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The Roots of false teaching – 1 Timothy 6:3-10

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3 If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound[b] words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, 4 he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain. 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and[c] we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

1. Identifying False Teaching (v3-5)
2. Identifying Godliness (v6-8)
3. Identifying the Desire to get rich (v9-10)

As a church we’ve been studying the book of 1 Timothy. It’s been a very meaningful journey as we’ve learnt what the gospel is and how it affects and shapes the life of the church. We’ve seen how the gospel applies to the roles of men and women in the church, we’ve seen how the gospel helps us select the right people to be elders and deacons of the church, we’ve seen how the gospel trains us up for godliness and over the last three weeks we’ve seen how the gospel empowers us to honor different groups of people: widows, elders and our masters.

Last week’s sermon was super helpful to me as it helped me understand how I could glorify God in my workplace using those 5 biblical principles. This week’s sermon is titled “Getting to the root” and I believe today’s passage speaks about identifying false teaching, identifying godliness and identifying the desire to get rich.

1. Identifying False Teaching (v3-5)

3 If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound[b] words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, 4 he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain.

The first thing that catches my attention in verse 3 is that Paul is writing against those who teach a different doctrine that doesn’t agree with the sound (healthy) words of our Lord Jesus Christ. The sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ refer to his life, teachings and work. Now why would that be important?

So when Paul brought the gospel to Ephesus and spent that time teaching and training the disciples, he didn’t produce a new teaching. All he did was apply the sound words of Jesus. Even when you read all of the other letters, Paul isn’t trying to bring some new idea to the church. What he does is he elaborates and explains the life, death and resurrection of Jesus! And this is critical in our day and age where we are more concerned about what’s new rather than what’s true! In our Christian culture we are much more eager to listen to a new thought or idea rather than listen to the same gospel message that gives life to our souls!

In Luke 24 when Jesus meets the two disciples walking to Emmaus, he tells them how all of Scripture beginning from Moses and all the prophets concern about himself. Later on in the chapter when he meets his disciples, he tells them how he needed to fulfill all the prophecies that were written about him in the Law of Moses, Prophets and Psalms. (v27, 44-47)

That’s why anyone who strives to be faithful to the Scriptures needs to talk about Jesus all the time because all the Scriptures talk about him. No preacher can add anything to the Bible or the gospel. In fact adding anything would mean making the gospel powerless and ineffective.

When Paul came to the Corinthians the first time, And I, when I came to you, brothers,[a] did not come proclaiming to you the testimony[b] of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men[c] but in the power of God. (1 Cor 2:1-5)

It was a culture that adored and looked up to new philosophies and ideas. They would’ve really been impressed if he changed the gospel and made it look new and hip. However, even then he still didn’t play to the galleries but chose to preach Christ crucified so that people’s hearts be truly changed by the power of God!

In order to know if the teacher is true, the questions for the church to evaluate are:

Is Christ being made much of through the sermon? Does Christ look big to you as a result of the preaching of the Word? Who is the centre of the sermon? Is it the preacher or Christ?

This is a big one. Is the preacher making the message more about his jokes, quips, stories or is it about displaying Christ as he is. As we learnt a few weeks back, the job of the elder is to remove all kinds of barriers to ensure that the Word is handled and preached as it is supposed to be: the Word of God. That also involves removing themselves from becoming the object of worship. This I do understand also has to do with the heart of the listener but there are many today who intentionally use the pulpits to make themselves known rather than Jesus.

Is the message calling you to repent of the idols in your heart? We see that when Peter encounters Jesus in Luke 5. After the miracle, when Peter understands that he is in the presence of Holy God, he doesn’t just stand there and have small talk. He falls at Jesus’ knees and says “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord”.

Are you being encouraged to trust in Christ’s work or yourself?

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Eph 2:8,9)

Talk about counter-cultural. Today if someone came up to and told you “whatever you do, your going to fail on your own strength”. How would that make you feel? Yet that’s the story of the gospel, it tells us how weak and incapable we are to make ourselves right before God. The only way we can be rescued is by relying on the sacrifice made by someone else. Yes, you need to trust in Christ’s life, death and resurrection to rescue you from the wrath that comes upon you for your sins. It humbles us to the core because we know we are helpless.

Is it a teaching that accords with godliness?

In other words if your sin is being exposed through the message, if repentance and faith is being preached in the name of Jesus then it should lead you to greater reverence and love for God. There is always an urge for holiness that comes from true biblical preaching.

I remember once going to a Christian concert. There was wonderful excitement and joy as people worshipped God. In the middle of the worship set, the leader asked us all to be seated and asked us to think about our need for help, healing etc. He then asked us all to respond with a loud shout and call out to God which was then confirmed as assurance of salvation by the worship leader. There was no call for repentance and need to trust in Christ as Savior. Not only did it give the wrong picture of salvation but it also didn’t encourage the believers to grow in holiness. All they got was an emotional experience!

4 he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain.

