Tag Archives: Paul

Itty Bitty Bible Study – Titus 1:10-16 This is a true saying

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)
Itty Bitty Bible Study Titus 1:10-16
I utilize various resources to research and study these Itty Bitty Bible Studies.
This time, for Titus, I hooked up with Keith Loy’s Celebrate Titus on RightNow Media.  RightNow Media is a subscription for everyone in a church. 
If you don’t have RightNow Media on your computer or TV streaming channels, the  Celebrate Titus dvd is available. I don’t know if it’s more or less information.

I am not an Amazon associate, so I don’t get anything out of sharing this! I will let you know that I will be quoting him!

Titus 1:10-16

13 This saying is true.

What saying is true?
It’s not a pretty saying.
We’ve just looked at Titus 1:6-9, the qualifications for an ambassador for Christ. It’s not just for Bishops, Elders and such…it’s for everyone who is called by the name of Christ!

Titus 1:10-16 King James Version (KJV)
10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:
11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre’s sake.
12 One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, the Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.
13 This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;
14 Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

We can read that in various versions….

Titus 1:10-16 Contemporary English Version (CEV)
10 There are many who don’t respect authority, and they fool others by talking nonsense. This is especially true of some Jewish followers. 11 But you must make them be quiet. They are after money, and they upset whole families by teaching what they should not. 12 It is like one of their own prophets once said,

“The people of Crete
always tell lies.
They are greedy and lazy
like wild animals.”

From the look of this, there is some stereotyping going on…and yet, “it is one of their own prophets that said”…apparently, it was a cultural thing at that time.
Read it in the Amplified or The Message, I dare ya!

Cultural bigotry?
That’s not the point of this passage.
Then, what is?
It’s a statement of a cultural issue, that even the people of CRETE knew about! Yet, that’s not why Paul is writing that. It’s to prepare us for the next part:

Titus 1:10-11 Contemporary English Version
10 There are many who don’t respect authority,
and they fool others by talking nonsense.
This is especially true of some Jewish followers.
11 But you must make them be quiet.
They are after money,
and they upset whole families by teaching what they should not.

The point is that false doctrines cause chaos…and need to be shut down.
Even if it is from the Jewish followers, of whom Paul has had difficulty making sure they don’t bring others back into bondage to the law!
Galatians 1:6-9
Hebrews 6:4-6

Using Contemporary English again,

13 That surely is a true saying.
And you should be hard on such people, so you can help them grow stronger in their faith.
14 Don’t pay any attention to any of those senseless Jewish stories and human commands.
These are made up by people who won’t obey the truth.

KJV says it a bit more clearly:

13 This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;

The reason to rebuke someone in error is to clear up the issue, and help them to grow sound in the faith! Grow stronger in their faith! Not let them slip down the rabbit holes of senseless and foolish Jewish myths, or human commands that pull them away from the freedom of Christ.
This is the purpose of Church Discipline doctrine…which I’m not going to discuss, but rather, put a link here for you to read and discern. Matthew 18, with some examples in the Corinthians letters. An extreme of this is the Amish shunning.

Are there really rabbit holes and Jewish myths mentioned in the Bible? YES!
In Matthew 7:15-20, Jesus warned them, and us, of false prophets, that they will look good…but we can judge them by their fruit…and we should.
Matthew 15 talks about the traditions of the elders verses scriptures.
Matthew 23 lists a few the Pharisees were guilty of teaching.

Mark 7 also talks about these things…Jesus is putting the teachers of that time on notice!

Blind guides…Matt 15:14

WARNING WARNING WARNING

1 Timonthy 4:1 KJV
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

2 Peter 3:16 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
16 He speaks about these things in all his letters in which there are some matters that are hard to understand. The untaught and unstable twist them to their own destruction, as they also do with the rest of the Scriptures.

We have to beware of those teaching false teachings, as well as those that twist scriptures around to their own destruction.

Here is the really ugly, dangerous, scary part to me:

Titus 1:15-16 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
15 To the pure, everything is pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; in fact, both their mind and conscience are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny Him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, and disqualified for any good work.

I don’t want to be defiled.
I do not want to be unbelieving.

1 Corinthians 2:9-16 King James Version (KJV) especially verses 14-16
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
15 But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
16 For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? but we have the mind of Christ.

It takes the mind of Christ to understand the things of Christ, and that is only obtained through salvation. Steps are listed at the end of this blog.

This passage is scary, but true!

Romans 1:18-32 King James Version (KJV)
21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Go Ahead, read that passage in different versions, if you aren’t clear on the meanings. Romans 1:18 and following in the Bible Hub

God gave them what they wanted. Freewill. Scary.

On the other hand, there is something very precious here…

Titus 1:15 To the pure, everything is pure.

This is freedom!
This is priceless – though Jesus paid an enormous price for us to walk in this freedom!

Again, Paul does talk about us NOT using our liberty in Christ to sin…or to cause others to stumble. Our freedom = rights, but with rights comes responsibility!

What are we free from?

  • sin
  • death
  • slavery
  • fear
  • self hatred
  • purposelessness
  • the consequences of the law!
  • earning our way to heaven…

Can you think of any other things that we are free from, by the grace of God, and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ?

We do have rights, and with those rights come responsibility!

rights —– responsibility
wealth —– giving/generosity
health —– self care
eternity — faithfulness
forgiven — forgive
full life — die to self

Die to self? That’s self sacrifice, taking the flesh to the cross…choosing to walk in the fruit of God’s love.
There are two ways we can sacrifice for God:
Walk in the Spirit… Galatians 5:16-26
present your bodies a living sacrifice – Romans 12:1

Just because we are free and have liberty does not mean that we can go on living in sin…GOD FORBID! Romans 6:1-3

1 Corinthians 6:12 King James Version (KJV)
12 All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.

We are crucified to that old life! Romans 8
Remember, we shall know them by their fruits…Matthew 7:20
They shall know us by OUR fruits…
what fruit are we displaying?

For reference, review the chart in Itty Bitty Bible Study Titus 1:6-9
Galatians 5 talks about walking in the Spirit. We looked at it in Itty Bitty Bible Study, Galatians 5 as well.

A warning, to all of us:

Titus 1:16 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
16 They profess to know God, but they deny Him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, and disqualified for any good work.

Titus 1:16 Common English Bible (CEB)
16 They claim to know God, but they deny God by the things that they do. They are detestable, disobedient, and disqualified to do anything good.

Titus 1:16 Amplified Bible (AMP)
16 They profess to know God [to recognize and be acquainted with Him], but by their actions they deny and disown Him. They are detestable and disobedient and worthless for good work of any kind.

For completeness – here’s the passage in The Message

Titus 1:16 The Message (MSG)
10-16 For there are a lot of rebels out there, full of loose, confusing, and deceiving talk. Those who were brought up religious and ought to know better are the worst.
They’ve got to be shut up.
They’re disrupting entire families with their teaching, and all for the sake of a fast buck.
One of their own prophets said it best:

The Cretans are liars from the womb,
barking dogs, lazy bellies.

He certainly spoke the truth.
Get on them right away.
Stop that diseased talk of Jewish make-believe and made-up rules so they can recover a robust faith.
Everything is clean to the clean-minded;
nothing is clean to dirty-minded unbelievers.
They leave their dirty fingerprints on every thought and act.
They say they know God,
but their actions speak louder than their words.
They’re real creeps,
disobedient
good-for-nothings.

If we are honest, we can all point our fingers to someone that is dirty minded…seeing something dirty in anything that is said.
If we are honest, we can think of someone that says they know God, but their lives and actions and choices say they do not.

If we are honest, we can point all those fingers back to ourselves…

Do we laugh at off color jokes?
Do we giggle at psuedo off color jokes?
Do we snicker at something that is totally innocent, and yet, we see it with a less than pure concept?
I have.

Do I do things that might speak to someone watching that I am an unbeliever?
Does my character, choices, and conversation glorify God or would Jesus be embarrassed to be by my side sometimes?
Yes, I have…and yes, things have been iffy at times.

There are times that my behavior and choices could cause others to question my loyalty to Christ.
Am I supposed to be concerned with other’s opinions?
For those in the church, in order to move up in the church, to gain accolades or to obtain position…if those are my motives for my character and choices…they are wrong. I am a manpleaser. My reasons are for my own benefit.

