The
Timothy’s
First
Timothy Chapter Two (the Character of the Minister
¶1Tim 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
2 Corinthians
12:2 I knew a man in Christ above
fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the
body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
· The second heaven is what Paul refers to as “spiritual wickedness in high places” This is the area of demonic activity. For us to get into a place of holding sustained and intimate conversations with the Lord we must break through the first heaven of our earthly circumstances, and the second heavens of demonic activity, into the third heaven of God’s glory.
·
Breaking
forth into the Spirit realm takes physical time and labor in the Lord.
Spiritual labors are such things as speaking in tongues, worship, spiritual
warfare, and waiting on the Lord. Time
is the most important factor in breaking into the third heaven. We live in the Burger King culture of the
fast food life. One of the greatest attacks by the devil on believers living in
Western societies is to tempt them into attempting the same fast food approach
with the Lord. Brother and sister in
the Lord, God is not the God of the fast foods. Breaking into the third heaven
is founded on time and that time on many occasions takes hours a day with the
Lord.
·
Intercession
is the most important and the most difficult ministry in the world. There is
nothing that the devil will attempt to hinder most than the time that the
believer plans to spend in intercession.
We must understand what true intercession is. Let us look at the following scriptures.
Romans 8:26 ¶ Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Eph
6:17 And take the helmet of salvation,
and the sword of the
Spirit, which is the
rhema word of God:
1Cor
2:10But God hath revealed
them( taking the lid
off) unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth(sounds out like a sonar sounds out the deep things in the ocean.)
all things, yea, the deep things of God.
·
Let us look
at First Corinthians 2:10. The rhema word of God reveals the things of God. It
also sounds out, in the same way that a sonar on a ship sounds the bottom of
the ocean floor, the deep things of God. The Lord never deals with the symptoms
of problems. That is the work of the
devil. The evil one has the world riding
on a merry go round of psychology, symptoms, syndromes, and disorders. The Lord on the other hand always drives
straight to the root of the problem.
·
It has been my experience that in most cases
of serious diseases amongst Christians there is a spiritual, family,
generational, or sin root associated with it.
·
The purpose
of intercession is to sound out the depths of God so that He reveals and
isolates the specific roots of the malady, and we destroy it in prayer with the
same sword of the Spirit all while in the same time of intercession. Intercession is the revelation of the
ungodly roots of a problem. We pray back in accordance to the specifics of what
the Lord shows us warrants the situation.
In all situations, and especially serious ones, the surgical work must
be done in the Spirit and the results in the physical will always follow. The
devil keeps us locked in the physical and psychological, and the roots continue
to bear bad fruit.
·
True
intercession is usually most successful through a human vessel that has gone
through the cross so that the believer’s emotions and will have been healed and
stilled and are now submitted to the voice of the Holy Spirit. A believer that
has his or her soul life healed and stilled can hear the voice of the Spirit clearly.
Secondly, their state of quietness and submission is enough to allow the Lord
to intercede through them. Deep intercession, many a time, is not the believer
interceding, but the Lord interceding through the believer. This believer is the clean vessel for the
Lord to move within.
·
As we
discussed earlier on, it is only when the Lord intercedes that He knows how to
hit with perfect accuracy the bull’s eye of the roots of any problem that we
bring before Him. He reveals it to us in the third heaven and we use this
revelation as the sword of the Spirit to pierce, destroy, sever, and deliver.
·
Luke
11:21 When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods
are in peace:
22But
when a stronger
than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted,
and divideth his spoils.
·
The evil one
is the strong man. The Lord is the
stronger one. During the Lord’s intercessory ministry as He wields His rhema
word as the sword of the Spirit the strong man’s armor is taken away piece by
piece and his spoils of disease, sin, bondage and so forth are distributed to
God as His victories.
1 Tim 2:2 For kings, and for all that are in
authority; that we may lead a quiet
and peaceable life in
all godliness and
honesty.
·
The result of an active prayer line by Christians changes the face
of outward circumstances;
·
Quiet
Quiet, is the result of freedom from disturbances and problems that
barrage us from the external world.
Prayer changes the outward condition of the world so that Christians can
live a “quite life”
·
Peaceable: This is the tranquility
that is developed from within a person as Christ heals and delivers.
·
Godliness: Comes from two words, which mean to render devotion, worship, and
reverence to the Lord in a fashion that is pleasing to Him.
·
Honesty;
The dignity and
godliness of the man and woman of God that incites reverence from others.
·
Let us look at the order of verse two. A healthy prayer life changes the outward circumstances of our life
and frees us from within. This allows us to maximize our relationship with the
Lord and transforms us into men and women of God that incites reverence and
respect in the world, bringing glory to the Lord.
3
For
this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
·
This is
beautiful and praiseworthy before the sight of God
4
Who
will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge )Greek: “epiginosko” of the truth.
