Scripture
Read: 1 Timothy 6:13-14 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life
to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before
Pontius Pilate, that you keep the commandment without
stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ
Application:
As Paul closes this letter to Timothy he admonishes him to “finish well”. This
should be the prayer of every believer. The race is to the end, not part, but
whole. To begin well and even get to the last lap, only to not finish leaves
the race incomplete. Far too many have dropped out just before they would have
finished. I believe the attack of the enemy intensifies at this time, because
the enemy has lost in every other way, so he desires to at least destroy the
testimony that person would leave. Notice, Paul shares with Timothy the
ultimate finisher, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who stood faithfully even in front of
Pilate. Paul uses two words to exhort Timothy in the way he should live. First
he tells him to be “without stain”.
ἄσπιλος áspilos; from the priv. a,
without, and spílos, spot. Without
blemish or spot, free from spot, unblemished, pure.
This
is the same word that describes Christ as “without sin”. Paul is
not suggesting that Timothy can live sinless, but he is emphasizing to Timothy
that the life he lives should as much as possible be pure, not mixed with sin.
This admonition needs to be heeded by us all. The enemy will discover what
areas of our life are mixed with sin and he will take advantage of that.
The
second word “reproach” emphasizes what others see in us.
Anepílēptos or anepílēmptos, a qualification the Apostle Paul recommends that
a bishop or elder should have (1 Tim. 3:2; 5:7), means beyond reproach,
i.e., that he ought to live in such a way that reproach will not come to him
justifiably when he stands under the scrutiny of judicial examination by God;
hence he is unindictable. This is found also in 1 Tim. 6:14, spoken of
God’s commandments grouped together as one commandment. We should incorporate
in our lives God’s commandments in such a way that the spoken word and the life
of the speaker may not bring the commandment under indictment as being either
faulty or ineffective. [1]
What
is so important is that we understand that in this race three issues are in
view, not one. This is not only about our testimony, it includes that, but
there are two other issues at stake here. First and foremost, the name of our
Lord is on the line. People have never met Jesus Christ, but they do meet us.
What they think of Him is determined most times by what they see in us. So how
we finish is very important. Secondly, the testimony of the Faith is also dependent on us. When we quit, unbelievers chalk our beliefs up to just
another religion that did not deliver. This should never be! Lastly, our name
loses it’s power. Think of the great saints that finished well, now
with the Lord for centuries, yet their name and life still speak into the lives
of believers today. We may not be famous, but even in our families our legacy
can carry a powerful impact on those that hear of what the Lord did in us!
Finish well; you will never regret it!
Meditation Questions: Do
you believe you will ever retire? What does that look like? Does that word mean
anything pertaining to your walk with Christ – What is that? How would you
describe what it will mean for you to finish well? Have you thought about in
what areas you might have a problem with when it comes to finishing well? How
important is it to know your weaknesses? Are you proactively fortifying your
weak areas?
[1] Zodhiates, S. (2000). The complete word study dictionary : New
Testament (electronic ed.). Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers.
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