1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:14,640 1 Timothy chapter 3 verse 8 is where we will start. 2 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:21,280 We've had a couple of tough passages the last couple of weeks, tough in that they're not 3 00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:24,280 agreed upon among Christians. 4 00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:28,880 There's certainly some different interpretation on the last couple of passages that we have 5 00:00:28,880 --> 00:00:30,720 looked at. 6 00:00:30,720 --> 00:00:36,480 But in these passages, Paul is giving Timothy instruction, instruction for the people of 7 00:00:36,480 --> 00:00:43,000 Ephesus where Timothy is serving, instructions for God's people, how things ought to be organized, 8 00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:46,100 how things ought to be managed, how things ought to take place. 9 00:00:46,100 --> 00:00:49,380 We saw in chapter 2 instructions for prayer. 10 00:00:49,380 --> 00:00:52,360 Then we saw some instructions for men and for women. 11 00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:57,200 And then last week we looked at instructions for elders or overseers or pastor, all those 12 00:00:57,200 --> 00:00:59,600 kind of the same thing in scripture. 13 00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:03,900 And then tonight, kind of continuing on, very similar to last week, we're going to look 14 00:01:03,900 --> 00:01:10,520 at instructions for deacons and the qualifications for those who are deacons. 15 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:12,960 So let's pray and then we'll get started. 16 00:01:12,960 --> 00:01:17,520 Father God, we come to you, we thank you for your good word and I pray, dear Lord, that 17 00:01:17,520 --> 00:01:21,800 we would see what your word says and that we would understand it as best we can, dear 18 00:01:21,800 --> 00:01:22,800 Lord. 19 00:01:22,800 --> 00:01:27,560 And that we would be the ones who are obedient to it in our life and as a church body, that 20 00:01:27,560 --> 00:01:30,800 we would live by your word and do what your word says. 21 00:01:30,800 --> 00:01:34,000 And so God, I pray that you just bless the reading of your word tonight, that you would 22 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:38,440 just let your Holy Spirit be among us, that you would hide me behind the cross as I preach 23 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:41,600 and teach, dear Lord, and it would all be for your glory. 24 00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:44,800 And I ask these things in Jesus' name, amen. 25 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:45,800 Amen. 26 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:46,800 All right. 27 00:01:46,800 --> 00:01:56,320 1 Timothy chapter 3 verse 8, deacons likewise should be worthy of respect, not hypocritical, 28 00:01:56,320 --> 00:02:00,120 not drinking a lot of wine and not greedy for money. 29 00:02:00,120 --> 00:02:04,480 Now a lot of these things that we're going to see here for deacons are very similar to 30 00:02:04,480 --> 00:02:08,960 what we have just saw for elders, not quite the same, but very similar. 31 00:02:08,960 --> 00:02:14,480 And so we talked about last week that kind of our structure in churches today that we 32 00:02:14,480 --> 00:02:18,680 see, at least in Southern Baptist churches, is sometimes you'll see a pastor and then 33 00:02:18,680 --> 00:02:22,480 maybe you'll see elders and then you'll maybe see deacons under that. 34 00:02:22,480 --> 00:02:27,480 But really what we see, I think, in scripture is this idea of elders plural. 35 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:28,720 So a fellowship would have elders. 36 00:02:28,720 --> 00:02:34,680 That would be multiple people who would meet these qualifications that we saw last week, 37 00:02:34,680 --> 00:02:39,160 people who would be able to serve, that would be above reproach and have the ability to 38 00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:41,420 preach and to teach in some way. 39 00:02:41,420 --> 00:02:46,360 And so that's really what we would call pastors is best to think of what we saw last week 40 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:49,160 as an overseer or an elder. 41 00:02:49,160 --> 00:02:52,600 That's kind of the same idea that we see in scripture. 42 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:57,240 And then we see tonight the qualifications for deacons. 43 00:02:57,240 --> 00:03:05,040 Now obviously our world and our culture plays some part sometimes in the way that things 44 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:06,600 at church are done. 45 00:03:06,600 --> 00:03:08,520 And that's not a good thing. 46 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:14,640 A lot of times we kind of try to formulate our churches to look like businesses. 47 00:03:14,640 --> 00:03:18,880 And so in a lot of churches, the structure may be something like, okay, the pastor is 48 00:03:18,880 --> 00:03:24,180 the CEO and the elder is the board of directors or the deacons is the board of directors. 49 00:03:24,180 --> 00:03:28,760 And sometimes we try to make our church look as though it's a business and run as though 50 00:03:28,760 --> 00:03:30,440 it's a business. 51 00:03:30,440 --> 00:03:35,280 And even we may be tempted to say, okay, those who are going to serve in these positions 52 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:40,560 as elders are in deacons or those who are business minded and those who are successful 53 00:03:40,560 --> 00:03:44,680 as businessmen, those sometimes are the ones who are chosen. 54 00:03:44,680 --> 00:03:49,720 Now that's not to say that somebody who's good in business is disqualified from serving, 55 00:03:49,720 --> 00:03:55,760 but perhaps if our mindset is to run the church like a business, then we're not doing a good 56 00:03:55,760 --> 00:03:58,800 job because it's not about being a business. 57 00:03:58,800 --> 00:03:59,980 It's not about a CEO. 58 00:03:59,980 --> 00:04:01,680 It's not about a board of directors. 59 00:04:01,680 --> 00:04:04,440 It's not about one man having a bunch of power. 60 00:04:04,440 --> 00:04:10,120 It's about God's people selecting men who can be elders and overseers or women and men 61 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:15,680 who can be deacons and who will serve God, who have the ability to preach and to teach 62 00:04:15,680 --> 00:04:17,800 and who have a heart to serve. 63 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:23,120 That's how our churches should be built up as far as those who are in leadership positions 64 00:04:23,120 --> 00:04:24,120 in the church. 65 00:04:24,120 --> 00:04:29,360 It's not a position of power like, oh, I'm a pastor, or oh, I'm an overseer, or oh, 66 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:30,360 I'm a deacon. 