1 Timothy 6:11-21 – Church at War
Get on the Bus – (close down 1 Tim, Mother in Laws next week!) This morning going to speak of war… a war
that rages around us, but its not a physical one. And some may be dismissing me already, either as a believer or
unbeliever, but I am reminded of Usual Supsects…Kaiser Soze
Pray – set our love upon the sons of men!
Opening Illustration – This week marked the 50th anniversary of the death of JFK, but unknown to most, CS
Lewis died on the same day. I think it appropriate to be preaching on 1 Tim. 6 and waging the good war in
light of the Chronicles series that he is best known for that over and again pictures the Christian life as a battle
and subversive war against the evils that would threaten Narnia. And as I watched again the previews for the
most recent remake of his first book in the Chronicles, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, I was struck at
how relevant that story is for our text – in there you have the wicked queen who is like Satan, a subtle master
who seeks to lure us by offering us Turkish Delight (in context of our study think riches or some other pull
toward a master) but ultimately seeks to destroy us. And this is how our enemy works, by convincing us he is
not real, or by subtle lure to a path of destruction all the while convincing us that we are not in a war. But in this
passage, we will see that we, like the Narnians, are in a battle, that we are a group of exiles waging a war and
just like the Narnians, if our King does not show up or empower us we will be swept away!
(QUICKLY) Context – We have Paul’s finals words in this letter to his young friend. But as we know these
words are not just for Timothy, they are for us so that we will know how we ought to behave in the household of
God! And Paul now concludes saying, MAKE WAR! Fight the Good Fight for the Gospel, for life and
doctrine! Character and right teaching! And we must not be deceived or take this lightly, we are under assault
by our own sin and unseen powers in our character, jobs, families – so lets see and live with eyes of faith today
that there are enemies seeking to devour us and there is a cosmic battle going on and we must engage the fight!
Main Idea: Wage the good war of guarding the gospel by fleeing sins and pursuing virtues
- Or take hold of life that is truly life by playing offense and defense in this battle – we take hold of this
true life represented in right doctrine and right life
I.
(READ 11-12) Fight for the Gospel by fleeing sin and pursuing virtue
But as for you, O Man of God: Paul here uses a term that is reserved in the OT for some pretty stout men like
Moses and Elijah, and it’s only used of Timothy in the NT. He is showing both great honor to Timothy and
reminding him of his identity while contrasting him with these other men who rather than being men of
God, are men of Gold and Greed, they see godliness as a way to get rich or get what they want! They see Jesus
as a stepping-stone to something better!
- So Paul reminds Timothy of his identity and then moves to what he should do in light of this
identity – and this is key, to engage in this fight and win, your identity has to be changed. So I want to
be clear up front, you do not do these things to be made right with God. If you hear anything today hear
that. Timothy can only pursue these things because his identity has already been changed by faith in
Christ! You certainly cannot win this war, but also can’t enter this war without a new identity!
- Now we do not have Timothy’s specific call but as I said this book is written to us and applicable for
us as we seek to live as the church and in a sense because we have the Spirit the same can be said of us!
- So what he’s he told to do, and what are we told to do in light of our identity?
Flee these things: (FAST!!!!) We are told to run away from the things that mark the false teachers – the word
here is Pheugo from which we get our word fugitive and it is in the present tense meaning it is to be the
continuous action of our life – we are to flee sin!
- Wickedness, arrogance, ignorance, reviling (quickly Tony covered them last week)
- Materialism – cannot be a man of God and a man of Greed!
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False Doctrine – doctrine that detracts from Christ and His word! (JW – Tony mentioned last week, see
what they say about Jesus! That is the key! If he is not considered as truly God who wasn’t created and
truly man who bore our sins on the tree and rose again, RUN!)
Unhealthy quarrels (not answering fools according to folly – UGA Florida game)
And anything that hints at using Christ for Gain!
Application – in the war there are times of flight because we realize these enemies could overtake us!
- So don’t mess with Saskwatch – FLEE!
