Category Archives: Love

Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Commands, Faith, Love, Modeling, Parenting, Scripture, Testimony

A REAL MAN

TITUS 2:2

“Older men are to be temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in perseverance.”

Today there is a lot of debate about what a man should be. Should he be more in touch with his feelings and show more emotion or should he be more macho and manly? Well, right here in today’s verse we have a perfect definition of a godly man. Paul gives us six ways to identify a real man.

He is first temperate (not under the influence of outside sources). He is to be dignified (has the respect of others). He is to be sensible (have control of his behavior). And then Paul says he should be sound (in good shape) in regards to faith, love and perseverance. Wow! Is this all possible? In Christ it is.

APPLICATION

How do you make this verse applicable to your children? By teaching them all these principles. We want all our children to be protected from outside influences. Therefore, insulate them with God’s Word. We want them all to be well respected by others. That comes from showing respect and living lives that earn respect. And, of course, we want them all to be sensible, which really means to be self-controlled.

As parents, we are to help our children’s faith grow, to help them learn to love others as Christ does and to learn to persevere under hard times. All three of those will make them healthier Christians, which is what the word “sound” implies. We get our word “hygiene” from it. Healthy faith, healthy love and healthy perseverance. Hmmm, I could use some of that myself.

So, how do you measure up, dad? Are you a real man? But hold on, mom. These are applicable to you, too. Do you exemplify these traits? Our goal should always to be more and more like Christ. Our goal should be perfection. We will never achieve perfection, of course, but Jesus is our model of a real man. Strive to live like Him and point towards Him always.

O Lord, give me these traits today as I live my life for You. I want others to only see You as they look at me. May my every action and word draw them to You.

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Advice, Bible, Child Bearing, Child Raising, Commands, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Eternity, Evangelism, Following, Inspirational, Love, Mentoring, Modeling, Obedience, Parenting, Testimony, Witnessing

TOUGH LOVE

TITUS 1:13

“This testimony is true. For this reason reprove them severely so that they may be sound in the faith,”

When I read this verse, I was trying to figure out what point to emphasize. I settled on the word “severely.” Why? Because so many times we rebuke others so cautiously they truly don’t understand the severity of their sin. We hear people all the time talking about God’s love. I even heard someone on tv say one time that the Gospel means God loves you. While that statement is true, that is not the Gospel.

Paul says to rebuke them severely. That means just what is says. Give it to them with both barrels. If you don’t, they could very well spend eternity in hell. I know you don’t want that. They may get upset with you. That’s okay. I had rather have a mad friend in heaven than an unoffended friend in hell. Point out their errors from God’s perspective. The rest is up to Him. He will “close the deal.”

APPLICATION

This applies to our children as well. There are time when a swift, severe rebuke is called for. I don’t need to spell out what that means. You know. Don’t let the crocodile tears or the puppy dog eyes sway you. If you truly love your children, you will administer quick and decisive discipline. If you don’t, you are asking for trouble. They will figure it out, and you are gone for.

Willful disobedience is my threshold. When a child willfully disobeys, I respond with the severe rebuke. They know better, yet they willfully disobey. You have to be aware of their actions though. You can’t go on word of mouth. When they see you being consistent and harsh, you will begin to see a different child.

Are you willing to be the “bad guy”? Are do you compromise so they will still like you? Only one of these choices has a happy ending. I believe you will find if you will start out as firm rebuker, you will have fewer and fewer opportunities to show it. People will know you mean what you say and say what you mean. They will respect your approach. Do what God’s word says and experience the freedom of firmness.

Father, I don’t like being too firm with others, especially my own children. But I know You have called me to confront others in sin. Give me boldness to approach them and win them to Jesus.

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Advice, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Commands, Confession, Deception, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Godliness, Inspirational, Love, Mentoring, Obedience, Parenting, Qualifications, Repentance

THE OPPOSITION

TITUS 1:10

“For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,”

In the previous five verses of Titus 1, Paul has laid out the qualifications of an Elder in the church. Now, he takes a one hundred and eighty degree turn and talks about the other side, the ones who are opposed to the church and the Gospel. These are not pleasant words and I pray none of these descriptions fit you.

Are you rebellious or insubordinate? It’s easy to fall into that trap. Don’t! How about an empty taker? That literally means speaking meaningless words. Do you deceive others? This particular Greek word for “deceive” is only used right here. It means to exploit others or to lead them in their own delusions. None of these three descriptions are nice. And none of them belong in the life of a believer.

