Discipleship - Goals and Definitions

Discipleship is not a word that appears in Scripture. However, the noun form of the word occurs ('disciple'), as does the verbal form of the word ('make disciples'). 'Discipleship' is a word that we commonly use to describe action in obedience to Christ's command, 'Make disciples.'

Simply put, a disciple is one who has submitted and is submitting to Christ in all areas of life: in his affections, belief-structures, and behavior. In other words, a disciple is one who has been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and who is learning to obey all that Christ has commanded.

Thus, the goal of discipleship is the obedience of faith to all the commands of Christ, for the sake of his glory. The object of discipleship is people from every nation. The source or authority over discipleship is Christ himself. We are to make disciples of him, not us.

To summarize, then, to 'make disciples', means to explain Christ's words (the Scriptures) to people in such a manner that those to whom he grants repentance learn to obey everything he has commanded.

In saying this, much is remaining unsaid. However, it must be emphasized that discipleship means explaining all the words of God such that a person obeys all the words of God for the glory of God.

And as one explores the content of discipleship, we must remember that we also are disciples. We should be asking about areas in which we need growth and putting together a plan for said growth as well as planning for the obedience of others.

In what follows, because they're basically my notes, I have left out Scripture references for the sake of brevity. However, if the need arises I can add them or footnote them later.

Discipleship - Content
The Scriptures teach us that the information which must be passed down to a disciple involve three categories: doctrine (what a disciple must believe), character (what a disciple must do), and ministry skill (how a disciple must serve others with the word of God).

What follows is a list of necessary components of the content of discipleship under these three headings. Though the following list is not exhaustive, it is purposefully broad.

Doctrine
-The nature of God
-The person of Jesus
-The role of Jesus as Messiah
-The historical nature of the acts of God
-The human race and its sin
-The penalty of sin
-Jesus Christ as a substitute for his people
-The role of faith in salvation
-The nature of the Scriptures (authoritative, without error, historical, sufficient)
-The sovereignty of God in having a purpose in all of history
-The vindication of Christ in his resurrection
-The status of Christians resulting from Christ's resurrection
-The current status of Christ as reigning ruler of all things
-The current status of Christ as the intercessor for his people
-The return of Christ to complete his reign in judging all humanity

Character
-The role of the Holy Spirit in producing obedience
-The role of the Gospel and faith in it in producing obedience
-The role of repentance and effort in producing obedience
-The uses of the Moral Law
-The content of the Moral Law
-The means of grace (the word of God, especially taught by the ordained men; prayer; the sacraments; fellowship; church discipline)

Ministry Skill
-Learning about people (listening, learning using questions, discerning idols)
-Learning how to boast about Christ in front of Christians and non-Christians
-Evangelism
-Making wise decisions
-Interpreting Scripture or recognizing teachers who do
-Applying the truths of the word of God to different people in different situations
-Planning, executing plans, and evaluating results with regard to the advancement of the word of God

Discipleship - Praxis

What follows is a list of 7 steps that are intended to be helpful in defining the means of discipleship. These steps, however, are to be taken in light of the answers to two questions. First, is the person a believer or unbeliever? Second, is the goal of discipleship moving the person to Christian maturity or Christian leadership? Not all Christians are called to be leaders, and it is okay for someone not to be. (Leaders in this context refers to positional leaders in the church rather than the 'type' of leaders all Christians are called to be i.e. we're all a kingdom of priests to God). The answers to these questions can actually be made clear as the steps are taken.

Seven Steps to Making Disciples
1) Establish credibility as a person whose life is submitted to Christ, who can teach a person what it means to live in obedience to Christ.
2) Invite the person or people into a relationship with the expressed purpose of learning about Jesus from God's word.
3) Investigate, by means of questioning, the person's spiritual state and real spiritual needs.
4) Plan the person's or people's discipleship with a specific goal or end in mind.
5) Teach the person, from the Scriptures. Involve the person in your obedience to the Scriptures (according to the preceding list, in all categories, as you are able). These are two different things; however, they must be happening simultaneously. It is far too easy for Christians to do a bunch of teaching without the involvement of the disciple.
6) Delegate specific tasks to the disciple that are directly related to the promulgation of the word. Help them grow as they serve.
7) Release the person into the care of properly appointed elders or into the role of elder.

Discipleship - A Summary
Discipleship involves the expression of Christ's words for the purpose of bringing people into obedience to him. This will involve what they believe, the way they live, and the way they help others. Some disciples will help others (or serve/minister to them), by becoming elders and Christian leaders in churches. We are called, as missionaries, to make disciples of Jesus according to all the commands of Jesus in dependence on the sovereignty of Jesus for the glory of Jesus.

