I have read many commentaries, and listened to very many sermons by preachers who for the most part I admire, who seem to deride Timothy as a weak man, a timid man, a fearful man.  And they say such things with such certainty and conviction, that I suppose I have been prone to almost believe them.  I say almost, because I don’t really believe them.  They say that poor Timmy was young and timid and being fearful and shy had caused him to have poor digestion and a continually upset stomach.

I said in our previous study I am not going to be surprised to find out when we get to heaven that Timothy was none of those things.  First of all, he wasn’t some timid teenager at the time of this writing.  Most Bible scholars agree that Timothy was about 32 years of age when Paul wrote this letter.  About the same age Jesus was at the height of His ministry.

If I had to paint a picture of Timothy, I would probably paint a picture of a big strapping, burly looking fellow with a long full  red beard, and very muscular.  He was probably very athletic, because Paul constantly uses metaphors of athletes and boxers and wrestlers and soldiers and farmers as the means by which to illustrate Biblical truths to him.  And I’m sure it was because those were the types of men that Timothy probably could identify with.

What these uber critical Bible teachers and preachers are missing here is the fact that Timothy was in a fight for his life.  He was in a fight for the extinction of the gospel.  Paul, his mentor and spiritual father, his erstwhile traveling companion whom he had traveled in dangerous conditions with all over the Roman Empire, was in prison again, rotting in a Roman dungeon awaiting his execution. And Timothy knew that the same fate more than likely awaited him.  I don’t think Timothy was scared to die, he might have been more inclined to take up arms and fight his way out of the persecution that had arisen against Christians. But Paul is writing to tell him not to fight with sword and spear, but to fight with spiritual means, and be wiling to suffer and even die for the gospel, which though it might appear to be defeat to the world will actually accomplish greater progress for the kingdom of God.

 I have to admit I get a little miffed at these preachers and commentators, even though I admire most of them on a certain  level.  But I’m a little irritated because they speak condescendingly about Timothy as some sort of sissy, as they write from the air conditioned comfort of their office in their multimillion dollar church building, sitting at their leather executive chair – arm chair warriors for Christ as they sip their Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte with their little pinkie sticking out.  And yet they have the nerve to denigrate someone like Timothy as being so timid and fearful that he gets an upset stomach. Meanwhile, you have to wonder how much suffering they have done lately for the gospel in comparison.

So Paul is not writing to a weakling, timid Timothy who needs to man up and stop sucking his thumb.  No!  Paul is writing to a hero of the faith, a man who had probably already risked his life more times than we can imagine. Most of the trials that Paul lists in 2 Corinthians could also be attributed to Timothy.  In 2 Corinithians Paul gives greetings from himself and Timothy in the introduction.  So we can assume that Timothy was with Paul for a lot of the trials listed in chapter 11:25-28 where Paul says, “Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea;  on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.  And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.”  

Those are the sort of things Timothy had experienced as well as he traveled with Paul on his missionary journeys.  So Timothy was no timid weakling. He was a warrior for the kingdom of God in every since of the word.  But what Paul is now counseling him about is that he should not fear dying for the gospel.  Timothy would in fact one day die as a martyr.  But until that day came, he should be confident that his life is hid in Christ, and the Lord was his defender and shield. 

I’ve often said, that there is no safer place than to be in the center of God’s will.  And there is no more dangerous place than to be out of God’s will. If you are a man or woman of God and you are living for the Lord and working for His kingdom, then you are bulletproof until the day you finish the job which God has called you to do.  When he is finished with you, then he may take your life, but until He decides to do so, nothing can hurt you. And what Timothy needs to be reminded of is that losing his life is part of the plan. But it’s not defeat, it’s victory.

So then Paul encourages Timothy to not fear what man can do, not fear what Satan might do, but bravely fight the good fight until death. The kind of courage that Paul is speaking of reminds me of the type of courage that was the hallmark of a Cheyenne military society that was in existence in the mid nineteenth century.  This particular military society was known as the Dog Soldiers.  In battle, these warriors would dismount and stake themselves to the ground by means of a sash tied around their body.  And from that position, which they were unable to leave, they would fight to either their death or victory. But whether or not they survived the battle was not really their goal, they were more concerned with whether or not they fought a good fight, fought with courage.

To encourage Timothy then in this fight to the death, Paul tells him to remember Jesus. Vs8, “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to my gospel.”Now how’s that for a battle cry?  Back in the days after the fall of the Alamo, where every man defending that fort died in battle, the Texans used it as a battle cry in their fight with Mexico.  Their battle cry which roused Texans to victory was “remember the Alamo!”  

Paul says, “remember Jesus!” That battle cry should stir our heart as well.  There are some important doctrinal truths that we should understand are enshrined in that cry.  First he says Remember Jesus Christ. That’s not to say that Timothy was in danger of forgetting about Jesus. By no means.  But rather to keep certain characteristics of Jesus foremost in his mind, as an example, which Timothy is to follow.

Notice he says remember Jesus Christ, that’s Jesus the Messiah.  Jesus is the Messiah, the Anointed One from God, the One promised in the OT who would crush Satan’s head, who would rule with a rod of iron, who would defeat all His enemies.

Secondly, he says “risen from the dead.” That fact should give great comfort and courage to Timothy, that as Christ rose from the dead, so we will be raised from the dead. 1Cor. 15:20-23 “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.  For since by a man [came] death, by a man also [came] the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.  But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming.” So first of all Jesus submitted Himself to death on a cross,  and then as Christ was raised from the dead, so we will be raised.

