Umuahia Diocese Knights Rededication Retreat address; Jan 25, 2019
LESSONS: Numbers 12:1-16; 2 Timothy 2:19-21; Matthew 26:36-50; Psalm 8:1-6
TEXT: 2 Timothy 2:20
But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.
INTRODUCTION: All over the Old Testament when God's people began to live in disobedience, God often threatened to judge them, such that they would become signs to the obedient ones (i.e. they become a proverb and a by-word; see Ezekiel 14:18).
So, when disobedient persons were made signs as such, it was because 1) They were judged by God; and 2) So that the obedient ones were not tempted to follow bad examples; in that case, the judgment of the disobedient became a sign to guide the obedient away from evil.
EXEGESIS: St Paul wrote our text to Timothy in the background of encouragements to obedience and warnings against disobedience.
We see illustrations made with vessels of precious metals like gold and silver, representing obedient Christians, in contrast to vessels of ignoble materials like wood and earth, representing disobedient Christians.
We see also that these two kinds of plates - the honorable and the dishonorable ones - are in the same great house, meaning the Household of Christian faith.
The implications are obvious: just like honorable vessels are used to serve only very important guests, God uses OBEDIENT and HONORABLE Christians for very important Kingdom assignments.
- On the other hand just like dishonorable vessels are used to serve only common guests, God uses disobedient and dishonorable Christians for unimportant and unenviable assignments.
The meanings of honor and dishonor here are vast, but the maximum honor is for a person's name to be written in the Book of life in heaven, but the maximum dishonor is for a person who claims to be a Christian to be found unworthy of this honor.
EXPOSITION: Apart from Christ, the most honored men in the history of the earth were the Prophets of the OT and the Disciples of Christ, to the extent they are regarded as constituting the foundations of Household of faith as mentioned in our text: 19Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone (Ephesians 2:19-20)
Now contrast these two groups of honorable men and women with these few of them, who ended up dishonored, because of blatant disobedience.
- We see in today's OT Lesson that Miriam, though called a prophetess in Exodus 15:20, she was temporarily dishonored with leprosy because of disobedience.
- We also see in today's Gospel how Judas, though an Apostle of Christ, was dishonored because he dared to betray Christ (the man who loved him most).
These are very frightening signs - that of the judgments upon Miriam and on Judas Iscariot. (When I was young I used to mistakenly assume Judas was Satan himself!)
These and other judgments in the Bible should also become Covenant signs of warning to Christians today.
- We can see that when Christians decide to become disobedient, they are setting themselves up for judgment, and to become signs of warning to honorable Christians not to follow bad examples.
APPLICATIONS: A name like Judas is not very honorable today - and there are also other dishonorable names in both Testaments; persons who otherwise should be honorable but who became dishonorable, like Philetus, Hymenaus, Alexander the Coppersmith, Demas etc. Unfortunately today some Christians - if not most Christians - wrongly assume that success (or honor) only consist through the amassment of money or material wealth. The foregoing wrong assumption is capable of bringing one to judgment, and hence becoming a negative sign to other Christians not to follow the same path.
Actually the lowest achievement of a Christian or a person is THE AMASSMENT OF FINANCIAL AND MATERIAL SUCCESS, as desirable as that may be. Christ says, "...Beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth" (Luke 12:15). Abraham was very wealthy. We can say material wealth is the earthen vessel of success [or honor].
A higher achievement than financial and material success, is INFLUENCE. Daniel and the three friends in Babylon and Medo-Persia are the greatest examples. They were so dependable and so influential; they outlived several Emperors and survived two great Empires. We can say this is the wood of success [or honor].
A higher achievement than influence, is SIGNIFICANCE. Moses is the greatest example: “And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face” (Deuteronomy 34:10). He wrote the Pentateuch [the first five books of the Bible], which are by far the most extensive and detailed single revelation of God ever recorded. Moses’ words have been regarded as God-inspired by Christians, Jews, and Muslims. No man has had greater visible significance in history. No man has had greater fame. We can say this is the silver of success [or honor].
The highest achievement than them all is A GOOD NAME. Christ is the greatest example: “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold” (Proverbs 22:1); “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:9). We can say this is the gold of success [or honor].
The contemporary tragedy is that some people who have achieved appreciable significance, appreciable influence, and whose names are appreciably honorable, still consider themselves unsuccessful because they have not yet achieved appreciable material and financial success!
- If such persons are do not have a biblically guided rethink, they may soon begin to compromise, in the attempt to catch up with the Joneses.
- They should rather recall and believe the words of Christ to them: "But make His Kingdom and righteousness your chief aim, and then these things shall all be given you in addition" (Matthew 6:33 Weymouth).
CONCLUSION: Dear people of God, Knights and Ladies, let us begin to re-order our priorities so as not to become by-words and signs of judgment. TO BECOME HONORABLE CHRISTIANS WE MUST ACHIEVE SUCCESS IN THE FOREGOING COMPREHENSIVE SENSE.
i. As we trust God for FINANCIAL AND MATERIAL SUCCESS, we should not also forget to trust Him to make us INFLUENTIAL through rejecting compromise like Daniel did.
ii. As we trust Him not to compromise, we should not also forget to trust Him to make us SIGNIFICANT through rejecting ignorance by being studious and sensitive to revelation like Moses (Acts 7:22).
iii. As we trust Him to become significant, we should not also forget to trust Him to make us a good name (a name honorable enough to be written in heaven) through developing the Christ-like obedient character.
iv. Simply put, may The Almighty God use us honorably as silver and gold, by the power of The Holy Spirit to "depart from iniquity" because we "nameth the name of Christ"; may He help us to be vessels "unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work" (2 Timothy 2:19, 21). IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN.
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