B3
Reasons for church conduct
C1
Paul wants to come, see them, fellowship with them, teach them, but
until then, he wishes for Pastor Timothy to know the importance of
Christian conduct. This is how we live our Christian life.
C2
God’s household
D1
This is God’s family. This is Christians (people who have
believed).
E1
Ephesians 2:19 CSB So then you are no longer foreigners and
strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God's
household.
E2
God is the Father, for we are born again. John 1:12 NIV Yet
to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he
gave the right to become children of God.
E3
God’s family has rules. Here
are a few:
F1
Romans 12:1-2 NIV Therefore, I urge you, brothers and
sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living
sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God--this is your true and proper
worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to
test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect
will.
F5
Hebrews 13:5 NIV Keep your lives free from the love of
money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never
will I leave you; never will I forsake you.
F6
Consider this list. Galatians
5:18-26
D2
We learn from this that our fellow Christians are family members with
us. We are together as a family in God’s family.
C3
We are not together for a similar purpose, reason, or goal, but we
are together as a family. Our father is God the Father. Our brother
is Jesus, God the Son. Our comforter and guide is God the Holy
Spirit.
C4
The church is to be the light in this world in thoughts, desires,
words, and deeds. We are to honor God by obeying His rules in the New
Testament.
C5
Our religion is a mystery to the unsaved. Bridgeway Bible Dictionary
on mystery: In New Testament usage, a mystery is not a puzzle or a
secret that leaves people in ignorance, but a truth that God reveals.
It usually refers to something that people normally would not know,
but that God in his grace makes known to them (Eph 3:4-5; Col 1:26;
Rev 17:7). The truths concerning salvation through Jesus Christ are
mysteries in this sense. People could not work them out by
themselves, but God who planned salvation from eternity reveals them
(Rom 16:25-26; 1Ti 3:9, 16).
C6
The Lord Jesus was revealed in the flesh. He is the God/man.
D1
Many
translations foul this Scripture. Wilbur Pickering PhD states in his
Bible notes: Instead
of 'God', 1% of the Greek manuscripts read 'who', and most modern
versions follow this 1%. But 'who' is nonsensical (in the context),
so most of them take evasive action: NEB and NASB have “he who”;
Phillips has “the one”; NRSV, Jerusalem, TEV and NIV render “he.”
Berkley actually has “who!” In the Greek Text the relative
pronoun has no antecedent, so it is a grammatical 'impossibility',
besides being a stupidity—what is so mysterious about someone being
manifested in flesh? All human beings have bodies. The pronoun can be
accounted for as an easy transcriptional error, a simple copying
mistake, so why not stay with the 98.5%? “God was manifested in
flesh”—now there you have a mystery!
D2
Jesus is 100% man and 100% God. This is the faith. See the Athanasian
Creed.
D3
Justified in the Spirit. Jesus
has been vindicated as sinless.
E1
Romans 1:3-4 ESV concerning
his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and
was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of
holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.
E2
Hebrews 9:14 CSB how
much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit
offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from
dead works so that we can serve the living God?
D4
Devotional:
1
Timothy 3:16 (F B Meyer. Our Daily Homily)
Without
controversy great is the mystery of godliness.
It
is more than likely that this is a fragment of one of the earliest
hymns of the Church. In her hymns, and maintenance of the ordinances,
she thus becomes the pillar and ground of the truth. The words
“mystery of godliness” are probably a general heading which is
further unfolded and expanded in the six following sentences, which
may have been sung antiphonally:—
“God
was manifest in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit. Seen of angels,
Preached unto the Gentiles. Believed on in the world, Received up
into glory.”
The
Extremes of Manifestation. — The Eternal Word was manifested in the
flesh. But it was not simply a physical manifestation; we cannot
forget the descent of the Holy Spirit at his baptism, or the
authentication of his words which the Spirit gave in signs and
wonders, and convinced hearts, and converted lives.
The
Extremes of Created Intelligence. — Angels worship Him; and
Gentiles, sunk in heathen darkness, hear the story of his wondrous
love. Jesus is the centre of all worlds: from heaven’s bright
spaces they come to Him on the one hand; from earth’s dark sins
they come on the other. In Him meet angels and men.
The
Extremes of Space. — Glory is above: “He was received up into
glory.” The world is but a speck, a mote in the beam of eternity.
How great the space between the two! But the feet of our Emmanuel
have trodden its low pavement, and He has now taken to Himself his
former glory. Like Jacob’s ladder, He links earth with the throne
of God.
B4
Applications
C1
There are to be pastors, deacons, and deaconesses.
C2
There are requirements in order to be one. Being a great business
person or leader in society counts for nothing in God’s church.
C3
We must be consistent in our thoughts, desires, words, and deeds.
C4
We are a family. We are to love and live as a family. The house we
live in is God’s house. This is not referring to communal living.
B5
Questions
C1
What is Christian conduct?
C2
What is the importance of consistency in the faith?
C3
What is mysterious about Christianity to non-Christians?
C4
What is the importance of “God with us?”
C5
How can God be manifest in the flesh?
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