As we continue to wrestle with the way 1 Timothy calls for the maintenance of the culturally expected social hierarchy of its context, we find that God is inviting us into the fullness of life that is possible when we are content and godly, and urging us to avoid being distracted from the gospel by…
What do we do with passages in scripture that we don’t like? We enter into the text as foreigners in a new land, trying to learn and explore that which we do not understand. We thank God for the opportunity to learn, to be challenged, and to grow.
We look at the remarkable story behind Paul’s letter to Philemon (and his church). We find in it a radical call to trust the work of the Spirit in the church.
We finish up our stint in Hebrews by looking at what it means to live a life that is shaped like Jesus, both as a church and as individual members of the body of Christ.
We shift, with Hebrews, from faith to holiness. Coming to recognize that Christ is the perfecter of our life and faith, we discuss our call to respond to the sanctifying work of Christ by allowing ourselves to be made holy.
We continue to talk about faith, remembering that the faith we have (however big or small) is no different than the faith of those who have come before. So we run the race with perseverance (not necessarily speed), allowing that bit of faith we have to drive us forward.
We talk about faith. What is faith? What does God ask of us in terms of faith? What does faith do in us?