Getting Ready for Usefulness to God | 2 Timothy 2:20-26 | Ben Akatsa | April 26, 2026

Preaching Passage: 2 Timothy 2:20-26 (ESV)

Ethnos Church of Houston, Texas

Welcome to Ethnos Church: A Church for the Nations

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Our scripture reading today comes from the book of Second Timothy two, twenty to twenty-six. If you're using one of the black Bibles that are available to you from our church, you can turn to page nine hundred and thirty-five. Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart, have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies. You know that they breed quarrels, and the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome, but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses, escaped from the snare of the devil after being captured by him to do his will. This is the word of the Lord. Please be seated.

SPEAKER_01 2:25

There we go. If you don't know me, my name is Ben, and I have the joy of serving alongside Jonathan as the associate pastor. And today I get to preach the word of God. So before we start, I'm gonna ask us to just bow our heads so we can we can pray. Um and just two simple prayers. The first one I'm gonna ask you to make for yourself, and I'm gonna ask you to pray this way. Lord, uh, would you remove any distractions from my mind and my heart so I can hear what you have to say? Just like that. Lord, would you remove any distractions from my mind and my heart so I can hear what you have to say? And then the second prayer, pray for me and pray this way. Lord, Ben needs you. Would you empower him by your spirit? Like that. Lord, Ben needs you. Would you empower him by your spirit? And then I'll pray for us. Lord Jesus, we thank you for this day. Thank you that we have the privilege of gathering together as your people. And some in our midst who don't know you. It's a joy to have them in our midst. Would you speak to your people as only you can? In Jesus' name we pray. And the Church of the Living God said, Amen. We are in 2 Timothy. 2 Timothy is a letter in the Bible that's been written by a Christian leader called Paul to someone he's mentoring called Timothy. And the big idea in 2 Timothy is this endure in the ministry that God has called you to do. That's a big idea. And and Paul gives Timothy some ways that he can do that. One of the ways is going to be you have to make sure that whoever is teaching is teaching the right gospel message. And when someone is teaching the wrong thing, you have to oppose them. And then he also tells them, you're gonna have to be diligent in what God has called you to do. And in the passage we're in today, Paul presents this idea to Timothy that says, you also have to prepare yourself for usefulness. Anybody who's going to endure in the Christian life is going to have to prepare themselves for usefulness. And he uses a metaphor in verse 20. And it says this now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable use. Now, before we read verse 21, here's what you have to remember. There are people who are opposing Timothy, there are people who are teaching the wrong message, and Timothy has to stand, be firm, and tell them the truth. Are they too far gone? Are they so far gone that God cannot use them? This is what verse 21 says. Therefore, if anyone, and you see this up on this slide, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he'll be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. The outcome is if anyone cleanses themselves, they will be holy and eventually useful to the master, ready for every good work. This is for everybody in the congregation who's hearing Timothy, read this letter. This is for you and I. You see, the Bible says this in 2 Timothy. It says, All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy tells us that Scripture equips us for what God wants us to do. And what Paul is telling us right here is that if we are going to be prepared for what God wants us to do, there's something that we need to do. So our message today is called getting ready for usefulness to God. Getting ready for usefulness to God. The metaphor that Paul has here is a metaphor of a house. And he talks about vessels of honorable use and dishonorable use. The best way to kind of understand this is think about your own home. You have a trash can. You would never take a trash can and serve food in the trash can and say, hey, here's your food. You'd never do that because the trash can is for trash. Dishonorable use. If you're gonna serve food, you're gonna serve food in a plate. Honorable use. That's the sort of idea that Paul is trying to communicate. There are things that are used for things that are dishonorable and things that are used for things that are that are honorable. But here's the thing: unlike a trash can that can't change itself and become a plate, Paul here is talking about people. And he says, anybody who is in this category of dishonorable, if they cleanse themselves, they can move to this category of being honorable. Cleansing is a biblical language for making something clean, so it can be used for religious purposes. In fact, the word that's used here for cleansing, we use in English to say catharsis. Something has been cathartic to me. This deep emotional experience where you kind of get relief. So this is a word that describes something thorough. There's effort that whoever is gonna do this is gonna have to put in. They're gonna have to be committed. And the question is how does one cleanse themselves according to this verse? Now, as I preach this message, here's what we have to keep in mind. What we're describing here