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Ring of Truth provides 366 daily ‘proofs’ that the Bible is consistent throughout from Genesis to Revelation, and relevant for our lives today!
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2 Timothy 2:2-5
“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. Endure hardship with us like a good solider of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a solider gets involved in civilian affairs – he wants to please his commanding officer. Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor’s crown unless he competes according to the rules.”
Paul was a pioneer, not a settler.
We need to be the same. God never envisioned a settler mentality. Settlers by definition settle. God is constantly moving on – even in a wilderness. Settlers allow the ‘status quo’ to remain. Settlers are satisfied to preserve the plateau.
Pioneers constantly look to see how things can be improved. How more people can be helped and blessed. How the Good News can be spread and affect more and more people.
Guess what? It takes hard work and training. The Church of today desperately needs leaders. Leaders need to be found and trained. If we don’t do it, the Church will not grow. That is why so many churches fail. Not so much through heresy but through settler mentality.
It’s like a family. A two-child family does not increase the population – it maintains the ‘status quo’ – it is a settler family. Not until the third and subsequent children are born does it become a pioneer family.
If we just care for and develop this generation, the church will ultimately close. If we train up the next generation, we are settlers. If we do as Paul suggests here – train up to the 4th generation – we become pioneers and the church grows.
Think about it and your response. The Christian life is a constant battle. It is hard work – we are “soldiers” in the Army of the Lord, whether we like it or not. We should be doing all we can to please our “Commanding Officer”, Jesus.
So many of us get bogged down with work, worldly values and pleasures, and miss out on running the race. Satan is probably even more effective in distracting us than in direct confrontation. He knows that if he attacks full on, we will react – but if he can subtly cause us to divert, slow down or avoid making plans and reaching goals, he wins far more effectively. “Soldiers” must watch out for the diversions of the enemy. They must be watched but never allowed to divert us from the main objective. The best form of defence is still to attack.
There is no easy way to win in the Christian Life. The path is not easy and it is a marathon rather than 100-metre dash. The enemy will do all he can to disqualify you – but don’t you let him.
The goal and the prize are far too great, and too close for anything except a 100% commitment.
Be honest – whereabouts are you on the commitment scale? Are you a settler or a pioneer?
Do you really want to receive the Overcomer’s Crown? (see Revelation 2 & 3; 2 Timothy 4:8)
Who are you training up to train the leaders of the Church in the next century?
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