1 Timothy 17-25

Title: Caring and Confronting Everyone – even your leadership!

Text: 1 Tim 5:17-25

CIT: The Church’s Responsibility in Caring for their Elders

CIS: As has been asked of you concerning those who serve you, be in prayer as you diligently consider the man or men the elders present to complete their team.

 

Introduction: In our passage this morning, Paul will remind Timothy and the church of their responsibility to the elders: Respecting them, Protecting them, Correcting them, and Selecting them. The Context deals with confronting and caring for people in your congregation. This is weird for me to be telling you to take care of me!

The flow: some will depart the faith – they will follow false teaching and false teachers; confront such activity in the body; teach the Truth of God’s Word; When you confront, there is a proper way to deal with your relationships! Relationships are important and these relationships are handled differently. Here’s how you confront the older men, younger men, older women, and younger women.

I.     Respecting your Elders (17-18)

exp.: rd 17-18; Give respect and ‘double honor’ to the elders in your body; vb – be considered worthy is one word in the Gk; imperative verb; which elders? The ones who rule well; requirements: ministry of the Word, prayer; Here we see a big responsibility in ‘ruling”; not lording, but προί̈́στημι (proistēmi); Stand before; a beautiful picture of leadership, out front; head of household;

1 Thessalonians 5:12-13: ¹² We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, ¹³ and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.

Heb 13:7, 17; ⁷ Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. And, ¹⁷ Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.

How do we respect these men? Giving them double honor; to those who: 3 job requirements – rule well and ‘labor in the word’ and ‘in teaching’ (preach and teach); This isn’t an exhaustive list by any stretch of the imagination. This really just seems to me to be the work seen in public – which fits our context. The Truth is, so much of what they do is really ‘alone’ stuff or ‘one on one’ stuff or even ‘small group’ stuff.

John Newton described the ministry as ‘a sorrow full of joy’… That’s really accurate.

Some see in this text as two separate elder groups: Leaders and preachers/teachers. Note it says those who rule well, but ‘especially’ those who preach and teach. I don’t think ‘especially’ is focused on the teaching and preaching, but on those who κόπος (kopos)- labor; this is demanding work; vs 18 is the proof text (rd); I like this; Paul uses two separate passages: Deuteronomy 25:4; referenced in 24.15; The 2^nd is a quote of Jesus; that’s pretty cool; Lk 10:7; Paul was very familiar with Luke; some scholars insist that Paul would have been familiar with Luke, since Luke may very well have been working on it while traveling with Paul; 2 Tim 4.11

app.: The point is this: respect, w/ double honor, your elders

t.s.: Respecting your elders…2^nd,

II.     Protecting your Elders (19)

exp.: rd v 19; protect them from accusation: it is a very serious matter to bring a charge against your elders; Don’t allow it, except where the process of church discipline has properly taken place;

ill.: Consider this: because the elders are very public in their service, they open themselves up to harsh criticism. They’re easy targets. That criticism can be harsh, especially when those who pass judgment don’t have all of the information in front of them. We do so much harm when we ‘accuse’ our elders of negligence because we simply disagree with their leadership; oftentimes it is simply a matter of change that upsets an individual; Someone doesn’t like a decision, a plan, a program, a change in the current system or program;

app.: Respecting our elders is seen in the protection of our elders from false or inflammatory remarks about their leadership and the decisions they make.

t.s.: However, with that said, no elder is perfect; Sometimes an elder needs to be corrected;

III.   Correcting your Elders (20-21)

exp.: that is why Paul continues v 20;

ill.: Vibe magazine interviewed popular comedian and actor Chris Rock.

When asked, “Were you raised Christian?” Rock answered:

I wasn’t raised anything, to tell you the truth. My grandfather was a…preacher. He was the funniest guy. He used to curse a lot, run around, whatever. A bunch of deacons from his church got arrested for selling coke. Not selling it out of the church, but you know.

When asked, “Do you ever regret that you don’t have a connection to a long tradition of belief?” Rock replied:

That I’m not Baptist or whatever? And I don’t have this thing to pass down? Not at all. ‘Cause I do have a long tradition of belief. My belief is in working hard and treating people well. All that other stuff is nonsense.

app.: Ok, there is so much in those statements, but let me just say: Elders Cursing and ‘running around’. That needs to be confronted. Deacons selling cocaine? Elders like that need to be asked to step down. But there is a huge spectrum between an elder participating in illegal behavior and making mistakes. So, just being an elder doesn’t mean he won’t make mistakes. He will. And when he does, he needs to be corrected…

when coupled with v 19, this lines up with church discipline as we’ve been taught by Jesus in Matthew 18; We often err, by not going to the member or the elder; and discussing this one-on-one; We hurt the body when we stand in the hallway and criticize our elders (or anyone for that matter); Should one of us have a problem, go and talk directly to him (that’s first); and if he won’t listen… then 2^nd, take two or three witnesses and talk this over with him; if he still won’t listen; bring your two or three witnesses and rebuke him in the presence of the body; The process Jesus gives us is for protecting us on all sides:

• It protects the person in sin, by allowing them the opportunity to repent without humiliation before the whole body. Isn’t that really the goal? Repentance and restoration?
• It protects the person doing the confronting, by allowing them to be corrected if they’re wrong. Most problems like these can be cleared up with a little understanding.
• It protects the body by strengthening these relationships and bringing healing to that one localized area.

Exp.: rd v 21; Paul reminds Timothy not to show partiality to the elders, don’t prejudge them.

t.s.: each one should be Respecting, Protecting, Correcting, and finally Paul reminds them to be careful in …

IV.    Selecting your Elders (22-25)

exp.: rd v 22; caution: don’t lay hands on to quickly; 1^st, this is for Timothy, not the body; The senior elder has a tremendous responsibility in leading the flock; when he lays his hands on a man who is unqualified, he ‘shares’ in their sins, past and future; κοινωνέω (koinōneō); this is the vb form of Koinonia (n); that is why he says in v 22c; keep (a watchful eye); yourself pure;

ill.: IH Marshall: this can be used of sharing in gifts and experiences or in actions; it may also be used for giving a share in something to somebody. Here the thought is clearly that by showing some kind of positive attitude to a sinner one is approving of the person and thereby sharing in that person’s sins in the sense of sharing in the responsibility and hence the guilt for them.

It makes me think of Chris Rock’s Grandfather and his leaders selling cocaine. And then Paul adds this parenthetical statement: rd v 23; issues of purity and health; So Paul brings his thoughts to a summation in vs 24-25; rd v 24-5; Here is his point: you will recognize an elder before you select them; their good deeds will go before them;

Conclusion: If you think about this, church, you’re in a pretty good place to be. You’ve chosen one elder – you chose me. But the time is coming when you’ll need to select other men from among yourselves to serve as elders. The standards were set in chapter 3. Now, you’ll need to be praying for those men you’ll ask to step up and serve in the future.

That’s my one take-a-way this morning: Pray

• Pray that you’ll recognize them by their lives and good work.
• Pray that the church closely follows God’s Will in the selection process.
• Pray that God will protect them from the enemy – who desires to destroy their testimony. That the church’s witness in the community will be fruitful.

I’ve been honored to serve with godly men in the past. I stay in touch with these men, even now. It does my heart good to hear of their continued service to the Lord. I think of John who wrote I find no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the Truth.

As always, I want to ask you to reach out to us if you have questions. If you want to know more about Christ and what it means to be a Christ-follower, reach out to us at tarpleybaptistchurch@gmail.com

 

1 Timothy 5.3-16

Title: The Treatment of Members: Confronting & Caring

Text: 1 Timothy 5. 3-16

 

Introduction: Confronting and Caring. The two words really come together well. Consider this: if you don’t care about someone, you’re not going to confront them in their error. If you don’t care about them, then you don’t care about what will happen to them. Let them perish in their folly. But, if you care, then you’ll want to protect them and help them see the error in their way.

It is interesting to me that Paul moves from confronting people in the church to caring for people in the church. I think that is because they’re close to the same thing.

We pick up where we left off last week – in the discussion of older women, in particular, widows. You probably remember Paul’s commands concerning confronting members.

I.     Confronting Members (1-2)

1. 1. Confronting Older Men (v 1)
   2. Confronting Younger Men (v 1)
   3. Confronting Older Women (v 2)
   4. Confronting Younger Women (v 2)

exp.: as sisters, in all purity; probably just with this last phrase; a 2^nd reminder of the moral responsibility as a man of God;

app.: The Context is that for a pastor, don’t lash out at people; There is an appropriate way to handle problems we have with members; Timothy isn’t to Lord it over them just because he’s the pastor. But instead, he is to confront these brothers and sisters in Christ with respect and dignity and honor (5^th commandment);

I don’t think this is just for a young pastor. We can be this way with each other. We should be, right?

Paul turns his attention to another situation in Ephesus, which is point #2:

II.    Caring for Widows (3-8)

exp.: rd v 3; I don’t know about you, but I’m like: Truly Widows? Isn’t the definition of a widow pretty clear?

     1.  Truly a Widow (really, indeed)

exp.: truly; Lk 23:47 – this really was an innocent man; Lk 24:34 – The Lord is really risen; Jn 8:36 – If the Son sets you free indeed; Mark 11.32 – John was truly a prophet. What Paul is saying here is that there are women who have lost their husbands, but they aren’t in desperate need that other women who’ve lost their husbands are! I don’t think he’s being mean or harsh. Paul is trying to not overload the work of the church. Think about this for a moment: a woman in that culture didn’t work like men did. We do find women working and we find them in leadership, but for the overwhelming majority of the women, when they lost their husbands, they lost their livelihood. So, Paul breaks down the need into categories. He identifies those who are truly needy and those living without necessities – a woman who needed care. To clarify, Paul list three categories or ‘types of widows’.

     2. Types of Widows

1. • Widow w/ family (4)

exp.: rd v 4a; a widow who has family, both children and/or grandchildren; ‘them‘ is a plural pronoun, which I believe points back to the children and grandchildren; ‘widow’ is singular here. Let the children and grandchildren care for her – and return to them the same care she gave them;

Consider what she has done for them over the years. It’s time to reciprocate. How many diapers has she changed? How many ‘bottoms’ has she wiped and cleaned? How many meals has she cooked for them? How many times has she cared for them when they were sick? Cleaned up vomit? Spit up? Held them, cried for them, prayed over them? She didn’t do it thinking someday they’ll return the favor. She did it out of love.

It’s time now for her children and grandchildren to show that same love to her; rd 4b; this is pleasing in the sight of God; godliness and obedience; it’s how you honor them.

• • Widow w/ no family (5)

exp.: rd v 5a; a widow who is truly a widow has no family (μονόω), we get our word ‘mono’ for the singular; monologue; monotonous; she’s alone.

– Alone: has no concern except for the Lord; her family is the church and the church should care for her;

– She is concerned for the affairs of God; So, God’s family should take her in and care for her;

• • Widow w/ finances (6)

exp.: rd v 6; a widow who is self-sufficient, wealthy, resources; lit.: living in luxury; contrast the widow whose concern is the church and the woman whose concern is her own selfishness; she may have no family, but she has her money and her things;

     3. Teach these Warnings (7-8)

exp.: rd v 7,  who is the ‘they’; v 8 (4, 16); The family; If she has relatives, they are responsible for her; if they don’t care for her, then that is a poor witness; they’ve done two things: denied the faith, worse than an unbeliever; opposite of v 4; ungodly; disobedient; no honor; isn’t better to be an unbeliever and be seen as an unbeliever than to be a believer and bring harm to the body as a poor witness?

t.s.: Paul moves quickly to “the list”

III.   Criteria for Widowhood (9-16)

exp.: rd v 9-10; So, it appears that there is a list of those widows who should be cared for. This is good. We need a group of folks in our church who take on this responsibility – to organize those who are truly widows and then to organize care and concern – to lead the church in this matter. There needs to be some organization – a list is made. That list can then begin to tackle or take on specific needs. Screens that need repair, vehicles that need to be made ready for summer, that these widows are being watched over in the COVID-19 era. What is this List? The List: There seems to have been an official ‘order of widows’. These women had certain requirements and if the church had been supported by these ladies, then, by all means, the church should care for them. Titus 2:3-5;

³ Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, ⁴ and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, ⁵ to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.

ill.: J. MacArthur: Their duties surely included helping with the baptism of women, visiting the sick, visiting prisoners, teaching and discipling younger women, helping younger women rear and nurture their children, and providing hospitality for visitors and strangers. They may have also assisted in placing orphans into proper Christian homes. That was a very important ministry in the Roman world since orphaned or abandoned children wound up as slaves, and often as prostitutes or gladiators. With their own husbands gone and their children grown, those widows had the time to pursue such essential ministries.

That such a group of widows existed in the early church is known from extra-biblical sources. In the late first and early second centuries, Ignatius and Polycarp wrote of such an order. Tertullian, who lived in the latter part of the second and early part of the third century, also mentioned it. The third-century document known as the Didascalia and the fourth century ‘Apostolic Constitutions’ also refer to an order of widows.

