At this time, we'll take our Bibles if you would, and we're going to go to first Timothy four and then back to first Timothy chapter three. So, first Timothy four twelve. I have that up here on the screen and then we'll go to first Timothy chapter three as we continue a series we started a couple of weeks ago on being an example. It's not only important what we say and what we teach, but particularly in the ministry, but not just in the ministry of the church, but in the ministry of the home before the world that we practice what we preach, that others have an example to look at, that they see who in us, that they see Jesus in us. And so, Paul challenges Timothy here in first Timothy four twelve.

He says, let no man despise thy youth, but be thou an example of the believers in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Let's pray. Dear heavenly father, thank you, Lord, for your word today. Lord, forgive us of our failures and our sins. Forgive us, Lord, of the things that may have distracted us from your service this week, keeping our eyes fixed on the Lord Jesus.

Help us, Lord, for the next little bit, Lord, to be focused fully upon you and receptive to what Your Word has for us. And we pray the Spirit would do a mighty work in each and every heart. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So be an example.

Now, as I mentioned a couple weeks ago, some people like to stress that first phrase, let no man despise thy youth. As though Paul is telling Timothy, now you don't let anybody look down on you. That's not exactly what he's telling Timothy. He's telling Timothy, don't let others have a what? A reason to look down on you.

Okay? So the impetus here is not on others, it's on who? It's on Timothy. Timothy, you live in such a way to be an example to others so that they don't have a reason to look down on your youthfulness. But you as a youth can be an example to the youth and to the middle age and to the the elderly in the church as they see Jesus in you.

That is what Paul is challenging Timothy here, to be a good example, a pattern or a model to follow, to be a better role model every day for those to whom he ministered and those who are watching him. By the way, these areas in which Paul wanted Timothy to be an example, they just they aren't just for preachers. They aren't just for teachers. They're for Christians because we all represent Jesus Christ. And we're all ministers, servants of the Lord in some form or fashion in our life.

Others are watching us to see what Jesus is like if we claim to be Christians, followers of Christ. In these areas in character and behavior in which Paul encourages Timothy to be a good example, God expects these of all of his children. That's why it's so important that Timothy, to whom he's writing, be a good role model because Paul and the Lord wants the others in his church to learn from him that they might grow, that they might be examples to others that will follow after them. That's the way the church is supposed to work. Group of Christians come to know the Lord.

They grow in the Lord. They tell others about the Lord, and others come to know the Lord. They're taught and discipled from the word. They grow in the word. They go out and they tell others about the Lord.

And the church grows and the church continues, and the testimony of the Lord grows in the community and in the world. And here we are. Why are we here? Well, because of that very thing of others that took this privilege and responsibility seriously to be examples and to tell others about Christ, to disciple them that they might continue. And so somebody told us about the Lord and now it is our turn.

We looked last week at the first one of these areas, which is, Let no man despise thy youth, be an example of the believers in word. And that's what we focused on last week the things he said. They are important. Not just these things you say from the pulpit, though they are important, or the things you say up in front of the class when you're teaching, but the things you say in just personal conversation with other people. One of the things that really impresses me, we have had an evangelist here several times over my time here.

His name is Mike Pelletier. Mike Pelletier is a wonderful preacher of the gospel, wonderful evangelist, but that's not what impresses me most about Mike Pelletier. What impresses me most about Mike Pelletier is when he gets done preaching, he comes down off the pulpit and he spends the next thirty, forty minutes talking to people, conversing with people. It's not just about what he does in the pulpit because ministry extends from the pulpit. And a lot of evangelists don't have time for that, but Mike does.

And that has an impact. And what we say to others has an impact. They are listening. They are watching. But we discussed that last week, so let's move on.

The next one of these areas here is in conversation. Now, first you read that and think, well, conversation, well, that's what we talked about last week, having a conversation with people. But actually, the Greek word that's translated conversation here means behavior or conduct or manner of life. When the King James was translated a few years ago, the word conversation had a broader meaning than it does to us today. We just think about talking.

But conversation had a broader general meaning to what your life conveys by your conduct and your actions. And so that is what Paul is talking to Timothy here. It is best understood as conduct or behavior or manner of life, the things you do. There's a lengthy list we find in first Timothy chapter three concerning such conduct in the life of a pastor or a deacon. And so we're going to turn back a page in your Bible to first Timothy chapter three.

