The Household of God

(1 Timothy 3:14-16 – the Household of God)

The true church of God is indeed a bulwark and pillar of truth amongst the peoples of this world. The truth cannot be found anywhere else but in Jesus Christ, and He will be found only in the true church: the household of God. (If you want a deeper understanding of what the True Church of God looks like, get the free eBook at this link).

But finding the truth of the gospel is challenging because the fullness of the truth is a great mystery. It is impossible to find the depth of the fullness of the truth because that would mean we could contain the depths of God Himself.

But by the same token, the gospel is simple otherwise no-one could be saved. The mystery of the gospel was well summed up Jerome: “The scriptures are shallow enough for a babe to come and drink without fear of drowning and deep enough for theologians to swim in without ever touching the bottom.”

Behaving in the Household of God

Let us look at this scripture before we consider the parts of it.

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 Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our religion: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (1 Timothy 3:14-16)

In the first two verses we see that Paul is giving instructions to Timothy on how to behave in the household of God.

The household of God is not a building. It is not something made of timber, bricks, stone, and mortar that is called a “church.”

The household of God is the people of God. It is the full collection of believers who come to Christ seeking salvation in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We, the church, are the people who come to Christ.

So, when Paul speaks about how to behave in the household of God, he is not talking about running up and down the aisles. He is not talking about making noise during meetings, or things to do with the physical church. He is speaking about relationships.

Behaviour that is important is how we live and relate to those around us. It is especially important how we relate to both God and the people of God.

We treat one another with respect, compassion, love, empathy, and meet together in joy and gladness as we seek the salvation in Jesus Christ. We honour and praise God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, for this is acceptable behaviour in the household of God.

And those who have knowledge of the truth, share it with those who do not, which brings us to the third verse in the quote above.

The Mystery of our Religion

The greatest mystery of Christianity is summed up in the words of Jerome above.

How is it possible that something can be so simple that a child can understand it, and yet so complex that it can baffle the most learned of scholars?

And yet, that is what Christianity is and does. The key to understanding this mystery is in grace.

The Grace of God in the Household of God

The grace of God is such that it extends across every part of the Christian faith.

We are accepted by grace. We are set free from sin through grace. We receive righteousness through grace. We are made holy through grace. And so on.

Grace is the key to understanding the mystery of how the most simple faith can be accepted alongside that of a scholar.

And that brings us to the other dimension of this mystery and how such extremes can be accepted by God: faith.

Faith

Grace and faith work hand in hand. God offers us His grace so that we can receive all of the gifts of God. We accept all of His gifts through faith.

It is written in Hebrews 11 that without faith you cannot please God. So, God’s grace is extended only to those who believe and have faith.

The solution then to the mystery is that faith is the key to receiving grace. And you don’t need the extensive knowledge of a theologian to have faith.

All we need is to believe that God exists, that Jesus came to the earth to die for our sins, and that God raised Him on the third day so that we can be set free from sin.

That’s about it. The mystery of our religion in under forty words! If a person has that amount of faith and understanding, they will be saved. Beyond that is learning how to live and walk as Christ walked, and that can take the rest of your life to work out.

And finally as we consider the last verse in this section under review, we see the mystery described.

Jesus was the one who came in the flesh to die for our sins so that we could be set free in the Spirit. It is He who is proclaimed around the world and believed upon by all who seek salvation.

The depth of the mystery is great indeed. But the fulfilling of the mystery is completed by faith, through grace, and in Jesus Christ.

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