The Umpire is Blind!

Not every umpire is blind.

Terrell Hawes is probably the biggest Atlanta Braves Fanatic I know.

I’m certain most of you saw the viral video of Terrell when the Braves won the World Series.

Terrell was at Truist Park on the field watching the game on the Jumbo-tron.

And when the Braves won, Terrell was - exuberant - to say the least.

As were many of us were exuberant.

And I’ve got to admit, when that young man intercepted the Alabama Heisman Trophy winning quarterback for the second time.

And Kirby’s on the sidelines telling him to hit the deck with it.

But he’s running down the sideline with his, “Mama, you better be watching your baby do this Pic-6,” attitude.

Got to admit - I was a bit exuberant.

We love our Braves.

We love our Dawgs.

And with equal emotion we hate our referees and umpires.

How many Jones County Greyhound football games have we watched where we’ve complained, “Yeah, we had to pay the ref’s too.”

More than once in my life, I’ve heard folks say - might have said it myself once or twice - the umpires are blind.

Back in the day in some baseball movies, you’d hear a fan yell, “Throw the bums out.”

But now here’s the thought.

You’ve got four umpires on the field in Braves game.

The guy behind the plate is having a day.

We can see because we’ve got a box on our screen that he’s having trouble calling close pitches.

The more we watch - we get more aggravated than the pitcher in the game.

And the next day we’ll say, “the refs were horrible.”

But was every umpire blind?

In our study in 1 Timothy - you might want to go ahead and get your Bibles out and turn to 1 Timothy 5.

If you don’t have a Bible with you we have some in the pew racks, no shame in using one of those.

And if you don’t have a Bible at home, take one of ours as a gift - every home needs a Bible and we’d be happy you have one from First Baptist.

In our study of 1 Timothy, you might remember we said the job of the Elders - a group of men who could preach and teach and who led the church.

It was their job to Proclaim and Protect the gospel, remember that?

In fact, Proclaiming and Protecting the gospel is the mission of the church and the elders are the gatekeepers for the church.

It’s their job to keep the church on a Godly, Christian path.

But the church at Ephesus wasn’t on a Godly, Christian path.

It was in chaos with people teaching “secret” teachings.

That your genealogy mattered in your salvation and that the family was a burden to you achieving your best life now.

And the Elders didn’t stop it.

If you want to know the frustration the good Christians in the Ephesian church felt, think of our political system.

We elect people and send them to Atlanta and Washington - and then they make some of the asinine and ungodly decisions they could make.

Decisions that have no basis on anything they campaigned on.

Doesn’t that aggravate you?

It does me.

And what do we say, “We should vote every one of them out.”

What Paul is going to say to Timothy today should make us all pause for a minute and think.

Paul will use the Bible and Jesus’ own words to show us how to choose good leaders and what to do with bad leaders.

We talk about wanting to follow Jesus - well here is a very clear, extremely clear path to walk, and it makes me wonder.

How many heartaches could be avoided if we simply followed Jesus?

1 Timothy 5:19–6:2 ESV

Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear. In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, doing nothing from partiality. Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure. (No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.) The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden. Let all who are under a yoke as bondservants regard their own masters as worthy of all honor, so that the name of God and the teaching may not be reviled. Those who have believing masters must not be disrespectful on the ground that they are brothers; rather they must serve all the better since those who benefit by their good service are believers and beloved. Teach and urge these things.

How do you figure out if a good guy really is a good guy?

I really do believe that the folks in the Ephesian church who were committed to proclaiming and protecting the gospel were telling Timothy, “We need to throw the bums out.”

As far as they are concerned, every Elder is a bad Elder.

They’ve let us down.

They are supposed to be in charge and look at what’s happened to us.

We need to get rid of every last one of them and start all over.

I’ve said the same thing about Washington - and I suspect many of you - whether you are Democrat or Republican or whatever - I suspect you’ve said the same thing.

We need to throw the bums out and start all over.

But the problem with that is - according to Paul - some of the elders aren’t bums.

“Let the elders who rule well...” he says.

Paul kind of hints at - do you really want to get rid of someone who is doing what God called them to do.

I was in seminary during the conservative resurgence in the Southern Baptist Convention.

It was a very difficult time in our convention - I certain believe now that it was necessary - but I still wonder about some of the tactics.

I was talking to someone who was a groupie of the big wigs in charge, telling him about a professor of mine who was a really good professor who got crucified.

And the groupie’s response to me was, “Sometimes you have to shed some innocent blood.”

I think Paul is contradicting that statement right here.

“Let the elders who rule well,” he says.

They are doing their job.

They are proclaiming and protecting the gospel and caring for folks with the best of their ability.

Don’t throw them out, he says.

Instead, 1 Timothy 5:17 “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.”

If they are going a good job and especially if they are preaching and teaching the one thing that has a chance of straightening this whole mess out.

Give them double honor.

Now, I’ve heard this preached a bunch of different ways - but here is what I believe based on what I’ve studied.

