Shelbyville Community Church

Jesus always rides into town on the backs of the generosity of his people. If a community is going to be stirred and made whole, it will always happen because of generosity. Generosity has tremendous power. It has the power to literally write us into the story of God.

Just like we’ve seen in 2 Timothy, the book of 1 Timothy addresses issues from False Teachers. One of their teachings was “godliness is a means to financial gain.” We will look at 1 Timothy 6:6-10 to see what Paul teaches in response to that statement, and how learning from this text can help us live generously.

As Paul closes out his letter He makes some bold statements as he reflects on his life. "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." As readers of these words in 2022 it's easy to look at Paul's impact on Christianity and agree with his words. Paul's letters are a large component of our Bible. Paul's missionary journeys led to him p...

Resilience is born out of the Word of God. Timothy wasn’t sure if he was going to make it, he didn’t know if he had what it takes, and Paul essentially said to him, Stay Anchored to the Word, Timothy! Whatever it is that you are facing, whatever it is that you are going through, God’s Word will see you through.

Scripture tells us to welcome suffering as a friend. While the world would see suffering as random and unfortunate, Biblical writers tell us that God has transformed suffering into something purposeful and beneficial for us. Through our suffering, God is shaping within us the strength and character of Jesus.

In 2 Timothy 3, Paul discusses the inevitable downward spiral of people in our world and how we can avoid becoming like them. The future of our world is at stake, but we can change that by faithfully and intentionally following Jesus together.

What is the role of a "Servant of the Lord?" Paul shares how to prepare to be used by God and the role we are called to play. Paul tells us that it's never our job to save people, that's God's job. But even though God gets to do the saving work, we do get to partner with Him in it!

Deep within the hearts of each of us is a deep-seated desire to be used by God. In 2 Timothy 2, Paul tells Timothy that when believers argue with one another over inconsequential or secondary issues, it leads to “catastrophe.” He reminds him that when brothers and sisters in Christ argue with one another, they forfeit their witness to a watching world.

Jesus is “risen from the dead.” Jesus is all-powerful. He is risen to prove it. If Jesus has risen, then there is nothing he can’t do. When you speak of him, you are not telling stories of antiquity. He is alive and well! He is here, now, in the present because He lives! This means you and I are not powerless or impotent in the face of adversity. Jesus is with us, even in the valley.

We’re used to thinking that baptism day is about us or the other people who made their declaration of faith alongside of us, but nothing could be further from the truth. Baptism is a celebration and picture of Christ’s loving work of salvation on the cross. It points us to His grace and power in our lives.

Paul spoke into the trials of Timothy with these words. “Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” (2 Timothy 2:3, CSB) He is saying to Timothy, “You are a soldier in the army of God. Soldiers go to war. In every war, there are casualties. This is war, Timothy, not a picnic. In war, you must be willing to endure suffering.”

Being resilient means springing back, rebounding, and returning to its original form. One way we can be resilient is through growing in grace. Growing in grace comes from trusting Christ, daily, that He will provide what we need for that day.

Paul opens his letter to Timothy by speaking into Timothy, but not by coddling him. He is going to remind Timothy of some key truths to consider in the face of opposition and hardship. I don’t know what hard things you are facing right now. But I know that Paul’s words to Timothy are meant, not just for Timothy, but for you and I.

We tend to believe that God loves good, successful people, who follow all the rules and are kind and respectful of others. We believe God loves people who demonstrate character and commitment. Then we work really hard to become the sort of people that we believe God could love. But what if God already loves you? What if instead of being attracted to strength and success and how hard we try, that i...

“We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” - Romans 8:28 Regardless of your circumstances, if you love God he will work things out for good. If God can bring good out of the cross, He can bring good out of anything.

In Romans 8, Paul is talking about the pain and suffering of creation. He says, “The whole creation has been groaning together with labor pains until now.” Why would Paul use that phrase? Why would he compare this era of creation with labor pains? Because all of the pain and suffering of creation today will one day give way to new life and unrealized glory.

Romans 8:12-18 presents us with a classic good news/bad news scenario. First the good news: As a child of God, you are an heir of God and a co-heir with Christ. That means you'll inherit everything God owns - Romans 8:16–17a. But it comes tethered to some bad news: You and I are going to have to suffer to get it - Romans 8:17.

Your mindset is a choice. Romans 8 tells us that we can have a mindset focused on our flesh, or a mindset focused on the Spirit. “Now the mindset of the flesh is death, but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace.” (Romans 8:6).

We live in a world filled with condemnation. But what if the good news of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection from the dead offers a solution to this problem? Maybe there is a principle at work here that looks like this: Condemned people easily condemn people. Likewise, gracious people extend grace to others.

So far in the book of Habakkuk, it seems like the Babylonian bullies are destined to take whatever they want without facing any consequences. But then God makes it clear to Habakkuk that he knows exactly what the Babylonians have done and that he will deal with the problem. Though it won’t happen as quickly as the prophet would prefer, he walks away assured that justice will prevail.

The prophet Habakkuk preached during a dark time in the history of God’s people. After the good King Josiah died, the people had turned away from God and descended into violence, injustice, and spiritual corruption. Habakkuk lamented these struggles to God, watching and waiting for a response as the Babylonian invasion loomed over the land of Judah. Yet in the midst of this suffering and chaos, Go...

In the book of Habakkuk, we learn a lot about the nature and character of God when we face circumstances that rock our world. Like Habakkuk, when we’re in the middle of it is when we need to lean into God most. Throughout the book we see Habakkuk engage in lament. Lament invites us to turn our gaze from the rubble of life to the redeemer of every hurt

In the face of moral decay, corrupt leadership, and war surrounding Judah, Habakkuk is struggling with the knowledge that God is sovereign while his daily experience appears to reflect something quite different.

The armor of God represents the protective covering of God. Paul is clear that we can forfeit God’s protection through things like sin, character issues, division, or a lack of trust in Him.

The Bible is very clear that when it comes to our world, there is another invisible world that impacts our world in ways that are tragic and deadly. And that invisible world isn’t just random. It has a leader who deceives and whom Jesus said came to kill and destroy.