is not how one comes to faith in Jesus Christ. Listen to what the book of Titus says. We ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy. And then verse 4 says this But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us not because of works done in righteousness, but according to his own mercy. So as we're going through this message, don't confuse what it is that brings us to God by faith and how we respond to that. So getting ready for usefulness to God, the first thing that we will see is in your life pursue holiness. When Paul uses the language of cleansing, he is talking about preparing yourself for holiness. And in verse 19, this is what it says: The Lord knows who are his, and let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity. Paul is talking about holiness. Verse 22. So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace. The word that's used there for peace, for flee, is like running away from danger. Flee youthful passions. Sometimes that word passions is used for sexual passions and for sexual pursuits that are against God's will. So it could include that. Though in this passage, because it says youthful passions, Paul is probably describing those sorts of things that people who are immature, who are not yet old enough, have not learned to temper. For example, the desire to always be right. Hopefully, as someone grows in maturity, they learn that you're not always going to be right. These false teachers are coming up with doctrines that aren't true. They're being very innovative. Maybe they want to be seen as the people who really want to know a lot. A passion of wanting to be seen as though they're the ones who know. These people, they're trying to teach the law of God, yet they're teaching it in the wrong way. The sorts of passions they have is they want to be seen as teachers of the law, yet they're not trained for it. Maybe those are the sorts of things that Paul is talking about when he talks about youthful passions. Instead of that, the opposite is pursue righteousness. Righteousness has to do, whenever it's used in the New Testament, for right conduct which follows the will of God and is pleasing to him. When he uses the word righteousness, he's talking about how we act in response to what we know to be true about God. Those who belong to God separate themselves from habits that they know do not please God, whether it is in their private life where no one can see, or whether it is in their public life, they pursue right conduct. If you compare this list in 2 Timothy 20, and you'll see that up on the slide, and a list earlier in 1 Timothy, what you'll notice when Paul is telling Timothy the things to pursue, in both lists, he has righteousness as the first thing. That I think is the writer's way of communicating to us that pursuing righteousness is really, really important. And then he adds, faith. Faith could be the idea of trusting God in all things, or it could be the idea of just being faithful to what God has called you to do. There is a pastor who was serving in a church where some of the elders, some of the other pastors did not like him. He had done nothing wrong, he was doing his best to do what God has had called him to do. But some elders did not like him and they wanted to push him out. And when they were coming together for this meeting where they were going to vote to decide whether he's gonna go or stay, they tried to tell him, you know what? Why don't you just go ahead and resign instead of having to go through this whole process? And he told them, I'm not going to resign because God has given me this post. And until God calls me home, I am staying at my post. If you want me to leave, you'll are gonna have to vote to have me go, and you are gonna be answerable to God for your choice, because there was no basis for what they wanted to do. He had decided he was gonna be faithful to what God had called him to do. That's probably the idea here behind faithfulness. And then in love, we seek the highest good of those who are around us. Sometimes that might mean correcting them. And then he adds, peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Later on, Paul is going to say that the person who serves God is not to be quarrelsome. And so it could be that the theme that he really wants Timothy to hear is peace. I love this last sentence. Along with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart. When it comes to pursuing holiness for you and for me, it's not a solo endeavor where it's just me, you, you by yourself, pursuing holiness, pursuing the things that please God. This is meant to be done in what? In community. Because there are times you will want to give up and you'll want someone, you'll need someone to come by your side and encourage you to keep on going. Pursuing holiness is not something we do by ourselves, it's something we do together in community. One of the ways we do that here at Ethnos, pursuing holiness together in community, is in our missional communities and in our huddle groups. In Hudl groups, one of the questions that we ask each other is, What has God been teaching you? And then here comes a second question. What do you need to repent of? When we get together in these Hudl groups, these are same gender groups, about three to four people. And so this is a place where you're supposed to be able to be completely honest about what's going on in your life. We are practicing this. We're pursuing righteousness, faith, love, and peace along with others who are calling on the Lord with a pure heart. 2 Corinthians 7:1 says this. Just along this idea of holiness. Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward what? Complete holiness because we fear God. Again, this is to remind us that there's a holiness we get when we trust in Jesus, when we come to faith in Him. Holiness because we're related to God. But then there's a holiness that you and I are called to pursue so we can be ready and useful for the Master. One person said this Lord, make me as holy as it is possible for a saved sinner to be. I think that's a good prayer. And another writer said this. Repentance means turning from as much as you know of your sin to give as much as you know of yourself to as much as you know of God. Repentance means turning from as much as you know of your sin to give as much as you know of yourself to as much as you know of God. When you do that, the result is holiness. So here's the question. What do you need to repent of in your private life? You know, the side of your life where nobody can see. If righteousness is behaving and responding and doing things that we know please God, when you think about your life, whether it's uh the things people see or the things people cannot see, what do you need to repent of? You see, I don't think God shows us all the things we need to repent of in one go. I think what happens is God gives us as much light as we need to change what needs to change so we can grow in holiness. So getting ready to be useful to God involves pursuing holiness. And secondly, in your speech, be gentle when correcting others. This is what you'll see in verse 23. Paul writes, have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies. You know that they breed quarrels. Have nothing to do with foolish and ignorant controversies, you know that they breed quarrels. Again, there were people here who were teaching things that they really did not understand. They were making speculations about the word of God. Paul calls these things foolish and ignorant, and he tells Timothy, have nothing to do with them. You know, recently we went, uh we took the ethno students go-karting, and you could see when they wanted to avoid uh crashing into the person in front of them, they do this so they can go to the side and avoid that person. That's that's what this word avoid means. When you see it coming, you can see that problem there, you avoid it. Paul is telling Timothy, when you see the sorts of people who like engaging in these sorts of conversations, and you can see the conversation is gonna come up, avoid that conversation. Do not involve yourself in it. Because these sorts of conversations they breed quarrels. And then verse 24. And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome, but kind to everyone. Why should Timothy avoid quarrels? Because he is the Lord's servant, because of Jesus. Jesus was not the sort of person who quarreled. Instead of being quarrelsome, the one who serves God must be kind to everyone. Timothy is gonna be teaching people who oppose him, who are not being kind to him, but he's being told you must, it's not an option, to be kind to everyone, even the ones who you have to correct. The Lord's servant must be able to teach. And here Paul is going back to the qualifications of somebody who's going to be a pastor, an elder, that they need to be able to teach. Patiently enduring evil. And then verse 25, correcting his opponents with gentleness. Correcting his opponents with gentleness. When Paul says that the Lord's servant must be kind to all, this is the kind of idea that's behind that word. Listen to this passage from 1 Thessalonians 2.7. But we, Paul's talking about him and the other teachers, were gentle, which is that word kind, among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. That's a kind of kindness that Paul is talking about, that the person who serves God must be kind toward all, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children, correcting with gentleness. This is a word that means, and here I quote, getting angry at the right time, in the right measure and for the right reason. It is a balance born in strength of character. Why does the person who serves God need to correct people with gentleness? Verse 25 tells us, God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of truth. And they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil after being captured by him to do his will. Here this passage is communicating this. That those people who are teaching the wrong things, the false doctrine, they are doing the devil's bidding. The Bible speaks of the devil as a real person. And the Bible is showing us here that where we see false teaching, the devil is at work somewhere. Paul is telling Timothy, correct with gentleness, because you never know. God might use those words that you're speaking when you're correcting people who oppose you to bring them back to their senses. We see a similar idea in Ephesians 4.15. This is what Ephesians 4.15 says. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head into Christ. Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Christ. That passage is teaching something similar. That when we need to correct others, that truth has to be accompanied by love, because when that happens, the result is supposed to be growth. The way I picture this is a plant. I have an image up on the screen. When we are correcting with gentleness, we're speaking the truth and we're speaking love. It's like having sunlight and water on a plant, and the result is supposed to be growth. Now don't push my metaphor too far. I know a plant needs soil and all that. Just kind of go with it. Truth and love, the result is supposed to be growth. We are supposed to be gentle in our speech. Because when we're gentle with our speech, especially when we're correcting others, God can use those words to bring change. It's hard to be gentle when those words are supposed to be correcting someone. So if we're to be the kinds of people who are getting ready to be useful to God, we need to pursue holiness in our lives and in our speech to be gentle, especially when correcting others. I wonder what the atmosphere in this church was like. Because in verse 23, the word quarrel shows up. And it's not the only time in this book that the word quarrel shows up. And then in verse 24, Paul says, and the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome. I wonder whether this was a place where when they gathered together, people would be arguing. I grew up in a house where my grandparents every so often would argue. And it would be like sitting down and seeing arrows, no, verbal arrows, shooting across the room. And that was hard to see. If we want to get ready to be useful to God, God is interested in our speech. You see, it's easy for me to say, pursue holiness, you know, make sure you'll be you're doing the sorts of things that God wants you to do. But in this passage, Paul also brings up our words, our mouths. It's as though he is communicating that that same holiness that is supposed to characterize the things you do in public and in private, you're supposed to take that same word holy and write it across your mouth and say this mouth belongs to God. And whenever I am correcting others, I want to correct them with gentleness. This isn't to weigh on you if this is an area you need to grow in. Remember what we said earlier that repentance is bringing to God as much as you know of your sin and then giving as much as you know of yourself to as much as you know of Him. If the Holy Spirit is bringing up this is an area you need to work on, that's his way of saying this is an area you need to grow in. And as you do all this, here's what we have to keep in mind. We need to keep in step with the spirit. Getting ready for usefulness to God involves keeping in step with the spirit. Where do I get this? I get this from Galatians 5. I don't think I put the passage up on the screen for you. So I'm gonna read it. Actually, I did. Oh, good. It is there. So, Galatians 5, here's what the writer is talking about. He's talking about the right, the kind of conduct that is Christ-like, the kind of character that is Christ-like. And he's talked about the fruit of the spirit, what the spirit produces in our lives. And then in verse 25, he says, Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. What the writer is doing here in Galatians 5 is communicating that you're not doing this on your own. The Holy Spirit who dwells in you is empowering you to do the sorts of things we're talking about. So remember, we're pursuing holiness in what? In community. You're not doing it alone. And also, you have the Spirit of God as a believer, and what you need to do is just keep in step with the Spirit. When I see this phrase, this is what I picture in my mind, and you'll see the image up on the screen. I picture a child walking with their parent. When you look at that image, and you look at that little child over there, do you think that little child will miss a step here and there? Yeah, when trying to keep in step with the parent, yes, they will. But the parent is not gonna give up on them. That's what we're supposed to do. As the Spirit is revealing things in our lives that we need to change, we're just supposed to keep in step with what he is showing. He's not gonna give up on us, he is going to empower us. When we're in community, he is working. And so we can pursue holiness, we can pursue gentleness in our speech, because all we're doing is keeping in step with the Spirit who is at work in our lives. So, where do you need to pursue holiness in your private life? Holiness has to do with separating from one thing for the sake of another. Where do you need to pursue that? What about your words? Are you kind with your words when you need to correct others? Maybe you've been argumentative lately. I'm gonna encourage you to bring that to the Lord. All of us need to commit to keeping in step with the Spirit. Let's go ahead. That they will be holy, that they will be useful to the Master, and that they will be ready for every good work. God desires for you and I to be ready for every good work that He desires to do through us. So if there's an area in your life where you know you have not been pursuing holiness and you need to bring that to the Lord, I encourage you to do that right now. To just talk to him. And just tell him I need your help in this area of my life. And then this area of speech, gentleness when correcting others. Is that an area you need to grow in? Because the more you grow in that area, the more you're getting ready for the things God wants you to do. Now remember, where you are today is not where you will always be. And the conviction of the Spirit is meant to bring us to repentance, and not to a guilt that only looks inward and does not see the Savior. So should you feel the weight of these words? Yes, but not to the point where you do not see the Savior. Because our Savior is a kind Savior. That's all. By your Spirit, would you apply the words we have spoken today? The words that your people have heard. The ways that will be life-giving. Thank you for your grace that empowers us. Thank you for your love that never gives up on us. Father, would you enable each one of us to be prepared for every good work by responding to your word and keeping in step with your spirit? In Jesus' name we pray, and God's people said. Amen.