The Simple Life - 1 Timothy 4:6-10

Introduction

87 percent of people want to live the simple life according to Forbes. And, this is largely being driven by millennials and Gen Z. They grew up in homes — often really nice homes because of well-paying careers — where they weren’t sure that their parents were happy. These homes were filled with stress and exhaustion and the continual dread of work and an extremely high divorce rate. And, what did their parents often talk about? You’ve heard this. They talked about the way their grandparents grew up in “simpler times.” They heard their apparently stressed out and unhappy parents talking about their grandparents who lived in the same small house on the same piece of land all of their lives who woke up with only one responsibility — to make sure everyone was fed.

So, millennials and gen z have decided to pursue their parent’s dream because their parent’s way didn’t seem to work. They’re willing to live in tiny homes and campers. They want a life that offers more subsistence living, even if they have to build their farm in the city. They’re embracing minimalism, and they want work-life balance more than a corner office and a fat salary. As a matter of fact, I bet there are some of you this morning who have thought even this week or had a conversation this week, about a desire, a longing for a simpler life.

God’s Word

Well, a simple life is exactly what Christianity offers. In our passage this morning, Paul speaks to his spiritual son, Timothy, offering clear guidance for life and ministry. His aim is simple—and one we can all embrace: to be “a good servant of Christ Jesus” (v. 6). That’s it. A straightforward goal, with straightforward instructions. Everything else is secondary.  So, we get Instructions for a Simple Life (Headline) to achieve a simple goal.

Clear “clutter.”

1 Timothy 4:7 “Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;”

(Add quote) Christian Psychologist John Deloney says: "Clutter is like your stuff yelling at you all the time." You have a book case filled with books, and they’re all yelling at you for never taking time to read. You have an old lawn mower because it was your grandad’s, and every time you have to walk around it, it yells at you: “You still haven’t dealt with this grief.” You have dishes in the dishwasher and clothes in the corner and a pile of papers on the counter, and they’re all yelling that you’re failing and your life is out of control.

So, one of the main benefits of clearing out the clutter is that it brings mental clarity and focus to the things that really matter and that you really care about. It helps to keep you from wasting precious time and energy on things that don’t help or matter. And, that’s really what Paul is telling Timothy to do when he says, “Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths.” Timothy has been sent by Paul to the church in Ephesus, and one of the reasons that he was sent there was because some false teachings had arisen that had combined a type of Jewish asceticism with Christianity — you can’t do this, you have to do that, you can’t eat or drink that, you have to eat or drink this — and Paul recognizes that Timothy could end up spending all of his energy and time getting wrapped up in this doctrinal clutter, and he wants him to see through it. I love how Paul frames it. This is the only time in the NT that the word that’s translated “silly” appears. And, it’s literally “old-womanly.” Now, that’s funny. But, what Paul is saying is, don’t get wrapped up in old wives’ tales while you’re trying to heal this body. Clear out the doctrinal clutter and focus on what matters.

“Doctrinal” clutter has “metastasized.”

Man, that’s a word for us this morning. Never has there been a time in which there was more doctrinal and theological clutter than today. Now, the church has always dealt with false teachings and aberrant teachings. Theological clutter isn’t new, but today it has metastasized. Back when the Bible is written and throughout most of church history, you might have a false teaching or an aberrant teaching, but usually these were contained to a particular area. You’ll notice that in the NT. Different letters are written to different churches to address different controversies and teachings, and each one was a bit unique. Well now, with YouTube and Tiktok and the History Channel and Facebook, anybody with a phone can say anything they want, and it’s imported into every living room in the world. So, churches aren’t just dealing with A false teaching. We’re dealing with all of them!

All of you who are older than 35, did you grow up worrying about a flat earth or theories surrounding the Nephilim? Did you find yourself confused about the Book of Enoch or whether Jesus’ teaching on Eunuchs from birth in Matthew 19 meant that Jesus affirmed homosexuality? I’m guessing not! But now, Jordan Peterson and Joe Rogan and a bunch of folks with letters after their names can come into your living room and break room and even bathroom with you and cause you to become confused over “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” Every KJV only-ist and end time theorist and canonical conspirator is at your finger tips, and they’re preying on your curiosity and desire to know what others don’t. Well, this gets back to the original sin, doesn’t it? It goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden when all Adam and Eve wanted was more knowledge that would make them like God.

“Learning” has distracted from “knowing.”

So, Paul calls them “irreverent, silly myths”—literally translated, “godless old wives’ tales.” They’re distractions. They waste your time and energy until you have nothing left for what’s real. Because here’s the truth: learning can actually distract you from knowing. I know that sounds backwards—but stay with me.

