Sermon Summary

How Deep Are Your Roots

Good Morning I am Pastor Bobby of Bare Foot Ministries and I want to thank you all for coming today and giving me the opportunity to spread the word of God with you.

The purpose of this Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen. I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Bare Foot Ministries will also organize acts of kindness for individuals, families and groups and encourage you to participate. These acts of kindness will be done in an effort to demonstrate God’s Love for everyone.

Let Us Pray

Lord, in Heaven, the creator of all Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.

Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace and hatred with love.

God remind us that our actions matter.

We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion

We build your kingdom.

Help us be kingdom builders today.

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Now for today’s sermon

“How Deep Are Your Roots”?

People are now calling September 11, 2001 "Black Tuesday." For many people that day was a wakeup call. Attendance in churches across the nation spiked sharply the Sunday after September 11, as people poured into churches to try to find answers. But not only did attendance go up, but people were also seeking spiritual answers to the deep questions they were experiencing. Bible sales went up 28%. Lots of ordinarily non-religious people became active seekers after God. They were asking spiritual questions they had not ask before. They were looking to find God, perhaps the God they learned about as a child in church, or perhaps the God they never knew.

Yet as we have all seen this seeking process turned out to be short lived. Events like what we experienced on September 11 create a momentary sense of urgency. But when the moment passes and our illusion of safety and routine is restored, our sense of urgency fades into the background. Soon we’re back to work, back to PTA meetings, soccer matches, carpooling, and yard work. Although we were sincere at the time about seeking God, slowly our motivation dissipates.

Do you know what makes a tumbleweed so susceptible to the wind? Tumbleweeds only put down one root, and that root is very shallow. So tumbleweeds are easily uprooted when the wind blows. Soon the tumbleweed is blowing wherever the wind pushes it, without any sense of direction or stability.

Contrast a tumbleweed with a tree, like an Oak tree, that puts down lots of roots and these roots go deep. Even in the midst of strong winds, Oak trees stand firm, because their root structure is strong and deep.

Is your spiritual life more like a tumbleweed or a mighty Oak tree? If you only have one or two roots in your spiritual life and these roots don’t go very deep, you’re more like a tumbleweed. And when the winds of life come, the winds of suffering and tragedy, or the breeze of business and routine, you’ll be easily uprooted. But if you have deep spiritual roots, you’ll find yourself standing firm no matter what comes into your life. Even though life doesn’t hurt any less for you and even though you still struggle with the same questions and issues everyone asks, your faith keeps you strong. You face uncertainty with courage, suffering with hope, and tragedy with confidence because your roots go deep.

How deep are your roots? Are you more like a tumbleweed or a mighty Oak?

Today we start looking at the books of 1 and 2 Timothy in the Bible. These two books from the Bible were written by the apostle Paul, the guy who wrote 13 of the 27 books found within the New Testament. Paul had once been a fanatical religious zealot whose passion in life was to exterminate Christians. But one day on the road to the city of Damascus, Paul’s life changed forever. That day Jesus Christ himself appeared to Paul and Jesus called Paul to become an apostle of Jesus. Paul was never the same, as he became a leader in the first century Christian church, traveling around to start churches and share the good news of Jesus Christ with whoever would listen.

Paul writes these two letters of 1 and 2 Timothy to a coworker named Timothy. Timothy was raised in an interfaith home, with a mom who was Jewish and a dad who was a pagan Roman soldier. Timothy grew up in the city of Lystra, a kind of backwater village in the outskirts of the Roman empire. Paul first met Timothy when Timothy was in his late teens or early 20s on one of Paul’s church planting trip. Later Paul invited Timothy to join his team, and gradually Paul entrusted several important tasks to Timothy. Now as Paul approaches the end of his life as he writes these final two letters before his death, Timothy is the heir apparent to Paul’s ministry.

Now Paul writes Timothy while Timothy is acting as a kind of temporary pastor in the church in the city of Ephesus. As we’ll see, Paul left Timothy in Ephesus to deal with some major problems that was destroying the church in the city of Ephesus. Paul started the church in Ephesus on one of his church planting trips. Ephesus was a large city in Asia Minor, which is modern day Turkey. It was a major city, with its primary claim to fame being the temple to the Greek fertility god Artimus. This massive temple was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and tourists traveled from all over the Roman empire to see the temple and buy souvenirs. Paul wrote a letter to the Ephesians that we have in the Bible as the book of Ephesians. But these two letters Paul writes to Timothy are also letters to the Ephesian church. As we’ll see, Paul expects the church to read these letters as well as Timothy.

Now these two letters are going to show us how to deepen our life with God. They’re going to help us move away from having a tumbleweed spiritual life to an Oak Tree spiritual life. These two letters are going to present us with three roots we need to grow deep for a deeper life with God. One root we’ll see again and again in these two letters is the root of accurate beliefs. Accurate beliefs about God, about our world, and about ourselves are essential to putting down deep spiritual roots. If we have inaccurate beliefs about God, we’ll find ourselves like that tumbleweed.

As a church we try to focus on this area in our worship services, like we’re doing right now. That’s why each sermon is out of the Bible in our services, to try to help us all develop accurate beliefs about God. This is a big part of what we hope to accomplish each week in our services. Accurate beliefs are essential to a deepened life with God.

But in addition to accurate beliefs, according to 1 and 2 Timothy we also need spiritual practices. Spiritual practices are those activities we engage in to nurture our relationship with God. They’re practices like prayer, Bible study, confession of our sins and sharing our faith. If we’re not engaging in spiritual practices, we’ll be like tumbleweeds.

Finally, in addition to accurate beliefs and spiritual practices, we also need Christian community to deepen our life with God. By Christian community, I don’t mean merely attending church. It’s hard to have Christian community when you look at the back of another person’s head for an hour. I’m talking about authentic relationships, the kind of friendships that happen in our home with other believers. This is why group bible study is vital for fellowship, because it’s a place to develop an authentic Christian community. The more involved we are with fellow believers, the deeper our roots will go.

These two letters of Paul to Timothy present us with these three roots to deepen our life with God. But today we’re going to look at why accurate beliefs are so important to a deepened life with God. We’re going to find three reasons why accurate beliefs are important to putting down spiritual roots.

