1 Timothy 4:6-16 - Spiritual Training
It is good to be back with you this week. If we haven’t met yet, my name is Brad, and I get the privilege of handling the Word of God here with you. If you have your Bibles, we are going to be in 1 Timothy chapter four.
1 Timothy 4:6-16 (NASB)
In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, [constantly] nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been following. But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness; for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and [also] for the [life] to come. It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things. Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but [rather] in speech, conduct, love, faith [and] purity, show yourself an example of those who believe. Until I come, give attention to the [public] reading [of Scripture], to exhortation and teaching. Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. Take pains with these things; be [absorbed] in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.
We’re continuing in a series through the book of 1 Timothy that has honestly been much more theological than I had anticipated. There’s a difference between reading devotionally and standing up having to teach it. If you’re reading it devotionally, you think, Wow, that’s really deep, and you can just move on. But if you’re teaching it, you’ve got to unpack what it says. It’s been a great series, and I hope you’ve enjoyed it as well.
If It Ain’t Working at Home, Don’t Export It
As we head into today’s message, I am mindful of an influencer in my life named Howard Hendricks. I went to Dallas Theological Seminary, and Professor Hendricks taught at DTS for over fifty years. He was so well respected among the faculty that even the other professors called him “Professor.” Professor was known for those little nuggets of wisdom that stick with you when you’ve been around that long.
He used to say to us—young communicators, young budding seminarians who thought we had it all figured out in our first year—“Look, if it ain’t working at home, don’t export it.” That stuck with me because, if you think about it, that is profoundly wise. In so many ways, the credibility of a message is either amplified or muted based on the character of the one communicating it. Have you ever heard somebody teach, and as you listen to them, you think, No, I know better? There is something about who we are on the inside that either amplifies what we say we believe or discredits it. If it ain’t working at home, don’t export it.
With that in mind, we have Paul writing a letter to Timothy. He has told him over and over again to hold to sound doctrine, to stand for good biblical teaching, and to drop what we call the plumb line of God’s biblical truth. He has been told to raise up elders and deacons—servants of the church who are part of the battleship that is a New Testament faith community. He has been told to hold to the historic faith. As you heard from Mike last week, chapter three, verse 16 gives us this great creed: “By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.”
1 Timothy 3:16 (NASB)
By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.
Then Timothy is told in chapter four, verses one through five, to stand in active opposition to those who would teach anything contrary to that.
1 Timothy 4:1-5 (NASB)
But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, [men] who forbid marriage [and advocate] abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.
In that regard, this book is not simply written to a church centuries ago as if we are reading somebody else’s mail, thinking, I don’t know what a Gnostic is, so whatever. Paul is giving a young pastor responsible for an influential church in a corrupt city lessons that are not just for his day, but for ours as well. That is the beauty and the convicting nature of the Bible: it has a historical context, yet it speaks directly into our world today.
Holding to biblical teaching is intensely timely in our day. When we live in a culture that is deconstructing the authority and validity of the Bible, skewing views of sexuality for kindergarten students, introducing gender fluidity without parental consent, celebrating gender confusion, and eroding God’s design for marriage as one man and one woman for life, this ancient book is as applicable now as it was then. The admonitions given to Timothy speak straight into the chaos of our world.
Nourished in the Faith
Paul begins in verse six:
1 Timothy 4:6 (NASB)
In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, [constantly] nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been following.
He says, “In pointing out these things to the brethren…” What things? The confession of faith in chapter three and the warnings against false teaching in chapter four. When he says “brethren,” some translations say “brothers and sisters”—it basically means “all y’all.” He says, “In pointing out these things… you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus.”
The word translated “servant” is diakonos, where we get our word deacon. It isn’t speaking strictly of professional clergy; it speaks of men and women engaged in living out God’s kingdom purposes on earth as it is in heaven. If you hold to these things, you are “constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been following.”
That word “nourished” is used only once in the New Testament. In ancient literature, it carried the idea of training up children. If you remember back to when you had toddlers, is there any season more insane than when you have littles? If you’ve been around them, you know they typically demand one thing: more. Your job as a parent is to nourish them—to keep them fed, keep them safe, and train them for how to do life at the next level. You teach them how to tie their shoes: make the bunny ears, go around the tree, and pull it through. You are nourishing and training them.
