CCF Sunday Messages

Faith by obedience--that's the story of Namaan, a commander of the Syrian army, whose story is told in 2 Kings chapter 5. In Luke chapter 4, Jesus refers to his healing through the ministry of Elisha as something we should take note of, and on this communion Sunday, Steve uses the story of Naaman to illustrate the need for simple faith that leads to obedience in our Christian walk.

Pastor Steve covers the final chapter division of this short letter from Paul to Titus, who is serving as pastor/leader for the churches on the island of Crete. In closing, Paul warns him against all those who will try to bring controversy and distraction from the main goal--doing God's work and being productive for the kingdom!

Pastor Steve covers the final chapter division of this short letter from Paul to Titus, who is serving as pastor/leader for the churches on the island of Crete. In closing, Paul warns him against all those who will try to bring controversy and distraction from the main goal--doing God's work and being productive for the kingdom!

As we finish up chapter two of the short letter to Titus from Paul, Paul continues to give instruction for how young men, bondservants, and Titus himself should live in the present dark world. Pastor Steve noted the issue of grace--we tend to worry that grace will cause a free-for-all towards sin, but Paul tells Titus that grace will teach us to say no to ungodliness and instead live righteously! Jesus gave all so that we could have his purifying power, being set apart as a special people to live for Him in this present age!

As we finish up chapter two of the short letter to Titus from Paul, Paul continues to give instruction for how young men, bondservants, and Titus himself should live in the present dark world. Pastor Steve noted the issue of grace--we tend to worry that grace will cause a free-for-all towards sin, but Paul tells Titus that grace will teach us to say no to ungodliness and instead live righteously! Jesus gave all so that we could have his purifying power, being set apart as a special people to live for Him in this present age!

As we continue looking at "Getting our Ducks in a Row" through Paul's letter to Titus, in chapter two Paul turns his attention to discipleship. The need for inter-generational communication is clear: the older men and women have a distinct role to play in modeling and teaching the younger generations how to live out their faith. Given it is Mother's Day 2013, Pastor Steve focused on the role of the older women and their behaviors and impact on the younger women & moms.

As we continue looking at "Getting our Ducks in a Row" through Paul's letter to Titus, in chapter two Paul turns his attention to discipleship. The need for inter-generational communication is clear: the older men and women have a distinct role to play in modeling and teaching the younger generations how to live out their faith. Given it is Mother's Day 2013, Pastor Steve focused on the role of the older women and their behaviors and impact on the younger women & moms.

Part of Titus' difficult task in Crete is to deal with a significant number of deceptive and lying teachers who would come against the church. The job of the elders that Titus would appoint would be to rebuke and correct those who would come deceiving with fables and manmade rules and commands. A challenge for us is to consider whether our mouths say one things but our works--the fruit of our lives--says another, similar to how Paul characterizes these defiled and disobedient teachers in Crete.

Part of Titus' difficult task in Crete is to deal with a significant number of deceptive and lying teachers who would come against the church. The job of the elders that Titus would appoint would be to rebuke and correct those who would come deceiving with fables and manmade rules and commands. A challenge for us is to consider whether our mouths say one things but our works--the fruit of our lives--says another, similar to how Paul characterizes these defiled and disobedient teachers in Crete.

As we start Titus, the final letter from Paul in the pastoral epistles series, the main theme of Paul's message is bringing order to the church in Crete--a series we have entitled "Getting our Ducks in a Row". One of the first "ducks" to get in order is healthy church leadership--the role of elder/bishop. But, applicable to more than just the church elder, the recommendations from Paul are a good reminder to all men who want to be a godly leader, whether at home, work, or wherever they have influence.