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Hello and welcome to the show today. Last week we saw how Timothy has now joined Paul and Silas on their second missionary journey. And, leaving his mother Eunice and Grandmother Lois in Lystra, it says in…
Acts 16:6 (ESV)— 6 And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. Other Plans-- Now we don’t know why God prevented them from entering Asia. Yet later there would be some very important churches that would be founded there; [churches in such cities as Ephesus, Smyrna, Philadelphia, Laodicea, Colossae, Sardis, Pergamum, and Thyatira.] But for now, God had other plans for them and communicated to them through the Holy Spirit that for now Asia was off limits. And that was no doubt very discouraging for Paul. And it can be discouraging to us too when God says no to something that (at the time) might seem like the right thing. But what we have to remember is that God knows what is needed and when those things are needed and can be used most. And we have to trust His timing. Don’t Fight The Air Currents-- Sometimes my kids watch a movie I used to watch as a kid called The Sword In The Stone; a story about King Arthur coming under the magical teachings of Merlin, whose talking owl Archimedes also helps to instruct the boy. And one day Merlin turns Arthur into a bird and Archimedes (a bird himself) is trying to teach Arthur to fly. But he is struggling against the air currents and can’t get lift. And Archimedes says, “Don’t fight the air currents! Use them!” And Arthur does, and suddenly (for the first time) really begins to fly. And you know, the same is true of the Holy Spirit, the Ruach, the Wind of God. If we can keep in step with the Spirit (Gal. 5:25), which is another way of saying “move our wings in accordance with how He is moving” we will soar. And so while God’s saying no may be discouraging, we must do what Paul did and allow that “no” to propel us into the better thing God has for us. And so they turned to Mysia, which is the region north of Asia. But it says in… Acts 16:7-8 (ESV)— 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia {(which is farther north)}, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. {So again they are repelled.} 8 So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. Keep Moving-- Now I love how they don’t stop and wait. They keep moving forward, knowing that God will redirect. You and I also are often called to wait on God not by standing still, but by following the next logical step; the next right thing. You can turn the steering wheel of car, but that will only change the car’s direction if that car is in motion. The same with us. Do what makes sense and leave yourself open for God’s redirection. Now we don’t know [how they were prevented {by Jesus here}, but with nowhere else to turn, they came down to Troas, a port on the Aegean Sea. They knew God would eventually reveal where He wanted them to go if they kept moving. At last, in dramatic fashion, He did so.] It says in… Acts 16:9 (ESV)-- 9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” Macedonia-- Now [Macedonia was across the Aegean Sea on the mainland of Greece. In it were located the important cities of Philippi and Thessalonica. More significant, this would be the first entry of the gospel into the continent of Europe.] Now after Paul sees this vision, he doesn’t waste any time. It says in… Acts 16:10 (ESV)— 10 And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. Luke Joins The Team-- And so Luke is indicating that they knew immediately that that is where they were to go. But there is also something else here that can be easily overlooked. And that is the word “we”. This is [the first of the “we” passages in Acts], which indicates that [Luke, the writer of Acts, has now joined the missionary team. {And} Like Timothy, he was to be Paul’s faithful friend and loyal companion for the rest of the apostle’s life.] Acts 16:11-12 (ESV)— 11 So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace {([Samothrace is an island in the Aegean Sea, approximately half way between Asia Minor and the Greek mainland. There they stayed overnight (to avoid the hazards of sailing in the dark)])}, and the following day to Neapolis {([the port city of Philippi])},12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. {And ([The winds must have been favorable, for the reverse trip from Philippi to Troas on the third missionary journey took five days (Acts 20:6).]) And so [When the missionary team landed in Neapolis, Paul’s ministry finally reached Europe.] But [The team did not stop to preach in Neapolis, but from there went on to Philippi, about ten miles inland.] And Luke writes, saying} We remained in