Author: admin

Spiritual leaders are not called to merely teach or preach the truth; they are commissioned to incarnate the truth. Yet at times we can be tempted to talk about things we are unfamiliar with. We may have a surface knowledge but not an experiential understanding of what we are talking about.

This reality can be especially true when we talk about and teach God’s word. If we have grown up in church, or have been a church member for some time, we can become extremely familiar with its teachings. We know, for instance, that God commands us to forgive those who harm us. We understand that God has commanded us to make disciples of all nations. Yet these truths become so familiar to us that we don’t take time to truly consider what they mean, in our context. If we refuse to forgive someone who has harmed us, or we are not actively working to make disciples of all nations, then we do not truly understand what Jesus intended.

The apostle James warned that not many people should be teachers, since they would face a greater judgment (James 3:1). There is too much at stake for Christian leaders and teachers to be careless. We must ensure that we have truly experienced that which we are speaking about to others. Think about what has been coming out of your mouth lately. Do you truly know what you are talking about?

The great temptation for spiritual leaders is to use their people rather than to love them. We focus on the task that needs to be accomplished, rather than on the people doing the work. We regularly need to be reminded, as Timothy was, that the people are the work. If we cannot love those we lead, we should not hold our leadership post.

Godly leadership is always performed out of love. Such affection can only be properly expressed out of a pure heart. If our hearts are filled with anger or resentment or fear, then we cannot truly care for others. Our hearts must be pure, for the perfect love of Christ to be properly dispensed through us to others. Our love must also be expressed out of a good conscience. We cannot love others, hypocritically. We cannot care for people while talking about them behind their backs. We cannot act lovingly to peoples’ faces while denigrating them in private. To truly love people, our conscience must be clear. Finally, our faith must be sincere. We cannot proclaim our faith from the platform but deny it by our actions. If our faith is genuine, it will be expressed in all that we do, whether in public or in private.

Are you loving those you lead? Can they tell that you care about them? Is there anything that could be adjusted in your life so you are free to love your people to a greater degree than you are now?

If there was one thing Paul could not stand, it was wasting his time! God’s people are constantly being seduced into meaningless or divisive discussions while neglecting matters of real consequence. Paul’s sagacious advice to Timothy was to avoid being drawn into time-consuming and unproductive conversations.

It can be tempting to speculate about matters of trivia. There is always a casual conversation at hand about recent sporting events or weather changes or political developments, if we want to waste our time. But Paul knew how important his time was. What could almighty God accomplish with one hour of Paul’s time? Paul knew. He had witnessed God using his life powerfully, many times before. He always wanted God to do it again.

Paul may have known that tenderhearted Timothy would want to be kind to those he led. Perhaps Timothy may have been timid to change the direction of a conversation or to walk away from one that was unprofitable. So Paul cautioned him. Avoid conversations that are purposeless. There is too much important work to be done, for God’s servants to squander their valuable time!

The apostle Paul had begun the church in Ephesus on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:1-5). He had devoted two years of his ministry to preaching and teaching in that great city, starting numerous other churches in the surrounding area as a result (Acts 19). Ephesus was also a center of idol worship and contained many spiritual forces working against the early church. To this important church, Paul commissioned his young companion Timothy. There were those who were teaching certain doctrines that were unbiblical and which concerned the apostle. Rather than going there himself to correct the problem, Paul sent young Timothy.

Timothy apparently struggled with timidity (2 Timothy 4:7). He probably was less than enthusiastic at settling controversy or confronting those whose theology had drifted off center. But that is what Paul asked him to do.

If we are to help people mature as leaders, we must be prepared to entrust them with difficult tasks. We can’t simply shield them from their areas of weakness, focusing only on their strengths. Paul understood that fear, and worse yet, cowardice, was lethal to a godly leader. Paul, in his typically thorough manner, was determined to leave no stone unturned in developing Timothy into a first class leader. What is it you are doing to take people around you to a higher level?

The apostle Paul first met Timothy when, on his second missionary journey, he visited the city of Lystra. Timothy’s mother and grandmother were believers, but his father was not. The busy, type A apostle saw something in Timothy that led him to invest his life into him. While Paul sometimes missed such opportunities, such as in his dealings with John Mark, he always had people around him into whom he was investing his life. Long after Paul was gone, the people he discipled continued to proclaim the message Paul had so faithfully preached.

What do you give to those you are mentoring or working with? Paul began with the goodness of God. He wished God’s grace on his young protege. Grace is God’s undeserved favor. It is what makes us like Jesus. Paul also sought God’s mercy in Timothy’s life. While Timothy was apparently a godly and sincere young man, everyone needs God’s mercy. And finally, Paul sought God’s peace. Peace is what we experience when everything between God and us, is as it should be. That was what Paul was striving for in Timothy’s life. As he walked with the young man, Paul sought to lead Timothy into the quality of walk with God in which he could experience everything God intended for him.

