Well, you can turn with me to 1 Timothy chapter 4. 1 Timothy chapter 4. This will be the last message on the qualifications for elders. We looked at 1 Timothy chapter 3, verses 1 to 7, the qualifications proper. But here in 1 Timothy 4, verses 12 to 16, the Apostle Paul exhorts Timothy on how to conduct himself in the gospel ministry.
So it is, as it were, a fleshing out of the qualifications in the life and ministry of young Timothy. So I'll read beginning in verse 1 to the end of the chapter, and then our focus will be on verses 12 to 16. So verse 1, now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies and hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving.
For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed. but reject profane and old wise fables and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance.
For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe. These things command and teach. Let no one despise your youth,
Example in Word, Conduct, and Purity
but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things.
Give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you. Amen.
Well, let us pray. Father in heaven, we thank you that you've not left us alone in the world. You've given us the Spirit, and you've given us your Word from Genesis to Revelation. We rejoice in that, and we pray now that the Spirit of God Most High would lead us in our study of Holy Scripture.
We ask that you would provide for not just this church alone, But all the churches of Christ, men qualified, according to 1 Timothy chapter 3, men recognized by the church of the Lord Jesus, and men set apart for gospel ministry. As we read this morning, the harvester, as we saw our Lord Jesus teaching in Samaria to lift up their eyes and to see the fields white unto harvest, we know that such is the case today, so we pray that you'd raise up men that you would fit them, that you would send them forth to proclaim the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord, for the salvation of sinners, for the sanctification of the saints, and ultimately for the glory of God Almighty. Forgive us now for all of our sin, we pray, and we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
Introduction
Well, in 1 Timothy chapter 3, we notice the man's desire for ministry. Verse 1, if a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. He must have a longing, he must have a desire to undertake that particular work. Paul then turns attention to the man's personal conduct, and we see that in verses 2 and 3.
And then he shows the man's domestic faithfulness. Notice in verse 4, he needs to rule his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence, for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God? And then he moves from that consideration of domestic faithfulness to his experience in the faith. He must not be a neophyte.
He must not be a new convert. Now this is hard to quantify because there are certain situations that we see in the New Testament where men were established as elders who couldn't have been Christians for 10 plus years. So we need to make sure that we are mindful of context when it comes to the application of these qualifications. As well, the man must have a faithful testimony with those who are outside of the church, is what the implication is.
And then finally, we looked at his ability to teach. Though it's in verse 2, we saved it for the last, because it is that aspect that is not character or virtue, but actual gift and competency, where the man must have an aptness or an ability to teach. Now moving over to 1 Timothy 4, verses 12 to 16, the apostle here exhorts Timothy concerning his example, his public ministry, his personal growth, and his perseverance. So that's what's happening. in verses 12 to 16.
And again, I thought it would be a helpful sermon to cap off the study concerning the qualifications so that we have a full rounded view of what we ought to be looking for in terms of men that are set apart for gospel ministry.
The Minister's Example
So notice in the first place, the minister's example, verse 12. Secondly, the minister's public ministry, verses 13 and 14. Third, the minister's personal growth in verse 15. And then finally, the minister's perseverance in verse 16.
So let's take up the minister's example in the first place.
The Prohibition Against Despising Youth
Notice that the apostle gives a prohibition to Timothy. Verse 12, he says, let no one despise your youth. Now Timothy was most likely in his 30s about this particular time. A rabbi famously said that a person at 30 was fit for authority and at 40 he was fit for discernment.
Well, nowadays we have teenagers who have great discernment and 20-year-olds who like to battle with the pastors of the church on Facebook and show them up. Well, when it comes to this particular imperative, the Church of Christ is not to gauge the ministerial effectiveness based on a man's age. If you go back in the context, you will see why the apostle admonishes Timothy to let no one despise your youth. Look at verse 11.
These things command and teach, not suggest and not recommend. See, when it comes to gospel ministry, the pastor, the preacher, the elder, the man handling the word, he's not just giving you recommendations. He's not just kind of meekly offering up a few suggestions. No, he commands and he teaches.
Look over at Titus for just a moment, Titus chapter one, and see what the apostle says there. Titus chapter 1, specifically at verse 9. He says, "...holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and convict those who contradict." And then notice in chapter 2 at verse 15, "...speak these things, exhort and rebuke with all authority, let no one despise you." Not arrogance, not authority based on who you are, but as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord, as one who is tasked with preaching the word of the living God, you're not suggesting, you're not recommending, but in the language of 1 Timothy 4, verse 11, these things command and teach. What could be the possible temptation for older members in the congregation?