this city some days. {Now it says…} Acts 16:13a (ESV)--13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, A Place of Prayer-- Now the reason they do this is because (although it was Paul’s custom to preach first in the synagogue of every city he visited) in order to form a synagogue you had to have the presence of ten Jewish men who were heads of households. And so Philippi’s Jewish community was apparently too small to form a synagogue. And [In such cases, a place of prayer, under the open sky and near a river or the sea, was to be arranged for. {And} The one in Philippi was located outside the gate by a riverside, probably where the road leading out of Philippi crossed the Gangites River.] They choose to go there in the best hope of finding people to witness to and (seeing a group of women) it says… Acts 16:13b (ESV)— and we sat down {(which was [the normal posture for teaching])} and spoke to the women who had come together. Paul’s Value for Women-- And notice that there are no men mentioned, which is [further evidence of the small size of the Jewish community at Philippi. {And so} Lacking a man to lead them, these women met to pray, read from the Old Testament law, and discuss what they had read.] Now imagine their surprise to have Paul and his missionary team join them. And for them to have Paul (a traveling rabbi, who was not only a rabbi but had been a student of a great rabbi, Gamaliel) was no doubt a very rare privilege. Now I love how the very first people in Europe that Paul ever shared the Gospel with were women. That is important, because a lot of misguided people have characterized Paul as some kind of male chauvinist, particularly because of Paul’s teaching on the role of women in the church. And they conclude that he had some kind of prejudice against women. But we see here that that is not the case. He is eager to share the Gospel with them and to even teach them, which is more than could be said about the Pharisees. The Pharisees [would not deign to teach a woman, and regularly in their rote prayers they thanked God that they were neither Gentiles, slaves, nor women. {And yet we see that Paul both teaches and sees the value in women, which by the way} ran counter to the treatment of women in Greco-Roman society. {When we look through the New Testament we see that} Paul valued the ministry of women such as Phoebe (Rom. 16:1), the various women among those he greeted in Romans 16:3ff., and even Euodia and Syntyche (Phil. 4:2–3).] And that of course stemmed from Jesus’ treatment of women, which also ran counter to the norms of that day. Just to give you an example of this, notice how the scripture describes women “sitting at the feet” of Jesus. Well “sitting at the feet of” is not merely a description of their posture. No, to sit at the feet of a rabbi was a phrase used to describe talmudim, disciples of a rabbi. Now only men were allowed to be disciples and it was very unusual for a woman be allowed. And yet Jesus was perfectly comfortable bringing women into that discipleship relationship. And we see here that Paul imbibes that same attitude. Now Luke writes… Acts 16:14a (ESV)— 14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. a seller of purple goods-- Now Lydia was the Roman province in which the city of Thyatira was located. And so Lydia may be named after her province or Lydia may have just been [her name in business; she may have been known as “the Lydian lady.”] But whatever the case, her city (Thyatira, which is the cite of one of the seven church of Revelation) [was noted for its manufacture of purple dye and dyed goods. Not surprisingly, Lydia herself was a seller of purple fabrics. {Now} Purple dye, whether made from the glands of the murex shellfish or from the roots of the madder plant, was prohibitively expensive. {Thus} Purple garments were worn by royalty and the wealthy, and the selling of purple fabrics was a very profitable business.] And she herself was (apparently) very wealthy. And that we will see in that her house is large enough to accommodate the entire missionary team (v. 15) and later the new church at Philippi (v. 40). Now aside from her wealth, there are a couple of things we can string together (every pun intended) about Lydia. And the first is that she was a worshiper of God. This shows that she (like Cornelius) believed in and worshipped the God of Israel, but had not yet become a full proselyte to Judaism. And secondly, she was truly listening; not just hearing audibly, but paying attention and seeking to understand. And that is the kind of posture that God can work with. There are so many who hear, yet never understand because they are not truly listening. Eyes Glazed-- Have you ever been in a