Bethany Bible Church Sunday Sermon Message July 13, 2025

1 Timothy 6:20-21

Theme: To guard the gospel entrusted to us, we must turn away from whatever distracts us from the gospel.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

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For the past several months, we have been making our way through the apostle Paul’s amazing New Testament letter of 1 Timothy. I’m convinced that it was the right portion of the Bible for us to have been studying together—especially with respect to the times in which we’re living. It’s the letter that teaches us how we’re to conduct ourselves as the household of God in the midst of the unbelieving world—and also how we’re to proclaim the gospel to the world together faithfully. It’s a letter that was written to a pastor—that is, to Timothy—who served the church in the ancient city of Ephesus. But it’s very obvious that the letter was meant to be read in front of the whole Ephesian church family. I imagine that when Timothy received it, he read it for himself first, and was deeply encouraged and exhorted by the things it said. And then, as soon as the church gathered, I imagine he read it to the congregation. God’s people would all have taken careful note of the things that were written in it. And in reading it, Timothy would have been making himself accountable to them … and they to him. Paul had started out by telling Timothy—and in the hearing of the whole church family,

As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith (1 Timothy 1:3-4).

Paul wanted Timothy to make sure that no one in the church was allowed to teach or preach anything else than the simple, straight-forward message of the gospel of God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Some folks would try to teach things other than that gospel, but Timothy was to make sure that it didn’t happen. The whole church would also have heard that command as it was read; and the individual believers in the church may even have looked around to one another, nodded, and committed themselves together to the support of their pastor in keeping it. As Timothy read further in the letter, they would have heard Paul tell him,

This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck … (vv. 18-19);

and this would have reminded them all of how authoritative that gospel is—and of how dangerous to the souls of people it would be to depart from it. This would probably have prompted the church and its pastor to pray very earnestly for one another in this work. Precious souls are at stake. And as Paul went on in his letter to describe the practical implications of the gospel for daily church life, they all would have heard him tell Timothy;

If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed (4:6).

This would have encouraged Timothy to strive more earnestly to be a good minister; and for the people of God to pray more earnestly that he would feed them well from the truths of the gospel. And they would have shared this desire together all the more as they went on to hear Paul tell them;

Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you (vv. 14-16).

I wonder how much both Timothy and the church family would have been struck by the seriousness of their conduct in the gospel when they heard what Paul wrote to their pastor in 5:21,

I charge you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing with partiality (5:21);

and I wonder how much they would have all been struck by the seriousness of the message of the gospel when they heard Paul say in 6:13-14,

I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing … (6:13-14).

So; all the way through the reading of this letter, the people of God would have heard—together with their pastor—the apostle Paul express the centrality of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the ministry of the church. It would have been clear that the mission of the church was to proclaim and live out the practical implications of this gospel—and that the ministry of Pastor Timothy was to faithfully preach it, teach it, and help the whole church to proclaim it. The precious gospel of Jesus Christ is the most important message the church can declare to this world. It alone has the power to save men and women from their sins and to completely transform their lives. And that brings us to the last portion of this letter. Timothy and the church family would probably have given special attention to these final words. And after everything else they heard in this letter, I can’t help but think that they all—both pastor and church—took them very much to heart.

O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge—by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith.

Grace be with you. Amen (6:20-21).

Do you notice those beginning words? This passage starts off with a strong interjection … “O Timothy!” That indicates Paul’s deeply emotional and passionate appeal to Pastor Timothy—telling him that protecting the gospel and preserving its integrity in this world is a matter of grave importance. Much depended on Timothy faithfully fulfilling this command! But do you also hear how this passage ends? It closes—and indeed, the whole letter closes—with the words “Grace be with you.” And did you know that, in the very best and most reliable ancient copies of this letter, the word “you” is in the plural? It should be translated as “Grace be with you all.” In other words, this passionate appeal was meant for the whole church family, as well as for Timothy, who read it to them. And do you notice what happens between the beginning and the end of this passage? It’s surprising. Timothy—and the whole church family—were urged by Paul to guard the precious gospel of Jesus Christ by making sure that they all keep far away from that which will distract them from the gospel. They must turn away from the kind of worldly debates, empty philosophies, and secular concerns that would end up turning them away from the work of the gospel. We need very much to hear that today. As Paul’s words show us, to guard the gospel entrusted to us, we—as God’s people—must turn away from whatever distracts us from the gospel.

* * * * * * * * * *

Now; as we look through this closing appeal from Paul, we find four very important things. We find a command to obey, a warning to heed, a danger to take seriously, and—at the end of it all—a very blessed outcome to expect. So; first, let’s consider …

1. THE URGENT COMMAND.

We find it in verse 20. Paul wrote—with those passionate words at the beginning—“O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust …” In the original language, the phrase “what was committed to your trust” is one word. It was originally a banking term; and it was used to describe something that is committed to someone else as a deposit for safekeeping. The apostle Paul used this same word in 2 Timothy 1:12 when—not long before he laid down his life for Jesus—he wrote,

… I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day (2 Timothy 1:12; emphasis added).

