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I invite you to take your Bible
and open with me to 1 Timothy chapter 2. 1 Timothy chapter 2 will be our
text again this morning. We will resume our study in Paul's
first epistle to Timothy. We have been making our way verse
by verse through this epistle, and our study will finish the
first section in 1 Timothy 2. Our focus will be on verses 6
and 7, but we'll read verses 1 through 7 to gain the context
this morning. 1 Timothy 2, beginning in verse
1. I exhort, therefore, that first
of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of
thanks be made for all men, for kings, and for all that are in
authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness
and honesty. For this is good and acceptable
in the sight of God, our Savior, who will have all men to be saved,
to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God
and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,
who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time,
whereunto I am ordained a preacher and an apostle. I speak the truth
in Christ and lie not, a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and
verity. If you recall from our recent
studies, this opening section here in 1 Timothy 2 has to do
with the priority of praying, praying especially for those
that are non-Christians, the unsaved, the lost. It is a call
to evangelistic praying. The passages and affirmation
that the church is not only to take the gospel of the Lord Jesus
Christ to all men, it is also to support its efforts with prayer
for all men. This is the high and holy privilege
that we have as the church, which the Lord has committed to our
care and our attention. Paul is writing to Timothy who
was left in Ephesus with the objective or assignment of restoring
order to the churches established there. The Ephesian church established
and founded by the Apostle Paul was a well-established church
known for its faith and its love. But as we've noted in our previous
studies, they have drifted from the faith they were once so grounded
in. They had fallen into sin and
ungodliness as a result of being led astray by false teachers
and unsound doctrine. This passage reveals that a corrupted
teaching had infiltrated the church, one that taught that
not all men could be saved. The false teachers had taken
the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace and turned it
into a system of self-effort. Instead of the gospel being broadcasted
to all men without discrimination or distinction, they narrow the
reach, making salvation possible only to law-keeping Jews or this
elite mystical group with special insight who attained a special
or higher knowledge of God. Only these, these false teachers
were saying, could be saved. In short, they had influenced
the believers in the church to restrict the focus of their evangelism
and even their praying to those who meet these criteria. So in these opening verses of
chapter 2, Paul calls Timothy, who he has placed in the leadership
of the church there in his absence, to realign the church to this
fundamental truth of Christianity that God desires all men, men
without distinction of race, of color, of gender, of ethnicity,
of nationality, or even economic status, that God desires all
men to be saved and that Christ Jesus himself gave himself as
a ransom for all without discrimination, and no restrictions are to be
placed upon those whom we seek to win to Christ or pray for. Sadly, even in such Bible-believing,
gospel-preaching churches like our own, we can often, too, adopt
a view, just like the Ephesian church had. Not in the way that
people must become Jews first in order to be saved, But the
idea that people need to become a certain way, need to fit into
our criteria before God will reach them with the gospel, before
they believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. So we say you must believe
first in the doctrines of grace. You must become a Calvinist first. You must esteem and hold up reform
theology first. And then you can be saved. So this teaching here by the
Apostle Paul is not only crucial and critical for Timothy as he
seeks to fulfill his assignment in Ephesus, it is important for
even us as a church here today that we would align ourselves
too with the pattern of evangelism, with the pattern of praying that
the Apostle Paul, under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, has set forth
for every New Testament church such as our own. And I want to
remind you again of what is central in Paul's mind as he lays out
the priorities of the church to Timothy as he ministers in
Ephesus in this opening section of chapter 2. It is not merely
a manual on praying or a manual on church order. Rather, it is
the nature of the gospel or the plan and purpose of God and the
salvation of all men that is the very heart, what is central
to this passage. When another system of belief,
another gospel, another message, and even another methodology
is added to the ministry of a church, it is no small matter. Many would have you believe that
it is a small matter. enter into many evangelical churches today,
and you see how so many have deviated and drifted from so
many things that the New Testament clearly sets in order for the
church. But it is no small matter. It is no neutral matter. It is
a result of defiance and unbelief in the ministry of the gospel
that God has ordained for the church. When that gospel, when
that truth, when that message, when that methodology for the
church is faithfully upheld, Paul tells us that it is the
power of God unto salvation to all men, both Jew and Gentile
alike, who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. The church's practice