On the other hand…if my character and choices causes others that are watching to see how a Christ-follower behaves, then I am to be concerned about how my behavior effects their opinion of God and His Kingdom. I am an ambassador. My reasons are for Christ’s and seekers’ benefit.

On another hand(yes, that’s three), if I choose to do things that the world does so that I do not have to speak up for Christ, or potentially suffer persecution, my reasons are for self preservation, not others, nor Christ’s.

Here’s the catch.
The Holy Spirit is ALWAYS WITH ME, because I am the temple of the Holy Spirit!
That means, when I choose to do things that are less than Godly, I expose the Holy Spirit to things that are less than Godly…or ungodly.
Someone is ALWAYS watching me.

I’ve been writing up a post on bitterness, including anger, and frustration and irritation at others. Do people see this in me?
Maybe.
But even deeper than whether others see this is that there are verses that say these very things prevent me from being forgiven if I don’t forgive, my prayers being hindered if I hold onto anger, and that a root of bitterness can grow and poison everything in my life. The thing is, I see these in me, and therefore, Jesus sees these in me, and is talking to me about them. I have a choice.

Our choices, our character tells others how committed we are to Christ.
Our choices, our character tells God how committed we are to Christ.
Our choices, our character tells US how committed we are to Christ.

I do not want to face Christ and here him say that I was good for nothing!
Oh my, just read the list in Revelation about who goes into the lake of fire!

Revelation 21:8 King James Version (KJV)
8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

Go ahead, read Rev 21:8 on Bible Hub, in various versions!
On the Bible Hub website, you can look at the cross references…so many things that talk about what will NOT have it’s place in Kingdom…like:

1 Cor 6:9-10 KJV
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

The beauty is that we have a choice.
We have a choice because we were bought with a price.

1 Corinthians 6:11 King James Version (KJV)
11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

We are not our own…we are a new type of slave…but also called friend, by Jesus Christ!

John 15:15 King James Version (KJV)
15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.

We will still be judged, and this is what I want to hear:

Matthew 25:23 King James Version (KJV)
23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

When you think of all that He has done for us, is it too much to ask us to live according to His principles and His standards?
When he’s saved us out of darkness, and brought us into His Kingdom of light…saved us from eternal death, which we deserved…how much is too much to give back to Him?

An oldie:

A new one for me:

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

Itty Bitty Bible Study – Titus 1:6-9 Ambassadors

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

Itty Bitty Bible Study Titus 1:6-9
I utilize various resources to research and study these Itty Bitty Bible Studies.
This time, for Titus, I hooked up with Keith Loy’s Celebrate Titus on RightNow Media.  RightNow Media is a subscription for everyone in a church. 
If you don’t have RightNow Media on your computer or TV streaming channels, the  Celebrate Titus dvd is available. I don’t know if it’s more or less information.

I am not an Amazon associate, so I don’t get anything out of sharing this! I will let you know that I will be quoting him!

 

Now, it’s about Qualifications for Leadership.  Here’s some quotes from Keith Loy.

“Leadership is not a title to be earned, but a towel to be held.”

“Influence and Impact another is leadership”

“Godliness(Christlikeness) is all about public witness (Influence)”

“Reputation precedes effectiveness” – Joseph Hall?

“How one lives has everything to do with how one leads”

“Does my walk talk and does my talk walk?”

What is the point of all of these? As Christ like followers, we are Ambassadors to this world.

“You may be the only Jesus anyone ever meets” – unknown

2 Corinthians 5:18-20 King James Version (KJV)
18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.

Got Questions has a very nice explanation of what does it mean to be an ambassador of Christ.

From this article, they say it much better than I could even try!

Christians are God’s ambassadors in that they have been “approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). As we go through this world, we represent another Kingdom (John 18:36), and it is our responsibility to reflect the “official position” of heaven. We are in this world, but not of it (John 17:16). God’s ambassadors are to be “as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must take the message of our King to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8), imploring men and women everywhere to be reconciled to God.

This is not easy to accept.
I’d like to put all the responsibility of being an ambassador on the Elders and Bishops, as are listed here in Titus and in Timothy.
The problem is, Jesus didn’t just preach the sermon on the mount to the 12 disciples.
Another problem is, we are all to be trees that produce fruit(by Jesus’ words) and we know the fruit is in Galations.
Another problem is Paul’s excellent writing on Love…in 1 Corinthians 13. He’s not just talking to the Bishops and the elders.
If that’s not enough…Christ commanded several things:

Mark 16:15 and Matthew 28:19-20
Jesus said Go YE…as in ME.
If I want to claim “and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” I have to claim the calling as well.

1 Peter 4:10 King James Version (KJV)
10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

We’ve all been given a gift…and as we have, we are to minister to one another…and that is the evidence of us being good stewards of the grace of God!

another reason for maintaining the character and reputation as listed here is

1 Timothy 3:7 King James Version (KJV)
7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

How many have fallen snare to the enemy, and lost their witness? Their church? Their families? Some, even their lives?

Can we agree that if we love the Lord Jesus, that we will want to be a good example of Him to others?
Can we agree that the combined commandment from Jesus is to Love God and Love others?

Ephesians 4:15 King James Version (KJV)
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

I have been gravely convicted of my lack of qualities as an ambassador of Christ…and yet, I am greatly comforted by the fact that in any way that I sin, I have the promise of an advocate for me with the Father (1 John).

I haven’t listed Titus 1:6-9 here yet.
I’ve tried to cross reference it with The Fruit of the Spirit, 1 Corinthians 13, and the Beatitudes.

Titus 1:6-9Bishop QualificationsCross Reference
Fruit of the SpiritLove ChapterBeatitudesBishopOthers
Gal 5:22-23I Cor 13:4-7Matt 5:3-10Titus 1:6-9
LoveLovefaithful to one wife1 Tim 3:2-4
JoyRejoices in the truthNeh 8:10
John 15:11, 16:24,33
Psalm 16:11
PeacePeacemakerNot violentJohn 14:27
1 Tim 3:3
Prov 28?7, Phil 4:7
PatiencePatientNot angry
Not irritable		1 Tim 3:3
2 Tim 2:24
Prov 14:17, 15:18
KindnessKindMercifulHospitality1 Tim 3:2
GoodnessPure in heartsBlameless
Holy		1 Tim 3:2 & 7
GentlenessNot rude2 Tim 2:24
Self ControlEndures all thingsMeekNot drunkard
Not violent
Not angry		1 Tim 3:2-3
2 Tim 2:25
Eph 5:18, Lev 10:9
FaithfulnessBears all things
Believes all things
Hopes all things		PersecutedLive wisely
Devout
Just		Pro 31:4-5
Not arrogantPoor in Spirit
Mourn		2 Tim 2:24-25
1 Tim 3:6
Not greedy1 Tim 3:3-7
2019(c) MCWildman and The WildBerry Patch

Here is a pdf of a Google doc of the qualifications of bishop.

Here’s a very clumsily hand written one:Bishop Qualifications Cross Reference

All of this is to try to give you an overview of the various qualities written in Titus for the Bishop, and how they actually are the qualities that Christ expects of us as an ambassador.

I hope this gives you the same eye opening understanding about the qualifications of a Bishop…we are all ministers to the gospel. I had hoped to get away from this, as there is that qualification – husband of one wife…I am never going to be a husband! Titus 2 will bring that home!

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

Itty Bitty Bible Study – Titus 1:3-5 Who, What, Why, Where and Peace

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

Titus 1 verses 3 through 5
I utilize various resources to research and study these Itty Bitty Bible Studies.
This time, for Titus, I hooked up with Keith Loy’s Celebrate Titus on RightNow Media.  RightNow Media is a subscription for everyone in a church. 
If you don’t have RightNow Media on your computer or TV streaming channels, the  Celebrate Titus dvd is available. I don’t know if it’s more or less information.

I am not an Amazon associate, so I don’t get anything out of sharing this! I will let you know that I will be quoting him!

