Adult Teching Resources September 11, 2016 Fith Mtters: Lessons From Hebrews (August 7-28) Jeremih 18:1-11 Getting Into Shpe An Apostle s Apprentice Lessons from Timothy (Sept. 11-Oct 23) 1 Timothy 1:12-17 Bd Strts Cn Be Redeemed 1 Timothy 2:1-7 It s Not About You 1 Timothy 6:6-19 Find Contentment Where You Are www.nurturingfith.net Subscribe to Nurturing Fith to ccess the core Bible content for this lesson. Find links nd videos relted to this lesson. 1 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Bd Strts Cn Be Redeemed Timothy 1:12-17 FIT Teching Guide by Rick Jordn This dult teching outline is designed to support The Bible Lesson by Tony Crtlege, printed in Nurturing Fith Journl. You cn subscribe to either the digitl or print edition of Nurturing Fith Journl to ccess the lessons. Plese lso ensure tht ech person in your clss hs copy of Nurturing Fith Journl so they cn prepre before the lesson. Before the Lesson: Mke copies of the lyrics sheet nd prepre equipment to ply the Pt Terry song, If Jesus Ws Like Me for the Trnsformtionl Exercise. Fellowship Question (Use one of these to brek the ice, to begin some discussion nd led into the study): Without going into lot of detil, where were you on September 11, 2001 when you herd the news? Wht is one thing tht hs chnged in your life becuse of September 11, 2001? Informtion On this dy, every yer, we remember the terrorist ttcks in New York, Pennsylvni nd Wshington, DC. 9/11 hs become recognizble phrse in our converstion. If you sk, Where were you on 9/11? everyone knows wht you re tlking bout. Terrorism is evil becuse innocent people re killed, injured, or victimized. The terrorists do not necessrily hve personl trget. They just wnt to kill people who work in tht building, or people who re celebrting ntionl holidy on tht street, or people who hppen to be police officers. It is nothing personl, like n ssssintion would be. It is desire to cuse fer nd chos. The more innocent the victim, the more ferful we my become nd the more we try to clmp down on venues for rndom destruction. Our Bible lesson tody is not bout terrorism, exctly. But in wy it is, becuse this letter is sid to hve come from mn tht the erliest Christins considered to be terrorist. Before he ws servnt of Jesus Christ, he ws murderer of Christ s followers. [Hve clss member red I Timothy 1:1-2.] Wht do we know bout Pul before his conversion experience? [Below is good, brief description of Sul/Pul s life, pre-conversion: Originlly from Trsus in Asi Minor (Acts 21:39), Pul received some of his eduction t the feet of Gmliel (Acts 22:3), highly respected rbbi in Jeruslem (Acts 5:34). Joining the Phrisic movement, Pul vigorously set out to defend his ncestrl trditions, thus persecuting the erly church (Gltins 1:13, 23; Philippins 3:6). On the wy to Dmscus 2 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Informtion continued where he wnted to rrest those who belonged to the Wy (Acts 9:2), he hd vision of Jesus Christ tht chnged his life nd turned him into the postle to the gentiles (Romns 1:5; 1 Corinthins 9:1). ] [Christin A Eberhrt. http://www.workingprecher.org/preching. spx?commentry_id=1768] Pul often begn his letter with the sluttion, grce nd pece. Here he dds nother word. Wht is it? [mercy] Mercy is key word in I Timothy. It is used here, t the very beginning of the letter nd it is used in nother key pssge we will look t soon, verses 12 nd following, which the NRSV titles, Grtitude for Mercy. Pul ws n Old Testment scholr before he becme follower of Jesus. Let s look t some of wht the Old Testment sys bout mercy. [Hve clss member red Pslm 116:5.] Wht chrcteristics of God re highlighted in this verse? Sometimes, people think, The God of the Old Testment is men nd ngry, but the God of the New Testment is kind nd loving. But from t lest the time of Moses, the Old Testment God described himself in different wy. [Hve clss member red Exodus 33:18-19 nd Exodus 34:6.] In this lst verse, we hve nother Hebrew word which is frequently tied to God s mercy. It is the word hesed, which is stedfst love. [Hve clss member red Pslm 25:6-7 nd Pslm 119:76-77.] A sinner my pproch God becuse of God s mercy nd stedfst love. This next pssge is ttributed to King Dvid fter his confronttion with Nthn bout his ffir with Bthsheb. [Hve clss member red Pslm 51:1.] In the New Testment, this imge of loving, merciful God is continued. We believe it ws incrnted in Jesus Christ. Jesus demonstrted God s love nd God s mercy with ll who he met. We rely on God s love nd mercy for our slvtion. [Hve clss member red Titus 3:3-5.] Now, let s look bit further in this letter for God s mercy. [Hve clss member red I Timothy 1:12-14.] Before his conversion, Pul ws certin tht he ws right. He ws