In the previous section which we looked at last week, Paul said in his admonition to Timothy that he was to be like a strong warrior, that he should be unafraid of making the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of the gospel. As a warrior for the kingdom of God, he should not shrink back from affliction, persecution or even death, because of the eternal glory that awaited him.
Today in this next passage, Paul changes analogies, saying that Timothy needed to be a workman that was not ashamed. And he uses yet another analogy, he was to be a useful vessel as opposed to a worthless vessel.
Paul is writing to Timothy, who was a sort of assistant apostle to the apostle Paul, and Timothy was to teach these principles to the local pastors of Ephesus and the surrounding region. But though it is written to pastors, it is by extension, given as well to the congregation. Because whatever standard the Lord sets for the pastor is given so that the pastor can be an example to the flock. Paul said to Timothy, “Be an example to the believers in word and conduct.” The apostle Paul said concerning himself that, “You are to follow me as I follow Christ.” So, when we talk about the standard that God has established for the pastor, we should understand that he should be the example for all the church to follow.
In this passage, Paul talks about a workman that doesn’t need to be ashamed. That’s in contrast to other church leaders such as Hymenaeus and Philetus who will be ashamed when they face the judgment. And notice in verse 14 you see the word “useless.” And in verse 21 you see the word “useful.” There’s a contrast in this text about being useless or being useful as a good faithful workman, or one that is shameful. Anyone who serves the Lord Jesus Christ I think would desire to be useful, a workman that doesn’t need to be ashamed.
What does it mean to be useful? Verse 21 says, “Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the master prepared for every good work. The word “vessel” is a household container. It refers to a pot, or a cup, a serving dish, a serving bowl. The master of the house has certain vessels that are honorable. On the other hand, there are some other vessels. They are dishonorable. Verse 20 says, “In a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor.”
Paul is giving us a picture, I believe of the church. And the Master here, in this large house, which is the church, is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. And within the church there are contrasting vessels that serve the congregation. Some of them are honorable. They are made of precious metals; they’re clean; they’re useful for every purpose.
There are others that would never be for proper food service, that are not for any clean usage. The honorable vessels are made of gold and silver. The dishonorable vessels are made of wood and earthenware, pottery. The contrast is deliberately extreme; the honorable vessels in the house were what you served the food on, and the dishonorable vessels are what you took the waste out in.
What does it mean to be a useful vessel? What is it to be a gold and silver serving dish, to serve people the bread of life? Well, if you go back to verse 21, it says there are three things that describe the useful vessel. First of all, it is sanctified. Secondly, the Master employs it for His good purposes. And thirdly, it is prepared for good works.
Now let’s go back to verse 20 and look at the analogy. A large house – this pictures the church. There are valuable, honorable vessels that are used to serve the food, but there are also the vessels which have become corrupted and are only good for common use. That this house is the church can be drawn from verse 19, where it says, “Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands.” Most all commentators think that phrase “the firm foundation of God” refers to the church. In 1 Tim.3:15 the church is called by Paul the pillar and foundation of the truth.
So, Paul gives here seven characteristics of an honorable vessel, or of an unashamed workman. And this is what we should all desire to be; unashamed, a vessel for honor, which is useful to the Lord. So seven characteristics are given here. The first one will take longer to get through, but the rest will go pretty quickly.
Number one thing that is necessary to being an unashamed workman, or honorable vessel is Biblical fidelity. Back in verse 14 we read this, “Remind them of these things” – things concerning the gospel of Jesus Christ – “and solemnly charge them in the presence of God.”
“Solemnly charge them in the presence of God” – that is to say you have an accountability to God; you are visible to God. It should be a sobering thing to realize God is watching you. And what is the charge? In chapter 4 vs 2, he states that charge to pastors in a positive sense, to preach the word of God, the truth of God. Paul charges them in the negative sense here, “Not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers.” The word “ruin,” by the way, here is the Greek word katastrophē. It is catastrophic; it is devastating; it is destructive.
