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Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to 2 Timothy 3. 2 Timothy 3, we're gonna take a 
few weeks off from our study in the book of the Acts of the 
Apostles. July 14th, we'll resume as we 
consider the Ethiopian eunuch there, a good sermon or a good 
passage rather for our baptism service on that Sunday. So beginning 
in chapter three of 2 Timothy at verse one. But know this, 
that in the last days perilous times will come, for men will 
be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, 
disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, 
slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, 
headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of 
God. having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from 
such people turn away. For of this sort are those who 
creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded 
down with sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never 
able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Janus and 
Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth, 
men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith. But they 
will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest 
to all, as theirs also was. But you have carefully followed 
my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, long-suffering, 
love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to 
me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra, what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord 
delivered me. Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ 
Jesus will suffer persecution. But evil men and imposters will 
grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. But you must 
continue in the things which you have learned and been assured 
of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood 
you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise 
for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture 
is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, 
for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 
that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every 
good work. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
Father, we thank you for this beautiful day. We thank you for 
your handiwork and for the demonstration of your righteousness and glory 
in the created order. We thank you for your providence 
in our lives, the way you watch over us. We thank you for the 
healthy birth of Ivy Marie and for the many blessings that you 
pour upon the people of this church. And God, we thank You 
for redemption through our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank You that 
You made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might 
become the righteousness of God in Him. And as we come on this 
Lord's Day to worship You, we pray that You would be glorified, 
that You would be honored and exalted, that we would come to 
the Father through the Son in the power of the Holy Spirit. 
And even now we pray that you would forgive us for our sins 
and our transgressions, that you would wash us in the blood 
of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that you would grant us freely 
your Holy Spirit so that we may receive your word. And we ask 
these things through Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, one of the 
things we've noticed in our studies in Genesis on Wednesday night 
is the various difficulties and hardships and trials that Abraham 
faced in his life. And he was a man of faithfulness. 
He was not a perfect man. He certainly presented in Scripture 
as a good and a faithful man. But again, not a perfect man. 
But one of the things we observed this past Wednesday night is 
the necessity for perseverance in the midst of hardship and 
trial. In Genesis 21, Abraham is called 
upon to banish his son Ishmael. He wasn't thrilled about that 
particular news. Sarah said, cast out the bondwoman 
and her son. And it says that Abraham was 
very displeased by this, but then God said that this is accurate, 
you need to do it. And then following chapter 21, 
where he has to banish his son Ishmael, he's then called upon 
in Genesis 22 to sacrifice his son Isaac. Now we are told in 
verse 1 that this was a test. We are alerted to the reality 
that God does not demand from his people child sacrifice. But 
this was an instance, rather, where God was testing Abraham. 
But the long and the short of it is, is that Abraham persevered 
in difficult times. It seems to me that this is the 
key to the Christian life, or one of the keys, to faithfully 
persevere through hardship and through trial. And I want us 
to focus particularly this morning on verses 1 to 9. This is Paul's 
call to faithfulness in perilous times. It's for the man of God, 
Timothy, but it was certainly for the church in Ephesus, and 
by extension, it's for the church in the 21st century. And essentially 
what we have is a call to recognize the danger facing the church 
in verse 1, a description of the danger in verses 2 to 5a, 
thirdly, an exhortation to avoid the danger in verses 5b to 8, 
and then finally, an encouragement in spite of the danger in verse 
9. It seems to me that when we are 
told that there are dangers or perilous times, we can respond 
with a fear and a trepidation and a withdrawal from those things 
that confront us. But Paul doesn't address it that 
way. In spite of the fact that there is this danger, in spite 
of the fact that there is this apostasy, in spite of the fact 
that there is this defection, The people of God must persevere, 
they must be encouraged, and they must remember that Christ 
is on the throne and he's building his church, and the gates of 
hell shall not prevail against it. So we'll look at those four 
things, the recognition, the description, the exhortation, 
and then finally the encouragement. So let's look first of all at 
the recognition of the danger in verse one. Paul tells Timothy, 
but know this, that in the last days perilous times will come. 
Now, this is an intriguing statement that the Apostle gives to Timothy 
in light of the context. Remember, Timothy is exhorted 
in chapter 2 to be a faithful man, to be a persevering man, 
to be a steadfast man. In verses 24 and 25 in chapter 
2, Timothy is told, A servant of the Lord must not 
quarrel, but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility 
correcting those who are in opposition. If God perhaps will grant them 
repentance so that they may know the truth and that they may come 
to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been 
taken captive by him to do his will. So Timothy must be faithful 
to try and win back people that have gone astray. That's the 
emphasis there in 2, 24 to 26. But Timothy must also be wise 
and not engage with those men that dig in their heels, that 
have hardened their hearts, that are opponents to the faith, opponents 
to Christianity. In that instance, in the one 
that Paul describes there in chapter three, Timothy must avoid 
such men. Timothy must be on guard against 
such men, and Timothy must not have truck with such men. Notice, 
know this, he says, know this for yourself, Timothy, but know 
this as well for the church, because the gospel minister not 
only has a responsibility to feed the flock, to tend to the 
lambs, but he also has the responsibility to drive away the wolves. He 
must spot and recognize false teachers. He must spot and recognize 
those corrupting influences in the church. And he must, by the 
grace of God, seek to drive those men out so they don't have effect 
on or wreak havoc in the life of the church. So Paul says, 
you need to know this. You need to recognize this. You 
need to understand that this is the reality. Now, when he 
speaks about the last days, we oftentimes put 2 Timothy 3, 1 
to 9 into our future. That's the usual way that persons 
appeal to or address 2 Timothy chapter 3. They say, well, in 
the last days, these things are going to happen. The last days 
is an identifier for the time of the Messiah. The Old Testament 
prophets spoke of the last days or the latter days, and we see 
the New Testament apostles use that same language, and it describes 
the time period between the ascension of Jesus Christ and the second 
coming of our Lord. That's the last days. We are 
in the last days, but so was Timothy. Paul does not say to 
Timothy, in the last days, horrible things are gonna happen. Aren't 
you gonna be happy that you're not a part of it? No, he says, 
avoid such men. He says, reject such men, resist 
such men, which indicates that Timothy himself is living in 
the last days. So the last days is not in our 
future, but the last days is upon us. the time between the 
ascension of our Lord and the second coming. Now, notice what 
verse 1 says. Know this, that in the last days 
perilous times will come. The ESV has times of difficulty. The NIV renders it terrible times. All good translations. And as 
Paul goes on to describe why they are, in fact, terrible times, 
I think we'd all agree. I think we'd all say absolutely 
positively. These are, in fact, difficulties. 
