Fighting for the Faith
1 Timothy 1:18-20
January 31, 2010
Just by reading this text to get started,
Or even by reading the title to the sermon,
It is obvious that we are talking about an often overlooked concept to the Christian life.
Because of the Lord’s commands to love one another,
And to be forgiving of one another,
And to sacrifice self for the good of another,
Many inside Christian circles have adopted an extreme pacifist role.
Quoting passages like turning the other cheek as their banner they see no place whatsoever for any type of disagreeable behavior.
They point to Jesus as the one who “while reviled did not revile in return”
And they quickly and easily adopt the view
That there is no place for fighting in the life of a Christian.
It is noteworthy to point out that while Christ didn’t revile on the cross, it was only 5 days prior when He cleared out the temple.
And if we had the time I could walk you through the gospels
To show the very militant side of Jesus.
• Confronting the religious leaders and actually calling the hypocrites.
• Warning the crowds not to follow the Pharisees (while they were there)
• Pronouncing certain judgment upon the religious heretics.
The point is that there is a very real place in the church
For the concept of fighting.
And this is made clear by Paul’s commanding Timothy to “fight the good fight”
Certainly you know that our battle is NOT a battle to be fought with swords and spears and other earthly weapons
2 Corinthians 10:3-6 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.”
We are not on a crusade like those back in the middle ages
Trying to force men into Christianity.
But we are still at war.
Our battlefield is the mind.
We confront bad doctrine, which results in bad living.
We wage war on sinful ideas and sinful practices.
We fight to protect the truth
And to see it lived out in the lives of men and women.
The point is that when a person enlists to become a Christian
They must certainly be aware that they are enlisting in God’s army.
From the moment that Timothy opened this letter from Paul
That reality is coming home to him.
Timothy was at war.
The enemy had brought a fight to Timothy.
The enemy had attacked his church.
1 Timothy 1:3-4 “As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith.”
1 Timothy 1:6-7 “For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.”
Peter warned us that such times would happen.
2 Peter 2:1-3 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”
And such times had come upon Timothy.
He may not have chosen to fight,
But if he didn’t then the enemy would certainly conquer.
Purity of doctrine was at stake in Ephesus
And as a result godly living was in jeopardy.
There was a battle to be fought.
LAST WEEK we heard Paul’s heartfelt explanation
As to why he is so passionately engaged in battle.
And tonight Paul will flat out command Timothy to join him in this war.
Many have found themselves in Timothy’s shoes throughout the ages.
Men like Athenasius…
(deity of Jesus)
An Egyptian scholar stood alone against Arianism defending the deity of Jesus.
The phrase was often quoted “Athenasius against the world”
Men like Martin Luther…
(justification by faith)
Asked to recant his writings in April of 1521 upon being branded a heretic and threat of death. He said, “Unless I am convinced by proofs from Scriptures or by plain and clear reasons and arguments, I can and will not retract, for it is neither safe nor wise to do anything against conscience. Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen.”
Even some men like Adrian Rogers who fought for the inerrancy of Scripture.
It’s not that any of these men went looking for a fight,
But the fight was brought to them and they chose to accept it.
That is where Timothy now finds himself
And Paul is very pointed as to what he should do.
We have three verses tonight and we will look at each one individually.
#1 THE EXHORTATION
1 Timothy 1:18
And there we see the weight of this issue at the onset.
“This command I entrust to you, Timothy”
This is not a suggestion.
This is not a request.
This is a command.
Paul was pictured as a military general looking for which lieutenant
He would entrust with the command of stopping the enemy attack.
Paul chose Timothy.
The task was dangerous.
The stakes were high.
And so Paul entrusted this mission to his most faithful student;
His son in the faith; Timothy.
He then explains why Timothy is the one.
“in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you”
Today men are called to the ministry first through desire, then through examination, and finally through confirmation of the body of Christ.
This will be clearly seen in chapter 3.
But prior to the days of the New Testament
Men were called through the spoken word of prophecy.
Men of God who were gifted to speak the true words of God actually spoke on behalf of those whom God had chosen to fill the office.
(Similar to Elijah throwing the mantle on Elisha)
And Timothy had been selected by God.
Acts 16:1-2 “Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. And a disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek, and he was well spoken of by the brethren who were in Lystra and Iconium.”
When Paul selected Timothy it was even on the recommendation of such men.
The point is that Timothy had been selected by God
For the ministry, just as Paul had been.
And it was because of this calling that Timothy was now
To rise to the occasion and meet the enemy head on.
“that by them you fight the good fight,”
The call to a man who leads God’s people is a call to battle.
Titus 1:7-11 “For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain, but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict. For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain.”
These are the men God had called and equipped, not to fight alone,
But to lead the charge against heresy and ungodliness.
Timothy was such a man and Paul commanded him to act like it.
The Exhortation
#2 THE EXPLANATION
1 Timothy 1:19
After commanding Timothy to fight, Paul now turns
To two very important aspects of how to fight.
Just as there are some in the church who completely dismiss the concept of Christian warfare.
There are some in the church who are fascinated by it, and sadly many who misunderstand what it means to fight.
I remember one time I had A PHONE CONVERSATION with a friend of mine who talked about going to a good Bible study about the Christian’s weapons.
I was thinking “armor of God” in Ephesians 6, but then this person started listing things like:
• Plead the blood of Jesus
• State the name of Jesus
• Fasting
I remember thinking, “What are you talking about?”