What does it mean wrangling about words? To wrangle is to wrestle, it’s an argument on the strength of human wisdom, philosophy, human reason from the viewpoint of the world. The argument of the church which uses the reasoning of the world has an outcome which is always catastrophic. In contrast to that, Paul says you should accurately handle the word of truth.
Verse 15 says, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” Forget about wrangling with words of human wisdom. Instead accurately handle the Word of Truth. Paul says “Be diligent” – spoudazō in the Greek – it means to give maximum effort. The King James said, “Study to show yourself approved”. That may not be the best translation, but I do think it is applicable because if you’re going to handle accurately the word of God you must be careful to study the word. To compare scripture with scripture. To meditate on the word. We are instructed in the scriptures to meditate on the word. Paul said back in verse 7, “Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” Think on the word, meditate on it so that we interpret it and apply it correctly.
The idea presented here is not just to be a student, but to apply what you have learned and become expert in it. It’s a picture of a master workman who has perfected his craft. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who doesn’t need to be ashamed.”
Be diligent to perfect your workmanship. What is the work? It is accurately handling the Word of truth.For a pastor especially your craft is expounding the word of God. It’s understanding correctly what the Holy Spirit is indicating in His word. You know, the idea that some pastors seem to have is that they can improve upon the gospel. Really, that must be what they think because they use the word hardly at all, or at the best, they use it as a springboard to go off down some rabbit trail of their own making. But the word of God is what is powerful. The truth of God’s word is what is able to pierce the heart.
Heb 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” To borrow a phrase from Shakespeare, man’s words are "much ado about nothing.” But the word of God is able to convict, to cleanse, and to give the knowledge that leads to salvation. And so the pastor should be diligent in his study and faithful in his use of the word of God if he is to be effective and be approved by God.
You know, my goal is not to win your approval with my witticisms and articulation and oratory skills. I gave up trying to be an entertainer years ago, realizing that not only was it beyond my ability, but it was not a worthwhile goal. My goal is to win the approval of the Lord God as a faithful messenger of what He has already said in His word.
And so Paul repeats that idea verse 16 again, because we need to hear it again. “But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it leads to further ungodliness, and that kind of talk spreads like gangrene.” Worldly wisdom, twisting doctrine to be acceptable to the world, using philosophy to try to minister instead of the truth of God only leads to further ungodliness. That kind of talk, that kind of sermon, doesn’t produce sanctification, it doesn’t produce more Christlikeness in the hearer, it produces more worldliness. Worldliness is the opposite of godliness. If you preach the philosophy, the reasoning of the world, then don’t be surprised to find it produces more worldliness. It cannot produce godliness. You must teach the word of God if you expect the outcome to be godliness. If you teach the world’s doctrines, then ungodliness spreads like gangrene. In other words, it corrupts more and more until it destroys the whole body.
Paul then gives a human illustration of this type of worldly preaching, “Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus” – these were two pastors who had turned from faithfully preaching the word, and had developed a dialogue with the world, they bought into the lies of Satan. They went so far astray from the truth, that they were saying that the resurrection had already taken place, and they upset the faith of some. We’re not sure what that false doctrine entailed, but it was probably a spiritualization of the resurrection, no longer believing in a bodily resurrection. The result though was catastrophic, it upset, or better overthrew, or destroyed the faith of some of the church.
This kind of false wisdom is the opposite of the true ministers of Christ. Because verse 19 says, “Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.” So the firm foundation is the church, and God knows those who are truly His church, because they abstain from wickedness. This idea Paul is speaking of is borrowed from Numbers 16, which is about Korah’s rebellion and God’s judgment. Back in Numbers 16, judgment from God fell on those men who had rebelled against Moses’ leadership. And God’s judgment will again fall on those who rebel against His word. But God knows those who are true, faithful workmen. God knows His true and faithful ministers because they are faithful to the word, and it’s evident because they abstain from wickedness. Good behavior is always the product of good theology, but wickedness is the product of worldly philosophy masquerading as theology.
So, the call to be a vessel unto honor - useful to the Master, prepared for every good work, a workman that is unashamed - is then a call to biblical truth. And right alongside that, number two, it is a call to a pure fellowship. Verse 21 “Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.”