 

Titus 1:3-5 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
3 In His own time He has revealed His message in the proclamation that I was entrusted with by the command of God our Savior:

4 To Titus, my true son in our common faith.

Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

Titus’s Ministry in Crete
5 The reason I left you in Crete was to set right what was left undone and, as I directed you, to appoint elders in every town:

Let’s break these down quickly.

Who was Paul?

Titus 1: 3 In His own time He has revealed His message in the proclamation that I was entrusted with by the command of God our Savior:

Paul didn’t walk with Jesus.
He seems to feel like he is an apostle out of his time.
Jesus revealed his message to him, specifically, and called Him personally.

Acts 9:1-9
2 Corinthians 12
In IBBS Galatians 1:1-10, I talked about Paul defending his apostleship.
He begins many of his letters with just such defense. It’s as if he’s listing his qualifications as an apostle.

Titus 1:4 To Titus, my true son in our common faith.

Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

Who was Titus?
Wikipedia has a great summary about Titus, Saint Titus, verses Titus the Roman Emperor.
The international Bible Society gives some information on Titus in it’s intro to Titus.
Christianity Today gives a bit of the Bible Timeline history of Titus.

Apparently, he was someone Paul led to Christ.
Apparently, he was called into the ministry, and served with Paul.
Apparently, he was sent out to minister to Crete, and this is where this letter comes in.

When was this?
From the International Bible Society:

Paul possibly wrote from Macedonia, for he had not yet reached Nicopolis (see 3:12). The letter was written after he was released from his first Roman imprisonment (Acts 28), probably between a.d. 63 and 65 (see chart, p. 2261)—or possibly at a later date if he wrote after his assumed trip to Spain.

Why?

Titus 1:5 The reason I left you in Crete was to set right what was left undone and, as I directed you, to appoint elders in every town:

To complete a work.
To appoint elders.
Next time, I’ll talk about the importance of elders, and watchmen and overseers for the body of Christ, or God’s people, since it starts back with Moses, but for right now, this is the purpose.

Did you notice I skipped something?

Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

Romans 1:7 KJV
To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Galatians 1:3 KJV
Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ,

For more: IBBS Galatians 1:1-10

Ephesians 1:2 KJV
Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

For More: IBBS Ephesians Intro, 1:1-2

Philippians 1:2 KJV
Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

For more: IBBS Phillipians 1:1-2

Colosians 1:2 KJV
To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The BibleHub has quite a collection of cross references for Grace and Peace based on the verse Romans 1:7

It’s as if this is a theme to Paul! A constant Prayer.
Grace…
Peace…

Numbers 6:24-26 King James Version (KJV)
24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

Ephesians 2:8-9 King James Version (KJV)
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Philippians 4:7 King James Version (KJV)
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

And then, Faith….

Hebrews 11:1 King James Version (KJV)
11 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:6 King James Version (KJV)
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Is he praying for our salvation? I don’t know…but I’ll take all the grace, mercy, peace, faith and love that I can get. What about you?

Ah, there’s the Where!
Crete…Greece. Preaching to the gentiles!

Next – the requirements for being an elder…you might be surprised at my take on this!

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

Itty Bitty Bible Study – Titus 1:2 Hope and promise

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

Itty Bitty Bible Study Titus 1 verse 2
Titus 1 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
2 in the hope of eternal life that God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.

The Hope of Eternal Life which God promised before time began.

Most Christians know what the Hope of Eternal Life is….

Romans 6:23 King James Version (KJV)
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

For more information on this:

  • This is the Hope…that we who were dead in our sins were loved while we were yet sinners and Christ came down from his glorious heaven, took on our form, dealt with our pains and sufferings, and died a horrible death on our behalf, then rose from the grave and now sits at the right hand of God to intercede for us day and night!

    Why did I post all of those previous blog post links? Because, if you do not know the hope of eternal life…they are there to guide you and explain!

    If you think you are getting into heaven just because you are good enough…let me burst that bubble right now. So you think you are going to heaven? is something I wrote years ago, and it’s because I want you to have the TRUE hope of eternal life!

    2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie,promised before the beginning of time,

    The hope of eternal life…..
    Talked about in Titus introduction.

    The hope of eternal life…salvation.
    God, who does not lie…I think we can agree with this…God is TRUTH.
    Here’s a bunch of verses about truth…from BibleStudytools.com

     

    None really say God is Truth…but, when you take all of verses together…you get:

    Romans 3:4 King James Version (KJV)
    4 God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.

    Another collection of God is true verses comes from Bible Knowing Jesus.

    Again, only a few specifically say that God is true…but you get the picture…God cannot lie and still be truth.
    He promised eternal life…He promised salvation…He promised a solution to our sin situation!

    James 1:17 KJV
    Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

    2 Timothy 1:12 Holman Christian Standard Bible
    12 and that is why I suffer these things. But I am not ashamed, because I know the One I have believed in and am persuaded that He is able to guard what has been entrusted to me[a] until that day.

    Philippians 1:6 Holman Christian Standard Bible
    6 I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you[a] will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

    The end is coming, and our hope is in this eternal life…

    1 Thes 4:14-18
    18 Therefore encourage[e] one another with these words.

    Hebrews 6:13-20 Holman Christian Standard Bible
    Inheriting the Promise
    13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself:
    14 I will indeed bless you,
    and I will greatly multiply you.[a]
    15 And so, after waiting patiently, Abraham[b] obtained the promise. 16 For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute. 17 Because God wanted to show His unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us. 19 We have this hope as an anchor for our lives, safe and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain. 20 Jesus has entered there on our behalf as a forerunner, because He has become a high priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.

    So, this goes back to Abraham….
    What about Noah?
    Genesis 9
    God promises not to destroy the world again with a flood – but Noah and his family were a type of salvation…

    Hebrews 11:7 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
    7 By faith Noah, after he was warned about what was not yet seen and motivated by godly fear, built an ark to deliver his family. By faith he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

    For that matter, Hebrews 11talks a lot about the promise not seen in the heroes of the Faith.

    Heb 11:10 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

    Heb 11:16 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

    Heb 11:39-40 39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40 since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

    Now, going back before Noah…

    Hebrews 11:1-3 Holman Christian Standard Bible
    Heroes of Faith
    11 Now faith is the reality[a] of what is hoped for, the proof[b] of what is not seen. 2 For our ancestors won God’s approval by it.
    3 By faith we understand that the universe was[c] created by God’s command,[d] so that what is seen has been made from things that are not visible.

    Titus 1:2 in the hope of eternal life that God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.
    How did God promise this gift of eternal life before time began?
    What happened before creation?

    Luke 10:18 KJV
    And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.

    Isaiah 14:12-15 King James Version (KJV)
    12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
    13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
    14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
    15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.

    Ezekiel 28:11-19 tells more of the fall of Satan

    Got Questions answers about the angels that fell with Satan.

    One thing that Got Questions says that I’m not sure I agree with is that the fall was AFTER creation.
    Let me put forth what I believe I’ve just gotten, and you be the judge as to the WHEN of the thing!

    Based upon the promise before time began, when did time begin?

    Genesis 1 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
    The Creation
    1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.[a]
    2 Now the earth was[b] formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and He called the darkness “night.” Evening came and then morning: the first day.

    As far as I’m concerned – time was created when God created the light, separated the day and night, and declared “the first day” was good!

    Time began.
    As I read Titus 1:2, I take it that he had the plan for our salvation BEFORE day ONE.
    WHY?
    To choose good, there must be something else to choose from.
    The lack of good.
    Otherwise known as not good, or evil.
    The angels were created with choice – but, what choice did they have? Hmmm. Lucifer wanted to be like God! And he was already prepared to tempt Eve with the same thing!

    God knows the end from the beginning, right? Isaiah 46:10
    God wants us to love him freely, not out of requirement or slavery, right?
    So, God gave us a choice…freewill…and, it didn’t take very long, as far as we know, for humans to mess up.
    Knowing that we would mess up, and choose ‘not good’, God still put the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil in the midst of the garden.
    It’s the ONLY thing that they could not touch. THE ONLY THING!
    They could have eaten from the tree of life!
    AND EVERY OTHER TREE, SO BEAUTIFUL, SO FRUITFUL, SOME THAT WE CAN’T EVEN IMAGINE! Paradise! with ONE restriction.
    The devil was there in the garden…
    The devil used words to tempt Eve to question God.
    Adam didn’t stand up to Eve…which may have changed everything! He just ate.
    Their gods were their bellies, their eyes and their pride. Phil 3:18-20
    The sin was idolotry…they put their own desires above God. They wanted to be LIKE God!