These are, in fact, terrible things. These are, in fact, perilous 
times. So we need to be mindful, in 
terms of this brief statement in chapter 3, verse 1, that there 
are dangers out there. And when we consider it, if we 
look at, say, Old Covenant Israel, and we look at the New Covenant 
Israel, the church, there's always two different types of threats. 
There's those enemies from without, the Philistines in the Old Testament, 
the Roman state in the New Testament. But then there's those enemies 
within, those corrupting influences, the apostates and unbelievers 
within Old Covenant Israel. And this passage deals with corrupting 
influences within the context of the local church. In other 
words, much of what Paul says here is very parallel to Romans 
chapter 1. But a distinguishing difference 
is the reality that these people have a form of godliness, but 
they deny its power. Paul is speaking about corrupting 
influences within the context of the local church. He's not 
telling Timothy, beware of the Roman state. He's not telling 
Timothy, beware of Islam. He's telling Timothy to beware 
of those corrupting influences that creep into the context of 
the local church and start to derail people and start to shipwreck 
people when it comes to the truth of Christianity. And we need 
to understand that for our own context and our own lives. Now 
notice, secondly, the description of the danger in verses 2 to 
5a. Notice the focus in verse 2. 
He says, for men. That's your problem. Notice it's 
not the environment. It's not that we need to green 
everything or else the church is going to be ruined. That's 
not the issue for the Apostle Paul. It is men that is the corrupting 
influence. It's not natural catastrophes. 
Well, earthquakes are going to come, and hurricanes are going 
to come, and tornadoes are going to come. That's not Paul's emphasis. That's not the danger confronting 
the church. The danger confronting the church are men. Men that 
are corrupt. men that don't think God's thoughts 
after him, men that see religion as a means of gain, men that 
see religion as a means of exploitation, men that see religion as a means 
to exalt themselves. Men are the problem. In fact, 
John Calvin makes the observation. He says what he makes the hardship 
of those dangerous or troublesome times to consist. not in war, 
nor in famine, nor in disease, nor in any calamities or inconveniences 
to which the body is incident, but in the wicked and depraved 
actions of men. That's our problem. It's not 
the environment. Again, it's not the catastrophes. 
The problem is man. And that's where Paul emphasizes 
with Timothy. And now he's going to describe 
the specific characteristics involved. Notice the list of 
sins. Again, it's very similar to Romans 
7. Romans 1, we call these vice lists, lists of vices, lists 
of bad things, lists of wicked characteristics. There are 17 
adjectives here and there are two contrasts. We're not going 
to go through each of the adjectives and all of the contrasts. I just 
want to sort of categorize what's happening in terms of this danger 
facing the church by way of godless men. Notice the sin of pride. The sin of pride. When we move 
on in this passage, it will be evident and it will be obvious. These are the sorts of people 
that creep into the households of gullible women who are loaded 
down with various lusts because they can't face their own sort 
of equals. They have to prey on the weak. 
They are proud men and they're full of themselves and they need 
to exalt themselves in a way that is unrighteous. Well, Paul 
speaks of their pride in a couple of different ways. He calls them 
boasters. They boast. They're full of themselves. You say, well, I don't know what 
these sorts of people look like. Yeah, you do. I mean, this is 
a common sin, isn't it? And you know what one looks like 
every time you look in the mirror to shave or to do your hair. 
I mean, we all have this issue. Again, we're not suggesting none 
of these things are present in the true church. Because of remaining 
corruption, these things are present in the true church to 
some degree or other. But these are not remaining problems. 
These are reigning sins in the lives of these particular adherents. 
They're proud men. They're boasters. Notice as well, 
he says, they are proud, and as well, they are headstrong. 
You want to see some headstrongness? Do a theological debate on Twitter 
or on Facebook and see the headstrongness. It's not a real great location 
for people to admit they're wrong and to admit their faults. No, 
they dig in, and they're headstrong, and they have to make everybody 
know that they're right. He then speaks of a lack of goodness, 
and this is referred to as being unthankful and despisers of good. There's this general climate 
of a lack of goodness that obtains among these people. They're unthankful. They're despisers of good. Can 
you imagine that? Despising good? We may have a 
problem in terms of remaining corruption from fully appreciating 
the good, but to despise the good is a diabolical trait. There 
is something good. By definition, we ought to prize 
it. We ought to praise it. We ought 
to be about it. But because of our sinful tendencies, 
we don't always appreciate it. But these men actually despise 
the good, and they're unthankful. Unthankfulness is characteristic 
of the ungodly. Paul describes this in Romans 
1. Man's biggest problem is that 
he doesn't glorify God as God, nor is his heart thankful. Before 
Paul gets to the vice list in Romans 1, those are the two prevailing 
things. They don't glorify God as God, 
and their hearts aren't thankful. It's from that vantage point 
that all of these vices proceed. And the same is true here. As 
well, he mentions disobedience to parents. It's always intriguing 
to me that these vice lists contain disobedience to parents. If you 
see somebody in the world that is ungodly, lawless, wretched, 
and genuinely committed to despising good, I guarantee you it probably 
didn't develop in their adulthood. It was probably symptomatic of 
their childhood. It was symptomatic of their youth. 
They don't honor parents. They don't obey parents. They 
don't listen to parents. They're despisers of parents. 
And this is what's happening here. Notice as well, he says, 
they practice slander. They engage in slander. Go back 
to 2.6 for just a moment. The hardworking, I'm sorry, 2.26. 
