As
Paul the apostle continued giving Timothy final instructions for
himself and the church in Ephesus, he used the example of “vessels
of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth” which are
in a “great house”, and he declared some of them to be “of
honor” and “some of dishonor”. He used these
“vessels” to describe the differences between the people
within a church. In chapter two and verse twenty-one, Paul told
Timothy how to insure that he would be a “vessel unto honor”
where we read:
If
a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto
honor, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and
prepared unto every good work.
The
verse begins, “If a man therefore purge himself from
these, he shall be a vessel unto honor,...”
Paul began with the word “if”
which is a conditional particle which means “in case or provided
that”. The idea is there is a choice to be made. Paul continued, “a
man” which refers to “any
certain or particular person” “therefore”
or “then, consequently and these being so” “purge
himself” which means “cleanse
out and clean thoroughly his own self” “from these”
which refers to the “profane and vain babblings”
and false teachings Paul referred to in previous verses, “he
shall be” or “in the future
will be or have” “a vessel”
which is the Greek word “skeuos” and literally means “utensil,
domestic gear or tackle of a ship like unto sails and ropes” and
metaphorically means “a man of quality and a chosen instrument”
“unto honor” or
“to, toward, for and among value upon which a price, deference and
reverence is placed”. This conditional phrase written by Paul is
the manner in which anyone may become a “vessel unto
honor” within the house of
God.
The
verse goes on to say, “...sanctified,
and meet for the master's use, and
prepared unto every good work.”
Paul went on to add, “sanctified”
which
means “rendered and acknowledged to be venerated, hallowed,
separated, purified and dedicated” “and
meet”
or “useful and easy to make use of” “for
the master's use”
which refers to “the master and lord of the house and in this
instance is a reference to Jesus Christ” “and
prepared”
which literally means “to make ready in advance” and
metaphorically was “drawn from the oriental custom of sending on
before kings on their journeys persons to level the roads and make
them passable” and was “to prepare the minds of men to give the
Messiah a fit reception and secure his blessings” “unto
every”
which means “each, any, all, the whole, everyone and all things”
“good work”
or “useful, salutary, pleasant,
agreeable, joyful, happy, excellent, distinguished, upright and
honorable business, employment, occupation, enterprise, undertaking
and that which one undertakes to do”. In other words, “if”
we “purge”
ourselves from the “profane
and vain babblings and false teachings” of
people we will be “honored, set apart and prepared” for
“everything” we do.
When
we take the time to think about Paul's words, we see the value in
being cleansed from the filth that can ruin our ability to be used by
God. Jesus Christ desires to use us as “vessels unto honor”,
and many times “profane and vain” pollution prohibits it.
As Christians, our desire is to be “sanctified, and useful” for
our Lord, however, impurity and defilement is within us. Let us take
time to ask the Lord to cleanse us from all things which would
inhibit us from His use, and may those around us know when we have
truly been sanctified by His Mighty Hand.
Next
time Paul tells Timothy to “flee youthful lusts”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
http://www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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