As a young man James sowed his share of wild oats, but he eventually came back to the Lord and got his life straightened out. He entered Bible College with the hopes of going into some form of Christian ministry. While he was at college he met and married a preacher’s daughter named Tammy. After attending a Pentecostal revival service one evening, they decided to quit school and become traveling evangelists.
For the next few years, they traveled the country preaching the gospel. James had a charismatic personality and people were naturally attracted to him. His success as an evangelist led to an opportunity to take his ministry to television broadcasting. James preached, Tammy sang, and they hosted a Christian talk show program, and they reached an audience of more than 13 million people a week.
Unfortunately, their ministry became more about personal glory than praising God. At the pinnacle of their popularity and outward success, James had a one night stand with his 21 year old secretary, Tammy became a closet drug addict, and they began to embezzle millions of dollars of money from the ministry for their own personal use. James and Tammy owned a 10,000 square foot condo in Florida and drove his and hers Rolls Royces.
In October of 1989 James (Jim) Bakker was convicted on 24 counts of fraud and conspiracy and was sentenced to 45 years in prison. On appeal, the sentence was reduced to 18 years. The following year he and Tammy Fae divorced; she then proceeded to marry Jim’s best friend. Jim was defrocked by his denomination and stripped of his ordination credentials. Pastor Jerry Falwell has gone on record calling Jim Bakker a liar, an embezzler, a sexual deviant, and “the greatest scab and cancer on the face of Christianity in 2,000 years of church history.”
Millions of people trusted Jim and Tammy Fae Bakker, but these scandals and the falls of other well-known preachers have caused many Americans to mistrust Christian ministers. The Roman Catholic priest sex abuse scandals over the past decade have only contributed to the lack of confidence people have in the clergy today. Unfortunately, these bad ministers have caused countless people to leave the church altogether. Have tragedies like this changed your perception of ministers?
The personal life of the pastor (and Christians in general) is directly connected to the credibility of the church. The Apostle Paul knew that well; there was a group of false teachers in the Ephesian church that were damaging the church’s credibility because of their personal corruption and heretical doctrines. In today’s Scripture reading, Paul writes to Timothy, the young pastor of the Ephesian church, instructing him about how to be a good minister. A good minister of Christ Jesus does three things: trains for godliness, models godly character, and engages in godly ministry.
1.) A Good Minister Trains for Godliness (6-11)
Paul begins by telling Timothy that if “he points these things out to the brothers, he will be a good minister of Christ Jesus.” The “things” that Timothy was to point out refers to the false teacher’s doctrines of demons that Paul discussed in the preceding passage (I Tim. 4:1-5). Paul wanted Timothy to warn the church about these false teachings and to work against them by proclaiming the authentic gospel and nourishing himself in the truths of the faith.
Instead of dabbling in godless myths and silly old wives tales like the false teachers, Paul tells Timothy to train himself for godliness. He should avoid the senseless superstitions that were rampant in that culture. On the contrary, he should, like an athlete, keep himself in vigorous training for the practice of genuine godliness, understood here as both the content of the truth and its visible expression in correct behavior. The term “train yourself” comes from the Greek word (gymnaze) from which we get our English word gymnasium.
Physical training has some value in this life, but godliness has value for all things because it holds promise for this life and the life to come. This statement is trustworthy because our hope is in the living God who is the Savior of the world. Jesus is the only one who can give spiritual life now and in the life to come. Through his death and resurrection, Jesus has offered salvation to all people, but is only applied to those who believe—that is, put their faith in Jesus Christ. The translation of the final clause “especially for those who believe” is awkward. A better translation would be “that is, believers.” Paul is making it clear that faith in Jesus Christ is absolutely essential for salvation—that is why training in godliness is so important.
Paul finishes the section by imploring Timothy to “command and teach these things!” Training for godliness is not just something for ministers; it is for the whole church! All Christians are called to be good ministers of Jesus Christ. Therefore, all Christians should train themselves for godliness.
Today we live in a fitness crazed society! It is absolutely astounding to consider how much time and money Americans spend on physical fitness compared to what they are willing to spend on their spiritual health. Think about how many hours a week Americans dedicate to running, walking, swimming, weight training, and other forms of physical exercise! Think about how much money people spend on gym memberships, home exercise machines, and sports equipment. Think about how many hours high school athletes spend practicing their sport in an average week! Then think about how many hours a week you are willing to spend attending church, studying your Bible, or praying?