That is the Christian journey. We enter in as spiritual infants. We interact with our Bibles and geek out over the simplest truths: “Did you know God so loved the entire world?” And those who’ve been around church for a while say, “Yes, that’s John 3:16, keep going!”
John 3:16 (NASB)
’For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
When you’re first exposed to Scripture, everything is new and wonderful, and you are being nourished in your faith. But the assumption of the Christian faith is that you don’t stay a baby; you mature and grow up. Teaching a toddler to tie their shoe is cute; teaching your high school sophomore to tie their shoe is awkward. We are expected to grow up spiritually.
Peter put it this way:
1 Peter 2:2 (NASB)
like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation,
Like newborn babies, we long for pure milk so that we may grow. The Christian life is not a spectator sport. You were not saved to sit and remain a spiritual infant years down the road. The author of Hebrews makes the same point:
Hebrews 5:13-14 (NASB)
For everyone who partakes [only] of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.
Solid food is for the mature, who by practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil. We are all being formed by something. The question is: by what or by whom?
We become like the people we spend time with. Parents understand this, which is why you care so much about your kids’ friends. Show me your friends, and I’ll show you who you are becoming. In college, before I knew Jesus, I hung around people who participated in nonsense, and it was very easy for me to join right in. But after I trusted Christ, I lived in the Bulldog Apartments with a couple of Christian athletes. One day, I saw them doing something I’d never seen before. I asked, “What are you guys doing?” They said, “We’re having a quiet time.” I said, “What’s a quiet time?” They explained, “You read your Bible so you can get to know Jesus.”
I went up to my room and said, “All right, I’m going to have a quiet time.” I started reading, and I loved it so much that I poked my head out the door and yelled, “Hey guys, this Bible is blanking great!” Because it was! I was all passion and no polish. But we become who we spend time with.
Training vs. Trying
Paul warns Timothy in verse seven:
1 Timothy 4:7-8 (NASB)
But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness; for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and [also] for the [life] to come.
He says to have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. That was a Greek figure of speech referring to idle, fruitless stories that go nowhere. Today, we might think of guys telling exaggerated fishing stories, or living in the glory days like Uncle Rico thinking coach should have put him in back in 1974. In our modern culture, it’s endless internet rabbit holes, conspiracy theories, and TikTok challenges. They aren’t necessarily evil in themselves, but they are unprofitable.
Instead of being shaped by foolishness, Paul says, “discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.” The Greek word for discipline is gymnazo, from which we get our word gymnasium. It means spending time, energy, and effort to train yourself to become something you currently are not. Physical discipline has some value, but godliness holds value for everything—both in this life and the life to come.
We need to make an important distinction here: training is not the same as trying.
Trying to be godly relies entirely on human effort, willpower, and moralism. It says, “That’s it, my New Year’s resolution is that I’m going to get sober on my own strength.” Moralism produces short-term change, but it is not sustainable long term. That is why so many Christians live on a spiritual roller coaster—on again, off again, trying hard, failing, and falling away.
In his book The Life You’ve Always Wanted, John Ortberg writes brilliant insights on trying versus training. Trying is ineffective over the long haul. If I told you right now, “Let’s go run a marathon,” most of us couldn’t do it no matter how hard we tried. Trying really hard in the moment will not get you across 26.2 miles. But if we committed to a training plan for an entire year, could many of us do it? Yes. Because training works where trying fails. We overestimate what we can do through trying, and we underestimate what can be accomplished through training.
Dallas Willard defined spiritual training like this: spiritual training is arranging our lives around those practices and disciplines that enable us to do what we cannot do by sheer willpower alone. You identify where you are, where you want to be in Christ, and you intentionally engage in practices by God’s grace to grow.
We do this with everything else in life. If you buy golf clubs and you’re terrible, you don’t just try harder during a round; you go to the driving range, practice your short game, and learn how to putt. When you start a new job, you learn the systems and work at it until you become proficient. Paul is saying you will not drift into godliness simply by trying; you must train yourself for godliness. And that means you have to care.
The Goal of Spiritual Training
Many people have an immediate aversion to words like “discipline” or “training.” We think of giving up our favorite foods and sweating on a treadmill. But the key to training is the goal: what are you training for?
