keep our conduct pure in the midst of a non-believing world, we are doing it so that no one will have anything to hold against us as Christians and so that we will not give anyone a reason to turn away from Christ. On the contrary, when we live our lives according to Christ, we make Christianity attractive and it can help to lead others to glorify Christ by putting their faith in Him. v.13-14 - Peter now gets a little more specific on the way we should live our lives as Christians in the midst of a non-believing people. There was a thought and practice back in the 1st century which has carried over to some extent into our life today that basically says that since God is my authority, I don’t have to answer to any other authority. We as Christians have no higher authority than God our Father. But we are to be subject, for the Lord’s sake, to every human institution. This starts with our parents, teachers, principals, pastors, policemen, mayors, judges, presidents. Any human institution in existence where we live, we as Christians, are to submit to and honor and obey. For the sake of God and bringing Him glory. If we disobey the authorities in our lives and they happen to be unbelieving, we throw mud on the name of God and do not show that person a true picture of God. God has placed these authorities in your life, and unless something they ask you to do contradicts what God would have you do, you are to obey and honor them always even if they are not Christians. Your obedience to them can help to point them to Christ. v.15 - When you live your life for Christ and honor the authorities placed over you, then in the event someone comes and accuses you of wrong doing, your life and obedience will silence those who accuse you wrongly. v.16 - When Peter talks about living as people who are free he does not mean we have the right to live however we want. He means that we live our lives in pursuit of Christ, free from the laws of man in Christ, but subject to them because of our devotion to Christ (Galatians 5:13-14). When you live as a free person, you love others and seek how you can do good for them. We are not under the law but under love, and love puts us under more responsibility for right living than the law ever could. v.17 - Peter closes this section by telling us to exercise proper conduct in every area of our lives. We are to honor everyone, to respect everyone we come in contact with and to treat them like they are important. We are to love the brotherhood. We need to hold those who are part of our Church in high regard and love them and sacrifice for them. We are to fear God. We are to have a healthy reverence for who God is and what He has done for us. And we are to Honor the Emperor. We are to submit to the laws of the land and obey them completely, unless they come into direct conflict with the teachings of the Word of God. We are to live our lives in such a way that we do not give any one reason to doubt us as Christians and in turn our God. When we live our lives this way we will silence those who try to accuse us of wrongdoing, and ultimately lead some to faith in Christ. We are supposed to submit to all the authority that is placed over us and honor them unless they ask us to do something contrary to Scripture. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor. **This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 Peter Week 6

2011-04-07T10:29:00.005-05:00

April 6, 2011 Pray Read 1 Peter 2:1-10 v.1-3 - Because of our new birth there are certain things that we should focus on doing. In verse 2 Peter tells to long for the pure spiritual milk. Some people take offense to this verse because it seems that maybe peter is calling his readers, and in turn us, babies. That is not the case however. What Peter is saying in verse 2 is that just as when we were newborns we have one thing on our minds, food. So it should be in our spiritual life as well. We should have no other desire than to grow in our spiritual lives by craving the pure spiritual milk. Our desires, our cravings, once we have been born again should no longer be worldly desires or cravings. They should be transformed to spiritual desires. Just like as we grow physically our appetite changes, we don’t just want milk, it won’t satisfy our appetites anymore and as we grow spiritually our appetites will no longer be sated by simply reading a few verses a couple days a week and just going to church and goofing off. You may be bored with your faith in Christ because you are not challenging yourself and feeding yourself with the spiritual food you need. As you desire to grow spiritually you will see yourself also putting away malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander; as you mature you change, as you change you get rid of things that will hinder continued growth. 1 Corinthians 14:20 says, “Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.” Peter echoes what Paul wrote to the Corinthians. As we grow we are supposed to stop thinking like a child, we need to see the things that are wrong and not beneficial to our growth as a Christian and rid ourselves of them, put them away. v.4-8 - We as believers need to stand united together. We talked last week about having a brotherly love for one another, a real, deep, sincere brotherly love for one another. Here we are encouraged to build for ourselves in relation to Christ, who is the living stone, a spiritual house. We are living stones, and we are connected to “The Living Stone” which is Jesus. Jesus, had been rejected by men, but to God he was chosen and precious. We draw our identity as Christians, from Christ. We are sometimes rejected and pushed aside, but to God we are chosen and precious. Verse 5 goes on to tell us that we are to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices to God (Romans 12:1). We are to offer ourselves up, and give to God of ourselves. We are His temple. We see in verses 7-8 that if a person believes the stone, Jesus, is precious. But to those who do not believe Jesus becomes stumbling block because they disobey. The result of their disobedience is judgment by God and an eternity separated from Him. v.9-10 - In these next 2 verses Peter uses some Old Testament descriptions for Israel to describe the way God views us as the Church now. The church today and all of us who are a part of it are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and we are a people of God’s own possession. Because of that we are to proclaim the greatness of God. We are now the people of God, sons and daughters of the most high king. God chose us and showed mercy to us. We should rejoice and be glad. We who have accepted the living stone have become like Him. We are no longer to desire earthly things, but our desires should change to pure spiritual milk, that which is necessary for our spiritual development. As we mature spiritually we should put away things that will disrupt our growth. We, like Christ, have been rejected by men, but also like Christ, we are chosen and precious to the Father. Because of our position in the kingdom we are called to proclaim the glory of God to the ends of the earth. We are supposed to brag on our Father to everyone we meet. **This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 Peter Week 5

2011-03-31T11:08:00.003-05:00

March 30, 2011 Pray Read 1 Peter 1:22-25 v.22 - Many things in our walk with Christ are rooted in our new birth, in our conversion. Our love for one another is one of these things. Peter starts off by saying that we have purified our souls by our obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love. There is no way for us to sincerely love each other, at all times, without first having purified ourselves by obeying the truth. That is that we have gone from death to life, that we have been reborn, and that we have Christ as the center of our lives. Only then can we love one another earnestly from a pure heart. We are called to love one another differently than the way the world loves one another. As Christians we too often forget that we are representing Christ in all that we say and do not only to those who are without Christ but also to those who are part of the body of Christ. One of the most important things that we can do to show those outside of the church what Christ is like is by loving those who are part of the body of Christ. Hebrews 10:24-25 - “And let us consider how to stir up one to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” 1 John 4:7 - “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and know s God.” Romans 12:9-10 - “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” All of these verses are talking not about loving those outside the church, but they were written to us, inside the church, that we should love each other. This is how others will know the love of Christ, through our love for each other. v.23-25 - Again Peter tells us why we should love one another. It is because we are born again. We are born again into the imperishable life of Christ. We no longer have to fear the end. Every person who is born will one day die. Just like the grass withers and dies, so will our lives end. But when we are born again we no longer are sons and daughters of man but sons and daughters of God, and we will remain to the end through the living and abiding word of God. We, as members of Gods family, should desire to love those who are within are family. We are set apart, we are separated from the world and we need to be able to rely on each other, that we will have nothing but love for each other. One of the greatest hindrances of the growth of any organization is in-fighting. If we want our church to grow and reach more people we need to learn to be more accepting of those who may not fit our mold. Let’s face it, there is a particular group of people who are comfortable in our church and who we are comfortable with being in our church. This is wrong. If we don’t show love to those who are in our church, why would anyone new want to come into our group. The church, our youth group should be a place that others want to come to be accepted and loved. This is a place that labels and cliques from school should evaporate and everyone should be accepted. There should be no age preference; seniors should desire to hang out with middle schoolers so they can help them to mature into strong young Christians. But we separate; we divide ourselves by age, by economic status, by labels that we put on people at school. There should be no labels here. The only way we should look at someone when they walk in our doors is as a brother or sister in Christ, or as someone seeking God, and we should love and accept them. **This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 Peter Week 4

2011-03-24T10:26:00.002-05:00

March 23, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 1:13-21

v.13 - Peter transitions from the last section of talking about the joy salvation brings us and the grace that God has shown us in the fulfillment of thousands of years of prophecy being fulfilled in the death and resurrection of Christ to now talking about the difference salvation should bring to the life of one who is born again. He begins in verse 13 by telling us to prepare our minds for action. Some of your Bibles may say “gird up the loins of your mind.” This is a reference to the clothing that the people wore back in Peter’s time. The men would wear ankle long shirts that would restrict their movement. If they had to get any real work done they would lift up their shirts and gird or tie them at their waist so they could prepare themselves to work. To gird up our minds is to prepare our minds by getting anything out of our minds that would interfere with living a holy life. Then peter goes on to tell us to be sober minded. In other words we are to be in complete control of our minds, not letting anything pollute it. When a person is drunk, they don’t have control over themselves, what they say, how they act, or what they think. Peter is warning us not to let anything cloud our minds and get in the way of our hope on the grace of God that we will one day fully realize. Our focus needs to be on Christ, not on anything else in this life. Even in the midst of suffering, we need to have the mind of Christ and think towards our future hope in Him. When you focus on the future fulfillment of grace, it will spur you on to obedience.

v. 14-16 - Peter calls his readers, obedient children in the beginning of verse 14. This is more of an encouragement than anything; he is encouraging his readers to be obedient by not conforming to the passions of our former ignorance. In other words Peter is telling us that once we are born again we cannot live the same way as we did before. Before we are born into the family of God we are dominated by our flesh. We desire things that are contrary to what God has for us. But once we are born again we now have a perfect example to follow. We look to God the author and perfecter of our faith and we see Him as holy so we in turn, should strive to be holy in all that we do. We should be holy for 2 reasons. First because we have been saved and second because God is holy; these two things should spur us on to live a life set apart from this world.

v.17-21 - Peter then tells us that if we are going to call God our father, then we need to understand something. He is God, and He will judge us. One day we will stand before God, and He will judge us, not on our level or our scale, but on His. He will judge us indiscriminately, penetratingly, and absolutely honestly. We should live in such a way that when we stand before our holy and just God, we can be confident. That confidence does not come from anything we do but rather from Christ. And if we truly grasp what it means to be holy, like God is holy, then we will live out our lives as best we can to mirror the way we see Christ live as we read the Word. We should live in fear and reverence, in awe of who God is and this should lead us to live holy. Here is where we need to understand something. Just because there is a history in your life of doing something one way or another, does not mean that it is the right way. Just because your parents got divorced does not mean that is the right way to look at marriage. Just because people around drinks or does drugs, does not mean that it is the right thing to do. Just because all of your friends are having sex, does not mean it is acceptable for you as a Christian to do. We have been saved from those “futile ways” by the payment of Christ’s death on the cross and saved and set apart for a new life by His resurrection. This was God’s plan from the beginning. God’s design for salvation that we are privileged to reap the benefits of. Being a Christian is more than church every now and then. Being born again changes us, having a holy, just God should spur us on to live holy, thinking on what is to come, the culmination of our faith, and living our lives according to Christ, not the flesh.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 Peter Week 3

2011-03-10T09:25:00.001-06:00

March 9, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 1:8-12

v.8-9 – While Peter walked and talked with Jesus we don’t get that privilege. We, like the Christians Peter was writing to, haven’t seen Christ. But yet we love Him and believe in Him. In John 14:15 Jesus says, “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” So how many of us love Him? How many times do we put something that is not God honoring and not something He would want for us in His place in our lives? Too often we allow what we know about what Jesus commands us to do to be put out of our minds in place of what we think is best for us. The commands of Jesus aren’t set up to make us have a dull life. We have these commands because He wants what is best for us. He knows us; He knows where we are strong and where we are weak. Jesus has been tempted as a human but He did not sin (Hebrews 4:15). Because we have not seen Him, but we believe in and love Him, we are given the outcome of our faith that is salvation (John 20:29). This once again should bring us inexpressible and glorious joy!! We don’t live like this very often. Too many times we allow our circumstances to steal our joy from us. In the midst of trials we only focus on what is happening, not what Christ has done for us in our salvation or the joy that we have to look forward to in heaven. This happens because, while we may with all our hearts believe and love Christ even though we don’t see Him, we sometimes put more emphasis on the tangible things in our lives. It is hard to live with inexpressible joy when we are focused on the things of this world because let’s face it; this world isn’t doing so good right now. There are wars, people getting sick, loved ones dying, gas prices rising, tests to take, chores to do, jobs to work, and too often we get wrapped up in all that is going on and we forget that we serve a great God who loved us from long ago, sent His son to die in our place and to be raised from the dead so that we could be born again to live different than the world by the help of the power of the Holy Spirit. Our joy in this should be so apparent that we are bursting at the seams to tell everyone of our great God! But instead, we live defeated and broken with no power, because we forget who it is we serve. We started out in our faith by loving and believing in Christ whom we have not seen, we need to dive into His word, and to always remember to be in prayer so we can continue to live out this joy that comes from knowing Christ.
v.10-12 – For thousands of years, the prophets of God were seeking and yearning for the hope that we have in Christ (Matt. 13:17). These prophets foretold the coming of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, our Savior. They didn’t know when their prophecies would be fulfilled, but they searched and sought after Christ carefully. These prophets were preparing the world for the coming of Christ, announcing His coming and revealing the faithfulness of God to fulfill His promises to us through Christ. We are privileged to be able to enjoy God’s salvation, through Jesus Christ, unlike the prophets of old. The angels don’t even get to have the privilege of salvation through faith in Christ. This is something that only we Christians, who were made in the image of God and are a little higher than the angels get to experience. God’s grace is so amazing that even the angels want to understand and be a part of it.
We need to remember the joy that is brought to us in our salvation. Though we do not see Christ, we love and believe in Him and this should cause joy to overflow out of us so that others are drawn to Christ by us. By God showing us grace and allowing us to participate in the culmination of thousands of years of prophecy, the angels look down from heaven and desire to experience God the way that we do. This is wonderful to think on!

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 Peter Week 2

2011-03-03T08:34:00.002-06:00

Pray
Read 1 Peter 1:3-7

(I fully intended to go all the way through verse 12 with last nights study, but it seems God had other plans. This was some really good stuff, I hope you enjoy. Leave me some comments to let me know what you think!)

So last week Peter, laid the foundation of our walk with Christ, which is salvation. We are called by God who long ago loved us and chose that we would come to know Him. We are given the Holy Spirit to set us apart and we are cleansed by the blood of Christ and saved to become more like Christ as we follow the purpose of God for our lives. With this foundation laid out before us, Peter is going to head into what our salvation should lead to in our lives.

v.3-5 – Peter opens up this next section of scripture by reminding us that we are born again. The process of being born again is known as Regeneration. Regeneration changes not only the way God sees us, we are no longer sinners but are clean and counted as His son or daughter, but it is supposed to change the way we live our life before others as well. We receive this new birth, our salvation, from God through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. This is a mercy that He shows us. God looked down on us and seeing that there was nothing that we could do to right our wrongs, sent Christ to die in our place and be raised from the dead. Without this mercy that God shows us, we would not have the hope of the new birth we are given through Christ. Verse 4 goes on to tell us of the inheritance we have in Christ. Our inheritance, our hope, is heaven. It is an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading. Nothing can change or take away our hope in Christ of eternity in heaven with Him. Nothing. We are told in verse 5 that God, by His power, is guarding our inheritance by sustaining our faith in Him. We don’t get the full benefits of this inheritance, yet, but we can be sure that it will be given to us because God sees us as an heir with Christ.

v.6-7 – Peter quickly then begins to speak of the joy that we have during our suffering when we think about the hope we have in Christ. That hope, even during persecution, should bring us joy because we know we ultimately will be with Christ for eternity. That is something that is hard for us to understand, waiting for something to be fulfilled. We live in a society that is all about instant gratification. We have fast food, microwaves, and 3G Internet on our phones. So when we begin to talk about enduring persecution and having joy in what is to come, we sort of get lost in the translation. But we need to remember, that even though we may suffer on earth, we have eternity with Christ in heaven to look forward to, and that should bring us joy (Heb. 12:2). Peter goes on to tell these Christians and us today, why we go through trials. It is so that our faith can be proven genuine, real. We can learn and grow from suffering. We can learn to cling to Christ and put Him first. Our faith deepens through our suffering, and in all of this we can honor Christ.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Mutually Encouraged

2011-03-01T09:20:00.003-06:00

Romans 1:12 "that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine."

In doing my daily reading today, I found myself starting off the book of Romans. Paul, had a desire to visit those Christians who were in Rome to encourage them and to be encouraged by them. You see, this is why we need to be faithful to be in church. It isn't a requirement of salvation, but I know that I get discouraged in my walk quite often and I am in need of encouragement. Too many people today say that they don't need to go to church to be a christian, that it is OK if they only come sporadically to church when they feel like it. I think that is a grave mistake. We weren't created to do this alone. We need relationship, companionship, and encouragement. Paul was anxious to get to Rome, he had heard of their faith and knew that they were serving God. Paul had the desire to encourage them and to be encouraged by them. Walking with Christ was never promised to be easy, but it is much less of a burden when we walk with others who desire the same deep, real relationship with Christ that we do.

So next time you are feeling down in your faith, go to church, be encouraged by your brothers and sisters in Christ and lift some of them up in the process.

1 Peter week 1

2011-02-24T09:36:00.004-06:00

February 23, 2011
Pray
Read 1 Peter 1:1-2

v.1 - I think that it is important for us today to look at who Peter was and why he wrote this letter. Peter was a disciple of Christ. He was one of the twelve disciples that Jesus handpicked. He was also one of the 3 disciples that Jesus loved. Peter was there when Christ was crucified, and he denied Christ 3 times. Peter was afraid of what people would do to him if he said he was one of Jesus’ disciples. Yet he was also very bold in his faith at times as well. Peter was one of the first to see the empty tomb when Jesus had been raised from the dead. At Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the church in the book of acts, peter preached and became a leader in the early church. In fact peter’s name in Greek (petros) means rock, and he is referred to as the rock upon which the church is built. Peter was instrumental in the church growing and leading many people to Christ. I tell you all this because it is important for us to understand where Peter is coming from when he writes this letter. Peter is writing to churches in Asia Minor, in modern day Turkey. Peter calls these people elect exiles. These Christians were not literal exiles most likely, but Peter was using exile figuratively likely meaning that as Christians we all are spiritual exiles in this world longing for our heavenly home. Being an elect exile simply means that we were chosen by God, who initiated salvation, first at the death and resurrection of Christ, then in our hearts through the prompting of the Holy Spirit. These Christians Peter is writing to are citizens in the Roman empire. They were most likely Gentiles, though there were probably some Jews scattered among them. They were most probably second class citizens. These Christians were suffering persecution, as we will see later on in the book. Peter is writing to these churches to remind them to endure, to hold fast to their faith.
v.2 - When we continue on to verse 2 we see 3 phrases that we are going to take a look at.
The first is “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,” Now we could go off on a tangent and explore very deeply the meaning of elect and foreknowledge, but we will have to save that for another day. Peter here is saying quite simply that God foreknew those who are “elect exiles.” Perhaps a better way to look at it is that God foreordained these Christians, and all Christians, God purposed in His heart long ago that we would be saved. This is something we should rest assured in and welcome. God loved us long before any of us were even born and He was making plans for each of us to come to know Him!
The second phrase that we need to look at in verse 2 is, “in the sanctification of the Spirit.” When you get saved, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside you. He is your helper, and He sanctifies us turning us from sinners into people who look more like Christ. The Holy Spirit sets us apart. Before Christ we are not able to live a holy life. When we trust in Christ we are then set apart and made holy by the work of the Holy Spirit.
The third phrase Peter uses in verse 2 is this, “for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with His blood.” When we become Christians we are sprinkled with the blood of Christ, we are cleansed from our sins and we are set apart for obedience to Christ. Being a Christian means we die to our old way of life and live for Christ, and obey God’s call on our lives. So basically verse 2 plays out like this, we are called by God who long ago loved us and chose that we would come to know Him. We are given the Holy Spirit to set us apart and we are cleansed by the blood of Christ and saved to become more like Christ as we follow the purpose of God for our lives.
As we begin our study of 1 Peter we need to understand who Peter was, a handpicked, beloved disciple of Christ, who hasn’t always been perfect but who was instrumental in the development of the early church. Peter is writing to people who need some encouragement and he starts off his letter to them by reminding them that their salvation is a work of God the Father who loves them, The Holy Spirit who sets them apart and Jesus Christ theSon who died for them to lead them in obedience and give them salvation.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Settling In

2011-02-17T14:15:00.002-06:00

Well it is official, we have been in our new home for just about a week now. Our house is beginning to look like a home and we are starting to get thing in order. Of course there is still going to be some adjusting to life in a small town. But I have a feeling we will like it! The people in the church are wonderful, sweet, and friendly. Life is different in a town of 2,000 compared to a city of almost 200,000. Slower, more laid back, more community oriented.

