INTRODUCTION
· PC VIDEO
· SLIDE #1
· Today as we continue in our Letters to Leaders series, we are going to delve into a subject that is important for us to consider.
· Today we will touch on a subject that has plagued the church from the beginning.
· The issue is doctrine, specifically false doctrine or teaching.
· In our video clip, the emphasis was on not getting too deep into the Word, not to get to know one another too much.
· Today it is somewhat popular to imply or say that doctrine is not important, it does not matter what you believe as long as you believe.
· Does it matter what we believe? I WHAT we believe important?
· Jerry referenced some prominent worship leaders and an author who has turned their back on the faith? Why?
· Why would someone who PROFESSES a faith in Jesus, one who makes a name for themselves by writing books, writing worship music, or leading worship, one day simply walk away?
· Could it have something to do with what they were or were not grounded in?
· Could some of the problem stem from what they were taught or what they taught?
· Could the issue with doctrine and teaching?
· Believe it or not, theology influences everything we do.
· Some Christians can view doctrine and theology as unimportant and divisive.
· However, everyone is a theologian. Everyone has opinions and beliefs about God.
· How you view God is a part of your worldview—and, ultimately, how you view the world impacts how you live.
· For example, if human beings are created in God's image, then they have innate value and should be treated with respect. Theology leads to ethics.
· What you believe impacts IF you will believe and how you will stand amid the world around you falling apart.
· In our passage today, Paul gives some strong encouragement to the young evangelist Timothy, to stomp out false teaching. Why? If it does not matter what you believe as long as you believe is true, why is Paul concerned?
· Paul is concerned with false teachers and doctrine in the church because he knows that all of life hinges on the truth of Jesus and a distortion of that truth has serious consequences to human life and discipleship.
· These false teachers are not only teaching bad theology but are causing believers to concentrate on things that don't matter; myths, genealogies, practicing certain laws (1 Timothy 1:3–4).
· When people say that theology can be divisive, sometimes they are right. Theology that stresses minor issues or trivial matters is divisive.
· Here are a couple thoughts to ponder as we dive in today.
· Christian theology should be grounded in the Bible and not in minor opinions or divisiveness.
· This subject is also important because all Christians are theologians and are responsible to reflect a biblical view of God to the world.
· Let’s turn to 1 Timothy 1:3-4 together.
· As you find the passage, just a brief background to this letter.
· After his first Roman imprisonment, Paul visited all the churches he planted during earlier Missionary Journeys in the 40’s and 50’s A.D.
· Paul passes through Ephesus on the way to Macedonia (where he writes 1 Timothy in 65 A.D.) when he urges Timothy to remain in Ephesus to take care of the problems that were occurring on the church.
· SLIDE #2
· 1 Timothy 1:3 (CSB) — 3 As I urged you when I went to Macedonia, remain in Ephesus so that you may instruct certain people not to teach false doctrine
· SLIDE #3
SERMON
I. The charge against false teaching.
· False teaching in the church is nothing new, the early church was plagued with the problem.
· The main problem with the first-century church was the attempt of the Judaizers to make those who were Gentiles first try to become Jews before they became Christians.
· Today, we face issues like the Prosperity Gospel, false teachings on sexuality, among other issues.
· There were many other false teachings that were going on in the Early Church.
· What you believe does not matter as long as you believe was not something for which Paul subscribed.
· Paul had previously warned the Ephesian Christians that some of their own group would draw them away (Acts 20:29–30).
· Later in this chapter, he mentioned two of the offenders by name (1 Tim 1:20).
· The heresy in Ephesus had arisen from within the church, and Paul was urging Timothy to act on Paul’s behalf to thwart the advance of mischievous falsehood.
· Paul tells Timothy to instruct…
· The word INSTRUCT is a strong word calling for strict orders.
· It was used to describe Jesus’ orders to the Twelve in Matt 10:5; Mark 6:8 and the orders of the Sanhedrin prohibiting apostolic preaching in Acts 4:18.
· Paul charged Timothy to find these folks and tell them to stop doing spreading false teachings.
· The way to stop false teaching is to teach the truth.
· SLIDE #4
· 2 Timothy 3:16–17 (CSB) — 16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
· All Christian theology and practice must be founded upon Scripture. 2 Timothy 3:16–17 explains the importance of the Bible in theology. All Scripture is INSPIRED BY GOD, or “God-breathed”—from the mouth of God.
· This passage shows the inspiration and authority of God’s Word. God’s Word reveals his nature and character.