And we're gonna use first Timothy three and the qualifications or areas of expectation of the conduct of a pastor to kind of guide us here in what Paul means by conduct. And so we're gonna spend a few minutes. We'll just start in verse one. We'll read down through verse seven, and then we'll just spend a few minutes looking at these together this morning. What areas of conduct is Paul concerned with?

Verse one of first Timothy three, this is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop the word bishop means overseer. It is likely synonymous with pastor or elder in the early church. If any man desire the office of bishop, he desireth the good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach, not given to wine, no striker, not greedy, or filthy lucre but patient, not a brawler, not covetous, one that rule of his own house, well, his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity. For a fan, a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?

Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride, he shall fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must have a good report of them which are without, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. So, this is a list of, qualifications or characteristics that God would expect, to be evident in one seeking the position as a pastor, elder, or bishop in a church. So we're gonna use this as kind of an outline. We're gonna pick out a few things in this list that are applicable to conduct.

Okay? To Timothy's conduct as he is serving as the pastor at present of the church at Ephesus as Paul is writing him this letter and to preachers today. And again, why does God give this list of things for pastors as qualifications or expectations for them? Because he also expects these things of who? Of Christians in general.

These are things that God expects of all Christians, generally speaking. There may be a few things that apply more to pastors like apt to teach. But most of these things, particularly involving conduct or things God expects of all of us, he just really expects those who are in leadership to be a good what? To be a good example. Because how are you gonna teach others to live in a way that glorifies and bring honor to the Lord if you're not doing that in your own life?

So let's look at a few of these things. First of all, in verse one verse two, it says, a bishop then must be blameless. Blameless. Now, at first thought, might think blameless. Well, someone who has well, if you're blameless, then you've never done anything to be blamed of, then you're you you don't sin.

Well, if that's the case, then you would not have any preachers because preachers are still humans and preachers still have a sin nature, and preachers and teachers and elders and deacons still struggle with some of the same temptations and things that, guess what, all of us do as Christians. So it's not saying sinless. There is one who is sinless. Who is that? That's Jesus Christ.

And one day, he's going to deliver me to heaven and then I will be like him. Among other things, that means that when I get there, I am going to be what? Sinless. But I am not sinless today As much as I would like to be, I still drag around that old sinful nature that it's been dethroned, but it it isn't gone yet. And it's tugs and pulls on me like it tugs and pulls on you, the more we walk in the spirit, we will overcome the lust of the what?

The lust of the flesh. So and that's true for every every child of God. But what Paul is doing here is he's challenging Timothy, can deduct him to conduct himself in such a manner as to not bring blame and dishonor to the name of who? To the name of Jesus Christ. If you're a Christian and you name the name of Christ, you represent him.

And Paul is saying to Timothy, of all people, Timothy, you need to conduct yourself in such a way as to not bring dishonor to the name of the savior that you serve, to besmirch his character or your own by questionable choices and actions. Sad to say the devil is hard at work trying to trip up preachers and teachers and evangelists and missionaries and Christians in general to ruin our testimony and our ministry before the world. And we have to be on guard that we continue to conduct ourselves in a way that we do not bring dishonor to his name, particularly in the moral realm. In Peter, he says, be holy in all manner of what? Conversation or conduct because I am holy.

God says to his children, do not settle for mediocrity in morality. That's not good. The rest of the world may live that way. Think, well, you know, I'm mediocre when it comes to morality. I'm not really all that bad.

You know, I I I'm not in jail and I haven't killed anybody. I haven't stolen any cars, and I'm I'm pretty good. You know? Mediocrity is not what God expects of his children. He expects us to go what?

Above and beyond. He wants us to have our eyes fixed on who? Jesus as our goal. Now, we won't fully reach that goal until we we stand in heaven someday, but it is a goal that we should be pressing for. That's what Paul said.

I press toward the mark of the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Paul said, yeah, I've made my I've made my share of blunders, but I leave those things in the past, they're forgiven, they're under the blood of Christ, But I'm not settling for mediocrity. We shouldn't either. Don't settle for mediocrity and morality. Don't compromise your integrity.

