WEBVTT 00:00:00.239 --> 00:00:02.479 Let's stay standing for the reading of God's Word. 00:00:02.560 --> 00:00:07.120 If you have your Bible, and I hope that you do, we're gonna be in First Timothy here this morning. 00:00:07.360 --> 00:00:10.640 And I certainly echo what Cody had said so well this morning. 00:00:10.800 --> 00:00:13.359 I am so excited for what the Lord is gonna do. 00:00:14.160 --> 00:00:17.359 If you have your Bible, we're in 1 Timothy chapter 4. 00:00:17.600 --> 00:00:21.359 We're gonna start here in verse 6. 00:00:22.559 --> 00:00:24.480 This is the word of the Lord. 00:00:25.519 --> 00:00:33.119 If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Jesus Christ, being trained in the words of faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. 00:00:33.280 --> 00:00:35.759 Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. 00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:37.759 Rather, train yourself for godliness. 00:00:37.920 --> 00:00:46.719 For while bodily training is of some good value, godliness is the value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. 00:00:46.960 --> 00:00:50.079 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. 00:00:50.240 --> 00:00:58.799 For to this end we toil and strive because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. 00:00:59.039 --> 00:01:00.640 Command and teach these things. 00:01:00.880 --> 00:01:08.640 Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. 00:01:08.879 --> 00:01:10.640 Let's pray here this morning. 00:01:11.359 --> 00:01:13.359 Father God, we need you. 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:15.599 We have nothing without you. 00:01:15.920 --> 00:01:27.920 But God, we are just moved in love, that you are alive, that the tomb is empty, that the Spirit is inside of us, the Spirit will do the work, that your word is sufficient. 00:01:28.239 --> 00:01:33.519 So, God, I pray in this moment that you would just illuminate our hearts and minds. 00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:35.359 Help us to see you more clearly. 00:01:35.519 --> 00:01:37.040 Speak directly to us, Lord. 00:01:37.200 --> 00:01:40.959 Show us what we need to lay down, show us what we need to turn from. 00:01:41.280 --> 00:01:43.599 Help us run to you this morning. 00:01:44.239 --> 00:01:45.760 Speak to our hearts, we pray. 00:01:45.840 --> 00:01:47.040 It's in Jesus' name. 00:01:47.280 --> 00:01:47.920 Amen. 00:01:50.000 --> 00:01:51.359 You can be seated. 00:01:52.560 --> 00:01:54.319 Like we said, my name's Ethan Sparks. 00:01:54.400 --> 00:01:56.879 I hope in our student ministry, and I'm glad to be here. 00:01:56.959 --> 00:02:00.239 I'm actually going to pray again if that's okay, and then we'll get into our word this morning. 00:02:00.480 --> 00:02:03.439 Heavenly Father, I just ask that you'll be with us. 00:02:03.599 --> 00:02:09.919 Lord, I pray that as I deliver the word, Lord, that you allow the preacher to decrease so that your word increases, Lord. 00:02:10.080 --> 00:02:13.680 God, I pray that you'll be at the center of everything that we do, Lord. 00:02:13.840 --> 00:02:19.039 God, I pray that we um honor you and seek to love you as we go into your word this morning, Lord. 00:02:19.120 --> 00:02:26.080 And I just pray that as you have promised, Lord, that faith would come by hearing, and that hearing by the word of God, Lord. 00:02:26.159 --> 00:02:31.360 And I pray that you'll be with me, you'll help me, and you'll lead us all to love you more as a result of this morning. 00:02:31.520 --> 00:02:32.719 In your name I pray. 00:02:33.280 --> 00:02:33.919 Amen. 00:02:34.639 --> 00:02:40.080 So I was 19, which was five years ago, uh, when I came onto staff at Orchard. 00:02:40.159 --> 00:02:47.840 And when I came on to staff, I'm gonna be honest, I had a mixture of really great excitement, but also probably some foolish confidence. 00:02:48.000 --> 00:02:51.199 I didn't know all that ministry would have for me, but I was excited. 00:02:51.360 --> 00:03:02.800 I loved God, I loved the Bible, I felt this conviction to serving students, and it really felt like God had kind of opened the doors perfectly for me to do what I felt called to do. 00:03:03.120 --> 00:03:09.840 But the Lord uh tested my confidence very quickly, and he really matured me very quickly because he brought James Mosley into my life. 00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:13.680 And James Mosley very quickly became a hero to me. 00:03:13.840 --> 00:03:17.120 Uh, it felt like to me, James always knew what to say. 00:03:17.280 --> 00:03:24.240 It felt like he always knew what to do, and I felt like as long as I had James, like things would be okay. 00:03:24.400 --> 00:03:31.360 Um, but then on a Saturday night, a lot shifted in my life, and I got a call from Chris Greenwood, and he told me, James is sick. 00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:33.280 Uh, will you preach tomorrow morning? 00:03:33.439 --> 00:03:34.240 I said, Yeah. 00:03:34.479 --> 00:03:39.280 And then about an hour later, I figured out that James wasn't just sick, but he was being rushed to the hospital. 00:03:39.439 --> 00:03:41.520 Um, they feared he had an aneurysm. 00:03:41.759 --> 00:03:47.039 Uh, they didn't know if he was gonna make it, but the same ask was put on me, will you preach tomorrow morning? 00:03:47.199 --> 00:03:56.080 And I remember sitting there thinking about our students, thinking about James, and I looked up and I was like, God, what do you want me to say? 00:03:56.319 --> 00:03:59.520 It's a prayer that sounds so m a little familiar this morning. 