Now it goes into a description of the fruit of the false teacher: you will get to see it in his lifestyle, the way he conducts himself.
• You’ll see him be arrogantly prideful about matters that he doesn’t have accurate or full information of.
• He’ll have an unhealthy appetite to stir up controversial topics.
• You’ll find him frequently argue and debate about empty, unimportant and trifling matters.
• Those discussions and teachings always result in jealousy, quarrels, damaging each others reputation, suspicion and purposely behaving in a way that’s unreasonable and unacceptable.

Then he goes deeper into the root of the problem:

It’s caused due to a depraved mind (mind that is rotting and being corrupted by desire) and deprived of truth (lack of truth – he didn’t want to hold onto to truth). What is the desire? Imagining that godliness is a means of gain. The issue starts there! Because at the deepest level of his heart his desire is to please himself, that’s why his teaching reflects what he desires and not what God desires, and he arrogantly justifies his position with his pride. It’s hard for me to look at this passage and think that prosperity preachers have good intention especially when they arrogantly boast about it. However, if you have friends or family who are in a prosperity church please don’t write them off. Continue to pursue them lovingly and Scripturally showing them what the truth is. Show them how God desires that at the deepest level of their hearts He wants to see Christ and not themselves or money. But know that this is a very enticing theology and many have been hooked onto it.

2. Identifying Godliness (v6-8)

6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and[c] we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.

This great gain is contrasted with the wrongful gain in the previous verse. Contentment is a conversation the urban church needs to have today. I’ve actually heard less sermons on contentment. In fact I may have heard more talks or lessons in my moral science class. Isn’t that strange? I think it’s because all of us struggle with finding contentment. Interestingly this verse says that godliness is complemented by contentment. It goes side by side. I believe there are few important things we need to learn about contentment from this passage:

a) We need to understand that our earthly lives are finite. There is a start to it and an end. It’s short-lived too. James 4:14 says our lives are like mist that appears for a little time and vanishes.
b) We weren’t created for money or possessions. That’s why we come into the world with empty hands and we leave the world with empty hands.
c) We need to understand the difference between our needs and our wants. Often our hearts get it all mixed up. Our needs are those things that are essential to us existing. Our wants are the add-ons that we often turn into our needs and then later turn into idols.
d) True contentment is found in God only. 5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Heb 13:5) We’ve usually only heard the later part which says “I will never leave nor forsake you”, however, we often miss the part before that which says “keep your life free from the love of money and be content with what you have”. What does that have to do with the promise in the next verse? I think what it means is: our hearts long for satisfaction and security which we often mistakenly look for in money. However, we weren’t created for money but we were created to find that security and satisfaction in the promise that God will be with us forever and never abandon us. As little children do you remember going to your parents and telling them about your fears and things that would trouble you. At those moments you didn’t want to hear the best and most sorted plan to deal with your issues but what calmed you and gave you so much of rest was when your parents put their arms around you and told you that they would be there with you. Now there was nothing more to be afraid of. Isn’t it weird how God tells us that in an even more serious way…by sealing these promises with his blood, but we still don’t believe?

3. Identifying the Desire to be rich (v9-10)

9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

Another important lesson for the church today is identifying the desires of your heart. We live in a culture and generation where the one who chases after money, gets it and lives a lavish lifestyle is praised! We love listening and talking about rags to riches stories. Materialism is all around us or rather within our hearts…sometimes we get so desperate that we’ll do anything to be able to latch onto material things. These are verses that should give us a sober warning. The love of money is seriously dangerous. Just to clarify, you don’t need to be rich to have the love of money. It’s the desire of your heart. Here are few things we can understand from these verses:

1) By having a love for money we open ourselves to various temptations. The love for money is a huge breeding ground for sin and the attacks of Satan. Because you are constantly thinking of how you need more money to give you a life you always wanted or to buy you things that you always desired. You become open to compromising your faith to get what you want. This leads to destruction.
2) It is a root of all kinds of evil. We probably don’t expect this to be a root of evil. We may expect adultery or sexual immorality to be the root. However, this verse should really give a strong warning that “all kinds of evil” spring up from this desire. No wonder one of the qualifications of an elder and deacon is “should not be a lover of money”.
3) Through this desire, people have wandered away from the faith! I think this has to be the saddest consequence of harbouring the love of money. The worst thing that can happen to a person is not lose a job, lose money or anything else but is to go away from our loving Saviour. It’s like in the Garden of Eden where the saddest moment was when Adam and Eve hid from the presence of God. Moving away from our Creator and Sustainer – you won’t be living without Him! You wouldn’t have been born at all without Him. Not just that but he loved us so much that while we were still sinners, he died a painful death on a cross. He died to redeem us from the curse of being separated from God. He died so that we can be with Him forever. Why would you want to wander away from such a loving Saviour?

Ask yourself these questions to know if you are a lover of money?

Is money controlling your life? Is the presence or absence of money changing you and the way you behave with others?

Would you do anything you can do to get more money? Would you compromise your faith to get more money?

Is money always on your mind?

Maybe the love of money doesn’t quite apply to your current situation. Could it be possible that like the false teachers in Ephesus that in some way you are looking at godliness as a means to some gain? Money, popularity, fame, self righteousness, acceptance etc. Would you repent of that desire and turn to Christ to help and strengthen you? Or you’ve recognized how you’ve been discontent with life and what you have…would you repent and trust on the promise that Christ would never leave you nor forsake you?

