For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain, Titus 1:7 NASB Not pugnacious – Pugnacious. A word I am sure you use every day. Right! We don’t have much problem understanding Paul’s requirement of a calm constitution (“not quick-tempered”) and we certainly…
For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain, Titus 1:7 NASB Overseer – What characteristics accompany the “overseer” (Greek – episkopos), a term sometimes translated as “bishop”? Paul gives Titus a list, both negative and positive. We have discovered that people who…
For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay. But My righteous one shall live by faith; and if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him. Hebrews 10:37-38 NASB Will come – In the previous verse, the author of this letter exhorts the reader…
For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. Hebrews 10:36 NASB Endurance – What does endurance mean? Does it mean gritting your teeth and pushing forward? Does it mean steeling yourself to circumstances? (Did you notice the two English idioms in those questions?) Does it…
Taking the child by the hand, He said to her, “Talitha kum!” (which translated means, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). Mark 5:41 NASB Translated – Why does Mark include a translation of Yeshua’s words? The answer, of course, is that he wants his readers to know what Yeshua said. But if Aramaic were the common language…
namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion. Titus 1:6 NASB Man – Can women be elders? The Church in general struggled with this. It read the indefinite, masculine pronoun, tis, in the context of “husband of one wife,” as though…
For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you, Titus 1:5 NASB Appoint – There’s a lot of confusion concerning Paul’s instruction to Titus about elders. Maybe we can clear up some of it. First, let’s remember that…
And the Lord said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave.” Genesis 18:20 NASB Sin – What is your idea of sin? Where did you learn that definition? I suspect that most of us inherit our theology of sin in the symbols, rituals and vocabulary of our…
The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. Genesis 2:22 NASB Brought – Why is the role of women in the family and in society so misunderstood? Why are challenges to the typical characterizations of women seen as threats? Why does…
Gideon said, “All right, when the Lord has given Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, then I will thrash your bodies with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers.” Judges 8:7 NASB Will thrash – Gideon begins with humility, fear and anxiety. The famous test of the fleece is really an attempt by Gideon to relieve his…