I think for me one of the greatest things is that I am can really tell that God has brought us here. I don't know exactly how to explain it but even in the short time we have been here, it seems that we are fitting in well. We are making friends, and establishing relationships with some of the youth. Naturally it will take awhile for us to really integrate into the lives of those around us but I know it will happen soon.

That's about it for now. Just getting all our ducks in a row. More to come about what God is doing in Huntington, TX!

Blessed Beyond Measure

2011-01-27T11:16:00.003-06:00

The last few days I have been thinking about some things. It is amazing to see the way that God has worked in my life to bring me to this point. And it is even more amazing to me, how He has blessed me. I have been in Amarillo since May 2005. Since then I have had the great privilege to work at 3 different churches and at each church God has brought me some lifelong friends. Looking back on the way things have set themselves up over the last 5 years or so is pretty crazy. I met and married Courtney, we lost one baby, then God blessed us with Bryson. I have gotten invaluable ministry experience interning at 2 great churches and have been given the great honor of having my first full time youth pastor position for the last almost 3 years. I have graduated from college and have started to work a little bit, preparing myself to eventually get my Master's.

As I look back particularly at the relationships I have built with people, I get encouraged. From student's who
have graduated out of a ministry I was a part of who are still loving, and serving God. To friends that I never would have expected to find. Many people say that being in ministry can be very lonely, but I have found that not to be true. When you love on people and allow them to love on you, the church, Christianity, is designed to be fulfilling and uplifting, helpful and instrumental in growing in your walk with Christ.

Now looking ahead to what God has laid out before us, His call on our lives, I can truly say that I am stepping into it without fear. Some sadness at leaving some great people behind, yes. Some anxiety about starting over in a new ministry, yes. But I do not fear the unknown, I do not worry about tomorrow. I trust that God has given me more than I need up until now in my life, and I know that He will continue to "supply all my needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19) And for that I will continue to give Him the glory, honor, and praise that He is due.

Following isn't Always Easy

2011-01-24T10:16:00.004-06:00

Sorry that it has been a while since I have posted anything. It has been a whirlwind last few weeks and we have been extremely busy. Some of you know, some of you don't, but my family and I are about to make a very big change in our lives. I have felt for a while now that God has been calling me away from the church I am currently serving in. It isn't something you can really explain it is just something you have to experience to understand. God has called me away, and called me to another church in Huntington, TX.

This is a bittersweet part of being in ministry. When you serve in a church the people become part of you extended family. You love them and they love you. So when God calls you to leave it is hard. Over the last few weeks I have been tempted to just stay put, to stay comfortable, to stay here. But that would be wrong. That would not be a good example for me to set for the students I lead in my ministry. When God calls, we need to go, whether we like the call or not. We are sad to leave Amarillo. Bryson's grandparents are here, his aunts and uncles are here, his great-grandparents are here. We are sad to leave. But we are very very excited to follow God in this new chapter in our lives. From the moment we met with the search committee we knew this is where God was calling us. When we saw the town and met the staff, we knew this is where God was calling us. When we met the students and the people of the church, we had no doubt, that this was where we needed to be, and that is a great thing to know.

So we have a little over 2 weeks left here in Amarillo. We will make the most of it, visiting friends and family, eating at all the local places, enjoying the wind......Then we are off. Off to follow God where He has led us, to serve Him and honor Him in all that we do.
We would really appreciate your prayers in a few areas:
1. that our house would sell here in Amarillo
2. that South Georgia Baptist Church would be able to find the man God has in store to lead their students
3. that we would have an uneventful moving experience
4. that God would prepare me to lead the students of Huntington First Baptist Church

So to all our friends and family in Amarillo, we will miss you. And to all of your new friends in Huntington, we can't wait to get to know you. Thanks for all the love, prayers and support!

Sold Short

2011-01-06T11:17:00.004-06:00

It amazes me that we seem to think that students can't handle the deeper things of the faith. Student ministry has basically become a time for students to come and switch off their brains for a few hours a week, a place where we might play some games and have fun and give a 15-30 minute lesson on dating or dealing with their parents. I am speaking generally here about how I think churches and leaders see student ministry.

The fact of the matter is that students today can handle more and deeper information than we give them credit for. I mean just look at all the AP and Dual Credit classes offered in High School. Students today have the ability to process more information than even when I was in High School almost 8 years ago. They read hundreds of text messages a day, check hundreds of statuses and tweets a day, and still find time to do their homework, study for tests and get in a few hours of TV. So why is it that at church we want to coddle them and hold their hand and not give them too much? We are doing them a disservice when we treat them like little kids instead of the maturing young minds that they are. And then the church is wondering why as soon as they graduate High School the majority of students drop out of church. It is because they never learned anything of any consequence when they were students. They never had the opportunity to go deeper and were never allowed the chance to explore their faith. Adults kept them away from the deep meaningful things of Christianity in favor of the childish stories and good times. The real world will rip them apart when they leave the protection of home and their student ministry. We need to prepare them for what is to come.

I want to call out all of us in charge of the spiritual development of today's teenagers. Parents, Sunday School teachers, small group leaders, youth pastors, we need to stop looking at students and thinking that they can't handle the deep stuff and start diving into the meat of Christianity with them. I was blessed to have a student minister who did this with me and others as he led us through our high school years, and the effects can still be seen today.

Advent Week 3: Joy

2010-12-16T11:40:00.002-06:00

Joy.

It is an interesting thing to think about Joy. One thing that really catches my attention when we talk about Joy is the fact that I think sometimes we are afraid to have Joy in our lives. What I mean by that is this, it is the end of the semester and students from high school to college are taking finals and writing papers and all that fun stuff. Lets say I took a class this semester with a good friend, and the whole semester we studied together and worked on our papers together. And lets say I make an "A" on my final and my friend fails their final. It is hard for us to celebrate with that friend because we don't want to offend them or rub our joy in their face. Now that may seem like it is no big deal but when you think about it, it actually is. You see as Christians if we truly understand the fact that Christ died for us and lives in us and changes us we would have so much Joy. But we are afraid to have Joy because that would make us different than everyone else. We don't want to have Joy because peoplel might look at us funny, or make fun of us. It takes courage to have Joy. But we should be overflowing with Joy because Christ is our Savior, and especially this time of year, we look back to the good news the angel brought the shepherds in Luke 2:10-11, "I bring you good news of great Joy that will be for all people. For unto you this day is born, in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." We have a Savior and this news should change our lives and bring us great Joy!! But we don't focus on Christ and we allow our Joy to be taken away. Romans 15:13 says, "May the God of hope fill you with all JOY and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." Our problem is that we as Christians forget that to have Joy and peace and hope in our lives we have to do one thing, that is believe in Christ. We have to put our hopes, our dreams, our fears, our failures, everything we have in Christ.

I hope that in my heart, I can begin to experience the Joy Christ brings. I hope that as we focus on Christ during this time of the year, that we can experience the Joy the angel talked about at the news of the birth of our Savior!

Advent Week 2: Peace

2010-12-09T10:46:00.003-06:00

Wow, 2 posts in one week....that's gotta be some kind of record, or not, who knows. I wanted to continue posting about our celebration of the Advent season in our student ministry. Last night, for me, was really good! I don't mean that what I did was good, but what God did in my heart was good. Sometimes I don't know if the students get anything out of what I am saying, but when God works in my heart through my preparation and speaking, it blows me away.

I wasn't sure how this second week of advent was going to go. Last week we talked about Hope, (see previous post). This week, the focus was on Peace. I wasn't sure exactly how this was going to play out, we have some old school liturgy, responsive reading and such, that our students aren't used to. They seemed to have responded to that rather well. We had to for silent prayer as well, and I would like to think God dealt with some students, in fact I know He dealt with a few by the texts I received when I got home. Peace is an interesting topic. I wasn't sure how I was going to make it all fit and be cohesive and last as long as it needed to. But when we opened up scripture and began to dissect it, God started speaking.

You see the "Christmas" season has become a crazy mad house of present buying, christmas parties, putting up lights and decorations, and family and friends. Not that those things are bad, I enjoy participating in most of them (I'll let you figure out which one I don't like). 1 Corinthians 14:33 says, "For God is not a Gad of confusion, but of peace." To me the way we celebrate Christmas is quite frankly wrong. If "Christmas" is about the birth of Christ, there should be peace in our lives this time of year. We shouldn't have to worry if we got Aunt Betty the right gift or try and fit one more staff/class/sunday school party in our schedule. This should be a time when we stop, be still, and focus on our Savior. Once again let me say that parties, and presents and decorations aren't bad. And if this is the time of year we celebrate all that, great. But lets also make some time to really focus on the Advent of Christ, both what has already happened and what we as Christians have to look forward too. Isaiah 9:7 says, "Of the increase of His government and of PEACE there will be no end...from this time forth and forevermore." To me that is something to celebrate and to anticipate. We as Christians need to become more focused and more at peace in this hectic time of Christmas.

Advent Week 1: Hope

2010-12-08T10:42:00.004-06:00

I know, I know I am a little behind on this post. The first week of advent is technically the last Sunday in November, which was 2 Sunday's ago. We are observing advent each Sunday in our church and I have taken the liberty to celebrate the Advent season with our students on Wednesday nights.

In studying and searching through what Advent is all about, I have come to see this holiday season a little differently. Yes I still hope for a few presents under the tree, and yes I still enjoy all the time with family and friends, but like every Christian cliche you can think of, my focus has been brought back to Christ. If you know me at all, one thing you know is that I am not a big fan of what is popular. What I mean by that is I like to go against the grain. Take music for instance, I pride myself on discovering music that others don't know, and if a particular band becomes too mainstream I begin to phase them out of my playlists. I don't like corny, cheesy, cliche things. I like to be original. I am not a big fan of the phrase 'don't take Christ out of Christmas'. Technically we as Christians put Christ into a holiday season that was not originally focused on Christ, so for us to 'take Christ out of Christmas' in my opinion, doesn't take anything away from the "Christmas Season". Which is why, in focusing on Christ, I intend to celebrate both Christmas (the family, friends, trees, lights, presents, etc.) and Advent, (latin meaning, arrival or coming).

The first week of the Advent season is focused on Hope. The nation of Israel had long anticipated and hoped for the coming of a Savior. Someone who would restore the nation of Israel to the prominence of being God's chosen people. They had hope because of the words of prophets like Isaiah, Micah, and Malachi. Yet they did not fully understand and comprehend what God would do through them in the coming of His son Jesus Christ. God was faithful to fulfill His promise of a Messiah. But this Messiah did not look, act, or talk like a conquering king. His coming was meek, lowly, and simple, yet miraculous! One of the neatest things about the celebration of Advent is the tension that exists between what God has already accomplished and what He has promised us through Christ. We don't just celebrate the birth of our Savior. We, as Christians today, are still in aniticipation, we still hope for Christ's second advent. When He will come and restore His reign over the earth. We should celebrate and hope for the second Advent just as much as we celebrate His virgin birth. The first week of Advent is all about celebrating Hope. The past hope that has been realized in the birth of Jesus, and the hope we still have, in the second Advent, when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the Glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:10)

How Flexible are You?

2010-11-18T08:48:00.005-06:00

It is crazy to me how much we plan things. I mean think about it. We plan our entire days, when we get up, what we eat for breakfast, what we are going to wear, the route we are going to take to get from home to work, or the store. As a minister to students I plan what our student ministry will do on Sundays and Wednesdays down to the minute. Last night was no exception. Last night our church put sacks of food together, enough for 1 family to have a good Thanksgiving meal, and we were going to hand them out to those in our community who came to the church to get a meal. We planned everything, down to the minute of who was going to help pass out bags and all that fun stuff.
The students were going to handout bags from 7:00-7:30. So I picked about 15 students to go and help, as we got to our fellowship hall, everyone was standing around not doing much. Let me back up for a minute. We passed out flyers to 4 elementry schools in our area, I think it was anywhere from 1500 to 2000 flyers. ( I could be way off on that number but it sounds good to me!) We had volunteers show up at 3:30 to pack 150 bags full of food. They were done by 3:45 and were weren't starting to hand out bags until 6:30. However people started showing up at the church to get their bags around 5:30. Once everything started we passed out a good number of bags at the church. But like I said, by 7:00 no more people were at the church to pick up a meal. So our pastor decided we would go down to a part of town where there are a good number of Somali and Sudanese refugees. God has really been working on our pastor's heart about going to this group of people and ministering to them.
Once we found out that there was nothing to do at the church and we were headed out to go pass out meals, I went and told the other 10-15 students about it and they were all on board with jumping in church vans and making it happen. This is where I get blown away. We planned the night and how it was supposed to go. But God had other plans. God completely wrecked our plan for the night, nothing went the way we wanted it to go, but God's plan was better. Now we have opened up an opportunity for dialogue with the Somali and Sudanese refugees. We ministered to close to 60 families who wouldn't have had a good Thanksgiving meal. God used some students, got them out of their routine and their comfort zone, and showed them how to love. Isaiah 55:8 says, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts , neither are your ways my ways declares the Lord." How amazing it was to see God do what He had planned despite our plans. Let's hope that we can all be ok with Him doing in our lifes what He wants and be willing to just get out of the way.

Selfish Much?

2010-11-11T09:23:00.003-06:00

Student ministry is a tough job. I'm not complaining, I'm just stating a realization that anyone who has worked with students, whether paid or not, would agree with. I am beginning to find one of the hardest things about working with students is the fact that to a student, (and let's face it, to many of us adults as well) everything is about them. Church is supposed to be a place where we can come and really feel loved, and welcome and find friends that will listen to us and pray with us and help us through all of the junk life throws at us. But instead of true community and fellowship that is uplifting, we have division and hurt. I see this play out every Wednesday and Sunday. The students get to church and the first thing they do is look for their friends. There is nothing wrong with that, I do the same thing. But the problem comes when we have visitors, or students who don't come often. The regulars, all hang out in their little groups and leave everyone else out. It all comes back to the fact that they are thinking selfishly. They don't put God first, much less others. The culture in America shows us that the teen years are all about the individual, all about what you can do for yourself. The Christian life is supposed to be counter cultural. We are not supposed to look to please ourselves first. If we claim to know Christ, then our example to follow is Christ. His main goal was to do the will of His Father. If I could impress one thing on the students in my ministry it would be that. Our goal in life should not be to please ourselves, rather our goal should be to follow the example Christ set for us. I know that is something that all Christians hear often. Follow Christ. But we make it more complicated than it needs to be most of the time. Love God, Love People. That is a popular phrase these days, but how many of us really do that. If we love God we will obey His commands. Stop putting ourselves first, think of others before you think of yourself. It is all pretty simple.

1 John Week 14

2010-10-28T08:51:00.001-05:00

October 27, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 5:13-21

v.13-15 - John begins the closing section of his letter by telling us, again, why he wrote this in the first place. His purpose in writing is so that we who are believers may know that we have eternal life. John desires for us as Christians to have no doubt about our salvation. He has shown us in no uncertain terms what someone who has a relationship with Christ looks like, acts like says and does. This eternal life is not just a future promise. One of the greatest things about being a Christian is having a relationship with God. Once we trust in Christ, we are washed clean; the sin that stains us is no longer what God sees. God sees us as He sees Christ, as a son/daughter and heir. We now have fellowship with God and the opportunity to get to know Him and grow closer to Him that we did not have before Christ. In verse 14&15 John talks about how, as a result of our confidence in our eternal life, we can in turn come to God with confidence in prayer. Earlier in this letter John spoke about prayer and how we can be confident in our prayers to God when our life glorifies God and conforms to God’s desires, which pleases Him. Now John adds that in order to have confidence in prayer, we must pray in accordance to His will. Jesus is the ultimate example of this. The will of Christ was always in line with that of His father (John 4:34), Jesus was about His Father’s business (John 6:38-40), and He always spoke what the Father wished Him to say (John 14:10; 17:8). If we are one with the father, our will is in line with His. Once our will and the will of God are in line then our desires will be lined up with the desires of God and our prayers will reflect our relationship with the Father. When we pray with an expectant heart and a heart that beats in rhythm with the heart of God, we have the assurance that He will respond to our requests favorably.
v.16-17 - We go from the encouragement of the possibility of an active relationship with Christ to the reality of sin in our lives. Our prayer life is powerful, especially in the life of those who are believers, our brothers and sisters in Christ, who are sinning and straying away from God. The issue with these verses is what John means by “sin that does not lead to death” and “sin that leads to death.” Sin that leads to death is more than likely sin that is unrepentant sin and sin that rejects Christ, chronic sins, and persistent lack of love for fellow believers, all of which John has said are indications of a lack of salvation. Sin that opposes Christ and keeps someone from a relationship with Him cannot be forgiven because it has not been paid for. What John is suggesting is that we need to pray for our fellow believers who are struggling with sin, if we do that God will help bring them out of that sin.
v.18-20 - We have talked about this a lot in our walk through of 1 John, but that just means it is all the more important. John is ending his letter by reiterating what he has taught us so far. We know that someone who was truly been born of God does not continue to sin. In fact, if you are truly born of God, Christ protects you from the evil one. Jesus is with us walking, leading, guiding, and helping, us as we strive to be more like Him. Verse 19 is a picture of our struggle but also our hope. We know we are from God, but we also know that the world lies in the power of the evil one. We as Christians need to be aware of the fact that everything in this world, apart from Christ is for Satan. But verse 20 gives us hope. John tells us of one who has come and has given us the ability to distinguish between truth and lie, between light and darkness, God and the evil one. We know Him who is true; we are in Him, and in His Son Jesus Christ. We see here an exclusive claim that He is the true God and eternal life. John is telling us that as believers we are aligned with THE true God and we have eternal life, both now and forever.
v.21 - John closes this letter with an exhortation, a warning against a temptation that we all struggle with even today. Keep yourselves from idols. We must be diligent and alert, actively making sure we don’t put things in front of God.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 13

2010-10-21T08:45:00.003-05:00

Last week our worship leader and his wife had their first baby, congrats to Brand and Sarah and welcome their baby girl Lydia into the world. Because they were out, I had the privelge of leading our students in worship last week and my good friend Dan spoke to them over last weeks passage out of 1 John, 4:20-5:4. That is why there is no entry for last week. Just thought I would let you know!