Grace & Peace,
Onesimus

A Godly Woman in Her Leisure Time

A Godly Woman in Her Leisure Time… this is a loaded title. In order to speak on this topic, one would have to assume that the speaker is a “Godly Woman”. In so many ways I feel inadequate to take on this responsibility. There are multiple times throughout the course of a day when I know I am not representing “Godliness”. I am not always the meek and quiet wife I should be. My frustration gets the better of me in my dealings with my children. Even though our home is a constant place of gatherings and fellowship I am not always the most generous and hospitable hostess. There are moments when I have failed miserably at being the “Christ like” image and witness that this world needs to see when I am in public. And although I have the reputation of possessing a laid back personality, I have acquired the skill of slicing an individual with subtlety. The mere reality of knowing just how “ungodly” I am can be overwhelming and I wonder if I will ever grow from what and where I am to true “Godliness”. In times such as these, I often find myself reflecting on the happenings, details and focus of the day (if not week). As a result, I usually find that my behavior is due to a lack of time with the Father in prayer and His Word. Prayer is the lifeline that has been given as a form of communication between us and the Holy, Righteous Creator of this universe. His Word is the blueprint by which we are shown how to survive in this world even though we are not of it. So, if I have deprived myself of these two necessities, then how in the world do I expect to represent, walk and live in “Godliness”?
The demands and responsibilities that we wives hold seem to be endless. I personally have the privilege of being a wife, mother of 4, homemaker, house keeper, school teacher, nurse, cook, waitress, janitor, peace maker, chauffer, and laundry attendant in our home, among others. There are times when I just want to allow my brain to breathe, take a short sabbatical and enjoy “leisure time”.
According to the Webster’s Dictionary, the definition of “leisure” is “Freedom provided by the cessation of activities, especially time free from work or duties”. Paul H. Wright states in The Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary that, “The Bible recognizes the need for regularly scheduled breaks from work. The weekly Sabbath (Exodus 20:8-11) and several yearly festivals (Lev. 23:1-44, Deut. 16:1-17) were intended to focus on Israel’s spiritual needs but also provided breaks from physical labor. In fact, the Mosaic Law mandated a yearlong honeymoon for newlyweds (Deut. 24:5, Luke 14:20)...”
Anyone who truly knows me is fully aware of the fact that one of my most favorite places in the entire world is to be with Jimmy (my husband)… preferably cuddled. I love his company, conversation, friendship, everything about him. He seemingly has the capability of relieving my stress regardless of the day. I also enjoy catching a good movie, listening to music, going somewhere to enjoy the wonder of God’s creation, or collaborating and creating with others artistically. For some, leisure may be cooking, for others it could be reading a book, some may prefer to shop, exercise, talk on the phone or sip on a cup of coffee/ tea while enjoying a pleasant conversation. “Leisure” has many faces and comes in many forms. This creates a question. Can leisure, although recommended scripturally, become sinful at any point? I believe it can, especially when the leisure time is misplaced. When any form of leisure takes precedence to the gentle tugging of the Holy Spirit that prompts us to spend time with Him, then it has most definitely developed into sin. The problem lies when leisure becomes our first and sometimes only means of release. Those favorite pastimes have been made into idols and before we know it, we have lost the sense of knowing how to think of time spent with Him as enjoyable, but rather as just another task that we have to push through. There have been times when I have been so exhausted that the focus needed to read, pray or meditate on His Word requires more effort than I am willing to sacrifice. All I want to do is “chill” and not “think”! Wow… how self-centered is that? Where does pray without ceasing (1 Thes. 5:17) and delight in the Law of the Lord, and on His Law should I meditate day and night (Psalm 1:2) come into play? How ironic then that I wonder why I have a problem with portraying “Christ likeness”.
What example did Christ set as a model for us to follow? What did He routinely do whenever He went off to get away from the crowds and disciples? He prayed. I think there is something to be said in this. Even though Christ was fully God, He was also fully man. His physical body required the relaxation that mortals must have. During this time of relaxation He deliberately positioned Himself in such a way where His mortality would not give way to sin. Times of fatigue and exhaustion are prime occasions for our flesh to be given opportunity to rise up and surrender to the desires that we are too tired to fight. We are “too tired” to make the necessary sacrifices that are needed to remain focused on a life of Godly submission and obedience. If I am in need of a release/ rest and it is Christ that I am having difficulty representing to the world and my family, then wouldn’t it make sense for me to follow Christ’s example? Christ showed us that it is an honor and privilege to go to the Originator and Creator of all things, at all times, regardless of our “feelings”.
We live in a culture that lacks a true understanding of suffering and deprivation. Regardless of one’s financial status or living circumstances, the fact remains that we live in a land of abundance. It is an abundance of media, entertainment, activities, food, relationships, etc. Suffering believers that live in other regions of the world, consider prayer a necessity for daily living. They risk their lives to merely possess the Holy Scriptures that have become their true daily bread. Our nations’ privileges are such distractions. We have allowed for them to be given power that keeps us from enjoying the intimacy that all believers should experience with the Lord. In light of these things, I have to soberly ask, “How ridiculous does my need to “chill” sound?” The answer is that my priorities must change, which in turn will determine my definition of leisure. In addition, I am learning that as I attempt to spend time with the Father, I must also be willing and ready to allow for the time to be one of self-examination. As He washes me with His Word, my hearts’ cry must be that He exposes every ounce of what I look like before Him. When there is a lack of self-examination, the result of the time spent will only become an increase in head knowledge without life transformation. If we come to these times with this in mind, then the gospel will be that which bleeds into our everyday interactions. As I truly get to know Him and clearly see what it is that I look like before Him, then my interactions will change to resemble “Christ likeness”.
I have come to the conclusion that relaxation is necessary but that Christ must become my first exhale. He must become the One I first seek for “cuddling”, the One I first enjoy. He must be my #1 leisure.

Grace & Peace
Nikki Miles

How should a man disciple his wife?

This is an incredibly helpful post for those men who are married, for those planning to get married, for women wanting a man to marry, for women who are married...

If you're breathing, this may be helpful to you.

Pastors HAVE to be exemplary fathers. 1 Timothy 3:4-5

(4-5) He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?

Paul here continues his explanation of the qualifications that pastors must meet. It’s worth revisiting the several different ways we should examine this section.