00:03:59.599 --> 00:04:13.840 Um, because it's one thing to desire to be in ministry and to be excited about all these things, but it's another to know that there's gonna be students that are sitting in front of you, potentially in one of their deepest times of need, and I have been entrusted to care for their souls. 00:04:14.000 --> 00:04:18.160 And that responsibility didn't decrease, it actually increased in the coming season. 00:04:18.240 --> 00:04:24.879 Um, it went from, Lord, what do I say to felt like every day I walked into work, I was saying, Lord, what do I do? 00:04:25.120 --> 00:04:26.560 What does faithfulness look like? 00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:28.319 What does uh service look like? 00:04:28.480 --> 00:04:33.279 What does it even look like to be successful in this call that you've put on my life? 00:04:33.519 --> 00:04:42.319 And the reason this passage this morning is so compelling to me is that Timothy is a young minister who has been sent by Paul to pastor the Church of Ephesus. 00:04:42.480 --> 00:04:45.360 And Ephesus is not a church that's in a perfect situation. 00:04:45.439 --> 00:04:54.399 They've had broken leadership, they've had false teaching, they have all these things that would divide the church, and Paul has called upon Timothy to go care for their souls. 00:04:54.560 --> 00:05:00.399 And I have to imagine that in the young mind of Timothy, a lot of the similar questions were on his mind. 00:05:00.720 --> 00:05:02.800 Paul, what do I say? 00:05:03.120 --> 00:05:04.319 What do I do? 00:05:04.560 --> 00:05:07.040 What does success even look like? 00:05:07.279 --> 00:05:16.959 And what happens in this letter that we're gonna read in 1 Timothy is Paul writes this to young Timothy to instruct him on what it looks like to be a faithful servant of Jesus. 00:05:17.120 --> 00:05:25.920 So that question's gonna frame our time in the word this morning is what does it look like for each and every one of us to serve Jesus faithfully? 00:05:26.240 --> 00:05:30.959 The answer that Paul starts with is that it starts with aiming well. 00:05:31.199 --> 00:05:43.680 He says in verse 6 that if you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. 00:05:44.079 --> 00:05:48.879 You see, when you read that, the aiming point that Paul actually gives Timothy is not this. 00:05:48.959 --> 00:05:54.000 He doesn't say, if you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good pastor of Ephesus. 00:05:54.160 --> 00:05:56.720 Now that might be a byproduct, but it's not the aim. 00:05:56.879 --> 00:06:03.199 What he actually says to Timothy is, if you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Jesus. 00:06:03.439 --> 00:06:07.519 What he aims them at is not only an aiming point, but it's an identity. 00:06:07.600 --> 00:06:13.040 That Timothy ultimately is not Timothy, pastor of the Church of Ephesus. 00:06:13.199 --> 00:06:16.240 He is Timothy, servant of Jesus. 00:06:16.399 --> 00:06:19.279 And this means when he asks these questions, what do I do? 00:06:19.360 --> 00:06:20.480 What does success look like? 00:06:20.639 --> 00:06:21.680 What do I say? 00:06:22.079 --> 00:06:28.879 The person who dictates what Timothy does and says is not ultimately the people of Ephesus or any people at all. 00:06:29.120 --> 00:06:30.240 It is Jesus Christ. 00:06:30.480 --> 00:06:39.040 So as Paul instructs Timothy to aim at Jesus, this may not seem like some radical revelation, but to Paul, it's a foundational one. 00:06:39.120 --> 00:06:44.639 And I think it's a foundational one that if we're not careful, we drift from without realizing. 00:06:44.800 --> 00:06:56.399 We can become so busy, so anxious for results, so task-oriented, so overwhelmed with responsibility that we don't even notice how long it's been since we've asked, What does serving Jesus look like? 00:06:56.560 --> 00:07:01.519 So before anything else, before telling him what to do or how to do it, Paul wants to get something clear. 00:07:01.759 --> 00:07:05.279 The job and the aim is to serve Jesus. 00:07:05.600 --> 00:07:10.240 And the reason Paul finds this so foundational is he's seen the effect of the opposite happening. 00:07:10.399 --> 00:07:21.120 In 1 Timothy chapter 1, verses 5 through 7, he's written this: the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 00:07:21.360 --> 00:07:33.360 Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussions, desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they say or the things with which they make confident assertions. 00:07:33.600 --> 00:07:40.560 I told you that the whole reason Timothy is in Ephesus is because Paul has sent them to care for a broken church. 00:07:40.720 --> 00:07:45.519 And the reason this church has devolved into brokenness is because they've had broken leadership. 00:07:45.680 --> 00:07:52.000 And what Paul identifies in chapter one is that this broken leadership actually originates from a broken aim. 00:07:52.160 --> 00:07:55.600 He says they have swerved from the aim that we've given them. 00:07:55.759 --> 00:08:03.199 So when it comes to aiming at Jesus, even if it seems like a simple revelation, it is foundational to everything we're gonna do. 00:08:03.360 --> 00:08:07.120 And let me tell you why I think aiming at Christ and aim in general is so important. 00:08:07.279 --> 00:08:11.439 Every year at D Now, which is our discipleship event for students, we play a game. 00:08:11.519 --> 00:08:15.519 And what we'll do is I'll hang six targets on that back wall right back there. 00:08:15.680 --> 00:08:21.120 And every session, I'll call one student onto the stage and I'll give them a bow and an arrow. 00:08:21.360 --> 00:08:22.800 Foam tip, of course. 