I continue to be amazed at how our people at CLF respond to the teaching of God’s word. I think one of the hallmarks of our church is the willing reception to God’s word. I cannot say thank you enough to our church. It’s humbling to lead a church of people like this. When I was younger in ministry, I remember saying to myself that preaching God’s word to God’s people is what builds God’s church. I’m grateful to be able to watch God do His word, with His word, in His church.
Misapplied Truth:
I made a statement in the 1st service on Sunday that I didn’t repeat in the 2nd. But I think it bears repeating. One of the major issues with the truths of God’s word, like authority and submission, is that it has been misapplied so often that it’s hard to believe the truth. But what I said Sunday was that a truth that is misapplied, does not mean the truth is an error. It means the application is in error. We must be careful to not allow bad application to cause us to discredit biblical truth.
Here’s the reality…when the truth of gender order in the church is applied well, you will find strong men and strong women, who deeply appreciate one another. You will find value, worth, encouragement, and respect. There will not be gender wars nor will there be a “one-upmanship”. There won’t be dictatorial leadership but joyful interaction.
Influence/Authority/Submission:
When you look at the Bible and see examples of how men and women interact, you’ll notice that women exude remarkable influence over men. Examples that I gave on Sunday were Eve, Sarai, and Jezebel. But there are other examples of when women speak with wisdom to men and men didn’t listen (Sarah to Abraham, as one example).
When Jill and I do premarital counseling with couples, we cover the roles in marriage. One of the things we remind them is that each person is to listen to the other and each person is to have appropriate influence over the other one. However, each partner must consider if their “wisdom” is godly or will be helpful. Influence is more important than authority.
This coming Sunday:
This week we will study through 1 Timothy 3:1-7. We will look at the role of elders in the church.
From the Cheap Seats:
- Matt Ryan for a 3rd round pick. Umm…not sure Jimmy Garapolo is going anywhere for a 1st round pick.
- How do MLB teams combine for 37 runs?? Rangers 25 Guardians 12! How does that happen??
- Liverpool vs. Man City…possibly 3 times over the next month and a half. Should be amazing.
- Thank you, Minnesota for taking Carlos Correa.
Below, is my view for Monday-Wednesday of this week. It’s not bad.
Dave York
Enjoy your week.
In Christ,