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5 ways in which we fail to glorify God at our Workplace

As you all know that we are doing an expository preaching through the book of 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus, the name of the series is “God Alive Church”

Why “God Alive Church”?

The name “God Alive Church” is because these books educate and express God’s heart of what an ideal church should look like, a church that is Alive and nor dead, a church that is fulfilling the purpose of its existence, a Church that is living out an exemplary life in every way, setting an example to the world around by her actions and words and lifestyle.

A church that is truly in love with her to-be Groom, her lover, her saviour – Jesus Christ, who left his heavenly glory and stooped down to express his love by saving us from the clutches of our sin, arrogance & rebellion, paid the penalty of our sin by dying on the cross and promising us eternal life in the Kingdom of God.

The Church of Christ is meant to be much more than what we have thought of, heard of, imagined of. And I believe these letters give us the right perspective, an understanding and glimpses of Jesus’s heart from his bride.

And imagine, the church that Jesus loves, the church we are talking about is US, bunch of people who are still unsorted in life, people who still struggle with our indwelling sins, people who are still immature in so many ways, people who still have doubts in our head, people who’re yet to understand and acquire the full knowledge of God’s love in so many ways.

And dealing with people especially sinful people like us is the most difficult task. And I believe these letters written by Paul to the church of Ephesus lays down a list of practical and solid foundations of what it means to be the church of Jesus Christ especially in our actions, our words, our conduct, our behaviour, our lifestyle, the way we deal with false and corrupt teachers, the way we care for the poor and needy, the way we treat the elders God has placed over us.

It is amazing to see how Jesus cares about every single detail of our lives as he continues to refine and purify our hearts, sanctify us in every possible way to present us as a holy and spotless bride before God the Father.

The reason I’m emphasizing on this is because in times of struggle and despair it is so easy for us to entertain thoughts like God doesn’t care, he doesn’t love, he’s absent from my lives. In the light of what we’re learning from these letters I want to encourage you to see how much God cares about every single detail of your life. I want you to see how concerned he is for you, how committed he is to help us see him clearly and to live for him and for his glory.

Often times we look for answers in the wrong place. But God, in so many ways have already spoken and expressed himself in the scriptures that all we have to do is to dive into this precious book, learn the truths about God, his purpose for our lives and the glorious life he has promised for us in heaven.

Today’s passage which is 1 Timothy 6:1-2 is one of those verses that show us how deep God is involved in our everyday life.

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As you see here Paul is talking very specifically to a certain group of people and they are the ones who are under the yoke as bondservants.

Who are these bondservants that Paul is talking to?

A bondservant in bible times were slaves – “the ones who were prepared to obey to, and entirely at the disposal of their masters”. During the time of Jesus and the first-century church, it is said that as much as one third of the Roman population were slaves.

Historical records reveal that it was not unusual for Jews to own slaves during the New Testament period. Because slavery was a familiar part of the culture, Jesus sometimes referred to slaves and owners in His parables (e.g., Matthew 25:14-30 and Luke 12:41-48).

Since we’re talking about slavery, as a side note I was surprised to read an article on The wall street journal website posted last year that states India as one of the top countries with the most number of slaves, around 18 million of them in many forms, from domestic to sexual to bonded and child labor. Something we all need to pray about and take action as the Lord leads.

But I want to point you to another kind of subtle slavery in which we live, the one that we often don’t seem to notice and are barely concerned about, it’s called wage slavery.

Wikipedia defines Wage slavery as

“Wage slavery is usually used to refer to a situation where a person’s livelihood depends on wages or a salary, especially when the dependence is total and immediate.”

At thing point I am not going to comment whether it is good or bad, I do have my opinion on it but I will save it for another day and time. All I want to point here is that if we have to contextualize the people to whom Paul is addressing as bondservants in verse 1 then it applies to all of us who work in the corporate world. If bondservant hood was the culture in Jesus’s time then “Wage Slavery” is the culture of the present age.

What Paul goes on to say in the next verses is “regard your masters (which in our bosses and managers) as worthy of all honour.

Now, that may sound pretty scary to some of you’ll. But this is the word of the Lord says. And I especially like the reasoning Paul gives on why we need conduct in this manner with our bosses and managers.

He says “so that the name of God and the teaching may not be reviled”. The Amplified version of the bible puts it this way “so that the name of God and the teaching [about Him] will not be spoken against.”

In Ephesians 6:5-8 Paul gives another perspective on how salves need to serve their masters.
He says “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.”

What Paul is essentially saying is that the way in which we conduct ourselves towards our earthly masters (our employers) defines whether or not we are living for the glorify of God’s name and whether or not we are being a true witness of Jesus Christ and the Gospel.

In the light of Paul’s comments the question we need to ask is how are some ways in which we dishonour earthly boss’s and manager that makes them look down on us or speak against the God we worship and make our testimony ineffective at workplace.

So, I want to share 5 such areas where we fail in our workplace which leads our hearts to stop giving our best and makes us look down on our earthly masters, eventually failing to glorifying God and make the most of Jesus in our lives.