    The Plan

    Genesis 3:15 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
    15 I will put hostility between you and the woman,
    and between your seed and her seed.
    He will strike your head,
    and you will strike his heel.

    This is known all through Christendom as the first declaration of the plan of salvation.

    Genesis 3:21 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
    21 The Lord God made clothing out of skins for Adam and his wife, and He clothed them.

    This is the first death, and it was on behalf of Adam and Eve’s sins…their futile attempts to hide their sins with fig leaves failed. The wages of sin is death…something had to die…and Adam and Eve had to wear the skins of the animals that they had named and cared for…to remind them of the cost of sin.

    Hebrews 9:22 Amplified Bible (AMP)
    22 In fact under the Law almost everything is cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness [neither release from sin and its guilt, nor cancellation of the merited punishment].

    The shedding of animal blood was the foreshadowing of Christ being the lamb that takes away the sins of the world. John 1:29
    Isaiah prophesied of this lamb in Isaiah 53 – long before he came.

    Here’s what has blown my mind.
    As I read it, God had already experienced the angels falling….and they had lived in perfection.
    Still he chose to create us.
    He knew the end from the beginning…so when Eve was rebuked, He knew that Jesus was going to come and die on our behalf…seed of Eve, destroying the seed of the enemy.
    When HE covered them with those bloody animal skins, the first death, HE KNEW that one day, Jesus would be that bloody mess, paying the price for sin on our behalf.
    And still – God chose to create us.
    He created us in His image…so that we could be like him.
    He gave us free will and choice…so that we could choose to be like him…or not.
    And, He gave us His son, that we might be saved from the dead heart that chooses evil.
    AND – HE GAVE US THE GIFT OF FAITH SO THAT WE COULD BELIEVE!

    Ephesians 2:8-10 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
    8 For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— 9 not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.

    While we were yet sinners – yes:Romans 5:8

    Before we were knit in our mother’s womb – yes –

    • Jere 29:11
    • Jere 31:17
    • Lama 3:26
    • Jere 1:5
    • Psalm 139

     

    But even before that!
    Before time began!
    He created us with a plan!
    He knew we would choose to fail,
    And that we would slip into hell
    But when we listen to his voice
    He calls us to a better choice
    Come unto me my little dears
    I will love and draw you near
    I have loved you since before time began
    And I have set in motion the perfect plan.
    Choose Jesus and the blood you see
    And I’ll give you life that is so free
    The life I planned, that you destroyed
    Is still here waiting with love untold.
    Just turn to me, and let me show
    The love I planned to help you grow.
    Eternal life is mine to give,
    Just turn to me, and live, live, live.
    (c)MCWildman2019

    Forgive me for this long passage of scripture at the end, but, it is God’s words to us…He has set before us life and death…we must make a choice!

    Deuteronomy 30:15-20 King James Version (KJV)
    15 See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;

    16 In that I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the Lord thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.

    17 But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;

    18 I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it.

    19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

    20 That thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

    I hope you worship with me:

    Hi!
    My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

    Thanks for joining me in this journey,
    In His hands and under His wings,
    ~Christi
    Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

    “The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
    If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
    If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” –     from My Utmost for His highest

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Itty Bitty Bible Study – Titus 1:1-2

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

Itty Bitty Bible Study Titus one

I utilize various resources to research and study these Itty Bitty Bible Studies.
This time, for Titus, I hooked up with Keith Loy’s Celebrate Titus on RightNow Media.  RightNow Media is a subscription for everyone in a church.  If you don’t have RightNow Media on your computer or TV streaming channels, the  Celebrate Titus dvd is available. I don’t know if it’s more or less information.

I am not an Amazon associate, so I don’t get anything out of sharing this! I will let you know that I will be quoting him!

 

Titus 1 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

Greeting
1 Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to build up the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness,
2 in the hope of eternal life that God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.
3 In His own time He has revealed His message in the proclamation that I was entrusted with by the command of God our Savior:

In IBBS Titus Introduction, we discussed Paul’s definition of himself as a servant or slave, and apostle.
We discussed the why – to build up the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness.

Here’s a few quick comments.
Who are God’s elect?
Got Questions has a great article on the theologies of Predestination and Election.

In Itty Bitty Bible Study Ephesians 1:3-6, I discuss what I feel is the most important focus in this debate. I hope you go look at that…It points to the need for faith.

In Luke 18:7, elect is also translated as chosen.

Luke 18:7 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
7 Will not God grant justice to His elect who cry out to Him day and night? Will He delay to help them?[a]

Acts 13:48 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
48 When the Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and glorified the message of the Lord, and all who had been appointed to eternal life believed.

Ephesians 2:8-10 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
8 For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— 9 not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.

In IBBS Ephesians 2:1-10, I talked about this very concept. We are saved by Grace, through faith BY GOD!

We know that we are a chosen generation, correct? 1 Peter 2:9
What about Godly?

Psalm 4:3 King James Version (KJV)
3 But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.

What does that mean about who can be saved?

1 Timothy 2:3-4 King James Version (KJV)
3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

and this puts both together:

2 Timothy 2:10 King James Version (KJV)
10 Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

Or complicates it…but, no matter what, Jesus said:

John 3:16-18 King James Version (KJV)
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

I believe in the Whosoever doctrine!

You see, God desires that all men come to him.

1 Timothy 2:4 King James Version (KJV)
4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

Our time is short:

2 Peter 3:8-10 King James Version (KJV)
8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

The fields are indeed white for harvest. Matthew 9:37-38 – but we must be ready to be the workers!

Matthew 9:35-38 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
The Lord of the Harvest
35 Then Jesus went to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every[a] disease and every sickness.[b] 36 When He saw the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were weary and worn out, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. 38 Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”

Let your light shine before all menI believe that Paul is speaking to those that confess to be believers, and discussing how the body needs to be helped.

Therefore, yes, we are to share, preach, and minister to those outside the church, but especially the household of Faith:

Galatians 6:10 KJV
As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

So often, we are told to build up one another in our most holy faith. Jude 1:20, 1 Thes 5:11, Eph 4:29 for a few.
This is the purpose of the Church body!
1 Corinthians 12 talks about the needs of the Body of Christ.

We are the Body of Christ. We should be encouraging one another

Ephesians 5:19-21 King James Version (KJV)
19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

Outside of the church, we are to go, preaching the gospel and making disciples.

Mark 16:15-16 King James Version (KJV)
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Inside the church, we are to encourage one another, lift one another up, sometimes, exhort one another, but mostly..LOVE ONE ANOTHER!

Why is Paul doing this?
He wanted to lift up those believers….
…securing their knowledge of the TRUTH…
To what end?
…leading to godliness.

So, outside, we have the unbelievers that need to know the truth of salvation, and at the end of this blog, I have several links that will share the truth of salvation.
Inside, teaching the truth that leads to godliness(vs 1)…what is that about? If they are believers, they(we) don’t need to be preached salvation to, right? What do we need to learn about?

1 Peter 2:1-3 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
The Living Stone and a Holy People
2 So rid yourselves of all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, desire the pure spiritual milk, so that you may grow by it for your salvation,[a] 3 since you have tasted that the Lord is good.[b]

1 Corinthians 3 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
The Problem of Immaturity
3 Brothers, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ. 2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, because you were not yet ready for it. In fact, you are still not ready, 3 because you are still fleshly. For since there is envy and strife[a] among you, are you not fleshly and living like unbelievers?[b]

Hebrews 5:11-14 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
The Problem of Immaturity
11 We have a great deal to say about this, and it’s difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand. 12 Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food. 13 Now everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced with the message about righteousness, because he is an infant. 14 But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil.

What is the indication of immaturity? Ungodliness. Therefore, Paul is writing to draw believers to the truth of faith that leads to godliness.

Does that mean perfection?
Well, there is a verse with which I used to beat myself over the head.

Matthew 5:48 King James Version (KJV)
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Thank you Blue Letter Bible!~ I’ve included the search link so that you can look even deeper.