Who does this young buck think he is? Who does this young man think that he is telling us how we're supposed to function when it comes to the church of the living God? Paul says to Timothy, don't entertain that. Don't be kowtowed.
Don't shrink back from doing your job. Be faithful. Let no one despise your youth. The church is not to respect age, but rather the ministerial the ministry of the man of God himself.
As well, the admonition is not for the good of Timothy's self-esteem, but it's so that the message is not marred. In other words, it's not about Timothy. It's not about his fulfillment. It's not about his therapeutic relation to the life of the church.
No, if Timothy's youth is despised, if that becomes the issue, then the people of God are not receiving the word of God. Everything that Paul admonishes, everything that Paul exhorts, everything that Paul does in his life, in his ministry, and in his instructions to his young companion, Timothy and Titus, is for the advancement of the cause of God and truth. It is for the proclamation of the word, because Paul knows how important that word is. So he tells him, let no one despise your youth, but then notice, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
The example is imperative in the Christian life. We look around at others and we see their example. Turn to Philippians 3 for just one specimen passage. Philippians chapter 3 at verse 17.
Paul says, brethren, join in following my example and notice, note those who so walk as you have us for a pattern. In other words, watch and observe the apostolic minister, but then as well, watch and observe those who carry out what he does. And then notice the rationale or the reason. For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ.
There's no shortage of bad example. There's no shortage of bad people. There's no shortage of those out there you could follow into a life of debauchery and sin. But when it comes to finding example in the church, you have to scope them out.
You have to find them, you have to locate them, and when you do so, follow their example. So back in 1 Timothy chapter 4, let no one despise your youth, but rather Timothy, you function as an example to the believers. What's Paul's point? The best way to overcome what may be perceived as a weakness in terms of Timothy's youth is a life demonstrable of Christian maturity.
In other words, if he's faithfully doing what he's supposed to be doing, no one should care how old or how young he is. If he is fulfilling the task that God has entrusted to him, then no one should worry about whether he's in his 30s or whether he's not. Notice what he goes on to say. He says, but be an example to the believers, and then he lists a whole host of things.
Remember, the same sorts of things that we find in 1 Timothy 3, verses 1 to 7. So what Timothy is supposed to exemplify according to verse 12 here, and what we've seen is the virtues or the characteristics of a godly man in 1 Timothy 3, 1 to 7, again, is something every Christian should aspire to. Every man, every woman, every boy, every girl that professes faith in Jesus Christ should want to be what Paul envisages in these particular passages. When it comes to the selection of men for the eldership, they must have proven demonstrable evidences that they live in light of these things.
And so, in other words, Timothy possesses these, and as a result, Timothy can now model these things and exemplify them. He has these proven aspects of faithfulness in his life, and he can function in an exemplary manner. So he says, in word, be an example in word, his general conversation, the way that he conducts himself with reference to his tongue. There are prohibitions throughout the New Testament on the way that a man uses his tongue.
There's multiple admonitions in the book of Proverbs. And as Bridges comments on one of the Proverbs of Solomon, it is wise to think twice before we speak once. And I think that's what's in view here in terms of in word. Notice he then says, in conduct, which is consistent.
Not only what a man says, but how a man functions or how a man lives. Philip Towner says, conduct, that is, manner of life, how one lives, was a natural counterpart to speech in Greek and Jewish moral teaching. Together they encompassed most of the observable life. And especially for the teacher, the manner of life was to correspond to what was professed.
Makes sense, right? If you profess saving faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, you fall under the admonition to let your conduct be worthy of the gospel. So therefore, you will seek to be faithful in light of what God has said concerning ethics that are consistent with having received the gospel of free and sovereign grace. Notice thirdly, he is to exemplify love, love to God, love to men.
Love to God, love to the brethren. Jesus says in John 13, verse 35, by this, all men shall know that you are my disciples. If you subscribe to the second London confession of faith of 1689. That's not what Jesus said.
Even as much as we might want him to have said that, he says, by this, all men will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another. So Timothy was to exemplify love in the congregation. And then notice he says, in spirit, this is absent from the modern translations, but with reference to the emphasis here, Poole says, in zeal and warmth of spirit, truly inflamed with the love of Christ and for his glory. And then he says, in faith, be an example of faith, saving faith in Christ, faithfulness in the Christian life, and seeking by God's grace to be consistent with what the word says.
And then the final aspect at the end there of verse 12 is impurity. And that means chastity or sexual purity. Look at chapter 3 and verse 2. Notice he is the husband of one wife.
