https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9OfhegrpI4
Welcome to Covenant of Hope Ministries and our combined written and live Sunday sermon. You will normally see us posted in written and live form on Sunday. I am Rev. Laura A. Neff. Our ministry was built on the truth of God’s love and sharing the Word of God, the Spirit of Christ Jesus in a way that we believe embraces the ways Jesus taught us to manage. We bring His Word to the many as opposed to the few, in order to continue the legacy created by the ministry of Jesus Christ.
You will find us in the following location: http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com
Rev. Laura’s other sites: Facebook & Blogspot & Twitter & Linkedin & USAlife & YouTube
Wedding officiant page: Wedfolio
Prayer List: We have many on our prayer list. Some wish to remain anonymous, and others only wish to have their first names mentioned. Our prayer list grows or changes every week. This is our current list.
- Evangelist Cal Jennings is still having a little bit of an issue with his recovery, but his dog Scrappy is doing much better and both continue to thank everyone for their prayers.
- My husband Ron fell on Friday and is suffering quite a few scrapes and bruises and the pain associated with them. Pray that his pain eases.
- Please pray for a friend of ours, Tyrone, who is still having issues with recovering from an injury managed at work that has affected his daily life in too many ways. Pray for his healing.
- Pray for Janice’s mother who is still having issues after a stroke last year and other medical issues. Pray for her daughter and son-in-law and their two children as they recuperate from COVID-19.
- Please pray for a friend of ours with serious health issues that she has been fighting for control of for quite a while. This friend has also had other issues in their life that have caused chaos in different ways. (SGE)
- Pray for my employer, Ed, who had a mini-stroke a little over three weeks ago. He’s been put on a new medication.
- Please keep my employer’s wife, Joy, in prayer as she has been diagnosed with stage 4 kidney disease.
- My nephew is still healing up from his scoliosis surgery and it has been wearing on my sister and him as well. Pray that his recovery goes more smoothly as the rest of the summer passes.
- That same sister is going through some serious stresses that are affecting everything right now, let’s pray she gets relief from these issues.
- Pray for a high school classmate of mine, her name is Kelly, who has been diagnosed with cancer. Her treatments have been going on for the past two months now and she’s got quite a few more to go through before it is done. She has survived the loss of her hair and the debilitating results of chemotherapy. She is past the halfway mark and continues with her treatments. May God’s blessings wrap around her and protect her through these treatments keeping her spirits high and her pain low.
- Continue to keep my Aunt Donna in your prayers. She is hanging on even with the cancer treatments and the many changes she is going through.
- Pray for my niece, Autumn, who is having a lot of health issues relative to a head injury from a car wreck. The wreck caused her to now suffer from seizures with an epilepsy diagnosis.
- Pray for Pastor Stephen Okoth in Nakuru, Kenya, as one of our outreach ministers for fifteen years. He and his congregation have done amazing work there in Kenya. God has been with them and the prayers we bring help as well.
- Pray for our other outreach ministers and the work they do, including Rev. Lisa Tyler, one of my mentors, Pastor Simon Peter Javaji, and the family of Pastor Robert Nganwa from Uganda who passed away a couple years ago, but the church continues on.
- Pray for those who were killed in accidents and violent criminal actions this past week, and for the families who are saying good-bye.
- Pray for the
many in this world who have lost their lives in the pursuit
of faith and hope.
- Pray for all of
those who suffer from cancer and all the other incurable
diseases and conditions that they be
secure in God’s embrace through
the Holy Spirit.
- Pray for those who are serving our countries around this world.
- Pray that the children around the USA do well in their new school year as they get back into the routine of learning.
Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, we have friends, family, and colleagues in all directions to bring up in prayer. Pain and trauma affect Tyrone, Cal, and my husband, Ron. Health issues affect a good friend of mine, Sharon. Cancer affects our Aunt Donna and my dear friend Kelly, let their cancer leave their bodies and free them from pain. There are family and friends suffering financial issues and woes, please help them put the world right side up again. Our children are headed back to school, help them to excel and make new friends and enjoy the learning experience. We pray for all of this in Your Holy Name, through our Savior Jesus Christ, and the gift of the Holy Spirit, Amen and so it shall be.
Opening Song: Our God Is An Awesome God ~ Michael W. Smith https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PP9BjKnDaFk
Sermon: Today we are continuing our journey through the first letter Paul wrote to Timothy as we continue with the second chapter. As has occurred prior to this moment, I have realized that we need to complete the thought we ended up on last Sunday. For this reason, I am including verse five with verse six of chapter two here.
1 Timothy 2:5-6 KJV – For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.
NIV – For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.