 – Three Criteria to make the List (9-10)

• • Age
  • Faithfulness
  • Service (good works)
    1. Brought up her children; this isn’t necessarily in the order of preference or prominence, but it definitely deserves some attention. Is there a greater task of importance than a mother to her children? Maybe to her husband?
    2. Hospitable
    3. Washed feet
    4. Cared for the afflicted (θλίβω (thlibō) under pressure to squeeze; it means to be between a rock and a hard place)
    5. Devoted herself to these ‘good works’; good works are a demonstration of godliness in a woman’s life – they demonstrate her beauty.

IV.    Caution/Urge Younger Widows to marry (11-15)

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Downward spiral
            2. Better to Marry

exp.: evidently, some of the widows have fallen for this false teaching in the church, they’ve chased after the things of this world and are causing trouble in the church.

There is something really interesting here that takes place throughout this chapter:

Aside: The order of people who care for widows: (16)

• Children and Grandchildren (v 4)
• Male Relatives (v 8)
• Female Relatives (v 16)

I don’t think this means that the church should ignore widows who have relatives who can care for them. But it does help us in regard to identifying widows in need and our responsibility to care for them.

Conclusion:

So, what is Paul saying here:

1. Anyone can be led astray: Old, young; male, female. We’re all vulnerable to false teaching.

2. But, widows need particular attention, because they are preyed on by others.

–  Widows, in particular, were targeted with false teaching in Ephesus.

But some of you might be asking about this because it isn’t what you see. What I mean is this: the government has taken over the responsibility to care for widows and orphans. And you know what, I’m grateful for those who saw the need and led out in caring for those folks. I’m grateful that our Christian virtues and ethics impacted our government.

But does that mean we ignore the command as given by God to the church? No, it doesn’t. The church needs to step up and care for her widows.

So, with this in mind, let me ask a question: Are you feeling a tug on your heart to care for the widows/widowers? – to make sure they’re ok? – to make sure they’re not being taken advantage of? Maybe the Lord is moving in your heart to step up to this task.

Ill.: Joanne Walker of Corvalis, Montana: Our wedding reception, in my parents’ home, ended late. Mom didn’t try to clean up until the next morning. To her dismay, there were cake crumbs everywhere! “How careless the guests were,” she thought to herself.

Until she went to the kitchen. There, still neatly stacked and clean, were the plates and forks–forgotten by my mother in the busyness of the preparations. In other words, with all of her work, she forgot to set out the very utensils needed to prevent such a mess. In her busyness, she forgot her business.

3. Busyness vs. Business

It’s easy to forget in the busyness of the church what the true business is: imaging God (being the Body of Christ). Let’s not get so busy with things that we overlook a very important part of our church: Our widows – those women (and I might add men) who are truly widows indeed.

Difference between the Y and the I; Busyness leads to questions: Why are their crumbs all over the floor, Why were people so careless? Business, true business leads to the I…what can I do, how can I help?

1 Timothy 5.1-2

Title: The Treatment of Members: Confronting & Caring

Text: 1 Timothy 5:1-2

Introduction: 1 Timothy 5.1-2; Titus 2.1-8; Question: type the answer if you remember – What is our purpose as outlined from our WEBS.

Sometimes I think the whole Christian world is made up of just two groups: those who speak their faith and accomplish significant things for God, and those who criticize and malign the first group.

Don Basham, “On the Tip of My Tongue,”

Today I might sound critical of you… that isn’t my intention. I wish to be a part of the first group here – those who are a part of the solution…

You’ll note from the title of today’s message that the issue today is all about relationships. I have to say that I love it when the topic is relationships. I’ll reiterate what I’ve said so many times: nothing is more important in the church than relationships. If you want to know more, see me after the service. I’m serious…

Relationships are hard. Period. Some are harder than others, but it is what it is: hard! That is why they are so important. They’re important in evangelism, in discipleship, in worship, in prayer, in fellowship and the list goes on. Relationships permeate every aspect of the church. So, we need to get this right.

Think about our Purpose as a body as outlined from Wednesday Night: Imaging God. Our purpose isn’t just to worship. Our purpose isn’t evangelism. Our purpose isn’t discipleship. Yes, we ‘do’ all of these; but our purpose is to Glorify God. There is no commandment greater than Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength. So, the question is, then, “what do we do when we haven’t been imaging God correctly?” We don’t like this part of relationships but confronting members who are not imaging God correctly is our task.

And, this is what I love about Paul’s letter. He’s saying to Timothy, Do the work of confronting, but do it in love! Let your first thought be love. Again, it comes back to relationships!

 

Opening Illustration: Joshua Harris

The Evangelical World has been rocked in the last few years with defectors from the faith. This past year saw Joshua Harris and Marty Sampson, two very high-profile evangelicals announce that they are no longer Christians. Harris announced that he was both divorcing his wife and renouncing his faith.

Joshua Harris: You probably remember Joshua Harris from his book, I Kissed Dating Goodbye. Before those two very big announcements, he made some statements in an interview where he simply said he was having trouble reconciling his theology with his life experience.

I think that there’s a push by some people to say being sex-positive means — the kind of the historical sexual ethic related to sex outside of marriage, related to homosexuality, is basically laid aside, and embracing a healthy view of sex means just accepting all that as fine within the Christian tradition. … I do think though that, for me, in that change of interpretation of such a fundamental level when it comes to sexuality, it’s just hard for me to … In a way, it’s almost easier for me to contemplate throwing out all of Christianity than it is to keeping Christianity and adapting it in these different ways.

This is refreshing in the respect that he can’t reconcile what the world teaches and what the Bible teaches. The problem with liberal theology is that it can’t reconcile both either. Their stance is to just throw out those portions of Scripture. But Harris doesn’t do that. He fully acknowledges that the Bible teaches something contrary to what the world teaches. There is more, and it comes out on Social Media. Using either Instagram or his twitter account, He stated that he isn’t a Christian. He said that based on his definition of what a Christian is, he isn’t. Others have encouraged him to move to a more liberal movement in observing the faith, but he has declared that he isn’t there yet.

Here’s the problem with a false gospel being preached from the pulpits – it creates a bunch of false followers who are in the game for all the wrong reasons. When God doesn’t do what the preachers have promised, then there is frustration and anger (and, I suppose, a step-by-step process of all the stages Kübler-Ross outlined) and eventually, a falling away. This is called a ‘transactional view’ of God. If I do such and such, God will reward me with such and such.

To be honest, my heart hurts for these men and others like them who have left devastated followers in their wake. They preach a gospel of success and happiness that comes through legalism. They don’t call it that, but that is what they promise. Don’t date anymore. Instead of dating, court your future spouse and God will give you the blessings of a wonderful marriage. Joshua lived that out and it failed him. So, he gave up on God. God let him down as he sees it. God didn’t keep his end of the bargain.

Hear what I’m saying: court, date, get married through an arranged marriage. It doesn’t matter which one you choose. In any of those cases, relationships are still hard! Do any of the following and your marriage might end. Do any of the following and your kids might still get sick – they might still die. Any message from a preacher who declares that if you’ll do this then God will do that – is a false doctrine.

Michael and Lisa Gungor are two more folks who experienced the same thing. They did what they thought they were supposed to do. According to her YouTube video, they dated and waited. But when they had a child with down syndrome, doubt began to creep in. They had done what they thought God wanted them to do, but then God didn’t keep his end of the bargain – transactional theology. They both now claim to be atheists.

Marty Sampson: Hillsong United Worship Leader. Oh, praise the name of the Lord our God. Oh, praise his name forevermore.

And, this is precisely what Paul has been warning Timothy about in our letter: don’t let false teachers present a false gospel. The damage they bring is destructive. Hear what I’m saying: court, date, get married through an arranged marriage. It doesn’t matter which one you choose. In any of those cases, relationships are still hard! I reiterate: Do any of the following and your marriage might end. Do any of the following and your kids might still get sick – they might still die. Any message from a preacher who declares that if you’ll do this then God will do that – is a false doctrine.

Look at 4.11-16 with me: ¹⁶ Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.

Now, Paul outlined for Timothy to ‘Command and Teach’ these things: Personal godliness, Preaching the Word, Putting into Practice his giftedness, Diligence over his life and doctrine and focused persistence in keeping a watchful eye over it all.

But how do you command and teach these things? When confronting members, it can be harsh. How do you confront an older man? How do you confront an older woman? Or, brothers and sisters your own age or younger? How do you talk to widows without seeming to be mean or hurtful?

It’s hard! Let’s look at what Paul says to Timothy in 5.1f; rd v 1;

So, the first thing Paul mentions here is how to be direct with members.

1. Confronting Members (1-2)

exp.: This word in Gk for do not rebuke appears nowhere else in the NT or LXX; epi – at or before; plēsō – to strike; to strike at; do not sharply rebuke; it’s a word picture; slapping someone with your words: don’t do it! We use this kind of language when someone says something and we reply: Oh, that hurt! Or That’s hitting below the belt!

Without referring to the OT Law, Paul is using his words like pictures to point them back to the Law.

Exodus 21.15 – ¹⁵ “Whoever strikes his father or his mother shall be put to death.

Leviticus 19.32 – ³² “You shall stand up before the gray head and honor the face of an old man, and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.

With a word, Paul points back to the Law and the requirement to honor and respect your parents. But there is more, disrespect brings condemnation.

Now, remember our context: False Teaching is infiltrating the church; for Timothy, being a teacher who brings strong, sound, healthy doctrine. Confront false teachers who bring false doctrine. Now, Timothy is charged with how to treat members – members of all ages. I think, because of the context, these are members who may very well be spreading the false teaching that they’re hearing.

*Boy, this has to be tough! You want to show honor and respect, but these older men need to be confronted!

Back in 4.12 – Don’t let them despise you because you’re young! Versus: Just because someone is older, doesn’t mean they’re biblical in their teaching! So, you Timothy, have to confront the destructive, false teaching. But how? Well, first, don’t strike at an older man with your words.

He continues, don’t strike with your words, but, instead exhort or encourage; He told Timothy how to do this back up in 4:13; Public Reading of Scripture…

Ill.: This is God’s Word – say that out loud where you are. Hold up your copy of God’s Word and acknowledge that this is God’s Manual for life. I think that is why some older folks don’t like it when people use their phones or their iPad’s, or Kindle. There is something beautiful in the representation of the leather and the paper and the ribbons.

Continuing on in 4.13: The public reading of Scripture, to exhortation (the same word here: encourage), to teaching.

So, Paul is saying, there is a way to confront without. Sure, there is some discomfort. But remember, the goal is to correct – and you can do that without being mean and hurtful. I wonder if sometimes we feel like its personal. I wonder if some of us respond as if someone’s false teaching is an affront to us.

Look back with me at 5.1: Do not rebuke (strike at) an older man but encourage him as you would a father. So, let’s delineate these:

1. Confronting Older Men (v 1)

exp.: an older man; πρεσβύτερος (presbyteros); Elder; this is not the office, but referring to age; probably above 40; more like above 50; no doubt 60; ὡς; as or like, a father; Titus 2.1-2; But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine. And what is sound doctrine? He continues in v.² Older men are to be sober-minded (This means not under the influence), dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. What I find interesting here is that these are the same qualities of an Elder and a Deacon. We hold these men (elders and deacons) to a higher standard – and so we should. But, the standard is no lower for an older man in the church. It doesn’t mean that every man should be an elder or a deacon, but it does mean that every man should live up to the same standard.

Transition: look at the end of 5.1; but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers,

1. Confronting Younger Men (v 1)

exp.: I’m supposing these are young men like Timothy; so, I consider these men his peers; as brothers; I think this comes out better and a bit clearer in Titus 2.6. In Titus, Paul follows a different order. You see there in 2.1-2 he speaks of older men; in 3-5 he speaks of older women and older women. Then in v6, he says: ⁶ Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. That’s it, be self-controlled, but not really, because Titus is a young man, like Timothy, he says: ⁷ Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, ⁸ and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. So, I think these are attributes for the younger men, too: self-controlled (wise minded); committed to good works (btw: the same words given to the women back in 1 Timothy 2. “Don’t let your outward beauty define who you are,” he said, “but be seen as beautiful by your good works.” 3^rd, men of integrity (lit.: incorruptible), dignity, and sound speech. Really, no different than the requirements of all believers.

I think you approach your brother differently than you do your father, for sure. But correction must be made, and it must be done in love.

Transition: back in our text 1 Timothy, look at 5.2;

1. Confronting Older Women (v 2)

exp.: an older woman; same as above; ὡς; as or like, just as you would confront your mom; I get this.

Ill.: Mama Madkins

Now, to think of correcting your mom has to be a weird feeling, right? Now, I’m only talking about doctrinal issues. But the feeling is the same, right?

Transition: Well, Paul gives Timothy one last group…

1. Confronting Younger Women (v 2)

exp.: as sisters; Consider how men feel about the women in their life. We’re very protective of our women and girls. I’m not talking about just fathers and daughters. I’m talking about brothers caring for their sisters. That’s the feeling we should have here: we should be protective of them. Notice the phrase here Paul uses; in all purity; probably just with this last phrase; a 2^nd reminder of the moral responsibility as a man of God; But so it should be for all men in the church.

app.: The Context is that for a pastor, don’t lash out at people; There is an appropriate way to handle problems we have with members; Timothy isn’t to Lord it over them just because he’s the pastor. But instead, he is to confront these brothers and sisters in Christ with respect and dignity and honor (5^th commandment);

I don’t think this is just for a young pastor. We can be this way with each other. We should be, right? And, again, remember the context – false teaching has infiltrated the body. There are those in the church who are practicing and repeating this false doctrine. They have to be confronted and corrected. Otherwise, it can be disastrous for the church.

