Today we will be looking at what I consider to the fundamental passage of this series and possibly the entire letter of 1 Timothy! Every verse in this passage is filled with vital truth and application. 1 Timothy 4:6-11 says, “If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things.”

The heading in my Bible concerning this passage says, “A good servant of Christ Jesus.” It’s important for us to recognize that it is not just for Elders and Deacons to serve the church. No, we are all called to serve the church. We are called to serve one another in the church, we are called to serve the lost outside the church, and most importantly we are called to serve Christ with our lives. But how are we are to be good servants of the church and of Christ if we haven’t been trained to be good servants? This of course is Paul’s concern and it is what we will focus on today.

As good servants of Christ we must be trained for godliness. We must be trained in spiritual warfare and spiritual maturity in order to successful in the mandate to reach the world with the Gospel and see lives completely transformed. In a world of darkness, lies, debauchery, disease, warfare, godlessness, paganism, and the spirit of the anti-christ, we must be trained in godliness if we are to overcome! Simply put, personal discipleship cannot be ignored if we are to be effective servants for the kingdom of God! To serve the Church and Christ effectively, intentional discipleship training must be a priority!