1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:04,880 We are going to be in First Timothy for the very last time, 2 00:00:04,880 --> 00:00:07,760 at least in this little series and season through First Timothy 3 00:00:07,760 --> 00:00:10,920 as a church. So turn to First Timothy Chapter 4 00:00:10,920 --> 00:00:13,960 6. We are going to finish off this 5 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:19,760 study that began at the beginning of the year and to 6 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:23,560 finish it off, we we find ourselves appropriately in the 7 00:00:23,560 --> 00:00:27,440 perfect season to get an overlap for something that's happening 8 00:00:27,440 --> 00:00:29,120 just in the season of the world we live in. 9 00:00:29,440 --> 00:00:31,360 And that is the graduation season. 10 00:00:31,920 --> 00:00:35,280 I see so many photos and posts and invitations in the mail of 11 00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:38,040 all of the the graduates, high school and college that have 12 00:00:38,280 --> 00:00:40,600 have finished their race. They've ended well. 13 00:00:40,960 --> 00:00:43,520 And in a sense we're we're ending our time. 14 00:00:43,520 --> 00:00:46,160 We're graduating from this book and on to the next chapter, as 15 00:00:46,160 --> 00:00:48,920 it were. And so when that happens, maybe 16 00:00:48,920 --> 00:00:51,880 you've been to some of these graduation ceremonies. 17 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:54,120 There's often the commencement speech. 18 00:00:54,640 --> 00:00:57,600 So I want you to think of what we're about to study today as 19 00:00:57,600 --> 00:01:01,480 Paul's commencement to Timothy to to give him inspiration and 20 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:06,400 motivation for how to do everything that he has been set 21 00:01:06,400 --> 00:01:09,920 out to do in this letter. But before we get to Paul's, let 22 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:13,600 me share with you a brutally honest commencement speech that 23 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:18,560 you might hear in summation of the world's commencement in a 24 00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:21,840 commencement speech that's making the rounds called Welcome 25 00:01:21,840 --> 00:01:25,440 to the Real World, congratulations and welcome to 26 00:01:25,440 --> 00:01:30,000 the real world. Your new worth is now your net 27 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:32,880 worth. To make it in the real world, 28 00:01:32,880 --> 00:01:35,840 you must fight the good fight of finances. 29 00:01:36,440 --> 00:01:39,080 You must chase cash over calling. 30 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:43,160 So I hope you've picked a major that pays, because money is all 31 00:01:43,160 --> 00:01:46,040 that matters now. Your success used to be measured 32 00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:48,880 in grades. Now it's measured in buying 33 00:01:48,880 --> 00:01:52,880 power and credit scores. So follow the money wherever it 34 00:01:52,880 --> 00:01:55,720 leads. Greed is good, greed works. 35 00:01:55,720 --> 00:01:58,920 Ethics are expensive. The meek shall inherit the 36 00:01:58,920 --> 00:02:02,240 earth, but the greedy get the mineral rights. 37 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:06,000 Don't bother with contentment. The joys of life are actually 38 00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:09,639 just a waste of time. Endure for the income. 39 00:02:10,199 --> 00:02:13,680 Remember, you can do any job, no matter how grueling or soul 40 00:02:13,680 --> 00:02:16,240 crushing, for the right amount of money. 41 00:02:17,200 --> 00:02:19,000 The poor and needy aren't your problem. 42 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:21,400 Friends will come and go. You can see your family on 43 00:02:21,400 --> 00:02:24,000 Thanksgiving. Don't slow down for any of them. 44 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:28,320 Stack the cash while you can. The faster you get to the top, 45 00:02:28,320 --> 00:02:31,800 the sooner you get to do what you really want to do. 46 00:02:32,200 --> 00:02:37,240 So save everything, give nothing away, hustle and grind for a few 47 00:02:37,240 --> 00:02:41,720 miserable decades and you enjoy an early retirement full of all 48 00:02:41,720 --> 00:02:44,000 the earthly pleasure that money can buy. 49 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:49,320 And in the words of the great professor that came before you, 50 00:02:49,760 --> 00:02:57,160 $0.50, get rich or die trying. So this is brutally honest if it 51 00:02:57,160 --> 00:03:01,440 was a completely unfiltered speech to motivate what awaits 52 00:03:01,440 --> 00:03:04,400 the graduating class in the world that they step into. 53 00:03:04,800 --> 00:03:08,800 Get rich and die trying. And like any good commencement 54 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:12,520 speech, the design is supposed to inspire and to motivate for 55 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:14,720 what you have to do to find success. 56 00:03:15,400 --> 00:03:18,960 And I bring that up because in the commencement we will read in 57 00:03:18,960 --> 00:03:23,320 First Timothy, we are going to get, as often is the case, the 58 00:03:23,320 --> 00:03:26,600 exact opposite of what the world is going to tell you. 59 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:29,200 Paul is going to say, don't fight the good fight of 60 00:03:29,200 --> 00:03:31,560 finances. Fight the good fight of faith. 61 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:34,840 With everything that we've been studying, you're going to need 62 00:03:34,840 --> 00:03:38,800 to fight with faith for all that you're called to do. 63 00:03:39,280 --> 00:03:43,760 And for our final view in the Trustworthy series, we might 64 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,960 call this the trustworthy motivation in everything that 65 00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:49,280 we've studied and all Paul has exhorted Timothy. 66 00:03:49,640 --> 00:03:53,640 And none of it works if you're not motivated for the right end. 67 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:59,120 And So what we will look at today is how to overcome the 68 00:03:59,120 --> 00:04:03,880 temptation to be motivated by anything but Christ, how to 69 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:08,440 overcome the temptation to be motivated, namely by money and 70 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:09,760 all the things that you can do with it. 71 00:04:10,320 --> 00:04:14,600 And we'll also look at how to fight the good fight of faith 72 00:04:14,960 --> 00:04:17,120 with the only motivation worth living for. 73 00:04:17,760 --> 00:04:21,040 So as we we read through this final section in first Timothy, 74 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:23,680 we're going to look at how to overcome temptation to be 75 00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:29,000 motivated by money or wealth or personal gain and how to fight 76 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:31,920 for the right motivation. What what is actually worth 77 00:04:31,920 --> 00:04:35,840 living for when you leave this place to go do what God has 78 00:04:35,840 --> 00:04:38,760 called you to do. So with that in mind, we'll be 79 00:04:38,760 --> 00:04:43,120 in first Timothy chapter 6. Now starting in verse 6, it says 80 00:04:43,120 --> 00:04:46,440 now godliness with contentment is great game. 81 00:04:47,280 --> 00:04:49,400 So as we walk through the verses, this is just a reminder 82 00:04:49,400 --> 00:04:52,200 to where we were last week when we had this warning that there 83 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:56,440 is there are some who have a form of godliness that is a 84 00:04:56,440 --> 00:05:00,400 means to an alternative end that some want to appear godly so 85 00:05:00,400 --> 00:05:03,240 that they can actually acquire personal gain. 86 00:05:03,760 --> 00:05:06,400 And we condemned that all last week as we looked at that 87 00:05:06,400 --> 00:05:09,600 passage. But today we're reminded that of 88 00:05:09,600 --> 00:05:13,320 course, with the right motivation in your heart, it is 89 00:05:13,320 --> 00:05:16,200 wonderful to be Christlike or to be godly. 