New Years Day Part 2

8.1.2012 1 Peter 1: 6-9

Good morning everyone. It´s wonderful to see all of you here this morning. We thank God for everyone of you.

As most of you know….. at Calvary Chapel Wiesbaden….. We teach through the Bible verse by verse……

Today for our time in God's Word together …. Please turn to 1 Peter chapter 1…….

We're looking at verses 6 thru 9….. We are going to talk about Our future…… Future Joy……

1 Peter 1:6-9 NLT

6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. 7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

8 You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. 9 The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.

1 Peter 1:6-9 Neues Leben

6 Freut euch deshalb von Herzen! Vor euch liegt eine große Freude, auch wenn ihr für eine Weile viel2 erdulden müsst.

7 Dies dient nur dazu, euren Glauben zu prüfen, damit sich zeigt, ob er wirklich stark und rein ist. Er wird erprobt, so wie Gold im Feuer geprüft und geläutert wird - und euer Glaube ist Gott sehr viel kostbarer als bloßes Gold. Wenn euer Glaube also stark bleibt, nachdem er durch große Schwierigkeiten geprüft wurde, wird er euch viel Lob und Herrlichkeit und Ehre einbringen an dem Tag, an dem Jesus Christus der ganzen Welt offenbart werden wird.

8 Ihn liebt ihr, obwohl ihr ihn nie gesehen habt. Obwohl ihr ihn nicht seht, glaubt ihr an ihn; und schon jetzt seid ihr erfüllt von herrlicher, unaussprechlicher Freude.

9 Das Ziel eures Glaubens wird die Rettung eurer Seelen sein.

The Holidays are for many…… a time of great joy and celebration……. Family friends……. Gifts…… Looking back at a great year……. looking to the future…… filled with hope and excitement……. Great memories from my childhood fill my thoughts….. but for others……. It is a time of loss and sorrow and grief…… fear and not joy…..fills their thoughts…… many feel afraid for the future…… anything can happen….. hopelessness is all around us…..

How do you feel today?

There is wonderful joy ahead…..

Let me remind you about one of the most treasured chapters in all of God's Word... Luke the fifteenth chapter….. You don't need to turn to it……

In Luke15 our Lord Jesus tells three stories…… One of them is about a man who had a hundred sheep and lost one….. another is about a lady who lost a valuable coin….. another one is about a father who lost a son whom we now know as the prodigal son…… In each case the story represents salvation…… The lost sheep is found, the lost is coin is found, the lost son is found…… Each of them pictures a lost soul brought back to God, forgiven and blessed……

And in each story there is a common response……

In each case there was tremendous joy........

The thing that I want you to notice is that salvation and celebration go together……. Salvation and joy belong together……. Being made right with God is cause for joy.........

Now this salvation joy is Peter's theme……..

Look with me now at 1 Peter chapter 1…. He mentions salvation in verse 5, a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time……. In verse 9, the salvation of your souls……. In verse 10, as to this salvation the prophets have made careful search……. Three times from verse 5 to 10 he uses the word "salvation."

Salvation is an important element in Peter's letter…..

You will notice also in verse 6 that he talks about joy, "In this you greatly rejoice." In verse 8 at the end he says, "You greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory."

Now what I would conclude just very simply from that is that Peter has in mind here that we would not only understand salvation……. but joy……

Salvation….. which brings a deep joy….. is on Peter's heart in this passage…….

Isaiah writing in chapter 35 verse 10 said that the ransomed of the Lord will come with joyful shouting….. with everlasting joy……

He also said in chapter 61 that Christ was coming to give the oil of gladness……. look in verse 10 of that same chapter when he said, "I will rejoice greatly in the Lord for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation."

You also remember that when the angels announced the birth of Christ they said that there was a Savior coming and that His coming was bringing good news of great joy…… to all people…… Luke 2:10.