Outline of Biblical usage
brought to its end, finished
wanting nothing necessary to completeness
perfect
that which is perfect
consummate human integrity and virtue of men
full grown, adult, of full age, mature

Can we choose to walk in integrity? Yes!
Do we have all we need to move into completeness in Christ? Yes, His word and the Holy Spirit!
Can we choose to walk in virtue? Yes!
Can we grow into the fullness of Christ, maturing day by day? Yes!

It’s not that we are perfect NOW, but that we are choosing day by day the things of God, rather than the things of this world!

How do we do that?
THE WORD OF GOD! Get in the Bible! God’s TRUTH leads to godliness.

Psalm 119:11 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
11 I have treasured Your word in my heart
so that I may not sin against You.

Proverbs 4:18 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
18 The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,
shining brighter and brighter until midday.

It’s a choice, a growth, moving towards something.

Even so, just like the truth about being saved by God, by a gift of faith, we grow in God by His working in us!

Philippians 2:13-15 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
13 For it is God who is working in you, enabling you both to desire and to work out His good purpose. 14 Do everything without grumbling and arguing, 15 so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God who are faultless in a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you shine like stars in the world.

Godliness…defined:

Dictionary.com
conforming to the laws and wishes of God; devout; pious.
coming from God; divine.

The Meaning of Godliness by Classroom:

Godliness is a significant term in the Christian faith. According to Strong’s Concordance, the word is translated from the Greek word for “piety”, and is used in the New Testament fourteen times in the letters of Peter and Paul. While the expression also refers to the divinity of God, godliness in the Bible is mainly used to describe a positive way of life influenced by God, and inspired reflection in the tenets of the Christian faith.

We have all felt the condemnation of needing to be perfect.
It’s just that…condemnation.
Condemnation brings death.
Conviction brings life.
If it brings fear, worry, and doubt – it’s not from God.
If it brings challenge, love, and courage – it’s probably from God, even if it hurts.
Giving up our pet sins hurts.
Losing out on God’s best will hurt eternally!

Here’s some verses about truth leading to godliness:

Proverbs 1:1-7

Proverbs 1:7 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
7 The fear of the Lord
is the beginning of knowledge;
fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Colossians 2:2-3 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
2 I want their hearts to be encouraged and joined together in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God’s mystery—Christ.[a] 3 All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Him.

Colossians 1:25-27 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
25 I have become its servant, according to God’s administration that was given to me for you, to make God’s message fully known, 26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to His saints. 27 God wanted to make known among the Gentiles the glorious wealth of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

The promise is that it’s GOD that began the work, and God will complete it!

Phil 1:6 HCSB
I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Oops, here is another clue that there are differences…in this case, the apostles vs the other people following along. What’s up with that?

Matthew 13:11 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
11 He answered them, “Because the secrets of the kingdom of heaven have been given for you to know, but it has not been given to them.

There are multiple types that are in the church.

  • Mature Believers – called, elect, chosen…however you want to depict them. See verses above.
  • Young, Immature Believers – can’t handle the meat of the word yet…but need nurtured. see the verses above.
  • Tares among the wheat…Matthew 13
  • Wolves…Matthew 7:15 King James Version (KJV)
    15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

Remember, we were like them at one time.

Romans 2:4 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
4 Or do you despise the riches of His kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing[a] that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

Galatians 6:1-2 King James Version (KJV)
6 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
2 Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.

This gives some insight into expectations of those that are more mature in the Lord, and how they are to minister! We are all in a different place in our walk with Jesus – we can learn from all – beware that we not be tempted – but lovingly come alongside each other to grow together in Him!

Is godliness required?
We are to offer the sacrifices of righteousness…

Romans 12:1-2 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
A Living Sacrifice
12 Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship.[a] 2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Psalm 4:5 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
5 Offer sacrifices in righteousness[a]
and trust in the Lord.

With His Help:

Psalm 5:7-8 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
7 But I enter Your house
by the abundance of Your faithful love;
I bow down toward Your holy temple
in reverential awe of You.
8 Lord, lead me in Your righteousness
because of my adversaries;[a]
make Your way straight before me.

Did Jesus say this?Matthew except your righteousness

Matthew 5:20 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus gave us some pretty clear instructions for behavior in the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5, Mt 6, and Mt 7
We have a promise:

Isaiah 32:17 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
17 The result of righteousness will be peace;
the effect of righteousness
will be quiet confidence forever.

Romans 14:16-18 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
16 Therefore, do not let your good be slandered, 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever serves Christ in this way is acceptable to God and approved by men.

For more about these promises, and more of an explanation of what righteousness is, Please go to
IBBS Ephesians 1:7-14
IBBS Ephesians 1:15-23

Remember, if we have received Christ as our Lord and Savior…and we have chosen to look forward, to become more like Christ…and we work out our own salvation day by day, we are right with God.

Righteousness with God…is being right with God.
Do we sin?
Yes
Does that separate us from the Father?
Only in the same way that disappointing a parent would briefly cause separation from our parent, until we repent, ask forgiveness, and turn from that behavior that causes separation.
It’s not a  lose or keep salvation situation, it’s a fellowship situation.

Getting to know Jesus is key to being in fellowship with him.
Spending time in His word is key to getting to know Him.
Spending time with the Holy Spirit in prayer is key to connecting with the Godhead.

This is what Paul wants to prepare Titus for,  to help with in the church at Crete.
This is what God wants us to be prepared for, in the church we attend.
He wants mature believers to minister to the other believers, so that they will have knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness…
and to share with those outside the church, the hope of eternal life, that God promised before time began.

And seriously, can’t we all be ministered to by remembering the hope of eternal life? …remembering that God keeps his promises?

Romans 15:13 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in Him so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

IBBS Ephesians 2: 20-22 part two

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

For review – here is IBBS Ephesians 2:1-10 and IBBS Ephesians 2:11-19

 

A review from IBBS Ephesians 2:20-22, which you can skip if you are up to date:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The truth is, we are slaves.
BUT WE GET TO CHOOSE TO WHOM!!!

and then, the most beautiful thing happens when we choose Christ:
Galatians 4

Galatians 4:6-7 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

If that’s not special enough, Jesus said, in John 15:15:

I do not call you slaves anymore, because a slave doesn’t know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from My Father.

There is an understanding that a son of someone can represent their father, for good and for bad.

Ambassadors represent the nations for which they are elected. for good and for bad.
The same is true for us.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How can we be good representatives, or witnesses, to Christ? Is it even expected?

James 2:14-26 discusses how we are to make evidence our faith. Here’s two excerpts:

18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

Jesus  tells us that we can be known by our love, as Christians.

John 13:35 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
35 By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

How do they know there is love? They can SEE it.
Paul explains love in 1 Corinthians 13.

We show of what spirit we are by how we love. These are evidences of our faith in Jesus Christ and the finished work on the cross. These are evidences of our gratitude for being brought our of darkness into the Kingdom of His dear son. These are evidences of Who is our Father.

Have you ever heard the stories of people that said their father’s told them that “insert name of family” does not act like that?

Acts 11:26 says that the followers of Christ were first called Christians in Antioch.
2 Chronicles 7:14 is written to those who are called by HIS name!

God does have expectations for how we will represent his name!

In the same way as the flesh/spirit discussion in IBBS Ephesians 2:11-19, there is a comparison to how we can show that we are NOT children of God.

John 8:44-45 King James Version (KJV)
44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
45 And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.

Disbelief is a serious sin.

Hebrews 11:6 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
6 Now without faith it is impossible to please God, for the one who draws near to Him must believe that He exists and rewards those who seek Him.

There are many lists of the sins of the flesh, but let me look at one aspect, and let me know if you think this applies.

1st Corinthians 6:17-18 talks about sexual sins.

Paul is telling us that there is a difference with sexual sins. If you go deeper into scripture you will see sexual sins of all types have the seriousness of binding two Spirits together. That is why fornication, adultery and all other sexual sins leading up to divorce and such things cause intense divisions and pain and wounds.

