Open our Bibles this evening
again to 1 Timothy chapter 4. 1 Timothy chapter 4. I began my last message from this
chapter pointing us to what the Apostle Paul told Timothy in
verse 6 concerning a good minister of Jesus Christ. He mentions
these two things. First of all, he will put the
brethren in remembrance of these things. Put the brethren in remembrance
of these things. Two of the other apostles of
the Lord Jesus Christ, in their letters, they also tell us that
this was their ministry. The apostle Peter, he wrote,
I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance. And the apostle
Jude, I will therefore put you in remembrance. This is necessary,
as Matthew Henry said, for we are apt to forget and slow to
learn and remember the things of God. So that's the first thing
the apostle tells Timothy that goes into making a good minister,
he must put the brethren in remembrance of these things. And then secondly,
the good minister of Jesus Christ will continue to be nourished
up in the words of faith and good doctrine. Notice the entire
verse. If thou put the brethren in remembrance
of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ,
nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto
thou hast attained. Now the verses that we're looking
at tonight, verses 10 through 16, they especially have to do
with the minister being nourished up in the words of faith, that
is in the scripture, in the word of God and good doctrine. We ended last time in verse 9
with one of Paul's four faithful sayings. In other words, in Paul's
letters, we find this four times. This is a faithful saying. This
is the second time we have this in 1 Timothy. His first was,
this is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that
Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am
chief. And I would remind us again,
the apostle didn't say, even though this was not the last
letter he wrote, but almost the last letter, he didn't say of
whom I was the chief, but I am the chief. I heard someone speaking
here last Sunday morning, I believe it was, or Sunday evening, talking
about the fact that as we grow in the grace and knowledge of
the Lord Jesus Christ, we see even more how that we are chief
of sinners. Not was, but are chief of sinners. But this is the second one of
these faithful sayings. This is a faithful saying and
worthy of all acceptation. Now what is it? For bodily exercise
profiteth little, but godliness. Here's the faithful saying. Godliness
is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that
now is and of that which is to come. Godliness is profitable
unto all things. Now this is true. This is a faithful
saying, and this is true not just for ministers of the gospel
like Timothy was, but this is true and is a faithful saying
for all of God's children. Godliness. What does that include? What is meant by godliness? This
is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that godliness,
godliness is acceptable, profitable rather, unto all things. Well,
if you look back to chapter two and verse two, when Paul was
writing about the fact that prayer that believers should pray for
all men, that is, for all classes of men, even those in authority,
he says in verse two, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable
life, now notice, in all godliness and honesty. We may lead a peaceable
life in all godliness and honesty. Now he tells us that that godliness
is profitable unto all things. What is godliness? Well, godliness
has to do with our duties in relation to God. Honesty has
to do with our duties in relation to men. But notice Paul says
godliness has the promise of the life that now is. but now
is, and of that which is to come. Now some might argue with that.
Some might argue with that. The life to come? Yes, I can
see that. I can understand that. Godliness
is profitable unto all things. Having the promise of the life
that is to come, But he includes the life that now is, the life
that we are living today as we go through this world. He says
godliness is profitable. Many of God's children lack in
this world. Many suffer many things in this
world. And yet Paul here says, that
godliness is profitable unto all things having promise of
the life that now is. It seems that this is a paradox. But Paul declares it is a faithful
saying. It is a faithful saying and worthy
of all acceptation that godliness is not only profitable concerning
the life that is future, eternal life, that is, the life which
is to come, but he tells us that it's profitable to the life that
now is, that is, the life that we are living in this world. And that just reminds us that
we walk by faith and not by sight. Because, as I have said, many
of God's children suffer many things in this world. We recognize
that. But notice, this prepares us,
this faithful saying, this is a faithful saying and worthy
of all acceptation, this prepares us for the therefore in the next
verse. Therefore, for therefore, because
godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of
the life that now is, therefore, therefore, we both labor and
suffer reproach. What the Apostle means here by
laboring is we suffer hardships in this world. And the Apostle
Paul, he could write about hardships, we know that. If you look back
to 2 Corinthians chapter 11, he knew by experience something
about hardships. 2 Corinthians chapter 11. 11, and
beginning with verse 23, he says, For are they ministers of Christ? I speak as a fool, I more. In labors more abundant, in stripes
above measure. We know those stripes, that means
