1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus
***denotes visual lesson
Thessalonians
**1 Thessalonians 5:18 - An Opposite and Equal Reaction
**1 Thessalonians 5:19 - Pentecost and the Holy Spirit (Holy Day Lesson - Pentecost)
**1 Thessalonians 5:21 - Face Value
**1 Thessalonians 5:22 - A Magnetic Lesson
**1 Thessalonians 5:22 - What About Sin
Timothy
**1 Timothy 4:15 - Be Absorbed in the Things of God
1 Timothy 6:12 - Fight the Good Fight
**2 Timothy 2:15 - How do You Handle God's Word?
**2 Timothy 2:19 - To Whom Do You Belong?
**2 Timothy 2:21 - Useful to God
**2 Timothy 3:13 - Seashells: Deceiving and Being Deceived
**2 Timothy 4:5 - Endure!
***An Opposite and Equal Reaction
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
Materials: rubber band, bouncy ball, green bean seeds, mirror, printed verses (James 1:17; Romans 8:32; Psalm 9:1; Psalm 95:2-3; 1 Chronicles 16:34; Psalm 100:4.
Imagine I pull a rubber band back from my index finger. What will happen when I let go? It will fly forward. If I pull harder and farther, the faster and farther the rubber band will fly when I release it. This is an example of Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
The more gas you give the car, the faster the wheels will turn. That is, the more force is pushing against the ground. The same force pushing against the ground pushes back against the car, making it move forward.
Think about dropping a ball on the ground. The higher I am when I drop the ball, the higher it will bounce back up. The harder I bounce the ball, the higher it will bounce back up.
Newton’s Third Law of Motion is at work every day in our lives.
In thinking about opposite and equal reactions, a mirror comes to mind. When you smile into a mirror, what is reflected back at you? A smile. But what if you frown? Do you still get a smile? No. Whatever your face displays is reflected back to you in the mirror - it’s an equal face that is reflected back to you.
It’s part of the law of the harvest. If you plant green beans, what do you expect to grow? Green beans. You don’t expect to plant green beans and then find radishes sprouting up a few days later. So you get back what you plant. It’s an equal and opposite reaction. You plant green beans; green beans grow.
So stop and consider a couple of verses:
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17
He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Romans 8:32
I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 9:1
Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods. Psalm 95:2-3
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4
We’re getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving Day this coming week. Why do we do that? Because God has given us so much. He’s given us His Son, life itself, the promise of eternal life with Him as his children. And we give thanks to Him because He is worthy to receive all of our praise and thanksgiving. He has given us so much!!
Think about Newton’s Third Law of Motion. God has given us so much. What’s the equal and opposite reaction? We need to give thanks to Him. As the apostle Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica: Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
We’re choosing to nationally, collectively set aside a day to give thanks to God. But really, we should remember to give thanks to Him always!
**Pentecost and the Holy Spirit
Do not quench the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19
Materials needed: large wine glass, oil, water, effervescent tablet, food coloring (Set up the demonstration while presenting the lesson: Fill the glass 85% with oil. Then pour in water - which will sink to the bottom of the glass. Put in a couple of drops of food coloring. Drop in a tablet. The effervescent tablet will bubble in the water, rise to the surface, and then sink again. The Holy Spirit works inside each of us. The outward actions that everyone sees can be genuinely motivated by the Spirit inside or they can be just an outward show without the inward reality. But God knows. And over time, the consistency of our actions will demonstrate the authenticity of our Christianity and the indwelling of God’s Spirit.)
The holy day, Pentecost, brings to mind the giving of the Holy Spirit. Where the Spirit was given only to a select few, now God’s Spirit was poured out abundantly on His people (Acts 2; Titus 3:4-6). What an incredible gift!
The apostle Paul tells us that the Holy Spirit is the downpayment, the pledge, of what is to come. (2 Corinthians 1:22; 2 Corinthians 5:5; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:16-17). It is a guarantee of our inheritance, our adoption into the family of God.
For those who belong to God, who are His people, the Holy Spirit dwelling within us causes a change from the inside out. The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth (John 16:13). The Holy Spirit teaches us (John 14:26).
The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin (John 16:7-8). As we listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit, we who love God turn away from sin, choosing God and God’s ways.
As we seek God’s ways more earnestly, the Holy Spirit within is the source of wisdom, revelation, and power (1 Corinthians 2:10-11; Acts 1:8; Ephesians 1:17-20). We are empowered to speak God’s words to others, to show His ways in our lives, and to understand more fully His ways and His plan.
The Holy Spirit helps us when we are weak and struggling with a temptation to sin. And the Holy Spirit intercedes for us when we don’t know the words to pray to our Father (Romans 8:26-27).
The Holy Spirit working in our lives is the means by which we become holy and sanctified and able to exhibit the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-25; 2 Thessalonians 2:13).
Knowing how very important the Holy Spirit is in our lives as followers of Christ who are pursuing holiness, it would behoove us to realize that we can quench the Holy Spirit at work in our lives. Otherwise, the apostle Paul would not have felt a need to warn us!
Here’s the gift of God, guiding us, empowering us, teaching us, giving us wisdom, helping and comforting us - and we can choose to turn away from the leading. We can choose to ignore the convicting within. We can give in to fear or doubt. We allow our wants and desires to dominate over God’s will and plan in our lives. We can choose not to get as close to God as we possibly can be. And that would be such a shame! God has given us such a gift, such an opportunity through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
On this day of Pentecost, I pray that each of us will allow the Holy Spirit to work fully in our lives, that we would stir up the Spirit within (2 Timothy 1:6-7).
***Face Value
Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 1 Thessalonians 5:21
Materials: optical illusions, card trick (optional)
(Sharing the optical illusions:) There are some amazing optical illusions out there - drawings and paintings which look real, but aren’t, or which make you think you’re seeing one thing but suddenly switches to appear that you’re seeing something else. Some optical illusions trick your eyes into thinking the drawing is moving.
There are so many things in our world which aren’t really what they appear.
There are people who try to deceive us into thinking something is true that really isn’t. (Good place to do the card trick.)
There are people who do this just because they think it’s funny. There are other people who are trying to deceive because they are mean.
So how can you guard yourself against the schemes of people who want to try to trick your eyes into thinking something is true that really isn’t?
Our Bible verse says, “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good,” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). How do you prove all things? You have to have a standard to prove something against. What do you think that standard has to be? You have to use the Bible. The Bible is God’s word. It is true. It is trustworthy.
So how does this work?
What if someone tells you that it’s okay to steal a candy bar while you’re standing in line at Walmart? You know that God says, “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15). You have proven that it’s not okay to steal. If you love God, you hold fast to that belief - and you don’t steal.
What if someone tells you that it’s okay to lie? People lie when they tell the Department of Transportation how much they weigh for their driver’s license. People lie when someone asks them if they have ever taken something that didn’t belong to them. People lie when they are asked if they read the Bible yesterday. People lie when they are asked if they lied yesterday. Is it okay to lie? Jesus Christ not only said that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6), He also said that there will be no liars in God’s kingdom (Revelation 21:8).
Someone could tell you that it’s okay to yell at your mom or your dad if they do they something wrong. But you know that God says to honor your mother and your father (Exodus 20:12). Yelling at them, or hitting them, or being disrespectful in any way is not honoring your mother and your father.
What if someone says that we should worship God every day, so it’s good to go to church on Sunday? You have to go back to the Bible to prove whether that’s true or not. God says that He set aside the Sabbath (Saturday) as the day to keep holy (Exodus 20:8-11), so we go to church to worship Him on the Sabbath (Hebrews 10:25; Acts 13:42-44; Acts 17:2; Acts 18:4).