conversation with somebody and you see their eyes glaze over and you realize they aren’t hearing a word? Maybe some of you are doing that right now. I don’t know. But in all seriousness, I remember one particular instance where that happened to me while I was talking with somebody several months back. I was having a conversation with somebody who must have had a lot on their mind because not long after I began sharing what I had to say they completely checked out and were no longer paying attention. And a little voice in my head said “just stop talking and leave.” I heard that little voice but then (because I knew what I was about to say would, under normal circumstances, really interest this person) decided to plow ahead and somehow try to be more interesting. It didn’t work. But Lydia wasn’t checked out. She was fully engaged. And it says in… Acts 16:14b-15 (ESV)— The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. 15 And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us. Lydia’s Hospitality-- And so we see that Lydia and her entire household came to faith in Christ. And in gratitude, she insists that they stay at her house. Now hospitality [is required of all Christians (Rom. 12:13; Heb. 13:2; 1 Pet. 4:9), especially women (1 Tim. 5:10) and church leaders (Titus 1:8). {And} It was critical in the ancient world, where inns were often unsuitable {places} for Christians to stay in. They were filthy, dangerous, expensive, and often little more than brothels. {And so} To make a home where travelers could be exposed to Christian love, family life, and fellowship was a high priority for Christian women (cf. 1 Tim. 5:9–10).] And Lydia’s offering them her hospitality shows that she had in her the love and fear of God, which had now become more fully realized in Christ Jesus. Use The Currents— Now what this passage shows us is that when God says no to us or no at that moment (like He did with Paul and his team entering Asia at that time), it is only because He has an awesome plan that He wants you to be a part of. And so don’t fight the air currents; use them. And even if that might mean stepping into some dangerous situations, God’s greatest blessings often lie in those situations. And so let us commit to trust and follow Him as He seeks to guide us into the fulfillment of His purposes. Let’s do so. Amen.
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Hello and welcome to the show today. In our study of Acts chapter 16 we have been taking a look at Paul’s setting out from Antioch on a second missionary journey; one that was aimed at strengthening all the churches that had been founded on his first missionary journey. And so naturally he wants to take Barnabas with him, as Barnabas had been with him on that first missionary journey and was such an encouragement to him; that’s what his name means, “son of encouragement”, which was given to him by the apostles. But Barnabas insists that John Mark also come. Paul doesn’t think that is a good idea because of how John Mark had abandoned them on their first missionary journey; and so they have a sharp disagreement about this and end up splitting up. Barnabas and John Mark go to Cyprus (which is where Paul and Barnabas had entered Asia Minor on their first trip, but with Barnabas and John Mark going, Paul chooses instead to enter Galatia from the opposite direction, traveling through Syria and Cilicia. And that may seem like an arbitrary decision (and may have been to Paul); but we will see in a few moments how God was at work in that in a huge way. Now [Syria was the region around Antioch, and the neighboring region of Cilicia contained Paul’s home city of Tarsus. {And so} Many of its churches had no doubt been founded by Paul himself. {And} As Paul and Silas traveled through those areas, they were busy with their priority, strengthening the churches.] Now as they [crossed the rugged Taurus Mountains through the Cilician Gates north of Tarsus, the missionaries came to Derbe and to Lystra. Paul and Barnabas had visited these cities on their first missionary journey (Acts 14:6ff.), and Lystra had been the scene of some remarkable events. It was there that Paul had healed a lame man (14:8–10). In response, the astonished crowd proclaimed the two missionaries gods (14:11–18). Following that, Paul had been stoned nearly to death by jealous Jews from Antioch and Iconium (14:19).] Now if it were me, I’d be a little nervous coming back to Lystra. But as for Paul, the mission of reaching people always trumped concerns for his own personal safety. Like we talked about recently, he always felt that weight of glory; that burden for people who were lost or who needed Jesus. And so unless God said otherwise, he was going to go.
