Sounding the Note of the Gospel TO ME
From 1 Timothy 1 – 1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,
2 Timothy, a true son in the faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.
3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia – remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine, 4 nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is faith.
5 now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, 6 from which some have strayed and turned aside to idle talk, 7 desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.
8 But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, 9 knowing this: that the law is not made for the righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the unholy and the profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manlayers, 10 for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, 11 according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.
Steven Curtis Chapman addresses his wife and his audience both when he sings, "There's music in your laughter the world's never heard before." Casting Crowns hits a similar note, realizing, "I have a song that the angels can't sing."
Not surprisingly, Paul was there before us and wants to usher us into the throne room of individualized grace. The battle-scarred apostle is every bit the astute cultural commentator. He has shown Timothy this as he has made his young charge aware of the pitfalls of serving the congregation in Ephesus. He has peered without blinking into the human chest and told us, THIS is why the Law exists, to govern evil passions, and to prick men into crying out for a Savior. Our preaching pundit could declare this instrument in God's hands glorious, and yet stop short.
Not so. He that began a good work by making Paul aware of how depravity plays out in the air around him and in history proves faithful to complete that awareness by delivering the Gospel to Paul in particular. Paul's apprehension of God's glory, then, is Pauline. I needed this, he is telling Timothy with refreshing candor from accomplished mentor to disciple. I was destined for Hell. Christ rescued ME. I can, he sings with Steven Curtis Chapman and Casting Crowns sound a unique note in Christ's chorus because of His individualized rescue and recreation.
The right and responsibility to sing one's unique note in the Gospel chorus doesn't stop with apostles. Believer, the glorious Gospel has also been given into our trust. It is to be delivered today in our cadence, in our accent, to reverberate off the walls of our homes and our offices. We may think media ubiquitous, but it will never reach the inner crevices of the human heart surround us the way our celebration of Christ as all glorious TO US will. The very reason we hesitate, the prideful cringe because spouses and coworkers know us and our flaws too well, is what provides the richness of the Gospel sound. This intimate audience knows our flaws and will marvel all the more that Christ chooses to work in and through us.
2 Timothy, a true son in the faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.
3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia – remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine, 4 nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is faith.
5 now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, 6 from which some have strayed and turned aside to idle talk, 7 desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.
8 But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, 9 knowing this: that the law is not made for the righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the unholy and the profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manlayers, 10 for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, 11 according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.
Steven Curtis Chapman addresses his wife and his audience both when he sings, "There's music in your laughter the world's never heard before." Casting Crowns hits a similar note, realizing, "I have a song that the angels can't sing."
Not surprisingly, Paul was there before us and wants to usher us into the throne room of individualized grace. The battle-scarred apostle is every bit the astute cultural commentator. He has shown Timothy this as he has made his young charge aware of the pitfalls of serving the congregation in Ephesus. He has peered without blinking into the human chest and told us, THIS is why the Law exists, to govern evil passions, and to prick men into crying out for a Savior. Our preaching pundit could declare this instrument in God's hands glorious, and yet stop short.
Not so. He that began a good work by making Paul aware of how depravity plays out in the air around him and in history proves faithful to complete that awareness by delivering the Gospel to Paul in particular. Paul's apprehension of God's glory, then, is Pauline. I needed this, he is telling Timothy with refreshing candor from accomplished mentor to disciple. I was destined for Hell. Christ rescued ME. I can, he sings with Steven Curtis Chapman and Casting Crowns sound a unique note in Christ's chorus because of His individualized rescue and recreation.
The right and responsibility to sing one's unique note in the Gospel chorus doesn't stop with apostles. Believer, the glorious Gospel has also been given into our trust. It is to be delivered today in our cadence, in our accent, to reverberate off the walls of our homes and our offices. We may think media ubiquitous, but it will never reach the inner crevices of the human heart surround us the way our celebration of Christ as all glorious TO US will. The very reason we hesitate, the prideful cringe because spouses and coworkers know us and our flaws too well, is what provides the richness of the Gospel sound. This intimate audience knows our flaws and will marvel all the more that Christ chooses to work in and through us.
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