We are married to Jesus Christ when we receive Him as our bridegroom and we agreed to be His bride. Our Spirits are united. There is another aspect of sin that is horribly grievous and that is committing adultery towards the Lord Jesus Christ. You can go to the first four Commandments in Exodus 20

  1. I am the Lord your God which brought the out of the land of Egypt and out of the house of bondage, and you shall have no other gods before me
  2. you shall not make any Graven image or likeness or bow down to it because I am the Lord am a jealous God
  3. you should not take the name of the Lord in vain for the Lord will not hold him Guiltless to take it his name in vain
  4. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy it is the Sabbath of the Lord

4 of the 10 Commandments point to our relationship with God.
It’s serious! 4/10, or 40%!
The king(Saul) rejected the Lord, and this is what God told the prophet to say:

1 Samuel 15:23 KJV
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

Being stubborn is equal to idolatry – because we make ourselves god.
Rebellion is as witchcraft – because we have placed another’s guidance over God’s in our lives.
Does anyone question that witchcraft and idolatry are grievous sins to the Lord?

One of the Ten Commandments is how we should respect our parents, or Honor them.
The other five of The Ten Commandments are how we should treat our fellow man.
One of those five or 1/10 of the Ten Commandments or 1/5 of the five how to treat other people is do not commit adultery.

Adultery is idolatry in a marriage
Putting another person between YOU and your covenant partner.

Idolatry is adultery in the Christian faith.
Placing another between YOU and your covenant God.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Ephesians 5:22-32 explains how the marriage of man and woman is the example of Christ and the church.

Ephesians 5:32 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
32 This mystery is profound, but I am talking about Christ and the church.

We need to remember the 10 virgins, and be prepared, and make sure we have oil in our lamps as we await our coming bridegroom! (Matthew 25)
We need to make sure that our garments are without blemish or spot.(Ephesians 5:26-27)
We need to be Christ to the world, and show them WHY we have committed our lives to God, in Christ with an eternal covenant!

We do not want to commit adultery with God by idolatry!
If we could could see idolatry as serious as adultery, or witchcraft, we might make different choices.

Now that I’ve gotten this far, I just want to point out Paul doesn’t keep us guessing in Ephesians 2 about our responsibility once we receive the gift of God.

Remember 1st Corinthians 6: 19-20: know ye not that your body is the Temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you which he have of God and you are not your own? For your bought with a price therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit which are gods. (1 John 3:24 and 1 John 4:13)

Remember Ephesians 2: 18-22 are talking about how we are built into being a part of the temple of God, being made into a habitation of God through Christ.

Remember Ephesians 2:10 says for we are his workmanship, created in Christ unto good works, which God have planned before time that we should walk in them.

We are not saved by our works so that we cannot boast, but we were created for good works for God’s glory!

This is the difference between legalism and graceful gratitude to God!

Ephesians 4 goes into how we should walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called.

Ephesians 4:1-3 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Unity and Diversity in the Body of Christ
4 Therefore I, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, accepting[a] one another in love, 3 diligently keeping the unity of the Spirit with the peace that binds us.

Ephesians 4:17-24

Ephesians 4:22 …that you put off concerning the former conversation the old man which is corrupt cording to deceitful us

Ephesians 4:24 …and that you put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness

Between those two versus is a very important verse

Ephesians 4:23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

How can we be renewed in the spirit of our mind? By washing ourselves with the water of the word daily(Ephesians 5:26).  By immersing ourselves in the word of God which tells us what is righteousness.  The world will not tell us what is righteousness. The more that we yield our minds to the worldly carnal mind the more we lose our focus on the new Godly mind. The more we focus on the Word of God, and let that guide us, the more we will walk like Christ.

Colossians 3:16 King James Version (KJV)
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

  • Remember what Christ has done for us!
  • Live a life full of grace-filled gratitude!
  • Feed the nature(old or new) you want to win!

For review – here previous sections for chapter 2:

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

Itty Bitty Bible Study Ephesians 2: 20-22 living stones and the temple

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

For review – here is IBBS Ephesians 2:1-10 and IBBS Ephesians 2:11-19

 

A review from IBBS Ephesians 2:11-19, which you can skip if you are up to date:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This section brings to mind the hymn “How Firm a Foundation” and “On Christ the Solid Rock I stand”.

How God created the body of Christ

Ephesians 2:20-22 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.
21 The whole building, being put together by Him, grows into a holy sanctuary in the Lord.
22 You also are being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.

LIVING STONES! stones are dead until God breathes life into them!

1 Peter 2:4-6 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
4 Coming to Him, a living stone—rejected by men but chosen and valuable to God— 5 you yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it is contained in Scripture:

Look! I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and honored[a] cornerstone,[b]
and the one who believes in Him
will never be put to shame![c][d]

At the beginning of this passage we are told to remember! What are we supposed to remember? On one side, we’re supposed to remember the we are nothing special apart from God. Apart from God we can do no good thing(John 15). In God we can do all things(Phil 4:13).

As we discussed in Chapter 2: 8 – 9 it’s by grace that we are saved through faith and that not of ourselves but it’s the gift of God! Not of Works lest any man should boast. (IBBS Ephesians 2:1-10) We cannot do anything to earn our salvation except to put our hands out and believe and receive from the hands of God!

What else is this that he’s talking about?

  • That we are no more strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens that we are of the household of God.
  • That we are living stones.
  • That we are built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets that Jesus Christ is the Chief Cornerstone.
  • We’re being built together into a holy Temple unto the Lord

 

Ephesians 2:22 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
22 You also are being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.

We are the Temple of the Holy Spirit!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How is this temple built?

Ephesians 2:20-22 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. 21 The whole building, being put together by Him, grows into a holy sanctuary in the Lord. 22 You also are being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.

What does this mean for us, and how do we apply it?
1st Corinthians 3 talks about the foundation and he who Waters and he who plants and he who harvests.

1 Corinthians 3:11 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
11 For no one can lay any other foundation than what has been laid down. That foundation is Jesus Christ.

Then it goes on to talk about building with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay and stubble and that every man’s work will be judged by fire.

THIS IS NOT SALVATION BUT EVIDENCE OF OUR LIFE COMMITMENT TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST!

1st Corinthians 3:16 know ye not that ye are the temple of God and the spirit of God dwells in you

That makes a very pretty little song but here is the second half, it’s following in our previous contrast and compare of the Flesh and the spirit

1 Corinthians 3:17 King James Version (KJV)
17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

To know how serious God is about his dwelling place, just read the old testament about the tabernacle, the temple, or for that matter, his response to ones who touched the ark of the covenant that were not qualified. Jehovah God takes his dwelling place very seriously. Life and death seriously.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 King James Version (KJV)
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

If you read 1st Corinthians 6 Paul’s talking to us about making sure that we walk sanctified and that we should walk in righteousness. He talks about what will be in the kingdom and what won’t be in the Kingdom. He’s also talking that there’s a difference between what you eat as in legalism and the actual sins of the heart and the spirit if you start in verse

12 “Everything is permissible for me,” but not everything is helpful.
“Everything is permissible for me,” but I will not be brought under the control of anything.
13 “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food,” but God will do away with both of them.
The body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
14 God raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power.
15 Don’t you know that your bodies are a part of Christ’s body?
So should I take a part of Christ’s body and make it part of a prostitute? Absolutely not!
16 Don’t you know that anyone joined to a prostitute is one body with her? For Scripture says, The two will become one flesh.
17 But anyone joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.

I’m not talking about legalism and rules.
I’m talking about glorifying God in our bodies!
This is NOT Old Testament laws…this is new testament response!

Ephesians 2:10 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
10 For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.

Remember that we are bought with a price…we OWE HIM EVERYTHING!!!
We owe him our lives!

Our choices can link us to God or the enemy.
Our choices indicate flesh or spirit guidance.
Our choices can bring us life or death!

Proverbs 18:21 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
21 Life and death are in the power of the tongue,
and those who love it will eat its fruit.

James 3:6 KJV
And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.

Deuteronomy 30:15-20 New International Version (NIV)
15 See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.

Back to the garden…they had a choice to choose life or death!

Genesis 2:16-17 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden, 17 but you must not eat[a] from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.”

Jeremiah 21 speaks judgement to Zedekiah, and yet, God gives the people a choice – life or death.