Involving Us 1 Timothy 1:1-4 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,

² To Timothy, a true son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.

³ As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may ^[a]charge some that they teach no other doctrine,

⁴ nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith.

Let me just give you the first reason: Accurate beliefs deepen our life with God by involving us with God’s plan.

This letter begins in a typical fashion, with Paul naming himself as the sender and naming Timothy as the addressee. However, even though Paul only names Timothy in these letters, but Paul assumed that the Ephesian church members would also read this letter, so he writes to bolster Timothy’s spiritual authority as Paul’s official representative to try to make Timothy’s job a little easier.

Paul reminds his reader that he’s an apostle of Jesus, chosen directly by God himself. Here we also learn why Paul has his young protégé Timothy staying in Ephesus. Apparently, some people in the Ephesian church are teaching false ideas about God. Some five years earlier, Paul had a special meeting with all the elders of the church in Ephesus, and he warned them at that time that he feared some of the elders would fall away and become false teachers Apparently Paul’s fear had come to pass.

We don’t know much about what these false teachers were saying, but we learn here that it has something to do with devotion to myths and genealogies. Now have you ever tried read the Bible and come to those parts of the Old Testament that are nothing but long genealogies? "So and so begat so and so, so and so begat so and so," and so on and so forth. If all parts of the Bible are useful, those parts of the Bible are useful for treating insomnia! Well back when Paul wrote this letter, several Jewish writings had been produced that tried to read between the lines of these genealogies found in the Old Testament. Entire books had been written that speculated about what happened to the people mentioned in these genealogies. These books consisted of legends and tales of these people, and they were pure fiction. Apparently, these false teachers were either obsessed with reading these kinds of novels or they were making up their own myths and legends based on Old Testament family trees.

Paul says this excessive devotion to myths and genealogies leads to nothing but controversy. It hinders rather than promotes God’s work. Now the Greek word translated "work" in v. 4 is the key word to this section, and it’s not the usual Greek word for "work" in the New Testament. The word Paul uses here refers to "a plan which involves a set of arrangements". The Greek word Paul uses here is related to our English word economy. It refers to a "master plan" or "strategic plan." Here it refers to God’s master plan.

Accurate beliefs involve us in this master plan of God, while inaccurate beliefs distract us from it.

Now what exactly is God’s master plan for our world? "I believe God has called each of us to reach non-believers and unchurched people with Christ’s love and to help these people grow into fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ who wholeheartedly love God and others"

God’s strategic plan involves reaching people who don’t yet know Jesus Christ. These are the unchurched people in our own communities, those who haven’t yet discovered a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ. When we live as Kingdom Builders in our own community it causes Gods Kingdom to grow larger, as more and more people discover this relationship with Jesus through your sharing of Gods word in this community. This is what God is doing in our world, using you and other Christians worldwide to invite people into a relationship with Jesus.

But this master plan also involves growth into spiritual maturity. We’re also concerned with helping people who are already Christians grow in their devotion to Jesus. This is what causes our faith to grow deeper, as we develop accurate beliefs, spiritual practices, and an authentic Christian fellowship (community).

Accurate beliefs involve us in this process of reaching out to lost people and helping each other grow into full devotion to Jesus. Inaccurate beliefs distract us from this master plan.

2. Empowering Us 1 Timothy 1:5 Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from ^[a]sincere faith,

Let me give you the second reason: Accurate beliefs deepen our life with God by empowering us to love people.

Verse 5. Paul states his purpose for giving Timothy this command to silence false teachers. Although this command to silence false teachers is going to be a difficult one to accomplish Paul’s aim is to produce love rather than controversy, reconciliation rather than strife. By extension we can conclude that this is really the goal of all Christian instruction. The goal of all Christian instruction is to empower us as followers of Jesus Christ to truly love other people, to truly love our neighbor

Where does this kind of love come from? It comes from "a pure heart." In the Bible, your heart is your inner person, who you are on the inside. A "pure heart" describes a heart that’s being continually cleansed and transformed by God. It’s not talking about a heart that’s never been dirty, but it’s a dirty heart that’s being cleansed by God through Jesus Christ. All of our hearts need continual and ongoing cleansing from sin, and Christ’s death on the cross provides for this cleansing. Hearts that aren’t cleansed by Jesus Christ can’t love with the kind of love Paul is speaking of here.

This kind of love also comes from "a good conscience." This isn’t talking about feeling good about our past actions, but it’s talking about a conscience that leads us to do good today. A good conscience is a moral sensitivity that shows us what’s right and wrong today. It’s a moral compass that’s aligned with the true north of God’s own standards for right and wrong. If we don’t have an accurate moral compass, we can’t love people the way God wants us to.

This kind of love also comes from "a sincere true faith." This refers to an authentic trust in God, a trust in God that’s not just religious showboating. It’s a trust in God that comes from the heart, a trust that’s willing to trust the results of our love to God. If we can’t trust God from our hearts, we’ll have great difficulty loving people.

Apparently, the false teachings circulating in the Ephesian church weren’t leading to love. These destructive doctrines were causing pure hearts to become defiled, good consciences to become confused, and sincere faith to erode. But accurate beliefs will empower us to love others.

Sometimes people say, "The Christian faith isn’t so much about believing certain things as much as it’s about loving people." Many people in our world today think it doesn’t matter what you believe, so long as you’re loving. And if you’re loving, you’re a Christian, regardless of what you believe. But the teaching of the Bible is that because of human sin, we’re incapable of loving the way we should. So God demonstrates his own incredible love by sending his own Son Jesus Christ. In Jesus Christ’s life, death and resurrection, we see real love in action. And when we trust in what Jesus accomplished on the cross, this belief empowers us to love others the way God loves. So there’s a direct connection between our beliefs and our capacity to truly love our neighbor.

3. Focusing Us 1 Timothy 1:6-11 from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.

But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully,

knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.

Accurate beliefs deepen our life with God by focusing us on the message about Jesus Christ.

