Today's DB from TRC's Daily redaing list of 1Tim 4 w/ Lena's Journalin'

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.

1 Timothy 4:1-16
Warnings against False Teachers
1Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from what we believe; they will follow lying spirits and teachings that come from demons. 2These teachers are hypocrites and liars. They pretend to be religious, but their consciences are dead. F11
3They will say it is wrong to be married and wrong to eat certain foods. But God created those foods to be eaten with thanksgiving by people who know and believe the truth. 4Since everything God created is good, we should not reject any of it. We may receive it gladly, with thankful hearts. 5For we know it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.
A Good Servant of Christ Jesus
6If you explain this to the brothers and sisters, F12 you will be doing your duty as a worthy servant of Christ Jesus, one who is fed by the message of faith and the true teaching you have followed. 7Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives' tales. Spend your time and energy in training yourself for spiritual fitness. 8Physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is much more important, for it promises a reward in both this life and the next. 9This is true, and everyone should accept it. 10We work hard and suffer much F13 in order that people will believe the truth, for our hope is in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and particularly of those who believe.
11Teach these things and insist that everyone learn them. 12Don't let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you teach, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. 13Until I get there, focus on reading the Scriptures to the church, encouraging the believers, and teaching them.
14Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecies spoken to you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you. 15Give your complete attention to these matters. Throw yourself into your tasks so that everyone will see your progress. 16Keep a close watch on yourself and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right, and God will save you and those who hear you.
FOOTNOTES:F11: Greek are seared. F12: Greek brothers. F13: Some manuscripts read and strive.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.
~ Lena’s Journalin’~
The Holy Spirit is expressing Himself in words to His church. The one who has come into covenant with Him by the shed blood of the Lamb of God.
What would it mean here when it is saying that a person is religious and has a dead conscience?
Dead would speak of numbness, unresponsive, no receptivity of breath or life.
It says these teachers who have lived out lies or are hypocritical……teachers! We are all teachers to someone, anyone who watches us live.
Hypocrisy is when I say I’m like Christ is, yet my modeling is not of one who names Christ. The word hypocrite means to put on an act. Saying, “I’m like Christ”, yet I’m not following His model, not truly truthfully being His models.
I’m going to share some truths. Teachings that are not Bible based are demonic teachings. The Bible says if you are not for Me you are against Me (and there’s no half way, or if I like God I’m for Him, or if I’m good I’m for Him).
One knows whether they are for a team or not. They dress for the team they root for the team they talk about the team. You never see someone at a game wearing half of one teams’ hat and half the other team’s hat.
If we are listening to a gospel we’ve created for ourselves, which possibly tells us if we are good we are ok, even if we don’t go all out for Jesus, we’re deceived. Jesus went all out for us and if we are as He is we also will be going all out for Him! If we make up a gospel of our own and live by our own rules, we are not submitted to God’s word and we are in a bad zone, enemy territory. God’s enemy does whatever he tells himself to do. He is his own god. If we follow that lead, we also are our own god. There are a few words about that that are very clear- You shall have no other gods’ before Me, not even yourself, as god. WOW. The death of conscience should be to self life that fulfills me and makes me the ruler and master of my life, not being deaf to God’s words and dead to the obedience of His will and plans.
When it says some will say it is wrong to be married they are saying it isn’t important to be in a relationship of covenant with someone else on earth. If we are in covenant with God we will seek to be in the same kind of covenant with people, one that does not violate another, one that does not violate God.
God’s word clearly states do not have sex (be joined as one in body symbolizing being joined as one in spirit with) outside of the covenant relationship of marriage/ Then He goes further with Christians and says do not join your body in a covenant marital act with an unbeliever. For some that is the test of flesh vs. spirit. What and who is your master? Who your master is, is what or who you are led by. Led by the flesh, will fulfill the lusts of the flesh, the flesh will lead us into all unrighteousness before God. The NT says if even looking at a woman with lustful thoughts, don’t look, you’ve sinned. It is just as though you did that uncovenantal act, your eyes wer on self, not on Jesus! That gospel is not well received in a society where everything I think is ok goes, where flesh is the great king of the nation!
Who’s kingdom we are of shows in our actions, not only the pledging of the allegiance of our words.
Separation from God, self and other men is the basis of all sin. Separation is an indication of a breech in any area. Notice when you are angry with someone your first tendency is to distance from the person? God is looking for a covenant people who will not only shorten those gaps on purpose, even when they hurt, but will stand in them as bridges back to faith in God enough to trust Him and go across those bridges.
Separation is based on fear. If we don’t eat this or that, it is possibly because the world has told us to fear this or that, we’ve believed in the curses rather than the blessings. Let’s think of food as being God’s word. If we only eat what we like, or what we want to, we’re not thankful for the rest that has been fed us by God in the form of our pastors teachers etc. What we’ve been fed, we can receive enough and then go to the word ourselves and check out the source.
When was the last time you criticized the given words in your mind, but never went to see if God was saying that to you, and if your offense was really your lack of desire to do the words?
If we trust God we’ll go to the source which is God and believe, and have faith for repair.
Don’t waste time when discussing God’s words in arguments, use the word to build up each others’ faith and obedience levels. There’s not time to waste it away with idle contesting conversations, but spend it rather on study for building a foundation of teachings.
They way we act and talk with one another shows we have no clue that there is a great test of our faith coming, the wise see the times and prepare. (5 wise virgins got oil when no bridegroom was in sight) Are we preparing for the great and yet terrible day of the Lord? How we live shows how much we believe it is upon the earth, not just upon us, but upon the earth. How we live, not what we say, proves our faith in His true appearing?
Be an example, the world is crying out for an example! It is wailing, do you hear the noise, the cry the call?


Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.