Since yesterday was the end of 2 Thessalonians, I figured we can keep going and run through 1 Timothy before doing a lighter finals week with just Psalms (for those of you on the Tech schedule). I pray that we can continue to make time for this even in busyness and stress.
5 The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 6 Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion, 7 desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions. (1 Timothy 1:5-7, ESV)
This is the passage that really stuck out to me the most and forced me to think and reflect a good deal tonight. In the context of talking about false teaching, verse 5 starts off dictating that the aim here is love, but rather than leave it at that, he details it for us that this is a love that flows forth from a pure heart, good conscience, and a sincere faith. I really enjoyed this perspective of the origins of this love and the conviction that it brings as we want our lives to reflect this so we can show the love of God.
After that, I also found the next part to be quite convicting when reflecting on it in relation to a book I have been reading. The main point of the section was: would you trust a younger version of yourself (say you 5 or 10 years ago aka teenage you) to make your decisions today? Or do you feel like you know more now that better equips you? One of the big points of this is that while we often trust ourselves to make these decisions, we often rightfully consult the help of outside sources when making decisions especially the Bible and prayer because while I often think that I fully understand an issue, many times I am humbled by the many things that I didn't know. While this is alright because it reminds me that I'm not the all-knowing God, it is also a good reminder that I don't know it all (or anywhere near it). Rather than allowing this to make us indecisive and fearful, I think it is a great reminder of how reliant we are on God and his word to help us make decisions in our lives. Hopefully, that makes enough sense. The reason this came to mind is verses 6 and 7 reminded me that there are many things about God and wisdom that his word is filled with that are still being revealed to me, and while I may be eager to think that I already understand a verse or an issue, I need to be open to others revealing new perspectives to me (that are rooted in God's word) as well especially since I am not a Bible expert. I desire to study it and come to know it more fully, but I am still learning. This may seem like a funny interpretation, but it was just a reminder to me that I am still learning and renewed my desire to read and reflect on his word to gain a better understanding through what God reveals to me.
"The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith." (v. 5)
ReplyDeleteAll this talk about the law is for the purpose of fostering a Godly love that is the product of purity, integrity, and sincerity in faith. I appreciate this because I always feel bogged down reading about the law, which I consider important, but tend to overlook because of so many legalistic perspectives I have encountered in my life. It also gives us three points to work on and improve, all of which I/we can work on in our lives on a daily basis.
It is good to be reminded that the law is not meant to bind us, but to set us free in a way to assume our identities as sons and daughters of God. Following the law leads us to pure hearts, respecting the law helps us develop good consciences, and understanding the law gives us the basis for a sincere faith.
To me 1 Timothy 1: 12-18 reminded me of a great truth that I feel many people forget often. Christ Jesus came to save sinners who have faith, but it is not just faith that will save us. Since one sin is an eternal and powerful offense to an eternal and all-powerful God we need the grace and mercy of our Lord. Grace, getting something that we don't deserve, and mercy, not getting something that we do deserve. Keeping this in mind we can prevent ourselves from becoming a false (or inaccurate) teacher that Paul warns us about.
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