1. When we fail to see our work as a gift from God & our workplace as an opportunity to serve

Many Christians hold a decidedly unbiblical view of work. Some view it as a curse, or at least as part of the curse of living in a fallen world. Others make a false distinction between what they perceive as the sacred—serving God—and the secular—everything else. And others make it into an idol, expecting it to provide them with their identity and purpose in life as well as being a source of joy and fulfilment that only God can provide.

Here’s an interesting verse from Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 that gives a good perspective on how we should view our toiling under the sun.

Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot. Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God.

Beloved, our jobs are a gift from God that enables us to provide for our families and to enjoy life. When I think of hundreds and thousands of people who struggle to find a decent job to give a good life to their family it makes me happy to know that God has always blessed me with the right job at the right time.

Think about it – It was because of a decent job at the beginning of my career that enabled me to get married and think of having a family. It was because of a decent job that paid me enough I am able to bring my children and provide for them. I can think of much better and talented people who could have done my job better than me but God chose to bless me with it.

Work allows us to exercise the gifts and abilities God gives each person, whether paid or unpaid. God expects adults to provide for themselves and for the family. Scripture says, “If one will not work, neither let him eat!”.

1 Timothy 5:8 – But if someone does not provide for his own, especially his own family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

Ephesians 6:8 says “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.”

This verse helps us to see and consider our jobs as an opportunity to serve the Lord and his people.
Beloved, if you’ve never seen it this way before I want to encourage your hearts to see your jobs as a gift from God and as an opportunity to serve.

You see, by doing so you will guard your heart from giving in to bitterness and anguish that often turns our hearts against our earthly masters.

The second reason we fail to glorify God in our workplace is ..

2. When we fail to empathize with the fallen state of our earthly bosses

Our human tendency is always to takes thing personally when we don’t get the appreciation that we think we deserve from our bosses. I hear people always complain that their bosses don’t appreciate their work, is such nasty guy, arrogant and selfish.

But here’s the thing we need to know about our earthly bosses and ourselves.

“The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it? – Jeremiah 17:9

“Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.” – Ephesians 2:3

The verse remind us of the fallen state of mankind on how deceitful and desperately sick people are because of their sins, and we can empathize with them because we too were once slaves to sins indulging in the desires of the flesh and of the mind.

I remember working for this company where we had this senior guy who took a team review meet at the end of every week where each one of us were asked to present the status of our work. At the beginning I always went back from these meeting discouraged because he would always criticize our work and never appreciated the ideas we would present before him, and the funny thing was instead he would take our ideas and present it back to us in another meeting as if it was his idea.

In my early days I tried my best to be better every time I met him until one day I decided to see him the way he is wired because of his fallen state and began to empathize with him and pray for him and never took his nasty comments seriously. You see, It helped me approach the situation in a different way and God showed his favour. When I left the organization he appreciated me for my talents and sent me with his blessings.

Beloved, there are people in this world who are so deep down in their sin that no matter how hard you wish they’d change they will never change unless we present our Saviour Jesus who changed our lives. And we can only do that if our lifestyle, attitude and hard work glorifies God and presents the teaching of Jesus as authentic and truly life changing.

The third reason we fail to glorify God in our workplace is ..

3. When we fail to respond in love and forgiveness

When things don’t go our way, when our boss start acting too bossy, when the culture at work become dominating and frustrating – Our natural response is always to become angry, throw tantrums and nurture hatred in our hearts. Instead the scripture encourages us to consider forgiving our masters and respond in love.

Mark 11:25 – And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”

1 Cor 13:4-7 – Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

The scripture teaches us to be patient and kind, not to be arrogant and rude. It encourages us to bear all things, believe all things, hope all things and endure all things until God opens another door.

Have you heard of people who throw their jobs away, write hate mails to their bosses because they are angry and full of hatred? If you’ve not heard of such a story then I can tell you one.

Unfortunately and shamefully I have to admit that I once did that in one of my early days where I was so angry with my boss because of his arrogant behaviour that I ran away without even informing him and even sent a hate mail. I so regret my behaviour and wish someone had preached this sermon to me.

But instead of reacting in our anger if can respond to that situation in love and show a forgiving heart, by doing so we will protect our hearts from sinning against our bosses and will end up glorifying our

God and his teachings even more.

The fourth reason we fail to glorify God in our workplace is ..

4. When we fail to diligently & faithfully complete the tasks assigned to us

Proverbs 10:4 – Poor is he who works with a negligent hand, But the hand of the diligent makes rich.

Proverbs 12:24 – The hand of the diligent will rule, But the slack hand will be put to forced labor.

Please note that it not always the fault of our bosses and managers that puts us in a situation that’s frustrating and unproductive. Most often it is also our faults when we fail to diligently and faithfully complete the tasks assigned to us.

It could be because of our pride that we sometimes don’t work diligently and faithfully, or just shear laziness that prevents us from giving our best. And If that is true about us than we need to repent of our sins and ask God for forgiveness.

Proverbs 16:18 says “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall”

Proverbs 13:4 – “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, But the soul of the diligent is made fat.”

Blaming our employer for the absence of growth in our lives because of our lazy and proud attitude is an absolute foolishness. It even projects us as a bad example to the unbelieving world bringing shame to our Christian family name. It allows people to criticize our faith and belief in Jesus and his teachings.