- Oh this Beehive looks harmless, why don’t I poke it with a stick? (When I say that makes me think of
Nate in the office who considers getting rid of a Beehive with a blowtorch) – we must realize that some
of these sins get a foothold through seemingly harmless actions – a casual text from someone who
isn’t your spouse that begins to get your heart beating, a quick look at a picture of one of your favorite
movie stars, subtly thinking we need these things to look respectable in this culture and these little
seemingly harmless things are beginning to get a foothold on us – we don’t play around, we FLEE!
We RUN! We mortify our Sins, put them to death!
John Owen Quote: Do you mortify? Do you make it your daily work? Be always at it whilst you live; cease not
a day from this work; be killing sin or it will be killing you.
Pursue – Timothy is not simply to run from things, but he is to run towards superior things, these other
virtues that flow from our union with Christ! We don’t just say no to Sin, we say Yes to Christ as Tony says!
- We are to eagerly run after/pursue, again in present tense so this is to mark our lives until we pass
– these false teachers have made a career in vice, but you are to make a career in virtue!
This is what I mean by offense and Defense – and this is how we often counsel – for instance when it comes
to pornography, it is not enough to just cut your eye out by getting rid of Internet access, but instead you replace
that weak, filthy affection with a greater affection
- Thomas Chalmer’s says it like this in a wonderful essay called the Expulsive Power of a New
Affection: The only way to dispossess the heart of an old affection is through the expulsive power of a
new one. It is therefore only when admitted into the number of God's children through faith in Jesus
Christ that the spirit of adoption is poured out on us -- it is then that the heart, brought under the
mastery of one great, predominate, and supreme affection is delivered from the tyranny of all its former
desires and the only way that deliverance is possible.
- Illustration (on running from and to) – Imagine coming into your home and suddenly seeing a
terrifying animal in your living room (reminds me of the time my roommate and in college came home
and saw a mouse in our Living Room and we jumped up on the kitchen table)), but consider this scene, a
rattlesnake is in your living room floor – what do you do? Pet it? No you run from it and then you get
something to crush it! And on opposite end, imagine opening the door and seeing a loved one you
haven’t seen in years, what do you do? You run toward them and embrace them! So it is! This is what
Paul is telling us!
(HIT THESE FAST!!!) What do we pursue? Righteousness – this is not imputed righteousness that we get in
our justification, but a practical righteousness that gives the idea of honest living
- Godliness – a favorite word of Paul in these two books, this brings to mind a holiness, or integrity
- Faith – active trust and reliance on God – begins here – again cannot get in this fight without being
saved, having your nature changed through faith!
- Love – Instead of stirring up dissension, we stir up love. This isn’t a warm fuzzy deal (hs hormonal
crushes) this is service and commitment, no greater than love than this! As we grow in godliness we
will grow in love for neighbor!
- Steadfastness – or endurance, bearing up under hardship!
- Gentleness – or kindness and patience towards others. This is said of elders to be gentle and not violent,
strength under control
Question: a Great question to consider is would anyone say these things of you? Would anyone say, she is
godly, he is godly?
- And what we see is that our actions will reveal our identity! So we must be clear here it is not our
pursuit of these things that makes us acceptable to God, but it is the pursuit that reveals that we have
already been accepted!
(FAST!!!) How do we pursue these things – Through the gospel (Galatians 3) says we pursue these things by
faith! Same way we got into the fight, is same way we conduct ourselves in the fight (seek first the
Kingdom and his righteousness)
- And by God’s grace this is how the Scriptures are laid out for us – the apostles help us to meditate
on the gospel and to crush sin – What does Paul tell us in 2 timothy 3 about the Scriptures? They train us
in Righteousness – so its not complicated, want to pursue righteousness? Read the book!
- The Spiritual Disciplines also help us crush sin (fasting) and pursue the gospel – pray for power,
meditate on gospel, fast, serve, etc
Fight the good fight of the faith – I like Paul because he loves to use sports analogies (best time of year for
sports football and basketball) and this phrase here literally means agonize the good agony which would have
called to mind for the hearers the endurance of a sporting event!