Look at verses 1 Timothy 6-11. Apparently, in addition to speculating about the genealogies in the Bible, these false teachers desperately wanted to be "teachers of the law." This phrase refers to Jewish rabbis who were especially skilled at applying Jewish law to contemporary life situations. And the heart of the Jewish Law was the ten commandments. Yet apparently, as dogmatic as these false teachers were, they really didn’t understand God’s law.

Paul reminds us that the Old Testament law of Moses found in the ten commandments is only valuable if it’s used properly. If we don’t use the law in accordance with God’s purpose for the law, we’ll find ourselves using it wrongly. When we use God’s law wrongly, it’s no longer a force of good in our lives.

God’s law is like a medicine prescribed by our doctor. If we use the medicine the way its prescribed, it will make us feel better. But if we abuse the medication or use it in ways not prescribed, it will make us even more sick. Paul tells us that God’s law is very good at pointing out what sin is, but God never intended the ten commandments to be a way to set us free from sin.

Paul lists all kinds of sins here, and the sins he lists roughly correspond to the ten commandments. The first four of the ten commandments deal with our love for God: No other gods, no idols, not taking God’s name in vain, and keeping the Sabbath holy. All of these commands deal with the vertical dimension of our spiritual life, they all have to do with our attitude and actions toward God. The words "ungodly and sinful, unholy and irreligious" all deal with sin directed toward God.

Then the last half of verse 1 Timothy 9:10 deal with sins against other people, and these sins correspond to the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth commandments. This is the horizontal dimension of our spiritual life, how we treat each other as a reflection of our devotion to God.

God’s law is God’s prescription to show us that these kinds of activities are morally wrong. But God’s law is powerless to bring about the spiritual and moral transformation we need to be delivered from these kinds of sins. For that we need what verses 1 Timothy 10-11 call the sound doctrine that conforms to the gospel. The phrase "sound doctrine" here uses a medical word to convey the idea of beliefs and teaching that promote spiritual health. While wrong beliefs and false doctrine produces spiritual sickness, true beliefs and sound doctrine produces spiritual health in our lives.

And the criteria for what counts as sound doctrine is the gospel. That word "gospel" simply refers to the message about Jesus Christ, the good news that Jesus came to live a perfect life, die on the cross for our sins, and rise from the grave to conquer death. Throughout the New Testament, God’s gospel is the good news about Jesus Christ and what Jesus accomplished for us.

You see, for the Christian, the gospel ought to be the criteria for evaluating every belief we have. We look at life through the lens of the gospel to come to beliefs that are sound and produce spiritual health in our lives. While many of the religious people back when Paul wrote these words looked at the ten commandments in this way, Paul tells young Timothy that this presses the law into a role God never intended for the law. Instead of looking at life through the lens of the ten commandments, God wants us to look through the lens of the gospel.

This emphasis on the gospel is what makes Church an evangelical church. We’re a church that focuses on this good news, this message about Jesus’ death and resurrection. We want to share this message with others, we celebrate daily. We listen to stories about how this message has changed people’s lives. We’re a gospel focused congregation of believers.

Conclusion

We learn here that accurate beliefs are powerful indeed. Accurate beliefs are essential to a deepened life with God because they involve us in God’s work, they empower us to love people, and they focus on the message of Jesus Christ. Inaccurate beliefs distract us from God’s work, hinder our ability to love people, and focus on things other than the gospel.

My hope and prayer is that as you come Sunday you’re on a journey of developing accurate beliefs about God, about yourself, and about our world. It’s my prayer that as we journey together in this process of developing accurate beliefs, God will use us in amazing ways. Then we’ll put down deep roots, roots that can withstand the winds of change and fear, roots that are strong enough to sustain us even in times of war, roots that go deep into the heart of God himself.

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet. John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Now go out and be a Kingdom Builders For God. Share the word with any and all that will listen.

Verse List

• 1 and 2 Timothy

• 1 Tim 1:1-4

• 1 Timothy 1:5

• 1 Timothy 6:10

• 1 Timothy 9:10

• 1 Timothy 10:11

Notes: This week we continue to study 1 & 2 Timothy.

Please read this one carefully. If you take offense please read this sermon again and look up each verse referenced. Both 1 & 2 Timothy are bypassed by alot of preachers because without careful study can cause controversy within their church and between men and women. That controversy is caused because of the misinterpretation of several of the verses.. Men and Women are equal in the eyes of God but each have their different role in serving the Lord. Don't stop studying The Books of Timothy after this series of sermons. Continue to look deeper. There is so much that Paul says in these 2 books of the Bible. Thank you all for allowing me to continue to plant the seed of God in your hearts.

Sermon Summary

“It's Not Just How You Start, It's Also How You Finish ”

Scripture: 1 Timothy 1:12-20

Summary: Whether our story of starting our life with God is dramatic or ordinary, what truly counts is finishing.

Well I’m here today to tell you that it’s not just how you start out in the Christian life, but it’s also about how you finish. Last weekend we started a new series through the books of 1 and 2 Timothy in the Bible called Deepening Your Life With God. Today we talk about how people start out in this life with God. Every journey has to begin somewhere, and the spiritual journey begins with conversion, with a decision to turn to God and trust in Jesus Christ. Although everyone’s story of conversion is unique, there are three basic kinds of stories we hear about conversion. There are dramatic stories, there are "ordinary stories," and there are tragic stories. We’re going to look at each kind of story today, and we’re going to see that it’s not just how you start, but it’s also how you finish.

1. Dramatic Stories (1 Timothy 1:12-17)

We start by looking at one of the most dramatic conversion stories of all in vv. 12-17. The apostle Paul who wrote this letter to Timothy had experienced a dramatic conversion. As he looks back on his story, Paul marvels in this section at how God could have confidence in Paul in light of his former way of life. His life before Jesus was characterized by blasphemy of Jesus, by persecution of Christians, and by violence. We know from the book of Acts that Paul participated in the execution of the first Christian to die for his faith. This led Paul on a rampage of hatred and violence, as he went from town to town stalking Christians. He used whatever means possible to imprison and hurt as many Christians as possible.