00:08:23.040 --> 00:08:30.399 Um as they come up here and I hang those targets, here's what I'll tell them: one of those targets is worth$100. 00:08:30.879 --> 00:08:32.000 They'll get all excited. 00:08:32.159 --> 00:08:34.000 I'll say, here's the bad news. 00:08:34.159 --> 00:08:36.000 Five of those are worthless. 00:08:36.240 --> 00:08:39.120 And I'm not gonna tell you which one is worth$100. 00:08:39.600 --> 00:08:45.840 So that means I could call it Katniss Everdeen or Robin Hood or Green Arrow himself, and they could have perfect markmanship. 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:51.600 But if they aim at the wrong target, the only thing it helps is helping them hit nothing perfectly. 00:08:51.840 --> 00:08:58.000 And I think the fear that we could have is that in life we could do things with great efficiency, great ability. 00:08:58.159 --> 00:09:01.600 But if we aim at the wrong target, it means nothing. 00:09:01.840 --> 00:09:03.759 It's pointless, and it's worthless. 00:09:03.919 --> 00:09:11.039 So I think what Paul's gonna do for us in this passage is he's gonna black out all those pointless targets, all those things that aren't worth aiming at. 00:09:11.120 --> 00:09:16.399 And he's gonna highlight the one thing that matters: to be a good servant of Jesus Christ. 00:09:16.639 --> 00:09:27.360 So, church, before we go into the rest of this passage, I think it's important that we evaluate our own lives in home, at church, in the workplace, in every facet of what we do, and check. 00:09:27.600 --> 00:09:28.799 What are we aiming at? 00:09:28.960 --> 00:09:30.879 Are we aiming just to stay afloat? 00:09:31.039 --> 00:09:35.360 Are we aiming for people to hold us as respectable or think highly of us? 00:09:35.519 --> 00:09:38.559 Are we aiming to seem like we have all things held together? 00:09:38.720 --> 00:09:44.159 Or are we aiming, regardless of what may occur, to serve Jesus faithfully? 00:09:44.399 --> 00:09:54.480 And if we aim to serve Jesus faithfully, what Paul's gonna do the rest of this passage is then give Timothy the arrows so that he doesn't only aim faithfully, but he shoots faithfully as well. 00:09:54.639 --> 00:10:02.720 And the first arrow that he gives Timothy in order to serve Christ is this: that Timothy should receive and share the Word of God. 00:10:02.960 --> 00:10:15.759 Like it says in verse 6, he says, if you put these things before the brothers, you will be a faith servant of Jesus Christ, having been trained in the words of faith and the good doctrine that you have followed. 00:10:16.000 --> 00:10:24.320 When he says these things before the brothers, what he's referring to is the very word of God that Paul has given Timothy, and he has to give to the Church of Ephesus. 00:10:24.480 --> 00:10:33.120 So what he's saying is, as you aim at Jesus, one of the most faithful ways you can serve him is by stewarding his well faith, his word faithfully. 00:10:33.600 --> 00:10:40.240 And it's it's an important observation to realize that when he spoke about the false teachers in Ephesus formerly, here's what he said. 00:10:40.399 --> 00:10:43.759 They swerved from the right aim and they went into false teaching. 00:10:43.919 --> 00:10:53.440 And now the first thing associated with aiming well in 1 Timothy 4 is that if you aim at Christ, you will find a responsibility to steward his word well. 00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:59.600 So why is there this such interlocking relationship between serving Jesus and stewarding his word? 00:10:59.919 --> 00:11:01.840 I want to just give you a hypothetical. 00:11:02.000 --> 00:11:04.639 I want you to imagine that you've written a letter, right? 00:11:04.720 --> 00:11:11.759 And you've poured your love and your advice and your wisdom and your kindness into this letter, and it's a letter for your child who's gone off to college. 00:11:11.919 --> 00:11:12.159 Right? 00:11:12.240 --> 00:11:16.720 So you've you've given encouragements, you've given reminders, you've given your heart into this letter. 00:11:16.799 --> 00:11:18.720 And you're like, man, that's that's what I want to send. 00:11:18.879 --> 00:11:22.720 So you seal it up, you put it in the envelope, and you put it in the mail, right? 00:11:22.960 --> 00:11:25.279 Entrusting the mailman to deliver it to your kid. 00:11:25.519 --> 00:11:31.840 Now let's say the mailman opens that letter, he reads it, and he says, that's not what your kid wants. 00:11:32.559 --> 00:11:35.840 And he throws that letter to the side and he says, I'm gonna write my own. 00:11:36.720 --> 00:11:39.360 Still say it's from you, and I'm gonna deliver it to your child. 00:11:39.519 --> 00:11:44.799 It does not matter how good the intentions of the mailman were, you would be furious. 00:11:45.039 --> 00:11:51.039 Because you didn't entrust the mailman to write the letter, you entrusted him to deliver the letter you wrote. 00:11:51.200 --> 00:11:55.440 In the same way, church, we're not masters, we're servants. 00:11:55.600 --> 00:12:03.360 And one of the most faithful ways that we can regard to serve Jesus is by stewarding his word faithfully. 00:12:03.679 --> 00:12:13.200 And I don't want to skip past the fact that also in this idea is not only a faithful stewarding of God's word, it's actually this idea of consistently laying it before the people. 00:12:13.360 --> 00:12:23.360 When he says, if you lay these things before him, the idea there is to continually, over and over and over again, bring it to the remembrance of your people. 00:12:23.600 --> 00:12:30.639 And this is important because I just discussed that we're a people that even if we start aiming at that right target, we tend to drift. 