I want to remind us that deep and lasting joy is a result of God's gift of salvation…… And all of us who are saved should experience that joy…… That's why Paul exhorted the Christians in 1 Thessalonians 5:16 with these familiar words, "Rejoice always."

To the Philippians he said,

Phil 4: 4 "Rejoice always and again I say rejoice."

Why? Because joy and rejoicing are elements within the saving work of God……

Unfortunately……when sin comes into a believer's life joy departs…… We feel separated from God…… distant……but He has not moved…….We have……… as the scriptures say…… sin has separated us from God……

David wrote about that in Psalm 51:12 when coming out of the terrible sin of adultery and murder……. he cried out to God and said, "Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation."

Joy is an element of salvation…… it has built-in joy……. Joy that every believer should experience constantly……

Now the question that comes to our minds is how do we experience that joy?

Let's face it, most of us are not all the time filled with joy…… we're not all the time experiencing rejoicing……

What then is it that restores that joy?

Well that's exactly what we're going to find out from Peter in verses 6 through 9…..

It's important for Peter to bring up the subject of joy because his readers need to be reminded of it…… They are at a very difficult situation…..

They are under persecution…… They have been blamed for the burning of Rome….. They were despised and hated and rejected……

Turn to 1 Peter chapter 2….. verse 12

1 Peter 2:12 NLT

12 Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.

1 Peter 2:12 Neues Leben

12 Achtet sorgfältig darauf, wie ihr unter euren ungläubigen Mitmenschen lebt. Selbst wenn sie euch eines Unrechts anklagen, wird sie euer einwandfreies Verhalten beeindrucken, und sie werden an Gott glauben und ihm die Ehre geben, wenn er kommt, um die Welt zu richten

In chapter 2 verse 19….. Peter is saying that they were having to suffer unjustly….. And Peter says "bear up under this unjust suffering."

In verse 20 it says they were being harshly treated and called upon to endure it with patience……

In verse 21 he says to them, "You've even been called for this purpose, Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps." He suffered and you will suffer as well……

In chapter 3 verse 9 he says

1 Peter 3:9 NLT

9 Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will bless you for it.

1 Peter 3:9 Neues Leben

9 Vergeltet Böses nicht mit Bösem. Werdet nicht zornig, wenn die Leute unfreundlich über euch reden, sondern wünscht ihnen Gutes und segnet sie. Denn genau das verlangt Gott von euch, und er wird euch dafür segnen!

Peter is saying that is they were doing evil to these Christians……. They were insulting these Christians…… But Peter said they were not to retaliate……

In chapter 3 verse 14 Peter says……

1 Peter 3: 14 NLT

14 But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.

1 Peter 3: 14 Neues Leben

14 Doch selbst wenn ihr dafür leidet, dass ihr das Richtige tut2: Gott wird euch dafür belohnen. Also habt keine Angst und seid unbesorgt.

And he goes on to remind them to give a defense for the faith and the hope that is in them……. and sanctify the Lord God in their hearts…… And if need be….. accept suffering and trials…….

1 Peter 4 : 1a NLT Neues Leben

1 So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too.

1 Da Christus also körperlich gelitten hat, sollt auch ihr euch diese Haltung zum Vorbild nehmen und ebenfalls bereit sein zu leiden. Denn wenn ihr bereit seid, für Christus zu leiden

Chapter 4 verse 12…… don't be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you which comes upon you for your testing as though some strange thing were happening to you...... to the degree you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing so that at the revelation of His glory…… you may rejoice with exaltation……

Verse 14 tells us they were reviled for the name of Christ…… verse 16 says…..They were suffering….. as Christians……

We're not to be ashamed…. but to glorify the name of the Lord…… And verse 19 says that if you suffer, commit yourselves to God…… In chapter 5 verse 10…… we read…..

1 Peter 5:10 NLT Neues Leben

10 In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.

10 Gott hat euch in seiner Gnade durch Jesus Christus zu seiner ewigen Herrlichkeit berufen. Nachdem ihr eine Weile gelitten habt, wird er euch aufbauen, stärken und kräftigen; und er wird euch auf festen Grund stellen.