1) It tells us what the men should be like that we appoint to eldership.
2) It shows us a paradigm of Christian character, since elders are to be examples to the whole Church.
3) It shows pastors how they are to continue to live.
4) It shows us the character of Jesus Christ, who is the Church’s Head Pastor and Shepherd – which is the same word in Greek, actually.

We need to note that again, the character trait that Paul points out here is not optional – it is ‘necessary’ – it is a ‘must.’ Someone who doesn’t have this trait cannot be an elder.

He must do a good job managing his own household – and this will show up in the submissiveness of his children. Are his children, in general, obedient?

Further, is the manner in which he keeps his children obedient ‘dignified’? This answers the question ‘how’ does he keep his children submissive? Is it through godly or ungodly means? Does he rule as a tyrant? Does he try to be his childrens’ best friend? Or does he seek to lead them lovingly to Christ?

So – those with unsubmissive children and those who keep their children submissive by wrong means are excluded from the pastorate.

This requirement seems a bit stringent, doesn’t it? Ultimately, can a parent be held completely responsible for his childrens’ behavior? No – not ultimately. However, while they are children, does a parents’ ability or inability to parent well not show up in the behavior of their children?

Paul goes on to provide the rationale for this requirement: “…for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?”

The similarity here is in leadership. The goal of a pastor is to lead well, instructing people in the word of God and applying the word of God to them, such that they obey God. And that is the same as the goal of a Christian parent for their children.

Paul makes a connection here – if someone can’t manage his own household – how can he manage a household that’s not his own? In which he only represents the Head of the house? He cannot. The Church needs people that can represent her Head, Jesus Christ, to her – well. And this is the love of God for us – to instill, in authority in the Church, those who imitate Christ to her well. Who care for her well.

We note here that it is God’s Church. And that Jesus ultimately cared for Her. He died for her to save her (Eph. 5). He leads her to salvation (Heb. 3). He saves her perfectly. He speaks to her through the Scriptures which are given to her (1 Tim. 4). He has given her his presence for joy (Eph. 2). He loves us, died for us, is caring for us, teaches us, and has secured salvation for us.

And those we appoint as elders should imitate him well, so that in the Church, Jesus will be loved and honored.

Summary:
-Those we appoint as elders must have submissive children.
-Those we appoint as elders must parent in a dignified, serious, godly manner.
-The Church is God’s House. It’s Jesus’ household.
-A pastor must be able to represent Jesus’ loving leadership to the Church in the way that is appropriate to a father leading his family.
-Jesus, ultimately, has loved and cared for his Church – and saved us.

Prayer:
Thank you, Jesus, for caring for us. Thank you for infallibly leading us who you chose before the world existed to salvation. Thank you that you grant perseverance in walking with you based on your death in our stead.
Cause me to lead my household well, Father, as Jesus loved us. Cause me to assist in the appointment of elders in the Church who lead in a loving, dignified, holy manner – desiring nothing more than to represent and honor Jesus Christ.
In his blood I pray, amen.

The character we should aspire to have; and absolute requirements for pastors

(2) Therefore, an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach…

Paul continues to give Timothy instructions for how to lead God’s people continually to Christ, and he continues to give Timothy instructions about pastors.

He starts with the words, “Therefore, an overseer must be…” By doing so, he says in the strongest way he can that a pastor has to have certain qualifications. They are not negotiable.

Why? Because, as it says in verse one, the office of overseer is a noble task. In other words, the overseer is to represent Christ’s leadership to Christ’s people. Since Christ is physically absent, an overseer is to watch over the Lord’s flock and care for his sheep in the way that Christ would.

And therefore, certain qualifications for such a man are in order.

An overseer must be above reproach. There must be no doubt as to his character and godliness. Jesus was and is sinless. No one within the Church or outside of the Church could ever have accused him of sin. And if they could have, who would’ve followed him? Though pastors cannot be sinless, they can live in a way such that they are not worthy of blame. And so the message about Christ will appear good to outsiders – and those inside will be more apt to follow their leadership. Further, overseers are to represent Christ in the sight of God – and such actions will honor him – as will the imitating actions of those in the Church.

An overseer must be ‘the husband of one wife,’ or literally, ‘a man of one woman.’ In other words, he must be free from sexual impurity. He wouldn’t have to be married (Paul himself wasn’t at this point in life), but he was to live his life pure for one woman. This is a good example for God’s people and looks good to outsiders. But more than that, it is in imitation of Christ, who set himself apart for a pure Bride, his Church. He is always faithful to us. He never strays from us. He always acts in love towards us. He never regrets choosing us and saving us – but will save us to the end.

An overseer must be sober-minded. In other words, he must be able to think clearly and to be restrained. He must not simply react to events and people. He must not be impulsive. Someone in charge of God’s visible church would be put through the fire – both from those outside the church seeking to hate Christ – and those within who weren’t in submission to him. A pastor cannot be a person who just reacts to bad things. Just like Jesus never reacted to those who hated him – and ultimately, as a sheep before his shearers, when he was condemned to die for our sins, he was silent. He suffered for us – and our leaders are to imitate Christ so we can join him in his suffering for the glory of God.

An overseer must be self-controlled. They must be sensible. They must be able to have goals, to keep those goals in front of them, and to make decisions rationally, not based on emotions or impulse or desire – but based on God’s word. They must be able to make decisions based on God’s word to model obedience to God’s people, to demonstrate heavenly priorities to God’s world, and to imitate and glorify Jesus. And that is how, though he suffered much in our place, Christ endured the wrath of God. He had his mind set on future glory and joy. So he was able to say to the Father, “Not my will, but yours be done” – and to suffer in our place for our sins – since he knew he would take his life back up again as King of all things.

