P2 - T.h.a.n.k you Jesus

1 Timothy 1:12a "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord...."

Introduction:

Can we ever thank Jesus enough for all He has done? Yesterday we considered three reasons to thank Jesus by using the acrostic t.h.a.n.k: 

1. Times of strengthening  
2. Heavenly calling
3. Awesome salvation

Point of Application: We noted yesterday the following main point of application: thanking Jesus will result in a lifestyle of worship. I get this thought from what Paul says in the closing part of this particular portion of 1 Timothy 1:12-17. Notice what he writes in verse 17 - "Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God,be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." Today's post will suggest two more reasons to give thanks to Jesus. We will utilize the acrostic t.h.a.n.k in understanding how giving thanks to Jesus results in a life of worship to Him. In thanking Jesus for times of strengthening, heavenly calling and awesome salvation, we can note a fourth area to be thankful for, namely...

Need for the Bible. 1 Timothy 1:15-16
We read the following in 1 Timothy 1:15 "It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all." As Paul wrote these words, he was expressing how by the Spirit he was wrapping his arms around key truths of scripture. Being that the Holy Spirit of God was superintending these words, we could say that the term "a trustworthy statement" illustrates for us the truth of the Bible's infallibility - that is to say, the Bible's ability to lead us into all truth and to never fail (hence the term "trustworthy statement"). 

Now what is it that makes the Bible necessary? It is the only book in the word that can be classified as the very words of God. In 1 Timothy 1:15b and 1:16 we see Paul wrapping two spiritual arms around the heart of the Bible's revelation: namely Christ's achievement of redemption and then the application of salvation at saving faith. In perhaps the clearest verse possible regarding the necessity and divine authority of sacred scripture, 2 Timothy 3:16, we see 2 Timothy 3:15 with this preface: "and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus." 

Other biblical writers saw the need to thank the Lord for His word, since they saw the need for it. King Solomon says in 1 Kings 8:56 "Blessed be the Lord, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised; not one word has failed of all His good promise, which He promised through Moses His servant." In terms of thanking the Heavenly Father for the revealed word, no greater example can be found than Jesus Himself in Luke 10:21 "At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight."

We can thank Jesus for our need for the Bible because of salvation (Romans 10:17) and strengthening for the Christian life (1 Timothy 4:16; Hebrews 4:12). More could be said but we shall move onto our final point in today's post concerning giving thanks to Jesus, namely...

King Jesus Himself. 1 Timothy 1:16-17
We began this short blog series with the following main point of application: thanking Jesus will result in a lifestyle of worship. I cannot think of a greater reason to thank Jesus than Jesus Himself. Clearly Paul is reflecting back on the beginnings of his conversion to demonstrate the fact that not only did He witness the living Christ, but he has been experiencing him on a daily basis since his intial salvation encounter. Thanks to the Lord for all he has done is like putting fertilizer on the soil of a potted flower. The more consistently we apply and cultivate the soil of a potted flower, the richer the bloom will be and the more enjoyment will be experienced. Worship is impossible without thanksgiving to God. 

Notice what Paul writes in his explosion of worship in 1 Timothy 1:17 - "Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God,be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." After expressing His thanksgiving to the King Jesus Christ, Paul then expresses this sudden burst of worship and praise to the Triune God in general. The Eternal Son, of whom He just gave thanks, shares in undiminished Deity with the Father and Spirit. When we are thankful people, the heart will after a while burst forth in worship to God, much like water building up behind a dam. Thanksgiving after thanksgiving builds up pressure behind the heart until the heart cannot contain it. Worship is in its purest expression the fullest manifestation of thanksgiving to God. Thanksgiving in our Christian life is a faucet that we must turn on throughout the week, moment by moment. The more thanksgiving we express, the greater intensity there will be in our worship. 

Closing thoughts:
We have for the past two days looked at giving thanks to Jesus. Our main point of application has been: thanking Jesus will result in a lifestyle of worship. As we looked at 1 Timothy 1:12-17, we saw the following five areas to thank Jesus for by noting the acrostic t.h.a.n.k:

1. Times of strengthening
2. Heavenly calling
3. Awesome salvation
4. Need for the Bible
5. King Jesus Himself

P1 T.h.a.n.k you Jesus

1 Timothy 1:12a "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord...."

Introduction:

Can we ever thank Jesus enough for all He has done? A few days ago I had blogged on this subject of giving thanks to the Lord. God's Word has this amazing property of yielding further riches after multiple times of study and reflection.  

