I Was Shown Mercy

Well, we are continuing this morning in our series through 1 Timothy.

And we are listening to Christ's instructions through the Apostle Paul about how we are to live in the household of God, in the church.

So if you have your Bible with you, you can open it up to 1 Timothy.

For the past two Sundays, we've been in chapter 2.

And this morning, we're actually going to go back and look at the section that we skipped over from chapter 1.

So we are going to be in 1 Timothy chapter 1, verse 9.

1 Timothy 1:9

And look at the rest of chapter 1 this morning.

Now let's remember how Paul started this letter to Timothy.

Right after the introduction, Paul jumped right into giving instruction.

And these were his instructions.

In verse 3, he said,

As I urged you when I went into Macedonia,

stay there in Ephesus,

so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer.

So as we heard several weeks ago,

there were people in the church teaching false doctrines.

Down in verse 7, we heard a little bit more about these false doctrines.

Paul said,

They want to be teachers of the law,

but they do not know what they're talking about or what they so confidently affirm.

We know that the law is good if one uses it properly,

said Paul.

So we noted a couple weeks ago that these people teaching false doctrines

were pointing people back to the Old Testament.

But the problem, according to Paul,

is that they didn't really understand the Old Testament.

They didn't understand the law.

And they were misapplying it to the people.

So now Paul is going to tell Timothy about the purpose of the law in verses 9 to 11.

Then he's going to share a little bit of his own personal testimony in verses 12 to 17.

And then verses 18 to 20,

he's going to give Timothy some more encouragement and warning,

especially in the backdrop of this instruction about false teachers.

Let's look at that first one.

The purpose of the law.

I'm going to read again, starting in verse 8.

Paul says,

We know that the law is good if one uses it properly.

We also know that the law is made not for the righteous,

but for lawbreakers and rebels,

the ungodly and sinful,

the unholy and irreligious,

for those who kill their fathers or mothers,

for murderers,

for the sexually immoral,

for those practicing homosexuality,

for slave traders and liars and perjurers,

and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine

that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God,

which he entrusted to me.

So Paul makes it clear right out of the gate here

that the law God gave long ago to the Israelites

had a very specific purpose,

or rather a specific group of people that it was given for.

He said,

The law is made not for the righteous,

but for lawbreakers and rebels,

the ungodly and sinful,

the unholy and irreligious,

and he goes on.

So the purpose of the law

is to convict us of our sins.

It's to show us what's wrong,

what's evil,

what's impure,

what's sinful.

And if we think back to those Old Testament days,

the law was not just an ethical code to live up to

or to aspire to,

but it was actually in force.

It was the governing law of the nation,

or at least it was supposed to be.

Israel departed from it at various moments.

So the law didn't just convict,

but it also condemned the guilty.

For example,

Exodus chapter 21 verse 12,

Exodus 21:12

Anyone who strikes a person with a fatal blow

is to be put to death.

However,

if it's not done intentionally,

but God lets it happen,

they are to flee to a place

I will designate.

So the law was made,

in part,

so that murderers,

people who intentionally killed other people,

might receive the punishment

that they deserve.

It was given by God

so that there would be justice

among his people.

And we might also argue

that it was given to restrain

or deter people

from doing these kinds of things

because it made the consequences

of doing wrong

costly.

There was a penalty

or punishment.

So Paul goes on

and he gives this big list

of people

that the law was made for.

And he uses all these different words

to describe

these people,

various attitudes

as well as behaviors.

And we're just going to quickly

go through this list.

It's quite the list.

He starts by saying

that it's for

lawbreakers

and rebels.

Quite literally,

for the lawless.

People who are generally

insubordinate.

Don't want to submit

to authority

of any kind.

People who have the attitude

of

I'm going to do

whatever I want to do

and ain't nobody

going to tell me

what to do.

Rebels kind of captures

that same sort of idea.

People who generally

are

just going to break

the law.

They're going to go off.

They're going to do

whatever they want.

It's for the ungodly,

says Paul.

The opposite of that

would be a godly person

and a godly person

is a person

who is devoted

to God.

A person who obeys God,

who worships God.

And so an ungodly person

is the opposite.