Timothy-- Now it is sometimes when we choose to show courage to obey God even in the midst of fear or danger that God often rewards us. And we definitely see that here; because while they are [At Lystra, the missionaries were joined by a certain disciple named Timothy.] And this young man Timothy (who was probably in his late teens or early twenties at this time) would come [to play a key role in Paul’s life, eventually becoming his right-hand man (1 Cor. 4:17; 1 Thess. 3:2; Phil. 2:19).] He would also be Paul’s “true child in the faith” (1 Tim. 1:2; cf. 1 Cor. 4:17; 2 Tim. 1:2)]. And this was primarily because [he had been led to Christ by Paul when the apostle visited Lystra on the first missionary journey.] But it was also because of how Paul continued to pour into his life during the many years that followed. And for Timothy this was such a blessing because the way the his father is described in the imperfect tense (“was”) rather than the present suggests that he had already passed on. And so Timothy (a young man still in great need of a father figure) was blessed to find one in Paul. Now Timothy’s father had been a Greek, while his mother (Eunice) was Jewish. And so [Timothy had access to both cultures—an important qualification for missionary service at that time.] Lois & Eunice-- But another thing I don’t want to overlook is the fact that his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois were also both believers (2 Timothy 1:5). And that just reminds me that behind most successful men are righteous mothers and grandmother’s who have equipped, trained and prayed their men into they eventually end up in. And I can attest to that personally. My mom has been and still is a constant source of encouragement to me. And my grandmothers (both of whom are still living) are constantly praying for me; and only eternity will show how many pitfalls I have avoided; how many physical and spiritual attacks have been driven back; and even how much of my ministry itself I owe to all three of these mighty women of God ministering to me. Now we don’t know Eunice’s story or Lois’ story. But what we do know is that they no doubt were in Lystra during the time of (and may have even witnessed) Paul and Barnabas’ persecution and Paul’s near death by stoning. And yet here they seem willing, amazingly, to allow Timothy to join with Paul in his ministry. And so if we knew nothing else about them, that alone would tell us that here were women of faith and obedience; women who also felt that “weight of glory”; and the reason we know their names today is because of their faithfulness to release this young man Timothy into the dangerous calling of following God. Paul Chooses Timothy-- Now because Timothy had been mentored and discipled by Lois and Eunice, he no doubt carried over into his own life their righteous character. Because we read in verse 2 that: He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. And Paul sees great potential in him and therefore chooses him as a disciple. And so [After being commissioned by the elders of the local assembly of believers (1 Tim. 4:14; 2 Tim. 1:6), he joined Paul and Silas, and the course of his life was set.] A Providential Blessing-- Now remember earlier I talked about how it is significant that Paul and Silas entered Asia Minor from the opposite direction; because if they had followed the same route as they did on the first missionary journey, they would not have come to Lystra until the very end of their trip. But God’s providence was at work in an amazing way as Timothy (because they came to Lystra first) now can be of help to them for their entire trip. And so God is showing that even when he calls us into difficult circumstances, we often find His greatest blessings in and during those situations. Stepping Out To WBS-- You know, in looking back at when God called me to go to seminary, I remember I wanted to wait, partially because the idea of seminary seemed way too daunting to me. I imagined myself surrounded by scholarly geniuses who would leave me in the dust. But my grandparents (because my family was in China during that time) were staying in my parents’ home, which was near Asbury College where I had been attending. And I visited them and told them of my intention to wait awhile. But (just like Eunice and Lois did with Timothy) they encouraged me not to wait. They even drove me down from Kentucky to Jackson, Mississippi to visit Wesley Biblical Seminary to kind of warm me up to the idea of starting seminary right away. And after receiving assurance that this was God’s will for my life and that it wasn’t totally beyond me and I could do this, I enrolled for that fall. And that was a big step of faith for me. And reflecting back, I think about how I never would have met and married Tanya had I chosen to wait. And so I would have missed out on who was without doubt God’s greatest blessing in my life. I don’t know who is Paul and who is Timothy in her and my relationship, but what I do know is that my life suddenly got a whole lot better after I met her. Even my grades made a marked improvement after she came into my life; because of both her belief in me and also her constant stream of encouragement, which has never stopped. Well, Timothy was kind of like that for Paul; and Paul was that for Timothy. God knew the right time and place to bring them together. Timothy’s Circumcision-- Now immediately following Timothy’s appointment to this ministry, Paul has Timothy circumcised. And some have criticized Paul for this, saying that he ended up falling into the same heresy he had fought against at the Jerusalem Council; that circumcision was