When we dealt with that, he is a one woman man. It's intriguing when God says to Ezekiel the prophet that he's going to kill his wife. He uses this language with Ezekiel. He says, I'm going to take from you the desire of your eyes.
Now whenever I envision Ezekiel, I don't know why, but I think of Mr. Alder Leaston. I think of an old gray-haired man with a long gray beard. Now, if that's the case, then however old they may have been, and actually Ezekiel, you can date pretty consistently how old he was at particular times.
It is a very specific book in terms of dating and whatnot. But nevertheless, God is able to say to an older prophet, I'm going to take the desire of your eyes. Ezekiel didn't have to say, which one Lord? I've got a stable of them.
No, it is your beloved wife. It is your bride. It is the wife of your youth. And that is the emphasis for Timothy and for the man of God.
He is a one woman man. at the end of verse 12, in purity. And then notice in chapter 5. Chapter 5, Timothy is exhorted or admonished on how he is to deal with various people groups in the context of the church. How he deals with the old men, how he deals with the young men, how he deals with the old women, how he deals with the young women.
Notice in chapter 5 at verse 1. Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father. Younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, with all purity. Younger women as sisters, Timothy, with all purity.
That's the modifier, so that he can exemplify sexual fidelity in the marriage relationship in terms of a watching congregation.
Limits of Example; Christ the True Model
Now, before we move on, I must make two qualifications concerning Timothy's life as an example. In the first place, brethren, Timothy sinned. In the first place, Timothy was inconsistent. In the first place, Timothy had his issues.
He had his inconsistencies. He had his stumbling blocks. How do I know that? Is there a 1 Timothy 7 that suggests that or that describes that?
No, but I know human nature, and I know Romans 7, and I know Galatians 5. And I know that Timothy was not the holy, harmless, undefiled one the way that the Lord Jesus was. So when you're looking at men that function as examples, know that they will always, always let you down at some point or other. It has been well said that the best of men are men at best, and they always will come up short.
The ultimate example for Christian conduct is our Lord Jesus Christ. But a pastor, an elder, in the context of the church, should function in such a way that persons can look at him and see demonstrable, proven, exemplifying of the application of these principles, and they can see that it is good to be like that man. Not that man the way he is and all that sort of thing, but insofar as he follows Christ. The second thing is we need to understand that example ultimately comes short.
You've probably heard the old adage, I think it's been ascribed to Saint Francis of Assisi, you know, preach the gospel at all times and when necessary use words. As nice as that may sound, it's absolute folly. Now Francis of Assisi apparently had a good connection with animals, I think he was the guy that spoke to animals, and I'm not suggesting he's in hell, I'm not suggesting he was the worst guy on the face of the earth. But brethren, example doesn't preach blood atonement.
If you follow a minister around all day long, and he's a really good one, and he exemplifies these traits at a 90% capacity or level, you're still not going to be saved. I think J. Gressam Maitre, as he typically is, is far better in this regard with reference to preaching. He says, we can preach the gospel, they tell us, by our lives, and do not need to preach it by our words.
But they are wrong. Men are not saved by the exhibition of our glorious Christian virtues. They are not saved by the contagion of our experiences. We cannot be the instruments of God in saving them if we preach to them, thus only ourselves, nay, We must preach to them the Lord Jesus Christ, for it is only through the gospel which sets him forth that they can be saved.
My virtue or your other pastors' or elders' virtues are not going to save you from your sins. It's the virtue of Christ. It's the finished work of Jesus. It is his perfect life of obedience.
It's his death at Calvary. It's his resurrection from the dead. So an example ultimately will fall short if our goal is to see men saved. I'm not suggesting we live like the devil while we preach Christ.
I think you'll understand the emphasis and the point. Examples aren't always great because men are fallible, but as well, the example isn't enough. We need to point them with our words to the Savior for sinners.
The Minister's Public Ministry
Now notice in the second place, the minister's public ministry, verses 13 and 14. Notice the commitment involved. Do not neglect. I'm sorry, verse 11.
Till I come, give attention. Give attention to continue in close attention to something, to occupy oneself with, to devote or apply oneself. In other words, it's not just haphazard, it's not just once in a while, it's not just a little bit, but this is the emphasis, till I come, give attention to these particular things. Now the command governs the three datives that follow.
So he says, give attention to reading, give attention to exhortation, and give attention to doctrine. Now, that exhortation and doctrine are public ministry sorts of things, so is reading. Paul is not saying, I want you to have your QT, your quiet time. I want you to have your devotional hour.
Not that he's saying don't. I think every minister worth his weight is going to be a man who goes into secret with his God in terms of searching Scripture and in terms of prayer. But that's not the point or the emphasis here.