- Any WWF fans in the house? So he’s talking a different kind of wrestling, hate to burst your bubble,
but in a way for the believer we can say it’s the same, if we are in Christ, the outcome is fixed! (You’ll
be taking home the Intercontinental belt)
- But this isn’t a fight against flesh and blood, but a fight for true peace, for hope, and for eternal
life! This is a fight to see the World rightly and live accordingly as you understand the gospel and how
to live it out! This changed identity as the King’s adopted son!
- And this will at times be agonizing as we flee our weak sinful desires and pursue strong ones on
Meditating on what Christ has done for us in the Gospel!
Christianity is not about removing desires, but nurturing and pursuing the right ones – fighting for the
right ones as godliness will not happen by accident, but as we work out our salvation with fear and trembling
Sadly, many in Tim’s day and in our’s will not remain in the fight (not a loss of salvation, not truly saved) –
some like Hymenaeus and Alexander who got swept up and ceased to fight as they were handed over to Satan!
- Again we must recognize we are in a war and wage the good warfare as a subversive group of
exiles undertaking a cosmic conspiracy against the current ruler living out the rule and reign of our
King that is growing and expanding into nations all over the World and will one day encompass the
globe!
- Piper reminds us: Life is war. But most people do not believe this in their heart. Most people show by
their priorities and their casual approach to spiritual things that they believe we are in peacetime, not
wartime. In wartime, the newspapers carry headlines about how the troops are doing. In wartime,
families talk about the sons and daughters on the front lines, and write to them, and pray for them with
heart-wrenching concern for their safety. In wartime, we are on the alert. We are armed. We are
vigilant. In wartime, we spend money differently - there is austerity, not for its own sake, but because
there are more strategic ways to spend money than on new tires at home. The war effort touches
everybody.
Take hold of the eternal life – And this fight is so that we can give a glimpse of the future reign and rule of
Christ. As we work out our salvation we give a picture of the final day when godliness will cover the earth!
- This doesn’t mean earn your salvation – at our salvation we get eternal life, this is more about a
quality of life in the time between, giving a glimpse of the future, a life which pictures communion with
God and His people! What is being urged here is to claim the full benefits in this life of what you have
received in eternal life!
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Tony says based on this exhortation it is possible to have eternal life without embracing or enjoying
it!
John 17:3: And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you
have sent – How do we take hold of eternal life, we pursue the greater affection in Christ, greater Joy,
a glimpse of future by holding very tightly to that which is eternal and very loosely to that which isn’t!
To which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses
– Paul links his calling (election) and confession to taking hold of eternal life
- Calling should remind us in this war that God is for us, not against us! Before the foundation of the
World he called you out of rebellion and into His family!
- Confession – We take hold of eternal life by responding to his call with an unashamed confession in
the presence of many that we are indeed His!
o In essence we take an oath of allegiance to our King – those in Ephesus would have
recognized this as military language as they would have thought of the soliders who would
confess their loyalty to Caesar when they enlisted!
o Almost all Commentators believe that Paul here is speaking directly of BAPTISM as the
Good Confession in the presence of many – At our Baptism it is an act of war, we are
confessing that Jesus is our King and we are enlisting to take our stand beside Him! In Timothy’s
day this was an affront to Caesar because one was saying there is another Lord (Acts 17:7: and
they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus)
o And it is in our day an act of war against the powers telling them another has been transferred
from your domain into the Kingdom of the Beloved Son!
And we make this war declaration in the presence of many because we aren’t to be scared to identify with
Christ and so that we have a cloud of people around us to hold us accountable and join us in the War –
This is why it is probably best not to do this in a bathtub in someone’s home, but in public venues as we
publically declare Jesus is Lord, stuff isn’t! Jesus is Lord, I am not! Jesus is King, Popularity isn’t! Jesus is
King, Caesar isn’t!