APPLICATION

The application is simple today for your children. Don’t let them be this way. I am sure you have had to deal with a little rebellion from your children. Deal with that quickly and firmly. Unaddressed rebellion will only lead to more and more rebellion. And teach your children to use their words carefully. Talking just to talk can cause problems for them and others. No one likes a babbler.

But of these three, make sure you teach them the dangers of deception. Deception comes in many forms – lying, stealing, cheating. To deceive with the sole intention to exploit someone is the furthest thing from the heart of Christ. We should be doing all we can to bring others to Him, not drive them away by taking advantage of them.

Now, I am sure from time to time we have all been guilty of one of these three. We are flesh and still succumb to its influence. If you have, repent. If you are currently living opposed to the Gospel, stop where you are and come to Jesus. He is the only one is able to give you the power to overcome your flesh.

Thank You, Lord, for living through me. When I want to lash out at others, You are the one who quickens my spirit. I will give You all the glory.

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Advice, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Encouragement, Evangelism, Grace, Love, Modeling, Obedience, Parenting, Prayer, Witnessing

AS I LEAVE

2 TIMOTHY 4:22

“The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.”

Paul’s final written words (as far we know) to Timothy are contained in this verse. Paul prayed the Lord would be with his spirt and His grace would also be with him. Nothing fancy. No flowing words. Just Jesus and grace. But think about. What else could he want for Timothy?

If you knew the words you were about to say to someone were the last words they would ever hear from you, what would you say? That, of course, would depend on whom you were addressing, right? If it was my wife, I would say something different than if I was addressing my neighbor or doctor or even my children. It’s the audience that can determine those words.

APPLICATION

Last words matter. You have probably taught your children about making a good first impression. But how about that last impression? You don’t want your child leaving someone with them thinking poorly of them, do you. So, what do you tell your child to do when they leave someone?

I often pray with someone before I leave them. That would be great to model for your children. Praying for someone, just as Paul did for Timothy, sends a message to them. It says they are special to you because they are to God. It says you care for them because Jesus died for them. And it’s really hard to walk away mad if you just prayed for someone, lol.

Today, focus not only on your greetings but also your goodbyes. Make sure your parting words are comforting and not confrontational. Ask someone if you can pray as you leave. You may just blow their mind. And pray sincerely and quickly. You don’t have to make it a sermon. You certainly don’t want them to avoid your parting prayer next time.

O Father, parting is hard sometime. Help me leave those I love and care for by leaving the grace and presence of Jesus with them. May they receive it and embrace it.

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Affection, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Encouragement, Evangelism, Family, Love, Ministry, Parenting, Witnessing

WHO?

2 TIMOTHY 4:21

“Make every effort to come before winter. Eubulus greets you, also Pudens and Linus and Claudia and all the brethren.”

In this next to last verse of 2 Timothy, Paul mentions four individuals who we know nothing about. You might just read this verse and move right on. Who cares about Eubulus, Pudens, Linus and Claudia? Paul did. And he thought enough about them to mention them to Timothy who also must have known them by name. Otherwise they would not have been mentioned.

Some people are name droppers. They like to mention they know or have met “so and so.” Usually that person they mention is well known or famous. It would be like me saying when he was alive, “Yesterday Billy and I were just talking.” Of course, I am referring to Billy Graham. Listen, everyone is important. Treat them that way.

APPLICATION

I want you to make a list of all the friends that your children have. Sit down with them and do that. Then make up a scale of one to five and have them score them according to how much they like them. One will be the least liked and five will be their BFF. This may take a while so be patient.

When they get done tell them to tear it up. They may argue a bit but insist. Now, read the verse to them. Explain that these four individuals fell somewhere on that one to five scale, but they probably weren’t fives because in all of Paul’s letters they aren’t mentioned anywhere else. But here, in Paul’s very last letter, they are the last people he mentioned. Friends are friends. They are all important.

How many friends do you have? I have over two thousand on Facebook. Some I have met through other friends. Some are mere acquaintances. Do you know why I made them my friends on Facebook? So I can expose them to the Gospel and encourage them. Will you make the effort today to reach out to one of your “lesser” friends and encourage them? God placed them in your life for a reason. Don’t forget that.

I am grateful for each friend You have allowed to cross my path. Help me encourage them today through Your Word. Let me be the friend they need today.

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Advice, Affection, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Comfort, Encouragement, Eternity, Evangelism, Family, Friends, Heaven, Love, Parenting, Separation, Witnessing

FRIENDS LEFT BEHIND

2 TIMOTHY 4:20

“Erastus remained at Corinth, but Trophimus I left sick at Miletus.”

