1 Timothy 6:13-16 (3)

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-Introduction:

Let me invite you to follow along in your Bibles.

We’ve come to 1 Timothy 6:13-16.

I’m going to do something a little different this evening...

…I’m going to read a quote that makes application from our text...

…before we read the text itself.

…I do recognize the potential dangers in that...

…and I take them seriously.

But I feel like an awareness of the sickness that the quote describes...

…will help us to better appreciate and receive the cure...

…which is prescribed in our text.

It comes from Robert Mounce (2019)

The contemporary church is in need of a view of God that stresses His greatness and transcendent power.

Modern hymns often bring Him down to our level of drab familiarity.

He becomes the panacea for trivial ills, the support for our lackluster programs. We forget the awesome quality of His divine nature.

To meditate on Paul’s great doxology is to realize again the greatness of God and the wonder of His eternal plan. - Mounce

Amen to that… At the very outset!

Now, let’s read our text...

…and pray that this great, transcendent God...

…would help it to have such an effect upon our hearts.

1 Timothy 6:13–16 (ESV)

13 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession,

14 to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,

15 which he will display at the proper time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,

16 who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

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Pray

(4 minutes)

Verse 13:

-If you’ll recall, throughout this letter, Paul had (at times)...

…paused his general instructions for the ordering of the household of faith...

…and had charged Timothy (personally) with certain responsibilities.

Usually, they were commands to faithfully...

teach, and

implement...

…the things that Paul was writing.

-In fact, he had begun the letter by charging Timothy...

…to charge others.

1 Timothy 1:3 (ESV)

3 As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine...

Many times throughout, he had...

Paused the instruction...

Issued a motivating exhortation.

For example, after giving that long list of...

difficult,

potentially unpopular...

...commands regarding:

widows, elders, etc...

…Paul had doubled down with that intense oath-like exhortation:

1 Timothy 5:21 (ESV)

21 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.

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-Our text is similar to these.

But as sober and solemn as they all were...

…they are surpassed by the gravity given to...

…this final charge directed to Timothy.

-We looked at the buildup to it (weeks ago) in verses 11-12.

Remember, Paul had commanded even there:

1 Timothy 6:11 (ESV)

11 But as for you, O man of God, flee these things...

The love of money

The craving for controversy

(chiefly)

1 Timothy 6:11–12 (ESV)

11...Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.

12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

-As solemn and sober as that is...

…he ratchets up the intensity even more in verse 13:

He says:

1 Timothy 6:13 (ESV)

13 I charge you...

can also mean: “command” or “order”

(very stern)

These are “marching orders”

His orders as a soldier of Christ

What are they?

Rather, what is it? (singular)

1 Timothy 6:14 (ESV)

14 to keep...

…something.

The word in the original can mean to:

Watch over something

To guard it

To protect

To preserve it.

What is this young soldier being charged with “guarding?”

Paul simply refers to it as:

1 Timothy 6:14 (ESV)

14 to keep the commandment...

singular,

definite article.

And not only is he charged with keeping it...

…he’s charged with keeping it impeccably!

Paul said:

1 Timothy 6:14 (ESV)

14 ...keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach...

“Unstained”= faultlessly (literally: without blemish or spot)

“free from reproach” = same word in 1 Tim 3:2

1 Timothy 3:2 (ESV)

2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach...

“where a credible accusation can’t be justly made”

“where a charge won’t stick”

-This is a stern commission.

-These are stringent marching orders.

-But, what were they?

What did Paul mean by “the commandment?”

-Well, commentators are divided on that.

Many suppose that:

The command refers to the duties laid upon Timothy for his ministry in Ephesus (1 Tim 1:3–20; 6:2c–5). - NET Notes

Some broaden it out to:

the letter as a whole, i.e. everything that was commanded to Timothy; - I. Howard Marshall

But it seems to me that given...

The immediate context, and...

The way this language is used elsewhere...

…that the scope of this singular commandment...

…is even more all-encompassing than even that!

I think J.N.D. Kelly may offer the best explanation.

He says that it refers to:

the whole law of Christ, the rule of faith and life enjoined by the gospel, to which Timothy has pledged himself at his baptism. - J.N.D. Kelly

I wouldn’t be dogmatic...

…but here’s why I lean that way:

Remember the immediate context.

1 Timothy 6:11–12 (ESV)

11 But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.

12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Peter wrote a similar exhortation:

2 Peter 3:1–2 (ESV)

1 This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder,

2 that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles,

John also refers to a singular command in 1 John 3:23.

He identifies it clearly there:

1 John 3:23 (ESV)

23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.

And Peter gives a warning about the...

...danger of disobeying such a commandment:

2 Peter 2:20–21 (ESV)

20 For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first.

21 For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them.

-Given all of these evidences...