certin tht he ws justified to use whtever mens to keep doctrinl purity in the Jewish fith. 3 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Informtion continued Pul sys he ws mn of violence. This is more thn mn with short temper. Pul ws clculting in how he used violence. Then comes terrible word; he hd been mn of insolent nd brutl violence. The word in Greek is hubristes. It indictes kind of rrognt sdism: it describes the mn who is out to inflict pin for the sheer joy of inflicting it. The corresponding bstrct noun is hubris which Aristole defines: Hubris mens to hurt nd grieve people, in such wy tht shme comes to the mn who is hurt nd grieved, nd tht not tht the person who inflicts the hurt nd injury my gin nything else in ddition to wht he lredy possesses, but simply tht he my find delight in his own cruelty nd in the suffering of the other person. [Willim Brcly. The Letters of Timothy, Titus, nd Philemon: Revised Edition. The Dily Study Bible Series. Phildelphi: Westminster. 1975. p. 45f.] Do you think it would be pproprite to describe Pul before his conversion s terrorist? Why or why not? As mn of violence, did Pul deserve God s mercy? Why or why not? (no, God s mercy cnnot be erned; no, he deserved to be pid bck the pin he inflicted on others; etc.) How do you feel bout God tht would dole out mercy to terrorist? Could it be tht prt of our judgement of Pul, or other terrorists, is due to our desire to rnk sins, or to sy yes, but I do not sin s bdly, so I deserve God s mercy.? Recently, I herd reporter sking Public Reltions person of business, So, mistkes were mde? The person responded, I don t think I would put it tht wy. There were misclcultions. Compnies nd institutions do not like to dmit mistkes, nd they certinly don t like to confess deliberte deceitfulness. (Volkswgen is recent exmple of this.) Aren t we s individuls the sme wy? Why is it hrd for us to dmit tht we were wrong, even when we thought we were right? When fced with our own wrongdoing, we often find wys to distnce ourselves, to shift the blme elsewhere or to conclude tht it somehow just hppened. But our unwillingness to fce sin mkes repentnce irrelevnt. And without repentnce, there is no heling. At best we limp wy or press on in the wek hope tht things will ese with time. There is no wy to understnd the depths of mercy nd grce if we don t recognize the cpcity for sin within ourselves. [Christine Pohl. Sin Insultion. The Christin Century. Vol 118 no 24. Aug 29 - Sep 05 2001. p 12.] Pul sid he ws wrong, but tht he ws wrong out of ignornce. Pul knew the Lw. Pul knew wht Christins believed. He would not hve killed them if he considered their doctrine to be pure. How, then, ws he ignornt? (He did not know Christ personlly; like the soldiers who crucified Jesus, for whom Jesus pryed, forgive them, they know not wht they do ; etc.) 4 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Informtion continued Pul hd to dmit tht he ws wrong. Killing Christins - no mtter how well mening he ws, no mtter how doctrinlly driven he ws, no mtter how zelous he ws ws sin. It ws sin for which he did not deserve mercy. But God is going to be who God is. [Hve clss member red I Timothy 1:15-16.] God demonstrted love nd mercy by forgiving Pul, nd Pul is eternlly grteful. Wht do you think Pul ment by mking me n exmple? The word he uses is hupotuposis which mens n outline, sketch-pln, first drft, preliminry model. It is s if Pul were sying, Look wht Christ hs done for me! If someone like me cn be sved, there is hope for everyone. [Willim Brcly. 48.] Pul s exmple is sometimes used s the primry model for becoming follower of Jesus, s if the Dmscus Rod experience is the stndrd. How do you feel bout tht? The mercy of God is relief to sinners. But it cn be irritting to those of us who consider ourselves to be not so bd. Jesus fced this with the Phrisees (the crowd who trined Pul, remember). In response, Jesus told prbles of womn who rejoiced when she found her lost coin nd fther who rejoiced when his prodigl son returned. Like the older son in the story, we d rther God be fir or just. With little sense of our need, we tke God s welcome for grnted nd hve little pprecition for the grce tht holds our lives But wht heven sees when sinner repents is precious lost one who hs been found. This is the wonder of Jesus prbles in Luke 15 nd the joy tht is missed by the scribes nd Phrisees who re nnoyed by Jesus indiscriminte welcome to sinners. Tx collectors nd sinners drw close to her more good news, but the religious leders grumble nd note tht Jesus is creless bout the chrcter nd sttus of the people with whom he ets. [Pohl. p 12.] But God wnts us to be like God, which mens being like Jesus who hd something to sy bout mercy in the