Hi First Presbyterian Church,
It’s time for our Mid-Week Meet-Up! I’m happy to be back home after finishing my first residency for my Doctor of Ministry degree, which was an incredibly enriching learning experience. I’m particularly happy to be back because we’ve just started our annual summer tradition of a sermon series structured around answering your questions. This year, since we’re spending this entire year reading through the whole Bible, the questions you’ve asked have to do with things you’ve been reading. Pastor Erin gave a great sermon this past Sunday on the nature of Christian community. This Sunday, my sermon will seek to answer the question, “What are we to make about speaking in tongues?” Many of you know that I have a background in the Pentecostal tradition, which emphasizes the practice of speaking in tongues. I’m very much looking forward to addressing this question on Sunday!
Today is Day 297 of our one-year Bible-reading journey. It’s not too late to begin reading along with us! We’re just finishing up the Book of Jeremiah as well as starting Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy. Let me know if you want a copy of the reading plan!
After finishing reading Paul’s First Letter to Timothy yesterday, I was reminded about how much practical advice is packed into that letter. One thing that Paul said to Timothy that really caught my attention was in 1 Timothy 4:12-16: “Let no one despise your youth, but set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Until I arrive, give attention to the public reading of scripture, to exhorting, to teaching. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you through prophecy with the laying on of hands by the council of elders. Put these things into practice, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress. Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; continue in these things, for in doing this you will save both yourself and your hearers.”
I love that Paul tells the young Timothy not to view his youth as a disqualification for leadership. Instead, he tells Timothy to set an example for everyone. Specifically, he instructs Timothy to read, study, and apply the teachings of scripture to his life. He tells Timothy to “pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching” (v. 16). This demonstrates the close connection that ought to exist between what we read and study in scripture and the way we live our lives. We ought to not only read to understand the Bible, but also read to apply the teachings of the Bible to our lives. This is what our summer sermon series is meant to help us do. In fact, it’s what the whole experience of reading through the Bible in a year has been meant to do. As you finish up reading through the whole Bible, I encourage you to ask yourself not only “What does this text mean?” But, more importantly, ask yourself, “What does this text mean for me?” Ask for the Holy Spirit to open up the scriptures so that you can hear God trying to reshape your identity in Christ. Such a practice has the power to, as Paul said, “save yourself.” That’s my prayer for you today!
Peace,
Pastor Aaron