The Pillar and Bulwark of the Truth

1 Timothy 3:14-16
14 I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you so that, 15 if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth. 16 Without any doubt, the mystery of our religion is great: He was revealed in flesh, vindicated in spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among Gentiles, believed in throughout the world, taken up in glory.

As some of you may know I absolutely love Flannery O’Connor, that wonderful southern writer of the last century. On a shelf in my office, in one form or another, is a copy of every published work she has ever written. I guess you could say my “literary love affair” with Miss Flannery started a few years ago when a friend of mine named Lanny left a copy of The Complete Stories of Flannery O’Connor in the driver’s seat of my truck; that very night, lying in bed, I read every story Lanny had marked as his favorite, and over the next few days I had read all of her short stories (which I have read several times over since). But I found I couldn’t stop there, so I bought the two novels she wrote, The Violent Bear it Away (which I read on a plane ride to Dallas) and Wise Blood (which I started on the return trip and finished that week). I also found various compilations of her letters, lectures, and spiritual writings (Flannery was a rare southern Catholic). If there’s anything she’s written I haven’t read it’s safe to say I will one day.
When you’ve read everything an author has written you begin to notice certain patterns and differences in her works, and it should come as no surprise that there are marked differences between the fiction of Flannery O’Connor and her more personal letters and spiritual insights to her friend Betty Hester, simply designated by the letter A. Her letters are more practical, personal, and to the point, and while written with the same mastery of language as her stories there is still a directness that stands out—still the same author, just a different intent. You notice these sorts of things when you’ve read everything an author has published, and it’s no different with the authors of Scripture.
Take for instance the works of Paul. You see, to read the entire Pauline corpus (the collected letters attributed to the Apostle Paul) is to read the writings of the Church’s first real theologian. Paul’s works are filled with deep, often confusing, language about the nature of God in Christ, the condition of humankind, and the wonder of salvation. I mean just listen to his words in the third chapter of Romans: “But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith.” Did you get all of that? Great theological words from the proto-missionary Paul, but of course, there are words and phrases and ideas like this all over the Pauline epistles.
This morning, however, we’ve read from one of the few letters of Paul that breaks from type. Just as Flannery’s letters to A. are markedly different in genre from her stories, Paul’s letters to Timothy (and Titus) are different from his other epistles. In the letters to Timothy and Titus (often called the Pastorals) Paul doesn’t go to great depths explaining the vast wonders of theology: no, he gets down to the real nitty-gritty of congregational life. This is Paul the bishop, Paul the mentor, not necessarily Paul the apostle and theologian.
In the first three chapters of 1 Timothy, Paul gives very practical guidelines for the how the church in Ephesus ought to be conducted: qualifications for elders, deacons, etc. After all, Ephesus is a church in the midst of a highly-populated city with a thriving cult of the goddess Artemis, the twin sister of the god Apollo. It is a church with a history of “celebrity” pastors: Paul, Peter, and John. With such circumstance, it’s no wonder Timothy would need the guiding words of his mentor and co-laborer Paul. Then, in the three verses we’ve read this morning, Paul expresses his desire to return to Ephesus and sums up his reasons for writing this letter to Timothy. It is in these verses that I believe you will find a very direct word for our congregation this morning.
Paul says in verses 14 and 15, “I am writing these instructions to you so that, if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth.” Notice the three phrases he uses to describe the church: household of God…church of the living God…pillar and bulwark of truth. I think it’s safe to say Paul has a high view of the church. Calling the church the “household of God” speaks of more than just a building. While you may refer to this building, this room, as “God’s house”, Paul has something much deeper in mind. The term Paul uses there (*Blogger doesn't recognize my Greek font, so insert Greek for "household of God) can refer to a physical dwelling or structure, or it can refer to those who occupy such a structure. The word “household” used by most English translation captures it well; Paul isn’t referring to a physical space, but those people who make up the household of God—believers.
He goes on to call it the church of the living God, (*insert Greek for "church of the living God"). This household of God isn’t like the temple to Artemis where they worshipped an inanimate idol: this is a congregation in which God himself lives! It is language reminiscent of Peter’s confession of Christ in Matthew 16: "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” The church is meant to be a community of people thriving in the all-consuming presence of the living God! Furthermore, this sort of church upholds the truth as the pillar and bulwark of the truth. The Church—both the local congregation and the Church universal—has a purpose, and that purpose extends beyond simply offering services! The church’s existence rests in upholding the truth.
Did you notice Paul’s words in verse 16? “Without any doubt, the mystery of our religion is great: He was revealed in flesh, vindicated in spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among Gentiles, believed in throughout the world, taken up in glory.” Just when you think Paul is going to stick with practical words about the mission of the church, he slips into his old habit of writing deep theology. Actually, what Paul has done here is clarify what he means by “the truth.” Paul even gives a quick jab to the Artemis cult there in Ephesus: they had a popular confession claiming “Great is Artemis” or “Great is Artemis,” so Paul turns those words in a subtle way by claiming that “the mystery of our religion is great.” Perhaps Paul is quoting from an early Christian hymn which speaks of the universal nature of the truth of the gospel, spanning flesh and spirit, angels and the nations, and even this world and glory. There is nothing outside the scope of the truth the Church is called to uphold.
So what does it look like to be a “pillar and bulwark of the truth”? I suppose Paul and those first century Christians may have had a different definition than most churchgoers these days. I suppose it would look strange to those first Christians if they were to join us for worship this morning. I can imagine they would wonder why we bothered tying knots around our necks, or why we are meeting in some building that isn’t one of our homes. Perhaps they’d find the projector and screen more than just a little strange, along with the hymns we sing—not to mention the language we speak! But I wonder if they’d still recognize us as brothers and sisters meeting for the worship of God and the upholding of the truth of the gospel? Would they still be able to see the gospel in us despite the difference of time, culture, and language? Are we a pillar and bulwark of the truth?
Why do we do what we do as Christ’s church, as a local body of believers? Do we hold services on Sundays out of obligation to some tradition that was established before we were born? Do we gather together for prayer on Wednesdays simply because, well, we always have? What about Sunday School; why do we have Sunday School? These are the questions we need to ask ourselves every so often to be sure we’re true to the calling of Christ on our lives as a congregation. Why do we do what we do? Well, if we answer that question with any other response aside from the will of God, then we need to refocus our efforts. Are we, the people of Fairview Heights Northside Baptist Church, a household of God, a collected gathering of believers seeking to do the will of God? Are we a church of the living God living in the real presence of the one true God? Are we a pillar and bulwark of the truth, seeking with all that we do to uphold the gospel and proclaim the reality of Christ to our neighbors?
Let me challenge you, all of you, this morning. If you’ve been a part of this congregation and simply going with the flow, allowing the monotony of obligation propel you towards a state of spiritual apathy, it’s time to ask yourself why you do what you do as a part of this church. If you show up on Sunday mornings, evening, or Wednesdays because you expect to be served rather than to serve, then it’s time to ask if you’re being a true part of the household of God. Each and every one of us who claims to be members of this church are called to uphold the truth of Christ in all that we do, most of all in what we do as a congregation.
So won’t you join me in seeking the will of God as we pursue the kingdom’s work together? Won’t you join with me in this time of invitation to bind our hearts together in prayer for our church as we seek to minister to those in need? Will those of you who are not members of this congregation join us in the work of Christ’s Church this morning? Won’t you join me in this time now as we are called together to be a pillar and bulwark of truth?
Let us pray…