In 2.26, and that they may come to their senses and escape the 
snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his 
will. Well, as Paul highlights the wickedness of these particular 
people, he says that they are Well, that's a function of the 
devil. Those who are enslaved by the 
devil to do his will will certainly ape the devil when it comes to 
slander. See, this is, again, something 
that's not absent from the true church. We need to guard our 
hearts here, brethren. We ought not to be slanderers. 
We ought not to be gossips. We ought not to be those whisperers 
that say, hey, have you heard the latest about so-and-so? If 
it's not about you, it's none of your business. Keep it to 
yourself. But this is a reigning sort of 
a mindset with these people. They are slanderers. Notice what 
else he says. They have no self-control. They 
are without self-control. And this is a terrible thing. 
We emphasize control by the state today. Some emphasize control 
by the church. Well, self-control comes first. 
Self-government always ought to come first. If persons govern 
themselves properly, you won't need so much on the other end. 
But these men have no self-control. They're about themselves and 
whatever pleases them. And then notice they engage in 
treason. Verse 4, Paul says, traitors. 
It's an amazing statement, isn't it? Traitors against Christianity. The word or later Christian writings 
used it of blasphemy and apostasy. So it's a pretty bleak picture 
that Paul paints with reference to the church here. But there's 
also three prevailing philosophies that are here. I got this from 
Andy Hamilton. I make no bones about it. Andy 
Hamilton, I thought, summarized this passage very well to demonstrate 
three prevailing philosophies, three sorts of things that mark 
individuals in the world, to be sure. But again, as Paul is 
saying to Timothy, this is obtaining in the church. Notice these three 
philosophies. In the first place, there's a 
secular humanism. A secular humanism. Why do we 
think that? Because Paul says they will be 
lovers of themselves. Isn't that what secular humanism 
is all about? Man is the measure of all things. 
I'm the most important person on the face of the earth. Me, 
myself, and I, that godless unholy trinity that I constantly exalt 
and I constantly parade. Secular humanism is wretched. 
It is a loving of self. But notice another prevailing 
philosophy, materialistic idolatry. Say, well, I don't see this. 
Just go to any store. Just witness any group of people. 
Materialistic idolatry. They're lovers of money. I don't 
think that means, kids, that they have piles of money and 
they roll around in it. It's what money provides. It's 
what money produces. It's what money can buy. Again, 
we're all in the world and we all have money and we all are 
to use it properly and to be good stewards, but we're not 
to be mastered by it. But these persons are lovers 
of money, which is materialistic idolatry. But then there's what's 
called hedonism. Hedonism is when I really love 
myself. I think there's a sense where 
every creature loves himself. Jesus says we are to love our 
neighbors as ourselves. But there's a general frame of 
reference there. We love ourselves in the sense 
that we eat properly. We love ourselves in the sense 
that we walk. We love ourselves in the sense that we rest. We 
love ourselves in the sense that we move out of, you know, trains, 
or when trains are coming, we don't drive our cars in front 
of them. But this lovers of self, It's this worship. It's this 
adoration. I'm sorry, lovers of pleasure. 
It's this pursuit of pleasure and things that we crave and 
that feed our bodies. So, this idea that we have to 
have these things in order to have pleasure. There is a humanism, 
an idolatry, and a sensuality that Paul says. But notice again 
the location of this problem. In verse 5, he says, having a 
form of godliness, but denying its power. Sad, isn't it? You'd like to think that when 
you come to church, you don't have to deal with these sorts 
of things. You come to church and you're with your fellows. 
We all have our struggles. We all have our remaining corruption. 
There is no perfect church. We need to remind ourselves of 
those things, because if we don't, we're always going to be let 
down. If we think there are perfect churches, we are always going 
to be let down. If we think there are perfect 
pastors, I'm going to tell you, you're always going to be let 
down. I guarantee you. If you think that your brothers 
and sisters that are sitting near you right now looking all 
polished and nice and smelling good because they had showers 
and all that, we all have issues and problems. We all struggle. We all have remaining corruption. 
We all have remaining hypocrisy. We all say with the Apostle Paul, 
the good that I wish to do, I don't do. The evil I don't want to 
do, I find myself doing. We say with the Apostle Paul 
in Galatians 5.17, the flesh lusts against the spirit, and 
the spirit lusts against the flesh, and these two are contrary 
to one another, so that you don't do the things that you want. 
So we have that, definitely, but there are some in whom it's 
not remaining, it's reigning. And he says they have a form 
of godliness, but they deny its power. I don't think he's talking 
about Islam. I don't think he's talking about 
other major world religions. He's talking about Christianity. 
They have a form of godliness. On the outside, they have that 
glitter that gold has, but they deny the very power of it. And 
in the context, it's false teachers. It's men coming to churches, 
men that look polished, men that look like they know what they're 
talking about, men that may even sound like they know what they're 
talking about, but they're wrong. They're false. They're off. They're 
deniers of the faith. And the apostle says, you need 
to watch out for these men. And that brings us to the exhortation 
to avoid them. Well, before that, Calvin says, 
they whom he briefly describes are not external enemies who 
openly assail the name of Christ, but domestics who wish to be 
reckoned among the members of the church. I think this one's 
more difficult because we like to give people the benefit of 
the doubt, don't we? We like to give the judgment of charity, 
and we should. We're not supposed to be those 
people that, you know, somebody says one little, oh, wow, I can't 
believe it. You're an apostate. You're a hater of Christ. No, 
don't do that. We need to be able to cut people some slack 
and to demonstrate love and charity and kindness. But Paul ain't 
dealing with that. He's dealing with devilish men 
who are trying to captivate the hearts of people the way that 
Absalom captivated the hearts of Israel and took the kingdom 
away from King David. This is absolutely, positively 
wicked. Gordon Clark says, undoubtedly, 
pagan persecutions are perilous times, but internal subversion 
is also perilous and perhaps more so. If you read through 
Old Covenant Israel, you read through the Old Testament, you 
see that they had their external problems to be sure, but it was 
the internal problems. It was when they were walking 
to Molech and throwing their babies in the arms of this demon 
God. It was when they were corrupted 
by marrying pagans. It was when they were corrupted 
by a whole host of things and led astray and drawn away. See, 
we can't rest on our knees and think, well, everything's gonna 
be okay always. No, Paul says there is this danger facing the 
church today. and you need to be aware of it. 
