Title: God's Desire/1 Timothy 2:1-6
'Inshallah' is one of the most frequently heard words when traveling in the Middle East. This means 'if Allah wills'. They live by accepting everything as the will of Allah. It is accepted as a kind of fate. This has become the dominant factor in the minds of the Middle Eastern people. Then, let's think about what words are used the most by Christians. You come to realize that it is 'the will of the Lord' or 'the will of God'. However, the problem lies in the fact that the mouth says God's will, but in real life it is not at all. At the decisive moment, my feelings, my will, and my pride are even more important. You will experience that God's will is being pushed back. Here is the difference between Jesus and us. Now you will seriously have to ask yourself. What on earth is God's will for me? It is said that God works with a wish, but what is God's wish for us? Paul teaches four things in the text.
1. To pray (v. 1).
Paul teaches that God's primary desire is in prayer. As a father, there is nothing as satisfying and good as the children seeking their father. Parents feel that they cannot give because they do not have it, and that they want to give as much as they can. 1 Timothy said, "I pray with raised up holy hands" (1 Timothy 2:8). This is God's wish. In order to emphasize the importance of prayer, verse 1 says, 'First of all, I urge you.' This is meant to emphasize importance, not ordinal meaning. On the other hand, different expressions are used to emphasize the importance of prayer. We use four similar terms. Here we should be able to read how much God wants us to pray.
Then why was he told to pray for the rulers? I point out three reasons for this.
First, that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life (verse 2). When the country is in peace, the citizens can live in peace. Therefore, this is to pray for the rulers to exercise their rulership correctly and to focus on the well-being and welfare of the people. It sounds like you are praying for them, but as you find out, this is directly related to praying for me. Jeremiah said, "Jeremiah 29:7 "Pray to the LORD for the peace of the city that I have brought you into captivity, for it will be at peace, and you will be at peace." You will remember that it is never a prayer for them, but a prayer for me.
Second, this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior (v. 3). Here, 'this' refers to praying for the rulers. That's why the Joint Translation says, 'It is a good thing to pray like this, and it is to please God our Savior.' What pleases God is the reason for that.
Third, because he gave himself as a ransom for all (v. 6). That Jesus died for 'everyone', that is, for kings and those in high positions. As brothers for whom Christ died, we cannot but pray for them. In other words, rulers cannot be an exception from the object of salvation. If you look at the history of Rome, one of the factors that made Rome a Christian church was because of people in high office. Their faith in Jesus became an important factor. It was also because the slaves believed in Jesus and prayed for their master.
2. Second, God's desire is to be saved (verse 4).
He said, "God wants all people to be saved...". Who is the target of salvation? 'Everyone'. I am not the only one who is saved and becomes a child of God. All must be saved. Then God is pleased. The most dramatic example of this is the parable of the prodigal son. When the younger brother returns, the older brother is displeased. And he doesn't like to go into the house while yelling at his father. The eldest son does not know how much this breaks his father's heart. The Father's heart is for both to be saved. That makes it happy and enjoyable.
Do you still not know the will of God? here it is. It's my salvation. And it is the salvation of all. Do you know why our Lord's second coming is delayed? The answer is in the text. It is because of God's love for all people to be saved. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow in His promise, as some consider slowness, but is patient with you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance.” It's just a delay because no one wants to perish. In John 6:40 it says, "My Father's will is that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him has eternal life." It is the clear will of God to have eternal life.
3. Knowing the truth (v. 4)
“He desires to come to the knowledge of the truth.” Here we have to ask what the truth is. God is truth (Isaiah 65:16), Jesus Christ is truth (John 14:6), the Holy Spirit is truth (John 14:17), and the Word of God is truth (Psalm 119:43, 142, 160) , John 17:17). God wants us to have more in-depth knowledge as we live our faith life. Of course, the knowledge we are talking about here is not the knowledge we are talking about in textbooks. It is knowledge that comes from a relationship with God. This is complex knowledge that comes from experience. Knowing the truth is obtained as a result of believing and being saved, and it is distinct from the knowledge of Gnosticism.
Why do we need to know the truth? The reason is given in verse 5. At the beginning of verse 5, the conjunction 'gar' appears. Of course, it is omitted in the Revised Bible. Translating the original text as it is, it becomes the sentence, 'Because there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men.' This 'gar' is a conjunction that takes the preceding clause. That is, the need to know the truth is due to the uniqueness of God. The truth is not many, but only one. There is one God and one mediator. This is because if you do not know the one God rightly, you will come to know idols that you should not know.
4. Witnessing (v. 6)
'When the promise comes, I will testify.' The justice of God was accomplished by Christ through his suffering and death. In other words, he himself bore the punishment required by God's law, and by doing so, he satisfied God. He gave himself as a ransom. On the other hand, the death of Christ as a ransom must be preached to satisfy God's justice. It is God's desire for us to announce this fact, as Christ testified when the 'promises come', that is, when the 'proper time' and 'good opportunity' arrives.
The Lord did this for three years of his public life (Mark 1:38), and when he ascended to heaven, he entrusted us with this great task (Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15, Acts 1:8). When we think of the object of evangelism, we easily judge and sometimes give up, saying, 'I am that kind of person.' However, he too is an object of salvation and of evangelism. Yes, a man named John Newtn said that he would be surprised by three things when he went to heaven. First, I thought, 'Even if no one else knows, only that person will be saved.' But when I went to heaven, I said that I would be surprised because there was no such person. Second, I thought, 'I think that person will go to hell.' But he said that he would be surprised once again that he came to heaven. Third, he said that he would be surprised to see himself in heaven. We should not judge or measure by our standards. But if there is anything we have to do, 'whether we hear it or not, in season or out of season.' It is about diligently and diligently preaching regardless of the audience. It is God who brings forth fruit. He has called us today for this work.
What is the purpose of organizing each church today, men's evangelism groups, and women's evangelism groups? Is it for business, trade, social gatherings or associations? no. Of course, you need fellowship, and you need business. But that's not the top priority. Our top priority is evangelism. Doing business is also to evangelize and save souls. So, it is a women’s evangelism society and a southern evangelism society. God wants this. But how faithfully are you working as the name suggests? Priorities should be clear. Otherwise, just as the temple in Jerusalem collapsed, the church will collapse, the nation will collapse, and the family will collapse. The first will of God is to testify.
The level of prayer can be measured like this. First of all, I have to judge how many prayers for myself and prayers for others are in my prayers. We must widen the breadth of intercessory prayer for others. Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and God will give you all these things. On the other hand, we are examining how many material prayers, physical prayers, and spiritual, spiritual, and missionary prayers are in our prayers. If he is still not out of the material level, he is at the level of a child. Now, we must become people of faith that are mature in prayer.