Terry Storch

Writing about life, leadership, faith, and anything else I find interesting.

1 Timothy 1 - The Phoenix

 

1 Timothy 1 - The Phoenix 

Diving into 1 Timothy, another one of Paul’s Epistles. This letter was written from Paul to Timothy, a mentee and very close friend of Paul. So close, he calls him son. When Paul was released from prison in Rome, he discovered that the church in Ephesus was straying from preaching and teaching the true Gospel of Jesus that Paul left them with. We read in v3 that this became Timothy’s mission and charge. 

“As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer” - ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭1:3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The opening of this letter is all about opposing false teachers, and this is a good and worthy message. But something later in the letter struck me and is where I am focusing this morning. Let me start by contrasting v1 and v13.

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior...” - ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭1:1‬a ‭NIV‬‬ 

“Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man...” - ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭1:13a‬ ‭NIV‬‬

We read in the initial letter from Paul to Timothy, this extreme contrasting of who Paul was, and who Paul is today. I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man...now I am an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior...

Who we were shapes who we are, but who we were does not determine our destiny or cancel our call. 

These are words the Lord gave me this morning to remind me that my past, as sketchy and jaded as it was does not determine my destiny or cancel my call! However, my past does shape me and that shaping, sculpting will be used by God to guide me forward. Check out Paul's words that followed v13.

“Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” - ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭1:13-14‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The grace of the Lord was poured out on me abundantly... Paul understood who he was, he understood his sketchy and jaded past was a part of him, but at the same time Paul recognized the love and grace of God was poured out on him, and his calling was not canceled, it was magnified. 

We have a real enemy, Satan, who wants to use our past to derail and to determine our future. He will lie to us, try and deceive us, and try to use our past against us. We must fight this, and we must not allow our past to dictate and determine our future, we must get past our past. 

“Here’s a word you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. I’m proof—Public Sinner Number One—of someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. And now he shows me off—evidence of his endless patience—to those who are right on the edge of trusting him forever. - ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭1:15-17‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Let me repeat it, who we were shapes who we are, but who we were does not determine our destiny or cancel our call.  God wants to use your past for His glory!  We must allow our past to shape us, and be apart of us, but not allow Satan to use our past to derail our destiny and future. 

Like Paul, I, Terry Storch, am proof—Public Sinner Number One! Someone who could never have made it apart from sheer mercy. I am so thankful for his grace, his mercy, and his immense patience he has extended to me. I pray that God can and will continue to use me as evidence of his endless patience and evidence that out of the ashes, something great can emerge. All glory and honor to God forever and ever! Amen 

other writing
John 20 - The Gospel

John 20 - The Gospel

The Gospel, the Good News! Jesus, Son of God, was born of Mary, lived as the Son of Man, died, and rose to life to rescue the world and bring about a new life. The central message of the gospel. Jesus, the centerpiece! John 19 & 20 cover the brutal death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

In this scene, I can not imagine how the disciples felt. John describes them as overjoyed...but those words just fall short of what I can imagine this moment was like.

John 19 - The Magnitude of the Cross

John 19 - The Magnitude of the Cross

The day of Jesus' crucifixion fulfilled 28 Old Testament prophecies. Scripture was fulfilled! Beyond that, trying to wrap my mind around what happened this day, on the cross, and fully grabbing the magnitude of the cross is mind-boggling.

Sure, we can dumb this down or simplify it to a place where I just don’t believe it is anywhere near accurate. We can get into penal substitution and argue over was God full of love or was God full of wrath and hate that he killed his son. To me, John 3:16 is pretty clear on the love part.

John 18 - Jesus levels an army

John 18 - Jesus levels an army

In John 18, we come to the great betrayal. Judas came with the soldiers, officials, and chief priest and Pharisees. We know the scene. But this morning, I saw something I don’t remember reading and surly don’t remember learning about.

“So Judas came to the garden, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and the Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons. Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, “Who is it you want?” “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “I am he,” Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) When Jesus said, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.” - ‭‭John‬ ‭18:3-6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

John 17 - The Lords Prayer

John 17 - The Lords Prayer

John 17 is Jesus looking heavenward and praying to God the Father. So much beauty and mystery in this prayer. One thing that jumps out to me is that Jesus, fully God, and fully man prayed. Jesus is God fully. Why did he need to pray, He was One with the Father, He was God...and yet he prayed. This is so powerful;

“And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.” - ‭‭John‬ ‭17:5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

John 16 - What does it take to believe?

John 16 - What does it take to believe?

By the end of John 16, Jesus had done countless miracles, preached some amazing sermons, transformed so many lives, and developed a close and personal relationship with his disciples. So, when reading these verses, I am just utterly confused on so many levels.

“I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.” Then Jesus’ disciples said, “Now you are speaking clearly and without figures of speech. Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. This makes us believe that you came from God.” “Do you now believe?” Jesus replied.” - ‭‭John‬ ‭16:28-31‬ ‭NIV‬‬

John 16 - Undervaluing God in Spirit

John 16 - Undervaluing God in Spirit

Jesus’ time on earth is quickly coming to a close, and he finishes up his last sermon or teaching to his disciples as they walk to Gethsemane. This final teaching was a heavy one that no doubt left his disciples with a heavy heart. Jesus said it this way;

“...None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things.” - ‭‭John‬ ‭16:5-6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus goes on to say;

John 15 - Constant Growth

John 15 - Constant Growth

We were built for growth, constant growth. From birth, all the way until our death, we were designed by God for constant growth. The problem is, we often can find ourselves stuck in a belief, a phase, or a part of life where we stop growing.

One of the most brilliant investors embodies this understanding. Charlie Munger, at 96 years old, is still learning and growing as a person. I love this quote:

“Knowing what you don’t know is more useful than being brilliant.”
- Charlie Munger

John 14 - The Gift of Peace

John 14 - The Gift of Peace

John 14 opens with Jesus, saying, Don’t let your hearts be troubled. And the chapter closed down with Jesus saying Don’t be troubled or afraid.

A message that needs to resonate with our spirit and our inner self. This was such a good reminder, reading through John 14 over and over. This passage lifted off the screen.

“But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart…

John 14 - Troubled Hearts

John 14 - Troubled Hearts

The world today seems so volatile and chaotic. Everywhere you look, whatever we read and see on TV just seems to be troubling. Last night, I noticed my lovely wife Tweeted this;

“I can’t be the only one who watches the news and is simply embarrassed right now, right? (Dear Jesus, we tap out. Come on back.)”

I find this first humorous, but then I also find it sad. It’s true, watching the news as a Christ-follower is pretty embarrassing. In John 14, we see Jesus…

John 13 - Unselfish Concern

John 13 - Unselfish Concern

Summarizing John, chapter 13, looks like this. The Lords Supper takes place. Jesus washes the disciple's feet. Jesus calls out Judas, and Satan enters him. Night comes, Judas leaves, and Jesus says he must go, and where I am going, you can not come. To cap it all off, Jesus also calls out Simon Peter and tells him that he will deny and completely disown Jesus three times. Whoa, a really full chapter, and historical day.

Nestled in the wrap up of the day is the parting message Jesus leaves his disciples, a message Jesus is sharing with us right now.

 
thoughtsTerry Storch