Ela

Young believers often don't know what to expect and may think problems mean they have done something wrong. They are not yet used to hear the voice of Jesus for themselves and may listen to the enemy without realizing it. So they need someone to help them to figure out what is right and what is wrong; and when they have fallen, how to quickly stand up again instead of hiding from each other or God because they feel guilty. They need an example to follow. Timothy is not Paul so they may need some time to recognize that it is not the familiar father figure only who can help them but God himself who can also work through someone younger in age then they are. They need to learn to trust God and Timothy. Timothy also had to learn to work without Paul and depend on God alone. This experience will have strengthened his own faith. Delegating ministry not only raises the next generation it also proves that God is the master and we are only the tools which he can be exchanged as he sees fit.

I imagine as reward a big smile from God, that he is pleased with me like a parent is pleased when the children bring something they have done to show their love. He will reward our motivation rather than the result, as we wouldn't expect children to produce something what is beyond their age. We will not be rewarded for something only he can do like the salvation of other people. But I think we will be surprised that he might reward something like tears we shared with somebody even though we may not remember it as something special. When we open our heart to God and let him reach others through us we will naturally feel pleasure but when we do works of the flesh we will only wear ourselves out without much joy. So it is good for us to keep short accounts with God and make sure to stay in his presence. That will correct and motivate us.

We wait for Jesus, who is coming back from heaven; he is God's son - God raised Jesus from the dead after Jesus had died as penalty for our sin; Jesus delivers us from the wrath to come (when God will judge the world). This is best to understand when we think of God's wrath against sin like a bush fire, if you want to be safe you have to burn some ground ahead of the bush fire and then step onto the already scorched ground. When we belong to Jesus our sin has already been dealt with on the cross and when God will judge the world his wrath will find nothing in us to burn away. It is important that Jesus is coming back for us and that God will judge the world but it is not important to know when and how that will happen, as long as we are ready. Both these important elements are under-emphasized by the church nowadays probably as over-reaction to previous generation's preaching of doom and the fear which has been created then. But only if we know that we have to account for what we have done and that we never can live up to God's holiness we can see our need for salvation. He can't just overlook our “small mistakes” - any sin is completely incompatible with his holiness and only in Jesus we can have fellowship with God, who dearly loves us and doesn't want us to perish. God hates sin but loves the sinner and wants him to become free from the power and punishment of sin.

We wait for Jesus, who is coming back from heaven; he is God's son - God raised Jesus from the dead after Jesus had died as penalty for our sin; Jesus delivers us from the wrath to come (when God will judge the world). This is best to understand when we think of God's wrath against sin like a bush fire, if you want to be safe you have to burn some ground ahead of the bush fire and then step onto the already scorched ground. When we belong to Jesus our sin has already been dealt with on the cross and when God will judge the world his wrath will find nothing in us to burn away. It is important that Jesus is coming back for us and that God will judge the world but it is not important to know when and how that will happen, as long as we are ready. Both these important elements are under-emphasized by the church nowadays probably as over-reaction to previous generation's preaching of doom and the fear which has been created then. But only if we know that we have to account for what we have done and that we never can live up to God's holiness we can see our need for salvation. He can't just overlook our “small mistakes” - any sin is completely incompatible with his holiness and only in Jesus we can have fellowship with God, who dearly loves us and doesn't want us to perish. God hates sin but loves the sinner and wants him to become free from the power and punishment of sin.

We wait for Jesus, who is coming back from heaven; he is God's son - God raised Jesus from the dead after Jesus had died as penalty for our sin; Jesus delivers us from the wrath to come (when God will judge the world). This is best to understand when we think of God's wrath against sin like a bush fire, if you want to be safe you have to burn some ground ahead of the bush fire and then step onto the already scorched ground. When we belong to Jesus our sin has already been dealt with on the cross and when God will judge the world his wrath will find nothing in us to burn away. It is important that Jesus is coming back for us and that God will judge the world but it is not important to know when and how that will happen, as long as we are ready. Both these important elements are under-emphasized by the church nowadays probably as over-reaction to previous generation's preaching of doom and the fear which has been created then. But only if we know that we have to account for what we have done and that we never can live up to God's holiness we can see our need for salvation. He can't just overlook our “small mistakes” - any sin is completely incompatible with his holiness and only in Jesus we can have fellowship with God, who dearly loves us and doesn't want us to perish. God hates sin but loves the sinner and wants him to become free from the power and punishment of sin.

We should be doing the work God has already prepared for us (Eph 2:10) and only the Holy Spirit can show us what that is. If we do what we think is right we won't have the same results as when we step into situations God has already prepared. The role of miracles is to proof God is behind Paul's efforts If we had miracles going along our own efforts we would be sure God is with us and hopefully they would point away from us to God. But there would still be those who don't want to believe. Main hindrance is our limited understanding of what God could do if only we would let him.