Await & Arise Teaching: Truth & Lies

Today we are looking at well crafted lies and how we can train so that we can stand firm in the truth and be leaders for Christ.  
1 Timothy 4 is our scripture for today.  Make sure you go and read that and then watch the teaching. 
In this teaching we focus on spending time in the right training- studying the word, spending time in God's presence and seeking godly mentors to help guide and encourage us so that when the time comes to stand for truth we will be ready. 

If you want to know more about Community Bible Study check out: www.communitybiblestudy.org

If you want to know more about Ang check out her webpage: www.angelaraber.com

Transcript

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If we were in Timothy reading the future before you're thinking about him features, and he's specifically kind of training, very kind of fearful training so that he can force the tree so that when it can find him for the truth, he is ready and able to do that. And then he can for the people that he's leading. Are you doing that today? Are you feeling high in his work? Listen to teaching and looking for really wonderful. Really hurt you. Thank you for being here. I hope this message encourages you and I hope that you will dive into the word today. Welcome to another episode of A Wait and Arise. Join me as we dive into scripture and just pause in awe of our good God. And as we give our souls just a moment of rest and refresh. Today I want to talk about lies and truth a little bit. So the best lie is one that is riddled with a little bit of truth and relatability. And she was so excited to share with me her calendar animal. Does anybody know what that is? Like the Chinese calendar. Mom, I'm this animal, and it's so exactly right. And I was like, really? Yeah. I said, well, read it to me. So she read me the strengths and the weaknesses. I don't remember what she is, probably a dragon. But she um, so anyway, so she read it to me and I was like, wow, yeah, that sounds like you. That's so interesting. I said, huh, read me another one. So she did. And she goes, huh? I said, that sounds like you too, huh? And she goes, yeah. Read me another one. Huh! That one also sounded relatable and familiar. Weird. So I told her that sometimes the best lie has a little bit of truth and relatability in it. And these are well-crafted lies because they make us feel seen and known and even kind of unique in a non-unique way. Isn't that interesting? Like, I feel so unique being a dragon. It's perfect. Except for so does everyone else. So it's not unique at all. That's how Satan deceives us. That's how a lie works. The problem is it takes away our ability to grow in Christ. It pigeonholes us into this one definition with these few strengths and these multiple weaknesses, and then that is who we are. And that is it. It takes away the ability for us to let God define us and color outside of those lines. He has made us fearfully and wonderfully, with great purpose, far greater than a Chinese animal could ever give you. Right? So it's okay to see our strengths and our weaknesses and admit them and go, oh yeah, that's kind of me. Oh yeah, I do suffer from that. I struggle with that. But then instead of taking it to a myth, we take it to God. And we compare it to his truth, to what he says about us, and we let him work that out. Because we realize that a lie is a good lie when there's a little bit of truth and relatability in it. And we do not want to be deceived. So we take it to the one who is truth instead. To do this, though, we have to seek after godliness. We have to pursue godliness, which is reading the Bible, discussing the truth, and seeking God for your answers and definition, and boldly speaking the truth to the world. Truth and training is spiritually fit, is the pursuit of godliness. So this week, Paul gave a warning and a mandate to seek truth and to be bold in the pursuit of godliness so that truth would be known, that speakers and their hearers would be saved by the truth. So this world is full of half-truths, not really truths, my truth and your truth and his truth and her truth. We all got our own truth going on. But we're bashful and shy of the truth, to stand on God's truth, the only truth. The only truth. So then we need to do some training. We need to work in that. We need to be in his word, spend time in his presence, know the truth so that we may be bold, as Paul says, so that we may speak and that hearers may be saved. Truth and training. Spiritually fit is the pursuit of godliness. Let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you so much that sometimes it's laughable at a lie. But a lot of times they're not. A lot of times we're deceived by them. Lord, I just pray that we all would be able to come to you to lay anything we hear or are thinking on or pondering at your feet in your word so that we may know the truth. Lord, the world says so many things to us. But you, you speak quietly the truth. May it be your words and not mine today. Amen. So our breakdown today is gonna be the ultimate training program, grounded in hope, and say nay-nay to the naysayers. I really like that one. I told them this morning, I was like, it's really good when something you wrote makes you laugh. So, anyways, we should be able to laugh at ourselves. The past season, and she's gonna kill me for saying this, but the past season, our oldest daughter, Josie, wrestled. Sorry, Joe. And the first time I ever went to a duel was during this season. Now, so this is me. I'm watching this duel happen, and the lights come down. There's only one mat in the middle of the floor, and this giant spotlight comes out. And then two extremely bold athletes come to the center to wrestle in front of everyone. I