All the time I hear people getting all excited to run marathons, but I also people complain if the sermon goes longer than 26.2 minutes. People will train for months in preparation for a triathlon, but they would never dare read a book about the Trinity in preparation for heaven. I watch guys in the gym get all pumped up to bench press 300 pounds, but that 3 pound Bible on the shelf if far too heavy to lift.
Paul’s words to Timothy in this passage help us to reevaluate our priorities. He isn’t saying that physical exercise is bad; it is good. But godliness has value for all things; it benefits us in this life and the next life! If we are to be good ministers, we must train ourselves for godliness!
2.) A Good Minister Models Godly Character (12)
Timothy was a young pastor (somewhere around the age of 30) and apparently had a timid temperament. In a culture where older people were highly regarded, and in a church were the elders would have been older than he, Paul thought it necessary to encourage him to not let anyone despise him for his youthfulness, but instead he should be a model of godly character and set an example for the whole church.
Paul lists five areas where Timothy is to be a model of Christian virtue. In speech, refers to the types or words one uses and conversations one has. Words have the power to both wound and heal; degrade and encourage; humiliate and inspire. Timothy should set an example in godly speech. In conduct, refers to attitudes and behaviors that are consistent with the gospel of Jesus Christ. In love, means that Timothy should put the needs of others before himself and seek the best interest of other people. In faith, means that Timothy is to hold firm to the core tenants of the Christian faith. In purity, (or chastity) refers to proper sexual conduct. Timothy should not engage in any pre-marital or extra-marital sexual activity. Each of these five virtues stands in direct contrast to the false teachers who were misleading the Ephesian church.
Age and spiritual maturity don’t always go hand in hand. I have known some teenagers who are more spiritually mature than people in their seventies. On the other hand, sometimes young people feel like Christianity is only for adults—that they will live how they want to now, and they will take their faith more seriously when they get older.
But whatever age you are, God is calling to be a good minister by being a model of godly character! Is your speech godly? How about your conduct? Do you love by putting others’ needs before your own? Do you hold firm to the core tenants of Christian faith? How is your personal purity?
3.) A Good Minister Engages in Godly Ministry (13-16)
After Paul challenges Timothy to be an example of godly character, he urges him to engage in godly ministry. Until Paul himself could return to Ephesus, he instructs Timothy to devote himself to the public reading of Scripture, exhortation (or preaching), and to teaching. These three ministries are all Word based and comprise some of the most important aspects of pastoral ministry. These ministries would directly counteract the work of the false teachers.
Paul commands Timothy not to neglect the spiritual gift he received for Word-based ministries when the elders laid hands on him at his ordination. He was to practice these things (do them over and over again) and immerse himself in them with all of his heart so that the whole church would see the growth in this young minister.
Paul concludes this section with one final imperative: keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. He is to keep close tabs on his spiritual life and the doctrine that he teaches to other people. Failure to do either of these things would result in a personal collapse and corruption in the church. Contrarily, if he does these things, it will lead to his own spiritual salvation and the salvation of those who hear his preaching and teaching.
We need to remember that godly ministry is always Word based ministry. Reading, preaching, and teaching the Bible helps the church avoid heresy and keeps us focused on what God wants us to do. This seems like such a simple model for ministry; and to some it seems outdated, but these things are indispensible for the health of the church. If we don’t know the Scriptures, we can’t distinguish God’s truth from every falsehood that the wind blows our way. Good ministers and good church members emphasize the public reading, preaching, and teaching of God’s Word.
Let me conclude with a little poem titled “A Church Perish”:
There is a pastor, himself he cherished,
Who loved his position not his parish
So the more he preached
The less he reached
And this is why his parish perished.
I can’t help but wonder if Jim and Tammy Fae Bakker had finished their education, modeled godly character, and focused on the simple ministries of reading, preaching, and teaching God’s Word, if things would have turned out differently. If they had watched their life and doctrine closely, they would have saved themselves and their hearers! Let us all watch our life and doctrine closely, and be good ministers of Christ Jesus!