It's a person

who has no fear of God.

Who disobeys God.

Who disregards God.

It's for the sinful,

says Paul.

A person who does

things that are wrong.

Things that fall short

of what God has revealed

is good and right.

He says it's for the unholy.

Which refers to

a person who is profane.

Somebody who treats

holy things

or sacred things

as if they were

just common.

A person who's irreverent.

It's for the irreligious.

A person who cares

more about this world

than about God.

Somebody who minimizes

or marginalizes God.

Cares more about

the stuff around,

the stuff of earth.

It's for murderers,

says Paul.

We talked about

that one already.

It's for the sexually

immoral,

says Paul.

The Greek word

used there

is pornois,

from which we get

our English word

pornography.

This word

refers to people

who engage in

any kind of

sexually immoral

behavior,

fornication,

adultery,

basically any kind

of sexual relations

or interactions

with someone

who you're not

married to

would be considered

sexually immoral.

Paul then gives

another specific

kind of sexually

immoral behavior.

Those who practice

homosexuality.

And at this point,

I want to hit the

pause button

and talk about

some of this stuff

as it relates today

because,

I mean,

the way that they

would have heard this

back in Ephesus

in those days

is probably a little

different than how

we would hear it

today in our culture.

We live in a culture

and time where

there are countless

voices saying that

when it comes to

sexuality,

anything is okay.

If it feels good,

do it.

Don't let anyone

tell you that your

sexual choices are wrong.

And this attitude,

this view of human

sexuality is promoted

everywhere.

Probably many of you

have heard this.

It's on the TV shows

and in the movies.

It's promoted by

journalists and

news writers.

It's promoted by

those who identify

as LGBTQ.

It's promoted by

governments and

workplaces now.

It's promoted by

teachers and in

schools.

It's promoted by

vocal organizations

like Planned Parenthood

and the Abortion Rights

Coalition of Canada.

It's promoted by

international organizations

like the World Health

Organization and the

United Nations.

And I could go on

but I think you know

what I'm talking about.

This message is coming

on all channels,

all around us.

When it comes to

sex, almost anything

is okay.

If it feels good,

do it.

Don't let anybody

tell you that your

sexual choices are

wrong.

But Paul says right

here that long ago

when God gave his

law to the Israelites,

one of its purposes

was to show us that

there is a sexual

right and a sexual

wrong.

There is a good

design and plan

of God for human

sexuality and the

Old Testament law

lays out the ways

that we corrupt

that, the ways that

we deviate from

that.

Sex outside of

marriage, adultery,

cheating, sex with

relatives, and Paul

explicitly in this list

mentions homosexuality.

Sex with people of

the same sex.

Quite literally, for

men who go to bed

with men.

Now I know that even

saying that in public

is considered hateful

today, bigoted,

intolerant, but let's

remember these are the

words of God himself.

These are the words of

Jesus Christ himself

speaking through his

apostle.

He's saying, just like

the Old Testament law

revealed all those

years ago, there is a

sexual right and a

sexual wrong.

God's law laid it out

long ago so that we

could know it, so that

we could be convicted

of it, so that we

could turn to God and

be washed and cleansed

of it and be called

back to that way that

he designed us to be,

to the goodness of

human sexuality that

he made us to enjoy,

to what is right, to

real intimacy, real

intimacy between a

married man and a

married woman who

give themselves only to

each other.

Sadly, many people in

our world today simply

reject the creator and

what he has to say.

They want to go their

own way.

They want to do

whatever they please

when it comes to

sexuality.

And so, for many, it

has brought nothing but

grief, heartache, broken

relationships, broken

trust.

It's led to women

feeling used.

It's led to children

being conceived with no

committed mother to

carry the child, no

committed father to

help raise the child.

It's led to cover-ups,

scandals, secrets, and

lies.

Ignoring what God has to

say about our sexuality

has led to one of the

deepest kinds of

confusion that we can

experience.

And rightly so, because

sex, it's a thing that

affects our bodies

deeply.

There's hormones,

there's chemicals, I'm

not going to go into

all the details.

There's synopses being

formed in our brains,

pathways strengthened when

we do God's design.

