Sept. 21, 2025 - Proper 20 - 1 Tim. 2:1-15

Whenever we drop Paul off at school we end up passing by Eastside Baptist right on the corner before it. I have no idea how many members it has, but it has to be a lot. We’ve been around over there a time or two. They’re one of the polling sites in the area for voting. They also have small concerts from time to time at one of the buildings on the lot. Back when we first got here and were staying out in that direction we’d end up driving by Community Bible or New Life pretty regularly too. We’ve been on a couple of little vacations in the last month or two and it seems like we’ve seen quite a few churches like that, with huge, sprawling campuses, sanctuaries the size of auditoriums, lots of extra buildings for education, administration, and all manner of other things.

Almost all of the ones I’ve seen recently are non-denominational or some flavor of Baptist. I’ve never personally seen these churches in action, but everything about them is of a different character than the big Catholic and Orthodox cathedrals I’ve been to. The Catholic and Orthodox churches tend to look less modern and are generally more artistic. They hold to certain traditions about the layout of the sanctuary and the importance of certain elements within it, much like Lutheran churches tend to do. Still, even the big Catholic churches here in town are pretty small compared to churches like New Life or Eastside.

It’s easy to speculate on the differences between our congregations. Why do they grow like they do? Here in our little congregation, where we number 40 or so on a Sunday, and places like New Life that probably have hundreds, if not thousands on a Sunday.

We can say there are big differences in what we teach. It’s odd to think that God’s free gift of grace would be less appealing than what other churches teach. Works righteousness is extremely popular. The idea that we earn our forgiveness in some fashion falls in line with how pretty much everything else in life works. So it feels comfortable to people to go to a church that teaches that sort of thing. If you need to get on God’s good side, then you need to know how to do that. There are churches out there that will tell you all about that.

The prosperity gospel is also extremely popular. If someone tells me there’s a surefire way to be rich and famous, I want to hear about that. There are plenty of churches that will do just that. So if I want to be rich and famous, and who doesn’t, then having the step by step instructions to be happy is sure to draw me in.

Prosperity gospels don’t work because God never promises wealth or fame or much of any of those kinds of things in this life. Works righteousness doesn’t work either, because God never accepts anything tainted, and sin taints everything you touch. You’ll never offer God anything worthy of paying your debts and no amount of work will ever be enough.

So there are differences there in what we teach. Grace is a free gift. You didn’t do anything to deserve what Jesus did for you. He did it because he chose to, because he loves you, and for no other reason. If you want a church that feeds your worldly desires or that fits with what you know of the world, then there are all of those churches out there that will do that and Satan is more than happy to get you to go to church, as long as you’re doing it for all the wrong reasons. Plenty of people do just that.

Differences in teaching may be a part of it, but that alone doesn’t feel like enough. Those other big churches are doing all kinds of things. Some have schools. Some run full sized food pantries or homeless shelters. They’re sponsoring couples’ retreats, after school care for kids, bingo nights, concerts, coffee shops, and all sorts of other things. They’re involved in the community in any number of ways.

Lutheran Pastor Jonathan Fisk has a book entitled, “Broken.” It’s all about the various lies Satan likes to feed people. One of them is the, “If we just...” Christians look at their church and compare it with other churches, especially ones that look especially vibrant or prosperous. Their own church looks lackluster in comparison, so the question comes up, “How can we breathe life back into our church?” or some variation of that. “Look at all of the things they’re doing. They’re successful. If we want to be successful, we should probably do things like that too. If we just add a daycare facility, if we just build a homeless shelter, if we just use the same kind of music, if we just use the same style of worship...” and on and on it goes.

These ideas never work either. God doesn’t gift every church the same way. First Lutheran has the resources to run a school. Trying to mimic them would be poor stewardship on our part. The same is true of many other big building projects or programs we might consider. Bringing people in because we change our style of worship isn’t necessarily good either. Having more people in the pews shouldn’t be considered success if we have to take away from God’s Word to do it. When we measure success in worldly terms, we’re bound to fail. Even if we feel we’ve succeeded, it’s probably because we’ve given up the one thing we had that was of any lasting value.