of evangelism, the church's practice of evangelistic prayer is patterned,
after all, after God's own heart toward the unsaved. What I want
us to see is that what Paul will say here in verses six and seven,
writing to Timothy, when he will speak about his own ministry
in regards to evangelism and the gospel that he is seeking
Timothy to fulfill and establish once again in the church, is
not for us just to simply see Paul's ministry, is not simply
to see what's happening in Ephesus, is not simply to admire and to
even glory in the work of God and salvation towards the lost
and the work of Christ as a mediator, but it is to ask ourselves today
as Christians, as a church, what are we to do with this? Do you
remember back in chapter one, Paul says that his very life
and conversion was a pattern of conversion for all men. And
in the same way, this pattern of evangelism, of prayer, of
ministry, is the pattern that you and I have today in the church. That is what I want for us to
see throughout this message. Again, by way of review, quickly,
Paul lists five basic components here in this opening section
of evangelistic prayer, the priority of prayer. In verse one, he mentioned
the quality of this prayer, mentioning those words, supplications, prayers,
intercessions, and thanksgiving, which make up, are the very character
and nature of prayer. In verse two, the diversity in
our prayer, that we are to pray for all men. And the apostle
simply means here that there is no people and no rank in the
world that is excluded from salvation. Because God desires that all
men would be saved through the proclamation and preaching of
the gospel. He even includes those in authority,
those rulers or kings, and those in high positions. Why? Verse
2, the end of verse 2 tells us, because we may lead a quiet,
a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity when
we pray for those that are in authority over us, especially
those who oppose Christianity itself. When we pray for their
conversion, it is so that there may not be this external distress,
even such that we are experiencing today in our nation, and that
there wouldn't be an internal distress. That we could live
out our Christianity in all godliness and dignity, and the light of
the gospel blazes forth in our lives and in our communities.
Then in verses three through seven, he moves to the rationality
of why we are to pray for all men. What reason do we have in
praying? Verse three tells us it is morally
good and heartily welcomed by God, our Savior. Verse four says
it corresponds with God's compassion and love towards sinners. And
verse five tells us that it is reflective of the very nature
of God. And verse six, in the first part
of verse six, he tells us that it corresponds with the person
and work of the Lord Jesus Christ himself, who is the God man. Then in the end of verse six
and verse seven, we have the methodology, how we are to carry
out this evangelism and evangelistic outlook in the ministry of the
church. Paul mentions in the second half
of verse six, the testimony or message that is to be testified
to all men and verse seven, that he is a messenger to deliver
this testimony to all men. So look with me as we look at
our text, verse six, the second half, Paul says again, of Jesus
Christ, who is the mediator between God and men, gave himself a ransom
for all to be testified in due time. Now, just by way of introduction
to this text, this phrase here, even in the original, in the
Greek of the New Testament, is a somewhat obscure verse. There have been many different
explanations of what Paul means here, but the key to understanding
This verse means is one in the same with our approach to interpreting
scripture in general. Context, context, context. Context is the key here for us
to understand what Paul is saying here. The ESV translates this
verse, which is the testimony given at the proper time. The
New American Standard, the 1995 version, gives the testimony
given or born at the proper time. I like how the Legacy Standard
Bible translates this, which I believe is the closest to what
Paul means here. This idea that Christ is a ransom
for all and a mediator for all. is the witness for this proper
time. Now I'll explain what Paul means
here. So in the first place, let us
consider the appointed message. Verses five through seven is
one sentence in the Greek. It is one cohesive unit or thought
expressed by the Apostle Paul. The testimony Paul is referring
to here in verse six is in correlation or relation with what comes before
it, even going back to verse five. So we are to pray for salvation
for all men because of these facts. There is only one God,
which means he is the only one who can save all men. There is
only one mediator, the man, Christ Jesus, who is truly God and truly
man, who can represent sinful man. Although he is man yet without
sin, he can represent us and he can represent God. On the
other hand, because he is God himself, he is a true mediator. God always, he became man to
reconcile holy God and sinful men, which means he is the only
one. who can bring all men to that
saving God. How can he do that? Paul tells
us in the first part of verse six, this one mediator gave himself
as a ransom for the sake of all. That word ransom, if you remember
from last week, simply means what is exchanged for another
as the price for his freedom. But the word that's used in the
Greek does not simply mean, here is the purchase price to pay
for the release of that person that is enslaved. The word that
is used here is more emphatic, more meaningful than that. It
is that that very person paid with his own life that purchase
price to redeem that person enslaved. here to his sin. Christ paid
for our freedom with his life and his substitutionary death.