These are the easy ones. But there are so many things that people believe that are not based on the Bible. You can be fooled by their words or by the things that you see in their lives. If what you see doesn’t look like what you see in the Bible, you let go of it. Prove what is true and hold tightly to that.
That means you’re going to have to do something every day. Do you know what it is? You’re going to have to pray to God and read your Bible every day. If you don’t talk with God and read what He says to you, how are you going to know what is just an optical illusion? Psalm 119:11 says, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (KJV). If you know what God has said, it’s easier to see the illusions.
Here’s your challenge: Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 1 Thessalonians 5:21
***A Magnetic Lesson
Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:22
Materials: magnets
Magnets are fascinating: the attraction, the repulsion, their movements because of that force. No matter what you do, the magnets are going to steadfastly act on that force of attraction or repulsion. They don’t suddenly change their minds. They don’t switch. They are either attracted or they are repulsed. Period.
I couldn’t help thinking about the decisions we make every day. There are behaviors which absolutely repel us. We can’t even think about doing those things because they are so repulsive. Stealing. Murder. Lying. How do we get to the place where these things are repulsive? It starts with our parents.
Parents have a huge responsibility to teach their children right from wrong. They are the ones who help their children understand what is attractive and what is repulsive. So it’s a really good idea for your parents to love God and to read the Bible. Do you know why? God tells us what pleases Him in the Bible. It’s His instruction manual to us. And because God is our Creator, He gets to decide what is right and wrong. And yes, He does care what we do. He wants us to do what is right, to choose to live our lives His way. So He gives us parents.
We rarely start out doing what our parents want us to do. We are rarely repulsed by the wrong. They have to teach us - usually through some sort of punishment if we’re disobedient - until we get to the point that we avoid the wrong. We don’t want the consequences. But eventually, their teaching becomes part of who we are and we are completely repulsed by wrong. For instance, to my knowledge, I’ve never eaten shrimp. I see commercials about it on television and it almost makes me nauseous to think about putting nature’s garbage disposal in my mouth. I know that eating clean food is part of God’s law, but it’s now so much a part of who I am that I am automatically repulsed by even the thought of it.
God works with us every day in the choices we make. As long as we continue to choose the right, the wrong becomes more repulsive. Eventually we can’t make ourselves do the repulsive thing because it’s so repulsive to us. That’s why you don’t ever tell yourself that breaking God’s law “just this once” is okay. If it’s okay once, then you’ll tell yourself it’s okay twice. And pretty soon, breaking God’s law is no longer repulsive to you. You suddenly find yourself apart from God and His goodness in your life.
How do you avoid that temptation to say “just this once?” You listen to your parents and obey them. You read the Bible. You hold a firm line. If your conscience tells you it’s wrong, don’t do it - not even once. As you continue to make the right choices, it becomes part of who you are until the wrong is repulsive. But it starts right here, right now - you have to listen to and obey your parents. God put you into their care to teach you His ways. So today you are building your attraction to God’s ways and your repulsion to sin.
Don’t try to convince yourself that God will excuse your sin. God sent His Son to die to pay for your sin. He doesn’t take it lightly. It’s your job to abstain from every form of evil.
***What About Sin?
Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:22
Materials: clear pie pan, water, pepper, dish soap, red food color, celery stalk, clear glass
What do you do when you are faced with sin? You can stand your ground and try to fight it. You can succumb to the sin. Or you can get as far away from the sin as fast as you can.
You already know that succumbing to sin is not good. Sin separates us from God. He is holy. He is not going to contaminate Himself with something unholy. If we want fellowship with God (and you’d be foolish not to want fellowship with God), then we want to avoid succumbing to sin. We don’t want to impair that relationship.
You can stand your ground and try to fight sin. The problem is that Satan is depicted as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. He’s a crafty, intelligent being who knows how to make wrong look like it’s right. He knows how to disguise things. He knows how to manipulate us so that we find ourselves in a huge mess before we even realized it was coming. The only way to fight sin and Satan is through God’s power - and God isn’t going to fight sin while standing in the middle of it.
So, your third choice is to get away from sin as quickly as possible. It’s the reaction of Joseph to Potiphar’s wife in Genesis 39. When she wanted him to sin, he first told her no. When she wouldn’t listen, he fled. He left so fast that he left his cloak in her hands. That a good model to follow.
It’s okay to protest - to immediately make a profession that you don’t want anything to do with sin or evil. But if the situation doesn’t resolve right away, you can’t stay in it! Think about the beautifully colored carnations (or celery stalks). You know they don’t grow that color. When they’re cut, the stems are placed in a vase of colored water. The color travels with the water up the stem to the petals (or celery leaves). Those white petals begin showing more and more of the color the longer they’re left in the colored water. In the same way, the longer we stay in sin, the more we are affected by it in our lives. Immediately, there’s a distance from God. Then there are all the natural consequences of sin and ungodliness. The more you sin, the more natural consequences there are.
In the end, the best choice - when faced with sin - is to get away from it as quickly as you can. You don’t want anything that is anti-God. You don’t want to impair your relationship with God. You don’t want to suffer pain and discomfort from sinful choices. So you get away from sin and evil as quickly as you can. Get yourself out of the situation.
Demonstration: In a clear pie plate filled halfway with water, sprinkle some pepper. In this analogy, the water is your life; you are the pepper; the dish soap is sin. Drop a couple of drops into the pie plate. The pepper shoots to the edge of the pie plate (because the surface tension of the water has been broken by the soap). Similarly, when sin comes into contact with your life, you get away from it as quickly as you can.
Now, can you do the same demonstration again in the same pie plate? No, the surface tension of the water has already been broken by the soap. It becomes another really interesting analogy. When you first put pepper into the water, there’s no soap. The pepper immediately moves once the soap is introduced. But if you add pepper again and then more soap, you won’t get the same reaction. You can’t add pepper after soap is already in the pie plate. Similarly, if sin is already present, don’t become part of the situation. As Paul tells the church at Thessalonica:
Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:22
***denotes visual lesson
Thessalonians
**1 Thessalonians 5:18 - An Opposite and Equal Reaction
**1 Thessalonians 5:19 - Pentecost and the Holy Spirit (Holy Day Lesson - Pentecost)
**1 Thessalonians 5:21 - Face Value
**1 Thessalonians 5:22 - A Magnetic Lesson
**1 Thessalonians 5:22 - What About Sin
Timothy
**1 Timothy 4:15 - Be Absorbed in the Things of God
1 Timothy 6:12 - Fight the Good Fight
**2 Timothy 2:15 - How do You Handle God's Word?
**2 Timothy 2:19 - To Whom Do You Belong?
**2 Timothy 2:21 - Useful to God
**2 Timothy 3:13 - Seashells: Deceiving and Being Deceived
**2 Timothy 4:5 - Endure!
***An Opposite and Equal Reaction
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
Materials: rubber band, bouncy ball, green bean seeds, mirror, printed verses (James 1:17; Romans 8:32; Psalm 9:1; Psalm 95:2-3; 1 Chronicles 16:34; Psalm 100:4.
Imagine I pull a rubber band back from my index finger. What will happen when I let go? It will fly forward. If I pull harder and farther, the faster and farther the rubber band will fly when I release it. This is an example of Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
The more gas you give the car, the faster the wheels will turn. That is, the more force is pushing against the ground. The same force pushing against the ground pushes back against the car, making it move forward.