Pray
Read 1 John 5:5-12

v.5 - Over the next few verses we gain an insight into the world of the church during John’s day. So here is a little background. The church in John’s day was experiencing some division. There were men and women, as we have already discussed, who were going around and teaching false doctrine. One of the most dangerous of these new false teachings was that it wasn’t necessary to believe in the death of Christ on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. Rather if we simply understand that Christ lived on earth as the incarnation of God that is all we need. But as we will see this is not the case. In verse 5 we see John introduce us to Christ again, the son of God.
v.6 - So who is the Son of God? This is He who came by water and blood. This is an extremely significant verse in determining how we are to see and understand and worship Christ. There are 2 significant events in the life of Christ that begin and end His ministry. The first is when Christ is baptized in the Jordan River and the Holy Spirit descends on Him in the form of a dove and the Father speaks from heaven and says, "This is my Son in him I am well pleased" (water). The second is when Jesus is crucified, buried, and raised again (blood). To separate these two or to put one of these two acts above the other in importance in our view of Christ would be wrong. What these false teachers were saying was that the necessary act for eternal life was not Jesus’ death, but Jesus’ life here on earth as what gives us life. This is not so, according to John it is not by water only (Jesus’ water baptism and confirmation that He is the Son of God) but by water and the blood (Jesus’ death on the cross). At the end of verse 6 we read that it is the Spirit that testifies, or tells us what to believe, because the spirit is truth.
v.7-8 - We see here that John has given us three “witnesses” that are all in agreement about who Christ is and the importance of a proper view of Christ. Our view of Christ, our Christology, is not simply based on human opinion. In Jewish law in order for a testimony to be true there had to be at least 2 witnesses that agreed upon or shared the same testimony. So here, John gives us 3 testimonies that are all in agreement, they all point to Christ. We can kind of wrap our heads around the water and the blood, but how does the Spirit testify? The Spirit testifies inside of us, when we become followers of God, the Spirit comes to live in us as our helper and we can feel Him move and can interpret truth because of His presence in us.
v.9-12 - So now John brings in a 4th testimony about the validity of Christ. This testimony, should trump all other testimonies. John says that if we listen to the testimony of men, which we all do, then we must realize that the testimony of God is greater. God testifies concerning His son. It is the Spirit of God in us that is affirming truths about the gospel of Christ and it is God’s authority that rests behind the testimony of the water and the blood. If you reject any of these testimonies about Christ you are in turn rejecting God himself as He testifies through these things about His son. Jesus Christ is at the center of what God is about here on earth. Through these testimonies, the incarnation of Jesus, the death and resurrection of Christ that points us to eternal life. There is no other way for us to understand or receive eternal life, if we miss one of these points, either the water or the blood, we miss the boat. Whoever has the son, as the Father testifies about His son, has life. Without a proper Christology, without a proper and full view of who Christ is, we will miss out on eternal life with God; we will miss out on the awesome opportunity we are granted here on earth to be in relationship with Him. This is vitally important. This is something in which we can’t afford to make mistakes, we need to have a proper view of Christ, then we will have life, and then we will understand what it means to be a Christian.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 11

2010-10-07T09:17:00.002-05:00

October 6, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 4:13-19

v.13 - Last week we talked about the love of God and how that is shown through us as we begin to seek after Him. God the Holy Spirit comes into our lives and lives in our hearts. This is no small thing for us to ponder. The fact that the Holy Spirit, comes and lives in us is more than just a neat thing, it is something that we should be excited about. I admit, I don’t know enough about the Holy Spirit; don’t know as much about Him as I should, as much about Him as I do the other 2 persons of the Trinity. But what I do know about Him is that when we obey God’s commands and pattern our lives after them, we have the assurance of God’s presence in our lives because He has given us the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our comforter, our helper, our seal, He connects us to God, helps steer us toward truth. This is who was given to us and abides in our hearts.
v.14-16 - We are a privileged group of people here in the US, in the Bible Belt. We hear and see Christ preached and lived out without threat of reprisal. We are not persecuted beyond the loss of popularity or friends. This I think hinders our testifying about the love of God. We don’t have to take a stand for Christ because our culture tells us that everyone around us knows about God so why should we step up. But John here is telling us the way things were and the way things should be. Not only do we see God and His love portrayed for us in the death of Christ on the cross, but we are to testify, to tell others about, this love that we have received through the Holy Spirit, by Christ’s death on the cross, fulfilling the promises of a loving God. I can’t stress enough the fact that we should everyday be confessing that Christ is the Son of God. When we do this, we see that God abides, lives in, us and we in turn abide in Him. Obviously the concept of God living in us and us living in God is a big deal to John. Seeing the repetitiveness of this concept in these few verses and chapters should make us desire to understand and to truly grasp this point. But I’m afraid that in our consumer society that says ‘give me what I want and give it to me now,’ when we hear something more than once or twice we get irritated and annoyed by whatever that thing is and whoever is delivering the message. I would encourage us to stop and really try and understand this important part of what being a Christian really is. This is something that we should really try and understand or know. Verse 16 says that we know and believe the love that God has for us. Faith isn’t just about believing, we aren’t asked to put faith in a belief without evidence, without reassurances. We have the Holy Spirit, to help us see the truth and understand what it truly means to abide in God and God in us.
v.17-19 - John desires for us to have confidence in Christ, confidence in our salvation and in our eternal place with Christ in heaven. Verse 17 starts out by showing us something that should change what we are about as Christians. John says that love is perfected or complete when we abide in God and He in us. God’s love is perfected when we truly abide in Him, what that means is when we surrender ourselves completely to His word, living daily for Him and being about His business. The love of God is made perfect when we lean on Him and share His love with others. When we see this love perfected, the result is assurance. It gives us confidence in the promises of God. When we abide in God and He in us, we experience His spirit in us and this leads to our confidence in Him. This is how we can be assured that even though we are still sinners, His grace and love in us will rescue from eternal separation from Him when we die. This assures us that we have something in common with Christ, namely that we have a special place with God. Perfect love casts out fear, fear of the future, fear of past sins, and fear of failure. When Christ’s love is perfected through us living out His love, we will no longer fear, because if you have fear then you have not been perfected in love. We have the ability to love because Christ first loved us and this love when perfected drives out our fear and leaves a desire to live for God more genuinely every day.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 10

2010-09-30T08:05:00.001-05:00

September 29, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 4:7-12

v.7 - John changes the tone of what he is telling us starting here in verse 7. Here john begins an extended amount of time on the subject of love. Now you may be saying, we have heard all of this before, blah, blah, blah. John wouldn’t stress love so much if it wasn’t important. Think about it, if you had to get a message to a group of people and you wanted to make sure they understood what was most important, you would talk about it a lot. Right? We have covered a lot about love but John goes a little deeper and we see some new things here in these verses. He starts off by once again calling those he is writing to, beloved. John’s concern for those he is writing to is birthed out of the same place our love and concern for others comes. That is from God. Whoever loves is born of God and knows God. The only place real love can come from is God. I’m not talking about loving your pet, or loving cheese fries. Love that transforms who you are, love that changes you from the core. That love only comes from one place and that is God.
v.8 - A person who does not have this kind of love in them is not from God. It is a hard truth to really take in but there are many people who think they know God but their lives show no evidence of this transformational, life altering love that comes only from God. Here we come across something that is so often quoted; we kind of take it for granted. God is love. It is a simple statement, but with profound meaning. Everything about God is love. There is nothing that God can do that is not done out of love. We cannot, however say that love is God. Not every display of affection is from God. We too often equate love with affection. They are 2 separate things. Once we begin to understand who God is, there is no way that we won’t change. God is so overwhelmingly different from us that whenever we take on the smallest resemblance of God, our entire outlook on life is altered.
v.9-10 - We have already read a verse very similar to this one, back in 3:16. But this verse is a bit different. We know that Christ dying on the cross is the greatest example that we have of what true love is. But this verse is different. This verse shows us what had been hidden before Christ. God, in Christ, reveals himself for what He truly is, a loving father who is so enraptured with His creation that He is willing to do whatever it takes to bring them back into relationship with Him. “Christ is the unveiling of God’s heart; He is God, displayed vulnerably before the whole world.” God sent Christ out of His love for us. No other reason than love. Not only was Christ sent out of God’s love for us but he was sent so that we might live through Him. We are not truly alive until we have Christ. That is why it is said that when we receive Christ that we are passing out of death and into life. Notice in verse 10 that John lays out the order that love takes effect. We don’t love God first, rather God loved us. We don’t have love in us until we accept the sacrifice of Christ, which is the love of God made real to us. Propitiation is a fancy way of saying that Christ is the sacrifice required of us to forgive us of our sins and bring us back into relationship with God.
v.11-12 - Beloved, if we see the depth of the love of God, willing to sacrifice His only son for us, we should love each other the same way. We should be willing to sacrifice ourselves and our desires and agenda for each other. Some people have a hard time believing in a God they cannot see, but as Christians when we love like Christ loved, we become a tangible example of God to those around us. As we grow and mature and become more like God His love is perfected in us, and we will become better examples of who God is to others

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 9

2010-09-16T08:42:00.003-05:00

September 15, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 4:1-6

v.1 - In John’s day, there were many people who claimed to speak for God. Some of these men and women were true followers of Christ, while some of them were ‘false prophets’. Today things are no different. We have many religious groups, sects, and cults that claim to speak for God. With the technology we have today, we can find almost anything we want on the internet and anyone who has the desire has a worldwide platform to teach whatever they want. So just like in John’s day, the beginning of the church, when it was important to make sure that this new community of believers wasn’t learning from ‘false prophets’, it is important for us to do the same. John calls for us to “test the spirits.” Paul asks his readers to do the same thing in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 and 1 Timothy 3:10. As Christians today we have to be ready to test every message we hear and the spirit that inspired it. I have said this many times before; you shouldn’t just take what I have to say for granted, just accept that it is what the Bible says and go about your business. You should read for yourself, study the scripture when you get home that we cover each week, make sure that what I am saying is true and lines up with scripture, because there are many ‘false prophets’ in the world today.
v.2-3 - John has been concerned with the certainty of his readers. He wants his readers to know things beyond a shadow of a doubt. He tells us here how to know the Spirit of God. If a spirit or a person moved to speak by a spirit, confesses that Christ came in the flesh, that spirit or person is from God. On the other hand, verse 3 tells us that every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God, any spirit that does not confess Christ, is of the antichrist. Let’s break this down. For us to know whether a person is of God or not, we have to look at what they have to say about Jesus. We have to determine their Christology. There are many religions out there today that agree that Jesus was a real person who lived a good life and was a great teacher. But if that is where their view of Christ stops, they are not of God. In order for someone to have a proper view of who Christ is, they have to believe 2 things about Him, that He was fully God and fully man. These days we seem to run into more people, who have no problem saying that Jesus was fully man, they have a problem with His divinity. For a person to be from God, and for us to allow ourselves to listen to what they have to say, we have to first know what they believe about who Christ is.
v.4-6 - There is another way we can test a person’s message to see if it is from God or not. We need to look at who is accepting this message. As Christians we are supposed to be separate from the world. Many times when new teachings arise, “the world” will embrace those teachings. This should be a red flag to us as Christians. Anything the world embraces, we should not, because the world does not know God and will reject the things of God. As a Christian you are part of a community. This community is for your benefit; to help you grow and mature in Christ. If someone begins to teach something that you aren’t sure about, bring your questions to some elders in the church. We read in John 10:4 that the sheep (that’s us, the church) know the shepherd’s (that’s Jesus) voice. If there is a teaching that is circulating around, that is being accepted by the world, and rejected by the church, we probably shouldn’t follow that teaching. Here we run across a very often quoted verse. “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” This is talking about the Holy Spirit and the spirit of Satan. If you look at this verse in context, it is speaking about our ability to determine between true teachers of God and false teachers. How can we determine this; because the Holy Spirit, who is in us, is greater than the spirit of the devil, who is in the world. We will be able to determine between the Holy Spirit and the spirit of the devil because we have already overcome the latter. The Holy Spirit, once we are follower of Christ, has the power to help us see through the false teachings of those who are not from God. We can trust in that truth.

With so much information available to us today, we have to be careful and test what we hear before we just believe it. If Christ, fully God and fully man, is not at the center of any teaching and if wise leaders in the church reject something, and if the world readily accepts it as truth, we should be warned not to accept this teaching, because it is not from God but rather from the spirit of him who is in the world, Satan.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 8

2010-09-09T08:39:00.003-05:00

September 8, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 3:19-24

v.19 - As a Christian sometimes life can be hard. We read last week that we shouldn’t be surprised when the world hates us. Jesus in Luke 6:22 says, “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man!” The fact of the matter is when you live the Christian life you will not be liked by the majority of people. John in this letter continually reminds believers how they can be sure of their salvation. John knows that it is hard and the things of this world can wear us down and bring doubts into our heads, so he continues to reassure the believers and give them proofs of their faith. Truth is a valuable commodity and possessing truth is important, even if we don’t see it at first. John tells us that we can know we belong to the truth. When he says by this, he is referring to what we read and talked about last week. We know we are of the truth when we love others and adhere to the teachings of Christ. We have reassurance when our lives line up with the life of Christ.
v.20 - Here we have an interesting verse. What do you think John means when he says, “Whenever our heart condemns us…”? When you sin and you feel guilty for committing that sin that is your heart condemning you. When you feel insecure and doubt your salvation that is your heart condemning you. But if you are saved we must hold fast to the fact that God is greater than our heart and we must trust in God and God alone for our assurance. If your heart condemns you it is important to know that God has forgiven you through the blood of Christ. Once again we have assurance of our salvation if our lives match up with what Christ would want for us. The devil will try and hold your sin over your head and convince you that you aren’t good enough and that God won’t forgive you for that, but the great thing to remember is that if you are a child of God, then the blood of Christ is all that God sees when He looks at your heart and that means that you are forgiven. We should not look into our hearts to see if we feel secure in our salvation, because our hearts deceive us. We must put it all on God’s shoulders and trust in Him.
v.21-22 - once we realize that our heart can’t condemn us, then we can go to God with confidence, knowing that if we ask for something from Him we will receive it. So if we ask for a new car it’s ours, or if we ask that the hot boy or girl in our history class will finally talk to us it will happen, right? Wrong. You see verse 22 has a part B and it says that, “because we keep His commandments and do what pleases Him.” John is not making God out to be a cosmic Santa Claus. What John is telling us, along with other verses in the New Testament, is that when we obey God and we do what pleases Him, we will get what we ask for in prayer because our hearts will be in line with His and we will ask for the things He desires for us to ask for.
v.23-24 - John once again, as he has before, spells out what it is to be a Christian. First and foremost, the most important thing is that we have faith in Jesus Christ. This is the most crucial thing that we can know. If we have faith in Christ the rest will follow. The love for one another is secondary but nonetheless important to our walk as Christians. But we can’t have love for one another until we have faith in Christ. He ends this chapter again with a way for us to know that we know God, if we keep His commandments. Not only do we have the assurance of abiding in Him, but we are promised that if we keep His commandments, He will also abide in us. God the Holy Spirit, the 3rd person of the Trinity, lives in us.

Above all else the fact that we have God the Holy Spirit dwelling in our hearts should give us the confidence to walk in Christ amidst the struggles of this life and the condemnation brought about by sin. We know that if we have God in us, we are washed by the blood of Christ, and are no longer condemned but sanctified and made new. If this is true then we have the ability to go to God with confidence in prayer, knowing that if we keep His commandments and do what pleases Him we will receive what we ask. If God is foremost in your life, we abide in the Father and He in us.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 7

2010-09-05T09:59:00.001-05:00

September 1, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 3:11-18

v.11-12 - John opens up this section of his letter by reminding his readers that of the message they have been taught from the beginning of their faith in Christ. This message is simple, that we should love one another. John starts off with this declaration of love being important, because as believers, if there is an absence of love in our hearts then it creates some inconsistencies with our message. We know that God is love. If we are His followers, shouldn’t that also be said about us? And if we don’t demonstrate love to one another, what kind of message are we sending out? Verse 12 John uses Cain as an illustration of the absence of love. Cain, for no other reason than that he hated his brother Abel, killed him. John says here that Cain was of the devil, literally a child of the devil. We see here a contrast between good and evil, Cain, who is of the devil, and Abel, who is of God. Hatred was born in Cain when God chose Abel’s good offering over Cain’s bad offering. So we see in Cain how easily jealousy can turn to hatred and hatred can turn to murder. Jesus says in Matthew 5, that if you have hatred in your heart for your brother it is the same as murder. Cain had no love in him and so was consumed by his hatred for his brother. Cain killed Abel because the deeds of Abel were righteous before God. A child of God does not have hatred for his brother. Like we read last week, someone who is regenerate cannot live in sin. To murder someone, literally, or even to hate someone, you would have to dwell on that hatred and allow it to been in your life for a long time. Something a child of God wouldn’t allow to happen.
v.13 - We have heard this before, but we shouldn’t be surprised that the world hates us as Christians. The world hated Christ and it hates us. If we truly live our lives like we are called to as Christians, even in America today, we will be hated by some.
v.14 - John is hitting pretty hard here on the fact that loving the brothers (those who are Christians) is of paramount importance in the life of a believer. He says again that we can know that we have passed out of death and into life, meaning we have passed from spiritual death without Christ, to spiritual life as a child of God, if we love the brothers. Because of our love for the brothers we can be assured of our new life in Christ. What John is not saying is that we have to love the brothers in order to be saved, rather he is saying once saved, we will have the desire and ability to love the brothers. If we have not love, we have not life.
v.15 - if we take what Christ had to say in Matthew chapter 5 into account we see where John got this from. Jesus himself said that if you have hate in your heart it is as good as committing murder, but John goes on to clarify for us that no murderer has eternal life in Christ. Now he is not saying that after a person commits a murder, they can’t repent and gain salvation. What he is referring to is the condition of the heart at the time of the murder, or in most of our cases, the hate. If a person’s heart is able to harbor hate for another person instead of love, then they don’t have Christ in their hearts and they don’t have eternal life.
v.16-18 - So what is love? We get the quintessential example of love here in verse 16. Christ laying down his life for us. We don’t know love apart from this. Christ didn’t die an unwilling death, instead, he lay down, willingly gave up, His life for us. In turn, as Christians, we should express this type of love towards one another. Be willing to lay down our lives for our fellow believers. But John asks a question of us here. If you have plenty and you see a brother in need and you don’t help, does the love of God live in you? The simple answer is no. we here in America have plenty compared to the rest of the world, yet the majority of US Christians, think only of themselves. They don’t sacrifice anything, some may give, but it is out of their abundance, just enough to not hurt them but still look like they are doing something good. That is not the kind of giving that John is talking about. We as the American church have this problem of saying we love and not acting on it. verse 18 warns us to love not just in word and talk, but in deed and in truth.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 6

2010-08-26T08:36:00.001-05:00

August 25, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 2:28-3:10

v. 28-3:3- The close of Chpt 2 is so seamless that it flows right into Chpt 3. John is writing to us reminding us of our heritage. If we practice righteousness, we can be sure we are born of Him, because like the old saying goes, “Like Father, like son.” If we resemble our Father in Heaven we can be sure we are born of Him. This has nothing to do with us; we are called Children of God for no other reason than that He loves us and calls us His children. There is nothing we can do to earn the right to be a child of God; we are so because He chooses for us to be. John also tells us in verse 1 of Chpt 3 that just as our Father is not known by the world, neither are we known by the world. There will always be a friction between those who know Christ as savior and those in the world who do not. Verse 2 talks about the fact that we are God’s children now and refers to the promise we have that we will be like Christ in His Kingdom one day. Being like Christ, having our glorified bodies, never experiencing sin, death, sickness, sadness again, being continually filled with the Holy Spirit is what we have to look forward to, the promise at the end of a life lived for Christ. If we have this hope in Him we will be pure as He is pure.
v.4-5 - John then switches gears and starts talking about sin. Here in verse 4 he defines sin as lawlessness. Sin is an activity without the guidance of God and in violation of His law. Then we see the hope that is in Christ as John reminds us that Christ came to take away sins, and that Christ himself, is without sin. This is our hope, because we know that in us there is sin, but through Christ we can have those sins taken away.
v.6-7 - Here is where things get serious. So far most of what we have read has been pretty reassuring happy go lucky, children of God, Jesus takes away sins, glorified bodies, etc. But in verse 6 John’s message changes. He says no one who has the things mentioned above, no one who abides in Christ, keeps on sinning. This is gut check time. Wait a minute, what does he mean by keeps on sinning? Well if a person knows something is wrong, yet they continue to do it, and they have no regret, no remorse, feel no compulsion towards repentance, that is a person who keeps on sinning. Those who habitually sin have neither seen nor known Christ. We read again in verse 7 that if we practice righteousness then we are righteous as Christ is righteous. To be righteous means to be characterized by uprightness or morality. If we practice doing what is right according to scripture, then we are righteous as Christ is righteous.
v.8 - Christ came to destroy the works of the devil, which is the practice of sinning, who was there when sin entered the world and who has been sinning from the beginning. This may seem a bit out of place but it is for us to understand the full implications of what it is that we are getting ourselves into if we are going follow after Christ. This is not going to be a walk in the park. If Christ’s mission is to destroy the works of the devil and we come along side Him we will be joining in that mission with Him.
v.9-10 - John reiterates and emphasizes his point that if we are born of God we don’t make a practice of sinning. We can see how important this is by how much he talks about it in this letter. Here we see a truth that could change everything for you if you allow it too. If a person has been born of God, that person cannot keep on sinning because God’s seed makes its home in that person. The heart of a genuine Christian will have been so transformed that they cannot live in a pattern of continual sin. The seed that is referred to in verse 9 is the Word of God that lives in the believer’s heart through the work of the Holy Spirit. Verse 10 goes on to point out that it is easy for us to see who is a child of God, and who is a child of the devil: if you don’t practice righteousness you are not of God, and if you don’t love your brother you aren’t one of God’s children.

