Some will abandon the faith. 1 Timothy 4:1

 Today we begin chapter four of 1 Timothy, but first, we need to understand what makes chapter four work.

(Warning: If you were to print this out, it is eight pages long.)

Chapter three ends by talking about a great mystery, and although you may not understand, there is no mystery to those of us who call themselves the body of Christ because we have received Jesus and follow His Word.

The most impressive part of this mystery is that He came to live in us because we confessed our faith in Jesus Christ. The world doesn’t have that, nor do they understand this concept. But that is not all there is, and the next few verses play a tremendous role in our beliefs, our faith, and our confidence that He is coming back to gather us to Himself. In the world of Apologetics, these are the concepts that we rely on to establish and refresh our faith. In other words, why are we following this man, Jesus?

Paul, in his last sentence of 1 Timothy chapter three (consider that this was a letter with NO chapters and typical punctuation,) gave us some of the most foundational points on which we live.

1 Timothy 3:15-16 NASB but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth. (16) By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.

We will look at verse 16, one bite at a time.

• “Jesus was revealed in the flesh.”

That statement may not make sense to some, as they will say, “of course He did.” We, should we choose to read, can see that Jesus was a man. But holding to a simple understanding aren't you setting aside the fact that God (Jesus, is God) came to earth as a human and subjected Himself to the birthing process and then the learning process. Mary and Joseph taught God how to walk and talk. They were responsible for His education. How do I know that? Because Jesus, especially by those in Bethlehem, was still considered a mumzer – an illegitimate child, and therefore NOT allowed in the synagogue. The synagogue was where the Rabbi's held their classes, classes that Jesus would not have been permitted to attend.

Yes, I am aware of the fact that many of the disciples promptly called Him rabbi. Rabbi is a respectful term for teacher, and those that called Jesus a teacher also witnessed the event where the Holy Spirit descended like a dove upon Jesus; and, immediately God spoke, saying, this is my beloved Son; this leaves us to speculate as to who understood these words and conveyed them to us, as most only heard what they thought was thunder on a clear day. (Mark 1:10-11; Matthew 3:16,17.)

(For your information, the scripture tells us that Joseph was a righteous man. If you skim over those three words, you will miss the fact that Joseph was an educated and respected man within the synagogue. Probably much older than Mary, these two factors gave Mary a place of security when Joseph went on to marry her. This fact also explains why Jesus was so knowledgeable and able to stand His ground in the synagogue with the elders as a young boy. Pastor John MacArthur says this of Joseph, “The phrase "a just man" is a Hebraism suggesting that he was a true believer in God who had thereby been declared righteous and who carefully obeyed the law.”)

I have already touched on this, but He walked around with the disciples, doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil. You might think that this would be enough to convince many, and yet the numbers were few. A proof of this disbelief can be seen in the chief priests and elders’ repetitious challenges, saying, show us a sign. Come on; He showed them many signs.

But then, there was one other sign that spoke to Jesus being revealed in the flesh. Jesus, having been hung on that cross then buried in the tomb, there was no doubt that He was gone in the disciples’ minds.

End page one.

To the Jewish mind, the soul leaves the body after three days, and so Jesus did not emerge from the tomb one moment before that time-frame because He wanted them to know, without a doubt, that He was – at least for the time being, back in the flesh. Over 400 witnessed Him around Jerusalem. And then He returned to the Father, where He now makes intercession for us.

• Jesus, “Was vindicated in the Spirit.”

Have you ever given this any thought? You should, as it carries tremendous meaning and depth.

To be vindicated means to be absolved of guilt, cleared, found guiltless, declared innocent, among other things.

Remember that we recently talked about how this message of Christ is a great mystery. Well, this, in a sense, is one of those mysteries, as you ask, how could God, the creator, become invalidated to the point that He would have to be vindicated? The answer is seen rather clearly in the NIV, as it says,

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, .” 2 Corinthians 5:21a.

Think back a few paragraphs to when I talked about God and how He became a human. Had God chosen a newborn baby, you might think it would be an excellent candidate to represent God, as it has not, as yet, had the influences that motivate us to sin. You merely teach the baby correctly, and in a short time, it could become an adequate substitute for Jesus. This is an absurd thought, and the thing that makes it ridiculous goes back to the garden of Eden. Thanks to Adam and Eve, we were all born with an inclination to sin.