If you ask me to train for a marathon, I have zero interest—I’m built like a Clydesdale, and God did not design me for distance running. But if you tell me we’re training to find the best pizza, brew the ultimate cup of coffee, or enter a pie-eating contest, I am fully on board. The value of the training depends on the reward at the end.
What is the end goal of spiritual training? It is an abiding relationship with the living Christ. It is enjoying His presence, delighting in His easy yoke, and experiencing the fullness of life in His kingdom. As the psalmist declared:
Psalms 16:11 (NASB)
You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.
In His presence is fullness of joy, and at His right hand are pleasures forevermore. How much better is that than a great pizza or a cup of coffee? The goal of spiritual training is not mere morality; morality is simply the overflow of an intimate, abiding relationship with Jesus Christ, where you know you are fully loved, fully forgiven, and fully accepted.
Furthermore, the fuel for this training is not just your own energy. God is already at work within you. Scripture tells us that you are predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ.
Romans 8:29 (NASB)
For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined [to become] conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;
Paul assures us that He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.
Philippians 1:6 (NASB)
[For I am] confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.
God is actively at work within you, giving you both the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.
Philippians 2:13 (NASB)
for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for [His] good pleasure.
And Paul prayed for the Thessalonians:
1 Thessalonians 5:23 (NASB)
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is already working in your life. When you get off the religious treadmill—realizing that simply doing more, reading more, or giving more won’t make you like Jesus, but will only make you religious—you discover the freedom of partnering with the Holy Spirit.
This training holds promise for this life and the life to come. Life lived in relationship with Jesus is flat-out better today, and it prepares us for glory, where we will stand in the ever-increasing joy of God forever.
Laboring and Striving in God’s Power
Paul writes in verses nine and ten:
1 Timothy 4:9-10 (NASB)
It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers.
Paul says this is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance: don’t waste your life on nonsense, fables, and internet theories that will never bring joy. Train yourself for godliness.
Notice the words Paul uses: “we labor and strive.” Spiritual growth is not leaning on a shovel and praying for a hole. Paul told the Philippians to work out their salvation with fear and trembling, immediately adding that God is the one working in them.
Philippians 2:12-13 (NASB)
So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for [His] good pleasure.
Spiritual training is a divine partnership. It isn’t spiritual neutral where you just sit back passively. It is sensing what the Spirit is doing, recognizing your blind spots, and investing your time, energy, and effort in cooperation with God’s grace.
Paul described his ministry in Colossians:
Colossians 1:28-29 (NASB)
We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.
He laboriously strove according to God’s power working within him. He said in Philippians:
Philippians 3:13-14 (NASB)
Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of [it] yet; but one thing [I do]: forgetting what [lies] behind and reaching forward to what [lies] ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
He pressed on toward the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Paul notes that God is the “Savior of all men, especially of believers.” Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient for all, but efficient only for those who place their personal faith in Him. The gospel is freely offered to everyone, and when you believe, you appropriate the finished work of Jesus.
Paul then charges Timothy in verses 11 and 12:
1 Timothy 4:11-12 (NASB)
Prescribe and teach these things. Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but [rather] in speech, conduct, love, faith [and] purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.
In the ancient Roman world, if you didn’t have gray hair, people assumed you didn’t know anything. Yet Timothy was pastoring a major, influential church. Paul tells him not to let anyone look down on his youth, but to set an example in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity. Let the Word do a work in your own heart first, and then export it.
Paul said elsewhere:
1 Corinthians 11:1 (NASB)
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.
Timothy was called to do the exact same thing: follow me as I follow Christ.
Understanding and Developing Your Spiritual Gifts
Paul continues in verses 13 and 14:
1 Timothy 4:13-14 (NASB)
Until I come, give attention to the [public] reading [of Scripture], to exhortation and teaching. Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery.
Paul tells him to prioritize the public reading of Scripture, exhortation, and teaching, and not to neglect his spiritual gift.
Let’s take a moment to look at what the Bible teaches about spiritual gifts, because there is often confusion here.
First, every believer who trusts in Christ is sealed with the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 1:13 (NASB)
In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation– having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
Second, every believer has been given at least one spiritual gift by the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 12:11 (NASB)
But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.
