church of Christ Christian Ekklesia Podcast

Leadership Profile, From Shepherd to Shepherd

March 11, 2008 – 10:17 pm
Place yourself in this situation. You have a very important decision to make, and this decision must be made. This decision will affect your future significantly. The truth of the situation is this: it will be impossible for your future not to be affected though this decision. One of two things will be true: your future will be much improved because of this decision, or your future will be much worse because of this decision. The potential for good or for bad in this decision literally is too great to be measured. As you prepare to make the decision, you are keenly aware that it would be a serious mistake to make the decision by trusting only your own knowledge and intuition. You are acutely aware of the fact that for you to make the wisest decision, you need quality outside input that you can trust. You need good information and ...

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Decisions, New People Ownership

March 10, 2008 – 9:46 pm
Have you ever heard this conversation between a husband and wife? "I guess we made a bad decision about that, didn't we?" "What do you mean 'we' made a bad decision? I didn't help make that decision. That was your decision, not our decision." "Well, I made it for us. I was thinking about you as much as I was thinking about me." "How could you possibly think that? When did you talk to me about it? When did you ask me anything about it? I didn't know that you were considering that decision. In fact, I didn't know anything about that decision until after you made it." "But I know you. I know how you think. I care about you. I want the best for you. I was doing what you would want." "That's the problem. You think that you know what I want without talking to me. I never am asked to share my ...

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Leadership Profile, Crete

March 7, 2008 – 11:02 pm
This evening we will continue to broaden and deepen our understanding of biblical leadership in a congregation. Tonight we want to look at the profile of a man who could become an elder or bishop in one of the congregations on the island of Crete. One of the principal reasons that Paul left Titus at Crete was to appoint elders in every city. As we approach this profile, let's briefly review a few things we discussed last week. I. Please remember: A. Congregations in the New Testament often enjoyed four kinds of leadership. 1. Congregational leadership provided by an apostle. 2. Congregational leadership provided by the Holy Spirit. 3. Congregational leadership provided by evangelists, such a Titus. 4. Congregational leadership provided by local elders. B. Last week I suggested that neither of the profiles in 1 Timothy 3 or Titus 1 was intended to become a check list of elder qualifications. 1. Neither said anything about the quality of faith the man had in Christ. 2. Neither said anything ...

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New People Leadership

March 6, 2008 – 10:09 pm
What a week! What a roller coaster ride! Something unbelievably successful happened and created one of the most exciting moments in your life! There was an adrenaline rush that created a fantastic, natural high. It felt so good, so right that you floated above the every day world. It was one of those, "Yes! I did it!" days. Then, one week to the day, you had one of the "downest" downers you ever experienced. Everything crashed, and it devastated you. You plummeted into the darkest depths of the pit of pessimism. You were so depressed--and so confused! You thought nothing good could ever happen to you again. Have you ever experienced a week like that? The people who followed Jesus did. It happened the week that he was executed. It started when Jesus entered Jerusalem while thousands and thousands of people cheered. Passover was a few days away, Jerusalem was splitting at ...

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Leadership Profile, Ephesus

March 4, 2008 – 11:06 pm
In churches of Christ we have great concern for doing Bible things in Bible ways. I totally agree that is a good and legitimate concern. But this is the question we immediately confront: how do you decide what is a Bible thing, and how do you decide the Bible way to do it? As an example, consider congregational leadership. I. We want our congregations to have the same kind of leadership that congregations had in the first century. A. But deciding how to make congregational leadership a Bible thing done in a Bible way is complex, not simple. B. Congregations in the New Testament enjoyed four forms of leadership. 1. They had leadership from the apostles. a. Without question, that was the best form of congregational leadership--it often was not well received, but it was the best. b. We all agree that the apostles were God inspired and guided by the Holy Spirit as no other Christians ever were. c. They also had the advantage ...

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Christianity and Relationships Part Two

March 3, 2008 – 10:44 pm
Selfishness can be one of those horrible flaws that is obvious to others but is not known to the person who is selfish. Selfishness is defined as excessive concern for self or exclusive concern for self without regard for others.  It is a total contrast to selfless.  Selfless is defined as having no concern for self. Selfishness is a total preoccupation with "me." It could be called "me-itus." Selfishness is a destructive self-focus. It says, "Other people exist for my well-being. I associate with no one who does not serve my advantage. The issue to the selfish person is not, "Is what's happening fair to them?" To the selfish person, the issue is "How do they as people or how do their actions serve to my advantage?" At the minimum, in every situation, selfishness says, "I matter the most. In nothing do I matter less than you matter."  At the maximum, ...

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Christianity and Relationships

March 2, 2008 – 12:14 am
CHRISTIANITY AND RELATIONSHIPS (Part 1) 1 Timothy 5:1-8, 5:1 Do not rebuke an older man but exhort him as you would a father; treat younger men like brothers, 5:2 older women like mothers, younger women like sisters, in all purity. 5:3 Honor widows who are real widows. 5:4 If a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn their religious duty to their own family and make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of God. 5:5 She who is a real widow, and is left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day; 5:6 whereas she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. 5:7 Command this, so that they may be without reproach. 5:8 If any one does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and ...

