Example

1 Timothy 4:12 "Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."

As Christians, we don't get a pass in certain areas of our lives. We are called to a higher standard, we are called to live a life that follows so closely after Christ that we are an example to be followed.

Paul lists 6 different specific areas where we are to be examples. The first is in word which just means exactly that - the words we say ought to encourage, uplift, and bring others closer to God. The second is conversation which literally means, "manner of life, conduct, behaviour, deportment." The third is in charity or love. The fourth is in spirit. This is a word with deep meanings. However, what I think Paul is getting at is that we ought to be an example in how we feel, think, and decide. The fifth is in faith, or our fervent conviction that the Gospel is true and thereby something we ought to live our life by. And finally, the sixth is in purity which has the idea of us being set apart completely from sin.

As Christians, we ought to aim for being examples to everyone we are around n the words we say, in our daily behavior, in the love we demonstrate through that behavior, in how we feel, think, and decide, in how we believe in God and act on that belief, and in how we separate ourselves from sin unto God.

It is a tall order, to be sure. However, we have the Holy Spirit within us and the power of Christ on our side. Let's do it.

Good Minister

1 Timothy 4:6 "If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained."

Paul is rather blunt here, telling Timothy that there are those claiming to be speaking for God who are actually "...giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;"

I find it curious that the two things that are mentioned specifically as being "lies in hypocrisy" are 1) forbidding to marry and 2) the prohibition of eating meat. I've thought over this for awhile and can't come up with a solid answer as to why these are the 2 things that are specifically mentioned. My only thought is that there were specific people saying things like this and Paul was addressing something that Timothy was currently facing.

Regardless, the principle here is clear. One of the ways we can serve as a good minister of Jesus Christ is to nourish, or educate, or form our mind around, the words of faith and of good doctrine and then do what we can to remind our fellow believers of the Truth we have learned.

Am I being a good minister of Jesus Christ today?

4 Types of Prayer

2 Timothy 2:1 "I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;"

Paul seems to list 4 words that are synonyms of prayer. Let's dig a little deeper into their meanings:

Supplications: "need, indigence, want, privation, penury, a seeking, asking, entreating, entreaty to God or to man. Has the idea of begging, as in binding oneself."

Prayers: "to wish; by implication, to pray to God:—pray, will, wish with the idea of doing it to the advantage of, at, near, by, to, towards, with, with regard to."

Intercessions: "a falling in with, meeting with, an interview, a coming together, to visit, converse or for any other cause, that for which an interview is held, a conference or conversation, a petition, supplication."

Giving of Thanks: "gratitude; actively, grateful language (to God, as an act of worship)."

So if I might paraphrase this verse, I would say, "Based on what I just said about holding fast to the faith, I exhort therefore, that, before everything else, you 1) recognize your need and bring it humbly before God, 2) direct your wishes and will towards God in prayer, 3) have a conversation with God where you speak about your petitions to Him on behalf of others and yourself, and 4) that you speak actively and gratefully to your God as an act of worship. Do all this for yourself and for everyone else as well."

It's a big command that Paul gives here. However, his language makes is clear that this is vital. How can I implement this kind of prayer in my own life?

Swerved

1 Timothy 1:5-7 "Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned: From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling; Desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm."

The end of the commandment, when it is all said and done, it all comes back down to love, to charity. Paul knew this, Timothy knew this. Paul's positive admonition here makes sense, it is what we would expect. However, the contrast that he draws is perhaps a less obvious admonition.

Where would someone be if they swerved away from love out of a pure heart, a good conscience, and true faith? I would probably say selfishness and pride. However, Paul points out that those who swerved ended up in vain janglings, trying to be teachers of the law though they did not understand it. This vain, empty talk is doing nothing to build up the church, nothing to win the lost, nothing to disciple believers.

I guess the lesson here is that sometimes we don't have to fall to the "hard opposite" of a Christian virtue in order to be missing the mark. Sometimes lack of effectiveness, vanity, rooted in pride, can result in us wasting time. Which is something our enemy loves to see.

Love Of God & Patience

2 Thessalonians 3:5 "And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ."

If you were to ask any Christian, do you want more love of God and patience in waiting for Christ? Their answer would most undoubtedly be 'yes'. In this verse, we learn that getting to 'more' is part of the Lord's work of sanctification in our lives.

The word "direct" has the idea of making straight the way, or removing hindrances that would obstruct your course. What kind of hindrances does God need to remove in order for you to grow in your love for Him? What is holding you back from patience?

Prayers in the Bible are everywhere if we will just look. These are prayers that we would do well to pray for ourselves and for others.

The Day Is At Hand

2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand."

Like so many things in life, understanding the coming of the Lord is all about balance. Other places in Scripture, we are told that He is coming soon. However, here Paul seems to say something different. What gives?

Think about it this way - if you believe that literally within the next few minutes, Christ would return and take you to Heaven to be with Him for eternity, how much motivation would you have for pursuing any long-term projects or any audacious undertakings? Not very much.

Or on the other hand, if you believe that Christ's return is a long ways off and we have plenty of time, how much urgency would you feel? Not very much.

This balance between motivation and urgency is what we are looking at here. Jesus wants us to know that His return is imminent, meaning that it could happen at any time - in the next second or in the next millennium. The timing is not what is important. What is important is how our belief about His return moves us to action. He will come like a thief in the night, no one knows the day or the hour. For these reasons, we ought to live with an urgency of action while at the same time not neglecting long-term projects that God calls us to.

How do you feel about Christ's return? Is the urgency stealing your motivation? Or visa versa? How can you re-balance your perspective today?

Manifest Tokens

1 Thessalonians 1:4-5 "So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure: Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:"

Our natural selves are never happy about any kind of suffering or persecution. Our natural selves seek to avoid it at all costs. However, this church was not walking in their natural selves. Instead, they were walking by faith in the Spirit of God. As a result, they were able to see beyond the here and now.

The key here is patience and faith. Patience, knowing that this too shall pass. This is not the end of our story, merely a chapter and we just have to wait patiently until the end is revealed. And faith, believing that there is a reward coming. Believing that serving Christ faithfully is worth any price we must pay. Believing that persecution and tribulation are manifest evidence that we are counted worthy of God's Kingdom.

How do you view suffering and persecution? How are you doing on patience and faith today?