Jeremiah 21:8 Holman Christian Standard Bible
“But you must say to this people, ‘This is what the LORD says: Look, I am presenting to you the way of life and the way of death.

It’s all about choosing life or death, flesh or spirit!

Romans 6 talks about the fact that we are slaves to whomever we bind ourselves to…BUT IT’S A CHOICE!

Romans 6:16-18 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
16 Don’t you know that if you offer yourselves to someone[a] as obedient slaves, you are slaves of that one you obey—either of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17 But thank God that, although you used to be slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching you were transferred[b] to, 18 and having been liberated from sin, you became enslaved to righteousness.

The truth is, we are slaves.
BUT WE GET TO CHOOSE TO WHOM!!!

and then, the most beautiful thing happens when we choose Christ:
Galatians 4

Galatians 4:6-7 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

If that’s not special enough, Jesus said, in John 15:15:

I do not call you slaves anymore, because a slave doesn’t know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from My Father.

There is an understanding that a son of someone can represent their father, for good and for bad.

Ambassadors represent the nations for which they are elected. for good and for bad.
The same is true for us.

I’m trying to keep these shorter…so, I’ll talk about the HOW in the next section. For now, let’s worship!

For review – here previous sections:

Hi!
My hope in the midst of despair and my joy in the face of depression is because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. If you do not have one, or are not sure you will join him in heaven, please check out these links.

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

Copyrights and Legal-eze
There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

For to me, to live is Christ, to die is gain. ~Paul

Itty Bitty Bible Study – Philippians 1:21-30

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

Philippians 1:21-30

FOR TO ME TO LIVE IS CHRIST, TO DIE IS GAIN

We’ve all seen this verse…

What does this mean?
Is Paul wanting to die?
Is Paul suicidal, but just deciding to live?
Is he being a living martyr for us?
Is he complaining?

I don’t think so. I think he’s just stating the fact that in this world, we have tribulations(John 16:33) – and the only complete deliverance from them is in the presence of Christ, after earthly death.
I also think he’s talking about how amazing it is to be with Christ, but now, we see through a glass darkly – but then we will see clearly, and know clearly (1 Corinthians 13:12 ).

I had a time when I was close to death and I had a conversation with Jesus. I call it, a glimpse of Jesus.

To confirm this, Ph 1:20

20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.

It’s not martyrdom mentality.
We’ve all met them.
“sigh – I would rather be doing this but I am called to be here, suffering for you, and it’s too God’s glory – sigh” followed by the hand swipe of the imagined sweat on the brow.

Paul is explaining what it is to be in Christ – to minister the gospel – to disciple others.
He’s admitting that it ain’t easy!

1 Ph 1:22-24

22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.

He calls the work for the Lord IN the flesh as fruitful labor…sounding like a husbandman of a vineyard, that loves the vines, and willing works and toils in order to nurture them to fruitfulness.
He knows his calling.
His calling is to teach.
The shepherd looks after his sheep, and gives his life for his sheep, if necessary. (John 10:11)
Paul is only imitating HIS Shepherd – Jesus, the good Shepherd. (John 10)
He’s doing it for the sheep – he’s living his life for the sheep that Christ has given him!
A servant heart!

Phil 1:25-26
Here is where I had to stop and do some research into the life and ministry of Paul.

25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith,
26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

I am ashamed to admit that I did not realize that Paul was in Rome twice.
He was released, and he did return to minister to the Philippians.
I love The Blue Letter Bible site! It’s there that I was able to look up the apostle Paul’s timeline!

His ministry at or around this time is explained in Acts 28, in his missionary works after the first Rome experience are indicated in 1 & 2 Timothy, and Titus.

His second trip to Rome was under Nero – and he was imprisoned and martyred.

2 Timothy 4:6-8
6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

How did Paul know that he was going to be released the first time, and not the second?

Amos 3:7
Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.

The Angel of the Lord said a similar thing when meeting with Abraham before destroying Sodom and Gomorrah. (Genesis 18:16-21)

Have you ever had a time when you just knew what God was going to do in your life?

You had asked for wisdom, you had asked for guidance – Just like James 1 says to do.

Somehow, in your time of meditating and praying, all of the sudden, you just KNEW what God was going to do in your situation.

As I read through this, I notice Paul, the ever consummate teacher! The Papa to these young Christians – wanting to not waste any time in his letter.
Why is he going to be returned to them?

Phil 1:25
for your progress and joy in the faith,

This would get my attention…that the reason that he is going to be continuing here on the earth, and even returning to see us is for OUR PROGRESS…and OUR JOY in the FAITH!

I’d sit up and take notice! This is for MY joy? MY progress? Woo Hoo!

Phil 1:27
27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,

ZING! OUCH! THAT’S PERSONAL!

  • Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ,
  • so that whether I come and see you or am absent,
  • I may hear of you that you are standing firm
  • in one spirit,
  • with one mind
  • striving side by side
  • for the faith of the gospel,

I don’t know about you, but, while this seems to be spoken to the church at Philipi…no group of Christians can be bound together in unity without the individuals choosing to live their lives worthy of the gospel of Christ!
A church cannot stand firm, unless the indivduals are choosing to stand firm.
A body cannot be in one spirit, in one mind unless each part chooses to be in unity with the others, or at least harmony, and in unity with Christ.
Only THEN, can they stand side by side!
Because they are focused individually and together on the faith of the gospel!

It’s the living out of the Body of Christ, as he wrote in 1 Corinthians 12:12-27
At the end of 1 Corinthians 12, Paul points to 1 Corinthians 13 by saying
“And I will show you a still more excellent way.”
That is the way of Love!

Romans 12:4-5, Ephesians 2:19-22
Knowing Jesus has a great list of verses about the Body of Christ.

Paul also addresses that something is going on that is causing fear…well, in this time, HE’s in prison for the gospel, Christ has been crucified, Stephen was stoned(this he knew of very well). The culture was not very pro Christian.

Phil 1:28
28 and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.

Stand fast together side by side…in LOVE.

1 Corinthians 16:13-14
13 Be on the alert. Stand firm in the faith. Be men of courage. Be strong.
14 Do everything in love.

Paul encourages them NOT to be terrified…that the persecution is to their(the enemies) damnation, but will work to salvation in the Christians. Romans 8:28 again, only this time, it’s applying to the believers..not to Paul’s circumstances!

I believe he’s pointing back to Jesus’s great sermon!

Matthew 5:10-12
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

If we walk as Christ walked, we can expect persecution. The keys here are FALSELY and on CHRIST’s account!
Paul started out this section with let your conversation(also translated as life) be as it becomes the gospel of CHRIST!

I’ve been ‘persecuted’ for my attitude – as in BAD.
I’ve been ‘persecuted’ for my rudeness, or inappropriateness, or my lack of respect for someone’s time.
That’s not being persecuted for my life reflecting the gospel or Christ.

I’ve heard of folks that have called their reprimands at work as being persecution. Unfortunately, when I questioned them, they were not doing their job, and were preventing others from getting their work done, and offending customers. That was NOT persecution. Maybe for their naivete, but not for Christ.

Then, again – as if Paul MUST drive this home…after letting us know that he would rather die and be with Jesus, but had chosen to stay here, in order to help us grow…into the fullness of Christ…and that we will have opponents….

Phil 1:29 – 30
29 For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake,
30 engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

WAIT!!! HOLD ON!!! I DIDN’T SIGN UP FOR THIS!!!
I thought it was all going to ask and ye shall receive…seek and ye shall find, life more abundantly, my father owns the cattle on a thousand hills…open the windows of heaven and pour out the blessings…Abraham’s blessings are mine!!!!

This type of Christianity just does not line up with the fullness of scripture.
Are those things true?
Of course. They are Bible.
Is this persecution and suffering thing true?
Again, Yes – they are Bible.

The best way I can explain it is to share this:
1 Peter 4
YES, the WHOLE chapter.
But here’s the main poit I want to make:

1 Peter 4:12-17
12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.
13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.
15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler.
16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.
17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

In this section, Phil 1:20-30, I see Paul stating why he is remaining here, and then, going ahead and teaching, challenging, encouraging, and maybe convicting the believers.

