
The focus of our text today is an instruction from Paul to Timothy on helping the Ephesian church care for her pastors. His instructions here reminded me of a quote from our theology/philosophy of eldership…
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The focus of our text today is an instruction from Paul to Timothy on helping the Ephesian church care for her pastors. His instructions here reminded me of a quote from our theology/philosophy of eldership…
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There’s no such thing as lower class, middle class or upper class in the church family. There’s only the class of sinner turned saint. There’s only the class who’ve been redeemed from the pit. There’s only the class that once was lost but now is found. There’s only the class who were orphaned by sin but adopted by the Savior. There are no second rate citizens in the church family and there certainly are no citizens with special privileges.
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Paul’s words to Timothy in the opening verse of our text carry a tone of seriousness that cannot be dismissed lightly. Five words in the first verse: Command and teach these things. Five simple words that carry serious meaning. We all have a serious responsibility to command obedience to the teaching of God’s Word. This is a serious matter because men and women who teach with their words what their lives don’t support are dangerous teachers to follow.
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Everyone wants to hear the words “Well done my good and faithful servant”. No one looks forward to a day when someone will say to him or to her “You have done your job poorly and you are an irresponsible servant. Depart from me for I do not know you.” Deep down inside, every one of us has a deep desire to serve well. We want to excel at things. We want to be successful. We want to be good at something. We want to be good servants.
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There is therefore, now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. This is a promise that has given many believers great hope throughout the centuries. It is a promise of both immediate and eternal freedom. In Christ, I am free right now and I am free forever. It is a promise that reminds me that the chains of my sin have been broken. The power of Satan has been destroyed. The penalty of death has been obliterated. All of this has been made possible through the horrific death and victorious resurrection of Jesus.
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The root word of captivate is the word captive. It brings to mind the picture of someone who is held in captivity. Now a person in captivity can only do what his or her captor allows them to do. This is a picture that can either be negative or positive. If you think about this I think you’ll see what I am saying.
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Romans chapter 8 is like healing medicine on infected wounds. God’s Word is like a two edged sword that cuts into the deepest parts of our souls and delivers an injection of the gospel that no other source can provide. It’s like a mirror that shows us our imperfections and helps us to reflect on God’s perfection in the cross of Christ. And Romans chapter 8 is like the most precious of all the medicine in God’s Word because it teaches us that there is therefore, now, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
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I’m planning to focus entirely on Romans 8:1 today. Romans chapter 8 is a passage of Scripture that I turn to often. It’s a passage of Scripture that describes the Holy Spirit’s work in setting us free from the bondage of slavery to sin.
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What is your vision of Jesus right now and how does that vision affect your behavior, your church engagement and your proclamation of Christ? Last week I made the statement that I believe that the church in the western world worships a small vision of Jesus. And my prayer has been that God would reveal to us where our vision of his Son needs to be increased.
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The passage in front of us today is Paul’s second pass as laying out the qualifications for leaders in the church. The first round focused on the role of Elders (3:1 – 7) and this second round focuses on the role of Deacons (3:8 – 13). At first glance both sections appear to be identical and there are many things that are identical in these verses. But there are also many things that are unique to the role of a Deacon in comparison to the role of an Elder. Look at what Paul says…
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