Protecting the Integrity of the Gospel

On my way home from work yesterday, I heard NPR reporter Richard Harris comment to Melissa Block that there were complications in the “top kill” procedure being employed by BP in order to stop the current massive flow of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.  This process involves filling a mixture of a dense mud-like substance into the rig’s blowout preventer (the part that didn’t prevent the blowout) in hopes of stifling the flow of crude oil.  Harris said that different types of top kills had been successful in the past, but some had not—and that there were risks.  It is possible that if they place too much weight inside the preventer or the well at the wrong pressure, they could actually cause the metal of the well pipe to sheer, thus allowing pressurized oil to escape through the pipe and then through the sea floor—as if the current disaster were not enough.  So they are quite concerned with protecting the integrity of the well wall.

In our last post, we introduced the idea that Paul was communicating to Timothy the preciousness of the gospel by urging him to command certain people not to pervert the gospel, nor to take the gospel lightly, but to uphold it.  The idea of issuing a command may sound harsh, but we saw earlier that if a command is motivated by love, issued in love, and if the goal or end of it is love, then such a command is wonderful.

I think the entire letter is wrapped around this idea.  Your translation may use a different word than command, like charge or instruct.  But we see the idea of this command three times in chapter 1 (vv. 3, 5, 18), and once again in chapter 6 (v. 13).  Clearly Paul took it seriously, and wanted Timothy to do so as well.

So how do we uphold the gospel?  How do we follow Paul’s urging of Timothy’s command?  It begins by protecting the integrity of the gospel.

1. We are to protect the integrity of the gospel of Christ.
     (1 Timothy 1.3-4)

As Paul is leaving the city of Ephesus, he wants to leave the church there in the capable hands of Timothy.  And his first priority is to protect the integrity of the gospel message he had taught there.  He tells Timothy:

As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus that you may charge [command] certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. (1 Timothy 1.3-4, ESV)

The faithful, godly stewardship he mentions is the message and work of the gospel (we’ll see that later in v. 11).  We should make no mistake: The gospel message has internal integrity.  It was conceived in the mind of God, was effected and placed on display in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and has been shared with consistency and power since the time of Christ.  The concern in protecting the integrity of the gospel does not come from within the message.  No, the concern, like the integrity of the well mentioned above, comes from external pressures that threaten to corrupt its good work.

How?  Throughout the New Testament, one of the gravest concerns the Scripture writers had was of the increasing influence of wrong teaching in their day.  False doctrines had infiltrated the church even in its earliest days.  Paul had warned his church plants to be on guard for the gospel for the sake of the church.  Here is what he tells the Ephesian church leaders on a different occasion:

Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.  I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.  Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears.  And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.  (Acts 20.28-32, NASB)

Paul was genuinely concerned for their welfare.  He tells them not only to watch out for outsiders, “savage wolves” who would come in to the community of truth in an attempt to corrupt the gospel message, but also for the deceivers among their own people, the wolves in sheep’s clothing who would desire to draw people away with a false gospel.

Listen to the way Peter says it:

But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.  Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.  (2 Peter 2.1-3, NASB)

Harsh words, but the toughness comes from a man who been commanded by Jesus to “feed my sheep.”  The many biblical commands surrounding the protection of the integrity of the gospel message cannot be taken lightly.  They are loving, because eternal life and death are at stake.

[This is part 2 of 5 in a miniseries titled, A Loving Command.  The larger series on 1 Timothy is called The Community of Truth.]

A Loving Command

As a little boy, I must have rejected authority and needed reminding a lot.  I remember one particular story that my mom would tell me over and over again.  It was an apparently true tale about an overseas church leader who lived near a rainforest region.  One evening he saw his son standing under a tree and instantly yelled to his son to lay down.  The son immediately obeyed, without understanding, questioning or complaining.  Then the father called out to the son to get up on his hands and knees, and to begin crawling forward.  Immediately the son responded.  After the boy had crawled a few feet, the father yelled that he should stand up and start running towards him.  And yet again, the son immediately followed his dad’s commands, running until he reached where his father was.  Upon arriving there, the dad turned his son around to reveal that a 10-foot Boa constrictor was hanging just above where the son had been standing.

