6 Minute Read + Scripture readings
Today’s Bible Reading:
Today’s Bible Verse(s):
“I think it is right, as long as I am in this bodily tent, to wake you up with a reminder,”
2 Peter 1:13 (CSB)
Reflections on Today’s Bible Verse(s):
I love preaching and teaching! I enjoy digging into God’s Word, discovering wonderful truths or seeing them in a new light, and then sharing what I’ve discovered with the people I get to pastor.
What’s the end game? What am I aiming at?
Well, one of my primary goals is to make disciples. Jesus made it clear in Matthew 28:19 that we are commanded to “go and make disciples.” In saying that, Jesus didn’t simply tell us to get people saved. He meant that we are to share the Gospel and then help those same people to grow in their understanding and practice of living in obedience and conformity to God’s Word.
While so many people think that the pastor’s sermon is almost solely about getting someone saved (just listen to the prayers that take place by well-meaning members before the sermon), the pastor’s job is to glorify Jesus Christ by helping those who are listening to be disciples. He desires for people to be saved but he also desires for the saved to be more obedient, more consecrated to Jesus.
So, if the pastor is doing his job and the congregation is made up of people who are getting into God’s Word, growing in their understanding of what it says and putting it into practice, then the chances that the pastor will preaching a “new” truth goes way down. As discipleship is taking place in a congregation, much of what the pastor preachers will simply come as a reminder of what the people already know.
That’s why “remind” is used so much in the New Testament. It assumes that Jesus-followers will become so knowledgeable of God’s Word that sermons will simply be reminders of things the congregation already knows.
Romans 15:15 “Nevertheless, I have written to remind you more boldly on some points because of the grace given me by God”
1 Corinthians 4:17 “This is why I have sent Timothy to you. He is my dearly loved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you about my ways in Christ Jesus, just as I teach everywhere in every church.”
2 Timothy 2:14 “Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to fight about words. This is useless and leads to the ruin of those who listen.”
Titus 3:1 “Remind them to submit to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work,”
2 Peter 1:12 “Therefore I will always remind you about these things, even though you know them and are established in the truth you now have.”
Jude 1:5 “Now I want to remind you, although you came to know all these things once and for all, that Jesus saved a people out of Egypt and later destroyed those who did not believe;”
Strive to be a Jesus-follower who knows your Bible so well that your pastor’s sermons rarely ever teach you something new. Instead, they are used by God’s Holy Spirit to remind you of truths that may require some adjustments in your thinking or living.
* * * * * * * * * *
Lord Jesus, You have made it relatively easy for me as a Jesus-follower. You’ve only given me one text book to master. I desire to read, study, and know Your Word more. Help me to develop such a biblical mind that I can listen to my pastor’s sermons and hear old truths, that I already know, but presented in fresh ways that Your Holy Spirit can use to point out areas in my life that need adjustments. I want to make the most of this one life You’ve given me. Amen.
Matt’s Musings 