“…by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron…” (1 Timothy 4:2)

When an animal is branded, there is an initial burst of pain at the intense heat, but after that, there is nothing.  The nerve endings are all burnt off, and the animal no longer feels anything at all where they have been branded.

God warns us that sin has a branding effect.  The first lie is immensely painful.  The lie brings anxiety, fear, and shame… but the next lie gets easier.  The first time a man’s eye wanders, he has pangs of guilt, but eventually the voyeurism of pornography draws him in as he gives in to his lusts.  Whether it be cowardice, outbursts of anger, treachery, or deceit… all sin can callous our hearts if we let it.

So, don’t let it!  Fight the temptation and fight the callous.  Repentance and confession rip the scab off and cause the wound of sin to bleed, but it also leaves room for new growth and healing.  The antidote to the branding effect is the vulnerability of confession.  Own your sin, and it will not be allowed to own you.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“…in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.” (1 Timothy 3:15)

When our children go to the library, we expect their conduct to be appropriate.  Shouting, pushing, crying, and other wild behavior is not acceptable in a library environment.  Paul made it clear to Timothy that there is a proper type of conduct as the church and a proper way that individuals should behave within the church.

It is nonsense to accept the current cultural belief that how a church should act should be entirely dictated by the culture and the whims of the people.   Modern churches have placed total emphasis upon becoming what the people want and have stopped asking what God wants.  This is wrong and illogical.  After all, who is the church trying to worship – God or themselves?

There is a right way for a church to behave, and there is a wrong way, too.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“…that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.” (1 Timothy 2:2)

As we read through the Bible, we often read of the epic tales of faithful people who sacrificed all to serve the Lord.  Elijah’s lonely travels, David’s relentless battles, Paul’s imprisonment, and Stephen’s martyrdom can paint a picture for us that the only way to live faithfully is to die for the cause of Christ on some foreign field… yet, that is exactly the opposite of what we are to pray for!

We are told to pray that we might live quiet, unassuming lives of dignified godliness.  God wishes for us to live as plumbers, IT technicians, friendly waiters, and firemen.  He desires for the world to be full of quiet examples of godly fathers and mothers holding tiny, chubby hands or mild-mannered students asking honest and insightful questions in the halls of learning.

Whatever your life is – live it for Him and let your quiet life be a silent sermon.  Serve and rejoice in the day the Lord has given you to dwell in.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor.  Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief.” (1 Timothy 1:13)

God will not forever overlook ignorance, but He does recognize it as a legitimate barrier to righteousness.  Paul did many horrible, sinful things, but he did them because he believed they were good things.  As Paul himself said, he was ignorant, and even his bad behavior was done in good conscience (see Acts 23:1).

God’s grace is that He gives us time to overcome our ignorance.  Eventually, repentance is required (see Acts 17:30), but God in His mercy allows us time to learn and grow through the Scriptures, so we might approve of what is good and act accordingly.

It is quite likely that right now there are things you are doing that five years from now, you will cease to do (and be horrified that you once practiced!)… this is normal.  Pursue maturity and with it the ability to discern between good and evil (see Hebrews 5:14).

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“For we can do nothing against the truth, but only for the truth.” (2 Corinthians 13:8)

Christ’s soldiers must be soldiers of truth.  We must care more about what is right than anything else.  Paul spoke harshly to the Corinthians only because he had to… only because truth was more important than their feelings.  Paul refused to wield his authority for anything other than what was right.

Is that our reputation?  Are we known as those who stand by truth even when it hurts us to do so? Or even when it costs us?  Would you harm your marriage for truth? Or end a friendship over it? Would you sacrifice your pride to return to the truth? Or show yourself vulnerable to find it?

The truth puts us on the side of the King.  Lies always put us at odds with Him.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“…even though I am a nobody.” (2 Corinthians 12:11b)

In the history of the world, the apostle Paul may be the most influential “nobody” of all time.

Next time you feel like a “nobody”, just remember that God uses “nobodys” to change the world all the time.

Better to be God’s nobody than Satan’s somebody.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11:14)

Jesus preached more against the religious of His day than anyone else.  There is a reason for that.  World religions have long been the bastion of Satan.  He loves religion as long as it is not built upon Christ and His Word.

The religious man feels safe in his traditions and genuflections of worship.  The man who feels safe doesn’t try and flee the danger of sin and temptation because he believes himself already perfectly fine.  The Pharisees religiosity blinded them to their own sinfulness.   Traditions, rote prayers, and a heritage of religion were enough to callous their hearts.

Satan disguises rebellion against God as spirituality all the time.  Make sure you know what you believe because merely believing something isn’t good enough.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when absent, such persons we are also in deed when present.” (2 Corinthians 10:11)

The language of Paul’s letters is known for being strong.  Paul expects a lot out of Christians.  Service, sacrifice, duty, love, and commitment are the language of Paul’s writings.  The weight of Paul’s commands affected the early Christians the same way it often affects us: isn’t this a lot to ask of a person?!

So, it often surprised the Christians when they met Paul and found him to be unassuming and gentle.  He was hardly the commanding presence they had seen in his writing.  Paul explains this juxtaposition – Christ’s commands are strong, but His followers are weak.  To live what Paul, the other apostles, and Jesus Himself preached is to live a quiet life in all godliness.  It is to turn the other cheek, pray for your friends and neighbors, and own your faults day by day.  It is the unassuming life of gentle service that fulfills what Paul preached.

Hard preaching is gentle living.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“…and arrange beforehand your previously promised bountiful gift, so that the same would be ready as a bountiful gift and not affected by covetousness.” (2 Corinthians 9:5)

            One of the reasons that God asks us to prepare our contribution ahead of time (see 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 for that command) is so our gift isn’t tainted by covetousness.  When we wait to decide how much we are going to give until we are assembled, we might be tempted to give more than we cheerfully wish to because of the pressure of the moment, or we may choose to withhold part of our contribution because we didn’t purpose in our heart ahead of time to give to God.

            Your contribution should be a sort of “first fruits” of giving.  It should be given from the beginning of the paycheck, not the last of what is jingling in your pocket.  It should also be given with intentionality so that the amount is not an emotional gift swayed by the moment but a determined choice to put God’s work first.  Don’t let covetousness affect your giving.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites

“for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.” (2 Corinthians 8:21)

When funds were gathered to meet the needs of the starving saints in Judea, Paul understood that the deliverance of such a large sum of money as had been collected needed to be done wisely.  The risk of theft or even the appearance of theft had the potential to taint the entire charitable endeavor.  He accomplished this task of doing what was honorable in the sight of God and man through two primary things.

Firstly, Paul refused to take the money himself – each church was to be in charge of their own gift at all times.  Each congregation was to choose their own messengers and entrust whomever they felt best to carry the gift (see 1 Corinthians 16:3).  This principle is to be applied today, too.  Each congregation is autonomous – there is no need to pool our funds and delegate our local autonomy to some third-party organization.

Secondly, Paul also did not travel alone with this gift.  There were multiple eyes at all times traveling with Paul as the money made its way to Jerusalem (see 2 Corinthians 8:19).  Multiple people meant multiple witnesses and protection.  It is the same reason many congregations have the weekly contribution counted by two people – redundancy protects everyone’s reputation.

In short, Paul wasn’t just honest; he thought about making sure he appeared honest.  The appearance of evil is a perception that can be just as dangerous to the reputation of the gospel as anything else.

Matthew 4:4 #Biblebites