" Spiritual Qualifications for Leadership "
Titus 1:9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others
by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it. (NIV)
by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it. (NIV)
Church elders must be 'men of the message': that was Paul's clear instruction to Titus
as he set about his task of ordering the fast growing church in Crete.
Firstly, they must believe the gospel personally, be known as people who base their own lives on the salvation of Jesus Christ, and be in submission to Him.
They were not free to change the message, even though parts of the gospel would be a personal challenge to every leader.
The 'apostolic gospel' (the way to come to Christ and live in Him as taught by Paul and the other Apostles),
was personally authorized by Jesus: it was not a 'primitive theology' from which more comfortable
and culturally acceptable versions could be derived.
The elders' primary spiritual task was to build up the faith of their congregation by preaching,
teaching and explaining the Lordship of Christ.
If they could not do that, they should not be appointed to the role.
Elders should expound the truth to those who were eager to learn,
and also patiently explain the way of Christ to people who opposed the teaching:
if they refused to listen, they should be rebuked.
That is what that the Lord Jesus intended when He first commissioned the Apostles to 'make disciples'.
We need to hear this verse again today.
When people want the gospel to be diluted or changed to suit social preferences,
the elders must be strongly courageous to proclaim the truth and strongly courageous to denounce error.
It is not a popular or easy life! When people wrongly see the church as a community where they can gather support for their opinions, the supremacy of Christ must be reasserted.
When the church is more concerned to please its members or appease external pressure, than make disciples of Christ -
the elders have failed in their duty.
The greatest danger to the church is weak leadership which fails to hold to the apostolic gospel:
the greatest hope for the church is in the message faithfully taught by leaders who are committed to Christ.
So pray for your leaders; and if you are one of them make sure that your first priority is to live
and teach the same message that the Apostle Paul taught.
Prayer for the day : -
Sovereign Lord. Thank You for shaping Your church according to the message You gave to the Apostles.
I am sorry when I have devalued Your message by failing to live it or teach it.
Please help all who lead the church in Your Name to hold firmly to the apostolic gospel.
May they teach it courageously and be strong to refute error.
May all who call themselves believers in Jesus Christ support those leaders who live and teach in that way,
praying for them in their difficult calling as they make disciples and confront false teaching.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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The habitual way in which you use the house you live in and its contents are all affected if you use them
in a positive consciousness (mental state).
The result is purification while interacting with the physical object, so that when the object is in use, it fulfills its function accurately, and it has also undergone a permanent change.
This can happen when you are cleaning the house, cleaning any object in the house
or preparing objects for a particular purpose.
If such actions are done in a positive consciousness then the physical object will have such a vibration of peace
and purity that no harm can be done with it and whatever action it is used to perform will be successful.
Any other soul who comes into interaction with those objects will also feel the affect of their pure vibrations.
If we perform each action with the physical body in a positive consciousness,
then the physical body gets purified and we can become free of illnesses.
In our relationships it is the same principle.
First there needs to be that detachment in relations.
Secondly, when there is a positive consciousness,
I will find that my interactions have a purifying affect on all that I relate to and I can bring benefit to everyone I meet.
In this way a positive mental state enables all actions to be successful, whether at work or at home.
as he set about his task of ordering the fast growing church in Crete.
Firstly, they must believe the gospel personally, be known as people who base their own lives on the salvation of Jesus Christ, and be in submission to Him.
They were not free to change the message, even though parts of the gospel would be a personal challenge to every leader.
The 'apostolic gospel' (the way to come to Christ and live in Him as taught by Paul and the other Apostles),
was personally authorized by Jesus: it was not a 'primitive theology' from which more comfortable
and culturally acceptable versions could be derived.
The elders' primary spiritual task was to build up the faith of their congregation by preaching,
teaching and explaining the Lordship of Christ.
If they could not do that, they should not be appointed to the role.
Elders should expound the truth to those who were eager to learn,
and also patiently explain the way of Christ to people who opposed the teaching:
if they refused to listen, they should be rebuked.
That is what that the Lord Jesus intended when He first commissioned the Apostles to 'make disciples'.
We need to hear this verse again today.
When people want the gospel to be diluted or changed to suit social preferences,
the elders must be strongly courageous to proclaim the truth and strongly courageous to denounce error.
It is not a popular or easy life! When people wrongly see the church as a community where they can gather support for their opinions, the supremacy of Christ must be reasserted.
When the church is more concerned to please its members or appease external pressure, than make disciples of Christ -
the elders have failed in their duty.
The greatest danger to the church is weak leadership which fails to hold to the apostolic gospel:
the greatest hope for the church is in the message faithfully taught by leaders who are committed to Christ.
So pray for your leaders; and if you are one of them make sure that your first priority is to live
and teach the same message that the Apostle Paul taught.
Prayer for the day : -
Sovereign Lord. Thank You for shaping Your church according to the message You gave to the Apostles.
I am sorry when I have devalued Your message by failing to live it or teach it.
Please help all who lead the church in Your Name to hold firmly to the apostolic gospel.
May they teach it courageously and be strong to refute error.
May all who call themselves believers in Jesus Christ support those leaders who live and teach in that way,
praying for them in their difficult calling as they make disciples and confront false teaching.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
=======================================================================
The habitual way in which you use the house you live in and its contents are all affected if you use them
in a positive consciousness (mental state).
The result is purification while interacting with the physical object, so that when the object is in use, it fulfills its function accurately, and it has also undergone a permanent change.
This can happen when you are cleaning the house, cleaning any object in the house
or preparing objects for a particular purpose.
If such actions are done in a positive consciousness then the physical object will have such a vibration of peace
and purity that no harm can be done with it and whatever action it is used to perform will be successful.
Any other soul who comes into interaction with those objects will also feel the affect of their pure vibrations.
If we perform each action with the physical body in a positive consciousness,
then the physical body gets purified and we can become free of illnesses.
In our relationships it is the same principle.
First there needs to be that detachment in relations.
Secondly, when there is a positive consciousness,
I will find that my interactions have a purifying affect on all that I relate to and I can bring benefit to everyone I meet.
In this way a positive mental state enables all actions to be successful, whether at work or at home.
Positive thinking keeps us energetic throughout the day.
Always think Positively and avoid the company of negative friends!
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