AS I was preparing for the sermon this week I came across
this wonderful cartoon posted by Middle School West Auckland on facebook. It
uses the idea of an iceberg to graphically illustrate all the effort and
energy, sacrifice and determination, sweat and tears, ups and downs, joys and
sorrows away from the public gaze, that goes into sporting success. It is also
a great illustration of what Paul means when he says to Timothy ‘fight the good
fight of faith”… it’s not a military metaphor but a sporting one, contending in
such a way as to win the prize. Or as The Message puts it ‘Run hard and fast in
the faith.’
In 1 Timothy it is like Paul is Timothy’s coach, he has
trained him from the start, he has set the goal and the task that Timothy is to
achieve, countering the false teaching at Ephesus so that Church can again
fully participate in God’s mission of seeing all peoples be saved and come to knowledge
of the Truth in Christ Jesus. He had outlined the strategy and tactics of the
enemy and given Timothy the tools and
the strategy to counter that: holding
fast to the faith, proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ, and living it out in
love. Now it is as if we have this final
motivational speech, maybe like a coach would give to a sports team that had
come in after a hard fought first half, heads down breathing hard, batted and
bruised, everything on the line, a speech to lift their heads and focus them to
persevere and to keep going till the end.
Well it is a race that we are called to run, a fight we are
called to content in.
Paul starts ‘But You, son of God’ he had been talking about
what was going on in the church around Timothy and the false teachers and now
here he stops and focuses on Timothy. The answer to what was happening the
danger of the draw of wealth and the false teachers focus on controversy and
derision was for Timothy to be and live differently, to live the calling he had
to be a man of God.
Man of God is a term that is only used in the New Testament
in Paul’s letters to Timothy, I wonder if it wasn’t a personal term that Paul
had for Timothy, but in the Old Testament it was used of people like the
prophets or beloved leaders, like Moses, David, Elijah and Elisha, who were set
aside and called by God for specific roles and tasks. You might think well I don’t fit that title
or identity. I’m a women; well Paul used the Greek word Anthropos which means
human being rather than a specifically male, so it can be man of God or women
of God, or the gender neutral person of God. You might say it obviously applies
to a special person not me! But in Christ’s death and resurrection we have all
become the people of God, you are a person in that people. God has commissioned
as all and set us aside to proclaim the kingdom of God. God has poured his Holy
Spirit out on all who believe that we are enabled and empowered to do what God
has called us to do in Christ.
The but you applies to us; change, renewal and
transformation starts in us. As we live out that identity in Christ.
Paul sets out the course we are to run, he shows us the
direction, sets the start line and the finish line.
Paul tells timothy the direction he is to run…that he is to
flee from all this, The all this is what he had been speaking about in the
previous section, the false teachers had focused unhealthily on controversy and
obtaining wealth and it had led to unhealthy outcomes envy, strife malicious
talk, evil suspicions and constant friction. But it wasn’t to flee in any old
direction rather it was to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith. Love,
endurance and gentleness. A virtue list diametrically opposed to the false
teachers. Righteousness and godliness speak of a life of integrity where who we
act and react reflect the God in whom we believe. Faith in the pastorals refers
to that invisible vertical relationship with God made possible through Jesus
Christ, and here it has the added dimension of being faithful to that in how we
live. It is linked again with love and we see that faithfulness to our covenant
relationship with God lived out in sacrificial service to others. Endurance and
Gentleness fill that out in how we show that love. Endurance speaks of
patience, its active patience committing ourselves to the faith and to love, by
how we treat others and gentleness is the word meek. Which means that all our
strength is harnessed to achieving the common good and the common goal and we
will not be nudged or bumped off course or loose our discipline, because of the
harsh words and slights, sledging, the stray elbow and jostling or down right
dirty play of others. That is why the meek will inherit the earth, they will
not be put off loving others by anything.
Our race also is one of fleeing and of pursuing, turning
away from those things that do not reflect our identity in Christ and pursuing
a Christlikeness, as we pursue Jesus Christ. I like the idea of pursuing
because Paul acknowledges that he is also in the race with us, he is in the
fight with as well and that you know we are all out there on the course
somewhere, we haven’t made it yet, the key thing is that we are keeping moving
forward in the right direction.
Paul tells us that the start line and the finish line. He
says to timothy grab hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you
made good your confession in the presence of many witnesses. The starting point
is when we confess our faith in Jesus Christ. Paul here was probably referring
to Timothy’s baptism. The start line was when we professed Christ, in referring
to Jesus confession before Pilate Paul is talking of that affirmation of Jesus
as Messiah and King in front of those who would oppose him. It’s an open Public
confession in front of both supporters and those who would think it a wrong. We
live in a world where many find it a difficult thing to confess Christ. I read
an article this week about a girl in Laos who became a Christian and her family
beat her and threatened her with death, she finally had to flee from them when
she overheard them deciding to take her to a big city and sell her into
prostitution because it was less shame on the family.