If you can think about sin as a genetic problem, you can understand that all humans carry a damaged genetic marker since the garden. Science looks at the genetic chain and says, you see right here, we all have this chromosome, with that mark, and therefore this is the basis for normal. (In case you have been living under a rock. The two major companies that were initially making a “vaccine” for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Economic Forum, under the guise of an upcoming global pandemic, were Inovio and Moderna. Both were working with genetic manipulation and behavior modifications through vaccinations.

So don't think for a second that what transpired in the garden was not a genetic modification that would affect all of humanity. If you want to look at this as a mystery, you have the opening rounds fired, and the weapon was a piece of fruit that could modify your genetic code. Can you imagine that at that moment Satan thought he had won. Little did he know, God had a plan.

Jesus voluntarily puts himself on that cross, knowing full well what would transpire over the next few days. No wonder He cried out, my God, why have you forsaken me, as He certainly felt things He had never felt before in His short life here on earth.

When the Apostle John looked into heaven, he saw Jesus, and Jesus said to him

“I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.” (Revelation 1:18 NIV)

During those three days, Jesus went to hell and preached to the captives there. He stripped Satan of his keys and power, and then He rose from the dead triumphantly.

Years ago, I drove quite a bit, and I would listen to the “Christian” radio stations. When it was time for Hank Hannegraf – the Bible Answer Man, to come on, I would give him the courtesy of listening for a few minutes because a few minutes was about all I could stand of his angry manner. That man condemned everybody. On more than one occasion, in his hostile tone, he would say it is blasphemous even to think that Jesus/God would have been subject to hell, almost as if it was filled with COVID 19 and He would get some on Him. (Disclaimer, although the world was profuse with diseases, and we all got a few, NONE of us, at the time, were aware of the COVID, nor did we care. We went on with our lives. Just as we should have now.)

End of page two.

I could not understand how or why Hank Hannegraf could ignore some of the statements that King David made. Let me show you what I mean.

"When you ascended to the heights, you led a crowd of captives. You received gifts from the people, even from those who rebelled against you. Now the LORD God will live among us there." (Psalms 68:18 NLT)

Perhaps Hank was projecting this verse to a time when Jesus will catch the church away; that might work, but a crowd is typically seen as a countable number though being an indeterminate size. I do not perceive the church as a countable number. But pay attention to this part of the verse; I never paid much attention to before. He received gifts from the people.

So, if what King David said is not speaking of the church, then what's left, and the only reasonable thing that is left is that Jesus ascended from hell to the heights of heaven. Having been freed from Satan’s grip, the church would not be the captives, but it would certainly be talking about those in Sheol. There is one other aspect of this, and I will go ahead and say it, Judas, may have been one of those who rebelled. Surely, Adam, with his treasonous act, was there; but what does this verse above say? He led a crowd of captives in His ascent.

One more point about this verse before I move on. 

If he led a crowd of captives, can I say that Jesus led them all out of Sheol?

I don't think so. Find the right person and say something positive about our American president and you will often get a cascade of hatred in response. Should you listen with an open mind, you will most likely not hear one logical complaint, but a mountain of gossip and rumors. Is the man perfect? Hardly, and all I had to do was watch the first, and hopefully the last debate between the two candidates. I say this because what I saw was two playground bullies trying to outshout the other. I could not tell you what they said because I did not care after a couple of minutes. The point here is that some people will NOT move off their hatred and foul language even if common sense were to hit them upside the head.

What people is David talking about?

Perhaps this will help.

For You will not abandon me to Sheol (the place of the dead), neither will You suffer Your holy one [Holy One] to see corruption. (Psalms 16:10 AMP)

King David was alive, and he is not speaking about his future; he is talking about Jesus. Although, I could see a few moments where he probably thought his circumstances could be deemed a living hell. An example might be when David had a good man killed in battle so that David could cover up the fact that he got the man's wife pregnant. Bathsheba did have David's baby, and that baby died as a judgment from God.

So, how could Jesus think or say such a thing, unless it happened, or at least have the potential?

So what then would create the potential for Jesus to go to hell?

And that takes us back to this verse.

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, .” 2 Corinthians 5:21a.

