On Sunday (6/24/07) we started a study of I Timothy. Lots of things to cover in these first two chapters.
Paul wrote this letter to Timothy before his final imprisonment. It's an encouragement and instruction to young leaders in particular, but also believers everywhere.
1:3-11 Keep in mind that Paul is writing in response to what he had witnessed and heard. The first being false teachers. Teachers that would endlessly debate about things that didn't matter that much or teach for the wrong motives- that is, to make a name for themselves. We can question what a leader teaches if (this directly from NIV Life Application study notes) a) "it promotes controversies instead of helping people come to Jesus," b) "it is often initiated by those whose motivation is to make a name for themselves," or c) "it will be contrary to the true teaching of the Scriptures."
1:12-17 Paul was living proof that no one under any cirucmstances is beyond the saving power of God. He used to reject Jesus' teachings and persecute those who followed Him. Keep that in mind if you ever meet somebody who you think would never become a Christian or never go to church. We cannot limit God's power and capabilities.
1:19-20 Hymenaeus spoke false teachings. Alexander may have been under him or with him but we are not sure. With some explanation, this is a model for how we ought to discipline. Vs 20 says they were "handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme." It seems very harsh, but Paul's ultimate goal was that they would see the error of their ways and repent. A group of believers should never exclude anyone permanently.
Chapter 2 starts out in a pretty straight-forward manner until verses 9-15. Remember, I said that Paul was writing in response to what he witnessed. Women were trying to gain respect for their outward appearance rather than the integrity of their character. And in regards to verse 12, the term "silent" refers more to a quiet, composed attitude- not complete silence. He was responding to women who were new converts trying to teach and "abusing their newly acquired Christian freedom" (study notes).
So I hope that dispels some of the controversy that passage seems to contain! Please feel free to comment and discuss more.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Paul & Silas in prison and Charlotte's Web
Last Friday (6/22/07) was a fun night as we joined Meadows for their outdoor screening of Charlotte's Web! Before that, we had our usual gym/outdoor time and then a quick devotional before the movie started.
Paul and Silas in prison is probably one of my favorite stories in the bible (Acts 16:16-40) We looked at the first half of that. The main topic was doing the right thing. Paul and Silas remove a spirit from a girl that gave her fortune telling abilities, and a profit for her owners! The owners bring Paul and Silas to the authorities and without trial, they are beaten and imprisoned.
Any normal person would be outraged at this point. Angry at the villagers. Angry at the authorities. Angry at God. But verse 25 gives us Paul and Silas' reaction. Worship. Even though they were still bruised and bleeding, sitting in a crummy prison they still chose to worship God. That's joy. That's doing the right thing. I pray we all choose to worship God inspite of whatever circumstances we may be facing.
Paul and Silas in prison is probably one of my favorite stories in the bible (Acts 16:16-40) We looked at the first half of that. The main topic was doing the right thing. Paul and Silas remove a spirit from a girl that gave her fortune telling abilities, and a profit for her owners! The owners bring Paul and Silas to the authorities and without trial, they are beaten and imprisoned.
Any normal person would be outraged at this point. Angry at the villagers. Angry at the authorities. Angry at God. But verse 25 gives us Paul and Silas' reaction. Worship. Even though they were still bruised and bleeding, sitting in a crummy prison they still chose to worship God. That's joy. That's doing the right thing. I pray we all choose to worship God inspite of whatever circumstances we may be facing.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
worship songs
This morning (6/17/07) we looked at a few modern worship songs and the scriptures they were taken from. I think it's interesting to compare. Some song lyrics are taken word for word. Some take a line from scripture. Some are just related thematically. After singing the songs we discussed what themes were in the scriptures and how they compared to the songs.
First we sang "Your Love Oh Lord," taken from Psalm 36. This "modern version" was written and performed by Third Day. The consensus was that David, the author of Psalm 36, and Third Day were pretty much getting at the same thing. Singing about God's faithfulness and asking for the favor of God's love to those who know Him.
Second, we sang "Kindness" by Chris Tomlin. This is based just on one verse- Romans 2:4. The obvious difference here is that the whole song is not taken word for word from scripture like the last one. But rather it expands on the theme of crying out to God and praising Him for His kindness, which allows sinners like us to repent.
These were the only 2 songs we got to go through, but of course this could go on for a long time. The worship song "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High" illustrates the third type of song. It may borrow exact lines of scripture, but it more covers the theme of singing praise to God for what Jesus did for us. In other words, it borrows themes and summaries of many passages of scripture.