67 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:32,240 I'm holier than now. 68 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:33,240 I'm in a higher place. 69 00:04:33,240 --> 00:04:36,040 Instead, I think... Now, this is my opinion. 70 00:04:36,040 --> 00:04:41,600 I think that those who are overseers or elders or deacons should have a heart of service. 71 00:04:41,600 --> 00:04:45,920 It's not an idea of, look how great I am, but rather an idea of how can I serve you? 72 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:47,120 How can I be there for you? 73 00:04:47,120 --> 00:04:48,280 How can I help you? 74 00:04:48,280 --> 00:04:50,320 How can I shepherd the flock? 75 00:04:50,320 --> 00:04:54,480 I think these are the type of qualities that we need to think about when we look at the 76 00:04:54,480 --> 00:04:59,480 Bible and we look at those in scripture that are described as overseers or elders. 77 00:04:59,480 --> 00:05:04,440 I think that these are the types of qualities that we need to focus on, the very qualities 78 00:05:04,440 --> 00:05:06,920 that Jesus himself had. 79 00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:12,800 We see these qualifications here for a deacon, very similar to what we saw for an elder or 80 00:05:12,800 --> 00:05:15,760 overseer or a pastor. 81 00:05:15,760 --> 00:05:17,160 These are obvious things. 82 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:19,280 What does it say here in verse eight? 83 00:05:19,280 --> 00:05:20,920 Should be worthy of respect. 84 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:23,680 Okay, you don't want somebody who's not respected. 85 00:05:23,680 --> 00:05:26,400 They're disqualified from being a deacon. 86 00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:32,360 If they're not respected, if they're unrespectable, then that disqualifies someone from serving 87 00:05:32,360 --> 00:05:33,480 in that way. 88 00:05:33,480 --> 00:05:34,480 Not hypocritical. 89 00:05:34,480 --> 00:05:37,000 That is not saying one thing and doing another. 90 00:05:37,000 --> 00:05:41,880 It's easy to say, oh, do this and oh, do that and this is good and this is right. 91 00:05:41,880 --> 00:05:45,880 We can all say what is good and what is right, but what are we doing? 92 00:05:45,880 --> 00:05:48,000 This is not just true of elders and deacons. 93 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:50,640 This is true of any of us. 94 00:05:50,640 --> 00:05:55,880 None of us want to fall into this trap of hypocrisy, of acting one way at church or 95 00:05:55,880 --> 00:05:59,520 acting one way when we see people that go to church with us. 96 00:05:59,520 --> 00:06:04,040 Then when we are on our own away from other folks, we act another way. 97 00:06:04,040 --> 00:06:05,040 That's hypocritical. 98 00:06:05,040 --> 00:06:09,000 Essentially, what we're doing when we come to church, if we do that, is we're putting 99 00:06:09,000 --> 00:06:10,000 on a mask. 100 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:13,040 It's like we're putting on a costume. 101 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:17,880 We're pretending like we're godly people, but really we're not. 102 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:19,920 Those who would do that are not qualified. 103 00:06:19,920 --> 00:06:25,200 If there are people who would live in that type of way and live in hypocrisy, that's 104 00:06:25,200 --> 00:06:28,760 a disqualification to be a deacon, not drinking a lot of wine. 105 00:06:28,760 --> 00:06:32,520 Again, it doesn't say not to drink any wine, drinking some wine. 106 00:06:32,520 --> 00:06:37,440 Of course, we see that throughout scripture, but the point here is not getting drunk. 107 00:06:37,440 --> 00:06:40,440 That's the sin in scripture is not getting drunk. 108 00:06:40,440 --> 00:06:45,640 You don't want someone who's out of control, who doesn't control what they drink, who does 109 00:06:45,640 --> 00:06:48,240 drink too much wine and does get drunk. 110 00:06:48,240 --> 00:06:50,200 You don't make good decisions when you get drunk. 111 00:06:50,200 --> 00:06:52,960 You make a fool of yourself when you get drunk. 112 00:06:52,960 --> 00:06:59,400 Because a body of Christ, you don't want somebody who's going to be in a position of respect 113 00:06:59,400 --> 00:07:02,840 for those in the community to see this person out drunk and acting a fool. 114 00:07:02,840 --> 00:07:03,840 Wait a minute. 115 00:07:03,840 --> 00:07:06,720 One, that gives a bad name to God. 116 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:10,040 Two, that gives a bad name to the body of Christ. 117 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:12,520 It hinders people from wanting to come to God. 118 00:07:12,520 --> 00:07:17,760 It hinders people from wanting to become part of a fellowship that proclaims God, but yet 119 00:07:17,760 --> 00:07:22,560 if those who are in leadership positions are getting drunk, it's not a good look. 120 00:07:22,560 --> 00:07:27,640 Really obvious disqualification here that Paul is pointing out for Timothy. 121 00:07:27,640 --> 00:07:28,640 Not greedy for money. 122 00:07:28,640 --> 00:07:34,920 Again, you don't want anybody that's going to be consumed with wanting money and worldly 123 00:07:34,920 --> 00:07:35,920 wealth. 124 00:07:35,920 --> 00:07:39,680 Now, you may remember if you've never read in Acts chapter six, you can. 125 00:07:39,680 --> 00:07:40,920 This is your homework. 126 00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:45,640 You can read in Acts chapter six, and this is where we really kind of see what it appears 127 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:48,520 to be the office of deacon formed. 128 00:07:48,520 --> 00:07:53,880 There was a problem that was taking place there between the Hellenistic Jews and the 129 00:07:53,880 --> 00:07:55,720 Hebraic Jews. 130 00:07:55,720 --> 00:08:00,520 The problem was is that they didn't feel like they were being treated equally. 131 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:02,120 They were kind of at odds with each other. 132 00:08:02,120 --> 00:08:04,520 They were both Jewish people by blood. 133 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:09,460 One was a Greek speaking group, and some of your translations in the King James, for instance, 134 00:08:09,460 --> 00:08:12,400 it might call them the Grecians and the Hebrews. 135 00:08:12,400 --> 00:08:13,400 Same group. 136 00:08:13,400 --> 00:08:19,520 They were both Jewish Jews, Hebraic Jews, Grecians, Hebrews, same group of people there. 137 00:08:19,520 --> 00:08:21,400 They were at odds with each other. 138 00:08:21,400 --> 00:08:25,460 The Hebraic Jews, they kind of stayed around Jerusalem. 