Think about dropping a ball on the ground. The higher I am when I drop the ball, the higher it will bounce back up. The harder I bounce the ball, the higher it will bounce back up.
Newton’s Third Law of Motion is at work every day in our lives.
In thinking about opposite and equal reactions, a mirror comes to mind. When you smile into a mirror, what is reflected back at you? A smile. But what if you frown? Do you still get a smile? No. Whatever your face displays is reflected back to you in the mirror - it’s an equal face that is reflected back to you.
It’s part of the law of the harvest. If you plant green beans, what do you expect to grow? Green beans. You don’t expect to plant green beans and then find radishes sprouting up a few days later. So you get back what you plant. It’s an equal and opposite reaction. You plant green beans; green beans grow.
So stop and consider a couple of verses:
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. James 1:17
He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Romans 8:32
I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. Psalm 9:1
Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods. Psalm 95:2-3
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4
We’re getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving Day this coming week. Why do we do that? Because God has given us so much. He’s given us His Son, life itself, the promise of eternal life with Him as his children. And we give thanks to Him because He is worthy to receive all of our praise and thanksgiving. He has given us so much!!
Think about Newton’s Third Law of Motion. God has given us so much. What’s the equal and opposite reaction? We need to give thanks to Him. As the apostle Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica: Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
We’re choosing to nationally, collectively set aside a day to give thanks to God. But really, we should remember to give thanks to Him always!
**Pentecost and the Holy Spirit
Do not quench the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19
Materials needed: large wine glass, oil, water, effervescent tablet, food coloring (Set up the demonstration while presenting the lesson: Fill the glass 85% with oil. Then pour in water - which will sink to the bottom of the glass. Put in a couple of drops of food coloring. Drop in a tablet. The effervescent tablet will bubble in the water, rise to the surface, and then sink again. The Holy Spirit works inside each of us. The outward actions that everyone sees can be genuinely motivated by the Spirit inside or they can be just an outward show without the inward reality. But God knows. And over time, the consistency of our actions will demonstrate the authenticity of our Christianity and the indwelling of God’s Spirit.)
The holy day, Pentecost, brings to mind the giving of the Holy Spirit. Where the Spirit was given only to a select few, now God’s Spirit was poured out abundantly on His people (Acts 2; Titus 3:4-6). What an incredible gift!
The apostle Paul tells us that the Holy Spirit is the downpayment, the pledge, of what is to come. (2 Corinthians 1:22; 2 Corinthians 5:5; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:16-17). It is a guarantee of our inheritance, our adoption into the family of God.
For those who belong to God, who are His people, the Holy Spirit dwelling within us causes a change from the inside out. The Holy Spirit guides us into all truth (John 16:13). The Holy Spirit teaches us (John 14:26).
The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin (John 16:7-8). As we listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit, we who love God turn away from sin, choosing God and God’s ways.
As we seek God’s ways more earnestly, the Holy Spirit within is the source of wisdom, revelation, and power (1 Corinthians 2:10-11; Acts 1:8; Ephesians 1:17-20). We are empowered to speak God’s words to others, to show His ways in our lives, and to understand more fully His ways and His plan.
The Holy Spirit helps us when we are weak and struggling with a temptation to sin. And the Holy Spirit intercedes for us when we don’t know the words to pray to our Father (Romans 8:26-27).
The Holy Spirit working in our lives is the means by which we become holy and sanctified and able to exhibit the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-25; 2 Thessalonians 2:13).
Knowing how very important the Holy Spirit is in our lives as followers of Christ who are pursuing holiness, it would behoove us to realize that we can quench the Holy Spirit at work in our lives. Otherwise, the apostle Paul would not have felt a need to warn us!
Here’s the gift of God, guiding us, empowering us, teaching us, giving us wisdom, helping and comforting us - and we can choose to turn away from the leading. We can choose to ignore the convicting within. We can give in to fear or doubt. We allow our wants and desires to dominate over God’s will and plan in our lives. We can choose not to get as close to God as we possibly can be. And that would be such a shame! God has given us such a gift, such an opportunity through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
On this day of Pentecost, I pray that each of us will allow the Holy Spirit to work fully in our lives, that we would stir up the Spirit within (2 Timothy 1:6-7).
***Face Value
Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 1 Thessalonians 5:21
Materials: optical illusions, card trick (optional)
(Sharing the optical illusions:) There are some amazing optical illusions out there - drawings and paintings which look real, but aren’t, or which make you think you’re seeing one thing but suddenly switches to appear that you’re seeing something else. Some optical illusions trick your eyes into thinking the drawing is moving.
There are so many things in our world which aren’t really what they appear.
There are people who try to deceive us into thinking something is true that really isn’t. (Good place to do the card trick.)
There are people who do this just because they think it’s funny. There are other people who are trying to deceive because they are mean.
So how can you guard yourself against the schemes of people who want to try to trick your eyes into thinking something is true that really isn’t?
Our Bible verse says, “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good,” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). How do you prove all things? You have to have a standard to prove something against. What do you think that standard has to be? You have to use the Bible. The Bible is God’s word. It is true. It is trustworthy.
So how does this work?
What if someone tells you that it’s okay to steal a candy bar while you’re standing in line at Walmart? You know that God says, “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15). You have proven that it’s not okay to steal. If you love God, you hold fast to that belief - and you don’t steal.
What if someone tells you that it’s okay to lie? People lie when they tell the Department of Transportation how much they weigh for their driver’s license. People lie when someone asks them if they have ever taken something that didn’t belong to them. People lie when they are asked if they read the Bible yesterday. People lie when they are asked if they lied yesterday. Is it okay to lie? Jesus Christ not only said that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6), He also said that there will be no liars in God’s kingdom (Revelation 21:8).
Someone could tell you that it’s okay to yell at your mom or your dad if they do they something wrong. But you know that God says to honor your mother and your father (Exodus 20:12). Yelling at them, or hitting them, or being disrespectful in any way is not honoring your mother and your father.
What if someone says that we should worship God every day, so it’s good to go to church on Sunday? You have to go back to the Bible to prove whether that’s true or not. God says that He set aside the Sabbath (Saturday) as the day to keep holy (Exodus 20:8-11), so we go to church to worship Him on the Sabbath (Hebrews 10:25; Acts 13:42-44; Acts 17:2; Acts 18:4).
These are the easy ones. But there are so many things that people believe that are not based on the Bible. You can be fooled by their words or by the things that you see in their lives. If what you see doesn’t look like what you see in the Bible, you let go of it. Prove what is true and hold tightly to that.
That means you’re going to have to do something every day. Do you know what it is? You’re going to have to pray to God and read your Bible every day. If you don’t talk with God and read what He says to you, how are you going to know what is just an optical illusion? Psalm 119:11 says, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (KJV). If you know what God has said, it’s easier to see the illusions.
Here’s your challenge: Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 1 Thessalonians 5:21
***A Magnetic Lesson
Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:22
Materials: magnets
Magnets are fascinating: the attraction, the repulsion, their movements because of that force. No matter what you do, the magnets are going to steadfastly act on that force of attraction or repulsion. They don’t suddenly change their minds. They don’t switch. They are either attracted or they are repulsed. Period.
I couldn’t help thinking about the decisions we make every day. There are behaviors which absolutely repel us. We can’t even think about doing those things because they are so repulsive. Stealing. Murder. Lying. How do we get to the place where these things are repulsive? It starts with our parents.