The righteousness he earned in his perfect life and death, he
has now exchanged for our unrighteousness. This ransom is provided not for
all persons without exception, but for all classes and ranks
of men. The word all here in these opening
verses is the emphasis here in this section. All is used twice
in verse one, once in verse two, once in verse four, and again
in verse six. Keep in mind what the problem
of the church in Ephesus was. What did Paul again charge Timothy
with correcting in the churches there? There were Jewish teachers,
again, in Ephesus promoting a false doctrine that men essentially
had to become a Jew first in order to become a Christian.
It was a form of spiritual elitism that said one must have this
special insight into Jewish genealogies and to keep the law to be saved. But Paul says here that this
is categorically false. He makes this clear here in this
verse by stating that the facts of God's redemptive plan and
in and through the sacrificial work of the Lord Jesus Christ
is in line with the purpose of God to extend grace and salvation
to all men. And I want to stop right here
with this idea of all men. You may be thinking to yourself,
but wait a minute, I thought that Christ atoned only for the
sins of his people? Paul would answer that question
with, indeed, it does. But Paul would reply with this.
But his people is not limited to one tribe or tongue. That is the emphasis here. Jesus
is the ransom for all. That is, he saves all kinds of
people from every class and rank, men and women, boys and girls,
from every tribe and people and nation. The apostles' meaning
here is simply that no nation of the earth and no rank of society
is to be excluded from salvation since God, again, desires to
offer the gospel to all men without exception. This means the offer
of salvation from God through Christ is universal to all who
will believe and trust in Christ. which leads us to what Paul says
here in the second half of verse six. The mystery of redemption
and salvation for all men in and through the Lord Jesus Christ
is the testimony, the precise testimony. That word testimony
here is marturion. The same word that we get our
English word for martyr. If you remember in our study
on Wednesday evenings on evangelism, what it means to bear witness
or bear testimony to the saving work of Christ, it is the same
word that is used here. It means that honest and accurate
declaration of the truth of Christianity. In other words, the mediation
and redemption of Christ for all mankind, which is received
by faith alone, was the great subject matter of Christian testimony,
which was to be testified. This is what Paul means by to
be testified in due time. These words in due time are better
translated as at the proper time, literally referring to a period
of time. And that period of time for this
testimony of the gospel of Christ, especially his work of redemption,
is that period of time that was set from his first coming, when
in the fullness of time, Christ came into this world, born of
a woman, born of a virgin, all the way through his second coming.
This period of time, Paul says, is the God-appointed time for
Jesus to be proclaimed to all men, even to the Gentiles. Turn with me quickly to Romans
chapter 10. Romans chapter 10, and we will
see here in his letter to the Romans how Paul emphasizes this
same thing, this testimony of Christ's work as mediator, as
a ransom in redeeming sinners from all ranks and all people
is, of course, derived by God himself. But he uses human agency. He uses the preachers of the
gospel to disseminate, to broadcast this message. Romans chapter
10, begin in verse 8. But what saith it? The word is
nigh. thee even in thy mouth and in
thy heart, that is the word of faith which we preach, that if
thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe
in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation. For the scripture saith, whosoever
believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference
between the Jew and the Greek, For the same Lord is rich unto
all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call
on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they
believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they
hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except
they be sent? As it is written, how beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of good things. You can turn back to 1 Timothy. Paul is telling us that this
testimony, this gospel, the way that God sends forth that message
is through the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that testimony
is proclaimed by his own people. Here, in this case, the Apostle
Paul. In this very testimony, which Paul says in verse seven,
he was appointed to bear at this proper time or this period of
time. So we move to in verse seven,
the appointed messenger from the appointed message, that testimony
that Jesus Christ alone is the way, the truth and the life that
no man can come to the father but by that he is the only mediator
between God and man, that he has taken to himself our sin,
and he has covered our sin with his own righteousness, and now
we have peace with God. Paul says in verse seven, whereunto
I am ordained a preacher and an apostle. I speak the truth
in Christ and lie not, a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and
verity. Paul says, where unto? This word
means Paul is referring to this testimony for this, this testimony
of Christ as mediator who gave himself a ransom for all. He
says, I emphatically, remember that I am ordained to this. I was appointed, is this word
ordained here, is what this means. What was Paul ordained to? What
was he appointed to? Paul tells us by using three
terms to emphasize three different aspects of his apostolic ministry
to all people. And I want to begin first with
that word that he references about his own ministry, apostle. Apostle literally means messenger,
one who is sent forth with orders. That is the general sense, but
when it is used here, it is used in the narrow sense to refer
to the special office of apostle, those who were eyewitnesses of
the Lord Jesus Christ, the risen Lord, those who were gifted with
those special gifts of the Holy Spirit. Paul, along with the
12 disciples, was appointed to this office by Jesus Christ himself
to carry the gospel to all nations. Paul says that I was appointed. He's referring to a past event.