Now notice thirdly, the exhortation to avoid it. Verse 5b, he says, 
and from such people turn away. From such people turn away. So 
in chapter 2, verses 24 to 26, Timothy expresses patience, or 
he's supposed to, and he's to attempt to win people back. He 
wants them to fish. But if the persons are this kind 
of men, he wants them to cut bait. He doesn't want to retain 
them. He doesn't want to try to recoup 
them. He's not supposed to try and go after them, but rather 
he is to avoid them like the plague. Why do you think that 
is? Because the corrupting influence of evil is really powerful. See, 
we have this zany idea that we're so holy and godly, we can go 
out into the world and affect everybody for good. You see this 
sometimes when people date or when they get married. A Christian 
will date or marry a non-Christian. Well, I'm going to win them to 
the Lord. Well, that's a nice sentiment, but there's a couple 
problems. One, you're commanded not to marry unbelievers. I mean, 
that's basic and fundamental. But two, the problem is that 
oftentimes the unbelievers win. When God tells Israel to go into 
Canaan and dispossess the land of the Canaanites, He says, I 
don't want you to have any social interaction with them. Vis a 
vis, don't marry their daughters, don't marry their sons. I want you to have obviously 
no political sort of truck with them. You're not supposed to 
do the body politic with the Canaanites. And you're also not 
to have any religious sort of affinity with that. You're supposed 
to destroy their altars. You're supposed to destroy their 
instruments of worship. Why is that? Is God mean? Is 
God vicious? Is God unkind? No, God knows 
the hearts of Israel. That if they don't rid the land 
of those Baals, they're going to be bowing to Baal, and that's 
exactly what subsequent history would reveal. They didn't dispossess 
the land, and then they end up acting like the Canaanites. Brethren, 
it is not the case that we are so godly and so holy that we're 
going to affect everybody positively for good. At some point, at some 
time, and this requires great wisdom, pastors and godly people 
need to allow people to cut bait, to go. And in this instance, 
the apostle tells Timothy, avoid them. The verb, according to 
one man, is a strong one, implying that Timothy is to avoid them 
with horror. Present imperative indicates 
that this should be a continual habit of life. What's that mean? That means that everything's 
not roses and fairies and meadows and unicorns and dancing and 
happy. It's not that way. We all have 
to persevere. It may not be in the banishment 
of Ishmael. It may not be in the sacrifice of Isaac. But persevering 
to the very end means to be aware of the dangers that are out there 
and sometimes in here and to guard our hearts against it. 
Because if we cozy up to false teachers, what's going to happen? We're going to end up believing 
they're garbage and be led astray. Paul deals with a couple of men 
in these epistles called Hymenaeus and Philetus. Hymenaeus and Philetus 
taught that the resurrection had already occurred. You say, 
well, that's outlandish. I haven't seen Jesus. That's 
crazy talk. Well, Hymenaeus and Philetus 
were able to convince a group of people and they made shipwreck 
of the faith. See, brethren, we need to be 
on guard. We need to be watchful. We need to be prayerful. We need 
to be vigilant. We need to be faithfully persevering 
in the midst of danger. Those dangers that are outside 
and those dangers that are inside. Now, notice what Paul does. He 
explains this in more detail. He gives them the exhortation 
to avoid the danger at the end of verse 5, and from such people 
turn away. Now he's going to explain this 
in a bit more detail in verses 6 and 7, and then he's going 
to give a comparison in verse 8. But notice in verses 6 and 
7 what these men do. They creep and they capture. 
A horrible way to be described, isn't it? You creep. They use 
that today. The kids use that today, right? 
I feel weird saying that nowadays. Oh, like the kids say. I still 
feel 18, but I'm not, obviously. But the kids say creep. They 
creep them on Facebook, or they creep them on Twitter, or they 
creep them on whatever. And what that all means, I don't 
know that I fully understand, but the word is suggestive of 
deceit. The word is suggestive of diabolicalness. The word is suggestive of coming 
in the back door. See, truth has no problem walking 
right in the front door. Truth has no problem with coming 
right out in the open. Truth has no problem dealing 
with its equals, men teaching other men. But in this instance, 
look at what these guys do according to Paul in verses 6 and 7. He 
says, for of this sort, the people that he just described, those 
who have a form of godliness but deny its power, for of this 
sort are those who creep into households and make captives 
of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various 
lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge 
of the truth. Again, this idea that they creep, it's deceit. Now, we all know there's filters 
for the internet so that persons don't look at pornography. I've 
often thought there ought to be filters on the internet so 
people don't look at heresy. Heresy is dangerous. Heresy is 
pervasive. Anybody can do anything on the 
internet nowadays, can't they? I mean, just look at some of 
the stuff out there. Now, I would never, as a pastor 
in the church, tell you, here's a list of things you can and 
can't do. No, I'm not going to add to the word of God lest he 
rebuke me and I be found a liar. But I'm going to encourage you 
that not all that glitters out there is gold. And you need to 
be aware of that. One of the reasons why we use 
a confession of faith that was written in 1689 is because it 
has stood the test of time. It accurately reflects what the 
church from the beginning till now has confessed. It is a safe, 
proven, reliable, and trustworthy guide. It's a parameter. It's a hedge. It's a protective 
agent so that we don't go astray. When you're going up a mountain 
road, you like the fact that there's a guardrail on the side, 
or else you will go right off the edge and plummet to your 
death. And yet in the church, whatever we want, whatever we 
think, whatever... No, we need guardrails, brethren. 
We don't want to fly off the side of the road. We want Chalcedon 
to define for us what biblical Christology is, so that we don't 
end up heretics. So the Apostle Paul tells us, 
with reference to these men, that they creep, but then they 
also capture. Now, just so I can dispel the 
myth that Paul is anti-woman, he's not talking about all women. 
He's not talking about all women. Paul is not, in the language 
of George Bernard Shaw, the eternal enemy of women. That is not accurate 
whatsoever. Paul is the friend of women. 