But when we take what he

has designed and

deviated from it, we're

affected in all those

areas of our body as

well.

Our feelings and

emotions are affected

so deeply that it's no

wonder that we see the

kind of chaotic

confusion that we see

today around this

issue.

We've got men who

think that they can

be women.

We've got women who

think that they can be

men.

We've got people out

there today saying

absolutely, men can

become pregnant.

And if you disagree,

they say you're

transphobic.

The truth is that we

live in a time of

widespread sexual

confusion.

confusion.

Some are somewhat

innocent in that

confusion.

Maybe they've been the

victim of abuse or

bullying.

Or maybe they've simply

just accepted what

they've been taught from

the time they were

young.

While others are more

militant.

They know full well what

they are doing, what

they are advocating, and

why.

nevertheless, what God

has said has been

consistent.

From what he has said

in Genesis about how

he created man and

woman and what

marriage is to be, to

what he said at Mount

Sinai when he gave the

law, what is sexually

right and what is

sexually wrong.

Up until this time when

he speaks again through

Paul to Timothy, there

is a sexual right and

there is a sexual wrong

and it hasn't changed

over all that time.

The law was given by

God in the first place

to reveal that and to

expose the wrongness of

deviating from it and

it does.

Sexual sin does leave us

guilty before God.

Just as the other things

in this list leave us

guilty before God.

God.

But there is good news

which we are getting

to.

But before we do, let's

just look at these last

few things in the list.

Paul says the law was

made for slave traders.

In the original language

it is literally man

stealers.

And it could be

translated kidnappers.

In Bible times, slavery

was an established social

construct and you could

sell yourself into slavery

to pay off a large debt

in the time of financial

ruin.

But this seems more

aimed at those who

would actually like go

and kidnap somebody who

was a free man and then

sell them into slavery.

And this is something

that still happens today.

Human trafficking of any

sort would kind of be

covered by this

description.

Paul says the law was

made for liars.

I have to be honest,

when we get to that word,

I'm kind of surprised.

You know, the other

things mentioned, they

seem really, some of them

really bad or really

obvious.

Murder, sexual immorality,

kidnapping.

But then liars.

Lying is something that

deviates from God's good

design as well.

It's evil.

It's much worse than we

think.

And it puts us in the

same boat as all the

other sins listed here.

guilty before God and

his good law.

Finally, the law was

made for perjurers.

Perjury is a specific

type of lying.

It means to lie in a

courtroom while under

oath, giving a false

testimony.

Paul then sums up this

list by adding a

catch-all phrase at the

end.

He says the law is made

for people characterized

by all these attitudes

and behaviors and also

for any others that I

didn't list that are

contrary to the sound

doctrine that conforms to

the gospel.

It's a little bit of a

tangled up sentence, a

long one.

Let's just unpack it

here little by little.

We'll start at the end.

Which he entrusted to me.

So Paul has been

entrusted with something by

God and that something is

the gospel, the good

news.

Here Paul describes the

good news as the good

news about the glory of

God.

That's one way of

describing what God has

done in sending Jesus to

save us.

It's a revealing of his

glorious nature.

And closer to his main

point, there is a sound

doctrine.

There is a true teaching

that conforms to the

gospel.

Or we might say goes with

the good news.

Accompanies the good

news.

Jesus died to save us,

yes.

But he also came teaching

about kingdom

righteousness.

For example, he taught

about money and greed.

Paul didn't say anything

in this list about that.

But that would be an

example of something else

that is contrary to the

sound teaching that

conforms to the gospel.

And the main point he's

making, the law is

helpful in convicting us

about all these things,

even the things I didn't

mention in this list.

And so let's apply this

list today.

As you look down this list,

are you anywhere in this

list?

Do any of these sinful

attitudes or behaviors

describe how you have

been at one time or

another in your life?

Most of us can look

through this and say,

well, I haven't murdered

anyone or kidnapped

anyone or lied under

oath in court.

But all of us have told

a lie, if not many.

Likely, some of us have

engaged in some kind of

sexually immoral behavior.

Probably all of us have

shown disregard for the

law of our land at one

time or another.

Probably all of us have

acted in a way that's

sacrilegious or profane,

even if it's just with a

comment or words that we

said.