Yet despite all this, God got a hold of Paul’s life. While Paul was on his way to the city of Damascus to hunt down more Christians, suddenly Jesus Christ himself appeared to Paul. Paul was knocked off his horse and struck blind, as he heard those unforgettable words from Jesus, "Why are you persecuting me?" Paul’s life was never the same, as he came to trust in Jesus as his own Savior that day and also received his calling to become an apostle of Jesus Christ.

In v. 15 Paul quotes a trustworthy saying. Paul mentions these trustworthy statements four times in 1 and 2 Timothy, and each time it refers to a saying that was common knowledge to the church in Ephesus. These trustworthy sayings were like proverbs or slogans that everyone in the church knew, perhaps a bit like our slogans "helping people love God and others" or "Every member a minister." Well one of the slogans at the church in Ephesus was, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners." Some Bible teachers believe this slogan might be based on a saying of Jesus himself, perhaps Luke 19:10, where Jesus said, "The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

After quoting this, Paul adds the words "of whom I am the worst." Paul viewed himself as the worst of sinners, or as some translations put it, "the chief of sinners." One paraphrase of the Bible puts it, "Public sinner number one" Now I don’t think this means that Paul was the most wicked, immoral, hateful person who existed on the face of the earth at this time. I think Paul is speaking from the perspective of his own experience. Some Bible teachers suggests, "Paul was so vividly aware of his own sins that he could not conceive that anybody could be worse". I think Paul was also struck by the fact that his sins had been committed in God’s name, which made his sins even worse.

Paul views his own conversion as a kind of prototype, an example of how God can get a hold of a person who seems far beyond the reach of God’s love. This leads Paul to break into praise in v. 17, as he gives the credit to God alone for his conversion. He recognizes that it’s the one true God, the creator of the universe, who has laid hold of his life and put him into service of Jesus Christ.

So Paul’s story is a dramatic story, perhaps the most dramatic story of all. Here we learn that THE GOOD NEWS OF JESUS CHRIST CAN TRANSFORM PEOPLE WHO ARE HOSTILE TO THE CHRISTIAN FAITH.

Think about some of the more notorious conversions in our generation. Alice Cooper, the 1970s rock star who was the inspiration of Marilyn Manson has come to faith in Jesus Christ the last few years. And then there’s Norma McCorvey, perhaps best known as Jane Roe in the famous Roe vs. Wade court decision that legalized abortion on demand. Norma McCorvey was led to Christ by Christian pro-life activists, if you can believe that.

The good news of Jesus can transform people who are enemies of the faith.

2. "Ordinary Stories" (1 Timothy 1:18-19a)

That brings us to what we think of as "ordinary" stories. I put the word "ordinary" in quotes because from God’s perspective every single conversion is a miracle and cause for rejoicing in heaven. However, these are conversions that seem less dramatic to us.

Timothy’s story was an ordinary story, as we see in v. 18 and the first part of v. 19. Now we don’t know nearly as much about Timothy as we know about Paul, but what we do know about Timothy is interesting. We know from the book of Acts Timothy was raised in an interfaith home, with a Jewish mother and a Roman pagan soldier for a father. We know from 2 Timothy 1:5 that Timothy learned about God and Jesus from his mother Lois and his grandmother Eunice. We also know from 2 Timothy 3:16 that Timothy was taught about the Bible as a very young child, that his mother and grandmother had taught him from the Bible as far back as he could remember.

So Timothy grew up in the equivalent of a Christian home, as a third generation believer. If Timothy was like a lot of people who grow up in that kind of home, he probably struggled to identify exactly when his conversion occurred. To Timothy it probably seemed like he’d always believed because his faith had always been an important part of his life.

So Paul doesn’t remind Timothy of Timothy’s conversion experience, but instead he reminds Timothy of a time when some prophecies were made about him. Now the spiritual gift of prophecy was an important gift in the New Testament church, and it still functions even today. God gifts some Christians with the gift of prophecy, not so much to predict the future, but more to help the church discern what God’s will is when the church is facing a crossroads. We don’t know when these prophecies were made about Timothy or who made them, though 1 Tim 4:14 links it to a time when the church elders laid their hands on Timothy to commission him to ministry. Most likely, this is referring to Timothy’s calling to serve in ministry, perhaps when he first decided to join Paul’s ministry team. For Timothy, this event was his milestone, not so much his conversion but his calling to ministry.

Following Paul’s instructions will enable Timothy to live consistently with these prophecies, so he can fight the good fight. This "fight the good fight," phrase pictures Timothy as a soldier, and it pictures the spiritual life as a fight that requires faithfulness and perseverance. Isn’t that what the spiritual life seems like at times, a fight?

For Timothy the key to fighting this good fight will be "holding on to faith" and keeping "a good conscience." Holding on to faith is literally holding on to the Christian faith. This isn’t talking about Timothy’s personal faith, but it’s talking about Timothy’s commitment to the Christian faith. In this context, Timothy’s faith refers to his doctrinal integrity. This is why later in the letter Paul will tell Timothy to watch his doctrine closely (1 Tim 4:16). Doctrinal integrity is critical to Timothy if he wants to fight the good fight in his life with God.

If "holding on to the faith" refers to doctrinal integrity, keeping a good conscience refers to Timothy’s moral integrity. As important as doctrinal integrity is, it’s no substitute for moral integrity. Even if we believe all the right things about God, we won’t fight the good fight unless we maintain a life of moral purity that pleases God. Moral integrity is not perfection, but it’s a life that strives to stay within the moral boundaries God has given for us to live in. It’s a life that refuses to abandon itself to behavior that’s displeasing to God, whether it’s a lifestyle of dishonesty or to sexual excess or whatever. Doctrinal and moral integrity are both essential to fighting the good fight.

Timothy’s story is an ordinary story. We learn here that THE GOOD NEWS OF JESUS CHRIST CAN TRANSFORM PEOPLE WHO WERE RAISED IN A CHRISTIAN HOME.