What is Paul doing here with these two verses? He is reintroducing CREATION. Then Paul adds that there is ONE WAY to be in God’s presence in the final days of this earth. We are God’s MOST SIGNIFICANT Creation. It is very important to realize the significance of our existence here on this earth. Without God we would not know what breathing would be. This week I learned something new about the greatest creation of humankind. It’s not new in the sense that every human does it, true. However, when put into this context it makes humanity that much more incredible. The first thing we do on the day of our birth is call out God’s name. How do we do that? His Name is YHWH and is pronounced Yah-way, now listen to that, His name is pronounced by drawing a breath in and breathing it out, just as He breathed life into Adam and Eve during the days of Creation. Now, that’s compelling, but what Paul shares in his references shows just how important Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection are to Christianity to this very moment in time.
Matthew 20:29 KJV – And as they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed him.
NIV – As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him.
Now, these gospel verses don’t seem to portray anything special, but honestly they do indeed do so. Jesus shares that His time on earth was limited as a man, but as God’s Son up in heaven, He was just getting started to bring each and every true Christian into the mansions that make up Heaven.
Mark 1:15 KJV – And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
NIV – “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
Paul then adds to this with his own observations as a follower of Jesus Christ. It’s important for everyone, Timotheus, Philemon, Titus, and all the others he wrote letters to at the churches in Corinth, Galatia, and all the other cities and towns throughout Asia Minor, Italy, and more, that Paul relay the message Jesus brought to him, a Pharisee, a Sinner, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, a Prisoner of Sin. That’s what Paul shares here in these different verses from his various letters.
1 Corinthians 1:6 KJV –Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:
NIV –God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you.
Galatians 1:4 KJV – Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:
NIV – who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,
Galatians 4:4 KJV – But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
NIV – But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law,
Titus 1:3 KJV – But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;
NIV – and which now at his appointed season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior,
Timotheus had a lot to do, and he wasn’t in the friendliest of environments. Remember, he was from the city of Lystra. This was a city in Galatia, near another city Paul mentions, Derbe. Lystra was most likely Timotheus’s hometown. Paul is now speaking to Timothy as ordained by Jesus to be a preacher to the many, called as an Apostle to serve with Jesus Christ while He was here on this earth. That’s what he shares with the church at Lystra and Timotheus next.
1 Timothy 2:7 KJV –Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.
NIV –And for this purpose I was appointed a herald and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying—and a true and faithful teacher of the Gentiles.
Now, here Paul actually reflects on the ideal of being a preacher. He goes all the way back to the poetic books of the Old Testament, to one of the books that King Solomon wrote as the Ecclesiast, or Preacher.
Ecclesiastes 1:1-2 KJV – The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.
NIV – The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”
Ecclesiastes 1:12 KJV – I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
NIV – I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.
Ecclesiastes 12:8-10 KJV – Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity. And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs. The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth.
NIV – “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Everything is meaningless!”
The Conclusion of the Matter
Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs. The Teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true.
Now, the best teacher in the universe is God. He sent us Jesus Christ to teach us how to follow God’s Law, the law of Unconditional Love. Yet, even with all the teaching Jesus managed here on this earth, people were often confused because they could not see beyond the physical there and then. Humanity still has this issue in far too many points of view. That’s why we have Scripture, and why Paul traverses every portion of Scripture to direct and lead the various churches all over Asia Minor and Italy as well. It is why his letters take up the majority of the New Testament, because we have to see all the angles, all the hidden gems of Scripture. Now, Paul portrays this point where John the Beloved recorded the reaction people had to the idea of Jesus being resurrected and ascending into heaven.
John 7:35 KJV – Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will he go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?
NIV – The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks?
Now Paul goes further and links it to the words of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ within the recorded writing of the gospel writer Luke, in the Acts of the Apostles.
Acts 9:15 KJV – But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
NIV – But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel.
Paul then added his references to the letters he wrote to Rome, Corinth, and Ephesus.
Romans 9:1 KJV – I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost,
NIV – I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit—
1 Corinthians 9:1 KJV –Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?
NIV –Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord?
Ephesians 3:8 KJV – Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
NIV – Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ,
Now Paul is going further into teaching Timothy and the congregation there in Lystra. What is he teaching them next? He’s portraying how to avoid the seven troubles. Specifically he is pinpointing wrath and doubt.
1 Timothy 2:8 KJV –I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.
NIV –Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.
Paul now focuses on the most famous ancestor of Jesus Christ, King David.
Psalm 24:4 KJV – He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
NIV – The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.
Psalm 28:2 KJV – Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.
NIV – Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place.
Psalm 63:4 KJV – Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
NIV – I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.
