Graham continued his series on Timothy this morning majoring on 1 Timothy 1:12 to 18.
1 Timothy 1:12-18
Intro
Verses 12 to 17 Paul says - he has chosen me for this privilege.
Verses 18 to 20 Paul says - he has chosen you Timothy.
1) What a glorious Gospel!
The whole of Chapter 1 rests on the fulcrum of Verse 11
“…the sound doctrine that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.”
Verse 12. False teachers taught contrary to it, Paul and Timothy have been “appointed” to it.
committed to my trust-Translate as in the Greek order, which brings into prominent emphasis Paul, “committed in trust to me”; in contrast to the kind of law-teaching which they (who had no Gospel commission), the false teachers, assumed to themselves
See 1Timothy 1:8
Titus 1:1-3
Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God’s elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness- a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, and at his appointed season he brought his word to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Saviour,
“Glorious gospel” and “Gospel of glory of Christ” See 2 Corinthians 4:4
The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
The supremely blessed One is He from whom all blessedness flows. This term, as applied to God, occurs only here and in 1 Timothy 6:15 (which God will bring about in his own time- God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, whom no-one has seen or can see. To him be honour and might for ever. Amen. )
Here it is that the Gospel is blessed in contrast to the curse on those under the law.
See Galatians 3:10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.
See 1 Peter 1:10-12
Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.
It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
“glorious gospel of the blessed God.” Why preach the false when we have the treasure we can proclaim? The false teachers have failed to see the treasure. What would happen to to us if we lost sight of the treasure? We keep our sight of the treasure clear by fellowship, worship, conversation with God, feeding on the scriptures, obedience.
2) Verse 12 “Considered me faithful.”
Was that before his appointment? It seems it was before his appointment, when God knew his character. See verses 13 to 16.
God saw a different character in Paul than he saw in himself. Compare this with his view of himself.
Paul is claiming that God foresaw that he would be faithful by the faithfulness God placed within him. Once again we find ourselves refering to Philippians 2:11-13
(Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed- not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence- continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.)
So this great trust and equipping was committed to Paul. This conviction will have been a huge motivation to him. Does it motivate us? Paul was thanking God for this shows that the value of Paul’s faithfulness was due solely to God’s grace, it was not to his own natural strength. It does not have to be our alone either. Faithfulness is the quality required in servants such as us 1 Corinthians 4:1-4 (So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.)
Remember though, amidst all this talk of faithfulness, Paul is claiming that God foresaw that Paul would be faithful according to the faithfulness God placed within him.
3) Verse 19 “Holding on”,
not just in a general sense, but in particular regarding the false teachers and the pressure put upon church leaders to not ‘rock the boat’ in the church.
Appointments - Paul and Timothy’s calling and perseverance.
putting me into-rather as in 1Th 5:9, “appointing me (in His sovereign purposes of grace) unto the ministry” (Ac 20:24).
Timothy’s appointment, see 4:11-16.
What good is the appointment if there is no follow-on?
What good is starting a race if there is no completing?
See Luke 14:27-33
…anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.
Holding on.
Holding on to the sense of what God wants to accomplish in you and with you.
Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Romans 15:5 May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus,
Colossians 1:11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,
1 Thessalonians 1:3 We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
2 Corinthians 12:12 The things that mark an apostle- signs, wonders and miracles- were done among you with great perseverance.
2 Thessalonians 3:5 May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.
James 1:3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.
James 1:4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Graham continued his series on Timothy this morning concentrating on 1 Timothy 1:9-11.
False Teachers and Their Character
1 Timothy 1:1-11
1) “Command certain men”
What right has anyone in the church to command, or for another to submit? This is an exceptional situation so does not encourages bullying leadership a churches, but it does show that the church is a place of truth and order. This is an issue that would not need teaching to the Jewish Christians, as they would know about the rebellion of Korah, Dathan.
Paul has already begun his letter to Timothy by emphasising that he himself is under authority.
