SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/15/2018
9:30 PM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-1 “Be Right With God”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Acts 20:28a
Message of the
verses: “Be on guard for yourselves”
These five little words have great meaning, and when one
looks at these words they can be words that will step on a person’s toes,
something that is not pleasant to have happen to you. I just finished up a book “Win the Battle for
Your Mind” and that book stepped on my toes a lot, and then just last week our
Pastor preached a sermon from Philippians chapter two that focused in on the
fact that as believers we are not to wine, and that also stepped on my
toes. Wonder what God is doing in my
life?
Remember that Paul is talking to the leaders of the
church at Ephesus. James has this to say
about spiritual leaders: “1 Let not many
of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a
stricter judgment (James 3:1).” John
MacArthur writes “The first priority for anyone involved in spiritual
leadership is his own relationship with God.
Effective ministry is not mere outward activity; it is the overflow of a
rich, deep relationship with God. As
John Owen wisely observed,
‘A minister may fill his
pews, his communion roll, the mouths of the public, but what that minister is
on his knees in secret before God Almighty, that he is and no more.’” John Owen was a Puritan.
A person must be right with God in order to face the
pressures and responsibilities of ministry.
A leader must also be on their guard in order to be effective: “"But be on your guard; for they will
deliver you to the courts, and you will be flogged in the synagogues, and you
will stand before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them (Mark
13:9).” “"Be on guard, so that your
hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the
worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap (Luke
21:34).”
How do we stay on guard?
One has to do self-examination in order to stay on guard. Paul spent a lot of time writing to Timothy
giving him exhortation to him and then near the end of his first letter (4:16)
he writes “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in
these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself
and for those who hear you.” In 2
Timothy he writes “20 Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver
vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and
some to dishonor. 21 Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things,
he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for
every good work (2 Tim. 2:20-21).” I
know that this confused me too and so I quote from John MacArthur to conclude
this first section here: “In a house
there were vessels for dishonorable users, such as garbage and other
waste. There were also vessels for
honorable uses, such as food and drink.
Only clean ones of high quality were fit for honor, self-examination and
forsaking sin are essential for leaders.
Although God does bless His truth in spite of the preacher, He does not
bless the unholy leader, no matter what title, position, or office he might
hold.”
I have written in earlier SD’s that the person who told
me the truth of the gospel when I got saved was not a believer. The things he told me were true, but he did
not believe them.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “One shall be taken, the other
left.”
Today’s Bible
question: “Who said, ‘I believe that you
are the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world’?”
Answer in our next SD.
7/15/2018 9:59 PM
No comments:
Post a Comment