“Paul’s Charge to a Young Man” 1 Timothy 4:11-16

Oops. Put this on, but you can keep me alive on that one. Take your Bible and turn with me to 1 Timothy chapter four. 1 Timothy chapter four. We have been looking at the pastoral epistles, and I mentioned last week that word that is the worst word you could ever utter in a Baptist church, and that word of change.

Now I’m gonna apply that by way of introduction here today as well. and to apply it to our country without being politically motivated or politically trying to prove a point, but to say that there has over, let’s say the last quarter of a century or 25 years, that there has been a tremendous change in the United States of America. And when we think about that change, some would probably think that that change is for the good. I think most of us would probably opt on the side that that change has not been for the good. But that’s not, I’m not here to debate that. I’m just here to say that there has obviously been some tremendous change. And one of the reasons, or maybe even a couple of reasons why that change is real, is that there’s been a tremendous amount of change in morality, understanding what is right and what is wrong, ethical reasons for that, because an ethical basis has been lost.

Not so much that this has been or is a a Christian nation, although there were many Christians in the founding of it, and many of our principles, separation of powers, and so forth, understanding the depravity of mankind, and that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. and following those kinds of thoughts and things like that. And so there’s been good, good principles that were maybe Christian in their makeup, the Supreme Court and its ideas that are there and our Constitution. But there seems to have been a tremendous amount of change with respect to all of that. So do you read the Constitution and believe that that is our founding principles and it doesn’t change? Or do we believe it’s a living document that changes all the time and that we give new rights, new unalienable rights? And is it the government that gives those rights or is it God that gives those rights? And again, those are good things to talk about and to debate, but that’s not where I want to go.

But how did we get to this point of chaos in our country? Well, I think everyone would understand and would say that some of this has come through some changes in our educational system. And again, some would think that that’s a good thing. Others don’t. But I think everyone agrees it’s through educational system, especially places of higher learning, but the educational system, examples that our leaders have given us. Let’s face it. After Jimmy Carter, some of the, and it’s went on before, but especially since Jimmy Carter, through President Clinton, all the way through President Trump, and now President Biden, and even in those that are trying to fill that office today. that I think that we could honestly say that the example that our leaders that we are proposing to be our commander in chief, our president and vice president and the like their lifestyles.

Well, let’s just face it. They are not Christian. And their example historically and to look at them, and that’s why everybody points to it. they point to well this he said this or she said that and and and it’s just it’s a mess because the leader example is there and Also that there has been a real sense of a loss of authority The loss of authority or the abuse of authority whether it be presidential proclamations that seem to have gone way too far, even in light of the Supreme Court saying no, and no, we’re gonna say no, well, I’m gonna do it now because it’s expedient at least for a while, or it be the loss of authority, but the Constitution says, you know, First Amendment, we’re supposed to have freedom of speech. Well, there’s a lot of places where that is not taking place. And it becomes difficult. when you look at the world that we live in with the internet and so forth.

Now, having said all of that, not saying who I think, or if anybody, really has an answer to all the problems to correct the chaos and the change that has been brought in the United States of America. But all those things that I have mentioned, are really agreed upon, whether you’re a Democrat, Republican, Independent, Libertarian, that pretty much those things, yeah, that’s it, but I think.

Now, what I find interesting is I kind of reflected over that, that the Apostle Paul knew that some of those same kind of things would take place in local churches. Like, for example, if you try to rewrite the history That’s what some have tried to do in our country. Well, if you try to rewrite or not accept or say that they’re just stories and not historical narrative, well, that has helped lead some churches and denominations into liberalism. a lack of proper understanding and interpretation of the Constitution or of the Bible that will bring about some confusion. And, you know, we would be the one of those biblical churches. But what does the Bible say? Yeah, but the Bible is not reliable. The Bible has mistakes in it. The Bible isn’t. And so, again, that will lead to chaos and to change. or maybe in some ways a lack of change where there should be some change.

And so in considering all of that, and when you read the book of 1 Timothy, Paul gives some of that same instruction, but he tells and does give us the answer when it comes or rather when it’s related to leadership and decision making and so forth in the church. And that is found in this section that we’re looking at this morning. First Timothy chapter 4 verses 11 through 16. And in fact, in this fact, actually the whole book and the book of Second Timothy, we really have the instructions of an old guy to the young guy or the apostle to an elder. in a local church, and the word elder there is that word that refers to Timothy.