Public Reading of Scripture
The reading is the public reading of Holy Scripture. See, we don't do that because, again, the command post for Reformed Baptist headquarters sends down a written liturgy, and thou must subscribe, and thou must do all this. No, it's from the Scripture. Deuteronomy chapter 31, there was an emphasis on gathering the people of God together once every seven years, including the little ones, and reading to them the law of God.
In that post-exilic situation in Nehemiah chapter 8, as the people are getting back to their sorts, as they're getting back in terms of the city being rebuilt, what do they do? Nehemiah has the brothers take the Word of God and they read it. They build a pulpit for them and they read the Word of God. And it says that everybody's ear was to the book.
And so there is this emphasis on the public reading of Scripture. Revelation chapter 1, at the very introduction, contains a benediction, a blessing, a beatitude. Blessed are those who hear or read and hear the words of this prophecy. There is this emphasis on the reading of Scripture.
See, back in the first century, they didn't have this beautiful Cambridge Bible. Cambridge came along in the 1500s. That's when they started printing Bibles. And even in the 1500s, they didn't do the wide margin goatskin like I have here, that unfortunately is falling apart.
So in the early church, they didn't have Bibles. And so how did they get the Bible? The pastor in the church would read the Bible. He would read scripture.
Again, it wasn't just filler, but that's the way the people came into contact with the word of the living God. So the Old Testament shows this. We see evidence of it occurring in the New Testament. And in terms of the purpose of public reading, it was for corporate instruction.
The people of God would be instructed through the reading of Scripture. But as well, corporate identity. Isn't that what binds us together here this evening? What binds us together in this church?
Obviously our faith in Jesus Christ, which we learn of through this book. So this book helps promote and produce in us a corporate identity. And then as well, it would produce corporate regulation. In other words, God's Word is the standard for how we are to conduct ourselves in public worship.
So the reading of the scripture, notice in verse 13, give attention to it.
Exhortation and Doctrine
Secondly, give attention to exhortation. This is emboldening another in belief or course of action to encourage them or to exhort them. 2 Timothy 4, verse 2, preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, and what? Exhort. In other words, exhortation isn't just a suggestion, it isn't just a recommendation, but it is an attempt by the grace of God and the power of the Spirit to move the will of man to compliance with the word of the living and true God.
So it's not just a lecture, it's not just a study, it's not just a passing on of information, but we should be affected by the Word and seek by grace to put it into practice. That's what he means by exhortation. And then, of course, teaching. You need to teach the Word of God.
You need to teach the doctrines of the Christian faith. You need to teach the people of God who God is, who man is, who Jesus is, what redemption is. That's what's supposed to occupy the public ministry of the church, brethren. It's not puppets, ponies, and programs, or whatever the modern equivalent is today.
Whatever we need to be doing as a church, we must always be doing this, reading, exhorting, and doctrine. That's the main emphasis of the church of the Lord God Most High. It is to pass on the truth of God because it's the truth of God that shapes the people of God and conforms them by the Spirit onto the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. Philip Towner again says, these were certainly not innovations in the worship services, but rather activities that needed to be continued or possibly resumed in view of the disruption caused by the false teaching.
The currency of confusing and contradictory doctrine calls for ongoing instruction in the apostolic traditions, theology, and ethics to ensure conformity with the will of God. I think he's on to something there. Turn back to chapter 1. Look at chapter 1 at verse 3.
As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, remain in Ephesus, that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith. Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm. And then notice in chapter 1 at verse 18, This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, having faith and a good conscience, which some, having rejected concerning the faith, have suffered shipwreck, of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I deliver to Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme. So I think Towner's right.
In the midst of a church that's been infiltrated by false teachers, in the midst of a church that has been infiltrated by false men, by deceptive liars, by men who have no business whatsoever in the Christian pulpit, Paul tells Timothy, get them out of there. And what you do in their place is what you should always do in the context of the local church. Give attention to reading, give attention to exhortation, and give attention to doctrine. That's what the church is supposed to be about, not these guys who have no business whatsoever intruding into places they do not belong.
So the specific directions in verse 13,
The Basis: Divine Gift and Church Recognition
and then notice the basis of his ministry. So in terms of his public ministry, he wasn't self-appointed. Timothy didn't wake up one morning and say, I wanna be a cowboy, but he couldn't stand, you know, horses. And so he thought, well, okay, I'll go ahead and be a pastor.
