1 Timothy 4
Paul writes this
book as a letter to Timothy, out of concern for the church in Ephesus. During
this time period (around 50AD), Ephesus was the 2nd largest city in the Roman
Empire- Only Rome was larger. It was a trading capital, so it contained ALL
kinds of people. As the Jews would think of Jerusalem as their religious home,
Pagans would think of Ephesus- It was Pagan Central Station. It made Las Vegas
look like Disney Land.
For example, Ephesus was home to, The Temple of Diana- which was pagan temple for orgy's,
interpreted as worship. This temple is one of the 7 wonders of the ancient
world… So in saying this we realize there was a LOT going on outside the early
Christian church. In comparison, it would be like one of us writing to a friend
leading the Church of Las Vegas- clearly this would be a very difficult task!
Also during this time, the church was rapidly
growing- not only in numbers, but also in opinion. As the church accepted more
individuals, they also accepted a variety of backgrounds and traditions.
Because of this, many small churches began to form and each varied in their teachings
and traditions.
Paul was wrote to Timothy for two reasons:
First to warn him of the challenges the church would face during this corrupt
time, and second, to encourage him to stay focused on the truth rather than the
legalistic/corrupt ideas of the world.
Paul stressed the role of the church was (and
still is) to act as the pillar of Truth. This is important because as we will
see in chapter 4, wherever there is truth, there will also be distortion and
manipulation… others will want to change it and take things out of context so
it fits into their ideas and traditions. Because of this, Paul tells Timothy to
“Take Heed.” (Pay attention)
1 Timothy
4
V.1-5-
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the
faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by
demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical
liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods,
which God created to be
received with thanksgiving by
those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.
V. 6-10- If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus,
nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have
followed. Have nothing to do with godless myths
and old wives’ tales; rather,
train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has
value for all things, holding
promise for both the present life and the life to come. This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labor and strive, because we
have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.
V. 11-16- Command
and teach these things. Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be
diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may
see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if
you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
3
things Paul tells us to observe: Timothy- Take Heed to:
1.)
What is coming into the church from the
outside (v.1-5)
2.)
What is going on inside the church (V.6-10)
3.)
What is going on inside of yourself (V.11-16)
1.) What is
coming into the church from the outside? (v.1-5)
When you are outside the church what do you
see/surround yourselves with?
1 Timothy 4:1-5 tells us that there will be people who:
a.)
Receive deception
b.)
Repeat lies
c.)
Reject conviction
The bible guarantees that there will be false teachings and
beliefs and than many of us will buy into them.
2
Peter 2:1-3- But
there were also false prophets among
the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive
heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on
themselves. Many
will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has
long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
Especially in the “bible belt,” but even in a city like Ephesus or
modern day Las Vegas, there will be individuals who claim to believe and claim
to be “Christian” but they are actually deceiving themselves. In order to
identify false doctrine, traditions, and customs, we must know how to define
faith. What does Paul mean when he says some will “fall from faith?”
Paul/ Christ definition of Faith: believing
in the Gospel. (PERIOD)= JESUS.
Anything
besides Jesus= False doctrine. Other teachings/ religions may look true.
They may even claim that they are trying to find favor with God, but the key
difference is, they are trying to find favor through their own human
righteousness. (Jesus + Works + rules =
Salvation)
Paul says in v. 3 there will be some who claim to serve our God
but deceive others into believing that they must also follow a list of rules. V.
3-They forbid
people to marry and
order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know
the truth.
There are a number of scriptures where Christ claims that we
cannot be saved through our own efforts:
*Titus 3:5-9* He saved us, not because of righteous things we
had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our
Savior, so
that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these
things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote
themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and
profitable for everyone.
Obedience to rules does not make you more or less a
child of God. Parents set rules for their child’s protection; however, when
that child breaks the rules they do not ask them to forfeit their last name.
(Although a parent may discipline their son/daughter… Most would never disown
them- no matter what the child had done)- This is the same with GOD.
