Going Deeper
A Radio Ministry by Pastor Hawkins
August 14th, Right Relationships (Acts 2:42-47, Greek word: ekklesia)
Have you ever met a "closet" Christian? Here I'm speaking about the Christian whose faith goes no further than an hour a week on Sunday morning. This is the person who says, "My spiritual life is between me and God. It involves nobody else." What a tragic, misguided view!"
God created you and me to have a relationship with both Him and other believers. We cannot be the complete men and women God wants us to be unless we are connected to others. That's what the church is. The Greek word for church in the N.T. is "ekklesia." It means assembly; An assembly is a gathering of 2 or more people for a common purpose. The benefits of these relationships are immense. The benefits include:
- a place to love and be loved
- a place to serve and be served
- a place to celebrate and be celebrated
Such relationships characterized the early church-there was no concept of faith in isolation or closet Christianity. Acts 2:44 provides an amazing statement. "All those who had believed were together and had all things in common. Do you have a place to go "where everybody knows your name?" Honor Him in your relationships today.
August 15th, Title: Get In The Game, Key word: treko/run
Paul the apostle said in 1 Corinthians 9:24, "Run in such a way that you mgiht win." The word translated here as "run" is trekete in the Greek. Its where we get the English word track. Trekete carries with it the idea to run the passion or to pursue the task with all your strength.
Because I was a sports nut as a kid, I played on many different team sports in school. I remember many boys with little or no athletic abiltity who would try out for these teams. Every once in awhile, a coach would feel sorry for one of these boys and place him on the teamin spite of his performance. Although he was given a uniform he was never allowed to play in the game.
Fortunately, the opposite is true in the Christian life. God doesn't place us on the team to have us sit on the bench. His chief desire is for us to get in the game and run in the race. It is His grace that calls us to salvation and it is His will that sends us into the world to make a differnce for Him.
August 16th, The Value of Self-Discipline, discipline-paideias
The author of Hebrews says, “If you are without discipline…then you are illegitimate and not sons.” (Hebrews 12:16) The word translated here as discipline comes from the Greek word “paideias.” Paideias carries with it the idea of self-control and the ability to live without the luxuries of life in pursuit of the deeper things in life. Today’s culture is obsessed with entertainment, materialism, and self-gratification. In fact, those preoccupations have become the marks of our superficial post modern world.
A century ago President Theodore Roosevelt essentially predicted those results when he said that “prosperity at any price, peace at any price… the love of soft living, and the get rich theory of life would eventually destroy America.” The best antidote to this kind of lifestyle is the self-discipline of the Christian life. In our pursuit to live the life He promises to give us the strength. Paul the apostle wrote to Timothy, “For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of this life and of that which is to come.” (1 Timothy 4:8) Lets walk in that newness of life today.
08/17/06- The Greatest Virtue, love-agape
One of the greatest testimonies of the early church came from the lips of an unbeliever. He was sent to spy out a group of Christians in worship. He came back with a report with 6 words that have been repeated down through the centuries. He said, “Behold, how they love one another.” Behold, how they love one another.”
1 John 4:16 says, “He who abides in love abides in God and God in Him.” The word translated here as love is “agape” in the Greek. Of the 4 words for love in the Greek, this one is the deepest. Agape love refers to an unconditional love. It’s the kind of love that was demonstrated the best at the cross where the Father gave up the most precious thing to Him in the life of His Son. The greatest virtue of the Christian life is love.
Paul the apostle said in the love chapter of the Bible, “But now these three remain. Faith. Hope. And Love. And the greatest of these is love.” God give you and me the power to live the life and walk in His love today.
08/18/06- Sword of the Spirit
In Ephesians 6:17 Paul the apostle compared the Bible to the “sword of the spirit.” He called it the “macharias tou pneumatos” in the Greek. The Greek term for sword here refers to a small weapon 6-18 inches in length. It was the only weapon carried by the Roman soldier. God’s Word too is the Christian’s best defense in the “good fight of faith.” It helps the believer in times of temptation. It’s a ready defense against attacks of the enemy.
Martin Luther said, “In every temptation simply close your eyes and follow the Word. Outside the Word there is nothing but tribulation and affliction…as soon as you lay hold of some saying of Scripture and rely on it as a holy anchor, the temptations are driven away.”
The Word of God is our great defense in times of temptation. But it does no good up in the attic or sitting on the shelf. Carry God’s Word with you at all times. The Sword of the Spirit is our sure defense. So make it your goal to daily get into the Word and let the Word get into you.
Catch Pastor Hawkins' Radio Ministry on WYLL 1060 between 7:25 and 7:30am Monday through Friday. Running from August 7 through October.
Text transcripts of the series will appear here the beginning of each week.
August 7-11 Transcripts
Portion of a greek manuscript of Leviticus. One of the oldest known Bible manuscripts.