Week 8: the last of Paul's letters
At the end of this week, you will have accomplished two major endeavors. First, you will be half-way through the New Testament! Congratulations! Second, you will have finished the letters of Paul. That's a lot to take in over 8 weeks.
From your comments online and through conversation, I can tell that you are taking the reading seriously and have discovered some wonderful things through Luke-Acts and the letters of Paul.
This week, we read the last of Paul's letters. Again, you will see a bit of a shift. While Romans, Galatians, Colossians, and Ephesians are largely theological, these last letters to the church in Philippi and to his colleagues, Timothy and Titus, are more personal in nature. Paul is also getting toward the end of his life and wanting to make sure that the churches and their leaders are ready to lead without him. Enjoy these letters; I hope you get the chance to read these letters in their entirety in one sitting.
As you read, keep in mind our reading questions. Use these as general questions to keep in mind as we read to help formulate your reflections, observations, and questions.
Our guiding questions are these:
- What stood out to you in the reading?
- Was there anything confusing or troubling?
- Did anything make you think differently about God?
- How might what you read change the way you live?
Please post a comment below with some of your questions, comments, and reflections from this week's reading.
In Titus 1: 6, Paul says an elder in the church must have well behaved children. I was thinking - what a high bar! I'm sure society at that time had many of the same challenges we have today, but I know of heartache in some families where children turn away from the Christian teachings they were given.
ReplyDeleteIn Titus 2:15, Paul encourages correcting people when necessary. One of the most difficult dichotomies for me is the command not to judge and the command to be the salt and light of the earth. I know things are different when dealing with misdeeds within the church and outside the church. But how do we speak to the culture and all the corruption we see without judging? I know there is a fine line here, but I struggle with where that is.
Thanks!
Most of my kids were born before I got into the ministry, so they haven't been PKs (preachers kids) their whole lives. But they have struggled with it at times. I remember when my son was in high school, and he had an incident as a member of the basketball team. The varsity coach read him the riot act, and then, to add insult to injury, reminded him that he was a preacher's kid and should know better. I had a little chat with the varsity coach after that. I think the overall principle here is that Paul is concerned that the elders are not only spiritual themselves, but are also passing it along to their children/families.
DeleteJesus' command not to judge has been taken out of context a lot. When I've preached on that text, I try to emphasize that Jesus isn't saying you can't judge at all; he's more speaking against a critical spirit, where someone has the attitude that nothing is right unless it's done their way. I think the broader witness of scripture encourages us to do what Titus 2:15 encourages. We need to be able to point out sin, recognizing that we are sinful people as well. It's OK to judge; we have been given the gift of discernment, so we would be denying a gift if we didn't call things out. The key is being humble and helpful rather than condescending when we call those things out.
I am glad you spoke on this. It gives me some insight on things I wondered about as I was reading this also.
ReplyDelete