In his first epistle to Timothy, Paul explains how we’re to behave in God’s household (3:14–15). Given his purpose, he has something to say to just about everyone – men, women, apostates, heretics, elders, deacons, widows, slaves, poor, rich, and so on.
In 4:6–16, Paul has something to say specifically to ministers of the gospel. That being said, the principles (in these verses) are relevant for all Christians. Why? We’re all servants of Christ. The question is this: Are we good servants?
These verses contain eight marks of “a good servant of Christ Jesus” (4:6). I’m going to share four in this post.
(1) Be Vigilant!
“If you put these things before the brothers...” (4:6).
What does Paul means by “these things?” He’s referring to 4:1–5, where he addresses the issue of false teachers.
Paul describes their error (4:1–3). He warns that some people depart from the truth, devoting themselves to deceitful spirits. (1) They confuse the nature of holiness; they adopt asceticism as a path to godliness. (2) They bind the conscience of man; they convince themselves that asceticism pleases God. (3) They corrupt the worship of God; their confusion stems from a superstitious view of God.
Paul dispels their error (4:3–5). He does so by affirming two truths. (1) Everything created by God is good. See Gen. 1:31. (2) Everything is to be received with thanksgiving. Simply put, that means we’re to use God’s good gifts sacredly, soberly, and sensibly.
It’s “these things” that Timothy must “put” before the church. He must charge the false teachers not to teach any different doctrine (1:3). Likewise, we must be vigilant, when it comes to refuting error. Why? Wrong thinking about God means wrong thinking about the gospel, which means wrong thinking about godliness.
(2) Be Studious!
“Being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine…” (4:6).
The verb “to train” means to nurture. Metaphorically, it means to digest inwardly. The present participle (“being trained”) implies an on-going process. Thus, Paul is affirming that we must continually feed upon God’s Word.
“Do not expect to master the Bible in a day, a month, or a year. Rather, expect to be often puzzled by its contents. It is not all equally clear. Great men of God often feel like absolute novices when they read the Word… Do not expect always to get an emotional charge or a feeling of quiet peace when you read the Bible. Often you will get no emotional response at all. Let the Word break over your heart and mind again and again as the years pass by, and imperceptibly there will come great changes in your attitude and outlook and conduct” (Geoffrey Thomas).
(3) Be Disciplined!
“Train yourself for godliness…” (4:7–10).
Godliness is the equivalent of the fear of God. “The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil” (Prov. 8:13). That means we must train ourselves to hate evil.
We face a daily dilemma, as we struggle with sin. Why? We wrestle with two truths. (1) We know sin feels good. (2) We know sin displeases God. Which of these truths will we choose to follow? Answer: the one that’s most attractive.
When we train ourselves for godliness, we’re striving to make sin unattractive. How do we do that? We find a good answer in Phil. 4:8, where Paul declares, “Brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” In a word, we must learn to savor our standing in Christ. When we think of our sin, we must remember His forgiveness. When we think of our guilt, we must remember His merit. When we think of our weakness, we must remember His strength. When we think of our pride, we must remember His humility. When we think of our failures, we must remember His sufferings. When we think of our want, we must remember His fullness. When we think of our temptation, we must remember His tenderness. When we think of our vileness, we must remember His righteousness.
Along those same lines, we must immerse our minds in what it means to be adopted into God’s family, what it means to be clothed with Christ’s righteousness, what it means to be assured of sins forgiven, what it means to be part of a royal priesthood, what it means to be chosen from the mass of humanity by God’s sovereign grace. As we think upon these things, we grow to savor them. We’re attracted to them.
An athlete, training for the Olympics, is motivated by the prize. Likewise, we need motivation. Paul provides it be reminding us that “godliness is of value in every way.” How? (1) It holds promise for the future – blessedness. (2) It holds promise for the present – contentment (6:6). Paul expands on the second in 4:9–10. He explains that we toil and strive in this life, but it isn’t in vain. Why? We set our hope on the living God, who supplies all our needs. How can we be sure God will meet our needs? He’s the Savior (Provider) of all people. His benevolence extends to all, especially believers. Therefore, we know that if we train for godliness, God will take care of the rest. As Christ says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33).
(4) Be Consistent! (4:11–12)
“Set the believers an example…” (4:12).
Timothy was a relatively young man – likely in his 30s. Paul expects some of the older men in the church at Ephesus to dismiss Timothy because of his youth. And so, he prescribes a sure way for Timothy to get their attention: “Set an example!” He touches on five areas: speech, conduct, love, faith, purity.
Examples are powerful – in the home and church. What kind of examples are we? What do people learn from our speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity? We would do well to remember that our confession is only as compelling as our speech; our doctrine is only as compelling as our conduct; our teaching is only as compelling as our love; our service is only as compelling as our faith; our activity is only as compelling as our purity.
Quotable: “Do not leave your Bible at church, and hear nothing from it all week long! Bring it home to your house! Let it dwell with you! Converse with it continually as your intimate friend! Let this book of books be often before you, and always in you! Let it be your meditation all day long!” (George Swinnock).
