Mosaic Church - At Walt Disney World

In this special installation of the Sent series, we’re reminded that Christmas Day presents a unique opportunity to enjoy the wonder of Jesus’ coming, sent to bring life where there is death, light where there is darkness, and freedom where there is bondage. We, who are awe-inspired recipients of this incredible work of God in Jesus, are compelled and sent into the world to “sing loud for all to hear” so everyone may know that the One who is good at what we needed most has come!

In the second installation of our Elf-themed Christmas series, Sent, we centered around the “weirdness” of our Sent Savior, the One who is light that came into the darkness. We may have become so acquainted with the Christmas story that we have lost our wonder at the amazing absurdity of a Savior King, born in a stable. He who called those with influence to give everything up, and promised those with nothing everything. This Christmas we reflect with awe and gratitude on the beautiful absurdity of the God-man, who came as a baby to save the whole world.

Our new Christmas series, Sent, will use the iconic movie, Elf, to illustrate the wonder of what God accomplished for us in Christ. We kicked off the series today by looking at the true need of our world: not to be removed from the naughty list or to have Christmas cheer, but ultimately to be rescued from the power of sin and death. When we had no hope, Jesus was sent to and for us! He is good at overcoming death because He is life, abolishing slavery because He is freedom, and casting out darkness because He is light. So, this Christmas season and forevermore, we celebrate that Jesus alone is good at what we need most!

So as not to be tempted into pride after being instructed to “not let anyone look down on you because you are young,” Paul opens 1 Timothy 5 with a reminder for gentleness and humility when correcting others, whether they be younger or older. Paul reasons that we are all family in Christ and ought to treat one another as such. Then, in a passage that seems at first to be all about widow care, Paul gives practical guidance for leading and loving any who have true need within the family of God. If we are going to love the Church like family, we must be willing to humbly admit our own real needs in order to receive, and sacrificially lay down our own preferences in order to serve.

Paul continues to emphasize to Timothy the non-negotiable value of sound teaching always being matched with mature character. Despite what culture thought in Ephesus or even today in America, mature character isn’t ultimately marked by age or talent, it is seen in immersing ourselves in the progress of becoming more like Jesus. As we become more like Jesus, stewarding our gifts to serve others, we get to have the unfathomable privilege of joining God in His work in the world.

After Paul clarifies what Timothy is to confront in the false teachers, he then qualifies Timothy’s ability for such confrontation. Timothy was able to lovingly confront false teaching because he was trained in the sound teaching of the Spirit. If Timothy weren’t trained in truth, he would have confronted out of speculation and division. Therefore, through Paul’s writing, God’s invitation for all of us is to be a people trained and devoted to God’s truth because it is valuable for all times in all things. Jesus is worth devoting our all to because He is the only living Savior able to save anyone who puts their hope in Him.

How did false teaching and destructive leadership get into the church in Ephesus in the first place? Some might have blamed the false teachers, but Paul brings us to the real source of false teaching. Any teaching, whether explicitly evil or seemingly good; but is opposed to the teaching of the Spirit of God is actually the teaching of demons! Therefore, Paul calls us to be a people who know God’s Word well in order to discern well and live well in God’s world.

Jesus is on mission right now in all of the world through his followers to redeem unredeemed spaces. Because Jesus has asked, invited, and empowered us to join Him, we individually and collectively invest our resources, not in temporary things, but in eternal stories of gospel influence.

After calling out false and destructive leadership, Paul calls up noble and beautiful leadership. Rather than seeking authority, power, and position in the church, leaders who follow the way of Jesus should see leadership as an opportunity to serve others.

Continuing in the context of Paul writing to Timothy to correct false teachers in Ephesus, there is a further need for correction among those influenced by their false teaching. This included both men and women within the church at Ephesus. Both are called to lovingly seek the good of others, in a manner consistent with sound doctrine.