How the Gospel Shapes Our Perseverance: 1 Timothy 6:11-16

What does it mean to be a man or woman of God?  I have had people refer to me from time to time as a “man of God” simply because I’m a minister.  Is that what it means to be a man of God?  Does that mean that anyone who is not a minister is not a man or woman of God?  I ask you this today because in the text that lies before us Paul is going to show us what it means to be men and women of God, and what we are going to see from this passage is that being a man or woman of God has nothing to do with whether a person is a minister or not. 

In 1 Timothy 6:11-16, Paul charged Timothy to persevere in the work that God had called him to do.  This is what it means to be a man or woman of God: to persevere in our walk with God and in whatever work that God has called them to do.  That work may be pastoring a church, but that work may also be raising children as a godly mother.  Whatever the work may be, men and women of God stay the course.  They press on and finish their race.  It’s my prayer today that God would stir each of our heart to look to Him for grace to persevere till the end in whatever we have been called to do.  This text is going to give us two important truths that will help us persevere. 

[11] But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. [12] Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. [13] I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, [14] to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, [15] which he will display at the proper time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, [16] who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.  (1 Timothy 6:11-16 ESV)

     I.         Men and Women of God Know How to Persevere (11-12)

In verses 11-12, Paul gives Timothy four imperatives (commands) that show him and us how to persevere in the faith until Christ returns.  The first way that we are to do so is by fleeing certain things (11a).  “These things” that Timothy is to flee are the evils of the false teachers mentioned in 6:3-10: heretical doctrine, arrogance & ignorance, craving for controversy and quarreling, & greed.  We are reminded here that the Christian life isn’t fight or flight; it is fight and flight.  Sometimes the way we win battles over sin is by turning our backs to it and running as fast as we can, just as Joseph did (Genesis 39:12). 

The second way that we are to persevere is by pursuing certain things (11b).  He is not only to run from something, but also to something.  He is told to “pursue” six items, which most commentators see as three pairs.  The first pair, “righteousness” and “godliness,” is a charge to pursue godly conduct.  The second pair, “faith” and “love,” is a charge to pursue godly virtues. The third pair, “steadfastness” and “gentleness,” is a charge to pursue godly ministry qualities.  Steadfastness is patience in difficult circumstances; gentleness is patience with difficult people.  We must always remember in our spiritual conflict that contending for the faith doesn’t mean that we are to be contentious people (2 Timothy 2:24-26).  They way that Timothy is to make a difference is by being the difference. 

The third way that we are to persevere is by fighting the good fight of the faith (12a).  This is a charge to contend for Christian truth, especially the truth of the gospel.  In 1 Timothy 1:18, Paul opened this letter by charging Timothy to “wage the good warfare” and now closes it by charging him to “fight the good fight of the faith.”  He would say of himself in 2 Timothy 4:7: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”  Two things stand out from these verses, the first one being a simple reminder that the normal Christian life is war. The Greek word here for “fight” gives us the English word “agonize,” and was used in both military and athletic endeavors to describe the concentration, discipline, and extreme effort needed to win.  The second thing that we need to see here is that some fights are good fights.  When false teachers appear in the church and the truth of the gospel is at stake, it is time to fight and at such a time it is good and right to fight. 

Finally, Timothy is told to persevere by taking hold of eternal life (12b).  In the NT, “eternal life” is presented as both a present reality and a future hope.  It is one of many examples of how we as believers are experiencing the world to come now in some ways.  And the picture here is beautiful.  Timothy was “called” to this eternal life.  When Scripture speaks of believers being called, it is normally a reference to being called to salvation or service to God.  This instance carries the former meaning.  A believers calling to salvation is not an invitation but a summons to which we respond (John 6:44, 65, Romans 8:30).  Timothy responded to this summons by making a “good confession” of this eternal life in the presence of many witnesses (probably a reference to Timothy’s baptism) and now he is to continue by violently pursuing and taking hold of it (cf. Philippians 2:12). 

 This instruction reminds me of the men in Nehemiah 4:17, who were ready to work with one hand and ready to fight with the other.  This is what the Christian life looks like: us reaching for God with one hand and fighting with the other.  That is how men and women of God persevere. 

If I could give you one practical way to put your perseverance on steroids, it would be that you make learning the Scriptures a serious, life-long pursuit.  2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”  God’s Word is what equips men and women to be men and women of God who know what to flee, what to follow, what to fight, and how to passionately chase God with all their heart. 

   II.         Men and Women of God Know Why to Persevere (13-16)

Verses 13-16 are one long sentence, with verse 14 being a general charge to Timothy to “follow his orders without fault or failure” and that general charge is wrapped with four reasons why Timothy is to follow those orders.

The first reason we are to persevere is because we have a Creator whom we are accountable to and who is able to sustain us (13a).  We are accountable to God who gives life to all things and Christ who gave His life to purchase us.  That God gives life to all things is meant to remind Timothy that God is both Creator and Sustainer.  He is able to sustain Timothy through whatever he may face. 

