(1Timothy 4:6-16)
"If you point these things out to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things. Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers."
Nancy Guthrie's second session was entitled "Keep a Close Watch of the Teaching", and it was based on 1 Timothy 4: 6-16. Nancy pointed out that "these things", mentioned in verse 6, mean the "sound teaching" of the gospel of Jesus Christ. She voiced the following question to the leaders of women's ministry in the PCA: "Are we willing to let God set his agenda before the women and determine to teach the women what they most need to know, or are we setting our own agenda based on what the women say that they want to know or learn, on what they find the most practical or relevant or interesting, or on what the women want to talk about, share, discuss from their own experiences, etc?"
Our speaker, Nancy, reminded us to focus on scripture. The Bible is God speaking to us! However, it seems that at times, that fact has lost its awe and wonder for us. It is crucial that we do not leave out chunks of the Bible that seem uninteresting. The Bible is God's Word breathed out! It is what God decided to tell us. For example, God wants us to know the story from the Old Testament of the history of his people. In the garden, after the fall, He points ahead to a Redeemer through whom he will bless His people. In Exodus, he shows us that he took his people out of slavery in Egypt and brought them into the promised land. This helps us understand our own story of redemption where we are set free from being enslaved to sin. God shows us the giving of the law, sacrifices, and feasts to point us to Christ who is the perfect law-keeper and the ultimate sacrifice. The books of the prophets hold a mirror to show us our own sin that deserves exile from God. Psalms teaches us how to pray, praise, and lament, and we need the wisdom of Job, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastes as we navigate life. The gospels show Christ in action and hold a record of His life, and the vision of John in Revelation shows God working out his plan to completion and the full fruition we will finally experience in the new heavens and the new earth.
It is important to not elevate man's words over God's words. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (1 Timothy 3:16-17). Also, "But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus." (2Timothy 3:14-15) Nancy Guthrie reminded us that doctrine is important! We need to care deeply about it and teach it. Some would say that we don't really need doctrine, and that doctrine is divisive, but the reality is, once we bring up Jesus, we need doctrine! We need to understand who he really is and what we believe about him. What we need most is not a bunch of tips on how to better live our lives, but instead we need to see Jesus at work in our lives, bringing about his purposes.
We must devote ourselves to and immerse ourselves in sound doctrine. This is what is means to "keep a watch on the teaching". So, watch what you invest time and money in, watch who you listen to, watch what you read. These various voices shape how we think and how we speak. What flows out of us is largely influenced by what flows into us. Reconsider what you spend time on, and don't spend time on pointless pursuits. Even "good things" can lead us astray from our Savior. It can be so easy to get absorbed in secondary pursuits.
How do we immerse ourselves in sound doctrine? Many opportunities are available. Not only can we attend a church where the pastor faithfully preaches the Word and take full advantage of church ministries such as Sunday School and Bible study, but we can take advantage of the technology of today and download sermons, read blogs, or get information from websites.
Nancy recommended the following to us:
monergism.com
desiringgod.org (30+ years of John Piper's sermons)
whitehorseinn.org
thegospelcoalition.org
www.proctrust.org.uk (Proclamation Trust)
allsouls.org (All Souls Church, Langham Place)
The following pastors' sermons: Collin Smith, Liam Goligher (from Tenth Presbyterian Church)
Download audio from various seminary classes such as Covenant Seminary
We want our lives to be shaped by the gospel rather than by the culture around us. If we don't persevere in watching our lives and our doctrine, we will drift. What should we watch out for in order to continue in this pursuit?
- Watch how you respond to criticism. It is so easy to justify ourselves, but instead listen to criticism and look for elements of truth in it!! Humble yourself to receive and appropriately respond to criticism. Be willing to learn from it and change. Don't get frustrated and quit if a certain ministry of yours is criticized.
- Watch that you don't get comfortable with your own hypocrisy or with certain sins. Don't think that you have a struggle that you can't change by the help of the Holy Spirit. The reason God points out our sin is so that we will repent and change. Don't ignore or justify sin.
- Watch your motives - look for opportunities to give, pray, and serve in secret. Our addiction to human praise will not serve us well in the long run.
- Watch out for cynicism - don't give up hope that God will work in difficult situations or change someone, for he is able to do more than we ask or imagine! The gospel really has power to deeply bring about lasting change.
- Watch out for women who never come to events and never connect. Don't ignore the women who don't participate. Seek after them! Some women are not interested in the things of God, but others may be hiding in shame, some have hard lives, others feel that they don't fit in, some are embarrassed of their lack of Biblical knowledge, some people are lonely or uncomfortable on a crowd. Christ associated with all different kinds of people in all walks of life, and so we should also seek after all of our women.
- Watch out for inappropriate relationships with men. Watch who you are alone with, watch how you dress and speak. Confess an inappropriate attraction and get accountability.
- Watch that you don't pour your energies into good things that don't have the power to save.
Again, as 1 Timothy 4:16 states, "Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers."
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