Preach The Word

Preach The Word

Near the end of his last epistle Paul gives Timothy a solemn exhortation in the most awe inspiring language.  I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word… (2Tim 4:1-2).  As someone wisely said, matters of the greatest import must be pressed with the greatest vehemence.  Paul does not call upon the Almighty Judge, refer to His Parousia and mention His Kingdom unless the matter in question is of the utmost significance.  Preach the word!  This must be for Timothy a top priority.  As a minister of the gospel he must proclaim the gospel.  It is a non-negotiable.  Of course Paul is not saying Timothy has nothing else to do, though some ministers appear to interpret the command this way.  Rather, Timothy must make preaching his top priority.  His grand and glorious business as a faithful steward must be the proclamation of Christ.   

Abide in the Teaching

Israel’s failure in this regard led to a severe rebuke.  My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…  a people without understanding shall come to ruin…  For the spirit of whoredom is within them, and they know not the Lord (Hos 4:6, 14; 5:4).  The Hebrew heralds had not fulfilled their commission.  Israel lacked knowledge and understanding.  John says, Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son (2Jn 9).  The teaching is crucial to salvation.   

Appointed Heralds

Yes, it is humbling to hear the gospel from mere jars of clay (2Cor 4:7) just as it was humbling for Namaan to deal with a servant and wash in the Jordan (2Kgs 5:9-12).  But in either case, there is no healing apart from the appointed means.  God’s power is made perfect in weakness (2Cor 12:9).  Would we refuse to quench our thirst if the water was provided in a styrofoam cup?  It pleases God to offer salvation through good news proclaimed by fallible men.  Who are we to argue?  Praise Him for appointing heralds who can sympathize with us in our miseries.  Petition Him to appoint heralds who will not shirk their duty and above all things will preach the word!

 

Sacred Writings

Sacred Writings

David spares no praise for the Scriptures.  More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb (Ps 19:10).  Solomon spares no expense for them.  He prefers them to silver, gold, jewels and any other desirable thing (Prv 8:10-11).  Thus he exhorts, Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding (Prv 23:23).  Paul spares no admiration for them.  They are sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2Tim 3:15).  He refers to writings, ancient script written centuries ago by devout Jewish men.   

Wise for Salvation

Unlike the rest of the world’s literature, these writings are uniquely sacred.  They reveal what holy, promote what is holy, originate from Him who is holy and oppose whatever is unholy.  They are the oracles of God (Rom 3:2).  Perhaps most importantly the Holy Spirit uses these sacred writings instrumentally in His work of convicting, converting and comforting the heirs of salvation.  This is what Paul means when he says they make one wise for salvation! 

Nothing Compares to the Bible

No other book can lay claim to such an eternally significant purpose.  No other writing can boast of such relevance and import.  No other so-called oracle can compare with Scripture.  The eternal destiny of souls depends in part upon the truth revealed in its pages.  Let us therefore follow the example of true worthies in sparing no praise, no expense and no admiration for the sacred writings.  They bear witness about the greatest treasure of all, Jesus Christ (Jn 5:39).

Cutting Straight

Cutting Straight
Many believe 2Timothy was the last epistle Paul wrote. Abandoned by friends and suffering in a Roman prison he was conveying some final thoughts to his young protégé Timothy.  The apostle offered inspired guidance to this youthful presbyter concerning one’s personal conduct and public ministry.  A good soldier of Christ finds spiritual strength by the gospel of grace in Christ and seeks to disciple others to do the same (2Tim 2:1-2).  Temptations to deviate from the course abound, even imprisonment and martyrdom, but the good officer stays the course.   

What's a minister to do?
If as a worker (a minister or teacher) he strives to avoid shame and seeks the approval of God, he must do his best to rightly handle the word of truth (2Tim 2:15).  Literally the minister must be eager and do his utmost to cut straight in handling truth.  An approved, unashamed workman in God’s household does not deviate from inspired revelation.  Is this all he does?  Absolutely not.  He is not a mere intellectual or academic.  He may not cloister himself among his books and neglect the needs of his flock.  Indeed, he has many responsibilities.  Peter sums it up by saying he must shepherd the flock of God exercising oversight willingly, eagerly and exemplarily (1Pt 5:2-3).  Like all Christians an officer must strive in every area to be Christ-like, but uniquely he must do this as a public person.  Expressions of faith, displays of hope and demonstrations of love should characterize his personal and public testimony.  