Third, spiritual gifts are given for the common good of the body, not for self-edification.
1 Corinthians 12:7 (NASB)
But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
Fourth, no single gift is given to every person.
1 Corinthians 12:29-30 (NASB)
All are not apostles, are they? All are not prophets, are they? All are not teachers, are they? All are not [workers of] miracles, are they? All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they?
Fifth, no single person possesses every gift. God arranged the body with diverse members so that we would need one another.
1 Corinthians 12:18-20 (NASB)
But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. If they were all one member, where would the body be? But now there are many members, but one body.
Sixth, every believer is called to discover and develop their gifts.
1 Corinthians 12:1 (NASB)
Now concerning spiritual [gifts], brethren, I do not want you to be unaware.
1 Corinthians 14:1 (NASB)
Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual [gifts], but especially that you may prophesy.
You can study the key passages on spiritual gifts in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4:11-13.
Romans 12:6-8 (NASB)
Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, [each of us is to exercise them accordingly]: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Ephesians 4:11-13 (NASB)
And He gave some [as] apostles, and some [as] prophets, and some [as] evangelists, and some [as] pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
In 1 Peter 4, Peter summarizes spiritual gifts into two broad categories:
1 Peter 4:10-11 (NASB)
As each one has received a [special] gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, [is to do so] as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves [is to do] [so] as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
He divides them into speaking gifts—such as evangelism, teaching, leadership, and exhortation—and serving gifts—such as service, giving, mercy, and faith.
Paul tells Timothy:
1 Timothy 4:14-15 (NASB)
Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. Take pains with these things; be [absorbed] in them, so that your progress will be evident to all.
He says to be absorbed in these things so that your progress will be evident to all. Not only should you know your gifts, but you should practice and get better at using them.
How do you know what your gifts are? You don’t necessarily need a complicated test. Start by process of elimination. Look at the biblical lists and cross off what clearly isn’t you. Then ask: What gives me the greatest joy in serving others? When you operate in your spiritual gifting, you will experience capacity and deep delight. If you aren’t sure, ask trusted believers who know you well. If I told my wife I thought I had the spiritual gift of mercy, she would laugh out loud—that is not my gift. But leadership and teaching? Absolutely.
Joy comes through service, especially when serving in alignment with how God wired you. If you dislike working with small children and lack the patience for it, please stay out of the nursery! But thank God for those in our church who hold babies and weep with joy because they know God made them for that ministry.
We talk at The Well about living on purpose. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. We love to quote Ephesians 2:8-9—that we are saved by grace through faith, not by works—but we cannot forget verse 10:
Ephesians 2:8-10 (NASB)
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, [it is] the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
You are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works that He prepared beforehand for you to walk in.
Pay Close Attention
Paul summarizes this entire passage in verse 16:
1 Timothy 4:16 (NASB)
Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.
Why does Paul say to pay close attention to yourself first, and then to your teaching? Because if it ain’t working at home, don’t export it! It doesn’t matter how gifted a communicator you are; if the gospel is not transforming your own character, you have nothing credible to say.
Paul says that by persevering in these things, you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you. That word for salvation (sozo) carries a rich meaning: you will be preserved from the empty, wasted life of chasing cultural nonsense, and your authentic life and teaching will be used by God to draw others to saving faith in Jesus Christ.
As we close, consider two questions:
First, what does spiritual training look like in your life right now? Where do you want to be in your relationship with the Lord, and what intentional steps is the Holy Spirit prompting you to take?
Second, what are your spiritual gifts? If you are a follower of Jesus, you have them. Try serving in different areas, see where God brings fruit and joy, and invest in developing those gifts.
The beauty of the church is that we are all completely different, yet under the headship of Jesus, we share a supernatural unity. There is nothing else like the body of Christ in all the world.
Let’s pray together.
Father, thank You for Your Word. Thank You for the clear call to train ourselves for godliness through the power of Your Holy Spirit. Thank You for entrusting each believer with spiritual gifts to build up the body. Lord, we want what we say with our mouths to be amplified by who we are on the inside. If there is any sin or hypocrisy in our lives that discredits the gospel, convict us. As we come before You in confession, grant us the assurance of Your complete forgiveness and grace. We pray all this in Jesus’ name. Amen.