There are thousands and thousands of "ordinary" stories all around us. I think of Anne Graham Lotz, the daughter of Billy Graham. Anne never rebelled like her brother Franklin did, but instead she came to faith in Jesus Christ at a young age and has continued to grow and develop in her faith ever since. God is using her greatly, and some people think Anne is a more effective public speaker than her dad and brother are. I also think of Dr. James Dobson, who was the son of a Nazarene pastor. Dr. Dobson came to faith in Christ at an early age and has never deviated from the faith he learned from his parents and grandparents.

For people with ordinary stories, their benchmark events are likely to be events other than their conversion story. For Paul, his conversion was his turning point, but for Timothy his turning point came when was when he was called to ministry. If you were raised in a Christian home, you might have trouble remembering exactly when you came to faith in Jesus. Your benchmark events are likely to come later in your life, perhaps as a teenager or a young adult. Perhaps an experience with God at a summer camp or a time when you started serving in ministry as a high school student. Perhaps a summer mission trip or a crisis of faith that you worked through during your college years.

The biggest danger for people who were raised in a Christian home is becoming a nominal Christian, a Christina "in name only." A nominal Christian is someone who simply has the title Christian but lacks a genuine, authentic faith in Jesus. These are people who identify themselves as Christians because their parents were, they perhaps still go to church, they read the Bible, they even try to talk to others about the Christian faith, but inside they lack a genuine, vibrant relationship with God. This is why every person raised in a Christian home must come to a point of embracing the Christian faith for him or herself, no longer relying on their parents’ faith, their youth pastor’s faith, or anyone else’s faith.

Once a person comes to this point, then their life with God can be just as deep and just as exciting as a person with a dramatic conversion.

To be honest, this is the kind of story every Christian parent wishes for his or her kids. A life like Timothy, where our children are nurtured in the Christian faith from infancy, where they came to faith at a young age, and where they confirmed that faith as an adult. We pray, "God help our kids be more like Timothy than like Paul."

It’s not just how you start, but it’s how you finish, and both those with dramatic stories and those with ordinary stories can finish well.

3. Tragic Stories (1 Timothy 1:19a-20)

But then there are tragic stories. These are stories about people who started out strong in the Christian faith. But for these people, something tragic happened, and they seem to have lost their faith in some way. For Paul, these people are represented by the false teachers in the church in Ephesus who once seemed to have faith but who have lost their way.

Paul gives us two examples of a tragic story in vv. 19-20. These are people who have pushed aside doctrinal integrity and moral integrity, and as a result they’ve have shipwrecked their faith. A shipwreck is a vivid word picture of total disaster, of being crushed and broken by the waves. A person shipwrecked is stuck, perhaps injured, and certainly has lost their way.

Paul identifies two individuals named Hymenaeus and Alexander who are examples of a shipwrecked faith. It’s likely that both of these guys had at one time been church leaders in Ephesus, but they’ve abandoned their doctrinal integrity and moral integrity. As a result they’ve shipwrecked their faith.

Now Paul says he has handed these two people over to Satan. That phrase "hand over to Satan" is a technical term in the New Testament for excommunicating people from the Christian community. The idea is that the church is the domain of Jesus Christ, but outside the church in the world is the domain of Satan. If a person rejects true beliefs about Jesus and embraces a lifestyle of moral rebellion, that person chooses to put themselves in the domain of Satan instead of the domain of Jesus. So if the person refuses to change after repeated warnings, they are given over to the domain they’ve chosen and put out of the church. This doesn’t mean the church stops loving them or praying for them, but it means that the church treats them as if they are an unbeliever because they are living like unbelievers.

Now Paul here never asks the question all of us are asking by now. Our question is, "Were Hymenaeus and Alexander still Christians?" Are they true Christians who lost their way or were they never true Christians in the first place? Paul refuses to speculate. He simply says to treat them as if they are unbelievers, but he stops short of making a judgment as to whether they’re genuine believers or not.

Hymenaeus and Alexander represent tragic stories. We learn that THE GOOD NEWS OF JESUS CHRIST CAN EVEN TRANSFORM PEOPLE WHO HAVE LOST THEIR WAY IN THE CHRISTIAN FAITH.

The reason why Paul told his own dramatic story first was to give hope to people like Hymenaeus and Alexander. If Christ can reach Paul, he can also reach Hymenaeus and Alexander, and anyone else shipwrecked in the faith. Tragic stories don’t have to have a tragic ending.

Now many of us know people who have lost their way in the faith. At one time they seemed to have faith in Jesus, but at some point they lost their way. Perhaps they lost their way doctrinally, abandoning their doctrinal integrity. Or perhaps they lost their way morally, abandoning their moral integrity. Our culture is filled with people who’ve shipwrecked their faith for whatever reason.

Versus

• 1 Timothy 2:8-15

• 1 Timothy 2:8-10

• 1 Tim 1:1-7

• Matt 5:23-24

• 1 Timothy 2:11-14

• 1 Timothy 2:15

• Gen 3:15

Sermon Summary

Men & Women: Different But Equal

Scripture: 1 Timothy 2:8-15

Summary: Two ways men and women are different in the church, and one way they are equal.

Men and women really are different. So different one author says that it’s almost like men are from Mars and women are from Venus. The feminist movement in America has accomplished a lot of things--many of them good things--but they’ve failed to convince us that men and women are pretty much the same. We process things differently, we have different needs in our relationships, we see life differently.

But different doesn’t mean better. Feminists have a valid point when they complain that most of human history has been about men dominating women. Throughout most of history women have been oppressed and restricted. Many Americans were shocked to learn that a woman can be executed in Afghanistan for no more than learning how to read.

Unfortunately, the Christian Church has also been guilty of treating women unfairly. The second century theologian Tertullian called women "the Devil’s gateway". The Christian theologian Augustine called marriage a covenant of death.

In many ways the Christian community simply reflected the prevailing attitude of the entire ancient world. All of Greco-Roman society looked at women as inferior to men. The philosopher Socrates argued that being born a woman was a punishment because a woman is halfway between a man and an animal. Women weren’t allowed to vote in ancient Greece, they had little choice over who they married, and in Roman society they aren’t allowed to be seen outside the home. Women in Jewish society didn’t fare much better. The Jewish rabbis prayed, "Thank you God for not making a woman." Jewish women were forbidden from learning the Jewish Bible. In fact, one rabbi said, "It would be better to see the…scriptures burnt than to hear its words upon the lips of women". The sad reality is that much of human history has been about men oppressing women. That attitude prevailed until Jesus Christ came to our world. Jesus both taught and demonstrated an entirely new attitude toward women, an attitude that was radical and revolutionary. Jesus taught that men and women were equal but different.