But I would like to explain that this verse is saying the body will be raised.  In the interim between death, or what is referred to as sleep for the Christian, the spirit of the man in Christ is alive. Jesus told the story of Lazarus and the rich man and they were taken to Paradise and Hades respectfully to await the resurrection. But they were alive in the interim.  Peter spoke of that interim stage in regards to Christ saying in 1Peter 3:18-19 “For Christ also died for sins once for all, [the] just for [the] unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit;  in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits [now] in prison.” So as Christ was alive in the Spirit in death, so are we that believe in Him.

You know, there is no more fierce warrior than the one who does not fear death. For those who would believe in Him, Jesus said, “He who lives and believes in Me will never die.  Do you believe this?”  I ask you today two questions.  Do you believe in Christ? And secondly, do you believe that you will never die?  Or do you live in constant fear of death? I suggest to you that if you truly believed you will never die, then you would live differently than you do. Though this body may pass away, our soul and spirit will live forever. Those who have been born again in their spirit receive the life of Christ, which is eternal life, that they might never die and not fear death.

The next characteristic of Christ that Timothy should remember is that He is “the descendent of David.” At first that may seem a little out of place.  But this fact that Jesus is the descendent of David teaches us a couple of important doctrines.  First, it is a reference to the fact that Jesus was not some mythical figure, but an actual man, a descendant of the royal line of David. But being a descendant of David is necessary if He is the Messiah, the Anointed One from God, the One who will rule over the earth with a rod of iron. It means He is fully man and fully God.

But I think even more to Paul’s point is the inference that as King David was the representative of Israel so Jesus is the representative of the church.  What great feat was David known for?  Everyone knows that David killed Goliath the giant. What we need to understand from that is that David was a type of Jesus Christ.  When Goliath issued his challenge, it was that one man from each nation would come out and engage in battle, and the victor from that fight would win the battle for the nation.  David slew Goliath and in effect won the victory for his nation  over the Philistines.

So when we consider that Christ is the descendent of David, we should understand that He is our representative, who fought the battle against sin, and the world and death and Hades, and He defeated all his foes.  His resurrection was proof that He had overcome the devil and the world, and taken the keys of death and Hell. And in turn, our victory over sin and death was accomplished through Him.  Once again, Timothy might draw courage from remembering the battle which Jesus accomplished through His death, and that He arose from the grave victorious.

Now that is the gospel, the good news.  That Jesus Christ our substitute, paid our penalty for sin by His death on the cross, and by His stripes we are healed, by His death we are given life.  Timothy should be emboldened to give up his life if necessary for that same gospel, that others might be saved from death and given life.

Paul says in vs 9, that because of that gospel, he too is suffering.  He says, “for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a criminal.”  Jesus was tried as a criminal.  And Paul was suffering as a criminal. Timothy would perhaps suffer as a criminal. I think the day is coming, when Christians here in America will suffer as a criminal.  If you believe and proclaim the true gospel of Jesus Christ, it will be considered hate speech.  It already is being outlawed on social media.  And I can imagine that in the not too distant future it won’t be that inconceivable that you can be arrested for speaking the truth of God’s word.

But though Paul, or Timothy or one day even we might be arrested and held in prison for the gospel, Paul says that the gospel is not imprisoned.  Vs 9, “but the word of God is not imprisoned.”  At that very moment, Paul was in prison writing the word of God in the letter to Timothy.  That letter was delivered to Timothy, and read in the churches, and it continues to be proclaimed to this day, 2000 years later.

Satan’s attempts to silence the gospel, to destroy the word of God have never been successful, and they never will be successful. As 1 Peter 1:25 states, “the word of Lord endures forever.” Martin Luther wrote a hymn of which the last stanza says, “The Word of God will never yield, to any creature living, He stands with us upon the field, His grace and Spirit giving.  Take they child and wife, goods, name, fame and life, though all this be done, yet have they nothing won, the kingdom still remaineth.” They burned at the stake William Tyndale for translating the Bible into English, and yet the torch that man lit by his sacrifice has become a fire that has engulfed the entire world. The gospel is not imprisoned.

This triumph of the gospel causes Paul to continue with these courageous words in vs 10 “For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, so that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus [and] with [it] eternal glory.”  Since the gospel will triumph, Paul endures all trials and persecutions, even to death. Though he is on death row, he is confident of victory, and whatever sufferings he has to endure he knows are only temporary and cannot compare to the glory that awaits him.

His sufferings he endures for the sake of those who are chosen, so that they also my obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it, eternal glory.”  Paul is willing to lay down his life for the sake of others, that they may be saved.  That is love.  We often wonder about how to understand the command that Jesus gave concerning our responsibility to love one another, even to love our enemies.  Jesus said “no greater love has any man but this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”  That is love, to sacrifice your life so that others may live.  To disregard the desires and pleasures of life for yourself in order to share the gospel with others, so that they might be saved is the essence of fulfilling the command to love one another.

And that salvation produces what Paul refers to as eternal glory.  There is so much that could be said about that, but at the very least, it is a reference to eternal life.  Once again, Paul is emphasizing the eternal life that we have in Christ, as a reminder to Timothy to be courageous in the face of persecution and possible death.

A few moments ago I quoted part of a hymn that was written by Martin Luther.  I’ve often been tempted to learn how to play it on the guitar and then teach it to the church.  But it is not an easy hymn to play.  However, what it does well is teach sound doctrine.  That’s why we sing songs, not just to give praise to God as if God is just sitting in heaven wringing his hands, wishing we would praise Him.  We do praise Him in song, but just as importantly, we remind ourselves of the doctrines of our faith, and in song we confess our faith before men.  In past times, and I suppose even in the Armed Services today, there were battle songs that were sung to lift the men’s morale and encourage them in their duty.