The fifth reason we fail to glorify God in our workplace is ..

5. When we fail to rely on God as our provider

One other common complaint we often hear from working professionals is their dissatisfaction with their monthly paycheck which I believe often leads our hearts to not giving our best at work and look down on our employer.

In a situation like this would you consider thinking of God as the one who provides your monthly income and not your employer?

1 Chronicles 29:12. “Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone.”

Even though it is our employer who signs out monthly paycheck I want to remember that ultimately it is God who is our provider. We need to settle down in our heart that what God has provisioned for you at this season of our life is the best.

In Proverbs 30:8-9 the author writes
give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is needful for me,
9 lest I be full and deny you
and say, “Who is the LORD?”
or lest I be poor and steal
and profane the name of my God.

You see, God knows the right balance for his children. He won’t give us too much that will lead our hearts astray and wont give us too less that will make us steal and profane his name.

The right balance to enjoying prosperity is in conjunction with the prosperity of our soul. In 3 John 1:2

John makes a prayer and says “Beloved, I pray that in every way you may prosper and enjoy good health, as your soul also prospers.”

And therefore instead of worrying too much about our pay check I suggest that we should be more concerned about protecting our soul from getting corrupted and believe that as your soul prospers in God you may also prosper all other godly things.

And finally in 1 Timothy 6:2 Paul goes on to say

Those who have believing masters must not be disrespectful on the ground that they are brothers; rather they must serve all the better since those who benefit by their good service are believers and beloved.

First of all, It is blessing if you get to serve under an employer who is a believer. You need to be thankful to God. Paul’s encouragement to these people is that they must serve their masters even better since those who benefit by their good service are believers and beloved.

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3 ways by which we can Care for our Church Elders – 1 Timothy 5:17-25

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As a church we’ve been going through a series titled “God Alive Church” reading through the pastoral epistles of 1 & 2nd Timothy and Titus. It’s been a joy for me personally to read and discover God’s plan for the church and how He intends that the life of the church be shaped by the gospel. The gospel changes the way we relate with each other – the family of God. The gospel allows us to live out our God given roles within the church and the home. The gospel produces God glorifying lifestyle. A godly life is the product of the gospel! Last week we got into some more practical applications of the gospel life.

As we read through the first 16 verses of 1 Timothy 5, we learnt about the 5 signs of a healthy church life:
a) Being considerate and respectful of one another
b) Giving generously
c) Testing and validating believers
d) Seeking sexual purity
e) Avoiding slanderous talk.

This week we look at v17 through 25, Paul gives instructions to Timothy on how to care for the elders in the church. We probably are well versed with the care that needs to be given to the congregation but what kind of care would need to be given to the elders? If this were an organization, probably this question about caring for your leaders wouldn’t come up. We know however that the church is the family of God. In a family everyone takes care and responsibility of each other. So what does it look like?

17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.” 19 Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 20 As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear. 21 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, doing nothing from partiality. 22 Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure. 23 (No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.) 24 The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. 25 So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden.

Let me put it out there that it feels a little strange to preach on this topic being an elder myself. I wouldn’t want to lay it down as though these were my own thoughts. These are the words from Scripture – and so let’s remind ourselves that this carries the authority from God.

Coming back to this passage, I believe there are three ways by which we can care for our elders:
1. By supporting them (v17-18)
2. By being prudent in handling accusations against them (v19-21)
3. By being patient in selecting them. (v22-25)

1. By supporting them (v17-18)

17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.”

The first verse starts by mentioning let the elders who rule well as a prerequisite for considering those worthy of double honor.
What does that mean? For this we’ll turn 1 Peter 5 which I think is a great measuring stick for an elder to assess himself:

2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight,[a] not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you;[b] not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Elders are called to be shepherds of the flock. The imagery is of a shepherd tenderly and gently taking care of his sheep. How do they shepherd and oversee the flock of God?
a) By doing it willingly and not under compulsion
b) By doing it eagerly without desiring some shameful gain
c) Not abusing the flock but rather being examples to them.

And it says when the Chief Shepherd appears, elders that have “ruled well” will receive the unfading crown of glory. And that surpasses any other incentive or kickback in this lifetime – receiving honor from God!

Another thing we see here is “double honor”. What does that mean? I think it means a couple of things. Firstly, it means respecting and submitting to their leadership. And this is not an easy thing to do in our natural self. Our natural self runs away from submitting to any kind of authority. Be it parents, or spouse, or teachers, or boss, or government or God. In our sin, we are prewired to rebel against all authorities. But that changes when we come to know and believe in Jesus. We realize that though Jesus is God the Son, He submits to the Father and is fully obedient to Him. In God’s wisdom He created authorities in our lives to help us understand the intimate relationship between the members of the Trinity. So even in your church setting, when you submit to the leadership of your elders and other people who might be discipling you, know that you are becoming more like Christ in that process.

