Jump Start # 3443

1 Timothy 1:5 “But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”

I have been reading a book about Benjamin Franklin. Not the statesman and founding father, but the early Indiana preacher. He was related to the famous Franklin, but among Hoosier disciples, he holds a fond place as one of the early preachers and writers that helped restore the ancient way of things. There are several good books about preacher Franklin, but the one I’m reading was published in 1879 by his son, Joseph.

It tells the struggles of a poor preacher in a pioneer world who is trying to establish the Gospel way. Franklin held many debates and although not very well educated, started publishing a paper that blazed the trail in Eastern Indiana for the N.T. pattern.

In describing these early pioneer disciples in Indiana, Joseph Franklin states, “Their religion was to believe the facts, obey the commands and enjoy the promises.” What a great summation and description. It is fitting not only for those log cabin pioneer Christians, but it is fitting for us in our fast paced, highly technological world that we live in.

What’s it all about? Believe the facts. Obey the commands. Enjoy the promises. As some would say, “That’ll preach.” More than that, what an easy and simple way of describing what we are about. We believe the facts. We obey the commands. We enjoy the promises. 1-2-3. That’s it.

Here are some things I want to share with you about that:

First, sometimes we make things harder than they need to be. Sure, diving into Romans is a deep study. But, we can get bogged down with so many things that we forget the big picture. What a great explanation to share with a new convert: believe the facts, obey the commands and enjoy the promises. Maybe if we returned to that simple statement, there would be less arguing and fighting among some.

Second, this statement shows us the balance that we need to keep before us. It’s not all commands to obey. It’s not all promises to enjoy. Some seem to stress one over the other. All three— believe the facts, obey the commands, enjoy the promises. Those aren’t choices. Those aren’t picks that we make. It’s all three. The promises cannot be enjoyed without the commands obeyed and the facts believed. One won’t obey the commands unless he first believes the facts. But facts and commands can seem dry and lifeless. They can seem like doing a hitch in the military. There are promises to be enjoyed. Believe. Obey. Enjoy. Together, all three work wonderfully well in the heart of a disciple.

Third, most of those early Indiana pioneer disciples would not believe the luxuries we have in worship today. Large church buildings, hundreds of hymns that can be projected on a screen, multiple translations at our fingertips on our phones. We can chase down the meaning of original words, bring up maps and even photos of the lands where the Bible events took place and have so many rich resources available to us. Yet, with all of this, believe, obey and enjoy can often escape us. We have it so nice, but we can complain so much. We have it so good, but we do so little. The life of compliancy can fill our hearts to which we become observers and spectators rather than deep worshipers of God.

Our verse today reminds us that there is a purpose or a goal to all of this. And, in this simple Timothy passage, we find three powerful statements: love from a pure heart; a good conscience; a sincere faith. That’s what Paul was aiming for.

And, for those early Christians in the wilderness of Indiana, it was, Believe the facts—obey the commands– enjoy the promises. That’s it. That’s what it is all about. That was their religion. Is it ours?

Roger

Jump Start # 3402

1 Timothy 1:5 “But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, and a good conscience and a faith without hypocrisy.”

Passages such as this are so pointed and plain, that one cannot possibly miss the point. There is a purpose of teaching God’s word. There is an endpoint. There is a goal. And here, the apostle reveals it to us. The goal is not to build up the numbers in the congregation. We worry about attendance numbers. Other than the opening pages of Acts, where we read about the number of conversions, the rest of the New Testament doesn’t focus on that. Which of the churches Paul wrote to was the largest? Was the Ephesian church larger than the Philippian church? Those things seem to matter to us. When I travel, the most asked question is, “How large is your congregation?” I’m never asked, “How strong is the church there?” or, “How faithful is the church there?” No, people want to know about size. That wasn’t the goal of our instruction, Paul said.

There are three expressions that are embedded in our passage. Each of the expressions have qualifiers on them.

The goal is love from a pure heart. Love that will seek the lost. Love that will help others. Love that longs to be with the Lord. And, just where is the source of that love? It comes form a pure heart. Not a fake heart. Not a heart that is going through the motions. It’s real. It’s honest. It’s pure. It’s genuine. It has no other desire than to please the Lord. There is no pretense. There is no hidden agenda. It’s not about self, but it is all about God.

The goal is a good conscience. A conscience that is not good is plagued with guilt, regret and remorse. A good conscience produces good motives. A good conscience is honest. A good conscience sleeps well at night. A good conscience embraces forgiveness and grace that “our instruction” teaches.