00:12:30.799 --> 00:12:31.039 Right? 00:12:31.120 --> 00:12:36.159 Something comes off and we're a little bit off, a little bit off, and shortly we're aiming nowhere near serving Jesus. 00:12:36.320 --> 00:12:41.600 Well, what God's word does is it continually brings the target that matters back into our view. 00:12:41.759 --> 00:12:48.159 Hebrews 2 says it this way: let us pay close attention to what we've heard, lest we drift. 00:12:48.399 --> 00:13:01.519 See, what God's word does is for a people that tend to drift and move further and further and further away from Christ, it highlights Christ over and over and over again and calls us back to truth and obedience to Jesus. 00:13:01.679 --> 00:13:09.840 So when it comes to studying the word, it's a call to be faithful, but it's also a call to regularly bring it to people's attention. 00:13:10.080 --> 00:13:13.840 And I think oftentimes when I say this, most people would say, amen, I agree. 00:13:14.080 --> 00:13:16.799 Like we need the faithful teaching of God's word. 00:13:17.120 --> 00:13:24.879 But here's the issue: I think a lot of times we regard that as only an obligation of preachers and teachers and pastors. 00:13:25.120 --> 00:13:29.360 And if you mean on a Sunday morning from the pulpit, maybe I can agree with you. 00:13:29.519 --> 00:13:38.320 But I actually think this call to faithfully and regularly lay the word before the brothers is a call that applies to all servants of Jesus. 00:13:38.480 --> 00:13:46.320 The Great Commission says this: go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 00:13:46.399 --> 00:13:47.039 And what? 00:13:47.279 --> 00:13:50.399 Teaching them to observe all that I've commanded you. 00:13:50.639 --> 00:13:59.120 See, a big part of the call for every single Christian to make disciples is to faithfully teach the word to both the unbeliever and the believer. 00:13:59.360 --> 00:14:07.440 A parent has this call to continually lay the word before their child so that faith may come by hearing and hearing by the word of God. 00:14:07.600 --> 00:14:14.480 A friend has a call to faithfully lay the word before their friends, so they may be encouraged and comforted in their time of need. 00:14:14.720 --> 00:14:25.440 Our church has a call to faithfully lay the word before our community, so that we may not drift from the target matters, but continue to serve Jesus in all that what we do. 00:14:25.600 --> 00:14:36.480 So what we see is this call to be faithful, to receive, and to share the word of God is a call that in many ways falls on every single servant of Jesus. 00:14:36.639 --> 00:14:38.080 And this is good news. 00:14:38.399 --> 00:14:44.399 Because this means that this call is not about being impressive or eloquent or gifted in speaking. 00:14:44.559 --> 00:14:48.960 So if you're like, man, I don't know how to do these things, that's not what faithfulness looks like. 00:14:49.120 --> 00:14:53.120 It's about being faithful to tell God's word and tell it consistently. 00:14:53.360 --> 00:14:55.600 Even as I'm up here, I have to remind myself of this. 00:14:55.759 --> 00:15:01.360 I have an internal pressure to be impressive or to be eloquent or to say things in a way that I want to say them. 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:05.440 But actually, what I have to remind is what Paul told Timothy. 00:15:05.600 --> 00:15:10.960 If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Jesus Christ. 00:15:11.200 --> 00:15:15.440 And the good news about this is this is not only a burden, this is a joy. 00:15:15.600 --> 00:15:23.279 Because what he says in the second part of verse six is having been trained by these words of faith and the good doctrine that you have followed. 00:15:23.440 --> 00:15:29.840 When he uses that word trained here, he uses it twice in this passage, but actually in the Greek they mean different things. 00:15:29.919 --> 00:15:31.600 Like they're literally different words. 00:15:31.840 --> 00:15:36.000 The first time he uses it is closer to our word nourished. 00:15:36.159 --> 00:15:36.399 Right? 00:15:36.480 --> 00:15:41.919 So you could read that as having been nourished by the words of faith and the good doctrine that you have followed. 00:15:42.080 --> 00:15:50.639 Very similarly to how as a baby is nourished by milk and then food, and that baby grows up into adulthood, able to stand firm. 00:15:50.960 --> 00:15:54.799 The word of God does that spiritually for the Christian. 00:15:55.039 --> 00:16:00.399 It grows us up into Christ's likeness and grows us up into maturity. 00:16:00.559 --> 00:16:07.279 I maybe have seen the most notable uh nourishing of God's word and his faithfulness to my college group. 00:16:07.519 --> 00:16:13.279 Man, at 19, I was asked by James Allison if I would consider starting a college group at Orchard. 00:16:13.360 --> 00:16:14.399 And I had three problems. 00:16:14.480 --> 00:16:18.159 I said, one, James, I don't see that many college kids. 00:16:18.639 --> 00:16:21.279 Two, I don't know how to start a college group. 00:16:21.519 --> 00:16:23.840 Three, I'm in college. 00:16:25.279 --> 00:16:27.039 Like a couple issues here. 00:16:27.200 --> 00:16:29.919 But as I prayed and I considered, I said, you know what? 00:16:30.080 --> 00:16:30.799 Let's do it. 00:16:30.960 --> 00:16:35.039 And I didn't really know what to do, but we were guarded to do two things consistently. 00:16:35.120 --> 00:16:38.000 And I think the grace of God that he led us in that direction. 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:40.480 We said we are gonna meet regularly. 