shadmans Musings  

  (1) Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope, (2) To Timothy, my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. (1 Tim 1:1-2) As John MacArthur rightly stated, one of the greatest joys for any parent is to see their son or daughter grow up into a mature adult. And in the same way, it is also true for someone you have mentored. As Christians, we pray, hope, counsel, encourage, guide, correct, restore and trust those whom we love in Christ and have poured our lives into. “There is no greater joy for a spiritual parent than to beget a true child in the faith and lead him to maturity.” [1] This is even more true for Paul, since he is our example.  In this epistle, we will see not only the great love that Paul had for Timothy, but his desire to equip him with everything that he would need to pastor and lead the large Ephesian church as well as anything else...

  (15) Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. (16) Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (17) Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father. (Col 3:15-17) In this last part of the ‘putting on of the new self,’ Paul completes the qualities that mark the lifestyle of a new believer. His conclusion references: 1) the peace of Christ, 2) the word of Christ, and 3) the name of Christ.  The Priorities The Peace of Christ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. (Col 3:15) ‘Peace’ – We know the meaning of the word as tranquility, but John MacArthur sees the word as including, “... both the concept of an agreement, pact, treaty, or b...