The law was made for the

sinful.

In Paul's letter to the

Roman church, he says,

all have sinned and fall

short of the glory of God.

In case we get to the

very bottom of this list

and somehow feel like,

well, it's not talking

about me.

I haven't been anything

like any of this.

There's that catch-all

phrase at the end.

Have you done anything

that is contrary to the

true teaching that fits

with the good news of

Jesus?

Where does Paul see

himself in relation to

this list?

Does he see himself as

the righteous?

A man for whom the law

wasn't made?

Or does he see himself as

being among the guilty?

One for whom this law

was made.

It's at this point that

Paul now begins to share

honestly his own story

about himself.

He says, I thank Christ

Jesus, our Lord, who has

given me strength, that he

considered me trustworthy,

appointing me to his

service.

Even though I was once

a blasphemer and a

persecutor and a violent

man, I was shown mercy

because I acted in

ignorance and unbelief.

So as Paul brings this

big list of sinful

attitudes and behaviors,

what does it do?

Does it bolster Paul's

self-righteousness?

No.

It's as if as he's giving

this list, he's reminded

of his own sinfulness,

his own unworthiness,

to be an apostle entrusted

with this good news of

Jesus.

He starts by thanking

Christ Jesus that he was

even selected in the first

place to serve as an

apostle.

And he acknowledges that

it has been Christ Jesus

who has given him strength

to do the job.

And then he goes on to

confess his own sins here

in verse 13.

Even though I was once a

blasphemer and a

persecutor and a violent

man, the word blaspheme

as it applied to Jesus,

as he was accused, it kind

of meant claiming to be

God, but it had a more

general meaning, just of

slander.

Paul's confessing here,

I was once a

blasphemer.

I was once a person who

slandered the people of

Jesus Christ.

I was a person who

demeaned the name of

Christ.

Paul says, I was a

persecutor.

I was a man who went

after the followers of

Jesus to round them up

and bring harm to them,

even to see them killed.

I was a violent man.

I saw to it that people

were beaten, that they

were killed for following

Jesus.

And yet, I was shown

mercy, says Paul.

Christ Jesus was

compassionate towards me.

He took pity on me.

He didn't treat me the

way I deserve.

Now, Paul brings in one

factor here.

He says he was shown

mercy because he acted in

ignorance and in

unbelief.

And I think we need to be

careful how we read that

statement.

I don't think Paul's

making an excuse here.

He's not saying, because

I was ignorant, I wasn't

guilty.

No, he's saying, I was

shown mercy.

In other words, I know

that I deserved punishment

for my sins, the things I

did against Christ.

So he's not using it as

an excuse.

Second, I don't think he's

saying that Jesus was

obligated to show me

mercy because I was

ignorant or because I had

done belief as if somehow

Paul earned the mercy of

Christ by being ignorant.

I think what he's getting

at here is there was a

difference between Paul, it

seems, and many of the

other religious leaders, the

Pharisees.

For them, they weren't

acting in ignorance.

They saw with their own

eyes the signs that Jesus

did, the miracles.

And they knew, deep down

inside, they knew what

those miracles pointed to.

And yet they knowingly and

willfully rejected him,

persecuted him, and put

Jesus to death.

Paul seems to be a step

removed from that.

Still spiritually blind and

unbelieving, yet also

somewhat ignorant to the

truth of who Jesus really

is until that moment came

on the road to Damascus.

But listen to this.

Paul says, even though I

was once a blasphemer, a

persecutor, a violent man,

I was shown mercy.

The grace of our Lord was

poured out on me

abundantly along with the

faith and love that are in

Christ Jesus.

I love that metaphor.

Poured out abundantly.

All the scholars will tell

you there's one word here.

It's like super abound or

something like that.

A word Paul made up because

they can't find it anywhere

else.

But the picture is clear.

The Lord didn't just give me

a second chance.

He didn't just wipe the

slate clean and then leave

me to myself to figure this

out.

He poured his grace out on

me abundantly.

His favor, his blessing, his

kindness came at me.

Into my life like a

waterfall flowing all over

me, all over my life.