- We take hold of eternal life through our Baptism and what it pictures that we are dying to Sin and we
are living to Christ!
II.
(READ 13-16) Fight for the gospel by fleeing sin and pursuing virtue with the right perspective
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 – Paul now gives us a theological perspective to fight from…
namely the presence of God!
- This is another charge given – we fight before the very face of God who is a life giver and of Jesus
who made the original good confession! This is right perspective the transcendent one is with you and
gives life!
- Don’t fear in the fight, your charge is given before the eyes of the living God who gives Life!
And remember our King in the face of death already made this confession – bore witness to the gospel that
he was indeed a king in the face of certain death – his confession is what we say in our good confession that we
mentioned, Jesus is King, Jesus is Lord! This is why He came into the World!
- Great to ponder this in Christmas season – This is why He came into the World! He didn’t come hear
to merely be as Ricky Bobby would say: The sweet baby Jesus! No he came to be a King. Notice how
radical what Paul is doing here is… he is saying to a colony of Rome there is another King! And he will
appear again!
- The mention of Pilate should call our mind to the historicity of this event – he actually faced all we
will and more! He is our example and our savior! So take a bold stand for Him as He did for you!
To keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ –
As we fight with the right perspective we don’t let the gospel get stained, that’s what is meant here by
commandment! We don’t do anything to compromise Jesus’ confession or our own! (Scriptures: It also likely
is implying all of the Scriptures, because they are unstained, we don’t want to stain them by teaching them
falsely or bucking up against them!)
How long is Timothy and are we to keep the gospel guarded? Till the King returns! A time that is coming
that has been designated in time past to which the whole universe longs, the coming of our King on the clouds!
- We fight for the gospel recognizing that peace time is coming – when the King returns to make all
things right, we fight with that day in view and until that day dawns!
Paul gives further perspective on why we should fight without fear as he launches off on what some might
see as a Doxlogical or praise-filled side note:
(SWIFTLY!!!!) We see here in verses 15-16 three things – Alistair Begg served me well in simplifying this
doxology!
God is not some absent landlord, but active in our world and He is:
- All Powerful – who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords – no ruler
is above him! He raises up and strikes down rulers!
- Perfect – who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever
seen or can see – He alone is intrinsically perfect, while we can drink of immortality through the gospel
fountain, He is the fountain! He is unapproachable because he is holy and we are not. He is like the Sun,
we need him to see by it, yet we cannot look into it! He is to steal the Princess Bride Language
Inconceivable if we had not in His grace revealed Himself to us!
- Praiseworthy – To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen – Because of who he is and what he has
done, he alone deserved glory! Not us, but Him!
This is our perspective in the war – the all powerful, perfect, and praiseworthy, prexistant one who alone
gives life is on our side!
- We miss who the real underdog is in David and Goliath – Goliath is… he is no giant compared to
God! And this perspective can propel men like David to wage the war without fear because they
understand that even if they are cut down, their God will win in the end!
- We should have the Obi Wan mentality in face of our enemy – you cant win, even if you strike me
down I will become more powerful than you can even imagine, because our God is all powerful!
So do you ever bust out in praise? Here is how you pursue greater affection, here is fuel for the war – the
amazing attributes of our God! If you follow Jesus you are enlisting in the service of the Ultimate Sovereign
King – To Him… MAY IT BE!
III.
(READ 17-19) Fight for the gospel by fleeing the sin of Greed and pursuing the virtues of
generosity and good works
For the Rich in the present age – Now Paul returns to the issue of money by now talking to the wealthy – it is
not as weird as one may think to come back to this topic because he is essentially pointing out that
contentment will be a War!
- We first see that wealth is not inherently wrong, and in a sense most of us in this room are rich
compared to the rest of the World (one in five live on less than $1 a day), or World history – we have
abundance, so this is for us!
- But Paul is putting wealth in proper perspective with the qualifier “present age” – it is possible to
be rich in terms of this age, but just remember this is temporary and transitory!
