Line Upon Line

Returning to a verse-by-verse study of 1 Timothy, Pastor Miles examines the Spirit's warning that in latter times some will depart from the faith—not chiefly into immorality but into the more seductive trap of religious legalism and self-righteousness. He argues that love is the clearest evidence of sound faith and that Christ's finished work alone secures our righteous standing.

Reflecting on the story of Zacchaeus, Pastor Miles teaches that Jesus came to seek and to save the lost, and that the church is called not to be a "sermon appreciation society" but a mobilized body that reaches the lost through compassion, charity, and evangelism. He shares the statistics of San Diego's lostness, the church's vision and name change, and a new church-planting partnership in Baltimore.

Pastor Miles concludes his "Why Christmas Is" series by showing that Christmas is God's response to the brokenness of a world ruined by sin and death. Because God is the gift-giving God who treasures life, He sent Jesus to die for our life, bringing everlasting joy and good news to all people.

A Christmas Eve Eve message that recounts the details of the nativity from Luke and Matthew, set against the larger series theme of why Christmas exists: because the world is broken, because God is a gift-giving God, and because to God life is precious. Pastor Miles invites listeners to experience, express, and extend the joy of Christ to others.

This Christmas teaching answers the question "Why Christmas?" by tracing life and death from Genesis through the Gospel of John, showing that because life is precious to the life-giving God, He sent His Son Jesus to deal with the death and brokenness brought by sin. The message culminates in the invitation to receive everlasting life through trusting in Christ.

Beginning from Jesus' words in Acts 20:35 that "it is more blessed to give than to receive," this teaching argues that Christmas exists because God is a gift-giving God who, unable to contain His excitement over the perfect gift for a broken world, dropped prophetic "hints" throughout the Old Testament until that gift—Jesus Christ—was finally revealed.

A teaching on 1 Timothy 3:16, framing the verse as an early church hymn that exalts the fundamental truth the church possesses: God was manifest in the flesh. Pastor Miles walks through the six lines of the doxology to show that Jesus, the incarnate God, brought to light life and immortality and is to be proclaimed, believed on, and worshiped as the risen Living Christ.

Pastor Miles argues that the *why* of Christmas matters more than its cultural trappings, tracing the story from the very good creation of Genesis 1–2 to the fall in Genesis 3, which left the world broken. Christmas is essential precisely because the world is broken, and the missionary God steps into that brokenness to seek and heal lost humanity.

A meditation on Thanksgiving rooted in 1 Timothy 4:1-5 and the story of the ten lepers in Luke 17, teaching that believers who know the truth should be the most thankful people on earth, offering public gratitude to God always and for all things. Pastor Miles shows that Jesus sees and answers those who call on him by faith, that faith must produce obedience, and that wholeness is an added blessing for those who return to give thanks.

A verse-by-verse study of 1 Timothy 3:8-15 on the qualifications of deacons, framed by Jesus's teaching that greatness in His kingdom comes through servanthood. Pastor Miles explains that the church is led by servants who serve well, that qualified servants display evident character (not academic credentials), and that both men and women serve as equals before God.