Consider the 4 people I’ve mentioned in my opening. Be praying for them – I feel pretty sure they would encourage those prayers. But, why would they leave the faith? Consider their theology? Consider their transactional view of God.

Do you remember the story of the rich young man who approached Jesus about inheriting eternal life? Mark 10.17-22;

¹⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’ ” ²⁰ And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.”

I wonder if this young man began to get excited. You see – at this stage of the conversation, it’s all very transactional. You do or don’t do these things and you can inherit eternal life. But Jesus doesn’t stop there. Mark continues: ²¹ And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

For some reason, this hits the young man hard. ²² Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. When it comes to following rules – he was good. But when it came to surrendering his soul to Christ – that was a different call altogether.

Many people think that following Christ is about the do’s and the don’ts, but really, it is all about the surrender. Surrendering yourself completely. When you have a false doctrine of a ‘transactional view’ of God – that he owes you anything because you’ve performed some sort of duty or you’ve kept all these laws since you were young –  When you have that false doctrine as your view, you set yourself up for failure.

I came across this passage this week: Isaiah 46.8-11:

⁸     “Remember this and stand firm,

recall it to mind, you transgressors,

⁹        remember the former things of old;

       for I am God, and there is no other;

I am God, and there is none like me,

¹⁰    declaring the end from the beginning

and from ancient times things not yet done,

       saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,

and I will accomplish all my purpose,’

¹¹    calling a bird of prey from the east,

the man of my counsel from a far country.

       I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass;

I have purposed, and I will do it.

 

God is God alone. He owes no one. And like with Israel, He is at work accomplishing his purpose. All things are for his glory – not ours. He doesn’t have transactions with us to bring Him glory – and he sure doesn’t do it to glorify us. I’m reminded of Romans 11.33-36:

 

³³ Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

³⁴    “For who has known the mind of the Lord,

or who has been his counselor?”

³⁵    “Or who has given a gift to him

that he might be repaid?”

³⁶ For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

1 Tim 4.11-16

Title: The Servant’s Success Comes through Faithfulness

Text: 1 Timothy 4.11-16

CP: Serve in such a way that you are an example to the believers of how they should conduct themselves.

Intro: Did you see this week’s article from the NY Times by Elisabeth Dias: “The Apocalypse as an ‘unveiling’: What religion teaches us about end times.”

She writes: For people of many faiths, and even none at all, it can feel lately like the end of the world is near. Not only is there a plague, but hundreds of billions of locusts are swarming East Africa. Wildfires have ravaged Australia, killing an untold number of animals. A recent earthquake in Utah, even shook the Salt Lake Temple to the top of its iconic spire, causing the golden trumpet to fall from the angel Moroni’s right hand.

Well, to be sure, all of this is for us to gain a picture of what end times will be like and be reminded that they’re coming. Lk 21. ¹⁰ Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. ¹¹ There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.

So yes, we’re near the end times, but this pandemic isn’t the apocalypse. But according to the Lord, these events are warnings or signs of the end. These ‘episodes’ are opportunities for people to come to Christ. They are opportunities for people to see this as a forewarning of the apocalypse to come. That’s why we have the book of Revelation. Just as the Old Testament folks were told of the Christ and given opportunities for repentance – opportunities to trust and follow God, we likewise, are given information and opportunities. By the way, the word apocalypse is the Greek word we translate Revelation.

So how are we to live in this age of pandemics and wars? Do we live in fear? You and I as believers have an advantage over others who walk in darkness. We know who is in charge and that we don’t have to live in fear. Jesus says in the Matthew passage a couple of verses later that the Gospel must be proclaimed to all nations. So, what’s more, important for us to ask is if that is happening. Are we busy doing what we’re supposed to be doing? I would say we must be busy about our work – taking the gospel to the nations – no matter the circumstances surrounding us.

This has been the topic of our study over recent weeks: service, ministry. But, to serve people without sharing the Gospel or without the underlying goal of sharing the Gospel falls short of our goal of letting people know that we’re all sinners, we all need forgiveness and God has provided that forgiveness through His Son Jesus. It’s falling short of what we have been called to do.

So, with this in mind, I’d like to turn our focus onto the individual: You, me.

In our study in 1 Timothy, Paul is encouraging Timothy in his work. Let me cut to the chase – Paul tells Timothy that his success as a servant comes through faithfulness in what he does, in how he does it and in his consistency to that work.

I’ve outlined it this way – The Servant’s Success comes through faithfulness:

• In what you do (11-12)
• In how you do it, and (13-14)
• In your consistency to it (15-16)

Our context is godliness, so keep that in mind as we make our way through this passage on the servant and the task; This theme of godliness really flows throughout the letter. In 3.14-16, Paul states his purpose in writing this letter, to encourage Timothy to teach the church about who she is, how she should behave and what it is she believes. And what she believes is that her godliness comes through the atoning work of Christ through His death, burial, and resurrection. That godliness then comes through the believer’s life in what he does and how he acts.

Don’t forget this: in all of your ‘doing’ it doesn’t make you godly. Let that sink in! This doesn’t mean you don’t do the work of the ministry, but rather that your ministry flows from your godliness – that was the focus last week.

In 4.1, Paul points to the false teachers and their false godliness, achieved by what they do and don’t do. And then in the passage we looked at last week, Paul encourages Timothy in his personal godliness: to nourish himself through the word of God and exercise his godliness daily as he lives out his life.

We’re still in the context of godliness, Paul now brings this section to a conclusion. It is a transitional paragraph to more teaching on how the church should behave; on how they should be godly in their behavior toward each other. So, Paul focuses now on Timothy’s work – his service. And just what is that work? We see it in v11, v13, and v16: teaching.

Timothy is encouraged to faithfully serve through his teaching – which combats the false teachers and directs the believers in a proper direction and understanding.

So, these are the three sections

The Servant’s Success comes through faithfulness:

• In what you do (11-12)
• In how you do it, and (13-14)
• In your consistency to it (15-16)

Transition: let’s look 1^st at The Servant’s Success come through faithfulness:

1. In what you do

exp.: Timothy is commanded here: imperatives; there are actually 12 imperatives from v6-16; there are 10 in our text (11-16); I’ve lost some of you kids; you guys know what an imperative is: clean your room; take out the trash; It is a command; Paul is giving his orders to Timothy; command and teach these things; ‘these things’ is repeated (6, 11, 15, v 16 pronoun); this is the job you’ve been assigned – do your job!

But Paul anticipates problems for Timothy, more problems of what he’s probably been dealing with; rd v 12; We see in v 11-12 two areas of focus:

1. A Focus on others: Command & Teach these things
2. A Focus on Oneself: Let no one despise (think against) you, but set the example (‘be the type’); tupos; type, be the type of Christian you’re teaching them to be.
3. In 5 ways: Speech, Conduct, Love, Faith, and Purity.

Our focus this morning is on the servant. The context is, of course, Timothy. He is the pastor there. But as a servant, the same principles apply to you. You want to do what you have been called to do, and you want to do it faithfully. And as you serve, you want to be the type of Christian that is an example for others to follow. Notice the 1^st two characteristics (Speech & Conduct) are external and the last two (Faith & Purity) are internal. Love binds them all together.

What’s even more interesting to me is that these characteristics are the exact opposite of what the false teachers were presenting.

The False Teachers were just the opposite

• In Speech: They were babblers, vain, foolish talkers (1.6)
• In Conduct: these guys have brought disrepute upon the church and have caused many to stray (6.10)
• In Love: These guys are lovers of money and themselves (3.3; 6.10)
• In Faith: they’ve made shipwreck of their faith (1.19); departed from the faith (4.1)
• In Purity: which these guys have stained; their false teaching spreads like gangrene (6.12; 2 Tim 2.17)

app.: But not so with Timothy, and not so with you and me, as we set the believers an example to be followed.

t.s.: The Servant’s Success comes through faithfulness: In what you do, and next, in how you do it.

2. In how you do it (13-14)

exp.: rd v 13a; until I come, harkens back to his expectation of delay, as seen in 3.14; I can’t help but hear the Word of the Lord for us to devote ourselves to the work He has called us to do. Rd 6.6f; ⁶ But godliness with contentment is great gain, ⁷ for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.

Mt. 28.¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Js 5 ⁷ Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. ⁸ You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

Repeated in God’s Word we’re encouraged, exhorted to our word from the text, to devote ourselves to the task at hand, to serve faithfully, because the Lord’s return is imminent.

Look at v 14; rd v 14; as before, so we see again how Paul calls charges Timothy to conduct his work with a focus on others but to not neglect a focus on himself in fulfilling this duty. Two areas of focus:

1. A Focus on others through ministry: Command & Teach these things
2. A Focus on Oneself in that ministry: Let no one despise (think against) you, but set the example

1. A Focus on others through ministry: Public Reading of Scriptures, Exhortation, Teaching
2. A Focus on Oneself in that ministry: Do not neglect the gift you have;

I love that teaching is focused on again (11&13); because teaching is his ministry, it is his service.

app.: Your gifting may be teaching, just like Timothy’s. But your gifting may be in other areas. I don’t know what you’ve been called to do but do it well. Success in your service comes through faithfulness to what you do and how you do it (utilizing your gifts).

t.s.: finally, The Servant’s Success comes through faithfulness:

3. In your consistency

exp.: Look at the three words Paul uses to encourage Timothy’s consistency: practice, immerse, persist; I love the word practice – as in what lawyers and doctors do: they practice law or medicine. The idea of practicing something means to apply what you’ve been theorizing. It is the application of your contemplation. Cambridge Dictionary: action rather than thoughts or ideas. And that fits so well with servants who consider what they’re called to do and then practice it. Practice, immerse yourself, persist in this; actually, the pronoun is plural. I like most other translations: persist in these.

Transition: Now, before you think my message is teaching that the results depend solely upon the servant and his ability to keep to the task…

ill.: E. Stanley Jones, Methodist Missionary to India in the early 1900s, presents a wonderful illustration that fits our teaching this morning. He says there are three types of people. There is the rowboat Christian who knows what to do and does it. The work hard and things move. But, if they stop, so does the work. The work is dependent on their abilities, their strength, and – well, it just depends totally upon them. But progress is slow and hard.

There is the 2^nd person – the sailboat. This person knows what to do, but success is so dependent upon other things: circumstances, situations, etc. Sailboat Christians can get so much done when life is good and everything is moving along with no interruptions, with nothing to sideline them. As the sailboat can move so much faster than a rowboat, at times, it just sits dead in the water because it is so dependent upon outside forces.

And finally, there is the Steamboat. Steamboat Christians move forward because of what’s inside. It’s circumstances of wind, or a lack of wind, don’t stop it. It progresses against the current, against the wind, and just keep chugging along because of what is inside. And for the believer, we understand this is the Spirit of the Living God taking up residence in our souls, empowering us.

app.: This is so important to remember because a life of service without the spirit is legalism. This is our first take-a-way for the day.

Take-aways:

1.  A life of service without the Spirit is legalism. There are a lot of people working really hard during this time. You can identify this problem in your own life because those who are doing this work in their own power usually grow resentful and bitter.

I’m reminded of a MASH scene where a sickness runs through the camp. For some reason, Father Mulcahy doesn’t get the sickness and he serves others with such excitement. I think because so often he feels useless. Now, while others are in need, he can serve – and he does. In this scene, he’s washing the soiled sheets in a big washbasin and just singing, “This is the way we wash our sheets, wash our sheets, wash our sheets…” Now Major Winchester comes in from some time away and he walks into this sickness running throughout the camp.” He’s needed, but he doesn’t want to serve. Major Houlihan says otherwise. The scene ends with Major Winchester washing the sheets with him singing the same song Father Mulcahy sings, only he’s obviously not as enthusiastic.

A life of service without the Spirit is no different than what the Pharisees did. And with that comes a vengeance to protect the position you’re in and not the people you’re serving.

So how do you keep from getting that way? Can I share from experience? I think Paul does a great job of reminding us through his letter to Timothy that we need to keep our focus on two spheres: our work to others and ourselves. For ourselves, he uses negatives:

2.  Remember the two spheres of focus:

1. 1. Service – serving others, but in our work don’t forget:
   2. Self – you have to take care of yourself.
      1. Be the example of what a servant is. (don’t let others despise you)
      2. Use your gifts, serve out of who you are. (don’t neglect your gift)

3.  Remember as you serve the Lord, he’s fully aware of what is going on.

Do you remember the story of the Lord’s Supper? Do you remember how it all came about? In Mark 14.12-16 it reads: ¹² And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?” ¹³ And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, ¹⁴ and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ¹⁵ And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us.” ¹⁶ And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

Now, note that the Lord knows a man is going to be coming their way entering into the city – at the same time they’re there. 2^nd, they follow this man to a house – where he goes in and they follow him. Notice also, the room is already prepared!

I’ve learned through the years that God sends us to places he already knows about and has already worked out the details. I promise you: God already knows about this virus and how it will play out in our lives. If he calls you into service, he’s worked out your details, too. God is going to do what he does to glorify himself.

