March 14, 2025
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in Joshua and Timothy? Here’s today’s reading:
1 Timothy 4 (NIV)
1 The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 3 They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.……Continue Reading
Our faith only has value because of the One we have faith in. God provided a way for us to be made righteous in his eyes and not by any act we can do. As a result our faith should drive our behavior, we should live the best life we can in His eyes and that is in regards to all aspects. What we eat, how we treat our body, where we spend our time and what we do in that time. Are we truly living out His call for our lives or are we doing what we want or what we think He wants because we aren’t truly listening to His voice in our lives. As Paul speaks about at the beginning of this chapter there are so many false teachers and there will only be more and more of those so the key is spending time with God to really train our selves to hear His voice and obey His law in our lives. Our foundation must be Him!
1TIMOTHY 4
What a relief it was to read this chapter. Many years ago I don’t think Paul was talking about the Catholic Church, but for me being brought up in the Catholic Church and not being able to eat certain foods on certain days and to know other people that were granted a divorce and others that weren’t. There was such freedom in this chapter. It made so much sense to read versus 4 and 5. That everything God has made is good and just to give thanks before receiving.
1Timothy 4
“Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.”
This part was very convicting for me in this season I am in. It is amazing how God will speak to you if you just take the first step of picking up the Bible and being willing to listen.
1 Timothy 4
The more evil this world gets, the closer that we should draw near to God. As Paul says, in the latter times there will be many false prophets and teachers to lead people astray. Even during the time when Paul wrote these letters, there were false teachers. Satan is very active in our world. He tries to deceive unbelievers to follow after false religions. With believers, Satan also tries to deceive them. There are many churches even now in our time that have been led astray by false doctrine coming into our churches. Either these churches are adding to the scriptures or leaving things out. God warns about this. He says let them be cursed. God holds His word in high regard. I thank God that our church is following the whole of scripture. As believers, we need to read and study the word of God. And whenever we open it, we need to ask God for His wisdom. If we don`t fully understand something, God will give us the answer somewhere else in scripture. We can also seek understanding from those that are in leadership. We also need to be teachable and not think that we know everything. Col. 3:16 {Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.} The Lord, bless you all.
“Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.”
When we immerse ourselves in Gods Word, pay attention to our thinking and how we live, praying that the Lord lead us in his way and help us live godly lives, we make it possible for others to be saved.
1 Timothy 4
1 Timothy 4
Definite words of encouragement!
How important it is for us to watch out for the deception that is in the world. I couldn’t help but think of the Catholic Church when Paul mentions forbidding to marry and abstaining from certain foods. But deception will come in various forms as we come closer to the end. And the best way to defend against that is to hold to the truth ourselves. We should expose ourselves to it as much as we can and make sure we follow it, so it runs even deeper in our souls and becomes more of the default of how we act and speak. We should care more about the state of our souls than the state of our bodies, but be good stewards of our bodies as well. We should also not neglect the spiritual gifts we have been given but make sure we are functioning in them. This all require diligence and intentionality, where we watch our lives to make sure we are doing things God’s way rather just assuming it is going to happen without effort on our part.
”Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.“
I Timothy 4:12-16 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/1ti.4.12-16.NKJV