Katy

Q1. I suppose people hear what they want to hear. By nature we are greedy and can fall into Satan’s trap when we are told about Christian’s becoming wealthy. In Phillipians Paul tells us that God will meet all our needs , he doesn’t mention our wants. We will most definitely receive spiritual wealth as we live our Christian lives but this may not also include financial wealth. We should be content with what God has given to us and not always be looking for more. If we daily look at our blessings it will make us more aware of all that we have and hopefully help us to be content. If God does bless us with more money than we need, as a Christian the surplus should be used to benefit the spreading of the gospel and helping others who need help and support.

Q1. I suppose people hear what they want to hear. By nature we are greedy and can fall into Satan’s trap when we are told about Christian’s becoming wealthy. In Phillipians Paul tells us that God will meet all our needs , he doesn’t mention our wants. We will most definitely receive spiritual wealth as we live our Christian lives but this may not also include financial wealth. We should be content with what God has given to us and not always be looking for more. If we daily look at our blessings it will make us more aware of all that we have and hopefully help us to be content. If God does bless us with more money than we need, as a Christian the surplus should be used to benefit the spreading of the gospel and helping others who need help and support.

Q5. Paul was teaching Timothy what he needed to teach to slaves. Paul is not condoning slavery but he accepts that at that time there were people who were slaves. These slaves if they were Christians needed to act in such a way as to honour their Lord, Jesus Christ. If their masters were not Christians they were not to bring disrepute to God by acting in a disrespectful manner to their Master and those they came into contact with on a daily basis. If their Master was a believer, He deserved even more respect because he was a brother in Christ. As a believer his Master will care for the welfare of His slaves. In God eyes every person is equal to another, He does not see Greek or Jew, slave or non slave, one race or another, one religion or another. We are all equal to each other. This is a great lesson and example to us all.

Q4.Having dealt with the disciplining the false teachers Paul goes on to tell Timothy not to be in a hurry to ordain more elders. It was more important to get to know church members deeply and then decide who to ordain. A person for leadership in the church must not be a new convert because he may become conceited also he would not have the depth of knowledge required by a teacher. It takes time to get to know people deeply , a persons bad traits may not be obvious at first when one knows them on a superficial level also their good deeds and qualities may not at first be obvious. These qualities and not so good qualities become more apparent as we get to know people on a deeper level.

Q3. Paul felt it necessary to call a halt to wrong behavior within the church, even if it was among the leadership of the church. Paul had laid down criteria for doing this: an accusation had to be well supported before it was even considered. No favouritism was to be shown to anyone, no matter how hard it was. It was to be done in public as a warning to others that bad behaviour/wrong teachings were noted and would not be tolerated in the Church. The temptation to ignore it and not go through with it can be very strong and can cause damage within the church. Some will not accept that certain people can be wrong. They in turn start to complain about the person trying to deal with the whole situation. It can split a church and do damage. The most important thing is to have everything covered in prayer. It does not guarantee smooth sailing but God will lead and guide the church and even if there is trouble God will be faithful if we obey and seek His face daily. Today it is difficult to exercise Church Discipline because everything in this world is now more casual and acceptable. This is present to a lesser degree within the church but still present to an extent. I don’t think all Christian’s are prepared to accept the authority of the Bible when the circumstances affect them. We do not grasp the Holiness of God and His loathing of sin. Some don’t accept there is such a thing as sin. It is hard to follow through on a set course that you know has the potential to disrupt the peace of the church body.

Q2. Paul tells us that Elders who do a good job in teaching and leading are worthy of double honour1Tim.5v 17. By this Paul means they are worthy of the honour and respect that goes with being an elder in God’s Church , but in addition to this they deserve to be compensated for their good work. Paul refers to various Scriptures that teach us to pay promptly those that have done work for us. We must not delay as the worker may be poor and totally dependent on his wage to feed his family. The Lord will be angry if we defraud our workers. Leviticus 19v13. James 5v 17. Deuteronomy 24v14-15.

Q1. It is our moral duty as human beings to care for family members who are not able to care for themselves. Even unbelievers do this. Therefore as followers of Christ we should welcome the opportunity to look after our parents who have nurtured and provided for us while we were unable to fend for ourselves. It is our responsibility and not the responsibility either of the State or the local church. We should regard it as a privilege to have the opportunity to give back some of the love, care and time to our parents that they have given to us over the years of our lives.There maybe others in the area or the church who don’t have any family members to care for them. If we neglect our responsibilities to our parents and others have to look after them, we may be depriving someone else of the care they need because they don’t have any relatives to look after them. Paul tells us that to neglect our duty makes us worse than unbelievers and infidels! By our non action we deny the very faith we proclaim to have.

