The Word Made Plain

Guest (Male): Welcome to The Word Made Plain with senior pastor Tony Clark of Calvary Chapel Newport News in Virginia. Currently, Pastor Tony is teaching a study in the book of Acts. Please open your Bible to Acts chapter 16, verses one through three.

Tony Clark: All right, let’s dive into the word of God together. Turn with me in your Bibles to the book of Acts chapter 16. We’re going to be looking at verses one to three. We are just so looking forward to the word God has to speak to us.

Father, we pray that you would open up our ears and soften our hearts so we can receive this word with meekness, Lord, which is able to save our souls. Dear God, I pray that you would build us up in the most holy faith. Lord, we pray for a prophetic word to be spoken into our hearts that you would reveal the secrets of our hearts, Lord, that we would have a will to want to obey your word in Jesus' name. Amen.

Acts chapter 16, looking at verses one to three. The title of this message is "How Far to Go." How far to go? You say, well, what do you mean? How far are you willing to go to see someone give their life to Jesus Christ? In other words, if you were the instrument God wanted to use to see your spouse, your friend, your children, your coworkers, your family member, or your neighbor, if you were the instrument God wanted to use to see them born again, what are you willing to give up if you had to give up something in order to see them saved? How far will you go? What hoops are you willing to jump through to see them saved? Oh, this is the subject of these verses here.

By way of background, remember that Paul is out on his second missionary journey to see how the churches they established were doing. We saw in the previous chapter how Paul was not with Barnabas this time around because of a heated disagreement over John Mark. So Paul took Silas, and Barnabas took his nephew John Mark. They ended up in the city of Cyprus, which was the hometown of Barnabas, and Paul took Silas and went in the opposite direction.

Now we pick it up in verse one. Look at what it says there: "Then he came to Derbe and Lystra. And behold, a certain disciple was there named Timothy, the son of a certain Jewish woman who believed, but his father was Greek." Now, it had been five years since Paul was last in the area of Derbe and Lystra. It was in Lystra that Paul healed a crippled man, and the people thought that he and Barnabas were gods. They tried to offer up sacrifices to them because of an old legend that was a part of their city's history.

When they tried to stop them and point them to the true and living God, they took Paul outside the city and nearly stoned him to death because he was the chief speaker. So here it is, five years later in this particular area. He was returning to the people who had previously stoned him, but upon his return, he found some fruit of his labors: a young man named Timothy, who was won to the faith. He was not just won to the faith, but this verse says that he was noticed as a disciple.

A disciple, by way of definition, is a follower or a student. In this case, a follower or student of Jesus Christ. We have to pause right here and search our hearts. Are you a follower or a student of Jesus Christ, or are you just an occasional churchgoer? A disciple is a student of the word of God. They do all they can to learn about Jesus Christ and follow in his steps. Does this describe your behavior? Does this describe you?

This is what Timothy was. It would seem like, just as Silas replaced Barnabas, Timothy replaced John Mark in Paul's life. Then a description of Timothy's family is also given. Now, why is this? Because it will set the stage for the next and for the rest of the verses. Timothy became like Paul's right-hand man throughout the New Testament, and Paul constantly called him "my true son in the faith," according to 1 Timothy 1 and verse two.

We are told in this verse that he was the son of a certain Jewish woman, who we know from 2 Timothy 1:5 that her name was Eunice and her mother's name was Lois. They were very instrumental in teaching little Timmy the word of God. We know this from 2 Timothy 3, verse 15, which says, "From childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise unto salvation." They understood from Proverbs 22 and verse six to "train up a child in the way that they should go, and when they're old they will not depart from it."

The question is, did it work? Oh, yes. This verse says that Timothy was a believer and a disciple of Jesus Christ. The scripture made Timothy wise unto salvation and created a hunger in him for the scriptures to the point where he became a student, a disciple of Jesus Christ, and became a big help to the Apostle Paul.

Now, that was his mother's side, but the end of verse one says that his father was Greek. The use of this imperfect tense of the verb "was" implies that Timothy's father was dead. Having a Jewish and Greek background made him perfect to do this missionary work with Paul because he would understand the Greek culture from his father's side and the Jewish customs from his mother's side.

Did you know that your family experiences and background make you perfect for what God has called you to do? Your family background, good, bad, or ugly, God has allowed you to experience them because you will be a perfect fit for the people he wants you to win to him.

Knowing this has really set me free to be me as a pastor. I don't have to try to be nor imitate someone I am not. Being a part of Calvary Chapels, I thought that I had to be like the other Calvary Chapel pastors. I began to embrace who God has made me, my background, and how God brought me and mixed that with the teaching of the word of God, and poof, out popped me. I'm okay with being who God made me to be.

Now, what I really want to know is what is this Jewish woman doing with a Greek man? It is like a believer being married to an unbeliever, something 2 Corinthians 6, verses 14 through 18 forbids. Maybe she became a believer in Jesus Christ after she had already married him. I say this because we know that when Timothy was born, they were pouring into his heart the word of God, like Deuteronomy 6, verses four through nine taught them.