00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:43.279 Like every week we're gonna make sure we gather. 00:16:43.360 --> 00:16:45.919 And we're gonna open the word every single time. 00:16:46.159 --> 00:16:47.519 We said, we'll just start it with a book. 00:16:47.600 --> 00:16:53.039 We'll start at verse one, and as long as it takes to get to the end, we'll keep going through that and we'll choose another book. 00:16:53.360 --> 00:16:58.879 And what we did is every week we opened it up and we read, and we didn't have that many impressive teachers or eloquent speakers. 00:16:59.039 --> 00:17:05.759 I remember at times we were huddled over uh tables in the lobby, calling wise people we know to be like, what does this mean? 00:17:06.079 --> 00:17:11.200 But we regarded ourselves to faithfully and consistently open up God's word. 00:17:11.440 --> 00:17:12.720 And here's what I can tell you. 00:17:12.880 --> 00:17:23.200 I bet you can ask any single person that has been in college group, and they can say, man, I am who I am in a large part because of God's work through his word. 00:17:23.599 --> 00:17:33.359 That God was faithful to the laying of his word before the brothers to grow us up in Christ-likeness and maturity and godliness. 00:17:33.519 --> 00:17:43.279 And if that's the case, then it is a joy to fulfill the servitude of laying the word before each other because it nourishes each other and it grows us up. 00:17:43.440 --> 00:17:54.000 And if God's word can nourish Paul and can nourish Timothy and can nourish the Church of Ephesus and can nourish me and my college group, and also can nourish you and your families and your community. 00:17:54.240 --> 00:17:59.759 So laying God's word before those people is a joy, not only a burden. 00:17:59.920 --> 00:18:04.559 But I don't think it actually stops at this call to serve it before other people. 00:18:04.720 --> 00:18:10.160 In fact, I actually think if we have a proper understanding of the nourishment of God's word, there's there's three things. 00:18:10.240 --> 00:18:12.799 There's one, man, I need to seek to be fed. 00:18:12.960 --> 00:18:15.279 You're here, and we seek to be fed on a Sunday morning. 00:18:15.359 --> 00:18:16.079 I think that's good. 00:18:16.240 --> 00:18:19.599 Two, I should seek to feed others, and that's good too. 00:18:19.839 --> 00:18:25.039 Three, I also think a sign of maturity is learning to feed yourself as well. 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:28.799 If you think about a baby who is nourished by milk, man, that's good. 00:18:28.960 --> 00:18:31.359 The baby's fed and he or she grows. 00:18:31.519 --> 00:18:38.079 At some point, though, there's an expectation that a sign of that baby's growth, the baby begins to learn how to feed themselves as well. 00:18:38.240 --> 00:18:51.920 So when it comes to God's word, it is so nourishing that what Paul's about to do is he's gonna transition to the public ministry of God's word into the private devotions that build the person that can steward God's word faithfully. 00:18:52.079 --> 00:18:53.440 And this is what he's gonna say. 00:18:53.599 --> 00:18:58.960 He's gonna say to Timothy, you need to train yourself for godliness. 00:18:59.200 --> 00:19:01.759 Now, we see the word train this time. 00:19:01.920 --> 00:19:04.960 It's not the nourish word, it's the word that much of us know. 00:19:05.200 --> 00:19:09.680 To exercise or to discipline yourself towards a goal. 00:19:10.160 --> 00:19:13.200 And the goal that Paul has in mind is godliness. 00:19:13.599 --> 00:19:19.759 Now, godliness is not just mere behavior of Christian practices or doing the right things and not the wrong things. 00:19:19.920 --> 00:19:26.799 Godliness is better defined as in the inner self having a reverence and a heart that is set towards God. 00:19:27.039 --> 00:19:34.240 So, what Paul says is you need to train yourself to have a heart that is set after God. 00:19:34.480 --> 00:19:38.319 Now, when he says this, then he actually reveals something super important. 00:19:38.480 --> 00:19:44.079 If he gives Timothy an obligation and responsibility to train for godliness, he tells us something. 00:19:44.240 --> 00:19:49.440 That godliness is not something that will happen on accident. 00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:57.920 I think about great athletes that we we know, people like LeBron James, Bo Jackson, even like a strong man like Arnold Schwarzenegger, right? 00:19:58.000 --> 00:20:03.279 And I think about that and I'm like, man, they have physiques and bodies that are perfectly crafted for what they do. 00:20:03.440 --> 00:20:03.599 Right? 00:20:03.680 --> 00:20:08.160 Like it is like he was in a lab to do exactly what they do. 00:20:08.400 --> 00:20:11.279 Now, I don't think a single person, when they looked at Mr. 00:20:11.359 --> 00:20:15.519 Olympia's Arnold Schwarzenegger, would say, I wonder how that happened. 00:20:16.000 --> 00:20:17.440 Probably by accident. 00:20:18.000 --> 00:20:22.559 He probably coasted and stumbled upon it, and then when he had that body, he's like, I must do weightlifting. 00:20:23.119 --> 00:20:29.839 No, I think every person would say that is an evidence of a striving and an exercising towards a goal. 00:20:30.079 --> 00:20:42.240 Well, all that Paul gets us to in this passage is that just as bodily exercise is important for bodily transformation, spiritual exercise is also important for godliness as well. 00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:54.799 And he calls Timothy to be a man who exercises towards godliness, who regards to be disciplined in the pursuit of the value of godliness. 