Point of Application: Thanking Jesus will result in a lifestyle of worship. 

I get this thought from what Paul says in the closing part of this particular portion of 1 Timothy 1:12-17. Notice what he writes in verse 17 - "Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God,be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." Today's post considers why we must t.h.a.n.k Jesus Christ. We will consider three reasons to thank Jesus today and then two more tomorrow. 

1. Times of strengthening. 1:12a

Paul begins by expressing to Timothy how awesome it was that Jesus Christ Himself was strengthening Him. Some of the false teachers who were confusing the Law and Gospel were "Johnny-Come-Latelys" who only wanted fame and notoriety among men. The well of strength that these false teachers were drawing from was their flesh and magnetic personalities. Paul's ministry on the other hand drew its strength from Jesus and His resurrection power. In Acts 9:22 we read of what took place following Paul's dramatic encounter: "But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ."

It was Jesus Himself who enabled Paul with the gifts and talent to begin serving him in the ministry. 

The strength that Jesus gives is not only for times of ministry, but throughout those seasons of the Christian life when we are at our weakest. After all, it is in those weakest of times that we learn His grace is sufficient. (2 Corinthians 12:9) Only when we have abandoned the mirage of self-sufficiency will we be able to say with the Apostle: "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.' (Philippians 4:13) So let's thank Christ Jesus for times of strengthening and then secondly...

2. Heavenly calling. 1:12b-14
We read in the second part of 1 Timothy 1:12..."because He considered me faithful, putting me into service." It is in 1 Timothy 1:13-14 that Paul expands upon the significant circumstances surrounding His calling to ministry. Before the heavenly call of ministry, Paul's call to salvation came first. The point of these verses is to underscore the fact that out of all the people in the world who were least likely to be the greatest spokeman for Jesus Christ, it was Saul of Tarsus. As Paul relays in 1 Timothy 1:13a "even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor." I love the phrase "even though". Why? Because whatever will come after that "even though" phrase will totally overule whatever Paul had once done prior to his conversion.

You and I dear friend have done a lot of "even though's" in our lifetimes. When God's call of salvation comes to us, we are in an "even though" condition. This "even though" condition in my case would go something like this: "even though I was a sinner, a self-righteous little ten year old boy not worthy to be called by Jesus Christ unto His salvation, yet He found me". We were in the same predicament as all lost sinners. Paul was literally arch-enemy number one to both the early church and to Jesus Christ. 

With that said, the most powerful word in 1 Timothy 1:13 erases Paul's former identity: "yet". When I see the word "yet", that is usually a God word. God alone can take a no body and make them a somebody who can tell everybody about The Somebody who can save anybody. This is Paul's whole point in his fountain of thanksgiving in these verses. We read in 1 Timothy 1:14 "and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus."

The call of God makes nothing into something. 

I thank the Lord who called me unto Himself in 1984 and who called me into His service in 1991. Whatever station of life you are serving, whatever you are doing, give thanks to the Lord for His heavenly calling and times of strengthening. Now notice the third thing to thank Jesus for....

3. Awesome salvation. 1:13b-14a
We read in the latter part of 1 Timothy 1:13 and the beginning part of 1:14 "Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; 14 and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant...". Mercy is God not giving to us what we deserve. What is it that everybody deserves? As a Christian there are three things I deserve: death, hell and the grave. God chose me in His mercy. Because of God, the wrath that I deserved was spared. The Gospel is awesome because of God's choice to show mercy. Wrath being withheld from all who believe is awesome news. But now the Gospel is awesome for another reason - grace. Grace is God giving to us what we don't deserve. Grace cannot be earned, only received. Saul of Tarsus was not looking for Jesus, if anything, he was doing all he could to destroy Christianity. Nonethless on the way to hell, so-to-speak, the King from Heaven met Saul in physical, post-resurrected form and engaged him in grace. Thus we can thank Jesus for awesome salvation, heavenly calling and times of strengthening.

More tomorrow...

25 Riches of the Gospel

Romans 1:16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek."