2) Myths and False teaching
Myths (1:4; Titus 1:14). The term “myth” is often used to refer to a story which is untrue. Academics use of the term does not generally refer to whether a story is truth or not. Unbelievers will use the word “myth” to refer to sacred stories of the various faiths. In a very broad sense, “myth” can refer to any traditional story.
Yes, but a myth is not the truth, and the gospel is the truth! The gospel is not a myth, it is the “power of God for salvation” (I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. Romans 1:16) and our faith does not rest on myths.”Endless genealogies”
The false teaching:
False doctrine, (1:3; 6:3). It is false, not true, not the real thing. Why settle for the counterfeit when the real treasure is available. Grace is better! When Paul wrote his letter to the Ephesians he majored, not on the false teachings, but on truth. He described their pressures as the attacks of dark forces. Here though he deals with false teaching they were subject to.
What if I claimed a new revelation of God given to me in a day-time visitation, like the founder of the Mormons, or in a dream, like the founder of Islam? You would have to decide if you believed me.
For a Christian it is a different process of thinking entirely. A Christian trusts in the words of Jesus because his words were validated by his miracles and his resurrection from the dead. And we know that the records are trustworthy. We find that the transformed life Jesus offered is real once we have experienced it for ourselves. A changed life is not the evidence. It is the a changed life in accordance with the teachings of Jesus, the one who is trustworthy because of his miracles and resurrected life.
I met a church leader last week. Just as I was looking at his face trying to remember where I had seen him before he said, “Hello Graham. The last time I heard you preach, you preached…” He then recounted the main points of a sermon from my Ezra series. He went on to say the state he was in at the time and that God spoke to him clearly then, through my preaching, in a powerful way. That word to him then had been like the turning of a rudder on a ship, it give him direction and revelation about his situation in a way that could not have been due to me, but only due to God. And then he said, “And another thing. It was thoroughly biblical!”
That final comment was the one that pleased me, gave me a sense of achievement. I want the scriptures to speak. My duty is to allow God to speak through his word. False teachers want themselves to be heard. They don’t want the glory to go to God, they want to get it for themselves. Over the years I think I have seen a principle at work, that he or she who sets themselves up as an object of idolatry will become entangled in the dynamic of idolatry and will themselves become the slaves of idolatry. They end up worshipping the false gods of the misuse of drugs, sex, money, possessions, etc.
3) False teachers and their character
Regarding the Christians is Ephesus and false teaching, where was their discernment? Where was the, “I feel uneasy about that”?
It is a year since a Christian leader in Florida, USA was discovered to have been a fraud all along. While portraying himself as one thing, he was betraying his wife and his followers by having had a sexual affair with a member of his staff all summer long. Why did more Christians not feel uneasy? He claimed he talked to the dead and to angels who visited him and who gave him new teachings. This example should help us to understand why in Ephesus false teachers were tolerated. The might have been nice people, they might have sincere.
Wanting to be teachers of the law. “Teachers”. Is there a need for status in the heart of these false teachers? See 3 John and the mention of Diotraphes a false leader, in also in Asia. Does this give us some insights into the pitfalls? The need to control. Preventing the group from hearing ideas from outside. The leaders position becoming more important than the people served or the greater purposes of God.
“Law”. Stressing the Old Testament law gives ample opportunity to be measured alongside other believers rather than the standard God has for the individual. This legalism was a forsaking the gospel of grace.
A list of sins is given in verses 9 and 10. This is a list of rather extreme sins including murder, adultery and slavery. Is the extreme list used to show that the law is needed not just for the wicked, or for all lest they become wicked? The law exposes the flaw in human nature, but is not the means of salvation.
See verse 10 in various translations:
for adulterers and perverts - New International Version
for them that defile themselves with mankind - AV/KJV
for sodomites - NKJV
who practice homosexuality - New Living Translation
those practising homosexuality - Today’s New International Version
Literally - “men that lie with men”
Has God said anything about homosexuality elsewhere in the Bible?
In the Old Testament
One of the first encounters with homosexuality in the Bible is in the Old Testament and the story of Sodom. Note the subject matter. It is actually Lot who is portrayed as being not all he should have been. The story does not say the men of Sodom were homosexuals or that they were judged for Homosexuality.