Charge them not to be haughty (not to be arrogant) – again we see fleeing language – flee arrogance – don’t
be arrogant about what you have!
- It is easy to see that stuff can produce pride – just like knowledge has tendency to puff up, so does
stuff! And some can even think wrongly God is happy with me if I making money!
- Our default mode is to seek to earn our way to heaven, and so when we are successful in an area like
money it is easy to be arrogant because you have made your own way, makes you arrogant
- I just want to be clear, the American Dream can be anti-gospel – we teach make your own way in
this world for happiness, but that’s not the gospel, the gospel is surrender to the only way! It is very easy
to get puffed up when we make our own way and think we have no need for God!
Nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches but on God who richly provides us with everything to enjoy
– He is reminding you, that God gives all things!
- This should put wealth in perspective, shouldn’t be haughty God allowed you to have it and can
take it tomorrow – ask yourself if you elevate gift above giver? He richly provides us with everything
to enjoy! This is why you cant be conceited, he gives you everything you have… even breath and
health!
- Set your hope on what lasts – God, not on what goes away – Money! Paul wrecks the idea that
money is your hope, it doesn’t last, but God does! When set your hope on money, intelligence, health,
looks, etc realize they can be taken this very hour, but God he is with you always!
- We see how practiacal the bible can be – it is helping us see wealth is not certain (1920s). But God is
not going away, be satisfied in him not stuff!
Colgate Illustration – This can have disastrous consequences when you pursue that which is fleeting and don’t
take hold of that which is eternal! (He has devastated his family – and we must be see wealth in right
perspective!)
How do we fight this? We preach the gospel to ourselves, Keller points out if someone gives up X to get Y,
He values Y more than X (Jesus did this, he gave up eternal riches for you, that’s how highly he values you, let
that sink in!). If you are in Christ, you are a son of the King and your name is in His book (all the prosperity of
this World cant compare to that which is coming!)
They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share – he gives further ways to
fight, says be rich in something else – good works and generosity!
- We are to be the benevolent rich who are generous and stirred up to good works! Like the early
church – This shows your hope is somewhere else, that you are taking hold of eternal things (kingdom
work and those less fortunate), not fleeting things! This cures materialism!
- Christmas time is a great time to meditate on this – having things is not wrong, but being a hoarder,
and an American materialistic consumer is… we need to be like our God who is a giver and go and do
likewise!
Storing up treasures for themselves as a good foundation for the future – Give for Eternal Gain. Those who
take hold of eternal life by giving to things of eternal value store up for themselves a good foundation as they
seek first the Kingdom of God by again supporting things that rust and moths cant touch!
Illustration – My Dad’s Estate and monthly check: Giving 25% of estate to EBTS and somewhere between
$200-$500 a month goes to a fund for mission trips for his now 10 grandkids! I’m not bitter. I have been given a
tremendous example to follow!
So that they may take hold of that which is truly life – HCSB Life that is Real – We should realize that the life
we live now is just a shadow of the one to come!
-
IV.
Imagine a time when you felt really alive – it wont compare to that which is coming – Tony says
often – if a Christian this is closest to hell you will ever get, and if an unbeliever this is as close to
heaven, in this context I can say, if a Christ follower this is the farthest you will ever be from that which
is truly life, and if an unbeliever this is as close as you will ever get to life that is truly life! When we
wage the good war and we see money in this light we act as Kingdom people giving a glimpse of the life
to come and storing up for it! A day when life will be as it was meant to be! That’s life, this is a
shadow!
(READ QUICKLY!!! 20-21) Fight for the gospel by fleeing the sins of irreverent babble and false
knowledge and pursuing the virtue of meditating on grace!
O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you – Paul now concludes by enveloping his main point
throughout the book, how he started and how he closed reminding timothy of his main role – guard the gospel!
That’s what this fight is all about, that’s the deposit we guard!
- O, Timothy – such an endearing tone – and we as Elders say this to you, especially our Aspire guys,
PLEASE REMEMBER THIS, don’t compromise the gospel! Doctrine matters!