First we sang "Your Love Oh Lord," taken from Psalm 36. This "modern version" was written and performed by Third Day. The consensus was that David, the author of Psalm 36, and Third Day were pretty much getting at the same thing. Singing about God's faithfulness and asking for the favor of God's love to those who know Him.
Second, we sang "Kindness" by Chris Tomlin. This is based just on one verse- Romans 2:4. The obvious difference here is that the whole song is not taken word for word from scripture like the last one. But rather it expands on the theme of crying out to God and praising Him for His kindness, which allows sinners like us to repent.
These were the only 2 songs we got to go through, but of course this could go on for a long time. The worship song "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High" illustrates the third type of song. It may borrow exact lines of scripture, but it more covers the theme of singing praise to God for what Jesus did for us. In other words, it borrows themes and summaries of many passages of scripture.
Judging others
On Friday (6/15/07) we looked at a few related scriptures on judging others. As Christians, we are careful not to judge others, but I'm sure we all slip at times when we get annoyed or a situation doesn't go our way.
First, we looked at Psalm 79. At first, you may think wow. What does this scripture have to do with judging? It's about crying out to God when injustice happens and for God to pour His judgment on those that do not trust God. This theme is actually in a lot of the Psalms. But this Psalm actually references back to 2 Chronicles 36:14-20. Asaph, the writer of this Psalm, is asking judgment on other kingdoms, yet the people in Judah, where Asaph is from, were rejecting God at this time also. The 2nd Chronicles passage tells us that the Israelites "mocked God's messengers" and "scoffed at his prophets." And Asaph was calling for judgment on unbelieving nations?! According to the NIV Life Application study bible notes, "this made their [Israelites from Judah] judgment even worse."
There are a few New Testament passages that show this concept. We looked at the one in the Gospel of John, chapter 8, where Jesus forgives an adulterous woman. Let the one who is without sin throw the first stone. Of course, that left the woman unharmed. Jesus tells her, "Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin." This last line is important because a person that does not repent and change is not growing their relationship to God. Passing a judgment onto others and also committing the sin themself is being a hypocrite.
Something to think about:
Do you catch yourself, individually or in a group, judging others? If so, pray for all those involved. Repentance is needed.
First, we looked at Psalm 79. At first, you may think wow. What does this scripture have to do with judging? It's about crying out to God when injustice happens and for God to pour His judgment on those that do not trust God. This theme is actually in a lot of the Psalms. But this Psalm actually references back to 2 Chronicles 36:14-20. Asaph, the writer of this Psalm, is asking judgment on other kingdoms, yet the people in Judah, where Asaph is from, were rejecting God at this time also. The 2nd Chronicles passage tells us that the Israelites "mocked God's messengers" and "scoffed at his prophets." And Asaph was calling for judgment on unbelieving nations?! According to the NIV Life Application study bible notes, "this made their [Israelites from Judah] judgment even worse."
There are a few New Testament passages that show this concept. We looked at the one in the Gospel of John, chapter 8, where Jesus forgives an adulterous woman. Let the one who is without sin throw the first stone. Of course, that left the woman unharmed. Jesus tells her, "Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin." This last line is important because a person that does not repent and change is not growing their relationship to God. Passing a judgment onto others and also committing the sin themself is being a hypocrite.
Something to think about:
Do you catch yourself, individually or in a group, judging others? If so, pray for all those involved. Repentance is needed.
Monday, June 11, 2007
a few more things...
On Sunday morning (6/10/07), we went over the first section in Ephesians 4 again. Rehashing some of Friday's points and going over a few more things.
Vs1: "As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received."
Worthy of the calling you have received. God calls us to live lives that can mount to so much more than if we try to get ahead in life on our own. What do you think God is calling you to be? Maybe a bit of stretch to ask some of the younger youth, but always a good question to ask yourself in general. And this is not just career-related, but what else do you do that makes you come alive?
Vs8-9: "This is why it[a] says:
"When he ascended on high,
he led captives in his train
and gave gifts to men." 9(What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions[c]?)"
Some debate on where he "descended." Some say it means to earth from heaven. Some say it means the grave. And a third possibility is Hades, the resting place of souls between death and resurrection (taken from the NIV Life Application Bible study notes).
Vs11-12: "It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up"
Pretty simple. As I said before- we cannot do everything on our own. Whether it's part of a team, being the body of Christ, or living out the Great Commission. We need each other and we can accomplish so much more.
That's about all we went through on Sunday morning. I'm still unsure of the best format to have on Friday nights and Sunday mornings. Any feedback on that, as specific as possible, would be great and very helpful. Do you want a bible study on Sunday mornings? If so, should we study certain books, topics, characters? How deep should we get on Friday nights? Should we have worship music either time, both, or none of the times? My job is to facilitate the spiritual growth for you guys. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
blessings
Vs1: "As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received."
