Timothy gives us a wonderful example of a Christ-centered life. His life is meant to inspire and motivate us to greater godliness. Let us imitate him in so far as he imitates Jesus.
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Timothy: A Christ-Centered Life
Philippians 2:19-24
In Philippians 2, the apostle Paul has been exhorting the Philippians to a life of selfless, humble service. By living this way, Paul knows that their peace and unity together will grow stronger and stronger. But Paul knows that mere exhortation is not going to be enough. The church needs to see humble, selfless service modeled for them. They need to see selfless humility wrapped in skin. So, Paul gives them four wonderful examples of selfless service.
His first example is the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul shows how Christ humbled himself. He emptied Himself. He took the form of a bond-servant. He was made in the likeness of men. He went further and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Truly, there is no greater example of selfless humility than that of Jesus Christ. Stunning!
But some may have thought, “Yes, Jesus Christ is a wonderful example for the church to follow when it comes to selflessness and humility. However, He is in a league all his own. He was born without a sinful nature. He never gave in to temptation. He had no inherent weaknesses. I love His example, but I could never do what He did.”
So, in order to give even more help to the Philippians, Paul decided to give them some more examples. Only, this time, the examples he gives are of ordinary flesh and blood people like themselves. Paul gives himself, Timothy, and Epaphroditus as examples of humble selfless servants.
Last week, we focused on the example of Paul. His was a poured out life. He was willing to give of himself over and over until he poured out everything in death, for the sake of Christ’s church.
Today, I want to focus on Timothy with you. His was a Christ-centered life. He was the one the apostle Paul chose to visit the church at Phillipi. Paul would have wanted to go visit them himself. Remember, that he has a very special relationship with them. In 1:7 he says he has them in his heart. He says in 1:8 that God is his witness how he longs for them all with the affection of Christ Jesus. In 4:1 he says, “Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown…” Paul loves this church dearly, and they loved him fiercely in return. However, as much as Paul wanted to, he was unable to go and visit these brethren. He was chained to a Roman guard and was under house arrest. So Paul did the next best thing. He sent Timothy to visit them and find out how they were doing in the Lord.
Let me remind you about this man Timothy. Timothy grew up in Lystra or Derbe, small villages in the region of Galatia. He had a Jewish mother named Eunice and grandmother named Lois. And he had a Greek father. So, his mother and grandmother would have taught him the Scriptures, and his father would have taught him about the Greek world and Greek culture. By the time Paul meets him in Acts 16, he is a Christian, and is well spoken of by the church. There was something attractive in his life because Paul wanted him to go with him. He took him and circumcised him so that he would be able to minister to Jews. From that point on, Timothy became Paul’s helper, assistant, and protégé. Paul speaks of him as “my true child in the faith” (1Tim.1:2), and “my beloved son” (2Tim.1:2). He calls him “my fellow worker” (Rom.16:21) and “our brother” (2 Cor. 1:1). He refers to him as “God’s fellow worker in the gospel of Christ” (2 Thess.3:2). Timothy was with Paul when he was in Philippi, Berea, Thessalonica, Corinth, and he is with Paul in Rome where Paul was imprisoned. In fact, at some point, Timothy spent time in prison because of the cause of Christ – “Take notice that our brother Timothy has been released, with whom, if he comes soon, I will see you” (Heb.13:23). Paul mentions Timothy at the beginning of several epistles including 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 2 Corinthians, Colossians, and Philippians.
So, what is the historical situation?
Timothy is in Rome where Paul is imprisoned. Paul is planning on sending Timothy to the Philippians. Phil. 2:19, “But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition.” Notice how Paul states his hope. It is to send Timothy shortly, or immediately (verse 23). But his hope is in the Lord Jesus. In other words, Paul has submitted himself to the sovereignty of God in this matter. He has a hope, but in the end it is the Lord Jesus who will approve of it or deny it. And Paul is okay with that. He has learned that the only will that truly matters is God’s will.
