Living Faith Christian Church: Messages, Studies, & Stories

In the 1990’s, everybody wanted to be like Michael Jordan. Gatorade even had a TV ad campaign called “Be Like Mike.” And while Michael was a basketball inspiration to people all over the world, it was really hard to be like him, because he was the best. Many people feel a similar way about Jesus. As a Christian, you want to be like him, but that seems totally out of reach, “He’s perfectly good. I’m a sinner. How can I be like him? That feels harder than me trying to be like MJ on a basketball court.” The good news is, God understands your challenge and has provided seven very practical examples for us to follow in Titus 1:5-9 and 2:1-10.

Have you ever had these thoughts about yourself, “I have done some bad deeds. I have some rebellious thoughts & wicked desires. I have said some vulgar words. Not just before I became a Christian, but afterwards. Am I really a Christian or do I deny Christ by these bad works?” Has that ever come to your mind? It may surprise you to know that many Christians have struggled with those thoughts at one time or another in their life. It’s common. Titus 1:10-16 contains four important instructions for us on this topic, to make sure we are fit for good works.

What is the role of good works in Christianity? For example, you write a check and give it to support a missionary, or you help a widow by shoveling her driveway, or you teach Sunday school at church. What does that have to do with faith & truth & eternal life? How are those good deeds related to the salvation of your soul? The text of Titus 1:1-4 can be explained in terms of four equations that will help us understand the role virtuous deeds play in becoming a Christian and in being a Christian.

Ministry and the Great Commission is labor. But he also called himself the Lord of the harvest. In doing so he reminds us that the harvest belongs to him, not to the laborers. We do not need to stay awake at night worrying about the call or if our efforts would be successful. God is responsible for the harvest. We, his laborers, are responsible to labor faithfully. Jesus wants laborers to work the harvest.

Why do you obey God? What causes you to live for Him? What is it that gives nourishment to your heart so that your heart directs your will to do the Lord’s will? What compels you to live for Christ? Though the Bible gives us many motivations, the primary one is the Gospel. Romans 1:8-17 articulates three reasons why preaching is the primary event in Christian worship services. It’s God’s design for the church.

About the practices of the early church, Justin Martyr wrote, “And on the day called Sunday, all who live in the cities or in the country gather together in one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits.” Since the beginning of the church, Christians have gathered for worship and one of the things they did was read the Scriptures out loud. That’s part of God’s blueprint for our gatherings. Here’s three reasons why we should read the Bible in church, and three reasons to considering standing when we do it.

In the Christian church, there’s a long history of debate about the nature of communion, but all churches think that it was ordained by Jesus to be done with regularity in worship services. It’s not wrong to take communion elsewhere, like if you end up homebound and someone brings you it, but communion is first and foremost to be taken in your local church at the worship gathering. That’s God’s design for it. Matthew 26:26-28 describes three reasons Jesus wants us to participate in the Lord’s Supper.

God’s design for our worship involves giving him the first and best of our income as an act of devotion. That doesn’t mean we need to pass the plate in our worship services, because we can give in a variety of ways, but it does mean we should have a time set aside in church to acknowledge our giving. And 2 Corinthians 9:7 states, “For God loves a cheerful giver.” He doesn’t want us to be even the slightest bit sad or sorry when we give, but to take great pleasure in it. How can we do that? 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 contains three principles that will help us be cheerful in our giving.

While it would be an overstatement to say that there are precise and comprehensive instructions in the Scriptures for exactly how and when churches should worship together, God has given us a blueprint in the Bible. One obvious part of our order of service is prayer. The Lord wants us to pray in church. Here are five observations about 1 Timothy 2:1-7 to give us direction for those prayers.

God sent Jesus so that we would sing.

• Jesus was born in a manger so that we would sing.

• Christ lived a flawless human life so that we would sing.

• The Lord died on the Cross so that we would sing.

• God sent Jesus so that we would sing.