John again gets to the heart of the matter and helps us see clearly whose we are. John lays it all out and makes it all pretty clear. If you make a practice of sinning and it doesn’t bother you one way or another if you do sin, even if it is a little sin, then you are not of child of Gods. This is when we need to take time and really examine our lives, our hearts. So many Christians question their salvation, that is not a bad thing, but to be sure you know Christ you have to practice living according to the Word of God. Once we know where we stand with Christ then we can lean on His promises and rest in the hope and joy of being one of His children. Then and only then will we be able to take the next step and grow begin to look more and more like Christ, drawing people to Him because of His love that is in us.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 4

2010-08-05T08:20:00.002-05:00

August 4, 2010
Pray
Read 1 John 2:15-17

v. 15 - John starts off this section of his letter with a warning. Once again, it is very plain, very easy to understand. John is to the point when he says, “do not love the world or the things in the world.” In all actuality it is a simple statement, but because we are humans, and we sin, we look for loop holes around this warning. What does John mean by do not love the world? What are the things in the world that John is talking about? John, when he says do not love the world, he means do not be devoted to the world, rather surrender yourself to the way of Christ. We know from John 3:16 that even God loved the world, so it would be a contradiction for John to tell us to not love the world. We as humans tend to put things in God’s place and love those things of the world instead of God. Likewise we tend to put people in God’s place and love them instead of God. The reasons for that are many, but if we follow what John says here and we follow what Jesus says is the greatest commandment, we will see that our love for God should come before anything this world has to offer. He continues on in this verse and says that “if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” This is a serious statement. If we love the world, we can’t love God. Basically John is saying that you can’t put things in front of God and be serious about your relationship with Him, which is why he tells us not to love the world or the things in it.
v. 16 - John in verse 16 gives us some general things that are in the world that we should stay away from, desires of the flesh, desires of the eyes, and pride in possessions. These things John tells us are not from God, but are from the world. John isn’t saying here that all of our desires are evil and we should have no desires at all. On the contrary, God has given us desires as human beings and those desires, when directed and focused on God are good. But when the world, gets a hold of them, they become twisted and unprofitable for our walk with God.
v. 17 - We tend to view our world as a permanent place. Even as Christians, we are deceived into the mindset that when we lay our heads down at night, we will wake up in the morning and that the world will still be here. Truthfully we don’t know when the world will end, could be tomorrow, could be 1,000 years from now. But either way, this world will end, and it is not a permanent place. Even if you live to be 120 it is still just a blink of an eye compared to all of history. When looking in history books we sum up entire decades in single chapters. Our world is not permanent and we need to live like it. The desires of this world, the things of this world, are passing away. But whoever does God’s will, puts God first, loves God more than the world, that person will abide forever, with Christ. As a follower of Christ we need to recognize that the fleeting pleasures of this world are not worth our time. We need to use our time for more permanent, lasting things, the things of God.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

1 John Week 3

2010-07-29T08:36:00.003-05:00

July 21, 2010

Somehow, I skipped week two, and am posting this a week late...gotta love how busy summer is in student ministry! Oh well, here ya go!

Pray
Read 1 John 2:7-14

v. 7-11 - We see here John telling his readers a “new commandment”. The only thing is that this “new” commandment isn’t quite new. Actually if you look back in the old testament, in Leviticus 19:18 we read the same commandment given to the people of Israel by Moses. Love your neighbor as yourself. Love one another. This new commandment is to love. John opens this part of his letter by calling the people “Beloved.” He says in verse 7 that this is no new command, but then he says in verse 8 at the same time, it is a new command. John is trying to get his readers and us to understand that as followers of Christ, all things are new. In Christ we see love perfected. So our model of loving others has changed. No longer do we love others the way we did before Christ. He is our model, our example. He is the true light that is shining and the darkness is passing away. Verse 9 takes it a step farther. If you say you are in the light, that is a follower of Christ, and you hate your brother, you are still in darkness. Following Christ should change us so much that everything about us should change. We can’t harbor hate in our heart if we are truly in Christ. Love will be the pervasive quality we possess and everything else will flow from that. If we love our brother we will have no cause for stumbling. When it’s dark you stumble and fall but living in Christ will illuminate your life and you will not have as much trouble continuing to walk. Love will guide us, but verse 11 tells us that if we walk in darkness, we don’t know where we are going because the darkness will blind us. I love how black and white the Bible is. Here John tells us that there are 2 choices. If you love your brother, you are walking in the light which means you have a relationship with Jesus. But, if you don’t love your brother, you are walking in darkness and in turn, do not know Jesus. It is pretty simple. Too often we try and complicate, and cloud things up. When we do that, it is because we are still struggling with darkness, but if we look at what the Word says, we will see how simple and uncomplicated things should be.
v.12-14 - Here John is trying to assure his readers that they can have confidence in Christ. John uses three terms, little children, young men, and fathers. Some think these terms symbolize the stages of spiritual maturity, or that the term little children is referring to all of John’s readers, young men, refers to new believers, and fathers refers to older believers. Regardless of how you see these terms, there are encouraging words spoken to us in these verses. Our sins are forgiven in the name of Christ. If we know God we know Him who was from the beginning. That is a great encouragement knowing that we can have a relationship with the one who was here before time began. We have the strength and ability to overcome the evil one when we put our hope in Christ and trust in His Word.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Lazy Summer....Yeah Right!!

2010-07-19T14:58:00.005-05:00

This summer has been crazy. I haven't seemed to stop once. In the last month I have spent more time away from home than at home. But it finally looks like things might actually be slowing down and I might actually get to enjoy some of my summer. I have loved being busy, and I have loved being able to do the things I feel that God has called me to do, but it will be nice to be able to spend some time with Courtney and Bryson and just relax. But before I let it all slip away, I want to let you know what God has been up to in my heart lately through my busy summer.

PERU:
Amazing!! My trip to Peru wasn't just for sightseeing or fun. It was a trip to help our church decide whether or not there are mission opportunities we need to pursue there. And in my opinion there are. God is at work through Jake and Dodie Glover and the team of Peruvian pastors, students and Christians they work with. I love the way that Jake views his ministry in Peru. We saw first hand the danger in doing an evangelistic push in the jungle without continued follow-up and discipleship. Jake's heart is all about discipleship. That is something I can get on board with. I want to work with people who are like minded in their desire to produce Christians who know why they believe what they believe and can take that and teach it to others. That is what we are called to do as Christians, it is what I am trying to do in my student ministry, and it is what Jake is doing in Peru. Praise God for allowing us to work with Jake. Before I go back to Peru I have 3 things I need to work on:
1) My Spanish
2) My futbol (or soccer since we as Americans have to be different)
3) Convincing Courtney to come with me! (no doubt the hardest task before me)
I have a great desire to go back and continue to grow in my relationship with the people of Peru. I hope it is something God will see fit to allow me to do.

Student Life Camp:
We just got back on Friday from camp. From the word go I have to say that it was one fo the most difficult weeks I have had as a Minister. Almost nothing went right. To start we left at 5:00 am which meant I was up much earlier than that. We did get to camp on time, after 9 hours of driving, but that seemed to be the only thing that went according to plan. There were quite a few obstacles or issues this week, and at times it was hard to look through all of the negative to see to the positive of what God was doing in the lives of our students and adults. God is constantly teaching me and growing me and I know there were things I let slip through while I was so focused on the issues and not on God. I have to learn to give it over to Him. I am beginning to see that I try to hard to hold on to my small idea of what should happen. God has a better way for things to go, even if it doesn't seem like it to me. One of the biggest issues this week may have helped a student grow more than they would have otherwise. I have to learn to not try and be in such control, take care of the issues as they arise, and let God deal with what I am not equipped to handle. It was a growing experience, one I am not going to ask God to repeat, but a good experience none the less.

That is just skimming the surface of what all has happened to me this summer through these 2 big events. God is working through it all and I have to remember who is the the Potter and who is the clay.

Headed out of the Country

2010-06-24T10:09:00.003-05:00

Well tomorrow I will be heading out on a "vision trip" to Peru with 3 other people from our church. I have been on mission trips in the states, and to Mexico but that is as far as I have gone. To be honest, I am really excited about this trip. It has been over a year in the making and has been pushed back once. But we have our tickets, passports, and vaccinations and we are ready to go. We will be flying into Lima, Peru and then to the largest city in the Peruvian Amazon, Iquitos. We will be meeting a missionary family in Iquitos who have ties to our church. Jake and Dodie Glover and their 2 girls are going to be hosting and helping us as we begin what is hopefully a long relationship with the Peruvian people. Their blog is www.jndnperu.wordpress.com check it out for more info. I'm not sure exactly what to expect. I do know we will be spending the majority of our time in the Amazon Jungle. We will be meeting and ministering to the Yagua people in Sta. Amelia, Huanta, Miraflores, San Juan, San Pedro, Santa Rosa, Pobre Alegre, and La Libertad along the Amazon river. I am nervous, more about leaving Bryson and Courtney than actually going. Courtney is a little nervous as well. But I know that God will provide for the families of those leaving just as much as He will provide for us. I won't have much in the way of internet access, I will take lots of pictures, and post them when I get back. I am also going to try and do something I have never done before, I am going to try to write down my experiences so that I can more accurately describe them when we come back. your prayers would be much appreciated. Here are some things you can pray for:

Travel - safety and ease of travel (don't anticipate any problems, but you never know)
Safety - we are going to be in the jungle, the movie "Anaconda" keeps playing in my head...
Ministry - that God will open up opportunities on this trip and for future trips
Yagua People - that they will be receptive to the Holy Spirit moving
Courtney & Bryson - I will miss them and they will miss me, pray for strength for Courtney while I'm gone.

That is about all I can think of, any prayers are appreciated. Thanks in advance.

-For His Glory,

Chris

1 John Week 1

2010-06-17T09:35:00.002-05:00

Pray
Read 1 John 1:1-10

1 John, many think, was written by John the son of Zebedee who was a disciple of Christ. The book of John was also thought to be written by John the son of Zebedee. This particular letter was most likely written no later than the 90’s A.D.
v.1-4 - as the book of 1 John opens we see something that is very key. This man who is writing this letter was someone who was around in the time of Christ. John isn’t writing this letter from 2nd hand knowledge. He is writing from his own experience. John heard the words of Christ, he saw the miracles Christ performed, he looked upon and touched the Son of Man. John was personally acquainted with Jesus Christ, the Word of Life. In verse 2 the life, Christ, was made manifest or, publicly seen or known, by the Father. The things that the disciples have seen and heard those things they are telling to us. It is important that we understand that what is written here is very reliable, and accurate, written by someone who was there. The desire of John is to inform us of these things so that we may have fellowship with those who were with Christ as their fellowship is with the Father and the Son. It will bring joy to those who are in fellowship together with the Father and the Son.
v. 5-7 - starting in verse 5 we see the message that Christ preached and now John proclaims to us. That message is that God is light and that there is no darkness in Him at all. Verse 6 goes a long way in explaining what a person who claims to follow Christ is supposed to be like. If God is light, then those who walk in darkness and claim to be followers of Christ are not truly following Christ. There is no darkness in Him at all. When God is referred to as light, it is an Old Testament background where light symbolizes both knowledge and purity. All that John is writing about flows from the basis of God’s spiritual perfection, His moral excellence, and His utter transcendence, in other words His light. If someone who claims to be a Christian does not attempt with their whole heart to conform to who God is, then they are walking in darkness and have no part in Christ. But in verse 7 we see the benefits of walking in the light. If we reflect with our lives, all that God is, with both right doctrine and moral purity, then we will walk with God in a deep fellowship with the creator of the world. When we walk in the light we don’t have hidden sins because the light reveals them. The light will reveal that which is hidden and as we continue to walk in the light, the blood of Christ will continue to cleanse us from our sins.
v.8-10 - in these few verses I think we see an issue with which we deal with constantly today. Many Christians know they are sinners but when it comes to our everyday life we seem to look past the fact that we sin. We don’t recognize or we turn a blind eye to the things we do. We fool ourselves into thinking that we are ok. How else can we justify the blatant way we spit in God’s face daily. We deceive ourselves. But I am not saying that every Christian who sins does not have the truth in them. But what I am saying is that we allow ourselves to be deceived and we need to be more aware of our sins and as verse 9 says, confess our sins and ask Christ to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we take verse 10 seriously then we need to be careful to see our faults and confess them, or else we are calling God a liar and His word is not in us.
Knowing that John rights from firsthand knowledge of the Son of God should encourage us to take his words here and hold them close. If we listen to what John says here we will have a deep and rich fellowship with God the Father and His son Jesus Christ. We need to understand and see that God is light and there is no darkness in him. So that means there can be no darkness in us if we are truly walking with Christ. We must not deceive ourselves and think we are better than we are, rather we should confess our sins and ask for forgiveness and cleansing from Christ.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 10

2010-05-13T08:52:00.001-05:00

May 12, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 4:10-23

v. 10-13 - As we close out the book of Philippians, we saw Paul continue in thanking and encouraging the people of Philippi. He says here that he rejoices because of the care and concern the Philippians have made for him. As soon as those in Philippi learned of Paul’s imprisonment, they immediately had the desire to help out in some way. At first they were not presented with an opportunity, but when the time was right they acted on their desire to help Paul and because of that Paul rejoiced. But he also wants the people of Philippi to understand that even in difficult circumstances he has learned to be content. Paul is in prison, which is no place anyone in their right mind wants to be. Most people when faced with the prospect of being in prison would say they are content. But we know that Paul made even his time in a roman prison useful for furthering the Gospel so he was content in every situation. Paul didn’t want this to sound like he was asking for more, he reassures those who gave to him that he didn’t see himself in need, but that he was content with his situation. In fact he goes on to say that he knows how to be brought low and to abound. He knows how to live when he has more than he needs and when he is just scraping by. He has faced plenty, hunger, abundance, and need and he has learned the secret of facing each situation. Most of us have learned how to “be brought low,” because when difficulties come we immediately run to the Lord! But few have learned how “to abound.[1]
Now we can read Phil. 4:13 and really apply it to the context in which it was written. In my opinion, behind John 3:16, this is probably the most quoted verse of the entire Bible. Verse 13 is a great verse to help remind us that, with Christ we can do anything that he asks of us to do. But we must also look at this verse in its original context and see what Paul was telling the Philippians by writing these words. Paul is writing here about being content in all of life’s circumstances and he says that he has learned the secret of how to do that. That secret is to rely on the strength of Christ in us to live a contented life. Many people try and use this verse to apply to a number of things in their life. I can make an “A” on my test through Christ who gives me strength. Or I can score a touchdown through Christ who gives me strength. While Paul does say that he can do “all” things, it is not referring to winning the spelling bee or getting into a certain college, he is instead referring to living a life that trusts God so much that no matter what happens in our lives, we will be content and rejoice in the Lord.
v.14-16 - Paul continues speaking to the help that the Philippians [provided him over these next few verses. He says that even though he was content in his circumstances, he recognizes the church at Philippi as the only church who, from the beginning of his ministry, helped him whenever he was in need. Even when he was in Thessalonica, another church with 2 books in the New Testament, the Philippians helped him. Paul was very grateful for all they did on his behalf, both spiritually partnering with him in his ministry but also giving financially when he was in need.
v.17-20 - Paul in these verses points out to the Philippians that their gifts to Paul not only benefit him in his ministry but that they will benefit from them as well. Paul is not only grateful for their help to him but he offers them opportunities to help him so that they will be able to add some things to their resume. Paul continues in verse 18 saying that what they gave him has well supplied him and because of that, God is pleased by their offering, it is a sweet smelling aroma to the lord. Verse 19 further elevates their giving and encourages them to continue doing so because God will provide for those who give generously. This isn’t saying that if you give the church $1,000 on Sunday that on Monday a check for $1,005 will show up in our mailbox. But what Paul is saying to the Philippians is that they will be blessed by God if they are generous with what He has supplied them with. God will supply for your NEEDS, not your wants.
v.21-23 - Paul closes out this letter to the Philippians with greetings from those who are with him and to all that will hear this.
[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Php 4:11). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 9

2010-05-06T09:18:00.001-05:00

May 5, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 4:1-9

v. 1 - in verse 1 Paul expresses just how he feels about the people in the church at Philippi. Paul genuinely loves them and he wishes he could be with them, he longs for them. He calls them his joy and his crown. Because of their faith and spiritual success the Christians in Philippi are one of Paul’s crowning achievements. They have taken hold of Christ in all they do and Paul is proud of them for that. He calls them his joy because of their perseverance in the faith which will lead to their final salvation. Paul has much joy and pride because of the faith of the Philippians and he encourages them not only in telling them how he loves them but also by telling them to stand firm in the Lord.
v. 2-3 - here Paul openly cautions two women in the church about agreeing with one another. This is obviously a serious problem that is hurting the church or Paul would not have mentioned it in his letter. I think there are 2 separate things we can learn from Paul’s words here. First we see that Paul truly loved these people. He expresses that love by encouraging them to solve conflict. A good leader will not only help and encourage in the good times, but will also be the voice of reason during the rough spots. This translates to students because each one of you knows the drama that is going on way better than any adult in this ministry. You all know who is mad at who and why. As a leader in this ministry you should encourage the reconciliation of those who are at odds. When you stop contributing to the gossip/drama and start trying to be part of the solution that is when you know that you are beginning to step up and be a leader. The second thing we learn from this is the way in which we are to handle bringing about reconciliation. We need to encourage the ones in conflict to work it out themselves first. However, with most conflicts, a third party needs to get involved. Notice, Paul didn’t choose sides; he didn’t eve address the reason for the problem, all he said was that they needed to agree in the Lord. Paul encourages a true companion, or friend, to help them agree in the Lord because he knows they probably won’t be agreeable without help. Paul recognizes that these women have been a vital part of helping him spread the gospel and he doesn’t want to see their disagreement hurt their previous work. Healthy relationships within the church, equals a greater ability to spread God’s love to those outside the church.
v.4-7 - Rejoice. Not many of us really understand or grasp this I think. I say that because not many of us are rejoicing in the Lord very often. Some of us rejoice in other things like sports, or grades or other achievements. But we fail to rejoice in the Lord. This is not a joy that is based on our circumstances, but rather a deep contentment in the Lord based on our trust in God. Many times we fail to rejoice in the Lord unless good things are happening. We base our happiness with God in our circumstances. But we need to rejoice in God, both when things are going our way and when things are looking grim. Verse 5 talks about reasonableness. If we are not reasonable we will offend many and will be offended just as much. If we are reasonable, we are not selfish. Being reasonable means that you don’t just look out for your own interests, you do what is best for others. Verse 6 is an oft quoted verse that we need to understand and really apply in our lives. Do not be anxious about anything. This is hard for me. I lay in bed at night sometimes for hours, anxiously thinking about things in ministry, at home, and everything in between. It is hard but we should begin to honestly try to let tomorrow worry about itself. Give all of our requests, fears, concerns, worries, delights, joys, hopes, dreams, to God and allow His peace to fill us up beyond our understanding. If we allow that to happen our lives become less complicated. Our hearts will no longer be heavy and our minds will be free to focus on that which is important, which is Christ. Now I haven’t mastered this, and I don’t think I will ever get close, but we need to continually try to let go of all our stuff and focus on our God.
v. 8-9 - we are called by Paul to think on certain things. We should think on these things so they will inspire worship of God and service to others. Whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, if there is anything of excellence, worthy of praise, think on these things. You want practical application, this is pretty practical and so is verse 9. Practice the things you have learned, received, heard and seen in me Paul says. If you do these things the God of peace will be with you. Pretty simple right, so why do we try to over complicate it?