90 00:05:16,440 --> 00:05:19,280 It is wonderful to try to understand the way that God has 91 00:05:19,280 --> 00:05:21,840 designed you to live and to pursue it. 92 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:25,560 And he says the key to having godliness that actually does 93 00:05:25,560 --> 00:05:28,640 give you in a gain, or what Jesus would call an abundant 94 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:33,680 life, is godliness cannot be motivated by money and earthly 95 00:05:33,680 --> 00:05:36,040 gain. It has to be coupled with 96 00:05:36,480 --> 00:05:40,680 contentment and so this is going to be one of the, the keys to 97 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:45,000 overcoming the temptation we see in verse 7 through 8 free for we 98 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:49,000 brought nothing into this world and certainly we can carry 99 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:55,360 nothing out and having food and clothing with these we shall be 100 00:05:55,440 --> 00:05:58,680 content. I, I, I so appreciate Paul's 101 00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:00,640 determination. He doesn't say with these 102 00:06:00,640 --> 00:06:02,160 things, do your best to be content. 103 00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:05,520 He says this is a mindset of victory. 104 00:06:05,560 --> 00:06:10,120 We will be content with these things in mind and what are 105 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:13,120 these things? He gives 2 perspectives for all 106 00:06:13,120 --> 00:06:16,280 of us to overcome the temptation to live for anything but Jesus 107 00:06:16,280 --> 00:06:20,080 in this world. And it is the big picture and 108 00:06:20,080 --> 00:06:22,880 the basic needs. And this is the perspective that 109 00:06:22,880 --> 00:06:26,960 Paul wants Timothy to have so that he's not swayed into some 110 00:06:26,960 --> 00:06:29,880 other motivation of his life. We look at the big picture verse 111 00:06:29,880 --> 00:06:32,280 7. He says for we brought nothing 112 00:06:32,280 --> 00:06:35,760 into this world and it is certain we can carry nothing 113 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:37,840 out. The big picture is your birth 114 00:06:38,040 --> 00:06:41,120 and your eventual death. And what Paul is saying is when 115 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:43,840 you were born you had nothing and when you leave this earth 116 00:06:43,840 --> 00:06:48,120 you will take nothing with you. So keep that in mind as you try 117 00:06:48,120 --> 00:06:52,160 your best to not fall into the temptation of acquiring a bunch 118 00:06:52,160 --> 00:06:56,560 of personal wealth. I think my favorite ever lesson 119 00:06:56,560 --> 00:06:59,160 on this or teaching on this comes from a pastor named John 120 00:06:59,160 --> 00:07:02,280 Ortberg who was teaching a similar passage. 121 00:07:02,280 --> 00:07:05,000 The parable of the rich fool who who lived his whole life to 122 00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:07,080 acquire wealth. And by the by the time he 123 00:07:07,080 --> 00:07:10,160 finally built the big enough barns to fill all of his his 124 00:07:10,520 --> 00:07:13,200 with all of his grain, his, his life was over. 125 00:07:13,840 --> 00:07:19,040 And John Ortberg compares all of that to the simple game of 126 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:21,680 Monopoly. And you think about what the the 127 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:23,080 game of Monopoly is designed to do. 128 00:07:23,080 --> 00:07:26,520 It's to teach you how to acquire, how to cheat and steal 129 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:29,600 and do whatever you have to do, make trades to eliminate your 130 00:07:29,600 --> 00:07:31,640 opponent and acquire all the wealth. 131 00:07:31,640 --> 00:07:35,040 And, and, and this pastor tells the story of learning this game 132 00:07:35,040 --> 00:07:39,360 with his grandma and how how ruthless she was to to take all 133 00:07:39,360 --> 00:07:42,040 of his properties and he could never beat her until 1 summer. 134 00:07:42,520 --> 00:07:45,880 He dedicated his whole summer to finally beating his grandma at 135 00:07:45,880 --> 00:07:48,840 Monopoly. And he finally bankrupts little 136 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:52,240 old granny. And he was so excited that he 137 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:55,400 had actually acquired all the wealth on the board. 138 00:07:56,360 --> 00:07:59,720 And then she looks at him and gives him the lesson of life, 139 00:07:59,720 --> 00:08:02,200 the lesson that we are being reminded of right now. 140 00:08:03,080 --> 00:08:05,480 He writes in his excerpt on this. 141 00:08:05,480 --> 00:08:10,440 She looked at me and said, now it all goes back in the box. 142 00:08:11,800 --> 00:08:15,520 All those houses and hotels, all the railroads and utility 143 00:08:15,520 --> 00:08:18,960 companies, all that property and all that wonderful money. 144 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:23,920 Now it all goes back in the box. He says. 145 00:08:23,920 --> 00:08:25,520 I didn't want it to go back in the box. 146 00:08:25,640 --> 00:08:28,880 But she continued, None of it was really yours. 147 00:08:29,160 --> 00:08:31,360 You got all heated up about it for a while, but it was all 148 00:08:31,360 --> 00:08:33,679 around long time before you sat down at the board. 149 00:08:33,960 --> 00:08:35,799 And it will be here after you're gone. 150 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:41,919 Players come and players go, but it all goes back in the box. 151 00:08:42,760 --> 00:08:47,280 And so for us houses and cars, titles and clothes filled barns 152 00:08:47,280 --> 00:08:49,600 and bulging portfolios, even your body. 153 00:08:49,600 --> 00:08:52,680 Because the fact is that everything you clutch to and 154 00:08:52,680 --> 00:08:56,840 consume and hoard is going back in the box. 155 00:08:57,560 --> 00:09:06,040 You are going to lose it all. It all goes back in the box and 156 00:09:06,040 --> 00:09:10,040 one of the keys to contentment right now, the the weapon of 157 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:12,560 warfare against the need for more. 158 00:09:12,560 --> 00:09:16,600 This ruthless desire that will never be satisfied in one more 159 00:09:16,600 --> 00:09:19,640 thing. One of the weapons is to say I 160 00:09:19,640 --> 00:09:21,600 had nothing and I'm going to have nothing. 