1 Timothy 4:6

If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed, but reject profane old wives' fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having the promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance. For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe. These things command and teach. (1 Timothy 4:6–11)

What it takes to hear Jesus say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

The Lament of Job and the Fear of Paul

If you have ever journeyed through the whole Bible, you have come across the great Hebrew poetic epic called the Book of Job. It is a challenging book because it deals with realities every person faces: suffering, hardship, trial, and difficulty.

The opening is striking. Job was one of the wealthiest men of his time, four thousand years ago. In a single day, messengers came in succession. The first reported that the Sabeans had raided and stolen a thousand oxen and five hundred female donkeys. A second said fire from heaven had consumed seven thousand sheep. A third said the Chaldeans had carried off three thousand camels and killed his servants. A fourth said a great wind had collapsed the house where his ten children were gathered, killing them all. That was day one.

The next day his health was taken too. By the end of chapter two, the wealthiest man of his day sits in the dust, scraping the pus from his boils with a piece of broken pottery, while his wife says, "Curse God and die." In chapter three he laments the day he was born, and ends with these words: "That thing which I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me."

I think similar words went through the Apostle Paul's mind when he returned to the church at Ephesus around 64 AD. He had invested two to three years planting that church, facing fierce adversity—"a great and effective door has been opened to me, but there are many adversaries"—nearly losing his life several times for preaching the gospel.

Paul's Warning in Acts 20

In his last meeting with the Ephesian elders, Paul expressed his concern. In Acts 20:27 he said, "I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God." He warned them to take heed to themselves and to the flock the Holy Spirit had made them overseers of, the church God purchased with His own blood.

For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.

He had already seen this happen in Galatia and in Corinth. He warned them with tears, night and day, for three years, and commended them to God and to the word of His grace. Then he left for about six years. When he returned, the very thing he feared had happened. The church was off course.

So, as we saw in 1 Timothy 1:3, Paul left his associate Timothy in Ephesus to set in order the things that were out of order, to charge some that they teach no other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies. And now Paul continues that instruction with an encouragement: "If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ."

I Want to Be a Good Minister

I went back this week and looked at my notes from the first time I taught this passage—October 24, 1999—eighteen years, three months, and eleven days ago. Across 954 Sundays this is essentially what I have done: give forth the word of God to the people of God for the equipping of the church, whether here or in the Philippines, Africa, Germany, and across Europe. Until Jesus calls me home, that is what I plan to do. And when He calls me home, my hope is to hear Him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." I want to be a good minister of Jesus Christ. Sure enough, in those old notes I had written the same desire.

Sadly, both Scripture and church history show us bad ministers—those who gave heed to fables and endless genealogies, who taught what Paul called doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, wolves in sheep's clothing. Paul calls Timothy to be a good minister in contrast to them: to fight the good fight of faith, do the work of an evangelist, and preach the word in season and out of season, because a time would come when people would reject sound doctrine and heap up teachers to tickle their ears.

Every Christian Is Called to Serve

You may never stand before a group and teach a Bible study—for some of you that is your worst fear—yet you should still desire, as Timothy did, to be a good minister of Jesus. That word "minister" can also be translated "servant"; it is the Greek word diakonos, from which we get "deacon." So every follower of Jesus should desire to hear Him one day say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Why should this be your desire? I can think of at least three reasons. First, God called you, saved you, and commissioned you to this task. A disciple is a follower and imitator of Jesus, and His commissions were given to disciples, not to a select few: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19–20), "Go into all the world and preach the gospel" (Mark 16:15), the call to preach repentance to all people beginning where you are (Luke 24:46–47), and "As the Father has sent Me, I also send you" (John 20:21).

Second, God has gifted you for it. He has equipped you with spiritual gifts to serve. As Peter says, "As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God" (1 Peter 4:10). Out of gratitude we should be good stewards of those gifts.

Third, He will reward good ministers. Some in the church teach it is wrong to serve for reward, but Jesus taught the opposite. He appeals to our desire for reward: "Well done, good and faithful servant. You were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord" (Matthew 25:21). Point one: all Christians have been saved, called, commissioned, and gifted for service—not just those with titles or positions.

Good Ministers Are Nourished by God's Word

If we should desire to be good servants, how can we be? Paul gives some indications. Good servants are "nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine." Point two: good ministers are nurtured by a good diet of God's Word.

You will never grow into a strong servant of Christ without a well-balanced diet of God's Word—and I mean more than forty minutes on a Sunday morning. That is good, but not sufficient. If you ate one good meal a week you would be malnourished—and cranky. The same is true spiritually. We need to be fed by the Scriptures every day. This is why Paul presses it again and again: "Give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine" (4:13); "Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them" (4:15); "Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them" (4:16). And in 2 Timothy, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable... that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work."

Why is God's Word so important? Consider Psalm 19:7–11. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. More to be desired than gold, sweeter than honey—and "in keeping them there is great reward."

Do you have a heavy heart today? There are heavy things in our church this week—my brother-in-law diagnosed with throat cancer, Tad D'Ambrosio injured badly at work and still in a coma. God's Word rejoices the heart and enlightens the eyes. When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness to turn stones to bread, He answered from Deuteronomy 8:3, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." God's Word is food for our souls.

