Manna To Memorize

Manna to Memorize is a tool intended to inculcate, equip and empower us for kingdom battle and Kingdom building. I am encouraging every member to memorize each verse per week and study its meaning. David said in (Ps. 1:2-3) But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.  And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Let’s plant our roots deep in The Word of God.

These verses explain the nature and power of faith in the believer’s life. As the writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 11:6, that without faith it is impossible to please God. As we fortify our faith in the Almighty God we become empowered to deal with all the challenges of life. We began to speak with unwavering confidence the things that are not as though they were.

Manna to Memorize is a tool intended to inculcate, equip and empower us for kingdom battle and Kingdom building. I am encouraging every member to memorize each verse per week and study its meaning. David sad in (Ps. 1:2-3) But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditates day and night.  And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Let’s plant our roots deep in The Word of God.

———————————————————————————————————————————–

These verses explain the Call, Commission and Challenges of the messengers who minister to us. It is clear that those who provide leadership for us are significant to our growth and development. Romans 10:14-15 says “how shall they hear without a preacher and how shall they preach except they be sent.”  It is extremely important that we understand and appreciate the pursuit, practice and preaching of those who have been called and anointed to proclaim the gospel and provide leadership.

Week One

(Jeremiah 3:15)

 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

The pastor here means either the king or the prophet; and the pastors here promised may be either kings or prophets, or both. These shall be according to God’s own heart; they shall be of his own choosing and shall be qualified by him: and in consequence they shall feed the people with knowledge, ‏that Divine truth concerning the true God and the best interests of man, which was essentially necessary to their salvation; and understanding, the full interpretation of every point, that in receiving the truth they might become wise, holy, and happy. The Great Scholar and Preacher Vernon Mc Gee said, “My friend, if you have a Bible-teaching pastor, you ought to run over and put your arm around him. You ought to protect him, because he is valuable. Such men are few and far between.”

Week Two

(Hebrews 13:17)
Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.

When a servant of God is in the will of God, teaching the Word of God, the people of God should submit and obey. This does not mean that pastors should be dictators. “Neither [be] lords over God’s heritage,” 1 Peter 5:3. Some church members have a flippant attitude toward pastoral authority, and this is dangerous. One day every pastor will have to give an account of his ministry to the Lord, and he wants to be able to do it with joy. A disobedient Christian will find on that day that the results of disobedience are unprofitable, not for the pastor, but for himself.

Quite frankly, it is much easier to “win souls” than it is to “watch for souls” (Ezekiel 3:16-21). The larger a church grows, the more difficult it becomes to care for the sheep. Sad to say, there are some ministers whose only work is to preach and “run the program”; they have no desire to minister to the souls placed in their care. Some are even “hirelings” who work only for money, and who run away when danger is near (John 10:11-14). However, when a shepherd is faithful to watch for souls, it is important that the sheep obey him.

Week Three

(1 Thess. 5:12-13)
¹² And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you;
¹³ And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves.

The following directions are addressed to the group as a whole, that is, to all Christians in the church. The church leaders are probably the elders of the church in view of how they were described by Paul. These were men who worked hard to provide pastoral care for the flock, probably in their spare time since in the early church local church leaders often carried full-time jobs outside the church. These leaders are further described as being over you in the Lord. They had positions of spiritual leadership in the church and were responsible to God for those under their care (Hebrews 13:17). This responsibility included providing admonition as needed. Since Paul used the plural those to describe their leaders, there was more than one such person in the Thessalonian church, as in other churches to whom Paul wrote. (Philippians 1:1)

Paul gave three exhortations to the church regarding their proper attitude toward their leaders. First, they were to respect them. This term (eidenai) normally means “to know,” but here it includes appreciating and respecting them and their work.

The need to regard leaders highly is further stressed in the second exhortation. Church members are to esteem, value, and respect their leaders for their works’ sake. The Greek is strong: hold them in the highest regard (hēgeisthai autous hyperekperissōs). This should be a continuing attitude. Some church leaders do not command as much personal respect as others, but Paul taught that all should be held in esteem because of the nature of their responsibilities before God. Not just some respect, but the highest respect is due these leaders, and it is to come from an attitude of affection (in love) for them, again, because of their work, if for no personal reason. Two reasons for this exhortation are the nature of their work and the fact that church leaders do a good service to others.

The third exhortation is to live in peace with each other. This results from obeying the former instructions. The idea here is to maintain rather than to initiate peace. Peaceful conditions existed in the Thessalonian church, but they had to continue. The command is imperative. Much dissension in modern churches is traceable to church members disobeying these commands.

Week Four

(1 Timothy 5:17-18)
¹⁷  Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.
¹⁸  For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.

When you look at the work of the elder, you quickly see that the elder is to rule. It is not the job of the elder to follow the leadership of groups in the church. It is his job to rule. The word “rule” means to stand before or to preside. It has reference to rank. It suggests being over or being in charge. It speaks of being a leader or director. Another way of looking at the elder is being the master of a house.

When Paul spoke of the elder here in this verse, he was speaking of a man who engaged in a work with intense devotion. He was talking about a man who strove to do that which was useful and profitable.

In the word “well”, Paul was letting Timothy and the church know that all elders are not the same. Paul was concerned about the relationship the church would develop with elders who rule well. The word “well” speaks of that which is valuable and virtuous, that which is good and right. It has reference to there not being any room for blame. The word “well” speaks of that which is commendable.

In the words “be considered worthy,” Paul was speaking of being deemed entitled or fit. It has reference to being counted worthy. It suggests that all things about the elder are taken under consideration and a conclusion has been derived. It suggests a person deserving something. Everything is based on the facts at hand. A person is being given what he has earned.

Paul was saying that the elder who rules well should be paid what he is worth. Paul said that the elder should be considered worthy of double honor. The word “double” means two-fold. It means again or twice as much. It speaks of more in quantity, number, or quality. The word double has reference to the major portion.

The word “honor” (time’) means more than reverence, respect, or esteem. Here it speaks of pay. It has reference to compensation or that which is paid in honor of a person’s work. Paul was suggesting that elders who rule well should be paid far more than what others are paid. The way the church would pay the elder who ruled well would say something about the way they honored and respected him.

In Verse 18 it is clear that Paul was speaking about the wages of the pastor as he was writing. He was concerned about the church doing right by the hard working pastor. Paul spoke as he did concerning the hard working pastor being adequately provided for, because of what Jesus said and because of what was written in the Law.

The Law said that an ox was not to be muzzled while he was working. The ox was to have the freedom to eat while he worked. This is seen in Deuteronomy 25:4. This passage was not written because God has such great concern for oxen. It was written because of God’s concern for his preacher (1 Corinthians 9:9-10). Paul also showed the value of the church providing for the pastor by quoting Jesus. Jesus said that a laborer is worthy of his wages (Luke 10:7).