1 Timothy 4.6-10

Title: The Servant’s Struggle

Text: 1 Timothy 4.6-10

CP: A good servant of Christ who teaches others, is intentional in receiving nourishment through God’s Word and living out a life of godliness before them.

Intro: With COVID-19 shutting down the way the church practices, I’ve had to sit down and put to paper what I think will need to change. I was inspired by Ed Stetzer’s podcast/blog from his basement this past Monday morning. He said: this is not the crisis!

From there he recommended church leaders work through 4 phases:

1. Pause and Pivot
2. Prepare and Plan
3. Engage and Execute
4. Recover & Re-emerge

He said too many pastors were stuck in Phase one, thinking the crisis was that they couldn’t worship together in church. But there is really so much more. In Phase Two, he asks: What needs to change? How does it need to change? And I think, for larger organizations, who on the team is responsible to implement that change?

Well, that got me thinking through that process. I don’t want to bore you with the details, but I quickly jotted down a few items. Worship together changes, Communication changes, and the way we serve changes.

Some people serve more naturally than others. It’s their gift. But according to Scripture, we’re all to be servants. We’re supposed to be like Jesus, our Master – ‘who came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.’

So, as I looked at this particular area of service, I began to work through what service will be like for Christians during this pandemic. If you’ve served as an usher for 30 years, that isn’t going to be happening during the next few weeks. So how do we adapt?

I’ll have more on this on Wednesday night. For now, let’s talk about Service and being a servant.

We’re in 1 Timothy 4 this morning. We’ll pick up in verse 6-10.

The immediate context is godliness. I’m reminded of how Becky coined the phrase: Context is King.

Can I say a quick word about that? Lots of ‘preachers’/’teachers’ are putting out their devotionals because they can’t meet with their folks. There is some crazy stuff out there. Some people bringing devotionals without any Scripture. Others, using Scripture way out of context. Now, I’m not trying to dog on pastors and leaders trying to stay in touch with their congregation. But, remember: Context is king. Don’t just read one verse and assume you know what it means.

For our context: Godliness (εὐσέβεια) appears 15x’s in the NT; 14 of those in the Pastoral Epistles and 10 in this letter alone. When considering what the context of this letter is all about, you’ve definitely got to put godliness up at the top of your list.

But we also find it in our immediate context, godliness is mention in 3.16 (the mystery of godliness). And it appears twice in our text (4.7, 8) this morning.

Paul gives his purpose for writing the letter in 3.14-15. In v 16, he gives this beautiful Statement of Faith in Christ – the mystery of godliness. You’ll remember from two weeks ago that as we looked at this ‘Statement of Faith’ we find that Godliness isn’t gained from obeying and doing the works of the Law. It is gained through the work of Christ on the Cross.

But in chapter 4.1, Paul demonstrates to Timothy that false teachers are teaching falsely about what godliness is. They were evidently teaching Asceticism – don’t eat, don’t drink, sex is bad. He warns of false godliness.

Now, he turns his attention toward the servant of God who demonstrates godliness in their lives. And this is where it hits home for us – especially at this time. Read with me:

A Good Servant of Christ Jesus:

⁶ If you put these things before the brothers,

you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus,

being trained: nourished

in the words of the faith

and of the good doctrine that you have followed (Lk 1.3; 2 Tim 3.10).

⁷ Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths.

Rather train yourself work out; gymnasium for godliness;

⁸ for while bodily training work out; gymnasium is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

⁹ The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance.

¹⁰ For to this end, we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. (it is work)

Transition: I’ve outlined three areas of life where a good servant of Christ is intentional:

1. A Good Servant of Christ Jesus is intentional in being nourished in God’s Word (6).
2. A Good Servant of Christ Jesus is intentional in how they live out their godliness before others (7).
3. A Good Servant of Christ Jesus is intentional in sharing their faith with others because they have eternity in mind.

So let’s begin with our first point:

I.     A Good Servant of Christ Jesus is intentional in being nourished in God’s Word (6).

exp.: rd 6a; What are ‘these things’? 3.14-15 – how they are to behave, who they are, what they are to believe. Rd 6b; trained; in our text, we find this word ‘train’ 3x’s; but, there are two different words in the Gk; this word is the word meaning ‘to nourish’; the root of this word is found in Mt 6.26; ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Added to this, this word means to continually be nourishing yourself; It’s a present passive participle; continually being nourished;

1. Nourished in two ways:
   1. In the Words of the Faith; this is the ‘Apostolic’ faith; there is a definite article here. You’ll note a particular faith – the faith; you and I have that here; The Bible.
   2. Of the Good Doctrine, you have followed; Doctrine could be translated teaching. You have followed. Paul has mentioned some of these people who taught Timothy in other places in his letters. 2 Tim 1.5 we learn that he first followed the teaching he received from his mama and his grandmother. 2 Tim 3.10-16;

Ill.: my examples:

my Nana – every morning and every night;

my Paul was Bro. Bill;

My practice for reading the Bible through in 1 year.

1. The Law
2. The History
3. The Writings
4. The Prophets
5. The New Testament

app.: Children, ask your momma how she reads the Bible. Ask your Grandmother, how she reads the Bible. Ask your father, also. Learn their secrets. Can I make a recommendation? The Big Picture Story Book, by David Helm. Also, Kevin DeYoung’s The Biggest Story. Great for devotional reading with your kids and grandkids.

app.: Christian, you need to be intentional about your nourishment. Maybe this lockdown has your schedule all messed up. It has me. I get up and go straight to the Coronavirus reports in the News. How many more cases? How many more deaths? Where are we in the #s? Before I know it, my time is slipping away.

t.s.: As a Good Servant of the Lord, be intentional about your spiritual nourishment.

II.    A Good Servant of Christ Jesus is intentional in how they live out their godliness before others (7-9).

exp.: rd v 7; First, they avoid irreverent, silly myths. 2^nd, Rather train yourself… this word ‘train’ is different than the previous one. It is the word from which we get our English word Gymnasium. Now we usually say: Are you going to the Gym? Whereas in the previous section you ‘work in’ that nourishment; here, you ‘work out’ your godliness before others. You practice it. You exercise it.

Wouldn’t it be nice, if we just became godly when we accepted Christ? All addictions, all bad habits, all ungodliness was gone? Yeah, it doesn’t work that way. It is something we have to be intentional about. It ain’t at all-natural.

And this workout – it serves a dual purpose:

1. The here and now, for the present.
2. The hereafter, for the future.

Rd v 8; verse 9 tells us this is some kind of statement that was popular in Paul’s day. Rd v 9;

app.: now, how are we godly in a lockdown? 1^st of all, not all of you are in lockdown. We have some folks in our church who are on the frontline of this defense. EMT’s who are having to make ambulance calls to the sick; Nurses; Doctors (Andrew O’Kelly); These people are our heroes; They’re leading the fight in a different kind of War;

Thank you, heroes, for your service. Thank you for your example of bravery.

But for many others, you’re limited in your activity toward others. Well, as Christians, I think we should be brave, too – and help those who need help. I’ll talk some more about this Wednesday night, but there might just be opportunities for you to serve those around you – in your neighborhood or your neck of the woods (without putting you or your family at risk). Sure, there are risks, but you can practice good hygiene and practice smart actions toward the sick.

t.s.: Let’s conclude this… A good servant of Christ Jesus is intentional:

• In being nourished in God’s Word
• In how you live out your godliness before others

 

III.   A Good Servant of Christ Jesus is intentional in sharing their faith with others because they have eternity in mind. (8-10)

exp.: rd v 10a; toil and strive; toil has to do with work/labor; it something we continually work at. No one really gets there this side of heaven. The Gk word here for ‘strive’ is the word from which we get our English word meaning to agonize. Think of that striving and straining in your exercise. Many people do exercise. I mean, they’re crazy about it.

ill.: Personally, I like to summit 14ers in Colorado. Someday, I hope to stand atop all 54. In order to climb a mountain, I have to be intentional about being in good physical condition when I go there. I hike and climb. I try to drop some pounds. I’m very intentional. I tell you – when you’re striving like that, you get your sweat on!

app.: Do the same for your spiritual training. Get that nourishment from God’s Word. Practice your godliness – work that out. And keep in mind that all of this is about your salvation and the salvation of others. We have set our hope on God… Hope doesn’t mean being wishful. It is certain knowledge of what is to come and knowing it will one day be.

Take-aways:

1. True godliness is deeply rooted in the Mystery of Christ (3.16). It is because of Christ’s work that we’re godly. So, nothing you do makes you godly. Only by what Christ has done are you godly. Please don’t confuse your ‘exercise’ and ‘nourishment’ as making you godly. With that in mind:
2. We do what we do because of the hope we have – and the hope we want others to have.
   1. Your service – your godliness, born out of a life nourished in God’s Word and mentored by godly men and women, is a testimony to others.
   2. Your service isn’t ‘a work’ that makes you godly, but rather a result of your godliness.
3. Being a good servant isn’t easy
   1. Personal nourishment is required, and this takes discipline
      1. From God’s Word (not Christian music; not inspirational stories)
      2. From those who’ve gone before
   2. Godliness is something you work out in your life.
      1. There is great value here and now.

There is great value in the hereafter. – and this helps us with the big picture.

1 Timothy 4.1-5

Title: Asceticism: The false appearance of godliness

Text: 2 Timothy 4.1-5

Introduction: We’ll begin in 2 Timothy 4 and at some point look at 1 Corinthians 7 & Mark 7. So, go ahead and find those other texts.

We all filter our experiences through our worldview. You have one, whether you know it or not. Hopefully, it is a Biblical Worldview. That is the main reason I love Starting Points. It is a great class for helping your children develop a Biblical Worldview. In that class, a student creates a filter, a colander of sorts. This filter is based upon God’s Word. Then, as life goes by and these students watch movies or read books or articles, they will filter what they hear through their worldview.

Story of Peter: This is what happens to Peter in Acts 10. God is at work in the lives of two individuals: Peter and Cornelius. Tell the Story.

God is changing Peter’s worldview. He is seeing that Gentiles could get saved. He’s seeing that Gentiles could get saved and not have to become Jews first.

That illustration, that example, that story was experienced and written down for your and my benefit. The Holy Spirit was at work in the lives of those men to teach us. If you keep reading in Acts 11, you’ll see that Peter reports back to the leadership in Jerusalem. By the time we get to Acts 15, so many Gentiles are being saved that the Jews must deal with this issue of OT laws. Their worldview was changing.

But not everyone could get on board with this new way of thinking. Too many Jews, who had become Christians, just couldn’t give up the law. For one reason or another, they held to their Jewish worldview of legalism.

Now, fast-forward a couple of decades to where the Gospel has spread… well, all the way to Rome. And even though it had been concluded that Gentiles did not have to become Jews before they could get saved – the old worldview still corrupted the church through false teaching.

Review of last week’s message and how we got to this place.

Who the Church is! What the church does (behavior)! What the church believes! And when we do these things – live out what we believe, they call us “Christians”. You’re just like your ‘Savior’, Jesus.

But there is a problem, in our text – this isn’t what the false teachers were preaching and teaching: This faith – the mystery of godliness. Their view of godliness was earned. Godliness came through regulation and rules, through abstinence and denial. It came through following Old Testament Laws that no longer were required because Christ had fulfilled the Law.

So Paul gives Timothy three actions of the believer to combat against False Godliness (Asceticism). Look with me at our text in 1 Timothy 4.1-5; it actually begins in the verse before – that statement of faith. The mystery of Godliness is that godliness no longer comes through rituals and rules! Godliness comes through Christ. We become like him. He is the fulfillment of all righteousness.

So Paul says to Timothy that Ungodliness will infiltrate teaching in the church. Expect it to be taught, here are a couple of examples, and recognized the error in that teaching by knowing the Truth. Repeat. False Godliness

• Expect it to be taught
• Identify it when you see it. Here are some examples of it (What it is…)
• Understand what it does: it steals your joy! (What it does…)

Transition: So, let’s take these actions one at a time.

Three actions to combat against False Godliness (Asceticism):

I.     Expect it (1-2)

exp.: rd v 1; Really? People will actually do this? Yes, and you know this because the Holy Spirit has told you so. You should expect this false teaching to promote false godliness. It will be preached and taught and there will be those who will listen and follow – and as a result, they will be led away. The Holy Spirit expressly says, declares, and makes it known to us. It is going to happen, so don’t be surprised, expect it. Timothy repeats this in his next letter: cf. 2 Tim 3.1-7;

This is the beauty of our faith: we have the Holy Spirit to guide us. We don’t walk alone and we don’t walk in ignorance. When you become a believer by faith, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in your spirit. This is one of the foundational, rudimentary doctrines of our faith. And we experience him in various ways as he guides, directs, teaches…

A thing or two about false teachers and those who follow them:

• They don’t lose their salvation – they leave the faith (1a) as opposed to losing their faith; is there a difference? You bet there is! 1 John 2.19 – ¹⁹ They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.
• Their devotion is to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons (1b)
• They ignore the foundation of truth and they follow the insincerity of liars (2)
• Their false doctrine leads to your false godliness: these people devote themselves to the wrong people and wrong actions thinking that those actions or behaviors are what makes them godly.