Parents have a huge responsibility to teach their children right from wrong. They are the ones who help their children understand what is attractive and what is repulsive. So it’s a really good idea for your parents to love God and to read the Bible. Do you know why? God tells us what pleases Him in the Bible. It’s His instruction manual to us. And because God is our Creator, He gets to decide what is right and wrong. And yes, He does care what we do. He wants us to do what is right, to choose to live our lives His way. So He gives us parents.
We rarely start out doing what our parents want us to do. We are rarely repulsed by the wrong. They have to teach us - usually through some sort of punishment if we’re disobedient - until we get to the point that we avoid the wrong. We don’t want the consequences. But eventually, their teaching becomes part of who we are and we are completely repulsed by wrong. For instance, to my knowledge, I’ve never eaten shrimp. I see commercials about it on television and it almost makes me nauseous to think about putting nature’s garbage disposal in my mouth. I know that eating clean food is part of God’s law, but it’s now so much a part of who I am that I am automatically repulsed by even the thought of it.
God works with us every day in the choices we make. As long as we continue to choose the right, the wrong becomes more repulsive. Eventually we can’t make ourselves do the repulsive thing because it’s so repulsive to us. That’s why you don’t ever tell yourself that breaking God’s law “just this once” is okay. If it’s okay once, then you’ll tell yourself it’s okay twice. And pretty soon, breaking God’s law is no longer repulsive to you. You suddenly find yourself apart from God and His goodness in your life.
How do you avoid that temptation to say “just this once?” You listen to your parents and obey them. You read the Bible. You hold a firm line. If your conscience tells you it’s wrong, don’t do it - not even once. As you continue to make the right choices, it becomes part of who you are until the wrong is repulsive. But it starts right here, right now - you have to listen to and obey your parents. God put you into their care to teach you His ways. So today you are building your attraction to God’s ways and your repulsion to sin.
Don’t try to convince yourself that God will excuse your sin. God sent His Son to die to pay for your sin. He doesn’t take it lightly. It’s your job to abstain from every form of evil.
***What About Sin?
Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:22
Materials: clear pie pan, water, pepper, dish soap, red food color, celery stalk, clear glass
What do you do when you are faced with sin? You can stand your ground and try to fight it. You can succumb to the sin. Or you can get as far away from the sin as fast as you can.
You already know that succumbing to sin is not good. Sin separates us from God. He is holy. He is not going to contaminate Himself with something unholy. If we want fellowship with God (and you’d be foolish not to want fellowship with God), then we want to avoid succumbing to sin. We don’t want to impair that relationship.
You can stand your ground and try to fight sin. The problem is that Satan is depicted as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. He’s a crafty, intelligent being who knows how to make wrong look like it’s right. He knows how to disguise things. He knows how to manipulate us so that we find ourselves in a huge mess before we even realized it was coming. The only way to fight sin and Satan is through God’s power - and God isn’t going to fight sin while standing in the middle of it.
So, your third choice is to get away from sin as quickly as possible. It’s the reaction of Joseph to Potiphar’s wife in Genesis 39. When she wanted him to sin, he first told her no. When she wouldn’t listen, he fled. He left so fast that he left his cloak in her hands. That a good model to follow.
It’s okay to protest - to immediately make a profession that you don’t want anything to do with sin or evil. But if the situation doesn’t resolve right away, you can’t stay in it! Think about the beautifully colored carnations (or celery stalks). You know they don’t grow that color. When they’re cut, the stems are placed in a vase of colored water. The color travels with the water up the stem to the petals (or celery leaves). Those white petals begin showing more and more of the color the longer they’re left in the colored water. In the same way, the longer we stay in sin, the more we are affected by it in our lives. Immediately, there’s a distance from God. Then there are all the natural consequences of sin and ungodliness. The more you sin, the more natural consequences there are.
In the end, the best choice - when faced with sin - is to get away from it as quickly as you can. You don’t want anything that is anti-God. You don’t want to impair your relationship with God. You don’t want to suffer pain and discomfort from sinful choices. So you get away from sin and evil as quickly as you can. Get yourself out of the situation.
Demonstration: In a clear pie plate filled halfway with water, sprinkle some pepper. In this analogy, the water is your life; you are the pepper; the dish soap is sin. Drop a couple of drops into the pie plate. The pepper shoots to the edge of the pie plate (because the surface tension of the water has been broken by the soap). Similarly, when sin comes into contact with your life, you get away from it as quickly as you can.
Now, can you do the same demonstration again in the same pie plate? No, the surface tension of the water has already been broken by the soap. It becomes another really interesting analogy. When you first put pepper into the water, there’s no soap. The pepper immediately moves once the soap is introduced. But if you add pepper again and then more soap, you won’t get the same reaction. You can’t add pepper after soap is already in the pie plate. Similarly, if sin is already present, don’t become part of the situation. As Paul tells the church at Thessalonica:
Abstain from every form of evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:22
** Be Absorbed in The Things of God
Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. 1 Timothy 4:15 (ESV)
Materials Needed: Colored Pinecones (Soak pinecones in 4 L of water mixed with an ounce of food coloring. Let sit over night and then dry on a paper towel.
Isn’t it interesting how you can immerse a pinecone, normally brown, into food coloring and water and end up with a different-colored pinecone?! Who could ever have imagined that would happen? Wouldn’t you assume that the pinecone would retain its brown color and be impervious to the food coloring? Well, actually, no. Pinecones grow on pine trees. Pines are notorious for their soft wood; it’s not as dense as other types of wood, oak and walnut, for example. So it makes perfect sense that if I place a pinecone in food coloring (and water) overnight, the pinecone is going to absorb the color.
Too many people don’t stop to consider into what they have immersed themselves. They might think they can watch R-rated movies, and it won’t affect them. They might think they can play violent video games, and it won’t change their attitudes and behaviors. They might think that coming to church on Sabbath isn’t that important. They might think that they’re too busy to read their Bible every morning. They would be wrong. What you do and what you think about is the same thing as a pinecone in food coloring.
Much like the pinecones immersed in food coloring, what you spend your time doing will sink into your heart and mind and soul. If you seek things of this world, then that’s what goes in. And if you seek God and His way, then that’s what goes in.
And then what comes out for other people to see is whatever you’ve been immersed in. If you spend your time reading the Bible, listening to Christian music, praying, and thinking about God, then that is going to be evident to all.
It would be ludicrous, however, to think that I could put a pinecone in blue food coloring and come out with a cone that was pink. That just wouldn’t happen. Neither does it happen for a person to immerse themselves in worldly pursuits and then have God be the first thing they want to talk about with people around them.
As Paul exhorted Timothy: Practice the things of God. Immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.
Fight the Good Fight
Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 1 Timothy 6:12
Fight the good fight! Alright! I love a good fight! Christopher must have been right when he read, “Love one another with brotherly affliction” (Romans 12:10).
While it is true that these words for fight do mean “conflict, struggle, strife, even violence,” Paul is not telling Timothy to lay down his pastoral duties and take up boxing or prize fighting. It is a fight, but it’s a good fight of the faith. Amazing how a couple of words can change the whole context!
The word for “good” is the Greek word kalos (#2570). It’s doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do. We saw it just a couple of weeks ago when we were working on Galatians 6:9: and let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. In Galatians 6:9, the “doing good” was doing the right thing because it was the right thing, focusing on the goal. Paul’s analogy to the Galatians involved reaping. He emphasized the harvest and thereby evoked the mental imagery of all the work that must come first before you get a harvest.