Perhaps to achieve a similar result is why we sing Christian songs today. Or at least, it should be the reason we sing.  Hymns are a way to teach doctrine, and to assure our hearts of certain truths, and the recitation of those truths should encourage and strengthen our faith, and give us courage to face the battle.  The Psalms which we read on Sunday morning, and which we are also studying at this time on Wednesday evenings are examples of what hymns should be.

So Paul quotes what many Bible scholars believe is a popular hymn of the early church as a means to remind Timothy of certain truths, and to strengthen his faith to endure the trials that he must go through. Some have even called it a martyrs hymn.  It’s probably not the entire hymn, but a portion of it.  That hymn then is found in vs11, “It is a trustworthy statement: For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him;  If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He also will deny us;  If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.”

The phrase, “it is a trustworthy statement” may not be part of the hymn, but rather Paul is saying that this statement of the hymn is trustworthy, or reliable. He says it is trustworthy. Trust is a significant thing.  If you trust someone, or something, then you are willing to bet your life on it.  And I think that is what Paul is indicating here.  That here are some truths that you can bank on, that you can trust with your life.

The first line is “For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him.”  This is the underlying theme of the whole passage; this idea of facing death without fear, knowing that the life we have with the Lord is eternal, it will never die.

But it has an even deeper meaning than that. It also is talking about our salvation.  If we died with Christ, speaks of when He as our representative man died in our place, we that trust in Him for salvation also died with Him.  We died to the old man, and we are raised up spiritually to live for  Him.  We see that illustrated in baptism.  I often say when I dip the person under the water, “buried with Christ in the likeness of His death,” and then when I raise them up from the water, I say “raised with Him in the likeness of His resurrection.”  That’s a picture of what happens when we are saved.  We die with Christ to sin, die to the old man, and are raised with him in newness of life in the likeness of His resurrection.

Rom 6:4-11 says, “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.  For if we have become united with [Him] in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be [in the likeness] of His resurrection,  knowing this, that our old self was crucified with [Him,] in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;  for he who has died is freed from sin.  Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,  knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.  For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.  Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

That statement then should give Timothy and us the courage to face death.  But it also gives us the assurance that we have the power over sin, and the power to live the life that we have been given in Christ. 

The next statement is “if we endure, we shall also reign with Him.” If we endure the trials here on earth in the flesh, if we endure persecutions and afflictions, even if necessary unto death, then we will receive a reward in heaven.  We who are servants here will be kings with Him there.  I don’t know exactly how we will reign, or over whom we will reign, but we shall receive a crown, an inheritance, which the Lord compares with reigning as kings.  Peter calls it a royal priesthood. One thing is for sure, the promise is trustworthy that if we endure trials here on earth for the kingdom of God, then we will reign with Christ when His kingdom is consummated.

The third stanza says, “I we deny Him, He will also deny us.” How do we deny Christ? The foremost reason would be they deny Jesus the rightful place as Lord of their lives.  They deny that He is the Savior of the world, the Messiah sent from God.  They deny that He is God incarnate, and that He died on the cross and was resurrected from the dead and now sits at the Father’s right hand.  They deny the Lordship of Jesus Christ.  The cry of the Israelites at His first coming was, “we will not have this man rule over us.”  That is to deny Christ.  Jesus said it plainly: “But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 10:33). There is a fate worse than earthly persecution.  And that is to find yourself at the judgment seat of God, and Jesus says, “depart from Me, I never knew you.”

The last stanza says, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.” 

If we are faithless… what does that mean?  I don’t know that it speaks of a lack of faith, because no man can be saved without faith in Christ.  It may refer to the temporary lack of faith in the face of persecution that Peter fell victim to when he denied the Lord.  Did Peter lose his salvation that night around the fire of the soldiers who had arrested Jesus?  He certainly denied knowing Jesus, and he cursed to add assurance to his claim.  

But I don’t think the Bible teaches that Peter lost his salvation.  I think it’s obvious that Peter was saved, and his conviction afterwards is evidence of that.  But what is important is that Christ did not prove faithless when Peter had a failing of faith.  Jesus prophesied in Luke 22:31-34 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded [permission] to sift you like wheat;  but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”  But he said to Him, “Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!”  And He said, “I say to you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me.”  

We are told that after Peter’s denial, after Christ’s resurrection, the Lord sought out Peter and restored him, and gave him the ministry to feed His sheep, and tend His lambs.  The Lord is faithful. Salvation is of the Lord. The Lord understands our weaknesses.  He loves us with an everlasting love.  I think another illustration of the faithfulness of the Lord is the story of the prodigal son.  We all know the story.  A son told his father that he wanted his inheritance and his father gave it to him.  But the son went to a far away country and spent his money foolishly on wild living. But soon he found himself with no money left, and took a job tending pigs that he might eat the pods that were their food. At some point he came to his senses, and realized that even a hired servant fared better in his father’s house than he was doing.  And so he decided to come home and ask his father to make him as one of the hired servants.  But when he was still a long ways off from home, his father looked down the road and saw him walking a long way off.  And the father hitched up his skirts and started running down the road, and when he got to his son, he embraced him, pig smell and all, and took him home and cleaned him up and restored him to his rightful place in the home.  That’s a picture of a faithful God who cannot deny Himself.  He cannot deny that this is His son. He cannot deny His love for His son. And so He will do whatever it takes to restore those who may have fallen, those who have drifted away, those who think they no longer want to be under the care of their father.  Yet the faithfulness of God never fails. The Lord will restore the lost sheep, the wandering lamb who fell into sin.  Because the lamb belongs to Him.

There is an old hymn that we used to sing in church when I was a boy.  I haven’t heard it for years.  And I will close with this;

1 I’ve wandered far away from God, Now I’m coming home; 

The paths of sin too long I’ve trod, Lord, I’m coming home.