As a pastor, it reminds us a little bit, well, actually a whole lot of Second Timothy, Chapter two, verses one and two, verse two, specifically where it says, Commit thou to faithful men that they may teach others. And it’s the perpetuity of the gospel, the perpetuity or the change of the handing of of the truth, leadership in the local church and all of that from one generation to another. And we see how important that is. Well, in the verses that we have before us this morning, beginning of verse 11 through 16, there are five important areas that Paul is going to mention to Timothy, five important areas of attention in a pastor’s life and ministry. In other words, there’s going to be five areas that Paul is going to talk to Timothy and to say. Pay attention to these things.

Now, it goes with the context of the entire book, if you remember, and there’s going to he’s come back now in this section to something is already made mention of in Chapter one. and that is be sure you pay attention to sound doctrine. And the term sound there means healthy or helpful kind of good doctrine, that the church should not be looking for new doctrine all the time. We have the instructions of the inerrant, holy, inspired word of God, and that’s what we need to pay attention to.

Well, he’s gonna mention that a little bit more in this section. And so he’s he’s done that. Then he’s given some order of the church services that how worship ought to be conducted in Chapter two. He wants women to remain and to learn in silence. He wants male leadership in the office of pastor, elder, teaching and leading in those. And he gives reasons for all of that, even to the point that a church should be known for praying, but through male leadership.

Chapter 3, he goes through the qualifications of the two offices found within the church. The office of elder, bishop, pastor, and he goes through those qualifications, including to be a one-woman kind of man. Man, Y-chromosome, the word there is not anthropos, where we get mankind. But rather it is on there, which is the word for a man, a man. Again, why chromosome? And so he talks about the qualifications of an elder of a pastor. He talks about the qualifications for deacons. And so all of that. Then when we come to Chapter four, we heard that the reason for all this is because the church is worth it, because there’s going to be false teachers. They’re going to come from within. those who say they believed one thing and then they will deny. And he addresses the issue of apostasy. But then he also says that there will be those that will bring challenge to those from without.

So from within the church, there will come those that will bring in bad and destructive teachings and also from outside. But then when we come to chapter four, verse 11, the second half of this chapter, he’s going to give some specific instructions on how to be a good minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ. What are things that that the church needs to know in a practical way? What is it that is going to be really good to help the pastor? that begins at verse 11 in chapter 4. So again today we’re going to look at very quickly five important areas of attention in a pastor’s life or in a pastor as we go from one generation to another as we go from one age to another. What are what’s on the Apostle Paul’s heart? He’s planning to eventually come and do this instruction personally, we see that over in verse 13. He says, till I come, give attention to.

So he says, I’m coming, but until I get there, I want to make sure that you’re doing these things. Later on, also in chapter three, when he’s writing, he says, these things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly. So Paul said, you know, I’m planning on coming. I’ll give you some more face to face meeting and instruction. These things are really important. These things were what the spirit of God said. You need to really pay attention. This is what is important in a local church. Well, what is he going to say? Well, there’s five areas that he makes mention of. The first one is this. The the first important area of attention is He tells him to continue. So Timothy was already doing this, but continue to give a charge to the congregation. And this is found in verse 11. And I only mention this because it’s really a segue. It’s that the pivotal point of the passage. And so it goes both ways. We introduced a lot of it in the first 10 verses. But he says these things.

Well, the things I’m about to tell you today, but these things also refers to what I mentioned to you last Sunday. These things command and teach, or if we wanted a really good translation, continue to command and teach. Now, what does he mean? Well, this is an address to Timothy to continue to preach, to be involved in commanding or to give orders, but also to teach the congregation. And the reason why this is, I think it’s the segue. It’s that that middle section. But the reason why he puts this one up front is because it it means Timothy. as the pastor of a local church and the things that are taught ethically on what we ought to believe and all of that, that you can do that as the pastor with a sense of authority. In fact, that word that says command, that is a it’s a military word. It includes the whole the whole idea of giving orders to another or rather while giving orders to another but giving the orders of another to others.

And so one thing that Paul wanted Timothy to know, that as an elder, the bishop, a pastor, that we, and as pastors, we speak authoritatively, but it’s not because I’m special. It’s because I’m an under shepherd and I give you the orders as commanded by Jesus Christ. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ or to be baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, identifying with him. Or if we do things within the church that has to do with church discipline and a person continues us in sin. And when a pastor leads the congregation into church discipline and you deliver such a one over into Satan and the like, there is a sense of command, of authority.