Transition: as a Christian, you’ve been forewarned of this invasion of the enemy: Expect it. Now that you know it is going to happen, how do you prepare for it? And this is our 2^nd Action:

II.    Identify it (3)

exp.: You should be aware of what this false teaching looks like, in order that you might avoid its pitfall. Rd v 3; these folks were told that marriage was forbidden and sinful, as well as, they were required to abstain from certain foods. For sure, this isn’t an exhaustive list, it isn’t every doctrine that is false – it is only two of them.

• Lies about marriage: Celibacy/Single; today it would be cohabitation; sex outside of marriage; Gay marriage

exp.: We see this doctrine of marriage being misunderstood from the beginning of Christianity. Consider Paul’s counsel for people to remain single – in order that their devotion might be single-minded. 1 Cor. 7.1-9; rd v 1; just that alone, appears to say that marriage shouldn’t happen. But, when you read more, you realize that just isn’t the case. Rd 2-5; Sex is to be enjoyed within the confines of marriage. Outside of that context and you have misery. Look at 6-9;

Paul says within the confines of marriage, sex is good. But false teachers say, no – sex is bad. This is Satan’s greatest victory over Christians: he takes what God gives us and perverts it in one of two ways. First, he takes the gift of God and expands the boundaries to include everyone and everything. Or, 2^nd, he goes the other way and limits the gift of God to the point that you never find joy in God’s gift.

Did you know that throughout most of the history of Christianity that sex has been seen as bad? R Kent Hughes has done some great research on this subject. He identifies many teachings throughout Christian history which identify sexual love as being wicked and evil. Tertullian, Ambrose, and Augustine wrote of the evils of sexual love. He quotes Ambrose: married people ought to blush at the state in which they are living. Augustine said that the sexual relationship in marriage was innocent, but the passion which comes along with the act is always sinful. The early church fathers praised virginity as superior to marriage. The Council of Trent denounced any who would deny such a thing. And the reformers didn’t help matters! Do you know who actually began to turn the tide on this thinking? The Puritans! Hughes quotes Dr. Leland Ryken: The Puritan doctrine of sex was a watershed on the cultural history of the West. The Puritans devalued celibacy, glorified compassionate marriage, affirmed married sex as both necessary and pure, established the ideal of wedded romantic love, and exalted the role of the wife.

I’ve got to be honest – I was so not expecting that! To be declared Puritanical is to declare a rigid, frigid, and presented in a negative way. When one thinks of Puritans, they don’t think of sex education. So, to clarify: I like what the Puritans had to teach! Let’s get this straight. Sex is great when understood as within the context of God’s design. That’s right, I said that from the pulpit. Sex is a wonderful gift from God. Enjoy it within the confines of marriage. Here is your warning: If you engage in this activity outside of that context, then you will experience pain, destruction, sorrow, depression, and all such misery. If you’re listening to me right now, please identify this false doctrine.

Paul then gives us a 2^nd doctrine to identify.

• Lies about foods: Don’t eat and Don’t drink

exp.: These two examples seem to be right out of the beginning of Genesis, don’t they? I think of Eve’s words – Don’t eat it, don’t even touch it. There are denominations that exist today that take the Old Testament Laws on forbidden, unclean food and apply it to their people. It is a lie that has been perpetuated throughout time. And Southern Baptists aren’t any different. We still apply traditional prohibitions to people – we say if you’re saved you can’t… eat this or that, or we say you can’t drink this or that.

It reminds me of the old country song from the ’70s that was sung by the Imperials as a dig toward conservatives: if you have long hair, then you can’t be saved. That was the big thing in the ’60s and ’70s: cut your hair and shave your beard! Some of you know what I’m talking about…

ill.: the big joke was of the boy who wanted to get a car. He begged his dad. His dad said that his grades were low, his room was a mess and his hair was too long – it needed to be cut. The son agreed to work on those things. The next report card came out and he had all A’s. His father acknowledged his room had been clean and looking really nice. The Dad said, “But son, you didn’t cut your hair.” The son said, “Yes, sir, I know, but Jesus had long hair. And without missing a beat the Dad said, “Yeah, but he walked everywhere he went, too.”

app.: I’m so glad we’ve moved beyond the coat and the tie requirement. And I’m glad you don’t have to cut your hair and your beard to be saved. But we still aren’t there if we put requirements of food and drink on people to declare their salvation and godliness.

Transition: Teaching on False Godliness – expect it, identify it and 3rdly…

III.    Understand what it does:

exp.: it steals your joy – You should know the truth about these doctrines. You should know and identify their parameters for your own health and safety; whether marriage or food – both are created by God and to be enjoyed by his people! Rd v 4-5; Everything God made is Good! Everything! ³¹ And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.

Turn with me to Mark 7.14-23; rd Mk 7.14-23; when you choose to put limits on God’s gifts, then you miss out on the joy God intended for you to experience. Here’s our problem: we over-indulge in the gifts of God – and that can be a bad thing. Whenever you over-indulge in the gifts, you begin to seek the gift more than the giver of those gifts. Over-indulgence is a bad thing, just as exclusion is a bad thing. There is a happy medium that we need to find.

So, let’s bring the pendulum back to the middle. Let’s stop the extremes of God’s gifts: denial and abstinence or license and debauchery. And instead, enjoy all that this life offers as given by God. Amen?

Truth:

• Fasting can bring you closer to God. But this is a serious endeavor and should not be embarked upon without preparation. May I be bold enough to say, yes – many of us need to fast.
• Paul said in 1 Cor 7 that abstinence from your marriage partner for a time can be beneficial to your soul. But don’t use this as an excuse and don’t hurt your spouse with it. Sex isn’t a tool to use for getting what you want. It is a wonderful experience of intimacy in the marriage as created by God.
• But God gave you these gifts to enjoy in life. Wow… go figure, God wants you to find pleasure in this life and you will find your pleasure in life when you are most satisfied in Him.

Take-a-ways:

1. If you are not enjoying God’s gifts, get some help. Get help for the sake of your marriage. Get help for the sake of your sanity. Get help for the sake of your family.

I can’t tell you how many people I’ve met with and offered counsel to over these issues. Many of us bought into the lies of the world and the false doctrines brought into the church and we experienced the depression, the sadness, the anger, the abuse, and the emotional rollercoaster that comes with disobedience. And, we carried that baggage into our marriages. Husbands and wives have fought over these issues because they still feel guilty. Hey get help, get forgiveness, forgive yourself and live life to its fullest. Stop wallowing in your misery. It’s not healthy.

2. Understand the beauty of moderation – The pendulum extremes are indulgence or abstinence. No, let’s find a happy medium here.

Here’s the thing about moderation – don’t impose your rules upon others. And, don’t confuse your activity or your inactivity with godliness. Just because you’re skinny doesn’t mean you’re godly. Just because you don’t physically cheat on your spouse, doesn’t mean you’re godly. Here’s the big problem with these false teachers – they impose a set of rules as requirements for godliness. Don’t do the same thing.

3. Never confuse godliness with ritual or routine. Yes, it is important to come to church every Sunday, but that doesn’t demonstrate godliness either. Don’t confuse the two.

I wonder if it saddens the Father to see us missing out on the wonderful life he has designed because we fall for the lies of Satan? I wonder if he thinks that he made it so simple and we complicate it all. I wonder if it breaks his heart to see

• a young woman destroyed by her decisions;
• a young man suffering from his decisions;
• a family broke apart by someone outside that family
• a person’s understanding that they are godly because they do this or that and avoid this or that.

Can I just conclude with this plea: God has created life to be enjoyed to the fullest possible extent. He created it, he designed it and wrote the manual on how it should be run. Will you trust him with it all?

If you’ve been trying to obtain godliness through all of your action or inaction, can offer you a moment to repent of that? Maybe you’ve never come to Christ and found the forgiveness of your sins. You’ve played the game of life and you’ve lost. Come to Christ. You can email us at tarpleybaptistchurch@gmail.com.

1 Timothy 3.14-16

Title: Church Matters

Text: 1 Timothy 3.14-16

Intro: What is the church? Why does she exist? And why should you care? I mean, why all of this organization? Do you really want deacons or elders? Does a statement of faith really mean a whole lot? Why should you be a member here? Does “church” even really matter?

 

There was a period in my life when I did not like the church of God. I loved God. I still do! But the church, it just turned me off. I decided I did not want to go to another church as Pastor. If I left the First Baptist Church of Worland, Wyoming, then I would go and plant a church. I didn’t want to deal with people and their traditions. I wanted to start fresh.

Well, I didn’t. I went to Calvary in Tyler. And once again, I said to myself, if ever I leave here, I’m not going to an established church.

There have been many times the church has left me frustrated and disillusioned. I tell you this today because I want you to know that if you’ve ever felt that frustration toward church – I get it. But that isn’t the way it is supposed to be.

I don’t feel that way anymore. I’m not so much ashamed of the church anymore. I think the church is a beautiful place to be. Sure, she isn’t perfect. But she is God’s design. Now, I have a special place in my heart for her. That’s why I’m here with you guys – I hope to help us be the church God has designed.

Do you remember KAL-007? I’m guessing you won’t from those numbers and letters. KAL (Korean Airlines) Flt 007; it was a New York City to Seoul, Korea flight that had a stop in Anchorage. Back in 1983, GPS was in existence, but not everyone had that capability. The Pilots had made a technical error in charting the flight path and ended up way off course – actually, over Russian air space. The airliner was shot down by the Russians and ended up in the Sea of Japan.

Today’s message is all about the church: Who we are. What we believe. How we ought to behave. My message is about the course that has been charted out for us – by one who knows the way. My hope is that you’ll have a greater affection and a deeper appreciation for the church when we’re finished this morning. And, what’s more, you’ll desire to be a strong part of her existence – because she matters!

God has given us a map to follow, but too often, we don’t follow it. We want to chart our own path. He has charted our course, but too often, we think we can do a better job. The results can be disastrous.

This text is Paul’s Purpose Statement for the letter. Let’s read this together (rd 14-16): His purpose in writing is so that they would know how they ought to behave, who they are in Christ, and what they ought to believe. Those are the three points for today, by the way.

This is near and dear to me because I’ve been working on the Church’s Constitution and Bylaws with the Trustees. These documents declare who Tarpley Baptist Church is and why Tarpley Baptist Church exists. These documents present your statement of faith and the polity by which you function and are organized. These documents answer the questions: What is the church? Why does she exist? And why you should care?

For the previous two weeks, we’ve covered the two separate offices of a church: Elder & Deacon. We pick up in v 14-15 where we see the answer to this question:

1. What is the Church?

exp.:

• The Household of God: God’s family; I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God. Last week in Bible Study the Men looked at Romans 8 – I was so grateful to be reminded of the fact that we’re heirs with Christ because we’ve been adopted into the family of God. In Romans 8, from verse 12-17, you’ll find so many references to us being in this new family: brothers, sons of God, adoption as sons, we cry, “Abba, Father”; ¹⁶ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. I think it’s interesting that Paul adds that 2^nd We love the “children of God” part, but don’t like the “provided we suffer” part. 1^st, we’re members of the household of God. 2^nd,
• The Church of the Living God: The Word church in the original language is a compound word that means, “called out”. We’re the “called out” ones. God has called us out of the world and invited us to become his own people. But there is more here! The Church of the … Living God! If you go back to Paul’s first experience at Ephesus, he was harshly treated. I’m guessing many of these people would have been in the crowd of thousands upon thousands of people who were screaming for Paul’s head. Do you remember reading of the story in Acts 19, where Paul was accused of turning people from worshiping the idol, Artemis of the Ephesians? This phrase here, in this letter to them, would have caused many of them to remember Paul’s teaching that Artemis was a fabricated god of stone and wood. The man who started the riot at Ephesus was a Silversmith who created silver shrines of Artemis. He was losing business. So, he got the people all riled up and they rioted. Paul is declaring: Our God, he is the living God! His presence is with us! Where 2 or more are gathered in my name…rd 15c;
• Guardians of the Truth – God’s Word; You and I have something absolutely incredible that has been preserved for us for 1,000’s of years. It’s truly amazing. We have the Truth of God in the Word of God! Jesus, when praying in John 17 said, “Your Word is Truth”. Paul, as he wrote to these same people in his letter to Ephesus wrote: ¹³ In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁴ who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

app.: You are the Household of God, you are the church of the living God, and you are the guardians of the Truth. That’s why the way you live is so very important for the rest of the world to see.

t.s.: which is point # 2; Point # 1, the Church, Point # 2…

2. Her Conduct: How she ought to behave

exp.: This has been each of my sermons to this point; that is what this letter has been about: 1^st, pray for:

1. Kings and all who are in high positions (2.1-2)
2. Toward their pastor (4.12; 2.11-15; 5.17)
3. Toward the elderly in their congregation (5.1-3)
4. Slaves toward their Masters (6.1-2)
5. The Rich toward others (6.17)

refuting false teaching and false doctrine; respecting and honoring those in positions of authority; respecting and honoring those who are older; organizing the church’s leadership; recognizing and fulfilling roles and responsibilities within the church;

app.: there is no need to spend more time on this here, but for now, just note the call for them to act like the Christians they claim to be!

t.s.: 1^st, the church and who she is; 2^nd, how she should behave; 3^rd, Her Confession

3. Her Confession: What she believes

exp.: Gk a compound word that means ‘to say the same thing”.

ill.: A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God: Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow.

app.: So it is when 100 believers are tuned to the one same confession. Tozer says: So one hundred worshipers met together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be were they to become “unity” conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship.