And not just his grace,

says Paul, but along with

his grace came faith and

love.

He poured these out on me

abundantly as well.

Yes, even our faith is a

gift from God.

If we look just back to the

previous verse, Paul was in a

state of unbelief.

Now he's in a state of

belief and came the same way

that the grace came.

It was poured out on him.

Paul was a violent man in the

previous verse.

He says, now a man of love.

It was poured out on him.

He was transformed.

Paul goes on in verse 15.

He says, here is a

trustworthy saying that

deserves full acceptance.

Christ Jesus came into the

world to save sinners.

sinners.

This is the gospel.

This is the good news of

Jesus in a nutshell.

Look back up at that list in

verses 9 and 10.

Look at all these sinful

attitudes and behaviors that

we might be guilty of.

And remember that catch-all

phrase at the end which

reminds us that if our sin is

not listed here, we're not off

the hook because this list is

an exhaustive and yet Christ

Jesus came into the world to

save sinners.

He came into the world to save

people on the list.

Paul was on the list.

The law's purpose was to expose

the truth about each one of us

that yes, we are sinners.

We are guilty.

We are rebels.

We're not holy as we ought to

be.

We have acted wrongly before

God in one way or another.

But there is good news.

God is a blessed and glorious

God.

He has mercy towards us.

He pours out his grace and love

abundantly on us.

And that's why he came to save

sinners like us.

This is a trustworthy saying, says

Paul.

You can bet your life on this.

Christ came into the world to

save sinners.

That's you.

That's me.

And then Paul confesses.

He shares based on these things

that he's already said.

His own view of himself.

He says, sinners of whom I am

the worst.

So we look at that list.

Paul says, I'm among the worst.

And we don't need to worry about

whether Paul thought he was the

worst possible sinner or just

among the worst.

I mean, case in point, most of us

can't say that we hunted down

Christians and are responsible for

their bodily harm, suffering, and

death.

Now, all sin is evil.

All of it makes us guilty.

And yet some sins are especially

grievous.

Paul says, I did those things that

are especially grievous.

But for that very reason, he says,

I was shown mercy so that in me,

the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus

might display his immense patience

as an example for those who would

believe in him and receive eternal

life.

Paul's saying, God showed me mercy.

He was patient with me because he

wanted to show.

He wanted to give an example.

He wanted everyone to know that,

yes, even those worst of sins on the

list can be forgiven.

It doesn't matter how badly you have

sinned.

Murder, the worst forms of sexual

immorality.

Jesus wants you to know through Paul

that, yes, you can be forgiven.

My grace is enough.

My mercy is enough to cleanse you and

forgive you and save you from what

you deserve.

And for our part, what do we need to do?

Paul kind of throws it in at the end.

He says, for those who would believe in

him.

Believe.

Put our trust, put our faith in Jesus

and we will receive eternal life.

So I want to ask you, do you believe in

Jesus?

Have you surrendered your heart to Jesus?

Jesus.

This news is so good that we could be

forgiven, that we could be saved despite

what we have done, that Paul burst into

praise.

Now to the king, eternal, immortal,

invisible, the only God be honor and

glory forever and ever.

Amen.

I love this.

He is so touched deeply by the mercy of

God in his own life, by the grace of

God, that he says, King Jesus, you are

worthy of all glory and honor for the

rest of eternity because you're the only

God.

You're the true king who lives forever

and will never die.

And though we cannot see you now, you are

worthy of that praise for unending days,

forever and forever.

Let's just quickly look at the last

paragraph here.

Verse 18 to 20.

Timothy, my son, I'm giving you this

command in keeping with the prophecies

once made about you so that by

recalling them, you may fight the battle

well, holding on to faith and a good

conscience, which some have rejected and

so have suffered shipwreck with regard

to the faith.

Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander,

whom I have handed over to Satan to be

taught not to blaspheme.

Now there's lots here we could discuss,

but the gist of it is that Paul is

encouraging Timothy.

There were prophecies made about

Timothy and Paul says that this command

that he's now giving Timothy about

silencing the false teachers will in

some sense fulfill those prophecies.

as Timothy fights the battle in this

difficult situation here in Ephesus.

