Some people may contradict our teaching, but these are the wholesome teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. These teachings promote a godly life.(1 Timothy 6:3)
I've often played a game with young people in which one person is blindfolded and two people are selected: one to guide them through a maze of objects by giving verbal directions only and another who tries to have them knock over the objects by giving false instructions. The twist is that the person blindfolded has no idea which person is telling the truth and which is telling a lie..
It creates an interesting discussion starter around how we discern truth from error, or more specifically, what is deemed "godly living" and what is not.
These days it is harder than ever to determine right from wrong. Society's understanding of morality is ever-shifting. No longer is the Bible the plumb line for morality (if it ever was). Subjective majority opinion is driving moral norms - not objective Biblical teaching.
This makes your task as a leader all the more difficult. If you teach Biblical truth around behaviour and morality you may be ignored or even ridiculed by at least some of those you lead.
Society's differing standards may even cause you to doubt what Scripture teaches. "Can I really trust the Bible to speak into today's world when it was written so many years ago?"
In his younger years, the great American evangelist Billy Graham was struggling with doubts over the Bible. In what became a turning point in his ministry he was out walking in the woods and, laying his Bible on a tree stump, cried out, “God I don’t understand everything about your Word, or have answers to all the questions people are raising, but I put my trust in Your Word, by faith.” A few weeks later he began a preaching crusade in Los Angeles that was the start of his rise to national and international prominence.
Perhaps more significantly, throughout his many years of ministry, there was never one accusation of immoral conduct. Belief in Biblical truth empowered him for godly living.
Perhaps at times you find yourself wondering about what the Bible teaches regarding behaviour and morality. Maybe you are tempted to lower your standards because people around you have lowered theirs?
If you want God to use you as a leader, here are two challenges. Firstly, make a decision to trust the Bible even when you're tempted to think your own wisdom may be more reliable than what you read in its pages.
Secondly, strive to live according to what the Bible teaches. Don't see the Bible as simply a book to understand, but a book to live by,
Take to heart Paul's words to Timothy in this verse and determine to live a godly life according to the wholesome teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Reflection
Where do you find a conflict between what the Bible tells you is right and what society tells you? How do you resolve these conflicts?
What's an area in which you struggle to live a godly life? What's a verse you can memorise that will help you stay true to God's Word?