Secondly, I think honor also refers to financial support. How can we say that? Because of v18 which quotes two verses. The first verse says “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” which is an OT reference. Now I don’t any of us is familiar with farming analogies so this will need some explaining. What this means is when the ox is plowing the field, it deserves to partake in some of his own labor. The command is to not muzzle the ox when he is trying to eat the grain. Apparently in OT times other nations would actually muzzle the ox and not allow him to eat. The Israelites had to stand out in terms of its fairness and compassion towards animals. Similarly, Paul uses this verse to state how elders who “labor in the word” need to be treated fairly by receiving financial support for their ministry. He explains this in a little more detail in 1 Cor 9:9-14:

9 For it is written in the Law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.” Is it for oxen that God is concerned? 10 Does he not certainly speak for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of sharing in the crop. 11 If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? 12 If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more?

Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. 13 Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? 14 In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel.

Then the next quote that Paul uses in 1 Timothy 5:18 is “The laborer deserves his wages.”

This is a command from Jesus when Jesus sends out the Twelve in Matthew 10 and 72 disciples in Luke 10.

“And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house.” Luke 10:7

This kind of financial support is given to the elder so that it can free him up to focus on the work that God has appointed him to do for the church.

Also we notice in v17 is that it mentions “those who labor in preaching and teaching”. When you think about labor what pictures come to your mind? It’s wearisome, tiring hard work to be able to communicate God’s truth accurately!

It’s like a person holding precious jewels (Word of God) and sharing it with his friends with utmost care. That’s why this passage doesn’t agree with those preachers that expect a spontaneous revelation from God to preach God’s Word. Lack of preparation is justified by saying that they are led by the Spirit. That’s not how it is. There is labor that goes into preaching and teaching the Word of God. Why? Because it takes work to remove the pre-conceived notions and erroneous thoughts we may have about God and our own hearts. The hard work is not in creating a sermon. It’s easy to manufacture a man made message. The hard part is to remove the baggage to allow God to speak clearly and powerfully through Scripture. The preparation time is bathed in prayer asking God to help us apply this to the congregation.

An illustration would be of a mother that takes time to think and prepare a meal for her kids that would nourish them and also make it enjoyable for them. Just making a tasty meal is not enough; she makes something that’s healthy for them. After 3-4 hours when the meal is prepared the kids enjoy the meal.

This labor is not just in words but also in deeds. There is labor in discipling people with a lifestyle that’s consistent to the message.

7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. (Heb 13:7)

We are all called to be disciple-makers. (Matthew 28:19-20) Disciple-making happens not just verbally but as you show people how to love, obey and trust Christ. That’s why it becomes hard to teach someone forgiveness when you yourself harbour unforgiveness in your heart.

Having said that, let me also say that elders don’t perfectly obey their sermons. That’s why we need to preach the same message to ourselves. Elders are also sinners saved by grace. We are need of Christ’s grace each day as much as anyone else. So the question is what should the church imitate and absorb from the elders? Their pursuit of Christ.
1) Are they pursuing Christ through prayer and the Word? If yes, copy that
2) Are they frequently repenting of the idols in their lives? If yes, copy that
3) Are they humbling themselves before the gospel every day? If yes, copy that.

So one of the first ways by which we can care for our elders is by supporting them: showing them honor, submitting to their leadership, financial support and imitating their pursuit of Christ.

2. By being prudent in handling accusations against them. (v19-21)

19 Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 20 As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear. 21 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, doing nothing from partiality.

The lives of the elders are always on scrutiny because they lead the church. Therefore there are always going to people who would disagree with decisions they take or have some accusations against them. What biblically we see here is that the God honouring way of handling accusations against elders is by admitting a charge only when evidence is provided by two or three witnesses.

This is not absolving them nor overlooking the accusations made against them but being fair to the God called and appointed elders of the church.

V20 talks about the case where an elder is proven guilty of a disqualifying sin and continues to persist in it. In this case, the elder who is persisting in rebellion will need to be publicly rebuked and corrected. This is important because it highlights how seriously the church views sin matters. A public correction reassures the congregation that a disqualifying sin by an elder will not be covered up. As we know elders are pace-setters. Therefore, even in sin matters if they aren’t corrected, it will begin to affect the church negatively.

We know of a lot of churches which have been broken because disqualifying sins of elders were covered up or tolerated. Just imagine the brokenness among believers when they find out that their pastor is caught in adultery or homosexuality. Furthermore, they are even more discouraged when they see these things being covered up or tolerated. One of the other disqualifying sins according to 1 Timothy 3 is also “he shouldn’t be a lover of money”. Yet there are many churches in the world where the pastor is an outright lover of money and his lifestyle is being applauded. It’s damaging to church!

After telling this to Timothy, Paul presents a picture of a heavenly court with God the Father, Jesus and other angels looking on. In front of this heavenly court Paul testifies and commands

Timothy to be faithful in rebuking any elder publicly who has persisted in disqualifying sin. When it comes to this, there is no room for being biased or partial.

I really think a lot of the churches in world would look very different if disqualified leaders would be publicly rebuked as laid down in this passage. How much more purer and devoted would the church be as a result of this? Also, I think the church would look a lot more different if the church was more prudent in admitting charges against the elder. This is the second way how you can care for an elder.

3. By being patient in selecting them. (v22-25)

22 Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure. 23 (No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.) 24 The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. 25 So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden.