In this chief passage of the Apostle Paul's Epistle (or letter) to the Romans, we behold a statement regarding the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel must be heard or read at least once a day. Why? Because there are so many rich truths and benefits that are contained in it and explained by it. Like a brilliant multifaceted diamond, whenever we turn the Gospel diamond over and over in our minds and hearts, the Holy Spirit can shine His illuminating light upon its facets. As the Spirit of God illuminates the Gospel, we become more convinced of it being what it truly is - the power of God unto salvation. Below I have listed out some of the truths and benefits that are tied to the Good News of Jesus Christ. The reader may note that the headings correspond to each Person of the Trinity, being that the Triune God is the Architect, Achiever and Applier of salvation.  

God the Father's plans for each of His people described in the Gospel

1. Foreknown    Rom 8:29-31; 2 Pt 1:1

2. Predestined   Romans 8:29-30

3. Chosen  Ephesians 1:3-11

4. (incarnation), Son sent  John 3:16

5. (Pentecost) Holy Spirit sent Acts 2

6. Calling Rom 8:29-30; Ephesians 4:1

The Son's purchased achievement of salvation desribed by the Gospel

1. Reconciliation Rom 5; 2 Cor 5:15-21

2. Expiation or taking away of sin 1 John 2:2

3. Propitiation or satisfaction of God's wrath  Hebrews 8-10

4. Forgiveness of sins  Eph 1:7

5. Credited or imputed righteousness earned by His life and purchased by His death  Romans 4:24-25; 2 Cor 5:21

The Spirit's application of salvation described by the Gospel

1. Calling. John 16:8-12

2. Regeneration  1 Peter 1:23; James 1:18

3. Saving Faith. Eph 2:8-9

4. Repentance. 2 Tim 2:24-25

5. Conversion. Acts 3:19

6. Justification. Romans 4

7. Adoption. Romans 8:14-16

8. Sanctification. Romans 6:4-12

9. Preservation of our faith. Jude 24-25

10. Illumination of the scriptures Ps 119:105

11. His permanent indwelling. Eph 1:11-13

12. His filling ministry. Eph 5:18

13. Future glorification of believers. Romans 8:30-31

14. Raising believers at Christ's return

1 Thess 4:13-18

These listings are a sample of the richness of the Gospel. Each could be a blog post on its own. The point is to show the reader how wonderful the Gospel is and why we need to hear it, read it and tell it to ourselves everyday. By doing so, we as Christians will be reminded of who we are and Whose we are. By telling ourselves the Gospel, we will then desire to tell it to others.

Saturday 11/15 Give thanks to the Lord

1 Timothy 1:12 "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service."

Introduction

I like how Paul begins this section of 1 Timothy with the simple words: "I thank Christ Jesus". Too often we as God's people don't take the time to thank the Lord. Today's post aims to see how major figures in the Bible thanked the Lord. 

1. Jacob gave thanks the Lord. 

Genesis 32:10 "I am unworthy of all the lovingkindness and of all thef aithfulness which You have shown to Your servant; for with my staff only I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two companies."

Jacob had to flee for his life from his brother Esau for stealing his blessing. Twenty years had passed and Jacob was on the eve of meeting up with his brother again. God had been certainly good to Jacob in a way far more than he deserved. But in reality, cannot the same be said of us as Christians living in the 21st century. It is not until we are forced to slow down and reflect that we can look back and see all the good things God has done, even when circumstances were less than desirable.

2. King Solomon gave thanks the Lord.

1 Kings 8:56 “Blessed be the Lord, who has given rest to His people Israel,according to all that He promised; not one word has failed of all His good promise, which He promised through Moses His servant."

King Solomon is recognizing God's faithfulness to his people, stretching all the way back to 480 years during the days of Moses. God's character and faithfulness are the lenses that enable us to see numerous reasons to thank the Lord. Solomon's statement of "not one Word of the Lord has failed" is one of the strongest affirmations in the Bible about the infallibility of scripture. To know that no one word of the Lord can ever fail is great cause for giving thanks to Him.

3. The Psalms gave thanks to the Lord

Psalm 136:1 "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good,For His lovingkindness is everlasting."

This Psalm has to be among the most saturated Psalms that deals with the subject of giving thanks to the Lord. The entirety of redemptive history is rehearsed, with near continuous cries of thanksgiving to God for His provision, power and protection of His people. Should you and I not give thanks to the Lord for all those times he has demonstrated his power, protected us and provided?