· When we know God through the means he has used to reveal himself, that knowledge leads to a relationship.
· What are false teachings?
· The word Paul uses for phrase TO TEACH FALSE DOCTRINE is a rare word only used twice in the New Testament (Here are in 1 Timothy 6:3).
· The phrase means to teach doctrines contrary to the accepted standard.
· The accepted standard is the Bible.
· All we teach has to line up with God’s word to the best of our ability!
· As a Church and as individual Christians, we have a responsibility not to accept, teach, or promote false teachings.
· When we promote false teachings on any subject, we could be condemning people to an eternity without God.
· When we teach that sin is not sin, then we help people stay in their sins, they think they are ok with God when they are not.
· More and more churches are promoting “alternative” lifestyles and abortion as being ok with God.
· We cannot allow ourselves to sucked into twisting the Word to make society happy!
· What you believe matters, and here is why.
· SLIDE #5
· 1 Timothy 1:4 (CSB) — 4 or to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies. These promote empty speculations rather than God’s plan, which operates by faith.
· SLIDE #6
II. False teaching leads to false thinking and living.
· Part of what the false teachers were doing was trying to get folks to buy into myths and endless genealogies.
· When one goes down the path of false teaching, they will then begin to base their thinking on false premises, which will lead to false thinking, which will lead to false living!
· Are you following me?
· The phase PAY ATTENTION TO means to turn one’s mind to something.
· When we get enamored by false teachings, we tend to push out the truth of the Gospel.
· The Jewish leaders were great at promoting myths and interestingly enough, they did a lot of it through the genealogies found in Genesis, 1 Chronicles. Ezra, Nehemiah.
· What these folks would do is take a name from the lists which nothing more than a name, and they would build up a story about the person and promote it.
· Also, Jesus rebuked the religious leaders in Matthew 15:1-9 for negating the Law in favor of The Traditions of the Elders, which was part of the religious writings in the Talmud which was constructed after the Babylonian Exile period in 538 B.C.
· This was a common occurrence in the Synagogue.
· What you think on will manifest itself in how you live.
· Let’s turn back to our passage.
· SLIDE #7
· 1 Timothy 1:3–4 (CSB) — 3 As I urged you when I went to Macedonia, remain in Ephesus so that you may instruct certain people not to teach false doctrine 4 or to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies. These promote empty speculations rather than God’s plan, which operates by faith.
· SLIDE #8
III. False thinking leads to false focus.
· When we get wrapped up in false teaching, it leads to false thinking, which leads to false focus.
· The result of all this is pointed out at the end of verse 4.
· These promote empty speculations rather than God’s plan, which operates by faith.
· The phrase EMPTY SPECULATIONS comes from a Greek word that means DISPUTES, or questions over controversial matters.
· False teaching leads to further confusion and uncertainty.
· They take our focus off God’s plan, and we waste time combating false teachers, we then have divisions that are caused by them.
· Do you think there will be Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Catholics, Church of Christ, etc.… in heaven?
· I do not, there will be disciples of Jesus in heaven, yet here we are.
· Here is something to think about.
· There was once a man in San Francisco walking along the Golden Gate Bridge, and he saw a second man about to jump over the edge.
· He stopped him and said, "Surely it can't be that bad. You know God loves you."
· The man about to jump got a tear in his eye. He said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew or a Hindu?" The fellow said, "I'm a Christian."
· "Me, too. Are you Protestant or Catholic?"
· "I'm Protestant."
· "I am, too. What Denomination?"
· "I'm Baptist."
· "So am I. Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?"
· "Northern Baptist."
· "That's a miracle! I am, too. Are you Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?"
· "Northern Conservative Baptist."
· "Me, too. Are you Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist or Northern Conservative Reformed Baptist?"
· "I'm Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist"
· "Me, too. Are you Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes region or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Eastern region?"
· "I'm Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes region."
· "So am I. Are you Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes region council of 1897 or Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes region council of 1912?"
· "I'm Northern Conservative Fundamentalist Baptist Great Lakes region council of 1912."
· With that, the would-be rescuer screamed "Die, heretic," and threw the poor man over the bridge!
· https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/how-shoud-we-handle-theological-differences-paul-barreca-sermon-on-doctrinal-difference-193916?ref=SermonSerps
· We need to promote truth, the truth will unite us and will help keep us from sending mixed messages!
CONCLUSION
· Always remember to things.
· Christian theology should be grounded in the Bible and not in minor opinions or divisiveness.
· All Christians are theologians and are responsible to reflect a biblical view of God to the world.