139 00:08:25,460 --> 00:08:28,920 They thought they were a little better because they had stayed in that area. 140 00:08:28,920 --> 00:08:33,440 Well, there are other Jews that were outside of Jerusalem, and they spoke Greek, and they 141 00:08:33,440 --> 00:08:37,860 were not speaking the original Hebrew language like those in Jerusalem. 142 00:08:37,860 --> 00:08:40,360 They were kind of at odds with each other. 143 00:08:40,360 --> 00:08:42,640 Then these groups were together. 144 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:46,800 When it came time to pass out food and to deal with some of these type of things, they 145 00:08:46,800 --> 00:08:49,840 were at odds with each other, complaining, well, this group's getting more than that 146 00:08:49,840 --> 00:08:50,840 group. 147 00:08:50,840 --> 00:08:56,720 So in Acts chapter six, what we see is the office of deacon is established, that there 148 00:08:56,720 --> 00:08:59,720 are going to be those who are going to serve. 149 00:08:59,720 --> 00:09:03,040 That's the word you're going to see when you read in Acts chapter six, verse two. 150 00:09:03,040 --> 00:09:05,080 You're going to see the word servant. 151 00:09:05,080 --> 00:09:07,840 That's where our word deacon comes from. 152 00:09:07,840 --> 00:09:10,680 Deacon means servant. 153 00:09:10,680 --> 00:09:13,720 If you say, well, what is the job of a deacon? 154 00:09:13,720 --> 00:09:14,960 What should a deacon do? 155 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:18,160 A deacon should be a servant to the people of God. 156 00:09:18,160 --> 00:09:24,440 So here we see that the apostles appointed these seven men as deacons in Acts chapter 157 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:26,640 six, and what was their job? 158 00:09:26,640 --> 00:09:28,780 It was to serve the people. 159 00:09:28,780 --> 00:09:31,480 It was to take care of those type of tasks. 160 00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:33,280 That's the job of the deacon today. 161 00:09:33,280 --> 00:09:38,240 Now, I would say also that that would be the job of the pastor, overseer, or elder as well, 162 00:09:38,240 --> 00:09:41,560 but certainly that job would fall to the deacons. 163 00:09:41,560 --> 00:09:47,200 Are there needs of the people in your congregation, of your body, in your group around you? 164 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:52,620 Is there financial need maybe you become aware of, or maybe there's just some help that somebody 165 00:09:52,620 --> 00:09:53,800 needs in some way? 166 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:56,920 Maybe it's cutting grass or whatever it may be. 167 00:09:56,920 --> 00:10:01,720 There's a variety of things that we may see among our community, among our church, among 168 00:10:01,720 --> 00:10:04,320 our widows, whatever it may be. 169 00:10:04,320 --> 00:10:09,640 It's the job of the deacon to be on the lookout for those types of things, and to be there 170 00:10:09,640 --> 00:10:14,160 to be a servant to the people in whatever way that they can. 171 00:10:14,160 --> 00:10:19,960 We see that office really started for us in Acts chapter six. 172 00:10:19,960 --> 00:10:23,880 When you see the word deacon, you need to think of the word servant. 173 00:10:23,880 --> 00:10:30,080 When you see the word servant in your Bible, chances are it may mean deacon, or the word 174 00:10:30,080 --> 00:10:32,960 that we would use as deacon. 175 00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:39,520 So anyway, there's a little background on the office of deacons earlier on in the scripture. 176 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:44,080 Verse nine, holding the mystery of the faith with a clear conscious. 177 00:10:44,080 --> 00:10:49,560 Now, this is an interesting passage here, holding the mystery of the faith with a clear 178 00:10:49,560 --> 00:10:50,560 conscious. 179 00:10:50,560 --> 00:10:52,880 Well, what does he mean there by the mystery of the faith? 180 00:10:52,880 --> 00:10:57,480 Does he mean that there are some things that are a mystery to us when we read the scripture? 181 00:10:57,480 --> 00:10:58,480 Well, possibly. 182 00:10:58,480 --> 00:10:59,480 That's certainly true. 183 00:10:59,480 --> 00:11:02,440 There are some things that we read and we believe that they're true. 184 00:11:02,440 --> 00:11:07,600 We don't doubt them, but we may not necessarily understand exactly how some things are going 185 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:10,520 to unfold or exactly what scriptures mean. 186 00:11:10,520 --> 00:11:12,440 And so in that sense, maybe they're a mystery. 187 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:17,280 That could be what he means, or he simply could mean it in the sense that, yes, the 188 00:11:17,280 --> 00:11:21,960 gospel of Jesus Christ was a mystery, but it is no longer. 189 00:11:21,960 --> 00:11:24,080 The mystery has been revealed to us. 190 00:11:24,080 --> 00:11:31,600 Now we see that in Colossians, Colossians chapter one, verses 24 through 26. 191 00:11:31,600 --> 00:11:38,160 It says, now I rejoice in my sufferings for you and I am completing in my flesh what 192 00:11:38,160 --> 00:11:41,320 is lacking in Christ afflictions for his body. 193 00:11:41,320 --> 00:11:42,800 That is the church. 194 00:11:42,800 --> 00:11:48,820 I have become its servant according to God's administration that was given to me for you 195 00:11:48,820 --> 00:11:56,680 to make God's message fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generation, but now revealed 196 00:11:56,680 --> 00:11:57,680 to his saints. 197 00:11:57,680 --> 00:12:03,440 Okay, so the gospel of Jesus Christ that Paul is serving under here saying, look, I'm serving 198 00:12:03,440 --> 00:12:04,440 these churches. 199 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:06,040 I'm spreading the message. 200 00:12:06,040 --> 00:12:07,920 I'm sharing the gospel. 201 00:12:07,920 --> 00:12:12,920 This was a mystery in generations past, but it's not a mystery anymore. 202 00:12:12,920 --> 00:12:18,720 And so before Jesus Christ came and was crucified and was resurrected, those in the Old Testament 203 00:12:18,720 --> 00:12:23,360 that knew the Old Testament prophecies and knew about the Messiah that was going to come, 204 00:12:23,360 --> 00:12:25,400 well, it was kind of a mystery to them. 205 00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:29,280 I mean, they believed that a Messiah was coming, but they didn't really know how all those 206 00:12:29,280 --> 00:12:31,720 things were going to fall into place. 207 00:12:31,720 --> 00:12:37,160 But for us and for the audience here that we're seeing in first Timothy, for Timothy 208 00:12:37,160 --> 00:12:40,200 and other Christians of that day, that mystery had been revealed. 209 00:12:40,200 --> 00:12:43,200 It had been seen, ah, here it is. 210 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:45,680 Here's what the Old Testament was speaking about. 