Godliness is beneficial for all things

1 Timothy 4 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, ² by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, ³ who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. ⁴ For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; ⁵ for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.

⁶ In pointing out these things to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the good doctrine which you have been following. ⁷ But stay away from worthless stories that are typical of old women. Rather, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness; ⁸ for bodily training is just slightly beneficial, but godliness is beneficial for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. ⁹ It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. ¹⁰ For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all mankind, especially of believers.

¹¹ Prescribe and teach these things. ¹² Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe. ¹³ Until I come, give your attention to the public reading, to exhortation, and teaching. ¹⁴ Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was granted to you through words of prophecy with the laying on of hands by the council of elders. ¹⁵ Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. ¹⁶ Pay close attention to yourself and to the teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

Often when we consider the signs of the time before Jesus returns, people think of what Jesus describes in Matthew 24:6-13: “You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains.Then they will hand you over to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. And at that time many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will rise up and mislead many people. And because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will become cold. But the one who endures to the end is the one who will be saved.” We can see the evidence of the things Jesus warned about happening in our society today. Today’s text warns of some of the more subtle signs saying: The Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer. We see today that Biblical marriage is no longer permitted to be the standard in our culture and society. Even in the church, there are some who pay attention to deceitful spirits and teachings. Again, in Matthew 24:4-5;10-12 “See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will mislead many people… And at that time many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will rise up and mislead many people. And because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will become cold.”  Those who mislead many, are those who having their own consciences seared, relax the commandments of God to suit the whims and lusts of our culture, saying that if Jesus was here today, He would embrace the immorality of our day. In Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus says: “Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them. For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  The scribes and the Pharisees held strictly to the commandments of God. No one who relaxes the commandments or teaches others that it is okay to do so, will enter the kingdom of God.

Additionally, we do see that there are those who advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. These people do not simply exercise their own choice in the matter. They want to impose their beliefs on everyone. It becomes just another matter of division among people, another reason that the love of many grows cold. The text says: Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness; for bodily training is just slightly beneficial, but godliness is beneficial for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all mankind, especially of believers. So much of our focus as a society is on bodily training. People spend hundreds and thousands of dollars on gym memberships and specialty diets for the sake of their bodies. It is good to make an effort to be healthy, but bodily training is just slightly beneficial. Eventually, even the healthiest and most fit will come to the end of their days. Godliness is beneficial for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.  If people would prioritize God and godliness, they would find that the other things that they desire would come to them also. Psalm 37:4 says: Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. In Psalm 91:14-16, God speaks through the psalmist saying: “Because he has loved Me, I will save him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name. He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. I will satisfy him with a long life, And show him My salvation.”  Jesus is the savior of all mankind, but to be saved a person must believe. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.”

Thank You heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ, my Savior and precious Holy Spirit. I believe. Amen.