So we ask the question, when was Paul appointed to this ministry
as an apostle to send forth and carry the gospel to all nations?
Well, we remember back in Acts chapter 9. Turn with me to Acts
chapter 9, a very familiar passage of the Apostle Paul's conversion. The Lord speaks to Ananias to
go to the Apostle Paul, Saul, who is now converted after that
encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus, Acts chapter
9 and verse 15. But the Lord saith unto, that
is Ananias, go thy way, that is go to Saul of Tarsus here.
For he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear or carry my name
to the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. Do you
see the Gentiles and the kings and to all Israel, children of
Israel? He is referring to all men, the
same reference here in 1 Timothy 2. Turn quickly over to chapter
26 of Acts. Chapter 26 of Acts, beginning
in verse 16. Again, Paul giving his accounts
in Jerusalem of his conversion and calling again to this office
as being an apostle, especially to the Gentiles, to proclaim
the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 26, beginning in
verse 16. But rise, he's referring to that
account when he was converted, but rise and stand upon thy feet. This is the Lord Jesus Christ
speaking. For I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to
make thee a minister and a witness, both of these things which thou
hast seen and those things in which I will appear unto thee.
Verse 17, delivering thee from the people and from the Gentiles
unto whom now I send thee. Verse 18, to open their eyes,
whose eyes? The Gentiles' eyes, and turn
them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto
God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among
them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. You see here what Paul is referring
to when he says that, I am ordained as an apostle. And he goes on
to say, I'm also a preacher. Go back to first Timothy chapter
two. He says, I am also a preacher. The terms before and after the
term apostle preacher and teacher refer to those specific duties
or activities of Paul and his ministry as an apostle. A preacher, the word here means
a herald, one who proclaims the important news for the public. It was usually a herald, a town
crier that was sent with a word or news from the king himself
to proclaim it in the public square. Today we have news on
television, on radio, on social media. In those days there was
nothing. So when there was news from the
government, news from the king, it was sent forth from this town
crier who would herald this news, this truth from the king to all
the people. Now did this town crier, this
herald from the king, could he read what the king said, open
up the scroll and say, ah? That seems a bit rough. I'm going
to modify it a little bit, make it a little easier for those
to hear. I'm going to add something in there to make myself sound
a little better. There would be no thought of this whatsoever. He was to faithfully open that
scroll with that information from the king himself and declare
it with all passion, with all authority from the king himself. So Paul says, I was appointed
a preacher. In the New Testament, this word
is used of the apostles as the divine herald to proclaim the
good news of salvation from God's wrath through faith in the Lord
Jesus Christ. It is what we refer to simply
as the gospel. This refers here to this word
preacher, to the work of evangelizing and exhorting the people in God's
truth. Paul says not only that he is
a preacher, he says also that he is a teacher. The word here in the Greek refers
to one who teaches concerning the things of God and the duties
of man. His special assignment here is
referred to. His special assignment or responsibility
as an apostle was to teach who? Look here at verse seven. A teacher
of the Gentiles. Those that are distinct from
Israel, non-Jews, Gentiles. And he was to instruct them in
what? I am appointed as a preacher,
an apostle, a teacher of the Gentiles. What is he to instruct
them in? In faith and truth. That is the doctrine of faith
and the truth. With the use of these two key
words, he indicates how his ministry seeks to accomplish what God
desires for all people. Look again at verse four. It
is God who will have all men, who desires all men to be saved
and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. How do men, how
are men saved? God desires all men to be saved.