211 00:12:45,680 --> 00:12:50,800 And so when it speaks of a mystery here in first Timothy chapter three, it may not be 212 00:12:50,800 --> 00:12:55,160 speaking of a mystery in the sense of, well, there's something that's still not understood. 213 00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:59,720 He may be saying, look, hey, the mystery of the gospel of Jesus Christ, you know it. 214 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:03,800 That is, it is no longer a mystery and you have put your faith on it. 215 00:13:03,800 --> 00:13:09,280 And that's what we see is one of the qualifications here for a deacon in verse nine, holding to 216 00:13:09,280 --> 00:13:11,960 the mystery of the faith with a clear conscious. 217 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:14,080 We talked about that a few weeks ago. 218 00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:16,760 We talked about that idea of having a clear conscious. 219 00:13:16,760 --> 00:13:21,200 If there's something that you don't feel like you should do, then you probably shouldn't 220 00:13:21,200 --> 00:13:22,200 do it. 221 00:13:22,200 --> 00:13:25,000 And so we want to be able to say, hey, I've got a clear conscious. 222 00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:28,440 Those things that I feel convicted of that I don't think are right. 223 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:29,480 I don't do them. 224 00:13:29,480 --> 00:13:33,520 And you sleep a whole lot better at night when you have a clear conscious, when you 225 00:13:33,520 --> 00:13:37,520 lay down at night and you think, man, I did this thing and I didn't feel like it was right 226 00:13:37,520 --> 00:13:39,360 and I did it and I know I shouldn't have done it. 227 00:13:39,360 --> 00:13:40,840 Well, that's not a clear conscious. 228 00:13:40,840 --> 00:13:44,760 And so that weighs on us, but a clear conscious is a beautiful thing. 229 00:13:44,760 --> 00:13:49,360 And when we have a clear conscious, we have nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to hide 230 00:13:49,360 --> 00:13:53,800 because we've done all we can to live by what we feel is right. 231 00:13:53,800 --> 00:14:00,040 And so a qualification here is to hold on to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscious. 232 00:14:00,040 --> 00:14:03,680 Verse 10, and they must also be tested first. 233 00:14:03,680 --> 00:14:07,920 If they prove blameless, then they can serve as deacons. 234 00:14:07,920 --> 00:14:08,920 Okay. 235 00:14:08,920 --> 00:14:11,120 So here's this idea of they must be tested. 236 00:14:11,120 --> 00:14:13,640 Well, what does this testing look like? 237 00:14:13,640 --> 00:14:16,520 Well, I can only speak from limited experience. 238 00:14:16,520 --> 00:14:23,320 What kind of what I've seen in deacons who are ordained is what is often referred to 239 00:14:23,320 --> 00:14:28,280 as a testing period where usually it'll be other ordained deacons or pastors that may 240 00:14:28,280 --> 00:14:32,800 be there for a service and they'll take a deacon in the back and they'll ask some real 241 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:33,800 basic questions. 242 00:14:33,800 --> 00:14:35,920 Do you believe that Jesus is the son of God? 243 00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:38,160 Do you believe he was crucified and resurrected? 244 00:14:38,160 --> 00:14:40,640 And it may not be but three or four questions. 245 00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:43,480 And if you answer right, then you've passed the test. 246 00:14:43,480 --> 00:14:46,760 But I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that necessarily. 247 00:14:46,760 --> 00:14:51,220 However, I don't think that's the kind of testing that Paul is speaking of here. 248 00:14:51,220 --> 00:14:56,520 We can't really test anybody through any great links and something like that. 249 00:14:56,520 --> 00:14:59,640 Somebody that doesn't know somebody can't really test somebody. 250 00:14:59,640 --> 00:15:05,560 I think the real test for those who are going to be a deacon is how they live their life. 251 00:15:05,560 --> 00:15:11,480 It's seen around by the community, by the church members over years really, not just 252 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:17,800 a few weeks, not just a few months, but over years it's been viewed and it's been established, 253 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:23,760 hey, this man meets these qualifications, these qualifications that we have seen set 254 00:15:23,760 --> 00:15:25,720 out for us by Paul. 255 00:15:25,720 --> 00:15:27,480 This person does these things. 256 00:15:27,480 --> 00:15:29,920 This person has a servant's heart. 257 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:32,880 This person is one who has passed the test. 258 00:15:32,880 --> 00:15:36,480 The test I don't think is not, can you answer a few questions? 259 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:39,600 The test is what does your life look like? 260 00:15:39,600 --> 00:15:42,080 Do you pass the test with the way you live? 261 00:15:42,080 --> 00:15:46,440 Now we need to remember these things because as a church, there are times that we are going 262 00:15:46,440 --> 00:15:50,960 to appoint deacons, that we are going to choose those among us. 263 00:15:50,960 --> 00:15:55,480 It's important that we choose those who meet the qualifications. 264 00:15:55,480 --> 00:15:59,320 We don't choose somebody because they are popular in the community. 265 00:15:59,320 --> 00:16:02,840 To be a deacon or an elder is not a popularity contest. 266 00:16:02,840 --> 00:16:06,640 It's not about choosing those who are successful businessman. 267 00:16:06,640 --> 00:16:12,000 It may be somebody that's quiet and humble, that's a janitor that cleans toilets in town, 268 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:14,400 but that's the kind of heart that we're looking for. 269 00:16:14,400 --> 00:16:19,800 We're not putting people who are popular into these positions just because they are popular. 270 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:25,240 Sadly, I think it's to our own hurt sometimes that maybe as churches, we become guilty of 271 00:16:25,240 --> 00:16:26,240 that. 272 00:16:26,240 --> 00:16:28,120 We need to look for those who are serving. 273 00:16:28,120 --> 00:16:31,380 Those are the ones who need to be deacons. 274 00:16:31,380 --> 00:16:35,640 Those are the ones I believe that meet these qualifications, at least the heart of what 275 00:16:35,640 --> 00:16:40,160 Paul is talking about here. 276 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:44,840 When we see this idea of a deacon being tested, I think the test is their life. 277 00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:46,480 You look at their life. 278 00:16:46,480 --> 00:16:48,880 Does their life match up with these things that are being said? 279 00:16:48,880 --> 00:16:51,540 If it does, then they've passed the test. 280 00:16:51,540 --> 00:16:58,360 If it doesn't, then no amount of lip surface or answering a few questions is suitable to 281 00:16:58,360 --> 00:17:02,960 serve as a deacon and a body of Christ. 