As Christian brothers and sisters we need to do our best to live in community with one another agreeing in the Lord. If that can’t happen then we need to help each other out in times of disagreement. Rejoice in the Lord in good times and bad, be reasonable, thinking of others before yourself. Give everything to God and allow His peace to wash over you think on things of God and practice the truth you hear and see. This is Paul’s call to us in these few verses.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 8

2010-04-29T08:37:00.003-05:00

April 28, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 3:12-21

v. 12-13 - Paul starts off by continuing his thoughts from the previous section. He wants us to understand that not even he is anywhere close to perfect. Paul, someone we look up to and so did the Philippians, a teacher and evangelist, is not perfect, in fact he still struggles, just like us, with sin and the things in this world. But he stresses, because Christ had achieved perfection and has chosen us to follow after him, he presses on to make perfection his own and to be more like Christ. Since we know that we have not achieved perfection for our own, verse 13 tells us to forget what we have done in our past, don’t let our past hinder our present and future progress. Many times we will allow sins from our past to continue to haunt us, the guilt that is associated with the life we lived prior to Christ or even the short comings we experience as part of a new creation in a fallen world will drag us down and make it more difficult for us to focus on what lies ahead of us, to focus on our goal of becoming more like Christ. So we must put those things behind us and press on toward Christ.
v. 14-16 - Paul uses the word ‘goal’ in verse 14 to show us something. When we have a goal in mind we know what we need to do to reach that specific target. Paul’s goal was a heavenly goal. Paul was constantly striving and straining towards heaven. If we are mature in our thinking Paul says, we will think this way. We will understand that we have not yet reached perfection and there is still much more we need to do to become mature or perfect. Paul also says that if you do for some reason think that you have obtained maturity/perfection, God will reveal to you that you have not. It is clearly evident to me that I have not reached perfection yet. I am not a perfect husband, father, employee, minister, or friend. There is much in this life that I have not had the privilege of learning and there are things that I have been taught but they still haven’t sunk in yet. I have a long ways to go, but the first step to fixing a problem is knowing there is one and I see that I am still a work in progress. Paul reminds us to hold true to what we have attained, that is a new life in Christ where the old is gone and the new has come.
v.17-21 - in these few verse Paul calls us to follow his example as he is committed to Christ the Lord. Even though Paul himself is not yet perfected, he is confident enough in himself to tell others to imitate him. He feels that he is living his life so focused on Christ that others can look to him as an example of how to live their lives according to the gospel of Christ. Not many people can live up to this standard however and in verse 18 Paul warns us that many who once were following Christ, are now enemies of the cross. We have to be careful in whom we follow and imitate and we can’t do so blindly. Sometimes mature believers will falter in their walk and will be swayed by false teaching. We must always be vigilant and cautious; making sure that who we imitate is truly imitating Christ. It is a good thing to imitate other Christians, it can help us mature in our walk with Christ, but if we follow blindly there is a chance we could be led a stray by someone who once walked closely with Christ but ever so slowly began to wander away taking us with them. For someone who is an enemy of the cross, verse 19 is very foreboding. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, meaning they worship themselves, and they are consumed with earthly things. We must be on the lookout for these types of people who are in the church and who will lead others astray. Because if their end is destruction, so will the end be for any who follow them. But, if you are in Christ Jesus, your citizenship is in heaven; your end is not destruction but life. In the end, we who follow Christ will take part in glory with Christ. In the end we will be perfected, we will have glorious bodies, like Christ’s, and we will live in glory forever with our savior.

We have not and will not while we are on this earth ever obtain perfection. But that doesn’t mean we allow an imperfect world to influence us in a negative way. On the contrary, we must forget our past failings and the guilt that comes with that, and strive for what lies ahead, the promise of perfection. A mature person knows that they have not yet reached maturity, but continues daily to strive for it. We must also look to other Christians as examples of how to live, but not blindly as fools. We have to keep our eyes open so that we can reach our end goal which is eternity with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Hero Envy

2010-04-26T09:03:00.001-05:00

Pray
Read Hebrews 11:32-38
I have always had a little thing I like to call hero envy. Often as I was growing up I would day dream and re enact scenarios in which I was the hero. I would always see a problem and imagine myself as the one to solve it. Whether it was rescuing a princess being held captive by a dragon, or making the game winning shot at the buzzer, I can look back at my childhood imaginings and I see a pattern. While I always imagined myself the hero I never was the one who went out and did those things. Because the truth is I was too scared to be the hero. I don’t see myself as having the skills necessary to be the hero. I have always relied on others to be the hero, never myself. I have always looked up to super heroes in comic books or sports stars.
I think we fall into this way of thinking in our walks with Christ as well. Many of us as Christians see that there is a problem in the world. Many of us see our families, friends, and co-workers and we know that they are in need of rescuing. And many of us will lay awake at night and imagine ourselves being the one that swoops in and saves the day. But if we get down to it, we will sit back and rely on others to accomplish what we desire to do ourselves. We hope and pray that there is someone better equipped to accomplish the task that we know needs to be done. We look to heroes of the faith, Paul, Timothy, Moses, Abraham, David, Elijah, Isaiah, Esther and the list could go on. We look to these men and women in the Bible and we say, “I could never be like that, I could never live up to those standards.” And so we never really attempt anything. We play out the scenario in our heads but we never take action. We don’t have enough Biblical knowledge, or we’re shy or we’re too young, or we’re too old or any other number of excuses. The bottom line is that we don’t think we have what it takes to be who God needs in this day and age.

A.W. Tozer - “Just as those who lived in the past had the privilege of being God’s people of faith then, so do we in our own day!” “I do not think that all the heroes of the faith are dead and gone!” - Ecclesiastes 9:4

We tend to look to these heroes of the faith and for most of us we automatically feel incapable of serving God like they did. But the great thing is that God didn’t make 2 David’s or 2 Abrahams, he didn’t make 2 of me or 2 of you. We are all uniquely gifted so that we can all serve God. Instead of being intimidated by these men and women of the faith, we should be encouraged by them. We should be spurred on by what these giants of the faith have done.
Hebrews 12:1 says that because we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses. Not in spite of the great cloud of witnesses, but because of them, we should run the race set before us. We shouldn’t have hero envy. We shouldn’t have the attitude that we can’t live up to those that have gone before us. We should desire to do far greater things than they did for the glory of God. We have to be careful here that we don’t try to do more than them so that we look good or so that our names are remembered. We need to surpass their influence only to make the name of Christ known among the nations, nothing more.

Hebrews 12:12- lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees
Philippians 1:14 - We should boldly speak the word without fear

For whatever reason, God chose us to be the instruments that further His kingdom. We can’t do that if we just sit back and admire the work of others. Those who have gone before us know the difficulty of our race. We should learn from them and run our race well. The 21st century is a great time in the life of the church. We have access to more information and the ability to spread that information further and quicker than ever before. We as the church need to step up to that responsibility left to us by those who have gone before us. I get excited at the thought that I might one day be remembered for the life I lived in serving God and making Him known throughout the world. We need to step up to the plate, and ready ourselves to take up the task that has been left to us. It isn’t just my job, or the big name speaker or worship artist. We are all called to serve. It is all of our responsibility. We could be the next hero of the faith. But we need to put down the comic book and get to work, for the glory of God.

Philippians Week 7

2010-04-22T08:32:00.002-05:00

April 21, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 3:1-11

When I orignally set out to go through the book of Philippians I intended to do it in 6 weeks. Obviously that didn't happen and we are on our 7th week of a 6 week study. Gotta love it!!

v. 1-3 - Paul is about to talk to the Philippians about the Judaizers. This is a topic which he has already talked to them about but he feels that it is important enough for him to go over again. A Judaizer was a Christian who tried to force non Jewish Christians to observe the Jewish laws and traditions. Paul speaks about the problems that causes in some of the other letters we have in the New Testament. This was a big problem for this new religious movement known as Christianity. The Judaizers were being very exclusive and legalistic, and were trying to keep some people from being Christians. That is not the goal of Christianity at all and so Paul was telling the people in Philippians some of the danger in that line of thinking. He calls these people dogs, evildoers, and those that mutilate the flesh. There are a few things of note here in verse 2. He calls these Judaizers dogs, which was a name that Jews would often use to refer to gentiles. He used a saying of theirs against them. Then Paul continues to flip their views of themselves on their head by calling the ones who uphold the Jewish law and tradition evildoers and those that mutilate the flesh. These Judaizers were more interested in the outward signs of holiness than truly being Christ like in all that they were doing. Jesus basically says the same thing to the Pharisee’s in Matthew chapter 23. Paul is recognizing that this problem still exists and it is something we as Christians need to be on the lookout for and be careful not to fall in to this same trap. Paul goes on to say what those who truly worship Christ look like. In verse 3 he says that we who worship by the spirit and do not pt confidence in the flesh are the true children of God.
v. 4-6 - in these next few verses we see Paul list his criteria for being a “Hebrew of Hebrews.” Paul was born to Jewish parents, circumcised in accordance with the law, and then he became a teacher of the law, a Pharisee, persecuted the church, and according to Jewish law blameless. Paul had everything going for him on the worldly side of things.
v. 7-8 - but after his encounter with Christ, everything about Paul’s life changed completely. The only thing important to this once ruling class citizen in the Jewish community is gaining Christ. There had to be something that happened to this man to drastically change his entire outlook on life. Paul went from someone who had it all to a man who was killed for his faith.
v.9-11 - to be found in him, means to be spiritually united to Christ and because of that we are no longer guilty before God as divine judge. Before Paul came to be a Christian he trusted in his own righteousness, but now he trusts in the righteousness that comes through his faith in Christ, the righteousness that comes from God. Our desire as Christians should now be to know Christ and the power of his resurrection. We have one goal in mind and that should be to have the mind of Christ. If we do this we will surely share in the sufferings of Christ but we will also share in his glory, and his resurrection from the dead.
As Christians we need to be very cautious about not thinking that we are overly good. We are not good on our own, there is no good in us apart from Christ. All the good we think we can do, just like Paul, is rubbish apart from a real relationship with Christ. Without that relationship with Christ we only have our own works to fall back on and in my case that is not a very comforting thought. Paul wants us to see that apart from Christ we cannot be righteous. It takes the atoning work of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection to grant us righteousness and in turn eternal life with Christ.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 6

2010-04-14T15:35:00.000-05:00

April 14, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 2:19-30

Tonight we will look at 2 examples of servants from the book of Philippians. Paul writes about his protégé Timothy and one of the Philippians own in Epaphroditus and leaves us 2 great examples how to live our lives as servants for Christ.

v. 19-24 - Timothy - One thing I really like about Paul is that he is all about discipleship. He loves getting one on one with people and helping them grow deeper in their walk with Christ. How do I know that, well he has taken a guy named timothy under his wing and discipled him and is now sending him out to places on his own. My heart as a student minister is discipleship. I think it is one of the most important things a Christian can do, make disciples. Paul loves timothy, he wrote two letters specifically to timothy to help him as he grew into his own ministry. I think it is important for us to see how Paul disciple timothy and for us to desire to be someone’s disciple as well as when we are mature in our faith, to take someone and begin to disciple them. After all, we are called to do that in the great commission. Matthew 28:19, “Go and make disciples of all nations…”Let’s look at some of what Paul has to say about Timothy in the book of Philippians.
Paul is hoping that he will soon be able to send timothy to the Philippians. Then he goes on to say that in all the people Paul knows, in all the men he has helped to learn more and grow deeper in their relationship with God, there is not another person like Timothy. Timothy will be truly concerned for the welfare of the people, not just his own interests, making his name known, establishing a following, others were all about that. Timothy wasn’t concerned with that; he was concerned with the things of Jesus Christ. Timothy has proven his worth. Timothy has sat under Paul’s teachings like a son would sit under a father and has served with Paul in the gospel. Timothy’s story starts all the way back in the book of Acts. His mother was a Jew but his father was Greek. Even though under Jewish custom, Timothy was considered a Jew, he agreed to let Paul circumcise him so he could really be able to minister to those who Paul would be ministering too. Paul and timothy didn’t want to have to argue things that didn’t matter, so to keep from that, Timothy got circumcised. That is just a simple demonstration as to how committed and serious timothy was about spreading the gospel.

v. 25-30 - Epaphroditus - Epaphroditus is a native of Philippi. He is one of their own. The people at Philippi sent Epaphroditus to Paul to bring him gifts from the Philippians. At some point since he has been with Paul, he became ill and nearly died. Paul praises Epaphroditus because he, for the sake of spreading the gospel, nearly died. If he hadn’t come to support Paul in his ministry and in turn help to further the gospel, he may not have gotten sick. But he risked his life in order to help minister to Paul on behalf of the Philippians. Paul calls Epaphroditus his brother, a fellow worker and soldier. Paul was identifying with and raising people’s opinions of Epaphroditus. People saw what a great work could be accomplished through someone simply being willing to go and support Paul and in turn Paul encourages the people of Philippi to honor Epaphroditus and be joyful at his coming because he was obedient to the point of death but God saw fit to show him mercy.

So what do we learn from these two men who served alongside of Paul. Well we see that it takes great commitment and sacrifice to serve the lord. When he calls you to something it isn’t simply something that will be easy and not cost you anything. But when you are called to serve Christ, which we all are in some capacity, then we need to be like Epaphroditus and timothy and do all we can to serve Christ well. Timothy had a reputation of being someone whom Paul could count on and who didn’t look to what was best for him, rather he was concerned with the things of Christ. Epaphroditus risked his life to help Paul and to minister to him in a way that the Philippians wouldn’t have been able to do if not for Epaphroditus. We need to be willing to go that far, and sacrifice as much as these two men of God did.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 5

2010-04-08T08:39:00.001-05:00

April 7, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 2:12-18

v. 12-13 - Therefore, Paul says, in light of what we just read and studied last week there is now a call to action by Paul. Because of what we learned last week, Paul in verse 12 encourages us to, as he says to the Philippians, as they always have obeyed, to continue, not just when Paul is with them but even more so when Paul is not with them, to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling. Now wait, is Paul telling us here that in order to be saved we have to do works? Many people who don’t take a real look at what this verse has to say can very easily take it out of context. If you take what Paul says in other places in scripture and you look at the context of this verse like we are going to, you will see that Paul doesn’t at all suggest we must work for salvation. Paul is however telling the Philippians and us today in 2010 that there is more to our salvation than praying a prayer and leaving it at that. What he means by work out our salvation is that we are not to be content with simply being a Christian, in fact, if we truly are a Christian we will desire to do more than that. As Christians we should have desires to grow and deepen our faith and we should desire to do all we can to accomplish that. We won’t be perfect at this, but Paul urges us to work out our salvation. Knowing who God is, righteous and just, we should work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Apart from the sacrifice of Christ, none of us would be able live right. So as we live our day to day lives, we need to remember that if not for Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, we would have no access to God or salvation. Verse 13 further encourages us in this work, and reassures us that even though we can’t do it alone, God will work in us, and through us, helping us to live more like Christ. Even the desire to do what is good comes from God. That isn’t in us naturally. God works in us so that the desires to do good actually turns into good deeds. God receives pleasure when His children obey Him and strive to live responsible Christian lives.
v. 14-16 - I love verse like, verse 14, short, simple and to the point. Do all things, not just what you like, but what you don’t like and what you don’t want to do, without grumbling or questioning. This is simply a continuation of verse 12; this is a practical way to work out your salvation. But why, why should we do everything without grumbling or questioning? “So that, we may be blameless and innocent children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom we shine as lights...” Once again, this is pretty simple and straight forward. We want, as Christians, to present Christ as best we can to the world. We are the living example of Christ to those who don’t know Him. We need to be blameless in the eyes of non-believers. We’re lights in the darkness. I know, very cliché, but it is what we are, and we will shine all the brighter if we are without spot or blemish. Too many times, we as Christians give those who don’t believe what we believe things to use as ammunition against us. Verse 16 is a big deal to us as Christians. Paul is telling the Philippians to “hold fast to the word of life.” Holding fast means that they not only believe the word of God but that they follow it as well. As a Christian, obedience to the Word is not simply something that is your own concern. We are all supposed to be sharing the Gospel and if any one of us doesn’t hold fast the word of life, we cause the others to be laboring in vain. Being a Christian was never supposed to be something that we do on our own. Everything someone who claims to be a Christian does, whether good or bad, hurts or helps how effective other Christians can be. It isn’t just about you, we are all supposed to help one another and not make it harder for each other to live according to scripture and to share Christ with our friends.
v. 17-18 - In the final two verses we are looking we see Paul offer up an illustration of how we should live out our lives as Christians. We should, allow ourselves to be poured out, and do it with rejoicing. When we serve Christ we are not supposed to hold anything back. We should pour out our hearts, our souls, and all that is in us to Christ. We are to hold nothing back. Leave it all on the field. We are not to hold anything back. And we should do this with rejoicing.

