Religious leaders often seem very kind in public, but get aggressive and violent when someone opposes them. Sometimes Pastors even beat up their wives and do not respect them in private. There are other leaders in the church, who serve people because of money. Some leaders are good with people in public but poor in managing their own household, their children don’t listen to them and are extremely rebellious. As a father and husband, they’re very passive about family matters, and the list goes on and on. But the Apostle Paul has a response against all these bad character qualities of a leader in this passage.
When the Apostle Paul writes down the character qualities of an elder in 1 Timothy, he lists out many virtues that display Christ-like character. And for the leaders in the church, there are some mandatory character qualities that Paul suggests cannot be compromised. In this 2nd part of learning about elder qualities, we learn how ability to teach, being hospitable and not being consumed by alcohol marks out a faithful, stable and a mature leader in the church.
We have a lot of poor examples of leaders around us, who make big promises but don’t fulfill them. Hypocrisy is so evident in their lives. Many leaders have fallen into sexual immorality, financial mismanagement, abuse of authority in the church etc. Recognizing a man of character has become a difficult task these days. How do we discern the character qualities of an Elder who is not perfect but acceptable in the eyes of God and people? Listen to the sermon to find out.
A person’s wage is often calculated based on how valuable and resourceful the labor is. But when it comes to pastoral ministry, not much attention has been given to the pastor’s labor. This passage gives adequate reasons on why we should be supporting the laborers of the gospel who honor Christ and serve His sheep faithfully.
Enjoying someone or something is to be human. According to the Bible, man’s chief end is to not just glorify God but to also enjoy him forever. Which means the ultimate purpose for man’s existence is to enjoy God. But why do we enjoy God? One simple fact is that he created us, he made us for himself, to find our pleasure and ultimate satisfaction in Him alone. In this sermon, we learn how to enjoy God through our lives.
We live in a culture that despises singleness once a person crosses a certain age. Person’s worth is measured by marriage, and marriage is often seen as the only remedy for singleness. But in Christianity, God never bestows value or declares a person’s worth based on their marital status. God bestows his value and worth on people simply because of His undying love for them. In this passage, we learn how God bestows his value on singles in the church and what he expects of them.
As Christians we often misunderstand mission as going only to foreign lands, but overlook the immediate context where the Lord has put us. We change careers, places and take major decisions either because of external pressure or because of our internal desires. We’re prone to make too many changes without really understanding God’s will for our lives. In this passage we learn how God calls us to be faithful in our calling wherever he has placed us.
What is the purpose of life? Is it to have a happy marriage or a successful career? Or is it to do something good for your country? Is it just to love someone or something like sex & money? Our culture has often limited life’s purpose to these categories, beyond which there’s no quest for truth. But what does the Bible say about man’s chief end? Listen to the sermon, as we explore the grand narrative of life’s main purpose.
What does the Bible say about divorce? What does it say about remarriage? Before we seek answers to these reasonable questions, we need to ask – “what does the bible say about marriage?”. When we know what marriage is meant for, can we really understand how to deal with divorce. Not only does this passage help us understand about marriage and divorce, but it also helps us understand about singleness (widows and widowers).