Worthy of the calling you have received. God calls us to live lives that can mount to so much more than if we try to get ahead in life on our own. What do you think God is calling you to be? Maybe a bit of stretch to ask some of the younger youth, but always a good question to ask yourself in general. And this is not just career-related, but what else do you do that makes you come alive?
Vs8-9: "This is why it[a] says:
"When he ascended on high,
he led captives in his train
and gave gifts to men." 9(What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions[c]?)"
Some debate on where he "descended." Some say it means to earth from heaven. Some say it means the grave. And a third possibility is Hades, the resting place of souls between death and resurrection (taken from the NIV Life Application Bible study notes).
Vs11-12: "It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up"
Pretty simple. As I said before- we cannot do everything on our own. Whether it's part of a team, being the body of Christ, or living out the Great Commission. We need each other and we can accomplish so much more.
That's about all we went through on Sunday morning. I'm still unsure of the best format to have on Friday nights and Sunday mornings. Any feedback on that, as specific as possible, would be great and very helpful. Do you want a bible study on Sunday mornings? If so, should we study certain books, topics, characters? How deep should we get on Friday nights? Should we have worship music either time, both, or none of the times? My job is to facilitate the spiritual growth for you guys. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
blessings
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Unity with different parts
For Youth Group Friday night (6/8/07) we went over the first couple part of Ephesians 4.
First we did a couple games/activities. We played the human knot, which apparently, you need more than 7 people to make it a challenge. I thought it would be a little harder with 7 people, but we figured it out in a couple of minutes. Next we played a game where the group has to work together to create different shapes. We started off easy with a triangle, then went on to more complicated ones, including the shape of the U.S.A.! Hopefully, you see the idea of these games with the themes we studied in Ephesians 4.
Are there people that annoy that are perhaps different than you? We cannot let these things break us apart. A great movie scene that shows this theme is found in Remember the Titans. The Titans have already come back from camp and are about to play their first game. Coach Boone speaks about unity between all the players despite differences, particularly racial divides. He says, "Nothing. Nothing tears us apart." He got them to come together in part by having them spend time together and learn about teammates of another race. That is what we need to do. Pray for our enemies (or those that just annoy us) and make the effort to spend time with them.
The other major theme has to do with our different roles as the body of Christ. A more complete passage on this can be found in I Corinthians 12. There is no way we fulfill the Great Comission (found in Matthew 28:18-20) on our own. Going to all nation, preaching the gospel, making disciples, and discipling believers? No way! We might as well not even try as individuals. But as the body of Christ, we can do so much more and fulfill so many roles to express the fullness of Christ.
Haven't gotten along well with someone lately? See potential in a new friendship or collaboration? Give it up to God. Initiate. The results may surprise you (hopefully for the better!)
The other major theme has to do with our different roles as the body of Christ. A more complete passage on this can be found in I Corinthians 12. There is no way we fulfill the Great Comission (found in Matthew 28:18-20) on our own. Going to all nation, preaching the gospel, making disciples, and discipling believers? No way! We might as well not even try as individuals. But as the body of Christ, we can do so much more and fulfill so many roles to express the fullness of Christ.
Haven't gotten along well with someone lately? See potential in a new friendship or collaboration? Give it up to God. Initiate. The results may surprise you (hopefully for the better!)
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
catch up time...
On Sunday morning (6/3/07) we went through a bunch of Ephesians and caught up to where we are at on Friday nights.
We left off on Ephesians 2:11. An interesting, much longer than anticipated, discussion about circumcision came up. It was considered unclean not to be circumcised. That is how pious Jews viewed non-Jews. In addition to this physical meaning of circumcision, Paul is also talking about a spiritual circumcision of the heart. Jews and Gentiles alike are unclean before God and need Christ to "circumcise" the sin in our hearts.
The rest of chapter 2 includes a few images of what Christ has done between Jews and Gentiles:
He "has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility" (v14),
"create in himself one new man out of the two" (v15), and
"put to death their hostility" (v16).
Again, I went over the "mystery of Christ" in the first section of chapter 3. Verse 6 sums this up, from the NIV translation: "This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus." Not known until now that Jews and Gentiles are now heirs together equally.