Refrain: Coming home, coming home, Nevermore to roam, 

Open wide Thine arms of love, Lord, I’m coming home.

2 I’ve wasted many precious years, Now I’m coming home; 

I now repent with bitter tears, Lord, I’m coming home. [Refrain] 

3 I’ve tired of sin and straying, Lord, Now I’m coming home; 

I’ll trust Thy love, believe Thy word, Lord, I’m coming home. [Refrain] 

4 My soul is sick, my heart is sore, Now I’m coming home; 

My strength renew, my hope restore, Lord, I’m coming home. [Refrain]

If that song describes you today, I hope that you will come home to Christ today.  He is waiting, and He is willing to restore you, to strengthen you, and give you hope.  

If we have been born of God, or what is commonly referred to as born again, then we have become the children of God. Paul addresses such a person here, speaking in an immediate context to Timothy, his child in the faith, and calling him a man of God. That’s a reference to the spiritual maturity that is expected and desired once a person has become born again as a child of God; they are matured into a man or woman of God.

Timothy has become a man of God, and he is a man of God in a deeper sense, as a spokesman of God, in the same vein as Moses was called a man of God, or Elisha was called a man of God. Timothy is a minister of the gospel as a sort of deputy apostle. He is acting on behalf of the apostle Paul in setting up and establishing the churches in the region of Ephesus and selecting and instructing the pastors of those churches. That was the role of an apostle. They were the foundation of the church.

And so in the immediate context Paul is writing to Timothy as a man of God in the position of a deputy apostle. But I believe it is entirely appropriate for us to see ourselves that are saved and mature in our faith as also men or women of God, and apply the same instructions that were given to Timothy to ourselves. We may not have the same role as Timothy, but we all are given a role as ministers, and we are even called priests of God. Not all of us are called to be a pastor of a church, perhaps, but we are commissioned to be an ambassador of the gospel, going into our world to proclaim the gospel.

That role as a minister that we are given is described and prescribed for us by the apostle Peter, saying in 1Peter 2:9 “But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR [God’s] OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” That is our ministry, our priestly duty, to proclaim Christ, and to testify of the truth of the gospel.

So rather than interpreting this passage today as only relating to pastors, or just to men such as Timothy, we can reliably apply it to everyone that has come out from the darkness of sin and ignorance into the light of the truth of the gospel. The man or woman of God is then instructed by Paul in this passage to conform to the doctrine of godliness, and to accomplish that to do four things; what they are to flee from, what they are to follow after, what they are to fight for, and what they are to be faithful to.

Paul begins by saying what the man of God should flee from. Vs 11 “But flee from these things, you man of God….” Now to find out what things he should flee from, we must go back to the preceding verses. First we must flee from a different doctrine, not conforming to the doctrine of godliness. This doctrine or teaching we should flee from is not sound. It has no basis in scripture. This is simply the doctrine of worldliness. It’s mixing a little scripture with a lot of man’s wisdom and a mind set on the world. It’s what he says later in vs 5 as a depraved mind and deprived of the truth. That’s a worldly mind. It’s a doctrine that is not derived from the truth, but deprived of the truth. You know, it doesn’t take much error to make what may have elements of truth, to not be the truth anymore. A little leaven leavens the whole lump. So doctrinal purity, doctrinal truth is essential, and that man who eschews the truth of God for the truth according to man, is not wise. We should flee that sort of doctrine.

Paul went on to say that sort of false doctrine produces bad attributes. And those bad attributes are “he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.”

So bad doctrine produces conceit, and that conceit, that self interest, selfish concern, results in a lack of understanding of sound doctrine. Instead they question the words of scripture to contrive a doctrine that appeals to their lusts of the flesh. And such conceit produces selfishness that is evidenced by strife, envy, evil suspicions. They want what seems best for themselves, to the point of disregarding the needs of others.

And that conceited attitude thinks that they can use the gospel, or their Christianity, to get more of the riches of this world. Paul goes on to talk about the love of money being a root of evil, and some longing for it have wandered away from the faith and caused themselves many griefs. So Paul says flee from such things. As mature men and women of God, we should flee those types of desires, flee the lusts of the flesh, flee the self conceit that produces such selfish, hateful behavior.

Instead, Paul says what the man of God should follow after, or pursue after. He gives us a list of different kind of behavior characterized by “righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.” This is the exact opposite of the conceited, self interested behavior they should flee from. This is selflessness, dying to the lusts of the world, and pursuing godliness, being of the same mind set as God.

That’s what Phl 2:3-8 talks about; “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not [merely] look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, [and] being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

That’s what we should follow after, the same attributes that Christ exhibited as an example for us, that we might follow in his footsteps. Peter said in 1Peter 2:21 “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps.” So as Christ was exemplary in these things, so we should pursue righteousness, be godly, or holy in our behavior, in our speech, remain faithful, love others with a sacrificial love, love them enough to share the gospel with them, to serve them.

And that faith and love will be characterized by perseverance. Perseverance in this sense I think is speaking of endurance. Endurance is an undervalued virtue in the church today. But endurance is sometimes all we can do when we go through various trials. Our faith is sometimes stretched to the breaking point. It seems like everything is going wrong, that the devil is winning on every front. When we go through trials like that, James said, we should consider it as joy, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance, or perseverance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing.” Endurance is a character trait of the spiritually mature man or woman of God. I can assure you that endurance or perseverance is not always fun, but James says we should count it as joy. We endure it as a trial, but we count it as joy. It is something that may bring weeping may last through the long night of suffering, but a shout of joy in the morning when we see Jesus.

