The right perspective is essential to right doctrine. If we get our view of God right, then our lives will flow from that truth. That’s Paul’s message in the final chapter of 1 Timothy. If you want to know how to live in the world, then set your mind on things above and the Glory of God. This will order your life in a way that reflects the goodness and mercy of God. It will result in a life of contentedness and thanksgiving, sanctification and worship, joy and celebration. These are the marks of a life that has been ordered around the love of God.
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What do you do when the world has you surrounded? When people that are all around you and in your life do not share your values, faith, or way of living? How do you respond when the surrounding culture would rather you not even be there? These are questions that Christians in America are increasingly up against. The response to those questions, however, is anything but uniform and consistent. The Apostle Paul, though, gives us a picture of what it looks like to live in that kind of culture. And what is his primary strategy? As simple as it sounds, his main strategy is this: Go to church, be the church. It may not sound like much, but it’s the plan God has given us to not just survive in this world- but to change it.
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The brokenness of this world is all around us in every sphere of our lives. We are constantly living in tension, if not all-out war with this reality. Paul recognizes the fight that we’re in and wants us to understand that while that fight rages here on earth, what happens here on earth is just a fraction of what really matters. In truth, our biggest priority shouldn’t revolve around the temporary things of this world, even the good things. Instead, we should set our hearts and minds on things much bigger, eternal things. And the church is central to that strategy.
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John Maxwell states, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.” It’s a simple maxim with a host of questions and implications that follow. What criteria do we use to choose our leader? Or is it Leaders? Is a Pastor the default leader or someone else? What is the nature of that leadership? What is the makeup of that leader? Are we free to choose whom we’d like or are there restrictions, a design, a model? Are the leaders free to lead however they want or is there a design to that too? What exactly should church leadership look like, what are its tasks, and how should it lead?
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Sometimes we read things in the Bible that can sound pretty shocking. They make us stop and kind of scratch our heads and wonder what we just read. 1 Timothy 2 ends in a passage just like that. The initial reading of this passage sounds like a way to put women in their place and that place is one of silence and childbirth. That’s their job. But with a little more digging and contextualization, we see that Paul’s goal was actually very different.
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How are we meant to live in a world that does not share our values, convictions, and beliefs? This is not a new question. In fact, most of the New Testament epistles are centered around the answer to that question. Consistently, Paul’s answer to this question does not look or sound like the answers many give today. The unexpected instructions for Paul in 1 Timothy 2 begin with prayer and an aligning of our hearts to what God wants- that all would be saved. That idea, that God wants all to be saved, has provided theological debate for millennia, but more importantly, it is an extraordinary statement about the nature and character of God.
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In Paul’s first letter to Timothy, Paul claims to be the foremost of sinners. While this quote might not grab our attention nowadays, it would have been a remarkable thing for Paul to say, a Pharisee among Pharisees. In this quote, Paul shows us the amazing truth that Christ opened his eyes to – that we are all alike in our sin – Jew, Gentile, Samaritan, Barbarian – and in need of a Savior.
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What do you do when you look up and it seems like you’re surrounded by a world that doesn’t want you here? What happens when you try to build a gospel foundation and everyone tries to knock it down? How do you live, work, and minister in a culture that just wants you to go away? As Paul instructs Timothy, the goal is not to tear down everything that surrounds you, but to minister to them in love. While that may be the last thing we want to do, it’s exactly what the world needs.
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God is at work. Seems like a simple enough statement, but given the right circumstances over a long enough time- it’s a statement even the most devout follower may begin to doubt. Or perhaps if we believe he’s at work, we may believe that His work is far from something we actually desire- but instead fear. The testimony of Judges, Ruth, and the entire OT is one of a God that is always working a plan- often slowly and in places we would not look, but always working. The story of the NT is that rescue plan being put into action. Make no mistake about it- we want an Old Testament God and a New Testament God too. In both Old and New, it is the same God working the same plan that guides us through our darkest moments and deepest pains.
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Sometimes we understand words and concepts even without being able to define them. They are simply things that we engage in or see every day, but don’t give much thought to. The idea of redemption is one of those things that we all instinctively know but probably can’t put words to. The idea of redemption has roots in our faith too, but much like our regular understanding of redemption- it can be hard to put words to that one too. When Ruth asked Boaz to be her “redeemer,” it can leave us a little confused, but Boaz knew exactly what it meant- and what it would cost. Jesus, too, knew what redemption would cost, and he not only covered our debt, he purchased for his own.
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Good advice is always nice. It can help us find our way or sort through all kinds of problems. The only thing is, good advice still leaves one big issue- we have to apply it. We still have to go out and do the thing we’ve been advised on. Far better for us is good news- an announcement of something that has already been done. Chandler Rowlen with RUF, our local missions partner, shows the difference between those two things is filled with exasperation, exhaustion, and eventually hopelessness. But the Gospel (i.e. literally the good news) is the remedy for a world full of good (and bad) advice.
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Certain questions never go away. Throughout every generation, these questions constantly resurface with a variety of answers and schools of thought. When thinking through theology, the question of God’s sovereignty and human responsibility is a classic debate that has entertained theologians for centuries. The answer to that question comes in many forms and the Book of Ruth shows us that these two things aren’t set in opposition to one another. In fact, they are beautifully connected. Ruth, Boaz, and Naomi all show how God intends for our work to be a part of his plan.
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The brokenness of this world can feel overwhelming. When surrounded by sickness, death, suffering, and violence, it can be easy to think there is no light left in this world. This is the book of Judges and it’s exactly how Naomi felt in the opening chapter of the Book of Ruth. Three women widowed and alone is enough to make anyone bitter and angry- like Naomi was. But when the darkness seems to overwhelm and threatend to undo us, is when even the faintest flicker of light shines the brightest. As we move from Judges to Ruth, we see that flame start to light up the night and we can know that the darkness has not overcome.
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They say never meet your heroes, they’ll always let you down. Samson might be the epitome of that phrase. A man born with a purpose and gifted with nearly superhuman strength, Samson never quite lived up to what he should’ve been. He had it all, but was so far from God he never really came close to being the savior he was born to be. His life was a wasted one- at least it almost was. In his final moments, Samson was still able to see (even without his eyes) what God wanted of him. Once again, God shows how he is not limited by our sin and failure, but works in and through them.
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Sometimes a story is too good to be true. Reality has a way of showing us the darkness of the world and preventing us from believing the best. No one would confuse the story of Jephthah of being too good, but it almost was. It could’ve been. It should’ve been. Which is really the whole point. A broken, tragic story that was so close to being the story God intends to write. The one that is there for all of us. The question is, will it be your story?
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