“WHATEVER IT TAKES” 1 Timothy
INTRO – Today, we will conclude our WIT series. As we have considered God’s call on our lives to be the person He desires for us to and become the church that He desires for us to become, we have considered these things:
• That Paul’s testimony from 1 Cor. 9:22-23 of “becoming all things to all people using all possible means to share the Gospel” should become our testimony, too.
• That Jesus had a WIT heart and, b/c of His heart and His commitment, faced temptation, rejection, and diversions. We must remember that in our quest to do WIT and live out that commitment, we will face the enemy’s temptations. We will have to deal w/ rejection from those who don’t understand our commitment, don’t share our commitment, and feel threatened by our commitment. We need single-minded devotion to battle against diversions that threaten to keep us in our comfort zones where we are accepted, settling for good things when we could have the best.
• That by looking at the lives of Martha and Mary, we must learn to survive and thrive in the midst of our busy lives by letting Christ in, listening to His words, and limiting the distractions in our lives.
Each of these messages dealt w/ our personal commitment to being a WIT person. This morning, the focus is on the church. Chuck Colson: “The church is the Lord’s, bought w/ His blood on the rough wood of the cross. It is the holy city that will shine w/ light for eternity. The bride of the coming King. The assembly of believers redeemed by His grace, yet whose every deed will be scrutinized by His judgment. The Body that is His holy presence, pointing the way to the coming k’dom.” He goes on to say: “For the church in the West [us] to come alive, it needs to resolve its identity crisis, to stand on biblical truth, to renew its vision…and, more than anything else, recover the fear of the Lord. Only that will give us the holy abandon that will cause us to be the church no matter what the culture around us says or does.” (Being the Body, p. 130-131) Using the words that we’ve used this last month, only that will give us a commitment to do WIT to be church that G desires for us to be.
What will does it take to be a WIT church? How do we do WIT to be the church G desires for us to be?
I. WE WILL PREACH TRUTH – Ch. 1
A. Timothy was facing difficult situation in his church. False teachers were leading people away from the foundations of their faith. Only way to counter their teachings was to stand his ground, command them to stop teaching the false doctrines, and fight the good fight of the faith.
B. We are living in a day in which there are more and more false teachers espousing their views.
a. Talk shows are full of them.
b. Websites are abundant.
c. Even in some Christian denominations.
d. Mormon Church is about to launch the largest publicity campaign in its history.
C. To be a WIT church, we must preach the truth of the Gospel as strongly as we possibly can, in every way we possibly can, as often as we possibly can.
a. V. 15 – This is the truth that the world needs to hear!
D. As we do this, there will be battles to fight. Only by doing WIT to preach the truth – and LIVING the truth – will we be victorious!
a. “Saving Pvt. Ryan” – toward end of movie. Young soldier whose sole job was to get ammo to the soldiers fighting the enemy was too terrified to move. Soldiers died b/c he did not get them ammo.
b. We must take the ammo of the truth of the Gospel to people or they will die!
II. WE WILL PRAY FERVENTLY – Ch. 2
A. V. 1 – We know that God is all-powerful and all-knowing. But what an incredible privilege He has given to us in letting us help Him change the world through our prayers. A WIT church will pray diligently, esp. for the lost!
a. “requests” – lit., to fall on your face and beg
b. “prayers” – used only in ref. to God. Worship & reverence must be present when we pray.
c. “intercession” – meaning “to fall in w/ someone” or to get involved w/ them. Empathy, sympathy, compassion, involvement enter our prayer lives as we pray for lost. We cry out to God on their behalf.
d. “thanksgiving” – need to pray w/ a spirit of gratitude for the love of God expressed in the Gospel truth.
B. Praying fervently is not reserved for just a select few believers in the church. V. 8 – “ALL men” (and women) need to pray fervently.
a. Praying together makes it difficult to be angry w/ each other and argue against each other.
b. Builds unity in the church as we pray together.
C. Experiment on power of prayer. Dr. Randolph Byrd, cardiologist, SF Gen. Med. Ctr. CCU. Nearly 400 patients participated in 10-month scientifically controlled experiment. Divided into 2 groups w/ no statistical difference in Group A or B. Patients not told which group they were in. Group B received no prayer support. Each patient in Group A had 2 people praying for them. Pray-ers were scattered throughout country. Did not know names of patients, only condition. Results showed that Group A did as well or better in every comparison. Conclusion: “Intercessory prayer appears to have a beneficial effect in patients in a CCU.”
a. As we pray fervently as a church for the lost, their spiritual hearts will be touched and changed. Must do WIT to pray fervently!
