Sunday Scripture

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday April 30TH 2023, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord + Savior Jesus Christ. Let us love our neighbor as ourself.

This morning I’ll be with my new church family here in Sebring Florida – weather-permitting. We could have some severe weather moving through the region this morning, so I’ll monitor that. (My new church is a little over 4 miles away by road.) In the event of severe weather – I can watch the livestream online as it happens. But I’d rather experience service in-person. (That’s the Pastor in me.)

So it’s been about 2½ months since I wrapped-up my last sermon here on #SundayScripture. That was the one that was based on the Matthew West song – “The God Who Stays”. I’d like to write another sermon based on another contemporary worship song. I just don’t know what that song is yet.

Starting with this edition and continuing through the month of May and into June – I’ll be presenting my March 05TH 2023 sermon on “Paul & Titus” – in its original written form. I hope that it inspires you and encourages you.

[BEGIN SERMON]

You know if I asked you to – quickly – list 10 names out of the Bible – I’m thinking maybe you would mention Adam and Eve, Moses, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, Paul, James, and Peter. I think those are the 10 most prominent names out of the Bible – 3 from the Old Testament and 7 from the New Testament.

Today – I want to share with you the story of one of the lesser-known names of the Bible – Titus. Who ? Titus ? Who’s Titus ? You know there’s an entire book of the New Testament on Titus, and it was written by – not Titus – but Paul (as in The Apostle Paul). It’s 1 of 13 letters or epistles that Paul wrote that make-up about half of the New Testament.

They are known as Pauline epistles. They are formal letters sent by the Apostle Paul to a person or a group of people – to inspire them – to encourage them – to set them in the right direction. Paul sent his letters to friends who were church leaders, and he also sent letters to the church in general. You know these Pauline epistles as his letters to the Romans, and the Corinthians, and the Galatians, and the Ephesians, and the Philippians, and the Colossians, and the Thessalonians, and his friend Timothy, and his friend Titus, and his friend Philemon. I’ve preached a lot from the Pauline epistles, as they are my favorite part of the Bible.

That’s a lost art from the past – writing letters to someone to inspire them – to encourage them – to make them happy. That was popular back before smart phones, and social media, and the internet, and computers. We would grab a pen and a piece of paper, and write a letter to someone to show that person that we’re thinking of him or her. Some of us even had manual typewriters at home, and we would type a letter. And then we would place that letter in an envelope, and write (or type) the address on it, and then place a stamp on it, and then drop it in the mailbox. Yep. That’s what we did – way back in the ‘60s and ‘70s and ‘80s. Even into the early-‘90s.

When I was serving in the desert of Saudi Arabia – during Desert Storm – 32 years ago – each of us received a random handwritten letter sent to “Any Serviceman / Servicewoman” – usually written by a student in school. They were words of encouragement from one stranger to another – from stateside to warside. They were awesome to read. They made us feel happy – thousands of miles away from home.

[TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK]

If you wish to learn more about the God I know then stay tuned to #SundayScripture. The best is yet to come !

Thank you for reading my blog for this day, and may:

The LORD bless you, and keep you.
The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you.
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.