The thing in those particular words that Paul had committed to the Lord was the safekeeping of his own precious soul. He knew that the Lord would be faithful to preserve his soul unto eternal life—even though he was about to lay down his physical life on earth for the cause of the Lord He loved. That’s what he had ‘committed’ to the Lord’s safekeeping. But in the words of our passage this morning, the thing that had been committed to Timothy’s safekeeping was the life-transforming message of the gospel. It’s the same kind of ‘entrustment’ that had first been given to Paul and the apostles. As Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 2:4;

But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts (1 Thessalonians 2:4).

And now, that very same unchanging gospel had been entrusted by Paul to Pastor Timothy; and he was to faithfully guard that which had been committed to his safekeeping for the ministry of the church. When I think of this, I remember the story of something that happened early in Marilyn’s and my marriage. I’m a little ashamed to tell it. We had only recently become husband and wife; and shortly after we moved into our apartment, my mother and father gave us a key to keep for them. It was a key to their safety deposit box at the bank. They were going to be doing some traveling; and they wanted us to keep hold of an extra copy of it while they were gone. And some time later—after all their travels were over—they called and asked for the key. And I’m very embarrassed to say that we couldn’t find it. We searched all over our apartment; but had somehow misplaced it. Fortunately, they had another key. But we proved unfaithful with that which had been “committed” to us. It was an early lesson to us of how important it is to faithfully “keep” or “guard” what is entrusted to us. We were still just kids at the time, and we realized we had some growing up to do. But how do we as a church do with something infinitely more important than a key to a safety deposit box? The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most important message the world could ever hear. It saves lost human souls and brings them to heavenly glory. Do we as a church make sure that we “guard” that which has been entrusted to us by the Lord? Do I, as a pastor, make sure that I protect it from error, and defend it as I should, and preach it and teach it with accuracy and clarity? When we meet the Lord together on the day of His return, will He ask, “How did you do with the task of protecting the integrity of the precious gospel that I committed to your care? Did you make sure that you lived it faithfully and proclaimed it courageously? Did you preach it without mingling it with anything else? Did you lift it up to the world just as I gave it to you; so that people could hear it and be saved by believing it? Did you guard that precious deposit that I entrusted to your care?” This isn’t something we can do in our own power. If we trusted in ourselves and in our own abilities, we would surely misuse this deposit, or misplace it, or contaminate it by mixing it with something else. We would easily ‘lose it’—just like Marilyn and I lost that key. We need the Lord’s help with this all-important entrustment. As the apostle Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:13-14,

Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us (2 Timothy 1:13-14).

May God the Holy Spirit help us—me as a pastor, and all of us together as a church—to heed this urgent command and faithfully guard what has been committed to us by His own power!

* * * * * * * * * *

Now; this gospel isn’t just an attitude or a feeling. It’s a message that has specific content that must not be altered by or mixed up with any other message. And so, with this command to guard the gospel comes …

2. THE NEEDFUL WARNING.

In verse 20, Paul wrote to Timothy to guard what had been committed to his trust; “avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge …” In other words, he needed not only to keep a solid hold on the content of the gospel, but also to stay away from the things that would confuse, or distract from, or distort, or even replace that gospel. There were two things that Paul urged Timothy to keep away from. First, he was to stay away from what he called “profane and idle babblings”; or, as it’s translated in the New American Standard version, “worldly and empty chatter”. These would be the truly interesting kinds of worldly topics that are actually void of any spiritual benefit—the kind of things that the unbelieving world spends its time arguing about—things that end up taking our time and our attention away from the true needs of the human soul. I say this with—I hope—due caution and respect; but I believe that an inordinate attention to politics would fall into this category. It’s really rather hard to think of anything that takes up more of people’s time and attention and that generates more emotional heat—but that renders less eternal value and godly growth—than worldly politics. At the time, some political event or debate seems like the most important thing that there is to talk about … as if it’s the one thing that could solve all our problems. And then, just a few months later, it’s almost completely forgotten, and the focus is turned to some other event or debate. Now; I certainly don’t mean that, as temporary residents of this world, we shouldn’t be involved in politics. To a certain degree, it’s our Christian duty to do so. But we must not let it—or anything else of a similarly worldly nature—divide our devotion to the Lord or take away from our primary call of protecting and proclaiming the gospel. We must make sure we are intentionally “avoiding the profane and idle babblings” that characterize such distractions; only allowing ourselves to be involved with them to the degree that it’s necessary to do so—and always in such a way as to steer things right back to the gospel. Many pastors, and also many churches, have spoiled their effectiveness for the gospel by not heeding this warning. The other thing that Paul warned Timothy to keep from is what he called “contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge”. The word that Paul used is the one from which we get the word “antithesis”; and it speaks of questions or disputes or oppositions to the truth through pretended “knowledge” or “insight” or philosophical “wisdom”—all in hostile antithesis to the gospel message. The Bible teaches us that when the gospel of Jesus Christ is being attacked by an alternative philosophy, or is being distorted and manipulated by some false ideologies, we have a duty to “contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). But we must be strategic about this. We must turn away from debates that are only put forth for the sake of stirring up contention and disagreement. Most of the time, such debates are only about mere human myths and speculations; and there’s really no way to argue rationally about myths and speculations. Again, this doesn’t mean that, in genuine love for people, we don’t do our best to answer sincere questions and resolve sincere doubts about the faith. But we must not let pointless arguments and challenges take up our time and draw us away from our duty to the gospel. Some people aren’t really interested in hearing the gospel at all, but are only interested in challenging it and proposing their own alternatives to it. And the best thing to do in cases like that is to simply—in love—say “Thus says the Lord”, point to the truth of what the Bible says, and move on. In 1 Timothy 4:7, the apostle Paul told Timothy, “But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness.” In 2 Timothy 2:16, he told him, “But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness.” And in Titus 1:13-14, he told Pastor Titus to “rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth.” This is a much repeated warning. May God help us to heed it for the protection and safekeeping of the precious gospel that has been entrusted to us.