that he was beaten, that they laid stripes upon his back. above
measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths off of the Jews, five
times received I forty stripes, save one, thrice was I beaten
with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck,
a night and a day I have been in the deep, in journeys often,
in perils of water, in perils of robbers, in perils of mine
own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the
city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils
among false brethren, in weariness and painfulness, in watchings
often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and
nakedness." Now, those things the Apostle Paul, he had experienced,
he knew something about suffering But he says, therefore, because
this is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that
godliness is profitable unto all things, unto all things having
promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. And then you notice he says,
we suffer hardships, or we labor rather, for therefore we both
labor and suffer reproach. By labor, he's speaking about
the hardships which he experienced. By suffering reproach, he's talking
about the patience and the cheerfulness he maintained as he went through
these difficult things. The patience and the cheerfulness
that he maintained as he went through these reproaches. Why? Why? Because we trust in
the living God. Notice that. For therefore we
both labor and suffer reproach. Why? Because we trust in the
living God. That's why. Because we trust
in the living God and we know that He has all power and can
make good on His promises. And not only that He can, but
we trust in the living God. Some translate that word rather
than trust, hope. because we hope in the living
God, the living and true God who has all power can make good
on His promises, and the faithful God who will, not only can, but
will make good on His promises, that godliness is profitable
unto all things. Yes, even concerning the life
that now is. There's every reason This is
what we might come down to. There's every reason to trust
in him to fulfill his promises for the life that now is as well
as the life which is to come. Someone said that Paul, it is
as it was, Paul argues from the lesser to the greater. Notice
he says that God We trust in the living God who is the Savior
of all men, especially of those that believe. He argues from
the lesser to the greater. God is the Savior of all men. Now that doesn't mean that all
men will be eternally saved, that he saves all men from their
sins. He's simply saying that God's
kindness God's kindness, God's goodness, and yes, we know even
God's mercy even reaches to all men, evil men as well as good
men. As the Lord Jesus Christ declared
of Him, He said in Matthew chapter 5, concerning His Father, concerning
our God, He maketh His Son to rise on the evil and on the good,
and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. How much more,
this is Paul's argument, how much more then will that kindness
that God extends even to the evil, how much more will that
kindness come to those of us who believe in Him? And as I
said, we walk by faith and not by sight. And many times we might
think, well, how can that be possible that godliness is profitable
unto all things? Yes, even concerning this life,
the life that now is. Well, there's a providence, we
know this. There is a providence which attends
all men, all men. And there is a special providence
which attends God's children, those of us who believe in him. And God says concerning us that
we are as the apple of his eye. We are as the apple of his eye. There's every reason to trust
in him. for the fulfillment of His promises
for the life that now is, as well as for that which is to
come. And I thought of some of the
promises I wanted to mention tonight that concern the life
that now is, the life that we are living today in this world.
Here are several promises, not all of them of course, but here's
one in Psalm 84 in verse 11. For the Lord God is a sun and
shield. The Lord will give grace and
glory. Now listen, no good thing will
he withhold from them that walk uprightly. What a promise is
that? No good thing will he withhold
from them that walk uprightly. And then in Isaiah 54 and verse
17, here's another promise that concerns the life that now is.
No weapon, no weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper. What a promise is that? Satan
with all of his arsenal, with all of his weaponry, no weapon
that's formed against thee shall prosper. And then in The New
Testament in Philippians 4 and verse 19, what a promise is this. But my God shall supply all your
need according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus. All your need, whatever that
need is, he will supply according to his riches in Christ Jesus. How rich is he? Well, we can't
measure his riches. is riches in glory by Christ
Jesus. And think about this. David,
he testified in Psalm 37, and he said, I have been young and
now I'm old. I have been young and now am
old, yet, listen, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,
nor his seed begging bread. That's just something David said,
I've seen a lot of things, no doubt he had, but this is something
I've never seen. I've never seen the righteous,
that is God's people, those who are made righteous by the righteousness
of the Lord Jesus Christ. I've never seen them forsaken
and I've never seen their seed begging bread. And then here's
a promise that we have, I believe five times in the word of God.