So we have seen what we should flee from, what we should follow after, and then Paul says what we should fight for. Vs12 “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” Bible scholars tell us that the Greek word in the original text is one that means contest, and the anguish and conflict that is concerned with it. So from that, they surmise that what Paul has in mind here is not a race, which is a commonly used metaphor of Paul, but more likely a boxing match.

It’s kind of funny to think of faith as a fight isn’t it? But it really is. We are constantly in a conflict with lies, with doubt, with fear, with attacks of the devil, with heartaches, with disappointments. It’s a real struggle to maintain faith, to persevere in faith in the midst of such attacks. In this first letter to Timothy Paul is out of prison. But in his second letter he is in prison, and I think it’s obvious to Paul that he isn’t getting out of there alive. And so he writes to Timothy near the end of that letter, in 2Tim. 4:7-8 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” I put that verse on my dad’s gravestone. He was a minister of the gospel, who to some degree might have not looked like a winner from the world’s perspective, but from God’s perspective, he had fought the good fight, he had kept the faith, and there was laid up for him a crown of righteousness which the Lord will award to him.

But notice in that verse Paul likens the fight to finishing the course. Paul had finished the course that God had called him to run. He finished his ministry. And he says he has kept the faith. That’s a reference to endurance, to perseverance. He kept the faith in spite of many attacks against him from all quarters. Faith is a race, an endurance race. But it’s also a battle. Its a battle against the lusts of the flesh, against the desires of this world, and against the lies of the devil.

We should remember though that according to 2Cor. 10:3-4 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.” Our faith is the victory over our enemies. We fight the lie of Satan and the world with the truth of the scripture.

That’s why Paul joins that statement with another which says, lay hold of the eternal life to which you are called. Faith is believing, and believing is receiving. Eternal life, new life in Christ, is not something only available in the future, but right now. The idea is that Timothy is to grab hold of it and hang on to it. Possess the life of Christ now. Because as you are confident that you have eternal life now, you can proceed to serve the Lord without fear. Our life belongs to the Lord. He gives it, He will protect it, and He will not take it away until we have finished our course.

There is another aspect of laying hold of eternal life. Paul says Timothy “made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” There doesn’t seem to be a consensus of opinion by Bible scholars on what he means by saying the good confession. But if you notice in the next verse, he says “Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate.” So whatever the good confession is, both Timothy and Christ seem to have made it.

I think it can only be one thing for Timothy. I think it is confessing Jesus Christ as Lord. Paul says in Romans 10:9, “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus [as] Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” This was written at a time when Rome was trying to force people to say “Caesar is lord,” and they did so under penalty of death. So to publicly confess Jesus as Lord was to deny Caesar, and to put yourself at risk of death.

But we know that confession is also making the point that Jesus is the Messiah, the Anointed One from God, the Savior of the world. It’s also understood that the Messiah was to be the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. And furthermore, it should be understood that to confess Jesus as Lord is to confess Him as YOUR Lord, your Sovereign, your Master. Thus your life belongs to Him. He controls your destiny. Timothy more than likely at his baptism publicly confessed Jesus as Lord in the presence of many witnesses, thus proclaiming his salvation and obtaining eternal life. And that faith is the victory over sin and death.

So we are to flee some things, follow after other things, fight the good fight, and then finally, Paul says what we are to be faithful to. Vs 13 “I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which He will bring about at the proper time–He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him [be] honor and eternal dominion! Amen.”

Now there is a lot that is said there, but the primary point he makes is that we are to be faithful to keep the commandment. Now that sounds way too legalistic for most of us, so we better look at the original language and see what we might find that is more palatable for us. And we find in so doing that sixty nine times out of 71 it is translated as commandment. The other two are precepts. So that’s really not much help to us.

But what is helpful is the definition provided, which is, “an order, command, charge, precept, injunction , that which is prescribed to one by reason of his office, a prescribed rule in accordance with which a thing is done , a precept relating to lineage, of the Mosaic precept concerning the priesthood.” So what we might deduce is that the commandment might be understood to be a commission that was given to Timothy. It encompassed all that Timothy had been commanded to do in regards to his ministry and the governance of the churches under his care.

Now we too have been given orders, a commission, a commandment to proclaim the gospel to every living creature, to go into all the world with the gospel, to start in the realm of our family, then our neighborhood, then community, and then to the farthest reaches of the world. This is our ministry that we have all be commissioned to do. One of the other metaphors that Paul likes to use is that of the military. And he often likens the good fight of faith to being a good soldier of Jesus Christ. So this commission is our orders, what we are tasked to do as the church of Jesus Christ. Our ministry is to win souls. To proclaim the truth which is able to save souls.

Notice though that Paul uses especially strong words to convey the seriousness and urgency of this commission. He says I charge you in the presence of God. That’s like the phrase we hear sometimes used: “As God is my witness!” But Paul uses this for great effect, to show the seriousness of the charge he is giving Timothy, that it is not just coming from Paul, but from God Himself. So we should have a reverance, a holy fear of God that gives us motivation to do what He has charged us to do, and there is the added assurance that Paul gives which is that God gives live to all things. So though this commission may cause us to go through danger, our lives are watched over by God, and He will preserve us as we are keeping His charge.

And to that witness of God, Paul adds the witness of Jesus, saying, “and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate.” Now we talked about Timothy’s confession, which resulted in his salvation and obtaining eternal life. What confession did Jesus make before Pilate? I believe it is a reference to the dialogue between Pilate and Jesus as recorded in John 18, where it says,

Vs. 33 Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?” Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.” Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say [correctly] that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

So the good confession that Jesus made is similar to the good confession that Timothy made, which is that Jesus is Lord, King of kings, that He is the Messiah that came into the world, born of man, but preexisting with God. Jesus said my kingdom is not of this realm, but I am a King, and for this I have been born, and for this I came into the world to testify to the truth. So there is a lot that is contained in the confession that Jesus gave Pilate. But it is the truth of God which we must believe if we are to be saved. Pilate did not believe the truth. His answer was “what is truth?” He tried to find a way to not commit one way or another. But in the end, his refusal to believe in Jesus Christ, caused him to side with those who would kill Jesus.