161 00:09:21,920 --> 00:09:24,920 Everything you hold loosely, nothing is actually yours. 162 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:27,600 Someone else will drive your car and live in your house and you 163 00:09:27,680 --> 00:09:30,800 donate your clothes. All of it's going back in the 164 00:09:30,800 --> 00:09:32,640 box. And that's the big picture that 165 00:09:32,640 --> 00:09:35,960 stirs in you the discipline of contentment. 166 00:09:36,080 --> 00:09:38,600 It is something to be learned. It is something to be fought 167 00:09:38,600 --> 00:09:41,000 for. He says we will be content. 168 00:09:41,480 --> 00:09:44,680 So you have the big picture and you have the basic needs in 169 00:09:44,680 --> 00:09:50,160 verse 8 and having food and clothing with these, we shall be 170 00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:52,120 content. So here's my working definition 171 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:54,960 of contentment under the perspective of your basic needs 172 00:09:54,960 --> 00:09:58,280 are met. Contentment is to be so secure 173 00:09:58,680 --> 00:10:04,080 with your basic needs. Food, shelter, the things that 174 00:10:04,080 --> 00:10:07,600 you you need to live. You're so secure in your basic 175 00:10:07,600 --> 00:10:10,760 needs that you are not tempted to strive for what isn't 176 00:10:10,760 --> 00:10:14,160 necessary. Most of the luxuries, all of the 177 00:10:14,160 --> 00:10:17,600 luxuries are in the category of unnecessary but nice. 178 00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:22,000 And we we spent so much time striving and longing and 179 00:10:22,000 --> 00:10:25,360 desiring for things that you actually don't need for your 180 00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:28,480 life. One commentator said contentment 181 00:10:28,480 --> 00:10:32,920 is the master key that locks every door temptation tries to 182 00:10:32,920 --> 00:10:35,640 open. So you think about all of the 183 00:10:35,640 --> 00:10:38,240 ways that you will be tempted in this world. 184 00:10:38,400 --> 00:10:41,240 And contentment is this beautiful defense. 185 00:10:41,240 --> 00:10:45,040 It's a shield against temptation coming into your heart that the 186 00:10:45,040 --> 00:10:47,480 great temptation of marriage. Well, if you're content with the 187 00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:51,600 relationship you already have, you will not be tempted for the 188 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:55,800 unnecessary relationship of more you think about the possessions 189 00:10:55,800 --> 00:10:58,160 you have. If you can be content with what 190 00:10:58,160 --> 00:11:00,080 is yours. You have food in your belly. 191 00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:02,480 You have a place to sleep tonight and shelter over your 192 00:11:02,480 --> 00:11:04,760 head. By God's grace, you don't have 193 00:11:04,760 --> 00:11:08,400 to walk into the temptation of what else you could acquire if 194 00:11:08,400 --> 00:11:11,200 only you had a little bit more money, a little bit more buying 195 00:11:11,200 --> 00:11:13,960 power. And all of this is a reminder 196 00:11:13,960 --> 00:11:18,320 that to be content in Jesus, your most basic need is your 197 00:11:18,320 --> 00:11:22,560 born again life in Christ. And to be content in Jesus is to 198 00:11:22,560 --> 00:11:26,080 say you are not going to be tempted to worship anything that 199 00:11:26,080 --> 00:11:30,400 isn't Him. Now the only necessary thing in 200 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:34,240 your spiritual life is a vision and knowledge of Christ, your 201 00:11:34,240 --> 00:11:37,000 Lord and Savior and the Holy Spirit that makes you born 202 00:11:37,000 --> 00:11:39,000 again. And everything else is an 203 00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:43,080 unnecessary temptation unless it's in the Lord's will to 204 00:11:43,080 --> 00:11:47,160 freely receive it. I love what it says in Proverbs 205 00:11:47,160 --> 00:11:49,680 chapter 30. Give me neither poverty nor 206 00:11:49,680 --> 00:11:52,400 riches. Feed me with the food allotted 207 00:11:52,400 --> 00:11:55,520 to me. Why, Lest I be full and deny 208 00:11:55,520 --> 00:11:57,200 you. You have so much food, you don't 209 00:11:57,200 --> 00:11:59,320 even need to think about blessing God for the the 210 00:11:59,320 --> 00:12:02,800 provisions of your meal or and say, who is the Lord? 211 00:12:02,800 --> 00:12:05,920 Or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of God. 212 00:12:06,480 --> 00:12:09,680 Contentment is to see that the hand of God is on your life and 213 00:12:09,680 --> 00:12:13,120 you have just enough. You need to worship him and say 214 00:12:13,120 --> 00:12:16,840 thank you and not deny him and also worship him and say thank 215 00:12:16,840 --> 00:12:18,880 you and not depend on anything else. 216 00:12:18,880 --> 00:12:22,360 So you have this big picture. You came with nothing, you're 217 00:12:22,360 --> 00:12:26,520 leaving with nothing and you have your, your basic needs in 218 00:12:26,520 --> 00:12:29,160 this place right now. Consider the basic spiritual 219 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:31,640 needs that we're, we've, we've been met with today. 220 00:12:31,800 --> 00:12:35,120 We have the word, we have song to praise the name of Jesus. 221 00:12:35,240 --> 00:12:38,400 We have seats to sit in. We have people to commune with, 222 00:12:38,600 --> 00:12:43,040 but we have everything we need to be a thriving body of Christ 223 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:46,760 right here and right now by the power of the Holy Spirit. 224 00:12:47,600 --> 00:12:49,000 And so you have those two things in mind. 225 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:51,960 But as he goes and continues, he's now going to give a picture 226 00:12:52,280 --> 00:12:56,200 or a consequence to avoid, as often is the case in first 227 00:12:56,200 --> 00:12:58,200 Timothy. He'll he'll give us these rules 228 00:12:58,200 --> 00:13:01,200 to live by, disciplines to navigate life, and he'll also 229 00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:04,440 give a a warning. And so that's now what we have 230 00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:08,440 in First Timothy 6, verse 9, he says. 231 00:13:08,440 --> 00:13:13,600 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare 232 00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:18,720 and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in 233 00:13:18,720 --> 00:13:22,160 destruction and perdition. There's your caution. 234 00:13:22,720 --> 00:13:25,920 Many people have this desire and it goes where does it take them 235 00:13:25,920 --> 00:13:28,480 in the end? He says for the love of money is 236 00:13:28,480 --> 00:13:33,040 a root of all kinds of evil for which some have strayed from the 237 00:13:33,040 --> 00:13:38,080 faith in their greediness and pierced themselves with many 238 00:13:38,080 --> 00:13:40,680 sorrows. Now I want to point out what 239 00:13:40,680 --> 00:13:44,760 it's not saying. He says those who desire to be 240 00:13:44,760 --> 00:13:47,840 rich, there's something in their heart that is aiming or being 241 00:13:47,840 --> 00:13:52,880 motivated for wealth. Paul does not say those who are 242 00:13:52,880 --> 00:13:55,960 wealthy, those by the circumstances of the place they 243 00:13:55,960 --> 00:13:59,040 were born and the family they were born into and the ingenuity 244 00:13:59,040 --> 00:14:01,320 of the mind that God gave them to acquire some wealth. 