An Apostle of God

I have not written anything in quite a while.  In fact, I have had trouble studying as I should.  Even getting through a paragraph in God’s Word has been a challenge.  I am not sure what has been causing this stuff, but it is frustrating when it is difficult to read, and after a bit, it was easy just to surrender to the distractions.

I know it sounds a bit like complaining, but it is not that at all, it is repenting and acknowledging that I have been falling short and neither praying nor studying as I should.

Getting started studying has not been easy either.  It has been like trying to restart an old motorcycle that seemed to be running just fine and then just one day it starts but runs rough and the next day you try to start it, and you kick that kick start peddle and it just will not go.

It is crazy to me how it happened.  I love the Word and Prayer both, but for some reason things became difficult and suddenly it became easier to to spend less time trying.  The thing that took the biggest hit was my writing, but that was just a symptom.  The illness was that I did not put my focus into my study like I should.  Using the analogy of an old motorcycle…  I kind of let her sit to much and things got kind of gummed up and the battery got weak.

Well a couple of weeks ago we started Fall Small Groups at my Church and my wife Pat and I settled on our preachers’ group.  The start of that class put a good charge on my battery.  It also got me tinkering with getting that old bike going again… I mean studying again.  I was reminded of the joy that I had in the depth of God’s Word.

Inspired

The books of the Bible we will be studying are first and second Timothy.  Terry is a great teacher and I must admit that I love all of Paul’s letters.  The first night of study was off to a good start.

Terry led a basic discussion of Paul’s history talking about who Paul was before and after meeting Jesus.  He reminded us that Paul was more than a simple preacher relaying secondhand information; Paul was an Apostle.  He had met Jesus face to face.  This is a fact documented in Acts 9 and 2Corinthians 12.

As Terry started into the first book of Timothy is where I got excited.  He was covering new ground for me.  Those first two verses gave me a bit of spark.

1 Timothy 1:1-2 (ESV)

​¹ Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus,

² To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

In verse one Paul declares to Timothy that he is an Apostle of God.  He also points out that was chosen by God and he did not volunteer. The second verse he reminds Timothy that Paul considers him his child. Now that word child weighed on me, so I looked it up in my Strongs and found this definition.

Child: in the new testament, pupils or disciples are called children of their teachers, because the latter by their instruction nourish the minds of their pupils and mold their characters.

It was not just to say that Paul was an Apostle.  This Apostle had chosen to take charge of Timothy’s training to prepare him to lead the Church.  He had a great foundation from his grandmother and mother,(2 Timothy 1:5), but Paul took him as a student of God’s Word; The Gospel, so that he might lead the Church as he explains in verses three and four.

1 Timothy 1:3-4 (ESV)

³ As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, ⁴ nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith.

What an amazing four verses.  What declaration Paul opened this letter with.

Recklessness

Now I do not know about you, but I sometimes skim over portions of the Bible I might have read before and the introductions of the Apostles at the beginning of all these letters is one of the places where I tended to skim a bit; after all how many ways can you introduce yourself.

I also skimmed over verses three and four of chapter one because it seemed very focused on Timothy.

Well as Terry took me through all those verses of 1Timothy 1 that I had tended to skim in the past I realized that there are no words in the Bible that I can afford to skim over.  All these words apply to me too.

Paul taught Timothy and encouraged him with this letter as he does me today.

Awakening

It was the gentle tap on the forehead of a 10-pound sledgehammer.  This intro was very powerful.  I had read the text before Church and I had even underlined the verses and discussed them with Pat, but as I listened in Church to the explanation, I realized how reckless it was to skim over any part of God’s Word.

These few verses were so powerful, and they were a declaration and an encouragement to me as much as Timothy.  I do not often hear Paul yelling or speaking with a raised voice when I read his letters.  Often, as I read, I imagine his voice as stern on occasion, but never a raised voice.  However, with this passage, I could hear a raised voice.  It was almost an “In Your Face Voice” to me.

