Word work is hard work.
Examining the text of Scripture, drilling down into it to find the hidden treasure—the Holy Spirit-intended meaning and implications—is hard work. So why do that work? Why not simply grab something from the text and put together a talk that is interesting, engaging, and funny, that connects with the felt needs of those we’re speaking to? Why invest ourselves in the hard work of figuring out the biblical author’s intended aim and then making that the aim of our talk?
On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, you’ll hear my answer to that question, a recording of a live presentation to about 40 women Bible teachers who gathered in Sydney, Australia, for the day we called “Help Me Teach the Bible.” We looked together at Colossians 1:24–29, where Paul presents what drove him in his Word ministry. Paul saw himself as a steward of a divine mystery he wanted to uncover for those he was teaching. It’s this same sense of stewardship that drives us to do the work of exposition today.
Free eBook by Tim Keller: ‘The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness’
Imagine a life where you don’t feel inadequate, easily offended, desperate to prove yourself, or endlessly preoccupied with how you look to others. Imagine relishing, not resenting, the success of others. Living this way isn’t far-fetched. It’s actually guaranteed to believers, as they learn to receive God’s approval, rather than striving to earn it.
In Tim Keller’s short ebook, The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness: The Path To True Christian Joy, he explains how to overcome the toxic tendencies of our age一not by diluting biblical truth or denying our differences一but by rooting our identity in Christ.
TGC is offering this Keller resource for free, so you can discover the “blessed rest” that only self-forgetfulness brings.