00:20:55.279 --> 00:21:01.680 Now, if you're anything like me, you hear all that and then you say, okay, but I just might not be that disciplined. 00:21:01.839 --> 00:21:02.160 Right? 00:21:02.240 --> 00:21:09.200 Like the call to each and every day strive with discipline towards this goal of godliness, I don't have that much discipline. 00:21:09.279 --> 00:21:12.960 And if I'm being honest in my natural self, I say, I feel that. 00:21:13.200 --> 00:21:13.440 Right? 00:21:13.599 --> 00:21:14.960 But then I think about it. 00:21:15.119 --> 00:21:19.440 And I think about how hard I work and how much I prioritize to get better at golf. 00:21:19.599 --> 00:21:19.920 Right? 00:21:20.079 --> 00:21:24.400 I think about how if I'm asked to stay up late to do something for work, I do it. 00:21:24.480 --> 00:21:30.799 And I think of all these facets of my life where I do discipline myself, then I realize something. 00:21:30.960 --> 00:21:34.160 It's not a discipline issue, it's a value issue. 00:21:34.400 --> 00:21:37.519 Six months ago, six months ago, I went to Italy with a couple of friends. 00:21:37.599 --> 00:21:42.000 And when I was in Italy, I lived a healthier life than potentially I've ever lived. 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:50.480 I was walking like 30 miles a day, I was drinking water, I was going to bed early, waking up early. 00:21:50.640 --> 00:21:54.000 Like I was doing all of these peak health things. 00:21:54.160 --> 00:21:59.200 And I remember about day 10 when I was there, I'm sitting around with my friends, and I say, you know what, you guys? 00:21:59.359 --> 00:21:59.599 When I 00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:03.039 Get home, I'm gonna drink water. 00:22:03.920 --> 00:22:05.039 I'm gonna sleep well. 00:22:05.200 --> 00:22:07.039 I'm gonna bike to work once a week. 00:22:07.200 --> 00:22:08.720 Like, this is what I'm gonna do. 00:22:08.960 --> 00:22:11.759 I have a confession, I'm gonna keep this inside the church. 00:22:12.000 --> 00:22:14.480 I still drink sweet tea almost every single day. 00:22:14.640 --> 00:22:22.319 Um, I have not stepped foot in the gym, and the closest thing to biking to work I've ever done is when I pull up the guts to walk to Pyros, right? 00:22:22.400 --> 00:22:25.440 That's just like not happened in my life. 00:22:25.599 --> 00:22:25.920 Right? 00:22:26.079 --> 00:22:28.240 And I think about like why hasn't it? 00:22:28.400 --> 00:22:30.319 Well, it wasn't a discipline issue. 00:22:30.480 --> 00:22:31.680 Here's what happened. 00:22:31.839 --> 00:22:37.519 When I came home, it was not important enough to reorder my life around. 00:22:37.680 --> 00:22:43.519 Even if I kind of valued it, I didn't value it enough to change my daily rhythms. 00:22:43.759 --> 00:22:50.799 Here, we learn something important when we understand this is that our actions reveal our values. 00:22:51.039 --> 00:22:51.440 Right? 00:22:51.599 --> 00:22:58.240 We can know what we prioritize by looking at our life and seeing what do I pursue. 00:22:58.480 --> 00:23:05.359 So what Paul is gonna do for Timothy is he's gonna call him upward to pursue godliness, but then he's gonna do something else. 00:23:05.599 --> 00:23:09.599 He's gonna show him how valuable godliness is. 00:23:09.920 --> 00:23:23.359 He says in verse 8, for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds the promise for the present life and also for the life to come. 00:23:23.599 --> 00:23:29.839 See, when it comes to godliness, Paul says the value is continuing and enduring forever. 00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:39.279 There are many things we can seek with discipline and effort that will matter in this life, but godliness is exclusive in the fact that it will matter eternally. 00:23:39.519 --> 00:23:49.359 See, as we pursue and train ourselves for godliness, and our heart becomes inclined to God, we begin to become the people that God designed us to be. 00:23:49.680 --> 00:23:55.440 A people that can enjoy God regardless of the circumstances. 00:23:55.599 --> 00:24:00.960 Oftentimes I ask our young Christians in student ministry, like, what do you look forward to about heaven? 00:24:01.119 --> 00:24:02.480 And do you know what they tell me? 00:24:02.799 --> 00:24:04.000 Ice cream. 00:24:09.200 --> 00:24:10.559 Like, this is what they say. 00:24:10.880 --> 00:24:15.119 But then I ask an older saint, what do you look forward to about heaven? 00:24:15.279 --> 00:24:17.359 And they say, My sin will be gone. 00:24:17.599 --> 00:24:21.839 I'll be undistracted and simply with Jesus. 00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:30.160 And here's the reality: each person's view of heaven is dictated in that situation, but what they most value here. 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:37.920 The reason that older saint longs to see Jesus is because they've learned to value and to love Jesus. 00:24:38.079 --> 00:24:43.279 Well, here's what Paul would say is that as Christians, we don't just wait to enjoy God in heaven. 00:24:43.519 --> 00:24:52.160 He would say godliness has value now, and I think he would be willing to say it this way is that godliness will begin what glory will complete. 00:24:52.319 --> 00:24:59.039 Is that by exercising ourselves towards godliness, we can have a foretaste of heaven now. 00:24:59.440 --> 00:25:04.160 We can begin to exist as a people that enjoy God now. 00:25:04.559 --> 00:25:11.119 So I think he would hold that when it comes to value, man, there is nothing more valuable than godliness. 00:25:11.359 --> 00:25:15.920 But I think there's a second reason that we might be unwilling to discipline ourselves to a godliness. 00:25:16.000 --> 00:25:17.839 And I think this is an honest one I realize. 