I am grateful that many of you are committed to taking it in daily. One tool we make available is thelisteningplan.com, where each morning a passage is sent to listen to, because faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. I can actually see who opens and clicks those emails—don't worry, I'm not watching like the NSA—but even if I don't know, God knows. Without His Word transforming our minds, we will be malnourished and unable to face the trials of the day in a right frame of mind.

Good Ministers Carefully Follow Good Doctrine

Paul continues: nourished in good doctrine "which you have carefully followed." Point three: good ministers carefully follow good doctrine. We read, study, memorize, and meditate so that we may apply it and make it part of our lives.

The temptation of Jesus reveals that Satan knows the Bible very well. There are people who know the Bible intellectually, who have committed their lives to studying it, yet do not actually do it. To be a good minister we must carefully follow the good doctrine we learn—by believing and doing what the Scriptures teach.

What does that look like? Second Corinthians 5 says anyone in Christ is a new creation; the old has passed away, all things have become new. Ezekiel 36:26 promises a new heart. Colossians tells us to walk in Him. Ephesians 4 gets wonderfully practical. Paul tells the same Ephesian church Timothy now pastors that, having learned Christ, they are to put off the old man and put on the new man.

What does that practically look like? "Putting away lying, let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor" (4:25). Stop lying; tell the truth. "Be angry, and do not sin"—ponder that, for Christ was angry yet never sinned. "Do not let the sun go down on your wrath"—if you snap at your spouse this week, make it right before the sun goes down. "Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need" (4:28)—stop stealing, get a job, and give to those in need. "Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth"—if you have a foul mouth, by the Spirit's power, stop it. Put away bitterness, wrath, and malice; be kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Very practical—not easy, but practical. By God's grace and the Spirit within you, you have the ability this week.

Good Ministers Don't Get Distracted by Dumb Doctrines

Verse 7 says, "But reject profane and old wives' fables." Commentators debate exactly what these are; Paul does not spell it out. Presumably they include the doctrines of demons and the teachings against marriage and certain foods mentioned earlier in chapter four. Clearly there were ideas circulating in Ephesus that Paul counted as profane fables.

I would be bold enough to say that any wisdom, teaching, or ideology that does not line up with—or cannot be substantiated by—the Scriptures is better rejected than received. If it doesn't line up with the principles of the Bible, set it aside as not worth your time.

On more than a few occasions well-meaning brothers and sisters have asked me, "What do you think about keeping kosher?" or "about observing the Sabbath?" or "about blood moons?" I answer, "I don't." They look at me funny, and I clarify: I'm not saying I don't know—I'm saying I don't think about those things. I see no clear biblical call to do so. As the New American Commentary says of this passage, some false teaching is best ignored rather than discussed.

Point four: good ministers don't get distracted by dumb doctrines. Many Christians and churches get sidelined from their God-given mission by things that may be fun to debate but at the end of the day are simply distractions. I've had people want to argue secondary theology with me while living in an adulterous affair, and I'll say plainly: your life is a mess, so let's deal with the sin first; this argument has distracted you from walking in righteousness. It is okay to flatly reject things that don't clearly line up with the Bible.

Good Ministers Exert Effort to Be Like God

Paul continues, "exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come." Just as you will not wake up tomorrow having fallen into physical health, there is no stumbling into godliness. It requires effort and exercise—regularity and routine.

Paul is not saying bodily exercise has no profit; clearly there is earthly profit and physical health in it. But bodily exercise carries only a temporary reward, while godliness carries both an earthly and a heavenly one. This body will not go into eternity—thank God. Americans spend roughly $50 billion a year on fitness, nearly a billion dollars a week. If we spent a tenth of that energy on godliness, how radically different would the church be?

What are godly exercises? Bible reading, memorization, meditation, prayer, fasting, giving, charity, and service. But also exercising ourselves in grace, mercy, forgiveness, love, self-control, kindness, humility, and honesty. Point five: good ministers exert effort to be more like God.

One of my favorite passages, Philippians 2:12–13, says, "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." God works and we work in concert. He saved us, gave us a new heart, and we work that salvation out with effort, because this is a profitable endeavor—more profitable than physical exercise.

And so Paul says, "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance." It is my hope to one day hear Jesus say, "Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the reward prepared for you." That should be your desire too. Good ministers are nurtured by a good diet of God's Word, carefully follow good doctrine, don't get distracted by dumb doctrines, and exert effort to become more like God. By His grace, may He enable us to be good ministers this week.

Closing Prayer

Father, we need Your grace to run this race we are in. We thank You that You have not left us orphans, unable to do the things You call us to. It is not by our own strength, not by might nor by power, but by Your Spirit. You promised the indwelling Spirit to empower us to walk in a way that brings glory to You. Holy Spirit, enable us today and this week to be humble, kind, self-controlled, gentle, forgiving, gracious, loving, and merciful. Give us strength to look to Your Word every single day and to pattern our lives after Your commands. Let it be evident to us, to our families, and to the people we study and work with that You are at work in us, that our light would so shine that people would see our good works and glorify You. Do a work in us, we pray. We ask this in Jesus' name. And all those who agree, say amen.