Monday, March 30, 2015

Reporting for Duty

1 Timothy 1:1 - Reporting for Duty
 
Have you ever been in a situation where people were constantly calling into question your credentials? Wondering out loud if you were truly qualified for the task at hand? Questioning whether you have what it takes to get the job done? Even suggesting that you may not have the right to take that position? Throughout Paul’s ministry, he was questioned in this manner. His authority as an apostle was denied, and he was constantly forced to defend his calling. You can see it in many of the letters he wrote that have been included in our Holy Bible.

As he wrote this letter to the younger minister, Timothy, Paul settled the matter up front. He didn’t do this for Timothy; this young minister knew who Paul was and admired him greatly. If it were not for Paul, Timothy would not have been the man of God that he was. No, he was not justifying his position to Timothy but to all his critics who would read this very important letter. It is important because it contains two of the most significant passages in the Bible as it pertains to the leadership of the church. We will get to these eventually, but they deal with who should serve as pastors and deacons, and my friends, if our churches would heed the words of this apostle, many problems could be dealt with before they came into being.

So look at how Paul starts his letter. He states up front that he was an apostle of Jesus Christ because he had been commanded by God to be an apostle of Jesus Christ. Understand two things: he was saved by the grace of God that was offered to him in Damascus. When Ananias came to Paul on Straight Street, Paul gladly and freely chose to accept God’s invitation to become a follower of Jesus Christ. Of course, following the dramatic way Jesus revealed himself to the man who was known as Saul in Acts 9, how could he not accept this wonderful gift that not only changed his name to Paul but also changed his life forever. But know this. Once he had accepted God’s gift of salvation, he became God’s slave, and God ordered him to duty. He commanded Paul to be an apostle. This is the second thing that I want you to understand: once Paul said “yes” to salvation, his right to say “no” to God vanished. The same is true for Christians today: Jesus is not the Lord of our lives if we ever tell Him “no.” And if He is not the Lord of our lives, then He is not our Savior, either.

Child of God, when you surrender your life to Christ in this salvation relationship, God becomes your Master – your Commander-in-Chief. Not only are we not allowed to say “no,” our hearts should be so in tune with His heart that we don’t ever want to reject His commands.

What does it mean to be an apostle? The word literally means “one who is sent.” He was a messenger. In this case, Paul became a messenger of Jesus Christ. His message is a simple one: God is our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ is our hope.

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