Now all of those verses let us know in no uncertain terms that they were in a very difficult time…… It was a time that easily could rob them of their joy….. They could have lost hope…..

And that is why Peter tells them to find joy in to their salvation…… reminding them of the blessedness of knowing God through Christ…… And that they should know joy in spite of all of that suffering……. These difficulties should not diminish their joy……

There is wonderful joy ahead……

Why do believers in the midst of trouble need to focus on to regain their joy?

Where do I go to find my joy when my circumstances are horrible……When I am feeling desperate……..

Joy is not a shallow brief emotion…… it is something very deep…… something tied to faith…… something tied to hope and love……

Joy does not come cheap….. it comes at great expense to God….. He laid up the treasure of joy in heaven through the sacrifice of Christ……

He provides that joy through all our trials….. by the ministry of the Spirit of God…… The Father gave us the Son and the Holy Spirit in order that we might experience joy…..

Joy is produced by things that are much deeper than the things that produce happiness…..

Happiness comes from positive events……. Joy comes from a deep down confidence that your life is hid with Christ in God…… Joy is connected with salvation……

We as believers have lost contact with joy ……we are often sad and discouraged……. not content with our lives……. Sour pickle Christians….. We are often unhappy with the way that the LORD is running our lives….. We need to rediscover our joy…..

Where do I look to rediscover that joy……

Our joy must come from deep within…… It's not related to our circumstances……. It's not related to what we're experiencing ……. Real Christians suffer sometimes…….

Our deep….lasting joy…… comes from confidence in certain things….. The first one, it comes from confidence in a protected inheritance.......

Turn back to our text for today …..1 Peter 1: 6-9

This is the first great truth that brings salvation joy…….

Notice verse 6…. "In this you greatly rejoice."

Rejoice in what? He is looking back to verses 3 to 5……

In this you greatly rejoice......... that word "greatly rejoice" is a very expressive term……. Jesus uses it in Matthew 5:12 in the Beatitudes and it's translated in the Authorized Version, "Be exceedingly glad."

It means to be exceedingly glad…… to be super abundantly happy in the deepest sense……. This has nothing to do with circumstances…… It is confidence in our forever…. And so he calls for great rejoicing……

The word is always used of spiritual joy….. never temporary earthly joy….. It's always used of joy that comes from a relationship with God…… never used of joy that comes from a relationship with anybody else…….

In the Greek, it has the idea of a continual exuberant joy and gladness……. You could translate it, "be jubilant... be exuberantly glad."

And so Peter calls for great rejoicing….. Over what?

We have to go back to verses 3 to 5

1 Peter 1: 3-5 NLT

3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. 5 And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.

1 Peter 1: 3-5 Neues Leben

3 Gelobt sei der Gott und Vater unseres Herrn Jesus Christus, denn er hat uns in seiner großen Barmherzigkeit das Vorrecht geschenkt, wiedergeboren zu werden. Jetzt haben wir eine lebendige Hoffnung, weil Jesus Christus von den Toten auferstanden ist.

4 Denn Gott hat für seine Kinder ein unvergängliches Erbe, das rein und unversehrt im Himmel für euch aufbewahrt wird.

5 Und in seiner großen Macht wird er euch durch den Glauben beschützen, bis ihr das ewige Leben empfangt. Es wird am Ende der Zeit für alle sichtbar offenbart werden.

Peter here is talking about a protected inheritance that everyone of us in Christ have with God…… God through His mercy has caused us to be born again unto a living hope…… and that is a hope that ever lives…… and that hope is that we will receive an eternal inheritance……

We can never be disqualified for we are protected by the power of God……. So we have a protected eternal inheritance…… In this, he says, you are jubilant….. filled to overflowing with joy……

Where are you looking for your joy? That's the question….. Are you looking for your joy in your circumstances?.....