How are they saved? The message must go forth about
Christ to the people of what they must believe, who they must
believe in, the work that Christ has accomplished for sinners,
and the truth. that men may come to the saving
knowledge of the truth of God in salvation through the Lord
Jesus Christ, what one must believe about God, about man, about Christ,
and about salvation. Paul was called to preach the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and to teach the way of the salvation
through him to the Gentiles. And I want for us to see here,
we can overlay the Great Commission. that the Lord Jesus Christ gives
to his disciples, to the church, in Matthew chapter 28 and verse
20. We can overlay the Great Commission
over this verse here in verses six and seven. We are called
to go forth and to make disciples of all nations. Here, Paul says
that I am a teacher of the Gentiles to instruct them in the truth.
We are to proclaim the truth of the gospel that all men would
be saved. And when they are saved through
the message of the gospel, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ,
we are not just to get them to understand this truth and understanding
to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are then as a church,
as Christians, to instruct them then in righteousness, how to
live out their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You'll notice that I have skipped
the parenthetical statement there in verse seven, which I will
now speak to for just a moment. There in the middle of verse
7, there is this parenthetical statement, this statement that
is put in parentheses. There was no parentheses in the
Greek language of the day. We have it here translated as
such in our English. But what Paul inserts here is
something of importance to us. Not only does he mention the
message that is to be declared, the commission or mission that
we have, that he had and we have as Christians, and the instruction
which we are to give in the gospel, but he also mentions opposition
to this gospel ministry that he is called to and that all
of us are called to. He says these words, I speak
the truth. The words in Christ are not in the best manuscripts,
so they should be left out. They were likely inserted because
of what he says in Romans chapter 9, verse 1. But he says, I speak
the truth and lie not. Paul knew that it was not easy
to persuade the non-believing Jews that God had commissioned
anyone to reveal the way of salvation to the Gentiles. He was the apostle
to the Gentiles. The fact that he was once a Pharisee
of the Pharisees, this high leader amongst the Jews there in the
first century, who hated Christians, who persecuted Christians, was
not enough. The fact that they heard that
he was the apostle to the Gentiles, these false teachers in Ephesus,
in all probability, denied that he could be called an apostle
at all. Knowing this letter would be
read to the churches, Paul sees it here as a necessity to strongly
affirm his commission as an apostle to the Gentiles by Jesus Christ
himself. They were saying, no, only those
who could be saved were those who become a Jew first, then
they can become a Christian. Paul says, no, Christ himself
has appointed me to the Gentiles, that Christ himself has established,
that the Old Testament itself has established, that the gospel
of God's salvation would go forth not only to the Jews, but also
to the Gentiles. So Paul saw it as a necessity
to affirm his commission as an apostle by the Lord Jesus Christ. The salvation first given to
the Jews is now extended throughout the whole world to which we say,
praise God. Praise God that we have these
words here in the Old Testament, have these words here in the
New Testament, that God desires all men to be saved. How do we know that is true?
We're sitting here this morning, are we not? Our lives have been
transformed by the message of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ,
who is the risen Lord, and our lives have been transformed.
He has brought us and adopted us into his family, and now we
are part of the kingdom of God because men like the Apostle
Paul sent forth the gospel unto the Gentile. There is one God,
one mediator, and one ransom for all. Therefore, there is
one gospel for all people. And it is the gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ. That is the way that men and
women from all tribes, all nations are redeemed. It is through a
message. The world mocks and laughs at
this. Salvation or redemption comes
by self-enlightenment. It comes by one's self-effort. But we say man is in sin. He can do nothing to redeem himself.
And we point to the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the only Redeemer
for men, for all men. As we draw this message to a
close, first a word to Christians, first a word to our church here. Here is what you and I are to
take away from this passage. This commission that Paul speaks
about himself, although it was unique to Paul through his apostleship,
remains the pattern or model that you and I, that we as a
church, are to carry on in this day. Yes, even our small assembly. This commission is for every
Christian. I like the way one commentator
sums up this first section of 1 Timothy 2. I can improve on
it in no way. So he says this, and listen closely.