Those things are not weapons in Scripture. Powerful? Yes. But not weapons that believers pull out of their back-pack and throw on the enemy.
Remember this story?
Acts 19:11-16 “God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out. But also some of the Jewish exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to name over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, “I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” Seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. And the evil spirit answered and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” And the man, in whom was the evil spirit, leaped on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.”
Those people had the same type of mystical fascination
With spiritual warfare.
Well here Paul clarifies to Timothy the two things
Required to successfully fight the good fight.
“keeping faith and a good conscience”
If you want me to sum it up for you.
1) Accurate theology
2) Personal godliness
In order to truly fight the good fight for the kingdom the first thing you must have is ACCURATE THEOLOGY.
We must know the truth,
Preach the truth,
Recognize any deviation from the truth,
Defend the truth,
Teach the truth,
Obey the truth.
Jude 3 “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.”
You could read the entire New Testament, especially the epistles
And see that this is the major thing that is occurring.
WHY DID PAUL WRITE LETTERS TO THE CHURCHES?
To correct their theology and to battle their theological error.
• Galatia wanted to be circumcised
• Colossae was given to philosophy
• Philippi had a couple of fighting women
• Thessalonica thought they missed the 2nd coming
• Corinth had more problems than I care to go back through
While that is not all that is contained,
In large part those letters are Paul contending for the faith.
He writes to encourage truth and to refute error.
He writes to commend the godly and rebuke the immoral.
That is precisely what Paul is calling Timothy to do at Ephesus.
To keep the faith.
Obviously then Timothy must became a faithful student of the word
So that he can spot error and teach truth.
2 Timothy 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”
If Timothy is going to fight the good fight he must have accurate theology.
But he must also have personal godliness.
“a good conscience”
The writer of Hebrews said:
Hebrews 13:18 “Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a good conscience, desiring to conduct ourselves honorably in all things.”
While the first aspect of an accurate theology speaks of an offensive weapon, this speaks of a DEFENSE.
The main weapon we use to fight off the enemy is personal holiness.
TURN TO: EPHESIANS 6:13-17
And so it is clear that the best defense against the enemy
Is personal holiness.
That is why Peter said:
1 Peter 3:15-16 “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence; and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.”
When we fall into sin or deception we are like a soldier without his armor.
We are easily wounded and some even see their ministries destroyed.
FOR EXAMPLE:
“which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith.”
Paul tells Timothy that the failure to maintain accurate theology and personal godliness makes you an easy prey for the enemy and you can actually see your faith shipwrecked
The idea is if you don’t remain pure in doctrine and in lifestyle
The enemy can easily take you out.
TURN TO: 2 Timothy 14-22
I know we have looked at this passage a couple of times recently but let me just remind you of it again.
You can clearly see the two dangers Paul wanted Timothy to avoid if he were to be victorious. (Bad theology and Bad character)
And then look at the potential for victory.
(VERSES 23-26)
The battle is only won through maintaining your spiritual weapons of accurate theology and personal godliness.
And so Paul has called timothy to battle for the truth,
And explains to him exactly what type of weaponry is required
To be victorious in that battle.
The Exhortation, The Explanation
#3 THE EXAMPLE
1 Timothy 1:20
Here Paul gives to examples of men
Who have done just what Timothy must avoid.
Hymenaeus and Alexander.
Hymenaeus:
2 Timothy 2:17-18 “and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some.”
Alexander
2 Timothy 4:14-15 “Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Be on guard against him yourself, for he vigorously opposed our teaching.”
(First seen as a mediator at the riot in Ephesus)
And Paul reveals that because of their defection from truth and personal godliness, that he has “handed [them] over the Satan”
This is not the first time we have heard such speech from Paul.
1 Corinthians 5:3-5 “For I, on my part, though absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this, as though I were present. In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus, I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”
And of course it is rooted in Jesus teaching on church discipline.
Matthew 18:15-18 “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED. “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. “Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
And that is what Paul has done here.
There is a protective bubble that people are under
So long as they are associated with God’s people.
But when they are removed from that bubble, they are cast alone into the world and are free to be roughed up by the enemy.
The idea is that they learn that being a part of the body is a privilege and that there are certain requirements to be a part of that body that cannot be compromised.
And that is precisely what Paul says here about those two men.
“so that they will be taught not to blaspheme.”
“taught” translates PAIDEUO
“teaching through painful, physical punishment”
It was used twice by Pilot speaking of scourging Jesus.
Luke 23:16 “Therefore I will punish Him and release Him.”
Luke 23:22 “And he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has this man done? I have found in Him no guilt demanding death; therefore I will punish Him and release Him.”
Paul used in reference to those who had desecrated the Lord’s Supper at Corinth and as a result were sick and dying.
1 Corinthians 11:32 “But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.”
And that is precisely what Paul has done with these two men.
And it makes a strong point to Timothy.
You must indeed fight the battle for the truth.
It is your calling, it is your responsibility.
But be careful how you fight it.
Don’t let anyone tell you that
There is not a battle to be fought even in the church.
There is.
It is a spiritual battle against unbelief and unrighteousness.
We are those called to rise up and fight the battle for the purity of the church.
But all the while to watch ourselves to ensure that we are not wounded in the fight, and ultimately render ourselves useless to the battle.
1 Timothy 3:14-15 “I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.”