The devil is hard at work and the world is too trying to get us to compromise our integrity. You can compromise on the color of the wall or what brightness bulbs you buy or the carpet you put down or what time you have the service or something like that. But don't compromise your integrity or the integrity of your ministry. Don't let your guard down. Solomon writes in Proverbs, guard your heart with all diligence.

Do not let your good be evil spoken of. Be careful that not even as you're trying to do something good that you do it the right way, that you don't allow your good to be evil spoken of. Be an example in the way you live and not just the words you speak. Be circumspect or careful as Paul puts it in the book of Ephesians. For people are watching.

They're watching our conduct to see if we live up to what we preach and say we believe in. Like it or not, they do judge us by our conduct. You may may irritate you that they do that, maybe unfairly do that, but the fact is they're going to do that. And I can't change, stop them from judging me based on the cover, so to speak. But I can do my best to send the right message, and it should be the desire of every Christian.

Rather than getting aggravated and upset at what other people, the judgments that they make, let's give them every reason to make the right one. Paul is telling Timothy needs to be careful in his public conduct as well as his private life. Be careful with the words you say particularly in response to the jabs or attacks of others. The world is watching to see if you can turn the other cheek or if you're just like everyone else and have to strike back or lose your temper. In verse three, it says, not given to wine.

We'll come back to that, didn't skip over. No striker, not greedy nor filthy lucre, we'll get to that, but patient not a what? What's the next word there? Am I with me? Verse three.

Brawler. Okay. Brawler or striker should not be a term that is generally connected to the description of someone in the ministry. Would you agree? Really shouldn't be in the description of a father or a mother.

Really shouldn't be in the description, generally speaking, of the child of God. Humility should be. Self control should be. We should not allow ourselves to be filled up with pride or anger and lash out in the power of the flesh and not in the power of the spirit. Spirit controlled is what others should see in us.

I have a little booklet written by fellow, his last name is Peterson. I can't remember his first name. It's not John W. Peterson, he wasn't a music writer, but another Peterson. But it's entitled Your Reactions Are Showing.

We wanna give ourselves a little leeway when it comes to our reactions. As though it's our planned actions that really reveal the most about us and our reactions to things that happen to us, well, we we just get, you know, a little, you know, that that's okay. We we didn't mean that. But what is it that really reveals most about your character and mine? It isn't the actions that we plan out.

It's the reactions that we have, the things we're not expecting. That's what reveals the most about our character and who we really are. How we handle the crisis, how we handle the attack on us. Do we handle it like Christ? Another area of conduct, verse two.

Bishop must be blameless, the husband of one wife. Now, what is Paul communicating to Timothy there? That a pastor needs to be a faithful what? A faithful husband. He's communicating to Timothy to be careful in how he conducts himself with the opposite sex regarding his personal interactions with them and even particularly today, viewing habits also.

The devil is looking for an opportunity to get his foot in the door and in the least create suspicion enough to mar your testimony if not to destroy your ministry or your home should you fall. And the world is complicit and entertainment is complicit In aiding and abetting Satan today in that endeavor, it is so easy. It is so all around us. We must be on what? On guard of our heart and of our home and of our marriages and our relationships.

He's telling Timothy, show yourself to be a faithful and caring and kind spouse and a responsible and loving father. Be a good, what? Example to the believers in your conduct in your conduct as it regards your home and your marriage and your morality. It's important because everything else people see, for the most part, is a poor example. Where should they see a good example?

Here. From me, but also from who? From you? In their home with their Christian mom and dad, they should see a good example. When you go to work and you say, hey, I'm a Christian, they should see a good what?

Example of what that means in regards to our purity and our marriage. Husband of one wife and down in verse four, one that ruleth his own house well. Couple of verses in regards to that, Ephesians five twenty five says, husbands, love your wives even as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. Ephesians six four says, and you fathers provoke not your children to wrath but bring them upper up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. God has high expectations of fathers and mothers and ministers that we'd be a good example in this regard in a world that is trying constantly to trip us up.

But greater is he that's in us than he that is in the what? In the world. Who is in us? The Holy Spirit. And he's greater than Satan and anything he or the world can throw at us.

Another area of conduct, and I I we skipped over this a moment ago in verse in verse three of first Timothy. It says, not given to what? Not given to wine. Be careful when it comes to potentially addictive substances. Now, the most common addictive substance and mind altering substance, conduct altering substance in that day was alcohol.