1Timothy 1:1-2

I love the way that Paul opens this letter to Timothy.  It is like… “I am Paul… I am an Apostle of God chosen by God. I am an Apostle; by the will of God according to the PROMISE of the life that is in Jesus Christ.” what can stand against that.  It really doesn’t need the bold print…

1 Timothy 1:1-2 (ESV)

​¹ Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus,

² To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Of course, after that, he reminds Timothy who he is and why he is there.  He also reminds him of the confidence he has in him. Paul mentioned his confidence in Timothy in 1Timothy 1:3-4 which I discussed previously.

Just Thinkin’

As I read this introduction again and again, I could see Paul reminding Timothy, to whom he had given authority to both teach and to assign responsibility, the source of this all was not man but God.  He also was encouraging Timothy by reminding him how much he meant to him.

To put it in our modern world for a minute… It is like your boss coming to you and saying look I am your boss and I answer to the one guy, the owner of the company and His Son.  You are the best guy I have, and I think an awful lot of you.  The Boss’ Son taught me all I know, and I have taught you everything they taught me.  I trust you to straighten things out here.

The other thing about this letter is that if you got any gruff from folks you could simply read that introduction and they will see who is asking you to do this and what he thinks of you.  That is a golden referral.

Further Reflection

As I considered all that I had missed by skimming over the introduction of 1Timothy I decided to go back and look at all of Paul’s letters. It was very interesting.

As I read the introduction to each letter, I could see the tenor of the letter.  Some, like Romans, were very long and much more in your face than 1Timothy.  Each letter was a bit different.  You can tell a bit about the audience and the tenor of the subject based on the intro.  These passages really are important not to skim over, even if you have read them many times.

I was also reminded that surrendering to distractions that limit my study and prayer life are just excuses.  It is easier to watch and listen to a video about a Camera, Movie or a Sermon by John MacArthur than it is for me to focus on reading.  But that is just an excuse and the reward outweighs any effort.

Closing Thoughts

I am still struggling a bit to study and prayer like I know that I should.  I try listening to Bible Gateway as I read, and that helps.  My prayers have been filled with “Thank You Jesus” and prayer requests for others more than the conversational prayers before, but that will change too.  I am making headway returning to the path that I really enjoy, and I got this old motor to fire a few times in the past weeks, it just takes a few more stops along the way.

Just like an old motorcycle, if I have spark and fuel it will start.  The same is true of study – we have God’s Word and Prayer as fuel and spark so it will start.   I loved riding a Bike, but that is nothing compared to my love of God’s Word.  I cannot ride any longer, but I am still alive, and I can survive without riding.  But the same is not true without God’s Word and prayer.  I need the Word and Prayer as much as I need food and water.  In fact, they are nourishment for my soul.  Without God’s Word and Prayer, I give up so much of what makes life wonderful. The Word and Prayer are calorie free.  In fact the more them you take in the less weight on your shoulders.

There are times when we hit tough spots or challenges. The key is not to give up.  Like starting an old bike that just does not want to fire we need to push forward and not give up on prayer or study either.  Both need patience and persistence every day.

Prayer

Father, thank you for every day.  Thank you for reminding me joy found in simply being patient.  Lord God, thank you for reminding me that there is no portion of Your Word that I cannot learn from.  Praise be to you.  Help me keep my eyes focused on you and your Holy Word always and pray continuously in Jesus name, Amen!

Ps

A lot of you may not have a clue what kick starting an old motorcycle is like and my analogy is likely lost on you. If you want to know what I am talking about click on the link.

Most of the time it is easy to kickstart a bike.  It will start on the first real kick.  But I will say it can be unpleasant and your leg and whole body feel it after a while if she chooses not to cooperate.  If you want to know details just watch a couple minutes of this link.  My knee still hurts when I think about this stuff too much, but I do miss riding even if I had to kickstart to get in the wind. As it stands, I am putting that determination to better use these days.   Kickstarting Motorcycles YouTube Video