PASSING CHRISTIANITY DOWN
AN EXPOSITION OF FIRST TIMOTHY
Copyright 2004 by Bob Marcaurelle
Revised 2016 by Bob Marcaurelle
freesermons@homeorchurchbiblestudy.com
web homeorchurchbiblestudy,com bob marcaurelle Anderson, sc
MESSAGE 6
THE LOVE WAY AND THE LAW WAY
(1 Timothy1:6-17)
Legalism or Love?
Many evangelical teachers are making the Christian life optional by "taking turning from sin" out of repentance and saying Jesus can be our Savior without being our Lord and master. It is refreshing to see those who agree that living the Christ-like life is essential, that it is the proof of being born again (James 2:14ff)
The question is, what they mean by Christian living. There was a difference of opinion in Ephesus as there is today. One is to make a lot of rules and use the legalistic approach, with fear as a motive. This is evident today not only in some Pentecostal denominations but is some Evangelical churches. The other approach is to give the example of Christ as our standard and use the love approach, with gratitude, and a little fear as a motive.
Truth on both sides
Folks, there is truth on both sides. Before we Baptists criticize our Pentecostal brothers and sisters, we’d better take a look at the way we stress grace and have thrown godly standards out the window.
A lady joined our church because her husband had a long standing affair, eventually married his lover and both of them kept right on singing in the choir during the whole filthy episode. The wife joined our church because she could not take seeing them in the choir every Sunday. Folks, that church needed a little holy discipline. A little “legalism” would have done it a world of Good.”
At the close of the 1900’s the George Barna survey said people who regularly attend mainline churches are little different from their un-churched neighbors morally and ethically.
A. THE LEGAL APPROACH OF LAW (6:6-10)
1:6-7 (CEV)
“They want to be teachers of the Law (of Moses). But they don’t know what they are talking about, even though they think they do.”
1:8-11
“We know that the Law is good if it is used properly. We also know the law is not made for the good (righteous), but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers- and for whatever else is contrary to sound (healthy) teaching that conforms to the gospel of the blessed God, which He entrusted to me.
Legalists say the church should make God’s laws mandatory for church members and in some way force them to obey. Paul, who tried living like this as a Pharisee, said they did not know what they were talking about. He himself was an example of the failure of the Law to make him a loving person. Why?
1) It majors on fear and even though there is a place for healthy fear in the life of a Christian. God wants us to serve Him because we want to and because we love Him.
2) It produces guilt and doubt. If obeying rules is proof of being a Christian, we can never know if we are “obeying enough”. All of us fall short of being like Jesus. With obedience to laws as the test of salvation we can never be sure of our salvation and we live in constant guilt, doubt and fear. In fact, this is the main purpose for the law. God uses this guilt and fear to bring us to Him for salvation.
3) It is for evil people (8-11). The law shows us our sins. It is God’s laws for bad people that helps society stay safe from their criminal acts. It is God’s laws for bad people that shows them their sins and hopefully produces enough guilt to lead them to seek forgiveness from Christ.
4) It produces loveless pride. Guilt, fear and doubt causes the legalist to draw lines he can reach and have peace. He says, “I don’t cuss and I don’t chew, and I don’t go with girls who do.”
5) This hinders Christian growth, because the rule keeper feels he is doing what he is supposed to. The Rich Young Ruler told Jesus he had obeyed the Law, but in fact, right then he was breaking the first two commandments. He loved his money more than God and he put his money above God. He’d rather go to hell than give up his money. (Mark 10:17f.) By the way, he came to Christ of find "eternal life" (salvation- 1 Jn. 2) and Christ told him he had to turn from the sin of loving money). Of course, true repentance means he comes acknowledging that he cannot do this and asking God to give him the desire and the power to do it.
6) It kills love for the weak. Many a Pentecostal and many a legalistic Baptist, who would die before they would withhold their tithe, will look down on people who don’t tithe. Early in my ministry Baptist churches looked down on divorced people and often treated them like lepers. The reason was, they weren’t divorced and thus they could point their fingers at the divorced person. . This was the attitude of the Pharisees, the proud church members, who, more than anyone else, were responsible for the death of Jesus. Nothing is uglier than a “good person” who knows he is good, for then he isn’t.
7) It has no power. A Bible verse telling me not to drink has no power to change my habits, Christ in me and my love for Christ do. Am
“Do this and live the law commands,
But gives me neither feet nor hands.
A better word the Gospel brings,
It bids me fly and gives me wings.”
B. THE LOVE APPROACH (1:1b-17)
Paul give his dedication to keeping the law as a Pharisee as an example of how a religious, rule keeper can look good on the outside but be filled with hate and violence on the inside (v13). Then he uses his conversion experience as an example of how the gospel changes us producing a hatred of wrongdoing and love for Christ.
Illustration: As a young Christian I saw nothing wrong with moderate drinking. Many fine Christians I knew drank responsibly and had some verses (Jn. 2 / 1 Tim.3) to support it. Then I read, Romans 14:21, “It is good (best), not to eat meat (Offered to idols), to drink wine, or to do anything else that may cause your brother to stumble.”
I thought of my dad, who died from alcohol abuse, of my influence on the young people in my Scout troop, and of the children I might one day have. God’s Spirit told me the way for me was total abstinence and it is more binding on me, than if God had taken me to Sinai and written it on stone, below all His terrors, and thunder and lightning.