4. Jesus gave thanks to the Lord. 

Luke 10:21 "At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight."

None give us a finer example of being thankful to the Lord than the Lord Himself - Jesus Christ. Jesus thanked the Lord for the illumination that was being experienced by His audience. We ought to give thanks to the Lord for those moments where clarity is obtained and where we see growth in our lives or in the lives of others. Certainly without the grace of God at work in the human heart, no one could believe nor understand the things of God. We have so much to be thankful for in this day and age. 

5. Paul gave thanks to the Lord

As we saw in the opening verse above in today's post, Paul was thanking the Lord Jesus Christ for calling him to the ministry and for the blessings bestowed upon him in salvation. As Paul wrote to Timothy and the church at Ephesus in this epistle, he was reminding them that our Christian lives and church lives ought to be constantly attended with thanksgiving to God.

Will you and I give thanks to the Lord?

So what about you and me? Are we giving thanks to the Lord? We ought. God has so blessed us in far more ways than we can think or imagine. Thank the Lord for the small things as well as the big things. Thank Him for the people in your lives - including those who rub you the wrong way. Why? They are heavenly sandpaper ordained by God to rid you and me of anything that is not likened unto Jesus Christ. Thank the Lord for His Word, prayer and even the fact we live in a free country. Most of all - thank the Lord for Himself. Give thanks to the Lord!

Sunday 11/16 Be thankful for God's calling

1 Timothy 1:12-14 "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, 13 even though I was formerly a blasphemer and apersecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; 14 and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with thefaith and love which are found in Christ Jesus."

Yesterday we considered the importance of giving thanks to the Lord. We considered key individuals in the Biblical record, and how they gave thanks to the Lord. Today we consider Paul's statements in 1 Timothy 1:12-14. As he wrote this epistle to the young Pastor at Ephesus, Timothy, Paul wanted to express to Timothy what it would take to excercise oneself properly in the church of God. A key trait of both pastor and church member alike is giving thanks to the Lord. Certainly the theme of God's calling is evident in these verses, being that without God's calling in ministry or even in salvation, no one could serve and no one could experience salvation.

Thank the Lord for the call to ministry

Paul begins by expressing to Timothy how awesome it was that Jesus Christ Himself had called Him to minister as an apostle. One of the motivations for sharing this trip down memory lane is to remind Timothy of the fact that he had been with the Lord from the beginnings of the Christian movement. Some of the false teachers who were confusing the Law and Gospel were "Johnny-Come-Latelys" who only wanted fame and noteriety among men. Paul's Divine encounter with the post-resurrected, post-ascended Jesus on the Damscus road can be reasonably dated to within less than two years of Jesus' ascension. In Acts 9:22 we read of what took place following Paul's dramatic encounter: "But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ."

Paul had been known as "Saul" in those early days, and Acts 9 explicitly states that he was "increasing in strength". The same word used by Luke in Acts 9:22 is the same word used by Paul here in 1 Timothy 1:12. It was Jesus Himself who enabled Paul with the gifts and talent to begin serving him in the ministry. Such an endument or "anointing" from on-high remained with Paul even to the writing of 1 Timothy. God's calling is remarkable in the fact that God's choosing and calling of people stems not from what they do but completely from God's own personal desire to use them. 

Thank the Lord for the call to salvation

It is in 1 Timothy 1:13-14 that Paul expands upon the significant circumstances surrounding His calling to ministry. Paul's call to salvation came first. The point of these verses is to underscore the fact that out of all the people in the world who were least likely to be the greatest spokeman for Jesus Christ the world-over, certainly that person could not had been Saul of Tarsus. As Paul relays in 1 Timothy 1:13a "even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor." I love the phrase "even though". Why? Because whatever will come after that "even though" phrase will totally overule whatever Paul had once done prior to his conversion.

You and I dear friend have done a lot of "even though's" in our lifetimes. We were not worthy to be called by Jesus Christ unto His salvation. We were in the same predicament as all lost sinners. Paul was literally arch-enemy number one to both the early church and to Jesus Christ. 