The next encounter is Leviticus chap 18, 20. The passages have a clear message, men are not to practice with men acts that that they might do with a women. Some Christians may like these passages when speaking to homosexuals but at the same time forgetting the context. These texts are sandwiched between laws that are not considered valid any longer such as breeding of domestic animals and the wearing of garments made from mixtures of linen and wool.
In the New Testament
Using the accepted method of viewing the OT through the NT we come to the letter of Paul to the Christians in Rome chapter 1. Paul tells us we know the truth, God has not withheld the truth, but has shown every person His truth in their innermost being. God will not deal kindly with those who distort and hinder the truth. He tells us that mankind is without excuse. Mankind knew God, but rejected Him. He tells us that mankind left the “natural” and sought the “unnatural”.
What is normal or natural? The bible sets out its case in the first scene with Adam and Eve. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and shall become united and cleave to his wife”. This is described as a “one flesh” relationship. This is later refered to by Jesus when he said (Matt 19:4-6) “He who made them from the beginning made them male and female”. Paul picks up this message (Eph 5:31) later and claims that the union of male and female is a drama. This drama is ideally designed to display, in some small way, the union of Jesus Christ with his followers, the church.
When Paul wrote in Romans that it is not natural for men to burn with lust for another, or for women to use each other sexually, there can be no doubt that he is talking about sexuality and sexual relationships of the same sex. It is not a modern invention. There are no new sex acts for our age.
Non-Christians take a different view to Christians because they are free to follow conscience alone, while Christians are not. This mention of the subject in Paul’s letter to Timothy leaves us to come to a conclusion about what is the teaching of scripture and the way of God. This is not my teaching, this is what the book says, you must deal with this yourself.
I wonder how long it will be before it will be unlawful in this country to say even these things.
[Referred here to current issues pertaining to this subject from the Christian Institute website. Details as foot of these notes]
Conclusion
The importance of being people of the holy scriptures and not the standards of society. If Christians followed the standards of society they would not have stopped the trans-atlantic slave trade, and the list would go on.
Ways to study the Bible. Read it, a little often is better than much rarely. Bible reading notes are good but ensure they add information, historical, geographical and biblical, so the scriptures are understandable to you. It is the word of God that must speak not the ideas of a human being.
Details from Christian Institute:
A Christian registrar who has been demoted because of her beliefs about marriage will today face a grievance interview. Theresa Davies is the second registrar at Islington Council to be disciplined for asking to be exempt from registering same-sex civil partnerships. The Council gave her an ultimatum of demotion to an entry-level post or dismissal.
She will today [16/9/09] be interviewed as part of the internal grievance procedure.
Miss Davies’ case echoes that of fellow registrar Lillian Ladele who was bullied and threatened with the sack by the same council after she asked to be exempted from registering same-sex unions.
An Employment Tribunal upheld Miss Ladele’s claim of religious discrimination last year, but the ruling has since been overturned at an Employment Appeals Tribunal and Miss Ladele is now seeking a further appeal.
In June Miss Davies wrote to the House of Lords calling on them to protect her freedom of conscience.
http://www.christian.org.uk/news/christian-interviewed-over-marriage-stance/
The Government has been defeated in the House of Lords over its attempt to repeal a free speech protection from a sexual orientation ‘hatred’ law. Peers voted by 186 to 133 to keep the protection in place. The matter will be passed back to the House of Commons where MPs voted for repeal.
The protection makes clear that criticising homosexual conduct or encouraging people to refrain from such conduct is not, in itself, a crime.
http://www.christian.org.uk/news/20090709/lords-back-free-speech-shield-in-gay-hate-law/
The Government says its new Equality Bill will force churches to accept practising homosexuals or transsexuals in youth worker posts and other similar roles. Equalities minister Maria Eagle said religious believers should push ‘gay rights’ in their communities, but in the meantime the state would do it.
http://www.christian.org.uk/news/20090520/government-to-force-gay-youth-workers-on-church/
Last week was actually the first in a new series on Timothy, even though it was based on Acts 28. Unfortunately, this week’s recording stops suddenly after 30 minutes because the mp3 recorder ran out of batteries.
