Central Baptist Church, Portsmouth, Virginia

In life we all need reminders. How many reminders do you have set for each week? As Paul finishes his letter to Titus he knows the church will need reminders as well.

Maybe you are familiar with the definition of grace that says grace is giving us what we don’t deserve. That is a good and accurate definition. However, what can sometimes be lost is everything that grace that gives. This week, as we taking one small step at a time toward right living by studying the book of Titus we will the different ramifications of grace. So, come be encouraged by this undeserved gift that God gives.

In the family and in the church everyone has a role to play. So, Paul isn’t letting anyone off the hook as tells Titus to call a family meeting with the diverse group of people. He wants to make sure that everyone knows what they should be focused on. These pointed instructions remain a great source of accountability for all of us. Come learn what every family and every church needs from every member.

We all want good leaders in every aspect of life. Yet, all too often it seems as if good leaders are hard to find. Paul understood for Titus to effectively make disciples on Crete he would need to appoint good leaders. So, Paul gave Titus and now he gives us the qualities we should look for when choosing our leaders. The amazing thing is these probably aren’t the qualities we would have produced.

Increasingly, people seem threatened by the whole concept of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. We don’t like the idea of someone telling us what to think, how to feel, or how to act. Moral relativism seems to rule the day. During our next series, One Small Step, we’ll see how Paul confronts these same issues during his day as he encourages Titus to take one small step at a time toward right thinking and right living. Titus is a small book full of practical theology that reminds us grace does not give us the freedom to sin… it gives us the freedom not to.

We have reached the end of our study through the minor prophets. One of the things we’ve seen throughout this study is that while God is personal with His people, He is not private. He forms a people for Himself, but God’s people living together is the most powerful testimony to the character of our God. Malachi exposes why this reality is sometimes missed.

Throughout our journey through the Minor Prophets we have seen God’s love on display. We have seen his love in his blessings and we have seen his love in his judgment. Through our study, we have also been challenged as a people on the importance of genuine worship and faithful commitment to our Lord.  We have learned and been reminded that God takes His covenant relationship with us seriously. As we start our study in the book of Malachi this Sunday, the last book of the Minor Prophets, we will see that despite how lethargic we can be towards God at times, we are called to be a committed people to God and also honor our commitment to others.

We all have burdens, don’t we? Those things that cause our heart to be heavy. Sometimes it’s knowledge that we want so desperately to convey. Other times it’s a pain that is so difficult to express. Zechariah concludes his prophesy with two oracles or burdens that he wanted so desperately for the people of Judah to understand and live. Come, hear what those burdens are and be challenged by the heart of this prophet.

This week we jump into the crazy and confusing minor prophet of Zechariah.

There are so many loud voices telling us how to think, how to feel, how to live. We might recognize that only God has the say, but sometimes we wonder will the other voices ever stop? Will they ever get quiet? This week, Zephaniah will help us deal with those voices now and we’ll see how God will quiet everything down for us in the end.