Q4. Ridged unsmiling orthodoxy misses the core of Godliness…. Which is love, first of our Lord and Saviour and secondly love of the people we meet in our lives, our families, our church family, our work colleagues, neighbours and those we try to meet to befriend and introduce to Jesus. Ridged unsmiling orthodoxy is teaching the law, hard fact with no emotions attached. It is like the Pharisees scrupulous about carrying out the law, they miss the opportunity of experiencing Jesus properly, instead they plan to kill Him. Absolutely no understanding of the world that God wanted to create, just their own world of rules and regulations. They could have experienced Godliness among their midst, and learnt it from the source of love Himself. They were blinded by their ridged rules and orthodoxy. We all learn from example and our leaders must be examples of people who lead Godly lives. People would also find it hard to accept a leader who teaches about Godliness and yet shows little or no signs that he is living a Godly live.

L I’m Q3.Godliness is something that is developed over time by consistently being immersed in the things of God. We do this for just one reason and that is that we love God so very much. It is something that is developed within our hearts over time as we grow in our knowledge and love of Christ. It is not something we notice ourselves but can be noticed by others. It takes time, consistency and single mindedness! We love God so much that we don’t want to offend or hurt Him in any way. Godliness is something that happens deep inside us in private with God. Strict Morality is a code of do’s and don’t that may have little to do with pleasing God, and more likely to be pleasing ourselves and thinking we are so much better than most people! It is religion and law keeping and nothing to do with a relationship with the Living God.

Q2. As human beings we want to be in control of our lives. It is difficult for us to surrender ourselves and accept God’s gift of Salvation. By performing good deeds we feel we are contributing in some way to make ourselves good enough to be acceptable to God. The Scriptures tell that our good deeds are like “filthy rags”. Sometimes if we don’t fully understand the Gospel, our good deeds can give us a feeling of self righteous and superiority. The true Gospel is about Jesus doing it all for us. We cannot add or subtract anything to what Jesus did for us. Only Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross was good enough to redeem us back from our sinful lives. If we attempt to do anything towards our Salvation by legal requirements , we do not grasp the Gospel and are like the Pharisees and are insulting to Jesus.

Q1. Paul was reminding Timothy about the prediction from God about False Teachers who would get into the Church’s and spread false teachings and lies. This was causing chaos in Ephesus and Paul wanted to forewarn his young friend and protégé. Being a father like figure to Timothy he may have been anxious that Timothy would find it very difficult to deal with. Paul wanted Timothy to be on his guard and to stamp out anything that was being taught contrary to the teachings of God. Timothy must also encourage and help the congregations so that they don’t become discouraged and drift into apostasy. Timothy must continue to be diligent in teaching God’s teachings so the people would be able to distinguish exactly what was true and right and what were lies from Satan.

Q4. The qualifications for both Elders and Deacons are similar. They must be upright men, who love Christ and desire to serve the body of Christ to the best of their ability. Their roles are however different, the Elders are more mature Christians and are responsible for teaching and dealing with issues of discipline. The Deacons deal with the Church administration and paperwork.

Q3. When considering someone for Church Leadership, they must be considered holistically. Every aspect of their character must be examined, not just the positive but also the negatives. This is why it is preferable if a candidate for leadership could spend a lot of time at the church getting to know the people and they getting to know him. Anger intimidation, force and pride should not be observed in this person. The fruit of the Spirit should be in evidence. If the church ignores things like anger, pride and intimidation, they will regret it because it is sowing seeds of resentment and hatred and general unrest within the church and possibly towards this person and it is not honouring to God.

Q3. If a person is inclined towards anger, intimidation, force and pride, they may not be walking in the spirit, and therefore would be most unsuitable for church leadership. Potential church leader must show signs of humility, compassion, gentleness. All the characteristics of Jesus should be seen in them. That is not to say they are perfect we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. Every day should be spent trying to humbly follow in Jesus footsteps . If the church appoints someone who is inclined to be angered easily, is full of pride and forceful, they will cause disruption, dissension and chaos. Worst of all it will dishonour God’s name and bring the church into disrepute.

Q2. Prospective Leaders need to be observed closely to determine their true character. Are they beyond reproach, do they get on with people and welcome strangers? Are they a man of God, praying without ceasing, longing to see others come to Christ. Daily absorbed in the word of God, and willing and able to teach others? How do they treated their families, is there love and respect shown to his wife and children? He must not be a new convert in case he becomes conceited and acts rashly, he must be a man of maturity in the things of God.

Q1. Paul is saying that a candidate for leadership within a Church must be the husband of just one wife. He must also be respectful kind and caring to both his wife, and his children. There must be a balance between love and discipline. Discipline should be only administered with love and never in anger. His home should be a happy open home, where all members of the family respect each other and forgive mistakes, and close ranks in time of trouble. If a man’s home is run in this way, he will probably make a good leader within a church. However if the children are disrespectful and out of control this would be a red flag, pointing to something within the family not being right. Further investigation would be needed. I do understand that some children can turn their backs on God in their teens, even though they have been brought up in a loving Christian home. These children would still be respectful and obey their parents, but maybe show reluctance to attend church etc. Fervent prayer is then needed.