An overseer must be respectable. This is the same word used to describe how women are to dress. It simply means that a man who is a pastor should be someone who people naturally respect. If they don’t, will they trust his leadership? Will they trust his instruction? Will those outside the Church see the Church as something deserving of attention? No. But if the Church is led by respectable men, God’s household will function properly within and glorify Christ to outsiders. Even those who hated Christ when he was on earth knew that he demanded respect; he couldn’t be brushed off as a fool, or a lunatic. And by his love and goodness and mercy his disciples knew he was good and followed him.

An overseer must be hospitable. In other words, a pastor must recognize that he doesn’t get his ‘own space.’ He must welcome others into the life of his home in practice and because he wants to be with them. He obviously has to love his wife more – and so he is to not do this to the detriment of his immediate family. However, he is to be welcoming outsiders into his family and home in regular practice, out of love for them. He is to imitate Jesus in this manner. We hated him, yet, he took us into his family. He loved us while we rebelled against him. He didn’t make us mere servants in his household, but heirs of God’s Kingdom. And he went to prepare a place for us to be with him forever – because he delights in us and we delight in him.

An overseer must be able to teach. The Christian faith is a religion of the book – of words. God has communicated himself and his glory to us in words which he chose. His authority and his glory and his love and his grace and he himself are revealed through these words – and so those who lead must be able to explain these words to God’s people – because they are God’s people – not the pastor’s. Ultimately, the people of God do not follow the pastor – but the pastor explains to the people who God is and what he commands of us. He shows us God from God’s book. Jesus is the head pastor of every church – and he is the ultimate expression of God himself – he is the exact imprint of God in physical form. When we see him, we will know him fully. Until then, he has given us words which are to be explained to us by pastors – so we can know him and love him.

Summary:
1) Since overseers represent Christ to the Church, and Christ’s leadership of the Church to the world, they must meet certain qualifications.
2) Some of these qualifications are being above reproach, being sexually pure, being sober-minded, being self-controlled, bing respectable, being hospitable, and being able to teach.
3) Christ is the ultimate head pastor of every church and the whole Church – and was the perfect overseer in coming to earth, explaining God’s word to us, dying for our sins, rising from the dead, and promising to return to take us home to be with him.

Prayer:
Father, thank you for Christ’s leadership. Thank you for his humility and suffering. Thank you that he always had your glory in mind and thus always had our best in mind – and was willing to suffer so much for it. Thank you that his words are trustworthy. Help us to rejoice in the good news he announced!
I pray that you would cause me and those in pastoral ministry to grow in and consistently demonstrate these qualities – not because we want to earn our salvation – but because you are worthy of being honored. Help us love Jesus more than all things and desire to show off Jesus more than all things – because it’s all about Jesus, in whose name I pray – amen.

Women aren't to teach the Bible to men or lead them spiritually - or - an idea I used to hate. 1 Timothy 2:12-14

(11) Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness.

Remember, Paul is instructing Timothy how to lead God’s Church – the community of people God has set apart, through Jesus Christ, for his new creation.

He’s just talked about how men and women are to come to worship and lead lives of prayer, both being connected to God, and to adorn that relationship with godliness that is particular to manhood and womanhood.

Paul now begins to give specific directions to Timothy as he leads the local church.

First, we should note that women are to be learning in the public setting of the local church, in public worship. They are not to be excluded! They are to learn; they are to hear from God’s word.

And they are to respond in prayer and worship and witness to outsiders, as loved daughters of God.

Learning from God’s word is not for men, but for all God’s children – the whole Church without exception.

Paul describes the manner of their learning – quietly, or in silence, and with all submission.

Now, bear with me – Paul’s about to explain why here. But first we’re going to look at the what. And even before we do that, we need to remember that this is God’s word: we don’t get to argue with it. We submit to it.

Women are to learn quietly, or in silence. In the culture of the day, it wouldn’t be uncommon for there to be more than one speaker. It also wouldn’t be uncommon to have ordered interjection and questioning. Here, Paul forbids women from doing those things (see 1 Corinthians 14:34-35).

Paul further describes this state as being ‘with all submissiveness.’ In other words, there is to be a demeanor of full submission to the teaching in the local church. There isn’t a bent of being able to exercise authority along with the church’s leaders, but rather, full submission to them as they teach God’s word.

(12) (and) I don’t permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet…

The commands that church leaders, namely, evangelists and pastors, are to enforce here are furthered. Again, we’ll get to ‘why’ in a second.

One thing you don’t see in the English translations is the connecting word between verses 11 and 12. These thoughts are very much connected. Quiet is the opposite of teaching. Submission is the opposite of exercising authority.

And among God’s people, women are not to teach or exercise authority over adult men. Now, to be more specific, given the context, God is talking about teaching the Bible to adult men and making decisions in the leadership of adult men. And God forbids those things, and commands church leaders to forbid those things.

(13-14) …for Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not decived, but the woman was decived and became a transgressor…

And now God gives us the rationale for his commands. Not that he has to, by the way. God doesn’t owe us anything. But I think here he wants to protect us against extremes. He wants to make sure that we understand that the commands aren’t rooted in male superiority or value. And he wants to protect us from thinking these commands are culturally relative; clearly, given his rationale, they are not.