Betitudes. [Hve clss member red Mtthew 5:7.] Trnsformtionl Exercise [Distribute lyric sheets.] We re to be like Jesus, including his demonstrtions nd techings bout mercy. But wht if Jesus were like us? In the next few minutes, let s listen to this song written nd sung by Pt Terry. It is clled, If Jesus Ws Like Me. [Ply Pt Terry s If Jesus Ws Like Me. There re few versions online including this one: https://vimeo.com/20471551] 5 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Trnsformtionl Exercise continued Here re the lyrics: If Jesus ws like me, he d seem like n lright guy Till the first time he heled someone, or turned some wter into wine Then he d tlk too much, ct wy too proud They d sy, There goes tht Jesus gin running off his mouth. How sd would tht be, if Jesus ws like me? If Jesus ws like me, he d be ll merciful nd meek Till the first time you mde like Juds nd kissed him on the cheek Then he d ct ll hurt, point out ll your sins When you sk, would if he forgive you, he d sy, Well tht ll depends. How hopeless would we ll be, if Jesus ws like me? If Jesus ws like me, he d men well but he might not follow through (when you needed him to) If Jesus ws like me, love might be the one thing he d try but couldn t do If Jesus ws like me, he d be your closest friend Till the first time you niled him to the cross for ll your sins Then he d pull the shdes, tke your number off his phone Let you pound ll night on Heven s gte while he pretends he isn t home How lost would we ll be, without one pryer or hope for nything Imgine where you d be, if Jesus ws like me You might s well just get up off your knees, if Jesus ws like me [After the song, close in pryer something like this:] God, we thnk you tht you re not like me, or ny of us, or ny of the best of us. We thnk you tht you hve mercy enough to cover our sins nd to cover the sins of the worst of us. We pry for our world in its tribultion. Lord, hve mercy. Christ, hve mercy. Amen. Comments or Questions for Rick Jordn? You my send comments to the lesson pln uthor t rjordn@ cbfnc.org. Rick is lso vilble to led workshops nd conferences on Christin Eduction, with prticulr emphsis on how best to use the FIT Fith model. 6 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Digging Deeper by Tony Crtlege Digging Deeper is designed to support The Bible Lesson by Tony Crtlege, printed in Nurturing Fith Journl. Wtch for the shovel icon in the The Bible Lesson, nd then reference tht item in this Digging Deeper resource. You cn subscribe to either the digitl or print edition of Nurturing Fith Journl to ccess the lessons. Plese lso ensure tht ech person in your clss hs copy of Nurturing Fith Journl so they cn prepre before the lesson. Pul nd Timothy Both Acts nd Pul s letters testify to the close working reltionship between Pul nd Timothy. Timothy, the son of Jewish womn nd Gentile fther, first joined Pul s mission tem in Lystr during Pul s second missionry journey, ccording to Acts 16. Together they trvelled through Philippi, Thesslonic, Bere, Athens, nd Corinth (Acts 17:14-15; 18:5). Luke s ccount in Acts sys tht Timothy ws lso with Pul during his third journey, when Pul sent him from Ephesus to Mcedoni to ly the groundwork for Pul s nticipted trvel to Mcedoni nd Greece (Acts 19:21-22). Lter, Pul gin employed Timothy s n dvnce mn, sending him to Tros, from which he ws to ccompny Pul to Jeruslem s they delivered collection for the poor in tht city (Acts 20:1-6). Pul frequently spoke of Timothy in his letters, noting tht he sometimes delegted Timothy to ssist struggling churches or to check on their progress (1 Thess. 3:1-6; 1 Cor. 4:17, 16:10-11; Phil. 2:19-24). Pul lso listed Timothy s being present with him or contributing to his letters (2 Corinthins 1:1, Philippins 1:1, Colossins 1:1, 1 Thesslonins1:1, 2 Thesslonins 1:1, nd Philemon 1). In his letter to the Philippins, Pul included touching tribute to Timothy, whom he spoke of s being like son: I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so tht I my be cheered by news of you. I hve no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfre. All of them re seeking their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But Timothy s worth you know, how like son with fther he hs served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope therefore to send him s soon s I see how things go with me; nd I trust in the Lord tht I will lso come soon (Phil. 2:19-24). Timothy in Ephesus? The letter s indiction tht Pul hd left Timothy behind in Ephesus while he trveled on to Mcedoni is problemtic. While Luke records two occsions when Pul visited Mcedoni (Acts 16:6-17:9 nd 20:1-6), Timothy either went hed or trveled with him both times. Luke s ccount is not exhustive, however, nd