In 1 Timothy, Paul goes right to the heart of the matter, the goal of eternal life. He tells Timothy to take hold of the eternal life. There’s no big surprises in Greek in these words, although the Greek word for “life” is zoe (#2222) which “refers to the principle of life in the spirit and soul, the highest blessedness” available to us in Jesus Christ, and is distinguished from bios which is physical life.
It’s very interesting that Paul doesn’t use the physical imagery of harvest and reaping with Timothy, although these two verses are essentially the same message. Rather, it’s as if Paul knows that Timothy “gets it.” Timothy knows that eternal life is the goal. So Paul reminds Timothy not to grow weary, not to give up, in his goal to take hold of eternal life because of two things. First, Timothy was called to eternal life. Wow! What an encouraging thing to say! I know that Satan lies to us all the time in as many ways as he can. One of the lies which grieves us most is this: Are you sure God really wants YOU in His kingdom? Maybe you’re not really a Christian. Maybe you’re among those of whom Jesus will say, “Get away from me, you evil doers; I never knew you.” Maybe your deceitful heart has deceived you into believing that you have a secure relationship with Jesus.
In just a few words, Paul refutes this lie for Timothy. He tells him that he was called to eternal life; Timothy just needs to take hold of it! Then Paul goes on to remind Timothy that he’s already made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. Timothy believed and confessed that Jesus was/is his Savior, that his sins were covered by the blood of the Lamb, that Timothy’s goal was eternal life through Jesus Christ his Lord. Paul is just reminding him of the covenant he made with God. It’s much like the marriage covenant we make: “in the presence of these witnesses I now pronounce you man and wife.”
What are the witnesses for? Initially they are there to celebrate with you! They are there to encourage you to walk worthy of the calling you have received. They are there to confirm that you truly did enter into a covenant - it wasn’t just a figment of your imagination. They are there to hold you accountable when you begin to break the covenant. And they are there as a legal record before God that you have entered into that covenant - as in “let every matter be established by the mouth of two or three witnesses” (Deut 19:15).
In our culture, the witnesses at the wedding ceremony usually only do the first job. They celebrate. But as Christian brothers and sisters, we must be willing to take on all of the duties of witnesses. Several weeks ago, we worked on Acts 14:22: strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.
It’s amazing how the same message comes up over and over. Stand firm in the faith. Act like men (1 Corinthians 16:13). And let us not grow weary of doing good . . . (Gal. 6:9). Fight the good fight of the faith (1 Timothy 6:12). It is a struggle. It is a fight to the very end. We cannot grow weary in doing good. We are going to go through many tribulations in order to enter the kingdom of God.
It’s important to remember that we’re not doing it alone. When we first started the New Testament we memorized one of the most encouraging passages from Jesus: Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light (Matt 11:28-30). Then from John 14:27, we memorized, Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
We must remember that God tells us He won’t leave us alone; He will never forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) We must also remember those people who are on the path with us. Those witnesses of our walk in the Lord also strengthen our souls. That’s part of their job. And that’s part of our job. We are likewise witnesses of someone else’s walk in the Lord. We truly are to love them with brotherly affection! Let me ask you a question: Do you think Jesus is going to return soon? Do you see evidence that the Day is rapidly approaching? We are to encourage each other and all the more as you see the Day drawing near (Hebrews 10:24-25) - because there’s a fight going on, a good fight of the faith. And we want to win!
***How Do You Handle God’s Word?
. . . . a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15
Materials: a hand-held fan, a box puzzle
Do you remember the first time you saw a fan folded up? Were you absolutely amazed when the lady snapped it open with a flick of her wrist? That fan, a combination of paper, wood, and glue, became a useful tool - when mere moments earlier, it was not helpful. Another apparently useless item is a puzzle box? It looks like a piece of decorative wood on a shelf. It seemingly does nothing but take up space and collect dust. But if you know how to open the box, it becomes a place to keep treasures.
I saw my fan the other day and couldn’t help thinking how well the fan illustrates this verse in 2 Timothy 2:15: a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
If we belong to God and we are His servants, then it logically follows that God has given us a job to do. We are to be witnesses of Him to the people around us. We are to make disciples of all nations. We are to spread the good news of the kingdom of God. Furthermore, God has given us a tool to accomplish that task: the Bible, the word of God, the word of truth.
So here’s the question: Do we handle that tool rightly? Do we use the Bible in the correct manner? That means believing it to be true, believing that it doesn’t contradict itself, that it means what it says and says what it means! We don’t take the Bible and add anything to it; we don’t add other people’s thoughts (other writings or books), we don’t add our own interpretations. We don’t pick and choose what we want to believe. We have to take all of the Bible, not just our favorite parts.
But just believing that God’s word is true isn’t enough. We have to know what the Bible says. That means we shouldn’t leave our Bible on the shelf and only read it on the Sabbath or when we need God’s help. We have to study it carefully, reading it diligently each day, seeking to understand what God’s telling us. Thankfully, those who belong to God have the Holy Spirit to help guide and illuminate God’s word so we can understand and apply the word of truth.
So we talked about the fan - how it’s a good object lesson of rightly handling God’s words. The puzzle box is also a good object lesson! Just as the puzzle box can hold treasures, so does the Bible. But you have to open the box to see the treasure, just as you have to open the Bible to find the treasures God has for you inside!
Here’s the bottom line: if you desire to know what God has said, so you open the Bible and read it, then you won’t be ashamed. Quite the contrary, in fact. God will bless you as you seek Him and His word of truth.
***Whom Do You Belong To?
The Lord knows those who are his, 2 Timothy 2:19
Materials: wrapped box for each child with toy inside
Suppose there’s a pile of wrapped boxes on the table. You get to choose any one of them. Which do you choose? You’re only able to look at the outside. But once you choose a box and open it, you get to see what’s inside. But if you open the box and take the object inside out, how will you know which thing is yours and which belongs to the person next to you? Silly question! We employ our powers of visual acuity and discrimination to catalog the differences between mine and his. After all, we have a certain proprietary feeling towards those things which belong to us; we want to make sure that we hold on to our stuff!
But what if you don’t like it - for whatever reason - and you don’t want it? Do you claim it as yours? Maybe long enough to pick it up and throw it in the trash or give it to someone else. But you don’t treat it as a treasured possession.
God has treasured possessions. Malachi 3:16-18 is one place which talks about those who love God, who fear and honor Him, who are righteous. God says those people are His treasured possession and he will care for them. I definitely want to be among the people that God says are His!!!
So, how do you come to love, fear, and honor God and to do what is right? Because Romans 6:17 says that God’s people used to be slaves to sin. We were dead in our sins (Ephesians 2:1, Colossians 2:13), and dead people are notorious for not being able to do anything. We couldn’t release ourselves from our slavery from sin. We were slaves! It was totally a work of God to call us (2 Tim 1:9), to choose us (John 6:44), and to redeem us from slavery to sin (1 Peter 1:18). Just like the boxes are powerless to choose you, so people do not choose God. They are powerless to break out of their slavery to sin. In fact, they don’t want to: Romans 8:7 says the carnal mind is hostile and an enemy to God.
But once God chooses us and saves us through the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we show that we are a new creation in Christ by obeying God’s commandments out of love and reverence and gratitude to Him (1 Peter 1:14-15). We speak God’s love language: obedience. (John 14:15). And if we are obeying God, walking according to His standards, proclaiming His ways through our words and actions, then we may call ourselves Christians. We can accurately and appropriately take the name of Jesus Christ.
