e-pistle2equippers October 19, 2001
Posted by: ccfmo <ccfmo@...>
Weekly ministry letters (successor to "The Whetstone") from Christian Civic Foundation
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Dr. Curt Scarborough, President October 19, 2001
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In this issue:
Sermon - I Timothy 2:8
Bible Study - "Brother vs Brother" (I Corinthians 4:7)
Prayer and Spiritual Warfare
Biblical Counseling Videos
God Needs a Few Good Men of Iron
I saw Ed Ames star in the musical "The Man of LaManacha" at the Muny in St. Louis a few years ago. At the end of the play when Don Quixote died, all the people he loved were gathered around weeping. Finally, he rose up and from the back of the stage came a great staircase with its ray of light shining down. He picked up his lance, looked at everybody he loved, smiled, and walked up into this light.
The orchestra and chorus blared away "The Impossible Dream." I was sitting there in the audience with tears streaming down my cheeks, and a woman next to me nudged her husband and said; "Look, this man is crying!" And I thought, "I'll give you something to really go home and tell your friends about." So I took out my hanky and really wailed. That blew her mind! She may forget Ed Ames and Don Quixote, but she'll never forget me!
I identified with Quixote. What a beautiful character. "Oh God, to have reached the point of death, only to find that you never really lived at all!" That wasn't true of Quixote. He knew he'd really lived!
Paul described such "Men of Iron" in I Timothy 2:8, "I desire therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.
Christian men typically have problems in four areas of their lives: spirit, mind, emotions and will. The text deals with these problem areas.
I. In the Spirit: Prayer
Men don't like to ask for help or directions. We'll drive around lost for an
hour before pulling into a service station for directions. We see ourselves
as independent, self-sufficient, rugged individuals.
Prayer acknowledges our weakness and inadequacy. It focuses on God's
power, wisdom, and provision. Prayerlessness is a major problem in most
Christian men.
II. In the Mind: Holy Hands
We live in a wicked, perverse, corrupt, violent, demonic society where it is
practically impossible in our own strength to remain pure in mind and clean
in thoughts. "Who may ascend to the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in
His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart" (Psalm 24: 3, 4).
How can I get my hands clean? How can I keep them that way? Holy Hands
can be ours daily only through the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ (I John 1: 7, 9).
III. In The Emotions: Without Wrath
Wrath is an uncontrollable, violent emotion . . . Hot anger, rage, lost temper! In
a man's psyche, just below the veneer of "civilized," lurks this anger, this wrath.
Why is anger a common emotion in the heart of man? It goes all the way back
to Adam. With him, we too feel the frustration of dashed dreams, disappointed
ambitions, unrealized hopes, missed identity. And such crushing defeatedness
of "what could have been" . . . "what should have been" . . . produces seething
resentment.
The opposite of wrath is love . . . God's love. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus
taught, "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who
hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you"
(Matthew 5:44). Paul describes such love in I Corinthians 13.
"Without wrath means "with love!"
IV. In the Will: Without Doubting
Men typically are highly skeptical, suspicious, untrusting . . . espically men from
Missouri, the "Show Me" State. "I'll believe it when I see it . . . maybe!" is our
motto. Why is doubting such a common characteristic for men?
This, too, goes back to the Garden of Eden. Satan deceived Eve. She was more
trusting, more naive than Adam. Both were guilty, but Eve was deceived while
Adam deliberately disobeyed.
Just as it is easier for a woman than a man to love, so also it is easier for a woman
than a man to trust . . . to have faith. So Jesus frequently is heard saying to His
band of men, "Only believe . . . All things are possible to those who believe . . .
Why did you doubt? . . . If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can move
mountains."
"Without doubting" means "with strong active faith."
MEN OF IRON
These four qualities of character in a man's life are capsulized in the word IRON, as in
Men of Iron (Proverbs 27:17).
"I" stands for Integrity of Mind (Holy Hands).
Sincerity means "judged by sunlight." It is transparent honesty, genuine purity, manifested
clarity, unsullied innocence . . . men with nothing to hide.
"R" stands of Radiance of Spirit (Pray)
Spending time with God produces radiance as in the case of Moses on Mt. Sinai. This radiance
is a vivid brightness, an emanated light. The word translated "transformed" in Romans 12:2 is the
same word translated "transfigured" in the Gospel accounts of Jesus shining as the sun.
"O" stands for Obedience of Will (Faith without Doubting)
Obedience involves subjection to authority. It's voluntary obedience because one trusts the person
in charge. Faith produces obedience.
"N" stands for Nobility of Heart (Love without Wrath)
Nobility means high and great in birth, rank, or title. It involves excellence of character; self-control.
We Christian men are nobility, part of the Royal family, sons of the King, brothers of the Crown Prince.
As knights of Christ's "Round Table," we are to exhibit Camelot-type chivalry: dignity, bravery, courtesy,
generosity, and gallantry. In other words, we as nobles are to exemplify unselfish love in action.
I challenge Christian men to be MEN OF IRON . . . Men of LaMancha, Quixotes of the spiritual realm,
daring to dream "The Impossible Dream" . . . "To fight for the right, without question or pause: To be willing
to march into hell for a heavenly cause."
BROTHER VS. BROTHER
Introduction:
Even among Christian ministers, there are disagreements, misunderstandings, and conflicts. This is not untypical, as we can see in scripture:
1. James and John (and mother) vs. other disciples, Matthew 20:20-28.
2. Paul vs. Peter, Galatians 2:11; I Corinthians 9:1-6.
3. Paul vs. Barnabas, Acts 15:36-41.
The causes of these conflicts include immaturity, selfish ambition, meddling by a family member, hypocrisy, low self-esteem, different background, education, gifting, temperament, disagreement over staff relationships and leadership style, and not having the same ministry vision.