We are to work out our own salvation, with fear and trembling, understanding that it if there is any good in us, it is from God, not from us. We should do all things without grumbling or questioning so that we can be lights that shine in a crooked and twisted world. And we are too hold fast to the word so that we do not cause ourselves or anyone else to work in vain. Pour out our lives and holding nothing back and do so rejoicing.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 4

2010-04-01T08:27:00.002-05:00

March 31, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 2:1-11

v. 1-2 - Paul opens up this section of his letter to the Philippians by continuing a little of what he began in the previous chapter. Paul talks more about how we as the church are supposed to be. We are supposed to live in unity with one another. Paul wants the people to take a step back and examine their lives within the church. He wants them to stop and see if they are encouraging one another in Christ, if they are comforting and loving one another. He wants them to see if they are participating in the spirit together, not doing things like the lone ranger, but rather joining with one another to more effectively reach out to others. Paul urges the Philippians to complete his joy by being of the same mind. Here we see Paul pushing the Christians in Philippi to be united in their purpose. Love is the central theme and is critical to the growth and health of the church. The church needs to be united in love for each other, and for the lost. We need this to be our unifying factor today as well.
v. 3-4 - within our call to be unified in love we have to resist some things. We as a church do not need to be rivals with anyone in our church or with other churches. We can’t look at something someone else in this student ministry is doing and try and one up them. We don’t need to be rivals trying to make ourselves better, or trying to simply push our agenda to the forefront, we need to work together in one spirit, with one mind striving for the same goal. How do we counteract rivalry or conceit within a ministry? Well Paul tells us at the end of verse 3, consider others better than ourselves. We need to not only look to our own interest, which is a natural thing to do, but, Paul says, we should also look to the interests of others as well. Regardless of what you want to think, it is not all about you. Other people may have a better way to accomplish whatever it is that you want to accomplish. So it is best to hear others ideas, and truthfully consider those ideas and see what will help you reach the end goal in the best way.
v. 5-11 - the rest of the verses we will look at today will all point us back to those that we just got through discussing. Paul shows us in verses 5-11 what end goal will should be striving for together as one body. In verse 5 Paul tells us to have “this mind among yourselves”. What is he talking about? Well as Christians we are to live like little a Christ. We are to adopt the mindset of Jesus in all that we say and all that we do. Paul will expound on what the mindset of Christ is all about over the next few verses.
Now Paul is taking us on a trip to see what Christ cares about. He starts us off in verse 6 by telling us about Christ as God. Jesus was in the form of God prior to coming down to earth. Jesus ruled with God over everything. He was sitting at the right hand of the father of all creation. Christ had equality with God, but the end of verse 6 tells us that, Christ didn’t think that equality with God was something to be kept and used for his own advantage, rather he had a mindset of service, even before he came to earth, Christ had a servant’s heart. As a proof that he had a servant’s heart, Jesus came down to earth and took on the form of a servant. He very easily could have come down as a king or emperor of Rome. But he chose to come down as the son of a carpenter in the little town of Bethlehem. He went from ruling with God to the likeness of man, flawed, weak and nowhere close to the power he was used to. Not only was he now a lowly man, but to further show us how to be a servant, Jesus committed the greatest act of love ever. He was obedient to his master, his father in heaven, obedient even to death, and not just any death, but death on the cross. The most horrific form of torture the ancient world had come up with. When we picture Easter, and Jesus’ death on the cross we many times see him hanging by three nails, hole in his side, and wearing a crown of thorns, wrapped in a purple cloth covering him up. This is not an accurate picture of a crucifixion. First of all it was dirty. Jesus was crucified on a dirt hill, wind blowing, dirt getting stuck in the blood and sweat pouring from his body. There was blood everywhere. Head wounds bleed a lot, Jesus had inch long thorns shoved in his scalp, and blood was flowing from hundreds of open wounds on his back. I could go into more detail but being obedient to the point of death on the cross means that Jesus loved us. He is the ultimate picture of love and service, ever. Never has one man given so much of himself for people who hate him, spit on him, and curse his name daily. Christ loves us and served us by dying on the cross and offering a way for us to spend eternity with Him, praising His name and brining Him the glory rightfully due Him. Verse 9 goes on to say that because he was humble and obedient, God the Father, exalted Him to the highest place. So that at His name, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord. One day, no matter what you believe here and now, everyone will come to the same conclusion that many of us in this room have. Jesus is Lord and He is the only way to eternity with God.

We need to look at the picture of Christ and what he did for us on the cross and see how that points to us being servants and living for one another more than for ourselves. Jesus’ entire existence on this earth was to accomplish one thing, and that was to purchase our salvation with His death on the cross, so that our existence in turn will be to live for Him, loving others and striving to bring God the glory He is due. This is much more easily accomplished when we do it together. We need to be of one mind and that mind among us is ours in Christ Jesus.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 3

2010-03-29T09:00:00.002-05:00

March 24, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 1:22-30

v.22-26 - We last left off with Paul telling us that we should live for Christ and nothing else. Paul goes on in the next few verses and tells us about a dilemma he is struggling with. Paul is a man who desires, above all else, to be with Christ. For us as Christians, this should be one of our desires as well. Paul had come to the point in his life and in his relationship with Christ that he so loved Christ and he so rejected the world and all it has to offer that he couldn’t decide what outcome he would like from his prison sentence. In verse 22 Paul paints a good picture for us. His call in life after his conversion to Christianity has been to spread the gospel of Christ to the gentiles. As a faithful follower of Christ, Paul, in prison, has some options to consider. There is a good chance that he could find himself, at any day, facing death. His death would mean that he would no longer have to wait to be with Christ. That, to Paul, is a very attractive option. He knows that this world cannot compare with what spending eternity with Christ is like, which is why in verse 23 he unabashedly says that be with Christ is far better than staying in this world. For many of us, it isn’t that we don’t want to spend eternity with Christ, we do, but there are certain things that we want to do here while we are on earth before we “meet our maker.” Most of the time those things that we want to accomplish before death have no eternal spiritual value whatsoever. Most of the time they are earthly things that we don’t want to miss out on before we see Jesus face to face. WHAT!!!! Come on seriously. We do not have a proper view of who God is and who Christ is if we want to do anything more than we want to spend eternity with them. I love my wife and I love my son but I should love Jesus more than them and desire to be with Him. There is no amount of money, no trophy, no accomplishment, and no adrenaline rush in the world that can even come close to comparing with eternity with Christ. So Paul was right to say that being with Christ is far better. But he then looks at his calling here on earth and he looks at Jesus’ life as a servant here on earth and he comes to the conclusion in verse 24 that he needs to stay here on earth to help win and disciple as many followers of Christ as he can. Being convinced that it is necessary for him to remain here, Paul is willing to lay aside what is far greater to serve the one who he desires to be with and to serve the ones that Christ loves. Paul is a servant of Jesus Christ, just like he says in the introduction of this letter, we now see him putting that service into practice.
v.27-30 - Paul shifts gears a little as we look at these verses. He points to the way our conduct should reflect a life that is worthy of the gospel of Christ. Paul here was pointing to the fact that as Christians we are citizens not of this earth but of heaven, and so we shouldn’t look to the things of this earth to pattern our lives after. We are to pattern our lives after one person, and that person is Jesus Christ. Paul’s hope for the Philippians is that whether he ever gets to come to them and minister to them and with them again or not, he will hear of them for the way they live for Christ. That is my hope as well, that when you graduate out of this student ministry or when I leave and take on another part of God’s will for my life, I will continually hear of you and how even in the midst of this world and all the sinfulness in it, you are living for Christ. You are living lives worthy of the gospel of Christ; you are a living example of the love of Christ here on earth. Verse 27, Paul also says that he hopes the Christians at Philippi are not only living for Christ but are also “standing firm in ONE spirit, with ONE mind striving SIDE BY SIDE for the faith of the Gospel.” Paul also desires to see the church unified in its purpose and direction, standing side by side living life and fighting to make truth known. Verse 28 encourages us not to be afraid of opposition, we will have opposition, Jesus himself promised us that (John 15:20). If you maintain courage in the face of opposition, those who are opposing you will see your strength which comes from God and they will see that they cannot prevail. Here Paul echoes Jesus and James (James 1:2-4), that not only should we believe in Christ but that we will suffer for his sake as well. Paul points to his own suffering and the joy that he has maintained throughout as evidence that if you live your life the way you are called to by Christ you will suffer but you can lean on Christ and remain joyful throughout your trials.

In these few short verses we see Paul show us what it means to live as a Christian, desiring to be in the presence of God but remaining here to lead people to Christ and make disciples while living according to the example set for us by Christ so that we can stand together united in purpose, strong in the face of opposition, and suffering for the sake of Christ. In all this Paul encourages us as we walk this earth. There is hope that we have that nothing can shake. That is the hope of salvation through the cross of Christ. He is our hope and He is the reason we endure on this earth.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 2

2010-03-11T09:23:00.001-06:00

March 10, 2010
Pray
Read Philippians 1:12-21

v.12-14 - Paul continues his letter to the Philippians by moving on to speak more of his imprisonment. In verse 12 he reassures the people that, just because he is in prison doesn’t mean that his work in preaching the gospel has to stop. In fact he says that being in prison has given him an opportunity to reach others that he wouldn’t have gotten to reach had he not been imprisoned in the first place. His imprisonment has really served to advance the gospel. Paul shows us here that no matter what our circumstances we need to be constantly advancing the gospel of Christ. You can preach the gospel to your friends in school, on your team, in your club, at work, at home, no matter where you are. We should share the gospel whether we are happy in our situation or not. As Christians we should take advantage of whatever situation we are put in and use that to further the gospel of Christ. Paul witnessed to everyone that was around him and had the opportunity to influence even the imperial guard. That is some pretty high society that he had the opportunity to being the gospel too, all because he didn’t let his circumstances hinder him from doing what he was called to do, preach the gospel. In verse 14 we see the affect of Paul’s witness on those around him. Because he was so bold to bring the gospel into the light even when it was the reason he was in prison, this encouraged the other Christians in Rome where he was in prison to be more outgoing in their faith. Because of Paul’s example in how he was bold to preach the gospel, others followed suit. We should be bold and that will encourage and empower those who need it.
v.15-18 - in these verses Paul addresses the fact that there are some people who are happy to stir up trouble by preaching the word of God. Some people were not happy with Paul and so they did things to harm Paul and his work for Christ. There is not a lot of evidence as to why they didn’t like Paul, but Paul says that he rejoiced that they were preaching the gospel to get him in trouble because that meant that the gospel was still getting preached. If people are preaching rightly about the gospel, whether they are doing it selfishly or to honor Christ, it doesn’t matter, as long as Christ is being proclaimed. But if a person is not delivering the true gospel message, then we shouldn’t rejoice in that.
v. 19-21 - Paul goes on to tell the Philippians that he believes that he will be delivered. He is not specific in which way that he believes he will be delivered. He could mean two separate things by this. One, he believes he will be delivered from prison. This is his physical delivery. The second is that he believes that in the end he will be delivered to eternal salvation if he should not be delivered physically from prison. If Paul is delivered physically from prison and live, he says in verse 21, “for me to live is Christ”, meaning that if he survives prison it is not for his benefit but for the benefit of the cause of Christ. It isn’t about life or death for Paul. It is about proclaiming Christ. He hopes that whether by death or by life, he honors Christ and furthers the gospel.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. these are just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the students in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Philippians Week 1

2010-03-04T08:41:00.003-06:00

March 3, 2010

We are beginning a 6-week series on the book of Philippians. Here are my notes from Week 1. I have a friend who pointed out that goin through the book of Philippians should take much longer than 6-weeks, but as I told him, keeping an 8th graders attention for 20 minutes, much less 6 weeks is hard enough. So I hope you will dig into the book of Philippians with me over the next 6 weeks.

Pray
Read Philippians 1:1-11

v. 1-2 - Greetings, Paul introduces this letter to the church at Philippi much like he does any other letter he writes. He greets them and kind of tells them why he is qualified to be writing them this letter and why they should listen to him. But Paul changes things up a bit here. He normally says “Paul an Apostle of Jesus Christ. “ But here he introduces himself and timothy as servants of Christ. This is important because he sets the tone in verse one for how we should read the rest of his letter to the Philippians. Paul calls himself a servant because he wanted the church at Philippi to know that he identifies with them in their service to Christ. Then he speaks towards those who he is writing, all the saints/Christians in Philippi, with special emphasis on those who are overseers and deacons. These were the men who needed to take all of this to heart and need to really try and put this to practice and teach those in the church these things.
v. 3-5 - After Paul’s greeting he begins his letter by thanking God every time he thinks about the church at Philippi. The people in this particular church have been partnered with Paul from the beginning of his ministry. The church at Philippi was the first church that Paul had planted in Europe. It was during his second missionary journey that Paul planted this church which means it was still pretty early on in his ministry when it was planted. Now Paul is writing from prison, 10 + years later and the church at Philippi is still supporting Paul and serving Christ. When Paul prays for this church he is filled with joy. He is thankful for their support but more than that he is overjoyed with the fact that they are still partnering with him in the gospel. My hope and prayer is that one day I will be getting phone calls and emails from you guys telling me about how your ministry is going, about the church you are a part of, about God using you in amazing ways. That is what brings joy to Paul’s prayers for the church at Philippi.
v. 6 - Paul wants for the people in the church at Philippi to continue to grow in their faith. One way to make sure that they do so is to remind them that God is a God who keeps his promises. God has begun a good work in all who know Him, that good work is salvation. We have not experienced all that salvation has to offer, but we can be sure that since God is God, He will bring that work to completion the day of Christ’s return. This is how we know that the God who saved us will never let us go and we will inherit our eternal reward. This is our assurance of salvation.
v. 7-8 - Paul goes into a little more detail about some of the reasons he feels this way about this church. They are hanging with him even though he is in prison. Being in prison is something that a lot of times will drive a wedge between people. The “bad” person in prison is many times looked down on and made to feel less important, they are an embarrassment to the ”good” people who do right and aren’t in prison. Paul, while in prison had the support of the people at Philippi, and he was sharing the gospel with the other prisoners and the guards. They continued to work with Paul even during his imprisonment.
v. 9-11 - Paul asks God that the people’s love would be more and more evident. That it would abound, overflow, and also be accompanied by knowledge and discernment. Love is the basis of what we as Christians believe. God is love and so we are to grow in our love for God and our love for others. That is Paul’s prayer for these people and us as well. But why do we need to add knowledge and discernment to our love? Verse 10 tells us we need to add knowledge and discernment to our love so we will be able to approve what is excellent and be pure and blameless for the day of Christ. We are supposed to constantly be looking towards Christ’s return. And we are supposed to be living like His return is eminent. We are to be pure and blameless in all that we say and do. How are we to be pure and blameless? It starts with love. Then we add knowledge to our love. We learn about God, who He is and what He desires from us. Then we add to that discernment. Discernment is recognizing what is right and doing that. We all know right from wrong, but there are some situations that are kind of gray. To make the right decision in those situations we must have discernment. When we have love, knowledge, and discernment we can live pure blameless lives in anticipation of Christ’s return and God fulfilling His promise to us. All of this will produce in us, verse 11 says, the fruit of righteousness which comes through Christ and brings glory and praise to God. Our ultimate goal is the world seeing God and His glory. We can accomplish that, not on our own, but through the person and work of Jesus Christ in our lives. The fruit of righteousness will result in glory and praise to God, only if we rely on Christ in us and not on our own power.

Paul opens this letter by letting the Philippians know how much joy they bring him and then he encourages them in their walk, to love, gain knowledge and discernment, and through Christ in their lives, produce fruits of righteousness to the glory and praise of God the Father.

**This is not an exhaustive study on these verses. this is just my notes for the talk that I gave this past Wednesday night to the student in my ministry. If you have questions or comments or would like to discuss what I have posted feel free, in fact I encourage it. thanks for taking the time to stop by my blog!!**

Titus Chapter 3

2010-03-01T10:49:00.002-06:00

Pray
Read Titus 3:1-15

v. 1-3 - I love what Paul does here to open up this part of his letter to Titus. He tells Titus to remind the people to do some things. The first thing Paul thinks the church in Crete and we need reminded of is that fact that we are to submit to rulers and authorities. That is very important for us to remember. Even if we don’t agree with what we are being told, unless it is a direct violation of God’s law, we must be submissive. I think that many times disrespecting our parents or authorities opens us up to deeper sin. Just like marijuana is a gateway drug to much more deadly and dangerous drugs, I think disobeying parents or authorities is kind of like that. So I think it is appropriate to hit this right off the bat. For many of us we don’t struggle with “big” sins, but if we aren’t careful we can fall into those sins because we allow the “little” sins to hang around in our lives. There is also another reason that Paul reminds us of this. If we continue in verse 1 we see that we need to be submissive and obedient so that we can be ready for every good work. If we aren’t obeying our parents and other authorities in our lives then how can we honestly think that we can accomplish anything for Christ? How can we do good in this world if we can’t even obey the authorities in our lives? It is all inter connected and we need to begin to understand that. In verse 2 Paul lists some things that also will prevent us from being ready to do good works for Christ. Speak evil of no one, in other words don’t gossip. Avoid quarreling, to be gentle and to be courteous to all people. Paul is connecting the way we act, with how others will perceive the church. And he continues by giving us good reason why, if we are really changed by Christ, we shouldn’t look down on people outside the faith. The main reason being, we all used to be there. Now we may not all have been as far gone as some, but we were all once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to our passions and earthly pleasures, hating others and being hated by others. So if we are to show people what a difference Christ has made in our lives, we must actually be different.
v.4-8 - In verses 4-8 we see what has changed us. This is the message of the Gospel of Christ. We are changed by Christ, through Christ, and because of Christ. There is nothing that we can do that can profit us anything. Verse 4 says that the goodness and loving kindness of God appeared to us in the form of Christ Jesus on the cross; He saved us by His mercy by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. God acts on our behalf and prompts our hearts towards the cross. Once we begin to follow after Christ we are washed clean by the Holy Spirit, symbolized outwardly by baptism. All of this is made possible, verse 6 says, through Jesus Christ our Savior. Once we are saved by Christ we become something that should simply amaze us. We become heirs of God and sons and daughters of the Almighty. We now have a hope that flows through us of an eternity that will be spent worshipping and adoring the king of kings and the lord of lords. That is our hope, and that should be our desire. We should desire nothing less than Christ and His Kingdom, our kingdom. We are sons and daughters, heirs to the throne of Grace. Our hope is secure in that. You want to know why you should live for Christ today and tomorrow and everyday you have left on this earth? It is for the prize set before us. We are to insist on these things. That means that we are to constantly be talking about these things and be living this out and ready to show and tell the reason for our hope to anyone and everyone we meet.
v. 9-15 - Paul wants us to best represent Christ and as heirs we need to strive for that. So here in the next few verses Paul lets us see some more things to avoid as sons and daughters of God. Avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law. In other words quit arguing over pointless things. Don’t let things that don’t matter cause a division between you and others. These things are unprofitable and worthless. Don’t get caught up in them. Verse 10 we see Paul, once again, addressing some problems in the church. We have these same problems today. We are dealing with church discipline and how to handle someone who stirs up division. Paul says, talk to them twice and if that doesn’t work then have nothing more to do with them. That person is condemning himself and is full of sin and we as a church shouldn’t allow them to continue to hurt our fellowship.

Finally Paul closes his letter to Titus by telling them of some missionaries he is sending them, and some others that they can help. We as a church are to “help cases of urgent need and not be unfruitful”. This was Paul’s last charge to us in the book of Titus. Let us not be unfruitful in any way.

Heading into a big weekend...

2010-02-16T10:31:00.003-06:00

I just have a few thoughts heading into one of the biggest weekend we have all year in the student ministry, Disciple Now. This weekend, in my opinion, is very important in the life a our student ministry. I have seen weekends like this change the lives of students forever and I always go into this weekend expecting nothing less to happen. It seems for some reason that this DNow I have not been as prepared as last years and it is quite possible that it is because I am not as prepared as last year. But I am doing everything I can to make this happen. We have a good speaker lined up, a good worship group, good curriculum for the students to study and so forth and so on. I do feel however that for some reason there are quite a few students and adults that could care less about this weekend. I have been getting frustrated lately and I have to try hard not to let it get me down, I guess inevitably there are those who aren't really up for these events and think that there are more important things they can be doing. I know my thoughts and feelings on that but what can you do? How do you convince students and more importantly parents that a weekend like this is more important than a baseball tournament, or cheerleading, or choir competition or any other number of things that seem to get in the way of students meeting with God. It is extremely frustrating but I don't know what to do to change the way our culture views church versus sports or other school related activities. I have always heard growing up in church that when God has something really special planned satan will do everything he can to quench the spirit at work. Well I don't know exactly how Biblical it is, but I know that there have been things that have gone wrong in planning Dnow this year, but I am trusting that God will do what He wants to in those of us privileged enough to get to meet with Him this weekend. I just have to give it all up to God and pray that He will move in the hearts and lives of students and adults as we set aside a weekend to learn about, honor and glorify Him.