Why does Paul want to send Timothy to the Philippians? Let’s let him tell us in verse 19, “so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition.” Paul was longing to hear a good word about the church in Philippi. He was optimistic about them. He loved them, and knew them enough to know of their true faith in Jesus Christ and their love for all the saints. Paul hopes to send Timothy so that he can be encouraged. Think of living in a world where you don’t have telephones, email, texts, Facetime or Skype. The only way you can send a letter is to send someone with the letter, and it will take seven weeks just to reach Paul, and then seven more weeks to get a reply back. Rome was only 800 miles from Philippi, but it would take more than 3 months just to send and receive a letter! Does that make you feel grateful that we can communicate so easily and quickly?
And not only did Paul want to send Timothy to them, but he has a strong hope that he will be able to come and see them himself soon. Notice verse 23, “Therefore I hope to send him immediately, as soon as I see how things go with me; and I trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly.” Paul believed that he would not be executed, but freed. However, there was always the chance that he would need to lay down his life. I think that’s why he says that he would send Timothy “as soon as I see how things go with me.” He didn’t want to send Timothy off until he knew whether he would be executed or acquitted, and then Timothy could bring the news to the Philippians. He knows that he could be executed, but he doesn’t really believe it will happen now. He says in 1:25, “Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith…” He says in verse 2:24, “I trust in the Lord that I myself will be coming shortly.”
Now, with the remainder of our message I want to show you three things about Timothy’s character that should serve as godly examples to us.
- Timothy Showed Genuine concern for Others
- Timothy Sought the Interests of Christ
- Timothy Served to further the gospel
1. Timothy Showed Genuine Concern For Others
2:20, “For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare.”
Now, there is a sense in which that is a really sad statement. Here we have the apostle, towards the end of his life, in prison, and when he looks around at the believers, there is no one that he can send to the church in Philippi that will be genuinely concerned for their welfare! You might think that there would be dozens of believers who had been converted and had matured in their faith to the point that they would gladly travel to Philippi to serve them. No doubt there were some who would have done that, but were not in Rome at the moment. We tend to think of the early church as this mighty, powerful church where there was great unity and no problems. Not! This verse proves it. The early church had its problems, just as we do. They had believers who struggled with selfishness and self-centeredness, just like we do.
However, the beautiful thing in this verse is to see that there was one man who was different. Remember, Timothy was there when Paul planted the church in Philippi in Acts 16. The church had known Timothy as long as they had known Paul. No doubt Timothy had a special love for this church, and would be genuinely concerned for their welfare.
The word for “concerned” is the same word that Paul uses in 4:6, “be anxious for nothing. In other words, “I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be anxious for your welfare. He will genuinely be burned for your welfare. Timothy cares about you. He wants you to be well, and thriving spiritually, and happy in the Lord.
We find the same idea in 1 Corinthians 4:16-17. In verse 16 Paul says, “be imitators of me.” Then in verse 17 he says, “For this reason [because I want you to imitate me] I have sent to you Timothy, who is my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, and he will remind you of my ways which are in Christ, just as I teach everywhere in every church. Timothy was of kindred spirit with Paul. They both felt the same way toward the churches that they had planted.
Brothers and sisters, are you of a kindred spirit with Paul? When you think of other believers that you know, are you genuinely concerned for their welfare? Do you want them to do well? Do you want them to grow in the Lord? Do you want them to prosper? Are you willing to make sacrifices to see that happen? Are you willing to take time out of your schedule to meet with them, and pray with them, and shoulder their burdens with them? Of course, the opposite of this character trait, is that you aren’t genuinely concerned for others. Instead, you are wrapped up in yourself, and only care about others when they can benefit you. May God free us from our self-absorption that we might truly be concerned for one another, and lay down our lives for one another!
2. Timothy Sought The Interests Of Christ
Remember Paul’s exhortation back in 2:4, “Do not merely look out for your own personal interests.” Well now in 2:21 he says, “for they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.”
Timothy was known as a Christ-centered believer. He was different from the others. They sought after their own interests. Timothy sought after the interests of Jesus Christ.
A man like Timothy was just such a man who could truly pray the Lord’s prayer. Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done. So many believers are really wanting their own name to be set apart. They want their own kingdom to come. They want their own will to be done. But not so with Timothy. He was consumed with the interests of Jesus Christ. The great burning question in Timothy’s mind was, “how can I further the interests of my master?!”