PRINCIPLES ON BROTHER VS. BROTHER CONFLICT
1. All are different: God made us that way, I Corinthians 4:7.
2. Mind your own business, John 21:22,22.
3. Don't judge your brother's servant, Romans 14:4.
4. Accept those who serve Jesus differently from yourself:
a. Three reasons, each introduced by "for", Mark 9:38-41.
b. Even if they have unworthy motives, Philippians 1:15-18.
5. Learn from and accept another's ministry, II Peter 3:15,16.
6. Be teachable, flexible, willing to change your opinion, Colossians 4:10; II Timothy 4:11.
7. Be forgiving and be reconciled immediatley, Matthew 5:24; Ephesians 4:26.
Conclusion:
1. Much of the conflict among brother ministers (and Christian denominations)
has to do with differing gifts, I Corinthians 12:1-12.
2. Desiring a particular spiritual gift or office is permitted, even encouraged,
I Corinthians 14:1; I Timothy 3:1.
3. Attempting to acquire spiritual gifts or offices by worldly means is not only
impossible, it is a sin, Acts 8:19-24.
4. The Father wants to give His children good gifts from the Holy Spirit, if they'll
just ask Him, Matthew 7:11; Luke 11:13.
PRAYER AND SPIRITUAL WARFARE
By Edward A. Collins
In a moment of transparency, Pastor Mark Littleton said, "Parishioners would never dream it, but there is a segment of the ecclesiastical nobility -- myself included -- for whom personal worship (aka 'devotions,' 'quiet time,' 'OT') has been a struggle. First, it's finding the minutes. Those phone calls in the morning always seem to foul up your communion with God. Or maybe it's the kids. Or the sweet smell of coffee from the kitchen."
Most church members assume that their pastor spends considerable quality time alone with God on a regular basis. Little do they know that one of the higher items on the list of pastoral frustration is the gap between the prayer life that pastors know they need and desire to have and their actual prayer life.
Dr. C. Peter Wagner in his book Prayer Shields states, "I personally conducted a survey of 572 American pastors across regional, age and denominatinal lines. I wanted to find out just how much time a day pastors spend in actual prayer. In this survey I was not counting Bible study, reading devotional books, listening to worship tapes or other components of a fully rounded devotional life. I was dealing only with prayer. In my sample I found:
* 57% pray less than 20 minutes a day
* 34% pray between 20 minutes and one hour a day
* 9% pray one hour or more a day
* The average prayer - 20 minutes a day."
Dr. Wagner discovered that in other nations of the world pastors pray more. For example: Australian pastors average 23 minutes a day. New Zealand pastors average 30 minutes a day. Japanese pastors average 44 minutes a day. Korean pastors average 90 minutes a day. (This does not include prayer meetings that the pastor may lead during an average day.)
What am I trying to say? It is clear that if we are going to be effective in Spiritual Warfare, our most important tool must be utilized. I am amazed how much talking about prayer we do as pastors, but how little we pray. I learned in seminary every minute of preaching required an hour of preparation. That may sound idealistic, but is it ideal to expect for every half hour of service to the Lord at least a minute could be spent in prayer. John Wesley rose at 4:00 each morning and spent two hours a day in prayer. Martin Luther said, "I have so much to do today, I will have to spend the first three hours in prayer, or the devil will get the victory." Adoniram Judson disciplied himself to withdraw by himself and pray seven times a day.
Do you pray enough? If not, today is a good day to begin a healthy new habit. Pray for an hour. Spiritual Warfare requires it!
BIBLICAL COUNSELING VIDEO COURSES OFFERED
Christian Civic Foundation's Pillsbury Institute of Applied Christianity has entered into a licensed agreement with the American Association of Christian Counselors to offer professional training in Biblical Counseling to ministers in Missouri and surrounding states, according to Dr. Curt Scarborough, president of CCF. Students will receive 30 engaging videotaped lectures featuring some of the best Christian counseling leaders and Bible teachers in the world, complete with course lectures, outlines, study notes and examinations.
CCF's agreement with AACC allows a student enrolled in the Pillsbury Institute to receive the entire course of study including a one-year membership in AACC, for the low tuition cost of only $225. The usual price for this program is $750 plus $89 for AACC membership. For PIAC students only, that's a saving of $614!
HERE'S HOW THE CCF-AACC AGREEMENT WORKS
1. Call CCF today at 1-314-739-1121 to enroll in the Pillsbury Institute of Applied
Christianity, and to qualify for the $614 scholarship offered by AACC.
2. The official registration form to enroll in the CCF's Pillsbury Institute of
Applied Christianity and AACC's Center for Biblical Counseling program is
included on this page.
3. Fill out the registration form and mail a $300 check made out to CCF:
PIAC Enrollment Fee $ 65
AACC Tuition 225
Shipping & Handling 10
Total enrollment fee $ 300
4. CCF will forward your tuition to AACC, certifying that your are a student in
PIAC and thereby, qualified to receive the $614 scholarship.
5. AACC will send you all the videotapes, course lectures, outlines, workbooks,
and examinations.
6. Complete all the work required by AACC's Center for Biblical Counseling and
receive their Certificate in Biblical Counseling.
7. Send a copy of the Certificate from AACC along with your completed notebooks
and examinations to CCF to receive 15 credit hours at the Pillsbury Institute.
Mail registration & check to:
Christian Civic Foundation
3426 Bridgeland Drive
Bridgeton, MO 63044
Phone: (314) 739-1121
Fax: (314) 739-0848
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The Pillsbury Institute of Applied Christianity
(owned, controlled, and operated by the Christian Civic Foundation)
under a licensed agreement with
The Center for Biblical Counseling
(a program of the American Association of Christian Counselors)
Registration Form
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