2.) What is
going on inside the church (v.6-10)
Outside the biblical or “Baptist” church realm we may hear about
all the “extra” requirements of salvation, but sometimes inside the church we
tend to hear the opposite of “extra”- by completely neglecting the importance
of our works. (Our fruit)
*Romans 10:13- tells us that we are saved by grace alone. This is
correct; however, if we are truly saved our salvation should be obvious by the
fruit we produce.
Matthew
7:15-20- Watch
out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will
recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes,
or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good
fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear
bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not
bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize
them.
Our fruits, or
deeds, are not what save us, however; our fruit should indicate our salvation.
Unfortunately, inside the church we can become too comfortable and
drift away from the Lord. When this happens we neglect parts of our faith and
in a can become what I like to call- “buffet Baptists.” We pick and choose
which parts of the bible we want to accept and obey.
But we don’t want this to happen because it is just as damaging to
our witness. When we fall victim to the buffet Baptist syndrome, Christ cannot
use us to show others his Love. It is important to have a “balanced meal.” No
parent would want their child to only eat Pizza and cookies on the buffet… no
you need a full nutritious meal to remain healthy!
3.) What is
going on inside of yourself (v. 11-16)
Lastly, our passage addresses the individual. If you are like me,
then you have often examined your life according to a “Sin Scale”- This can
happen when we associate with either group above- the one inside or outside the
church… we get caught up in measurement when we focus on works alone- we will never be good enough! When we
treat the bible as a buffet, we miss all the nutrients needed to remain healthy
and we will continue on this up and down cycle. And if we believe we are saved by
our works, we will always try to prove that we are worthy…. HOW EXHAUSTING!
I am the first to admit that I have been on this roller-coaster many of times. Now even more so, as a teacher, I struggle to live in the world
but not of it. I catch myself setting do and don’t lists, limiting what I can
and can’t do. And this usually leads to one of two outcomes:
a.)
I become arrogant, selfish, and prideful
Or
b.)
I get bored and/or frustrated so I end up
stumbling into the “don’t list.”
I catch myself thinking that because Christ calls me to be an example;
I need to have it all together. When I fall into this mentality my relationship
with Christ becomes more about the outward appearance than the inward. I slack
on actually building a foundation, because I want to rush into how my life
should look once that foundation is set. But what I fail to realize is a
foundation in Christ will never be 100% stable through my own efforts, Satan
loves to throw curve balls… that is why I must always be working on my foundation.
I need to focus on grounding myself in Christ DAILY! When my focus is on HIM
and finding security in Him, then I do not have to worry about the Do/Don’t
list because my desires will become HIS!
1 Tim. 4:3 tells us that “EVERYTHING God created is good, nothing
is to be rejected if received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the
word of God and prayer.” In everything we say, receive, and do… we need to give
thanks and know that Christ has not set limits on our life.
In v. 7 we see that we should have nothing to do with silly
irrelevant myths!
This is where I think most of you will want to tune in…. As
singles I know many of us like to have a good time, (we like to go out, have a
few cocktails, maybe dance a little… or whatever you like to do on your
weekends) but maybe you are struggling with where and how to draw the line. How
to “live in the world and not of it.” You set limits and then you breaking them
(because you are human) which leads to guilt… well the awesome thing about surrendering
to Christ is that you no longer have to live on egg shells!
Listen to me- if you don’t get anything I have said, get this: The
#1 command Jesus gives us is this: “follow me.”
When we stop setting rules and decide to follow Him, we will be free
to do whatever we desire because our desires will be HIS.
If you want to go grab a beer with a friend on a Saturday night-
do it… Life is no longer about this is right and that is wrong. Life is simple: “Follow CHRIST.”
You can enjoy this world when you follow Jesus, because you will
no longer need a Quantity of worldly things satisfy you (more drinks,
more hook ups, more money, more possessions)… But when you are satisfied
through JESUS alone- He becomes your Quantity. (More time in prayer…. In
Fellowship… in the Word) Therefore, you can enjoy the Quality of the world
in the way Christ intended!
The
actions and choices you make will reflect whether you seek the Quantity of the
world or the Quality of Jesus Christ!