There is no neutral position in regards to Christ. A lot of people today want to think that they can have a little bit of Christianity and be ok. That they can mix the wisdom of the world and a little bit of Christianity together and they can have the best of both worlds. They can have the world’s riches, and yet still gain heaven in eternity. But the fact is that believing in Jesus Christ as Lord is not a 50/50 position. If Jesus is Lord, then He must be King, and if He is King, then to Him be all honor and eternal dominion.

Our worship of Jesus Christ as King then means that we offer up our selves as a living sacrifice, dying to the world and the lusts of this world that have controlled us and held us captive, so that through faith in Christ we might receive forgiveness of our sins, and be credited with the righteousness of Jesus Christ, so that we might receive new life, even everlasting life, which we now live as a citizen of the kingdom of God in submission to His will and His purpose.

That is salvation. It’s not sugar coated. It’s not if you come to Jesus all your wildest dreams will come true. Or you can live your best life now and get heaven to boot. But salvation requires full obeisance, honor and submission to Christ our King, and in exchange for renouncing our sinful life, and the passing, temporary pleasures of this world, He will give us forgiveness and HIs righteousness, and a life that is everlasting, and a crown which He will award to us on that day when He establishes His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. I hope that you will lay hold of that truth, and confess Jesus as your Lord and King, that you might receive that life from God.

I assume that you are here this morning because you want to worship the Lord. Jesus said, God is Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth. He said in another place, speaking to the Father, Jesus said your word is truth.

So one of the primary ways we worship the Lord is to study His word. But according to the apostle James, we are not to be merely hearers of the word, but doers of the word. So to obey the word is worship. In the earliest mention of worship, we find that Abraham took Isaac to offer him on an altar to God, and Abraham said, the lad and I will go worship. So to sacrifice is worship. Samuel said to disobedient Saul, when he had claimed he saved the best of the animals in order to sacrifice to God, Samuel said, “to obey is better than sacrifice.”

I say all that to make the point that if you’re here this morning to worship the Lord, then one of the primary ways you do that is through hearing the preaching of the word, and then being obedient to it. And God has ordained preaching as the means by which his word is proclaimed. And to that end, God has ordained pastors to preach and teach His word.

We get this word pastor from the word in the Greek which means shepherd. And we find it used to describe the elders of the churches. For instance, in Acts 20:28 Paul is speaking to the elders of the church in Ephesus. He had called together the elders of the various churches and he said, “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”

So Paul calls together the elders, used in vs 17, and then in vs 28 calls them overseers, which is also translated as bishops, and then calls them shepherds, which is the word from which we get pastor. That shows that all those titles are synonymous, and interchangeable. It’s a mistake to make more out of one title than another, because it’s evident from just that one passage that all those titles are interchangeable. And it’s verified in other passages as well.

Now back in chapter 3, Paul laid out the qualifications for a pastor. And I don’t have time to review all of that this morning. That message is available on our website and YouTube if you want to see what he said regarding their qualifications. Today, in our ongoing study of 1 Timothy, we are looking at the section where Paul deals with how pastors are to function in the church.

And particularly, he deals with three areas in regards to the function of pastors, or elders. Those areas I have boiled down to three words, which may serve as an outline that might help us navigate through this section of scripture. The first point is compensation, secondly, accusation, and third, ordination. Now those are rather broad points, but I hope they will serve to help us as we study this letter about how the church is to be conducted.

So Paul begins with the broad concept of compensation for pastors or elders. He says in vs 17 “The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “YOU SHALL NOT MUZZLE THE OX WHILE HE IS THRESHING,” and “The laborer is worthy of his wages.”

Now most commentators introduce this subject by drawing a corollary between the widows mentioned in vs 3, and the elders, both of which we are told to honor. In regards to widows, Paul said that the church was to honor them. These were women who had lost their husbands, had no family or visible means of support, and had devoted themselves to serve the Lord in the church. Now I preached a message about that last week which I don’t want to have to repeat here. But suffice it to say that to honor those widows indicated that the church was to provide for their financial needs. That was more or less a unique situation in the early church that we do not have as much call for today. That was due to the culture which had no safety net for widows who did not have someone to take them under their support. Today most people have access to government subsides and housing and food, if they don’t have insurance that takes care of their needs, and so we don’t have much call for the church to support widows.

But the point was that the church was to honor widows. Now in vs17, regarding elders of the church, he says they are to be given double honor. I used to think that indicated that a pastor was entitled to make twice what a normal person in a regular job would make. I might wish that were true, but upon further study I don’t believe that is what Paul is saying here.

Double honor is simply a way of referring back to the honor that is given to widows, which refers to compensation to meet their financial needs, and then additional honor that should be given due to the pastor’s position as the messenger of the Lord. In other words, they are to give him honor because of his position as the spokesman for the Lord. As he is faithful in preaching the word, they are to give him the honor due, to respect his word, to listen and to obey it. That obedience to the word of the Lord is what Paul is referring to when he says the elder who rules well. That’s what a shepherd is responsible for as he is shepherding the flock. He rules well according to the chief shepherd’s command, and the flock needs to respond accordingly. Ruling well doesn’t necessarily mean cracking the whip, but it does mean making sure that the flock stays on course, that they are protected from wolves, and which is spiritually healthy and maturing as they should.