Laying on of hands is a biblical symbol of appointing ministers to service either elders or deacons. What Paul was telling Timothy is that he shouldn’t be quick in appointing elders. Not before he assesses their theology, lifestyle, maturity and witness. And these things take time. That’s why v24 says “the sins of others appear later”. This is contrary to what we see in the world. For eg: if you’ve gone to seminary and got a degree – people say “you are fit to be an elder automatically”! Or if you’re involved in church activities, “well you should try ministry”. In fact v22 says that if you appoint someone hastily to be an elder, you also share in the responsibility of the elder’s future sin. That’s what it means when it says “nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure”. Time and time again we see examples of people being pushed too early to lead a church without having their lives analysed. It wrecks havoc.

Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out. (Proverbs 10:9)

Your sin will find you.

That’s why I added this point of being patient in selecting elders because the best way you can also love your brother who has potential and is passionate about Jesus is to also wait until he matures in his speech and lifestyle before he is given that role. In Acts 19:10, it is reported that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks! That is astounding! Now just imagine the requirement for elders in each of those churches. Must’ve been huge. More than anyone else they would’ve wanted to have elders in place merely to organize themselves. Yet Paul says “do not be hasty in the laying on of hands”. How does that speak to our culture where we want everything to happen instantly? Yes, we should disciple people…give them opportunities to serve the church…train them to be more effective in evangelism but be slow when it comes to appointing them as deacons or elders. “Let them be tested first…let them not be a recent convert”…those are the instructions for deacons and elders.

The encouragement is in v25 where it says that “So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden.”

The good works (lifestyle) of people will also be evident, so if you are living life in your community, your community will be in the best place to identify you as someone who can be qualified as an elder.

This passage gives us a good guideline on how can we care for our elders : by supporting them, being prudent in handling accusations and being patient in selecting them. What are some places where you feel God has been speaking to you today? Is it something God wants to change in your beliefs? In your attitudes? In your actions?

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Sermon

5 Signs of a Healthy Church Life – 1 Timothy 5:1-16

Last Sunday we learned how to discern whether we are listening to right biblical teaching by applying the 4 principles i.e right teaching, right living, right community & right scrutiny.

Right biblical teaching will always lead our hearts to sound teaching of the scripture pointing our hearts to Christ and the Gospel, help us live godly lives, join us with godly community and convict our hearts of sin.

In our passage today which is 1 Timothy 5:1-16 I believe Paul is getting into the practical aspects of church life. After addressing false doctrine and rebuking false teachers, pruning the church from anything or anyone that was taking the focus away from Christ and the Gospel. Paul goes on to speak specific things about church life that needed attention.

In these passages Paul lays down a number of instructions and I want all of us to keep in mind that since the context of the church life in Ephesus is quite different to ours we wont be able to literally take the instructions as if it relates to us today. Like for example, Paul giving specific and elaborate instruction regarding widows. The reason being there were many widows in the community at that time and the church had taken responsibility to care for them.

And how come there were so many widows in the church? Well, historians say there may well have been two classes of women here. There were certainly widows who had become widows in the normal way by the death of their husbands. But it was not uncommon in the pagan world, in certain places, for a man to have more than one wife. When a man became a Christian, he could not go on being a polygamist, and therefore had to choose which wife he was going to live with. That meant that some wives had to be sent away and they were clearly in a very unfortunate position. It may be that such women as these were also reckoned as widows and given the support of the Church.

So, instead of taking each of those instruction literally we will try to understand God’s heart behind these instructions and try and apply them in our context.

These instructions were given as practical applications to consider in a normal and a healthy church life.

And there are five such application that I can see in these passages.

1. Being considerate & respectful of one another

The first sign of a healthy church is where people are considerate & respectful of each other.

In verse 1 & 2 Paul writes “Do not rebuke an older man harshly but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, in all purity.”

Even though this instruction may specially apply to Timothy and others leaders where Paul is saying do not rebuke an older man harshly, while rebuking is clearly an elders role. But we see God heart wherein he wants them to be considerate of the old age and deal with an old man as they would with their own father.

In the later verses Paul goes on to say “Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity”

In a generation where all these respectable attributes are fading away even from Christian families and churches, God’s heart still remains the same and calls every child to continue to show love and respect to strangers just as they would do to their own family members.

A few months back I happen to see a video from one of my previous churches, its the church where I was mentored and discipled by an elderly pastor, the church where I met Jane and served God as a young man.

It was a clip where the some leaders and members of the church broke out in a fight with the Pastor concerning some church issues. It was not the issue regarding which they were having a fight that disturbed but the manner in which they were talking and shouting at each other. In the chaos there was this young girl in her twenties got up from the crowd and snatch the microphone from the pastor hand to stop him from speaking.

A clear act of disrespect to the elders and other members of the church and it is happening in our generation, in our churches today.

Philippians 2:3-4
“Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”

Titus 3:2
To speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.

Brothers & Sisters, being considerate and respectful of one another is a sign of a healthy and flourishing church. One that God desires from his children.

2. Giving generously

The second sign of a healthy church life is where people give generously.