282 00:17:02,960 --> 00:17:06,200 Now we have another little wrinkle. 283 00:17:06,200 --> 00:17:09,960 This goes along with those wrinkles we've seen over the last couple of weeks when we've 284 00:17:09,960 --> 00:17:15,320 talked about women's roles in the church and can women be pastors. 285 00:17:15,320 --> 00:17:18,760 Here we see our next wrinkle in verse 11. 286 00:17:18,760 --> 00:17:25,000 In my translation, it says, wives too must be worthy of respect, not slander or self-controlled, 287 00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:27,400 faithful in everything. 288 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:31,320 Some of your translations, if you have King James, it's going to say their wives. 289 00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:36,160 But you'll also notice if you have a King James that the word there is italicized. 290 00:17:36,160 --> 00:17:41,600 You may not know why some words are italicized in your King James Bible, but the reason is 291 00:17:41,600 --> 00:17:48,200 it's because those words are in the actual manuscripts that they were translated from. 292 00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:53,680 What the translator is doing there is they're saying, we think that this is the right way 293 00:17:53,680 --> 00:17:55,240 to interpret this text. 294 00:17:55,240 --> 00:18:00,480 We're going to add this word to help give some understanding around this text, but this 295 00:18:00,480 --> 00:18:02,120 is a word that we have added. 296 00:18:02,120 --> 00:18:06,000 It's not in the original scriptures that we're looking at. 297 00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:09,360 You'll see those words italicized. 298 00:18:09,360 --> 00:18:15,080 Your King James, it'll say their wives, implying that is the wives of deacons. 299 00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:20,280 A deacon needs to live a certain way and their wives need to live a certain way. 300 00:18:20,280 --> 00:18:21,400 That certainly is true. 301 00:18:21,400 --> 00:18:25,880 I think those who are going to be deacons or those who are going to be elders, they 302 00:18:25,880 --> 00:18:28,520 certainly, their wives should live in a certain way. 303 00:18:28,520 --> 00:18:30,160 Their families should be respectable. 304 00:18:30,160 --> 00:18:33,720 We saw that last week in the passage that we looked at. 305 00:18:33,720 --> 00:18:41,520 The question is, is this passage speaking of wives of men who are going to be deacons 306 00:18:41,520 --> 00:18:46,920 or is it simply speaking of women in general, or wives in general? 307 00:18:46,920 --> 00:18:53,640 In the actual language, for a translation to say, wives too must be this way or wives 308 00:18:53,640 --> 00:18:57,540 should be this way, is probably the most accurate way to read it. 309 00:18:57,540 --> 00:19:00,440 What that means is heavily debated. 310 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:02,480 Some translations may say women. 311 00:19:02,480 --> 00:19:04,800 Some would say wives, some would say women. 312 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:07,480 That's because that's the same Greek word. 313 00:19:07,480 --> 00:19:11,640 When you look at that Greek word in the Old Testament, a lot of times it's used for women 314 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:12,640 or women. 315 00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:16,080 A lot of times it's used for wife or wives. 316 00:19:16,080 --> 00:19:19,040 That doesn't really help us in this context either. 317 00:19:19,040 --> 00:19:20,280 Is there a shift here? 318 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:25,600 Is it saying, okay, here's how deacons need to act and hey, women too, if they're going 319 00:19:25,600 --> 00:19:28,680 to be deacons, this is how they need to act. 320 00:19:28,680 --> 00:19:31,560 You're going to find some difference of opinion on this. 321 00:19:31,560 --> 00:19:36,280 There will be some Christians that say it is suitable for a woman to serve as a deacon 322 00:19:36,280 --> 00:19:41,480 and you will probably find others that would say, no, this is a position for a man. 323 00:19:41,480 --> 00:19:47,920 However, I do believe that women can serve as deacons because we see that in the scripture. 324 00:19:47,920 --> 00:19:54,080 In Romans chapter 16 verse one, we see Phoebe mentioned and it says Phoebe is a servant. 325 00:19:54,080 --> 00:19:59,400 The same word that we see in Acts chapter two, six, verse two, the same word, deaconess 326 00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:02,360 or deaconess, whatever the Greek word is, I'm not sure. 327 00:20:02,360 --> 00:20:05,360 But it's the word that we call deacon. 328 00:20:05,360 --> 00:20:07,200 It's the same word that's applied to Phoebe. 329 00:20:07,200 --> 00:20:10,400 It's saying that Phoebe, a female, is a deacon. 330 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:18,640 We certainly have scriptural support to say, hey, there are women deacon in the scripture. 331 00:20:18,640 --> 00:20:24,080 I believe that as far as deacons go, then deacons could certainly be men or women based 332 00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:25,560 on what the scripture says. 333 00:20:25,560 --> 00:20:30,320 However, there would be many Christians who would probably disagree with me on that. 334 00:20:30,320 --> 00:20:35,160 Now, I stated a couple of weeks ago that I don't think that... I do believe that the 335 00:20:35,160 --> 00:20:39,560 scripture says that it should be men who are in positions of authority, but let's not forget 336 00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:41,800 a deacon is not a position of authority. 337 00:20:41,800 --> 00:20:44,680 Now, we may have made it that in our churches today. 338 00:20:44,680 --> 00:20:49,400 We may have elevated our deacons to a position of authority. 339 00:20:49,400 --> 00:20:54,760 By the biblical definition, a deacon is one who is a servant, not one who is an authority. 340 00:20:54,760 --> 00:20:58,360 And so both men and women can serve in that way. 341 00:20:58,360 --> 00:21:02,360 At least I believe that's what the scripture says, and I believe we see evidence of that 342 00:21:02,360 --> 00:21:08,700 in Phoebe in Romans chapter 16 verse 1, because again, the same word is used for her as those 343 00:21:08,700 --> 00:21:13,320 seven men who are appointed in Acts chapter 6 verse 2. 344 00:21:13,320 --> 00:21:17,760 But there may be disagreement even in this room among us, and that is okay, because as 345 00:21:17,760 --> 00:21:23,200 I've stated the last two weeks, some of these things are hotly debated passages among Christians. 