Titus 1:1-16 “The Order of Elders” 03/01/2026 Application: • Much of Timothy and Titus carries the same themes; in fact, if you were to align chronologically, I Timothy was composed first, followed by Titus, and subsequently II Timothy. Titus was left in the Mediterranean island of Crete to act as the main overseer there. On the island of Crete, there were people known for their deceitfulness, wickedness, and laziness. • When appointing any person to a place of church leadership, we must remember that the gospel is the foundation. In order that these recipients stay in step with the truth of Christ and His church, and how they are to live in context in gospel community. The gospel is not something you do, but something only Jesus can do for you and His glory. There are no enough laws, rituals, ceremonies, or works that will give you favor with God outside of saving faith in Jesus. • In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth and made everything perfect and good, but human kind disobeyed God’s command and thrust sin and brokenness into the world, and this sin effects every single facet of life, sin ultimately affects your relation to God, who is Holy, it is this sin that causes separation from God because He will not be in the presence of Sin, and we are all born into sin, but God offered a remedy by sending His Son, to be born and to bare the sins of sinful humanity, Jesus was condemned as a criminal, yet was innocent and without sin, “he who know no sin, bore our sin, so we could become righteous before God, He died on a cruel cross, was put into a tomb, and overcome sin and death by rising again, thus bridging that broken relation that humans once had with God.

Prayer Prompts:

• That the gospel will take the primary position in your service and leadership in the church.
• That as the church looks for people to serve and to fill ministry roles will make the gospel clear and concise.
• Pray for those in our community, and our neighbors, and that they may come to know Christ.

Recorded 2-22-202

II Timothy 4:9-22 The Need for Community

Pastor Larry finished preaching a series on the letters to Timothy. Listen and be challenged to enjoy the church community the Lord has placed you in.

I. The Need for Community in Times of Joy and Sadness:

II. The Need for Community is Used by God to Rescue:

Discipleship Reflection: How can we better appreciate the need for church community?

1. We focus more on encouragement than discontents.

2. We Rejoice in What God is Doing

3. We Never Return Evil for Evil:

II Timothy 4:1-8 “Finishing Well”

2/15/2026

Application:

• Sometimes, it is very difficult to hear the truth; it’s even more difficult to live it out. To finish well means the follower of Christ must proclaim God’s truth through scripture. Like the workman Paul spoke of earlier, we all have a level of commitment to handling the Bible.
• The proclamation of the word drives preparation, correction, rebuke, and encouragement with patience. The command is to take a stand or “stick to it,” stay at it, show proof of errors, and rebuke, at the same time, encourage.
• There are some who abandoned truth and are looking to get their ears tickled, and it is like trying to yank someone's arm out of the socket. Many have abandoned the truth of scripture and attempted to substitute it with feel-good, self-help sermons.

What areas of life and ministry must Highland monitor with “sober-mindedness?”

1. Membership Is Not Your Sole Identity
2. Steward our Resources Well.
3. Be Intentional In How We Study The Bible.

Prayer Prompts:

• “Lord, help me to hear and accept truth even when it is difficult to hear. Help me to follow through with Biblical convictions.”
• Pray the Lord will give you a hunger for solid teaching and application from the Bible.
• Pray the Lord will help you identify areas in your life, and the life of the church, where there needs to be reform and correction.