Here is the summary of this opening section, which matters so much
to us. It is the unity of God and the
uniqueness of Christ which demand the universality of the gospel. God's desire and Christ's death
concern all people. Therefore, the church's duty
concerns all people too, reaching out to them both in earnest prayer
and in urgent witness. What we can admire in Paul's
passion and Paul's obedience and Paul's diligence to be that
preacher, that apostle, that teacher to the Gentiles should
not just be a matter of admiration for us, but we should take it
and say, yes, it is though we are those who Acts chapter 2,
42 says that we are those devoted to the apostles' doctrine, that
we are those who are devoted to carry on what the apostles
have said and taught, we are to carry it on in this church
today. That means we are to carry the
one true gospel as Paul carried it, heralding the good news of
salvation from sin and guilt and God's wrath through faith
in Christ the risen Lord and teaching the way of salvation
from the scriptures to all people and to pray for the worldwide
success of the gospel in this place and time God has called
us to live out our Christian lives. This is the pattern. There
are churches that employ business means, marketing schemes from
the corporate world to grow the church. Paul reinforces what Jesus has
said. Preach the word. Teach the word. make disciples
of all nations, go from this place and reach the world. We
desire to grow this church for God's glory, to advance his kingdom. We desire to see these pews filled. We pray to God every week as
a church to see these things come to pass. It is not a matter
of God's will. Will he do it or will he not?
He tells us here that he desires all men to be saved. How do we
do it? Paul tells us how he did it.
Now he's looking to us from scripture, from his words, as a mirror pointed
to us now, what are you going to do now? Do you see how easy
it is to get caught up and say, wow, Paul, look at his ministry.
Wow, look at the message of the gospel. And then we read it,
study it, study it in the Greek, read the theological works in
books, and then we sit down on our hands at home. And that's as far as it goes. Paul's call to us here today
is to follow in his footsteps. All power and authority in heaven
and in earth has been given to me. So you say, evangelism, that's
intimidating. I'm awkward in conversations
with people. I don't believe I can carry out this work of
evangelism. It's hard for me. All power and
authority has been given to me in heaven and earth. And how
does he finish the Great Commission? Lo, I am with you always. It's not a matter of God's power
or God's help. It's a matter of our belief if
God will help us and meet us when we step out onto the street,
when we enter into that home, when we're in the workplace and
say, you know, God, this person, there's an opportunity here.
I'm going to seize it, not by my power and by my might, but
by your grace and your help. We have to get past that point
where we say, I want to do, I want to serve God, but I just can't. That's unbelief. It's unbelief in what God has
designed for the church. It must become our very pattern,
our very life in this church. This is the way that God has
designed for us to reach people, that people would hear the gospel
and they would say, I want to know more. God would save them.
What happens after he saves them in our community when we reach
them? We bring them into our midst. What happened when Paul
was met by Christ on the road to Damascus? He was converted
by the risen Lord Jesus Christ. He came into that house in Damascus
and Ananias comes to him and tells him what the Lord has said.
And then he takes him, takes Paul. The scales are removed
from his eyes and does what? He baptizes him. And now he becomes
a part of the church. The same is true today. reach
the people with the gospel in our lives, in this community.
When God saves them as he will, as he has promised to save all
people from all walks of life, all ranks, all nations, all tribes,
all tongues, then we are to bring them into our midst, to instruct
them, to baptize them, instruct them in the ways of God's word. We have everything that we need
to carry out this and more. came across a saying this week,
popped into my head that I remembered from years ago. I don't know
where I heard it from or how, and I looked it up and found
out that it was this gospel hymn by this gospel group that sang
it. But I love the idea that's there. It's always stuck in my
head, and I hope it sticks in your head, to carry out the great
commission that we have, to carry out this work of evangelism and
praying for others. I'm just a nobody. trying to
tell everybody about a somebody who can save anybody. I'm just
a nobody. You're just a nobody. It's about
Christ. I'm just a nobody trying to tell
everybody about a somebody, the Lord Jesus Christ, who can save
anybody, even the worst of sinners. May we adopt that very simple
principle into our lives as a church. Finally, a word to non-Christians. Here is what I want for you to
take away from this message. You may have heard nothing worth
remembering here today up to this point, so I sincerely ask
that you would hear me out in these final moments this morning. The Bible tells us clearly here
in 1 Timothy 2 that there is only one God. You may have come
across a different truth. No, there are many gods. Some
cultures, some nations say there are millions of gods. We get
to choose which god we serve. Some will tell us that there
is more than one mediator. The Bible says there is one mediator,
and it's Jesus Christ. There's only one way to God.
