Jump Start # 3790

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

Our verse today is wrapped around the idea of a purpose. Life is governed by things that we need to do. There is a purpose that drives us to do things, even the things we don’t like. Why do we get the oil changed in our cars? Because we have nothing else to do? Because we enjoy sitting in a cramp waiting room, sitting on hard chairs, while we wait for our car to be ready? No. None of those things. We get our oil changed, because our engines need it. We want to keep our cars running. There is a purpose behind that.

The same could be said about a student in school. Why do I have to do homework one complains? They do not see the purpose. Sometimes it is even asked in a classroom, “Do we have to know this stuff?” or, “Will I ever use this stuff?” There is a purpose to learning.

Why go to the dentist? Why give your dog a bath? Why stick to a budget? Purpose, that’s why. There is a reason to do all of those things.

And, when we come to our verse today, Paul is showing us the purpose of preaching. Why preach? Just about every Sunday for last forty-five years I have preached a sermon. Why? Why do churches still have sermons? Many don’t. They feel that they have outgrown sermons. They feel that sermons are a reflection of your grandma’s church and no one wants to be like that. So, you’ll find modern preachers on stage kicking footballs, punching robots, dancing, singing, telling jokes, conducting plays, and doing just about anything and everything except preaching God’s word.

God chose the avenue of preaching to deliver His will and message to mankind. He didn’t use instincts, intuition, of feelings. God sent His preachers out early preaching. Jesus came preaching (Mk 1:14). Timothy was told to preach the word (2 Tim 4:1-2). Philip was sent to preach to the Ethiopian (Acts 8:35). When Peter was in prison, angels opened the doors for him, but it was Peter who went and preached.

And, it is through the word of God that we come to understand and know the Lord. We are warned through the preaching of God’s word. We are comforted by the words of God (1 Thes 4:18). It is the word of God that keeps us true (Ps 119:9). By what is written, we know that we have eternal life (1 Jn 5:13).

We desperately need the preaching of God’s word today. Even among us, there can be a drifting away from the word of God towards emotionalism and ideas not based upon God’s word. These times need preaching.

• 6 out of 10 believe evolution is true
• 5 out of 10 believe aliens are real
• 3 out of 4 believe that Jesus speaks directly to them
• Less than 3 out of 10 believe the Bible should be the foundation of determining right and wrong.

And, if the Bible is not that foundation for right and wrong, what is the foundation? Or, is there a foundation? It may be nothing more than how someone feels at the moment. Next week, they might change their mind. Nothing absolute. Nothing clear. No stakes in the ground.

Our verse identifies three reasons for sermons.

First, is developing a love for a pure heart. Loving our enemies doesn’t come natural. Doing what we do not feel like is not natural. Through the teaching of God’s word, that love springs forth within our hearts. It is from that love that we will forgive. It is from that love that we will serve. Preaching stirs that up within us. The examples of Jesus magnify this.

Second, preaching builds that good conscience. A life free from guilt because of God’s grace and forgiveness. A heart that operates on pure motives. Honest. Faithful. That comes from learning the principles of God.

Third, the production of a sincere faith. Genuine. A faith that saves. A faith that changes you. A faith that endures. A faith that looks at danger in the face and instead of saying, “What if…” it declares, “Even if.” What if it is cancer? Even if it is cancer, I’ll be faithful to God. What if I don’t survive? Even if I don’t survive, I will be faithful to God. What if I die? Even if I die, I will be faithful to God. Courageous. Strong. Confident. This is what preaching will do.

There is a need for sermons. We will never outgrow that. God bless those who raise their voices in sermons every Sunday. You are among a special group within God’s kingdom. Keep preaching the Word.

Roger