With that said, the most powerful word in 1 Timothy 1:13 erases Paul's former identity: "yet". "Yets" are awesome words in the scriptures. When I see the word "yet", that is usually a God word. God alone can take a no body and make them a somebody who can tell everybody about The Somebody who can save anybody. This is Paul's whole point in his fountain of thanksgiving in these verses. We read in 1 Timothy 1:14 "and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus."

Think about this: if Jesus had not called Paul in salvation, he would had continued on the road of destruction. Furthermore, if Jesus had not called Paul in salvation and then into ministry, we may not have had 2/3 of our New Testaments or at least we would not have the same Bibles that have survived for two millennia. The call of God makes nothing into something. 

May you and I today be thankful for God's calling. I thank the Lord who called me unto Himself in 1984 and who called me into His service in 1991. Whatever station of life you are serving, whatever you are doing, give thanks to the Lord. To think that the God of Eternity can be this Personal to call us by name to Himself and into His service is indeed cause of much thanksgiving!

5 Statements you can trust from 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus

1 Timothy 1:15 "It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all."

Today's post is about the five "trustworthy" statements we find throughout 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy and Titus. As Paul wrote these letters to Timothy, Titus and their congregations, he wrapped his arms around key truths of scripture and the early apostolic preaching based upon the scriptures and summarized it all in five statements. Being that the Holy Spirit of God was superintending these words, we could say that these 5 statements illustrate for us the truth of the Bible's infallibility - that is to say, the Bible's ability to lead us into all truth and to never fail (hence the term "trustworthy statements). Below I will list the sayings with headings to highlight these 5 statements you can trust, and why it is you can trust them.

1. Gospel to save the sheep. 

1 Timothy 1:15 states - "It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all." This first "trustworthy statement" deals with the mission of Jesus Christ as spelled out clearly in the Gospel. When I speak of "sheep", I'm referring to believers in Jesus Christ, as called by Jesus for example in John 10. The term "gospel" is found over 100 times in the New Testament. Paul told Timothy to deal with the false teachers that were infiltrating the church at Ephesus, and to be sure to preach the Gospel which can save both he and his hearers. (1 Timothy 4:13-16). Thus the Gospel itself is the first statement we can trust, because it saves the sheep. But notice the second trustworthy statement...

2. Pastors to guard the sheep

1 Timothy 3:1 "It is a trustworthy statement: if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a fine work he desires to do." We as believers in Jesus Christ need pastors. Even as a pastor writing this post today, I myself look to other fellow pastors and listen to pastors in their preaching to get fed, to attain wisdom and to better understand the scriptures. This statement is trustworthy for the simple fact that it gives us the qualifications for pastors and it reminds us of our need to be under God's Word. Jesus prescribes the pastoral ministry to His church to build up the church to the goal of attaining the unity He prayed for and aims to achieve before His second coming. (John 17; Ephesians 4:11-12). Now lets consider a third statement you can trust regarding doctrine.

3. Doctrine to feed the sheep

1 Timothy 4:9-10 tells us these words - "It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. 10 For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers." What is doctrine? Doctrine is the fine pearl necklace that adorns the church and tells us who God is, who we are, how to think Biblically and what to tell others about the Gospel. Doctrine gives us vocabulary with which to describe our glorious Savior. Doctrine is the handmaiden of Biblical preaching and the assistant to the Christian in the practical affairs of everyday life. The reason why I ascribe the value of doctrine to this third trustworthy statement is because it answers for us in the clearest way possible: for whom did Christ die? The accomplishment of Jesus Christ on the cross requires doctrine to explain it and apply it to both believers and non-believers alike. This statement is one that summarizes virtually every scripture that touches upon Jesus' atoning death. He died for all men in a historic sense (Savior of all men) and for His church in the eternal sense (especially of believers). (1 John 2:2; Acts 20:28) 

Jesus died for all men in the sense to give time and room in history for everyone to believe and repent. God's general revelation in creation renders all people without excuse and no one can say they did not know about God and His nature, power and wrath. (Romans 1:18-20; Acts 14:17). If a person so humbles them selves to such general revelation, God by His Spirit will send a Christian with the Gospel of the special revelation of the Bible, drawing that person then to saving faith in Jesus Christ. Unless the Son's work on the cross had been directed toward the whole world, the whole world would had been destroyed due to the fact that the Holy God of eternity cannot tolerate sin in His sight. (Isaiah 6; Habakkuk 1:13). 