He's using an example. Notice what he says in verse 
6. For of this sort are those who creep into households and 
make captives of gullible women. It's not saying all women are 
gullible. But there is, at least in Ephesus at the time, these 
households that were occupied with gullible women. And in these 
households that were occupied with gullible women that were 
also laden with various lusts and sins, these false teachers 
would prey on them. These false teachers would creep 
in there. These false teachers would come with the answers. 
These false teachers would come with the encouragements. These 
false teachers would come to exercise their control and power 
over them. That's what Paul is speaking 
to. In fact, not Knight describes what Paul says in terms of the 
grammar. He says Paul does not use the 
term to derogate women, but to describe a situation involving 
particular women. There are gullible men too. Let 
me tell you. Okay? But what Paul has in mind 
specifically with reference to the churches in Ephesus, the 
church in Ephesus, is this group of gullible women that are laden 
with sin, and these guys try to dominate. Paul does not use 
the term to derogate women, but to describe a situation involving 
particular women that he uses a diminutive form shows, that's 
of the word, that he is not intending to describe women in general. 
To get that from this text is inaccurate, it's wrong, and that's 
not what Paul is saying. In the church at Ephesus, there 
was a group of gullible women that were laden with lust, and 
these false teachers preyed on them. On the one hand, it's a 
statement concerning the pity that ought to be shown for these 
poor women. The main point is to show how 
terrible these men are. I've often thought about that. 
Cults, you know, they go door to door during the day. Come 
at night when the men are home. Now, I'm not saying a woman can't 
hold her own at the door, but I don't want two dudes from a 
cult talking to my wife during the day when I'm not there. That's 
a usurpation of God's created order. It's not legit. It's not 
right. And these men go into these houses 
where they know that these women are prey. It's not a statement 
about bad women. It's a statement about these 
wretched men that have a form of godliness, but they deny its 
power. Can you imagine? They won't stand 
in the ring with Timothy. They won't go toe-to-toe with 
the Apostle Paul. They will go to these poor women 
that should be pitied, cared for, encouraged, and nurtured. 
not manipulated, not twisted, not distorted, not brought to 
a place where they're in utter confusion. That's Paul's point 
in the passage. It is a pathetic but all too 
common state. And again, it's not just with 
women, it's men too. Look at what he says in verse 
7. He says, always learning and 
never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. You've probably 
met people like that before. They're familiar with the Bible. 
They're familiar with religious teaching. But they go from Dan 
to Beersheba doctrinally. You have no idea where they're 
at, because they have no idea where they're at. They don't 
know if the Trinity is true. They don't know if justification 
by faith is true. They don't know about sanctification. They 
don't know any of these things, because they know tiny bits about 
a whole lot of stuff. Those kind of people, you want 
to say, here's a good Bible, and here's a confession of faith. 
Here's your guardrails. Don't go off the cliff. But isn't 
that, again, I don't know if you ever met these people. They're 
always learning, but they never come to a knowledge of the truth. 
There's people that are very curious. There's people that 
are very interested. There's people that have a desire 
to learn what the Bible says. Well, they click on the wrong 
guy, and they're not going to learn what the Bible says whatsoever. It intrigues me that when I go 
to these thrift stores and I see books that say what the Bible 
says about such and such. More often than not, the Bible 
says nothing of the kind. There's a man by the name of 
N.T. Wright. He's reworking the doctrine of 
justification by faith with reference to the Apostle Paul. He wrote 
a book called What St. Paul Really Said. Another scholar 
said he should have named the book What St. Paul Never Said. We have to be careful, brethren. 
But these men are perverse, they prey upon these gullible women, 
these poor women that are always learning but never able to come 
to the knowledge of the truth. Now notice comparison in verse 
eight. Verse eight he says, now as Janus, 
he's still talking about these particular men, and he says, 
now as Janus and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist 
the truth. Men of corrupt minds disapprove 
concerning the faith. Now the reference, Janus and 
Jambres, they're not mentioned by name in Exodus, but pagans 
and Jews together believe that this is what Paul's speaking 
about. They've identified these magicians, or at least two of 
the primary ones at the time of Moses and Pharaoh as Janus 
and Jambres. And so the apostle Paul is linking 
these men in the situation that Timothy is facing with these 
men back in the times of Moses. And he says specifically, Just 
as Janus and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist 
the truth. They are men of corrupt minds, 
disapproved concerning the faith." Now, notice what they do. The 
similarity between the magicians and the similarity with these 
apostates. They resist truth. That's the problem with these 
guys. They're men of corrupt minds. You see where the emphasis 
lies? Certainly they've got bad morality 
and certainly they've got bad ethics. If they love themselves, 
they love money and they love pleasure. Those are bad things 
with reference to the actions of a man. But what Paul has in 
the crosshairs is that they're men of corrupt minds. They resist 
the truth of God's Holy Word, because the reality is that when 
you internalize God's Holy Word, there is a doctrine that accords 
with godliness according to Paul in Titus chapter 1. So these 
men are corrupt in their minds, they're corrupt in the way they 
think, they're corrupt in their doctrine of justification, they're 
corrupt in their doctrine of the Trinity, they're corrupt 
in their doctrine of Christ, and as a result they live like 
heathen. And so Paul says they're just 
like those magicians. They're just like Janus and Jambres. 
They're just like those guys who resisted the truth as Moses 
spoke. They don't want the Word of God. That's it, fundamentally. It 
all comes back to that, doesn't it? It always comes back to that. What think ye of the word? You 
say with the psalmist, the entirety of your word is truth, therefore 
I love it, or the entirety of your word is truth, therefore 
I despise it, I hate it, I loathe it, I want to get far, far away 
from it. I want to manipulate it, I want 
to use it, massage it enough so that I can prey on gullible 
women and get a following. See, men who are conquered by 
the truth go wherever the truth takes them. But men who want 
to conquer the truth, manipulate it, massage it, and do whatever 
it is they think will benefit themselves. That's who Paul is 
talking about in the context of the local church. The false 
teachers are disapproved concerning the faith. So do these also resist 
the truth, men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith. 