Both Erastus and Trophimus were trusted colleagues of Paul on his missionary journeys. Paul knew them both well and wanted to make sure Timothy conveyed his greetings in his farewell letter. Erastus was the treasurer of Corinth, so he was probably very well known. What an opportunity he had to share the Gospel.

Trophimus was left in Miletus by Paul when he became sick. Now, let’s talk about that. Didn’t Paul have the gift of healing? He had healed many people. So, why didn’t he just say, “Get up Trophimus. We’ve got to go.” Because God directs and does the healing, not us. We don’t decide when and whom to heal.

APPLICATION

Unless your children remain in your home all their life and you never move and their friends do the same, they are going to leave friends behind. That can be hard. I know it was for my children. We made a few moves during their childhood which forced them to leave friends and make new ones. So, how do we prepare them for that? What can we say and do to make that easier?

Here are few ideas:

  1. Invest in their friends while they are with them. Get to know them.
  2. Get to know their parents. Know them by name and talk about them to your children.
  3. Help your children share Jesus with them. Leaving behind a saved friend, knowing you will see them in eternity, is so much easier.
  4. Help your children make contact after the move easier. Let them FaceTime or Skype their friends.
  5. Pray with your children for those friends. Keep up with their prayer needs through their parents and pass them on to your children.

Now, these won’t prevent the tears from flowing when the parting comes. But knowing the separation is temporary (only here on earth) can be such a comfort. Do you have a friend that comes to mind whom you have had to leave behind? Why not this week reach out to them. It is so much easier today. And say a prayer for them. That’s the oldest form of long distance communication.

Father, thank You for friends. Thank You for companions who You put in our path through life. I ask You today to bless them.

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Advice, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Friends, Love, Ministry, Modeling, Obedience, Parenting, Witnessing

SAY “HOWDY”

2 TIMOTHY 4:19

“Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus.”

Have you ever told someone to say “hi” for you to an old friend? That’s all Paul is doing here. Do you remember Prisca (Priscilla) and Aquilla from Acts? They were the fellow tent makers whom Paul took up with during one of his journeys. And Onesiphorus was an old friend from Ephesus whom had been very kind and compassionate to Paul while he was in Rome in prison.

Friends are important, especially those with whom we have ministered. That ministry binds us. We have the same purpose, motive and drive. What is it? To present the Gospel to a lost world. I wonder how many people these friends saw come to Christ together.

APPLICATION

Friends with a purpose – that is important for us to teach our children. Now, I don’t mean to imply that there is anything wrong with having playdates or friends over to play ball. That would be silly. But we parents need to encourage our children to have friends who share the same worldview.

If their friends don’t see the world as we see the world (lost and dying and in need of a Savior), they will probably discourage your son or daughter in their faith. I don’t mean they will say, “Don’t be a Christian.” But they may say, “You don’t have to do that.” Our children need friends who share their faith, purpose and drive, just like us.

Do your friends? Or are you still living your old lifestyle? We need to engage our old friends for Christ. We need to present the Gospel to them. Otherwise, we were never friends, right. If you can’t share the most loving thing with the people you love, you never loved them to begin with. Now, go love.

Thank You, Lord, for friends who love You and me. I am committed to loving others to You. Surround me with those whom share Your view of this world.

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Advice, Affection, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Forgiveness, Love, Mentoring, Ministry, Modeling, Obedience, Patience

RESTORING OLD FRIENDS

2 TIMOTHY 4:11

“Only Luke is with me. Pick up Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service.”

I have to tell you that this verse warms my heart. Mark had joined Paul, Barnabus and Silas, but split at Perga in Pamphylia (Acts 13:13). So when Barnabus wanted to bring his cousin Mark back on the next journey (Acts 15:38) it lead to a split between Barnabus and Paul, causing each to go their separate way – Paul with Silas an Barnabus with Mark.

But skip ahead to today’s verse, almost 20 years later, and who does he ask Timothy to bring with him – Mark. Why? Undoubtedly Mark had redeemed himself through his missionary work. Sometime between 50-60 AD Mark wrote his gospel. Paul had heard of his growth and work and now he wanted to see him in his last days. We can learn some lessons from this verse.

APPLICATION

These are applications for us all, not just parents and not just children. And they are not original. Credit belongs with the author, Kevin Laymon – http://glorybooks.org/paul-barnabas-split-progression-john-mark/.