Now, unfortunately, we have lost that in churches today. Number one, how many churches actually discipline And then I might add to that how many churches exercise church discipline biblically. But it is something that is supposed to be done. It’s supposed to have meaning. And now when we interviewed Lizzie, we did not ask her if she was under church discipline. But we have asked others of you that have joined recently. Are you underneath church discipline? Because it counts. It means something. When churches do that, there’s a sense of authority. Well, who are the ones that lead in that in that fight? It’s the pastor. So he he charges him that there is a sense of authority. that it is giving orders of another to others. And the word that way, the verb there, the verbs that are used is to command and to teach. You don’t do this in a vacuum, but the church is a teaching institution that you are to continue to be involved in that. So there’s a sense of authority.

Now, I’m going to pause and I want to come to another reason or something that is made made mention of this will actually be part of the third point. But notice that is why I believe verse 12 is in the context. It almost seems out of context because he’s these things command and teach. Let no man or let no one despise your youth. But be an example. That sounds like, OK, Timothy, we know is a younger guy. and so forth, but he was in his 30s. It’s the only way you can kind of get this, the timeframe in there. He’s in his 30s. Some believe he was getting really, really close to the age of 40, but he wasn’t there yet. And the word that is used there for youth means someone who was young. And in a church, when you’re younger and you’re the senior pastor, it sometimes becomes difficult.

Now, Back in the day, you know, I think the T-Rexes were still walking on the face of the earth and I was young, that I never looked my age. I just don’t have a heavy beard or anything. And so I grew a mustache. Not so much that I thought a mustache really looked good or looked good on me, it’s that I needed to show people I actually could. that I would look at least a little bit older. And people, I remember in my first church up in Ohio that there was a guy up there and he literally had his crooked little finger and he pointed it in his face and he told me, I think you’re almost a neo-evangelical because you have a mustache.

Now neo-evangelical is not a phrase that we use a lot of, That’s kind of a compromise, it’s not a compliment. And it’s kind of like a compromise thing where you’re willing to compromise doctrine and everything. And he had determined my whole total character and my doctrinal stance because I had a mustache as a pastor. And I just looked at him and told him, I said, I have a mustache just to look older, because if not, I look like I’m in high school. And I already have two master’s degrees. I had two master’s degrees that was there. And I was and I was in what I would still would have been in my 20s back then. Yeah. And so it is I was young, but I was a senior pastor. I was called and I was giving them commands and teachings out of God’s word for another Jesus Christ. Therefore, believe what I say and submit, not because I’m some hotshot. It’s because I represent the king of kings and the lord of lords. And so you see here, he said, let no one despise your youth.

Also had a guy there in the church. He said that the only reason why he voted on me was I was bold enough to wear a red shirt. at when I was candidating a church. And he said, that’s why I voted for you to be said, I figured that you were some kind of a little bit of a different kind of a guy. And that’s who I wanted to be, my pastor, and that you must be really self-confident. I wore a red shirt because it looked good with the tie I had. And that’s it. And I like black and red. And so churches. determined submission and following of the leadership for some really non biblical and for some really bizarre reasons. And so we are and you see again it goes to leadership and what can bring harm to a local church.

So this first one is he tells Timothy. continue to give charge with authority to the congregation, both in charging them on godly living and in the teaching of God’s word. The second important area was to continue this teaching of the authority. And it has the context of teaching in order to safeguard the people from the false doctrine and false teachers that had crept in. The reason why that was there, if you look at verse, well, it goes all the way back to beginning of chapter four, which is now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times or in these latter epics in time, Some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies, hypocrisies, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding marrying, and some of those other things. If you drop on down, verse six, if you instruct the brethren, Timothy, in these things, that is, and so that they can battle those doctrines of demons and so forth, you will be a good minister of Christ, nourished in words of faith and good doctrine, which you have carefully followed.

The term doctrine is found in the pastoral epistles over 15 times. And because of that. It means it was on the heart of the apostle Paul for the perpetuity of the gospel, in other words. One absolute. Absolute. important thing of a local church is, what do they believe? What do they teach? And I guess, do they believe what they teach? What are the doctrines? You see, we live in the day and age where people think doctrine is boring. I just want to know how I should live. I want to just make it practical. I want to to have lively services and that. And they are willing to compromise church attendance and that to go to churches that simply do not teach the truth.