Now, my question is, are you taking the time to pour the word of God into your children and grandchildren? For those children who are not doing what they're supposed to do, grandparents, I'm a grandparent now. Are you pouring the word of God into their little hearts, into their little lives? Or are you too busy scrolling through social media to do it? Or are you trying to leave it up to the church to do it? Really?

Remember that we only have them no more than, let me just say, no more than two hours a week, and that's if you're super spiritual coming on Sundays and Wednesdays. We only have them two hours. That means you and the school system, you have them the rest of the time. Take the time to help them memorize scripture like they did with Timothy because the word of God, please understand this, parents, the word of God will keep them and convict them when you are not around.

Oh, I'm telling you. I understand there's a big movement with the homeschooling movement, a little bit in this area, but throughout Virginia and especially in California, it’s real big. Homeschooling, hey, let me tell you, you pour that word into those children because they're not going to be around you all the time.

It’s the word that’s going to keep them. Not your little rules, your little man-made rules you made up that were handed down from your grandmama and granddaddy and to your parents, and now these little man-made rules. That won't keep them. The word of God is what's going to keep them when you are not around. It's going to keep them and, watch this, convict them because God's word doesn't return void. It’s going to accomplish that which it was sent out to do. You teach them to memorize scripture. That means you're memorizing it with them. You're memorizing scripture so when you're not around, that word is going to convict them. That word is going to be there when they're out there fooling around, experimenting, and trying things. That word is what's going to keep them and going to convict them.

Now, what did the people around the area think of little Timmy? Look at verse two: "He was well spoken of by the brethren who were at Lystra and Iconium." Timothy, being in his late teens or early 20s, was well spoken of by the brethren who were at Lystra and Iconium. What are the people around you saying about you? Do they speak well of you like they did Timothy? Or do they talk about your nasty attitude, or how you don't talk to anyone, or about your loose ways?

No matter what, people are saying things about us: good, bad, or ugly. We want to be well spoken of by the people around us that know us. You know why? Because ultimately, we want to win people to Christ. That's the ultimate goal of everyone who names the name of Christ, everyone who calls themselves Christians. The ultimate goal for us, we should always be looking for ways and opportunities to win people to Christ. Period.

So we want to have a good testimony among those who know us, those who are around us. Those people who knew Timothy, they spoke well of him. So Paul, the testimony of Timothy really, really impressed Paul, that this young kid, this young teenager or early 20s, was well spoken of by the people around. This impressed Paul so much that verse three says, "Paul wanted to have him go on with him."

Paul wanted him to go with him, said, "Bro, hey, I can use you. You’ll be a good bro to have around. I can pour into you." This is what we want to do as well, look for young Timothys or Tinas and pour the things of God into them. Paul said in 2 Timothy 2:2, talking to Timothy, who was at this time the pastor of the church of Ephesus, he told him, "And the things that you've heard from me among many witnesses, commit these things to faithful men who may be able to teach others also."

This is what we're called to do, pour the things of God into the next generation so they can pour it into the generation under them. Notice how Paul said, "the things you have heard from me." It’s not on the screen for you note-takers. The Greek word is *akouo*. It’s where we get our English word "acoustics." It means that which belongs to sound. The definition of that is to hear or to listen. They must listen. They must hear the things we have to say, older generation, to pour into the younger generation.

Yes, I do four services a Sunday, but I really do five because 7:00 in the morning I'm pouring into people who are in leadership positions here at the church at 7:00 in the morning. So that's 7:00 in the morning, then the four Sunday morning services. So these are the things that I am doing, pouring into the next generation or those who are in leadership positions.

But something I want you to notice. Notice he said, "the things you've heard from me among many witnesses, commit them to faithful men." We live in a generation of flakes. People are wishy-washy, flaky, sometimey, and I'm just telling the Marine Corps just ruined me. I just have very little use of flaky, wishy-washy, sometimey people. I don't do late. I don't do late. Marine Corps taught me you're one minute late, you're UA, Article 86. You can get money taken away and be in the brig for one minute late. So I don't do late. I don't do that.

This is why I'm always looking for faithful men who may be able to teach others also. I don't do flaky, I told you. I don't do sometimey. You just don't know how I'm looking to you when you come late. As you come through, I'm looking like this, and then I do this. Why are they late? Now, sometimes, you know, kids were fooling around and, you know, just life stuff. We understand that. But the Marine Corps taught me if you're on time, you're late. "Well, I'm on time, Pastor Tony." You're late to me.

So I'm looking for faithful men. People I've got that I'm looking for to pour into, some Timothys to pour into, I'm watching. I'm watching. Check them out. Are they faithful? Are they faithful? Can they come three Sundays in a row? I may have you speak next Sunday if you did that. I don't get this generation. I struggle. However, we have to look for those who are faithful.

