Pastor's Bible Study

Church leaders holding the office of pastor (bishop, elder) should be drawn from men who are spiritually mature. Paul in this section of Scripture gives Timothy of list of characteristics that could help the church determine if a man was spiritually mature and qualified to lead in the office of pastor.

Paul wrote these words to a male-dominated culture. As we read them, we need to understand that he wrote them not to limit women, but reassure them of the liberty they have. When we look at this passage of scripture through the lens of our American culture we can the see word "limited" stamped on it. But if we look at this passage of scripture clearly with no cultural bias, we see the word "libert...

Paul exhorts Timothy and the church at Ephesus to keep first things first, i.e. focus on the top priority. The top priority in ministry and for ministry is prayer. We would do well to heed Paul's exhortation to pray first and to pray for all people and their salvation. That kind of praying can change the world, our world, and our lives too.

Paul encourages Timothy by reminding him the he is the recipient of God's mercy.

Paul writes a letter to young Timothy (Paul's protégé) and encourages him pastor to pastor. Paul knows that Timothy is in a hard place to lead a church. In the opening verses, Paul lays out four directives for Timothy to follow. These things are good for us today also. Timothy was to 1) stick to the task, 2) speak the truth, 3) set his sights on the goal of ministry, which is love, and 4) support...

The letter Paul wrote to Philemon shares with us the beautiful and moving story of friendship and forgiveness, release and redemption. We really see to very applicable truths: 1) Jesus did for us what Paul did for Onesimus. We've been forgiven for the sake of Jesus just like Philemon forgave Onesimus for the sake of Paul. 2) We can forgive others because we've been forgiven.

As Paul wraps up his letter to the Colossians, he takes time to mention and appreciate several friends in the ministry that have partnered with him and ministered to him during his imprisonment. A friend provides three things vital for a quality life. Friends provide companionship, without which we’d be lonely and isolated. They provide comfort – a pat on the back, a shoulder to cry on, and kind w...

In the text, Paul addresses both dimensions of our speech, the vertical and horizontal planes. Our vertical speech is directed to God. Our horizontal speech is directed to other people. And Paul points out that one of the reasons what we say on the horizontal plane is so important is because we say it to those who are lost and don’t have a vertical relationship with God. Our horizontal speech can...

Although this passage refers to servants, or slaves, and masters, or slave owners, the principles taught here certainly apply to the employee/employer relationship. In this lesson we will look at the both the original context of this passage and how it applies in our modern day work life. What Paul has to say speaks directly to the dignity of work, our work ethic, and how we treat workers with fai...

When Christ is our life, His peace will be the decisive factor in what we think and feel. And the truth of His Word will saturate everything we say and do. By default then Christ as our life will also impact our homes, marriages, families, etc. In this text, Paul will deal with the home, husbands, wives, parents, and children. As with all things that God created, God has a divine design for the Ho...

Paul uses the image of changing clothes illustrate how our actions are to match our identity as the elect, holy, and beloved of God. Since we are the elect of God, holy and beloved we have some solemn responsibilities to God to put on spiritual clothes and turn on spiritual controls. Instead of sensuality, materialism, and negative emotionalism, we are to have compassion, kindness, humility gentle...

In the first two chapters of the book, Paul laid down the doctrinal part of Colossians. He exposed the false teaching that was robbing the Colossians of their spiritual maturity. Now in chapters three and four he gives practical application of those doctrines that leads to genuine spiritual maturity. Christianity brought a change to the way of thinking and living for the Colossae believers. What w...

After making it clear that Jesus is all we need (He is sufficient), Paul attacks the heresies and false teaching of his generation. He begins verse 16 with the conjunction therefore, pointing to the connection between the practical application that follows and the theological discussion of sufficiency of Christ that he just shared. From verse 16 to the end of the chapter, Paul focuses his attentio...

We (believers) need each other to achieve our maximum potential in spiritual growth. We can’t grow they way we should if there is no “we” in our lives. A lone ranger mentality in our Christian life will impede our growth. There are many things we need to do as individuals, but there are also needs that we have that are best met by others. Individually we can emphasize bible study and prayer, but a...

We are all called to ministry. If we going to fulfill our ministry we must: 1) Have the right attitude - joy 2) Serve in the right area – the stewardship of our life 3) Know the right assignment – proclaiming Christ and His gospel 4) Realize the aim and purpose - present every man (believer) spiritually mature in Christ 5) Depend on Jesus - realize that we can’t do in our own efforts

In our text Paul records a hymn of praise to Jesus that reveals how Jesus meets our deepest needs. Jesus meets our need to know God, to be loved, to be forgiven, to have security, and to feel assurance.

Paul prayed that the Colossian believers would be filled with (controlled by) the knowledge of God's will. Paul knew that knowing and doing (obeying) God's will leads to spiritual growth and brings stability in the face of temptation and false teaching. When I know and do the will of God for my life, then I walk worthily, work fruitfully, withstand gloriously, wait joyfully, and worship thankfully...

If you change the gospel's message, you by default change who Jesus is. The gospel is simple faith in Jesus' work of the cross to save us from sin. It is a message of grace. If you add to or take away from the gospel, then you adding to or taking away from the cross-work of Jesus and you declare Jesus to be insufficient. Jesus is sufficient to be our Lord, our life, and our leader. He is supreme....

The young church in Thessalonica had a problem with some of her members loafing and not working. It wasn't a matter of not being able to work; it was a matter of not being willing to work. Paul expected the church to come together in solving this problem. To assist them in the task, he gives four motives to encourage the careless believers to turn from their sin and start earning their own wage.

Paul contrasts Satan’s big lie with God’s truth and teaches us about four responsibilities we have toward the Truth of God’s Word: believe it, guard it, live it, and share it.

Someone posing to be Paul, had written a letter to the believers in Thessalonica stating that the Tribulation had already started. The believers were instantly shaken in faith and became troubled in spirit. To calm their hearts and shaken faith, Paul explained that they were not in the Day of the Lord. The reason was simple: that Day could not arrive until certain other events had taken place. The...

Paul knew that the believers in Thessalonica were undergoing some very difficult hardships from pressures on the outside and confusion from within. He sought to encourage them in three ways: praise, promises, and prayer.

As Paul wraps up his first letter to the Thessalonians, he ends by reminding those at Thessalonica to do the basics (fundamentals) when it comes to respecting spiritual leaders, loving brothers and sisters in the church, and glorifying God.

Paul had assured the Thessalonians in 4:13-18 that the dead in Christ will rise and we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet Jesus. Now in 5:1, Paul continues to talk about end time events but his focus shifts from the rapture of the church to the “day of the Lord.” The subject is similar but different. The key difference in what he has to say here is...