necessary for salvation. However, nowhere does it say or imply that he did this in order that Timothy might be saved. Rather, it says in verse 3 that he did this because of the Jews who were in those parts, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. You see, circumcision was the number one condition that was seen as absolutely necessary for every Jew. And if Timothy did not become circumcised, all the Jews that they would meet on their missionary endeavors would assume that Timothy was renouncing his Jewish heritage; and that would place a stumbling block in the way of reaching those Jews with the message of Christianity, which remember is a fulfillment of Judaism. Also keep in mind that Paul always started his ministry in the local synagogues; and if Timothy wanted full access to those synagogues, he needed to be circumcised. And so it had nothing to do with salvation, but rather doing what is necessary in order to reach people for Jesus. Listen to the words of Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:19-22, because it really encapsulates Paul’s thinking on this… 1 Corinthians 9:19-22 (ESV)-- 19 For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. The Meaning Behind The Action-- Now having said this, I want to point out that later Paul did refuse to circumcise Titus (Gal. 2:3). And why was that? Because [Titus, unlike Timothy, was a full-blooded Gentile. {And} To have circumcised him would have been to capitulate to legalism. And what this reveals to us is that something might be okay to do in one culture and wrong in another; or right in one situation and wrong in another. It’s not always the action itself, but what the meaning is behind that action. Kind of like kicking a door down. That is wrong to do if you are trying to break into somebody’s house to rob them. But it is a good thing to do if their house is on fire and you are trying to save them. And so with Timothy, Paul saw circumcision as a means of avoiding unnecessary offense; but in refusing to circumcise Titus, Paul was showing that we cannot and must not compromise on any of the essential doctrines and teachings of scripture. In one circumstance circumcision is a means of helping to save people; in the other it is a practice that will rob people of the essential teaching of the Gospel, which is that salvation is by grace through faith alone. And that message (along with the council’s admonition that the gentiles live by love in being sensitive to the Jews and their ways) they are communicating to all these cities, which we see in that it says in… Acts 16:4-5 (ESV)-- 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. Sold Out-- Now what we can’t miss in our study today is this passage’s emphasis on what these early Christians were willing to lay on the altar for the sake of the Gospel. Timothy was willing to leave his entire old life to embrace a ministry that was permeated with danger and uncertainty. And (perhaps even more amazingly) Timothy’s mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois were willing to release him into that ministry. They were like military moms and wives, releasing their men into danger for the sake of a greater cause. But that is what it means to be a Christian; to lay it all down for the sake of Christ and the Gospel. I hope that you and I will be just as faithful. Let’s remember that we are called to be 100% sold out to Jesus. Let’s do so. Amen. Anchors-- You know, in reflecting back on my life, there have been quite a number of people who have been anchors for me in my Christian faith; men and women who took time to invest in my life so that I could be thoroughly equipped both to know Jesus Christ in intimate and personal relationship, but also so that I could be thoroughly equipped to carry His Gospel into the world. And one of those people was one of my seminary professors, Dr. Matt Friedeman. Few people have helped shape my thinking about ministry as much as he did. He was not only my professor, but also the leader of a discipleship group I was blessed to be a part of; and it was a discipleship group that was very different from your typical one nowadays, with everyone sitting and talking about the Bible. No, not with Matt. His philosophy of discipleship (which is most akin to what we find here in the book of Acts, and which he would state often) was this: “If you make disciples by sitting around and talking, don’t be surprised if all your disciples do is sit around and talk.” “If you make disciples by sitting around and talking, don’t be surprised if all your disciples do is sit around and talk.” And so yes, we would do Bible study and prayer (and even sing hymns) together, but it wasn’t in the comfort of a home, but in a van on the way to the local prison. He would (like Jesus did) split the group into pairs and send each into a different prison block to preach. Now let me tell you, for a young man who had never preached a sermon before in his life, that was baptism under fire. And furthermore, he wouldn’t tell you when you were going to preach. He would just point at you before boarding the van and say, “Cameron (or whoever it was), you’re preaching tonight.” And (if you weren’t already prepared) you had the van ride over to prepare. Let me tell you, there were few things that I faced that were more intimidating. But looking back, there are few things I am more thankful for; because it taught me that though Jesus had called me to learn, it wasn’t so I could sit in a group of my peers and exchange meaningful ideas; it was so I could go into the darkest of places and bring into the places (and the people there) the transforming power of the Gospel.