Verse 3-8 Paul writes
“Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God. The widow who is really in need and left all alone puts her hope in God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help. But the widow who lives for pleasure is dead even while she lives. Give the people these instructions, so that no one may be open to blame. Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

[16] If any woman who is a believer has widows in her care, she should continue to help them and not let the church be burdened with them, so that the church can help those widows who are really in need.

Even though Paul in talking about giving in context to the situation with widows his general observation is that people within the church are giving importance to their religious practices but completely ignore to care for their families. He goes on to say in the last verse that “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

If we look at the early church we will notice that giving was an essential part of church life.

Acts 4:32-35 says
“All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. 33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all 34 that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35 and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.”

Matthew 12:41-44 records an event where “Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. 43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

Our society values how much a person has; God values how much a person gives. When Jesus watched the widow, He praised her who cast in just two mites—a fraction of a penny—because it represented such a sacrifice. Though money itself is not evil, loving money leads to all kinds of evil.

The best protection we have against the sorrows that come from loving money is to cultivate generous hearts. And therefore we need to look for opportunities to use the resources God has given to us (even if they do not seem to be great) for the benefit of others. Rather than waiting until you have enough to give, we need to be generous and give as the Lord leads.

Giving generously is the sign of a healthy and flourishing church.

3. Testing and validating spirits

The third sign of a healthy church is to be able to discern, test and validate true and devoted believers from the flock.

Verse 9-10
9 No widow may be put on the list of widows unless she is over sixty, has been faithful to her husband, 10 and is well known for her good deeds, such as bringing up children, showing hospitality, washing the feet of the Lord’s people, helping those in trouble and devoting herself to all kinds of good deeds.

Often churches are assumed to be a place where human spirits are celebrated regardless of the heart motives of people. Where correcting and being bias is looked down on.
But unlike what people assume the church should look like, the scripture clearly demands church authorities to discern, test and validate true and devoted believers, the people under our care and supervision.

Paul is telling Timothy not to include widows who are under sixty, has been unfaithful to her husband, known for bad deeds, not bringing up their children well, not showing hospitality, not washing the feet of the Lord’s people and not helping others in times of trouble.

Can you imagine Timothy and other leaders standing at the door and telling some of widows to go back home for the reasons mentioned above? Would you be part of a church where you see this happening in front of your eyes? What will be your reaction? Will you look down on the church or will you honor Gods word and his governance displayed through the elders of the church.

Beloved, discerning, testing and validating true and devoted believers from the flock is the sign of a healthy church life.

4. Seeking sexual purity

The fourth sign of a healthy church life as described in the passage is seeking sexual purity above everything else.

Verse 11-15
11 As for younger widows, do not put them on such a list. For when their sensual desires overcome their dedication to Christ, they want to marry. 12 Thus they bring judgment on themselves, because they have broken their first pledge.

14 So I counsel younger widows to marry, to have children, to manage their homes

God’s heart for the church is to seek sexual purity above everything else. Please note Paul is asking Timothy not to consider younger widows on such list because there is a possibility that their sensual desires cam overcome their dedication to Christ.

It is a proactive step Paul is asking Timothy to take just in case an event like that may occur.

You see, As long as we are in our flesh we are and will always be prone to fall for our sensual desires. And that is why it is important to constantly guard our hearts and avoid any such circumstances to damage our devotion to Christ.

It happens when we daily remind ourselves the Gospel. Remembering what Jesus did for us on the cross of cavalry, that he died on our place for our sins, broke the bond of slavery to sin and made our bodies slaves to righteousness.

Unlike what most people think when they fall in to sin that the power of sin is greater than their willpower. But it is the lack devotion to Christ and his finished work on the cross that often leads our hearts astray.

Beloved, sexual purity within the body of Christ is a serious matter for Jesus.

1 Corinthians 6:18
Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5
For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God;

Hebrews 13:4
Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

In the case of young widows Paul says I rather prefer that these widows would get married, have children & manage their homes.

Seeking for sexual purity within us and among the church members is a sign of a healthy church.

5. Avoid Slandering. Talking nonsense and say things they ought not to.

The fifth and the final sign of a healthy church is that it is careful not to slander, get into senseless discussions and avoid say things to each other that are not true.

13 Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also busybodies who talk nonsense, saying things they ought not to.

14 So I counsel younger widows to marry, to have children, to manage their homes and to give the enemy no opportunity for slander. 15 Some have in fact already turned away to follow Satan.

Another reason why Paul is saying not to include young widows in the list is also because of their habit of being idle and becoming idlers, busybodies who talk nonsense and say things they ought not to. And by doing so Paul says some have even turned away to follow Satan.

Here Paul is out rightly against young widows making pretty judgmental statement against those who slander, give themselves to idleness and speak nonsense in the church.

I think the churches today have become quite tolerant of these behaviors in the church which is leading the hearts of people especially new believers away from the Lord. This passage suggest that we need to be quite intolerant to these behavioral patterns so that the church sets itself as an example to the world outside.

Matthew 12:36
I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,

Psalm 101:5
Whoever slanders his neighbor secretly I will destroy. Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart I will not endure.

Luke 6:45
The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Avoiding slander, withdrawing ourselves from either speaking or listening to senseless talks is s sign of a healthy church.