Imagine your marriage is in crisis. You know something’s wrong. Your spouse is asking to talk, to reconnect. But instead, you order four books on marriage. You pull out old yearbooks and scroll through their social media history. You talk to friends who’ve been through it. You do everything—except actually sit down with your spouse. In your effort to understand marriage, you haven’t done anything to actually KNOW the person you’re married to. You’ve become an expert on love. You’ve become an expert on the person you want to love. But, you haven’t actually loved. You end up knowing more about your spouse—but they feel more distant than ever. Why? Because information without intimacy can’t build trust. Only true, experiential knowledge of the person can do that.

There’s a difference between learning and knowing, isn’t there? In the same way, you can chase every theological curiosity, every speculative doctrine, every spiritual rabbit hole—and end up farther from Jesus, not closer. You’ll be exhausted by your own spiritual efforts, and still spiritually empty.

Listen: Knowing Jesus—not just studying theories and speculation about Him—is how you’ll endure. He’s the one who brings rest, hope, and security. And so, I know all these curiosities, all this doctrinal clutter, are shouting for your attention. But if your aim is a simple life with a simple goal—to be a good servant of Christ Jesus—then clear out the clutter. Focus on knowing Jesus. Focus on the means of grace He has given. Focus on how He has revealed himself through the Scriptures. Focus on the fellowship with the local church. Focus on the Lord’s Supper. Focus on your daily prayers.

And, that’s the direction Paul moves with his instructions toward the Simple Life. Once you’ve removed the clutter…

Establish “routines.”

1 Timothy 4:7–8 “Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training 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.”

James Clear says: “Routines are a way of saying: ‘These things matter to me’.” Routines are a way of making a decision in advance to prioritize your values. They’re the daily steps we take to get where want to be. It’s not enough to want a simple life, Paul is pointing out. You’ve got to implement the steps to get there. Routines feel ordinary and unexciting — but that’s how simplicity feels, isn’t it? That’s what people are chasing — a clear, dependable, purposeful life. And, that’s the exact purpose of building the right routines. And, that’s simplicity.

It’s interesting to me that “the simple life” has become so closely associated with farm life. My great grandad was a farmer, and I was honored to be able to meet and know him. I joked this week that I can’t wait to see him in heaven so that I can let him know that chickens are hip now. He had chickens when they were just smelly. But, he and my great grandmother were the ones that everybody in our family talked about as having the simple life. And, what’s interesting about the farming life is that it’s one of routine. Farmers know exactly what they’ll do tomorrow when they lay down tonight. They’ll milk the cow, plow the field, feed the chickens, and they’ll stop at dark. It’s simple.

Well, this is very much in Paul’s mind as he’s instructing Timothy toward the simple goal of “being a faith servant of Christ Jesus.” He says to “train yourself for godliness.” Ephesus was a lot like Alabama. They placed a lot of “value” on sports there. They spent a great deal of money preparing and training athletes for all types of sporting events, and they got a lot of their cultural identity from sports. So, here’s what Paul says — that’s fine. Training your body is good and right. But, you get a much higher return on your investment when you “train yourself for godliness.” Training your body is good for you today. Training yourself for godliness is good for you today and forever.

Discipline “reshapes” your “life.”

Now, what is godliness? Well, “godliness” is just another way of restating the goal of a simple life — “to be a faithful servant of Christ Jesus.” And, “godliness” in the NT is more than pious discipline. It’s more than a series of things to do. Godliness is is the reshaping of all of your life into the image of Jesus. It’s the transformation of your life “in every way.” Godliness is the wisdom to navigate life, the character to cope with life, and the perspective to understand life. But, though godliness is more than just pious discipline, it requires discipline. No person would expect to reshape their body into the vision that they have apart from training. You don’t drift into good shape and good health. And so, even though good health and being fit is far more than discipline. It requires discipline. Well, the reshaping of our thoughts, desires, and character require training in a similar way. Reshaping your life, like reshaping your body, requires discipline.

If we want to live a simple life, then we have decide what that vision is. As James clear says, we have to decide what matters, and then we just have to establish the right routine of daily steps to get us there. An example for what it means for you whose simple goal is “to be a good servant of Christ Jesus.” We have a young congregation. Many of you are in your 20’s and 30’s, and I want you to have a vision now of what it will mean for you to be a godly matriarch or patriarch of your family. Don’t you want that? Don’t you want to be a stabilizing force for your family that sets it in the right direction forever. For some of you that’s keeping it going and for others of you, that’s breaking a cycle. But, for all of you, it’s going to require you establishing the right habits and routines today to be who your family needs you to be tomorrow.

Discipline “makes” life “easier.”

(Show marathon training plan) Because that’s how you train for a marathon. Several years ago, Alan Easterwood talked me into to running a marathon with him. And, I was really intimidated by the idea. So, he sent over a training plan. It was a six month plan. And, it didn’t start at 26 miles. It started at 1. Gradually, it increased until you were running 40 miles a week. And, it did what good training does. It broke the goal down into a sustainable routine, and each week built upon the other to get you where you wanted to go. And, in the end, the practice was so much more than the actual event, that the race became eas-IER. Not easy. Eas-IER.