For to me, to live is Christ, to die is gain.
Do we really have a choice? technically, yes…but, if I want to be like Jesus…I don’t have a choice.
Jesus said it this way:

Matthew 16:24-26
24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life[a] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

A very wise man, who did give his life for Christ, said this:

I’m going to end this chapter with a link to a poem I was given last night, The Pain of Night. I think it goes well with this study.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ More Philippians ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~Thank you! ~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Jim & Christi 2017

 

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I want to thank

for the ability to search the Bible online.

Some artwork is from me – ChristArtist. It is copyrighted – by me. Please do not share it without my permission. The same goes for my written work.
Some artwork is from ChristArt – not me! I have purchased a membership, and the art is copyrighted by them.
Some artwork is from FreeClipArt Library. copyrights belong to them.

I’d love to stay in touch with you – we are working on email subscriptions…sign up! 
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.

Itty Bitty Bible Study – Philippians 1:18-21

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

Philippians 1

To catch up, the links are at the end of the blog, or all the Itty Bitty Bible Studies are listed on this page.

Philippians 1:18b – 26
Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

First, focus on what Paul is saying here:

Yes, and I will rejoice,
19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance,

This sounds very familiar!!!!!
Maybe because Paul wrote ROMANS!!!

He’s in Jail.
He’s chained to a guard. Or possibly on house arrest.
Blue Letter Bible provides a very nice Timeline of Paul’s Life and Ministry
He’s had so many things happen to him…and he’s still looking at these things from the point of view that all things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to HIS purposes! Romans 8:28
The whole chapter of Romans 8 could be written, and summarized in this thought…that no matter how badly things look, we can know that it is bringing about OUR salvation. Not in the sense that we get saved again and again, but more in the sense that we work out our salvation with fear and trembling, that this is a walk, a journey, and the fullness of Christ is to be worked out in us.

In Philippians 1:12 he is pointing out to everyone that is concerned that this is all for the furtherance of the gospel! This is his first and foremost concern.
In Philippians 4, we’ll hear about how it’s not about him having his needs met.
It’s to comfort those that are concerned, and to speak of HIS confidence in Christ.

I started that part with verse 18b – and yes, I will rejoice!
It reminds me of the letter that James wrote:

James 1:2-4
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.
4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

James knew Paul, Paul knew James – James was the head of the church at Jerusalem. Bible Odyssey goes into much more detail.
It makes sense that James and Paul were thinking alike!

I wrote about the Oil of Joy

To understand a little bit more of verse 20, we have to read it with verse 19.

Phil 1:19-20
19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.

  • I will not be at all ashamed,
  • but that with full courage now
  • as always
  • Christ will be honored
  • in my body,
  • whether by life
  • or by death.

He’s not talking about him being ashamed of the gospel. To confirm this, read

Romans 1:16
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

He’s talking about being ashamed of himself – because his first love is Christ Jesus, and he wants to glorify Him in all that he does, whether by living, or by dying.

Philippians 1:21English Standard Version (ESV)
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

And, with that, we will stop here. There’s too much to consider with the next 5 verses!
I pray that this will bless you.

Have you ever had to choose joy in the face of a “prison” surrounding you?

Have you every been “trapped” because of your faith?

Have you ever been concerned about YOUR behavior – ashamed of Your behavior as an ambassador of Christ?

Do you know that we have an advocate with the Father?

1 John 2:1-2
2:1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

Please share your thoughts with me in comments!

It is Well With My Soul
Worship Video
and
Chris Rice with a beautiful video

One of my rivers:

Philippians Itty Bitty Bible Study

Itty Bitty Bible Study – Philippians 1:12-18

My thoughts for the Itty Bitty Bible Study group on Facebook. (join if you’d like to get these in fb!)

Philippians 1:12-18
12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.
14 And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. 16 The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.

First:

Phil 1:12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.

So often, when things go badly from our point of view, we wonder what we did wrong, what others did wrong, or why God did not protect, provide, or prevent whatever happened.

Paul wrote Romans 8:28

28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

This goes all the way back to the story of Joseph – being thrown into the well by his brothers…and his final statement to them:

Genesis 50:19-20
19 But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in God’s place? 20″As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.

This goes back to Ruth and Naomi…if Naomi, Elimelech and their sons had not gone to Moab, and the men had not all died, Ruth would not have met Boaz and been the grandmother of David, and in the ancestral line of Christ.

Ruth 4:13-17
Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. 17 And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.

For more of my thoughts on this part of Ruth’s story – Itty Bitty Bible Study – Ruth 4

The verse states : those that Love God and are Called according to his purpose
Paul loved God – shown early on by his zealous nature to eradicate the Christians, and his willingness to humble himself, admit he was wrong, and zealously follow Christ!
Paul was called – again – hearing the voice of God saying “Paul, Paul, why do you persecute me?”, and then, as a blind man, being led to Christ so that he could truly see.

Our lives, when we give them over to the Lord, are knit together to bring about HIS good will and purposes in our lives. Throughout the Bible, it is obvious that God is not as concerned about being the holy Santa Claus and giving us the material things to look like the wealthy kings, but more that he is interested in giving us lessons so that our character is challenged, and we are given spiritual things so that we can be filled with the Holy Spirit, and walk as an Ambassador of Christ! A representation of Christ to the world.

What was Paul called unto?
1 Cor 1:1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ…
2 Cor 1:1; Colossians 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God….
Galatians 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead)
Philippians 1:1 Paul…the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus….
1 Timothy 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;
Titus 1:1 Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness

An apostle.

But this is talking about the effect his bonds have upon others…and, this is the statement that talks about Paul’s specific calling:

Philippians 1:17
The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel.

Saul’s calling was pretty dramatic.
Acts 9 talks about the zealot – and his blinding – and his healing – and his calling!
Ananais was not convinced to go see this man that killed the Christ followers! But here is where God states Paul’s calling:

verse 15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.

Paul’s bonds for Christ hve drawn attention. I’d imagine, it wasn’t just the bonds, because many had been put in bondage. It’s the REASON for which he was put in bondage…something worth being put into bondage for!

Christ’s death exploded the faith. His resurrection completed the plan – but being willing to die for His faith set in motion the cost to be a follower. Here are just a few of the ways that Jesus tells us to count the cost…

We can understand why Paul said, in Philippians 3:7-9 that he counts all things as loss, except for Jesus Christ.

Philippians 1:18
But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,

Jesus said something similar. in Luke 9:49-50(ESV)

49 John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.”50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”

To me, this is saying that God is able to make sure that HIS word is able to accomplish that to which HE has sent it.

Isaiah 55:10-11English Standard Version (ESV)
10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

It’s the basis for Philippians 1:6

For I am confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will continue to perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

and reflects, from the Psalmist:

Psalm 138:8 NASB
The Lord will accomplish what concerns me;
Your lovingkindness, O Lord, is everlasting;
Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

There are various ways to share the gospel.
Here are a few:

Some great pointers on being clear, when sharing the gospel.

The key is TO SHARE THE GOSPEL!

Mark 16:15-16English Standard Version (ESV)
15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

There’s a parable about the seed…we all know it.Matthew 13
We’re to cast the seed – maybe we do some watering – maybe some day, we get to harvest…but we are all called to cast the seed!
Paul explains to us that some plant, some water, and some harvest – but, the point is…we all spread the seed. 1 Cor 3:6

Remember, we may be the only Jesus that someone ever meets!
Let’s BE LIKE JESUS!

 

Jim & Christi 2017

 

Thanks for joining me in this journey,
In His hands and under His wings,
~Christi
Ps 63:7 Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

“The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear.
If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation.
If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself.” – from My Utmost for His highest

I want to thank

for the ability to search the Bible online.

Some artwork is from me – ChristArtist. It is copyrighted – by me. Please do not share it without my permission. The same goes for my written work.
Some artwork is from ChristArt – not me! I have purchased a membership, and the art is copyrighted by them.
Some artwork is from FreeClipArt Library. copyrights belong to them.

I’d love to stay in touch with you – we are working on email subscriptions…sign up! 
Soon, we will have a gallery for the art I have created by the hand of God.

There are many organizations that support children and families. Here are ones that we are blessed to be a part of. Please consider sponsoring a child – the life you change could be your own.