00:25:18.000 --> 00:25:25.200 When I think about my unwillingness to go to the gym, one of them is because I don't value it that much, and I should. 00:25:25.440 --> 00:25:27.759 The second is I think there's a reality. 00:25:27.920 --> 00:25:37.440 When I think about the gym, um, even if I had the desire to go, if I stepped in there desiring to exercise myself myself bodily, you know what I would say? 00:25:37.599 --> 00:25:39.200 I have no clue where to start. 00:25:39.440 --> 00:25:45.359 I would feel incompetent to step in there and know what proper exercising looks like. 00:25:45.519 --> 00:25:46.960 And thus I would avoid it. 00:25:47.200 --> 00:25:56.799 Man, as Christians, I don't want y'all to have that same plight where you avoid exercising for godliness because you're intimidated with knowing where to start. 00:25:56.960 --> 00:26:04.160 So I want to give, if you say, Man, I value godliness and I want to seek it, one place that every Christian in this room can start. 00:26:04.319 --> 00:26:07.440 And it comes from one of my favorite examples in Mark 135. 00:26:07.519 --> 00:26:11.519 And what happens in this story is Jesus has had one of the busiest days of all time. 00:26:11.759 --> 00:26:16.160 From sun up, there were crowds wanting him to preach and to minister and to love them. 00:26:16.400 --> 00:26:21.759 From sundown, they followed him back to the house he was staying at and stayed at the door, still wanting to be healed. 00:26:21.920 --> 00:26:22.880 He was busy. 00:26:23.039 --> 00:26:28.799 And the next morning, he does something that I think shows us a discipline for godliness very well. 00:26:29.039 --> 00:26:35.839 It says he wakes up early, departs to a desolate place, and there he prayed. 00:26:36.160 --> 00:26:39.680 Man, Jesus Christ was fully human and fully God. 00:26:39.839 --> 00:26:46.240 And I guarantee you the desired comfort of just sleeping in existed as a temptation. 00:26:46.480 --> 00:26:57.200 But Jesus Christ showed us what is valuable in the fact he woke up early, departed where there was no distractions, and resolved to spend time with God. 00:26:57.599 --> 00:27:03.519 Man, if you don't know where to start when it comes to exercising yourself so it's godliness, I would start right there. 00:27:03.920 --> 00:27:12.480 It's prioritizing in your day, in your mornings, that I am gonna depart to a desolate place, distraction-free, and I'm gonna give it to God. 00:27:12.640 --> 00:27:13.680 And here's the good news. 00:27:13.839 --> 00:27:23.920 What it says in verse 10 is it says, for this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the savior of all people, especially of those who believe. 00:27:24.160 --> 00:27:28.319 The good news is as you strive for godliness, it's actually not you who accomplish it. 00:27:28.559 --> 00:27:38.960 You exercise because your mind and your heart is set on God, who you know will be faithful to nourish you, who you know will sanctify you, and who you know will save you. 00:27:39.200 --> 00:27:48.079 So we exercise not because I think by my efforts I become holy, but because I know as I draw near to God, God will draw near to me. 00:27:48.319 --> 00:27:53.359 So the two arrows to serve Jesus that he's given Timothy, the first one, receive and share the word of God. 00:27:53.519 --> 00:27:58.559 The second one, be a person who exercises yourself towards godliness. 00:27:58.720 --> 00:28:06.319 And the third one that we're gonna see in this passage is that he's gonna call Timothy to be a person that sets a godly example. 00:28:06.559 --> 00:28:08.079 Read with me, verse 11 and 12. 00:28:08.160 --> 00:28:10.319 It says, Command and teach these things. 00:28:10.559 --> 00:28:19.680 Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, and in faith and in purity. 00:28:19.920 --> 00:28:26.640 What's gonna happen here is Paul is gonna address a very real hindrance that Timothy has in his ministry. 00:28:26.880 --> 00:28:34.960 Timothy, we don't know exactly his age, but we know for a fact that he is young compared to the responsibility that he's being entrusted. 00:28:35.119 --> 00:28:35.279 Right? 00:28:35.440 --> 00:28:39.039 And we know as a young man that there's gonna be a natural hindrance that shows up. 00:28:39.359 --> 00:28:42.720 People are gonna look down on him because of his age. 00:28:42.960 --> 00:28:50.960 And Paul, although he knows Timothy is the man for the job, also wants to prepare Timothy for how to serve Jesus in that situation. 00:28:51.119 --> 00:28:52.960 And here's what I want you to see what he does. 00:28:53.119 --> 00:28:58.400 He doesn't tell Timothy to say, go tell that congregation they're so wrong for looking down on you because of your age. 00:28:58.559 --> 00:29:00.160 Here's what he tells Timothy. 00:29:00.400 --> 00:29:04.319 You, Timothy, set an example of godliness. 00:29:04.559 --> 00:29:10.000 See, the reality is I don't think that this situation that we see here is one that is unique to only Timothy. 00:29:10.160 --> 00:29:15.759 I think we can empathize with Timothy because Timothy's issue is not unique to young people. 00:29:16.000 --> 00:29:25.759 I'm sure we're all familiar, we're stepping into a room where there are assumptions and expectations and whatever it may be about us based on things we can't control. 00:29:26.000 --> 00:29:33.599 Whether it's based on our status or our past or our age, there are realities where we step into the room and I'm gonna have to battle with that hindrance. 00:29:33.839 --> 00:29:42.559 And here's what Paul says: Paul says, your obligation and your responsibility is simply to set an example of godliness. 