That's not what happened. Or, wow, I want to be an astronaut, but he was afraid of heights, and so he chooses the pastoral ministry. Or he wants to be a plumber, but he's kind of a bigger guy, and he can't fit into those sewers and whatnot, so he'll go ahead and be a pastor. That's not it at all.
He was not a self-appointed man. Any man that is in a pulpit that put himself there is a man you should run far from. That is not the way of God's appointment. It is the church that recognizes, it is the church that sets him apart, it is the church that brings him into that place of ministry.
So notice in verse 14, do not neglect the gift that is in you. The public ministry that Timothy was called to engage was to be continued. He was not to neglect the gift. In other words, God gave you that gift, Timothy, so that you'll use it.
God gave you that gift, Timothy, not so you'll parade the gift and say, wow, aren't I a gem and a gift of the church? No, but you utilize and minister consistent with the gift that has been given to you for the edification of the saints, for the salvation of sinners. Notice the origin of this gift. It's kind of an interesting turn of phrase, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership.
The gift given to Timothy was from God. This is what's called a theological passive. It is God who gave the gift to Timothy. And prophecy was given by God to others concerning Timothy's giftedness for ministry.
Remember when Paul comes into Lystra, in Acts chapter 16, the apostle hears about Timothy, and it says that Paul wanted Timothy to go with him. That is such a beautiful statement concerning Timothy. If the apostle Paul comes to your town and wants you to accompany him, on his journeys, you're doing okay, you've got a good reputation. But notice in our literature, 1 Timothy 1, 18, this charge, I commit to you, son Timothy, notice, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you.
So before they had a 1 Timothy 3 with qualifications by which the church could validate or vet or confirm a man who was gifted to the ministry, there was prophecy made by or given by God within the context of the church to set apart men for the ministry. Notice as well in 2 Timothy 1 at verse 6. Therefore, I remind you to stir up the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands." Not that Paul is magic, not that Paul conferred this, not that Paul conveyed this to Timothy, but having been alerted by God through a prophet that Timothy was the man, they laid hands upon Timothy. And so back in 1 Timothy 4 at verse 14, he says, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the elder's ship.
The Minister's Personal Growth
And then notice in the third place, his personal growth, his personal growth. In other words, a man who is in the ministry should grow in his understanding of the Bible and theology, right? I think that makes pretty good sense. If you have an old doctor, you'd probably like to know that he's on Google once in a while reading new research, right?
That just makes sense. Or if you have an old mechanic that, you know, cut his teeth on a 66 Camaro, you'd sure like for him to be a bit more up to speed on your 2021 Camaro. You want men that engage in professional activity to keep up with and to continue to excel, and the gospel ministry is not different. In other words, gospel ministers should be reading, they should be growing, they should be meditating upon the word, they should be learning theology and the Bible each and every day.
Notice what Paul says in verse 15. Meditate on these things. Improve by care or study, practice, cultivate, take pains with. To fix one's mind on something, think about, meditate upon.
Now brethren, if a man is called of God, that's not tough. If a man is called of God and fit to fix Camaros, he wants to read about Camaros. If a man is a farmer, he wants to read about his craft and learn and grow in a manner consistent with it. If a man is called by God and set apart by God in order to preach the Bible, that man loves the Bible, that man loves theology, that man doesn't look at it as a chore.
It is rather a blessed privilege that he gets to undertake it. And so notice what Paul says, meditate on these things, and then note the language, give yourself entirely to them. Literally, be in them. Be absorbed in them.
The minister of Christ is to meditate upon the Word of Christ and be absorbed in it and with it. Again, if a man says, well, you know, I just don't really like to read. Now, it may be more of a chore at times. It is work.
It is the case that all of us have the ebb and flow in our professional lives where, you know, certain times there's a fever pitch and other times because of stress and pressure and all that sort of thing, it's a bit more difficult. But a man who's resistant to reading and to praying and to seeking, to strive, to learn more of Christ and his word, that might not be the best choice in terms of an elder in the church. You want a guy that is meditating upon these things. You want a guy who is given to these things.
And then notice that your progress may be evident to all. This isn't that he parades himself. This isn't that he just recites scripture so that everybody is dazzled and they say, what a wonderful minister. That's not it.
But again, if your mechanic is keeping up with the literature requisite for your car, That's evident, right? Hey, you did a good job. Well, same with the pastors, same with the elders, same with the man that's preaching the Word of God. That progress, personal conduct, but the understanding of Bible and theology, that should be evident to all.
It shouldn't be the case that ministers are stagnant. It shouldn't be the case that moss grows from them. It shouldn't be the case that they say, well, You know, I did my hermeneutics. I did my Greek.