The last time here in Hebrews chapter 13, for he has said,
I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. And you know that verse
of scripture, there's actually five negatives in that scripture. And in that language, you know,
in our language, in English, one negative cancels out another
negative, but to emphasize in that language, the Hebrew, I
believe it was, and the Greek, the five negatives. I will never
leave thee, nor forsake thee. I want you to look back to Isaiah
49, just a moment. I believe this verse that we're
going to read here, I'm not positive, But I believe that this is the
verse that Charles Spurgeon commented from this morning in his morning
devotional. But in Isaiah chapter 49, verse
13, the scripture says, Sing, O heavens, and be joyful, O earth,
and break forth into singing, O mountains. For the Lord hath
comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. But Zion said, and sometimes
we're guilty of this, if we don't say it, at least we think it.
The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. You ever feel like that? The
Lord hath forsaken me, and God has forgotten me. And this is
where, can a woman forget her sucking
child? that she should not have compassion
on the son of her womb. You think that's possible? Yea,
they may forget, yet will I not forget thee? And here's that
word that Charles Spurgeon commented on. Behold, behold, look at this. Behold, I have graven thee. Not just your name, that's true,
but I have graven thee. upon the palms of my hands, thy
walls are continually before me. What a promise. God is not
going to forget nor forsake his people. Godliness, that's what
Paul is saying here. Godliness is profitable unto
all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that
which is to come. Now, in verses 11 through 16,
Paul gives Timothy six things, back in our text, 1 Timothy chapter
4. Paul gives Timothy six things
to which he must attend. Verse 11, attend to this, command
and teach these things. Now we looked last time at what
all would be included in these things, the things that we have
in chapters 1, chapters 2, chapters 3, up to this point. And especially
that verse in chapter 3 and verse 16, and without controversy,
great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh. justified in the Spirit, seen
of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the
world, received up into glory. Command and teach these things. Attend to that, first of all,
Timothy. Command and teach these things. And then second, in verse 12,
let no man despise thy youth. How old was Timothy? Well, none
of us know for sure and it makes no difference. I liked what John
Calvin said. He said, it is vain to estimate
a man's worth by the number of his years. But he was obviously
younger, that is Timothy, he was obviously younger than some
of the elders and younger than many of the believers in Ephesus. And yet Paul tells him, attend
to this, Timothy, let no man despise thy youth. Well, how could Paul, or how
would Paul have Timothy achieve this? Well, notice what he mentions
in these areas as an example. First of all, in word, let no
man despise our youth, but be thou an example of the believers. First, in word, the word of truth,
the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, you must hold fast. Remember
in his second letter to Timothy, he tells Timothy, preach the
word. I charge thee, he said, I charge
thee, preach the word. So this is a way Paul would have
Timothy to deport himself, his conduct, so that men would not
despise his youth. Even though he was younger than
many of those he ministered to, and yes, even of other pastors,
But let no man despise thy youth. And this is the way you do that. In word, in conversation, your
lifestyle, in your home, in the church, in the world, your lifestyle
must be above reproach. In conversation. Then number
three, in charity. In your love to God, in your
love to Christ, in your love for other believers. Remember
what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 13, if a man speak with the tongue
of men and of angels and have not love, he's nothing. This
is a way Paul would have Timothy to fulfill, to attend to this,
let no man despise thy youth. In your word, in your conversation,
that is your lifestyle, in your love, And then in spirit, be
zealous, zealous for the honor of God and the glory of his son. And then in faith, do not waver
in holding fast and preaching the gospel. You know, it is in
the gospel and only in the gospel that the righteousness of God
is revealed. That's what Paul tells us in
Romans chapter one. When he says he's not ashamed
of the gospel, he says, for therein is the righteousness of God revealed. And it's not revealed anywhere
else. You know, the heavens, the creation reveals that there
is a God, but it's only in the gospel that the righteousness
of God is revealed. In other words, how it is that
God may be both just and just of ours. How God may be as He
declares Himself to be in Isaiah, I am both a just God and a Savior. The only place that is revealed,
how God can be both just and a Savior, is in the Gospel of
Jesus Christ. How He may be just in punishing
sin and yet forgiving the sinner. Verse 13, impurity, that's another
thing he must attend to, impurity. In other words, flee youthful
lust, as he writes in 2nd Timothy. But here's the third thing in
verse 13. So first of all, command and
teach these things, verse 11. Verse 12, Let no man despise
thy youth. And the third thing in verse
13, give attendance to reading, exhortation, and doctrine. Now,
Paul hoped to visit Ephesus, but until he came, Timothy was
the minister there. And this is the life of a minister,
giving himself to reading, to exhortation and to doctrine. Reading what? Reading magazines
and booklets and things the world puts? No, reading the scripture. The pastor must be, first of