Now, let me use just one example. And it’s some that we can see very closely within our own community. We believe that the Bible teaches that when you accept Christ as Savior, you receive the gift of eternal life, not you receive the gift of potential eternal life. That is the doctrine of perseverance and preservation of the saints for those that want more identity, it’s the P of tulip of the five points of Calvinism. But that just all bothers an awful lot of people, so let’s just not do that. It is some that would refer to as eternal security. It also, unfortunately, is also the same doctrine that some people spout off and say that once saved, always saved. Well, technically, that’s true, but they usually mean one saved, always saved. Therefore, I can live any way that I want. There’s nobody that knows the doctrine of perseverance, preservation of the saints that believes that. But there are those who say that we believe that and therefore they say they don’t.

So it’s one of the main, main doctrines. And that is one of the watershed doctrines or teachings within the church. I’m thinking of ours and two other churches in our community very close to here where they teach that a person can lose their salvation. Is that true? No. Is that a healthy doctrine? No. And but yet some people say, well, I’ll go to that church because, well, I like their music or I like their youth or I like their program. I like whatever. And that has been the demise, I think, of many churches and of many Christians in today. The church hopping that goes on because Christians have no discernment on what is good biblical teaching on some of these doctrines. You see, if you can lose your salvation, then it’s not eternal life that you received when you became a Christian. Try to square losing your salvation with the doctrine of election. Well, a lot of people have a problem with the doctrine of election. I get that. You might need to study it more, but you don’t throw out the doctrine when the Bible clearly says we’re chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.

Well, if that’s true, then how do you lose it? Or if when I accepted Christ, the Holy Spirit indwells me. Well, for me to lose my salvation, the Holy Spirit leaves me. Where is that taught as a New Testament biblical doctrines salvificly? It’s not there. So it’s important that we continue to teach with authority The word of God and the reason is he gives here is is because it safeguards us from false teachers and from false doctrine. If there’s ever a day and age when the church of Jesus Christ needs discernment with good healthy doctrine, it’s now because of the advent of podcasts, YouTube and cable TV and Christian radio. Some people feel that if it’s just a pastor, oh, he’ll teach me right. This passage would say no. Oh, if it’s a good conservative, it’s OK. I would say no. You need to always be discerning. I’m not going to say not to listen to it. I listen to some podcasts. But you need to always listen with discernment.

Two things that the church needs is to have a sense of giving a charge with authority, no matter where you are and how old you are in the ministry. And you need to also continue to teach the congregation to safeguard against false doctrine. Thirdly, you need to maintain a right relationship with the congregation. Now, some would refer to this as pastoral authority or pastoral identity with the congregation. And so what can we have here? Well, he does this in a negative and a positive way. And here I’ve already alluded to this. And that’s let no one despise your youth. Well, who was despising his youth? It was church members. Oh, he’s young. I can’t I can’t bow to him. Part of that, it’s a negative response because someone is the word there to despise. Probably that’s a little stronger in a negative sense than what Paul is meaning, because the word despise means to look down upon.

Timothy was probably around 30 years old in this day and age, 40 was considered to be out of the youth category. and 30 you were still down. You had to be 40 to be a captain in the army for example. And so this idea is that don’t let people look down upon you. A relationship between pastor and people and to look down on one based upon age and age alone where there’s no age bracket. There’s no age limitation when you could become an elder or not. But the word itself, elder, actually came about as a respect in this culture and in many cultures today. There’s a high respect for the elderly. And it is easier for the elderly to pick on, despise, or not want to submit to the charge of a younger person. And in a local church and relationship wise, it should not be based on age.

Now, it may be based on doctrine. There can be other issues that are going on, but it deals with how one relates. And that’s the main thing that Paul’s trying to get at, because this is actually not just a simple sentence. but rather it’s a comparative sentence. Notice the text again, verse 12. Let no one despise your youth, but, so here is the other side of it, the relationship part of it, but, be an example. A pastor not only has to meet the qualifications of chapter three, of the qualifications of an elder here in Chapter three of First Timothy. But he also needs to be an example to the believers. That’s one reason why how I live, how I conduct myself makes a difference, how I raise my children, how I treat my wife. how I am known from those out in the community. That’s why those qualifications exist. Be an example as a pastor to your congregation.