Pastors are elders but this doesn’t mean that a Pastor/Elder should be paid twice as much as anyone else.

First of all, back then they didn’t have vocational clergy.

Every elder had a day job.

The beginning church didn’t have the funds to pay full-time staff and certainly to pay them double everyone else that might get paid.

Double honor is simply this.

First, respect them for who they are.

God called them there.

They are struggling with all of their might to lead the church well - that is not easy.

They are proclaiming the gospel; they are trying to protect the gospel; they love you.

Respect them.

And secondly, when they preach, pay them an honorarium.

Double honor - respect and an honorarium.

Now look at what he uses for support.

Deuteronomy 25:4 ESV

“You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain.

If you look that up in Deuteronomy, you’ll find that one little sentence is sandwiched between two sections explaining how to treat folks right.

The first section is talking about punishing a criminal.

The second section talks about young widows.

And in the middle of that, it’s like God says, and by the way, treat your animals right too.

Don’t take your beast and make him work making you food while you starve him.

Not cool - don’t do that.

But if that wasn’t enough support, Paul quotes Jesus, Luke 10:6-7

Luke 10:6–7 ESV

And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house.

Jesus appointed 72 others, Luke tells us, to go and do the work of an elder - “Go proclaim the good news.”

Stay with whoever will let you - and don’t feel guilty for accepting their hospitality.

“…for the laborer deserves his wages...”

Jesus says they deserve double honor.

Folks who receive the gospel should respect you.

Folks who receive the gospel should support you - so you can keep telling the good news.

So, back to the point, 1 Timothy 5:17 “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.”

You’ve got some bad elders, yes you do.

But you’ve got some good ones too.

You’ve got some good umpires - you’ve got some good politicians.

But you’ve got some bad ones too.

How do you tell the difference?

First, figure out who is doing the talking

If they have a reputation for being a bad elder, who is calling them bad?

That’s one of the things about social media - who are these people we are listening to?

I would caution you about what you are hearing about the Ukraine situation.

Yes, Putin is an autocrat who had done some really bad things.

But who is it who is telling us we need to be ready for war with Putin?

Who is priming the pump for World War 3?

Who is doing the talking?

1 Timothy 5:19 ESV

Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.

Guess where this comes from.

Deuteronomy 19:15 ESV

“A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.

Paul obviously knows his Bible.

Paul obviously still believes the Old Testament law has validity.

Paul knows - as we know - that God has been working since the formation of the earth to show us who He is.

And God is fair.

God is just.

God will not break a bent reed nor will He put out a flame that is barely flickering in someone’s heart.

He is for you.

Listen - if you are in a situation where you are being unjustly accused - don’t for a moment think that Jesus has abandoned you.

Know, know that He is with you and that He is for you and He is making a path to give Him glory and draw you into it.

Life is full of pain and that will never change until Jesus returns.

But that doesn’t mean that God doesn’t care.

What Jesus is doing with this text in 1 Timothy is He is teaching us how to make the church a place of refuge.

As best as we can - we’ll never do it perfectly - but as best as we can.

Don’t admit a charge against an elder - against the leadership - or anybody for that matter - except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.

Eye witnesses.

People with first hand knowledge.

Not people who heard about something in the dishwasher detergent aisle at Ingle’s or at the deli at Harvey’s.

Or the diaper section of Dollar General.

Make sure you know who is talking.

We’ve renamed one particular sin in our society and sanitized it.

The sin is gossip.

Now we call it social media.

Never condemn your pastor on gossip.

Never condemn your elders and deacons on gossip.

Never condemn you Sunday School teachers, Awana leaders, Ministry team leaders on gossip.

Or anybody else in the church based on, “Did you hear about so and so?” unless the one telling is an eye witness, but even then...

Take your time making up your mind.

One of the best lessons of the Bible which we are horrible at is taking our time.

It’s the old joke, “Lord, give me patience and give it to me now.”

In verses 24 & 25, Paul lays out a principle that is taught all over the Bible.

1 Timothy 5:24-25 “The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden.”

What does the Bible say about discernment - about figuring out if something is right or wrong?

Numbers 32:23 ESV

But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.

Ecclesiastes 12:14 ESV

For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

Luke 8:17 ESV

For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.

If you look in your red-letter edition Bibles, you’ll notice those words are written in red - Jesus is warning us.

What is all of this saying?

In a world that wants you to make up your mind right now, do not make a snap judgement about a brother or sister.

Don’t make a snap judgement about your Pastor or Elders or Deacons.

And don’t get frustrated if it seems like the bad guys are getting away with something and there doesn’t seem to be anything you can do about it.

Because the answer is right here.

Your part is to wait and to watch and to pray.

Because God’s part is to reveal.

There is nothing secret “that will not be known and come to light.”

Back in the day I managed a sales teams and we were always giving away incentives for our sales people to sell certain products.

$25 gift cards, $25 Traveler’s Checks.