Paul, then mentions the tenets of this faith – the same faith we all possess. The tenets of this confession:

• Manifested: Christ, though he was in nature God, chose to let go of his position in heaven and ‘emptied’ himself and came to earth to live as a man – and not just any man, he became the lowest form of a man – a servant. He humbled himself. And, as Philippians says, he became obedient, even unto death. He was buried in a borrowed tomb.
• Vindicated: or justified, or declared righteous by the Spirit. The Bible teaches that although Jesus was dead, he didn’t stay that way. The Holy Spirit vindicated him and brought life to his dead body, displaying for all of us that Jesus is God’s Son. Jesus was raised from the Dead! More than just dying for our sins, he was raised to life again. Paul opens his letter to the Romans with this: 1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, ² which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, ³ concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh ⁴ and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord…
• Seen by angels: at his birth, at his resurrection, at his ascension. All of heaven offered praises to Him testifying to who he is – the Risen Son of God! But it could have another meaning: messenger. The word ‘angel’ a transliteration of ἄγγελος is Messenger. The Hebrew word is Malachi; So, could the Confession, then, be a statement of the apostles who witnessed the resurrection and testified about it? They are the messengers mentioned here. Scholars disagree.

Manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit who raised him from the dead, seen by angels, or by messengers – and this fits well with the next part of the confession – proclaimed among the nations…

• Proclaimed among the Nations: this is what the apostles did starting in Jerusalem, then to Judea and Samaria and even to the uttermost parts of the world. And what is their message? Just this: Jesus Christ, God with us, God who became flesh, who lived and died for our sin. Buried and raised to life again. This was their commission as given by Christ himself: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Mt 28.18-20
• Believed on in the World: This is the message of the book of Acts: They start with 120 persons in the upper room and expand to thousands as the Gospel is proclaimed to the World. Acts 1.15; 2.47 – and the Lord added day by day to their number those who were being saved.
• Taken up in glory: This, of course, refers to the ascension of Christ, but I think hints at the future. I say this because everything seems to flow in progression until you come to this phrase. It seems out of place unless of course, it is referring to the future. Ryken says this denotes, in particular, the glory, majesty, and sublimity of God. By virtue of his resurrection, Jesus is exalted and enthroned. He radiates the glory of God. What better way to end a hymn than with the glorious praise of the glorious Christ? He continues: Epiphanius had this glory in clearly in mind when he composed his “Second Creed” – a confession of praise that strikes a joyous chord in every believer’s soul: “The Word became flesh; the same suffered in the flesh; rose again; went up to heaven in the same body, sat down gloriously at the right hand of the Father; is coming in the same body in glory to judge the quick and the dead.

t.s.: Let me close this section with: The mystery of godliness. We spent some time last week talking about the mystery, so I don’t want to belabor the point this week. But the mystery is this faith we possess – hidden for ages, revealed in Christ. And, as individuals, we come together with this same faith – One Faith, One Lord, One Spirit – There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— ⁵ one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶ one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Conclusion: Most of you are old enough to remember the South Korean Airliner being shot down by the Russians in 1983. I remember it for a couple of reasons. The main reason is that my mother is from South Korea and so it was bigger than just news to my family. My mom was scheduled to fly to Korea just a few weeks after this happened. Tensions in the Cold War were high and pessimism toward Russia and the USSR was higher than it had been in some time.

I remember watching the news over the next couple of days as so many of those people were in anguish: falling on the ground, flailing about, screaming and crying at the same time. I had never witnessed anything like that before. It really made me sad because people who have no hope see death as the end. I’m telling you, watching the news and seeing their hopeless response just broke my heart. Sometime later I read where Paul wrote that we don’t respond like people do who have no hope (1 Thess 4.13: ¹³ But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.)

That’s when I understood what I had seen.

C.S. Lewis: “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”

Takeaway’s: Why are these important? That is: Our Conduct and Our Confession

1. They give us hope. They constantly remind us of our Hope in Christ. His Resurrection means our Resurrection. That these struggles are not the end for us. The Corona Virus could kill millions of people. But our hope isn’t in the surgeon general or in the president. Our Hope is in Christ and our eternal destiny. And when the rest of the world panics – we don’t.
2. They give others hope. When the lost and confused in this world struggle with a world-wide crisis and they see us living differently, they want to know why!
   1. Aren’t you afraid of the stock market crashing? No, we’re not. These possessions aren’t the totality of our lives.
   2. Aren’t you afraid of getting sick? No, we’re not. This health isn’t the totality of our lives.
   3. Aren’t you afraid of dying? No, we’re not! We understand life differently and we understand death differently.
   4. Aren’t you afraid that things are out of control? Well, no, we’re not. Because while things may appear out of control, we know the One who is in control. And when you think you’re in control, it is only an illusion.

I can’t promise any of you that you or I won’t die from this dreaded Virus that has the World in such a panic. If we’re honest, the statistics are not in our favor here at Tarpley. Most of our congregation is in the ‘high risk’ segment of society. But, as we view this situation, as those who don’t really belong here, we gain a proper perspective.

Two Offices of the Church, Part II

Title: The Two Offices of the Church: Deacons are like Elders, mostly

Text: 1 Timothy 3.8-13

Deacons: A different group of people.

I want to talk to you today about the greatest need at Tarpley Baptist Church, Tarpley, TX. I’m talking desperation, here. This is a great day to take notes, and if you’re taking notes write this down: for the ministry and mission of Tarpley, right now, our greatest need is for deacons. I say this because we have Trustees who are functioning and we have a pastor (that you love and are excited about having serve here!). So, we need deacons.

Now I wonder, if some of you might be asking at this point: “Really Fred? That’s our greatest need?” Yeah, it probably is. Ministry opportunities are currently uncovered and not happening because we just don’t have the men and women in place to keep up with the need. Others are overtaxed in their load.

And it really shouldn’t be that way. We have enough people to cover our needs. Why is it then, that ministry goes undone and uncovered if we have enough people?

• My guess is that people just don’t know.
• Maybe there is a stigma attached to the word deacon – like, someone feels they’re too young; they’re too old.

We as a body need to remedy this. So, today I’m going to talk to you about deacons and ministry in the church as outlined in our text; and, just what we as a church need to be doing about it.

Our text is 1 Tim 3.8-13. It covers the 2^nd office of the church (the other being elder). I would like to present my message this morning in two simple parts with one moment in between where we’ll chase a rabbit (an excursus is a digression within a text).

1. Their Character (8-10)
2. Their Competence (12-13)
3. Excursus: Women in ministry (11). And we’ll talk about this when we get to verse 11.

So let’s take a moment and look at our biggest need right now. We need men and women to step up and fill in missing gaps in ministry.

Some of you might be asking yourself if you’re deacon material. That’s a great question. Let’s talk about that. 1^st, Paul tells us of…

I.     Their Upstanding Character

Exp.: It’s really a very short list; basically, a review of what’s already been said; rd v8a; ⁸ Deacons likewise must be dignified.

In the Gk there are three words; there is no verb here in the Gk, but it is supplied by the reader because the reader has it from above (cf.v2); must be, needs to be, it is necessary; Honorable, dignified. It’s not any different than the elders, with the exception of being able to teach. You might even sum it up by saying: these guys are elder-like. They have an upstanding character. That’s what the ‘likewise’ is for; it means in a similar manner or in like manner. To clarify, deacons aren’t to be…; rd 8b not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain.

• Not double-tongued could mean one of two things, and I think both apply.
  • 1^st, not to say one thing and do another.
  • 2^nd, not to say one thing to one person and something else to another.
• Not addicted to much wine. This coincides with the elders. There isn’t anything wrong with a glass of wine, it’s when there is no self-control and wine takes control.
• Not greedy for dishonest gain. I love the KJV: not greedy of filthy lucre. Again, there is control over passion and pursuits when it comes to money.

To say one thing and do another isn’t honorable. To say something to someone and something else to someone else is not honorable or dignified. Getting drunk is not dignified. Being selfish and greedy and doing what you do in the pursuit of money isn’t honorable or dignified.

A simple way to see this is to see them living out what they believe. rd v 9-10; ⁹ They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.  ¹⁰ And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. I note two parts to this:

• An informed faith: deacons are not required to teach like elders are, but they do hold to the mystery of the faith. Mystery simply means that at one time it was hidden, but now it has been revealed. That’s the gospel. Many didn’t see it coming the way it did, but now they see. Now they know. Many still don’t see it. To them, it is still a mystery. But to those of us whom Christ has been revealed – it is faith. And these men, these deacons, not only hold to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience, but they’ve been tested in that faith.
• An incessant faith: it remains through all of the tough times. Many problems in life and in the church have come and gone, but they remain. They are a constant – like a lighthouse in the bay – their light continues to shine and guide others in spite of what storms rage around them.

Transition: these guys have been tested and tried and have come out on the other side blameless. Now, rd v 11 with me; – ¹¹ Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.

II.    Aside: Women who serve

Exp.: I want to be careful, but very clear. I mentioned last week that there are basically 4 words used in the NT for the office of overseer. You see it in the English translation in 6 possible words: elders, pastors (shepherds), overseers (bishops), leaders. For deacons, there is just one: διάκονος (noun) διακονία (verb). Where there is only one word in Greek, it is sometimes translated with different English words: servant or minister (noun); service or ministry (verb). In the text, Rod read for us this morning, Acts 6.4. This word is translated ministry. That one isn’t so confusing. But what about Romans 16.1. Where Paul writes: I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae. NASB, CSB, NIV, ESV, all translate it “servant”. Young’s translates it “minister”. The NRSV, NLT, translate it, “deacon”. The confusion comes when this word is translated for you with meaning (perhaps a meaning not intended by the author). For us, we don’t know for sure what Paul intended. Was Paul telling us that she was a deacon or a deaconess at the church in Cenchreae? We don’t know for sure. And, our problem comes when we take our understanding and beliefs and translate this through that lens.

In our text, the Gk reads literally: women likewise dignified. Grammatically, I want you to note:

1. There is no pronoun their in the Gk. NASB gets this correct in the literal sense: Women must likewise be. The ESV, NIV, CSB, each put in a pronoun and translate it Their wives. Some scholars do this because they argue that it is That means that previously, it was supplied and so you would supply it here, too. The argument made by those who hold to this would say: that the woman in chapter two is Eve and she is the wife of Adam and so, here it is the wife.
2. The verb is to be supplied. So, women likewise must be dignified. This is the same exact wording as v 8, only in the feminine form. What does this mean? Well, it isn’t clear.

4 possible solutions:

1. Women are deacons, too. There are other texts that refer to women who ‘served’ as deacons (i.e.: Romans 16.1)
2. Women who are not deacons, but rather deaconesses and a different group altogether.
3. Women are married to the deacons and a part of their ministry. Now there is a 4^th option and it is very close and similar to #3…
4. Women who are servants and assistants to the deacons in their ministry.

Of these 4 possible solutions: I don’t think it is #1. #2 – I like # 2, but really need to explain why I like it. I think one of the last two of these are a real possibility.

1. Women are deacons, too. I don’t think that is Paul’s presentation. Strike it.
2. Women who are not deacons, but rather deaconesses and a different group altogether. Possible, but I don’t think this is Paul’s presentation either. You would have an argument with the usage of ‘likewise’ but, Paul returns to the deacons in the next verse. So that probably isn’t the case. He isn’t leaving this issue of being deacons. I guess the reason I don’t like it is that it just doesn’t stand on its own. So strike it too.
3. Women are married to the deacons and a part of their ministry. Highly possible; but I doubt this one. Many women who are married to deacons willingly volunteer their time and help their husbands. But not all do. If that is the case, then should a man not be a deacon if his wife doesn’t help him? Then it would need to be a requirement to become a deacon. Now there is a 4^th option and it is very close and similar to #3…
4. Women are servants and assistants to the deacons in their ministry. Highly possible; Women who serve; We find one such lady listed in Romans 16.1-2; Phoebe; “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, ² that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well.” I think the term ‘Likewise’ gives them a classification, like their different from the men, but still an important and vital part of the church’s ministry;

So, this is how I understand this teaching and how I plan to lead the church at Tarpley: The deacon body consists of men appointed to this task by the church. There are women and men who serve under the responsibility of the deacons and administrate certain ministries.

Question: Why is it that Baptists are against women deacons? My theory is that a typical Baptist church has its deacons serving in elder-type positions and making elder-type decisions. These deacons give oversight and rule. To be brutally honest, many Baptist churches function on their traditions and ignore the Scriptures. They go back to chapter two and see that a woman shouldn’t have authority over a man, therefore, a woman shouldn’t be a deacon. But, Scripture is very clear that Deacons are simply servants. They were created to serve in Acts 6.1-8. Their job was to ‘wait on tables’.

The job of the deacons is to put on an apron and serve. In John 12.2 – Martha served; Luke 17.7-10 – unworthy servant; Luke 22.26-27; ²⁴ A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. ²⁵ And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. ²⁶ But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest and the leader as one who serves. ²⁷ For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

That’s the job of a deacon: to serve. Mark Dever: “Deacons should not act as a separate power bloc or second house of the legislature through which bills need to be passed. If the elders say, ‘Let’s drive to Pittsburgh,’ it’s not up to the deacons to come back and say, ‘No, let’s drive to Philadelphia instead.’ They can legitimately come back and say, ‘Our engine won’t get us to Pittsburgh. Perhaps we should reconsider.’ That’s very helpful. But in general, their job is to support the destination set by the elders.”