* * * * * * * * * *

And this warning isn’t just for the sake of the gospel alone. It’s also a warning that’s given for the good of our own souls. Paul went on in verse 21 to warn us of …

3. THE SPIRITUAL DANGER.

Paul’s warning to avoid those “profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge” is given because “by professing it”—that is, by “professing” or by “proclaiming” the false form of knowledge that stands in contradiction to the purity of the gospel—“some have strayed concerning the faith.” I don’t believe that you and I—dear brothers and sisters—would ever dare to think that we could involve ourselves with the moral impurities and sinful practices of this world and come away unaffected. Dabbling in the debased sins of this world—even if we thought it was just to learn from them how to understand the unbelieving world better—would without a doubt bring terrible harm to our souls and would lead us astray from the Lord. So then; how can we think that we can become experts in the world’s myths and false philosophies, or spend our time acquainting ourselves with the ill-motivated and antithetical arguments of unbelievers against the gospel, and not become just as easily affected by it? Very few people can do such things safely; and sadly, many who sincerely thought they could do so have fallen from the faith completely because of it. At the very least, it distracts us from the truth. In a couple of places in his letter, Paul makes reference to this danger. In 1 Timothy 1, he urged Timothy to stay put and not let anyone in the church family teach any other doctrine but the pure gospel; telling him to

rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth (1 Timothy 1:5-7).

And in verses 18-20, he gave a true-to-life example of the danger. He urged Timothy to keep true to his calling; having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck, of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme (vv. 18-20). I think it’s very interesting to see how Paul put this. He urged Timothy in verse 20 to literally “turn aside” from “the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge”; because if he wasn’t careful, in verse 21, those things would cause him to “turn astray” concerning the faith. “Turn away so you aren’t turned astray.” That’s the thing we must do. And may God help us to do this—not only for the sake of our own souls, but also for the sake of the purity of the ministry of the gospel that has been entrusted to our care. * * * * * * * * * * * And that leads us to notice one more thing, dear brothers and sisters. And that’s … 4. THE WORTHY OUTCOME. At the end of verse 21, Paul wrote, “Grace be with you”; or, as it would better be translated, “Grace be with you all.” In all of Paul’s letters, this is the shortest of his conclusions; but it’s loaded with significance. This conclusion was the standard kind of ‘farewell’ that Paul used in all his letters. It was part of the way he ensured that the recipients would know it was truly an authentic letter from him. As he wrote at the end of 2 Thessalonians; The salutation of Paul with my own hand, which is a sign in every epistle; so I write. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen (2 Thessalonians 3:17-19). But given the context of this whole letter, this particularly short closing is meant to point our attention powerfully to the grace of God that Paul wished to be fully experienced by all his brothers and sisters—Timothy and the church Timothy served. To experience the grace of God is to experience His full favor—free and unmerited—through faith in Jesus Christ. And to experience this grace fully would necessitate the absolute clarity and purity of the gospel of Jesus; because it’s only by faith in that gospel—the message of how Jesus, the Son of God, became one of us; how He was born into the human family through the virgin Mary; how He lived a sinless life of obedience to His Father; how He took the guilt of our sins upon Himself and paid the death penalty for us on the cross; how He was raised from the dead three days later; and how He ascended to the Father in victory, with the promise that He will return to receive to Himself all who repent of their sins and place their trust in His sacrifice—that we can experience God’s grace. It’s only by guarding the gospel by keeping true to it, and by not allowing ourselves to be caught up in anything else in our church’s ministry, that the closing words of this letter can be true for us: “Grace be with you all.” * * * * * * * * * * Dear brothers and sisters; let’s allow the message of this important letter to speak to all of us together. Please pray for me that I will faithfully proclaim and protect the message of the gospel in our church’s ministry. And I will pray for you—and also for myself—that together, we will live in the light of that gospel faithfully so that we can show it forth to the world. By the help of the Holy Spirit, let’s guard the precious power of the gospel by faithfully keeping to the gospel. AE AE