245 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:06,000 It is not a condemnation on having money and we know that 246 00:14:06,000 --> 00:14:09,640 because if you survey the Bible, you will see many people that 247 00:14:09,640 --> 00:14:13,880 God uses and blesses and calls a men after his own heart are 248 00:14:13,880 --> 00:14:17,040 extremely wealthy. Abraham had wealth that we can't 249 00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:21,240 even comprehend by today's standards and same with David 250 00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:23,680 and his son Solomon and and these are people that God 251 00:14:23,680 --> 00:14:28,800 blessed with wealth. So being poor does not make you 252 00:14:28,800 --> 00:14:32,960 more godly and being rich does not make you ungodly or vice 253 00:14:32,960 --> 00:14:35,480 versa. This is not a vow to poverty 254 00:14:35,480 --> 00:14:39,840 that any of you have to make. And in fact, as we skip ahead to 255 00:14:40,280 --> 00:14:42,600 some of the the verses that are connected to this later in the 256 00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:46,480 passage, Paul will actually give instructions for those that are 257 00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:49,520 in the gathering that are part of the community that happened 258 00:14:49,520 --> 00:14:52,360 to have wealth. Look what he says in First 259 00:14:52,360 --> 00:14:56,680 Timothy 6 verse 17. He says command those who are 260 00:14:56,680 --> 00:15:01,400 rich in the present age and the command is not sell everything 261 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:04,280 you have, give it to the poor so that we're all equal and no one 262 00:15:04,280 --> 00:15:06,000 has more money than the next person. 263 00:15:06,360 --> 00:15:08,480 He doesn't say that. He says command them who are 264 00:15:08,480 --> 00:15:12,880 rich in the present age not to be haughty nor to trust in 265 00:15:12,880 --> 00:15:16,880 uncertain riches, but in the living God who gives us richly 266 00:15:16,960 --> 00:15:20,640 all things to enjoy. Then he says with this position 267 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:24,880 in your life, let them do good, that they may be rich in good 268 00:15:24,880 --> 00:15:28,920 works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves 269 00:15:28,920 --> 00:15:32,880 a good foundation for the time to come that they may they hold 270 00:15:33,160 --> 00:15:36,880 of eternal life. So for those that are in 271 00:15:36,880 --> 00:15:42,080 Ephesus, a vibrant New York City type of a place where there are 272 00:15:42,080 --> 00:15:45,280 going to be a different hierarchy of wealth, he says 273 00:15:45,280 --> 00:15:47,520 some of them may be believers. And here's your instructions. 274 00:15:47,800 --> 00:15:51,160 Be humble, don't be haughty, don't be a showsman. 275 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:54,200 Don't use your wealth to to gain status within the community. 276 00:15:54,320 --> 00:15:58,720 Don't be haughty, be humble. Then he says keep trusting God. 277 00:15:59,280 --> 00:16:02,920 Don't put your faith in the uncertainty of riches because 278 00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:05,520 surely riches can come and riches can go. 279 00:16:05,960 --> 00:16:08,160 And James, he says don't make a bunch of plans and say we're 280 00:16:08,160 --> 00:16:09,920 going to do this and that and gain a bunch of wealth. 281 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:12,280 You don't know what tomorrow brings. 282 00:16:12,640 --> 00:16:17,080 He also says enjoy the good things that God has given you. 283 00:16:17,680 --> 00:16:20,560 So this again is not a condemnation on those of us who 284 00:16:20,560 --> 00:16:24,640 live and happen to live in a world that is by and large 285 00:16:24,640 --> 00:16:28,200 wealthy. Your life compared to most of 286 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:31,600 the world. You have been given a great 287 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:35,520 amount of buying power. And the answer to the American 288 00:16:35,520 --> 00:16:37,920 church is not to feel condemned because we're not the church 289 00:16:37,920 --> 00:16:39,400 that lives in the poorest of the poor. 290 00:16:39,720 --> 00:16:43,360 Some of the answer is use this as a way to enjoy what God has 291 00:16:43,360 --> 00:16:45,840 given you. Enjoy the finer things in life 292 00:16:45,840 --> 00:16:48,280 that you can because God has placed you where he has placed 293 00:16:48,280 --> 00:16:51,920 you. But he says be willing to share. 294 00:16:52,800 --> 00:16:57,640 May we be people who never fall into the trap of consumerism and 295 00:16:57,840 --> 00:17:00,320 and the the desire to continually have more and to be 296 00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:02,480 selfish because we're continually practicing 297 00:17:02,480 --> 00:17:06,280 generosity. 1 commentator said generosity is like the vaccine 298 00:17:06,280 --> 00:17:09,440 against greed. If you are a person that has 299 00:17:09,440 --> 00:17:14,240 much freely receive and freely give, and then he says lay hold 300 00:17:14,240 --> 00:17:17,400 of eternal life and he says those who have riches in this 301 00:17:17,400 --> 00:17:21,920 present age, meaning you too, your wealth is not something you 302 00:17:21,920 --> 00:17:24,720 can take with you. You have present riches, but the 303 00:17:24,720 --> 00:17:28,040 real riches are the eternal riches that await all of us. 304 00:17:28,680 --> 00:17:31,760 There are those who have more riches in the coming Kingdom of 305 00:17:31,760 --> 00:17:36,080 eternity then we can fathom of those that are materially wealth 306 00:17:36,200 --> 00:17:38,880 on earth. The psalmist says if riches 307 00:17:38,880 --> 00:17:42,000 increase, do not set your heart on them. 308 00:17:42,960 --> 00:17:46,120 So we are not a church or a people or families or people who 309 00:17:46,120 --> 00:17:49,160 are following after God. That sets our hearts on riches. 310 00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:51,080 And when they increase, we're doing really well. 311 00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:53,680 And when the the the market's down, we feel really sad. 312 00:17:53,840 --> 00:18:00,320 Whatever God gives you beyond food and shelter, enjoy and use 313 00:18:00,320 --> 00:18:04,840 it with a heart of generosity. So with that in mind, it's not 314 00:18:04,840 --> 00:18:08,320 condemning wealth in itself. We go back to verse 9 and we 315 00:18:08,320 --> 00:18:10,560 look at what Paul is actually warning against. 