When you consider that deacons have no power, except as servants of the body… can women serve like that, too? The answer is yes. And they should…

Finally, Let’s get back to the passage…

III.   Their Outstanding Competence

Exp.: rd v 12; ¹² Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. ¹³ For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

Their competence is seen in the way they manage their families:

• Wife: same as the elder; a man of one woman; he is elder like in his faithfulness to his wife.
• Children: again, just like last week: this doesn’t mean that his children are perfect.

Their family is a priority. As I think about this in my life, I’m reminded of something Mark Dever once said: the church can get another pastor, but my children cannot get another father. My wife cannot simply get another husband. And so it is with the deacon: his family is his priority.

The life of a deacon displays a servant’s heart. Being a servant means managing: managing funds, schedules, supplies, etc. There is a lot to administer and care for when someone serves.  – I think this means you recognize these men because they’re serving already. They have a servant’s heart and that just comes out in what they do.

We are in need of people to serve. Let me rephrase that: we have a desperate need for people to serve.

So, here is my challenge to you:

• Church, will you pray for the men in our congregation and ask God to show you men who should be serving as deacons?
• Men, will you seriously pray about saying yes to serve if you’re asked? That’s a big thing for the church to say to you: I see Christ in you, I see your leadership capabilities and we’d be so blessed to have you serve. Will you serve?
• Women, will you step up and help these men accomplish their duties. Will you be willing to say I’m here and will help in whatever capacity the Lord might want to use me?
  • Will you go visit the shut-ins?
  • Will you help care for the Widows?

*not just on your own, but under the care and guidance of the deacon body?

Some of you (men and women alike) are like: I can do that on my own? I don’t have to be a deacon to do that? No, you don’t have to be a deacon to serve. But can I offer a couple of pointers here?

1. 1^st, organization. The ministry needs to be organized. I’m reminded of the book of Judges where each person did what was right in his own eyes. And, it led to chaos, and rebellion and sin, etc. We’re grateful for when people cover areas of ministry where there is a need. But, can I encourage you to work with the deacons on this – help them keep things organized.
2. 2^nd, accountability. There is accountability when you surrender your personal passions to the leadership of the collective whole. That takes great humility and is most Christ-like. Submitting to the leadership of the deacons can keep you accountable to accomplish what you feel God has led you to do.
3. 3^rd, testimony. It is a great testimony against the lie of Satan when you submit to the leadership of the church. The lie of Satan says that authority can never be trusted because it is always tyrannical and oppressive. But there are wonderful, godly men who need your help. And that help starts by submitting to that leadership. And, it is also a testimony to the world when we function as a body the way God designed us to function.

God created two offices in this body: elders and deacons; pastors and ministers; overseers and servants. For the elders, He has given the responsibility to spiritual matters. To the deacons, he has given the responsibility of the physical, temporal matters. What a great testimony we would be if we functioned as we were designed to function.

I’m so grateful for the godly men who have served faithfully as deacons. They’ve blessed me. Jim Casey, Dave Posey, Harris Tingle, Malcolm Dickinson, James Powell, Bob Ditmer, Johnny Miller, Clint Carneal. I wonder who is here today that I’ll mention 20-30 years from now in this group of men.

Let’s bow our heads for just a moment.

1 Timothy 3.1-7

Title: The Two Offices of the Church (Part 1)

Text: 1 Timothy 3.1-7

CIT: There are standards by which elders should live.

CIS: The work of an Elder is noble and should not be entered into lightly. The church should recognize these men and appoint them very carefully.

 

Intro: Last week we dealt with a particularly tough text, but only if it is taken out of context. When understood within the context of the letter, you understand how important our roles and responsibilities are.

Now, here is our biggest problem: people who serve in areas they shouldn’t be serving in! We’ve all experienced deacons and elders who gave those offices bad names. I’m grateful for the men who I’ve had the privilege of serving with who fulfilled their roles with dignity and honor; And, brought honor and dignity to the office.

You don’t know him, and I’ve not spoken to him in 30 years. His name was/is Malcolm Dickinson. Malcolm and his little family went to our church in Copperas Cove. Malcolm was a deacon and he took his responsibilities seriously. I’ll never forget driving down the road and seeing him working on a widow’s porch. Another time I saw him repairing a screen. He took his job of caring for the widows seriously.

Here’s the thing about Malcolm. He was a coach at the local high school and was busy with 4 little boys – 4 little rambunctious boys. And yet he still found time to be a good deacon.

He was a godly man. I loved to hear him pray during the worship service. It was like everyone disappeared and it was just Malcolm and God.

This morning I want to talk with you about the two offices of the church: elder & deacon. In the context of our passage, Paul is writing to Timothy, but for the benefit of the church. So, this is how I’m seeing this. I want to approach this from the perspective of a letter to the church and your responsibility toward your leadership and your potential leadership. Consider this: God has placed men in your midst who are elders and deacons. You recognize them right now by their actions, their demeanor, and their deportment. You see it in the way they carry themselves and how they are around others. There will come a time when you will need to ask them to step up and fulfill the role. Will you commit to praying about it now?

Ill.: I’ve had the privilege of serving on various teams, committees, and boards. I’ve been on some incredible bands. Over the past 40 years, I have sung with and/or played the bass and/or played acoustic in many bands with many people – and this is what I’ve learned: having the right people in the right place is the key.

I played with many singers and instrumentalists who were very good at their job; however, their personalities caused so many problems in the band that we couldn’t function properly. And it only takes one person to disrupt your group. It is the same with your staff or team or committee. You might have a wonderful businessman who has no business serving as an elder. You have to be careful who you select and appoint to these roles. Again, will you commit to pray over this?

App.: the application remains the same for any team or committee or board or staff member: One wrong person can create havoc on you and your work. So, you as a body can select a really good man – who fits the requirements in every way and still fracture your body. And that is the scary part. Our goal is unity for the benefit of our witness.

Remember the context: These folks have been looking down on their leadership. They’ve shown disrespect and dishonor to folks in authority. And because of it, they’ve been a poor witness to the community at large.

Transition: you have a great responsibility – maybe that is why Paul goes into such great detail about who should and who should not serve as an overseer.

Let’s go back to the beginning and identify the steps that got us to where we are in 1 Timothy:

• A charge to confront false teachers and their false teaching (chap. 1);
• The role of men and women in the public arena concerning prayer and worship (chap. 2); the lost are watching; it appears throughout this letter that there is a lack of understanding of how you treat your leadership and those who are seniors.
• Leadership in the church… the role of the church to put the right men in the right spot… all within the context of false teaching and false teachers.

From this text we find that there are two offices in the church:

1. Overseers (4 terms: Overseers [bishops], Pastors [shepherds], Elders, and leaders) v1-7; interchangeable
2. Deacons v8-15

Ill.: The opening of Paul’s letter to the Philippians is one great example of this: Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons: ² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

BTW: this is clarified in our Statement of Faith (BF&M 2000) in Article 6: VI. The Church

A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of baptized believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. Each congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ through democratic processes. In such a congregation each member is responsible and accountable to Christ as Lord. Its scriptural officers are pastors and deacons. While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.

The New Testament speaks also of the church as the Body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages, believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation.

This morning, I’d like to focus on just the first of these two offices: the elders or overseers. We note first in v.1 that Paul declares this a noble task. Rd v 1; The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. This someone aspires to something good. It is a good work. Overseer is ἐπισκοπή (episcope, i.e.: Episcopalian): epi: over and scope: to see.  He desires a noble task. Lit.: a good work; We saw this phrase a good work up in the previous chapter (2.10), as a characteristic of a godly woman. ἀγαθός and καλός, both are synonymous and are used in Scripture attributes of God.

So, the first step in becoming an elder is: you want to be one.

I.     If someone aspires to be an overseer… he desires a good work. So, because this is a good work, a noble task, the church should not enter lightly into selecting men to serve here. That’s why Paul says in the next verse: Therefore… rd v 2-3;

Transition: So, if someone aspires to be an overseer,

II.    If someone aspires to be an overseer, you will see it displayed in his upstanding character.

Exp.: We’re talking Behavior/Actions; rd v 2-3; Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, ³ not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.

I agree with DA Carson who said that there really isn’t anything special in these quality characteristics – except for one – being able to teach. I mean really, shouldn’t these be characteristics of any man or woman who claims to be a believer?

1. He must be above reproach: in Titus, he uses the synonym It isn’t that he’s perfect and sinless, but rather that he exemplifies Christ in his manner and deportment. Thabiti Anyabwile: Being above reproach means that an elder is to be the kind of man whom no one suspects of wrong-doing or immorality. People would be shocked to hear this kind of man charged with such acts. Above reproach; blameless.
2. He must be ‘a man of one woman’: that’s the literal translation; most translation read: the husband of one wife. It’s hard to know exactly what is meant here. It could mean that he’s never been divorced. There are a lot of scholars I respect deeply who hold to that opinion. I think there is a principle being taught here, though, that is really important. I’m not absolutely positive that Paul is laying down the letter of the law here, but rather presenting a principle. No matter your view on divorced or even single men serving as elders, I think Paul is communicating that this man has a high view of marriage as between a man and a woman and that marriage is sacred. His marriage is a display of this belief.
3. He must be sober-minded: the literal meaning here means temperate in his use of alcohol. He is sober. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t drink any alcohol, but rather that he never drinks alcoholic beverages to a point that he is out of control. Baptists like to use this part of Scripture to declare alcohol is bad. You should never do it. But that’s just legalism, too. This man, though, he never lets what he consumes get out of control.
4. Self-controlled. The negatives in v 3 below outline a man who is out of control. He can’t control his drinking (must not be a drunkard). He can’t control his anger (he must not be violent). He can’t control himself in conversation (he is quarrelsome; he always has to be right!). And he can’t control his appetite for more and more money. Maybe he gambles, hoping for a big windfall. He works too long and too hard to make more money, not observing the Sabbath, but trying to get the extra cash. No, our man is self-controlled.
5. He must be respectable: these are noted by his family (his wife and children) and the community. We’ll look more at this when we get to those verses in 4-7.
6. He must be hospitable: this Gk word is a compound word translated a lover of strangers. He is a lover of strangers and not a lover of money. The man who loves his money holds his purse strings tight. The man who loves strangers opens up his moneybag and pours out his money for them. He uses his money to love people instead of using people to satisfy his love of money.
7. He must be able to teach: this is our first and only requirement that isn’t really universal of all believers. Basically, all of the traits we’ve listed simply outline who and how we should be as Christians.

Now Paul turns toward the negatives, which we already listed with the out of control man.

8. He must not be a drunkard
9. He must not be violent but gentle
10. He must not be quarrelsome
11. He must not be a lover of money.

So, the only requirement listed here that wouldn’t be an expectation of any man in your congregation is that he be able to teach. I believe the reason for this is his responsibility to communicate sound, healthy doctrine.

Conclusion: If… Someone – aspires to be an overseer – he must display upstanding character. You will have already seen it in his behavior.

III.   If someone aspires to be an overseer, then he has set an example of leadership with his family.

If… Someone – aspires to be an overseer – his example has already been set in his family.

Exp.: rd v 4-5; He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, ⁵ for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?

This doesn’t mean that his family is perfect any more than it means that the church is perfect. There are problems; there are struggles. You will find it anywhere you find relationships. The issue isn’t that he has the perfect family. Because he won’t and he can’t! It has to do with his management skills in caring for his family. Here is a good question to ask: Does his wife respect him? Do his children hold him with high regard and have that same respect? You can witness this respect through the submissive nature of their relationship. They hold him in high regard. They know him better than anyone else. Their respect speaks volumes.

Conclusion: If… Someone – aspires to be an overseer – his example has already been set in his family. Not that they are perfect, mind you, but that they see him that same way.

IV.    If someone aspires to be an overseer, then the church must determine his fitness based upon his spiritual maturity and positive public perception.

Exp.: If… Someone – aspires to be an overseer – the church must be careful in its appointment of this someone to the position of overseer. Rd v 6; He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. ⁷ Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

Spiritual maturity will help a man avoid those pitfalls and snares of the devil. Oh Man, if there is anything the devil can do to bring down your elders, he will. So be careful in your appointments. Don’t appoint a man before his time.

So to review:

1. If someone aspires to be an overseer… he desires a good work.
2. If someone aspires to be an overseer, you will see this desire displayed in his upstanding character.
3. If someone aspires to be an overseer, then he has set an example of leadership with his family.
4. If someone aspires to be an overseer, then the church must determine his fitness based upon his spiritual maturity and positive public perception.

Take-a-ways: As we consider sound doctrine…

1. Church, your theology drives your methodology. It impacts everything you do. That is why your doctrine is to be pure and sound.
   • Bad theology corrupts a church body. Remember, it was Paul’s purpose in placing Timothy in Ephesus – to protect them.
2. Church, when you appoint men to serve as elders (and deacons for that matter), you are making a doctrinal statement. Too often, the church wants to pick popular, pretty people. Standards set in the Word of God are cast aside for comfort and popularity.