The second reason we are to persevere is because we have a Redeemer who has persevered for us (13b).  This is what Paul intends to bring to Timothy’s mind when he reminds him that Christ Jesus made “the good confession” before Pontius Pilate in His testimony.  Paul is reminding Timothy that Christ persevered in His mission through great suffering to the point of death on the cross (Philippians 2:8).  This was for Timothy and for us.  For God’s people, there are fewer images that are more motivating than seeing the beaten and bloodied Christ refuse to cave in before His persecutors so that we may have life.  

The third reason this passage gives us to persevere is because we have a King whose return is certain (14-15a).  The certain return of Christ is supposed to be one of the most powerful motivators in the Christian life to persevere (Titus 2:11-14, 2 Peter 3:11-12, 1 John 3:2-3).  The idea is that we should be motivated to persevere until “the fat lady sings” because we believe that she WILL sing at the proper time. 

The final reason we are given to persevere in this passage is because we have a God who is infinitely glorious (15b-16).  The contemplation of Christ’s certain return causes Paul to erupt in praise, rattling off several of God’s attributes.  God is “the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.”  Only He ultimately rules this universe.  God “alone has immortality.”  We are immortal creatures, but our immortality is a gift from God.  No one made God immortal; He is.  God’s life is the essence of immortality.  God also “dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see.”  He is infinitely holy and inaccessible in His fullness.  Sinless, angelic beings cover their faces because they feel unworthy in His presence (Isaiah 6:2-3).  To Him belongs ultimate “honor and eternal dominion.” 

The reason Paul focuses on the glory of God here is so that the corresponding smallness of Timothy’s opponents might be seen.  These four reasons essentially communicate one truth: that we are to persevere because we have a God who is infinitely big and glorious. 

Scripture and history are filled with men and women who had such a clear picture of God’s greatness that they were willing to persevere to the very end.  David Brainerd was a missionary to the American Indians who persevered in the face of great depression and illness.  He would die from Tuberculosis at the age of 29.  Adoniram Judson, the first Baptist missionary from America, would minister for years before seeing a convert and suffered great loss.  Yet he never gave up.  John Piper tells the story of the perseverance of the Masai warrior named Joseph:

 “One day, Joseph, who was walking along one of these hot, dirty African roads, met someone who shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with him. Then and there he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior. The power of the Spirit began transforming his life; he was filled with such excitement and joy that the first thing he wanted to do was return to his own village and share the same Good News with the members of his local tribe.

Joseph began going from door-to-door, telling everyone he met about the Cross of Jesus and the salvation it

offered, expecting to see their faces light up the way his had. To his amazement the villagers not only didn’t care, they became violent. The men of the village seized him and held him to the ground while the women beat him with strands of barbed wire. He was dragged from the village and left to die alone in the bush.

Joseph somehow managed to crawl to a waterhole, and there, after days of passing in and out of conscious- ness, found the strength to get up. He wondered about the hostile reception he had received from people he had known all his life. He decided he must have left something out or told the story of Jesus incorrectly. After rehearsing the message he had first heard, he decided to go back and share his faith once more.

Joseph limped into the circle of huts and began to proclaim Jesus. “He died for you, so that you might find forgiveness and come to know the living God,” he pleaded. Again he was grabbed by the men of the village and held while the women beat him, reopening wounds that had just begun to heal. Once more they dragged him unconscious from the village and left him to die.

To have survived the first beating was truly remark- able. To live through the second was a miracle. Again, days later, Joseph awoke in the wilderness, bruised, scarred—and determined to go back.

He returned to the small village and this time, they attacked him before he had a chance to open his mouth. As they flogged him for the third and probably the last time, he again spoke to them of Jesus Christ, the Lord. Before he passed out, the last thing he saw was that the women who were beating him began to weep.

This time he awoke in his own bed. The ones who had so severely beaten him were now trying to save his life and nurse him back to health. The entire village had come to Christ.”[1]

One final example of perseverance that is appropriate this Mother’s day is the example of Timothy’s grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice (2 Timothy 1:5, 3:15).  They weren’t famous preachers or missionaries.  They were simply a mother and a grandmother who persevered in teaching Timothy the Scriptures from childhood, and the result was a mighty warrior that God would use for His kingdom. 

What these people all had in common is that they persevered in the work that God had called them to do because they had a big God.  One of the reasons that we often fail to persevere in our walk with the Lord and the work we are called to do is because we loose sight of just how big the God that we belong to is.  Men and women of God stay the course because they know that they serve a big God.  How big is your God?  With all due respect, some of us act like the God we serve couldn’t help us get through anything.  May we remember today that whatever we face, there is a glorious God and Savior who is able to hold us up as we persevere through anything!  Will you surrender your heart and life to Him today? 

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[1] Excerpt taken from Let the Nations Be Glad, pages 93-94.