There is a distinction God made between men and women that is not based on the nature of men and women or value of men and women – but on the manner in which God desires to be glorified. And to reject the pattern God set up is to reject, in this circumstance, God’s design for his glory.

God’s rationale for teaching and authority among his people is based in the way he created the world. He gives two reasons: Adam was made first, and Eve and not Adam was deceived into breaking God’s law.

At first glance, that may not make sense to you. And that’s understandable. Why would the order that God created Adam and Eve matter? And wasn’t Adam also deceived?

The order God created Adam and Eve matters for this reason. If you look at the way Paul uses the word ‘first,’ he’s often referring to the order in which people received God’s word.

In the case of Adam and Eve, Adam was created first and entrusted with God’s commands and covenant: if you disobey, you will die; but if you obey, you will live (see Genesis 2). Now, later, both Adam and Eve were given charge over all the rest of creation together (Genesis 1); but Adam was given caretaking over humanity – to guard against sin and death.

So, Paul argues, this is the pattern that God has set up among his people: men are to be the ones entrusted with God’s words – for their application to God’s people – and the guarding of God’s people from disobedience. That is the way that God’s people have been structured from the beginning, and to do otherwise is to break God’s ways.

So – wasn’t Adam also deceived? If we look at Genesis 3, yes, he was. And everywhere else in the Bible the first sin that plunged us all into darkness and death is noted as Adam’s, not Eve’s. So what’s going on here?

Again, in Greek, the emphasis here isn’t on ‘being fooled’ – it’s the ‘receiving of deception.’ In other words, Eve was the object of deception. It doesn’t mean that women are more easily tricked. The emphasis is on Satan, not Eve. Satan went after Eve – instead of going after the one who was supposed to be leading the first community of God’s people.

In other words, Satan turned God’s created order – men leading based on God’s word alone and suffering to do so for the lives of God’s people (Adam should have guarded Eve against the devil) – with men and women submitting to God’s word taught and applied.

To put it more simply, the devil himself subverted God’s structure for how his community should work in the application of and teaching of his message.

And I’d suggest he desires still to do it today – via chauvinism (male leaders who are leading for themselves and not God and his people) and feminism (women can teach and lead men).

What’s brass tax, here? God’s word is the authority over men and women. There is no authority which is to be exercised in God’s church but that which is from God’s word. A group of men called pastors/elders/overseers are to teach and apply God’s word to his people, serving them, loving them, and when necessary, suffering for them. The rest of God’s church is to submit to God’s word taught by and the leading of God’s appointed men. Period.

Why? Because God’s word is authoritative. Not our desires, culture, or experience. If we have seen sin that leans to chauvinism, we are not to run to Satan’s lie: feminism. And if we have seen sin that leans to feminism, we are not to run to Satan’s other lie: chauvinism.

Rather, we are to collectively submit to the order that God has set up for his people, period.

Why? Because it honors God and his message about Jesus, a cross, a resurrection, and the salvation of everyone who believes in him.

Summary:
1) Church leaders are to enforce a certain structure of church leadership.
2) They are to do so out of love for their people and love for the world.
3) Church leaders must not permit women to teach the Bible to men.
4) Church leaders must not permit women to lead men spiritually.
5) Church leaders, being men, are to teach God’s word and lead via God’s word alone, suffering for God’s people as her leaders when the times call for it
6) This is all for God’s glory. Human ‘worth’ is not a relevant category here, except to note that this is for the good of God’s people.
7) This structure is also for the good of the world, as God’s glory is shown to the world, and as God draws people to relationship with Jesus.
8) Thus, this structure is to be the structure of God’s communities in every place.

Prayer:
Father, thank you for rescuing us even though we collectively sinned against you and rejected your word. I’m sorry for being a passive man – not speaking up with your word when it’s needed. I’m sorry for being a cowardly man – not leading as your word would have me. I’m sorry for being a selfish man – speaking up to get things that will please me.
And I’m so thankful that Jesus was the perfect man, and that his obedience rescues me.
And I’m thankful that his perfection also rescues your daughters, and they are equal heirs of your Kingdom.
Help me and other churchmen to love our wives and our churches and all women. Help us to live and die to show your glory to them.
Help women to see their worth not in what they do – but as your daughters. Not in service, but in being saved.
Help us all to submit to your word for your glory.
Because of Christ we pray, Amen.

Hey! Man up, and PRAY. 1 Timothy 2:8

(8a) I desire, then, that in every place the men should pray…

Paul here continues his thought regarding prayer. Prayer is the loving response of the Church to the world which hates her, because the Church once hated the Savior who loved her and died for her.

Paul concludes that since God’s love is without condition, the men should be praying in every place without distinction. And indeed, they are men in every place now, since God has loved all nations without distinction.

It’s interesting that he settles on the men here. Perhaps men have a greater tendency not to pray and need the exhortation. Regardless, men need to see unconditional and loving prayer for the world as a necessity. And they need to do it.

And we should note that the verb used for ‘pray’ is a continuous verb. In other words, men should be continuously praying in every place.

And here we see the heart of God – who desires that men should pray in every place, speaking to him, worshiping him, showing their dependence on him, honoring him.

(8b) …lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling…

Here Paul describes what the men’s prayers are to look like. The expression ‘lifting holy hands’ denotes how prayer is to be done – with one’s hear turned toward the God who is in heaven, knowing that we are creatures on earth. We are to turn our attention and desires and trust to him.

