The Bible is the instruction manual for biblical manhood. Scripture is God’s means to teach men, train men and fully equip men to be what God has called them to be. A real man is “a man of God.” Verse 11 and the verses just quoted from 2Timothy are the only places in the New Testament where the phrase “man of God” is used. The phrase is found frequently, however, throughout the Old Testament. “Man of God” is a title that referred to the servants of God, the prophets and leaders of old. Men like Moses, David, Ezekiel and Elijah were each referred to as a Man of God. So then, these men are examples of what true manhood looks like. And of course our Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect man and perfect pattern of manhood. A real man is a “man of God.”

In 1Timothy 6:5 the apostle Paul says that one of the marks of false teachers is that they “suppose that godliness is a means of gain.” There are many such teachers around today who daily urge their listeners to send them money, promising that God will multiply the money and give it back to them. One listener received a letter from a TV preacher that said if he gave to his ministry he would receive a hundredfold return on his money. The listener wrote the preacher back and said, “If it really works that way, you send the money to me, and God will give you a hundredfold!”[1] When we use God as a means for our personal success or wealth, then we have turned the tables and made God the servant of our own little kingdom.

Our passage today is a warning to be on guard against false teachers.  It would be nice if we could simply focus on the positive truths of the glory and majesty of Jesus Christ our Savior, and didn’t have to be negative about anything.  But the very presence of sin in our lives, in the church and in the world prevents us from saying only positive things.  In fact, saying only positive things is a mark of a false teacher!  There are multitudes of preachers today that preach as the false prophets in Jeremiah’s day.  In chapter 6:14 Jeremiah declared that the false prophets have “healed the hurt of My people slightly, Saying, `Peace, peace!’ When there is no peace.”  Those false prophets were the original positive thinkers.

Our passage in 1Timothy 6:1-2 has to do with all three of these forms of love - love for God, love for our neighbor and love for one another as Christians.  Though Paul is addressing bondservants or slaves in this passage, these verses have just as much application for us today.  This passage teaches us how to honor God in the practical application of the fifth commandment, the third commandment and the new commandment.

In order for the church to have order and for it to faithfully carry out the Great Commission, God has given elders to lead His church. It is crucial that the church have good leadership! Without godly, capable leaders, the church will not be able to fulfill this commission. Spiritually mature elders are vital to the church’s health, and a spiritually mature church is vital to carry out the Great Commission. Today’s church, more than ever, is in need of good leadership. We have already looked at the qualifications for that leadership in 1Timothy chapter three. Now in chapter five we are instructed further concerning the nature of the office of elder and how we are to treat elders in the church.

Verses 9-20 record the vision John had of the triumphant, exalted Christ. Verse 10 indicates that this occurred on the Lord’s Day, the first day of the week – the day on which our Lord was raised from the dead. Since the resurrection, our Lord Jesus has been meeting with His people in a special way on this day which we call the Christian Sabbath, or the “Lord’s Day.” John was “in the Spirit” on this day – in total communion and fellowship with God. His heart was set completely on God and the world was shut out of his mind. He heard behind him “a loud voice, as of a trumpet.” Jesus spoke and said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” signifying His deity and eternal nature as Almighty God. John was commanded to write down what he saw. John had been a close companion and disciple of Jesus. He was in the inner circle with Peter and his brother James, and of those three, he was known as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” John had seen Jesus after the resurrection and had witnessed Him being taken up into heaven at His ascension. Of all people, John was as close to Jesus as one could be. And yet nothing he had experienced on earth could prepare him for the force of this heavenly vision of Christ.

I trust that everyone in this room today would agree that without the cross, there is no salvation. True conversion must be conversion to Christ with faith in His death on the cross. Yet Christian author Stephen Smallman has written that “In the actual experience of coming to Christ, very few people have an adequate understanding of the work of the cross.” This morning, as we reflect on this passage of Scripture, I pray that we would grow in our understanding of what the cross is all about. Almost anyone you talk to knows that Jesus died on the cross, but hardly anyone understands why. The cross of Christ is the very center of the message of Christianity. Without the cross there is no salvation. Without the cross, and the resurrection which followed, the apostle Paul said, “You are still in your sins!” And without faith in Jesus Christ and His cross, you will die in your sins and spend eternity separated from God in hell. Without the cross and resurrection, there is no good news.

