1 Timothy 2:1-8

8 Ways to Sharpen our Prayer Lives

Our prayers go dull when...

1. We don't pray PRIMARILY (1a, Psalms 5:3)
2. We don't pray CATEGORICALLY (1b, ACTS)
3. We don't pray SURPRISINGLY (1c, Matt 5:44)
4. We don't pray STRATEGICALLY (2, Prov 21:1)
5. We don't pray MISSIONALLY (3-4)
6. We don't pray PASSIONATELY (5-7)
7. We don't pray RIGHTEOUSLY (8a, James 5:16)
8. We don't pray CORPORATELY (8b, Matt 18:20)

Sick Woman, Dead Daughter

Thought these stories are sandwiched together, I have separated them for the purpose of discussion:

The Dead Daughter
Mark 5:22-24, 35-43

22Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came there. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet 23and pleaded earnestly with him, "My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live." 24So Jesus went with him.


35While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. "Your daughter is dead," they said. "Why bother the teacher any more?" 36Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, "Don't be afraid; just believe."

37 He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James. 38When they came to the home of the synagogue ruler, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. 39He went in and said to them, "Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep." 40But they laughed at him.

After he put them all out, he took the child's father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41He took her by the hand and said to her, "Talitha koum!" (which means, "Little girl, I say to you, get up!" ). 42Immediately the girl stood up and walked around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished. 43He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.

Notes on parallels
1. Mark & Luke give much more detail as Matthew focuses primarily on King Jesus
2. Mark provides the (original) Aramaic in vs. 41.
3. Matthew alone has the news spread (vs. 26)

Questions to Consider

1. What should we emulate in Jairus?
1) Humility (ruler pleading)
2) Belief (that Jesus could heal)
3) Patience (despite the delay of Jesus)
4) Faith (despite obstacles)
5) Risk (of upsetting those over him)

What did the household learn about the 'teacher'?
They learned that He was more than a mere teacher
What is our view of Jesus. We may say the right words, but if we only seek Jesus for doctrinal information, we, practically, view him just like they had.





The Sick Woman
Mark 5:24-34

A large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. 26She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. 27When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28because she thought, "If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed." 29Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

30At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?" 31"You see the people crowding against you," his disciples answered, "and yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?' "

32But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. 33Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."

Notes on Parallels:
1. Once again, Matthew is very brief, leaving out seemingly interesting details
2. Luke neglects to mention 'doctors,' perhaps defending his own :)

Questions to Consider
1. What is the result of seeking salvation from the world?
The woman had spent all she had, yet grew worse
2. What should we emulate in this woman?
1) High View of Jesus (just his cloak was enough)
2) Humility (didn't view herself as worthy of his time)
3) Risk (she was unclean)
3. Does this show Jesus wasn't all-knowing while on earth?
Yes, but He had the Spirit
4. What does Jesus consider noteworthy?
Those who don't consider themselves noteworthy
5. Can we be close to Jesus without being changed?
Yes. Many were touching Jesus, but only she was changed by him here. It's not enough to walk in Jesus' circle, we must walk in His steps

1 Timothy 1:18-20

7 Habits of a Highly Effective Minister

1. Value your connection to other ministers (18a)
2. Be a strong encourager of others (18b)
3. Keep returning to the vision (18c)
4. Fight through the hard times (18d)
5. Keep believing that God is working (19a)
6. Make sure you're right with God (19b)
7. Learn lessons the easy way (20)

A Stand for Marriage

A Stand for Marriage

California --> NY --> Outrage

35% of non-born-again Americans have been divorced
35% of born-again Americans have been divorced

Yet we're more concerned with union of state-endorsed homosexual marriages than with the dis-union of God-endorsed marriages between Christian men and women. We should check out Matthew 7:4-5 & 1 Corinthians 5:12-13.

3 Principles Regarding Marriage

1. Marriage is defined by God (Genesis 2:18-24, Matthew 19:3-9)
2. Marriage is not for everyone (Matthew 19:10-12, 1 Corinthians 7:7-8)
3. God hates divorce (Malachi 2:13-16, Matthew 19:8-9)

Consider, therefore, the kindness and sternness of God (Romans 11:22)

3 Valid Endings to a Christian's Marriage

1. Death of Spouse (Romans 7:1-3)
2. Departure of the unbeliever (1 Corinthians 7:12-16 via Matthew 18:15-17)
3. Divorce due to unfaithfulness (Matthew 19:9)

But the intention should be to preserve, not end

The church needs to minister to those broken by divorce
But we have no strong right to speak till we set a better example

Centurion's Servant & Widow's Son

Luke 7:2-10

2There a centurion's servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. 3The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. 4When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, "This man deserves to have you do this, 5because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue." 6So Jesus went with them.

He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: "Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."

9When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, "I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel."

10Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.

OBSERVATIONS (parallel in Matthew 8:5-13)

Setting:
Matthew has the dialogue b/w Jesus and the centurion himself
Luke records that the centurion sent 2 delegations to Jesus

Faith Act:
Luke's is longer b/c of the extra characters

Faith Affirmation:
Matthew uses astonished, Luke amazed
Matthew, writing to Jews, rebukes the Jews

Questions to Consider

Do Matthew and Luke contradict each other on the setting?
(Liberals complain about contradiction and collusion)
(The gospels can't win either way)
Other NT examples that illustrate that both accounts can be correct
Matthew 20:20 vs. Mark 10:35
Matthew 27:7 vs. Acts 1:18
Acts 21:11 vs. Acts 21:33
1 Thes. 2:15 vs. Gospel accounts

What can we learn from the study of history that heightens the power of this account?
Jews usually hated Romans, especially centurion's. This was an exceptional centurion.

What was so astonishing about the Centurion’s faith? What made it great?
Humility (8:8, 7:4, 6)
Servant (7:5)
Loving (7:5)
Caring (8:5, 7:3)
Belief (didn't need to see Jesus physically, see John 20:29)





Luke 7:11-17

11Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her.

13When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry." 14Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, "Young man, I say to you, get up!" 15The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.

16They were all filled with awe and praised God. "A great prophet has appeared among us," they said. "God has come to help his people." 17 This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

Questions to Consider

How does this miracle connect to the one previous? What kinds of people did Jesus make a habit of healing? What are his miracles revealing?

Luke seems to be pointing out an escalating view of Jesus
Jesus seems to be focused on healing the outsiders
This is the first recorded resurrection in Jesus' ministry


How does this story compare to that of the widow of Zarephath during Elijah’s ministry (1 Kings 17:8-24)? In what ways was Jesus like Elijah?

Very comparable. This is what prompted them to call Jesus a 'great prophet' and, perhaps, played a role in prompting some to say that Jesus was Elijah himself (Matthew 16:4). And yet Elijah had to pray for a miracle. Jesus did the work himself.