Are You in Fit Condition? - 1 Timothy 4 - 10/26/08
Join me in turning to the book of 1 Timothy, chapter 4. Timothy is towards the end of the New Testament, in the second half of the Bible. We have been going through this book together.
We saw that this is a letter from the Apostle Paul to Timothy, his young protégé. Paul left Timothy at Ephesus to straighten out the problems in the church there. Ephesus was a city filled with idol worship, sexual immorality, and false teachings.
Timothy, though, is a young man and sometimes people in the church did not follow his leadership and give him the respect he deserved. Timothy was timid and shy. He sometimes was sickly, or at least was so troubled by the problems in the church that his stomach bothered him. The tension in the church had him to the point of giving up. But Paul gives him a letter to encourage him to keep on going.
We saw Paul give three commands to Timothy in chapter 1:
1. Teach Sound Doctrine 2. Preach the Gospel 3. Defend the Faith
We looked at chapters 2&3 and saw what pleases God? We saw that
God is pleased when men are PRAYING! And
God is pleased when women are PROPER! And
God is pleased when leaders are PURE!
We talked about leaders in the church, elders and deacons, and how they need three traits:
Desire, Character, and a Good Reputation
Last week we talked about some steps we each could take, even if we aren’t leaders: We can . . .
Respect the leadership of the church
Pray for the leadership of the church
Encourage others to follow God’s call on their lives
Assist the leadership of the church
Make yourself available for leadership
I hope you have considered these steps this past week.
Today, we move on to chapter 4, and Paul is going to talk to Timothy about getting into shape. Paul loved sports; in fact, in several of his letters he uses sporting terms. He talks about wrestling, boxing, foot races. And today, here in 1 Timothy 4, Paul tells Timothy to make sure that he is in fit condition. He tells him to take steps to stay in shape. And that is exactly what you and I need to do as well. Let’s read chapter 4.
Read 1 Timothy 4 -- pray -- As you have just heard as we read the chapter, Paul calls Timothy to get into shape, but it’s not just a physical fitness that Timothy needs as much as spiritual fitness. Now don’t get me wrong -- we need both. Maybe just the thought of getting up and going to the fridge during the commercials tires you out. If so, you might need to focus on physical fitness. But Paul’s emphasis to Timothy is on the need for Spiritual Fitness. And that is an area of life that we all can improve upon. In this chapter, Paul touches on 2 aspects to fitness. First, He points out the . . .
1. Dangers We Face - Now, when we are talking about physical fitness, it is easy to identify the dangers we face. It may be that we just have a sedentary lifestyle - we don’t get enough exercise. We are couch potatoes. We go from bed to easy chair to couch and back again. We sit in front of the TV for hours on end. We have so many labor saving devices that we have to artificially bring exercise into our lives. Hence, we have Gold’s gym memberships or YMCA memberships, and for the ladies, we have Curves - a place to go meet other ladies and bring exercise into our lives. We identify the dangers physically with all kinds of labels - MSGs, saturated fats, or in old terminology fried foods, fats, and sweets.
But what about the dangers we face spiritually. That’s an area that often we are taken off guard. Most of us know we need to exercise more and eat less, or at least eat wisely. We can pick up a cheesecake, read the label, and see that it has 45 grams of fat per small slice! But how many of us think about the dangers we face spiritually. That’s what Paul reminds Timothy of here in verses 1 through 7.
Spiritually, there is an abundance of False Teachers. Paul has already warned Timothy that part of his job at Ephesus was to defend the faith against false teachers. But he points these teachers out in more detail here. And it is important that we take note of what Paul says, because we face the same type of false teachers in our day today. Look what Paul says about them. False teachers are . . .
• Deceitful - Satan is the father of lies. These false teachers profess to be teaching the truth, but deceive many by mixing truth with error. They often are some of the most dynamic speakers you will ever hear; but their teaching is from Satan. Secondly, these teachers are . . .
• Hypocritical - they know the truth, but they suppress the truth so it never has a chance to be heard. They willingly choose to deceive others. That’s another way we know these are not good men gone astray, but men led away by Satan. Third, they are
• Seared - they have gotten to the point that they have no feeling. Just like when you burn your fingers on a stove, you loose feeling in the ends of those fingers. So their consciences have been seared so they don’t even care about the lies the tell.
