Well, folks, this is our final sermon in 1 Timothy. Next, we’ll be moving into 2 Timothy.
We learned last week that Paul is giving some final instructions to Timothy and the church in Ephesus.
This sermon is part 2 of a two-part sermon called “The DON’Ts and DOs of Our Pursuits.”
I want to look at last week’s passage together and then read right on through to the end of the book.
Look at 1 Timothy 6:3-21:
3 If anyone teaches false doctrine and does not agree with the sound teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ and with the teaching that promotes godliness, 4 he is conceited and understands nothing, but has an unhealthy interest in disputes and arguments over words. From these come envy, quarreling, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant disagreement among people whose minds are depraved and deprived of the truth, who imagine that godliness is a way to material gain. 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out. 8 If we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. 9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
11 But you, man of God, flee from these things, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of eternal life to which you were called and about which you have made a good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13 In the presence of God, who gives life to all, and of Christ Jesus, who gave a good confession before Pontius Pilate, I charge you 14 to keep this command without fault or failure until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 God will bring this about in his own time. He is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords, 16 who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see, to him be honor and eternal power. Amen.
17 Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be arrogant or to set their hope on the uncertainty of wealth, but on God, who richly provides us with all things to enjoy. 18 Instruct them to do what is good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and willing to share, 19 storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of what is truly life.
20 Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding irreverent and empty speech and contradictions from what is falsely called knowledge. 21 By professing it, some people have departed from the faith.
Grace be with you all.
Let’s go to the Lord in prayer and ask him to guide us as we conclude this passage and this book of the Bible.
(prayer)
Ok; there’s a lot to be said from this passage, some of which was said last week.
As a matter of review, here are the DON’Ts that we covered last week:
I. Don’t pursue false teaching.
II. Don’t pursue riches.
Now, we want to transition to the DOs. We must not only know what not to do; we must also know what to do.
So, first, . . .
III. Do pursue godliness.
Paul says very clearly to Timothy in verse 11, “But you, man of God, flee from these things, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.”
Paul has already mentioned the DON’Ts, such as false teaching and the pursuit of riches.
Paul tells Timothy to flee the DON’Ts; stop pursuing the DON’Ts and start pursuing righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.
DON’T pursue the DON’Ts; DO pursue godliness!
This idea that Paul shares here reminds me of Hebrews 12:1-2, which says in part, “Let us lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.”
We are to actively pursue godliness.
Of course, Paul continues in verse 12 with these words:
“Fight the good fight of the faith.”
and, “Take hold of eternal life to which you were called.”
Listen, church: we must never forget that it is only by the grace of God and the work of the Holy Spirit that we are saved from our sin, and kept close to God.
Still, there is an active participation that is required from us to become more and more like Jesus.
We must pursue godliness! We might fight to be faithful! We must take hold of all of the blessings that Jesus has secured for us in our salvation!
We must pursue godliness!
Paul mentions that Timothy had made a good confession of his faith before others.
Perhaps this was at his baptism, when he publicly proclaimed that he was a follower of Jesus. Perhaps this was when he was set aside for his ministry as a pastor. We’re not entirely sure when this was, but nonetheless, Paul tells Timothy to remain faithful to that which he has proclaimed.
Then, in verse 13, Paul refers to when Jesus made a good confession, before his death, in the presence of the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate.
It’s as if Paul is saying to Timothy, “As Jesus was faithful, you remain faithful.”
That’s a good reminder for us all, church; as Jesus was faithful, may we remain faithful. Let us continue to pursue godliness. Let us fight. Let us take hold of our salvation.
Paul then tells Timothy how long he should keep pursuing godliness. How long should he keep fighting the good fight?
Look at verse 14: “ . . . keep this command without fault or failure until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
There you go, church! Keep being faithful until Jesus comes back! Then, He will powerfully, miraculously, and beautifully give you rest and newness that was earned on your behalf because of His faithfulness.
We must be faithful now because Jesus has already been faithful on our behalves.
I love this little tidbit here in verse 15. Well, when will Jesus come back? Paul says, “God will bring this about in his own time.”
Don’t worry, child of God. He will make all things right; He will bring you rescue; He will give you rest in His own time.
Then, Paul gives a beautiful little doxology in verses 15 and 16 (look again at your Bible).
He says, “He is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see, to him be honor and eternal power. Amen.”
Isn’t that wonderful?
Ok, church: first, do pursue godliness.
Second, . . .
IV. Do pursue good works.
Paul spends some time addressing money again (it must have been really important to him).
Last week, we covered what Paul said about not pursuing riches. Now, Paul shifts his discussion to those who are already rich.
Look at verses 17-19:
17 Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be arrogant or to set their hope on the uncertainty of wealth, but on God, who richly provides us with all things to enjoy. 18 Instruct them to do what is good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and willing to share, 19 storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of what is truly life.
So, in last week’s sermon, we’ve already learned not to be arrogant, and we’ve already learned not to pursue riches.
Now, Paul tells Timothy to instruct the rich not to put their investment in that which is uncertain, but in that which is certain: God Almighty!
So, rather than pursuing riches, we learn in verses 18-19 that we are to pursue good works.
By the way, I think this idea of pursuing good works is applicable to all of us, even if we’re not rich.
Paul says to do what is good, be rich in good works, be generous and willing to share, and store up treasures (of course, in heaven).
Notice at the end of verse 19, Paul says to “take hold of what is truly life.”
Well, what does that mean?
You see, we’re not to take hold of worldly riches; we’re to take hold of our salvation.
So, there is a sense that when we give away worldly riches for the sake of good works and generosity, then we are experiencing the beauty of our salvation.
So, pursue good works and pursue something good. Pursue what is truly life.
By pursuing good works, whether it’s how we use our resources or something altogether different, we are laying a foundation of godliness and generosity that will carry over in the new age to come.
In verses 20-21, Paul offers a few final summary statements concerning what he has already said elsewhere.
Then, Paul offers a final farewell by simply saying, “Grace be with you all.” Indeed, we need God’s grace in this life as we await the life to come.
Church, may we pursue godliness, and may we pursue good works in our lives.
That takes us to our bottom line:
Bottom Line: We must purposefully pursue God’s ways in our lives.
Church, we must be purposeful; we must be intentional.
You will not become godly by accident. You will not do good, godly works by accident.
We must pursue godliness. We must pursue good works. We must fight the good fight. We must take hold of eternal life.
Challenge yourself this week in this one way:
Weekly Challenge #1 – Choose to fight the good fight.
Make a conscious decision to fight to be faithful.
Moms know something about this, right? Sometimes it is a fight to be a mom. You’re juggling all that you’ve got to juggle, the kids are asking for snacks, dad wants to know to know where the ketchup is, you haven’t even finished getting dressed for the day. It’s a fight to be a mom. However, you choose to fight because you’re a mom, and you love being a mom (most of the time).
Even more so, it’s a joy to be a follower of Jesus. May we fight to be faithful.
Paul said elsewhere in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.”
James said in James 4:7, “Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Hebrews 10:39 says, “But we are not those who draw back and are destroyed, but those who have faith and are saved.”
Church, let us be intentional; let us fight the good fight!
(Gospel presentation)
(closing prayer)
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