And the hands that we are to lift must be holy, or in other words, dedicated to God’s service. Our lives are to be dedicated to God. But hands don’t turn our attention to motive – they turn our attention to actions.

In other words, we are to approach God in prayer, living a holy life. We are not to hypocritically turn to God in prayer, expecting things from him, if we are not living for him.

God further explains how prayers are to look: without anger or quarreling. He of course doesn’t mean that people were coming to him angry or arguing with him – but with each other. Men, particularly.

Anger is a massive theme in scripture, and we see that it doesn’t accomplish the righteousness that God desires. But we also see anger and prayer linked together as a hypocritical combination.

Consider James 4:1-4: “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

Anger on earth shows us where our treasure lies – on earth. Why, if our motives are earthbound, would we approach God and ask for heavenward things? We wouldn’t! And so Paul instructs us – but particularly men – how to pray. Our deeds should be holy, our desires should be heavenward, and our relationships should be peaceful – otherwise our prayers will be hypocritical.

We could also say that relational strife is an indicator of where our hearts are – and where our relationships with God are.

And so we must commit to peace as we come to God, seeking his will to be done on earth through us. And then we must do it.

Summary:
1) Men everywhere should be living lives of continuous, public prayer.
2) This prayer is a response to the unconditional love of God, asking for the unconditional love of God to be extended to others.
3) Prayer is to be accompanied by holy deeds.
4) Prayer is to be accompanied by relational peace.
5) Our deeds and relationships are indicators of where our motives lie.

Prayer:
Holy God, you deserve prayer to be extended to you from every place on earth all the time. I’ve sinned against you. I’ve been self-dependent, forgetting that every blessing given to me is by your unconditional love. I’ve been self-absorbed, desiring things on earth to make me happy. Thank you for the cleansing from sin purchased by Jesus’ blood for even the chief of sinners. Thank you for forgiveness. Cause me to do the works you’ve prepared for me to do. Cause me to desire nothing like I desire your name to be honored in all of creation. Father, thank you for your love, given freely to us in the Son, applied to us in your Spirit.

Amen.

A Thought About Marriage

Secular marriage - a husband and wife giving up some of what they each want to reach maximum happiness together.

Christian marriage - a husband and wife giving up any perceived rights or desires they have for the sake of God being glorified in the relationship.

Also, John Piper has a simply amazing quote about a husband's role here: click!

Some thoughts regarding the Marriage and Obesity Article from CBMW

I recently posted in article from the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood regarding the relationship of marriage, obesity, and proper body care. You can scroll down for the original article. A quite lengthy discussion ensued.

And this discussion raised a lot of … emotions, didn’t it? It’s a touchy subject – and I think our emotions about it have run deep because this issue affects how we think about ourselves and our closest relationships.

So some passion is understandable. I want to suggest, at the outset, that much of what has been discussed has been based on assumptions – it hasn’t necessarily addressed the article as such, but rather the inferences that we made and the feelings we have about it.

So, in response to this discussion, I want to make a series of observations from Scripture, in reference to the article, and in application to Christ’s Church. (To those of you who followed the discussion on Facebook, this is not the 'theology' about which I spoke - merely a response to the discussion.) I hope this is helpful to your walk with Jesus.

1. Justification

One’s acceptableness to God is not determined by their physical fitness nor attractiveness. God forbid. But nowhere does the article imply anything like that.

Our right standing with God is also not determined by the ‘rightness’ of our hearts, since our hearts are wicked (Jer. 17:9) and we are unrighteous before God (Rom. 3:10-12). Our right standing before God is based solely on Jesus’ righteousness (Phil. 3:8-9) received by faith in him apart from works (Rom 3:28).

This article assumes the right standing of those who trust Christ. It is not advocating justification by fitness or attractiveness. That’s an absolutely absurd notion. But justification by the goodness of one’s heart is an impossibility as well. We must all look to Christ for our right standing – we can’t stand right before God, in whole or even in part – only Jesus can.

Be very careful here. You need to not have a knee jerk reaction when you feel a certain way – you misrepresent what people have said. Be very careful, also, that you not believe that your right standing is on the basis of your godliness! I don’t want to belabor the point – but it is vital that you get this: right standing is on the basis of the righteousness of Christ plus nothing, received by faith in Christ. Your heart is not good. Jesus’ is. When you see the glory of God, you will not enter his kingdom on the basis of your heart – but on the basis of Christ’s heart in your place, if you have trusted in him.

2. The place of obedience in the Christian life

That said, that doesn’t mean that we can do whatever we want. Just because our entry into Christ’s kingdom is based on Christ’s righteousness and not ours does not mean we can fail to pursue obedience. (Rom. 6:1-4; Phil. 2:12-13) It means quite the opposite.

Obedience does not mean being a supermodel, and the article says nothing of the sort. But obedience to God does have ramifications in terms of how we treat our bodies, as we shall see.

3. The idolatry of body image

One way that we can sin against God is to worship our bodies or what other people think of our bodies. Essentially, what happens, is that we become concerned about what people think about us (John 12:42-43, and we treasure things that belong to this world (Matt. 6:19-21) – a world which is going away.

We all know the things that those sorts of things lead to. The article doesn’t deny this. It just isn’t about these issues. They are not a small matter; they are the result of sin. Jesus deserves our worship – our bodies do not. People also do not. Jesus does. Period. Working out should not be god. Peoples’ opinions of how you look should not be god. And that’s because Jesus IS God.

If this is a struggle for you, you need to repent. Get your sin out in the open in the presence of some trusted friends, and have them help you, thanking God that you’re forgiven in Christ.

