A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope,
encouragement and exhortation.
Daily
Encouragement on
Thursday, January
17, 2019
"The
Pattern Of Walking Worthily"
Message
summary:
We
must submit our ways to
God in our walk, in our
behavior, in our
productivity and in our
godly knowledge. Let us
be faithful so that we
bring honor to our
Father in heaven, as we
practice a pattern of
walking worthily. Let us
never, never, never give
up!
Listen to our
message on your audio
player.
"And let us
not grow weary of
doing good, for in due
season we will reap,
if we do not give up"
(Galatians 6:9). "In
all things showing
yourself to be a
pattern of good works"
(Titus 2:7). "Walk in
a manner worthy of the
Lord, fully pleasing
to Him, bearing fruit
in every good work and
increasing in the
knowledge of God"
(Colossians 1:10).
Monday we
mentioned that our 17
year old cat Dottie had
died on Saturday. It
seems many can identify
with the loss of a pet
and we are thankful for
the "condolences". Among
our three pets Dottie
had the least exciting
pet-ality (the pet
equivalent of
person-ality). Our older
dog, Roxie, now 14 years
old, is slowing down a
lot, seemingly afflicted
with arthritis, although
she still has a pleasant
disposition and
pet-ality.
But Mollie,
our eight year old
border collie, is still
very full of pet-ality
and vim and vigor.
According to the
customary one human year
equals seven dog year
formula she is now some
56 years old but still
acts like a teenager.
Yesterday we tossed a
frisbee on our
snow-covered lawn and
she still dashes across
the lawn at full speed
to catch the frisbee in
the air.
From the time
she was a pup Mollie has
always wanted to catch a
squirrel. She will spend
hours and hours running
around the lawn chasing
them and then staring at
them up in the trees.
Every morning when I let
her out, it's the first
thing she does as she
runs to the squirrel
laden oak tree and tries
to spot a squirrel.
But they never
choose to come down and
play! Although Mollie
has never caught a
squirrel she never gives
up, and she doesn't even
seem to be discouraged
about it. Her relentless
and enduring pursuit of
squirrels provides an
illustrative lesson for
us in regard to our relentless
and enduring pursuit
in seeking to
do good and walk
worthily.
This week in
our Daily
Encouragement messages
we are examining the
concept of "pattern"
as set forth in the
Scriptures. We believe
God has provided in
the Scriptures a
pattern for how we are
to live our lives.
Today let us examine
the pattern of walking
worthily. In this
regard as Winston
Churchill is often
attributed to famously
saying, "never, never,
never give up"
(Although the actual
quote is slightly
different. Listen here,
17 seconds).
The apostle Paul uses the theme of walking worthily several times in his writings: "Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called" (Ephesians 4:1). "Walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory" (1 Thessalonians 2:12).
1 and 2 Timothy and Titus are in a category of epistles known as the Pastoral Epistles. Our second daily text is a word to Titus, a young pastor. "In all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works" (Titus 2:7). These epistles are especially highlighted for those entering into ministry since they set a pattern for godly leaders. Yesterday we shared a portion from 2 Timothy read at my ordination service nearly 40 years ago.
The apostle Paul uses the theme of walking worthily several times in his writings: "Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called" (Ephesians 4:1). "Walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory" (1 Thessalonians 2:12).
1 and 2 Timothy and Titus are in a category of epistles known as the Pastoral Epistles. Our second daily text is a word to Titus, a young pastor. "In all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works" (Titus 2:7). These epistles are especially highlighted for those entering into ministry since they set a pattern for godly leaders. Yesterday we shared a portion from 2 Timothy read at my ordination service nearly 40 years ago.
Let's spend a
few moments examining
today's final text which
provides a pattern of
good works and the
nature of walking in a
manner worthy of the
Lord. This involves:
1) We walk in a manner worthy of the Lord when we seek to be "fully pleasing to Him." In Ephesians 5:10 we are told to "find out what pleases the Lord". As followers of Christ this is an ongoing pursuit and the main source of finding out what pleases Him is found in the Holy Scriptures. Increasingly the effort to walk with and please the Lord will run contrary to the world's way of thinking. It would be an extremely rare media interview where the "expert" directs us to dig into the Scriptures to find the Lord's answer for the problem at hand.