Isn't that a beautiful statement, disapproved concerning the faith? There is objectivity to Christianity. It's not a free-for-all. You 
don't get to believe whatever you want. The church, the Bible, 
theology, biblical truth ain't Canada, ain't America. You don't 
have the liberty to be wrong when it comes to thinking God's 
thoughts after Him. You certainly do as a Canadian. 
You can believe whatever it is you want, as long as you don't 
harm people. Well, and as long as it's not the truth. At least 
that's where we're heading. But you understand. But with 
reference to God, it's not open for debates. It's not open to 
be massaged. It's not open to be manipulated 
or twisted. There is an objectivity about 
the Christian faith, and Paul says they are disapproved concerning 
the faith. Again, another plug for the confession 
of faith. What has the church as a whole 
described in terms of the objectivity of the faith? Is it, you know, 
the pastor woke up on a Sunday morning and said, let's all speak 
in tongues? No. Is it the pastor woke up on Sunday 
morning and said, let's all do that? No. There's an objectivity 
about the Christian faith through exegetical prowess, through reading 
the Bible, through study, through good hermeneutics, through all 
the things that the church has recognized are are good for understanding 
and getting at the text of Scripture, there's objectivity to it. We 
ought to be able to spot or tell if somebody is defective in their 
theology. And again, I'm not talking about 
some of the things that differentiate God's people, those intramural 
debates where we have legitimate issues and differences. That's 
not what's in view. These men have departed from 
the truth of God. And Paul says they are recognized 
for that. Now notice, finally, This is 
a bleak picture, isn't it? Before we get to the encouragement, 
it's not very encouraging what Paul portrays here. We are in 
the last times. The last times are going to have 
perilous times. The last days are going to have 
perilous times, difficulty, terrible hardship. You know, we see descriptions 
given of these men, this humanism, this idolatry, this hedonism, 
the sorts of things that make the godly people Again, we have 
these remaining corruptions, but we see that, we say, that's 
not right, that's terrible, that's wicked. And then Paul says they 
have a form of godliness, but they deny its power. So it's 
not the external enemies, it's not the Philistines out there, 
but it's the professing believers within here. That's a discouraging 
and bleak picture, isn't it? I mean, if there was no verse 
9, we could all be dispensationalists. If there was no verse 9, we could 
all toe the line with the guy who says, why polish the brass 
on a sinking ship? But there is a verse 9, and the 
people of God unfortunately forget that. Look at what Paul says 
by way of encouragement in spite of the danger in verse 9. He 
says, but they will progress no further, for their folly will 
be manifest to all, as theirs also was. So they, the false 
teachers that Paul is warning Timothy about, will progress 
no further, for their folly, they, the false teachers that 
Timothy is to be warned about, their folly will be manifest 
to all, as theirs also was, Janus and Jambres. Do you ever come 
away from the book of Exodus saying, boy, I'm so thankful 
for those magicians. What great guys. Nobody does 
that. They were the losers, weren't 
they? Yeah, they lost tremendously. They couldn't replicate the plague 
of lice. And when it came to the plague 
of boils, guess who got affected with boils too? the magicians. So Janus and Jambres, for all 
of their pomp and all of their show and all of their ability, 
at least at the lower level, are there standing or covered 
in boils. They didn't win that exchange. Nobody celebrates the magician. I imagine there's a group out 
there that does celebrate those magicians. I would imagine you 
could find the YouTube video somewhere that, oh, yeah, these 
were great guys, victorious and wonderful. You know, that's not 
the big majority of people. They lost. They were exposed 
as frauds. They were exposed as shams. They 
were exposed as men that did not have the power of God. Just like Simon the sorcerer, 
when he comes, or when Philip comes and he preaches the gospel 
to him, this was a man who claimed to be someone great. People around 
him were chanting that he is the great power of God. Philip 
comes, Philip preaches, and even according to the text, he himself 
believed and was baptized. Nobody goes, wow, what great 
guys and their antagonism to the Word of God. Those are not 
heroes, brethren. Those are fools. Their folly will be evident to 
all. We looked at Proverbs 30, verse 
6 last week. Do not add to his words, lest 
he rebuke you and you be found a liar. History always, well, 
I hope, history always demonstrates who was right and who was wrong. 
And in this instance, Paul tells Timothy that like Janus and Jambres, 
these men are going to fail. Aaron's rod swallowed up the 
magicians. They couldn't duplicate the plague 
of lice and had to confess, this is the finger of God. They were 
covered with boils in the sixth plague. And again, nobody reads 
that book and says, wow, these are great. I want to be like 
these magicians. It's just like when you read 1 Samuel chapter 
17 and the Goliath or the Philistine champion Goliath is out there 
taunting the armies of Israel and Saul and the Israelite army 
are all afraid. And then David comes up and David 
says, who's this uncircumcised Philistine talking about the 
armies of the living God? Who of us as Bible readers want 
to identify with Saul and his army? None of us. What woman 
wants to marry Saul and his army? They want a David. Men want to 
be Davids. In the same instance, Paul says 
men want to be Timothys. Men want to be Pauls. Women want 
to marry Timothys. They want to marry Pauls. They 
don't want these kinds of guys that can't meet their fellows 
but go into houses of women who are gullible and loaded down 
with various lusts. Those are cowards. Those are 
fools. Those are men who creep. Those 
are the persons that engage in deception. These are persons 
that are described in vivid detail in verses 2 to 5 as being the 
sorts of people nobody wants to be around. So Paul tells Timothy, 
don't try to rehabilitate them, but avoid them. Flee from them. 
Have nothing to do with them. So they will not progress. Notice. We need to be vigilant, but we 
also need to guard against despair. We need to guard against despair. 