It isn't there…… Circumstances will betray you…… The marvelous promise of God to every believer is that we have an eternal inheritance….. which is our ultimate glorification in final salvation…… It is presently reserved for us, securely held in heaven until the last day…… when we see Jesus face to face…… God the Father by mercy has granted to us the new birth…… It is the hope that fills our hearts……. In this you rejoice…… Beloved, get your eyes off this world…… Quit looking for your satisfaction here…… It's our eternal glory in heaven that should be our focus……

Paul said it, "Set your affections on things...... above," "not on things on the earth." Colossians 3……

Eternal salvation is reserved for you……..

Nothing can happen to it….. What a source of joy. …..

Paul in Romans 5:2 says, "We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God."

That's why he says in Romans chapter 12 in verse 12, "Rejoicing in hope."

Because his hope is in the resurrection and his hope is generated by the indwelling Holy Spirit……

Now if you're going through trials in life….. instead of looking at this world with all of its problems…… Instead of looking at your problems….. you need to look at your future….. your forever future…… it is safe and certain…… Because of God´s mercy…..we have been given an eternal inheritance….. We can rejoice…….. we have a deep and lasting joy…….. joy that no circumstance can ever take away from us….

I'm not asking you to pretend to have a joy that isn't real…… I don't think you can manufacture joy…… I don't want you to deny pain…… I'm not asking you to deny suffering…… I'm not asking you to deny sorrow or deny trouble…… It's not going to go away…… But I am saying, decide which way you're going to look…….

If you want to rejoice…… look at your new life in Christ…… your hope, your wealth…… your security in Christ……

Don´t let yourselves be tormented by the darkness of difficult circumstances…. Look to your forever…..

The reason that so many Christians are miserable…… weighed down with burdens and guilt and unfulfilled aspirations…… is because they don't look at their glorious protected eternal inheritance…….. Our future is secure…… no matter what happens…… even if I am told tomorrow that I have cancer…….

Your joy……. now listen carefully…… must be in great part the joy of anticipation....... It´s going to get better…….. The Lord Jesus is coming……He will make everything right……..

W e understand anticipation…….. we often live with the joy of anticipation in an earthly sense……. You get all pumped up months and months and months before you go on vacation……. Usually the anticipation is better than the reality…… You're about three days into your vacation and you're saying to yourself, "Why am I spending all this money?" I expected more from this….. that's the way life is…… We have huge expectations about our earthly future……. We look forward to that school….that job……. that perfect husband…… that perfect wife…..We anticipate events and things……. and pretty soon they´re not what we thought they were........ Our anticipation turns to disappointment….. because the perfection was in our heads…….. Not real…….. But With the LORD…..the reality is far better than our expectations…..

God´s promises are better than anything we can imagine or think……..that´s something to look forward to……. focus on the joy of anticipation……

Joy……. it's not only how you view your future but it's how we must view our present………

Joy comes….. now listen carefully……. not in spite of trouble…… but because of trouble…… It comes through trouble…… How? Because trouble, verse 7, is the proof of your faith....... which is more precious than gold…….

God brings trials into our lives to prove our faith….. to refine our faith….. to purify us and to make us more like Jesus……

Look at verse 6…… we can learn a lot about troubles and trials here……

1 Peter 1: 6 NLT Neues Leben

6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.

6 Freut euch deshalb von Herzen! Vor euch liegt eine große Freude, auch wenn ihr für eine Weile viel2 erdulden müsst.

Notice please……trouble doesn't last…… Isn't that good to know? It doesn't last……. It's temporary……

Trouble is important……… It serves a purpose……. It is necessary……

You say, "What's the purpose? I don't get the purpose."

Well….. check out this list….