[At this point, you are at the end of page three, in case you want to hit the pause button.]

If I understood the things that made Jesus so victorious and capable of being our mediator, you would think I would be well equipped and established in an unshakable knowledge that could convince others.

And yet there is Paul's admonition to Timothy, that we find in chapter four.

“Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.” 1 Timothy 4:1 (NLT)

End of page three.

Alternate translations will say, “the Spirit;” expressly and distinctly; in the last days or latter times.

Some points to consider: Paul is talking about the last days or times; this is what eschatology is all about.

1. How do we know that we are in the last days?

The disciples, having asked Him when the temple would be destroyed and what would be the sign of His return, things that were to them specifically about the last days and Jesus return, got this response to their questions, and you can find it in Mark 13:5-13.

• Many will come in My name, saying, 'I am He!' and will mislead many.

This borders on the ridiculous, for it, doesn’t take a whole lot of brainpower to escort some quack out the door if he says he is Jesus. I say that, and yet here in the Los Angeles area, we had a Sunday Morning radio program called the Jesus show. The host would say when I walked the earth. I listened on a couple of occasions, and strangely, I had a Christian brother – in the Lord, think this guy was okay. The host's words coincided with scripture, but then there was the whole idea of pushing yourself off as Jesus.

This next piece of information makes sense. In the study of eschatology, we have a false prophet coming. Islam calls him the Dajal or Jesus, the son of Mary (not God.) According to Islam, he will be a high priest in the new temple, and they have his lineage traced back to Aaron, making him appropriate and eligible. Scripture tells us that he will perform signs, just like the two witnesses that God sends, and the things this man will do will convince the Jewish elite to follow him as the Messiah. This false prophet is the person who sets up an image of the beast in the temple and makes it talk. All will have to bow to this image and make allegiance to it. Sound familiar?

• You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.
• There will be earthquakes and famines.
• They will deliver you to the courts.

Since the COVID lock-down, one example stands out in my mind, as we have effectively been forced out of our churches. Here in California, some pastors have fought back because the Bill of Rights- an aspect of our constitution, effectively says, NO Governmental body has the right to interfere with our ability to meet in church.

• The NASB says you will be flogged in the synagogues.

Flogging was an important statement to the Jewish converts to which Paul was writing. Still, since so many of us have no understanding or association with a synagogue, it becomes irrelevant. Let’s try to make it relevant. I can do that by pointing out that if you speak out boldly about certain things, such as abortion; or how the pandemic is man-made; and, that the mask you are wearing is meant to create an atmosphere of compliance. I could tell you that this compliance is a tool meant to get people willing to give up their rights in exchange for the freedom that a mark or allegiance brings; and how that those people you deemed brothers and sisters in the Lord will vehemently fight with you.

2. The gospel must first be preached to all the nations.

Having stated to an acquaintance that Jesus could come back at any minute, he angrily retorted, No, He can’t because not everyone has received a bible and been preached to them. The Word of God informs us that NO Human will have an excuse because the ability to understand that there is a God and that He should be worshiped is written upon all creation.

End of page four.

Add to that the fact that we are told that an angel will proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ as it flies worldwide. Consider that in Iran, where missionaries are not allowed, these dear people are coming to the Lord faster than anywhere else in the world, as Jesus himself is showing up in their dreams and sharing the gospel with them.

• Are we seeing these things that Jesus spoke of, happening?

We are! But there is one more thing that you need to understand. A part of Jesus' answer speaks of the fig tree. Israel is that fig tree, and it became a nation in 1948. Jesus said, this generation (the one that experiences the fig tree blossom will be the last generation before the time of wrath – the seven-years of God's judgment upon the earth, and His return at the end of that period as the warring Messiah. The condensed version of this oration is that we are living on borrowed time.

Scripturally, we have this.

"When you see these things happening, recognize that He is near, right at the door. " Mark 13:29b. NASB.

Another indicator comes from the prophet Joel who said,

"It will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind, And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions. (Joel 2:28 NASB)

Many people are making posts on YouTube about their dreams and visions of the end times, and their closeness. Jesus is at the door.

2. “some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.”

In the Greek, the idea of turning away from the true faith is to remove yourself or instigate revolt.

