Where are the Numbers? - Saturday February 27, 2016
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope, to Timothy, my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 1 Timothy 1:1-2
Paul often addressed the Christians, extending grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Jesus Christ. Have you ever wondered why? These believers were embroiled in persecution and spiritual battles that made grace, mercy, and peace from God essential if they were to continue with courage. One thing conspicuously missing from biblical history is the number of members in the first churches. Other than in the beginning of Acts when the church was established, there is no record of Paul recording the number of conversions, how many were baptized, or what the church attendance was. Why not? We know Paul wanted to "win the most," as he wrote to the Corinthian Christians. So where are the numbers?
I believe an overemphasis on numbers tempts us to be proud on one hand, or insecure on the other, and to miss Jesus. Paul admonished others about where their focus should be: "Christ Jesus, who is our hope." Hope is a choice.
You must choose to place your hope in Jesus Christ over and over and over again. There is a constant temptation to abandon your hope in Christ and place it in other things or people, including our performance and the number of people saved or baptized. Does that mean you should never count? No. Be humble and remember who saves souls, and be secure in His love, so that you give Him all the credit.
Submitted by:
Stephen Scott Nelson
Atlanta House Churches
Atlanta, Georgia
One-Year Reading Plan:
Leviticus 20:22-22:16
Mark 9:1-29
Psalms 43:1-5
Proverbs 10:18
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SCRIPTURE REFERENCB-ES: Unless otherwise identified, Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible B) The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are from the Holy, Bible, New International Version, copyright B) 1973, 1978, 1984 by InternaB-tional Bible Society; (NKJV) are from New King James Version B) 1982 by Thomas Nelson; (NLT) are from the New Living Translation, B) 1996, Tyndale House Publishers; (ESV) are from English Standard VersionB., B) 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers; (TM) are from The Message B) 1993 by NavPress Publishers.