…I think Kelly’s opinion (many agree) is to be preferred.

Again, that Paul is referring to:

the whole law of Christ, the rule of faith and life enjoined by the gospel, to which Timothy has pledged himself at his baptism. - J.N.D. Kelly

-But… it isn’t really the “what” of the charge that’s most significant.

It’s the “how” and the “why” of the charge...

…that I believe will be the most beneficial to us.

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-Look back at what we skipped over in verse 13.

It accentuates for us...

…the sobriety and solemnity...

…of this weighty exhortation.

Paul said:

1 Timothy 6:13 (ESV)

13 I charge you in the presence of God...

In a sense, Paul is placing Timothy under an oath.

The language is similar to the high priests’ adjuration of Christ...

…during his mock trial.

Remember, Jesus wouldn’t answer their questions up until that point.

Matthew 26:63 (ESV)

63 But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”

After that, He confessed his identity as the Messianic King!

-And Paul certainly didn’t take Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount...

…to mean that Christians were forbidden from making oaths (as many do today).

1 Thessalonians 5:27 (ESV)

27 I put you under oath before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers.

Similarly here, he charges Timothy...

…as though he stood before the very immanent presence of Almighty God.

And if that wasn’t enough to drive his point home...

He adds:

1 Timothy 6:13 (ESV)

13 I charge you in the presence of God, . . . and of Christ Jesus...

For a Christian, it would be hard to...

…stress a matter more sternly than that right there.

“I charge you before the Father.”

“I charge you before the Son.”

This should invoke complete obedience.

-But… I want you to notice a kindness...

…that Paul includes with that severity.

Notice the descriptions he attaches...

…to the Father and the Son.

They may not seem like it at first glance...

…but they are intimately related in the way...

…they are meant to encourage Timothy.

He says, of the Father, that He is the one:

1tim6.13

1 Timothy 6:13 (ESV)

13 ...who gives life to all things...

The word Paul uses here specifically denotes...

“The preservation of life”

…rather than the initial gift of life.

The point is this:

Deuteronomy 32:39 (ESV)

39 “ ‘See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god beside me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.

The point is that:

God is the source of life

He sustains it where He wants it sustained...

He takes it where He wants it taken.

Your life can’t be taken apart from His permission...

…and even then, He has the power and authority...

…to give it back via resurrection.

Here’s what that meant to Timothy...

And what it should mean for us as well:

He therefore means, that we should shut our eyes, when ungodly men hold out and threaten death; or rather, that we should fix our eyes on God alone, because it is he who restoreth the dead to life. - Calvin

This was meant to encourage Timothy to...

…press on in his spiritual warfare!

Because (ultimately), the outcome of the war is certain.

-And, what Paul says about Christ was meant to have a similar effect.

1 Timothy 6:13 (ESV)

13 I charge you in the presence . . . Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession,

What’s he referring to?

Jesus’ confession of His lordship before Pilate...

…prior to His crucifixion.

His faithful witness resulted in his unjust execution.

And this is the point for Timothy.

He’s drawing a parallel between Jesus...

appearing before a hostile ruler...

…and Timothy having to bear witness before hostile people...

…both within and outside of the church at Ephesus.

He’s saying:

Follow Christ’s example of humble obedience, and...

Resign your fate to the one who can, either:

protect you from harm, or

raise you from the dead.

He’s saying “soldier on, son!”...

… “you have every reason to persevere!”

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-Now, at the end of verse 14...

…Paul tells Timothy the duration of his enlistment.

He says:

1 Timothy 6:14 (ESV)

14 to keep the commandment . . . until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,

1 Timothy 6:15 (ESV)

15 which he will display at the proper time...

So, he doesn’t tell him how long his commission will last...

In months, or

years.

Rather, he says you just soldier on until...

…you see your King returning in triumph.

That word “appearing,” is the root word...

…behind our word epiphany.

It literally means to “shine forth”

Notice (as a side note) that Timothy isn’t told to soldier on...

…until everyone suddenly disappears.

He’s told to soldier on until someone APPEARS!

Until Christ Appears!

What were his disciples told when he left the earth?

Acts 1:11 (ESV)

11 ...This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

visibly

physically

with clouds of glory

Jesus had said before:

Matthew 16:27 (ESV)

27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.

not invisible

not secret

Paul combines all three aspects...

(appearance, coming, and judgment)

In:

2 Thessalonians 2:8 (ESV)

8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.

And John wrote:

Revelation 1:7 (ESV)

7 Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.

Timothy wouldn’t have to wonder...

…whether or not his deployment was over.

He would know it without a doubt...

He would either

die in battle...

Or, visibly behold the return of his King!

-But… notice (again) in verse 15...

