A Weekly World Wide Word of Encouragement to those in the Ministry
PRAISE GOD IT’S MONDAY!
A WEEKLY ‘WWW (world-wide word) OF ENCOURAGEMENT’
TO THOSE IN MINISTRY
A FREE service, currently connecting with Christian leaders from 3,000 denominations and ministries, in 70 countries.
Issue No: 1113 Published: 13 Feb 2023
Sorry for the delay
It was my fault.
Hit a wrong key.
Enjoy anyway
David
THINKING GREEK OR HEBREW
PREACHING AND TEACHING
Greek (Western) Under the Greek mindset, preaching is the primary way of conveying God's Word to people, both saved and unsaved.
The traditional form of preaching that we know today was introduced by the Roman Catholic Church, from the time Constantine accepted Christianity in the 4th century AD. Then, and for more than 1000 years thereafter, the people did not have access to the Scriptures and were reliant upon the Priests of the church to proclaim the Scriptures to them.
However, this Greek/Roman mindset and pattern continued through the Reformation and remains with us today. Our whole Christian setup, from buildings, to preachers, to worship services, is based on the foundation of the sermon.
Buildings: Countless billions of dollars have been spent on building structures primarily designed as auditoriums for God's word to be proclaimed from a pulpit up the front.
Preachers: The first role of a minister, pastor, or priest, is to prepare and present sermons, to preach to the people in their congregation.
Worship: Worship services are nearly always centred round the preaching of the word.
Only this week, a pastor told me that accepted Theological College teaching is that it takes 7 years from the commencement of a pastorate, for the pastor to have had time to influence his congregation's way of thinking through his preaching.
Obviously, looking at churches worldwide, the current, sermon based system, is ineffective in bringing in new believers, and in turning current believers into disciples.
Eastern (Hebrew) In traditional Jewish ways, the primary means of bringing spiritual understanding is through interactive teaching.
The specific way of learning was by way of discussion - the asking and answering of questions. Jesus as a 12 year old could read and talk to the senior Rabbis of the day in the Temple.....
45 When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. (Luke 2:45-7)
Jesus, as a Rabbi, was primarily a teacher. In the Jewish way of the time He, in particular, taught a small group of 12 disciples, whom He sent out to preach to non-believers..
5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7 As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ (Matthew 10:5-7)
For both Jesus and Paul there are 5 times as many mentions of them teaching as preaching, at a time when there were relatively few believers.
The best quoted justification of preaching in the New Testament was the night before Paul left Troas.....
7 On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. (Acts 20:7)
He spoke for that long as he was leaving, and it had deadly consequences that resulted in a miracle!
9 Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. 10 Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” (Acts 20:9-10)
Today, most sleepers are in seats and wake up at the end of the sermon! Been there, done that! LOL!
There is no specialised ministry gift of preaching mentioned in the New Testament.....
11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-13)
The only 'preacher' identified in the Bible was Noah. He also preached, unsuccessfully, to the unconverted. Paul too, preached to the unconverted, but he taught the believers.
Presently, we seek to place preaching primarily in the domain of the pastor. However, it rightly belongs to the evangelist, and then only when addressing large groups of people. Person to person evangelism though, is generally found to produce more fruitful, long term results today.
Disciples are not created through preaching, but by teaching and mentoring new believers through the challenges of everyday life, in order to build up an ongoing faith in Jesus.
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
SOME SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY
1. While preaching is designed to reach the unconverted, teaching is the means to help those already churched grow in God.
2. Teaching should be interactive, in order for the participants to receive the full benefit.
3. Mentoring new converts is an essential part of the discipleship process.
4. Obviously, this has huge implications for the current way things are done in the church.
FROM THE WORD
THE WORDS OF JESUS
Life Through the Son of God (John 5:16-30)
Jesus criticized for healing on the Sabbath and claiming to be God’s son.
“My Father is still working, and so am I.”
“I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can only do what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does the Son does as well. For the Father loves the Son, and reveals to him everything he does; and the Father will show to him even more incredible things that will completely amaze you. For just as the Father gives life to those he resurrects from the dead, in the same way the Son also gives life to those that he wants. The Father judges no one. He has given to the Son all the authority to judge, so that everyone may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who doesn’t honor the Son doesn’t honor the Father who sent him. I tell you the truth: those who follow what I say and trust the One who sent me have eternal life. They won’t be condemned, but have gone from death to life. “I tell you the truth: The time is coming—in fact it’s here already—when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live! Just as the Father has life-giving power in himself, so has he given the Son the same life-giving power in himself. The Father also granted the authority for judgment to him, for he is the Son of man. Don’t be surprised at this, for the time is coming when all those in the grave will hear his voice and will rise again: those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation. I can do nothing by myself. I judge based on what I’m told, and my decision is right, for I’m not doing my own will but the will of the One who sent me."
Testimonies of Jesus (John 5:31-47)
If I were to make claims about myself, such claims wouldn’t be valid; but someone else gives evidence about me, and I know what he says about me is true. You asked John about me, and he told the truth, 34but I don’t need any human endorsement. I’m explaining this to you so you can be saved. John was like a brightly-burning light, and you were willing to enjoy his light for a while. But the evidence I’m giving is greater than John’s. For I am doing the work that the Father gave me to do, and this is the proof that the Father sent me. The Father who sent me, he himself speaks on my behalf. You’ve never heard his voice, and you’ve never seen what he looks like, and you don’t accept what he says, because you don’t trust in the one he sent.
