Fernley Free Methodist Church
Sermon notes.
5-26-19
Locations & Times
Fernley Free Methodist Church
100 S West St, Fernley, NV 89408, USA
Sunday 11:00 AM
Ephesians 6:1-9
Children and Parents
1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
2"Honor your father and mother"--which is the first commandment with a promise--
3"that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."
Deuteronomy 5:16 (NIV)
16 “Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
4Fathers, do not exasperate(infuriate, incense, anger, annoy, irritate) your children;
instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
Children and Parents
1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
2"Honor your father and mother"--which is the first commandment with a promise--
3"that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."
Deuteronomy 5:16 (NIV)
16 “Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
4Fathers, do not exasperate(infuriate, incense, anger, annoy, irritate) your children;
instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
Slaves and Masters
5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.
6Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart.
7Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men,
8because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
"Servant" in our English New Testament usually represents the Greek doulos (bondslave). Sometimes it means diakonos (deacon or minister); this is strictly accurate, for doulos and diakonos are synonyms. Both words denote a man who is not at his own disposal, but is his master's purchased property. Bought to serve his master's needs, to be at his beck and call every moment, the slave's sole business is to do as he is told. Christian service therefore means, first and foremost, living out a slave relationship to one's Savior (1 Corinthians. 6:19-20).
What work does Christ set his servants to do? The way that they serve him, he tells them, is by becoming the slaves of their fellow-servants and being willing to do literally anything, however costly, irksome, or undignified, in order to help them. This is what love means, as he himself showed at the Last supper when he played the slave's part and washed the disciples' feet.
When the New Testament speaks of ministering to the saints, it means not primarily preaching to them but devoting time, trouble, and substance to giving them all the practical help possible. The essence of Christian service is loyalty to the king expressing itself in care for his servants (Matthew 25: 31-46).
Only the Holy Spirit can create in us the kind of love toward our Savior that will overflow in imaginative sympathy and practical helpfulness towards his people. Unless the spirit is training us in love, we are not fit persons to go to college or a training class to learn the know-how or particular branches of Christian work. Gifted leaders who are self-centered and loveless are a blight to the church rather than a blessing.
James I Packer, Your Father Loves You, Harold Shaw Publishers, 1986.
5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.
6Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart.
7Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men,
8because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
"Servant" in our English New Testament usually represents the Greek doulos (bondslave). Sometimes it means diakonos (deacon or minister); this is strictly accurate, for doulos and diakonos are synonyms. Both words denote a man who is not at his own disposal, but is his master's purchased property. Bought to serve his master's needs, to be at his beck and call every moment, the slave's sole business is to do as he is told. Christian service therefore means, first and foremost, living out a slave relationship to one's Savior (1 Corinthians. 6:19-20).
What work does Christ set his servants to do? The way that they serve him, he tells them, is by becoming the slaves of their fellow-servants and being willing to do literally anything, however costly, irksome, or undignified, in order to help them. This is what love means, as he himself showed at the Last supper when he played the slave's part and washed the disciples' feet.
When the New Testament speaks of ministering to the saints, it means not primarily preaching to them but devoting time, trouble, and substance to giving them all the practical help possible. The essence of Christian service is loyalty to the king expressing itself in care for his servants (Matthew 25: 31-46).
Only the Holy Spirit can create in us the kind of love toward our Savior that will overflow in imaginative sympathy and practical helpfulness towards his people. Unless the spirit is training us in love, we are not fit persons to go to college or a training class to learn the know-how or particular branches of Christian work. Gifted leaders who are self-centered and loveless are a blight to the church rather than a blessing.
James I Packer, Your Father Loves You, Harold Shaw Publishers, 1986.
9And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.
FAVORITISM
There's a wonderful story about a Chicago bank that once asked for a letter of recommendation on a young Bostonian being considered for employment. The Boston investment house could not say enough about the young man. His father, they wrote, was a Cabot; his mother was a Lowell. Further back was a happy blend of Saltonstalls, Peabodys, and other of Boston's first families. His recommendation was given without hesitation. Several days later, the Chicago bank sent a note saying the information supplied was altogether inadequate. It read: "We are not contemplating using the young man for breeding purposes. Just for work." Neither is God a respecter of persons but accepts those from every family, nation, and race who fear Him and work for His kingdom (Acts 10:34-35).
Kathleen Peterson.
FAVORITISM
There's a wonderful story about a Chicago bank that once asked for a letter of recommendation on a young Bostonian being considered for employment. The Boston investment house could not say enough about the young man. His father, they wrote, was a Cabot; his mother was a Lowell. Further back was a happy blend of Saltonstalls, Peabodys, and other of Boston's first families. His recommendation was given without hesitation. Several days later, the Chicago bank sent a note saying the information supplied was altogether inadequate. It read: "We are not contemplating using the young man for breeding purposes. Just for work." Neither is God a respecter of persons but accepts those from every family, nation, and race who fear Him and work for His kingdom (Acts 10:34-35).
Kathleen Peterson.
Fernley Free Methodist Church
100 S West St
Fernley, NV 89408
Phone: (775) 575-4424
P.O. BOX 1706
100 S West St
Fernley, NV 89408
Phone: (775) 575-4424
P.O. BOX 1706