Are you kidding me? This instigation of a revolt sounds like a mutiny, and one would think that an uprising on this level would be associated with violence. Oh, that's right, it already is.

The reality is that the changes have been slow, almost methodical. We have been watching this revolt building for years, as churches have installed, in opposition to biblical direction, female pastors and homosexual pastors; declaring an obvious acceptance of abortion; and in just the last few months, we have churches literally bowing to BLM inc., and the Antifa movement.

(Just to set the record straight. You may have had any number of active sins in your life, but when you came to Christ you did a 180 degree turn FROM those sins, to live a life in Christ. Having done that, you might think that you are free to be a pastor; perhaps, the problem, and it is one that legitimately excludes many of us, is that Paul, earlier in this letter to Timothy, laid out the guidelines for those that think they want to be a/the pastor. Look at how Eugene Peterson's Message, puts it. (1 Timothy 3:2-7 MSG).

“But there are preconditions: A leader must be...”

• well-thought-of,

Think of this as though you are applying for a job with the police. They are going to do a background check on you, which includes asking your neighbors about you.

• committed to his wife,

I suppose this means if you have a wife.

End of page five.

Considering the horrendous temptations that come from standing in front of a mixed crowd, you might think that being married, that means committed to your wife, would keep your eyes from wandering; that may help, but if you are already prone to the wandering eye, marriage is not going to help, because you will do it right in front her.

• cool and collected,
• accessible, and hospitable.
• He must know what he's talking about,

Obviously, the allusion is to men only behind the pulpit. Why would Paul do that?
What motivated Paul to take that position is not clear in my mind. Many of the commentaries I looked at were written in the 1700s. One is very modern; this pastor also holds to Paul's assertion and recently disparaged a dear lady that was speaking at a conference. In Jewish culture, many women are held to a subservient role. We understand that the Bible was written by inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God. The implications of that statement are that Paul's words would be deemed God's heart on the matter; but, it does not explain the roles of Deborah, the prophetess – who ruled Israel as a judge for several years, nor does it explain, Ruth, Rahab, and Esther – who put her life on the line to save her people.
You can find the scriptural reference for this in Paul's first letter to Timothy (1Timothy 1:11-12.) I have had women pastors, but I will tell that there are things I would not share with a woman pastor, although with this advent of mega-churches you will find it harder and harder to even get close to “your” pastor. The female pastor I was familiar with seemed a little power-driven, but then many people are. As to being a Teacher? Why not, and there are many women, such as Beth Moore, who is amazing.

• not be overfond of wine,
• not pushy but gentle,
• not thin-skinned,
• not money-hungry.
• He must handle his own affairs well,
• attentive to his own children, and having their respect.

Paul goes to say,

• He must not be a new believer, lest the position go to his head and the Devil trip him up.
• Outsiders must think well of him, or else the Devil will figure out a way to lure him into his trap.”

End of page six.

3. Still under the heading of “some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.”

Did you know that the BLM inc., movement acknowledges calling on the spirits of dead people to guide them? It is not dead people responding to their pleas; these are demons.
Even though the situation already seems horrific, the fact that many of us are praying against these terrorist acts is the very thing that is restraining these groups from acting out in their full fury.

Are you beginning to understand what is going to happen when the church is gone?

And you know what restrains him now so that in his time he will be revealed. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. (2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 NASB)

Aside from the things I pointed to, these churches are throwing sound doctrine to the side of the road by saying that there are many ways to get to heaven.

Before you get ultra-critical, I want you to think about something. What did the thief on the cross do to gain salvation? He did nothing that aligns with religious practices, and yet Jesus accepted him. If you were paying attention, you would have noticed that the “thief” on the cross went through Jesus. So, here we are back to the idea of only one way, but how do you define the word way?

You will notice that I highlighted the phrase “for the mystery of lawlessness is already at work.” No matter how this lawlessness disguises itself, it is a doctrine of demons.

4. So what can we know for sure?

I know that the Holy Spirit has spoken, either to Paul or to someone else, telling them that grievous changes are coming.

Like the Jewish community, I happen to think that God establishes His prophetic words through repetition; so where else is God speaking of such an event? 

“I know that as soon as I'm gone, vicious wolves are going to show up and rip into this flock, men from your very own ranks twisting words so as to seduce disciples into following them instead of Jesus.” Acts 20:29-30.(MSG)

Another evidence of atrocious changes.