Greek: Who
continuously desires for men to be saved and to come into a full, precise and
thorough knowledge that can grasp what is genuine and accurate about Him, His
Word, His Will, and every good thing, which He has deposited in each.
·
This is the
goal of our prayers. God is never
satisfied with having Christians get saved so that they can go to heaven one
day. He desires all men and women to
come into the four types of a full, precise, and thorough knowledge that I have
listed below from a previous study. It
is the duty of every believer to mature in spiritual knowledge if they are to
be truly effective for the Lord.
A)
KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST (“Epiginsoko”)
·
· Ephesians 1:17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may
give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
·
My dear brethren, the four types of knowledge that we shall study
today, all come from the Greek word “epiginosko”.
This particular word
defines knowledge as one that is “mature, probing and deep, complete,
accurate, thorough, and precise.”
Eph3:7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the
effectual working of his power. Christ reveals Himself differently in each of us in accordance
with the callings that He has placed within.
The more that we know Him personally with accuracy and intimacy, the
more that every ministry will be revealed, strengthened, and guided within the
local body, fulfilling Ephesians 4:6.
Rev 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And
he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy
brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of
prophecy; We
can see that very manifestation of the living Christ is the source of all
spiritual gifts. Out of the very presence
of Jesus flows the power of God. His
very gifts glorify Him. John
15:26 But when the Comforter is come,
whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father,
he shall testify of me:
1Cor 1:5
That in every thing
ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;
6 Even
as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you.
Brethren, the more of Jesus that is revealed in each of, the more the
gifts will operate, and the more will be the edification, which the church will
receive.
Col 3:10 And have put on the new man, which is
renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
B) KNOWLEDGE
OF GOD’S WILL
·
Col1:9¶ For this cause we
also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire
that ye might be filled
with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and
spiritual understanding;
10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto
all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the
knowledge of God;
Beloved, did you know that most of our churches operate today
without an accurate and complete knowledge of what God’s will is for their
specific vision? It is no wonder that
most of them spin their wheels for years to come, caught in a web of powerless
programs and agendas. To know God’s
will in “all spiritual wisdom” is incredibly important. The “wisdom of God” is the will of
God according to His strategy, His ways, and His timing. It will always happen in the Spirit, and
always through a death and resurrection of the vision for that ministry. We need to spend the days, weeks, and months
that it takes in prayer to discern that will.
Much more will be accomplished by our waiting and seeking, than by our
getting busy in a flurry of activities.
To do His will “with all spiritual understanding” is to
discern what are God’s specific steps in fulfilling the will, which we have
just discerned. A church fulfilling the
will of God “with all spiritual understanding” will take the
painstaking time to move step by step in line with the Holy Spirit, never
behind, and never before Him.
1Ch 12:32
And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding
of the times, to know what Israel ought to do; the heads of them were two
hundred; and all their brethren were at their commandment.
Ps 103:7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.
2Pe 1:2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you
through the knowledge of God, and of
Jesus our Lord,
C) KNOWLEDGE
OF THE TRUTH
1Tim2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to
come unto the knowledge of
the truth. Beloved, to know the
truth, is to know God’s word deeply, with accuracy, and in accordance to fact and
certainty.
John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth
shall make you free. Many of us sadly “claim and frame”
this scripture. In reality what Jesus
is telling us, is the truth shall free us in the exact proportion to the
accurate understanding and performance that we have of it. Our misunderstanding of scriptures through
error, a lack of meditation or study, or because we have turned them into a
“doctrine of men” will not free us.
D) THE KNOWLEDGE OF EVERY GOOD
THING WE HAVE IN CHRIST
Philemon 1:6 That the communication of thy faith may
become effectual by the acknowledging
of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus. This rarely used, but vitally important
scripture, tells us that our faith will only become effectively empowered, as
we discover and use every gifting, calling, and ministry that Christ has placed
within us. Beloved this is not the
responsibility of the few but of all.
When a church discovers this and implements it, we shall see another
church of Acts.
2 Timothy 4:5 But watch thou in all things, endure
afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
Colossians 4:17 And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which thou hast
received in the Lord, that thou fulfil
1Tim 2:5
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man
Christ Jesus;
6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. }
·
Ransom:
Greek; The Lord stood
instead of or in the place of us and paid the amount required for the
liberation of slaves.
7
Whereunto
I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie
not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.
·
The two prerequisites
for any true minister of the Lord; first, he or she must minister in the realm
of faith, and not sight. As we had discussed in an earlier study, all
management of God’s affairs by us must be executed exclusively by faith.
·
Secondly,
ministry must take place through a human vessel whose life and doctrine lines
up with the accuracy of the four types of spiritual knowledge.
1Tim 3:1 ¶ This is a true saying (trustworthy
is this saying), If a man(Greek;
male gender utilized) desire(
stretch himself forth in order to reach after) the office of a bishop,( comes from
two Greek words which means to preside above, or be spiritually high up, in
order to be able to look down upon and accurately scope out problems within his
congregation.) he desireth a good work.
