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13 Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to. There are things that just shouldn’t be said! I’m not talking about foul language or curse words, I am talkingContinue reading “15Aug2008 1Tim 5:13”

8 If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. With the rise of government intervention, nursing homes, hospitals and a mobile society, this concept, that families are responsible for the care of their elders, has faded into obscurity.Continue reading “14Aug2008 1Tim 5:8”

15 Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Spiritual growth takes effort. We have to be willing to stick to the process through the tough times rather than jump ship mid stream. With the birth of our first grandson just ten days ago, the processContinue reading “12Aug2008 1Tim 4:15”

13 Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. This verse encapsulates the causes of decline in any church movement. In fact, I look around the American church and I see a rampant disregard for these elements in so many churches and by extension the lives ofContinue reading “11Aug2008 1Tim 4:13”

12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. We are setting an example whether we like it or not. People are watching our conduct and determining our character from that conduct. When weContinue reading “10Aug2008 1Tim 4:12”

7 He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap. Paul is not talking about all outsiders being in love with the message being preached and running to become Jesus-followers. He is talking about avoiding the stink of hypocrisy. I remember aContinue reading “8Aug2008 1Tim 3:7”

6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil.  Two very distinct things jump out at me in this verse. The first is that leadership can lead to judgment; it is not a road to guaranteed spiritual success. In fact leadershipContinue reading “7Aug2008 1Tim 3:6”

4 He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. 5 (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?)  This seems so obvious that I am not sure why Paul included it, other than theContinue reading “6Aug2008 1Tim 3:4-5”

3 not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. We are looking at the qualifications for pastors, but I don’t want you to just skim over this thinking, I am not a pastor so this does not apply. All of us are responsible to living a godly life.Continue reading “5Aug 2008 1Tim 3:3”

2 Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,   We started yesterday dealing with the qualifications for being a pastor, someone in spiritual leadership of God’s people. The first qualification is often the most difficult to swallow in our culture ofContinue reading “4Aug2008 1Tim 3:2b”