And, that’s what training for “godliness” does. Notice that “godliness” isn’t just good for when you get to heaven. It helps in “the present life.” You see, godliness doesn’t make life easy. Life isn’t easy. But, godliness makes facing life eas-IER. Like parenting teenagers is hard! But, it’s a lot harder if you haven’t been investing in the character and wisdom that you’ll need to face it. Growing older is hard! But, it’s a lot harder if you don’t have the perspective and dignity that godliness brings. Being the matriarch or patriarch of your family is hard, but decades of discipline and training makes it eas-IER. (Not because the circumstance is easier, but because the character is equipped to better handle it.)

“Training yourself for godliness” is establishing the right routines today that will give you the wisdom and character you’ll need tomorrow and ten years from now and forty years from. So, start simple. Establish the right routines. Don’t go to the track and try to run 26 miles. Start with 1. (Philosophy of ministry, philosophy of life, upside down kingdom and clear, uncluttered mission)Most research shows that it takes about two months to establish a new routine. So, would you take a two month challenge? For two months, would you do three things every day and one thing once per week? (Write these down.) Pray, read your Bible, and meditate on your Bible every day. Start with 30 minutes. 10 minutes per. Then, just once a week, come to church, fellowship, listen, pray, and sing. That’s it. Pray, read, meditate, and come to church. Those are the means of grace — the God-given disciplines — and that’s a simple way to a simple life.

And, it’s part of the way that we aim to…

Live “intentionally.”

1 Timothy 4:6–10 “If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training 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. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. 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.”

People today are pursuing the simple life because they’re realizing that they’re living a life that doesn’t feel very meaningful. Seeing what’s happened by running the rat race and keeping up with the Joneses, a lot of people today are asking: What good is that? What’s the significance? Look, millennials have a lot to figure out, but did you know that a recent study by Arizona Christian University show that 75 percent of millennials are seeking to live a life of meaning and purpose, making them the highest in that category among generational groups.

And, that shows why so many of them are drawn to the simple life. And, it shows the opportunity we have as Christians to show them a simple life that is filled with purpose and meaning. Notice how he frames up everything in verse 10: “For to this end (the end being “to be a good servant of Christ Jesus” in light of the “(held) promise for this life and the life to come”) we toil and strive.” The verb “toil/labor” means something that saps a lot of energy. It’s something that drains you. It’s athletic language again. It’s the picture of an athlete that’s running a race, and they’re coming down the final straightaway running out of gas, so they just lean with their last burst of energy through the tape to attempt to win.

A simple life isn’t low “energy.”

A simple life isn’t a low energy life. It’s just a life that focuses that energy on quality over quantity. It’s a life that gives every, single thing it has for the purpose it was given. It’s not trying to make everyone happy. It’s not trying to have everything the world has to offer. It’s not trying to collect as many experiences and possessions as you can. It’s intentionally aiming toward a single ambition because that single ambition is your driving passion: “to be a good servant of Christ Jesus.”

JI Packer once wrote: “Those who know God have great energy for God.” And, that’s the picture here. It’s someone who realizes they have limited time and limited energy so they’ve aimed it all — intentionally — at God and the life He would have them live. They’ve decluttered their lives of everything else. They’ve organized their life accordingly into their routines. Because they recognize that this is the way you live a life that matters.

A simple life is high “clarity.”

And, it’s simple. So, a simple life isn’t a lazy life. A lazy life is the quickest way to drain life of its meaning. And, a simple life isn’t a mediocre life. A mediocre life is just falling in line with the rest of the ants mindlessly running the rat race. A simple life is a life of high clarity. It’s an intentional life clearly aimed at the only vision that really matters — “our hope hope set on the living God.” It’s a life that knows what’s worth getting up early and being tired for. It’s a life that knows what’s worth staying up late and sacrificing for. It’s knowing where the energy and time should go, and it’s going to bed tired every day satisfied because that day your effort mattered. So, a simple life isn’t low energy; it’s high clarity.

What’s the vision that you have your life? I’ll bet it’s to have a life that isn’t so hectic. It’s probably to have a life with your loved ones that matters. It’s probably to have the godly wisdom that you need when you need it. And, I’d bet that, if at the end of your life the only words on your tombstone where: “A good servant of Christ Jesus,” that would pretty much summarize it all, wouldn’t it? A simple life is realizing that at your death nobody cares what your job was or what your resumé listed or your golf handicap. They’ll only care that you lived a life with the right priorities that made the right difference.

Well, that’s a simple life, but you won’t drift there. You’ll have to clear out the clutter and noise so that you can see clearly. You’ll have to establish the right routines so that your priorities are implemented. And, you’ll have to live intentionally with great energy the race that God has set before you. So, you won’t drift into the simple life, but you can have them simple life.