Why Work?
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Why Work?
1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,
2 through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared,
3 who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,
5 for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.
6 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.
7 Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;
8 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.
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.
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.
As we have taken on the study of 1 Timothy, we have looked at key verses that summarize the passage we are studying. I have found it helpful when reading scripture to look in the text for the reason or purpose the author wrote that portion of the Bible.
In this passage we read, verse 10 gives a summary of this whole discussion of later ties and is a pointer to why Paul even brings up the possibility of departure from the faith.
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.
Paul tells what he does and why he does it. Paul and Timothy toil and strive. That is what they do. They do this because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. This is the reason they toil and strive.
Why do you work hard? Some of you are very committed to Jesus Christ and to the church. Why? Some of you have a low commitment level when it comes to the Jesus and the church. Why?
This “why” question is important.
The connection between what a Christian does and why he does it is this term “godliness.” We mentioned it last week in Chapter 3 and it shows up again in Chapter 4.
7 Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;
8 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.
9 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance.
A godly person is one who believes and acts on that belief in the things of God. The world would call such a person a religious person. I have heard testimonies of people who are not Christians speak about a person they know that practiced what they preached and lived a truly Christian life. That is a godly person.
A godly person is doing kingdom work.
A godly person is doing kingdom work because their hope is in the living God…
A godly person is doing kingdom work because they have their hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
Where is the toil and strife in that? It must be a wonderful thing to live for God, to do what he wants, and to work to help people deal with sin…
But it isn’t…always.
Look at what Paul and Timothy had to contend with.
1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,
2 through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared,
3 who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.
Within the church were people who were devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons. This was unbelievable, but true.
Within the church were people who were insincere liars who didn’t have a conscience. This was unbelievable, but true.
Within the church were teachers who said that you were committing sin if you married. What?
Within the church were those who were telling you what to eat and what not to eat. They did not do as dieticians who were trying to keep you alive. These people were saying, “Thus saith the Lord. Don’t eat these foods that God created.”
4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,
5 for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.
Paul is informing Timothy that he is going into a battlefield. He is going into Ephesus, a city where he will have to work hard and deal with a lot of strife.
If you care about yourself, you will run away from a place like Ephesus. Your blood pressure is going to go up.
If you care about the people, the church, you will enter into that fray with open eyes. It will be a battle and there will be strife.
Why would you want to do so?
Because your hope is in God.
The way that Paul tells Timothy this indicates that Timothy had an ongoing hope that started in the past and continued unto the present. The living God gave them a living hope.
We toil and strive hoping we can make a difference. Paul said to Timothy, we toil and strive because we hope God will make a difference.
What this means in a practical sense is that Paul determined he was going to fight this battle God’s way.
What was God’s way?
Paul and Timothy were going to promote godliness. They would promote right belief and encourage people to live out their faith in the right way.
Timothy’s job was to put these things before the church.
6 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.
When Timothy had done this, he needed to let God work.
Timothy not only had to put these things before the church, he had to guard himself about fighting battle that were not worth fighting.
7 Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;
Timothy had to avoid the distractions that come with irreverent, silly myths. He needed to train himself in godliness so that he could train others.
In other words, preach sound doctrine and encourage good behavior. This holds promise for the present life and for the life to come.
If sound doctrine and good application are put before people, what will happen?
Jesus said it will fall on four kinds of soil. Some won’t understand and will soon forget.
Some will like what they hear, but won’t act on it because they are afraid of what people will say or do.
Some will like what they hear and start using it, but soon get diverted from following through because the care and concerns for this world or the desire for riches will block out a person applying the truth.
Some will hear and respond. Their lives will be changed.
What makes the change? The Spirit of God. That is why Paul tells Timothy that their hope is in the living God. They had experienced change in their own lives, so they knew what God could do. Their hope was that God would cause some to respond.
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.
That some would not respond was a given. These were the ones who made kingdom work toil and strife. The fact that some would respond drove Paul and Timothy to put up with the toil and strife.
The God they set their hope one the living God, was the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
People have gone crazy over this statement. Some have used it to say that because God is the savior of all people, all people are saved. Others have used this to say that God is not the savior of all people, he is only the savior of those he chose or elected to believe. Still others will say that God will save any who come to him, but only those who believe will be saved.
As we embroil in these controversies, we miss the whole point of the verse. God can save anyone who believes.
Paul is not addressing universalism or predestination and election. He is telling Timothy that when he goes to Ephesus, he will face strong opposition from people who do not believe the gospel and do not live godly lives. He is telling Timothy that both the false teachers and the crowd, (those trying to decide between what Timothy will say and what these false teachers will say,) are open to salvation through the living God who will save whosoever believes.
Do you want to help people? Promote godliness. Do you want to make a difference in people’s lives? Talk about Jesus and talk about the life Jesus wants them to live. Leave it up to God to make the difference. You can’t change anyone.
I would hate to face what Timothy had to face. These deceitful lying people who were telling people that marriage and food were sinful to eat, the very things God initiated and created. These things that we are to be thankful for were put down by these manipulating people. I would hate to deal with that.
Yet I have and you have. Not everybody in church is a believer. Not everyone has sincere motives. Not everyone tells the truth. We wish it were so, but it’s not.
We need to be careful that we do not stop loving people. God loved us. Even while we were sinners, he sent Christ to die for us. Even while people are sinning we should promote a godly life. Trust Jesus and live right. We know that all won’t receive the word. That is why we trust God, we put our hope in the living God, who is able to do things that surprise us.
He requires us to be faithful. He doesn’t require us to be successful.
God wants you involved in the church. You know that. I am not preaching something that you don’t already know in your heart. He wants you to be here to help share the load and be an encouragement to fellow believers.
I can say it, but only God can do it in your heart. Have you put your trust in Jesus? Are you toiling and striving for the sake of the gospel?
We have needs. Journey needs actors, greeters, and people to monitor the parking lot. We are approaching the time of year where members decide what responsibilities they take on. We have needs for people to visit friends and people in the church and community in the name of Jesus.
We toil and strive, putting our hope in the living God that he will stir people’s hearts to live out their faith through this local church and beyond.
A new pastor would love to walk into a church in which everything is in order. He would love to come to a place where people love the Lord and love one another. He would love to come to a place where a need is shared and it is met instantly.
We know that he won’t find it here. No church is perfect. But we can hope by the spirit of God that he will find godliness in you.
If not, then you have time to change. You can start not only believing, but living out and doing what you know God wants you to do.
No one can force this. The Holy Spirit will encourage this, convict you and empower you to step up. But you must decide whether you will respond to the Spirit of God or not.
I pray that you do.