Sunday – September 5th – 1 Timothy 3:1-3 -----
1 This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work.
2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;
3 not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous;
The Daily Walk Bible inspirational thought for today:
AS LONG AS WE LIVE, WE SHOULD MORE AND MORE BE TURNING FROM ALL THAT IS EVIL AND TO ALL THAT IS GOOD.*
Oh, what a great joy and rich blessing to have arrived at Sunday of this week. As a follower of Jesus, it is a day of worship, a day of rest, and a day of opportunity. The inspirational thought for today keeps jumping off the page at me. I am sure we can all agree on the substance of this statement. As a follower of Jesus, we are called to have in us the mind/attitude of Jesus so it should be no surprise that we are to resist evil and embrace good. However, the challenge I see in this verse is whose definition of evil/good do we use in determining the direction we go. If we only listen to the suggestions of a fallen world, where evil, or sin, is often masked as good, we can easily be guilty of making good time in the wrong direction. Ultimate good is only found in one place – the word of God given to us for so that we can chart our direction toward God. It is also good to know that the Holy Spirit is like that voice on your GPS program that instructs you to “make a U-turn” when you begin heading in the wrong direction. May we all be heading in the direction of God as we prepare for a new week.
In our pick verses today, we begin a new chapter of reading and are invited in by Paul to a new subject of teaching. Once again Paul is writing to a church which exists in a community that is deeply immersed in a pagan culture, influenced by pagan ideas, and surrounded by pagan values. His instructions for leadership in the church is to help individuals transition from their old lives and lifestyles to now live under the blessings of God’s anointing. Paul knows that the leadership of the church is the example that the rest of the church will follow as they grow in Christ. While Paul uses terms that are associated with his day and time, “bishops” and “deacons”, over the centuries these terms have morphed, and changed, and taking on entirely new meanings depending on the denominational polity of the day. Bottom line is that all church leaders must serve as an example of good Christian conduct. And if you remember my definition of “leader” it includes anyone and everyone who has someone else following their lead in living a Christian life. Guess what - that includes you!
Blessings
Pastor Jim
Monday – September 6th – 1 Timothy 3:4-5
*Tyndale. The Daily Walk Bible NLT (Daily Walk: Full Size) (Kindle Locations 48141-48142). Tyndale House Publishers. Kindle Edition.
1 This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work.
2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;
3 not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous;
The Daily Walk Bible inspirational thought for today:
AS LONG AS WE LIVE, WE SHOULD MORE AND MORE BE TURNING FROM ALL THAT IS EVIL AND TO ALL THAT IS GOOD.*
Oh, what a great joy and rich blessing to have arrived at Sunday of this week. As a follower of Jesus, it is a day of worship, a day of rest, and a day of opportunity. The inspirational thought for today keeps jumping off the page at me. I am sure we can all agree on the substance of this statement. As a follower of Jesus, we are called to have in us the mind/attitude of Jesus so it should be no surprise that we are to resist evil and embrace good. However, the challenge I see in this verse is whose definition of evil/good do we use in determining the direction we go. If we only listen to the suggestions of a fallen world, where evil, or sin, is often masked as good, we can easily be guilty of making good time in the wrong direction. Ultimate good is only found in one place – the word of God given to us for so that we can chart our direction toward God. It is also good to know that the Holy Spirit is like that voice on your GPS program that instructs you to “make a U-turn” when you begin heading in the wrong direction. May we all be heading in the direction of God as we prepare for a new week.
In our pick verses today, we begin a new chapter of reading and are invited in by Paul to a new subject of teaching. Once again Paul is writing to a church which exists in a community that is deeply immersed in a pagan culture, influenced by pagan ideas, and surrounded by pagan values. His instructions for leadership in the church is to help individuals transition from their old lives and lifestyles to now live under the blessings of God’s anointing. Paul knows that the leadership of the church is the example that the rest of the church will follow as they grow in Christ. While Paul uses terms that are associated with his day and time, “bishops” and “deacons”, over the centuries these terms have morphed, and changed, and taking on entirely new meanings depending on the denominational polity of the day. Bottom line is that all church leaders must serve as an example of good Christian conduct. And if you remember my definition of “leader” it includes anyone and everyone who has someone else following their lead in living a Christian life. Guess what - that includes you!
Blessings
Pastor Jim
Monday – September 6th – 1 Timothy 3:4-5
*Tyndale. The Daily Walk Bible NLT (Daily Walk: Full Size) (Kindle Locations 48141-48142). Tyndale House Publishers. Kindle Edition.
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