But watch this. Every Paul needs a Timothy and every Timothy needs a Paul. So this relationship must be this way because we need to pour because here's the thing. I understand my own mortality, that I'm getting older and I won't be here forever. So I have to pour into the next generation so they can pour into the generation under them. So I've already got my eye out for some early 20s. I'm looking. It's hard to find some faithful out of that group, but I'm looking. I know it. I'm looking. I'm checking because when I got in ministry, I got saved at 19, I was in ministry at 20. So my wife always told me everyone's not like you. I understand that, but I'm looking and checking. Is there another young Tony Clark somewhere? Somebody that’s about that life, that life of God? I'm watching. I'm looking. I'm still looking.

So here it is, Paul wanted Timothy to go on with him. But here's the thing that I want you to see. This is an amazing thing. Look at the second part of verse three. I want you to see this. It says, "Paul wanted to have him go on with him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in that region, for they all knew that his father was Greek." Now, Paul took Timothy and had him circumcised. Why?

Because this verse goes on to say, "because of the Jews who were in that region." Watch this, "for they all knew that his father was Greek." See, even though Timothy's mother was Jewish, his father was Greek, making Timothy Greek in their eyes. Today, they would say Timothy was mixed. No, Timothy was Greek because his father was Greek in their eyes.

So Paul stepping in as a Jewish father and had him circumcised. It’s very obvious that this was the job of the father, but seeing that his father was Greek, his father didn't understand the Jewish customs and Jewish ways, and he definitely was not going to submit to his son being circumcised. Therefore, Timothy went uncircumcised, and the people, the Jewish people around there, they knew that.

Therefore, in order for Timothy to have a ministry among the Jews, Paul stepping in as a father had Timothy circumcised so it would open the door for Timothy to minister to the Jews because as Timothy was traveling with Paul, his Greek culture could get him an audience with the Greeks. But the Jews would be like, "You know your father was Greek, don't you?" and they wouldn't hear a word he had to say. Therefore, having him circumcised, that word would spread, and therefore it would open up the door for him to minister to the Jewish people.

Now, keep in mind that the ultimate goal in life is to win people to Jesus Christ. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9 in verses 20 to 22, he says, "I have become all things to all men." Why? "That by all means I may save some. To the Jews I will act like a Jew. To the Gentiles I will become like them so that I can save some." So if circumcising Timothy opens the door for him to reach Jews, then so be it. It says a lot about Timothy even submitting to the circumcision.

Now, how far are you willing to go to reach people? Now, what this doesn't mean, in order to know what a verse means, so often you have to know what it doesn't mean. What it doesn't mean is that you violate your conscience or the word of God to reach people. For example, someone may say, "Well, all of my old friends are hanging out smoking weed, so if I want to reach them, then I need to go there and smoke weed with them." No!

First of all, if you're strong enough to be in that environment, then go and hang out. But watch this, but when they offer you some weed and alcohol and all that kind of stuff, you decline and tell them how Jesus has made you a new creation in Christ Jesus. Old things are passed away, including the weed, including the drink, and all things have become new. And I'm new in Christ Jesus. Now the door is open for the gospel.

But not everybody can go back in that environment. You go back in that environment, you slipped, and you're right along with them, puffing away and handing it and talking with that smoke in your mouth and fooling around. Not everybody can go back in that environment. Not everybody can handle that, but it is a great opportunity and a door open for you to preach the gospel.

I mean, we can't expect, let me just put away this misnomer. We can't expect for lost people to come to the church. Okay, watch this. To expect a lost person to come to church is like expecting a criminal to go to the police station. A criminal will not go to the police station. That’s not one place that is on his bucket list, is to go to the police station.

So to, yes, there are some who think that they are saved and they'll come to church and end up getting saved, yes. But it's just not natural. Unless you do some coercing and I promise you lunch or breakfast afterwards or, you know, whatever, whatever, you come. But it's not natural for just a lost person to come to church. That’s just not natural. It happens, but it’s not natural.

But these sort of situations, our job is to reach lost people. Many of you, I'm telling you, perfect opportunities is whenever I get a chance to go back to high school reunions. And I get a chance to see folks, folks knew me from high school, therefore they wonder how I got into ministry. Now that I've been in ministry 30-plus years, everybody knows already.

But some still want to know. They thought I was going to go to the major leagues in baseball, they thought ministry was not on the radar. So some do want to know, and it's great opportunities to talk. Some of you won't even go back because of mess that happened in high school 20, 30, 40 years ago. Well, so-and-so may be there, and I remember what they did to me. Cut it out! That was 40 years ago. Hopefully they were kids, little punk teenagers. We were 17, 18 years old. And you won't go back and you're missing out on some great opportunities to share Christ with some folks that are lost.

That's why I ask, what are you willing to go through? How far are you willing to go to see people saved? To see those closest to you born again. What are you willing to give up to see them saved? Time? What are you willing to give up? Paul loved his Jewish people so much that he said in Romans 9:3 that he wished that he could be accursed from Christ if it meant that they could be saved.

Let me really tell you what he's saying. In other words, he was saying, "I wish that I could go to hell if it meant that they could be saved." Wow, what a powerful statement. What are we willing to sacrifice to see people eternally saved? This is something we have to search our hearts about, something we have to ponder.

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