We’ve been in a series through the New Testament books of 1 and 2 Timothy called Deepening Your Life With God. In this series we’ve been looking at the apostle Paul’s final letters before his death. He wrote these letters to his young protégé Timothy who was staying at the Christian church in Ephesus. We’ve seen so far that to have a deep life with God we need accurate beliefs, spiritual practices and authentic Christian community. Today we’re going to talk about the Christian community, and we’re going to see how men and women are different in the context of the Christian community.

1. Different Temptations 1 Timothy 2:8-10

We start by asking how men and women are different. Now I’m asking this question beyond the obvious, that men and women are different biologically. How are we different in the context of the Christian community? As we worship together, how are men and women different?

We’re going to see that men and women face different temptations in the Christian community.

Now just as a reminder, this entire chapter of 1 Timothy is about conducting prayer in the church’s worship services. We talked last week of teaching about public prayer in 1 Tim 1:1-7. This concern that we pray in our worship runs throughout this entire chapter, and we dare not forget it if we want to truly understand what Paul is saying here.

Paul starts by talking to the men in the church in v. 8. Lifting up your hands in prayer was the normal prayer posture among both Christians and Jews in the first century. This is one of several references to the lifting of our hands in worship. But here Paul seems less concerned with our posture and more concerned with our hearts. Apparently many of the men in the congregation were bickering and fighting among each other, and then putting on happy face at church and praying as if nothing were wrong. This was pure hypocrisy, because inwardly they were filled with anger at each other, but outwardly they were pretending that nothing was wrong. This was a clear violation of Jesus’ teaching in his Sermon on the Mount, that we should leave our offering at the altar and be reconciled with our Christian brother or sister before presenting an offering to God (Matt 5:23-24). Our uplifted hands aren’t holy in worship if our hearts are filled with seething anger and unresolved resentment.

But then Paul addresses the women in vv. 9 and 10. In the original Greek Paul wrote, v. 9 begins with the phrase, "Likewise also." This is important because the "likewise also" refers back to Paul’s statement in v. 8, "I want men to pray." By saying, "Likewise also," Paul is saying that he also wants the women to pray in worship, just as he wants the men to pray.

But the temptation the women were struggling with in the worship service was different than what the men were struggling with. Paul needs to remind the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety when they’re praying in worship. The word "modest" means "well ordered," and it refers to clothing that’s not showy, extravagant or sensually enticing. He calls the Ephesian women to "propriety," which means using "sensible judgment".

Now for the Ephesian women, the opposite of modesty was braided hair, gold, pearls and expensive clothing. Before you start looking around to see if anyone here has braids, gold or pearls, you need to know that the prostitutes in the ancient city of Ephesus wore braided hair and gold as part of their working clothes. You see, the city of Ephesus was home to the ancient temple of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, and this temple employed hundreds of temple prostitutes. These prostitutes were infamous throughout the Roman world for their elaborate hairstyles and ornate gold jewelry, so much so that you could identify a prostitute of Aphrodite from a distance just by the way she dressed. Some of the Ephesian women were mimicking the hairstyles and accessories of these prostitutes when they met for worship.

If the braided hair and gold was dressing seductively, the pearls and expensive clothing refer to dressing extravagantly. Pearls were the most expensive kind of jewelry you could buy in the Roman world, so they represented affluence and wealth. Pearls and expensive clothing pictures women coming to the worship service dressed in a way that called attention to their wealth and affluence. This was a way for them to flaunt their wealth in the faces of those who were less wealthy.

As I studied this verse, I immediately thought about the kinds of fashions we see every year at the Academy Awards. Each year we see women dressed in gowns that cost more money than you or I make in a year. And some of the dresses are so revealing that they seem to defy the laws of gravity just by staying on. I think Paul would say, "Don’t be surprised when they do that at the Academy Awards. But beware when you start dressing like that for worship."

Instead, says Paul, Christian women should adorn themselves with good works that are consistent with their claim to worship God. Now it’s very important that we understand the Bible’s principle here and not confuse the principle with how this principle applied in first century Ephesus. The principle is for Christian women to dress modestly when they participate in public worship. This verse says nothing about how a woman dresses for her husband privately. Really it’s not even talking about how a woman dresses in the workplace or the community, although we might apply the principle to those other circumstances. But the emphasis here is on Christian women dressing modestly for public worship.

Now the application of this principle for Christian women living in first century Ephesus was to avoid braided hair, gold, pearls and expensive clothing. What we need to apply in our own day is the principle, not necessarily the first century application of the principle. I knew a college student who didn’t understand this distinction between the principle and the first century application of the principle. Because of this verse, this student refused to allow his wife to wear her gold wedding band outside of the house. Now if I met a woman who I knew was married and I noticed that she wasn’t wearing her wedding band, I’d think, "This woman is trying to pretend to be unmarried." This student’s application actually had the opposite effect, because in our culture today a married woman not wearing her wedding band is an immodest act. So we want to emphasize the principle, not necessarily how the principle applied back to a different culture 2,000 years ago.

What we have here are men and women facing two very different kinds of temptations. Both temptations are similar because they deal with the alignment of what’s inside with what’s outside. THE MEN WERE TEMPTED TO MASK INNER SIN WITH OUTWARD VIRTUE. They were being hypocritical, pretending to be outwardly pious, while seething with inner anger. And men have a tendency to keep things deeply buried in their hearts, don’t they? Under stress, we guys have a tendency to internalize our feelings and bury them. We can be experts at pretending that everything’s okay when it’s really not. We can be tempted to mask inward sin with outward virtue.