Ill.: Mark Dever writes: I had made a statement in a doctoral seminar about God. Bill responded politely but firmly that he liked to think of God rather differently. For several minutes, Bill painted a picture for us of a friendly deity. He liked to think of God as being wise, but not meddling; compassionate, but never overpowering; ever so resourceful, but never interrupting. “This,” said Bill in conclusion, “is how I like to think of God.”

My reply was perhaps somewhat sharper than it should have been. “Thank you, Bill,” I said, “for telling us so much about yourself, but we are concerned to know what God is really liked, not simply about our own desires.”

And all of God’s children said, “Ouch”. Dever has a great point: what someone likes to think about God isn’t so as important as what God says about himself. Our theology is important and it must be grounded in God’s Word. The God of Christmas in Luke is also the God of Judgment in Revelation. So, when you appoint men to serve, you’re making a doctrinal statement about what you believe. Finally,

3. Men, if you aspire to the office of elder, I’d like to close with two thoughts:

Conclusion:

First, as a pastor and elder, there are certain texts of Scripture that float around in my head on a regular basis. Scriptures like James 3.1: 3 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. And Heb 13.17: ¹⁷ Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.

Professor John Brown was sought out by a former divinity student, who had graduated and moved to the country to become the pastor of a very small church. This young man wrote his former professor declaring his impatience in serving the 16 souls in the country church. He stated that he could not wait until he was finally asked to pastor a much larger congregation with greater prestige and publicity. The kindly professor responded to this eager young preacher:

I know the vanity of your heart, and that you will feel mortified that your congregation is very small, in comparison with those of your brethren around you; but assure yourself on the word of an old man, that when you come to give an account of them to the Lord Christ, at his judgment-seat, you will think you have had enough.

Oh, what a mighty leadership team we could build if we selected men with this mindset.

Second, 1 Peter charges the elders to serve the people under their care: So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: ² shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; ³ not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And then he finishes with this: ⁴ And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Let’s pray.

1 Timothy 2.8-15

Title: The Hope We Have that Comes from Godly Men & Women

Text: 2 Timothy 2.8-15

 

Introduction: My parents split before I could form memories. My dad was a military man, so I was shipped back and forth to my grandmother as needed. My religious formation comes from her and I stand before you today because of her prayers.

When I was in 8^th grade, my grandmother made $125 a month babysitting for two Air Force Officers. I made about $20 a month throwing Newspapers. Never once did I eat a cold breakfast. She was up early fixing a warm breakfast before school. I saw her reading her Bible in her bed as I made my way from the shower to the bedroom to get dressed. I saw the same thing at night when I was getting ready for bed. She would stop and come in and read a chapter from the Bible with me.

I’m grateful for the strong influence my godly grandmother passed on to me.

Let me also say, there was a period in my life, not so long ago, when I was surrounded by girls. Jennifer and three little girls came to live with us when they had been abandoned. My life was filled with estrogen. Lisa, Jennifer, Elizabeth, Caroline, and Sweet Annie. Even our little dog is of the feminine persuasion. Lisa created for me a safe haven where I could flee to and watch news and sports!

And I shall always cherish those days – hugs and kisses at night. But you didn’t give me no hugs and kisses, Pa!

I want to tell you that I want good things for my little girls! I want them to dream big and chase those dreams to become whoever they want as they pursue their dreams in relation to their faith in Christ.

I think many preachers have abused this text before us today. I pray that I get this right. Not because I’m worried about your response, but rather, I fear the response of the Master – The One who has called me to this service.

Let’s pray: God, help me get this right.

One of the reasons so many teachers and preachers get this wrong is because they take the Scripture out of Context. Context is everything. DA Carson: A text without a context is a pretext for a prooftext. I know you’ve heard that before. I promise you will hear it again. (ill.: Worship Conference Radio Advertisment – Jesus said, “³² And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”)

Our Context for this passage is Public Worship. You remember from last week that we don’t have the same worship experiences of those in the early church. At first, they met in public places. Eventually, they met in public places and in their homes.

The Goal is that the lost, who witness the church in action, might be saved. The converse of that is that the lost might very well remain that way because of the church’s poor behavior in action. That’s a negative way to say: Church, get your act together!

1^st, Let me walk through the text with you and show you how this is all playing out:

Evidently, the problem with what was happening in Ephesus was that the lost would observe some of the men being contentious and also observe some of the women, who were dressing in inappropriate clothing. Now, that is the close-up.

Ill.: Read Acts 19.8-10; this is church planting in action! As they met in the synagogue and then in the Hall Tyrannus, and later, wherever they were meeting publicly, their behavior as men was detrimental to the spread of the Gospel! And the behavior of the women was just as detrimental: they were more concerned with their looks and appearance than their godliness and good works.

But, I think the problem is even deeper: there appears to be a lack of respect for those in authority. The whole church seems to have this problem.

Let’s pull away from this small passage on prayer and practice to gain a greater perspective.

1. Purpose Statement in 3.14-15: ¹⁴ I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, ¹⁵ if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.
   1. The Church is a witness to the World against what is false. She is a witness to the Truth of God.
   2. Her witness appears to be damaged because of her behavior. This letter is to inform you of how you ought to behave within the household of God.
   3. A major part of that breakdown for the church was their disrespect for leadership and those in positions of authority. I find it odd that Paul says in combating false doctrine to 1^st, pray for:
      2. Kings and all who are in high positions (2.1-2)
      3. Toward their pastor (4.12; 2.11-15; 5.17)

• Toward the elderly in their congregation (5.1-3)

6. Slaves toward their Masters (6.1-2)
7. The Rich toward others (6.17)

There seems to me to be a major problem with these members having respect for those who’ve been put in positions of honor and respect and authority. And, it is hurting their witness. That is the context of this letter: Public Worship viewed by lost folks & a blatant disrespect for others and their positions.

So, Paul commands them to get organized! God gave us structure and within that structure, God gave us roles and responsibility. And, within that structure, you need to show respect where respect is due. Honor those who deserve honor. Respect those who are in certain positions.

Ill.: I learned this in the military. I had an older man who was teaching me. I told him how hard it was to salute an officer who was a low life – unworthy of the respect due to his office and rank. Without missing a beat, my elder said: you salute the rank, not the individual.

Ill.: a few years back, when President Obama was our president. I made a comment about him coming into our worship center. A lady in the congregation – an ultra-conservative lady – made a derogatory comment about the president. And I let it slide. But I shouldn’t have. It was very public, and it should have been corrected in public. There was a blatant disregard for the office of the President. I’m not saying you have to agree with him. Indeed, I can’t find anything for which I can agree. But as Christians, we respect the office.

I saw that as a young man watching my pastor. We were at a convention and the governor was invited to speak. You probably remember her – Governor Ann Richards. When she came in the whole congregation stood to their feet in respect of her position. Except for my pastor; He remained seated. His wife simply looked at him and in a quiet voice said: Are you going to practice what you preach? He stood. It’s was a great teaching moment for me.

Notice 1^st, he gets on the men: read 2.8; evidently, their witness was horrible in front of the lost community watching the gathered church; there is contention here; they are lifting hands in anger and they are quarreling in public.

Oh, but women, you’re not without fault either. Your witness is damaged, too. Rd v 9; the women are more concerned with their physical appearance than their spiritual appearance. They want to be seen as pretty and not pious. They want to be seen as gorgeous and not godly. They want to be noticed because of their beauty and not recognized for their behavior.

No one is without fault here. The Church as a whole has been damaging the witness to the world that is watching. But, And here is our 1^st point! Our Hope comes through:

1^st, Men and Women Behaving as Believers: men, women… the world is watching so ‘behave’.

2^nd, When we fulfill our God-given roles and responsibilities in the church. There are roles for leadership and there are roles for men and there are roles for women. That role you fulfill is vital in the presentation of the Gospel by the church as a whole.

As a matter of fact, I think v11-15 actually go closer to 3.1ff, than they do with 2.8-10 or even 2.1-10. It is like he’s saying:

1. Pray in public for your worldly leaders. There is a hint of: stop being disrespectful of them before the lost world that is watching. Remember: you are to lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.
2. When you gather and pray – Men, stop being contentious and quarrelsome. Women, stop trying to cover up your lack of inner beauty by dressing up the outside. Instead, play down your external beauty and let the inner beauty come through in what you do. Godliness and Good works; with modesty and self-control.
3. As a matter of fact, let me turn my attention toward leadership in the church. And he does so now in 2.11.

Paul stays on the topic of women; rd 2.11-12; ¹¹ Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. ¹² I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet.

So, as we look toward leadership – women, respect those men who’ve been placed in authority within the church.

So, I think this is about the position as Elder or Overseer or Pastor. In the church, the position of pastor is for men only. And, I believe God has created this picture with purpose – just like he has in marriage. When you read Ephesians 5 you see that marriage is a picture of the Gospel.

And it is the same here. God has a purpose in his design.

So, let’s look closely at what is doing. I think for v 11, he’s simply restating what he has said before. Notice the words he has repeated:

• Godliness: rd v 2; godliness is required of every believer;
• Quietly: rd v 2; here in 11 and again in v 12; that doesn’t mean she sits down and shuts up; No! that demonstrates her attitude and demeanor. She is living her peaceful, quiet life within the context of her position in the congregation. Men are to be the same way.
• We will see peace and dignified again, too.

I get from this that there may have been women who were being disrespectful of the overseers, including Timothy. Maybe, there may have been some who were trying to take over his role. Paul is simply stating how behavior in the church should go and when it comes to the office of Pastor/Elder/Overseer, that office for men.

For me, it is interesting that when you look at the qualifications for elders and deacons, they really aren’t that special – as compared to all Christians. Review 3.1-12;

But then he says in 2.13-15 just why these roles are put in place by God. And, he uses the Old Testament as hermeneutical grounds. Rd v 13-14; He’s quoting from Genesis 2 & 3; There is “the role” and “position” in the Creation account; and, there is the fact of the fall.

• Adam is formed first and Eve is fashioned from him to be a helper suitable for him.
• Then, in the fall, consequences take place – and this is what Paul is referring to…

Turn to Gen 3.13ff; The Fall we find hope; in sin, there is the promise of a Messiah who will come and crush the head of the serpent! But continue in v 16; She will endure tremendous pain in bearing children, but in the bearing of her children comes the hope of a descendant who will crush the serpent’s head.

As we go back to our text in 1 Timothy, we see that in v 12 (¹² I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man;). Paul isn’t saying a woman shouldn’t be a teacher. Indeed, as you compare that with other passages of Scripture, we know women are to teach. Indeed, Timothy’s two greatest teachers were his mom and his grandmother! In Titus, he encourages older women to teach younger women. So it isn’t that a woman isn’t to teach. It’s within the context of chapter 3. She isn’t to be an elder. Paul cites the creation account as grounds for this teaching. And, in his reference to Eve, it’s her faithfulness that one day brings about the Messiah. Rd v 15a;

In 15b, Paul moves from the Genesis account back to the women of Ephesus: if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control. Salvation comes through you, too, ladies. Your faithfulness, your love, your holiness, your godliness, your self-control, your modesty, your quiet, peaceful life is a tremendous witness to your children, your spouse, your neighbors, your grandchildren and to the lost who are looking in from the outside.

That would be point # 3: There is hope in the order and organization: 1^st, through Eve’s faithfulness, her seed is Jesus. 2^nd, through faithfulness today, women bring that same hope of salvation. There is great power in submission. There is great power in showing respect and honor.

I see that in my life. And this is my one take-a-way for this morning: There are tremendous power and influence in a peaceful, quiet life lived out in all godliness and dignity.

 

1. What an incredible leadership role you play in the lives of your children, grandchildren – in the formation of their spiritual lives and their eternal destiny.
2. Men, do you realize how detrimental you are when you crush the spirits of your women and your children through your behavior? Or, your mischaracterization of Scripture
3. Organization and structure within the church are beneficial for the church and for the lost world.

I believe I am where I am today because a strong, godly woman – my nana – prayed for me and was an example of faith, love, godliness, and self-control. Furthermore, I mean not to embarrass my wife, but her faithfulness is something that has blessed me, too.

In memoirs of an ordinary pastor, DA Carson tells the story of a turbulent time in the life of his family that he never knew about.

His father lost funding for a church plant where he was pastor. What Carson didn’t know was that it came about because his father spoke out against a leader in the denomination. That leader was furious and with his power, pulled all funding that kept that little congregation going. The pastor and his family had to move. DA Carson writes that he was a teenager when all of that happened.

Years later, he encountered the man who had hurt his family. But DA had no idea of what had happened. He was kind and respectful because his mother and father were always kind and respectful of that man. After the mean man walked away, a pastor walked up to DA and asked how he could have been so kind and respectful to that man after all of the damage he caused the Carson’s? DA asked, “What damage?” It was only then that he learned what had happened.

DA Carson said in all the pain that leader within their denomination caused his family, never once did his father or mother speak ill of that leader. They always showed him great respect and spoke highly of him in front of their children. Carson said it was an invaluable lesson he learned from his father and mother about behavior in the church.

So, ladies, I don’t think this is ugly at all. I think this is empowering. You have tremendous power in how you pass on the faith. You do it in your behavior. You do it in the way you live out your quiet, peaceful life with all godliness and dignity.