Verse 8 also brings up another good point- "Although I am less than the least of all God's people..." Why does Paul say this? Clearly he was an important evangelist and apostle. The first reason is yes, to be humble. But also, we must recognize continually that the ability for any of us to do good works comes from God. Even if you are not the best at evangelizing, conversing, or debating biblical knowledge, God will give you opportunities to share Christ to others through you. Then it is clear whatever good may come of it is because what the Lord has done!
Closing the day was the Prayer to the Ephesians. It is so rich but pretty self-explanatory. I encourage everyone to meditate on how limitless God's love is. Grasping this in our minds is the easy part. Seeing it in our hearts is my prayer for all of us.
We left off on Ephesians 2:11. An interesting, much longer than anticipated, discussion about circumcision came up. It was considered unclean not to be circumcised. That is how pious Jews viewed non-Jews. In addition to this physical meaning of circumcision, Paul is also talking about a spiritual circumcision of the heart. Jews and Gentiles alike are unclean before God and need Christ to "circumcise" the sin in our hearts.
The rest of chapter 2 includes a few images of what Christ has done between Jews and Gentiles:
He "has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility" (v14),
"create in himself one new man out of the two" (v15), and
"put to death their hostility" (v16).
Again, I went over the "mystery of Christ" in the first section of chapter 3. Verse 6 sums this up, from the NIV translation: "This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus." Not known until now that Jews and Gentiles are now heirs together equally.
Verse 8 also brings up another good point- "Although I am less than the least of all God's people..." Why does Paul say this? Clearly he was an important evangelist and apostle. The first reason is yes, to be humble. But also, we must recognize continually that the ability for any of us to do good works comes from God. Even if you are not the best at evangelizing, conversing, or debating biblical knowledge, God will give you opportunities to share Christ to others through you. Then it is clear whatever good may come of it is because what the Lord has done!
Closing the day was the Prayer to the Ephesians. It is so rich but pretty self-explanatory. I encourage everyone to meditate on how limitless God's love is. Grasping this in our minds is the easy part. Seeing it in our hearts is my prayer for all of us.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
A Prayer for the Ephesians
Youth Group on Friday, June 1, 2007:
Games and Activities- With many youth around, we were able to play a couple of fun games. First was shuffle your butt, where someone is it in the middle, and they have to try and take a seat in the circle. The players sitting down avoid the person in the middle from sitting by "shuffling their butt." Next, we got to play another pretty hysterical round of "I've never..." Then we got on with the devotional.
Do you believe in miracles? Is there something that you either witnessed or heard an account of that cannot be explained in human terms? This was the topic of our discussion last Friday. I told a story of how Amber, a friend of mine, went on a mission trip to India. There she met a man who was unable to walk most, if not all, of his life. Amber commanded the man to walk in the name of Jesus- and HE GOT UP AND WALKED!
Paul's prayer to the Ephesians in chapter 3, verses 14-21 include this idea. He prays that the power of the Spirit would strengthen them, that they would know how high, long, wide, and deep the love of Christ is. At the end of this prayer, Paul says that Christ is able to do more than we can possibly know or imagine, and He is at work within us.
A couple other places in the gospels relay this sort of power we have in Christ. A parable Jesus says states that if we have the faith the size of a mustard seed we will be able to move a mountain. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says with faith, we will do greater works than He.
To sum this all up- if we are inside of God's will, put our faith in Him, and give Him the glory, we can to mighty works for the Lord. This is my prayer for all of us.
Games and Activities- With many youth around, we were able to play a couple of fun games. First was shuffle your butt, where someone is it in the middle, and they have to try and take a seat in the circle. The players sitting down avoid the person in the middle from sitting by "shuffling their butt." Next, we got to play another pretty hysterical round of "I've never..." Then we got on with the devotional.
Do you believe in miracles? Is there something that you either witnessed or heard an account of that cannot be explained in human terms? This was the topic of our discussion last Friday. I told a story of how Amber, a friend of mine, went on a mission trip to India. There she met a man who was unable to walk most, if not all, of his life. Amber commanded the man to walk in the name of Jesus- and HE GOT UP AND WALKED!
Paul's prayer to the Ephesians in chapter 3, verses 14-21 include this idea. He prays that the power of the Spirit would strengthen them, that they would know how high, long, wide, and deep the love of Christ is. At the end of this prayer, Paul says that Christ is able to do more than we can possibly know or imagine, and He is at work within us.
A couple other places in the gospels relay this sort of power we have in Christ. A parable Jesus says states that if we have the faith the size of a mustard seed we will be able to move a mountain. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says with faith, we will do greater works than He.
To sum this all up- if we are inside of God's will, put our faith in Him, and give Him the glory, we can to mighty works for the Lord. This is my prayer for all of us.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
