{"id":1743,"date":"2019-01-31T20:00:26","date_gmt":"2019-02-01T03:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/?p=1743"},"modified":"2019-01-27T22:32:15","modified_gmt":"2019-01-28T05:32:15","slug":"1_timothy_4_11-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/1_timothy_4_11-16\/","title":{"rendered":"Lead By Example and By Your Words"},"content":{"rendered":"

1 Timothy 4:11-16 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today’s passage is 1 Timothy 4:11-16.\u00a0 Let’s go!<\/p>\n

1 Timothy 4:11 (NIV)\u00a0<\/strong>
\n11\u00a0<\/span><\/sup>Command and teach these things.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 11: \u00a0Can a pastor\u00a0command<\/em>\u00a0his congregation to do certain things?\u00a0 According to Paul in verse 11, yes a pastor can, but always with gentleness and respect and always leading by example (as we’ll see in the next verse).\u00a0 Western culture tends to focus so much on individual freedom and equality, such that we tend to downplay or even ignore the truth that our pastor or spiritual leaders have authority over us.\u00a0 When met with the idea that we must follow and submit to our pastors and spiritual leaders, we might retort, “Well, we are all broken and prone to error.” \u00a0Paul recognized that we are all broken and prone to error, but he still told Timothy to command and teach his church.\u00a0 He urged him to step courageously into his role as their leader and spiritual authority.<\/p>\n

That’s a good lesson for all of us — for those who are in authority and those under authority.\u00a0 Those in authority must exercise their God-given authority to command and teach with great care, courage, wisdom, humility and love.\u00a0 Those under their authority must practice humble submission, team play and a teachable spirit. \u00a0It’s about believing that God works when we submit to our leaders, broken and imperfect as they may be.\u00a0 Just as children are to obey their parents, broken and imperfect as they may be, we are to obey our spiritual leaders.\u00a0 For it is in such unity that God bestows His blessing on His entire family and enables a church to thrive, grow, and make a lasting impact.<\/strong><\/p>\n

1 Timothy\u00a04:12\u00a0(NIV)\u00a0<\/strong>
\n12\u00a0<\/span><\/sup>Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 12: \u00a0This was one of my favourite verses growing up, one worth memorizing. \u00a0Godly leaders don’t just message people about how to follow Christ; they model it for them too.\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0I pray that in your home, in your church, in your workplace or school, and among your friends, you would set an example of what a Christian should be in the way you speak (speech), the way you live (life), the way you treat others (love), the way you trust and believe God’s Word (faith), and the way you seek the please God with your life (purity).<\/p>\n

1 Timothy\u00a04:13\u00a0(NIV)\u00a0<\/strong>
\n13\u00a0<\/span><\/sup>Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 13: \u00a0There’s a reason why at Thrive we read Scripture together a lot and why we place a great emphasis on strong preaching and teaching.\u00a0 It’s because\u00a0there is power in the public reading of God’s Word, and the preaching and teaching of it<\/strong>.\u00a0 It’s no wonder Paul told Timothy to devote himself to the reading, preaching and teaching of Scripture.<\/p>\n

1 Timothy\u00a04:14\u00a0(NIV)\u00a0<\/strong>
\n14\u00a0<\/span><\/sup>Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 14-16: \u00a0Apparently Timothy was a gifted communicator and leader, but he might have been a little timid and prone to giving up too early.\u00a0 That’s why Paul tells Timothy not to neglect the gift God had given him (v14), to give himself wholly to the calling God had on his life (v15), to watch his life and what he is teaching, and to persevere (v16).\u00a0 In doing so, he would “save both yourself and others” (v16b); in other words, he would fulfill his destiny and be a blessing to others.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this? \u00a0Do you want God to use your life in a powerful way?\u00a0 Then develop the gifts God has given you.\u00a0 Watch that you’re living a life that is pleasing to God.\u00a0 Teach with care and precision.\u00a0 If you keep on doing these things and don’t give up even when you fail, you will fulfill the destiny God had for your life and bless many others in the process.<\/strong>
\n\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>
\nHeavenly Father, thank You for the calling You have on each person reading today’s GAME sharing.\u00a0 You’ve called us to worship Jesus, to grow more like Him, to serve Him with our talents, to lead others to Him, and to love our spiritual family.\u00a0 Thank You for the gifts You have given us.\u00a0 May we develop our gifts so that we can use them effectively and excellently for Your glory.\u00a0 May we be careful to live in a way that is pleasing to You.\u00a0 Help us to love and follow our spiritual leaders well, to be excellent team players and good followers.\u00a0 Through both our example and our words, may we clearly and lovingly teach others who You are.\u00a0 In Jesus’ name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today’s passage is 1 Timothy 4:11-16.\u00a0 Let’s go!<\/p>\n

1 Timothy 4:11 (NIV)\u00a0
\n11\u00a0Command and teach these things.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On verse 11: \u00a0Can a pastor\u00a0command\u00a0his congregation to do certain things?\u00a0 According to Paul in verse 11, yes a pastor can, but always with gentleness and respect and always leading by example (as we’ll see in the next verse).\u00a0 Western culture tends to focus so much on individual freedom and equality, such that we tend to downplay or even ignore the truth that our pastor or spiritual leaders have authority over us.\u00a0 When met with the idea that we must follow and submit to our pastors and spiritual leaders, we might retort, “Well, we are all broken and prone to error.” \u00a0Paul recognized that we are all broken and prone to error, but he still told Timothy to command and teach his church.\u00a0 He urged him to step courageously into his role as their leader and spiritual authority.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1744,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1743","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1743"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1743\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1745,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1743\/revisions\/1745"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1744"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1743"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1743"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1743"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}