I did it not because I can prove my position from the Bible, but because I honestly believe my Lord wants me to abstain. As one man put it, we are locked in a room with open doors.
THE EXPERT WITNESS (10B-17)
The Salvation of a Raging Bull
13) “I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man. I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief.
15) “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners- of whom I am the worst.
16) But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners (KJV= Chief), Christ Jesus might display His unlimited patience as an example for those would believe on him and receive eternal life.” (15-16)
1. The Awful Guilt (13, 15-16)
Paul was living proof that self will in keeping rules makes a person proud and loveless. Legalism brought out all the evil in his heart as he persecuted Christians, hunting them down to be put to death. The law made him worse but the good news of Jesus saved him from the horrible person he was.
He was self righteous. As a Pharisee, all these attacks on the church were part of his zeal to obey God and somehow earn salvation. He lived by the belief that by practicing morals, ethics and religion, he was good enough for God and far better than those who didn’t.
He was proud. As a Jewish Pharisee his nose was so high up in the air it got in the way when he combed his hair. They thought they were good enough for God, but when God came to them personally in Jesusthey hated him and had him killed.
Note: We have people in church today who think they are better than others because of their hard work and moral choices. They don’t like to associate with people who are not their “kind” of people. They fill our pews, read their Bibles, pray their prayers, give their time and money, and go to hell because they do not have love.
He was a cruel. Paul was the best (or the worst) of the rotten bunch of Pharisees. In the gospels they sneaked around and used others to do their dirty work against Jesus. But Paul stood up and stood out and went after the church like the Nazi’s went after the Jews, thirsty for the blood of good, peaceable people.
He calls himself a persecutor. In Acts 7-8 we see him persecuting, executing (Acts 22:7; 26:9-10); punishing, and jailing Christians (Acts 22:5). He describes himself as “one who intensely persecuted the Church of God and tried to destroy it” (Gal. 1:14-15).
The word “destroy” means to create havoc and was used for wild animals thrashing and tearing up a field or a flock of sheep. Like a Nazi Gestapo squad leader, or a raging bull, he burst into humble Christian homes to drag men and women to their beatings, jail cells, or deaths, while their children and loved ones looked on in fear and horror. How many times did he brush aside a screaming child or mother, begging him not to their husband and daddy?
He was Violent (Insolent): Paul was a “bully” and a proud, unapproachable man who was not fit to be around. He did not attack Christians with any thoughts of love or mercy. Not only was he not sad about the things he felt he had to do, he enjoyed it. This made him, in his own eyes, the chief of sinners.
He adds that he was a Blasphemer: This word means sins deliberately directed at God. Jesus’ first words to him pointed this out, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” (Acts 9). God scrapped the bottom of the barrel of sewage when He forgave Paul.
2. The Amazing Grace (13b-14, 17)
3b) “I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief.”
14)“The grace of our Lord was abundantly poured out on me along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
16) “I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.”
17)“Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen!
1) A Pattern of Grace (14, 16)
Paul says Jesus saved him as an example of His unlimited patience as He poured wave after wave of grace upon His foul heart to heal it. This is an encouragement to every sinner. Paul is saying if God can forgive me, He can forgive you. If God can change me, He can change you.
2) A Partner with Grace (13b)
Paul makes a strange statement, “I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in my unbelief.” (1:13b).
This is hard to interpret. God’s love is unconditional, but salvation is not. Christ’s death for us is pure grace- a gift to the undeserving. The Holy Spirit’s opening our eyes to our need for Christ, is pure grace. But the receiving of Christ is our choice.
Folks, we don’t go to hell for being sinners, that’s like going to hell for being human. We go to hell for rejecting the forgiveness and help of God that He offers us in His Son’s death on the cross for us.
3) A Praise for Grace (14,17)
The word grace means a gift- something we cannot earn and do not deserve. Paul’s dictionary didn’t have the right words to describe it. He said it was poured out on him like a flood (14), and then He exploded with praise, honor and glory to God. (17).
It was the “mother” of all grace. God’s river of love overflowed like a raging flood to save this raging bull. The great God of this universe, immortal and invisible, died on a cross for him! Now folks, it that is not shouting ground, there is no such thing as shouting ground!
Illustration: If someone kills your child in a horrible way, they might repent, and you or I might find it in our hearts to forgive them. But in no way could they ever “deserve” our forgiveness. In no way could they earn our forgiveness. Our forgiveness would be a gift.
And we are all guilty of committing the same sins of the people who killed Jesus. We have killed His Son.
In us is the jealousy of the Pharisees, the anger of the Priests, the callousness of the soldiers, the cowardice of the disciples, the self preservation of Pilate, the name calling of the crowd, and the morbid curiosity of the spectators.
3. The Amazing Gift (1:12)
This old raging bull, conquered by the love of Christ, thought about how God not only saved him but called him to preach, and expressed his undying gratitude, saying, “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that He considered me faithful, appointing me to his service His service.” (12)
1) Power for Workers.
God’s gift of strength means, His will never put us where His power cannot keep us
2) Praise of Workers.
Paul said God “considered me faithful”. Oh what a compliment. A young wife and mother in one of my churches, was facing more challenges than she felt she could bear. The church and I encouraged her through her ordeal and today she is stronger and happier than ever before.
During the ordeal she handed me a saying from “Mother Teresa”. “God’s compliments our strength when He sends us burdens, but sometimes I wish God didn’t think I was so strong.”
