I wanted to tell you men about a story that some of you may be able to relate to. I used to love to squirrel hunt. As a matter of fact I preferred it over just about any other kind of hunting. Well one day when I was about 19 while attending Southwest a friend of mine said that he had found the perfect place to go squirrel hunting. He told me about this beautiful patch of woods out near Ruth that was loaded with old growth hardwoods and full of squirrels. I was excited. We left right after school one day early in the season. We didn’t even bother to change clothes. We got into the woods and he was right. There were squirrels everywhere. There were so many we stayed longer than we expected. When it started getting dark we headed out. But we soon realized we were lost. We ended up spending the night in those woods. It got cold then it rained. And just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse we got treed by a bunch of wild hogs and had to sleep in a tree huddled together for warmth. It was miserable. I had assumed that my friend knew the way to go. He didn’t. I had followed him all over those woods not knowing he didn’t know the way out. I remember thinking later that I wish I had had a compass. Compasses come in all shapes and sizes. They can be purchased or they can be made out of simple items found in most households. But they all do basically the same thing. That is point the way North. Once you know which way north is you can go anywhere without getting lost. I made a crucial mistake that day. I followed someone who I thought knew the way. And that brings me to the passage of scripture I want to share with you today.
1st Timothy Chapter 4 verses 11- 16 says.
11. Command and teach these things. 12. Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.
13. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. 14. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you. 15. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. 16. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
Let us Pray.
Paul was telling Timothy to be an example for other believers. He was telling him to be a compass, if you will, to his followers that pointed the way to Jesus. He is telling us the very same thing.
How do we do that?
We are to set an example in the 5 areas listed in verse 12.
1st we are to set an example in the way we speak.
As Christians we should ask ourselves 3 questions before we open our mouth. Is it True? Is it necessary? And is it Kind? If what you are about to say can’t pass that test don’t say it. You will find that you don’t say near bout as much as you used to. We need to remember that the tongue is referred to in the book of James as a restless evil that spews deadly poison. Sometimes we Christians forget that one day we will all be held accountable for every idle word.
Next we are told to set an example in the way we live.
Don’t tell the people around you what you believe let them see what you believe. They will see your beliefs in the way that you live your life. We need to practice what Jesus preached. Do as I do works a whole lot better than do as I say. I promise you one thing. You do not ever want to here the words..... "And you call yourself a Christian". Or maybe "And you say you are a Deacon" Or even "Aren’t you supposed to be a preacher." Statements like these cut to the quick. We need to remember what someone once said "Be careful how you live your life. You may be the only Bible some people ever read"
3rd we are to set an example in how we love one another.
The way we love should be a mirror of how Jesus loved us. I didn’t say that. Jesus did when he gave us the great commandment to love one another as He loved us and He loved us enough to deny himself and take up the cross. We should deny ourselves for the ones we love. The Bible says we will be known for our love for one another. If we don’t show our love for one another we won’t be known as Christians. In first Corinthians Chapter 13 Paul lists several characteristics of Love you need to check your love for others against that list. The one I like the best says that Love never Fails. Don’t let your love fail.
Next we are to set an example in our faith.
The ones following us do not need to see fear in our eyes. They need to see our faith in Christ. I was never more scared in those woods than when I looked into my friends eyes and saw fear. I knew then the situation was hopeless. The faith we have in Jesus and His awesome power needs to be in our eyes so that when someone around us has doubts they do not think the situation is hopeless. Faith needs to be noticeable.
The final area we need to set an example in is purity.
We need to have pure hearts, pure minds and pure bodies. We are defiled or made impure by our feelings, our thoughts and our actions. Our heart is pure when we do the right things for the right reasons. People know when your just doing something because you feel obligated. It shows. Those around us should not hear us grumbling about having to tithe or serve the church. They need to see us as being obedient to God out of Love. Not out of a sense of duty.
We exercise pure thoughts when we don’t always think the worst of people. We need to give other people the benefit of the doubt especially Christians. This life is not easy and when we assume other people are not living right we may hinder there walk. We need to check our eyes for logs before we go looking in others for splinters.
Finally we exercise purity of body by eliminating the sin we do to it or commit with it. So many of today’s social ills such as STD’s, Abortion, Alcoholism and Drug Abuse would be eliminated or at least reduced if we just practiced physical purity.
Paul told Timothy the reasons why he needed to do these things. He listed 3.
The 1st was so that others could see his progress.
The 2nd was so that he could save himself
and
The 3rd was, to me the most important, so that he could save others.
We need to do all these things because there are people following us who assume we know the way. Our wives, our sons, our daughters, our brothers and sisters, our friends and even our sometimes look to us for guidance.
We need to make sure every aspect of our lives point the way to Jesus. Because once you know the way to Him you can go anywhere in life without getting lost.
I have been very blessed to have had some compasses in my life that always point the way to Jesus. My father in law is one example. As long as I have known him he has always pointed the way to Jesus. In his speech, in his life, in his love for others, in the faith he displays and in the purity he practices. When I would lose my way I could look to him and see Christ in him. I could always look to him for guidance.
I may be telling you all something you already know but I think its worth mentioning. I’m privileged to call Tod Bullock a friend. He and I see each other at basketball practice, at games and even at Band competitions. We have had many opportunities to discuss our personal relationship with the Jesus. We talk of His saving power, His Grace and of His Mercy. The reason I’m telling you this is that during these conversations it didn’t take me long to discover that one of the compasses in his life is his father. I hope that one day my son talks about me the same way Tod talks about his Dad. We need to realize that we are going to have an impact on the people God has put in our path.
What kind of impact is entirely up to us.
There is one more thing I’d like to say, earlier I said that a compass could be made with simple items found in almost every household. The one thing I didn’t mention is that once you make your compass you have to check it against one that you already know works. In the front of this New Testament that Jerry Bullock gave to me it refers to the Bible as the pilots compass. If you want to find out if your compass is pointing the way to the Truth. Continuously compare it to the one that you already know works. Because from cover to cover this little book always points the way to Jesus.
Paul challenged Timothy to be an example or a compass and I am challenging you today to do the same thing. This time of year so many people make New Years resolutions and sadly they usually resolve to do something that only benefits them. This year make your resolution something that will benefit everybody you know. Resolve to be a compass to those around you. Be diligent, give your self wholly and persevere. As Paul said do not neglect the gift that was given you.
Let us Pray.
I want to thank you for inviting me and Greg here today. We have enjoyed good food and good fellowship. I am reminded of what the Psalmist said "Behold. How good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." Have a great day and a Happy New Year.