TROUBLE

1 To humble us……

2 to wean us from worldly things…… To help us look to heaven……

3 to reveal what we really love……

4 To teach us the value of God's blessing as over against the pain of life…… Trouble comes

5 to enable us to help others…… Trouble comes

6 to develop enduring strength in our character….. and sometimes trouble comes

7 to chasten us for our sin….. It serves a purpose…….

We see that purpose in 1 Peter 5:10….

1 Peter 5:10 NLT Neues Leben

10 In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.

10 Gott hat euch in seiner Gnade durch Jesus Christus zu seiner ewigen Herrlichkeit berufen. Nachdem ihr eine Weile gelitten habt, wird er euch aufbauen, stärken und kräftigen; und er wird euch auf festen Grund stellen.

God has a purpose in it…….. trouble brings pain…… Nobody ever denied that……

God knows about it, that's why He brings it……. sadness, sorrow, disappointment, anxiety…… trouble brings pain…..

trouble is supposed to be painful….

It's suppose to distress us... to drive us away from the world….. and to the Lord…… to purge our sins…… to refine us for greater usefulness……

Trouble comes in many forms….. Verse 6 says…..

1 Peter 1: 6b NLT Neues Leben

even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.

auch wenn ihr für eine Weile viel erdulden müsst.

The greek is very interesting here (greek) poikilos peirasmos…… troubles, trials….. in many forms……. it means many colored….. that´s a great word picture……

Trouble is many colored……

By the way, Peter uses that same word one other time…….. It´s when he describes the many colored grace of God….. that's a beautiful thought…..

Trouble is multi-colored and God's grace is multi-colored…….

Grace to match every trial……Trouble comes in many forms….. you just think you've gotten over one and another one comes……. But along with the trial is grace to match it……

Notice verse 6….

1 Peter 1: 6 NLT Neues Leben

6 So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.

6 Freut euch deshalb von Herzen! Vor euch liegt eine große Freude, auch wenn ihr für eine Weile viel2 erdulden müsst.

You greatly rejoice even though you are in trial…… The point being, trouble doesn't diminish joy…….

Why?

Verse 7……

1 Peter 1: 7 NLT Neues Leben

7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

7 Dies dient nur dazu, euren Glauben zu prüfen, damit sich zeigt, ob er wirklich stark und rein ist. Er wird erprobt, so wie Gold im Feuer geprüft und geläutert wird - und euer Glaube ist Gott sehr viel kostbarer als bloßes Gold. Wenn euer Glaube also stark bleibt, nachdem er durch große Schwierigkeiten geprüft wurde, wird er euch viel Lob und Herrlichkeit und Ehre einbringen an dem Tag, an dem Jesus Christus der ganzen Welt offenbart werden wird.

Now listen to this very carefully…… this is a profound truth. Peter says here's why trials don't take your joy……. trials produce joy……. because if you pass through the test….. your faith becomes proven…….

Trials prove the genuineness of our faith……. If you went through life and never had any trial…… never had any trouble……. If your faith was never tested…… you wouldn't know your faith was real….. That's basically what he's saying.

Trials come……They come like fire to burn the dross off the metal to see if there's something real there….. faith is really revealed in the trial…… And we become more like Jesus in the process……

God's purpose in trouble is to test your faith…… For who?

For Him? Does He need to test your faith?

No, He knows what's in your heart, right?

So who is the test going to benefit? Us.........

God tests the believer to reveal whether his or her faith is genuine…… Just like He tests gold and it mentions gold in verse 7 that's tested by fire….. Fire equals trials….. The gold is your real faith….. And when the fire comes and all the dross is burned off……. real faith is revealed…..

Think this through….. Your heart is grieved, okay? You're going through trouble, trial, suffering, pain….. you're feeling afraid and maybe a little hopeless….. The environment around you is collapsing….. Nothing is working out the way you want it to work out….. You're going through all kinds of pain and concern….. And you start to look around an escape hatch…… for somewhere to put your comfort….. Most people in the world put it in money, friends, booze, drugs, sex, revenge…… whatever…… And the trouble burns up everything……. because everything they put their trust in is also going to be consumed….. none of it lasts…… It will all burn in the fire….