mean, I do this, but I am not wearing a singlet. So to be bold enough to publicly show their ability, that had to take some training, also some youthful lack of care and um a zest for the challenge. But in our faith, we too must take the time to bolster our souls, to strengthen our minds, to study the word so that we can stand firmly and boldly on the truth, on the word of Christ, on the word of God and his salvation for all. Our world is not a lot different from Timothy's world. The Gnostics of the time were filling the world with lies and a lot of lies. The lies, though, they were laced with truth. So the people who were not spiritually fit or training to know truth were falling to these lies. And it wasn't just that they were laced with truth, but that sounded good. Oh, I should not have that in my diet. Oh, yeah, I should be doing those things. Oh, all these false obligations that didn't add up to spiritual fitness or godliness. They they didn't add up to anything. Boo. Nothing. So Paul says to Timothy, you, you, pastors, you, teachers, you, leaders, you, you have to be spiritually in training so that you are ready to stand strong and boldly speak scripture, speak truth, and in public. Because these liars, they're not gonna back down. They don't back down here today in our world. They're not gonna back down. So are you training? Are you ready? When the house light's dim and it's you and the liar, i.e. Satan, standing forefront, will you be able to boldly witness to the truth of Christ? If not, well, you better hit the weight room. Right? You better do some toughening up, some sharpening of your mind. Spend some time with the only one who gives truth, so that you may allow him to dispense that truth through you when the need arises. Paul goes on to say that that dispersement will commence in an example of speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity. Now, when we are strong in study of the word and faith in Christ, our every move will show that strength and that truth. It's like a workout routine. So I've been doing these a lifting workout since about August. And um, last week I was on my max week, which means I put on as much as I think I can and I was doing squats. I had put on the weight that I knew I was ready for, but in a minute I went, I don't know if I can do that. And I'm thinking, well, I hope I can because I'm home alone. So I but I mean eventually someone will find me. But anyways, when I moved under that bar and I squatted, it was almost as if my legs surprised me because they handled it. And I was even able to add a little bit more. But that is what training does. The same is true for our spiritual training. When you spend time in the Word, when you spend time in His presence, when you spend time spiritually getting fit, when that bar is placed on your shoulder, when someone calls you out or questions you, you'll go, Oh, I don't know if I'm ready, and then all of a sudden, poof, you're ready. Because God is with you, and God will speak through you. And you've been training. But you've got to be spiritually fit, you've got to be doing the training, you've got to be spending time in his presence. Truth and training. Spiritually fit is the pursuit of godliness. Now, Paul goes on because this pursuit is not just labor and striving with no focus, it is grounded, grounded in the hope of the living God. So as I was studying this week, um the concept of an electrical ground popped into my mind, and I had to look it up because I am not an electrician. And I have done some electrical things in the house. Generally, when those jobs come up, I'm like, Justin, because it's better if he gets electrocuted than me. Um not really, but he's so much smarter than me when it comes to that stuff, and I'm just terrified. Like I'm just there's my hair will be I don't know. So, anyways, I steer I tend to steer clear of that stuff. Um, I have a very healthy fear, I think. So much so that he I can rely on my husband, and I'm grateful for that. But I do know that a ground is of importance to current and the path of the electricity. A ground in an electrician or an electrical situation is defined as providing a path of least resistance for the current to travel back into the ground so it doesn't go anywhere else that may cause harm to people or property. A ground gives path and direction and even control to an otherwise wild and harmful electricity. Isn't that something to think about? Now, I'm the type of person I can have a million wild and fun and large ideas. And if I were not grounded, and in some times in my life I have not been grounded, then those I would just shoot off all over the place like an electrical current. Bing, bing, bing, bing. And unintentionally, I would cause harm and havoc. Not all my ideas are God's ideas. What? I know it was baffling to me as well. But each one that is grounded in him, that all of them need to be grounded in him, but each one that is grounded in him takes the path that he would have it take so that it may go back to him and glorify him through me. Isn't that cool? And he also talks about this hope being active. And if you think about a ground, the ground is constantly working because the electricity never stops working. So it's constantly directing this wild power, right? And that is our ground in the hope of Christ. We are grounded so that that path is sure and true and glorifies God. Isn't that cool? Godliness. Paul says, ground yourself in the hope of Christ. When we labor and strive, we do so with the grounding of hope in God, the living God. So our hope then is an active grounding, constantly working towards godliness in his holiness. So we train. Our grounding is one that, again, takes training, but it also takes confidence to listen to the one who has defined