Timothy Follows-- Now the reason I say all of this is because here in Acts chapter 16 we see that Paul takes under his wing a young man by the name of Timothy, who joins Paul in ministry; and so Timothy becomes his disciple in the “following” sense of the word because he follows Paul into the spiritually darkest places in the world and joins in his ministry. It is discipleship by hands on training in meeting the physical and spiritual needs of people. And today we will begin to see how all that came about. It says in… Acts 16:1-5 (ESV)— 1 Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. Paul’s Living Fruit-- Now this young man Timothy that joins Paul and Silas in their ministry was actually the living fruit of Paul’s ministry; because remember that on Paul’s first missionary journey into Asia Minor, Paul and Barnabas visited the city of Lystra, where it says in… Acts 14:1b (NKJV)-- …that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews, and so spoke that a great multitude both of the Jews and of the Greeks believed. A Constant Companion— Well Timothy was likely one of that multitude. And he was a young man who already had solid Jewish training in the Scriptures from his mother and grandmother. And so when Paul and Silas return to Lystra here on their 2nd missionary journey, they find him, are impressed by his dedication to Christ and willingness to serve, and so Paul takes Timothy under his wing and begins to disciple him. And Timothy [would ultimately become Paul’s constant companion, traveling with him throughout Asia, Macedonia, and Greece. He was also in Rome for part or all of the apostle’s two-year house arrest—and is named as one of the senders in the letters Paul wrote from Rome to the Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon (as well as 2 Corinthians and 1 and 2 Thessalonians).] And we see his dedication even here as (as an adult) he allows himself to be circumcised in order to not create an obstacle for the Jews they would be witnessing to who might know of his mixed Greek/Jewish background and be offended because of their concern to keep the covenant of circumcision. So he is very dedicated. Now not only that, but (as we will see later) Timothy is one of the most self-less Christians in scripture. Paul writes to the Philippians in… Philippians 2:19-22 (ESV)-- 19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy's[a] proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. {And so we see modeled in Timothy’s life the selflessness of Jesus Christ, which is the supreme mark of the true believer.} Not Making Disciples-- Now at this point I would like to return to something I said last week; and that has to do with what we were talking about in regards to discipleship, because I think that there are many churches that know how to make converts. But there are very few churches that know how to make disciples; who know how to establish new converts firmly in their faith; who know how to teach them the Word and ground them in sound doctrine; who know how to make disciples who will also be thoroughly equipped to make disciples of their own. That is the supreme weakness of the Church today, making disciples who can make disciples. Well, what is a disciple? Wiersbe on Discipleship-- Warren Wiersbe once said: [A disciple, then, is one who has believed on Jesus Christ and expressed this faith by being baptized. He remains in the fellowship of the believers that he might be taught the truths of the faith (Acts 2: 41– 47). He is then able to go out and win others and teach them. This was the pattern of the New Testament church (2 Tim. 2:1-2). In many respects, we have departed from this pattern. In most churches, the congregation pays the pastor to preach, win the lost, and build up the saved— while the church members function as cheerleaders (if they are enthusiastic) or spectators. The “converts” are won, baptized, and given the right hand of fellowship, then they join the other spectators. How much faster our churches would grow, and how much stronger and happier our church members would be, if each one were discipling another believer. The only way a local church can “be fruitful