Underlying what Paul says here is the fact and reality of sin in the members of the church. You know, if it wasn’t for the existence of sin in the lives of church members, pastoring a church would be easy. And if it wasn’t for the existence of sin in the life of the pastor, it would be a joy to hear him preach and to submit to his leadership! It is helpful to remember that the church is a family. That is what Paul pictures here in these two verses – the church as a family. He urged Timothy to treat others in the church as he would the members of his own family…with respect, gentleness, love and purity. Like the family, the church is to be a place of mutual accountability, and great care must be taken in the way we relate to different kinds of people.

You and I are either making visible progress in the Christian life, or we are shrinking back. If you are shrinking back and not making progress, you are not pleasing to God….you are not fit for the kingdom. So this morning, my prayer is that this message…based on Paul’s words to a young, timid minister who was tempted to shrink back, will challenge you to turn around, get up and get moving in the right direction so that you will make progress that is visible to all.

There is a huge problem in the church today that we have imbibed from the world. Political correctness dominates our culture. Everyone is afraid to speak out against what is wrong. That PC attitude has filtered over into the church. Ministers refuse to condemn error anymore. No one wants to be accused of going on witch-hunts. We are concerned about not offending people and we end up offending God. Something is wrong with that picture. Part of the problem is that the postmodern world has done away with the very notion of objective truth. In such a climate, everything becomes fuzzy and hazy. There is no black and white anymore, only shades of gray. The message of 1Timothy is that there is truth and there are lies. There is doctrine that comes from God and there is the doctrine of demons. There is teaching that exalts Jesus Christ and His finished work of redemption, and there is teaching that exalts man and his feelings, his goodness, and his importance.

1Timothy 3:16 is a tremendous statement about the majesty and greatness of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is actually a hymn that was used in the early church to exalt Jesus Christ in the hearts of the congregation. Many of the hymns we sing today follow the pattern set forth in this verse. The apostle Paul introduces this great hymn by saying, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness.” What is he saying here? First, he is saying that what he is about to declare is great beyond all question – no believer can argue the importance of this glorious statement. We have many controversies in the church today, but in this verse, there should be no controversy. The church or minister or Christian that has a problem with what is being said in verse 16 has departed from the true Christian faith. These truths about Jesus are undeniably the heart and soul of Christianity. Another way to say this is that Jesus Christ is the heart and soul of Christianity.

In the very first verse of Paul’s letter to Timothy, he referred to “the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope.”  He didn’t say, “The Lord Jesus Christ, my hope,” though that would have been true.  He said “our hope,” which refers to the church, to all those chosen by God to be part of Christ’s body.  The Lord Jesus Christ is the hope of the church.  What is so special about the church?  After all, there are people today who say they are Christians and yet they dismiss the church as unnecessary and even as a hindrance to following Jesus.  Professing believers today sometimes look at the church as a voluntary club which they can join or not join, if they choose.  These are the people who say, “I love Jesus, I just don’t like the church.”  If they really loved Jesus, they would love His church too.  The church is His body!  You cannot love Jesus if you don’t love His body.  Ephesians 5:25 states that, “Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her.”

02/15/09

The Form of Government of the ARP Church states that “The office of deacon as set forth in Scripture is one of sympathy and service after the example of Christ.” The church needs deacons who are like the Lord Jesus Christ. The word “deacon” simply means “servant.” Of course in this passage, Paul is using the term to refer to an office in the church. But that office is as the word indicates – an office of service. A deacon is a servant, first of all, of the Lord, and secondly of the church. The greatest deacon who ever lived was Jesus. Therefore the office of deacon must be patterned after the humble service of our Lord, which is a tall order. And not only deacons, but every member of the church is called to a life of service after the example of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is our hope because He is our ruler and king. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. That is true in the civil realm. The rulers of the nations must answer to King Jesus. He rules over the affairs of men and nations. Kings and their subjects are all subject to Christ, the Anointed One. Also, our Lord Jesus in a special way rules over His church. He is the head over all things in the church and has preeminence in all things. Underneath our first core value as a church we state that “The only King and Head of the Church is the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom all power in heaven and on earth has been given. From His throne of glory, He rules the Church through His Word and Spirit.” In addition, Jesus rules His church by the agency of qualified men who exercise servant leadership in the church.

GRP exists to plant reformed churches in Europe.  This is an eye-opening message dealing with the darkness of Europe — the political and spiritual condition and need for the gospel.  You will be encouraged as you listen to this message that our God is sovereign over all.  Let us pray that God would bring another reformation to Europe and the world.