2
A
bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of
good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
·
Blameless
– This means to have
absolutely nothing resident in our lives consisting of disobedience or sin,
where human or devil can grab on to, or point an accusatory finger
towards. This is the same as being without
reproach.
·
The
husband of one wife:
A “one wife” type of man.
·
Vigilant
: Literally; “to be sober because one is free from wine.” One scholar tells us that the meaning of
this must be broadened towards all passions, and simply not that of wine.
·
Good
behavior: Literally: “The world”; therefore orderly,
and in harmony. The person of good
behavior is a seemly individual, and has well ordered spiritual life that is
portrayed by their seemly and beautiful Christian walk.
·
Hospitality
Greek: Comes from two Greek words that mean
a “lover of strangers”. This should be
the extent of our hospitality.
·
Apt to
teach: Skillful in
teaching; (the responsibility of every minister.)
3
Not
given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a
brawler, not covetous;
·
Not
given to wine: “Not sitting besides his or her wine.”
·
No
striker: Greek literal: “Not ready to throw a fist
or punch”: Not a quarrelsome or contentious person.
·
Not greedy of filthy lucre: Greek: “Not obtaining of moneys by
shameful ways.”
·
Patient: Having a mild, gentle, and balanced inward disposition that has
been wrought by the Lord. Outwardly it
expresses itself in patience, forbearance, kindness, and a sense of justice to
all men.
·
Brawler:
Greek: “ Not a
fighter”: One who does not argue.
·
Covetous;
Greek: “One who has a fond love of money”
4 One that ruleth (“being set before” to rule by example) well his own house, having his children in subjection( military subjection) with all gravity;
·
Greek:
One that rules his own household well by being an example to his family. By his
“loving example of rulership” he must have his children in
military subjection “to what he orders”. The end result of this must be that his children are dignified
and reverent and glorify the Lord through their behavior.
·
Beloved; The church
today is failing to fulfill this command! We must
beware! Our children are not glorifying the Lord when they behave as children
of the world.
·
I
always tell people; “Show me your children and I will tell you what kind of a
Christian leader you are”. Leadership begins at home. If your house is a wreck
so will be the church that you lead. This
is what Paul means by the next verse.
5
(For
if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the
church of God?)
·
Greek: If you don’t know to how to instinctively
take care of your home how can you instinctively take care of the church?
8
¶
Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine,
not greedy of filthy lucre;
Romans
16:27 To God only wise, be glory
through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen. <<Written to the Romans from
Corinthus, and sent by Phebe servant(same word as deacon; Our understanding
is that Phebe was a deaconess in the church at Cenchrea. This seems to signify the following. In accordance with our Greek scriptures, elders
and bishops are found exclusively in the male gender, but deacons are found in
both genders. This is not my opinion, I am simply reporting what I have found))
of the church at Cenchrea.
·
Doubletongued: Literal: “two words” Not say one thing to one person and another
thing to another one.
9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.
·
The
mystery of the faith is the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ within us. His revelation by the rhema word is what we
must preach without. The greater is the
revelation of the Son of God within us, the more effectively we can preach Him
to the world.
·
Our conscience is the Lord’s moment-by-moment
barometer of our walk before Him. His
voice ever speaks to us in our conscience in this capacity.
·
A
pure conscience is what holds in place the fullness of the revelation of the
Son of God. The Lord Jesus reveals Himself in us in proportion to the purity
our lives. The Lord ever brings the
evidence of our purity before our eyes as He speaks in the thoughts of our
conscience to either defend or convict us.
2
Corinthians 1:12 For our rejoicing is
this, the testimony of our
conscience, that in simplicity (a single eye for the Lord) and godly sincerity (a life
tested by the rays of the sun) , not with fleshly wisdom, but by the
grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world, and more abundantly to
you-ward.
·
Greek: Our boasting (bragging)
is this; the evidence that our conscience gives about us. Our Christian conduct in the world has been
held in an absolute devotion to Christ.
This absolute devotion allows us to have a life, which is simple because
there is nothing else but Christ in it.
Our lives are so pure that the rays of the sun can shine through them
unhindered. This proves us as sincere
before the Lord. We accomplish this not by our agendas and programs but by
living in utter dependence to the voice of the Spirit.
10
And
let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being
found blameless.
·
Also
first be proved: A fine metal is only labeled as “proved” after
being refined and tested. The refining process takes place at very high
temperatures, which causes all dross and impurities to rise to its surface so
as to be skimmed off. This is the one and same requirement for believers before
they are released to be leaders of the church.
Unfortunately this is not always the case.
15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know
how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of
the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
·
Herein
lies the awesome responsibility of the church.
The church is the only universal institution that is the foundation or
bulwark of the accurate manifestation of the four faceted spiritual knowledge
about God.
·
A
pillar supports. The church must take
from the foundation of the truth and support, prove, and uphold it in this
world by living, teaching, and transmitting it to others.
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