Pep Talk for the Faithful

1 Timothy 4:11-16

©Copyright February 23, 2020 by Rev. Bruce Goettsche

The stories are legendary about pep talks given in locker rooms of athletic events. Knute Rockne gave a famous halftime speech to the Notre Dame football team in 1928. Notre Dame was the underdog against Army. They were down 6-0 at the half. Rockne used the half time to tell the story of George Gipp. He said,

And the last thing he said to me -- "Rock," he said - "sometime, when the team is up against it -- and the breaks are beating the boys -- tell them to go out there with all they got and win just one for the Gipper...I don't know where I'll be then, Rock", he said - "but I'll know about it - and I'll be happy."

The team then went out and scored two touchdowns to upset Army.

It will always be known as the "speech" among Cub fans. The last game of the World Series and the Indians had tied the score off the Cubs closer. The Cubs curse seemed to be rearing its ugly head. Jason Heyward took the team to a closed team meeting and reminded them that they were the best team in baseball for a reason, and it was time to show the world what that reason was. The rest is history.

In 1 Timothy 4:11-16 you get the feeling Paul is delivering a pep talk to his young friend Timothy. He had just been encouraging Timothy to work hard at his faith; to train diligently. He followed with this "pep talk."

11Teach these things and insist that everyone learn them. 12Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. 13Until I get there, focus on reading the Scriptures to the church, encouraging the believers, and teaching them.

14Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you. 15Give your complete attention to these matters. Throw yourself into your tasks so that everyone will see your progress. 16Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you.

I can almost visualize Timothy gaining strength and energy with each line Paul wrote. It's my hope these exhortations will have the same effect on us.

The first thing Paul told Timothy was to teach everything Paul had just said to everyone. It was Timothy's job to encourage people to pursue faith diligently. It is certainly our job to do the same. Then He got specific. The intensity begins to rise.

Don't be Intimidated; Lead by Example

Timothy was a young man. It is likely there were those who dismissed him because of that fact.

This was a significant verse to me as I was growing up. I became a follower of Christ at 13 years of age. At 14 I became the President of our state youth group (which was not as big of a deal as it sounds). At 16 I was asked to come to a church and preach my first sermon. I felt intimidated by the prospect of standing up as a teenager to teach those who were many years older than I.

My Pastor at the time looked over the first sermon I was to preach. I never forgot his advice. I was timid and almost apologetic in what I said. He told me to say boldly: "The Bible says" and to follow that with confidence. And then he said words that have stuck with me since that day, he said, "NEVER, apologize for the gospel."

I didn't realize it then, but he was taking a page out of the playbook of the apostle Paul. Timothy's age was not important. What mattered was his maturity in Christ. Paul seems to say the best way to gain credibility is to be consistent in the way you live. He told Timothy to be an example in "what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity."

Paul first points to our speech. James tells us if we can control our tongue, we can control the rest of our body. This involves being truthful, kind, conciliatory, not using humor to cut others down, not being argumentative or sharp in our comments. Instead, even our rebukes and corrections should be couched in gentleness.

Showing faith in "The way you live" is the general course of your life. A believer should not be one way in church and one way in the world. Faith shown "In your love" is that special concern Timothy was to have for his people in his heart. It should be genuine and not contrived. This should produce an urgency toward evangelism but not a reckless insensitivity.

Being an example "In faith" means Timothy was to show His faith and trust in God was real; even when things did not go his way. And finally, he is to demonstrate his faith "in purity." Timothy was not to be a sexual vagabond like so many in the world today. He should view intimacy as something reserved for that special person in a marriage relationship rather than using people as a means to sexual satisfaction.

It doesn't matter what age you are; or what job you hold, this is good advice. Do you want to silence those friends who make fun of you because you are too young, too old, not educated enough, lack life experience, or are overly naive? SHOW them the Christian faith in the way you live! There is nothing that strengthens a person's credibility more than a consistent life. But it is important to note the corollary: there is nothing that will destroy a person's credibility more quickly than a life that is inconsistent.

