Sermon Tone Analysis

I Timothy 6:11-16

 

! I.     Introduction

            This morning we will complete the series of messages on I Timothy.

I trust that there have been things we have learned that have been an encouragement to you and have helped you walk faithfully in Christ.

As we come to the last passage, we notice that it is written personally to Timothy.

When  Paul says in I Timothy 6:11, “But you, man of God…” he is specifically writing to Timothy.

Does this mean that it isn’t for us?

The term “man of God” is used in other places in the Bible to refer to leaders.

It is used of Moses in I Chronicles 23:14, of David in Nehemiah 12:24 and of others and so it would not be a stretch to apply this to Christian leaders.

But as we examine these truths, we discover that they are quite wonderful and relevant to us as well.

So this passage was written first of all to Timothy but can also be applied to Christian leaders and to all of us.

Let us read the passage.

A few weeks ago, we heard about a friend who was waiting for the bus to take him to another city.

He got to the bus depot on time and got his ticket for the bus, but then sat down in the waiting area and wasn’t paying attention to the time and missed his bus.

It wasn’t too serious, but not paying attention cost him an hour and a half wait for the next bus.

When I was in Bible school, I had stayed up too late several nights in a row.

During an afternoon Hebrews class, I had a hard time staying awake and finally put my head on the desk.

When I woke up, everyone had left the room and I was alone.

It wasn’t too serious, but my lack of attention and carelessness cost me some embarrassment and possibly a few marks.

When we are careless and don’t pay attention, often it isn’t that serious, but other times, like when we are driving, inattention can have very serious consequences.

What about in our walk with the Lord?

Can we afford to fail to pay attention?

Can we be careless in our attentiveness to God and our relationship to Him?

!

II.

Due Diligence

We sometimes hear the phrase “due diligence.”

It means that in a particular matter we need to be careful and pay close attention.

For example, it is used in the area of workplace health and safety.

One document on this topic that I found said that, “due diligence means that employers shall take all reasonable precautions, under the particular circumstances, to prevent injuries or accidents in the workplace.

This duty also applies to situations that are not addressed elsewhere in the occupational health and safety legislation.

To exercise due diligence, an employer must implement a plan to identify possible workplace hazards and carry out the appropriate corrective action to prevent accidents or injuries arising from these hazards.”

Due diligence is also spoken of in making purchases.

One document talking about making investments said, “Every seller knows certain things that they definitely don't want you to discover.

The question is: Are you going to learn their secrets before or after you buy? Due diligence is the way to discover everything before you buy.”

Does due diligence have anything to say about our Christian life?

!! A.  Our Struggle

Dwight L. Moody writes, “When I was converted, I made this mistake: I thought the battle was already mine, the victory already won, the crown already in my grasp.

I thought the old things had passed away, that all things had become new, and that my old corrupt nature, the old life, was gone.

But I found out, after serving Christ for a few months, that conversion was only like enlisting in the army--that there was a battle on hand.”

One year when Carla and I were in Jasper National Park, we had driven up Mount Edith Cavel and enjoyed the amazing view.

It is a long switchback road about 10 km up the mountain.

We had our bicycles along, but I had no desire to cycle up the mountain.

However, I thought it would be great fun to cycle down the mountain.

I would not have to put in much effort, only keep my hands on the brakes and enjoy the ride.

I did, in fact, cycle about half way down and it was fun!

            Sometimes we wish that the Christian life was like that, that it was all an easy ride downhill, but it is not.

We have tremendous struggles in many areas.

We have struggles with ourselves.

We fight with temptations, with discouragement and with all kinds of inner battles.

We struggle with others trying to maintain good relationships, finding that some are hard to keep, some people drain us, others oppose us and others cause us to be afraid of them.

On top of that, we are doing battle with the enemy.

Satan is like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.

How are we going to stand up against his constant onslaughts?

Although we wish it were easier, the Bible is quite clear that the Christian life will be a struggle.

That is the reason why it is imperative that we take due diligence.

!! B.  Taking Due Diligence

The importance of due diligence is emphasized in this passage by the fact that four different words call for it.

In verse 11 it says, “flee from all this and pursue…,” verse 12 says, “fight the good fight…,” and “take hold of…” and then verses 13,14 say, “I charge you to keep this commandment without spot or blame…” Whenever we have something repeated in the Bible, it means that we should take it very seriously.

Let us take a look at the individual commands which call us to due diligence in our Christian life.

The first words are a pair in which we are called to “flee from all this” and at the same time to “pursue” something else.

It seems unusual to put flight and pursuit in the same sentence.

About the only example of flight and pursuit that I can think of is in a game of prisoner’s base, which we have sometimes played in young people’s or at camp.

In that game, it is possible to be chased by someone and at the same time to be chasing someone else.

In our Christian life, however, this is always happening.

There are always things that we need to be fleeing from.

The words “all this” most logically refer to what has just been spoken of in verses 9-10 where Paul talked about the love of money and all the trouble it can bring.

Now he says, flee from that trouble and instead pursue those things that are more fitting for a child of God.

I think that if our life focus becomes running towards something, we will soon find that the things we are running away from are so far in the distance that they will become a non-issue.

Let us exercise due diligence to flee from that which harms and to pursue that which builds up.

The next words, “fight the good fight” also relate to due diligence.

The Greek word is “ἀγωνίζου” which sounds like our word "agony."

This phrase is not so much about a military battle as it is about an athletic contest.

There are many passages in Paul’s writings which use the imagery of an athletic contest.

Just as an athlete trains and is diligent in preparation and is alert and ready for action throughout the contest, so we as Christians must be diligent in being alert, recognizing the fight that we are in for our very souls.

It is interesting that in II Timothy 4:7, which is written later, Paul says “I have fought the good fight.”

Will we be able to say that when we come near to the end of our life?

The next word is also in verse 12 and calls us to “take hold of.”

Once again it is a word calling us to due diligence.

The word makes me think of being careful to grasp, to hold tight on to something lest it slip from our hands.

I have sometimes been playing hockey and some aggressive player has come and used his stick to knock my stick out of my hands.

Evidently I wasn’t holding on very tightly and I had to get down and pick it up again.

That is the imagery that comes to my mind when I hear this word, that we must deliberately and firmly grasp onto that which we have received.

The last word calling us to due diligence is found in verses 13,14, where Paul actually issues a solemn charge to Timothy, and to us.

He not only requests, encourages or suggests, but actually charges Timothy to “keep this commandment without spot or blame.”

The word “charge,” in Greek, was often used for military orders.

This was a serious call and to be taken seriously.

Obedience without blemish or blame is certainly a call to due diligence.

So as we read this passage of Scripture we read a serious call to due diligence.

!! C.  The Direction Of Due Diligence

We also need to take note of the direction in which our due diligence should go.

In verse 11 we are told to pursue “righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.”

Righteousness is doing what is right.

One writer describes it as integrity.

Godliness is “the sort of conduct that honours God.” Faith could be a reference to one of several things.

It could be the content of the faith – in other words right doctrine.

It could also refer to the confidence in God that we know as trust or it could be faithfulness which is the confidence in God that acts.

The later is a good interpretation for it reminds us that when we trust God it must make a difference in our life and we need to be diligent in this.

Love is so frequently described in the Bible that it is unquestionably a critical part of Christian living.

Endurance recognizes that the Christian life is not a cake walk, but is a battle and sometimes it isn’t anything but endurance that will see us through.

Gentleness reminds us of the gracious, generous attitude with which we are called to relate to others.