Q5. I think Paul’s main reason for not wanting women to teach was probably their lack of education and training. Also some were obviously causing some kind of unrest with their calling out at inappropriate times. Today women have opportunities to be educated and trained to teach just like men. In our church the Pastor or Elders preach during services, and this is reserved for the men. Women are involved in teaching in women’s groups, children’s clubs etc. This is accepted and works well. However I do think if no trained man was available, say in a missionary situation then a woman should teach. I think it should depend on the gifts people are given.There is no point in man or woman teaching if they don’t know the Scriptures and don’t have the gift of teaching from God.

Q4. Paul was concerned because some women were wearing expensive clothes and accessories. This was done to show to others that they were doing well and could afford nice things. This should not have been the motive for dressing to go to church, it may make others feel uncomfortable because they were poor, and give them a sense of not being able to ‘fit in’! It also shows wrong motives for going to church. If one is so concerned about showing off their status in life, can they really be coming to worship God, will they have spent time in prayer and reading scripture before they came?? As women we need to dress modestly and with taste. What we wear depends on the culture and customs of the country and area we live in. I do think it is important to keep ourselves smart and nicely dressed. I think we do a disservice to the Lord if we appear to neglect our looks and how we dress and as a result look old fashioned and frumpy. I don’t mean we need to spend a lot of money but I think it is important to keep our hair nicely cut and cared for, and to be reasonably up to date with our clothes. These things can be done on a tight budget. It is honouring to the Lord to present ourselves clean, and well turned out.

Q3. Unfortunately the false teacher who at infiltrated the church in Ephesus had caused anger and strife among the congregation, it would appear from these verses that the men were particularly affected. They were coming to worship with hatred anger and strife in their hearts. Because of this they were unable to worship in spirit and in truth. Their minds were preoccupied with other matters. Unless they came to worship with peace in their hearts and their minds focused on the Lord their prayers would not be heard. This is also a warning for us not to approach worship with worldly things occupying our hearts and minds. It is an insult to God and our prayers will not be heard.

Q2. Jesus is both our Mediator and Our Ransom. Jesus , mediated between God and man. He went much further for us He didn’t just negotiate on our behalf He also became the ransom. Jesus was the the only one good enough to appease the wrath of the Father, Jesus was the only sinless person in existence and the only one who could ransom us by taking our place and becoming our ransom. Because Jesus loved us so much He was prepared to give up the splendour of heaven and come down to earth, with just one purpose in mind. That purpose was to die on a cross so there could be reconciliation between us and God. However we have free will He will never force us to follow Him. This is a decision each one must make for themselves.

Q1.Paul emphasises salvation of all people, and not just Jews because with everything that was going on in the church, false teachers, the inward looking results of their attitudes, the wrong teachings etc, something was being missed. The gentiles were being forgotten and not being prayed for by the church congregation of Jews. This would suggest that they had forgotten about God’s great commission and were not involved in evangelism.

Q4. Paul is trying to encourage Timothy by reminding him that when he was commissioned that he received from God gifts which would help him in his work. He wasn’t going alone he had the Holy Spirit to lead guide, protect, and counsel him . To fight the good fight means that no matter what comes our way that we hold on firmly to God through thick and thin. Only by doing this will we finish the race and please God. He has promised never to leave us or forsake us. This promise is for bad times as well as good times. Paul tells Timothy that he must hold onto faith and a good conscience, because the two must work together. If there is sun in our lives we cannot work and be effective for God. We must keep ourselves pure and have a clear conscience.

Q3.We learn that God is Eternal, Immortal, Invisible, The only God. When we think in detail about the essence of God , we can but praise Him. We are so privileged to have been called and chosen as one of God’s family, we must give Him praise on an ongoing basis. I do sometimes pray the Doxology in Jude v24 -25. Now I will add a few more.A doxology says all the things about God that I want to say but I’m not articulate enough to put the words together. So saying or reading one makes me think about God and how wonderful He is and how blessed I am!

Q2. Paul was showing that it was not the law that changed his sinful way of life. Although the law was well know by him through ignorance he sinned grievously by killing and persecuting Christians. He realised his sinfulness by the grace and mercy of a forgiving God. Paul was open and honest to show that he had a sinful life before he was chosen by Christ and shown just how forgiving He is. If Christ did it for Paul , He will do it for any of the listeners who turns from their sinful ways and ask God’s forgiveness. This shows churches that no matter how sinful anyone is that we have a forgiving God. If anyone asks His forgiveness and turns from their sinful lives , Christ is waiting and longing to forgive and welcome the repentant sinner back.

Q1. Some of the results of the false teachings at Ephesus were a very unhappy and unstable church. There were controversies , quarrels and strife. This was leading to division, inward thinking and distrust. The Spirit of the church was being compromised. This distracted from the work of the church and gave Satan a foothold! The church that is being subjected to false teaching is spiritually compromised because truth is not being taught and people pick up untruths which lead to confusion and quarrels. A church in these circumstances cannot thrive only God’s truth will make a church thrive and flourish. A congregation must also be humble and eager to hear, and obey. If a church is not hearing truth it’s people cannot go out any and fulfill God’s mission they will be telling warped messages which are detrimental to everyone who hears.