Can you imagine one of those toys - let’s say one that you don’t like and would never claim - writing your name on it? To people who see that toy, they’ll associate you with it because your name is on that toy! Is it true? No! You’d never be caught dead with that toy. In a similar way, it should make you stop and carefully consider your words and your actions before you tell people around you that you are a Christian, that you belong to God. Are you showing honor and reverence and obedience to God? If you think it’s okay to break God’s commandments and still call yourself a Christian, you are not speaking God’s love language. In fact, you are dishonoring the One who made you and saves you. And that is a serious thing!
The Lord knows those who are his.
**Useful to God
Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. 2 Timothy 2:21
Materials: assortment of brushes
Having the right tool makes a job a whole lot easier. You wouldn’t scrub the kitchen floor with a pipe cleaner. You wouldn’t brush your hair with the floor scrub brush. Each brush is designed to do a certain job well. It would be foolish to try to use the wrong brush for a task.
Not only do you have to have the right tool, there’s a certain amount of cleanliness required for particular jobs. You wouldn’t scrub the garden vegetables with the toilet brush. And after a period of time, you get a new toothbrush.
We understand this when we’re talking about brushes. But sometimes we don’t get it as people of God. That is, God has designed each of us for a certain task. So first thing to remember is that
*God has a plan, a purpose, and a place for each one of His people. Figure out what your gift is, what your talent is, and use it for the glory of God.
Additionally, no one person is given every gift. It would be foolish to try to use your toothbrush to clean your teeth, brush you hair, scrub the vegetables, clean the floor, and scrub the toilet. Similarly, each person in a church family has a job to do to make the church family function at the very best level. So the second thing to remember is
*a church family and your physical family works best if each person contributes their talents to the benefit of the family.
It’s really disgusting to think of using a toothbrush to scrub the tile grout around the tub - and then use it to brush your teeth. It’s also yucky to think about brushing the dog’s coat with your own hair brush. I set aside my brushes for a specific purpose. When God sets a person aside for a specific purpose as a child of God, that person becomes holy. It’s our job to make sure that we cleanse ourselves from anything dishonorable so that we will continue to be holy, usable by God, set apart for His purposes.
*live in a way that pleases God, so that He can use you for His glory.
You have a job. Figure out what it is. Then be holy.
**Seashells: Deceiving and Being Deceived
while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 2 Timothy 3:13
Materials: conch shell
Has anyone ever told you that if you hold a conch shell to your ear you can hear the ocean? Now, let’s just think about that for one moment. How in the world could that be possible?!! The ocean isn’t inside the shell. The shell doesn’t have a tiny speaker broadcasting the ocean sounds. There is no way you could actually be hearing the ocean when you hold a conch shell to your ear.
So why do people say that? Well, it kinda sounds like the ocean. Hmmm. So if something “sounds” like something, we just assume that’s what it is? What kind of logic and science is that?
Unfortunately in our world, there are too many people who see something, hear something, or taste something - and jump to the conclusion that it is a specific thing. And perhaps in many of those cases, it doesn’t really matter. It doesn’t hurt anyone. Or does it? If we get accustomed to coming up with a plausible explanation without having evidence and truth behind it, then we are much more easily deceived by someone who comes along with a plausible story they’re trying to sell us without evidence and truth.
And if they can convince someone that it is true - like hearing the ocean in the conch shell - then the person who has been convinced that it’s true walks happily down the road, spreading the same untruth (AKA lie) without ever realizing that it is a lie.
For instance, I recently read that it’s not the ocean; it’s the blood surging through the veins in your ears. That sounds plausible. And I might even have spread that tale to others . . . except, I decided to verify the information. Guess what?! That’s not true either, no matter how plausible it sounds. Nor is it true that it’s air whooshing around inside the shell.
In this world where pictures can be photoshopped so easily, sounds can be mimicked and tweaked so easily, and where many people are too busy to verify a story before they spread it, it is really hard to know what to believe. Even if you trust the person who is telling you something, did they carefully check their facts?
Paul exhorts us in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 to “prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” That’s an important modus operandi in a world where “evil people and imposters will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”
And as for the seashell, what is it that you’re hearing when you put a conch shell to your ear? You are actually just hearing the ambient (background) noise around you resonating in the shell. You can produce the same effect with your hand or a cup.
Check it out at:
https://science.howstuffworks.com/question556.htm
**Endure!
. . . always be sober-minded, endure suffering . . . 2 Timothy 4:5
Materials needed: raw egg, hard-boiled egg, raw carrot, cooked carrot, ground coffee, cup of coffee
The ESV says, “always be sober-minded.” Does that mean we can’t ever laugh? Should we live our lives always being serious and not having any fun? The NIV translates this verse a little differently. It says, “keep your head in all situations.” What does that mean? I take my head with me everywhere I go!
Both of these phrases, I think, exhort us to remember that we belong to Jesus Christ. We can’t become distracted or discouraged by the things (or the people) around us. We are going to face opposition more and more in this world. People in the world aren’t going to agree with what we believe. Events in this world are increasingly in conflict with God’s laws and ways. We have to stand firm, doing the job that God has given us, holding fast to the faith that He’s given us.
So what does that look like?
Suppose you are like a carrot. You are firm and steadfast. That’s good.
Suppose you are like an egg. You have a tough exterior, but a soft heart. That’s also good. You want to stand firm, not be wishy-washy, but you also want to have compassion for people around you.
Suppose you are like coffee. You have an aroma about you that draws others to you. That’s also good.
But what happens when you are faced with persecution, difficulties, trials, and problems? In this case, the troubles are symbolized by boiling water. How do you react? If you are a carrot, you become mush. You completely lose your firmness. You give in to the pressures around you. And you are no longer standing firm in your faith. That’s not good.
If you are an egg that is faced when trouble, you lose your soft heart. You become hard-hearted towards others. You no longer care about the pain and trouble they’re going through because you’re only thinking about yourself.
What happens when coffee is subjected to boiling water? It changes the water around it. In a similar way, when you experience trouble, your job is to be a position influence on the people around you. And that means you have to endure, persevere, continue to do good and to follow God’s ways.
God gave us all a job to do - remaining steadfast in doing what pleases Him no matter what trouble, persecution, and problems come our way. Set your minds on that!
https://momof3darlings.wordpress.com/tag/object-lesson/
Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. 1 Timothy 4:15 (ESV)
Materials Needed: Colored Pinecones (Soak pinecones in 4 L of water mixed with an ounce of food coloring. Let sit over night and then dry on a paper towel.
Isn’t it interesting how you can immerse a pinecone, normally brown, into food coloring and water and end up with a different-colored pinecone?! Who could ever have imagined that would happen? Wouldn’t you assume that the pinecone would retain its brown color and be impervious to the food coloring? Well, actually, no. Pinecones grow on pine trees. Pines are notorious for their soft wood; it’s not as dense as other types of wood, oak and walnut, for example. So it makes perfect sense that if I place a pinecone in food coloring (and water) overnight, the pinecone is going to absorb the color.
Too many people don’t stop to consider into what they have immersed themselves. They might think they can watch R-rated movies, and it won’t affect them. They might think they can play violent video games, and it won’t change their attitudes and behaviors. They might think that coming to church on Sabbath isn’t that important. They might think that they’re too busy to read their Bible every morning. They would be wrong. What you do and what you think about is the same thing as a pinecone in food coloring.
Much like the pinecones immersed in food coloring, what you spend your time doing will sink into your heart and mind and soul. If you seek things of this world, then that’s what goes in. And if you seek God and His way, then that’s what goes in.