“You search the Scriptures because you think that through them you’ll gain eternal life. But the evidence they give is in support of me! And yet you don’t want to come to me so that you might live. I’m not looking for human approval —I know you, and that you don’t have God’s love in you. For I’ve come to represent my Father, and you won’t accept me; but if someone comes representing themselves, then you accept them! How can you trust in me when you look for praise from one another and yet you don’t look for praise from the one true God? But don’t think I will be making accusations about you to the Father. It’s Moses who is accusing you, the one in whom you place such confidence. For if you really trusted Moses you would trust in me, because he wrote about me. But since you don’t trust what he said, why would you trust what I say?”
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One key element here is the setting out in chronological order (as far as it is possible to do so) our Lord's words drawn from all the Gospels, and the elimination of repetition between Gospels.
You may be surprised by the different perspective this presentation gives you both in understanding of His life and ministry, and in achieving a closer relationship with Him.
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DAVID'S DOODLINGS
REACH FOR THE SKY!
82. Sparrows can only twitter in the foothills while eagles soar to the mountaintops. Why then, are there so many more sparrows than eagles?
83. Nobody told the bumblebee that he cannot fly ' so he does!
84. If the bumblebee can fly, so can you and I.
85. Only eagles fly high!
341. Unfortunately, there are many more people in life who would rather see you fly low than high. They want company!
342. The higher the mountain, the fewer who are prepared to climb, but the greater the rewards.
343. It's a lot less crowded on the mountaintops!
344. It's only the unsuccessful who have the secret of 'easy success'!
345. You can only get to the top of the mountain by starting from the bottom.
346. If you don't start, you will never finish!
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TUESDAY TEACHINGS
THIS WEEK: ‘THE RAPTURE’ - SATAN’S PLAN OF DECEPTION WITHIN TODAY’S CHURCH .....
..... will look at many verses promising Gods protection through the times of difficulty ahead.
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LAUGHING AT OURSELVES
***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused***
308. A Matter of Priority
The Catholic Church's air conditioning broke down, so they hired a fellow named Higgins to crawl around in the ducts and figure out what was wrong. As Higgins peeked down through one of the vents in the sanctuary, he saw little old Mrs. Murphy kneeling by the altar, saying her rosary.
Being a bit of a rascal, Higgins decided it would be funny to try and mess with Mrs. Murphy's mind. In his most authoritative voice, Higgins said, "This is Jesus. Your prayers will be answered."
Mrs. Murphy didn't even blink; just kept on saying her rosary. Higgins tried again. "This is Jesus, the Son of God!" Higgins boomed. "Your prayers will be answered!"
At this, Mrs. Murphy looks up and yells, "Wait your turn, Lord. I'm talking to your Mother!"
QWIK QWIP: “Yesterday is in the past. Tomorrow is in the future. Today is a gift; that's why it's called the Present.
309. Take Five
One Sunday, a preacher announced that he'd pass out miniature crosses made out of palm leaves.
"Put a cross in the room where your family argues the most," the preacher said. "When you look at the cross, it will remind you that God is watching."
As people were leaving the church, a woman walked up to the preacher, shook his hand and said, "I'll take five."
310. Your Choice
A church was running short of the finances that were needed to do some sorely needed repairs.
The Pastor worried over how he could motivate the congregation to come up with more money. To add to the Pastor's problems, just before the start of worship services he learned that the regular organist was sick and a substitute had been brought in at the last minute. The substitute wanted to know what to play.
"Here's a copy of the service," the Pastor said impatiently. "But you'll have to think of something appropriate to play after I make the announcement about the finances."
Following the Pastor's sermon, he paused and said, "Brothers and Sisters, we are in great difficulty. The church repairs are costing nearly twice as much as we expected, and we need $4,000 more. Any of you who can pledge $100 or more, please stand up."
At that moment, the substitute organist played "The Star-Spangled Banner."
And that is how the substitute became the regular organist!
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A DAVID MUSING
Here in New Zealand the north of the North Island is being struck by a cyclone, as I speak.
It is the second one in 3 weeks. Unbelievable for our beautiful land!
Cyclones from the Pacific Ocean have only just started to hit New Zealand as the atmosphere warms. Our largest city, Auckland, is in its path, so it is very expensive and time consuming to repair the damage.
All brought on by Global Warming, whatever the cause is.
Jesus has said that in the final days weather events will become more common, and we are seeing that round the world. Earthquakes etc, are included to.
During difficult times it is up to us to get deeper into Jesus, so that when these events occur, we will be able to rest in Him through it all.
Photo shows the cyclone approaching
Until next time
His servant and yours
David Tait
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WALKING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES is a non-profit, non-denominational, Bible based ministry located in Hastings, New Zealand. A ministry dedicated to developing discipleship, fostering unity amongst God's people to achieve the Great Commission, and in doing so, preparing for Christ's return. It is securely based upon the foundational principles of the Apostles Creed while recognising the wide and rich diversity of beliefs amongst Christians in other areas. In accordance with the Lord's direction, materials produced by the ministry are available, free of charge, to genuine enquirers upon request. The ministry is solely funded by donations, as the Lord provides. A list of materials available (plus some fun!) is obtainable and freely downloadable from our website
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Our role is to bless and encourage those in ministry while promoting co-operation and unity of direction amongst the body of Christ, as emphasised 3 times by Jesus in His longest prayer, immediately prior to His arrest and crucifixion. "... so that they may be one as we are one." (John 17:12, 21, 23-4) Our website is currently being developed to encourage your participation one with another, to share resources, and to enable you to promote events and items of interest to the body as a whole - and have a smile while doing it!
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