Tag: pursue godliness
The good fight!
Scripture reading for July 2nd: 1st Kings 10-11, 2nd Chronicles 9, 1st Timothy 6
Key Scriptures: 1st Timothy 6:9-13 “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”
Paul warned Timothy about one of the traps of the devil: the love of money. Jesus had taught that a disciple couldn’t serve two masters. The love of money was idolatry and had taken many away from the faith and caused much ruin and destruction. The man of God must flee from this trap and pursue God and His righteous character. He must lay hold of eternal life by living a sold-out and set-apart life .
1st Kings 11:4 “For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.”
Faith confession and prayer: Lord Jesus, I submit to You alone as Lord and will pursue and take hold of eternal life by faith in Jesus Christ and His Word. Keep me safe from snares that will turn my heart away from You.
Sunday rest and reflection!
Scripture reading for December 7th: 1 Timothy 4-6
Dear Friends,
Do you sometimes feel that you are fighting to keep your focus on the goal of seeing Jesus Christ either when He comes or when you go to be with Him? Do the things of this world compete for your attention and sometimes derail your focus? Timothy, a young pastor, was encouraged to wage a “good fight”.
In Timothy’s day, as ours, one of the distractions was be money. Many people were caught in the pursuit of riches and not content. As people let the love of money affect their choices, they fell into temptation and the trap of the Devil. This opened the door in their lives for ruin and destruction! (1 Timothy 6:6-10) Some had even wandered from the faith!
“But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of eternal life, to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” 1 Timothy 6:11-12
Paul encouraged his young pastoral protege to pursue righteousness and all the qualities of godliness. We get what we focus on! As we think about Paul’s advice, what is our focus? Are we involved in the fight of faith or for money and material things?
The advice for those who have money is to fight the fight of faith by generous giving! (1 Timothy 6:17-19) Timothy was to warn them not to put their faith in riches, which are very uncertain and can soon vanish. The only way to insure eternal value is to use your riches to win people to the Lord!
“Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith.” 1 Timothy 6:20-21
The war we are in is waged in every-day living. We must always be on guard. Some claim knowledge that is opposed to God’s word. We must know the true word of God and live accordingly to keep from being seduced. Fight the fight of faith in your life today! We win eternally!
In His Love, Pastor John and Mary