The things he should cleanse himself from are the dishonorable things, the common things, the unholy things, the world’s philosophy, the carnal knowledge that spreads like gangrene and causes the faith of men and women to be destroyed. In the rebellion of Korah the Lord told the Israelites to separate themselves from the wicked lest they too be destroyed. Look back at vs 20, “Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor.” So there is pure fellowship which is honorable, godly, and useful for every good work. And there is dishonorable fellowship, which is hallmarked by ungodliness and false doctrine. And they are both found in the church at large.
Jesus gave a parable about a mustard bush which is often misinterpreted, in my opinion. In Mat 13:31-32 it says Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all [other] seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR come and NEST IN ITS BRANCHES.”
The problem with most interpretations is that they confuse two different sayings about mustard seeds. In one, Jesus compares faith to the size of a mustard seed. But in this case, Jesus teaches that this mustard seed grows into something abnormal. It should produce a bush, but it produces a tree which is bigger than all the other plants, so that the birds come and nest in it’s branches. In a previous parable about the sower, Jesus likened the birds of the air to the devil and his angels. So if we are to understand this correctly, it would seem that Jesus was saying the church universal was going to grow, but the growth was going to be abnormally large and would actually give refuge to the devil and his angels, which are the ministers of false doctrine.
I think that ties in with what Paul is saying here. In a large house, God’s church, there are honorable and dishonorable vessels. The dishonorable vessels are those pastors, those teachers that have adulterated or even abandoned the truth of God’s word for the sake of the world’s acceptance and approval. But they are not approved by God. Some of you folks visiting here today are perhaps attending churches back home that have abandoned the truth of God’s word. The pastor is teaching an adulterated version of the gospel which has been sanctified by the culture of the world, rather than sanctified by the Word of God. You do not know what spirit you are partaking of. I would suggest that unless you want to become corrupted like them, and be cut off, then you get out of those churches, stop supporting those churches for the sake of fellowship with the world, and find a church where you can have pure fellowship in the truth.
The third thing Paul says is this, “If you want to be a useful vessel, if you want to be an honorable vessel, you must have not only a biblical fidelity and pure fellowship, but thirdly, a clean heart. Verse 22, “Now flee from youthful lusts.” That’s the negative. The positive is, “Pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”
Youthful lusts are not the sole property of the youth. Old people can have youthful lusts as well. Older people are just people that haven’t learned lessons that they should have learned in their youth. Lusts include all the things of this world that are in opposition to the truth of God. The desire for physical gratification, or sexual gratification, or financial gratification that the devil tells you can be found outside of the bounds that God has established for them. God gave us sex, He gives man the ability to make money, He blesses the work of our hands, He gives us things which we can enjoy. But to lust is to want more than what God has given, and use ungodly means to get such things.
Paul says run from such things. These lusts of the world are so destructive, we should run from them, the way Joseph ran from Potiphar’s wife. Don’t dare try to have God and have the world as well. Run away from the lusts of the flesh and the lusts of the world. But there are things we should run to, and that is righteousness, faith, love and peace. If we pursue those things, we will have a pure heart, a clean heart.
He says we should pursue righteousness. That means doing right according to God’s standards. Righteousness means living in harmony with God’s Law, living in obedience to His Word. The second thing we pursue is faith. Faith is trusting that God’s way is best. It’s being faithful to God. It’s being a faithful steward of what God has entrusted you with. The third thing to pursue is love, a sacrificial love for others. 1 Cor. 13 says “Love is patient, love is kind [and] is not jealous; love does not brag [and] is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong [suffered,] does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” That’s agape love. Peace means that they have made peace with God and man. They are no longer rebellious, no longer enemies of God.
And notice what he says at the end of the verse, “With all those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” That’s speaking of salvation. To call upon the Lord is to call upon Him for forgiveness, for life, for mercy, for grace, for His Spirit. David called upon the Lord in Psalm 51: “Hide Your face from my sins And blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” Those who have called on Him pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace.
Number four, if you would be an unashamed workman, a vessel fit for the Master’s use, you must have a discerning mind. And here he comes right back to the same issue again, verse 23, “Refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels.” Foolish and ignorant speculations is a description of the wisdom of the world.