The goal is a faith without hypocrisy. A faith that is the real deal. A faith that loves the Lord. A faith that doesn’t look around to see if others are watching. A faith that is as strong when alone as it is in a crowd. A faith that longs to please the Lord.

And, just how does one get that love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a faith that is genuine? It comes from our instruction. That’s what the apostle was aiming at. Those three things, added with the qualifiers, is the target.

I wonder if we have somehow lost the purpose of our instruction. Could it be we are trying to produce nice conservative Republicans rather than disciples of Jesus? Could it be that we are trying to build budgets, pay off the building, and a number of other things, while forgetting the most important thing.

Heart. Conscience. Faith. Pure. Good. Without hypocrisy. That’s the aim. That’s the goal. That’ll make servants. That’ll get you through storms. That’ll help you though the night. And, what leads up to our verse today is warnings about strange doctrines, speculations, myths and endless genealogies. Chasing those rabbits will not bring about heart, conscience and faith. They will not be built upon what is pure, good and honest. Myths, strange doctrines, and speculations, are wrapped around lies and the egos of the speakers. Nothing pure there. Nothing good about them.

Goal. Purpose. Direction. Aim. We don’t just teach because we have to. We don’t preach just because it’s Sunday. There is a goal. There is a purpose. There is a direction.

In the heart of each person assembled, love from a pure heart, a good conscience and a faith that is true. Love is outward. Conscience is inward. Faith is upward. Combined and tied to the word of God they make a true disciple of Jesus. It’s not one, it’s all three. And, when those are missing, we need to do more instructing.

That’s how it works.

Roger

Jump Start # 750

1 Timothy 1:5 But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

Paul’s words to Timothy in this passage identifies the basis and motives behind teaching the Bible. The expression, “The bottom line,” is often used to define what something is all about. People have motives for many things they do. Some do things because they like helping others. For some, its money. For some, it’s fame. Others have a personal mission that they are after.

The goal of our instruction, Paul said, is love. The drive is not to fill church buildings. It’s not about numbers. It’s not about growth charts and statistics. It’s about changed lives. It is about love. The greatest commandment, Jesus said, is to love the Lord with all that you are. The second is to love your neighbor as yourself. Without love, Paul told the Corinthians, what we do is a waste of time.

The love for God will keep us pure and wanting to praise Him with others. Our love for the word will keep our nose in the book and will motivate us to tell the story of Jesus. Our love for  brethren, will connect us to them in fellowship and service.

The goal Paul was after was not simply smarter Christians. It wasn’t busy Christians. It was love. And not just any love but genuine love. Paul hooked three expressions to the word love.

Love—from a pure heart…love-from a good conscience…love from a sincere faith.

Pure, good, sincere—those words define being true and genuine. Nothing fake. Nothing artificial.

The other words Paul uses are: heart, conscience and faith. It is a pure heart. It is a good conscience. It is a sincere faith. The opposites help us to understand the concept. Instead of a pure heart, some may have an impure heart. Instead of a good conscience, they may have a bad conscience. Instead of a sincere faith, others may have a fake faith. Impure, bad, fake—those are the characteristics of someone who is all about appearance and not about substance.

Image is huge in our country. Looking good. Playing the part. The right labels. The right colors. The right style. Hollywood has been drunk on that idea for generations. Flashy cars, expensive clothing, and nothing in the soul. That false and fake lifestyle is all about show and pretense and nothing about being genuine and spiritual. The gospel of image is about self. It’s all about making others wish they were you. It’s about looking better than others. It’s about attention. That thinking is so far from Christ.

Paul was interested in the inner man more than the outer man. Look beyond the package, and the showroom. Is there anything in the warehouse? Is there anything in the heart?

These thoughts have a lot to do with us. The goal of our instruction is to be a true Christian everyday and everywhere. When the temptation comes at work to cross the ethical border, the  person of substance will stop. His faith, his heart, his love will keep him from doing wrong. When the opportunity comes to cheat on a test, be dishonest to a customer, fudge numbers to look good, to take credit for something you didn’t do, those who have been instructed by the word of God will not go that way. They are driven by more than the superficial praise of others. They are looking beyond what others say. They are instructed by God. Their desire is to do the right thing because God wants that and demands that. They strive to be pure and honest in all aspects of life.

Has God’s instructions changed you? Has it made you redefine what is important to you? Are you through with trying to impress others? Are you more interested in pleasing God?  It’s hard to spend much time with Jesus and still be selfish. Jesus is the example and the model. Being like Jesus is what it’s all about.

There is a goal to our instruction…have you reached that goal yet?

Roger