Paul mentions a couple examples of these false teachers: Look at verse 3 - They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods. Can you think of a church that says people can’t marry? Priests and nuns need to stay celibate and single? God says here that is a false teaching. There is nothing wrong with a person choosing to remain single and celibate. If that is God’s desire, that is good. But we don’t mandate a person’s celibacy. How about having to avoid certain foods. Now, going back to the physical fitness, there are some foods you definitely want to eat in moderation. But what Paul is teaching is those who say it is a sin to drink coffee, like some groups. Or it is a sin to eat meat on Fridays, like some other groups.
Paul says in verse 4 - For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving. What Paul is teaching is not that you can eat everything -- there are some things physically that if you eat them you might end up dead - like poison mushrooms. But Paul is saying that food is not sinful in and of itself.
Even alcohol -- something that many condemn -- is not sinful in and of itself. In fact Paul is going to tell Timothy in 5:23 to use a little wine as medicine. Did you ever take Nyquill - it is made largely of alcohol. But the alcohol in itself is not sinful -- the sin comes in its abuse. But even though it may not be sinful, we may still choose to abstain.
These false teachers were deceitful, hypocritical, and seared. Let me read a few quotes of notable people:
Madonna -- If scientology makes Tom Cruise happy, I don’t care if he prays to turtles. And I don’t think anybody else should.
George Lucas -- Ultimately the Force is the larger mystery of the universe. And to trust your feelings is the way to that.
Oprah -- Follow your instincts. That’s where true wisdom manifests itself.
Eckhart Tolle -- True salvation is freedom from negativity
Mahatma Gandhi -- Truth resides in every human heart, and one has to search for it there and to be guided by truth as one sees it. But no one has a right to coerce others to act according to his own view of the truth.
There are many false teachers out there. Some say God just wants us to show love, so they accept homosexual behavior as godly. Even though God specifically speaks against it. Some say that a baby who survives an abortion and lives has no human rights -- because they do not want to see Roe v Wade overturned. They lie about the truth of life, because they have an agenda they want to push.
If you want to be spiritually fit, the first thing you need to do is be aware of the dangers you face. If you want someone to stop smoking, you can’t just bribe them to stop. You have to give them motivation. You need to help them see what smoking will to to their lungs and their bodies. People who teach diet workshops will often use a big mass of synthetic fat to show people what 5 pounds of fat looks like.
We need to see the dangers to our spiritual life as well -- avoid the false teachers. Avoid those who would add all types of requirements to salvation.
I once had a secretary who I had type up a gospel tract for a friend. She gave it back and said she couldn’t type it up because it was filled with errors. I asked her what errors. She said it failed to point out that to be saved you had to be filled with the Holy Spirit and speak in tongues. There are many strange ideas added to salvation. Jesus said we are saved by grace through faith. But many add things -- you have to speak in tongues, you have to be baptized, some even specify - you have to be baptized three times forward in the name of Jesus -- if you want to get to heaven. There is a branch of baptists centered in Baptist Bible College in PA that teaches all Christians can get to heaven, but only their group will be the bride of Christ.
If you want to be spiritually fit, avoid these false teachers. Paul told Timothy he would be a good minister if he pointed out these false teachers. So Paul points out the dangers we face. He also points out the
2. Training We Need - If you want to be physically fit, you need two things - diet and exercise. Spiritually, we need to diet - to avoid false teaching that would destroy us spiritually -- and we need exercise, spiritual exercise. Paul tells Timothy in verse 7, rather, train yourself to be godly. The word for train is the word gymnaze, like gymnasium, Paul says to to the gym and work out spiritually. Paul says there is some value in physical fitness, but there is great value in spiritual fitness. How do we get spiritual fitness?
• it requires proper nutrition - If you want to build muscles physically, you don’t munch on twinkies and brownies. And if you want to grow spiritual muscles, you need spiritual nutrition. The author of Hebrews writes, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
What type of spiritual nutrition do you get? A prayer at meals and at bed? Read three bible verses and your daily bread? Or do you study to show yourself approved to God. Jesus says in Matt 4:4 - Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Psalm 119:103 - How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path.