it is possible tht Pul mde other journeys tht re not recorded in Acts. 7 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Digging Deeper continued Endless myths nd genelogies It is uncler wht Pul ment by this expression, nd precisely wht techings he ws opposing. Pul s concern my hve relted to Jewish believers, some of whom my hve followed populr interest in ncestrl records designed to trce one s heritge to the priestly line, for exmple, or to fmilies tht hd been in exile. Likewise, mny legends hd grown up round erly Jewish heroes, nd were recorded in populr pocryphl books like the Book of Jubilees. Pul my hve considered these to be myths. On the other hnd, Pul s concern my hve been with the myths ssocited with the Greek nd Romn gods whose temples dorned ll mjor cities, or with the incipient growth of Gnosticism, belief tht the evil world ws seprted by severl levels from the idel heven, nd tht vrious demi-gods could help guide persons through progressively higher levels through imprting specil knowledge. Although Gnosticism ws not in full flower until the second century, it ws developing in the first century s syncretistic mix of Judism, Christinity, nd Greek/Romn thought. Some identified Jesus s the lowest of the demi-gods sent from the pure spirit bove. Pul, of course, would hve opposed this. Other problems re more evident. Some persons were evidently promoting n sceticism tht rgued ginst mrrige (1 Tim. 2:15; 4:3; 5:14) nd prohibited certin foods (1 Tim. 4:3; 5:23; Titus 1:15). Some climed tht the resurrection is pst lredy (2 Tim. 2:18). The uthor lso seems quite concerned bout church orgniztion nd structure, giving instructions for the ppointment of decons nd other church officers, concerns tht becme prticulrly evident with continued church growth in the second century. Fith nd love Fith nd love were t the hert of Pul s teching, with love being the nturl outgrowth of fith. While opposing leglists in Gl. 5:6, Pul hd insisted the only thing tht counts is fith working through love (see lso Rom. 13:4 nd 1 Corinthins 13). Giving thnks nd being thnkful Pul usully begn with verbl expression of giving thnks (euchristō, see Rom. 1:8, 1 Cor. 1:4, Phil. 1:3, Phlm. 4, 1 Thes. 1:2) for those to whom he ws writing, for wht God hd done for them, nd for their fithfulness or good work. In 1 Tim. 1:12, he does not use the verb for give thnks, but employs the nominl expression I hve grtitude (chrin echō). Insted of giving thnks for how God hd blessed his reders, here Pul focuses on how Christ hd sved him nd counted him worthy for service. Dyn-o-mite! Comedin nd ctor Jimmie Wlker, who ws fetured in the sitcom Good Times (1974-79), ws best known for his trdemrk exclmtion, Dyn-o-mite! Pul would hve pprecited the expression. When he sid tht Christ hd strengthened or empowered him, he used the term endunmōsnti, which is built on the root dunmis, from which English gets the word dynmite. Pul ws sying tht God hd infused him with power. Dyn-o-mite! 8 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Digging Deeper continued The sying is sure The Pstorl Epistles mke frequent use of the expression the sying is sure (pistos ho logos), which could be trnslted literlly s fithful [is] the word. The expression does not occur elsewhere in the New Testment. The uthor uses it to emphsize tht the teching it refers to is both trustworthy nd significnt, nd thus worthy of cceptnce nd prctice. See lso: 1 Tim. 3:1 The sying is sure: whoever spires to the office of bishop. 1 Tim. 4:9 The sying is sure nd worthy of full cceptnce. 2 Tim. 2:11 The sying is sure: if we hve died with him, we will lso live with him. Titus 3:8 The sying is sure. In 1 Tim. 4:9 nd Titus 3:8, the expression ppers to refer to previous sttement. Testimony Those who might be concerned bout hving less dynmic testimony becuse they hd grown up in the fith cn tke comfort from Timothy. According to 2 Tim. 1:5, Timothy s mother, Eunice, nd his grndmother, Lois, were strong believers in Christ, pssing long their fith to Timothy, so he presumbly grew up s good boy. When I ws child, my home church, like mny others, hd T.E.L. clss. As children, some of us ssumed tht T.E.L. stood for The Elder Ldies, since tht ws who populted the clss. Only lter did we relize tht the clss ws nmed s testimony to genertions of women who pssed their fith on to children nd grndchildren: it ws the Timothy, Eunice, nd Lois clss. Visible nd invisible The Greek goddess Athen ws one of mny Greek nd Romn gods whose imges were well known. This sttue is smller copy of much lrger imge of Athen tht ws housed in the Prthenon in Athens, built s temple to Athen. When Athen ws born, ccording to Greek trdition, she lept from within the skull of Zeus s full-grown nd fully rmed womn. In contrst, the uthor of 1 Timothy speks of the God who is immortl nd invisible, description echoed in Wlter Chlmers Smith s clssic hymn of prise Immortl, Invisible, God Only Wise. The first verse of the hymn builds on the theme of God s eternl mjesty: Immortl, invisible God only wise, In light inccessible hid from our eyes, Most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Dys, Almighty, victorious, Thy gret nme we prise. 9 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
