Living in the Gospel of Christ untainted by debates and useless philosophies.

1 Timothy 1:1-11

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope…” 1 Timothy 1:1

Paul was what-he-was according to what God commanded him to be through Jesus Christ, not by his own declaration of what he wanted people to think he was. Paul was a Pharisee of all Pharisees and studied under the powerful Pharisee, Gamaliel [Acts 22:3], but he defined himself through Jesus Christ not human accomplishments. Likewise, obtaining a college degree from a Bible school does not make a person a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, nor a master of divinity. The Holy Spirit wants us to know that whatever we are in Jesus Christ comes by the will of God, not by human accreditation. Jesus Christ is our hope, not self evaluation nor the say-so of other people.

“To Timothy, a true son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.” 1 Timothy 1:2

While Paul was on his missionary journey in Lystra, he met Timothy as a teenager and adopted him into his missionary work, as described in the posts on Acts 16:1-5. Timothy was a true son in the faith of Jesus Christ, a true child of God. Paul was in prison when writing to Timothy and wanted him to be assured of God’s grace, mercy, and peace. The Holy Spirit wants us to know that everyone who truly lives for God by faith in Jesus Christ are assured of His grace, mercy, and peace, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

“As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith.” 1 Timothy 1:3-4

The Holy Spirit wants us to know that our charge is to remain rooted in the doctrine of Jesus Christ. Paul describes that Gospel, “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures…” 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

Any other doctrine other than the Gospel of Jesus is a different Jesus, “For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—” 2 Corinthians 11:4 We must not be accepting of a false Christ. People who preach another Jesus, “…are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.” Jude 1:12-13

The Holy Spirit warns us about engaging in worldly debates not rooted in faith, because our Salvation, our born-again experience, comes by believing in Jesus Christ. When people add to the Scriptures or take away the core issues of the Gospel, it amounts to nothing more than fables. Ignore those teachings, “And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ” Matthew 15:9 Also, debating the comparison of the genealogy in Matthew to the genealogy in Luke is an endless debate because our family tree is rooted in Jesus Christ, as described in Romans 11:11-24. Godly edification comes by staying true to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our born-again experience is the Gospel written on our heart.

“Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.” 1 Timothy 1:5-7

The whole purpose of the commandments of the Old Testament is to love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind and to love others as ourselves, as quoted, “Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is  like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40

There has been a global falling away from the Gospel of Christ and people have strayed from loving God and loving others. They are removed from the true message, which is, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 Many people want to be preachers and teachers. They are in the churches everywhere, churches that have abandoned the Gospel of Jesus Christ to partner with community values. They do not have an understanding of the word of God nor of the unBiblical things that they declare to be true.

The beast that has power over physiology to give people what to speak, do, think, and feel corrupts pureness, corrupts the conscience, and opposes sincere faith. This beast opposes God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit by giving life to the image of the beast to speak and live through people everywhere. By what they are given to say and do they are groomed to the mark of the beast.

We need to have a pure heart, good conscience, and a sincere faith to teach about the scriptures, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8 “Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord?
Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.” Psalms 24:3-5

“But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.” 1 Timothy 1:8-11

The law that Paul was speaking to Timothy about was of the Old Testament, such as the Ten Commandments. Those laws are good if used appropriately, and appropriate use is to point to Jesus as the fulfillment of prophecy about the coming of the Christ and Son of God. But to use those laws to teach people to adopt the doctrine of humanism is blasphemous. Humanism is the fig leaf worn by those serving the beast that gives them what to speak, do, think, and feel. Unfortunately, the Bible is being used in that way, humanism is “…an outlook or system of thought attaching prime importance to human rather than divine or supernatural matters. Humanist beliefs stress the potential value and goodness of human beings, emphasize common human needs, and seek solely rational ways of solving human problems.”

The laws, such as the Ten Commandments, were given to the Israelites because they strayed from God within their mind, heart, soul, and in their behaviors. If they had been living in the will of God, the Ten Commandments would never have been necessary. They had to be told not to have no other God but God our Creator. Not to serve idols, such as the beast of today that make sets itself up as God to give people what to speak do think, and feel. Not to use the name of God without acknowledging Him as being the one and only real God. They needed to be told to keep the Lord’s day sacred and to honor parents. They had to be told to not murder, not to cheat on the spouse sexually, not to steal, not to lie, and not to be envious of what others have.

As the prophets of the Old Testament prophesied, our Lord Jesus came to atone for our sin so that we can live for God by the presence of the Holy Spirit. “Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they will be My people, and I will be their God. But as for those whose hearts follow the desire for their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God.” Ezekiel 11:19-21

A righteous person is one who lives for God by faith in Jesus Christ in the presence of the Holy Spirit.  “the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe.” Romans 3:22 There is no law within the Old Testament that is greater than the law of life in Jesus Christ that makes us free from the law of sin and death. The letter of the law brings death but the Spirit gives life. “…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:11