And I think this is what happens with this passage. You meet people 
that have a bad eschatology, a bad understanding of how things 
turn out at the end, and they say, well, it's just going to 
get worse and worse and worse and worse and worse. I'm not 
suggesting that there's going to be a utopia on earth. I'm 
not suggesting that man by himself, left unchecked by the grace of 
God, is ever going to get better or better or better. But at some 
point, brethren, we have to appreciate the book of Revelation when we 
are confronted with a great multitude that no man can number, from 
every tribe, every tongue, every people, and every nation that 
are assembled together before the throne of God and the Lamb 
who sits upon the throne. We have to reckon with the claims 
of Christ in Matthew 16, when he said, I will build my church 
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. So if your 
understanding of the danger causes you to go hide in your closet, 
you're not understanding it properly. Christ is over the danger. Christ is sovereign in the midst 
of the danger. Christ will build his church, 
and there is no place for the sorts of fear and trepidation 
that paralyzes the people of God. It happens in major movements. Persons in the early part of 
the 20th century, when a particular view of the end times took, didn't 
go on to higher education, didn't marry, didn't have babies, they 
were convinced the world was getting worse and worse and worse 
and Jesus was going to come any moment. Well, how'd that work 
out for them? Not well. We need to have a proper 
understanding of the danger that is there, but we ought to never 
lose focus upon Christ. You see that? The scriptures 
are filled with promises concerning the power of the gospel. Paul 
says, I'm not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of 
God unto salvation for everyone who believes, to the Jew first 
and also to the Greek. Why? Because in that gospel, 
the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, that as 
it is written, the just shall live by faith. The Lord Jesus 
Christ made the promise of building his church. Do you think Islam 
is going to stop him? Do you think Justin Trudeau is 
going to stop him? Do you think a band of fools in the context 
of a local church is going to stop King Jesus Christ? Never. If there is not a confident 
expectation in the power of Jesus and his gospel in the hearts 
of his people, then we haven't understood it. Yes, there's danger. Yes, there's persons to avoid. 
Yes, there's persons to guard against. But yes, there's a Christ 
who has purpose to save a multitude that no man can number. So brethren, 
be advised, but be encouraged. Calvin says he encourages Timothy 
for the contest by the confident hope of victory. For although 
false teachers give him annoyance, he promises that they shall be, 
within a short time, disgracefully ruined. disgracefully ruined. And we're not talking about the 
garden variety center that, you know, has his issues. We're talking 
about men that have taken a stand against Christ, against his word, 
and are trying to manipulate people and trying to exercise 
power and authority over them for whatever their twisted ends 
are. Those ones will be disgracefully ruined just as Janus and Jambres 
stood there covered in boils trying to protest the God of 
Israel. So be warned, but be encouraged. In terms of some concluding applications, 
first, we ought to appreciate the duty required of church members, 
church members, or by extension, attenders. You gotta know the 
truth, not exhaustively, not perfectly, because you're not 
God, but you gotta know the truth in the foundational basic principles 
of Christianity. I mean, I'm not saying, give 
me the proof for superlapsarianism. No. A basic understanding of 
the doctrine of the Trinity. an understanding of justification 
by faith, an understanding of the gospel, that the gospel isn't 
my feelings, the gospel isn't my story, the gospel isn't my 
experience, the gospel is the truth of Christ Jesus, that He 
came into this world, that He lived in obedience to the Father's 
law, that He died as a sacrifice at Calvary, that He was raised 
the third day, and with the thought, the reality, that everyone who 
looks to Him in faith will receive both forgiveness of sins and 
the righteousness of Christ. Beautiful thing. I fear, brethren, 
that outside of reformed circles that aren't taught and educated, 
people don't know these things. We're not talking about the quantum 
physics of theology. We're talking about the basic 
building blocks of theology, justification by faith alone. 
If you have a thought that you're going to go to heaven, in small 
part, based on your works, you're wrong. Absolutely, positively, 
100% wrong. The only way we go to heaven 
is based on the works of Jesus. His life, His death, His resurrection. The Apostle says it so clearly 
and in a summary fashion in Romans chapter 4. He says that Christ 
was delivered up because of our offenses and He was raised for 
our justification. You see, these are basic doctrines 
that the people of God must know and they must cherish. As well, 
the people of God must strive, by the grace of God, to let their 
conduct be worthy of that gospel. Philippians 127. Many emphases 
in the New Testament. In other words, what we believe 
concerning God ought to affect the way that we live with reference 
to God. Just because all that glitters 
is not gold is true, doesn't mean that gold doesn't glitter. 
We got to have some glitter. It's not going to be perfect 
glitter. It's not going to be, you know, impetuously great glitter. 
There's going to be a degree of glitter. Again, godliness 
is that fruit of understanding the truth of the gospel. And 
then the people of God must be discriminating with reference 
to those who teach the Word of God. They must be discriminating 
with reference to those who teach the Word of God. If Pastor Cam 
and I get blasted on the way home from church today, we're 
dead. Don't just let anybody into this 
pulpit, ever! Never, ever! Guard it. The way that you guard it is 
by discriminating, not based on ethnicity, not based on age 
or anything like that, but on biblical and theological acumen. If a guy doesn't know scripture 
or theology, he has no place in a pulpit. That's all there 
is to it. He could be a pilot, he could 
be a doctor, he could be whatever he wants. But if he can't handle 
accurately the word of truth, he has no business being in a 
pulpit. Why is this so obvious elsewhere 
but not in the church? If I wandered down to Vancouver 
General Hospital and I entered into the operating theater, the 
surgery room, and I said, I'm going to do this brain surgery, 
everybody would, with shock and horror, say, no, you're not. 
You're not a brain surgeon. Oh, yeah. Well, it doesn't matter. 
I'm going to get in there and finagle around and do my best. 
We let that happen in the church all the time. Fools that have 
no clue whatsoever about basic doctrine are preaching in churches. I'm not picking on them, I'm 
picking on all of us. Brethren, these things ought 
not to be. 1 Timothy 3 determines what a man must be to serve in 
the eldership. Titus 1 determines what a man must be to serve in 
the eldership. And Revelation chapter 2, we 
always think about the church in Ephesus and all we remember 
about them is that they left their first love. They left her, 
they lost their first love, those dirty rotten scoundrels in Ephesus. 
Brethren, I don't think for a moment that they apostatized. I don't 
think for a moment that they abandoned their Savior. I don't 
think for a moment that they had stopped being believers. 