“For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.” (Philippians 3:18-19 NLT)

I wanted to know what McGee had to say about 1 Timothy 4:1, so here it is.

“Some shall depart from the faith. Paul is warning that there will be heretical teachers who will mislead a great company of people. There will be a departure from the faith. Paul also wrote in 2 Thessalonians 2 of the apostasy to come. Actually, this matter of apostasy has been in the church for a long time, and it will not be new at the end of the age by any means. It has grown and will continue to grow, however. When the church of Christ is raptured, there will be left behind a totally apostate organized church.”

But pay attention to the above paragraph, as McGee uses the term apostasy to help define this grievous time frame. By now, we should all know that the word apostasy refers to a falling away of the church, and it has certainly done that. McGee, however, takes his direction from 2 Thessalonians 2:3 where it says unless the apostasy comes first.

End of page seven.

Many of us have changed our thinking on this passage (2 Thessalonians 2:3,) as we have learned, thanks to Dr. David Wood, that the term apostasia, which is translated here as apostasy – means the gathering and not a falling away of the church. This error was introduced intentionally by the Catholic church in the late 1500s, to impose guilt upon those leaving the state-approved church for Protestantism.

So, when I read 2 Thessalonians 2:2,3, I read it like this, the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come unless the gathering comes first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.

Because I lived under this intentional deception all my life, I could not understand what 2 Thessalonians 2:2,3 was trying to say, and would always look toward 2 Thessalonians 2:6-8, which is unmistakably clear.

“And you know what restrains him now so that in his time he will be revealed. (7) For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. (8) Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;” NASB

We have covered this portion but it bears repeating, “And you know what restrains him now so that in his time he will be revealed.” That restraint is the church, but obviously not all of us.

“only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.” A day is coming when Jesus will come back for His bride, the church. At that point in time, we will be taken out of the way. What a sad thought, as the world cheers that idea.

“ Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming.” This final sentence brings the Antichrist onto the stage and covers the entirety of the seven-years, a time filled with horror.

The world says you Christians are just looking for an escape. You want to know something, we are because many of us have read the Revelation and we know what is coming. Many of you are already getting a taste of what is coming almost daily,  especially if you live anywhere near Seattle or Portland. But it is not just an escape, it is a promise from Jesus himself, the one who said He would rise from the dead, and He did.

You too can have this promise if you will turn your life over to Jesus.

The end of page eight.

So that you will know how to conduct yourselves. 1 Timothy 3:14-16

 The Mystery of Godliness

This is the caption that most translations use, but why, as it only seems to confuse most Christians.

Is Godliness a mystery?

Well, first, you have to answer the question, what is a mystery?

Webster’s dictionary tells us it is - “A profound secret; something wholly unknown or something kept cautiously concealed.”

Is that what God did, keep it concealed?

It almost seems as if He had to, and we see why in Genesis 3:1a.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. (NASB)

Satan immediately started in on Eve by crafting a scenario that could introduce confusion, doubt, and distrust, not just of Adam but also of God. God, in response to the deception and Eve’s reactions, tells her,

“...I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.” (Genesis 3:15 NASB)

What does enmity mean?

Webster’s conveys that it is: ill will, hatred, and the opposite of friendship.

We see the strain of this hatred and ill will throughout the Old Testament. Revelation 12:4 tells us the dragon (Satan) stood before the woman who was about to give birth so that when she gave birth, he might devour her child. Italics mine.

And we see this attempt at destroying Jesus when we read about Herod killing all the boys in the region that were ages two and under. You can look this up at your leisure in Matthew 2:16-18.

Much was said in Genesis 3:15, and yet most of it is kept cautiously concealed. Paul talks about the whys' of this concealment in 1 Corinthians.

Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;  (1 Corinthians 2:6-8 NASB)

Consider how the Synagogue rulers had tried to kill Jesus on multiple occasions, and then, there was the frightened statement made by Thomas.

and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe; but let us go to him." Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, so that we may die with Him." (John 11:15-16 NASB)

Thomas knew that the Jews were actively looking for Jesus and that they wanted to kill him. There would have been nothing to stop them from killing anyone associated with Jesus.