Rightly Handling God’s Word
Paul certainly does not restrict the minister’s duty to preaching and teaching.  But he does identify this as the primary focus of his ministry.  He points out that rightly handling God’s word is that to which he must commit himself with untiring devotion.  An approved workman is one who skillfully cuts straight when handling truth.  Like a master butcher dexterously wielding his knife to gain the best cut, a minister must skillfully handle the sword of the Spirit so he may wisely and faithfully feed the sheep.  James says the wisdom from above is first pure and only then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere (Jas 3:17).  Hence, the minister must devote himself to rightly handling God’s word so that the wonderful blessings of unity, security and fellowship may be enjoyed by a well-fed congregation.  Paul’s point is a matter of emphasis, not exclusion.  The preaching of, teaching from and counseling by the Scriptures is the root from which so many good and pleasant fruits will grow.  We do not neglect the fruits by any means, but we will not enjoy them either without a healthy root.  Sadly, many modern ministers focus so intently on the fruits that they neglect the root.  As a result we find churches in which the Word is not central, preaching is not esteemed and orthodoxy is not safeguarded.  Their unenviable condition leaves them vulnerable to the gangrene of irreverent babble leading them to ruin and ungodliness (2Tim 2:14-17).  This occurs because they have become like those who swerved from the truth (2Tim 2:18).  May the Lord Jesus by His Spirit keep us from deviating from Scripture and enable us to cut straight in handling the word of truth!

Room for Boasting

Elder Ray Gilliland brings us the evening message this week, "Room for Boasting."

Elder Ray Gilliland

Vivification - Colossians 3:12-17

    Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
(Colossians 3:12-17 ESV)

"...And the injuries and the griefs that He sends are those which tend to mortify our pride and sanctify our souls and therefore, we recognize His hand so that though others meant it for evil God meant it for good."

Model Spiritual Servants

Sermon delivered by Elder Ray Gilliland. Be encouraged by what our elder has brought us.

Hubris

In the ancient world, excessive pride or hubris was a prominent feature in classical tragedy.  For instance, in Homer’s Iliad the great, mythical conflict between Achilles and Agamemnon was borne out of the deep seated arrogance that permeated both men.  Of course hubris is not just a relic of the past, but is characteristic of every age.  That is because every child of Adam from the moment of conception is infected with this disease, and its symptoms are more or less evident throughout the whole of human experience.  No one is immune.  None is righteous, no, not even one! (Ro 3:10).

Take for example the shocking display of hubris in the life of Herod Antipas.  After delivering an oration arrayed in his imperial regalia, the Caesareans shouted, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” (Acts 12:22).  How foolish he was to welcome this false acclaim!  How excessively proud he was to withhold honor from God.  In the end, it was hubris that led to his gruesome demise.  An angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms (Acts 12:23).

Contrast this with the Paul’s experience in Lystra.  As he was preaching, a man lame from birth was listening and had faith to be healed.  With a penetrating stare Paul looked at him and said, “Stand upright on your feet” (Acts 14:10).  When the cripple sprang to his feet, the Lystrians shouted, “The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!” (Acts 14:11).  Noteworthy was the influence of grace in Paul’s heart.  The temptation was great, but he refused to accept their idolatrous praise.  Unlike Herod, he knew himself to be but a sinful creature infinitely beneath the dignity of his Creator.

As the wise man warns, Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall (Prv 16:18).  Hubris plagues every human being to one degree or another.  It is something with which we all must struggle.  It reveals itself in countless ways across all walks of life.  Its ugly symptoms can be traced back to that original, diabolical, criminal desire to be like God (Gen 3:5).  The natural man like Herod welcomes the applause.  The spiritual man like Paul knows the truth.  With an enlightened mind he realizes that he is of like nature with the rest of fallen humanity.  It is a humbling insight.  But he also brings good news about turning from such vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them (Acts 14:15).  Amazingly, this living God holds out terms of amnesty to guilty rebels who are willing to lay down their hubris and humbly embrace the Lord Jesus Christ by faith.  Under the sanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit, through the justifying virtue of saving faith, one may display genuine humility reflecting the character of Christ.  Only then may he truly become like God.