March 26, 2000 Volume 1 Number 13
…Doctrine
Which Accords With Godliness
Please consider the following two verses.
First, Titus 1:1--Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus
Christ, according to the faith of God's elect and the acknowledgment of the
truth which accords with godliness, and 1 Tim 6:3-5-If
anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words
of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness, he
is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over
words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, useless
wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that
godliness is a means of gain.
Paul uses the same term, in these two verses to show how truth or doctrine is coupled with or joined with Godliness. In other words you can't have the one without the other. Godliness is an essential characteristic to truth otherwise it would not be truth.
Attitude
Towards Godliness
The Bible shows us what type of attitude and respect
they held the thought of godliness. After Peter and John healed the lame man in
Acts 3:11-12, the Jews had a very strong and powerful reaction.
They assumed that it was some special characteristic of these two men and
brought about this power. In
denying that they had any such power on their own Peter uses the two terms which
in his mind the people would have assumed they must have in their character to
able to have such a relationship with God. Notice what he says in Acts 3:12-So
when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: "Men of Israel, why do you
marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or
godliness we had made this man walk? )
Peter knew that the people would assume that either
these men had power in their own right, or that there was something about them
that would give them such special privileges in the eyes of God. Instead of using righteousness or faith, he selects the term
godliness as the one that would have given them a special reason in the eyes of
the people for such power. Peter denies that their own godliness had given them
such power. The important thing for
our consideration here is that the Jews recognized that godliness had a special
place in the eyes of God. Its next use is as an adjective to describe the
quality of a man named Cornelius. In
Acts 10:1-2 its says, “There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a
centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, (2)-a devout man and one who
feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and
prayed to God always. Here the word is translated “devout.” This godliness
and reverence can also be described as piety and devotion.
Godliness
is the process of thinking about God and about His reaction to things, before we
do them.
Paul’s
Use Of This Word
Paul uses this word many times. As we mentioned in the
beginning of the article in 1Tim 6:3-6 Paul writes, ”…doctrine which accords
with godliness.” In verse 6 he says, “godliness with contentment is great
gain.” In 1Tim 2:2 he writes,
“…that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and
reverence.” In 1Tim 2:10 he says
in the context of proper apparel for women…”godliness, with good works.”
Again in 1Tim chapter 4:7 he says, “exercise yourself toward godliness.”
On and on he uses the term. In 1Tim 6:11 he writes, “But you, O man of God,
flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience,
gentleness. We should takes Paul’s
admonitions to heart!
Peter
Speaks Of It
In 2 Pet 1:3-11 Peter writes to those who are baptized
into the body of Christ and have taken on the name Christian.
Upon that act we take on a new role and new responsibilities.
It is a task that will keep us busy for the rest of our lives.
All of us should keep a mental note of what it is God is watching for in
our hearts.
In Peter's second epistle he tells us
to add to an unwavering total trust in God, which never doubts that He exists,
and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Among all the wonderful qualities
we are to pursue and add to our faith is of course, godliness.
He tells us if we add all of these fine qualities…virtue, knowledge,
self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love we will
never be barren or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ - 2 Pet
1:5-8.
It is an important quality to possess. Do you have it?
If not, pursue it with all of your heart. It is essential to your spiritual well being and your contentment here in this life.
#Carlos
Aguilar
Home and Family:
On
Your Own
Young people leave home for a variety of reasons. The most usual is that they
grow up and leave their parents to be on their own, and to start a home of their
own. Sometimes children leave because of conflict within the home. Whatever the
reason, when you leave home, time should be taken for deep consideration and for
prayers for guidance. Take full advantage of this golden opportunity to improve
the direction of your life toward the higher and the better. You should, at this
time, review the goals of your life thoroughly If you judge your life to be
lacking in goal and purpose, or headed in a direction away from these desirable
ends, re-evaluate your attitude and prepare yourself for changed ideas and
standards. If you are already aligned with Godly goals and intent, your job is
to reinforce and continue to develop these attitudes and to take all precautions
not to lose ground through development of slovenly habits or ways of thinking.
Now, when you are
starting your new life, you will have two major obstacles to overcome if you are
to maintain a high moral standard or to improve a lower one. The greatest
obstacle is YOU, for the Bible tells us that, "The Spirit is willing, but
the flesh is weak" (Mark 14:38). With no one to awaken you and make you get
up and attend worship, it is all too easy to neglect this duty. Without outside
guidance, you will often be tempted to neglect your studies or fail to report to
work. A mature person has the initiative to stick to a job until it is finished.
Your first conflict will probably be between what a friend suggests and
what your conscience requires.
Here
are two basic rules:
Never
violate your own conscience.
Never
hesitate to seek advice from your parents, elders, or minister of the gospel.
Once you have
established a path to follow through careful thought, prayer, and counsel, do
not allow your friends to become an obstacle. Do not let them do your thinking
for you; do your own thinking.