But are there many other such substances today? Yes. It is one of many that we need to be careful of. Because how are you going to be a good example if you are controlled by an outside substance? The Bible says, be not drunk with wine wherein is excess, but be filled with the what?

Filled with the spirit. Be filled and led by the spirit and not be influenced and led by by alcohol or marijuana or cocaine or heroin or fill in the blank. There's a myriad of them today. We need to be careful because oftentimes when people's testimonies are destroyed, when their homes are destroyed, this has something to do with it. Is it worth the risk?

Do you really need the drink? First Corinthians six twelve, Paul says this, all things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient, not beneficial. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. Well, what's the best way to not be brought under the power of a substance? Don't ingest the what?

Help me out. Don't ingest the substance. Okay? You can't be brought under its power if you don't ingest it. If you ingest it, then the danger is there.

Timothy seems to have taken this very seriously. He obviously refused to drink any alcohol. Now, how do we know that? Well, first Timothy five twenty three, Paul said this to Timothy. He said to Timothy, drink no longer water or drink no longer water only, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities.

Why did Paul have to give permission to Timothy to drink a little bit of wine and not water only? Because Timothy did not what? He did not drink alcohol. Okay? He took this very seriously.

So much so that he was dealing with constant bouts of dysentery and stomach issues because of the what? Because of the water that he drank. See, today, when you get water out of the tap for the most part, it is treated and it is okay to drink or if you don't want to do that, you can buy a filter and put it on your thing. Or you can go to the store and you can buy jugs or bottles of drinking water. And it's purified, and it's not full of all kinds of terrible bacteria that's gonna make you sick.

But did they have water treatment plants in Timothy's day? No, they didn't. So so what did they do? Well, do one thing that's kind of time consuming, especially when the only way you can heat stuff is over a fire, and that is you can boil the water. Boil the water and you burn off the impurities.

Right? But that was time consuming and not very practical. So what did they tend to do? Well, they took a little bit of wine that had alcohol in it. You mix a little bit of wine in with the water.

The wine killed the what? The alcohol killed the bacteria and it purified the purified the water. Well, Timothy refused to drink any wine at all. So his water was what? It was contaminated and it was making him sick.

So Paul said, drink a little wine with your water in order to, as a medicine, to deal with your medical problem. Not to treat his depression, not to relax him after a tense day at work, or water down his inhibition so he could have a good time. Is that what Paul said? To take a little bit as what? Medicine.

Now, I don't have to drink wine today if I have stomach problems because there's other medications in it that I can take. So, I don't need that. I'll just take those other medications. In the Old Testament, Leviticus chapter 10. Leviticus chapter 10.

Now this is concerning priests. Priests were the ministers to Israel in the Old Testament and this is what the Lord said to them, do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou nor thy sons with thee when you go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord has spoken unto them by the hand of Moses. What is the Lord saying? He's saying, you're you have a great responsibility.

Don't flub it by drinking alcohol and breaking down your inhibitions or making it so you don't aren't fully in control of what you're doing because it's important. It's vital. Therefore, don't drink wine. What happened that led to this statement? Well, earlier in this chapter, two of Aaron's sons evidently were drinking, intoxicated, and they brought the wrong substance to put on the altar of incense.

And when they dropped the wrong substance on the altar of incense, God struck them both dead. So he said, don't drink, priests, because you don't want to be Nadab and Abihu. What you're doing is important. So make sure that you are fully controlled. Be not drunk with what?

Wine where it's in excess, but be filled with the the spirit. And then, be careful not to allow the allure of money and things to influence your work in the ministry or life of service to God. Where do we find this in chapter three? We find this in verse three where it says, not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of what? Filthy lucre.

What's filthy lucre? Money. Money. He goes on to say at the end of the verse, not covetous. We all need necessities of life, even pastors and their families.

In first Timothy five and first Corinthians nine, Paul suggests that ministers should receive temporal comfort compensation for their services. But he also writes this in chapter six in verse 10. For the love of money is the root of all evil, which some have coveted after they have erred from the faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. Now the last part of that verse is actually part of the verse, the part of my outline. He also warns that the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil, which will very quickly destroy the minister and his ministry and the testimony and effectiveness of the child of God.