316 00:18:11,160 --> 00:18:15,640 He says those who desire to be rich fall in temptation in a 317 00:18:15,640 --> 00:18:19,920 snare. In this word desire, Paul is is 318 00:18:19,920 --> 00:18:23,440 pointing towards something that we saw earlier about people who 319 00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:26,560 had kind of the obsession for disputes and arguing they 320 00:18:26,560 --> 00:18:29,320 couldn't get over it. The same idea those who have an 321 00:18:29,440 --> 00:18:34,320 obsessive desire that everything they do is filtered with how 322 00:18:34,320 --> 00:18:37,160 they can manage to have a little bit more. 323 00:18:37,560 --> 00:18:40,000 He goes on to say that they have harmful lust. 324 00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:44,200 It's eventually going to destroy their life, but lust is desiring 325 00:18:44,200 --> 00:18:46,000 something that God hasn't given you. 326 00:18:47,160 --> 00:18:51,640 He says that when you have this, this obsessive desire to be 327 00:18:51,640 --> 00:18:56,280 motivated primarily for your status in the world that you're 328 00:18:56,280 --> 00:18:59,920 walking into a temptation and A and a snare. 329 00:19:00,760 --> 00:19:04,160 What is the temptation? The temptation is don't ever be 330 00:19:04,160 --> 00:19:06,960 satisfied. Don't ever be content. 331 00:19:07,480 --> 00:19:10,200 You should always have a little bit more. 332 00:19:11,040 --> 00:19:14,880 And here's the snare. Snare means trap for people who 333 00:19:14,880 --> 00:19:17,440 have this obsession. They're walking towards 334 00:19:17,440 --> 00:19:22,000 something that will eventually trap them into a harmful, 335 00:19:22,160 --> 00:19:27,720 destructive life. The trap is that it's never 336 00:19:27,720 --> 00:19:30,880 enough. We already quoted $0.50, so 337 00:19:30,880 --> 00:19:33,160 let's quote another great thinker, Bob Marley. 338 00:19:34,560 --> 00:19:38,320 Bob Marley says money is counted in numbers and numbers have no 339 00:19:38,360 --> 00:19:41,400 end. You will never find the last 340 00:19:41,400 --> 00:19:44,880 dollar that you need to finally have enough. 341 00:19:44,880 --> 00:19:47,600 You will always need just a little bit more. 342 00:19:48,520 --> 00:19:52,040 And the heart of discontent that is not satisfied. 343 00:19:52,040 --> 00:19:56,200 It is not a cultural problem. It's not something that existed 344 00:19:56,200 --> 00:19:58,560 in Ephesus and then uniquely again in our time. 345 00:19:59,080 --> 00:20:03,840 This is a problem of sin. It exists in the heart of every 346 00:20:03,840 --> 00:20:06,040 person. You do not have to teach it to 347 00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:08,480 children. They have it from a young age. 348 00:20:08,480 --> 00:20:13,120 I I say that quite aware just in the the recent view of my own 349 00:20:13,120 --> 00:20:16,760 parenting, I have a child that it must be around the age of 5 350 00:20:16,760 --> 00:20:19,400 where they become collectors, obsessive collectors. 351 00:20:19,400 --> 00:20:22,680 They want it all. And so my son is using every 352 00:20:22,680 --> 00:20:25,640 opportunity to receive from birthday to Christmas to just 353 00:20:25,840 --> 00:20:28,400 little, little times out. If he has any opportunity to buy 354 00:20:28,400 --> 00:20:31,760 anything, he is buying a superhero action figure. 355 00:20:31,840 --> 00:20:36,040 He loves them, he stacks them, he counts them and he he 356 00:20:36,040 --> 00:20:37,280 actually has more than he can count. 357 00:20:37,280 --> 00:20:39,800 So now he brings them to me and he says, dad, count them for me. 358 00:20:41,200 --> 00:20:44,200 I'm like his little accountant. He's like a acquirer of gold. 359 00:20:44,200 --> 00:20:45,920 You know, I'm accounting. He's like louder. 360 00:20:46,000 --> 00:20:50,080 I need to hear. I'm like 1516. 361 00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:53,360 And the shocking thing is we all we continue to add to the 362 00:20:53,360 --> 00:20:57,360 number. He wants more and yet he 363 00:20:57,360 --> 00:20:58,760 continually walks away sorrowful. 364 00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:01,120 It's like a madman pace. And he's like, it's not enough. 365 00:21:01,640 --> 00:21:04,120 I need more. I still don't have this guy. 366 00:21:04,120 --> 00:21:07,440 I need more of this guy. And he's he's just plotting the 367 00:21:07,480 --> 00:21:11,520 acquisition of his category, which is toys. 368 00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:13,920 And the category will change eventually. 369 00:21:13,920 --> 00:21:16,560 It will go from toys to shoes or clothes. 370 00:21:17,280 --> 00:21:20,760 And we all have our categories where we obsessively want more. 371 00:21:20,760 --> 00:21:23,680 And the ultimate category is money because it gets you all 372 00:21:23,680 --> 00:21:27,960 the categories. And he says Paul is saying 373 00:21:27,960 --> 00:21:32,040 you're walking into a trap. He says those who have fallen 374 00:21:32,040 --> 00:21:36,160 into this temptation and snare fall into many foolish and 375 00:21:36,160 --> 00:21:40,240 harmful lusts. Listen which drown men in 376 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:44,400 destruction and perdition. Perdition is the state of 377 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:49,680 absolute spiritual chaos where you're you're completely 378 00:21:49,680 --> 00:21:53,080 shipwrecked in the soul and you're drowning in that 379 00:21:53,080 --> 00:21:55,560 shipwreck says you're drowning in destruction. 380 00:21:56,640 --> 00:21:59,880 And so maybe some of you can think through the obsessive 381 00:22:00,120 --> 00:22:03,840 patterns you've had to navigate and being shifted by motivated 382 00:22:04,120 --> 00:22:07,160 simply by what God has for your life to be motivated for what 383 00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:10,080 will you want for your life? Maybe you've experienced, maybe 384 00:22:10,080 --> 00:22:15,040 you've seen it in someone else Drowned by workaholic being a 385 00:22:15,040 --> 00:22:17,360 workaholic, you just can't turn it off. 386 00:22:18,080 --> 00:22:20,600 You're like TGIM. Thank goodness it's Monday. 387 00:22:20,600 --> 00:22:25,480 I got more time to work. And through that you are so 388 00:22:25,480 --> 00:22:28,040 addicted to work, you will put everything else on the back 389 00:22:28,040 --> 00:22:31,640 burner, including relationships, including time in the word, 390 00:22:31,640 --> 00:22:33,040 including time with your children. 391 00:22:33,200 --> 00:22:35,720 And you neglect all the things you should be doing because 392 00:22:35,720 --> 00:22:38,280 you're drowned by the desire to work to get more. 393 00:22:39,200 --> 00:22:40,640 And you can get drowned by greed. 394 00:22:40,680 --> 00:22:42,960 You're unable to see the needs of others. 395 00:22:42,960 --> 00:22:46,480 You're unable to to see anything beyond your own desire to have 396 00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:48,880 more. And you step over the people 397 00:22:48,880 --> 00:22:52,480 that God has in your path to, to bless and to care for. 398 00:22:53,040 --> 00:22:55,920 And your greed is unwilling to open your hands to what God may 399 00:22:55,920 --> 00:22:57,520 be desiring to use your life for. 400 00:22:57,680 --> 00:23:01,720 You can drown in fear because it's never enough. 401 00:23:01,760 --> 00:23:04,720 And there's someone that's probably always after your 402 00:23:04,720 --> 00:23:07,160 little corner of the market or your little treasure. 403 00:23:07,480 --> 00:23:09,840 Thieves will rob, rust will destroy. 404 00:23:10,240 --> 00:23:12,600 And at any moment, if you're not careful and you're not 405 00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:16,360 obsessively thinking about how to maintain your empire, it'll 406 00:23:16,360 --> 00:23:18,920 be gone. And so you're drowned by fear. 407 00:23:18,920 --> 00:23:22,560 And ultimately in this trap, this snare that holds people, 408 00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:25,080 you will drown with dissatisfaction. 