00:29:42.720 --> 00:29:47.519 And if you do that, you will be a faithful servant of Jesus. 00:29:47.680 --> 00:29:50.960 So what Timothy can't do is change his age. 00:29:51.200 --> 00:29:59.839 What he can do is set an example that he is a trustworthy, God-fearing, honest, wise, faithful man of God. 00:30:00.000 --> 00:30:04.559 And not only can he do that, Paul says he is responsible to do that. 00:30:04.720 --> 00:30:12.319 Another way to put it is he can either act in a way that validates the fears people have about him, or act in a way that calms them. 00:30:12.559 --> 00:30:20.720 And Timothy's responsibility is to set an example of godliness so anyone who sees sees an example of Christ-likeness. 00:30:20.880 --> 00:30:27.039 I think it is this right here that Paul shows us an important principle about servitude of Christ. 00:30:27.200 --> 00:30:32.160 It's that we cannot be a people that demand credibility because of our title. 00:30:32.480 --> 00:30:38.480 Christians are a people that cultivate it through a mature example of godliness. 00:30:38.640 --> 00:30:43.920 And if I was to go back honestly to 19-year-old Ethan, and I could tell him one thing, I would tell him this. 00:30:44.160 --> 00:30:46.400 The example I set matters. 00:30:46.559 --> 00:30:51.680 That I should strive to be a person, that a parent looks at me and says, I want my child to be like him. 00:30:51.920 --> 00:30:52.160 Right? 00:30:52.319 --> 00:30:57.039 That someone looks at me, and if I said, imitate me as it imitate Christ, it would be for their good. 00:30:57.200 --> 00:31:04.240 That I should strive not to put out every fire, but to simply say, I will live as an example of godliness. 00:31:04.400 --> 00:31:07.200 And I will trust Christ with what he does with that. 00:31:07.359 --> 00:31:11.279 And as Paul gives Timothy this arrow, it's not only for the good of Timothy. 00:31:11.440 --> 00:31:14.240 We actually have to understand it's for the good of his flock as well. 00:31:14.400 --> 00:31:19.440 Because as people, we are all naturally led by examples. 00:31:19.680 --> 00:31:23.519 I see this maybe most notably in my nephews, Judah and Josiah. 00:31:23.599 --> 00:31:25.440 They were the cutest boys you might have seen in the lobby. 00:31:25.519 --> 00:31:26.400 They're about two and a half. 00:31:26.720 --> 00:31:32.079 And they've been living in our house, our family for about a year, year and a half, and I've noticed something. 00:31:32.160 --> 00:31:33.279 So we have this tendency. 00:31:33.359 --> 00:31:38.960 Every day we'll go out and we'll we'll hit golf clubs in the yard, and I'll chip and they'll hit their little plastic balls. 00:31:39.039 --> 00:31:40.400 And I didn't even notice I did this. 00:31:40.559 --> 00:31:50.160 I'll come in, I'll scrape off my shoes, put them in the garage, I'll put my golf club by the trash can next to the door in the corner of the garage, and I'll walk in. 00:31:50.319 --> 00:31:51.680 Apparently I do that every day. 00:31:51.920 --> 00:32:01.599 The other day I was playing with Judah and Josiah in the yard, and as we finished, I walked in, I saw Judah scrape off his shoes, put the golf club in the corner, and walk in. 00:32:01.759 --> 00:32:03.359 And that shows us something. 00:32:03.519 --> 00:32:06.400 That by example, I led him. 00:32:06.480 --> 00:32:10.799 And that he, by the very nature, was prone to follow an example. 00:32:11.039 --> 00:32:13.119 Man, we all exist in that exact same way. 00:32:13.279 --> 00:32:18.559 That we have a greater tendency to follow what someone does than we do to what they say. 00:32:18.799 --> 00:32:29.599 And this means, as Christians who are desiring to make disciples of the nations, it is important that not only the words we say equate with God, but our actions do as well. 00:32:30.000 --> 00:32:35.119 And as we go through this, we've now seen three arrows that Paul has equipped Timothy with to serve Christ. 00:32:35.359 --> 00:32:37.920 One, receive and share the word faithfully. 00:32:38.160 --> 00:32:40.799 Two, train yourself for godliness. 00:32:40.960 --> 00:32:44.480 And three, set a godly example. 00:32:44.640 --> 00:32:50.079 And as we finish out this morning, I want us to remind me where we started this morning. 00:32:50.319 --> 00:32:56.319 At age 19, I came into this job where I felt like there was responsibility that I didn't know what to do. 00:32:56.640 --> 00:33:04.079 I felt like there was a call that I didn't know what faithfulness looked like, and I felt a great feeling of responsibility that I didn't know what to do with it. 00:33:04.160 --> 00:33:08.079 And I asked the Lord a question: Lord, what do I say? 00:33:08.319 --> 00:33:10.400 And Lord, what do I do? 00:33:10.640 --> 00:33:16.079 And this is a question I don't think only exists as a night general Ethan, but we ask ourselves consistently. 00:33:16.480 --> 00:33:18.480 So Lord, what do I do? 00:33:18.720 --> 00:33:20.400 And here's what I would call you. 00:33:20.640 --> 00:33:23.599 First, make sure you aim at serving Jesus. 00:33:23.839 --> 00:33:28.559 There are so many worthless targets that will attempt to pull you from that attention. 00:33:28.799 --> 00:33:34.960 Nothing is worthy of your devotion except for Jesus Christ and aim your whole life at serving Jesus. 00:33:35.119 --> 00:33:41.279 And then as you aim yourself at the worthy call of serving Jesus, three arrows. 00:33:41.599 --> 00:33:43.759 Regard to receive and share the word of God. 00:33:43.920 --> 00:33:46.079 You will be shocked at how God works through it. 00:33:46.319 --> 00:33:51.599 Two, regard to train yourself and prioritize your days towards godliness. 00:33:51.680 --> 00:33:53.039