And then what comes out for other people to see is whatever you’ve been immersed in. If you spend your time reading the Bible, listening to Christian music, praying, and thinking about God, then that is going to be evident to all.
It would be ludicrous, however, to think that I could put a pinecone in blue food coloring and come out with a cone that was pink. That just wouldn’t happen. Neither does it happen for a person to immerse themselves in worldly pursuits and then have God be the first thing they want to talk about with people around them.
As Paul exhorted Timothy: Practice the things of God. Immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.
Fight the Good Fight
Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 1 Timothy 6:12
Fight the good fight! Alright! I love a good fight! Christopher must have been right when he read, “Love one another with brotherly affliction” (Romans 12:10).
While it is true that these words for fight do mean “conflict, struggle, strife, even violence,” Paul is not telling Timothy to lay down his pastoral duties and take up boxing or prize fighting. It is a fight, but it’s a good fight of the faith. Amazing how a couple of words can change the whole context!
The word for “good” is the Greek word kalos (#2570). It’s doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do. We saw it just a couple of weeks ago when we were working on Galatians 6:9: and let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. In Galatians 6:9, the “doing good” was doing the right thing because it was the right thing, focusing on the goal. Paul’s analogy to the Galatians involved reaping. He emphasized the harvest and thereby evoked the mental imagery of all the work that must come first before you get a harvest.
In 1 Timothy, Paul goes right to the heart of the matter, the goal of eternal life. He tells Timothy to take hold of the eternal life. There’s no big surprises in Greek in these words, although the Greek word for “life” is zoe (#2222) which “refers to the principle of life in the spirit and soul, the highest blessedness” available to us in Jesus Christ, and is distinguished from bios which is physical life.
It’s very interesting that Paul doesn’t use the physical imagery of harvest and reaping with Timothy, although these two verses are essentially the same message. Rather, it’s as if Paul knows that Timothy “gets it.” Timothy knows that eternal life is the goal. So Paul reminds Timothy not to grow weary, not to give up, in his goal to take hold of eternal life because of two things. First, Timothy was called to eternal life. Wow! What an encouraging thing to say! I know that Satan lies to us all the time in as many ways as he can. One of the lies which grieves us most is this: Are you sure God really wants YOU in His kingdom? Maybe you’re not really a Christian. Maybe you’re among those of whom Jesus will say, “Get away from me, you evil doers; I never knew you.” Maybe your deceitful heart has deceived you into believing that you have a secure relationship with Jesus.
In just a few words, Paul refutes this lie for Timothy. He tells him that he was called to eternal life; Timothy just needs to take hold of it! Then Paul goes on to remind Timothy that he’s already made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. Timothy believed and confessed that Jesus was/is his Savior, that his sins were covered by the blood of the Lamb, that Timothy’s goal was eternal life through Jesus Christ his Lord. Paul is just reminding him of the covenant he made with God. It’s much like the marriage covenant we make: “in the presence of these witnesses I now pronounce you man and wife.”
What are the witnesses for? Initially they are there to celebrate with you! They are there to encourage you to walk worthy of the calling you have received. They are there to confirm that you truly did enter into a covenant - it wasn’t just a figment of your imagination. They are there to hold you accountable when you begin to break the covenant. And they are there as a legal record before God that you have entered into that covenant - as in “let every matter be established by the mouth of two or three witnesses” (Deut 19:15).
In our culture, the witnesses at the wedding ceremony usually only do the first job. They celebrate. But as Christian brothers and sisters, we must be willing to take on all of the duties of witnesses. Several weeks ago, we worked on Acts 14:22: strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.
It’s amazing how the same message comes up over and over. Stand firm in the faith. Act like men (1 Corinthians 16:13). And let us not grow weary of doing good . . . (Gal. 6:9). Fight the good fight of the faith (1 Timothy 6:12). It is a struggle. It is a fight to the very end. We cannot grow weary in doing good. We are going to go through many tribulations in order to enter the kingdom of God.
It’s important to remember that we’re not doing it alone. When we first started the New Testament we memorized one of the most encouraging passages from Jesus: Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light (Matt 11:28-30). Then from John 14:27, we memorized, Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
We must remember that God tells us He won’t leave us alone; He will never forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) We must also remember those people who are on the path with us. Those witnesses of our walk in the Lord also strengthen our souls. That’s part of their job. And that’s part of our job. We are likewise witnesses of someone else’s walk in the Lord. We truly are to love them with brotherly affection! Let me ask you a question: Do you think Jesus is going to return soon? Do you see evidence that the Day is rapidly approaching? We are to encourage each other and all the more as you see the Day drawing near (Hebrews 10:24-25) - because there’s a fight going on, a good fight of the faith. And we want to win!
***How Do You Handle God’s Word?
. . . . a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15
Materials: a hand-held fan, a box puzzle
Do you remember the first time you saw a fan folded up? Were you absolutely amazed when the lady snapped it open with a flick of her wrist? That fan, a combination of paper, wood, and glue, became a useful tool - when mere moments earlier, it was not helpful. Another apparently useless item is a puzzle box? It looks like a piece of decorative wood on a shelf. It seemingly does nothing but take up space and collect dust. But if you know how to open the box, it becomes a place to keep treasures.
I saw my fan the other day and couldn’t help thinking how well the fan illustrates this verse in 2 Timothy 2:15: a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
If we belong to God and we are His servants, then it logically follows that God has given us a job to do. We are to be witnesses of Him to the people around us. We are to make disciples of all nations. We are to spread the good news of the kingdom of God. Furthermore, God has given us a tool to accomplish that task: the Bible, the word of God, the word of truth.
So here’s the question: Do we handle that tool rightly? Do we use the Bible in the correct manner? That means believing it to be true, believing that it doesn’t contradict itself, that it means what it says and says what it means! We don’t take the Bible and add anything to it; we don’t add other people’s thoughts (other writings or books), we don’t add our own interpretations. We don’t pick and choose what we want to believe. We have to take all of the Bible, not just our favorite parts.
But just believing that God’s word is true isn’t enough. We have to know what the Bible says. That means we shouldn’t leave our Bible on the shelf and only read it on the Sabbath or when we need God’s help. We have to study it carefully, reading it diligently each day, seeking to understand what God’s telling us. Thankfully, those who belong to God have the Holy Spirit to help guide and illuminate God’s word so we can understand and apply the word of truth.
So we talked about the fan - how it’s a good object lesson of rightly handling God’s words. The puzzle box is also a good object lesson! Just as the puzzle box can hold treasures, so does the Bible. But you have to open the box to see the treasure, just as you have to open the Bible to find the treasures God has for you inside!
Here’s the bottom line: if you desire to know what God has said, so you open the Bible and read it, then you won’t be ashamed. Quite the contrary, in fact. God will bless you as you seek Him and His word of truth.
***Whom Do You Belong To?
The Lord knows those who are his, 2 Timothy 2:19
Materials: wrapped box for each child with toy inside
Suppose there’s a pile of wrapped boxes on the table. You get to choose any one of them. Which do you choose? You’re only able to look at the outside. But once you choose a box and open it, you get to see what’s inside. But if you open the box and take the object inside out, how will you know which thing is yours and which belongs to the person next to you? Silly question! We employ our powers of visual acuity and discrimination to catalog the differences between mine and his. After all, we have a certain proprietary feeling towards those things which belong to us; we want to make sure that we hold on to our stuff!
But what if you don’t like it - for whatever reason - and you don’t want it? Do you claim it as yours? Maybe long enough to pick it up and throw it in the trash or give it to someone else. But you don’t treat it as a treasured possession.
