1 Timothy 1:1

Timothy 1:1 says, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;  Paul described himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God.  He said God was his Savior through the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for the sins of all mankind.  He was not declaring himself to be better than anyone else, nor did he believe that he was any less an apostle than those who had physically followed Jesus.  He was an apostle by the calling of God.  No Christian is better than any other nor any less spiritually than any other since we are all saved by Jesus Christ, but God does call us to different tasks in His kingdom.  Paul said his hope was in Jesus Christ and what He did for mankind on the cross, and so should ours be as Christians.  

Verse two adds, Unto Timothy, my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.  Paul said that this epistle, or letter, was to Timothy, who he said was his son in faith.  I believe thus means he was converted under Paul’s preaching, but in God’s kingdom, they were brothers.  We may think that we have a special relationship with someone who comes to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior, but we will never be more than a brother or sister to them in God’s kingdom.  We may be a mentor and feel like a parent to them spiritually, as Paul did with Timothy, but God alone is the Father to all who believe in Him. 

Verse three continues, As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other doctrine,  Paul said he brought Timothy with him to Ephesus and left him there while he went on to Macedonia.  Like any father, Paul knew that he would eventually have to leave Timothy to do the work that God had called him to do.  Paul knew this was God’s plan and he carried it out.  I have to assume that Timothy also believed that it was God’s will that he remained in Ephesus while Paul went on to Macedonia.  There will come a time in the life of every Christian parent when they will need to allow their children to go wherever God leads them to do His work, yet many times if it means that they are going to be physically separated by several miles that they won’t want them to go, but this is not an attitude that we should ever have.  

Verse four concludes, Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.  Basically, Paul was telling Timothy to not get caught up in ideas that were not in accordance with God’s commandments but to teach the truth of God to edify, or build up, the faith of his fellow believers in Christ.  Many people today want to look into their genealogy for whatever reason, but if they are doing this to elevate who they are in the world, it is not in accordance with God’s will.  Paul also told Timothy to not get caught up in the fables of the world, which I believe would be anything that claimed to be the truth about the world that gives credit to anyone or anything other than God. 

Ezekiel Review

Ezekiel Review

Ezekiel prophesied while Israel was in captivity, the same as Jeremiah.  His prophesies were not only about the return of the nation of Israel from captivity, but also about the coming kingdom of Christ.  He was called by God to be a prophet and carried out his calling.  We as followers of Christ are called to a certain task or to certain tasks in God's work and we should faithfully carry them out.

Some of his prophesies can be interpreted in different ways, and are hard to understand completely, but God preserved them for us, so we must do our best to understand them under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  I believe many of his prophesies came to pass when the nation of Israel returned from captivity and some have yet to be fulfilled.

Ezekiel prophesied about the land of Israel being restored to the people who were in captivity and we who are in captivity to sin can be restored to God if we accept the only way possible to do so, and that is by putting our faith in Jesus Christ.

Ezekiel prophesied about the restored temple and its various uses, but we today as followers of Christ are the temple of the Holy Spirit, so we should all work together in accordance with God's calling.   

Ezekiel also prophesied about strangers coming to Israel to live.  They were to be treated just as other Israelites, I believe once they acknowledged God, though it doesn't really state that.  As Gentiles, this would apply to us, since we would have been strangers in Israel, God's Holy Land.

Ezekiel has a lot more lessons I am sure, but I will stop at these.  Next, we will look at 1 Timothy.

Ezekiel 48:30

Ezekiel 48:30 says, And these are the goings out of the city on the north side, four thousand and five hundred measures.  The last few verses tell us about the size of the area around the four sides of the city and which tribes the three gates on each side would be named for.  

Verse thirty-one adds, And the gates of the city shall be after the names of the tribes of Israel: three gates northward; one gate of Reuben, one gate of Judah, one gate of Levi.  The three gates to the north would have one each named for Reuben, Judah, and Levi. Though there were a total of twelve gates then and each tribe had one designated for them, we have but one gate to salvation, and that is through putting our faith in Jesus Christ, Who is the only way to salvation, and we all have equal access to that gate.   

Verse thirty-two continues, And at the east side four thousand and five hundred: and three gates; and one gate of Joseph, one gate of Benjamin, one gate of Dan.  The three gates to the east would be named for the tribe of Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan, one for each tribe.  

Verse thirty-three states, And at the south side four thousand and five hundred measures: and three gates; one gate of Simeon, one gate of Issachar, one gate of Zebulun.  The three gates to the south side would be named for the tribes of Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulon, one for each tribe.   

Verse thirty-four adds, At the west side four thousand and five hundred, with their three gates; one gate of Gad, one gate of Asher, one gate of Naphtali.  Finally, the three gates to the west side would be for the tribes of Gad, Asher, and Nephtali, again, one gate for each tribe.  Each of the twelve tribes would have a gate to enter into the temple, and all would have equal access. As ready stated, we have but one gate into heaven, by faith in Jesus Christ, but we all have the same access.  

Verse thirty-five concludes, It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The Lord is there.  Then, the total area of the city was given and Ezeliel was told that the name of the city from that day on would be “The Lord is there.”  We look to that heavenly city, and we know that the Lord will be there.