…that he wouldn’t be told that in advance.

Paul says, (In reference to the appearing of Christ):

1 Timothy 6:15 (ESV)

15 which he will display at the proper time...

In other words, God (the Father) will be the one...

…who determines when the time is right.

He will:

manifest Him

Make him known...

...When HE decides to!

-Timothy is not given the prerogative to know ahead of time.

nor are we!

Timothy was called to soldier on in expectant hope...

so are we!

The scripture is clear:

Matthew 24:36 (ESV)

36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.

People debate what that’s referring to...

…but not many do these parallel passages:

Matthew 25:13 (ESV)

13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

1 Thessalonians 5:1–2 (ESV)

1 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you.

2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.

But, he says:

1 Thessalonians 5:4–6 (ESV)

4 But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief.

5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.

6 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober.

This is to be our disposition in the waiting:

Watchful

Vigilant

Diligent

Sober

Serving

Faithfully soldiering on...

…and longing for the day of our King’s victorious return!

Philip Ryken beautifully elaborates:

His return will bring total triumph for the people of God.

We are not on a suicide mission, doomed to destruction. On the contrary, our King has promised to come again before the last battle, when he will come with heavy reinforcements to sweep our enemy from the field.

In the meantime, every soldier in God’s army must keep fighting, blamelessly, the good fight of the faith:

“For if earthly soldiers do not hesitate to fight when the outcome is uncertain and they are in danger of death, how much more bravely ought we to fight under the guidance and banner of Christ,...

...where we can be certain beforehand of victory, more especially since a reward awaits us, far beyond the rewards usually given by commanders to their men,...

...a glorious immortality and heavenly blessedness.” - Philip Ryken

-And it may just be the recognition of these realities...

…that swells up in Paul’s heart...

…and causes him to burst forth...

…in that glorious, glorious doxology...

…that follows in verses 15-16

It appears to be a spontaneous, worshipful eruption...

…that is laden with theology proper.

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He says of God (proper):

1 Timothy 6:15 (ESV)

15 ...he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,

He begins this systematized praise by emphasizing:

The goodness of God (His “blessedness”)

The Power an authority of God.

He says that He is the...

“Sovereign” (The “potentate”)

The root word is dunamis (power and ability).

Paul says that He is the One who possesses ALL...

Power

Ability.

And it’s almost redundant, but he says that...

…he is the ONLY Sovereign!

And he illustrates that by that majestic, regal description:

“The King OF kings and Lord OF lords”

That’s ABSOLUTE sovereignty.

That may not be the god of much 21st century evangelicalism...

…but is is emphatically the God of the Bible!

Deuteronomy 10:17 (ESV)

17 For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.

And don’t overlook the significance of this:

Revelation 17:14 (ESV)

14 They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”

-Paul continues his praise in verse 16:

1 Timothy 6:16 (ESV)

16 who alone has immortality...

What he means is that God is “immortal” of his very nature.

Of Him alone, can that be said!

Everyone/everything else that will endure into the ages...

Got/gets its life from Him

He is the source

Psalm 90:2 (ESV)

2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

And again:

Hebrews 13:8 (ESV)

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Revelation 22:13 (ESV)

13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

Paul goes on:

1 Timothy 6:16 (ESV)

16 ...who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see...

This is in reference to the transcendence of God...

…in His essential nature.

His essential Being is too holy to be beheld...

…by lesser things.

But, his glory emanates from his essence.

His goodness shines forth visibly...

…so that he may be enjoyed by his creation...

…but His radiant glory, while good...

…is not at all safe!

The classic example is:

Exodus 33:18–23 (ESV)

18 Moses said, “Please show me your glory.”

19 And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.

20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.”

21 And the Lord said, “Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock,

22 and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by.

23 Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.”

The Reformed Expository Commentary summarizes:

Here the Bible speaks of the blinding, luminescent radiance that streams from the glory of God.

Yet God himself remains invisible.

As he said to Moses, “You cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live” (Ex. 33:20). - REC

Again, a little Christology:

John 1:18 (ESV)

18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

Colossians 1:15 (ESV)

15 He is the image of the invisible God...

Hebrews 1:3 (ESV)

3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature,...

Revelation 22:3–5 (ESV)

3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.

4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.

5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

Ryken thus Concludes:

Invincible, immortal, invisible, altogether inaccessible—this is the great Commander we serve.

What else can we do but trust, serve, and worship him? If invincibility, immortality, and invisibility belong to him, then all praise and worship belong to him as well: - Ryken

That is the only appropriate response, brethren...

WORSHIP!

-That’s where Paul inevitably goes.

He says:

1 Timothy 6:16 (ESV)

16...To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

Amen?

Amen!

Let’s Pray.

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