- This has everything to do with those that will come after us, especially our children – what will we
pass down? Parents what will you pass on?
Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called "knowledge," for by professing it
some have swerved from the faith – Instead of engaging in worthless theological convos (some can be
worthless) protect the gospel.
- In mind here is certainly babble and false teaching (teaching that contradicts the Bible) but I
think the principles here may be closer to home than we think, especially with so many seminary
guys – some things should be debated (and wolves should be identified, i.e. we wont debate the Trnity
and exclusivity of Christ), but if we love debate for debates sake, I think this should hit us between the
eyes! Instead remember, blessed are the peacemakers!
- Here it is clearly false knowledge, probably something that almost appears like real thing but it
isn’t (Cologne in Turkey) – we are to flee or avoid it! Don’t mess around with teachers that may
tickle your ears but don’t in action or Word love the Bible and teach from it! If we are going to guard
the gospel, we will love the bible and fight for it and we wont waste time with worthless arguments!
This aspect of the war is so important because if not diligent here, we, or others may shipwreck and
swerve from faith and don’t think you are immune – so we war for the gospel, not muddying it, but making
it clear for the good of our hearers and the glory of God!
GRACE be with you – Paul ends with his shortest benediction! Reminding us this is all done under the banner
of God’s greatest gift to us – His Grace!
- Who is Paul talking to here? Timothy? The you here in the Greek is plural – “Y’all” (maybe Paul
had a little Texan in him like I do) – he expects more than Timothy to get this letter and to be reminded
of grace
- In the midst of your enemies and opposition – Grace! For the hurting and Dying, GRACE!
As we war side by side, lets continually remind each other of GRACE!
Conclusion – How can we wage this war, how can we put off sin and put on Righteousness? We can only do it
because the right man is on our side! If not we would be powerless for the fight
- The one who always fled sin and lived by the voice of God, but grew in favor and wisdom and stature
with God and man!
-
The one who in amazing grace made the invisible God visible by at the proper time through his
incarnation!
The one who though he was rich epitomized generous giving to the rich by emptying His riches so we
could become rich in Him!
The man of true endurance, who endured the cross despising its shame – He went to the crosssinless and bore the penalty of sinner by suffocating in His own blood under the judgment of God
reserved for me! We cannot fight if our death sentence is not commuted by the death of another!
But we are not powerless because on a Sunday morning this King showed His power by walking out of a
Grave in the Middle East – exercising true Dominion by crushing the Ancient Dragon’s Head!
- And He’s coming back to settle the war, to rule the nations with a rod of Iron, and the Bible says on that
day as He’s riding the White Horse in power striking down enemies he will have a name tattooed on
his thigh – King of Kings, Lord of Lords!
Luther writes of this war we wage and how we can do it: Did we in our own strength confide, our striving
would be losing, were not the right man on our side, the man of God's own choosing. Dost ask who that may
be? Christ Jesus, it is he
Unbeliever – the end of this text speaks of grace – and grace has come near you today, you are hearing
about the true King! The call to you is to humbly pledge your allegiance to him as King! Please do not
harden your heart to what you hear
Believer – lets respond with eyes of faith today in this war
- Lets crush sin and pursue affection for Christ!
- Realize that when we take LS, its an act of war! When we pray, its an Act of War! When we sing, its
a Battle Ballad, and when we hear our King’s voice and Follow, its can Act of War! As we care for
Orphans and Widows, its an Act of War against that ancient dragon!
- And realize that you are rich beyond measure, as you are an adopted son and heir because Christ
bled in your place
- And lets do it all under the banner of Grace and with our Faith in the King realizing that one day the
war will stop, when Jesus once again sets his foot on the stage of human history!
And until that day we live out what CS Lewis talked about in Mere Christianity: Enemy-occupied
territory---that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say
landed in disguise, and is calling us to take part in a great campaign of sabotage
Now lets act out that sabotage as we turn to the King’s Table!