The Puritan Thomas Brooks is noted in saying, an example is the most powerful rhetoric. So continue being an example. Kind of like what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 16, be ye followers of me even as I am also of Christ Jesus. That same concept is found in Philippians chapter 3, chapter 4, and in Hebrews chapter 13, verse 7. So a pastor is not only to charge and to teach doctrine with authority, he’s to live a life to earn the right to do that. If you get a scoundrel. Well, let me part of the scandal, and again, when we started earlier in the message in my intro about how change comes about and how that change can really mess us up, and it’s true in the church. It wasn’t long ago that there were some preachers, if I’m not mistaken, they were out in California, but they might not have all been out there, but they somehow got it into their head. beyond measure to my thinking, that if you use profanity in the pulpit, that that’s a good thing. You relate to the people, you know, and they were saying words.

Let me just say that if I ever would have said those words and I was saved at nine and praise God, I’ve not had the problem with bad language. But the Bible says, let no filthy communication proceed from your mouth. And if I one time, I can think of one or two bad words I ever said, and my mom didn’t do it, but if I would have said a third one, I think she would have, that I would have gotten a really good taste of ivory soap. It would have just been mashed in my teeth, washed my mouth out with soap. Now in today’s world, that’s probably called child abuse. In my day, it was called discipline, and it keeps a boy’s mouth clean. And it teaches only by example. And also, you don’t do that again. But anyways, but these pastors, they were uttering profanities. And I know of one guy right now that enjoys doing this as well. And there’s no difference between him and a sailor. And he thinks he’s relating well in the midst of that.

Well, that’s a lousy example. That’s a lousy example to the children in the congregation. to your family, to this world. You know, we’re to be, you know, behold, all things before Christianity and Christ in my life have I’ve died to those things and those are to be buried. And I’m a new creature. Jesus said, what comes out your mouth shows really what’s in your heart. Now, the end result is, as far as I can think of it, except for the guy I know locally, Those other guys, I don’t think, are in the ministry now. Or if they are, they’re not really preaching the real gospel of Jesus Christ.

And so there’s this concept of, in a positive way, to be an example, to continue being an example in all these things. But he then goes in and mentions the areas that young preachers need to make sure that they are an example. Notice what it says here. Be an example to the believers in word. Right, there’s the first one. How do you talk? Not only what words do you use, previous illustration, but how do you speak? how you talk about your wife, in what tone, with what words.

My dad was a very, very bad example in how he referred to my mom, of which I will not use those words. But I just grew up knowing I never want to refer to a woman with those words. Because you see, again, what Jesus said, what comes out your mouth, it reveals what’s in your heart. And here’s what he said, be an example in your word. Not only that, but in conduct, how you live. How you drive, how you pay your bills. He then goes on and says, and in love. As you live a life that love is the word and sense of self-sacrifice on the behalf of others, Jesus said. No greater love hath any man than this that lay down his life for a friend. Do you love? Are you known as a loving person?

Well, that’s a general thing that needs to be true of all of us. But it better be true of a pastor. You’ve got to have the right conduct. You’ve got to have the right speech. You need to be a very loving person because you know what? Sometimes sheep are very unkind. A pastor doesn’t have a right to hold a grudge for a while. He can’t do that. He can be heartbroken. He can he can be affected. But but a man who doesn’t have the ability to forgive. Does not have a right to be in the ministry. Because if you can’t forgive, and then you preach on forgiveness, and other people will say, well, buddy, your actions speak louder than your words. There’s no way.

So you need to live a life of love, of faith. He goes, okay, there, believe in word, conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith. That’s not salvific faith, but rather it’s a faithfulness of trustworthiness. May I put it this way? It has the idea of without wavering or with a sense of loyalty. This would be one of my particular problems with some preachers. You go to a pastor’s meeting and it’s kind of like everybody is having a fried church member. You know, sometimes they talk about roasting the preacher, you know, at lunch in your homes, but preachers have the thing known about frying church members. And they just talk about, do you not have brother? Oh, did they go over to your church? Yeah, well, they’re a bum. I hate that.

I remember not long after I had come here and somebody challenged me in a Christian context, Oh, you’re the pastor of Fellowship Baptist. Oh, isn’t that the church where? You just yeah, you just know that’s a no win situation. Oh, isn’t that the church where? I said, yeah, where we understand that God is in the business of forgiving sinners. and that we have a church of genuine, authentic Christianity.