He gives us four lessons we can learn:

  1. Our past mistakes don’t have to define our future. God constantly works within us to make us more like Him. No matter the extent of our failure, we should learn from it, and allow God to continue to work out his sanctification process in us. It’s never too late.
  2. If you mess up in ministry, or in life, don’t ever feel like you can’t get back in the game. Mark was a late bloomer, as are some of us. Sometimes God works in people for years, with many falls along the way, before they are ready for ministry. Be patient.
  3. It’s never too late to reconnect with someone you’ve let down. We’ve all failed someone in our past. Time spent being sanctified can be a powerful healer.
  4. It’s never too late to forgive someone who let you down. Just as we’ve all failed someone else, we’ve also had someone fail us. Sometimes people go years without speaking because of a falling out. Someone hurts us and we assume they’ll always be that type of person–unchanging. But we need to always remember that if we can change over time, so can someone else. Reach out to them. They just might surprise you.

Lord, let this forgiving, redeeming spirit reign through me. There are many to whom I need to extend grace now after years of separation.

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Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Christ's Return, Direction, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Eternity, Faith, Gifts, Love, Modeling, Obedience

CROWN ME

2 TIMOTHY 4:8

“in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

Do you like to play checkers? That was the first thing I thought of when I read this verse. I know, call me weird, lol, But in checkers when you reach the opponents back row with one of your checkers, they have to crown you with another checker they have taken from you, giving that checker special power from that time forward in the game.

As believers, we don’t have to wait on the righteousness to come with the crown. If we are walking and talking like Jesus, we are living righteously. The crown is simply a recognition of who we are in Him. The crown belongs to Him because we have no ability for righteousness outside of Him. It is His righteousness that makes us righteous.

APPLICATION

So, how do we explain righteousness to our children? How do we get them to understand how to live that way? Let’s tell them what the word means. It simply means doing what is approved of by God, by His judicial approval, what is right in His eyes. Now, that weeds out a lot of nonsense, doesn’t it?

I explain it this way. It’s being right (salvation), knowing right (studying His Word) and doing right (walking daily according to His Word). If our children can do that, they are living righteously. If they understand that, they will receive that crown which they will turn right around and lay at His feet.

Where’s your crown? Do you have that coming? Remember, it’s His righteousness, not yours, that earns you that crown as a believer. Let me encourage you today to be, know and do right in God’s eyes. That is His definition of righteousness. If I am pleasing the Father, if you are pleasing the Father, that’s all that matters.

I will live to please You today, O God. Righteous living is godly living. Righteous living will be rewarded and for that I am grateful.

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Advice, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Commands, Disciplemaking, Encouragement, Evangelism, Inspirational, Love, Mentoring, Ministry, Modeling, Obedience, Parenting, Scripture, Testimony, Witnessing

BE READY

2 TIMOTHY 4:2

“preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”

I will never forget when I was serving with an older pastor in South Georgia while in college. He gave me, a young minister at the time, some great advice. He said, “Always keep your six-gun loaded.” What he meant was to always be ready to preach. He told me then he always kept six messages in the back of his Bible in case he was asked to preach somewhere. I’ve done that most of my ministry, and it has sure come in handy.

But Paul goes beyond that with Timothy. Not only does he tell him to be ready “in season and out of season,” but he tells him how to preach. He says to reprove, rebuke and exhort. That’s not tickling people’s ears. That’s not just saying God loves you. That’s calling people to be aware of their sins and calling them to repentance. We should take notice of that.

APPLICATION

As our children come to Christ we need to teach them to be ready at all times to share their faith. I was asked recently, “What is the purpose of our salvation?” What do you think? We are commissioned by the great Commander-in-Chief to spread the good news of salvation to others. Our children have that same standing order. So, we must teach them to be ready at all times.

And in these days, they will be tempted to “normalize” all sort of behavior. Calling sin a sin is not popular today. They will be ridiculed for holding to the truth. They will possibly even be threatened for rebuking or exhorting. But God’s Word hasn’t changed. Teach them through your actions to be bold as they share the truth of the good news in love to others.

Are you bold enough in your witness to do what Paul charged Timothy? This charge is also our charge. Are you prepared at any time to present the gospel to someone? Is your six-gun loaded? You don’t have to preach a sermon, but you should have enough grip on the message of salvation that you could share with anyone. Get ready. Load up. It’s harvest time.

I am ready, O Father, to share Your message of salvation. Today put someone in my path with whom I can share. Let my testimony be front and center so others can see what You have done through me.

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