Paul sends a couple of letters to his very good friend and companion, Timothy. Paul has already been through Ephesus and spent some time there. On his journeys he’ll often stop for a little while to try and get a church put together, but then he’s off and running again. His vocation is, first and foremost, an apostle, a missionary, sharing the Gospel with the world. He has others, whom he trusts, who come along behind him to help keep things moving after he leaves. In this case, Timothy is working to build up the church in Ephesus and help it to stabilize and grow.

A fledgling church has somewhat different needs than one that’s long established. There’s quite a lot for them to figure out, beyond the already big undertaking they have before them of learning the basics of the Christian faith. They have to determine what it means to be the church, not to mention being a church in a land that openly and violently hostile toward them. So, Paul offers Timothy some direction and guidance to put into practice in the church there in Ephesus.

He wants the church to grow and thrive. Even though the empire at large and Ephesus in particular are hostile to it, God is working and bringing salvation to the lost who live there. Paul wants that to continue. So, how do we do that? Do they need to add a day care program? Do they build a homeless shelter? Do they tailor their worship services to be more appealing?

He doesn’t discuss any of those possibilities. They aren’t the concern here. It would probably be easier if he did. If getting the church to grow was as straightforward as having a food pantry, then it would be a simple path to follow. There might be some difficulties in carrying out the plan, but at least you knew it was a plan that would work and would bring in people. But, that’s still not what interests Paul here. Those kinds of problems are easier because they are external problems, problems that we can see around us and attempt to fix. Paul isn’t addressing problems on the outside, but ones on the inside. What does your life look like?

While Paul absolutely wants the church to grow in number, he knows it is more important that the church grow in righteousness. If the church grows in number but everyone acts like the pagans all around them, then it isn’t truly a church. The first order of business then, isn’t to fix all of the problems going on around them, but they themselves who need to be fixed.

Jesus comes into the world to reveal the truth. You are not as good, as righteous, or as holy as you think or are, or as you’d like others to believe. You will not be saved by dealing with all of the problems going on around you, because the problem is right here. As recipients of the Gospel, those in the church in Ephesus have come to a knowledge of the truth. They have acknowledged their sin and their debts have been paid by Christ, who gave his own life in exchange for theirs. Now they need to learn what that salvation means in their own lives. They need to model a life that reflects God’s good order. That means doing some things that the pagans around them might think strange or even foolish.

As God saves the Israelites from slavery, claiming them as his own, he tells them that they are to be holy, just as he is holy. Their God would not act the same way as the made up gods of this world. They are to spread the message of his salvation to the world. Sharing that message is important work, but they are more than just messengers. They are recipients of his salvation. They are people who learn firsthand what is different when sin no longer rules and when death no longer terrifies.

Paul writes to Timothy, giving him some instructions on the kinds of things he should be directing his people to do. Yes, they are still concerned about the world around them. They still need to be involved in the life of their community and country. They still need to help their neighbors, but none of that will do much good if they themselves are still the very same sinners committing all of the very same sins they always have without any desire to change.

Repentance is more than just a confession of sins and a desire for mercy. It is also a request that God help you not continue committing those sins. In the same way, Christian life is more than just a declaration that you are a Christian, more than just a declaration of faith. It is a genuine desire to live according to that faith. Jesus shows us that the Law is more than just things to avoid. It also directs us to things that we should do instead.

God does want you to lead a holy life, but he also understands the realities of sin in this world. Even when we want to be holy, we fail, and often we don’t even do that much. That is why any discussion of holiness and righteousness must first begin with forgiveness. We are forgiven through Christ, whose blood covers our sins and makes us holy. Only then can we begin to live as the holy people he has made us.

ou are already claimed as God’s people and been set free from slavery to sin and death. Through baptism, you, like the Israelites have gone through the water, escaping the power of death and arrived safely on the other side. The pagans of our day and age are still doing the same things. They’re running around doing good things in order to curry favor with whatever gods or spirits they think will help them have a better life or afterlife. You’ve already been saved from all of that. As someone who has already been saved, God urges you to leave all of those ways behind. He has given you a new life and now he shows you how to live it. God does want all people to be saved, but he also wants to save you personally, to lead you on the path of righteousness that he has set you on and give you a taste of the life he has in store for you when you, like the Israelites, finally arrive in the Promised Land.