all, a man of this book, that is, God's book, God's word. Give
attendance to reading, exhortation, and doctrine. Now
Paul, look, keep your place here, we'll come right back, but look
just a few pages into 2 Timothy 2. I'm sorry, 2 Timothy 3 and verse
15. Look at what Paul tells Timothy.
He says that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures.
Well, now he says, give attendance to reading. But, Timothy, you
know this script. You never outgrow the word of
God. I've given several Bibles, I
don't remember to who all, to some of my grandsons, and I've
tried to write in each one of them, usually when they've graduated
from high school or college, you will never outgrow this book. That's just so. You will never
outgrow this book, the Bible. Give attendance to reading. And notice Paul tells him in
that verse in 2 Timothy 3, 15, that the scriptures will make
thee wise unto salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. You read in private. for your
own good, and then you preach and you teach for the good of
others. And notice the order, and that's
very important, isn't it? Reading first, in other words,
studying. You don't just get up and talk
off the top of your head. Give attendance to reading, then
to exhortation and doctrine. And then verse 14, neglect not
the gift that is in thee. Now this gift that was in Timothy
was the gift of the ministry. In other words, he was given
a gift enabling him, making him apt to teach and interpreting
the scripture. Now, some believe that by prophecy
here, neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee
by prophecy. Some believe that this could
be better translated, for prophecy. In other words, this gift which
was given unto thee for prophecy or for preaching. And it's to
be used. Don't neglect it. God's given
you this gift. Don't neglect it. Don't be like,
and this is what that parable has reference to in the Gospels,
when that one man took his mina, or whatever the gift was that
his Lord gave him, wrapped it up in a napkin, and hit it in
the ground. No, no. This gift is given unto
you. Neglect not the gift that is
in you. Stir this gift up. And the way
that this gift is stirred up in a preacher is by prayer. If you neglect prayer, then that
gift is going to lie dormant. And if you neglect the Word of
God, you have nothing to preach, nothing to teach. All right,
verse 15. Here's the fifth thing. Meditate
on these sayings and give thyself wholly to them. In other words,
Timothy, this is to be your life. Preaching. When a man is set
aside and apart to the ministry, it's not a hobby. It's not a
sideline. This is to be your life. Give yourself wholly, wholly
to the ministry. And verse 16, take heed to thyself. and unto thy doctrine continue
in them. Pastor, you take heed to yourself
and unto thy doctrine to continue in them. Let others do as they
will, Timothy. This is to be your concern. That
is your salvation and the salvation of those who hear you. Look at
that verse. Take heed unto thyself and unto
the doctrine. Continue in them. For in doing
this thou shalt save thyself and them that hear thee. I want to close with a comment
by John Calvin on that verse of scripture. Thou shalt both save thyself
and them that hear thee. And I quote, it is indeed true
that it is God alone who saves and not even the smallest part
of his glory can be rightly transferred to men. But God's glory is in
no way diminished by his using the labor of men in bestowing
salvation. Thus our salvation is the gift
of God, since it comes from him alone and is effected only by
his power, so that he alone is the author. But that does not
exclude the ministry of men, nor does it deny that that ministry
may be the means of salvation. For it is on that ministry, as
Paul says elsewhere, the welfare of the church depends. Ephesians
4 11. This ministry is itself entirely
God's work. For it is He who makes men good
pastors, and leads them by His Spirit, and blesses their work,
so that it may not be in vain. So, people might question, you
know, what this means here, thou shalt both save thyself and them
that hear thee. The preacher doesn't save. God
saves. He's the only one who saves.
But God uses the preaching of the gospel in saving his people. I pray God would bless his word
to all of us here this evening. If you will, let's sing a hymn
and we'll be dismissed.