III. WE WILL PREPARE LEADERS – Ch. 3
A. To be a WIT church, we must have leaders who are willing to do WIT to be the person God has called them to be and help lead our church to be the church that God desires for it to be.
a. Bottom line of the list of qualifications for leaders in church is that they must have hearts that are totally, 100% devoted and dedicated to the Lord Jesus Christ in every way, in every aspect of their lives.
i. Not perfect, but moving forward and deeper in their love and devotion to Christ.
b. Shouldn’t that also be true of every believer?
B. The leaders of God’s church are in the enemy’s crosshairs constantly. B/c of this, we must be diligent in our walk with Christ. We must be prepared to face the enemy and battle against him for the good of the church.
a. Commitment to prayer must be deepening.
b. Commitment to study of Word must be deepening.
c. Commitment to family must be deepening.
d. Commitment to a life of holiness must be deepening.
e. Commitment to the church, “the pillar & foundation of the truth” (v. 15) must be deepening.
f. Commitment to the mission of Jesus (v. 16) must be deepening.
C. Someone once said to Teddy Roosevelt, “Mr. Roosevelt, you are a great man!” To which he replied, “No, Teddy Roosevelt is simply a plain, ordinary man – highly motivated!”
a. To be a WIT church, we need plain, ordinary men & women who are highly motivated by their passionate desire to serve their Savior!
IV. WE WILL PERSEVERE ALWAYS – Ch. 4
A. V. 16 – Perseverance is a trait that a WIT church exhibits.
a. Dictionary – “steady persistence in adhering to a course of action, a belief, or a purpose; steadfastness.” (www.dictionary.com)
i. Our course of action? Been talking about it all month long – to do WIT to be the person God desires for me to be and to help this church become all that God would have it to be.
ii. Our belief? Summed up in verses like:
1. John 3:16
2. Great Commandment (Matt. 22:37-39)
3. Great Commission (Matt. 28:19-20)
iii. Our purpose? To seek God through authentic worship & personal d’ship; to share Christ w/ the lost of our community & world; & to serve others by our missions giving & actions.
iv. Will we be steadfast in these things?
B. Not easy to persevere. World opposes us. Enemy attacks us. Sometimes there are those in the church that will not understand or desire to be a part of God’s work. But as a WIT church, we must persevere always!
a. Remember child’s toy that was a big vinyl doll w/ heavy round weight of sand in bottom? Punch it constantly and it would continue to bounce back up in an upright position.
b. Through the centuries, the Church has been punched over and over again. Yet, b/c Christians have persevered and God is in control, it keeps coming back up.
c. We will be punched, too. We must persevere and get back up!
V. WE WILL PRACTICE PROPER RELATIONSHIPS – Ch. 5
A. Beauty of the church is its diversity. Made up of different age groups, different levels of income, different races, different backgrounds, different family situations. All of us make up the body of Christ. “Though its parts are many, they form one body” (1 Cor. 12:12).
a. Throw all those together in one group and there will always be the possibility of problems.
i. Younger people will mess up. Older people will mess up.
ii. Married people will mess up. Single people will mess up.
B. Paul gave young Tim some advice on relationship w/in the church. And to be a WIT, everyone in every age group must learn to properly relate to one another.
a. Sin needs to be dealt with, no matter a person’s age.
b. Those in need must be ministered to, no matter their age.
c. Those in ministry positions must be cared for and honored.
C. Proper relationships w/in the church FAMILY will help us be a WIT church.
a. Improper relationships lead to temptation & sin and weaken the work of the church.
i. Adultery among members
ii. Gossip among members
iii. Dishonoring and not supporting pastor and staff
iv. Factions and hidden agendas
v. All of these result from improper relationships.
VI. WE WILL PURSUE THE THINGS OF GOD – Ch. 6
A. v. 11 – Look at the things that Paul told Tim to pursue:
a. righteousness – to do what is right in relation both to God & man
b. godliness – reverence for God flowing out of a worshipping heart
c. faith – confident trust in God
d. love – agape’
e. endurance – a victorious, unswerving loyalty to God in face of trials
f. gentleness – kindness, meekness, humility
B. What would keep Tim from pursuing these things? Context of passage is the “love of money” (v. 10). So many have sacrificed a close relationship w/ God b/c they loved their money more than they loved and trusted God.
C. To be a WIT church, we must pursue the things of God.
a. Honor God w/ our money. Imagine what it would be like to be a part of a church where every Christian tithed,
b. Fight the good fight of the faith (v. 12). Spiritual warfare is real!
c. Take hold of eternal life (v. 12). Get a grip on the reality of eternal life. What we are about as a WIT affect us and others for ALL ETERNITY!
CONCLUSION – Are we a WIT church? Are we willing to do WIT to be the church that God wants us to be? Want to introduce someone to you who might be able to help us answer that question. Might give us a little different perspective.
INTRODUCE RAY