When my mom would repeat this story to me, in my antiauthoritarian spirit, I’m sure I wanted to say, “I don’t get it, Mom.”  But the point of the story is clear, and she and I both knew that.  There are times when a loving, gracious command is issued, for our good, in a way that we may not immediately understand.  And yet the command needs to be followed, since life and death are at stake.

If a command is motivated by love, issued in love, and if the goal or end of it is love, then such a command is wonderful.

And so begins the biblical letter we know as 1 Timothy—with a command.  In trying to understand the dynamic of the circumstances surrounding Paul’s writing of his first letter to Timothy, I always try to think of what it might have been like to be Timothy in this situation.  What would it feel like if I were a young man in a ministry that was given to me just as my mentor was about to go into another region, leaving me behind to finalize the work in that particular area?  I imagine that he waffled between youthful enthusiastic confidence, and immature feeble fear.  No wonder at times Paul tries to shore up Timothy’s confidence in Christ.  Already approximately in his late 20s to early 30s, Timothy was probably very capable, but easily might have questioned his ability to stand in the face of opposition.

It is this context into which Paul leaves him behind in order to carry out a very important task.  He must rid the church of false teaching.  Easy enough (sure).  More on this in a moment.

I love it when a letter of Scripture explicitly spells out the purpose for which it was written.  In the third chapter, Paul specifically states that he is writing so that “you [Timothy] may 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” (1 Timothy 3.15).  Although this specific statement is directed to Timothy (the “you” here is singular), much of the letter clearly addresses the entire church and their role in the community and its culture.  In modern terms, it would be like taking out an ad or posting an online public letter that is actually addressed to a private individual.  Paul was shrewd in the best sense.  He knew that he wanted to get some points across to the entire congregation, but he does it by telling Timothy—in an open letter.  So we know Paul’s purpose is to help them uphold and promote the truth.  And what is truth?  The answer to this question points us back to the first part of the letter where Paul refers to the truth as the glorious gospel of the blessed God (1.11).

As Paul left to go into Macedonia, he urged Timothy to stay in Ephesus and command others not to teach false doctrines—untrue versions or perversions of the one, true gospel.  Just like the story above, Paul understood that getting the gospel right, and keeping it right, was a matter of life and death in an eternal sense.

The command is still in force today, far beyond ancient Ephesus.

So how do we uphold the gospel?  How do we follow Paul’s urging of Timothy’s command?  It begins by protecting the integrity of the gospel, which we’ll look at next time.

[This is part 1 of 5 in a miniseries titled, A Loving Command.  The larger series on 1 Timothy is called The Community of Truth.]

The Community of Truth – Series Archive

A Series on 1 Timothy

Below you can find links to a series we will be developing here in the coming days on the biblical book of 1 Timothy. This post will serve as the series permalink, with parts updated as they are posted. We pray this will become a helpful resource in your Godward progress.

1. A Loving Command (Introduction)
2. Protecting the Integrity of the Gospel (1 Tim 1.3-4)
3. Promoting the Goal of the Gospel (1 Tim 1.5-7)
4. Proclaiming the Grace of the Gospel (1 Tim 1.8-11)
5. Preserving the Progress of the Gospel (1 Tim 1.18-20)
6. Intense Desire for Ministry (1 Tim 1.12-17)
7. Gospel-Advancing Prayer (1 Tim 2.1-8)
8. Purposeful, Ordered Design (1 Tim 2.8-15)
9. Proven Character for Leadership (1 Tim 3.1-7)
10. Respectable Volunteer Leaders (1 Tim 3.8-13)
11. The Pillar and Pattern of the Truth (1 Tim 3.14-16)
12. Falling Away from Faith (1 Tim 4.1-5)
13. Good Servants of Christ Jesus (1 Tim 4.6-16)
14. Church Life as Family (1 Tim 5.1-16)
15. Maintaining Trustworthy Elders (1 Tim 5.17-25)
16. When God Doesn’t Change My Circumstances (1 Tim 6.1-2)
17. Godliness with Contentment (1 Tim 6.3-10, 17-19)
18. Guarding the Trust (1 Tim 6.11-16, 20-21)

A Perfect Injustice

Here is another well-produced video, this time with super photography, on the ministry to street children in Kampala, Uganda that I mentioned last time.  Again, the photography by Phillip Glickman is amazing.  Watch.

Support the ministry of Global Hope Resources.