346 00:21:23,200 --> 00:21:25,320 There's not a general consensus here. 347 00:21:25,320 --> 00:21:30,920 And so I'll leave you to pray about that one, and we will believe these passages as we see 348 00:21:30,920 --> 00:21:37,100 the Holy Spirit leads us to in these tough type things. 349 00:21:37,100 --> 00:21:43,040 Verse 11, wives too must be worthy of respect, not slander, self-controlled, faithful in 350 00:21:43,040 --> 00:21:44,040 everything. 351 00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:49,840 So similar to the types of qualifications that we've seen in the verses before. 352 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:55,800 Verse 12, deacons must be husbands of one wife, managing their children and their own 353 00:21:55,800 --> 00:21:57,800 households competently. 354 00:21:57,800 --> 00:22:02,400 Again, this is the same type of qualification that we saw for an elder. 355 00:22:02,400 --> 00:22:03,720 There's not much difference. 356 00:22:03,720 --> 00:22:08,600 You make it even say that those who are qualified to be deacons, if there are some who really 357 00:22:08,600 --> 00:22:12,960 excel and who are really faithful to God as deacons, then maybe those are the ones who 358 00:22:12,960 --> 00:22:14,520 are best suited to be elders. 359 00:22:14,520 --> 00:22:18,940 If they've proven their self enough to be a deacon, and they've lived their life as 360 00:22:18,940 --> 00:22:25,200 a deacon well enough that maybe it's those who need to be placed in those positions of 361 00:22:25,200 --> 00:22:28,720 eldership in a church, of overseers of a church. 362 00:22:28,720 --> 00:22:30,880 And so the qualification is simple. 363 00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:33,040 Look, a deacon needs to have his family in order. 364 00:22:33,040 --> 00:22:38,360 He needs to be a good husband to his wife, and he needs to be a good father to his children. 365 00:22:38,360 --> 00:22:43,400 And that's probably evidence in his wife's life and in his children's life. 366 00:22:43,400 --> 00:22:48,480 If he's not raising them right and not doing right at home, then that, you're probably 367 00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:51,280 going to see difficulties of that. 368 00:22:51,280 --> 00:22:52,920 It's kind of hard to hide those things. 369 00:22:52,920 --> 00:22:56,040 You can see how someone's children turn out. 370 00:22:56,040 --> 00:22:59,760 And as the saying says, apples don't fall far from trees. 371 00:22:59,760 --> 00:23:02,200 Well, that's probably a good indication. 372 00:23:02,200 --> 00:23:07,080 If someone has a kind of rough family, then they're probably disqualified. 373 00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:12,320 There's probably some stuff that perhaps we don't see that goes on behind closed doors 374 00:23:12,320 --> 00:23:13,960 that is a flag for us. 375 00:23:13,960 --> 00:23:15,880 So this is why Paul gives us this. 376 00:23:15,880 --> 00:23:18,400 Say, hey, pay attention to the family of this man. 377 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:19,400 Does he have a good wife? 378 00:23:19,400 --> 00:23:20,560 Does he have good kids? 379 00:23:20,560 --> 00:23:25,040 Then if so, this is a good indicator that he would be one who's suitable to serve God's 380 00:23:25,040 --> 00:23:26,040 people. 381 00:23:26,040 --> 00:23:32,760 Verse 13, for those who have served well as deacons, acquire a good standing for themselves 382 00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:36,560 and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. 383 00:23:36,560 --> 00:23:37,560 Okay. 384 00:23:37,560 --> 00:23:39,600 So again, we see this idea of serving. 385 00:23:39,600 --> 00:23:40,600 What does it say? 386 00:23:40,600 --> 00:23:46,680 For those who have served well as deacons, they acquire a good standing for themselves. 387 00:23:46,680 --> 00:23:50,480 And so we should never want to be deacon just for a title. 388 00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:55,120 I suspect that throughout history, there have been some in our world that have wanted to 389 00:23:55,120 --> 00:23:59,360 be a deacon just so they could say, oh, I'm a deacon and probably tell people every chance 390 00:23:59,360 --> 00:24:01,520 they get, I'm a deacon. 391 00:24:01,520 --> 00:24:05,480 But that's not really what to be a deacon means. 392 00:24:05,480 --> 00:24:08,000 It should be just what it says here. 393 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:11,320 Those who serve will know, is somebody serving well? 394 00:24:11,320 --> 00:24:14,080 Are they just going around waving their deacon flag? 395 00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:17,240 Or do you see those who are deacons actually serving the people? 396 00:24:17,240 --> 00:24:21,000 And those who serve well, they'll have a good reputation. 397 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:22,640 They'll be known in their community. 398 00:24:22,640 --> 00:24:27,680 Not that we do anything to get a pat on the back, ever as Christians, but when you do 399 00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:33,120 what God tells you to and when you serve, then those things will be seen, whether you 400 00:24:33,120 --> 00:24:34,980 want them to be seen or not. 401 00:24:34,980 --> 00:24:40,880 Sometimes those things will be seen and your reputation precedes you as the saying goes. 402 00:24:40,880 --> 00:24:46,760 And those who are deacons should have a reputation of those who serve other people. 403 00:24:46,760 --> 00:24:52,000 Verse 14, I write these things to you hoping to come to you soon. 404 00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:56,040 But if I should be delayed, I have written so that you will know how people ought to 405 00:24:56,040 --> 00:25:02,200 act in God's household, which is the church of the living God and the pillar and foundation 406 00:25:02,200 --> 00:25:03,200 of the truth. 407 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:04,200 Okay. 408 00:25:04,200 --> 00:25:08,040 So Paul says, look, these instructions have a purpose. 409 00:25:08,040 --> 00:25:13,760 They are so you can help these people understand how God's household needs to be established, 410 00:25:13,760 --> 00:25:16,120 how things needs to be run. 411 00:25:16,120 --> 00:25:17,660 There's an order to things. 412 00:25:17,660 --> 00:25:19,080 Things are not done in chaos. 413 00:25:19,080 --> 00:25:22,560 There needs to be kind of a structure in the way things are done. 414 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:26,040 There need to be godly men who are going to lead the church. 415 00:25:26,040 --> 00:25:31,240 There need to be godly men and women who are going to serve in the church. 416 00:25:31,240 --> 00:25:37,920 And when you establish and you put godly men overseeing the church, then you're probably 417 00:25:37,920 --> 00:25:39,600 going to have a pretty good church. 