What are the interests of Christ Jesus? To put it very simply and concisely, I would say Christ’s interests are three-fold: the glory of God, the salvation of His people, and the sanctification of His saints.
Just as Jesus was consumed with the interests of His Father, so we are to be consumed with the interests of Jesus.
John 2:17, “Zeal for Your house will consume Me.”
John 4:34, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.”
John 17:4, “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.”
John 5:30, “I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”
The apostle Paul had come to the place where Christ’s interests consumed Him.
Philippians 1:21, “For to me to live is Christ…”
Acts 20:24, “But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.”
This is what Paul means at the beginning of his letters when he introduces himself as “a bond-servant of Christ Jesus.” A bond-servant seeks His master’s interests above everything else.
Just as Jesus sought the Father’s interests, and Paul sought Jesus’ interests, so too, Timothy was of kindred spirit with Paul. He also sought the interests of Jesus Christ.
Now, folks, ask yourself this morning if you are seeking after those interests. What are your greatest pursuits in life? If you are seeking after your own interests, rather than those of Christ Jesus, you need to repent. Do you desire above everything in life that you would exalt Christ’s Name, further His kingdom, and do His will? Do you want God’s glory, the salvation of God’s people, and the sanctification of God’s saints supremely? May He make it so!
3. Timothy Served To Further The Gospel
Philippians 2:22, “But you know of his proven worth, that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father.”
From Paul’s perspective Timothy served with Him. Paul did not see himself as Timothy’s lord or master or boss or dictator. Paul saw them serving together. But Timothy saw himself like Paul’s son. And in a very real sense, he was.
Timothy gave his life to serve to further the gospel. He served under Paul’s leadership. We never read of him chafing at being in a submissive role. We never read of a sharp disagreement between the two, like Paul and Barnabas had. We never even read of Timothy ever refusing to do something Paul directed him to do.
Timothy was a rare individual. He was so valuable to the apostle Paul. He had the same heart towards the church that Paul had. Paul could send him to this place or that and Timothy would go wherever he was needed. It seems that he crucified his own desires, and put the furtherance of the gospel above everything.
When Paul asked him to travel and minister with him, when he was a young man, surely Timothy had some desires of what he wanted to do with his life. But, he set his own desires aside, and took up the furtherance of the gospel as his goal. As far as we know Timothy never fell in love, got married or had kids. It appears that he set aside all the joys and pleasures of family life for the sake of the gospel. As far as we can tell, he never owned a home, but traveled incessantly, preaching the gospel and strengthening the infant churches.
It has been estimated that Paul traveled over 10,000 miles in his lifetime. If that is true, then Timothy was not far behind him. And this travel took place in a time when a man could only walk, ride a donkey or camel, or go by ship – an average of 4 or 5 miles an hour! Timothy’s life was marked by tireless service to promote, spread, and teach the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Timothy is one in a million. How many Christians can you point to who are meek, humble, submissive, and obedient to a fault? God inspired Paul to give us this picture of Timothy to inspire and motivate you. He is an example of selfless humble service.
Conclusion
So, what does the Holy Spirit want us to do in us this morning? I believe He is desiring to inspire you to greater acts of humble selfless service. He desires that you be genuinely concerned about the interests of the church. Don’t be thinking about what the church can do for you. God wants you to be thinking of what you can do for His church. Consider how you can lay down your life for others. Truly care about the well-being of your brothers and sisters, and pray that God would show you what you might do to promote their welfare.
God also wants you to be known as someone who is not always seeking their own interests, but more than anything, you are seeking the interests of Christ Jesus. When someone looks at your life they see someone who wants the Glory, and Fame, and Name, and Kingdom, and Will of Jesus Christ to be done in the earth. They are willing to lay their lives down for the sake of Jesus Christ!
God also wants you to humbly serve to further the gospel. What kind of sacrifices are you making to see that the gospel is extended to all people? Are you giving to world missions? Are you going out and sharing the gospel with lost people? Are you praying for opportunities to proclaim the gospel? Do you ache to be used of God that His gospel would triumph?
Brothers and sisters, let’s recommit ourselves today that we might be genuinely concerned for the welfare of the church, that we would seek Christ’s interests above all, and that we would serve to further His gospel in all the world. Amen? Let’s pray.
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