Now, ask yourself, what would have happened if they killed Jesus before He was meant to and consider how He was supposed to die?

Perhaps the entire plan might have been eliminated. I don't think God would have allowed that to happen, and therefore God's plan to redeem us all was shrouded in the form of secrecy. But all that changed the day He rose from the dead.

Who are the rulers of this age?

The Word Study Dictionary explains this Greek word árchontos as a ruler, chief, prince, or a magistrate, but it can mean a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin or the Synagogue.

What did the Apostle Paul tell us?

For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12 NLT)

Just look around you at cities like Portland, Seattle, and now Louisville, Kentucky, where the town had to be boarded up. Why, because we have come to expect that the evil spirits and mighty powers of this dark world were going to show up on the city streets in an attempt to burn down another city.

So, back to our original question, Is Godliness a mystery?

Not to those who have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

“But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets.” (1 Corinthians 2:10 NLT)

The Spirit of Jesus Christ - the Holy Spirit, has revealed these things to us by His Spirit. Yeah, I know, some will whine as they say, but I don’t know anything. Just smile real big and say, that’s because you will not take any time to get to know Him through His word. It’s just that simple.

Having been a member of the body of Christ since I was a child, I have heard and read many things from scripture. Like pieces of a puzzle, they have, over time, come together to give me a picture of the nature and character of God; which, I found in Jesus.

“I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth. By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.”
(1 Timothy 3:14-16 NASB)

• From the NLT, “so that if I am delayed, you will know how people must conduct themselves in the household of God,”

I thought we were living in the age of grace, which means I can do anything and get away with it, right?

Wrong! God's Spirit has written His laws upon your heart, and you are therefore responsible for them. Besides that, we have laws that govern our actions, and the laws (used to) demand retribution; that means you might have to pay for your foolish act, which you thought was wholly covered by grace, with prison time. Many of these fools, some of which think they are “Christian,” are burning our cities down. You know what grace did for them, it bought their forgiveness of sin before the Father. Since you only get to the Father through Jesus Christ, then you would have to acknowledge Him as your Lord, and there in the problem lies. Sins are forgiven, but you are still held responsible for what you did with God's Son, Jesus. If that was nothing, then you have to throw yourself at God's feet and hope for mercy when you get to the Great White Throne. Good luck with that.

But 1 Timothy 3:15 is talking about how we are to act within the body of Christ.

I am looking at this phrase: how one ought to conduct himself.

How is the Greek word pos. It means in what way or manner.

Ought is the Greek word dei. It means it is necessary; it behooves; ought or should.

We could easily substitute the words acceptable, appropriate, and suitable.

Conduct is the Greek word anastrepho. It means to busy oneself; remain; live; abide, and behave.

The CEV translation gives us this, "how everyone who belongs to God's family ought to behave."

I find myself asking; I did not know we had standards of behavior within the church.

I suppose that it is reasonable and necessary to have standards, as we had rules of conduct in Celebrate Recovery. Considering all that goes on there, and the people who come in, even I could see a need. We had people on court orders attending our anger group as an alternative to an anger management program, and the group I was a leader of, fit that requirement.

But take this idea of behavior one step further. I have made “friends” with several people over the years who have worked security within the mega-churches I attended. I never thought we would see the day that we needed armed security, but then, I visited John Hagee’s church in Texas many years ago. There, a man had walked up the aisle toward Pastor Hagee while he was speaking that morning. The man emptied the revolver he carried, in hopes of killing the Pastor; however, not one bullet struck the Pastor. I remember being shown the bullet holes in the podium. I have never forgotten that scene. Now incidents like this happen with frequency, and one of those victims was a relative of mine. Fortunately, he lived despite sustaining multiple gunshot wounds and returned to his pulpit.

On a less severe note.

I am reminded of a brother in Christ, who fancied himself a bit prophetic, and one day, motivated by something we were not aware of, decided to give an angry word to the church body. It began by him announcing to everyone that “this man is called of God and that we should listen to him.” Well, that did not sit well with anyone. It was all very theatrical, and many people noticed. Upon arriving at the church's front, where everyone could see him better, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and proceeded to find the scripture that "the Holy Spirit" had told him to read. This phone thing was very discomforting as we now had to wait for the phone to respond. His reading was filled with emotion and a touch of rage. At one point, the pastor asks the brother to sit down and stated that he was out of line. That is when the man screamed out, you are a false teacher, and I can prove it. Seeing as false teachers are generally teaching contrary to the word of God, I do not think any of us could understand why he would shout such a thing.