Authority may come with a title, but credibility comes with a life of consistency in the areas of speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity. As one now giving advice to young pastors, I would tell them to worry less about whether people are "submitting" to your authority and focus more on giving them someone worthy to follow. You cannot demand authority or get it by throwing your weight around . . . you can only gain it by your godly example.

Matthew Henry commented, “Those who teach by their doctrine must teach by their life, else they pull down with one hand what they build up with the other.” Puritan Richard Baxter said, “There are too many men who are ministers before they know how to be Christians.”[1] The way to get people to stop looking down on you is to give them reason to look up to you!

Keep the Focus on the Word of God

The second thing Paul says to Timothy is: "Until I get there, focus on reading the Scriptures to the church, encouraging the believers (apply the Scriptures), and teaching them." (v. 13) This is not three commands, it is one. He is urging Timothy to read the Scriptures publicly, teach the scriptures, and to help the believers know how to apply the Scriptures in their daily life.

In the interest of a more streamlined service, many churches have stopped the public reading of Scripture unless they refer to it in the sermon. There is value in reading the Scriptures. On most Sundays you will hear the text 2-3 times during a one-hour time of worship. Why? Because we believe it is God's Word that changes people rather than the nifty outlines and points made by men.

Not only was Timothy to read the Scriptures, he was to teach the Scripture and apply these teachings to daily life. This is why we do what would be called expository preaching. It is when you go to a passage of Scripture and explain what the Bible is teaching and then show how it applies to daily living. We believe the best way to do this is systematically (going through an entire section or book of the Bible) as opposed to jumping around from text to text.

The advantages of this are numerous: we allow the Bible to set the agenda. Rather than always talking about what we are comfortable talking about, we follow the emphasis of Scripture and we will be much more balanced in our understanding. Second, people will have some background and context to better see how texts fit together. This will help guard all of us from error. Third, this forces us to talk about things that we would avoid if we had the choice. No one wants to talk about divorce, failure, what the Bible says about women, or teaching about stewardship. But this is the "whole counsel of God" and we need to listen to it in order to be balanced in our lives.

There are times and places for what we would call topical teaching. This is when you start with a topic and gather verses together that speak to that topic. However, it is easier to pick only those verses that fit with what you want to say and leave off those that would lead us to a different conclusion. In other words, it is easier to lead you to where the speaker wants you to be, rather than where God might want you to be.

Use Your Gifts

The third thing Paul says to Timothy is,

14Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you.

A few weeks ago we looked at the requirements for elders and deacons. We went to Acts 6 where the Apostles appointed deacons to serve the people so they could devote themselves to the preaching of the Word and to prayer. This is an example of not neglecting your spiritual gift.

It is easy for us to get pulled in a number of different directions so that we are so busy, we are no longer able to give quality time to what God has specifically called us to do.

When we become a follower of Christ the Holy Spirit equips us with gifts or ministries He wants us to use in the Body of Christ. He might give you a real passion for youth, or for teaching, or for music. He may give you a heart for the elderly or those who are alone and at home. He may give you a passion for a new ministry in the church. We should put our primary focus on what God has called us to do. If your passion is to pray, guard your times of prayer. Don't let other "good things" rob you of time to do what God has called you to do.

In the case of Timothy, God called him to preach and to teach. Paul tells Timothy to give the bulk of his time to this pursuit. Timothy could be running everywhere trying to minister to every person in every difficulty. However, in doing so he would be neglecting the job God gave him to do. The principle is simple: we need to let God set the agenda in our lives and not other people.

Give complete attention and maximum energy to the Gospel

I believe these last three exhortations are all saying the same thing,

Throw yourself into your tasks so that everyone will see your progress. 16Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you.

There is a time in a game of poker when a player may go "all in." It means they are betting everything they have on the hand they hold. I think this is what Paul is telling Timothy: Be "All In" as you pursue the Lord and serve His people.