This is not exclusive to pastors for the love of money will destroy anyone who chooses to seek Christ's kingdom second to money, fame, and fortune. What does Jesus say? But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. Seek first to please the Lord and then other things. But keep Christ first.

That must be true in the ministry because if it's about money, then money will mess with your head and it will mess with your conduct and it will blow up your ministry and it will blow up your home and it will blow up your testimony. It is a very common problem in The USA in particular and one that has been a problem for quite a while already. If the current generation is suffering from it, they likely learned it from who? Their parents and their grandparents who when they got a taste of the good life, forgot about who? Forgot about the Lord.

Our grandparents, most of them grew up in church. Many of them claimed to be Christians. And I'm speaking not just of us, but of our country in general. But now fewer and fewer, smaller and a minority of people in this country go to church. And even fewer of them even know the Lord today.

How did that all change in a couple generations? Well, largely in part due to this issue. We let money and comfort and luxury become first and Christ second. The world notices when ministers do it. You can name TV evangelists that pop to the top of your head when you think, be careful.

Judge not that you be not judged. Be careful because we are also susceptible if we are not guarding our heart. And then finally, be sober minded in life concerning the ministry of the gospel, vigilant and diligent in the service of the Lord, giving it your all, living and acting in a way befitting such a wonderful calling and purpose. Verse two again, a bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober of good behavior. Sober doesn't mean, you know, serious, serious, glum, never happy and smiling or having fun.

But but this ministry is is serious business. Your home are serious. Testimony before those you were that that is serious. Your relationship with God, these things are serious. The presentation of the gospel to a world that desperately needs it is serious business.

Because as we sat here today in this service, many souls have gone out of this world to heaven or to hell. This is serious business. It is not to be trifled with. It is not a game we play. It is not a put on for other people.

So treat it that way. Serving the Lord in ministry is an important calling for the child of God. The ministry of the gospel vital to the souls of men. The life of the child of God should demonstrate that it is so. By not by spending most of their time in frivolous and worldly pursuits.

There's place for relaxation and rest and entertainment and amusement. But if that's what drives you, it's going to affect your ministry. There's more important things. More important things. Second Timothy two, three, and four, this is our last passage up here this morning.

Paul writes to Timothy, thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath called him to be a soldier. Don't get entangled. Don't let those things take over, whether they be money, the the love of money, or the love of pleasure, or addictive substances. Don't allow the world to to pull you off the path that God has put you on.

It is so easy to get distracted and tangled by the things of the world, especially today, as they are always vying for our attention. We must not be led astray by the glitz and the glamour of the world that we lose our way in the blinding light and lead off lead others also down that path. I can't look to my left or my right up here as I'm preaching because I will get this bright spot in the middle of my eye and it'll cover up your faces because these lights are like super bright that are pointing at me. Can't see very well when staring at the bright light. Make sure you're you're looking at the right one.

There's a good light and there's a bad light and the good light is who? Jesus Christ. He's not the one who blinds, He's the one that opens up our eyes to see the truth. This world is not our home, we're told. Lay not up treasures on earth, but lay up treasures where?

In heaven, we're told. Cast aside every weight in the sin which just so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. We must not forget God is watching. Does he know you? Is he your God, your Lord, your Father, your savior?

Have you accepted his offer of salvation this morning? He's revealing that to you in his word. Jesus came and he died for you to save you from sin and hell. Have you responded in faith? Have you humbly responded and accepted his offer?

Are you stubbornly staying on a path that leads to where? To destruction this morning. And child of God, he's watching you too. And others are watching you too. Are we being a good example in our conduct?

Do we take it seriously? Do you want to be salt and light to point others to Jesus? If there's something area that's lacking, maybe maybe we need to have a talk with God about that today. Let's pray. Dear heavenly father, we thank you, Lord, for the opportunity you have given us who know you to be salt and light in the world and to point others to Jesus.

I thank you, Lord, for the ministry that you've given me and the ministries that you have given others. Lord, help us not to squander those opportunities. Help us, Lord, to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and our conduct blameless. So others aren't distracted from the gospel message, so that our light is not dimmed, but that it might shine more brightly, that we might please and make joyful our father in heaven and lead others to a savior. Forgive us of our failures, Lord, and help us, Lord, to be that bright and shining light this week, this month, this year, as we follow Jesus Christ, our savior.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.