1 Timothy 4 - Important things

Devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching - 1 Timothy 4:13 (ESV)

There are quite a few things that can consume my time. Or yours. The key is to figure out what is important and make that the priority.

Paul gives Timothy a stripped down job description. As a pastor, this passage is very instructive, as other attention grabbers try to distract me from these tasks. But this passage is helpful for all of us.

If what Paul is telling Timothy to do is for the benefit of all believers, then wouldn't this commitment be easier if it was sough out by all believers? You see what I am driving at - we all should be devoted to listening to Scripture, to being exhorted (when needed), and to being taught. These are needs of every follower of Christ.

This reminds me of something Peter Scazzero wrote in his book, The Emotionally Healthy Church. He described a time where he was having all sorts of difficulties, especially with his family, and he needed a break. He wanted to just tell the church something like, "My family is having a rough time right now, so what we really need is for the congregation to just follow Christ, because we can't handle anymore conflict." (not a direct quote).

I think that radically following Christ doesn't get rid of all our problems, but it does make life a lot simpler and better. Especially when we follow Him together.