418 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:44,040 When you have good godly men and women who are going to serve in the church, you're probably 419 00:25:44,040 --> 00:25:45,560 going to have a pretty good church. 420 00:25:45,560 --> 00:25:47,120 You're going to have a good community. 421 00:25:47,120 --> 00:25:49,320 There's going to be love there. 422 00:25:49,320 --> 00:25:51,800 And so that's why Paul gives these instructions. 423 00:25:51,800 --> 00:25:54,440 He doesn't want the church to be a place of chaos. 424 00:25:54,440 --> 00:26:00,160 Now, sadly, sometimes we see that in churches and we want to pray and we want to be on guard 425 00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:01,640 that we don't fall into that trap. 426 00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:03,040 No church is immune. 427 00:26:03,040 --> 00:26:05,320 There could be chaos in any church. 428 00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:09,920 When a church stops listening to God's word and people stop loving one another and those 429 00:26:09,920 --> 00:26:15,080 who are in those positions of leadership stop serving God and stop serving one another, 430 00:26:15,080 --> 00:26:17,680 then quickly chaos can be formed. 431 00:26:17,680 --> 00:26:22,840 But Paul says, look, follow some basic simple instruction so that there is not chaos among 432 00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:27,640 you so that there's order in the church, that there's order in the household of God. 433 00:26:27,640 --> 00:26:29,240 That's what he says here. 434 00:26:29,240 --> 00:26:35,640 I have written to you so that you will know how people ought to act in God's household. 435 00:26:35,640 --> 00:26:41,520 Now, perhaps that speaks to a church community or church body like we see here. 436 00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:47,080 It certainly could apply, but when we speak of the household of God, that's a far more 437 00:26:47,080 --> 00:26:51,420 reaching thing than just the body of Christ here at Enterprise. 438 00:26:51,420 --> 00:26:52,800 That's all of God's people. 439 00:26:52,800 --> 00:26:58,740 We are, those who are in Jesus Christ all around the world, are the household of God. 440 00:26:58,740 --> 00:27:02,280 And so how do we know how to act as the household of God? 441 00:27:02,280 --> 00:27:08,320 We read the instructions of God, the word of God, not just in 1 Timothy chapter 3, but 442 00:27:08,320 --> 00:27:09,320 all of scripture. 443 00:27:09,320 --> 00:27:13,720 Now, we may see this passage tonight in these last couple that we've looked at and said, 444 00:27:13,720 --> 00:27:17,880 boy, for most of you in here, you'd say, well, I'm glad I'm not a deacon or an overseer. 445 00:27:17,880 --> 00:27:19,520 Those passages don't apply to me. 446 00:27:19,520 --> 00:27:23,700 Well, maybe they don't in that sense, but there are certainly plenty of passages that 447 00:27:23,700 --> 00:27:25,360 apply to us. 448 00:27:25,360 --> 00:27:31,080 And many of the qualifications here that we see for an overseer, elder, or a deacon are 449 00:27:31,080 --> 00:27:35,160 things that all of us as brothers and sisters in Christ are called to. 450 00:27:35,160 --> 00:27:39,760 And so on some level, we all need to be those who are above reproach, and we need to be 451 00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:43,240 those who are trustworthy, and we need to be those who are not drunkards, and we need 452 00:27:43,240 --> 00:27:45,200 to be those who are not greedy. 453 00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:48,600 These are things that are commanded for all of God's people. 454 00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:54,600 And certainly there are few that are qualified to be in those positions of a deacon or an 455 00:27:54,600 --> 00:27:56,680 elder. 456 00:27:56,680 --> 00:27:59,140 Maybe a few more are qualified than we would realize. 457 00:27:59,140 --> 00:28:04,380 Perhaps there are very few in our world that would be qualified to serve in these areas. 458 00:28:04,380 --> 00:28:09,000 But our churches would be better suited if we really look at these words and we say, 459 00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:12,600 okay, there's some people that are really good people, and I really like them. 460 00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:16,360 But there's a couple of these areas where they're not qualified. 461 00:28:16,360 --> 00:28:21,160 And it's hard to say, well, I don't know, I'm not going to support that person. 462 00:28:21,160 --> 00:28:23,880 I don't think that person should be in that position. 463 00:28:23,880 --> 00:28:24,880 Those things are hard to say. 464 00:28:24,880 --> 00:28:28,680 It's not that we're saying we don't love somebody or we think they're the devil, but we need 465 00:28:28,680 --> 00:28:33,280 to hold those who are going to serve as deacons and elders at a very high standard. 466 00:28:33,280 --> 00:28:38,720 And the result of that will be, I believe, better church bodies, better fellowships of 467 00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:39,720 believers. 468 00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:46,960 And so Paul's goal here is that God's household, not just the church here, but Christians in 469 00:28:46,960 --> 00:28:49,080 general, will know how to act. 470 00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:50,440 So we want to know how to act. 471 00:28:50,440 --> 00:28:52,720 That's part of why we come to church. 472 00:28:52,720 --> 00:28:54,600 We come because we love God. 473 00:28:54,600 --> 00:28:55,800 We come to praise God. 474 00:28:55,800 --> 00:28:59,440 We come for fellowship, but we also come to hear God's word. 475 00:28:59,440 --> 00:29:04,560 And sometimes we hear it and it's gracious and it's encouraging and it's good and we 476 00:29:04,560 --> 00:29:06,560 lift up our voice and praise. 477 00:29:06,560 --> 00:29:11,400 But sometimes it's instruction to us as, okay, here's what you need to do or don't need to 478 00:29:11,400 --> 00:29:12,400 do. 479 00:29:12,400 --> 00:29:13,400 Here's how you need to act. 480 00:29:13,400 --> 00:29:17,200 And sometimes we need to be reminded about how to act, how we need to act. 481 00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:18,720 That's just the way it goes. 482 00:29:18,720 --> 00:29:21,920 That's why we continually read God's word. 483 00:29:21,920 --> 00:29:27,800 Verse 16, and most certainly the mystery of godliness is great. 484 00:29:27,800 --> 00:29:33,860 He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the spirit, seen by angels, preached among 485 00:29:33,860 --> 00:29:38,980 the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. 486 00:29:38,980 --> 00:29:41,960 Here we see this idea, the mystery of godliness. 487 00:29:41,960 --> 00:29:45,700 Now I'm not sure again exactly what he means there. 488 00:29:45,700 --> 00:29:50,040 We see Paul use mystery several times in the New Testament. 