1 Timothy 1
Introduction
Timothy is to get the church on a good footing to allow it to mature.
Note, the importance of church, the group. The church was to have a great future, growth was expected. Not like the film I once saw where Paul and Peter were disagreeing with each other and one said he was “fighting for the survival of the church!”
Timothy is to counter false teaching, develop the worship and appoint leaders.
By looking at what Paul told Timothy had to do, we can see some features of the church in Ephesus, it’s problems or deficiencies.
The structure of 1 Timothy are the task set out for Timothy to accomplish:
(a) Warn the false teachers against teaching doctrine contrary to the accepted gospel already proclaimed and accepted by the church. See 1:3-20, compare Revelation 2:1-6, Galatians 1.
(b) Teach orderly conduct in worship.
(c) Appoint properly qualified leaders.
(d) Select female church workers, widows who would be supported by the church and response would carry out certain duties in the church. See 2 - 6:2.
(e) Warn against covetousness and urge good works. See 6:3-19.
A summary of Timothy’s task could be: To bring about a community of the truth, worshipping in truth and living out the truth, all within the context of resisting false teaching.
Use of language reveals attitude or mood of the writer or speaker. I choose three words in the first part of this letter which, I think, reveals something of Paul.
1) “Command”
“Paul an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Saviour and of Christ Jesus our hope…”
“Commandment” - gk epitag?, stresses the authoritativeness of the command.
This later letter of Paul’s has a different greeting from his earlier ones. Previously he described himself as an apostle by the “will” of God. Now it is by the command of God. Does he now feel conscious that it is something he must submit to, with all the consequences? Perhaps he needed this perspective when the times became more challenging for him.
How to know the will of God?
- Live in the scriptures.
- Keep up your conversations with God.
- Try to do what you believe you are asked to do by God.
2) Verse 3, “Stay.”
Sometimes we need to resist the urge to move on in our quest for the next adventure. Where the action is, is where Jesus wants you to be.
“Stay!” Why? Was he about to move on? The greater good, the mission of the church of Jesus Christ is put alongside personal desires.
3) “Charge” verses 3, 5 and 18
“Charge” - gk parangelia, a proclamation, a command or commandment, is strictly hsed of commands received from a superior and transmitted to others. (Vine’s Expository Dict of NT words)
Is also used in Rom 16:22-27
Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him- to the only wise God be glory for ever through Jesus Christ! Amen.
A command or instruction is given, a charge is a responsibility accepted. This distinction is something explored further in this letter when Paul starts speaking of false teachers.
Graham is back with us after his holiday from China. His message this morning was based on Acts 28.
Letters of Paul to Tim & Titus Part 1
Acts 28
Introduction
Paul’s Roman imprisonment in AD 60. After his release he writes to Timothy and Titus about AD 63-65.
1) “Go to this people and say”
Compare with Matthew 13:14 and the parable of the sower. Jesus taught in parables. Why? See verse 10 following. Truth is revealed to those who are ready or who have openness to receive, yet concealed from those who would reject it, saving them from the further sin of blasphemy. This is the confidence Paul has in Acts 28.
2) “They will listen”
That the gospel was for the Gentiles as well as the Jews is the great theme of the book of Acts, this book written by a Gentile, Luke.
On his release from confinement we Paul visiting Crete during his fourth missionary journey. He missed Crete due to the storm which nearly sank his ship on his way to Rome. During this fourth missionary tour he writes to Titus, the man he has left in charge of the new church in Crete, and to Timothy who is left in charge of the new church in Ephesus.
His letters to both of these people, Timothy and Titus, are not so much letters to these men on personal issues but to instruct them how to get the new churches on a proper footing. What it is to be a church of Christians, or Christians being church, will be a main theme of this series.
Paul’s conviction, communicated through these letters, is that the Gentiles “will listen”.
Conclusion
“They will listen” Acts 28:28
Compare with:
Matthew 9:37 Then he said to his disciples, The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.
Luke 10:2 He told them, The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.
John 4:35 Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.
I need to make sure I do not forget this.
