Balancing Ministry N' Work

1.      Last week we looked at a bit of Scripture that there is some debate on if it should still be in our Bibles or not. a.       It is believed to be a true event, just one that was not in the oldest manuscripts. b.      It is likely in the copies when the council decided on what is Canon. c.       It teaches us about Jesus and His Grace. d.      It may be out of place, but it still teaches us about our Jesus. e.       Which to me makes it worth studying. 2.      The scribes and Pharisees who brought the woman to Jesus were trying to test Him. a.       They were trying to find a way to discredit Him and hurt His influence. b.      His response to them was that only a sinless person can throw the first stone, only a sinless person is qualified to decide someone’s fate. c.       No one in the crowd met that qualification. d.      No one here does either. e.       Only Jesus does. f.       In the end the crowd dispersed and only Jesus and the woman were left.

  1.      The Pastoral Epistles are the letters that Paul wrote to Timothy and Titus. a.       All three of these letters were written late in Paul’s ministry. b.      Likely in the final handful of years of his life on earth. c.       These letters are personal, from Paul to men that he saw as his sons in the Lord. d.      They are also practical, meaning they guide us in things that we all deal with. 2.      Focusing on 1 Timothy. 3.      Early in the letter we see that Paul was encouraging Timothy to challenge those who were teaching false doctrines. a.       1 Timothy 1:5-7 b.      Teaching the Word should come from a pure heart, good conscience, and a sincere faith. c.       Teaching the Word should come from someone who is a follower of Christ Jesus. d.      Not that we are perfect, but that we are submitting to God and letting Him work in us. e.       Timothy had his work cut out for him as he stood his ground on the Word of God. 4.      Paul also talks a

1.      If your Bible is like mine, you are going to see a note about the last verse of John 7 and the first 11 verses of John 8. 2.      This section is about an adulteress and her encounter with Jesus. 3.      As we continue to find older manuscripts it has been determined that this encounter is not recorded in the older documents. 4.      Which brings up a few questions. 5.      Are these verses part of scripture? a.       There is a little bit of a debate here. b.      If we believe that God orchestrated everything in our Bible today, then yes. c.       But we should realize that these words have been assigned to John but best we can tell they were not in his original letter. d.      Someone added these verses at a later date. 6.      Were these written by John? a.       The style is different than the rest of the letter. b.      Some of the older manuscripts have this section plugged in at different chapters of the Gospel. c.       These were very likely no