Vote for Global Hope

Embedded below is a short video about a ministry of Global Hope Resources, and the work of Abby Tracy in Kampala, Uganda.  The piece is a submission by Sophia Ruvolo to YouTube’s Project: Report contest.

Just last week, Abby came to our church while in the States to speak at our missions festival, and she also spoke in my LIFE class.  Her heart for street children in Kampala is contagious.  God is continuing to bless this work, and one small way that you can help this ministry gain exposure is by watching the video, and then voting for it on Project: Report.

If your browser works as it should, you can simply mouse over the video while it plays, and at the bottom of the clip (while playing) it will offer the opportunity to vote.  If you are not able to vote this way, go to the Project: Report channel on YouTube, click on Vote, search among those videos for ‘Global Hope,’ and you will find the same video.  There you should certainly be able to vote (to the right).

Enjoy the video.  Praise God.  Pray for Abby and the kids.  And vote.

Restoring the Family

For many who live in our not-my-fault modern world, the concept of brotherly and sisterly confrontation, and eventual church discipline, seems foreign.  With Christians who grew up in a church context that did not practice discipline, or for nonbelievers who may stumble upon a web post like this, the idea may sound harsh or unloving.  To the contrary, it is a loving and gracious component of what Christ intends for His church.  Ultimately, the idea is to restore those church family members who have wandered away.

With this post I do not intend to write an essay, as it would be lengthy and I prefer not to turn off anyone due to post length alone.  So what follows, in outline form, are the some of the Scriptures and process showing why and how we practice what we do, in a loving way, for the glory of God and the good of His people through the almost lost virtue of church discipline.

Restorative confrontation and church discipline has never been an easy task, and therefore many leaders and congregations have abandoned the practice.  However, God has commanded the discipline for clear reasons and has told us how to do it.

1. Biblical reasons for church discipline

A. For the righteousness of the church

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.  Philippians 1.9-11 (NASB)

B. For the restoration of the congregation

Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…  Galatians 6.1 (NASB)

C. For the reputation in the community

- God's name/reputation is at stake

I am writing…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 [in the larger community].  1 Timothy 3.14-15 (NASB)

I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren, but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?  1 Corinthians 6.5-6 (NASB)

2. Biblical model for church discipline

Stage 1: Private confrontation

If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.  Matthew 18.15 (NASB)

Stage 2: Pastoral and personal contacts

But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed.  Matthew 18.16 (NASB)

The Lord’s bond-servant [in context, speaking of church leaders] must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.  2 Timothy 2.24-26 (NASB)

Stage 3: Public challenge

- Publicly within a closed church meeting

If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector [i.e., as a nonbeliever].  Matthew 18.17 (NASB)

3. Possible results of church discipline

A. The individual repents and is restored with the congregation

Sufficient for such a one is this punishment which was inflicted by the majority, so that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him, otherwise such a one might be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.  Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him.  2 Corinthians 2.6-8 (NASB)

B. The individual refuses and is removed from the congregation

…faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan, so that they will be taught not to blaspheme.  1 Timothy 1.19-20 (NASB)

Reject a factious man after a first and second warning, knowing that such a man is perverted and is sinning, being self-condemned.  Titus 3.10-11 (NASB)

In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus, I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.  1 Corinthians 5.4-5 (NASB)

Even when the offending individual must be excluded from the church, the ultimate purpose for excluding him or her is always for repentance, reconciliation and restoration—for the glory of God and the good of the individual and congregation.

Succession of Leaders

A couple of weeks ago, the bottom fell out from under the late night TV talk show world.  When local NBC affiliates threatened to preempt The Jay Leno Show due to the show’s low ratings damaging their late local newscasts, NBC decided to shift gears.  Although in 2004 they had contracted with Conan O’Brien, then host of Late Night, to take the helm of The Tonight Show in 2009, his Tonight ratings over the last seven months had not been so hot either.  So NBC’s solution was to move Leno’s existing show to a 30-minute format at 11:35 PM and also move O’Brien’s Tonight to 12:05 AM.  Needless to say, nobody was happy.  O’Brien ended up looking like the victim, and Leno appeared to have lost his creds due to greed.

But backtrack five years.  Then, O’Brien appeared greedy by essentially forcing NBC’s hand and getting the Tonight contract, albeit five years down the road, and Leno looked like the victim of an age-driven push-out (as he would turn 59 in 2009).  Despite appearances, in ‘04 or ‘09, make no mistake—both hosts stand to gain a lot of money and continued fame.