and multiply” (instead of growing by “additions”) is with a systematic discipleship program. This is the responsibility of every believer, and not just a small group that has been “called to go.” Jesus had opened the minds of His disciples to understand the Scriptures (Luke 24: 44– 45). They knew what He wanted them to teach to their own converts. It is not enough to win people to the Savior; we must also teach them the Word of God. This is also a part of the Great Commission.] Jesus’ Pattern for Discipleship— And you know, he’s absolutely right. That was the pattern for discipleship modeled to us by Jesus. He chose a handful of guys and poured everything He had into those few men. He then showed them how to do ministry; he gave them His authority. Then at Pentecost He gave them His Spirit. And it was that handful of men who ended up changing the world. He trained disciples who could make disciples. Paul was himself discipled under the teachings of the other apostles. Then he takes a disciple of his own; Timothy; and pours everything he has into him. And he trains Timothy until he is ready for service. And Paul’s letters to Timothy contain much of that training. [Paul tells Timothy how to confront false teachers, how to order the church’s worship, how to select church leaders, and how to conduct himself as a young leader in a difficult situation. {And} Speaking as a father to a son, the apostle urges Timothy not only to stand up for the truth in public but also to guard his own soul from the errors all around him (1 Tim. 6:20, 21)]. Timothy’s Ordination-- And when Timothy is ready for service, [In a ceremony that serves as the basis for modern-day ordination of ministers of the gospel, Paul and an “eldership” (group of church elders, or leaders) … laid hands on Timothy to set him apart for God’s service (1:18; 4:14). And we see that he becomes Paul’s handpicked choice to oversee the troubled Church in Ephesus; somebody that he himself had discipled. And Paul calls Timothy by a very personal title in his greeting to Timothy. He says… 1 Timothy 1:2a (NKJV) Greeting-- 2 To Timothy, a true son in the faith: Son Language-- You know, that is pretty close and personal language. You can hardly get more personal than a relationship between a father and a son; a parent and a child. That is one of the closest, most intimate bonds there is. A child is dependent on you utterly and completely for sustenance. A child absorbs so much what you teach them. You bear them and then you lead them to maturity until they one day leave your home and go off to start families of their own. Our Fruit— And the question I want to leave you with is, what children are you bearing for the kingdom of God? Who is the Timothy in your life? What young or new Christian are you pouring yourself into? Who are you carrying in prayer? To whom are you writing letters of discipleship and encouragement? If we want our nation to experience true freedom in Christ, then we have to start making disciples. It’s in our obedience to make disciples that we can help bring our nation back into right relationship with God. And so let us commit to do that. |
Rev. Cameron Ury graduated from Asbury University in 2007 with a B.A. in Bible and Theology. From there he continued his studies at Wesley Biblical Seminary in Jackson, MS. It was there that he met his wife Tanya, who graduated from WBS with her M.A. and M.Div. degrees. Cameron and Tanya got married in 2009. Cameron then graduated with his M.Div. degree with a pastoral concentration in 2011.
After shepherding churches in both Mississippi and Ohio, they joined the ministry team at Renton Park Chapel in January of 2018, where Cameron serves as Senior Pastor and Teacher. Cameron is also the founder and host of Lechem Panim, a weekly radio show that airs on KGNW 820AM "The Word Seattle". The ministry of Lechem Panim is centered around leading people into the life-giving presence of God in and through Bible study, prayer, and active discipleship with the aim of ministering to a world that is in desperate need of the healing touch of Jesus Christ. Archives
July 2022
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