409 00:23:25,880 --> 00:23:28,480 There, there, there will be no joy in your heart. 410 00:23:28,840 --> 00:23:31,680 You will never reach the top of the mountain. 411 00:23:33,160 --> 00:23:36,640 And in this be as you're drowning, you're opening up your 412 00:23:36,640 --> 00:23:40,640 life to everything Paul has been warning Timothy against. 413 00:23:40,640 --> 00:23:43,160 Paul's says Timothy, fight for sound doctrine. 414 00:23:43,920 --> 00:23:47,360 And in this destruction that people can walk through for the 415 00:23:47,360 --> 00:23:51,600 ways of the world, they can walk towards all sorts of evil. 416 00:23:51,600 --> 00:23:56,240 It says for the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. 417 00:23:56,240 --> 00:24:00,320 Now this is often misquoted as the root of all evil. 418 00:24:00,320 --> 00:24:03,240 Of course, there's other roots to things that we do in our 419 00:24:03,440 --> 00:24:07,600 sinful and evil hearts. The root of all evil is sin 420 00:24:07,600 --> 00:24:09,920 itself. But one of the great roots that 421 00:24:09,920 --> 00:24:14,440 will, that will turn someone into a compromised a person of 422 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:18,000 morality and character and virtue is the desire from for 423 00:24:18,000 --> 00:24:20,240 more money. One commentator puts it like 424 00:24:20,240 --> 00:24:22,000 this. There's not a single evil in 425 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:26,720 this earth, not a single form of immorality, not a single form of 426 00:24:26,720 --> 00:24:30,640 murder, not a single form of injustice, not a single form of 427 00:24:30,640 --> 00:24:36,480 violence that will not be practiced for the sake of money. 428 00:24:37,920 --> 00:24:41,880 One of the great temptations is your life in your in your call 429 00:24:41,880 --> 00:24:45,600 to be holy as God is holy is if I pay enough, will you do it? 430 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:49,120 If it has a big enough price tag, would it be worth your 431 00:24:49,160 --> 00:24:52,480 morals and your character? And he says for when this 432 00:24:52,480 --> 00:24:56,760 happens, for which some have strayed from the faith in their 433 00:24:56,760 --> 00:25:00,320 greediness and pierced themselves through with many 434 00:25:00,320 --> 00:25:03,120 sorrows. Now we started this with a view 435 00:25:03,120 --> 00:25:04,840 of the commencement speech of the world. 436 00:25:05,480 --> 00:25:07,880 And if you want to make it in the world, you got to get rich 437 00:25:07,880 --> 00:25:10,400 or die trying. But once again, Paul is 438 00:25:10,400 --> 00:25:12,920 reminding Timothy that this is not an Ephesus problem. 439 00:25:12,920 --> 00:25:14,520 This is a church in Ephesus problem. 440 00:25:14,880 --> 00:25:18,080 This is happening with those who have strayed from the faith. 441 00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:21,880 This is happening to those who came in to be motivated by what 442 00:25:21,880 --> 00:25:25,040 God had for them and they got dollar signs in their eyes and 443 00:25:25,040 --> 00:25:28,640 they walked away. And so this is our chance to do 444 00:25:28,640 --> 00:25:32,280 a modern rebuke of anyone who is strayed from the faith but still 445 00:25:32,280 --> 00:25:36,360 represents the name of God. And how often in the Trustworthy 446 00:25:36,360 --> 00:25:39,200 series, we said, Lord, cleanse our church age of one of these 447 00:25:39,200 --> 00:25:41,560 problems. That there are leaders and 448 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:45,160 preachers and pastors and alleged prophets and writers of 449 00:25:45,160 --> 00:25:48,960 books who have have begun a work in the name of the Lord, but 450 00:25:48,960 --> 00:25:52,920 strayed towards their own empires and their own private 451 00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:54,800 jets and their own cars and their mansions. 452 00:25:55,720 --> 00:26:00,480 And it says that because of this, they are piercing 453 00:26:00,480 --> 00:26:04,720 themselves with sorrows. Let their lives be a warning to 454 00:26:04,800 --> 00:26:08,720 anyone who would stray from being motivated by the will of 455 00:26:08,720 --> 00:26:12,000 God for your life. What awaits them is many 456 00:26:12,080 --> 00:26:14,120 sorrows. It will not end well. 457 00:26:14,960 --> 00:26:18,280 They will not be an example of someone who ran the race well. 458 00:26:18,280 --> 00:26:21,160 They'll be an example of someone who got strayed from the faith 459 00:26:21,280 --> 00:26:24,160 and went down a path of utter destruction. 460 00:26:26,040 --> 00:26:28,880 It's a problem as old as the Bible. 461 00:26:28,880 --> 00:26:35,240 And I have to say, I don't often find a reason to say something 462 00:26:35,240 --> 00:26:37,720 positive about the celebrity culture that we live in. 463 00:26:38,080 --> 00:26:41,520 But this might be the only reason that because we all have 464 00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:46,480 a front row seat into the the celebrities and the the people 465 00:26:46,480 --> 00:26:50,560 of our world that have wealth. We all have a front row seat to 466 00:26:50,560 --> 00:26:55,200 the reality of this warning that that read the headlines, read 467 00:26:55,200 --> 00:27:00,040 the tabloids, read the the the billion dollar divorce cases and 468 00:27:00,040 --> 00:27:03,880 the drama that ensues flowing from the the elites of our 469 00:27:03,880 --> 00:27:06,480 world. Money does not solve problems, 470 00:27:06,480 --> 00:27:10,080 it actually enhances them. Sometimes all that money does is 471 00:27:10,080 --> 00:27:13,200 show you what you would do in the deceitfulness of your heart 472 00:27:13,280 --> 00:27:17,600 if you had more buying power. And so may we be people who 473 00:27:17,720 --> 00:27:22,200 listen to what Paul is saying to Timothy, to be disciplined in 474 00:27:22,200 --> 00:27:25,280 contentment. It is our only shield against 475 00:27:25,280 --> 00:27:29,280 the temptation of more. And also to have a view of the 476 00:27:29,280 --> 00:27:32,000 consequences of those who have strayed from the faith. 477 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:35,440 And now they have arrows in their back for the destruction 478 00:27:35,760 --> 00:27:40,880 of naming the name of the Lord, but living in the strategy of 479 00:27:40,880 --> 00:27:43,960 the world. And so as we've done throughout 480 00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:47,960 this series, and we now have this grand finale that Paul will 481 00:27:47,960 --> 00:27:50,840 take Timothy through, there is this principle that Timothy 482 00:27:50,840 --> 00:27:52,920 needs to implement into the church for this. 483 00:27:52,920 --> 00:27:55,000 It is to have the purest of motivations. 484 00:27:55,280 --> 00:27:59,480 And then there is an exaltation of the only thing that can 485 00:27:59,480 --> 00:28:01,280 actually make a church trustworthy. 486 00:28:02,200 --> 00:28:06,800 And now for this last section, we get a vision of what is worth 487 00:28:07,160 --> 00:28:10,520 living for. Verse 11, he says, But you, O 488 00:28:10,520 --> 00:28:14,160 man of God, a title that he's giving Timothy so uniquely 489 00:28:14,160 --> 00:28:16,880 actually in the New Testament, you are not a man of the world. 