Friends are people
with likes and dislikes similar to those of your own. You share your deeper
thoughts with them, you care about them, and they care about you. Obviously,
they way they think and the things they do greatly influence your outlook and
activities. If you choose friends of good moral and spiritual outlook they will
help strengthen you. If your friends are people who disrespect God, their
parents, and the law, it will be exceedingly difficult for you to avoid a
disgraceful, a sad, and a turbulent life. For this reason God has warned, in I
Corinthians 15:33 ASV, "Evil companions corrupt good morals". A true
friend really cares for your spiritual, emotional, and physical well-being. One
who calls himself a friend but who would influence you into evil thoughts and
actions is really a selfish person wanting only to find someone who will condone
his sinful life. Seek true friends.
As a last and most
important point, I ask, indeed request, that you who are Christians go to the
Elders of the Lord's congregation nearest to your new location and place
yourself under their spiritual care and oversight. Make yourself known to them
as a Christian for the scripture says: "Obey them that have the rule over
you, and submit to them: For they watch in behalf of your souls, as they that
shall give account; that they may do this with joy, and not with grief . .
." (Hebrews 13:17).
May it be that your new life will always be in line with God's intent and purpose; be sure you know what God's will is - study your Bible regularly.
~
The Bible Research Library
"Do
You Want to Be There?"
By Kevin Patterson
Cal Ripkin, shortstop for the Baltimore Orioles, was
honored not too long ago as the first man in baseball history to play in 2,131
consecutive games. When asked why he was always there and never missed a game,
he said it was because he wanted to be there. It was not that he never got mad
at the coach, umpire, fans, or other players. It was not because he always felt
perfect or never had any personal problems. It was not because the weather was
never too hot, cold, rainy, or windy. He was always there simply because he
wanted to be there.
There was a lady in Augusta, Georgia, who had not missed Bible class or worship
for 44 years. That's 2,288 Sundays! Why do you think she was always there? Do
you think she never had company that came in at the last minute? Do you think
she never had a headache or a cold or indigestion or nervous spells? Do you
think she never wanted to sleep late on Sunday morning or never had her feelings
hurt by the preacher, elders, or another member? Of course she did! But, she did
not believe those were reasons important enough to "forsake the
assembly" (Hebrews 10:25). She came simply because she wanted to be there.
In the late 1950's, there was a very popular prime-time television show called
"The Miss Patti Page Show." It came on every Wednesday night. There
was one couple during that time who never saw the show because they were always
at a Bible study. They were Patti's parents. Although they loved Patti very
much, they felt it more important to keep the kingdom of God first (Matthew
6:33). Why were they always at a Bible study instead of at home watching their
daughter's show? It was simply because they wanted to be there!
Whether we realize it or not, 99% of all the things we do in life are because we
want to do them. We can generally always find the time to do the things that are
most important to us. Worshiping God and attending the services of the Lord are
no different. If these things are important enough to us, then we will surely be
able to find the time to do them.
Joshua gave both a command and his own position concerning the selection of our priorities. He said in Joshua 24:15, "...choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." Who will you choose to serve this day, and how will you do it? One way is to faithfully attend the services of the Lord. It is simply a matter of whether you want to be there.
Article is from Kevin's Komments November 12, 1997
The
Lukewarm Church anounces the publication of "Church Songs," whose
title, according to the editor, was chosen because, "We didn't want to turn
anybody off with threatening words that no one understands anymore like
'worship' or 'hymn.' People in today's society get kind of uncomfortable with
too much talk about things like commitment and dedication. They'd much rather
have a religion that they can turn on or off at will. Our book seeks to meet
that need."
Contents
Include:
*
A Comfy Mattress Is Our God
* Joyful, Joyful, We Kinda Like Thee
* Above Average is Thy Faithfulness
* My Hope is Built on Nothing Much
* Amazing Grace, How Interesting the Sound
* My Faith Looks Around for Thee
* Be Thou My Hobby
* O God, Our Enabler in Ages Past
* Blest Be the Tie That Doesn't Cramp My Style
* He's Quite a Bit to Me
* Oh, How I Like Jesus
* I Lay My Inappropriate Behaviors on Jesus
* Pillow of Ages, Fluffed for Me
* I Surrender Some
* Praise God from Whom All Affirmations Flow
* I'm Fairly Certain That My Redeemer Lives
* Sit Up, Sit Up for Jesus
* Special, Special, Special
* Take My Life and Let Me Be
* There is Scattered Cloudiness in My Soul Today
* What an Acquaintance We Have in
Jesus
* Where He Leads Me, I Will Consider Following
You
should know that--
Those
Jesus has added to the church are called--
Members
1
Cor 12:27
Disciples
Acts
6:1
Believers
Acts
5:14; 2 Cor 6:15
Saints
Acts
9:13; Rom 1:7; Phil 1:1
Priests
1
Pet 2:9; Rev 1:6
Children
of God 1
John 3:1-2
Christians
Acts
11:26; 26:28; 1 Pet 4:16
~excerpted
from pearlstreet.org
We
hope you find this bulletin useful in your Bible study.
2
Sam 22:31
As
for God, His way is perfect; The word of the LORD is proven; He is a shield to
all who trust in Him. NKJV