A bit of background here.

Probably about a year before this event, I was invited to lunch with the previous pastor. Just a few bites into the meal, at a very public restaurant, and he asks me why I study eschatology. Not many people know what that means – it means end times events as they line up with the Bible. Mere seconds into my response, which included me saying because the Bible is relevant to the things around us every day. The pastor interrupted me and began to criticize me, saying, you prophesy guys are all like that; you overpower the listener and act like you know everything. It became quite personal. I waited until I thought he was done ranting, and then I challenged what he was saying by asking, is that what you think of me? To which he responded, yes. His answer and the tone of his voice pretty much ended the conversation. 

I was supposed to teach the Pastor's class on Christian discipline that night and had shown him the notes, merely to prove that I had done my preparations. He exclaimed, without hardly looking at it, you can’t teach that! I realize now that he thought it was too much information, as I always over-prepare. Nothing more was said about teaching that night. Thoroughly undone, I insisted that I needed to pick up my wife and tried to excuse myself. We left together, but he had to add that, under the premise of Godly wisdom,  I should never look at or speak of eschatology again for five years. He said that there was no need, as the Lord was not coming back for at least forty more years. Of course, we did not have this phony COVID 19 pandemic, which has changed everything as we know it.

How does the brother in Christ, who was eventually escorted out of the building, relate to me? I simply put two events together. One included my attempt to have a conversation with this man about some of the global events we had recently experienced. His response to me at the time was authoritarian, oppressive, and he left me no opportunity to talk or respond. At lunch that day with the Pastor, he had mentioned that someone had been trying to coerce him into teaching on Revelation and eschatology. The Pastor turned him down. The same man who was getting escorted out of the building was the man who had soured the Pastor, and he was now taking his anger out on me.

While I feel that was rather lengthy, I think it shows a potential reason for guidelines.

The church where this happened quickly set up guidelines and forced anyone who operated in the Holy Spirit by giving words to the body, to write the message down on a piece of paper and somehow get it to the Pastor. The Pastor may or may not approve your giving of the word, especially if he thinks you are angry.

Continuing with 1 Timothy 3:15, from the CEV translation,

“After all, the church of the living God is the strong foundation of truth.”

What does Dr. J. Vernon McGee have to say?

“What Paul is saying is that the church is the pillar, the bedrock—it is the prop and support of the truth. If the officers do not represent the truth, the church has no foundation, no prop, and it cannot hold up the truth of God.”

Wait a minute, here in California; our Governor told us that the church is non-essential.

How is it that the pillar, the bedrock, the prop, and support of truth have become non-essential?

That is an easy question to answer as long as we are still supporting the truth, but this man-made pandemic has caused the church to show its true colors, and it is clear that in the majority, we the church, do not support the truth.

To help make my point, the Pastor of the mega-church I attended used to rave about Pastor Tim Keller. Several years later, in September of 2020, Tim Keller has come to the forefront again and is being attacked as a false teacher. A blog which spells some of those details out can be found here: (https://churchleaders.com/news/382650-tim-keller-sparks-twitter-debate-over-political-comments.html),

Here is a quote from Tim Keller.

“The current political parties offer a potpourri of different positions on these and many other topics, most of which, as just noted, the Bible does not speak to directly. This means when it comes to taking political positions, voting, determining alliances, and political involvement, the Christian has liberty of conscience. Christians cannot say to other Christians ‘no Christian can vote for…’ or ‘every Christian must vote for…unless you can find a Biblical command to that effect.‘"

In my mind, our life and freedoms emanate from God, and then from the basis of our constitution, which was founded on a belief in God. Those amendments give us rights. Let me show you the first one. 

The First Amendment provides several rights protections: to express ideas through speech and the press, to assemble or gather with a group to protest or for other reasons, and to ask the government to fix problems. It also protects the right to religious beliefs and practices. It prevents the government from creating or favoring a religion.

But I have to agree with Pastor Tim Keller in that not everything is spelled out for us in scripture.