490 00:28:17,240 --> 00:28:21,160 You're a man of God. You, O person of God, living in 491 00:28:21,160 --> 00:28:25,960 the world, flee these things. Don't don't fall into this the 492 00:28:25,960 --> 00:28:30,040 trap of the ways of the world. And whenever you flee something, 493 00:28:30,040 --> 00:28:31,680 you turn, you pursue something else. 494 00:28:31,680 --> 00:28:34,440 And So what is Timothy now supposed to pursue? 495 00:28:34,880 --> 00:28:39,760 Don't get rich and die trying. Get godly character and die 496 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:42,920 trying. Pursue righteousness, godliness, 497 00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:46,120 faith, love, patience, gentleness. 498 00:28:46,720 --> 00:28:52,880 Fight the good fight of faith. Lay hold of eternal life to 499 00:28:52,880 --> 00:28:55,280 which you are also called, and have confessed the good 500 00:28:55,280 --> 00:28:58,120 confession in the presence of many witnesses. 501 00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:04,080 This is the pursuit, this is the motivation, this is the over the 502 00:29:04,120 --> 00:29:07,200 overflow of sound and healthy and good doctrine for your life. 503 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:10,480 The fruit of studying a book like this is that we would stop 504 00:29:10,480 --> 00:29:13,440 pursuing the ways of the world and we would start pursuing the 505 00:29:13,440 --> 00:29:17,600 ways of God. Pursue righteousness, pursue 506 00:29:17,600 --> 00:29:19,880 godliness. Become more like Christ with 507 00:29:19,880 --> 00:29:24,280 your life, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. 508 00:29:25,960 --> 00:29:29,480 The Proverbs say a good name is to be chosen rather than great 509 00:29:29,480 --> 00:29:34,960 riches, loving favor rather than silver and gold and, and, and 510 00:29:34,960 --> 00:29:37,360 here is our great fork in the road with the culture. 511 00:29:38,400 --> 00:29:41,720 I have to say as a dad, if, if, when I, when I think of the 512 00:29:41,720 --> 00:29:45,560 fruit of all of the discipleship I'm giving to my kids and I have 513 00:29:46,080 --> 00:29:49,680 a desired outcome in mind. I don't care how much money they 514 00:29:49,680 --> 00:29:52,640 make in this world. If they make make a lot, they 515 00:29:52,640 --> 00:29:54,240 may make a little. But you know what I do care 516 00:29:54,240 --> 00:29:56,880 about? I care that they would become 517 00:29:57,280 --> 00:30:02,040 righteous and godly people. That is what we're aiming for. 518 00:30:02,560 --> 00:30:04,400 And the Lord will bless them for that. 519 00:30:04,400 --> 00:30:05,760 He will care for their ever need. 520 00:30:05,880 --> 00:30:09,120 They will learn to be content in whatever they have because they 521 00:30:09,120 --> 00:30:12,760 know that pursuing God with their life, when they seek first 522 00:30:12,760 --> 00:30:16,760 His Kingdom, He will take everything else and fulfill it 523 00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:20,120 for them. And I have to say, as I think 524 00:30:20,120 --> 00:30:23,120 about, you know, my personal family also think about this 525 00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:25,880 family. I think about being a pastor and 526 00:30:26,040 --> 00:30:30,280 and what is the fruit the, the, the, the desired outcome for a 527 00:30:30,320 --> 00:30:33,600 church that gets together and gets in the word and pursues God 528 00:30:33,600 --> 00:30:37,000 and praises his name and looks for opportunities to serve 529 00:30:37,000 --> 00:30:39,640 people that I don't care how much stuff we have. 530 00:30:39,640 --> 00:30:43,760 I really don't if the Lord, you know, increases and we need more 531 00:30:43,760 --> 00:30:46,960 than according to his plan for our church. 532 00:30:48,000 --> 00:30:52,600 I don't want to be a pastor that measures success of a church in 533 00:30:52,600 --> 00:30:56,880 stuff and resources and programs and material gain. 534 00:30:57,160 --> 00:30:59,840 If God has it for us, great. But you know what I do want to 535 00:30:59,840 --> 00:31:02,640 be known for man. A good name is better than 536 00:31:02,640 --> 00:31:05,800 riches. Families who are uncompromised 537 00:31:05,800 --> 00:31:08,840 by the ways of this world, families and believers and a 538 00:31:08,840 --> 00:31:12,280 church that is so trustworthy because they are not for sale. 539 00:31:13,160 --> 00:31:15,520 And that is what Paul is giving to Timothy now. 540 00:31:15,520 --> 00:31:18,840 And you know what that requires. He says you got to fight the 541 00:31:18,840 --> 00:31:21,760 good fight of faith. But we're not looking for the 542 00:31:21,760 --> 00:31:25,160 fight of finances and the corporate ladder and the rat 543 00:31:25,160 --> 00:31:27,360 race. What we are is people who are 544 00:31:27,360 --> 00:31:31,720 willing to stay in the game for the name of God, to fight back 545 00:31:31,720 --> 00:31:34,440 all of the distractions of the world that creep into the 546 00:31:34,440 --> 00:31:37,880 church. And so as we think about closing 547 00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:42,000 this sermon series, I just we got to fight on our hands. 548 00:31:42,600 --> 00:31:46,280 When you study first Timothy. This is not a book designed to 549 00:31:46,280 --> 00:31:49,080 say, hey, study it, memorize it. Good luck. 550 00:31:49,240 --> 00:31:52,480 This is now the church that is cleansed and trustworthy because 551 00:31:52,600 --> 00:31:55,520 we have declared the the power of God's design through the 552 00:31:55,520 --> 00:31:59,000 preaching of God's word. What what actually happens is it 553 00:31:59,000 --> 00:32:02,680 should stir your hearts to say, Lord, may we be people who fight 554 00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:05,440 for these things. I mean, I only consider all of 555 00:32:05,440 --> 00:32:08,640 the things that Paul has presented to Timothy that are so 556 00:32:08,640 --> 00:32:11,760 worth fighting for in our day. He says, fight. 557 00:32:11,760 --> 00:32:15,120 The good fight of faith in doctrine to be people who love 558 00:32:15,120 --> 00:32:18,360 God's word and will not allow it to be compromised in the way 559 00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:22,680 that it's taught or followed. He says fight to end quarreling. 560 00:32:22,680 --> 00:32:26,200 Don't be an arguing people that gets in all of the the the the 561 00:32:26,200 --> 00:32:29,360 ways of the world that just tribalism and our way against 562 00:32:29,360 --> 00:32:32,440 your way. He says end it and and look for 563 00:32:32,440 --> 00:32:35,880 ways to be united through prayer and the teaching of the word. 564 00:32:35,880 --> 00:32:38,920 He says fight for good leadership, fight for for for 565 00:32:38,920 --> 00:32:43,560 men that are qualified to serve the church that have the example 566 00:32:43,560 --> 00:32:46,000 that's worth following. He says fight for faithful 567 00:32:46,000 --> 00:32:49,720 servants, people that are willing to actually get in the 568 00:32:49,720 --> 00:32:51,720 game of what it means to be part of a church. 