Whose life are you currently investing in? Are you helping them experience God’s grace, mercy, and peace?

True servants of God are people who function out of a sense of divine calling. They hold their positions because God clearly called them to it. One of the greatest weaknesses of today’s church is the number of people who serve in leadership positions as a result of their own choice and political maneuvering rather than by divine appointment.

Those who reject God’s call, also forfeit His corresponding power and blessing. How many leaders do you know today who are holding a position (at times tenaciously) but who demonstrate no evidence of God’s hand on their lives?

That could not be said about the apostle Paul. Paul had no doubt why he was doing what he was. God had called him! Why else would Paul suffer such abuse from his opponents and endure such disappointments from his alleged friends? Why would Paul keep preaching in the face of dire death threats? Why did Paul never give up, even when he was in excruciating pain? His sense of divine call gave him the strength and motivation to forge ahead, knowing he was fulfilling almighty God’s call on his life.

What has God called you to do? Do you have a clear sense of His purposes for you? Is that what is motivating your current leadership role? If you have grown discouraged or you feel uncertain of your future, take time to review and ascertain your call. The call of God can radically reorient your life and enable you to accomplish things you might never have dreamed were possible.

No one hated the church any more than Saul did. No one had done more to harm the early Christians than had Saul. He had brought great suffering to many godly, innocent people. Yet when he was converted, he instantly became a “brother” to every believer of his day. No longer was he an enemy. He was now family.

Christianity has no place for second-class members. There is no probation period where new converts must first adequately prove themselves before they are accepted. The moment someone becomes a Christian, they join the family of God as full members.

Saul had so persecuted the church that it took time for some to believe he was sincere. But he was no less family. His past was not held against him. No penance was required. Each believer knew that, but for the grace of God, they too would lie beyond the pale of divine salvation.

Who in your life do you struggle to accept as a member of the family of God? Are you skeptical of some? Do you watch and wait for some to fail? Or do you warmly embrace and encourage each new believer with the fervency of someone who has never lost the wonder of God’s grace in their own life?

God does not save us in order to make us comfortable. He saves us for His own glory. He does not redeem us so He can always “be there” for us. He transforms us so we can always be there for Him.

The risen Christ did not sugar coat His call on Saul’s life. He told him from the very beginning that His will was for Saul to suffer greatly. And he did. No one would have willingly enlisted for the assignment Saul was given. But once Saul met Christ, he realized he had no choice. He must obey. He owed Christ everything. Saul had no illusion that his life would get easier once he became a Christian. In fact, people began trying to murder him once he became a follower of Jesus.

God’s will is not that everyone should suffer like Saul did. The truth is that God has graciously blessed many of us to a far greater degree than we deserve. But for some of us, His will may include hardship. Are you prepared for that? Have you resigned yourself to gladly embrace God’s will for your life? Can you accept the challenges as well as the blessings God assigns to you?

At times God tells us things that seem unbelievable. In the first century, few things would have appeared to be a greater impossibility than that Christianity’s greatest enemy would become a Christian. Saul had terrorized the church. He had brutally hunted down believers and cruelly thrown them into prison. He was filled with anger and murder. No one seemed farther away from salvation than he did. Yet Saul was actually at the very doorstep of a spiritual new birth.

Are there people in your life who seem beyond the possibility of salvation? Are there people who are bitter at the church or critical of the Christian faith? They may not be as far away from salvation as you think. In fact, if we truly know and appreciate God’s power, we will recognize that all things are possible. Even as people are cursing God’s name, the Spirit may be inexorably drawing them toward the Savior.

You ought never to be surprised when a notorious sinner or outspoken agnostic accepts Christ. Likewise, you should never give up on anyone who seems beyond Christ’s reach. History demonstrates that Christ has found a way to reclaim even the most hardened of sinners. Perhaps He is at work right now in someone’s life you would least expect.

Being a shepherd in biblical times was not necessarily an honorable occupation. They were viewed as nomadic people whose definition of personal property was extremely flexible. When the flocks packed up and moved on, so, often, did the possessions of local inhabitants. So untrustworthy were shepherds that their testimony could not be admitted as evidence in a court of law. They would have been the last people you would think of to entrust an important message. Yet that is what God did.

The first people to ever be entrusted with the Gospel message were shepherds. The angels could have made an announcement in the Roman palace or the courts of the temple or the meeting chamber of the Sanhedrin, but they did not. Heavenly messengers were dispatched to announce the amazing news to people who were considered least in their society.

And how did the shepherds respond? They glorified God. They gladly received the good news. They were filled with praise for what God had revealed to them. They knew full well that they had been entrusted with something extremely important. God is no respecter of persons. He loves each individual. He wants each one to know the incredible news of what He has done for them. He also allows us the amazing privilege of delivering that message on His behalf.