When it is time for the Super Bowl or the World Series, fans of the teams in the game are often "all in." They wear the jersey's, they block off time to watch games, they may even spend large amounts of money to attend one of these games. They invite their friends over. They cheer. They fret. They ride an emotional roller coaster. And when the game is done, they are exhausted or elated even though all they did was eat snacks in their chair while they watched athletes compete. It is the same with new Star Wars movies or Avenger Movies or even a new Disney movie!

These moments don't last long. When a new season begins, the agony and the ecstasy start all over again.

Here's the point I believe Paul would make: Follow Christ with that same kind of fervency! This matters eternally! Block out time in your schedule. Put aside money in your budget. Tell others. Invite your friends. Be attentive. Be invested in the advancement of God's Kingdom.

He is summoning us to the pursuit of excellence in our walk with Christ. Listen to these pointed words of Chuck Swindoll I read many years ago.

Before the tragedy of the Challenger explosion, astronauts used to joke, "it really makes you think twice in here when you realize everything in this whole project was constructed according to the lowest bid!" That's not funny anyone.

Many -- dare I say, most --conduct their lives "according to the lowest bid." This is never more obvious than in the evangelical community today. Let anything appear the least bit expensive and you can expect a critical response.

Not only is abundance suspected as being inappropriately extravagant, it is openly criticized. The majority will never understand. They will always make the ordinary their standard. I challenge that! I feel there are times when "extravagant" gifts are not only appropriate, they are occasionally essential! So are "extravagant" purchases and "extravagant" expressions of love and worship, especially if we are determined to live above the level of mediocrity. (Charles R. Swindoll, Living Above the Level of Mediocrity 1987, p. 68)

I hope you reach that point in your life when you choose to savor life. When you take that nice vacation, purchase that new car, and treat yourself to something nice and special. But even more than this I hope you reach that point in your relationship with God! Give Him all you've got. Dare to trust Him. Throw yourself unreservedly into serving Him. Give generously to honor Him.

Harry Gray who was then the CEO of United Technologies wrote this ad that appeared in the Wall Street Journal between 1970-1980.

The greatest waste of our natural resources is the number of people

Who never achieve their potential.

Get out of the slow lane.

Shift into the fast lane.

If you think you can, you won’t.

If you think you can, there’s a good chance you will.

Even making the effort will make you feel like a new person.

Reputations are made by searching for things that can’t be done

And doing them.

Aim low: boring

Aim high: soaring.[2]

Takeaways

Let me summarize and give you some quick takeaways from this text.

First, If you want to lead . . . show it by the way you live your life. If you live a life of consistency and grace, the critics will have very little ammunition against you.

Second, we must be first and foremost a people of the Book. We should come into this place looking for a "word from the Lord." That should be true whether it is for a Bible Study, a Youth Group meeting, Sunday School or worship. We must never settle for a haphazard study of the scriptures. Hunger for God's Word more than you do music, fellowship, or anything else. It is God's Word that is more powerful that a double-edged sword! If you ever find yourself in a church that is skimping on the teaching of the Scriptures . . . find another church!

Third, give first priority in your life to what you can do well in your service for the Lord. Refuse to be distracted or overburdened with other things. Be faithful to what He has given you to do. I have found Matthew 6:33 to be true in life experience: "seek FIRST the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all the other things will be given to you."

Finally, follow Christ enthusiastically. Stop shuffling your feel and start dancing! Let's stop looking to see what is the LEAST we can do, and start looking for the BEST we can do for Christ and His Kingdom. He deserves the best of what we have and of who we are. Dare to be a dreamer. Think big. Go "all in" with the Lord.

It is time for God's church to be done with lesser things and pursue that which is good and excellent with all the energy we can muster. And if we do this, we will not only make an impact, we will be stunned by what God can do in and through us. And what's more, doing this will be more fun, and more fulfilling than we thought possible. Don’t take my word for it, test it for yourself.

[1] Philip Graham Ryken, 1 Timothy, ed. Richard D. Phillips, Daniel M. Doriani, and Philip Graham Ryken, Reformed Expository Commentary (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2007), 181.

[2] First read on page 9 of Swindoll, Living Above the Level

Pep Talk for the Faithful - 1 Timothy 4:11-16