THE WOMEN WERE TEMPTED TO MASK INNER VIRTUE WITH OUTWARD SIN. Now this is not to say that the women were more inwardly virtuous than the men in the church were, but it’s merely to point out that their temptation was slightly different than the men’s temptation. Instead of allowing their inner devotion to Jesus to be sufficient, they felt the need to mimic the fashions of the temple prostitutes to call attention to themselves. Or instead of letting their service of Jesus speak for itself, they wore clothing and accessories that flaunted their wealth. The women in Ephesus were dressing seductively and extravagantly to call attention to themselves.

I don’t think this passage is forbidding women from adorning themselves to enhance their beauty. Many Bible teachers agree when they say, "Paul recognizes both that women are beautiful and that they should increase and exhibit their beauty. There is no biblical warrant in these verses for women to neglect their appearance, or conceal their beauty or become drab…The question is how they should adorn themselves". The principle here for women is modesty, for women to enhance their beauty in modest ways. Modesty is simply not dressing in a way that calls attention to yourself, whether seductively or extravagantly.

It’s interesting that even non-Christians in our culture are starting to recognize the need for modesty. Wendy Shalit, a writer for the Wall Street Journal, has recently written a fascinating book called A Return to Modesty. Wendy Shalit believes our loss of a sense of modesty has led to women being victimized and brutalized in our society. Listen to what Wendy Shalit says, "Specific rules about modesty change with the styles. Our Victorian ancestors…would judge us utterly depraved for wearing the modern bathing suit. Real modesty, however, is a constant and desirable quality. It is based not on fashion, but appropriateness…A well mannered and self-respecting woman avoids clothes or behavior that are inappropriate and conspicuous". Shalit isn’t a Christian, but clearly she and many other women of her 20-something generation are yearning for a return to balance in this area. Men and women face different temptations, even in the Christian community.

2. Different Roles 1 Timothy 2:11-14

Let me give you the second difference between men and women in the church: God has given men and women DIFFERENT ROLES TO FULFILL in the Christian community.

Look at v. 11-14. Now this is one of the Bible’s most controversial passages. Some people think that this passage proves that the Bible is a patriarchal, woman-hating document. The author of one of the commentaries on 1 Timothy I studied this verse said, "This is a passage I have always disliked, resisted, and until now avoided at all costs".

Yet it’s essential that we hear exactly what Paul is and is not saying before we pass judgment on him. The text begins with, "A woman should learn." Now we quickly pass over that part, but it’s vitally important statement, because in the Greek this is a command, an imperative. It literally commands the church, "Let a woman learn." Back then both people believed it was wrong to teach women, so what Paul is saying here would be revolutionary to first century ears. This command opened a door that allowed women to learn about God for themselves, not having to rely on their husbands or a priest or prophet.

But this learning must take place in an atmosphere of quietness and full submission. In other words, the woman learning the Bible must be teachable and submissive to what the Bible says. So Paul wants the women to learn in an attitude of submission to the Bible, which is really a good attitude for all of us to have when we learn about the Bible.

Then Paul says he doesn’t allow women to teach or exercise authority over men. Now Paul uses a literary device here called hendiadys, where two ideas are coordinated but they really refer to the same action or thing. The two ideas are "teach" and "exercise authority over a man." Paul does not mean that he forbids women from all teaching on the one hand, and, by the way, he also forbids women from exercising authority over men. That would go against what Paul says elsewhere about older women teaching the younger women. So it’s not a blanket prohibition against women teaching, but it’s the kind of teaching that involves exercising authority over men that Paul’s concerned about. We might paraphrase Paul’s point as, "I do not allow a woman to give authoritative teaching to men, but when it comes to authoritative teaching, I want women to remain silent."

Now the reason for this prohibition relates to the story of Adam and Eve in the book of Genesis. Paul says that there’s significance to the fact that Adam was created before Eve. That doesn’t mean Adam is better than Eve; after all, all the animals were created before Adam. But Paul does see that this order of creation illustrates a distinction in roles. Paul also points to the fact that it was the woman who was deceived. Now this does not mean that women are more easily deceived than men are. It always cracks me up when people think that this means women are more easily deceived and then they put women in charge of teaching all the children, the must vulnerable group. Remember, the responsibility for the fall of the human race is not shouldered by Eve, but the Bible says that its in Adam that the entire human race sinned. But there is significance to the fact that Eve was deceived.

All of this points to a distinction in roles for men and women in the Christian community. We can’t apply this to the workplace or to the community. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with a woman being a supervisor in the workplace over men, or holding high political office, or whatever else. The context here is church leadership, not leadership outside of the Christian community.

Now how does this all apply to us? We understand the role of authoritative teaching to be limited to our elders. In fact, I find it very interesting that in the very next chapter Paul writes down the qualifications for church elders, because it’s up to the elder board to maintain a church’s doctrinal integrity. The elder board guards doctrinal integrity, and every person in any teaching role--male or female--is expected to teach within these doctrinal parameters. So we don’t take this to be a blanket prohibition of any women teaching men, but we take it to be a prohibition of female elders, because it’s the elder board that provides authoritative teaching in the church.

We do have female pastors because we make a distinction between elders and pastors. In the Bible, a pastor is someone who is spiritually gifted by God to help equip other people for ministry.

There are women who minister wherever God might lead them to. There are female Bible study leaders, female volunteer staff, female care group leaders, female communion servers, and so forth.

So God has given men and women different roles in the Christian community.

3. Different But Equal 1 Timothy 2:15

Now if this is where the text ended, we might be tempted to think that God values the contributions of men more than he values the contributions of women. In fact, many Christians down through the ages have concluded just that, and the church has a bad history of refusing to allow women to use their spiritual gifts in meaningful ministry. In many churches, if it doesn’t involve cooking food, working with kids, or making crafts, women can’t serve.

So Paul tries to even things out with the last verse of the chapter, v. 15. Verse 15 literally says, "She shall be saved through childbirth." The "she" grammatically refers back to Eve in vv. 13 and 14. Remember what God said in Genesis after Adam and Eve both rebelled against God? God said to the serpent, "I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; the offspring of the woman will crush the serpent’s head, and the serpent will strike at his heel" (Gen 3:15). In that verse God promised that the remedy to sin would be provided by the woman’s offspring. The fulfillment of this promise came through the birth of Jesus Christ to Mary. Paul’s reminding us here that God’s gift of salvation would came through women, and this gift of salvation would be for all people. Every time a woman gives birth to a child it’s a reminder that women played a vital role in bringing God’s plan to fulfillment.