Another confusing point to be clarified is the way he says, “ especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.” Some have said this indicates that there must be a plurality of elders in the church, and some preach, and some merely lead. I don’t happen to agree with that view. I think that the scripture indicates all elders are to be preachers and teachers. For instance, Titus 1:7 says, “For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain, but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.” So he is able to exhort sound doctrine. That is preaching.

And in 1 Tim.3:2 and 2 Timothy 2:24 we are told that an elder/overseer, pastor must be “apt to teach.” So I don’t think there is an imperative here that we are to have elders in the church who are not preachers/teachers of the word. The last thing we want in a church is someone who is merely an administrator. Who applies standard business practices to the church. The church is not a business, its not an organization. It’s an organism, a body, the body of Christ and it lives by the word of Christ, not by the best business practices, even though that may sound logical to some people.

But the main emphasis that Paul gives here is that of compensation in regards to financial compensation. That follows in line with the honor given to widows. And the same would be true of pastors. As they are devoted to the ministry of the church, the word, and to prayer, they are reliant upon the church for their financial needs. So Paul says we are to give them honor financially.

Now we know that is what he is referring to, because he includes two scriptures as illustrative of that principle. The first is a quote from Duet. 25, in which he says, “”YOU SHALL NOT MUZZLE THE OX WHILE HE IS THRESHING.” Paul uses a quote which was originally referring to God’s care of oxen, as a metaphor for God’s care of pastors. The ox would be tied to a millstone and would pull or push the millstone around and around which ground the grain. And God wanted the Israelites to leave the ox unmuzzled, so that he might eat from the grain he was milling in order to sustain his strength.

That’s the principle involved in the pastor’s compensation. He is to make his living from the work which he is doing. He gets his sustenance from his work. He uses that same scripture to establish that principle again in 1Cor. 9:9-11 “For it is written in the Law of Moses, “YOU SHALL NOT MUZZLE THE OX WHILE HE IS THRESHING.” God is not concerned about oxen, is He? Or is He speaking altogether for our sake? Yes, for our sake it was written, because the plowman ought to plow in hope, and the thresher [to thresh] in hope of sharing [the crops.] If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it too much if we reap material things from you?” And then in vs 14, Paul clarifies that principle by saying, “So also the Lord directed those who proclaim the gospel to get their living from the gospel.”

Now here in 1 Timothy 5, Paul also quotes from Luke’s gospel chapter 10 vs 7, saying, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.” That’s actually a quote from Jesus, which makes the gospel of Luke the equivalent of Old Testament scriptures. And by the way, Paul’s writings are referred to as scripture by none other than Peter, who says in 2Peter 3:15-16 “and regard the patience of our Lord [as] salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all [his] letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as [they do] also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.” So Peter refers to Paul’s letters as scripture.

But it’s interesting that Paul uses Jesus’s words to validate the preachers labor as hard work. And it is work. And if you do it well, it is hard work to study, to spend time working through the scriptures so that you can be a workman that needs not to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth. If you buy your messages online from some pastor’s resource website, then perhaps it’s not as hard as it should be. But nevertheless, in the Lord’s view, preaching and teaching is honorable work, and they will give an account for what they have said and done.

So then Heb 13:17 says, “Obey your leaders and submit [to them,] for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.” Those that rule well by preaching and teaching give them double honor. Give them the compensation due to their position, and obey them as they are being truthful and faithful to the word of Christ. And God will hold them accountable for their work.

Now on to the next point, which is accusation. Still speaking of elders/pastors/overseers/bishops, Paul says in vs 19-20 “Do not receive an accusation against an elder except on the basis of two or three witnesses. Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also will be fearful [of sinning.]”

Actually, this is still a reference to the honor that is due to pastors. There should not be allowed in the church any unsubstantiated accusations against the pastor. A pastor’s reputation can easily be besmirched by someone who has an axe to grind. So such accusations are not to be. Only when such accusations are accompanied by two or three witnesses is there to be any credence given to them. Many pastor’s have been ruined in their ministry by someone who is upset at the church for some reason, and starts to spread rumors that could not stand up in the light of day. But enough damage can be done whispering behind closed doors to ruin a pastor, and ultimately destroy the church.

So Paul sets a high bar for accusations. But in reality, Jesus set the same high standard in Matthew 18 for all church discipline. The Old Testament gave the same standard for accusations of any Israelite. I was watching something online a few days ago where they are having an inquisition regarding a certain political figure. And just when we thought it was finally over, they called another day of hearing because of what they called “new evidence.” It turns out that the new evidence was actually not eye witness evidence at all, but merely hear say. But irregardless, they got the effect that they wanted, which was to further impugn the character of that political figure. Now that may be par for the course in politics, but that is not the way the church is to operate. There must be 2 or 3 witnesses to the accuasation.

But if there are the proper witnesses, and the accusation is found to have merit, the pastor is in some sin, then Paul says, “Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also will be fearful [of sinning.]”. Notice that he says those who continue in sin. That’s an important principle in regards to church discipline. The goal is not to kick people out of the church that are sinning, but to rebuke them, to correct them, to instruct them in righteousness so that they might repent and do what is right. The goal is repentance and restoration. But in the case of a pastor, it is possible to become disqualified as a pastor because of your sin, even if you repent of it. I’m not sure I can easily delineate that line that cannot be crossed, but I would say that if you go back to chapter 3 and look at the qualifications that are required for a pastor, and then see if there can be sin in regards to those qualifications and yet still be qualified. For instance, if the pastor leaves his wife and runs off with another woman there is really no way that he can be qualified anymore as being a one woman man. He doesn’t qualify anymore. And it’s not a matter of whether or not the church forgives him, or even that God forgives him, but it’s a matter of him no longer being of a reputation that can be trusted in that respect and so he is disqualified.