But you may have heard, no, there are many ways. All roads lead
to heaven. I'm just on my path, you're on
your path. No, God says, there is only one
God, and there is only one mediator between God and men. You and
I are sinners, God is holy. God has created us to live in
fellowship and harmony with him and with one another, but sin
through our first parents, Adam and Eve, has separated that fellowship,
that relationship with God, and now sin is passed on to every
descendant of Adam and Eve, including you and me. But God says there
is this mediator, one who puts the hand on sinful man and one
who represents God on the other hand and says, this is the only
way for you to come to God for salvation. It is only in and
through the Lord Jesus Christ. He lived the life that you and
I could never live. He died the death that you and
I deserve. rose again from the grave on
the third day. And how are we to respond to
that gracious work of God himself in Jesus Christ? The Bible tells
us that we are to respond by repentance and faith. Turn from your sin. I don't have
to spell out your sin to you. You know this very moment, if
you are a sinner, those areas in your life that you have sinned
against God. God has given you that bell in your head that Pastor
Jim was speaking about in the last hour, that conscience that
you are seeking to suppress, that understanding that God is
holy, that you know and you're suppressing it in unrighteousness. I know this is not right, but
I love my sin. So God says today, forsake your
sin. Your unrighteousness will only
lead you not to what the world says will be joy and peace and
happiness and fulfillment. The more that you can indulge
in the world's pleasures, the happier that you will be. Money,
power, possessions, relationships, you name it. All are all the
lies of the evil one. It's the same ones he tempted
the Lord Jesus Christ with in the wilderness, right? All of
these are an empty well. The only joy and satisfaction
that you can find in this world is in a person, and that person
is the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Turn from your sin and trust
and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, his righteousness for
your unrighteousness, and God's promise to you this day, if you
will search for me with all your heart, you will find me. You will be saved. You will be
delivered from your sin. That is God's promise to you
today. Our gracious Heavenly Father,
we close this meeting together this day, this Lord's Day. where we rejoice in the privilege
and blessing of meeting together to worship you, to hearing from
you. I pray, O Lord, that what is remembered this day, what
is impressed upon the hearts of the people who are not personality,
or the words of the preacher themselves, may they hear solely
from you. May the people know this day
that they have heard from you, they have met with you, that
you have given us your word, that you have impressed upon
us how you would have us live out our lives as Christians in
this dark, evil, crooked, and perverse world. You have called
us to be the light. May this day, through the preaching
of your word, may this day have been a day where that light is
rekindled, set aflame even more brighter
than it was when we walked in. Help us now, God. You know our
weaknesses. You know our failures. You know
our doubts, our unbelief. So we pray that by your grace
and by your Spirit, we would go forth from this place changed
people. Even Christians here today sanctified
by your word, sanctified by the hymns, sanctified by our fellowship
and our conversations together, and that we would go forth seeking
to serve the King of kings and the Lord of lords to be that
herald of the gospel to all men. Help us, O God, fill this place
with the people that we meet, with the people that we bring
the gospel to. Oh, what glory it would bring
the Lord Jesus Christ to see this place filled with
those who you have brought into your kingdom through the gospel.
Help us, O God, to be such a place, to be such a harbor, to be such
a house of prayer and a house of worship to you. And we pray
for those even now that are unsaved, here even in our midst. Oh God,
may they no longer put off, may they no longer neglect and close
their ears to the work, to the truth of the gospel, the work
of the Lord Jesus Christ on their behalf. Today is the day of salvation. May this ring true in their ears.
And if they do suppress this truth and unrighteousness, may
it be that bell that continually goes off in their mind, in their
heart, wherever they go. May you dog their steps with
the gospel. May you bring them under conviction
of sin. And may they truly be saved from sin, from self, and
from your divine wrath. Do this all for the glory of
our Lord Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
One Gospel for all People
Series A Study in First Timothy
A Study in First Timothy (11)
One Gospel for all People
1 Timothy 2:6-7
| Sermon ID | 625231840527952 |
| Duration | 50:34 |
| Date | |
| Category | Sunday Service |
| Bible Text | 1 Timothy 2:6-7 |
| Language | English |
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