I did my Hebrew. I did that all about 10 or 20 years ago. I don't need to do that again. You know, I read A.W.
Pink's Attributes of God when I first got saved, so I don't really need to know any more about theology proper. If that is the attitude, it is contrary to what Paul says to Timothy in 1 Timothy 4 at verse 15. Meditate on these things. Give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all.
The Minister's Perseverance
And then finally, notice the minister's perseverance. His perseverance in verse 16. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. See, personal conduct and your appropriation of the word of God.
God had regard for Abel and his sacrifice. Never miss that. He had regard for Abel and his sacrifice. Take heed to yourself and to your doctrine.
In other words, there ought to be personal growth, maturation in Christ, the development of Christian ethics, the application of the Word of God in one's own personal life. But as well doctrine. There are new things in theology, not because the Bible's changed, not because theology changes, but because men are fools and they want to attack the Word of the living God. If a minister does not keep up with that, he is not going to faithfully help the people of God on a consistent and regular basis.
Again, so much of this would be so obvious if we went into another career field, and yet we come into the church and it's perfectly acceptable for ministers to be lazy. for ministers to not keep up, for ministers to not give themselves entirely to these things, and ministers to not take heed to themselves or to their doctrine. And for whatever reason, ministers are like politicians, you can't get rid of the bad ones. For whatever reason it is, we oftentimes pick the worst cretins among us to rule over us, whether in church or state. So with reference to Paul's admonition, take heed to yourself and to the doctrine.
John Calvin said at the present day there are many, or there are many, who are well nigh sickened by the very name of preaching because there are so many stupid ignorant men who blurt out their worthless brainwaves from the pulpit. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. In other words, understand the truth of the Bible, understand Christian theology, all the better if you have, say, a confession of faith that outlines the contours of that theology, and make sure you hold fast to that, and make sure you don't depart from that, and make sure you preach that message faithfully. And then in terms of perseverance, look at what he says, take heed to yourself and to the doctrine, continue in them, continue in them.
The things specified here are non-negotiable, and they are to be pursued over the long haul. It's not just starting well, and it's not even just finishing well, it's consistently being well all along the way. That's the admonition for the minister of the gospel. And the faithful minister is not faithful because he is successful or famous, but because he perseveres.
John Newton, the man who wrote Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me, made this observation. If opposition has hurt many, popularity has wounded more. That is a very powerful statement. If opposition has hurt many, and it has, popularity has wounded more.
I'm not sure that every man has the capacity for 5,000 members in his church. Obviously, C.H. Spurgeon did, but not the rest of us are C.H. Spurgeon.
God is wise. God knows how to give out what is needful for his people. And then look finally at the reason given. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine.
Continue in them. And here's the rationale. Here's the reason. And it might surprise some of us.
Salvation Through Means of Grace
For in doing this, you will save both yourself and those who hear you. Is Paul an Arminian? Has Paul abandoned his Calvinistic principles? Has Paul thrown off or jettisoned the sovereignty of God?
Is Paul no longer subscribed to Romans 9, 16 that he wrote, it doesn't depend upon him who wills or upon him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. Now he's suggesting, he's actually saying that a minister can save himself and save those who hear him. Is that what Paul is saying? The Lord God Almighty saves, but He does so through what?
Through means. So the God who's ordained the end has also ordained the means. And the means by which God is well-pleased to save sinners is through the message preached. 1 Corinthians 121, Romans 1017, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. He doesn't mean that the minister has the ability or power or sovereignty or efficacy to save himself and those who hear him.
But as a faithful minister, a man who preaches the word of God, it is that word that God uses to draw sinners unto himself. Listen again to John Calvin. He says, and as the unfaithfulness or carelessness of the pastor is ruinous to the church. Look over at chapter 1 at verse 19, "...having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck, of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme." When there is a bad minister, it has a bad effect upon the people of God.
So ergo, when there's a good minister, we can conclude that it may have a good effect upon the people of God. So back to Calvin, and as the unfaithfulness or carelessness of the pastor is ruinous to the church, so the cause of salvation is justly ascribed to his faithfulness and diligence. True, it is God alone that saves, and not even the smallest portion of His glory can lawfully be bestowed on men. But God parts with no portion of His glory when He employs the agency of men for bestowing salvation.
That's the way we understand 1 Timothy 4, verse 16. For by so doing, you will save yourself and those who hear you. See, Calvin says God's glory is not diminished in the use of means. Rather, God's glory is magnified in that he uses earthen vessels.