When it comes to abortion, whether you think that a nine-month-old baby can reason or not, it is still a living being, and we, as Christians, we are under a mandate from God to NOT commit murder. Brutally slaughtering a defenseless baby is murder, and I have little sympathy over what happens legally or emotionally to someone that openly brags about how they slit the baby's throat so that it won't scream. I honestly cannot see anything but a callous human being doing this.

Now, if your candidate endorses or tells us you that they will fund ghastly abortions, perhaps you should turn your brain back on and rethink who you are going to vote for.

There are other accusations laid against Pastor Tim Keller, and you can read about them in the article Four Theological Problems With Tim Keller and Why He Should Be Avoided, By Jeff Maples, September 19, 2019, From the website, (https://reformationcharlotte.org/2019/09/19/four-theological-problems-with-tim-keller-and-why-he-should-be-avoided/)

Although I am not a fan of Tim Keller's works, I did not want to get into a bashing session here but merely point out how the issues that erode our foundations can be subtle and come from venues we thought we could trust.

Let's try to finish this out.

1 Timothy 3:16 CJB. “Great beyond all question is the formerly hidden truth underlying our faith: He was manifested physically and proved righteous spiritually, seen by angels and proclaimed among the nations, trusted throughout the world and raised up in glory to heaven.

• “Great beyond all question is the formerly hidden truth underlying our faith:” CJB

Paul, in his letter to the church in Rome, wrote,

“Now to God, who can strengthen you, according to my Good News, in harmony with the revelation of the secret truth which is the proclamation of Yeshua the Messiah, kept hidden in silence for ages and ages,” Romans 16:25 CJB

There was a hidden truth, but it has been revealed through the preaching of the good news. It is the fact that Jesus is the Messiah. Paul says that even here in Romans, that information was kept hidden and silent for ages and ages.

Paul continues telling Timothy.

• “Christ came as a human.” CEV.

Many of us, having heard it for so long, merely say, yeah and?

Think about that fact for a moment.

The chain of humanity, extending from Adam outward, was tainted. Some would say yes, but God chose a virgin, Mary.

What does that have to with escaping the brokenness that passes through every human, including Mary – a virgin?

Not a thing, because God had a secret plan.

Cannot the inventor of the aspects that bring about a birth bring his own fertilized ovum into the picture?

And that is precisely what He did. Mary merely carried that fertilized ovum to its maturity.

This event was beyond human comprehension, and when you read about Mary's pregnancy, you can get a feel for how she may have been mistreated. Joseph, stepping up and marrying her, gave her some relief, but those in Bethlehem would not soon forget or forgive. Perhaps now you can understand why the family moved to a small, no-name town, where no one knows you.

Jesus, still to this day, sits as the Son of God, at the right hand of the Father, still a human, and ever making intercession for us.

Ask yourself, is Jesus limited in any manner because of His humanness?

Not in the least bit.

What comes next can be seen as a resume, but it is even better than that as it takes on the air of Royalty. Perhaps this is best understood if you have watched the movie, A Knight's Tale. In the movie, you could only joust if you had a royal bloodline. Now mind you, somebody could knight you, and eventually, the young man is knighted, ending a jealous dispute that prevented him from jousting, and so we have been.

He who was revealed in the flesh:

• “Was vindicated in the Spirit.” (The Father vindicated Jesus in the Spirit.)

Vindicated is to be rendered or shown to be just, innocent, free, and made to be righteous.

• Seen by angels,

Not only angels but also over 400 people could verify that He rose from the grave still a human and alive to God.

• Proclaimed among the nations,

An intriguing aspect of this is that Paul, while he was Saul, caused the church to disperse among the nations because of the persecution he put on them.

Is it possible that God has in hand in the trials we endure?

• “Believed on in the world,”

“because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth;” (Colossians 1:5-6 NASB)

In case you don't believe, read this,

After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; (Revelation 7:9 NASB)

• “Taken up in glory.”

By convincing proofs, he showed the disciples not only who He was but that His word was true; and that included being taken up into Glory, to be with the Father.

Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, Hebrews 8:1 NASB.

Jesus did not return to heaven to be able to play golf without distractions; He sits at the right hand of the throne of Majesty, interceding on behalf of those who belong to Him.