Conduct: Fight the fight
Life as the church - Book of 1 Timothy • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 1:05:04
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A Christians “Jihad”
A Christians “Jihad”
Jihad is a fight or struggle against enemies of Islam. So, what is a Christian Jihad?
In other instances that word can be translated at “holy war” or in a literal meaning “struggle.”
A Christian struggle may come in several ways.
Personal: an inner struggle against evil that is within
Social: Struggle for decency, goodness and good moral conduct
Militarily: Struggle on battlefield where and when necessary.
Now as Christians we know we are followers of the Prince of Peace (Isa9:6) who gives peace (Jn14:27) so you can have peace with God (Rom5:1) but that does not mean we don’t have struggles, battles.
For the kingdom is spiritual, and not of this world (Jn18:36)
jn18:36
36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”
Our battle, struggle is not with the sword (in the flesh) (Mt26:52)
52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.
Now this does not mean we do not need to fight, for our passage today instructs Timothy “to” fight
12 Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
and this morning I want us to look at a few things starting in this verse.
Fight
Lay hold
Called
Fight! The good fight of faith
Fight! The good fight of faith
There are a couple of fights we can pick from this. May we take a few minutes and develop this concept of fighting.
There is fight for our faith
We are to contend for it (Jud3-4)
jud3-4
3 Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. 4 For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
We are to strive (agonize) for it (Php1:27)
27 Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
Why? for we have the doctrine (Gal1:8-9) and there are others, false teachers who are trying to give something else (2Pt2:1-3)
Gal1:8-9 in summary is we have the gospel, anyone who preaches anything else but the gospel that has been received is to be accursed.
And there are false teachers who are doing that now.
1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned;
3 and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.
(transition) where we see this played out in the physical world, it truly is still a spiritual battle, a spiritual Jihad. So we need to
Fight with the proper weapons (2Cor10:1-5; 2Tim2:24-26)
Paul urged the Corinthians with meekness and gentleness of Christ to fight with the right weapons
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,
Proper weapons are divinely powerful able to destroy
Proper weapons are knowledge of God.
And told Timothy how to do it
24 The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, 25 with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth,
26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
Proper weapons are kind, able to teach, are patient, gentle, and correcting.
From fighting for the faith, to now fight for our faith.
It is personal (1Tim4:12)
Ready for a scripture marathon again?
Our faith is personal, we have a common faith, the one faith, but this here that we are contending for is personal faith.
12 Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.
So we an example to others in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity!
It must be pursued (1Tim6:11)
11 But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.
Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.
It must be protected (Heb3:12)
12 Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.
Contend for our faith so there will be no falling away from the living God, no hardening of heart.
Weapons for our use in this Jihad (struggle)
The Word of God (Rom10:17; Jn20:30-31)
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
and John wrote his gospel so we can believe, have faith
30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
The word of God, the words written in this book! Written with a purpose, to bring faith (belief) and that by it you can have eternal life.
Exhorting one another (Heb3:13, 10:24-25)
13 But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
Exhort one another so not to be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
Not only exhort but look for ways to do it
24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
Fully equipped with God’s armor (Eph6:10-17)
Remember it is a spiritual battle, needing spiritual weapons
11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
Girded with truth, With a breastplate of righteousness, feet shod with gospel of peace, with a handy shield of faith and the helmet of our salvation yielding the sword of the spirit, the word of God!
(Transition) Fight, contend, strive, what do we want, what did Paul want as the end result for Timothy and in turn for us? Let’s look together.
Lay Hold
Lay Hold
Eternal life is a future hope and a present possession and Paul wants Timothy to contend for it, to have it, to know he has it and to walk in it.
12 Run hard and fast in the faith. Seize the eternal life, the life you were called to, the life you so fervently embraced in the presence of so many witnesses.
Seize what was promised by God (Tit1:2)
2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago,
Eternal life promised, hope to be fulfilled
Seize that which is our inheritance (Tit3:7)
7 so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Hope of eternal life by being justified by His grace and made heirs
Seize that future fulfillment on day of judgment (Mt25:46)
The hope to be fulfilled fully on the day of judgment
46 “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
So, be set free from bondage of sin (rom6:22-23)
Hope that should remind us to be free, stay free from the bondage of sin.
22 But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Know good, do good, share with others (1Tim6:17-19)
So because of this hope that we fight for, share it with others
17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. 18 Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,
19 storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.
Be rich in good works, generous in sharing, store up a good foundation for the future (fulfilled eternal life)
Pursue, persevere to the end eternal life
7 to those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life;
(Transition) this is a set up for this laying hold as a present possession just as much as a future hope.
Enjoy eternal life given now, for life is in the Son and we may know we have it (1Jn5:11-13)
Let these verses marinade in you some
11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.
And this great assurance we can know
13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.
This life involves knowledge of Father and Son (Jn17:2-3; 1Jn5:20)
Eternal life is knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ according to (Jn17:3)
Know that the Son of God has come so we may know the One who is true and that we are in the One who is true, this is His Son Jesus Christ according to (1Jn5:20).
It is an abundant, life full (Jn10:10)
We know Satan came to kill, steal and destroy but Jesus came to give life give it full, or more abundantly according to (Jn10:10)
So lay hold, seize this life by:
Walk in the light (1Jn1:7)
Keep his commandments (1Jn2:3-6)
Gods love perfected in us when we keep His commands and love one another.
Love the brethren (1Jn3:14-15)
We go from dead, from death to life by our love of God that is demonstrated in our love for the brethren.
Watch your doctrine (2Jn1:9)
For in the doctrine (teaching) you can know you have the Father and the Son.
Jihad, holy war, struggle, strife, agony, fight - Paul admits the struggle, and tells Timothy and us to fight, fight the good fight! Paul did said.
2tim4:7
7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith;
He fought the good fight and has kept the faith and he knew what awaited him.
8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
Not just him but all who love His appearing!
There is still one more point I want to grab from the passage today
12 Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
Eternal life to which you were called.
How were you called
By the gospel
Why were you called
sinner in need of Savior
When were you called
When you heard the Word that brings faith
Where were you called
Right where you were, in your sin, in your iniquity, in your separation, in your desperation
(insert- The Gospel PowerPoint) here -Invitation
(Song) (Prayer) (Exit)