He uses cracked pots to proclaim the glorious treasure of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Lord. The Geneva Bible comments at verse 16, faith is by hearing and hearing by preaching. And therefore the ministers of the word are so said to save themselves and others for that in them the Lord has put the word of reconciliation. So it's not Arminianism, it's not Pelagianism, man doesn't save, but rather the idea is, is be a faithful minister of the word, because God is pleased in the use of that word to call sinners unto himself.
So that when that word is faithfully proclaimed, and when God does his work of saving sinners, it is in the language of 1 Timothy 4.16, as much as if the minister has a hand in saving them. And I think that's the emphasis that we are to take away.
Application
So in conclusion, the conduct of a faithful minister, not only here, but backing up to verse six, the need to instruct the church in the truth of God. Notice in verse six, if you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ. See, the definition for a good minister of Jesus Christ isn't tough. It isn't hard.
It isn't if you have 250 people in your church after the first year. It isn't if you have a building that costs, you know, the size of a small city. That's not the way to quantify the gospel ministry. If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine, which you have carefully followed.
Secondly, they need to reject heresy. Look at verse 7a. but reject profane and old wives' fables. Don't have truck with false teaching. Don't give them a hearing.
Don't let heretics preach. Guard the pulpit, Timothy. Reject those things that are contrary to the word of the living God. It is absolutely mind boggling what passes for Christian preaching today and what passes for so-called discernment among the people of God today.
Sermonettes of 15 to 17 minutes are wonderful. Oh, it was so profound. And oftentimes it's what Moody would have referred to as birdbath theology. Birdbath theology means it's about that deep.
We've got the Pacific Ocean in the Bible. I mean, far more than that. We've got riches. We've got Christ in whom all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden.
We ought not to have birdbath theology or sermonettes for Christianettes. Notice he needs to exercise himself towards godliness in verse 7b. As well, notice in verse 11, the need to command and teach, not suggest and confuse. Something I'm recognizing that is just bad when it comes to the Bible and theology is vagueness and ambiguity.
Brethren, the task of the ministry is to explain the Word of God. It is to take the hay and put it to where the horses can eat it. It's not to dazzle them. It's not to impress them.
It's not to cause them to be amazed at the erudition of the... No, preach the Word. Preach the Bible. Preach good theology.
Don't be vague. Don't be ambiguous. Don't be in a ministry of confusion rather than education. As well, Timothy must be an example.
Timothy must engage in the public ministry commanded by God. Timothy must have been gifted by God and vetted by the church. He needs to devote himself to the truth of God and to progress further in personal piety and public usefulness. He needs to embrace the gravity of this position and conduct himself accordingly.
Verse 16 also underscores the grave condition for gospel ministry. James tells us in 3.1, let not many of you be teachers. Why? We shall receive a stricter judgment.
See, I don't know that there's other professions out there. This is where it does differ a little bit. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine of plumbing. Not that plumbing is unimportant, brethren, but there isn't this admonition or rationale provided.
For in doing so, you'll save both yourself and those who hear you. I mean, you will from some temporal disaster, but in terms of eternal weight, that is different.
Marks of a Faithful Congregation
And then the conduct of a faithful congregation. Now I'm not saying this because I feel like there's any deficiency. This is not, hey, this is how you should be to me. Last time I preached this sermon, it was when we brought Michael Kirkpatrick into our eldership.
And so it was an admonition to our church with reference to Michael Kirkpatrick. As well, it was an admonition to the Surrey Reformed Baptist Church with reference to Michael Kirkpatrick. So I'm not giving this list because I think I want to somehow passively, aggressively tell you that you should be nice to me. I feel like everybody here is really nice to me.
I feel like everybody here prays for me. I feel a real connection. I feel a real love. I feel like there's no other place I'd rather be.
So do not interpret this little list as Jim Butler's got some vacancy in his soul and he wants to harangue the people of God and make them, that's not it at all. But I think if we can look at the marks of a faithful minister, there ought to be consistent with that. the marks of faithful congregations. So in the first place, the Church of Christ will receive the Word of God with joy. Again, there's ebb and flow.
There's times when we're tired. There's times where, you know, it's not the same. I get that, brethren. I understand that.
I realize that sometimes young moms are up late at night with their children. That's perfectly acceptable. I don't go, wow, that guy yawned when I was in, you know, Act 4 then. No, that never happens.
But you will receive the Word of God with joy. If God is pleased to furnish His church with spokesmen for Him, and they actually get it right, they actually expound Scripture properly, and they teach you theology properly, that's a win-win situation. Again, brethren, there's deficiencies in all churches. There are problems in every church.