At the same time the nation (or those who couldn’t avoid the pop news) was watching NBC’s succession of show hosts, I had begun a series teaching through the New Testament letter known as 1 Timothy.  Which brings me to the contrast I want to paint here.

Paul and Timothy are no Jay and Conan.

Shocking news, I know.  But when we look into the Scriptures to see this example of a godly succession of leaders unfold—as Paul the apostle essentially hands the reins down to his younger protégé Timothy—we can’t help but notice just how different their transition is from that of modern day superstars.  With intentionality, Paul hopes to pass the truth to Timothy, so that Timothy can pour his life into others, so that they can pour theirs into still others.

The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.  2 Timothy 2.2 (NASB)

For the moment, I don’t even mean to criticize the entertainment industry.  But church leadership is not the entertainment industry, although sometimes Christian superstars act like it.  However, when we observe the lives and service of Paul and Timothy, we see two servant-leaders who understand how to transition leadership with grace and honor, and that’s a model I can follow.  So how did they do it?

1. For a godly succession, there was an early emphasis on Scripture.

Paul clearly was raised on the Scriptures.  His eventual transformation found substance because he was already well-versed in the Hebrew Scriptures, and he would be able to recognize Jesus as the Messiah.  Note how diligent he was in the sacred texts throughout his earlier days:

If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.  But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord…  Philippians 3.4-8 (NASB, emphasis added)

And also:

I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated under Gamaliel, strictly according to the law of our fathers, being zealous for God just as you all are today.  Acts 22.3 (NASB, emphasis added)

Timothy was also given great opportunity at a young age to hear the Scriptures.  The letter of 2 Timothy points out that even from childhood his mother Eunice, and grandmother Lois, taught him the Scriptures that would lead to faith in God, ultimately through recognizing and trusting that Jesus is the Messiah.  Note the emphasis on the sacred texts:

You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.  2 Timothy 3.14-15 (NASB, emphasis added)

2. For a godly succession, there was a genuine faith for salvation.

Paul’s transformation experience is well-documented in Acts, chapter 9.  He was changed, and saved, as he was on his way to arrest Christians.  However, notice that he understands his salvation and calling to have begun far earlier, even from all eternity:

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle and a teacher.  2 Timothy 1.8-11 (NASB, emphasis added)

Although the details of Timothy’s conversion are not directly discussed in the Bible, it is clear enough that he trusted in Christ.  Most likely, Timothy had recognized Jesus as the Messiah when Paul first visited Lystra, Timothy’s hometown (Acts 14).  Having had the foundation of the Scriptures noted above, Timothy had the wisdom that led to his salvation through faith in Jesus.  Paul recognized it as sincere faith:

For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well.  2 Timothy 1.5 (NASB, emphasis added)

3. For a godly succession, there was proven character for leadership.

Paul’s character, and his leadership, are above reproach to any who have honestly studied the Scriptures produced through him.  The genuineness of his faith works itself out in the integrity of his ministry.  He modeled the way for Timothy, and in so doing modeled the role for all of us:

Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me!  2 Timothy 3.10-11 (NASB)

Timothy would eventually follow Paul’s lead and learn this way of life that points others to the glory of God as reflected in the face of Christ.  But before he had even joined Paul’s team, he was earning a reputation as a young man with integrity.  And look what happened as Paul visited Lystra a second time:

Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra.  And a disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek, and he was well spoken of by the brethren who were in Lystra and Iconium.  Paul wanted this man to go with him….  Acts 16.1-3 (NASB, emphasis added)

And Paul would later say of Timothy:

But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition.  For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare.  For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.  But you know of his proven worth, that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father.  Philippians 2.19-22 (NASB, emphasis added)

So what was the result of this kind of progression, with an early emphasis on Scripture, a genuine faith for salvation, and proven character for leadership?  It produced a godly succession of leadership that we’re still writing and reading about to this day.  Paul considered it a trust that is passed from one generation to the next—a treasure to be guarded and shared.

Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.  Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you.  2 Timothy 1.13-14 (NASB)

So as you can see below, I’ve decided to start early with my little ‘Timothy’…

Our nightly Bible time