But says Paul the finish line is eternal life. Paul says
Timothy is to contend to grab eternal life that he had received when he made
his confession of faith. It is a gift that we are given from Jesus Christ as we
come to know him as our Lord and Saviour, we don’t contest to somehow earn it,
we are not like mice caught in a spiritual running wheel, trying to get to the
top and never managing it till we are exhausted and frustrated. Rather as we
flee and pursue that eternal life that we will have when Christ returns enters
our lives now, in what we would call abundant life, a life full of the presence
of God and that reflects Christ’s presence to those around us. In verse 19 Paul
applies this teaching to those who are have wealth and he say they are to
invest not in this world but in the kingdom of God, that they may take hold of
life that is really life. Take hold of is used in both places it is as we
pursue a life that reflects Christ that we find out what real life is really
like, a life that will go on into eternity.
There is an ethical element to this as well as Paul tells
Timothy to run the race with out spot or blemish.
Paul also tells us about the glory that is there in running
the race and contesting the fight. It’s not like the adulation and acclaim of
the athlete or team that wins the trophy or the tournament or the gold medal in the race that is
focused on us and is there for a while and then fades and is placed in a draw
somewhere and pulled out now and again to show people. But for Paul the glory
is that of Jesus Christ and God himself. Paul finishes this section of his
letter with a doxology a song of praise to God. Paul focuses on God’s
sovereignty, he is the great ruler, king of kings and lord of lords are titles
that human rulers have claimed for themselves, but here Paul applies them to
God. When we think of the race through life it is reassuring to know that God
is sovereign and in control. That the course has been planned out with purpose
and precision. He also focuses on the holiness of God, the only true God who
dwells in unapproachable light. What a great thing to know the one who reigns
and rules in glory. The glory of the race is with God. The one who
initiated it by creating us to know him, who saved us by making himself known in
Christ Jesus, who stepped down and gave his life for us, who enables us to run
the race by the presence and guiding of the Holy Spirit. Who welcomes us into
fellowship. To know and meet with face to face. To have run and been part of
the God story and the God mission, to the glory of God. That is a great prize.
Paul tells Timothy how rich people are to run this race as
well.
Remember from last week he had talked about the dangers of
fixating on getting rich, now Paul turns to address a group in the church who
were rich, who must have been wondering if that would disqualify them from the
race. Is the gospel anti wealth? Pauls response is to tell timothy to command them
not to be arrogant, or put their hope in wealth, rather to put their hope in
God, who is the one who richly provides for all what is good. To become rich in good deeds and be generous
and willing to share. He finishes by echoing Jesus teaching of storing up
treasure in heaven on focusing on the kingdom of God not the kingdom of this
world.
In the end for those who are rich the race is the same they
are to flee and to pursue. Flee from self-reliance. Self-indulgence and
self-importance to focusing on trusting God, showing that trust in care and
compassion and practical love for others and focusing on Jesus Christ and his
kingdom.
Paul finally tells timothy what he should hold on and bring
with him on the race. Here the focus is the apostolic teaching that he has
received, the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now I think that means more than just
having a joggers bible with him or listening to teaching on his MP3 as he runs.
Rather it is the good news of Jesus Christ, that body of truth that is our
basis of our faith: That Christ came into this world lived and died and rose
again. And to throw away and dodge carrying the false teaching.
You know when I have a look at that cartoon we started with
and think of the sporting analogy we’ve been using all the way through this
message there is one thing missing. It’s easy to miss, its easy to think that
the focus is all on our endeavour, our effort. It’s easy to miss the four words
that Paul finishes his letter with, to simply see them as a polite nicety, but
they make all the difference. Grace be with you all. Grace be with you all. Of
course when Paul says grace, we know it
is the grace of Jesus Christ that he is talking about. Out on the course, in
the fleeing and pursuing, the contending for the prize, we are not alone, we
have grace. It is Christ who called us and made it possible for us to become
people of God, by his death and resurrection, it is Christ who promised to be
with us till the end of the age, it is Christ who has run the race before us
and who goes with us and encouraging and strengthens us on the way who marshals
us and sustains us. Who stops to pick us up and restore us when we fall, who
sends companions and team mates to contend alongside us, who provides the
coaches and mentors to keep us on track and calls us to do that for others. It
is Christ who waits for us. Grace be with you all.
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