Wherever you have humans, there's problems, and that's the reality of it. But if God in his infinite grace and mercy has raised up men to proclaim the truth, and they are doing that the way that God calls them to, that's a win-win for congregations, and they should receive that word with joy. Secondly, you will reject heresy with earnestness. It's not just the pastor's job to refute heresy.
Not just the pastor's job to resist the encroachments of the ungodly world, and oftentimes ungodly so-called church, with all of their intrusions into sacred and holy things. We have to exercise discernment. We have to have a Berean spirit. We have to examine the Word of God.
Remember the Bereans? They were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica. Why? Because they examined daily the things spoken to them by Paul.
They had the Apostle Paul and they're checking chapter and verse. And Paul doesn't say, oh, you're not supposed to do that because I'm the Apostle Paul. No, check it, discern, understand the truth, understand the counterfeit. And the way to spot the counterfeit is by knowing the true thing.
As well, you will pursue those virtues commended by God. It's not just the pastor who has to do what is said in this chapter. It's not just the pastor who are men who aspires to the ministry to not be greedy for money. I mean, that's all of us.
We're all in this together as it were, and we're all supposed to be pursuing Christian virtue and ethics. And then I would suggest you will value and prize the public means of grace. You will value and prize the public means of grace. Certainly, there's private things that you can do.
You should read your Bible every day. You should pray every day. You should have a family altar if you are a family. You should read scripture with your bride.
You should pray with your husband. You should do all those things. But brethren, do not neglect the public worship of the living and true God. If God has set apart a class of men who have as their particular emphasis the public reading, the public exhortation, and the public teaching of Holy Scripture, then you should avail yourself of each and every opportunity.
I have quoted this before, both Ryle and Spurgeon. Ryle says, preaching is an ordinance of which the value can never be overrated in the Church of Christ. But it should never be forgotten that there must not only be good preaching, but good hearing. I mean, if Spurgeon fell out of heaven and he erected a pulpit out in the middle of the wilderness and he proclaimed with the tongues of angels and no one was there to hear him, it wouldn't make any difference, brethren.
So if there is preaching, there should be hearing. And Spurgeon's comment on Mark 4, 24, the parable of the soil. Again, you may have this committed to memory. I've quoted it so many times.
He says, here, it is your wisdom to know what God says. Here, well, God's teaching deserves the deepest attention. It will repay the best consideration. Here, often, waste no Sabbath nor any of its services.
Use weekday lectures and prayer meetings. And then finally, here, better. You will grow the holier thereby. You will find heavenly joy by hearing with faith.
For those interested, we're getting to the 10 commandments in our study in the book of Exodus this coming Wednesday. This is important stuff. Does the Bible speak with reference to Christian ethics? Oh yeah, it certainly does.
It gives the 10 commandments in chapter 20, and then from 21 to 23, there is extensive application of those principles to the body politic with reference to life in the land for the nation of Israel. as our confession rightly understands, that that judicial law has expired with the Commonwealth of Israel. But there is a general equity, there is wisdom to be found in chapters 21 to 23, to inform the Christian mind, even in the 21st century, of matters not only individual, matters not only familial, matters not only ecclesiastical, but matters civil, in terms of the political order in which we conduct ourselves. And then the final observation, you will value and prize the ministers of the public means of grace. There are several passages in the New Testament that underscore this.
So hopefully the saints in Surrey do this with reference to Mike Kirkpatrick.
Closing Prayer
Well, brethren, there is the list of qualifications, 1 Timothy 3, one to seven. There is this sort of exemplifying of those aspects in 1 Timothy chapter four at verses 12 to 16. Going forward, we remember the mind, or rather the words of our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew chapter 9. Remember that scene where he looks upon the multitudes and he feels compassion for them because they were like sheep having no shepherd.
So on the heels of that, he says to his disciples, the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. pray that the Lord of the harvest will raise up laborers and send them out. So Jesus does that very thing. And then he installs the 12 apostles. He invests them with authority and he sends them out to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Not that we have apostles, but we are looking for elders. God be merciful to us and provide that so that we can do the work of ministry. Well, let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank you for your word.
We thank you for its clarity at the point of the officers in the church. We pray, God in heaven, that you would bless men serving in Christian pulpits all over the earth. Uphold them and encourage them and strengthen them and cause them to be faithful. As well, our Father, increase in our churches a heart to receive the truth of God's holy word, a desire to conform by the power of the Spirit to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to seek to take every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus Christ our Lord.
We ask now that you would go with us, cause us to enter into this week with hearts filled with gratitude to you for what you've done for us in the gospel of our salvation. And we pray this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. We'll close with a brief time of meditation.