Today's Passage - 1 Timothy 2:7

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english 1 Timothy 2:7   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.   Paul was given three missions by God as he was being sent:    First, he was sent out to preach; to preach meaning preaching God's word.  As preachers, the foremost thing is knowing what to preach, and preach faithfully according to the word of God.  God's word is the foundation of our belief, and especially for those who have dedicated themselves in serving the Lord, reading God's word is an extremely important training. Let me make three suggestions in reading the Bible: First is speed reading of the Bible; you would have an overview and understanding of the Bible in a short time without going into details. The other method is to read expediently on a single book so that you may feel some kind of accomplishment.     The second method is devotional reading of the Bible in which you only read a few verses - not much to ask.  With prayers and reading at the same time, you pray along as you are reading; slowing digesting and absorbing so that your spiritual lives may be nourished.  The third method is reading like in Biblical exposition which requires some reference materials such as Biblical handbooks, Biblical encyclopedia and Bible commentaries.  With this method, you can get a deeper understanding of the Bible and your faith would be strengthened.  As Christians, we should all have these different kinds of training in God's word.      Secondary, Paul was called to become an apostle, one of the five duties in the New Testament church.  Apostles were needed to provide a direction for the church in addition to the vision and driving force for its expansion.  As the gifts of the apostles were manifested, this driving force provided the strength for the church to move forward.  In the history of church development, whenever there was revival, leaders like apostles would provide new directions which persisted for a while and, as a result, evolved into various denominations.  Therefore the births of each of these denominations were actually the work of these apostles.    Thirdly, Paul was also appointed as a teacher for the gentiles, who was sent to gentile nations to disseminate the truth.  Churches today needed more people to join the mission field, and instead of just taking care of themselves, they should also commit themselves in the expansion of God's kingdom. May the Lord raise up warriors of mission amongst us to work in one accord for His kingdom.  Brothers and sisters, are you willing to prepare yourselves to become the workers of His kingdom?                      Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, we thank you for you are a "sending" God. You have sent us to bear glorious testimonies for you in our living places.  Grant us a heart of meekness, submission, and humility so that we may become a vessel in your hands.  With thanks we pray, in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!