Instructions

Do we follow the guidelines God gives to meet the requirements or to please God and follow His heart?

• God gives us guidelines and instruction so we are able to live life to the full for Him.
• God doesn't give rules and guidelines to make life boring He gives us them so can stay focused on His presence and purpose for our lives. The purpose God has for our lives is beyond imagination sometimes, if we follow the purpose we will live the best life we could.
• 1 Timothy 2 v 1-15
• Paul's instructions for worship are applicable to us as they are culturally relevant to the day in Ephesus.
• Paul doesn't just blast straight into things because he is talking to the leader of a church where one of the main issues was that they had forgot their first love of God and there was false teaching happening.
• He defines the Gospel and lays it out for them; to be saved you must believe in Jesus who died for the entire world and its sins. Paul outlines this because the Gnostics were saying people good get to heaven by material things and good deed alone.
• It doesn't matter how much we love each other and do good deeds, if the source of this love is not God then we are just going through the motions.
• Romans 3 v 21-22 - "²¹ But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. ²² We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are."
• If we just follow the law/rules and don't have faith then we can't fully follow God's purposes because we are just doing it meet requirements.
• Paul gives clear instructions for worship.
• The key to these verses is that Men are to worship in a wholehearted way and the women are to do the same. But neither should distract the other from worship.
• God uses many men and women all through the bible. God wants to use men and women all over the world today and He is.
• If some men and women worship whole heartedly then other people will follow suit.
• Three things that men and women should try to be - Loving, Faithful and Holy. 
• We can only be all three of these things by the power of God's grace.
• How can you step up your worship?