4. The idolatry of food

Here’s another thing we can worship instead of God – food. I’m reminded of the sentence in Philippians 3:19: “their god is their belly.”

Gluttony is bad (Proverbs 23:20-21).

I was just flipping through a cookbook, and there was a whole section on ‘comfort food.’ That is nothing less than the advocating of idolatry. I’ll return to why in a second.

Now, it’s certainly not wrong to enjoy food. As a matter of fact, if you control what you eat so much that you don’t enjoy food, you’re probably in sin, either trying to justify yourself by harsh treatment of your body, or refusing to enjoy and thank God for what he’s given, or because you’re worshiping your body and what people think of you.

But – God is our Comforter. God is our delight. God is our treasure. Food is not. You treat food like it is your comfort, your delight – you are worshiping an idol. If you spend a ton of time thinking about food, coveting food, desiring food, meditating what the next meal will be – you are worshiping food, not God.

If you don’t stop eating when you’ve had enough, if you are wasting God’s time eating food that you don’t need, if you are not using food for the glory of God, it’s using you, and you are worshiping an idol.

To be honest, I struggle here. Now, I usually eat healthy, and I do work out – but I have people holding me accountable in this area – because it is easy for me to make food into a god – usually for comfort or just as a waste of time.

Now, the article had to do with how we treat our bodies because that affects how we look. Granted, there is not a one-to-one correlation here. Not everyone on the same diet will look the same, and we shouldn’t automatically judge people as gluttons or anorexics based on how they look.

But the sin here we’re dealing with is idolatry – worshiping food. Regardless of how it affects how we look, this is a sin that needs to be taken seriously.

And it’s not as if this sin is the swinging of a pendulum to the ‘other side’ – where the one side is body-image issues and control. At the root, these things are the same – Jesus isn’t being worshiped, something else is. We all need to root the sin out and worship Jesus.

5. The superiority of godliness to physical attractiveness

1 Peter 3 exhorts women to focus on inner adornment – a gentle, quite, submissive spirit – as greater than how they look physically. Obviously. The article does not deny this, and it says nothing in which inner godliness is diminished.

But to say that godliness has no connection to making ourselves look good to our spouses (or future spouses), is wrong. See my next point.

6. The importance of physical attractiveness

Read Song of Songs. Do you realize that almost everything Solomon says to the Shulammite is about her physical appearance? And that much of what she says to him is also about physical appearance?

And that, in the picture that marriage is of Christ and the Church, the Bride is beautifully adorned? (Eph. 5:21ff; Rev. 21:9ff)

Now certainly, some of what constitutes beauty is culturally conditioned, and there are indeed different body types – I will never be tall! (Or even of average height!) And as we move towards physical death, our bodies change. However, there are many things you can do out of love for your spouse for the glory of God in making yourself a delight to the senses. And you should.

And these should not be done in fear (see the next point) but in love.

Let me suggest this- perhaps, far too much time is spent in considering how we look to people that are NOT our spouses. And perhaps you don’t seek to please your spouse with your looks enough. Perhaps the way you look should primarily be to serve your spouse!

Loving your spouse means seeking their happiness – and part of that is how you look.

Or let me put it another way – your job is to please your spouse. Not from fear, but from love. Both men and women. That should be something we work for. We should work to make ourselves look good to our spouses (or future spouses) not in exclusion to inner qualities – but as a result of and corresponding to those inner qualities.

This is not easy and it is not intuitive. But it is holy and good and we should do it.

EDIT: In saying this, I'm not stating that we should be placing demands on our spouses! Far from it. I'm saying that you should be working to please your spouse, not that you should be forcing your spouse to work for you.

7. The unconditional nature of a husband’s love

“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the Church…” (Ephesians 5:25). The husband doesn’t get an out from this. His love for his wife should not be conditioned on how she looks.

And that includes if she sits around eating chips and brownies all day, doing nothing but watching TV.

It also means that he should love her regardless of how she treats him. If she publicly humiliates him, disrespects him, degrades him, and is constantly trying to usurp his authority in the household – he is still to love her, period.

The article says nothing different. To run with the inference that a wife’s not making herself look good for her husband somehow causes him to commit adultery is wrong.

But do you think a husband’s responsibility here is easy? Do you think there are things that a wife can do that make his responsibility to love her hard? Men are more visual than women, and a man will often take his wife’s care for her appearance for him as a measure of respect and love for him.

The fact is that women ‘letting themselves go’ does not cause their husbands to fail or to fall – but it sure isn’t helping them. And I’d hope that a wife’s desire to look good for her husband isn’t the result of fear of him committing adultery or getting addicted to porn – but that out of love she seeks to protect him from those things by making her body a delight to him.

And it goes the same way for men. Women – you are called to unconditionally submit to your husbands. Now, that is difficult, isn’t it? But what if your husband doesn’t make time for you? Doesn’t listen to you? Doesn’t treat you gently? Mocks you in front of his friends? Doesn’t love you? Doesn’t speak love to you?

It’s even harder, I’m sure. But you still have to do it – for the glory of Christ!

But ultimately – you don’t want your husband to act in an unChristlike manner. It makes your submission that much harder.

It boils down to this: failure to love your spouse is not an option; but there are things that you can do – both men and women – that make your spouse’s job harder or easier. They don’t cause his or her sin or obedience – but you can indeed help them and love them.

Part of how that should be done is intentionally, regularly, making an effort to make yourself look good for them and to them.