The Hrdest Question by Tony Crtlege The Hrdest Question is designed to support The Bible Lesson by Tony Crtlege, printed in Nurturing Fith Journl. You cn subscribe to either the digitl or print edition of Nurturing Fith Journl to ccess the lessons. Plese lso ensure tht ech person in your clss hs copy of Nurturing Fith Journl so they cn prepre before the lesson. Did Pul relly write the pstorl epistles? At fce vlue 1 Timothy clims to hve been written by Pul, from Mcedoni, fter he hd left Timothy behind in Ephesus. This offers bit of problem, becuse these trvel detils do not fit into the ccounts found in Acts nd Pul s other letters. The relted book of Titus lso suggests tht Pul hd trveled freely to Crete, which cretes dditionl problems with our chronology of Pul. The book of Acts nd Pul s other letters suggest tht Pul s rrest in Jeruslem, his lengthy imprisonment nd his journey to Rome for n ppel to Cesr culminted in Pul s execution. Those who ffirm Puline uthorship generlly get round this objection by hypothesizing n ddition to Pul s itinerry not otherwise mentioned in scripture postulting tht he must hve been relesed from prison following the episodes mentioned in Acts, somewhere round 63 BCE. The theory ssumes tht he then embrked upon the trvels to plces mentioned in 1-2 Timothy nd Titus before being subsequently re-rrested, tken bck to Rome, nd ultimtely executed round 67 BCE. In 2 Timothy 4:16-18, Pul refers to his defense during the Romn imprisonment, nd sys he ws rescued from the lion s mouth. Some tke this s oblique evidence tht Pul ws freed for time. Some scholrs rgue tht Pul could not hve been the uthor of the epistles, not only becuse of the chronologicl problems, but becuse the pstorls include mny Greek vocbulry words not chrcteristic of his other letters, becuse the teching sometimes seems t odds with his opinions expressed in other letters, nd becuse the concerns ddressed seem more pertinent to those of second century congregtions in the erly postpostolic ge. While Pul s other letters seem minly concerned with prepring the church for the imminent return of Christ, these letters seem to ssume tht the church is settling in for the long hul, nd needs to get its doctrinl nd orgniztionl house in order. In response, more conservtive scholrs rgue tht Pul s use of scribe could help ccount for the different vocbulry choices. They lso insist tht there re wys to hrmonize Pul s pprent chnge of opinion on some issues, nd suggest tht the issues ddressed s heresy could hve been present in the first century s esily s the second. It cn be helpful to relize tht our fith should not rise or fll on the issue of Puline uthorship. While both positions seem to offer vlid points of view nd we could discuss them t greter length, delving deeply into the debte is beyond the purpose of this lesson. We will pproch the text s if Pul is the uthor, with n wreness tht lter dmirer of Pul my hve written in his nme, seeking to ddress issues s he believed Pul would hve done. 10 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016
Hndout If Jesus Ws Like Me By Pt Terry If Jesus ws like me, he d seem like n lright guy Till the first time he heled someone, or turned some wter into wine Then he d tlk too much, ct wy too proud They d sy, There goes tht Jesus gin running off his mouth. How sd would tht be, if Jesus ws like me? If Jesus ws like me, he d be ll merciful nd meek Till the first time you mde like Juds nd kissed him on the cheek Then he d ct ll hurt, point out ll your sins When you sk, would if he forgive you, he d sy, Well tht ll depends. How hopeless would we ll be, if Jesus ws like me? If Jesus ws like me, he d men well but he might not follow through (when you needed him to) If Jesus ws like me, love might be the one thing he d try but couldn t do If Jesus ws like me, he d be your closest friend Till the first time you niled him to the cross for ll your sins Then he d pull the shdes, tke your number off his phone Let you pound ll night on Heven s gte while he pretends he isn t home How lost would we ll be, without one pryer or hope for nything Imgine where you d be, if Jesus ws like me You might s well just get up off your knees, if Jesus ws like me 11 Nurturing Fith September 11, 2016