9-21-22 Today in the Word

Pursuit of Righteousness Wednesday, September 21 | 1 Timothy 6:11–16 In warfare, a tactical withdrawal is when an army retreats while continuing to engage the enemy. Sometimes it is a sign that the retreating army is outmatched. But in the spiritual warfare of the Christian life, it is an offensive measure. We defeat the enemy by fleeing from him and pursuing God instead. The “all this” that Paul tells Timothy to flee is described in verses 4–10. Although the internet hadn’t been invented yet, Paul’s list sounds uncomfortably like much of what we read on social media! It includes spiritual pride, frivolous spiritual controversies, envy, discord, malicious talk, evil suspicion, irritability, and greed. Instead, Paul urged Timothy to “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness” (v. 11). This is a strategic withdrawal during which Timothy is to fight the “good fight of the faith” (v. 12). It is a battle carried out by holding fast to the truth both in word and in action. We tend to think of fighting for the truth as primarily a battle of words. The apostle makes it clear that it is also a matter of living out the truth. “The apostle gives us no teaching on holiness and how to attain it,” John Stott observes. “We are simply to run from evil as we run from danger, and to run after goodness as we run after success.” When Paul tells Timothy to “take hold of eternal life,” he is not talking about earning but acting in faith. Timothy is to act in accordance with his confession of faith. The language of confession is probably an allusion to baptism, which 1 Peter 3:21 calls “the pledge of a clear conscience toward God.” The truth that baptism symbolizes is that we have been cleansed from sin by Christ’s death and given new life by His resurrection. >> How do we pursue righteousness? The key is to keep your eyes on Jesus Christ. We confess Christ by agreeing with Jesus’ testimony about Himself. He is our King and Savior. Pray with Us “Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature, O Thou of God and man the Son, Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor, Thou, my soul’s glory, joy, and crown” (Joseph Seiss, “Fairest Lord Jesus”).

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

9-16-23 Santa Staleness

Santa Staleness :: By Edwin Tan Published on: December 24, 2022 by RR10 Category:General Articles My one and only trip to Israel had more than a profound effect on my present-day psyche. It might have been three decades ago, but there is more than a lingering aftertaste. It happened smack in the last fortnight of the year. Surprisingly absent were the familiar sights and sounds of the Christmas most people are accustomed to. Hardly any Christmas decorations in downtown Tel Aviv, if not any of the shopping thoroughfares across the Holy Land. Hanukah was a breath of fresh air – not anything resembling a Christmas carol most people grew up with did surface. The Christmas Eve service in a small Protestant church not far away from Jerusalem’s Old City was awesome; songs that truly celebrated the virgin birth of our Lord, which though seemingly unheard of, were a welcome inspiration to many a soul. There was even one sung in Arabic! So it began, my overt disdain for the secular Christmas t...
Read more

9-25-23 The Farm Chronicles: One Christmas

The Farm Chronicles: One Christmas :: By Bill Wilson Published on: December 24, 2022 by RR10 Category:Bill Wilson, General Articles There are a lot of terrible things going on right now in the world. But we are at the time of the year when we, as Christians, celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. We can choose to be impacted by the world around us in its dimly lit arena, or we can choose to let our light so shine. I choose the latter. I want to tell you a little about the Christmas that I had growing up on our family farm in Ohio. I was blessed to be born into a horse and cattle farm that has been in our family for some 200 years. And Christmas, especially Christmas Eve, was a wonderful time for our family. December 24 was my Dad’s birthday. And my Dad was well-loved by his neighbors and friends, so we had a lot going on Christmas Eve. I remember one special Christmas Eve. I must have been about four years old. The night was falling, and the wind and snow were whipping across the barny...
Read more

9-15-23 Miracles 2

Miracles 2 :: By Jim Towers Published on: December 21, 2022 by RR10 Category:General Articles This story is a continuation of the exciting things God continues doing in my life. I was supposed to have died a while back, and sometimes I feel as though I may do so soon. But since I’m ready to meet my maker, I have no fear of death. In fact, my evangelistic zeal has only increased, especially as I see the fast approaching of the “Tribulation period” mentioned in the book of Revelation. Insofar as my acting career is concerned, I just finished filming a soliloquy featuring Melchior, one of the three Magi who followed the star to Christ lying in the manger, and am preparing to portray a Jewish Priest on stage. Like I said, God is working overtime in my life, and I will be appearing on stage singing Broadway show tunes sometime in March, so I have a lot of rehearsing to do. In the meantime, I will be signing Christmas carols acapella at a park here in Naples. Since it is a spontaneous th...
Read more