489 00:29:50,040 --> 00:29:54,280 Now we talked a while ago about part of that mystery has been revealed to us, the mystery 490 00:29:54,280 --> 00:29:56,560 of the Messiah who is to come. 491 00:29:56,560 --> 00:30:01,200 But as we also said, there are still some things to us that are a mystery. 492 00:30:01,200 --> 00:30:06,240 Paul says in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, where he's talking about, hey, one day we're going 493 00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:07,320 to leave this world. 494 00:30:07,320 --> 00:30:11,680 We're going to be transformed into something new that flesh and blood cannot inherit the 495 00:30:11,680 --> 00:30:12,680 kingdom. 496 00:30:12,680 --> 00:30:14,040 And what does he say in that passage? 497 00:30:14,040 --> 00:30:16,040 He says, I'm telling you a mystery. 498 00:30:16,040 --> 00:30:17,240 Well, why? 499 00:30:17,240 --> 00:30:19,000 Because we don't understand. 500 00:30:19,000 --> 00:30:20,920 Like what happens to us when we die? 501 00:30:20,920 --> 00:30:22,120 Well, I don't know. 502 00:30:22,120 --> 00:30:23,120 I don't know. 503 00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:29,240 Like what's that transformation for us going to be like into a new man, into a new creation? 504 00:30:29,240 --> 00:30:30,960 I don't know what that's going to look like. 505 00:30:30,960 --> 00:30:32,440 What's it going to feel like? 506 00:30:32,440 --> 00:30:33,440 Is it going to taste? 507 00:30:33,440 --> 00:30:34,440 Is it going to smell? 508 00:30:34,440 --> 00:30:36,140 Is it going to take a long time? 509 00:30:36,140 --> 00:30:37,840 Is it going to be instantaneous? 510 00:30:37,840 --> 00:30:40,780 Like, what's the process going to be like? 511 00:30:40,780 --> 00:30:44,600 And then once we go through the process and once we're in the presence of the Lord, what 512 00:30:44,600 --> 00:30:46,640 will that be like for all of eternity? 513 00:30:46,640 --> 00:30:49,280 Well, there's certainly, these things are a mystery to us. 514 00:30:49,280 --> 00:30:54,000 We don't know how all of these things take place. 515 00:30:54,000 --> 00:31:00,360 The very idea of the Trinity, that God became man, that Jesus is God and Jesus was human. 516 00:31:00,360 --> 00:31:02,360 Well, we certainly believe those things. 517 00:31:02,360 --> 00:31:05,900 We don't doubt those things, but in some way it's kind of a mystery. 518 00:31:05,900 --> 00:31:07,520 Like how are those things possible? 519 00:31:07,520 --> 00:31:09,280 Like how did God do that? 520 00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:14,360 Like how in the Old Testament did God take a form of an angel that appears sometimes 521 00:31:14,360 --> 00:31:16,560 or a man sometimes? 522 00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:21,880 And then he came as a man in Jesus Christ and Jesus is the Son of God and Jesus is God. 523 00:31:21,880 --> 00:31:25,240 These are things that we certainly believe are true, that we see in scripture, that we 524 00:31:25,240 --> 00:31:28,300 don't doubt, but yet they're a mystery to us. 525 00:31:28,300 --> 00:31:34,040 We still may not have a complete understanding or really be able to completely wrap our mind 526 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:35,040 around these things. 527 00:31:35,040 --> 00:31:40,800 So certainly there are some mysteries left for us in this world. 528 00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:42,160 But what does he say? 529 00:31:42,160 --> 00:31:45,640 And most certainly the mystery of godliness is great. 530 00:31:45,640 --> 00:31:49,600 And so even though we may not understand all of God's word or all that God has established 531 00:31:49,600 --> 00:31:54,640 and all that God will do and all the ways that God will do it, we know that these mysteries 532 00:31:54,640 --> 00:31:55,640 are great. 533 00:31:55,640 --> 00:31:56,800 We know that God is great. 534 00:31:56,800 --> 00:32:01,200 And so we want to be those who follow the instructions that Paul has given to Timothy, 535 00:32:01,200 --> 00:32:05,680 that Timothy in turn has given to the church, that in turn we have received tonight. 536 00:32:05,680 --> 00:32:09,880 That we would be those who are obedient to the word of God, to the will of God, that 537 00:32:09,880 --> 00:32:14,880 we seek to live up to the commands of God and that we trust in God. 538 00:32:14,880 --> 00:32:18,180 Even the things that we don't understand, that we believe in the mystery that's been 539 00:32:18,180 --> 00:32:20,400 revealed through Jesus Christ. 540 00:32:20,400 --> 00:32:24,240 And we believe and we trust in the mysteries that maybe we still don't understand, but 541 00:32:24,240 --> 00:32:28,280 we know that God is good and we want to be those who follow his good word. 542 00:32:28,280 --> 00:32:29,280 Let's pray. 543 00:32:29,280 --> 00:32:30,500 Father God, we come to you. 544 00:32:30,500 --> 00:32:31,500 We thank you for your good word. 545 00:32:31,500 --> 00:32:33,840 And I pray dear Lord that we would rejoice in what we know. 546 00:32:33,840 --> 00:32:37,920 And what we know is Jesus Christ crucified and resurrected. 547 00:32:37,920 --> 00:32:42,000 And the rest of it, dear Lord, will just help it to fall into place as it needs to fall 548 00:32:42,000 --> 00:32:43,360 into place. 549 00:32:43,360 --> 00:32:45,760 Help us to understand what you want us to understand. 550 00:32:45,760 --> 00:32:49,040 Dear Lord, maybe there are some things that we've, we kind of wrestled with our whole 551 00:32:49,040 --> 00:32:53,520 life and we still don't quite understand them, but so be it, dear Lord. 552 00:32:53,520 --> 00:32:58,240 Let us not, let us not get caught up too much in those things so long as we know who Jesus 553 00:32:58,240 --> 00:32:59,240 Christ is. 554 00:32:59,240 --> 00:33:00,560 Let us rejoice in that today. 555 00:33:00,560 --> 00:33:05,520 I pray that as brothers and sisters in Christ, that we would seek to live by your commands. 556 00:33:05,520 --> 00:33:11,360 That as a church, as we establish deacons or elders, whatever it may be, dear Lord, 557 00:33:11,360 --> 00:33:15,480 that we follow your words, that we follow your commands, that we try to understand them 558 00:33:15,480 --> 00:33:21,000 as best that we can, dear Lord, that we would be a church that has been instructed and follows 559 00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:24,520 your instruction, that we would, we'd be about your work and about your business. 560 00:33:24,520 --> 00:33:26,680 We thank you for being good to us and blessing us. 561 00:33:26,680 --> 00:33:32,120 And I pray that you would help us never to fall into any kind of trap of chaos or disarray, 562 00:33:32,120 --> 00:33:35,640 dear Lord, but that you would keep us strong, keep us focused on you. 563 00:33:35,640 --> 00:33:37,680 And I ask these things in Jesus name. 564 00:33:37,680 --> 00:33:44,680 Amen.