Multiple thousand dollar trips.

We dangled some pretty fat carrots in front of those sales people.

And pretty fat carrots yield a lot of temptation to cut corners.

But I always told my folks, if you cheat, I will fire you.

You may get away with it for a season, but God doesn’t like ugly and one day I’ll find out.

And true to His word, every now and again I would stumble across something very creative where one of my folks cheated.

I would quietly gather the evidence.

When I had enough first hand evidence, I would take it to my boss and to Human Resources.

And with their blessing, I would fire the cheater.

And although I wasn’t allowed to publicize it, everyone in the office would know.

They cheated - and they lost their job.

If you cheat, that will happen to you too.

If you are a bad elder, you will be found out too.

We know what to do with good elders - we give them double honor.

What do we do if they are bad?

1 Timothy 5:20 “As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear.”

What is implied here is Jesus’ instructions for conflict resolution found in Matthew 18.

Evidence from witnesses would come in.

The elder who received it would go to the offending brother.

If that failed to change his behavior, then one or two others would go and try to get the brother to repent.

If he still refused to repent, then he would be called in front of the church, and be publically rebuked and removed from eldership and membership.

That’s sounds harsh and I’ve never seen it done, although it should have been, but I wonder,

How many heartaches could we have avoided if we simply followed Jesus?

That’s what this text is talking about, how we follow Jesus.

Well, here’s a way.

This entire text is telling us - when you look for leaders, take your time.

Just because they are bright and shiny doesn’t mean they are pure.

Just because they are dingy and dirty doesn’t mean they are nasty.

Ask the Lord to show you their stripes and believe Him to do what His word has promised.

Don’t get impatient - bring every one of your own thoughts captive - crucify your desire to know it now.

And wait on the Lord - or in our words - follow Jesus.

Odds and Ends

1 Timothy 6:1-2 “Let all who are under a yoke as bondservants regard their own masters as worthy of all honor, so that the name of God and the teaching may not be reviled. Those who have believing masters must not be disrespectful on the ground that they are brothers; rather they must serve all the better since those who benefit by their good service are believers and beloved. Teach and urge these things.”

When we talk about slavery in the Bible we immediately think of the Chattel Slavery in early American and that causes us all kinds of problems.

Slavery in their day wasn’t defined by race.

If your army conquered another land, you might bring back people and put them to work as slaves.

If you were extremely poor and there was no way for you to survive, you might sell yourself into slavery.

We’ll talk about slavery and race one day - but this isn’t the day and this isn’t the text.

This text essentially is talking about an employee / employer relationship and let’s just net this out.

If you work for a Christian, don’t take advantage of him or her because they are a Christian.

Respect your boss - for what reason?

Matthew 5:16 ESV

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

What is our job?

Proclaim and protect the gospel.

At all times.

Everywhere we go.

In everything we do, without exception.

And one last thing:

1 Timothy 5:23 “(No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.)”

This has been taken out of context so many times.

It’s been preached and taught that this verse says we can drink alcohol.

Let me give you the context and then I’ll agree with you.

Remember what we said about the qualifications of an elder - of which Timothy is one?

1 Timothy 3:3 “not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.”

Not a drunkard - if you remember, we said that word was different from a deacon.

Deacons are “not to be addicted to much wine,” but the elder must not be a drunkard.

That word - drunkard - literally means that a good elder can take it or leave it and if it is going to bring offense to someone, he will definitely leave it.

To understand this verse and why Paul interrupts the flow of his teaching to put this here, you have to look at the last 3 words of the prior verse.

“Keep yourself pure.”

What Paul is saying to Timothy is not that it’s OK to cop a buzz watching a ball game or a race.

He’s telling Timothy, “You are working so hard to remain pure - to represent the gospel well to those promiscuous and drunken heathens that you are hurting your own health.

“Keeping yourself pure does not mean killing yourself.”

“Drink a little wine to settle your stomach and maybe it will help your other ailments as well.”

Do you see the practicality of Jesus’ love for us?

Yes, Jesus died for our sins to make us right in the eyes of God.

Yes, the wrath of God has been turned aside and instead of condemnation

We have acceptance.

Like a shepherd loves and protects his sheep.

Like a good father draws his children close.

A good father...

I know some of you didn’t have a good father - in fact, some of you had horrible fathers.

But try to think - try to remember maybe - among the bad times.

Remember a time when your dad or some man in your life taught you a good thing.

The right way to change a tire.

The right way to deal with a bully.

The right way to plant a garden or build a bird house.

Or swim in a creek.

A good father shows you how to do those things so you won’t get hurt and you can live happy and fearless.

That’s one of the reasons why God the Father sent Jesus.

So Jesus could say, brothers and sisters, this is the way, walk in it.

Follow me through this life - do what I teach - I know what I’m talking about.

Follow me until we all go home.

Dad is going to have a party waiting for us when we get there.

Psalm 84:10–12 ESV

For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!