Would you say "Imitate me"?

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TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

TO CHEW ON: “And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy in the Holy Spirit, so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe.” 1 Thessalonians 1:6,7

A few weeks ago in a church Bible study I’m part of, the topic of mentorship came up. Paul’s description here sounds a lot like that: “And you became followers of us” - 1 Thessalonians 1:6.


[Mentor:  (Noun) 1] A wise and trusted counselor; 2] an influential sponsor or supporter. (Verb) To advise or train.

"Mentorship is a relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps to guide a less experienced or less knowledgeable person. The mentor may be older or younger than the person being mentored, but he or she must have a certain area of expertise" - from Wikipedia]

This business of mentorship (though that specific word is never used) is mentioned in more places in the New Testament:

• Paul to the church in Corinth: “Imitate me” and listen to Timothy who “will remind you of my ways” - 1 Corinthians 4:16.

• Paul to the church in Philippi: Copy everything about me: “The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do” - Philippians 4:9.

• Paul in a later letter to the Church in Thessalonica: Imitate me in the way you work for a living - 2 Thessalonians 3:9.

• The writer of Hebrews also encourages his readers to be enterprising and diligent - Hebrews 6:12.

• Hebrews urges, as well, that readers imitate and submit to leaders - Hebrews 13:7,17.

 But mentorship is not meant to be a dead end that stops with the person being mentored. I love how Paul proposes it continue. “And you became followers of us and the Lord…so that you became examples to all…” 1 Thessalonians 1:6,7 - emphasis added.
The goal of mentorship is to produce more mentors. There’s a place for everyone.

Are we  being mentored—by a person or by books (in a class discussion answering the question, “Who have been your mentors?” a large number of us named books and their authors as significant mentors)? Are we, in turn, becoming mentors, to our children and those newer in the faith?

Let’s keep the mentor chain growing!

PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for the life of Jesus in the Bible, and for flesh-and-blood and book teachers and mentors to learn from and imitate. Help me to live in such a way that I could say to anyone, “Imitate me.” Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Fathers, lead in right paths

 HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Proverbs 4:1-13

TO CHEW ON: "I have taught you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in right paths." Proverbs 4:11


"I have led you in right paths" says the father to his son in our reading today. There is probably no more persuasive teaching than that done by example. What are the "right paths" on which a father could lead his children? Are they still there for us to find today?

Right paths:

1. The wise father seeks out the paths of God - Psalm 23:3.

2. He goes to the "mountain of the Lord" to get instruction (Isaiah 2:3). For the Old Testament Hebrews this would have been the temple in Jerusalem. In our day instruction can come from many places—church, radio & TV, books and, of course, the greatest book for this is the Bible which we can access in our own homes (no traveling to mountains necessary, although spending time with God in His word is sometimes called a "mountaintop experience").

3. The paths of God are:
- life and joy and pleasure - Psalm 16:11.
- mercy and truth - Psalm 25:10.
- wisdom and justice - Proverbs 2:6-8.
- uprightness - Isaiah 26:7.
- righteousness - Proverbs 8:20; 12:28.
- shining - Proverbs 4:18.

4. He avoids the path to sin. The path specifically referred to here is the path to the  "seductress" i.e. an immoral, extramarital relationship - Proverbs 2:19.

5. If he goes astray he looks for the way back. Jeremiah tells us to find our way back to God via the "old path" (Jeremiah 6:16), and to look for the "signposts" and "landmarks" (Jeremiah 31:21). This picturesque instruction says to me, don't look for a new-fangled way back to God. Come by the way of the book. If you have backslidden, come remembering and revisiting your decisions and experiences from the past.

6. The writer to the Hebrews gives the last bit of path wisdom to fathers and all of us: "…make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed." We need such straight, honest living, not only for our own well-being but for the well-being of those who follow behind, calling us father (and mother).


PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for fathers. Thank You for my father who loved Your word and taught it to us in our home. Please give wisdom, grace, and joy to all fathers who read here this Father's Day. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Mentor-servant

TODAY'S SPECIAL: John 12:20-43

TO CHEW ON: "If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me, and where I am, there my servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor." John 12:26

 "Who is investing in you and who are you investing in?" asked author/speaker Joel Rosenberg in a talk I once heard him give.

Jesus talked about that kind of relationship in John 12. We call it mentoring. He was, of course the mentor, the one the disciples followed [akoloutheo: joined as His attendants, accompanied Him as disciples]. In that role they served Him [diakoneo: to be a servant, wait at table, offer food and drink, minister, attend to anything that may serve another's interests].

An explanatory article in my Bible explores this type of serving:

"What personal service has qualified a leader? In both OT and NT, authentic ministry presupposes a leader has a record of personal service to someone: servanthood is the time-tested entrance prerequisite for trustworthy ministry. Since God's Word seems to reveal such service as the basis for any advancement in leadership, we are wise to be cautious if such credentials are not found in a rising leader today" - Joseph Garlington - "Servant, Leader Traits," New Spirit-Filled Life Bible, p. 1466 (emphasis added). 

Of course now, 2000 years since Jesus walked the earth, we can't up and literally follow or serve Him. But in the spirit of "whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me" (Matthew 21:40), let's enact this type of discipleship by:

1. Living alert for opportunities to serve "the least of these."

2. Making ourselves available to being discipled and to discipling others.

3. Following the biblical model of leader preparation. Notice how many leaders were first servants: 

• Joshua served Moses (Exodus 24:13; Joshua 1:1).
• Elisha served Elisha (2 Kings 3:11). 
• David served Saul (1 Samuel 16:21, 17:32).
• Jesus' disciples served Him. 

Time spent in service to a mentor is not an uncommon part of a leader's resume. 

PRAYER: Dear God, it seems with You the way up is usually the way down. Please help me to have the heart of a genuine servant, both as a mentor and as someone who is being mentored by others.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.