Then v. 15 broadens to include all women, that they too will experience this salvation if they continue in faith, love, and holiness with propriety. That’s Paul’s way of saying, "All women will be saved from sin provided that they are Christians."

So here we find how men and women are equal in the Christian community. Both men and women are invited to equally share in salvation through Jesus Christ.

Jesus came into the world by being born of a woman. But Jesus came into the world as a man. Which was more important to the process: Manhood or womanhood? That’s like asking which hand is more important when you clap, your right hand or your left hand? Both are equally important, because without one the other can’t do what it needs to do.

Paul writes these words to help us men view women as equals. After all, according to the Bible both men and women bear the image of God. Paul wrote in Galatians, "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus" (3:28). The gift of God’s Spirit was poured out on both the men and the women, both sons and daughters, both slave and free, both young and old.

So even though men and women are different, they are definitely equal in God’s eyes.

Men and women are equal but different. In the Christian community they’re different because they face different temptations and have different roles to fulfill. There are probably other differences too, but these are the ones Paul focuses on because that’s where the problems were in the church in Ephesus. But men and women are also equal because they are both equally invited to share in God’s gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.

Always remember that Christ Died for all, both men and women both young and old, both Jew and Gentile so that we could all be saved thru Jesus Christ and have ever lasting life.

Now go out and spread Gods word to any and all that will listen. Continue to approach those who refuse to listen. One day they will start asking questions and want to hear more about God and how to receive everlasting life thru Jesus Christ.

If you can lead one person to confess their sins and be saved you are a Kingdom Builder

Verse List

• Luke 10:25-37

• Lev. 19:18

• Judges 2:10-13

• Eph. 2:1-3

• 2 Cor. 4:4

• Gal. 6:2

• Matt.25:34-40

Sermon Summary

Loving Your Neighbor

Text: Luke 10:25-37 (The parable of the Good Samaritan)

Introduction (v25-29)

“On one occasion an expert in the Law stood up to test Jesus.

“Teacher,” “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus ask “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

He answered: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’, and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Jesus Said “You have answered correctly,” “Do this and you will live.”

But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

1. The law of God commands us to love our neighbor.

A.See Lev. 19:18 You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against people, against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the Lord

2. There is more to “Loving your neighbor” than we might think. What can we do to really show our neighbor we love them?

I want to share a 3 step process on how to really love our neighbors.

Step 1. Prayer (v30)

“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and left him half dead.”

Four terrible things happened to this man;

1.He fell into the hands of robbers

2.He was stripped of his clothes

3.He was beaten

4.He was left half dead

Jesus is telling a parable here: He is telling an earthy story that has a spiritual application

The spiritual application here is clear;

1. When sin entered the world all of humanity fell into the hands of the Devil. The devil is the thief who comes only to steal, kill and destroy.

2. They first stole his clothes.

Back in Jesus’ time a person’s clothes had a lot to do with a person’s identity. When they stripped him of his clothes they also stripped him of his identity. Take a person’s clothes away and there is no way of telling if he is a rich man or a poor man.

Application:

The Devil loves to strip people of their true identity.

The Bible says “We were all created by God and for God.”

The Devil’s favorite passage of scripture

“After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and served the Baals. They forsook the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the people around them.” They provoked the Lord to anger because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. (Judges 2:10-13)

They next beat him up

The simple fact is this. Sin beats us up. It never builds us up!

Sin will take us further than we want to go

Keep us longer than we want to stay

Cost us more than we want to pay

Finally they left him half dead.

The Bible tells us because of sin we are physically alive but spiritually dead.

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts.” (Eph. 2:1-3)

In light of verse 30 Step 1 to loving our neighbor has to be Prayer.

Here’s why: v29 “but he wanted to justify himself…”

The 6 most dangerous words in the Bible: “but he wanted to justify himself…”

Translation: How dare you say I’m a sinner; I’m not a sinner I’m a saint!

“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Cor. 4:4)

This is our prayer: that the Holy Spirit would open the eyes of those who are blinded so that they might see their need for a savior.

It’s hard to not like someone if you pray for them.

2.If Step 1 is prayer then step 2 has to be Care

“A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him.” (v31-34)

A.God has called us to follow up our prayers with care for our neighbors

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Gal. 6:2)

Question: Does God want us to personally care about everyone?

Answer: He wants me to really care about more than just myself and my family.

If you are a person who really cares about more than just yourself and your family you are in the minority.

A. “A sign of the times” – A priest and a Levite both passing by on the other side.

And notice there is no mention of a reason from Jesus why neither the Priest nor the Levite stopped to help.

Why: Because in Jesus’ view no reason was acceptable.

But what about those who need more care than we can give?

The Good Samaritan only did what he could. When it was clear that more help was needed he shared the need with someone else.

Does God really notice whenever we care for those who are hurting?

Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take the inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go and visit you? The king will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matt.25:34-40)

3. The third step in loving your neighbor is to share (Jesus)

This 3rd step is only going to be effective if we have successfully being doing the first two. We first love our neighbor in prayer and care.

People don’t care about how much we know until they first know how much we care.

Where does it say anywhere in our passage that we should not only have prayer and care for our neighbor but also share Jesus?

“What is written in the Law? He replied. “How do you read it? He answered: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and, love your neighbor as yourself.” (v26-27)

How do you read it?

The goal of Loving our neighbor is not just so that our neighbor loves us back. The goal of loving our neighbor is so that they will come to love God with all their heart, soul, strength and mind!

The danger is that we can be very caring but never go on to sharing.

This is why prayer is so important. Because if we are fearful about sharing we can start praying for God to help us.

In conclusion

Who might God want you and I to begin praying for? And in what ways can we also show our care for that person? And finally let us pray that God will give us the boldness to also share the good news of Jesus to any and all that will listen. By spreading the good news of God you will be a kingdom builder.