Now, was our church perfect? No. Is our church perfect now? No, there is none. The proverbial thing, if you find a perfect church, don’t join it, because as soon as you join it, it’ll no longer be perfect. Well, the idea there was is that and and I but I just said, you know, yeah, it’s genuine, authentic Christianity. And I just was defending the congregation because that’s what a shepherd does when a wolf tries to come in and bring some disruption. I came to the next prayer meeting and someone greeted me at the door and said, thank you for loving us. And then they explained that they heard by way of rumor.

One thing you never do is speak about Fellowship Baptist Church in a negative way to Pastor Piatt. And may I just say that continues to this day. Because when a pastor loves his congregation. Yeah, that love is biblical love, and it comes with a sense of faithfulness. Well, a pastor ought to faithfully love, but it has the idea of loyalty.

Now. You show a church that’s growing that is reciprocated by the sheep to the pastor. Oh, that’s where the preacher, you know, has monkeys or breed snakes. Of course, now that we almost, well, I don’t know about you, but I think that’s kind of a positive thing. You know, I breed snakes and I got the gift. Hey, you know, that’s good. But it goes to the uniqueness thing. But the idea there, you get it. But especially from the pastor. He is to love, to have faith and faithfulness and trustworthiness in that purity in word, actions, and intents of his heart. And that goes to the treating of the opposite sex, to be a one-woman kind of man, and we’ve already covered that.

So continue to charge the congregation with authority, continue to teach, Maintain right relationships with the people of the congregation. Fourthly, it is to carry out a scriptural ministry. A scriptural ministry. It says nothing about youth program, it says nothing about the music. Notice. He says, until I come, so until I get there, and I can give some specifics, Timothy, give attention to the reading.

Now, that is the term reading. It would refer to the scriptures, but the reading. And the reason why I read it that way is because the the the definite article is in the original text. The public reading of scripture. Is a big deal. That’s one reason why we like to sing. We don’t do it every Sunday, but pretty much anymore. Every Sunday morning, we sing the Psalter that’s giving attention to the scriptures. That’s why we have the public reading of scripture, usually of the passage that I’m preaching, but not always.

That’s sometimes why we have a call to worship and we read the scripture. If you get it, we have several specific things in our liturgy, if you want to use that word, but in our public services on the Lord’s Day morning, where we read the scriptures. You know why? Because Paul told Timothy to do that. Until I come, give attention to the reading, not only that, to the exhortation. The term exhortation means to apply that which has been read, how to live to the heart. It’s a sense of the morality of the text. It’s to apply what was read. What’s the meaning? What’s the purpose of that?

A lot of churches, they’ll have some reading of scripture that has nothing to do with what the theme of the whole service is about. It’s kind of like a potpourri of just Christian things or of Christianity. Rather than this service, we’re talking about the old guy telling the young guy in the first century how to conduct church and then to sing songs about that and what is important. That should go with the music and everything. So pay attention, carry out the scriptural ministry of the reading of scripture. May I also say that that means to read it, not bumble through it. We’ve had different times and seasons when we’ve called on men to publicly read scripture. We try to get it to them early so that they can practice it.

I learned an awful lot from R.C. Sproul, my friend and one of my professors in the doctoral program, and he said, when you read, read the passion of the passage. What is this about? Don’t just read the words, read the passage. So the public reading of scripture, the exhortation, that would also be called the sermon, And then the teaching, 15 times used in the epistles, what to know. It’s to address the intellect. Church is a place, not just that you can go and get a good pep talk. You can go to Dale Carnegie’s seminars and get that. But it should be doctrine, the teaching, and to get it. I’ve appreciated Pastor Ryan and the Sunday school that we’re teaching to learn this morning, learning an awful lot about some of the early missionary endeavors and men and the spread of the gospel.

Now, that’s not teaching preaching the scriptures, but it sure has taken some biblical examples of men throughout church history and really laying a foundation of this is where we’re getting it. Someone told me, you know, about those that went to India and were involved in that ministry. And then you think of Ben Malaparty, one of our future elders, has been a deacon, was a child, a great, great grandchild of some of those men that were covered this morning. That’s a good healthy thing rather than just going in and to church to have your ears tickled.