1Co 1:21, 25 says “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not [come to] know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. ... 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” The foolish and ignorant speculations of false teaching, and worldly wisdom cannot produce godliness or a pure heart, but it will produce quarreling, squabbling, an impure heart, a deceived mind. Discernment is a gift of the Holy Spirit. That is the job of the Holy Spirit, to give us discernment to distinguish between truth and error. So we should pray for discernment that we may not be deceived as we study the word and fellowship in the church.
Number five, if you want to be a useful vessel, honorable, you must be characterized by a manner that is not combative or argumentative. Vs 24, ““The Lord’s bond servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged.” Foolish and ignorant speculations produce quarrels, arguments, contention. But the useful vessel, the unashamed workman must not be quarrelsome. I don’t preach the word of God to try to cause dissension or an argument, or to try to pick a fight with people. I preach the word of God to take fighting off the table. I am not the one saying a certain thing is a sin, or that we should run from certain things, or avoid certain types of people. If the Bible says it, then the Lord is saying it. Don’t shoot me, I’m just the messenger. I’m going to say what God says. I’m not making this up on my own. If you don’t like the message, your complaint shouldn’t be with me, it’s with God.
Number six is a humble spirit. Vs 25 says “with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth.” The Biblical definition of gentleness is not weakness, but meekness. Meekness is power under control. It was a word used in talking about training horses. The tremendous power of the horse that is under the control of it’s rider is said to be gentled. So it should be with us. Our message should be under the control of the Lord and given in the spirit of humility.
Humility is essential to have as you try to correct those that are in opposition to the truth. We don’t have some air of supereriority as if we earned our salvation through our piety or by our works. We are sinners saved by grace, by God’s mercy. That understanding is the basis for our humility in dealing with those who are not saved. But for the grace of God, there would I be. That’s an attitude of humility, having the heart of a servant, being concerned for other’s needs.
And then finally, number seven, seems almost counterintuitive. if you want to be a vessel unto honor, you must have a confrontive will. If you go back to verse 25, “With humility correcting those who are in opposition” – you’ve got to be willing to correct. Go over to chapter 4, verse 2, he says it again, “Reprove, rebuke, exhort.” First Timothy 3 says that the Word give by inspiration of God is profitable for instruction and correction.
Being humble, being gentle, being loving, doesn’t mean that you don’t tell the truth in regards to sin and rebellion against God. But rather we speak the truth in love. If we didn’t love you, we wouldn’t tell you the truth about sin and the wrath of God against sin. But because we love you, we must tell you the truth. But thank God the truth is an antidote to sin. The truth of the gospel is that the righteousness that is required comes through faith in Christ Jesus as a gift of God to the person who recognizes their need of it, who recognizes that they are lost, they are a sinner without hope. To that one who looks to Christ, God gives the gift of righteousness.
But it could also be applied to a believer who has fallen into some false doctrine, or some sin, and needs to be confronted with the truth so that by that truth he can come back to his senses, escape the snare of the Devil where he’s been held captive. But it doesn’t happen without confrontation.
By the way, verse 26, it says, “May come to their senses.” He uses a verb ananēphō which means to return from drunkenness, to sober up. It’s used only here in the New Testament. There’s all kinds of lies floating out around there, the lies of Satan filtered into Christianity by the dialogue that the church always wants to have with the culture. These false teachers numb the conscience, deceive the mind, paralyze the will, and cause some believers to fall into a spiritual drunkenness from which they need to be delivered because it is a snare of the Devil. And the devil tries to hold them captive, as long as he can, and render them useless. So, we need to deliver them by a confrontive will. So we are to be compassionate, a loving, and humble, yes, but we don’t back off when it comes to truth.
So you want to be an honorable vessel, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, you want to be a useful servant to the Lord? Then you need Biblical fidelity, you need pure fellowship, a clean heart, a discerning mind, a gentle manner, a humble spirit, and a confrontive will. I pray that’s your desire and the desire of all who truly know the Lord and are called to His service.
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