Titus Chapter 2

2010-02-11T08:56:00.000-06:00

Pray
Read Titus 2:1-15

We start off chapter 2 by Paul telling Titus to teach what accords with sound doctrine. This means that Titus is supposed to teach the people of Crete how they are supposed to live according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul tends to write and tell us practical ways to live out our lives as Christians, the book of Titus is no different. Christians in the first century are no different from Christians today. Christians in Paul’s day had trouble understanding exactly what it was to live according to sound doctrine, so Paul lays it out for us, by age and gender, exactly how we are supposed to live according to the Gospel of Christ.
v.2-10 -in verse 2 Paul starts off by speaking to the heads of the house, the leaders of the church and society, the older men. Many of these same things are requirements we read last week in the qualifications of elders, the repetition here can only mean that these things are necessary and important to living according to what Christ has taught us.
· Older Men - sober minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness
· Older Women - reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine, teach what is good, train the young women
· Young Women - love their husbands and children, be self controlled, pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their husband
· Young Men - be self controlled, be a model of good works, show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned
· Slaves - submissive to their own masters, be well pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, showing all good faith
So here are a few things that are important for us as believers and followers of Jesus to know about how to live. But why? Why do we need to do these things? What’s the big deal? All we say and do should be aimed at bringing glory to God. When we strive to live according to the Gospel of Christ it should be for that reason alone. When we live according to the gospel, we do not provide a reason for the gospel to be reviled or criticized. We should want to protect the name of Christ and his gospel from others criticizing or talking bad about it. We can’t really do that if we don’t live our lives according to that very gospel. Is it any wonder that your friends think Christianity is a joke if you don’t live according to what the gospel says? Of course they aren’t going to accept it, if it isn’t good enough for you to live your life by, why should they? Another result of living according to the gospel is that it highlights the attractiveness of the gospel. This kind of living also proves the gospel to be true. If something doesn’t do what it says it will do then you won’t use it correct? Well the gospel is the same. If the gospel doesn’t accomplish what it says it should in your life, others won’t see the attractiveness in it and won’t desire it. The only way the gospel is ineffective in your life is if it isn’t truly a part of who you are. If Christ has gotten a hold of your heart then His message will change your entire world. It will be flipped completely upside down.
v.11-15 - we should live according to the gospel because the grace of God that saves us has also told us to live another way, a way that is opposite of everything that we know in this world. You cannot claim to have been saved by the grace of God without also being changed by that very same Grace. God’s grace came into the world through Christ and is for all people. Verse 12 says that we are taught by grace to hate sin and love godliness. But it isn’t a switch that goes off in us as soon as we come to know Christ. Just like with anything that we learn, there will be struggles and failures along with amazing triumphs. We are to live Godly lives in this present age, meaning today, not some day when it is easier for us, but today. The knowledge of Christ’s imminent return should spur us as Christians to live Godly lives. According to verse 14 one of the reasons for Christ death was to make His people holy. His death was to redeem us from lawlessness and to purify us for Himself. Here we see Paul close out this part of his letter to Titus by once again giving him a command to teach all of these things with authority. Paul also tells Titus to not let anyone disregard him or his message. We need to take that and remember that we are ambassadors for Christ and we have a message that our friends and the world need to hear, so we shouldn’t let them disregard what we have to say.

Titus Chapter 1

2010-02-03T15:04:00.000-06:00

Pray
Read Titus 1:1-16

Paul opens up this letter that he is writing to Titus, his child in the faith. Paul had recently been to the isle of Crete and had established some churches in Crete. In order to see that these churches were growing and not being hurt by the false teachers, he left Titus in Crete. These are Paul’s instructions to Titus.

v. 1-4 - Paul is quick to point out why he is writing this letter, what his main concern for these new churches and his main desire for Titus is, “For the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth.” Paul is writing here because he is concerned for the salvation of people in Crete and their knowledge of what is true, that is the Gospel of Jesus. The true Gospel always produces godliness in those who have accepted it. Godliness, by definition, is being like God. That is our aim that is our goal as followers of God. That is what true faith produces. The promise of God is eternal life and Paul’s mission is rooted in the certainty of that promise. God never lies; it is contrary to God’s character and so is impossible for God to lie. There is a promise of hope that we need to hold onto when things get rough. Paul is delivering a message that God has established since the beginning of time. This message that God gave him to deliver at this particular time, to these particular people.
v. 5-9 - We will skim over this and point out the important parts, but we here again, are qualifications for elders. Titus was supposed to help each church in the different cities, appoint leaders, elders in the church. Paul lists these qualifications for Titus to go by.
Here Paul addresses the children a little more than he did when we looked at these same qualifications in 1 timothy. He says the children must be believers, and not insubordinate, disobedient, or open to a charge of debauchery. Debauchery is basically excessive sex outside of marriage, getting drunk and doing drugs. After Paul lists the things not to do as an overseer or elder, he then lists the things that one is supposed to do. Verse 9 is important here. It says that to be an overseer or an elder you must hold firm to the Truth, to the word as taught so that you may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. Peter echoes Paul’s words in 1 Peter 3:15 “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy; always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” We are to know what we believe and why we believe it. Paul lists this as a qualification of an elder, I think we can take this and list it as a byproduct of the Holy Spirit in us after we become Christians. This is something that each and every one of us who are followers of Christ should make sure we do.
v. 10-16 - Here Paul addresses that problem that exists in Crete, False Teachers. These false teachers are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers. These false teachers are teaching things that are based out of the Jewish religion, but these things are contradictory to the teachings of Christ. These false teachers must not be allowed to hurt the church with their teachings that falls under the responsibility of the elder to prevent this from happening. These false teachers are motivated by greed and are hurting entire family’s faith. Paul is smart here and doesn’t criticize the Cretans, but rather he quotes a Cretan author who says that all Cretans are liars, evil beasts and gluttons. Paul agrees with this but not that every single Cretan is evil, just as a generalization. Paul hopes that because this is true those that are Christians in Crete will be on guard to protect themselves from being labeled in this way. Jump down to verse 15. To the pure all things are pure. What does that mean? Paul is referring here to the teachings of ritual purity concerning Jewish food laws. These false teachers say they know God but they deny him by their works. Paul is showing us here how important living a Christian life is. We cannot expect our friends to truly see Christ in us if we deny Him by our works. Paul goes on to say that someone who is like one of these false teachers, profess Christ with their lips, but deny Him with their works, is detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good work. What we do needs to back up what we say we believe in. It is what Paul is concerned with, and we should think about it every day.

Paul is addressing the new churches in Crete. He is concerned with their faith and their knowledge of the truth. We need to be concerned with those same things, first for ourselves and second for those around us. We can’t witness and be effective for Christ with out first knowing what we believe. We need to guard our hearts against false teachers who profess to know Christ but live the opposite of that confession.

Prayer

2010-01-07T16:48:00.000-06:00

Last night for worship we did an emphasis on prayer. we stopped to pray and dedicate our student ministry to God for 2010. we had 7 different stations for the students to pray at. 1-church leadership, 2-sunday school teachers, 3-sunday school classes, 4-our 'big' ministry events for the year, 5- servant teams (our sunday night program that allows the students to take part in ministry), 6-their friends, saved unsaved and everywhere in between, 7- themselves. we had candles, music (the band wasThis will destroy you, no they aren't hardcore, just some sweet mood enhancing instrumental stuff). i wanted to create an environment where the students felt that they could go and pray, that they were by themselves even though they were surrounded by 40 or so other students. It went well, about like i expected. we started the actual praying around 7:20 or so and by about 7:35 all the students had finished praying. I was excited to see them on their knees praying for things that directly affected them. it was certainly encouraging and i loved last night. but i see something wrong with last night also, not with the students, but with the way we have taught them to pray.

This makes me see that in the church we don't treat prayer like we should. it is so scripted for us that when we have an opportunity to take time, the students had all night i.e. 30 or so minutes to pray for these 7 different things, as the church we confine prayer to 2 or 3 times in a worship service usually consisting of prayers less than a minute long. whatever happened to "pray without ceasing."? 1 Thessalonians 5:17 I really plan on trying to help the students in my student ministry be able to talk to God and really ask for Him to move. i hope next time we do this the students will use the time they have to speak with their creator more deeply and intimately than they ever have before.

Reading through 1 Timothy week 12

2009-12-10T10:13:00.000-06:00

1 Timothy 6:11-21
December 9, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 6:11-21

We are finishing up our 12 week study on 1 Timothy. I hope that you have enjoyed going through this book verse by verse and really digging into what Paul has to say to Timothy about the church. This entire book is about the church and how the church is to function. We are to love the church as Christ loved the church, so much that He gave himself up for the church. Let’s jump into the last few verses of this book.
v. 11-12 - let’s stop right off the bat and take a look at what Paul calls Timothy here. He calls him a man of God; he is the only person in the New Testament to be called ‘Man of God’. People like Moses and the great prophets were called ‘Man of God’ in the Old Testament. Great men are called ‘Man of God’ and that is what you GUYS are to strive to be. How do we become a man of God? Well conveniently Paul tells us, we have to flee these things. What things, sin. We are to flee sin and flee things that are not of God. We have to flee. Not drop and stare at or let go with one hand and hold on with the other. You have to flee sin, drop it and turn away from it and run. But not just sin in general. We sometimes wonder why we can’t stop committing a particular sin even when we ask God to help us. One of the reasons is that a lot of times when we pray we say, “God forgive me of my sins and help me to stop sinning.” That is it, that’s the prayer we pray and the reason we still struggle with a particular sin in our lives is because we haven’t really confessed that sin to God. Sometimes it is hard to confess our sins, individually and to ask for help in not doing that particular sin anymore. But we have to name the sin to claim power over it. Maybe you disobey your parents all the time, you’re rude and disrespectful and disobedient. Confess that. Maybe you are too physical with your boy/girlfriend, confess that. Maybe you have a problem with drinking or drugs or popularity or something that you are putting in front of God on a consistent basis. Confess the specific sin and flee from that. But if you flee from something you have to flee to something and that is righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. But in the beginning of verse 12 you see what it is going to take to be a man/woman of God. It is a fight. It isn’t easy. You aren’t just going to be able to stroll along and be fine. It takes work, hard work and sacrifice. It is a fight. We are to take hold of eternal life, the promise that we have through faith in Christ that we confessed before many witnesses. This is one of the reasons for a public profession of faith and baptism. You confess it in the presence of many and they can help you in the fight.
v. 13-14 - we are to be like Christ when he was on trial with Pontius Pilate. Read Matt. 27:11. “Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, Are you the king of the Jews? Jesus said, You have said so.” Jesus didn’t deny his position before the man who had the power to save him from death. We as Christians are to do the same thing. We are not to deny Christ, ever. If you want to confess to being a Christian, it is time to start acting like it. Step up to the plate and follow Christ. Stop pulling the Christian card when it’s convenient and start living for Christ all the time. That is what Paul is charging Timothy with here. Stand for Christ like he did while he was being sentenced to death on the cross.
v. 15-16 - God is God. He is the Blessed and only Sovereign. Sovereign means being above all others in character, importance, excellence, etc. He is what it is all about. The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords who alone is immortal and dwells in unapproachable light, which no one has seen or can see. This is the God we serve. We sometimes forget how big our God is. There is nothing in this world that compares to him. There is no one whose name can even be used in the same sentence as our God. We need to remember how big our God is so that when we have trials and tribulations, when the fight gets hard we know who we must lean on. God is God.
v. 17-19 - last week we saw that Paul warned against the love of money, here Paul talks about those who have wealth here on earth should use it. He says for wealthy people not to be haughty or proud or snobbish. Nor are they supposed to put all of their hope in their wealth on earth but rather put their hope in God who provides all that we could enjoy. Do good, be rich in good works, generous and ready to share. This shows that their focus is not here on earth but rather we are focused on the life to come.
v. 20-21 - Paul ends his 1st letter to timothy by encouraging him to guard the deposit entrusted to him, that is the gospel. Avoid all the crazy talk from false teachers who call their teachings knowledge because they reject the Truth of Christ.

To wrap up this section of 1 Timothy we need to know a few things. Flee sin, pursue Christ, if you confess Christ you better act like it. Rely on God who is greater than this world. If you are wealthy don’t be proud or trust in your wealth rather give it to God and give it away. Guard the Gospel and ignore false teachers who reject the Truth of Christ.
Grace be with you.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 11

2009-12-03T09:02:00.000-06:00

1 Timothy 6:1-10
December 2, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 6:1-10

v. 1 - Paul continues his letter to Timothy by now addressing bondservants that are within the church. This isn’t necessarily talking about slavery as we picture it. A bondservant was a slave who had the ability to earn money to buy their freedom. A bondservant was trusted by their master with money and important possessions by their masters. These were not the slaves in the 17th-19th centuries here in America. So what can we take from this verse about honoring masters? Well we are to treat those in authority over us with honor “so that the name of god and teaching may not be reviled.” If you have a job you are supposed to do the best that you can and honor your boss so that those around you, your co-workers and those you serve in your job, will see what it really means to be a Christian. At school, you are to respect and honor your teachers and professors and do the work they set out for you so those in your classes can see Christ in all that you do. At home, parents are to be honored and respected so that your other family members (maybe even your parents) can be influenced by Christ in you.
v. 2 - Now Paul addresses the problem of taking advantage of having a Christian master. If your boss/teacher/parent is a Christian, it does not give you the right to use Christ as an excuse for slacking off on your responsibilities rather because they know Christ we should serve all the better. For example, if your parents are Christian and one of your chores is to wash the dishes every night and clean the kitchen. You don’t have the right to say “mom, dad, I didn’t get the kitchen clean tonight because I was doing my quiet time.” That is not right, you are supposed to do your work and still make time to spend with God. If your teacher is a Christian you do not have the right to say, “teach, I didn’t get a chance to do my homework last night because I was wrapped up in my Bible study with my friends from church, so if you could give me a pass that would be great.” We do not have the right to use our mutual relationship with God to try and get us out of obeying and honoring those in authority over us.
v.3-5 - Paul again is addressing false teachers just like he did to open up this letter to Timothy. Here Paul warns Timothy and us about those false teachers who only use the name of Christ for gain. They are out there and they are in your face and you probably don’t know it. I can think of at least 2 or 3 people in particular that really use the name of Christ for their own gain. They tell people things that aren’t true, that don’t agree with the words of Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness. These people think very highly of themselves and they love to stir up controversy because when that happens more people get drawn into the conversation and perhaps into their pockets. These false teachers are just as prevalent in our society today as they were in the days of the early church.
v. 6-8 - Paul tells us here that we are to be content and that there is great gain in godliness when we live a contented life. We can’t take it with us, something most of us have heard, but it’s true. When you die you leave all your great stuff behind. You leave your iphone, your ps3, xbox360, car, clothes, everything. How many of you have an extremely long Christmas list? If you don’t get what is on that list how upset are you going to be? What if all you got for Christmas as an Operation Christmas Child shoebox? Would you be content? There are people all over the world who would love to be able to eat the food in your trash can because they don’t have anything to eat. There are people here in America who would love to wear the clothes that sit in your closet and you don’t never wear because they are old and out of style. There are people here in Amarillo who would be grateful to sleep in the shed or doghouse in your backyard instead of on the street. We are a society of overly blessed people yet if we don’t have the hot new thing that everyone else has we are discontent. Paul tells us here that if we have food to eat and clothes to wear we are to be content with that.
v. 9-10 - Paul warns us about loving money too much. If all you desire is to be rich you will fall into temptation, into many senseless and harmful desires that will eventually destroy you. Money isn’t bad, having wealth isn’t a bad thing in and of itself. But when we begin to love money more than God we begin to sacrifice what we believe for the chance to get more money. We sacrifice coming to church because we have to work to accumulate more useless junk that doesn’t matter in the least, to make sure we have a car that impresses our friends, or to have the new video game and all that comes with it. When you stop caring about reading your bible because you have to go to work and make some money so you can buy your girl/boyfriend something, when all your prayers begin to be focused on gaining things for yourself and it is no longer about connecting with your savoir, then you have a problem. You can’t love both God and money, you have to choose. If God blesses you with money that is great, if when you have money you give it away to those who don’t have it so you can spread the love of God then money is great. But when you hoard it for yourself and selfishly spend it on the things you want, money is your God and Christ has been put in the back seat.

Honor those in authority over you whether Christian or not, so that by doing so you can help others see Christ in all that you do. Be wary of false teachers who look to exploit the gospel for their own gain, so they become more famous, wealthier, and more powerful. They are out there and they are leading many astray. Be content with what you have and don’t be greedy and love money. Love God and use what you have for Him and He will bless you beyond measure, if you don’t you are in for a life of heartache, pain, emptiness, and in danger of walking away from the faith and to your own destruction, because money can’t fill God’s place in the least.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 10

2009-11-19T10:39:00.000-06:00

1 Timothy 5:17-25
November 18, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 5:17-25

v. 17 - let the elders, or the preachers and teachers, the leaders in the church, who rule well. If someone is doing a good job leading the church, let them be given double honor. Look on them with respect. There are men and women in every church whom God has ordained to be there and to be part of His work in whatever capacity they are in. We are to give them double honor if they do their job well. I wouldn’t expect for anyone in the church to show me honor if I wasn’t do a good job in the student ministry at the church I am at. Paul says here that we are to honor those who preach and teach and do it well.
v. 18 - Then Paul quotes here from Deuteronomy and from the book of Luke. He says you don’t muzzle on ox, this is a statement that comes from a tradition that says an owner of a field who has an ox grinding grain, cannot keep that ox muzzled while it is grinding, preventing it from eating the grain it grinds. Basically it means if the ox does the work you should reward the ox for working. Then Paul quotes from Luke and says the same thing, if someone works, pay them what is fair. Paul is not saying that preachers and teachers should get paid double, only what is fair for the work they are doing.
v. 19 - now in this verse Paul goes from honoring and fairly compensating elders, or pastors of a church to how you should handle the situation when they do something wrong. Here Paul tells the church at Ephesus that in order to bring a charge of wrong doing against an elder or pastor it needs to be something that has more than one person as a witness. What can happen is a person may get mad at the pastor and make a story up that will ruin their credibility. The verse says, do not admit a charge unless it has multiple witnesses backing it up, which means don’t believe a charge if there is only one person as a witness. It is easy for someone to ruin a person’s ministry if they want to. That is why this prohibition it set out here, to help protect the pastor.
v. 20-21 - but if a person, an elder, who persists in sin should be rebuked in the presences of the entire congregation. The tendency of many people in churches is to think that their pastor can do no wrong and if the pastor does do something that is really bad they will sweep it under the rug so that no one thinks badly of the pastor. Here we see the command to do just the opposite. We are to expose the wrong doings of those in leadership so we can help them out of that sin and show others that sin is not tolerated in leadership and it won’t be tolerated in lay people either. I am not talk about if you catch me speeding one day you make a public spectacle of me the next Sunday in church. This is for serious offences that hurt the integrity of the church and smear mud in the face of Christ. Verse 21 goes on to say that this is a serious matter. Not only are you bringing these charges against the leader of the church in front of the church but also in the presence of God, Christ, and the heavenly court. This is serious stuff. You should not prejudge someone, find someone guilty before you have heard all the facts, and not being partial and treating anyone differently because of their position in the church.
v. 22-23 - if a church ordains a pastor before he is ready and that pastor later falls and sins, those who laid hands on him to ordain him are just as guilty of his sin as he is. Once again this does not mean for every sin that a person commits, for if that were the case we would all be held responsible for the sin of all the pastors in the world. This is not the case. This is for the sins that once again, smear the name of Christ or hurt the integrity of the church. Verse 23 is sort of a curve ball, not sure why it is in this particular place other than to say that Timothy was having some issues with his health, maybe an ulcer from worrying. But Paul tells Timothy that it is alright for him to have a little wine, not a whole lot, this is not permission to become a drunk, but just to help with his physical health, and wine is good for that. In today’s world we have medicines for that and wine isn’t necessary for us. Just like we don’t practice bloodletting with the help of leeches, we don’t need to drink wine to help with an ulcer.
v. 24-25 - Paul gets back into his admonition in the process of appointing elders. Verse 23 kinda breaks up what Paul is saying so we continue in verse 24. Basically he says that you can easily see the sins of some men, they are blatant and out in the open, and you probably won’t make them elders. But he says at the end of verse 24, the sins of others appear later. He says the same thing happens with good works in verse 25. Sometimes the good works are evident and in the open for you to see, other times it takes a while for the good deeds to show themselves, but eventually they will. So what Paul is saying in these closing verses of chapter 5 is that we need to give it time when it comes to selecting leaders for the church. Don’t be hasty and rush into anything because eventually all the good that is done will show itself and so will all the bad.