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A New People

February 28, 2008 – 10:21 pm
Do you know what basic problem is in the world? Do you know what the basic problem is in our society? Do you know what the basic problem is in the families of our society? It is the same basic problem in all of them! The basic problem is people. Do you realize that every significant problem in our world is caused by people? Look at the problems in our society, and notice that the causes for every social problem is people. People cause the problems in our country. They cause the problems in our state. They cause the problems in our city. They cause the problems in our families. They even cause the problems in our congregation. It is always people! We could solve all our existing problems if we just got a brand new people to inhabit this earth. "David, that is ridiculous! That is worse than ridiculous --that is just ...

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A New Me In A New World

February 26, 2008 – 9:58 pm
He is a changed man. From the time he was a freshman in college, all he did was chase women. For him, life existed to have a good time, and to have it any way you could find it. You could not depend on him for anything. He did what he wanted to do when he wanted to do it, and that is all he did. Today you would never guess that he had been that kind of person. She is a changed woman. From the time she left home, all she did was party. Could she drink! And she smoked like a chimney! She had a different boyfriend every week. She was never serious with anyone, never serious about anyone. When she finally got a good job, she worked five days a week so she could party hard every weekend. Today you would never guess that she ever lived that ...

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And Jesus Said, You Dont Get It

February 24, 2008 – 10:44 pm
School is in session. College is in session. Without doubt this morning we have a number of teachers and a number of parents who already share the same frustration. The frustration: trying to teach a student who "just doesn't get it." I can guarantee you that it is no fun being that student who "doesn't get it." When I was in the fourth grade I had a horrible time understanding the concept of fractions. I simply "did not get" the concept. My teacher could not communicate that concept to me, so Mom took up the challenge. One night she was trying hard to explain fractions. She was having no success. So, creatively, she said, "David, if six birds are sitting on the fence, and two fly away, what is left?" Well, I am not stupid! I knew the answer to that question: "Four!" Mom asked, "Four what?" In my brilliance I ...

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Spiritual Arithmetic

February 22, 2008 – 11:22 pm
In the process of maturing spiritually, Christians face four primary growth challenges. Those four primary growth challenges are growing in our understanding of God, growing in our understanding of Jesus Christ, growing in the understanding of the Holy Spirit, growing in our understanding of the meaning of scripture. Each one of those challenges is difficult. At each level of understanding, our tendency is to stop growing and be content. It is convenient to feel that "we know enough" or "we know all that it is important to know." When we think that, we feel certain that we know all that we need to know about God, about Christ, about the Holy Spirit, and about scripture. It is comforting to believe that we understand everything that we need to understand. It is easier to believe that we need to defend what we know than to recognize that we need to increase what we ...

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Liberated From The Need To Hide

February 17, 2008 – 10:14 pm
All people possess a set of masks. And, all people use those mask. We wear several masks every day. Masks exist to conceal. We hide behind masks. By using our masks, we attempt to control how well other people know us. Typically, we allow a person to know us as well as we want him or her to know us. How well I allow you to know me depends on how secure I feel with you. So, a person has one mask for strangers, another for acquaintances, another for friends, another for best friends, and a special set of masks for family members. We wear some masks so frequently that we are not even aware that we have them on. Other masks are put on deliberately, consciously. We wear these masks because we fear the dangers of someone knowing us too well. Sometimes we wear a mask to protect self, and sometimes ...

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Troubles Have Spiritual Purpose

February 12, 2008 – 10:54 pm
Everybody has troubles. No one wants the troubles he or she has. When it comes to troubles, we have two basic preferences. First preference: we don't want any. We want a daily life that is literally free from trouble of any kind. We spend lots of energy and effort trying to discover a trouble free daily existence. Second preference: if we must have troubles of some kind, we want to swap the troubles we have for someone else's troubles. We want the troubles of our choice instead of the troubles of necessity. No one likes the troubles that he or she has. And, we all know many people who have troubles that we do not want. But, we know some people who have the kind of troubles we would trade our troubles for their troubles. Think a moment about the first preference: a daily life that is genuinely trouble free. Spiritually, that ...

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Wearing Big Shoes

February 11, 2008 – 10:57 pm
There are moments in the lives of small children that delight parents in every generation. Though those moments occur in every generation, the very same incident never gets old, never stops touching us, never fails to make us smile. One such moment is the sight of a three or four year old child wearing Dad's shoes. Dad's shoes are too big for the child to lift off the floor. If he tries, he steps out of the shoes. So he struggles to keep his small feet and legs in Daddy's shoes as he scoots those huge shoes across the floor. Small children have been trying to walk in Daddy's shoes as long as Daddies have been wearing shoes. Yet, that sight always makes us smile. We are never bored by a small child trying to wear Daddy's shoes. Why do small children try to wear Daddy's shoes? To the child, Daddy is bigger ...

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God’s Higher Calling

February 7, 2008 – 10:15 pm
It would be fascinating to listen to people in the different stages of successful marriage discuss the higher calling of marriage. Don't you think that would be fascinating? What would a person deeply in love, engaged to be married soon, and genuinely prepared to marry, say about the higher calling of marriage? The higher calling of marriage is to love. Marriage should make the person feel loved as he or she had never felt loved before. Making the person feel loved is the higher calling of marriage. What would newlyweds who had been married a month and love being married say about the higher calling of marriage? The higher calling of marriage is to feel truly a part of someone else's life. Sharing life in marriage is an incredible experience! Achieving shared life is the higher calling of marriage." What would a couple who had begun their family, who have two small children ...

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