But having said all that, Paul wants to make sure that there is no witch-hunt that is carried out by the church just because of petty disagreements or personality conflicts. So he says, vs21 “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of [His] chosen angels, to maintain these [principles] without bias, doing nothing in a [spirit of] partiality.” In other words, this is not to become a political witch-hunt just because you don’t like a pastor’s personality, or you think you can find a more agreeable, personable pastor that you will like better. Such accusations are serious business and God will judge those who do so.

That leaves us the final principle that Paul discusses, which we will call ordination. Too much is made sometimes of the ordination of a pastor. I’m not saying it should not be done, but I am saying that ordination is simply the human confirmation of what God has already done. God calls and gifts a pastor. The church ordains him as a means of joining in agreement with God, and it’s signified by the laying on of hands.

But to that point, Paul says in vs22 “Do not lay hands upon anyone [too] hastily and thereby share [responsibility for] the sins of others; keep yourself free from sin.” In other words, don’t gloss over the qualifications for a pastor without serious consideration. Otherwise, if you ordain them prematurely, you can end up participating in their sin. You have given them the blessing of the church, as if they have been vetted and confirmed that they are trustworthy and without reproach, when in fact they are not. And so as they continue in their sins, they end up doing much damage in the church, and you are at least partly responsible for it because you helped them obtain that platform.

It also speaks to the principle laid out in the qualifications, which is they should not be a novice. That may refer to youth, or a young age, or it may refer to a new convert. Either way, the warning is to keep yourself free from sin by not sanctioning such a person who may still be in their sins. Don’t lay hands on them too quickly. Take time to watch such a person to see if their talk matches their walk.

Now that admonition to keep himself pure leads to another remark which is personal in regards to Timothy. If you remember, one of the qualifications stressed often in regards to pastors is that they are not to be addicted to wine, or a drinker of much wine. But now Paul says especially to Timothy in vs 23, “No longer drink water [exclusively,] but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.”

One of the biggest health risks in that country at that time was dysentery. Drinking the water in some countries even today can result in what we call Montezuma’s revenge. And so this admonition to drink a little wine may have been at least partially in respect to that. But it’s also possible that Timothy had a weak stomach. I can attest to that as something that I’ve had problems with over the years. Believe it or not, I actually have a six pack under this bulge. It’s just not visible because of bloating. I’m kidding of course. I don’t have a six pack. But I do have problems with bloating. Everything seems to hurt my stomach. My wife can eat anything and not ever be bothered. I on the other hand, seem to have problems with everything.

But I’m in good company. Timothy had frequent ailments, presumably of the stomach. So the popular medicine for that in Paul’s day was a little wine. Not a lot of wine, but a little wine. And so to counter act the possible criticism that Timothy might get as a result of a pastor drinking a little wine, Paul gives him permission, or instruction to drink a little wine for his stomach and frequent ailments.

But it’s important to note that wine for Timothy was medicine for his stomach and not a beverage to catch a buzz from. Today we have a lot more effective alternatives than wine for stomach ailments. I personally would never drink wine for my stomach or for any other reason, unless I were on a desert island and had nothing else to use. But with a Walgreens on every other corner, I don’t need to take a chance on compromising my reputation, nor tempting myself to drink more than I should. I think it’s better for a pastor not to drink at all.

But drinking wine or not drinking was something that was easily ascertained when they were considering a man to ordination. Being a drinker is something that is usually not easily hidden. It’s usually pretty obvious if you watch someone for a while.

And Paul wants them to consider that in regards to a possible candidate for ordination as a pastor, some sins are more evident than others. But all sin is a problem, and a possible means of disqualification. So he says in vs 24 “The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their [sins] follow after. Likewise also, deeds that are good are quite evident, and those which are otherwise cannot be concealed.”

I’ve quoted this verse often in the years past, especially in regards to self righteous individuals who may not have a lot of outward problems with sin and are especially critical of those who do. Some sins, like drunkenness for instance, are pretty obvious sins. They go before a man. You can see the town drunk a long ways off coming down the sidewalk and you know right away that there is a problem there. You quickly cross over to the other side of the road.

But the person who has a secret life of sin that he keeps hidden on his computer, or behind closed doors, such a person’s sins follow after. It may take time for those sins to become evident. That kind of person can escape criticism because on the surface everything looks ok. There is no immediate evidence of sin in their life. But in one way or another, either sooner or later, perhaps not until the judgment day, but one day their secret sins will become evident. Paul is giving a warning here about such people, and that is another reason to not lay hands suddenly upon anyone. Give time for their life to become evident.

In the same way, a person’s good deeds become evident over time. Anyone can put on a front for a day or two to make a good impression, but it’s another thing to live with someone for a while. That’s when the true character of someone becomes evident.

And while that is written in regards to candidates for pastors, it certainly is applicable also to any Christian. Jesus said, by their fruits you shall know them. If you have been saved, cleansed from sin, having received Christ’s righteousness, then the fruit of the Spirit will be a life that is not marked by sin, but rather by good deeds. Not a couple of good deeds here or there which are done for show, but then fade away quickly when no one’s watching anymore. But true conversion means a complete change, albeit a continual change, in which we are being conformed to the image of Christ on daily basis.

I want to urge you to ask yourself this morning if you have ever been converted. Not just trying to turn over a new leaf. Not just trying to be a better person. But recognizing your sinfulness, repenting of it, and asking the Lord to be changed, converted, delivered from sin and given the righteousness of Jesus Christ. That is conversion, that is salvation, and it is free and accessible to everyone who comes to Christ in faith and repentance. And only as we have been converted are we able to live a life that is righteous. I pray that if upon examination you know that you have not been converted, then today would be the day that you call upon the Lord to save you and remake you. Don’t put it off.