Psalm 134:2 KJV – Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord.
NIV – Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord.
Psalm 141:2 KJV – Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
NIV – May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.
Paul references so many passages in the scroll that David wrote because the prophecies of salvation emanated the most through him. Next we’re focusing on Jesus and what He did for the Apostles and Disciples who followed Him. Here are passages from the gospels of Luke and John the Beloved.
Luke 24:50 KJV – And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.
NIV – When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them.
John 4:21 KJV – Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
NIV – “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
Paul is foreshadowing, not just what Jesus knew then and there while He lived, but what Jesus shared with the Apostles and Disciples after His resurrection. It is important for us to realize that the twelve men that Jesus gathered together into a single unit had a huge mission ahead of them, and they would need everything Jesus taught them, and more still, in order to get the task done. Every last one of His Apostles worked until they died, spreading His gospel from sea to shining sea, mountains, valleys, from the smallest to the largest and back again. Now, Paul also shares cautions for the members of the church at Lystra. Here is one of them.
1 Timothy 2:9 KJV –In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;
NIV –I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes,
Money holds zero importance for God and for Jesus. It has no influence on our eternal lives. We can’t buy ourselves out of sin, or into heaven either one. Stature has no hold on eternal life. Remember, Jesus said the richest shall be last and the poorest first. The humble, the faithful believers of all that is unseen and unknown would be the first to enter the gates of heaven. Beware the deceivers. This is what we see here in the words of King Solomon, Isaiah, and Peter as well.
Proverbs 7:10 KJV – And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart.
NIV – Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.
Proverbs 31:25 KJV – Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.
NIV – She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.
Isaiah 3:16 KJV – Moreover the Lord saith, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet:
NIV – The Lord says, “The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, strutting along with swaying hips, with ornaments jingling on their ankles.
1 Peter 3:3 KJV –Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel;
NIV –Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes.
Our last verse from the letter to Timotheus is one that is actually mostly in parentheses, like thoughts, as opposed to lessons, for Paul to portray what he wanted the congregation at Lystra to understand. For this reason, I will be sharing both the King James and the New International versions of this specific verse.
1 Timothy 2:10 KJV –But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.
NIV –but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.
In this verse, Paul references King Solomon again. The wise and revered king shares words portraying what the New Jerusalem would look like.
Proverbs 31:25 KJV – Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.
NIV – She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.
Paul then references the city of Joppa in Judea where a young disciple named Tabitha lived. Now, Tabitha was her Aramaic name. Her Greek name was Dorcas. Remember, she is the one Peter raised from the dead.
Acts 9:36 KJV – Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas: this woman was full of good works and almsdeeds which she did.
NIV – In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor.
Acts 9:39 KJV – Then Peter arose and went with them. When he was come, they brought him into the upper chamber: and all the widows stood by him weeping, and shewing the coats and garments which Dorcas made, while she was with them.
NIV – Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.
Paul’s final references are from his fellow Apostle, Peter.
1 Peter 3:3-5 KJV –Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:
NIV –Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands,
2 Peter 3:11 KJV –Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
NIV –Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives
In the days of old, the outward display of wealth and stature were looked down upon, especially for Christian women. You’ll notice that I don’t wear my hair in fancy ways, and often forego makeup. I’ve learned to do my best to stay humble and kind. This is the portrayal of Jesus, who epitomizes humility and kindness in every possible way. Faith should always be humble, kind, steadfast, and filled with unconditional love. Let’s show each other how faith and belief in God go hand in hand, and all of us have the opportunity to walk in the faithful steps of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The ability to do this requires us to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. If you are willing to do so, please leave me a note in the comments and I’ll be in touch. Now that’s something to think about as we pray in the prayer that Jesus taught us saying:
Our Father, which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the
kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13)
Closing Song: Humble & Kind ~ Tim McGraw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb_qGChk0GI
~ Shalom ~
Rev. Laura A. Neff
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Evangelist Calvin Jennings
Covenant of Hope Ministries Main Site: http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com
Scripture Excerpts: The New Open Bible Study Edition: Copyright © 1990: Thomas Nelson Publishers, Inc.
Scripture Excerpts: Holy Bible: Copyright © 1982: E. E. Gaddy and Associates, Inc.
Scripture Excerpts: Holy Bible: Copyright ©circa 1890-1910: International Bible Press, The John C. Winston Co.; Philadelphia, PA, USA
Sermon or Study Copyright © 2024 http://www.covenantofhopeministries.blogspot.com
Our mission for Covenant of Hope Ministries is not to exploit fear, but to conquer it, and overcome all that is created through fear together as the bringers of the light of Jesus found in the midst of darkness.
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