They had been weary in the battle because they tested those who 
claim to be apostles and were not. Here's my take on the brethren 
in Ephesus, which, by the way, is the church that Timothy is 
in ministering to. Paul gives them the qualifications 
for elders. These guys show up at the church, 
and they say, we're apostles. And so the church responsibly 
and rightly says, OK, sit down. We're going to run you through 
the gamut. We're going to take you from Dan to Beersheba with 
reference to Bible and theology, and we're going to test you. 
We're going to see if your claims are accurate or if they're not. 
And in the midst of that, probably these guys didn't like it. Well, 
what do you mean you test me? Well, what do you mean? Never 
trust a guy who isn't open for scrutiny. Never trust a man who's 
not going to put his money where his mouth is when it comes to 
his theological commitments. So they probably had a lot of 
battles. And in the midst of those battles, yeah, they lost their 
first love in the sense that they weren't red hot, fired up 
for Jesus. The encouragement is, is get 
both. Fight those false apostles. Test 
those who say they are and aren't. But at the same time, reach Spurgeon 
and have great devotions and love Jesus. It's not an either-or, 
but a both-and. As well, there are duties for 
pastors. I think this text demands. First, they need to guard against 
external threats. They need to guard against internal 
threats, and they need to understand that the way they do those things 
is essentially the same, by being faithful with the Word of God. 
And I think here it is important for us, brethren, to have sort 
of a positive and a negative emphasis. There was a guy that 
ministered, and I don't know if he died or retired. He must 
have retired because he couldn't have said this if he was dead. 
But he retired, and he said, you know, I spent all these years 
teaching my people what to believe, and I never taught them what 
not to believe. It's like when we go through Birkhoff on Saturday 
morning. The false teachings of Rome, for instance, and the 
false teachings of other groups are the foil or the context in 
which we appreciate the gem of truth. There's times when people 
need to be warned. There's times when we need to 
understand. There are false guides out there. You're not supposed 
to like them. Again, it's hard because you 
can't dictate, can't tell people what they can and can't read, 
can't tell people where they can and can't click. But at the 
same time, you need to be on guard, and pastors need to be 
encouraging, not only in terms of truth, but as well with reference 
to error. Calvin says, Paul informs Timothy 
that the church will be subject to terrible diseases, which will 
require in the pastor's uncommon fidelity, diligence, watchfulness, 
prudence, and unwearied constancy, as if he enjoined Timothy to 
prepare for arduous and deeply anxious contests which awaited 
him. That's right. And then I quoted a bit of this 
quote earlier from Gordon Clark. I'm going to add to it. He says, 
undoubtedly, pagan persecutions are perilous times, but internal 
subversion is also perilous, and perhaps more so. He says, 
the duty of a pastor, therefore, the duty of a synod or general 
assembly, is to keep the church pure. The church cannot be pure 
in the sense of having only sinless members, or even of expelling 
all hypocrites, but it can, with vigilance, maintain its confessional 
standards. That's the task. Can pastors 
accurately see all the hypocrites and expel all the bad? No, but 
we can demand fidelity to God's holy word as summarized and encapsulated 
in our wonderful confession of faith. This is the means by which 
pastors exercise that vigilance and hopeful watchfulness so that 
this kind of stuff doesn't enter into the church. And then finally, 
Paul makes this reference. He makes it not only here, but 
in what's called the pastoral epistles, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, 
and Titus. Notice what he says in verse 
seven. He says, always learning and never able to come to the 
knowledge of the truth. There is this knowledge of the 
truth. Knowledge of the truth in 1 Timothy chapter two brings 
salvation. In other words, you cannot be 
saved by your works. You cannot be saved by your best 
deeds. You cannot be saved by moral 
reform. If you've heard this morning 
some of these sins mentioned, and you think to yourself, well, 
I'm going to go home, and I'm not going to love myself anymore. I'm going 
to go home, and I'm not going to love money anymore. I'm going 
to go home, and I'm not going to love pleasure anymore. Great, 
but that's not going to get you into heaven. The knowledge of 
the truth is crucial. The knowledge of Christ and Him 
crucified, the knowledge of a substitute at Calvary, the knowledge of 
a righteousness availing with God through Christ, that's the 
knowledge of the truth that brings salvation. In other words, when 
you hear that truth, that knowledge of the truth, you're supposed 
to believe it. You're supposed to embrace it. You're supposed 
to welcome it, whether you're young or old. You're not supposed 
to say, well, I'm a kid. I'll wait until I'm 50, like 
those really old people in the church. Don't say that. And then 
I'm going to believe this knowledge of the truth. No, believe it 
now. Paul says today is the day of salvation. Now is the acceptable 
time. Why do we think we have tomorrow? 
Why do you think you're going to make it to your business meeting 
on Wednesday? Why is it that we don't listen to James when 
he says, why are you boasting? Your life is like a vapor. It's 
here for a time, and then it's gone. Think about that teapot, 
that steam that flows out at the end of the teapot. It's there 
for a moment, but then it's gone. That's our lives, brethren. And 
we're not sure of having a tomorrow. We're not sure of having a rest 
of today. You say, well, he's trying to 
scare me. Maybe, yeah, you should think about it. Kids, young men 
especially, they're eight foot tall and bulletproof. Nothing 
will ever happen to me. You need to guard your hearts. 
You need to come to the Savior. You need to hear the knowledge 
of the truth. You need to believe that truth. That is most important 
today. That is the most important thing 
ever, is that you come to Jesus. That's the way of salvation. 
That's the way of blessedness. That's the way of joy unspeakable 
and full of glory. Christ, in the language of the 
Song of Solomon, is altogether lovely and chief among 10,000. 
Those who've been conquered by sovereign grace, yea and amen 
that, don't we? Don't we say with reference to 
Christ, He is altogether lovely. He is chief among 10,000. He 
has my heart. and I have by grace His righteousness 
and forgiveness." That's the most important thing facing you 
ever. What? Think ye of Christ. If you are not a believer, believe. If you are not saved, look unto 
Him and be ye saved. All the ends of the earth, God 
says to the prophet, for I am God and there is no other. Well, let us close in a word 
of prayer. Our Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you 
for the clarity