us. Just as I mentioned earlier, there were many things or are many things in the world that would like to re-identify us. They'd like to rebrand us, right? Satan would like us to forget about God and how he defines us. Think about back last year, some of you were with us when we did Daniel in Revelation. Remember when the Israelites were taken from Babylon or to Babylon, and then the Babylonians made them, they gave them new names, and they made them eat their food, and they they wanted them so enapped in their culture, so seeped in it, that they forgot they were Israelites. They forgot they were children of God. But Daniel didn't forget. Daniel continued to feed, to do the discipline, to spiritually be fit, and he was bold. He was bold for God in very scary situations. The world would like for you to accept its identity for you, its limits for you, its judgments that would make you doubt what God has called you to. Paul addresses Timothy here and he says, youth. He reminds him that God has called him to this position, and his youth is not an issue. Do not let them be naysayers because you are young. Remember, you were called by God. You were prophesied over, you were laid hands on by the elders of the body. This is who you are. Step fully into this, do not listen to the doubters. Boldly walk in the knowledge of who God has called him to be and not fear what man says. Be diligent, Paul finally says. Give yourself wholly to them and watch your doctrine closely so that you and your hearers may be saved. The work is so very important. We don't have time to listen to the world and to question God. We have enough time to listen to God and do as he has called us to do, to boldly trust him and to train in his word, in his spirit, so that we may stand strong in his truth. In CBS, there's an old saying, and some of our servants' team have it embroidered on a quilt square, and it says, There is enough time in each day for the will of the Lord. And that is the truth. We don't have time to be distracted. We do not have time to be swayed by the world's doubts. There is enough time for the will of the Lord in each day. Will you seek his will? Will you pursue godliness? Will you train with him? Sometimes it's going to be a person of youth who will come before us and who will teach us, who will remind us, who will bolster us up in God's truth. Do not listen to the naysayers and do not be a naysayer. There's a quote that I love, and it says, age and maturity do not always come together. Sometimes age comes alone. And we can laugh a little bit about that, because that's comical. But the opposite is true, or the flip side is true as well. Sometimes God's gifting shows up in a young person. Sometimes maturity comes before age. And it is not our job then to question God's working. It is our job to be a prayer warrior for what God is doing through these young people. He knows the wicked world that needs to be spoken to, and he knows who needs to do it. So we must pray. Hold them accountable, lift them up, encourage them, most importantly, pray and then train alongside of them. Are you doing the training too? Are you disciplined and in his word? Are you studying and spending that time with him? Are you in his presence so that you are pursuing godliness so that you may be ready when he calls you to be bold? Truth and training. Spiritually fit is the pursuit of godliness. This week, dig into the word. Seek that solace in the presence of the Lord. Remember, godliness is reading the Bible, discussing its truth, seeking God for your answers and your definition. And then boldly speaking the truth to the world. Truth and training. Spiritually fit is the pursuit of godliness. Let's pray. Lord, that we have a Bible that we can open up and dig into to know you, that your spirit is with us, and we can come to you at your feet and beg you for understanding, to know your character, to hear your will in our life, Lord. May we be disciplined. May we be pursuing. Thanks for joining me today. If your soul was refreshed by this pause in the word, then I hope that you'll continue to join me weekly for these await and arise meditations. My hope is that this podcast space will be a reprieve for you to just take a pause away from the world, to be refreshed in the word, and to await in the presence of a good God. Would you go to the comment section and leave a word or a scripture that's lifted you up this week? I really do love to see how God is working in all of our lives. And my desire is to see that this space just grows as a community of people who come together and encourage each other in the word. I want to see him working in all of us. It's just such a sweet reminder that we are all in this together. And God, he goes before us. So until next time, I'm praying your heart stays anchored in his truth. A Wait and Arise podcasts are available on all podcast players. If you would like to see Ange, me as I teach weekly live, click on my YouTube channel or go to my webpage, angleraber.com, and you can find those episodes there. Meditations come out each week on Thursday, and live teachings are weekly on Monday, and I post those on Tuesday. We hope that you'll subscribe and feel free to share this episode with family and friends and on social media. For more information for connecting with a community Bible study in your area, you can also click those links below. You can join a connect group online or you can find a community Bible study in your town or in your area that you can join in person. It is so important to be in the Word, meditating on it and studying it for yourself. So it is my encouragement to you to find a Bible teaching church and an in depth Bible study and dig in. Thanks for listening. Now await in his presence and arise to his call.