The Christian rises above all that….. He rises above everything that is subject to change and decay and he casts his hope in the promises of God……

The Christians´ source of joy is permanent…..

When you go through a test….. if you rise above that by faith and hold on to Christ….. your faith is proven…… The point is, if you come out the other side of the test believing God….. trusting Christ…… then you know your faith is real......... What great comfort…….

Do you live with doubt in your life?

God knows you need more trials...... because that will prove your faith to you……

Beloved, welcome trials...... welcome testing…… Don´t complain about them…….. They are for our good…..

We have hope in God…. He has sent Jesus to redeem us to be with us…….. The God of the universe is our friend…..He is our hope……….Jesus brings us joy……. Because our hope is certain……… Jesus said…..I will never leave you…..I will never forsake you……. Like the old song……. What a friend we have in Jesus…….. There is wonderful joy ahead……..

We will spend eternity with the Lord….. Our best friend…. Our creator and redeemer…..

God sends us trials…… and the grace to get thru them……… Showing us that our faith is real……. Reminding us that we have nothing to fear….. there is wonderful joy ahead…….

Goals for this year….. Simply…….

To obey Jesus in these very difficult times……. No matter what the trials……

To proclaim the Good News…..

We have been sent on a mission…… by the LORD JESUS…..

Get back our joy in the Lord…… so that we can fulfill our mission with joy…. just like Jesus!

Calvary Chapel Wiesbaden scripture for 2012

Hebrews 12:1-4 NLT

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. 3 Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. 4 After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin.

Hebrews 12:1-4 Neues Leben

1 Da wir von so vielen Zeugen umgeben sind, die ein Leben durch den Glauben geführt haben, wollen wir jede Last ablegen, die uns behindert, besonders die Sünde, in die wir uns so leicht verstricken. Wir wollen den Wettlauf bis zum Ende durchhalten, für den wir bestimmt sind.

2 Dies tun wir, indem wir unsere Augen auf Jesus gerichtet halten, von dem unser Glaube vom Anfang bis zum Ende abhängt1. Er war bereit, den Tod der Schande am Kreuz zu sterben, weil er wusste, welche Freude ihn danach erwartete. Nun sitzt er an der rechten Seite von Gottes Thron im Himmel!

3 Denkt an alles, was er durch die Menschen, die ihn anfeindeten, ertragen hat, damit ihr nicht müde werdet und aufgebt.

4 Immerhin habt ihr im Kampf gegen die Sünde noch nicht euer Leben opfern müssen.

Who for the joy that was set before him…. endured the cross!

Matthew 28: 18- 20 NLT

18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28: 18- 20 Neues Leben

18 Jesus kam und sagte zu seinen Jüngern: »Mir ist alle Macht im Himmel und auf der Erde gegeben.

19 Darum geht zu allen Völkern und macht sie zu Jüngern. Tauft sie im Namen des Vaters und des Sohnes und des Heiligen Geistes und

20 lehrt sie, alle Gebote zu halten, die ich euch gegeben habe. Und ich versichere euch: Ich bin immer bei euch bis ans Ende der Zeit.«

We have Four assignments…….

1….. Proclaim the Good News

2….. Make disciples

3….. promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching….. sound faith….. be filled with love and patience……

4….. to demonstrate to this hopeless generation…..that we have been with Jesus………. He changes lives….. He forgives……we can have hope……..

The 3^rd assignment comes from Titus 2:1,2

Titus 2:1-2 NLT

1 As for you, Titus, promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching. 2 Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely. They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience.

Titus 2:1-2 Neues Leben

1 Was immer du sagst, soll der gesunden Lehre entsprechen.

2 Lehre die älteren Männer, selbstbeherrscht, vorbildlich und besonnen zu leben. Sie sollen einen starken Glauben haben und liebevoll und geduldig sein.