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1 Timothy Pt. 3: The FUNdamentals of the Christian Faith

1 Timothy 2:1-7 (ESV)

September 22, 2024

If we can’t agree on what we talk about today, the rest of this book is not for us. It does not matter what church leadership looks like, there will be no church to lead. That’s why this is important

(v1-2) First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

– Paul urges us to give “supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings”

– Right away we can jump in to some theological principles. God is a powerful and capable God. Paul tells us to pray intercessions because God is capable of interceding. We give thanks because it is through him that every good thing comes. 

– God did not make us and forget us; we have a God who we are urged to interact with and to depend on.

– These prayers are to “be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions”

– our prayers of intercession and thanksgiving must have a subject. Paul tells us we are to offer these for all people, specifically those in leadership over us. 

– Not all prayer takes an equal amount of effort.

– Prayer is a muscle, we have to grow it by constantly practicing, sharpening the habit.

– This command comes with a little bit of a purpose, we are told the reason we are to live this way is “that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life”. It is for our benefit!

– How many of you worry about the future of your company? How many hours are collectively spent by the people in this room consumed on the politics of this country? 

– The text doesn’t say everything will be perfect and just the way you want it if only we pray. It’s more about a mindset. Give things over to God, and we do that through prayer.

– This kind of living is called “godly and dignified in every way”. It is how he wants us to live. This letter is straight forward, it says exactly what it means. To live this way is to be Godly. 

(v3-4) This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

– What is good and pleasing? “This is good, and it is pleasing”

– He’s talking about our prayer for others. Prayer for all people is godly, it pleases him, and is connected to the next thought that “God desires all people to be saved”.

– God tells us this is his desire. We should be praying his desires.

– God desires all people to “come to the knowledge of the truth”

– How are people to hear unless someone preaches?

– Romans 10:14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?

(v5) For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus

– The truth is that “there is one God”

– This was written to a man living in a world of polytheism where false gods were fighting for relevance. 

– The next part of the truth is that “there is one mediator between God and men”

– Sin is an act of offense, a transgression against Gods law. It is putting our desires in front of what God wants for us. 

– God is a good God who, because of his holiness and perfection, cannot tolerate sin. So, in order for this problem to find some resolution, there had to be this mediator.

– The bible is clear that there is ONE mediator. Only one path, one resolution. 

– There is only one way to set things right between us and God, and that mediator is “the man Christ Jesus”

–       Satan is envious over this advantage that Jesus has over him and the other fallen angels. Jesus knows what you and I are struggling with. He has empathy for our plight because he has lived in flesh like ours.

(v6) who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.

– Jesus was not forced to do anything, he was not forced to take on flesh, and the text tells us “who gave himself” 

– There was no taking his life

– He did this so our imperfection could be reconciled with God’s righteousness.

– There was purpose to his death; it was not accidental.

– Jesus gave his life “as a ransom for all”. 

– That mediator that we talked about earlier, the price that needing paying was the price of our disobedience.

–  Christ Jesus was not on the hook for the bill. He was a man but he was certainly God, he had done no wrong and did not need to pay any price for HIS actions. 

– It was us that needed to be paid for, and we were at his mercy. We were helpless to save ourselves. 

–       It was once and for all for all of his creation that Jesus died.

– This does not mean that all will accept this gift, and that all will be in heaven with us. 

(v7) For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

– Paul concludes our text this morning by reminding Timothy “For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle”

– He has a purpose because of this truth. 

– He was appointed to preach (which is to teach, instruct, proclaim, shepherd) 

– Even though Christ died for everyone, there is still a need for these people to understand. They have to cognitively grasp the truth in order to come to faith. 

– And that is Paul’s business in his mission, and in this letter. To help us comprehend the truth of who God is, what he has done, and what our response to it should be.

Primary teaching points

– We have got to be praying, especially for our leaders

– We pray because God is capable of answering prayers

– God wants to bear our burdens, trust in him through prayer

– Our prayer is rooted in God’s desire for all people to be saved

– There is one God, who died for us, to mend our relationship with himself. 

Application

Where can I add prayer to my life?

–       Find time to get on your knees before the lord. Carve out some serious time.

How is prayer impacting my life?

– Our hearts should be more like the lords, and we should be less worried about stuff

– It is obvious why the enemy does not want us to do it and distracts us from it

Take it upon yourself to learn more about who God is

– Pick up some theology books, get a study bible, read a commentary

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Nehemiah Pt. 6: Persistent Prayer

Today we look at the problems and the prayers of Nehemiah and Jerusalem, and through it we’ll learn more about God’s character, and what God’s people are to do and how to live.

4 1Now when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. 

2 And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” 

4 Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. 5 Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders.

• Turn straight to prayer. Asking for their enemies to face the things they have recently been subjected to. 

• A little counter intuitive. Matthew 5:44 “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” 

• Romans 12:19 “Beloved, never avenge yourselves but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written ‘vengeance is mine, I will repay says the LORD’”

• Their attacks are really aimed at God. They are insulting God’s purposes and plans

6 So we built the wall. And all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.

• They have a desire and a motivation that has come from God. He sustained them as they worked on the project.

7 But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry. 8 And they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. 

• They realize there is a limited window of opportunity to sow confusion and disunity amongst the people of Jerusalem. The walls are closing, they need to act now. 

9 And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.

• But in the midst of these attacks, the danger and the uncertainty, the people prayed. They asked for protection from God. 

• Spiritual and physical attack, so there is a response to both

• It is in tandem. They don’t just ask for prayer. They don’t just set up a guard. This two-pronged approach is quite instructive for Gods people

Summary

What should we take away, what are the main things we see in this passage:

Prayer comes first

-it is not an afterthought for Gods people. We see consistent dependence on the lord.

Determination to get it done

-They had a job to do. they got after it. Their confidence was in the lord

The enemy is strategic

-he is cunning and will take advantage situationally.

-Sanballat and Tobiah had a limited window to stop this plan. An attack made sense

God is just

-we need to hate what is evil, not for our sake but for God’s. The people didn’t pray against them because they were an inconvenience, but because it was against the will of God.

Application

Stick to the plan

Similarly, we have a direction and vision. We have been tasked to make disciples; we’ve talked about that several times already in our study of Nehemiah. We should not lose heart either even if it doesn’t look exactly like we would have drawn it up. Sometimes people disappoint us, or they take longer to grow in their faith than we’d like. 

But we have to stay determined

Be alert

-learn to identify dangerous times, when you are particularly vulnerable to sin. The enemy will certainly be close, we need to be ready.

Plan to pray

Nehemiah shows us a great example. His personal response as well as the way he leads the people directly to prayer, constantly, is encouraging. 

What is your outlook on prayer? Is it a wish list? Is it a therapy session? 

-do you spend time listening? 

-how receptive are you to Gods answers? 

-do you get mad when you see things not going your way?

What are you praying about right now? 

-If that’s a difficult question to answer you might want to bring some discipline and intentionality to your prayer life. 

“8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

Hebrews 13:8

This is the same God, who hatched a plan to consecrate his people in the city of Jerusalem, to restore them to Godly living, to the lives he wanted for them from the beginning. That same God did that same thing again for us. We can be made new, because our sins have been forgiven. 

Isaiah 25:9 “It will be said on that day, ‘Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the LORD, we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation’”

We don’t have to wait any longer

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