So carrying out a scriptural ministry and then very quickly and I think this is really important. Paul’s charge to Timothy. You’ve got authority. Preach it. You’ve got to teach. the congregation, you’ve got to maintain relationship with the congregation. You’ve got to carry out scriptural ministry. It’s about the word of God is why we come. And then finally, you need to take heed unto yourself. One of the verses that called me to the ministry, Acts chapter 20, verse 28. Take heed therefore unto yourself and unto the flock of God over which the Holy Spirit has made you an overseer to feed the church of God which he has purchased with his own blood.

Next week we celebrate my 30 year anniversary for coming to Fellowship Baptist Church. We’ve been looking at pictures and there’s a lot of excitement. People came early today to talk to me and I appreciate all that. But let me just tell you that there are two things that scares the liver out of me. Number one. This truism. No church rises above its pastor.

Now I’m thinking congregationally that way. There can be very spiritual men that may excel the pastor as far as biblical knowledge, verses they can quote, they can do that. But as a congregation, as the leader of a congregation, a pastor cannot ultimately take the whole church higher than he is himself. If he is drawing water out of an empty well, they’re gonna get thirsty. They may go other places, they’re not gonna be instructed. That’s the reason why pastors need to read, further their education so that they take heed unto themselves. They lead a soft, sloppy life, you’re gonna think it’s okay to lead a sloppy life. And on those things go. The other thing that scares the liver out of me And that is, as they say, you know, it’s kind of like with dogs. You know, you can take a look at a dog and how that you start looking like your dog.

Well, the churches start looking like and taking on the personality of their pastor. And I don’t know what I’m going to tell Jesus on the judgment day. I’m sorry. I sometimes just joke around probably too much. And they took they took the lead on all of that because we have a lot of that. Which is OK. But you see, a pastor needs to take heed unto himself. Safeguard your calling and your spiritual gift.

This is what he’s gonna say, because notice what he says, verse 14. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which is given to you by prophecy and with the laying on of hands of the eldership. That’s in reference to his calling and ordination. Meditate on these things, give yourself entirely to them that your progress may be evident to all. We’ll be to the preacher that stagnates and doesn’t study, nor read, nor grow. But then he just calls it, verse 16, take heed to yourself. Watch your heart, man. But notice what he says, it’s tied. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine, to the teaching. Don’t forsake and question the founding document, the scriptures, the pillar and ground of truth. Don’t.

I think that’s part of our problem in our in our country. People want to rewrite the Constitution. They want to add the Constitution. They want to change The Supreme Court. Again, I’m not for those things, but I’m just saying that will lead to destruction. But the same thing’s true in a church. They can get all caught up into other things. Well, Albert Einstein said. Who cares? Well, I know that according to some anthropologists that says that we’re all tied to the animal kingdom. Who cares? And that has destroyed churches because they’ve gotten away.

Safeguard your character. Safeguard your doctrine. And then notice, safeguard your conduct again, because then he says, take heed to yourself, to the doctrine. Continue in them. A pastor. needs to be a man who finishes well. He finishes right where he needs to finish. Continue in them, for in doing, I’m sorry, for in doing this, you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

Now, that’s another one of those controversial passages. And as Brother Bill Hutchins told me, he says, you keep announcing that you’re going to take the controversial verses and do them on Wednesday night. Nice way to get a good crowd on Wednesday, Pastor. So we’re going to consider what does it mean, save yourself and those that hear you. But let’s just say that’s personal and corporate salvation. Because a church will not become what it needs to be if the pastor is not what he needs to be. That was on the heart of the Apostle Paul.

We’re going to see in Second Timothy the urgency of it all. The neglect of these biblical areas in a pastor’s life will lead to an apathetic and spiritually impoverished church. that will not withstand the wiles or the deceitful strategies of the devil. First Timothy chapter four, verse 16. And there will be no salvation because it’ll be lost. And there’s churches today where you’ll never hear the gospel because they let go these five charges of Paul.

Let’s pray. Our Father in heaven, how we thank you and praise you for your love for us and for these instructions. And Father, as we come to this time of thinking about these things, may we understand that, yeah, this is true for pastors, but it’s ultimately, in many ways, true for all of us. We all need to take heed. Father, may we be willing to say in the words of this closing hymn, take my life, and let it be wholly consecrated unto thee. We pray and ask this in Jesus’ name, amen.