In dying for all men, those whom the Father sends His Spirit to Divinely affect by His convicting work, whom He lovingly set His affection upon, who willingly and freely respond to the call of Gospel are those for whom Jesus died for in the ultimate sense. Those truly regenerate persons are those who compose the true church of Jesus Christ, which is what Jesus gave His life for as planned out between He, the Father and The Spirit in eternity. (Acts 20:28) 1 Timothy 4:9-10 is a trustworthy statement that wraps its long arms around the massive doctrine of the atoning achievement of Jesus Christ and thus is a statement we can trust as doctrine that feeds the soul of the sheep. 

4. Truth to liberate the captive sheep and those pretending to be sheep

2 Timothy 2:9-11 tells us - "It is a trustworthy statement: For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him;
12 If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He also will deny us; 13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself."  I find in this fourth trustworthy statement a word of warning and a word of encouragement. The liberating truth comes in freeing believers from the fear of wondering whether or not they are saved. Likewise, for some who are playing church or make-believers, the jarring truth of 1 Timothy 2:12 awakens them from their little game to believe, repent and be saved. We need this statement to set us free from fear and carelessness. Truly then this statement can liberate people. 

5. Holiness to purify the sheep

Titus 3:8 notes - "This is a trustworthy statement; and concerning these things I want you to speak confidently, so that those who have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds. These things are good and profitable for men." We have considered four statements thus far that you can trust in essential matters of the Christian life. This final statement is important due to the call to live a holy life for the glory of God. Without the scriptures and the power of the Holy Spirit, our efforts to live holy lives will be exercises in futility. Paul reminds Titus that the scriptures (including what he is writing) are designed to urge readers to pursue a holy and devout life with God and before men. 

Closing thoughts
Today we have considered the five "trustworthy statements" found in Paul's three letters of 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy and Titus. These are summaries of large and important teachings of scripture that are inspired statements themselves that we can trust. As was mention, such statements highlight the infallibility of scripture or the ability of the Bible to lead us into all truth without fail. In considering these five statements you can trust, we saw...
1. The Gospel that saves the sheep
2. Pastor to guard the sheep
3. Doctrine to feed the sheep
4. Liberation of captive sheep
5. Holiness to purifiy the sheep

Friday 11/14 This Means War! What it means to put on the full armor of God: Fight for your faith

Ephesians 6:10-12 "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places."

Introduction and Review
We have been spending the past couple of days exploring what is meant by the command to "put on the full armor of God." So far in our consideration of the wider context of Ephesians 4-6, we have suggested that putting on the full armor of God means: Filled with the Holy Spirit and living out the fully-obedient Christian life. Today we offer a third and final suggestion as to what it means to put on the full armor of God: Fight for your faith.

Putting on the full-armor of God means fighting the fight of faith
I want to direct the reader's attention to the following statements in Ephesians 6:11-12 that suggest this third meaning of "putting on the full armor of God".

"so that you will be able to stand firm" vs 11

"our struggle" vs 12

"but against rulers, against powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in heavenly places" vs 12

Think about this: Why would the Apostle Paul be commanding us to put on the full armor of God unless we were not to fight? Now this may seem obvious from the context of Ephesians 6 - however by the way we so often live the Christian life, it seems we are more ready to give up ground to our enemy in the eternal matters of the Christian faith.

All of the spiritual armor has to do with various areas of the Christian life. If we fail to put on the full armor and fight the fight of faith - then we give up much ground. Consider how often we are told to "fight for our faith":

Romans 13:12 "The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light."

1 Timothy 1:18-19 "This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight, 19 keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith."

2 Timothy 4:7  "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith."

1 Thessalonians 5:8 "But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation."

Jesus Himself waged cosmic battle against Satan and the kingdom of darkness, winning the war of redemption in Colossians 2:11-15. We are as it were the church militant, sailing through the turbulent waters of the history and proclaiming this victory. Jude writes these words in Jude 3  "Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints."

Closing thoughts:
We have considered these past several days the meaning of "putting on the whole armor of God." In our studies we have concluded three meanings for this instruction:

1. Filled with the Holy Spirit
2. Fully obedient to the Lord
3. Fight for your faith