God has treasured possessions. Malachi 3:16-18 is one place which talks about those who love God, who fear and honor Him, who are righteous. God says those people are His treasured possession and he will care for them. I definitely want to be among the people that God says are His!!!
So, how do you come to love, fear, and honor God and to do what is right? Because Romans 6:17 says that God’s people used to be slaves to sin. We were dead in our sins (Ephesians 2:1, Colossians 2:13), and dead people are notorious for not being able to do anything. We couldn’t release ourselves from our slavery from sin. We were slaves! It was totally a work of God to call us (2 Tim 1:9), to choose us (John 6:44), and to redeem us from slavery to sin (1 Peter 1:18). Just like the boxes are powerless to choose you, so people do not choose God. They are powerless to break out of their slavery to sin. In fact, they don’t want to: Romans 8:7 says the carnal mind is hostile and an enemy to God.
But once God chooses us and saves us through the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we show that we are a new creation in Christ by obeying God’s commandments out of love and reverence and gratitude to Him (1 Peter 1:14-15). We speak God’s love language: obedience. (John 14:15). And if we are obeying God, walking according to His standards, proclaiming His ways through our words and actions, then we may call ourselves Christians. We can accurately and appropriately take the name of Jesus Christ.
Can you imagine one of those toys - let’s say one that you don’t like and would never claim - writing your name on it? To people who see that toy, they’ll associate you with it because your name is on that toy! Is it true? No! You’d never be caught dead with that toy. In a similar way, it should make you stop and carefully consider your words and your actions before you tell people around you that you are a Christian, that you belong to God. Are you showing honor and reverence and obedience to God? If you think it’s okay to break God’s commandments and still call yourself a Christian, you are not speaking God’s love language. In fact, you are dishonoring the One who made you and saves you. And that is a serious thing!
The Lord knows those who are his.
**Useful to God
Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. 2 Timothy 2:21
Materials: assortment of brushes
Having the right tool makes a job a whole lot easier. You wouldn’t scrub the kitchen floor with a pipe cleaner. You wouldn’t brush your hair with the floor scrub brush. Each brush is designed to do a certain job well. It would be foolish to try to use the wrong brush for a task.
Not only do you have to have the right tool, there’s a certain amount of cleanliness required for particular jobs. You wouldn’t scrub the garden vegetables with the toilet brush. And after a period of time, you get a new toothbrush.
We understand this when we’re talking about brushes. But sometimes we don’t get it as people of God. That is, God has designed each of us for a certain task. So first thing to remember is that
*God has a plan, a purpose, and a place for each one of His people. Figure out what your gift is, what your talent is, and use it for the glory of God.
Additionally, no one person is given every gift. It would be foolish to try to use your toothbrush to clean your teeth, brush you hair, scrub the vegetables, clean the floor, and scrub the toilet. Similarly, each person in a church family has a job to do to make the church family function at the very best level. So the second thing to remember is
*a church family and your physical family works best if each person contributes their talents to the benefit of the family.
It’s really disgusting to think of using a toothbrush to scrub the tile grout around the tub - and then use it to brush your teeth. It’s also yucky to think about brushing the dog’s coat with your own hair brush. I set aside my brushes for a specific purpose. When God sets a person aside for a specific purpose as a child of God, that person becomes holy. It’s our job to make sure that we cleanse ourselves from anything dishonorable so that we will continue to be holy, usable by God, set apart for His purposes.
*live in a way that pleases God, so that He can use you for His glory.
You have a job. Figure out what it is. Then be holy.
**Seashells: Deceiving and Being Deceived
while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 2 Timothy 3:13
Materials: conch shell
Has anyone ever told you that if you hold a conch shell to your ear you can hear the ocean? Now, let’s just think about that for one moment. How in the world could that be possible?!! The ocean isn’t inside the shell. The shell doesn’t have a tiny speaker broadcasting the ocean sounds. There is no way you could actually be hearing the ocean when you hold a conch shell to your ear.
So why do people say that? Well, it kinda sounds like the ocean. Hmmm. So if something “sounds” like something, we just assume that’s what it is? What kind of logic and science is that?
Unfortunately in our world, there are too many people who see something, hear something, or taste something - and jump to the conclusion that it is a specific thing. And perhaps in many of those cases, it doesn’t really matter. It doesn’t hurt anyone. Or does it? If we get accustomed to coming up with a plausible explanation without having evidence and truth behind it, then we are much more easily deceived by someone who comes along with a plausible story they’re trying to sell us without evidence and truth.
And if they can convince someone that it is true - like hearing the ocean in the conch shell - then the person who has been convinced that it’s true walks happily down the road, spreading the same untruth (AKA lie) without ever realizing that it is a lie.
For instance, I recently read that it’s not the ocean; it’s the blood surging through the veins in your ears. That sounds plausible. And I might even have spread that tale to others . . . except, I decided to verify the information. Guess what?! That’s not true either, no matter how plausible it sounds. Nor is it true that it’s air whooshing around inside the shell.
In this world where pictures can be photoshopped so easily, sounds can be mimicked and tweaked so easily, and where many people are too busy to verify a story before they spread it, it is really hard to know what to believe. Even if you trust the person who is telling you something, did they carefully check their facts?
Paul exhorts us in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 to “prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” That’s an important modus operandi in a world where “evil people and imposters will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”
And as for the seashell, what is it that you’re hearing when you put a conch shell to your ear? You are actually just hearing the ambient (background) noise around you resonating in the shell. You can produce the same effect with your hand or a cup.
Check it out at:
https://science.howstuffworks.com/question556.htm
**Endure!
. . . always be sober-minded, endure suffering . . . 2 Timothy 4:5
Materials needed: raw egg, hard-boiled egg, raw carrot, cooked carrot, ground coffee, cup of coffee
The ESV says, “always be sober-minded.” Does that mean we can’t ever laugh? Should we live our lives always being serious and not having any fun? The NIV translates this verse a little differently. It says, “keep your head in all situations.” What does that mean? I take my head with me everywhere I go!
Both of these phrases, I think, exhort us to remember that we belong to Jesus Christ. We can’t become distracted or discouraged by the things (or the people) around us. We are going to face opposition more and more in this world. People in the world aren’t going to agree with what we believe. Events in this world are increasingly in conflict with God’s laws and ways. We have to stand firm, doing the job that God has given us, holding fast to the faith that He’s given us.
So what does that look like?
Suppose you are like a carrot. You are firm and steadfast. That’s good.
Suppose you are like an egg. You have a tough exterior, but a soft heart. That’s also good. You want to stand firm, not be wishy-washy, but you also want to have compassion for people around you.
Suppose you are like coffee. You have an aroma about you that draws others to you. That’s also good.
But what happens when you are faced with persecution, difficulties, trials, and problems? In this case, the troubles are symbolized by boiling water. How do you react? If you are a carrot, you become mush. You completely lose your firmness. You give in to the pressures around you. And you are no longer standing firm in your faith. That’s not good.
If you are an egg that is faced when trouble, you lose your soft heart. You become hard-hearted towards others. You no longer care about the pain and trouble they’re going through because you’re only thinking about yourself.
What happens when coffee is subjected to boiling water? It changes the water around it. In a similar way, when you experience trouble, your job is to be a position influence on the people around you. And that means you have to endure, persevere, continue to do good and to follow God’s ways.
God gave us all a job to do - remaining steadfast in doing what pleases Him no matter what trouble, persecution, and problems come our way. Set your minds on that!
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