180 Degree Turn

When Paul was a young man, he had been a zealous Jew, so zealous that he tracked down Christians and put them to death, thinking that he was being faithful to God. Then, when Stephen was stoned, Paul watched, and maybe heard Stephen pray, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them" (Acts 7:558:1). Stephen died, not knowing how his prayer would be answered.

There’s something wholesome and wonderful about the gospel. It moved Paul, as it should move us, from unbelief to belief in Christ, and from deserving God’s wrath to receiving his grace and mercy.

When I was a young Christian, I remember my father-in-law, an international evangelist, saying that the gospel was GRACE, i.e. God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. That’s a great acrostic—a reminder of the amazing truth that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—sinners like Paul, sinners like you and me.

This is the gospel: Christ Jesus came to bring us grace, mercy, and kindness from God the Father and to cleanse us from our sins when we were unable to help ourselves. Salvation in Christ Jesus isn’t a take it or leave it matter. There is no faith without “full acceptance” (v 15) of the gospel. This is a personal decision.

That’s why, to return to 1:1-11, if anyone teaches a message that omits the gospel, they’re false teachers. It’s also why Paul stresses how important it is for Timothy to “fight like a good soldier” in order to hold on to the faith informed by the gospel (vv 18-19). And it’s why Paul doesn’t hesitate to hand Hymenaeus and Alexander over to Satan for making “a mess of their faith” (v 19 CEV).

So keep the faith. Don’t depart from the gospel message. And be on your guard. For much of the false teaching we find around the church today denies the need for faith in Christ Jesus, and in so doing stops short of bringing honour and glory to “the invisible and eternal King” (v 17).

Respond in Prayer

Lord, we pray that we might remain loyal to Christ Jesus despite the false teachers we may come across. And we ask you to help us hold on to “faith and a good conscience” so that we do not wreck our faith. Amen.

Lawson Murray

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®).