When you’re down, God’s word will lift you up. When you’re lost, it will give you direction. When you’re afraid, it will give you hope. When you’re weak, it will give you strength. When you’re hurting, it will bring you healing. We need to feed daily on the word of God for good spiritual nutrition. Spiritual fitness
• it requires exercise - to be physically fit, we need exercise, we need to get up of the couch and walk a couple miles. We need to raise our heart rate. We need to push our bodies out of our comfort zone. And spiritually, we need to push ourselves also. Paul says in verse 10 - for this we labor and strive -- the NLT puts it this way - We work hard and suffer much in order that people will believe the truth, for our hope is in the living God. The word “labor” indicates growing weary, and the word strive or toil or suffer -- is the word for the athletic matches - agon - he says we agonize and wear ourselves out - we exhaust all energy to grow spiritually.
Growing easy is simple, but it is hard work. It is easy to know what to do; it is just exhausting to do it. Running in the Boston Marathon isn’t hard to know what to do; it’s just exhausting to do it.
Sometimes as Christians, we don’t like all we have to do to be faithful. Sometimes it would just seem easier to watch the questionable shows. Sometimes we don’t want to speak up to confront someone who is doing wrong. Sometimes we don’t want to have to take a stand for what is right. But we wear ourselves out, because that is how we grow spiritually.
My mother used to have a little saying on her desk: Christians are like tea; their real strength comes out when they are placed in hot water! So, as Christians, we need proper nutrition, proper exercise, and we need
• it requires progress - To grow spiritually, we need to make progress. Look down in verse 15 - Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. We need to look for spiritual maturity to come over time. But we have to be faithful in our nutrition and exercise.
Some people approach dieting with the mentality that they will starve themselves for three days, they lose two pounds, and then they go out and binge for a week and gain 5 pounds. To diet effectively, we need a lifestyle change, we need to change how we think about eating on an ongoing basis. And to see spiritual growth, we need a lifestyle change. We can’t just sit down this afternoon and read 20 chapters and think we will suddenly be spiritual. It is an ongoing effort. Paul tells Timothy in verse 11 - Command and teach these things. This is in the present tense, which shows continuing action. He is saying, Timothy, Keep on commanding these things. Don’t give up! He needs daily exercise to see progress. And Paul tells Timothy the progress will be seen as he focuses on ministry, on serving God. He first needs so set an example: verse 12 - set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. To have a successful ministry, you need a life that backs up your teaching. But notice verse 13 - Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Public reading - they used to read from the OT scrolls and comment on them. Some people feel that the only thing the OT is good for is to give the prophecies in the Christmas Story. If we are going to grow spiritually, it means we need to break away from matthew and John and Philippians, and start reading 1 Kings, and Isaiah and the book of Job. When is the last time you read the OT and really sought for God to speak to your heart out of it? Timothy is to read the OT publicly. He is to preach - to give encouragement and exhortation to others through the scripture. And he is to teach -- to systematically look at themes and subjects and what the Bible has to say about them. And he needed to keep on doing this.
In verse 14 - Do not neglect your gift - the language really is stating, Stop neglecting your gift! Timothy had been given a gift of ministering the word of God in a way that it impacted others lives. But Timothy had been neglectful in using his gifts. Paul is really giving a word play here. He says, Stop being careless about your gift, but instead be careful about your duties!
There are a lot of Christians who physically are comfortable; they have an extra 30-40 pounds of weight on, but they are too concerned. And that is bad for your heart, bad for your lungs, bad for your health. But there are many, many other Christians who are spiritually comfortable: they go to church, give a few dollars in the plate, and pray when they have a special need, and they don’t really care if they grow spiritually. God has given them gifts to use in ministry, but they are comfortable, they don’t use their gifts.
Paul admonishes Timothy, let your progress be seen. The word for progress is a military term for a military advance. Sort of like “the surge” in Iraq. Paul says, make spiritual progress, and let others see that progress.
If you could pick one area of life that you wanted to see God give you help in growing spiritually, what would it be? Maybe you’d like to pray more. Maybe you want to control your tongue. Maybe you want to trust God and tithe, to give back the first 10% to God, even before you pay any bills. Whatever you want, why not work on that one thing this week, and seek God’s help in making some spiritual progress. Paul tells Timothy is verse 16 - Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers. Paul says, if you make spiritual progress, not only will it benefit you, but it will influence and impact other lives as well.
This week, be on the lookout for those who are twisting the truth, teaching false doctrine. Learn to listen for it. And this week, take some practical steps to grow spiritually. If you need to lose some weight or get into shape physically, take some steps to do that. Go on a diet. Plan your menu and stick to it. Walk a little more each day. But make sure, make sure that you take time to grow spiritually. Get the proper nutrition. Get the proper exercise. And look for progress in godliness. Let’s pray.