In 4:6–16, Paul has something to say specifically to ministers of the gospel. That being said, the principles (in these verses) are relevant for all Christians. Why? We’re all servants of Christ. The question is this: Are we good servants?
These verses contain eight marks of “a good servant of Christ Jesus” (4:6). I’m going to share four in this post.
(1) Be Vigilant!
“If you put these things before the brothers...” (4:6).
What does Paul means by “these things?” He’s referring to 4:1–5, where he addresses the issue of false teachers.
Paul describes their error (4:1–3). He warns that some people depart from the truth, devoting themselves to deceitful spirits. (1) They confuse the nature of holiness; they adopt asceticism as a path to godliness. (2) They bind the conscience of man; they convince themselves that asceticism pleases God. (3) They corrupt the worship of God; their confusion stems from a superstitious view of God.
Paul dispels their error (4:3–5). He does so by affirming two truths. (1) Everything created by God is good. See Gen. 1:31. (2) Everything is to be received with thanksgiving. Simply put, that means we’re to use God’s good gifts sacredly, soberly, and sensibly.
It’s “these things” that Timothy must “put” before the church. He must charge the false teachers not to teach any different doctrine (1:3). Likewise, we must be vigilant, when it comes to refuting error. Why? Wrong thinking about God means wrong thinking about the gospel, which means wrong thinking about godliness.
(2) Be Studious!
“Being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine…” (4:6).
The verb “to train” means to nurture. Metaphorically, it means to digest inwardly. The present participle (“being trained”) implies an on-going process. Thus, Paul is affirming that we must continually feed upon God’s Word.
“Do not expect to master the Bible in a day, a month, or a year. Rather, expect to be often puzzled by its contents. It is not all equally clear. Great men of God often feel like absolute novices when they read the Word… Do not expect always to get an emotional charge or a feeling of quiet peace when you read the Bible. Often you will get no emotional response at all. Let the Word break over your heart and mind again and again as the years pass by, and imperceptibly there will come great changes in your attitude and outlook and conduct” (Geoffrey Thomas).
(3) Be Disciplined!
“Train yourself for godliness…” (4:7–10).
Godliness is the equivalent of the fear of God. “The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil” (Prov. 8:13). That means we must train ourselves to hate evil.
We face a daily dilemma, as we struggle with sin. Why? We wrestle with two truths. (1) We know sin feels good. (2) We know sin displeases God. Which of these truths will we choose to follow? Answer: the one that’s most attractive.
When we train ourselves for godliness, we’re striving to make sin unattractive. How do we do that? We find a good answer in Phil. 4:8, where Paul declares, “Brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” In a word, we must learn to savor our standing in Christ. When we think of our sin, we must remember His forgiveness. When we think of our guilt, we must remember His merit. When we think of our weakness, we must remember His strength. When we think of our pride, we must remember His humility. When we think of our failures, we must remember His sufferings. When we think of our want, we must remember His fullness. When we think of our temptation, we must remember His tenderness. When we think of our vileness, we must remember His righteousness.
Along those same lines, we must immerse our minds in what it means to be adopted into God’s family, what it means to be clothed with Christ’s righteousness, what it means to be assured of sins forgiven, what it means to be part of a royal priesthood, what it means to be chosen from the mass of humanity by God’s sovereign grace. As we think upon these things, we grow to savor them. We’re attracted to them.
An athlete, training for the Olympics, is motivated by the prize. Likewise, we need motivation. Paul provides it be reminding us that “godliness is of value in every way.” How? (1) It holds promise for the future – blessedness. (2) It holds promise for the present – contentment (6:6). Paul expands on the second in 4:9–10. He explains that we toil and strive in this life, but it isn’t in vain. Why? We set our hope on the living God, who supplies all our needs. How can we be sure God will meet our needs? He’s the Savior (Provider) of all people. His benevolence extends to all, especially believers. Therefore, we know that if we train for godliness, God will take care of the rest. As Christ says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33).
(4) Be Consistent! (4:11–12)
“Set the believers an example…” (4:12).
Timothy was a relatively young man – likely in his 30s. Paul expects some of the older men in the church at Ephesus to dismiss Timothy because of his youth. And so, he prescribes a sure way for Timothy to get their attention: “Set an example!” He touches on five areas: speech, conduct, love, faith, purity.
Examples are powerful – in the home and church. What kind of examples are we? What do people learn from our speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity? We would do well to remember that our confession is only as compelling as our speech; our doctrine is only as compelling as our conduct; our teaching is only as compelling as our love; our service is only as compelling as our faith; our activity is only as compelling as our purity.
Quotable: “Do not leave your Bible at church, and hear nothing from it all week long! Bring it home to your house! Let it dwell with you! Converse with it continually as your intimate friend! Let this book of books be often before you, and always in you! Let it be your meditation all day long!” (George Swinnock).
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