569 00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:57,240 Fight for a culture of honor. Widows, men, women, young 570 00:32:57,240 --> 00:33:02,880 children, We honor one another. And he says fight now to be 571 00:33:02,880 --> 00:33:07,680 motivated by nothing but our faith in God. 572 00:33:08,360 --> 00:33:11,360 You have to fight for it. You have to stay in the game. 573 00:33:11,360 --> 00:33:15,280 It's a fight as old as the New Testament church. 574 00:33:16,240 --> 00:33:18,200 And I have to say, I'm so grateful that you even would 575 00:33:18,200 --> 00:33:20,040 come to church today. There are so many people that 576 00:33:20,040 --> 00:33:23,560 listen to the things that we've had to discuss doctrine and 577 00:33:23,560 --> 00:33:27,480 leadership and the ways of church in the to, to counteract 578 00:33:27,480 --> 00:33:29,080 the ways of the world. And they say, you know what? 579 00:33:29,080 --> 00:33:30,760 I'd rather just not go to church anymore. 580 00:33:31,280 --> 00:33:34,040 I'd rather just, you know, me and the devotional and you know, 581 00:33:34,040 --> 00:33:35,880 the walk that I'll take. And I'll just raise some 582 00:33:35,880 --> 00:33:38,960 disciples in my own home. And church is drama and church 583 00:33:38,960 --> 00:33:42,040 is tragic and church is hard and they're right. 584 00:33:43,040 --> 00:33:46,120 But you guys have heard this call. 585 00:33:47,280 --> 00:33:50,680 You've heard that to be a trustworthy church takes people 586 00:33:50,680 --> 00:33:52,480 that are willing to fight the fight. 587 00:33:53,040 --> 00:33:56,480 The sideline people, the people that have looked at the church 588 00:33:56,480 --> 00:34:00,280 and seen it with much need of improvement are not in the 589 00:34:00,280 --> 00:34:03,640 fight. So Paul ends to Timothy and I 590 00:34:03,640 --> 00:34:07,800 end with you keep fighting. There will be all sorts of ways 591 00:34:07,800 --> 00:34:10,400 that we have to fight for sound doctrine and good leadership and 592 00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:12,840 a culture of honor. And it's as old as the church. 593 00:34:12,960 --> 00:34:15,840 And it will happen. The fight will continue until 594 00:34:16,159 --> 00:34:20,080 the Lord comes again. And with that in mind, we now 595 00:34:20,080 --> 00:34:27,480 get a vision of the only motivation to want to be part of 596 00:34:27,480 --> 00:34:30,600 a trustworthy church to to follow Jesus and to live in this 597 00:34:30,600 --> 00:34:32,960 world and to fight against the ways of this world. 598 00:34:32,960 --> 00:34:38,800 Verse 13 I urge you, I motivate you in the sight of God who 599 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:43,320 gives life to all things and before Christ Jesus, who 600 00:34:43,320 --> 00:34:46,800 witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you 601 00:34:46,800 --> 00:34:49,360 keep this commandment without spot. 602 00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:56,480 Stay in the fight blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ's 603 00:34:56,679 --> 00:35:02,040 appearing. This is the timeline of this 604 00:35:02,320 --> 00:35:05,240 command. He did not write to Timothy and 605 00:35:05,240 --> 00:35:08,360 say put things in order and then you'll be finally the church 606 00:35:08,360 --> 00:35:11,120 will be good and you can kind of sit back and it'll all work like 607 00:35:11,200 --> 00:35:15,040 a like a giant mousetrap. He says this is going to 608 00:35:15,040 --> 00:35:20,880 continue until the Lord comes. The church age that we live in, 609 00:35:21,680 --> 00:35:27,520 we are called to be part of how God wants to raise up people 610 00:35:27,520 --> 00:35:31,880 that are living by faith, that are giving glory to His name and 611 00:35:31,880 --> 00:35:34,800 His name alone. And are an example to a lost and 612 00:35:34,800 --> 00:35:40,080 dying world of what it means to live out the call of God in 613 00:35:40,080 --> 00:35:43,320 their lives until the coming of the Lord. 614 00:35:44,400 --> 00:35:48,400 And this is the motivation that I leave all of you with. 615 00:35:48,400 --> 00:35:53,160 Now in the trustworthy motivation gospel, Luke says 616 00:35:53,160 --> 00:35:57,120 when the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth? 617 00:35:58,360 --> 00:36:01,320 When the Son of Man comes, will he find people that have not 618 00:36:01,320 --> 00:36:04,800 stopped waiting for his return? They stepped, they kept on 619 00:36:05,280 --> 00:36:07,440 waiting and trusting in his ways. 620 00:36:08,760 --> 00:36:12,400 And when will his return be? Verse 15. 621 00:36:13,280 --> 00:36:18,240 He will manifest this in his own time, He who is blessed the only 622 00:36:18,240 --> 00:36:22,960 potent, the king of kings and Lord of Lords, who alone has 623 00:36:22,960 --> 00:36:27,560 immortality, dwelling in in unapproachable light, whom no 624 00:36:27,560 --> 00:36:33,880 man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. 625 00:36:35,280 --> 00:36:39,800 When Paul ends the commencement speech to Timothy by having 626 00:36:39,800 --> 00:36:43,760 Timothy lift up his eyes in the middle of the trench warfare for 627 00:36:43,760 --> 00:36:46,720 the Church of Ephesus, in the middle of the chaos of the 628 00:36:46,720 --> 00:36:51,160 church age we live in, Paul says, look, that's worth 629 00:36:51,160 --> 00:36:54,640 fighting for. That is a motivation that is 630 00:36:54,640 --> 00:36:58,760 worth anything you could ever trade your soul for on earth. 631 00:36:59,640 --> 00:37:04,760 The king of kings is on his way, the Lord of Lords, who alone has 632 00:37:04,760 --> 00:37:08,680 immortality, who alone has everlasting power. 633 00:37:08,760 --> 00:37:12,000 What Paul is saying is you think that earthly wealth means wealth 634 00:37:12,000 --> 00:37:14,040 means anything. What do the rich want? 635 00:37:14,040 --> 00:37:16,000 They want to live forever and have endless power. 636 00:37:17,000 --> 00:37:21,200 And guess who has that? The only one who has that, he 637 00:37:21,200 --> 00:37:24,840 will. He alone is immortal and he 638 00:37:24,840 --> 00:37:28,040 alone has endless power. He alone is the King of Kings, 639 00:37:28,160 --> 00:37:32,760 He alone is the Lord of Lords. He is on top of the ladder to 640 00:37:32,760 --> 00:37:39,640 success and he is the only motivation for your life. 641 00:37:40,960 --> 00:37:44,360 He is coming quickly and you will meet Him in the blink of an 642 00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:46,680 eye. And all of the things you could 643 00:37:46,680 --> 00:37:50,000 be distracted by to hold in your hands, to acquire for the wealth 644 00:37:50,000 --> 00:37:53,120 of your life to live for, to be trapped in the temptation, in 645 00:37:53,120 --> 00:37:56,520 the snare of the deceitfulness of riches will vanish away. 646 00:37:56,720 --> 00:38:05,840 And you will stand in His glory. And He will either say, well 647 00:38:05,840 --> 00:38:12,760 done or I never knew you. The trustworthy church, the 648 00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:18,440 trustworthy believer, the trustworthy person has one aim 649 00:38:18,440 --> 00:38:21,080 for his life. It is not money. 650 00:38:21,880 --> 00:38:25,080 It is not gaining a church full of followers. 651 00:38:25,720 --> 00:38:27,920 It is not being right about every doctrinal issue. 652 00:38:28,720 --> 00:38:33,000 It is a vision of the glory of God that is so real. 653 00:38:33,760 --> 00:38:37,560 And you've put all of your faith in the person of Jesus. 654 00:38:38,600 --> 00:38:43,520 And a church that does that is a church that God will bless.