2) We walk in a manner worthy of the Lord when we seek to be "bearing fruit in every good work." Jesus Christ called His disciples to fruitfulness and good works. "By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be my disciples" (John 15:8). "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16). All over the world today our brothers and sisters are doing this, often unseen and normally unheralded. Their reward here on earth is seeing lives changed. Their greater eternal reward is yet to come. We are called to bear fruit in the tough prison setting, in the lonely nursing home, in the hospice setting where life's journey ends for so many, the pregnancy crisis center or any door you walk through where you can shine the light of Christ in an otherwise dark place.
3) We walk in a manner worthy of the Lord when we seek to be "increasing in the knowledge of God." To do so we must read, meditate and even pray the Scriptures. Avail yourself to Study Bibles so that you become familiar with the historical settings or benefit from seeing outlines of a Bible book. Character studies of familiar and not so familiar Bible personalities are commonly featured. Above all read the Scriptures but supplement your Bible readings with information that might help you better grasp and understand the Bible.
To summarize our text: We must submit our ways to God in our walk, in our behavior, in our productivity and in our godly knowledge. Let us be faithful so that we bring honor to our Father in heaven, as we practice a pattern of walking worthily. Let us never, never, never give up!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
1) We walk in a manner worthy of the Lord when we seek to be "fully pleasing to Him." In Ephesians 5:10 we are told to "find out what pleases the Lord". As followers of Christ this is an ongoing pursuit and the main source of finding out what pleases Him is found in the Holy Scriptures. Increasingly the effort to walk with and please the Lord will run contrary to the world's way of thinking. It would be an extremely rare media interview where the "expert" directs us to dig into the Scriptures to find the Lord's answer for the problem at hand.
2) We walk in a manner worthy of the Lord when we seek to be "bearing fruit in every good work." Jesus Christ called His disciples to fruitfulness and good works. "By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be my disciples" (John 15:8). "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16). All over the world today our brothers and sisters are doing this, often unseen and normally unheralded. Their reward here on earth is seeing lives changed. Their greater eternal reward is yet to come. We are called to bear fruit in the tough prison setting, in the lonely nursing home, in the hospice setting where life's journey ends for so many, the pregnancy crisis center or any door you walk through where you can shine the light of Christ in an otherwise dark place.
3) We walk in a manner worthy of the Lord when we seek to be "increasing in the knowledge of God." To do so we must read, meditate and even pray the Scriptures. Avail yourself to Study Bibles so that you become familiar with the historical settings or benefit from seeing outlines of a Bible book. Character studies of familiar and not so familiar Bible personalities are commonly featured. Above all read the Scriptures but supplement your Bible readings with information that might help you better grasp and understand the Bible.
To summarize our text: We must submit our ways to God in our walk, in our behavior, in our productivity and in our godly knowledge. Let us be faithful so that we bring honor to our Father in heaven, as we practice a pattern of walking worthily. Let us never, never, never give up!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer:
Father,
I ask myself, "Am I
living in a manner
worthy of Your name?
Do I seek to please
You rather than
myself? Does the fruit
of my labor reflect
the Spirit of Christ
living within my
heart? Do I have a
zeal for the things of
Christ and a desire to
know Him better, to
reflect His character
every day in my life?
Am I steady or do I
sputter in my
Christian influence?"
Father, in all these
things I want to be
more like Christ,
consistent in the ways
that bring glory to
Your name and growth
in my spiritual
nature. I want my
spiritual walk to be
the most important
pursuit of my life as
I journey here below
so that I may
influence as many as
possible to live for
Jesus. It is in His
name that I pray.
Amen.Colossians 1:10-12 provides a list of items for our consideration. I will phrase them as personal questions:
* Am I living in a manner worthy of the Lord?
* Am I pleasing Him in all respects?
* Am I bearing fruit in every good work?
* Am I increasing in the knowledge of God?
* Am I being strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might?
* Am I attaining steadfastness and patience?
* Am I joyously giving thanks to the Father?
"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).
Here's a
photo of Mollie
chasing after a
frisbee in the snow.
Today's
Suggested
Music and Supplemental Resources
What does it mean to
not grow weary in doing good
(Galatians 6:9)? From the
gotquestions.org teaching site.
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
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Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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