We baptized a witch. We baptized an atheist. And then we baptized a man who had grown up in the Church.
I know that there are witches out there. I know there are atheists out there, but what really bothers me are the people who grow up in the Church that miss the Gospel while sitting in church. What do I do with this?
1 Tim 4
There are men and women around us who are worshiping with us who know Jesus but don’t know him. They can unpack him, but they don’t know him.
Keep a close watch on yourself and your teaching. Persist in this for by so doing, you will save both yourself.
There is a way to live and a way to teach that helps men and women see what the Gospel is and what it is not.
If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Jesus…
You’ve got a chance here to talk about what is deep and beautiful and meaningful and mighty OR you can kinda just address silly things.
Doctrine, deep, beautiful doctrine is somehow becoming synonymous with historic fundamentalism. That is completely untrue. How can that be equated to death.
The same is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, for to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living savior who is the hope of all people. If the end goal is not God and him glorified, then you’re in big trouble. If you like Jesus to grow a big church, get better marriages, etc. you are after that thing and not Jesus, then you are an idolater.
The good news of Jesus Christ is not that everything is going to go well, it’s that if you get Him, He is sufficient no matter what.
John the Baptist, the greatest man who ever lived (?), is in prison and asks if Jesus is the One. Jesus says He is, but John is beheaded anyway.
Moses had to wander in the desert.
The idea that if you follow God everything will go well with you on the Earth gets trumped by this: reality.
If you’ve been at your church mroe than four years, where your church is weak is where you are weak. You cannot ask your people to read the Bible and not do it. You cannot tell your congregation to share the Gospel with their neighbors and not do it yourself. You are the mirror. You are the example.
Practice these things: doctrine, purity, etc. Devote yourself to them so that all may see your progress. Keep a close watch on yourself. No man can avoid the painful work of self-examination. You can tell what is going on your heart by two indicators, what you do with your money and how you treat others.
My parking spot is the last one, not the first one.
If you’ve strayed too far from the Gospel, you’re not the Church, you’re the rotary club.
Guard your life and doctrine closely. Because by doing these things, you’ll work out your salvation, and others will come to know Him.