8. The connection of our physical bodies and spiritual lives

Ephesians 5:18-19 says this: “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart…”

What’s this passage got to do with this topic? Simply this – your physical body is connected to your spiritual life. You make your body drunk, it’s going to affect your walking in the Spirit.

But so will it be if you’re not in shape, if you don’t sleep enough, if you’re eating so that you live in an insulin coma – your walk with God is affected by how you treat your body.

So yes – you can make an idol out of fitness and/or appearance. Don’t do that. But, you should be treating your body in such a way as to make yourself a better, more able, servant of Christ. Do that.

9. Final thoughts

I understand how reading an article like this one from CBMW could raise some ire. It’s a touchy issue. But a lot of the ire raised had very little to do with the article’s actual content.

I think such a long discussion happened because it is a touchy and personal issue for so many of us. Perhaps we feel judged. Or perhaps we are touchy about how we look (I am, and I know how that feels). Or perhaps there are other fears. Perhaps we fear people reacting and idolizing body-image instead of idolizing food and laziness!

Let me suggest a few things when we read articles like this, even ones which misquote a couple verses.

1) Read the article for what it says.

2) Do not make inferences about what the article says based on how it makes you feel.

3) Do use biblical discernment.

4) Even if the article uses a verse or two incorrectly, make it your goal to heed what is sound in it...

5) …because the fact is, we all need a little rebuking. Our first reaction to an article like this should be to see how such a thing could sanctify us personally. To be humble, and to examine ourselves for sin so that we can repent –even if there are some things that are wrong in the article. We need to be learners and repenters – not people who are characterized by the seeking to critique sources of exhortation. We should seek to be applying exhortation, though with discernment.

For the glory of God.

Manliness, manliness is what I long for...

I was having a conversation with a few guys about manhood a few days ago, and we got into a disagreement about what it means to be manly. So I figured, hey, let’s look at what the Bible has to say about manhood.

1) God expects us to just know what it means to be manly. In 1 Corinthians 16:13, Paul says, ‘Act like men.’ And in 1 Corinthians 11:14-15, Paul says, “Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair, it is a disgrace for him…?”

We’ll get to that ‘long hair’ issue in a second – but note this: God expects us to just know what manliness is.

2) Some of what manliness is is culturally relative. 1 Corinthians 11 is about head coverings. In the verse I just cited, Paul says, essentially, don’t you know that a head covering (long hair) on a man is effeminate?

Now, we don’t ‘know’ that per se. It was something unique to the Corinthian culture. But the fact is – they would’ve known that wearing a head cover in their culture was effeminate.

Application? There are things in our culture that are girly. So I can say you listen to girly music. Or like girly movies. Or talk in a girly way. Knock it off and toughen up, guys.

3) Only men are called to exercise authority in their families and in the Church of God. Of course that authority should be gentle (1 Peter 3), not domineering (1 Peter 5), and for the love of the saints/one’s wife (1 Peter 5; Ephesians 5:22ff).

But it’s still authority. That means a dude has to be decisive, responsible, and a leader. He has to own the direction for his family – and before he can do that, he needs to be decisive and responsible about his position as a Christian.

4) Godly men are to be willing to suffer. Ephesians 5:22 and following tells us a godly husband should suffer for the holiness of his wife because he loves her. So our love should compel us to suffer for the holiness of Christ’s bride and his people, in general.

Real men embrace suffering.

There’s a strength about that. You can look back to 1 Corinthians 16:13 about it.

5) Godly men protect God’s people against attacks against the glory of God.

Adam, as recorded in Genesis 2, was responsible for the commands God gave. Eve wasn’t even around when God gave them. And Adam did jack when Satan showed up.

He was supposed to speak up, act as his wife’s authority, and kill the serpent. Likewise, in the Church, the elders are commanded (Titus 1) to teach sound doctrine and silence those who contradict it.

Oh but that sounds so… harsh.

6) Men have a natural tendency towards violence – and that’s not a bad thing. Adam was supposed to kill the serpent. The priests (Numbers 3) were supposed to kill anyone who dared desecrate the temple. Only men were called to be soldiers.

Sometimes protection means we rebuke people. Sometimes protection means we use force. And that’s what men are called to.

Of course that can be abused. But those abuses aren’t what we’re talking about right now. Some things require violent action, and men are put in those positions for violent action. No man gets an exception.

7) Men are to lead courageously. In Judges 4, Barak failed to courageously lead God’s people into battle. Deborah, a judge in Israel, calls him out and mocks him – because he wanted to be protected by a woman.

8) Men are to determine the actions of their churches. In Isaiah 3 God mocks Israel – saying that women are leading them. He does that to mock the men. They should’ve been sticking up and leading Israel. They failed.

So there’s just a little bit. I’m not talking about stuff like love and gentleness here- those things that every Christian is commanded to obey. It’s clear from these Scriptures (and more) that men are to be uniquely men.

They are to lead. Take authority. Take responsibility for the Church of God. Silence those who would lead the sheep astray. Take responsibility for their families.

So men – you know this stuff. A few things to do:

A) Own your own spiritual growth. Stop being a spiritual coward, start following Jesus your King. That means submitting to his word and taking your own sin seriously.

B) Own your family’s spiritual growth if you have one.

C) Step up in the Church. Think of ministries to do. Do them. Step up when they ask for volunteers. Stop looking to be entertained and start taking risks to serve God.

D) Know the Bible. Speak the Bible. Rebuke those who contradict the Bible.

Guys – any more you can think of?