Remembering those prophecies is going

to help him to fight well.

Paul's talking about the spiritual battle

here and he's urging Timothy to hold

on to his faith, to hold on to his good

conscience.

This harkens back to what we read in

verse 5 and 6.

The false teachers, the problem with them

was that they were departing from a pure

heart and a sincere faith and a good

conscience.

And so Paul is now coming full circle

and he's saying, Timothy, don't you do

that.

Hold on to your faith.

Don't let go.

Keep your good conscience.

And then he goes on to name some of

these false teachers who have departed

from the faith.

Hymenaeus and Alexander, these two men

and others let go of their sincere faith.

They let go of their good conscience

and it proved utterly disastrous for them.

I'm not going to speculate on what their

final outcome was.

We don't really know.

But it doesn't sound good.

Whatever Paul means by

whom I have handed over to Satan

to be taught not to blaspheme.

And Paul's going to have more encouragement

and more warnings like this

later on in the letter.

We're going to now turn our attention

to a little bit of a different focus.

I want to come back to this testimony of

Paul, to the gospel.

And as we do, we want to

be reminded of what the Lord has done

for each one of us.

We're going to celebrate the Lord's table

again this morning.

And for those who are new or visiting,

I just want to take a few moments

to explain what it's all about.

Why we do it.

We do it once a month

on the first Sunday of each month.

And it is a sacred thing that we do.

It's kind of a reenactment

of the last supper that Jesus had

with his disciples before

his crucifixion.

That evening, before he was arrested

in the Garden of Gethsemane,

Jesus sat down with his disciples

and had the Passover meal.

And while he was around the table,

he took bread and he broke it

and he gave thanks.

He also took a cup

and he passed it around to each of them

and he urged them to eat of the bread

and drink of the cup.

The cup contained, in Jesus' words,

the fruit of the vine,

either wine or grape juice.

And Jesus encouraged them

to drink from the cup.

And there was a special significance to this.

Jesus told them in metaphorical language

that the bread represented his body

and that the contents of the cup

represented his blood.

Jesus knew that he was about to die

and he wanted his disciples to know why.

And so he explained something

of the metaphor that night.

He said,

this is my blood of the covenant

which is poured out for many

for the forgiveness of sins.

So Jesus knew exactly why he had come

and why he was about to die.

It wasn't just because the religious leaders

didn't like him or were angry with him.

God was doing something far greater

than anyone realized.

There was going to be a new covenant.

There was going to be a new arrangement

between God and man.

Not like the Old Testament law

which was also a covenant

but a better covenant.

A covenant that would not require

animal sacrifices anymore

but a covenant that would secure

permanent, once for all,

forgiveness of sins

for God's people.

And Jesus would be the sacrifice

offered to bring this about.

His blood, his death

rather than the blood of a lamb

or a goat or a bull.

His blood would atone

for the sins of his people

of all who would believe in him

thus securing forgiveness

from God

and removing permanently

the guilt of sinners forever.

So Jesus is the one

that told us to do this.

To do this regularly

or customarily

when we're gathered

as his people.

To eat and to drink

of the bread and the cup

in remembrance of him.

And so that's what we're

going to do

in just a moment here.

The Bible says

that we ought to examine ourselves

before we partake.

We says that we shouldn't partake

in an unworthy manner

meaning irreverently

!

Or insincerely!

And so

if you don't believe in Jesus

then I would encourage you

just to refrain or abstain

when these are passed around

you can just signal

with your hand.

But for the rest of us

this table is precious.

It's here that we remember

how we

just like Paul

were all sinners

guilty

and how Christ Jesus

came into the world

to save us.

we remember

how his mercy

was shown us

his grace

was poured out

abundantly on us

and so if you believe

that Jesus

died to save you

that he is

your savior

your messiah

your lord

please

join with us

remember with us

in the next minutes here

we'll just have a moment

few moments of quiet

and I encourage you

to pray

in these moments

to confess to God

to talk to God

to pour out your heart

to him

and then after a few minutes

of that

we'll have

Dave and Rod

come up

and pass out the elements

we'll wait until

everybody has been served

and then I'll pray

and we'll eat

and drink

all together.

voy voy