As Paul closes out this part of his letter to Timothy we see the care that we should take in choosing leaders for the church. We should honor and respect the leaders that we have in our church. We should give them double honor. But what does this have to do with you, a student in a church, not a leader of the church. Well I am always looking for the next leader to step up and reveal themselves. I need student leaders to step up and help me as I steer this student ministry in the direction that Christ has for us to go. Will you be someone I can lean on and say hey, I have watched you for a year or two and your good works are coming out, I think you might be ready to step up and be a leader. Or are your bad works coming to the surface and disqualifying you from becoming the leader that this student ministry needs?

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 9

2009-11-12T09:48:00.000-06:00

1 Timothy 5:1-16
November 11, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 5:1-16

v. 1-2 - the church is supposed to be a family. We are to treat others as we would our family, not, necessarily as you would treat your family, but how a good family is supposed to function. We are to treat the older men in the church with respect and as we would our own fathers. We should listen to them; go to them for help and advice. We are to treat younger men as brothers, once again probably not the way that you would treat your little brother. We are to love them and help them grow in their relationship with Christ and mature into strong Christian leaders. We are to treat older women as mothers. I love my mom. I am a momma’s boy. We are supposed to love the older women as we would our own moms. We are to treat younger women as our sisters, in all purity. The last 3 words of verse 2 are pretty heavy. In all purity. Paul is telling Timothy here how we are supposed to treat the opposite sex in the church. We are to treat them with all purity. This means you don’t come to church looking for a boyfriend/girlfriend. You don’t hold hands, or hug on each other. This is something that I am adamant about in this student ministry. This is all about purity. Romantic relationships complicate things, they complicate things for those in them, and they also complicate things within the church. When the time is right, not when you are in Jr. high or High School, you find the person you are supposed to marry by having a friendship first. If you are treating younger women, or younger men, as brothers and sisters then you will be friends with them and if something romantic builds out of it when you are old enough to get marred then praise God and roll with it.
v. 3-4 - Honor your parents. Here we are again reading about honoring our parents but this is a little different than what we normally think about when we think about honoring our parents. It basically says here that we are supposed to take care of our parents when they are old. This pleases God.
v. 5-8 - Set your hope on God; continue in supplications and prayers night and day. But if you are self indulgent, meaning to only focus on one’s own desires and passions without restraint, that person is dead even while they are alive. Command these things so that others don’t fall into sin. You are supposed to take care of your own family first, and then you probably don’t know Christ simply because your actions don’t show Christ.
V. 9-12 - Here is how you make sure that in hard times the church takes care of you, because as a family, that is what the church is supposed to do. Have the attitude of a one woman man/one man woman, have a reputation for good works, brought up children, shown hospitality, washed the feet of the saints, cared for the afflicted, devoted to every good work. Younger widows are not supposed to remarry. This is not a prohibition against remarriage, but a warning against marrying non believers and taken the faith of the husband which was the custom of the day.
v. 13-16 - Do not gossip. Do not become a busy body. Do not say things that you should not. Some have already strayed from the faith after Satan as a result of remarrying non-believers. Then in verse 16 we see that we are supposed to take care of our relatives before we push them on the church.

So the church, the body of Christ, is a family. We are supposed to love and respect all the members of the church as we should our own family members or better yet as Christ loved and respected His family. We are not to treat the church like our own personal dating service. We are to love, respect, protect, and treat members of the opposite sex as our brothers and sisters. We are to care for those who need to be cared for, starting with those in our own families and extending to those who need help in the church and then in the community. We are to have the attitude of a one woman man/one man woman, and a reputation for doing good works, caring for the afflicted. We are to be careful who we date/marry because if we are not careful we could let the faith of a non believer in and hurt our faith. Paul is helping Timothy to understand what it truly means to be the church, we are to love, and look after one another in all instances.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 8

2009-11-09T11:21:00.000-06:00

1 Timothy 4:9-16
November 4, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 4:9-16

v. 9 - Paul is putting forth that what he has to say is trustworthy and you should fully accept it for what it is worth.
v. 10 - why do we live this Christian life? Paul here, and in many other places, describes ministry as toil and striving. It is not an easy thing. Nowhere in the Bible is it ever stated that being a Christian would be easy. On the contrary Christ says that we should expect persecution because that is what He got. As Christians we toil and strive to this end that others would come to know God and attain “godliness” and its eternal value. Why do we see fit to toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the savior of all people who believe.
v. 11 - this verse is pretty self explanatory. Paul is telling Timothy here that he needs to command and teach these things.
v.12 - this is one of the most commonly referenced verses in student ministry today. But it sheds a light on what Timothy was feeling and how many young Christians feel today as well. We are not supposed to let people look down on us because we are young. I say us because I am still a relatively young Christian in the church. Regardless of our age we are to set an example for the other believers. We are to talk right, act right, love others, have a strong faith, and live in purity. Here Paul is telling timothy to be the example that everyone, young or old, looks at to know how to live like Christ. Why do you think that we automatically assume that since we are young we don’t have to live right and we can’t be an example to those older than us?
v.13 - Paul is planning on coming to the church at Ephesus, but until he gets there, he has some things that Timothy needs to make sure happens. The first is that they devote themselves to the public reading of scriptures. Make sure that this isn’t something that is kept secret just for a select few. Make sure that you are reading these scriptures publicly and for the benefit of all. This shows the communal aspect that the church is supposed to be practicing. The second thing timothy is supposed to be sure and do while he awaits the arrival of Paul is devote himself to exhortation. Exhortation is the act of conveying urgent advice or recommendations. Timothy is called to continue to teach the people the urgent message of the gospel. Exhorting is delivering an urgent message to those who need to hear it. The third thing Timothy is to devote himself to is teaching. All of these things go hand in hand. When you teach the gospel you are exhorting and hopefully publicly reading the scriptures.
v. 14 - here Paul is reaffirming to timothy that he has been called and gifted by God to do the work that he is currently doing. Paul doesn’t want Timothy to be discouraged by anything; one way to stay positive when things are hard is to remember your calling. Paul is urging Timothy to do just that.
v. 15-16 - Practice these things immerse yourself in them. Don’t just kind of be a Christian and kind of practice these things. Paul here tells Timothy to immerse himself in these things. Timothy is to immerse him and practice being an example to all the believers in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity. He is supposed to immerse himself in the public reading of scripture, exhortation and the teaching of the gospel. Immerse means to go completely under, to submerge. That is how we are supposed to live our lives as Christians. We are supposed to immerse ourselves in Christ and practice all of these things. We do this so that we can show others who Christ is and that through us living our lives for Christ, immersed in Him, they may come to know Christ as Savior.

In the end of chapter 4 we see Paul reminding Timothy why he toils and strives in the ministry, and this is a great reminder of why we do the same. We need to set our hope on the living God, who is the hope of salvation for all who believe. We are to be an example to all people in what a Christian is supposed to be like in all areas of life. Then we are to immerse ourselves in Christ. This is a big deal. We are to be totally and fully committed to Christ and his teachings, and they should rule over our lives completely.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 7

2009-11-02T09:50:00.000-06:00

1 Timothy 4:1-8

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 4:1-8

v. 1 - let’s get started. Paul started off his first letter to timothy by talking about what, false teachers. Now we come full circle and Paul again addresses the issue of false teaching in the church. The Holy Spirit has revealed to Paul that in later times, some will depart. I think we see that a whole lot more than we realize. When students graduate or even when they become juniors or seniors they begin to check out. Why, because they devote themselves to deceitful spirits and the teaching of demons. Demons, really? Yes people are being led away by the teachings of demons and deceitful spirits. Anything religion or teaching that teaches anything but Christ and Him resurrected is false. There is one way, not many, one. People today, just like in Timothy’s day, are being led away from Christianity by false teachings. We need to know this is going to happen and then do everything we can to prevent it from happening to us and those around us.
v. 2 - The consciences of those who are teaching false things have become desensitized and rendered ineffective so that they do not function how they are supposed to. Those who teach false doctrine do so because they have no sense of conscience any more.
v. 3-5 - Here we see some of the content of the false teaching. Paul deals with the issue of food and marriage in other places in his writings as well. These false teachers were forbidding people to get married, and forbidding people to eat certain foods. The false teaching is rating our holiness by how much we deny ourselves or by how much we are willing to give up. In response Paul says that everything is good that was made by God and we should enjoy it as a gift from Him. Now this is not permission to over indulge in things that aren’t good for us. Or to let down our guard and give into temptation to do things that we aren’t supposed to just because it was made by God. This doesn’t mean that we can get drunk and use drugs if we just thank God for them. This does not mean we can go sleep around with as many people as we want, if we say a prayer of thanksgiving before we do. Paul is not giving permission to sin, rather he is simply stating that for things like food, all food is considered good and holy if it is from God and through prayer.
v. 6 - we all want to be good at what we do right? I mean I am extremely competitive and like to be the best. So how can we be a good servant of Christ? If we put these things, these teachings we have learned before the brothers. If we practice what we have been taught and teach others these things as well, then we will be good servants of Christ. But we need to know what we believe; Paul says that we should be trained in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have followed. We need to be trained, which means we are intentional about why we are at church or why we read our Bibles. We don’t just do it to check of some list that we did it; we do it because we want to be good servants of Christ so we train ourselves in the words of faith and good doctrine.
v. 7-8 - Have nothing to do with silly myths, rather train yourself for Godliness. Here we see Paul speaking about what he sees is of importance. Paul many times references athletes in his writings and here we see and I agree that physical training, training of the body, is of some benefit. The best way to stay healthy and not get sick is to exercise every day. But we see here what is of more benefit than physical training. Training ourselves in Godliness is of value every way. It helps now and it is the only thing that will be of any benefit in the life to come. Training in Godliness benefits now, if you love God and follow his commands you will live long and have a good life, you won’t destroy your body with drugs or alcohol, and you won’t destroy your body with an STD. You will love others more than yourself which will bring you friends that truly love you as well. But training for Godliness also holds a promise for the life to come. How do you know a Christian, by their fruits, from their training, from the things that they hold dear. You can spot an athlete by the way they look, the things they do with their time. You can spot a Christian the same way. If you know Christ as your savior and follow him with your life, then you can be assured of the promise for the life to come, for eternal life with Christ in heaven. That is the ultimate goal.

So we know we need to stay away from false teaching that will draw us away from Christ. We need to prepare ourselves for the inevitability that comes with being a Christian. We will face opposition and others will try and lead us astray, but we need to be prepared for that by training ourselves in Godliness which holds a promise for this life as well as the life to come.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 6

2009-10-22T11:10:00.000-05:00

1 Timothy 3:8-16
October 21, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 3:8-16

Last time we talked about qualifications for overseers, or elders, or pastors. Tonight we are going to look at what are the qualifications for Deacons.

v. 8 - likewise, here we see that what Paul just wrote about overseers, is applied and given to deacons as well. We see here that Deacons are not to be double-tongued, which literally means they shouldn’t talk out of both sides of their mouths. This means you can’t tell one person one thing and another person a totally different thing. Not to be addicted to much wine. This means exactly what it says. Don’t be addicted to wine or alcohol, don’t be an alcoholic. You want to know a great way to not become and alcoholic don’t ever start drinking. Do not be greedy for dishonest gain. This does not mean that if you want to try and make a good living for yourself and your family that you can’t be a deacon. What it does mean is that if you are going to qualify to be voted as a deacon, you can’t get rich deceitfully.
v. 9-10 - here we see that deacons, while they don’t have to be able to teach, they need to have a clear and firm grasp on the gospel. They need to know their theology. They need to know what they believe and why they believe it. Then it says that they are to be tested for a time and after they prove themselves blameless then we can let them be deacons.
v. 11 - here we come to a very controversial verse, controversial in the fact that there are three views on who this verse is talking about. The first view is that this verse is speaking to the wives of deacons like it reads in English. The second view is that this verse is addressing female deacons. The third view is that this verse is addressing women who assist male deacons in their ministry. The word in Greek here used for wife is guvvvne which could mean women or wife. That is why we have the controversy. But we will just look at the qualities that a woman in this instance should possess. She must be dignified, not slanderers, sober-minded, and faithful in all things.
v.12 - then we come to some more things that male deacons need to practice. Just like overseers, deacons are to be the husband of one wife, or have the attitude of a one woman man. And manage their children and their household well.
v. 13 - here we see that if you serve well you will gain respect and good standing within the church and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. This is a reward that we can grasp here on earth for serving Christ and the Church.

v. 14-15 - Now Paul jumps from the qualifications of deacons to more of why he is writing all of this and giving it to Timothy. He is writing all this down in order that Timothy and those in the Church at Ephesus would know how to act. One saying can sum it up. True doctrine leads to right living.
v.16 - As we finish up chapter 3 we come to an odd verse. Here Paul is explaining the mystery of the Gospel, the mystery of salvation. Christ came in the flesh which led to his crucifixion. But he was vindicated by the resurrection and then was displayed in victory before the angels. Then he was proclaimed among the nations to which he was then believed on in the world and finally he was taken up in glory, he ascended into heaven.

We see here the qualifications of being a servant of Christ in the Church. Whether you think women can be deacons or not, these are good things for all of us to look at and strive for. There is not any reason male or female, as Christians, we should not be servants of Christ to the church, even if we aren’t formally elected as deacons by the church. All of this should point back to one thing that is the death and resurrection of Christ and the salvation offered up to us through Christ alone. This is the great mystery of godliness.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 5

2009-10-08T11:31:00.000-05:00

1 Timothy 3:1-7
October 7, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 3:1-7

As we look at 1 Timothy and as we read through we come to some parts that you may wonder why we are talking about them. But we will go through them and learn what God has to say anyways. Tonight we will read and study a passage that deals more with the leaders or overseers of the church. I will do my best to help you understand why this is necessary for us all to know and why it is a good thing for you all to remember as you grow in your faith and begin to take over the leadership of the church.

v. 1 - Paul here lays out what he is going to talk to Timothy about, being an overseer. The term elder, pastor, and shepherd are all used interchangeably throughout the NT to refer to the same office in the church, the one who watches over the congregation. Paul then tells Timothy that it is a noble task to desire to be an overseer. It is a good, noble thing.
v. 2-3 - The first thing we see as a qualification for being an overseer is that he must be above reproach. This means that he should always act like Christ. Whether he is by himself, with his family, at the church, or in public, an overseer should not give anyone any reason to question his call as the Pastor of the church or give anyone an opportunity to turn their back on Christ because of his actions. All of the other things listed in verse 2 are specifics of living above reproach. Husband of one wife, sober-minded, self controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach (this is the one requirement in this list that is not required of all believers or deacons but is more of a skill required of pastor) , not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. If someone possesses these qualities they are living a life above reproach.
v. 4-5 - Here we get into a little broader view of an overseer. A man must be able to control his household well, with all dignity, keeping his children submissive. Why is this qualification a big deal? Verse 5 tells us. If a man cannot run his own house with Christ at the center then how can he be expected to run the church, which is the house of God? Some of you are disqualifying your fathers from being overseers in the church because you are not following after God and you are not submitting to their rule as your parent or God’s will for your life. Your actions and attitudes affect your parent’s ministry to the church.
v.6 - An overseer cannot be a new Christian. Someone may be a very gifted leader and/or speaker but if they are a new Christian they should not be given the responsibility of being an overseer because it takes time to grow in maturity and character. One of the dangers of being a leader is to become conceited and think it is all about you, which as Paul says, is the condemnation of the devil. It isn’t about me, it isn’t about any other pastor, it is and should always remain about Jesus Christ. I hope that as I continue on in ministry that I can always point people to Christ and not shine a light on myself.
v.7 - Here we see what an overseer’s reputation in the secular world needs to be like. If a pastor of a church isn’t liked by the people outside the community, if he has a bad reputation, how effective do you think he will be in winning lost people to Christ? Paul says if a pastor or overseer is not well thought of by outsiders, then he falls into the snare of the devil. A pastor, who isn’t well thought of by non-Christians, is not doing much for the kingdom of God. Is the pastor effective then if he isn’t known by outsiders? Before an overseer can be well thought of, first he has to be thought of which means he needs to be in the community making an impact for Christ.

So what does this have to do with people who aren’t called to be pastors or overseers? Why is this important for us to look at? How many of you want to live lives that honor and glorify God? I hope all of you do, well all of these things except for one, being able to teach, are good things for any Christian to try and live out. This isn’t only the requirements for overseers, but it can be a checklist for your life as a Christian, to see if you are living a life that is focused and headed towards the right thing, God.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**

Reading through 1 Timothy week 4

2009-10-01T09:25:00.000-05:00

Well we missed last week in our series over 1 Timothy, but here are my notes from last nights talk to my students. Hope you enjoy!

1 Timothy 2:11-15
September 16, 2009

Pray
Read 1 Timothy 2:11-15
In order to really understand what Paul is talking about here we need to go back to the beginning, just like Paul. Paul takes us back to the creation account so we will go there as well.

Genesis 1:27-28; 2:18, 20-23
Here we see what God says about creating man and woman. Both man and woman were created in the image of God so we have to understand that both men and women are loved by and valuable and blessed by God. Men and women in this sense are equal. Let’s jump over to chapter two in Genesis and look at what it says. Chapter two is a more detailed account of the creation, not a separate creation account. Here we see the order in which humanity was created. Man first, woman second. I hope you don’t see that God places preeminence on man here and leaves woman second. Here we find out what man and woman are created for. Man was created to work. Woman was created to help man accomplish his task. Woman was taken from the side of man, not the back, not the front but the side. So we see a partnership here. Dancing with the Stars, just like in ballroom dancing. Man is supposed to lead. If the woman doesn’t follow his lead the dance is off, but if they work in harmony together, the man leading, the woman following it is a beautiful thing. But without the woman’s support, following the man’s lead, the man would look like an idiot spinning around in circles straight to the loony bin.

Now after discussing this lets go back to 1 Timothy and dig into what Paul has to say about women’s role in the church.

v. 11 - women are supposed to learn quietly. They are not supposed to teach in the church, but rather they are supposed to submit to male authority.
v.12 - we see two things of note here. Women are not permitted to publicly teach scripture and/or Christian doctrine to men in the church. And women are not permitted to exercise authority over men in the church. However we do not find here that women cannot teach at all in the church. In fact a woman teaching other women is encouraged in Titus 2:4 and women teaching children is encouraged by Paul in 2 Timothy 1:5. Women are not to be shut up and not allowed to speak; rather they are to be quiet in regards to the teaching of the assembly of the church.
v.13-14 - Here we see the reasoning behind Paul’s statement about women in the previous verse. The first biblical reason behind the prohibition in v. 12 is the order of creation. Man was created first; the second reason is the deception of Eve in the Garden of Eden. Paul here argues that gender roles in the church are not the result of the fall, but are rooted in creation so they apply to all cultures at all times. As we look at the fall account we need to understand something that many people don’t look at when they read the account. Eve sinned first, but Adam was there and did nothing. Adam didn’t step in and tell his helper no, don’t do that, it isn’t good for you. Instead Adam sat back and did nothing. Adam’s inaction is as important to see as Eve’s sin.
v. 15 - Paul is not suggesting here that women can receive eternal salvation through having kids. But he is referring rather to the fact that people are saved as they persevere (continue in) in their faith to carry out the Lord’s calling on their life. Paul says you are to continue in faith, love, and holiness with self control. Paul wants women to understand their role in the church so that they can serve the church in the right way.

**this is by no means an exhaustive study on these verses, these are simply my notes from the talk I gave on these verses. if you have any questions or comments they would be much appreciated so feel free to post them, thanks!**