The Message, September 28, 2025: "The Pursuit of Godliness," 1 Timothy 6:6-19

Author: Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
October 01, 2025

 

“The Pursuit of Godliness”
A Message by Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
1 Timothy 6:6-19

            The pursuit of godliness. It sounds a bit pretentious, does it not?

            “Hey, Scott, would you like to go grab a cup of coffee?”
            “No thank you. I am pursuing godliness.”
            “How about a movie? Or a show?”
            “No thanks … godliness.”

            Of course, I am exaggerating here. But the point is that anything done to such an extreme that it distracts us from pursuing God’s Way is something to be avoided. Yes, even godliness, if the pursuit has the wrong motivation.

            But I am getting way ahead of myself. Let us back up a bit.

            This letter was written to leaders of the early Christian community at the end of the first century or the beginning of the second century. As we have noted previously, the church was in its infancy. They were still trying to find their way. Those early leaders did not have shelves full of Bible commentaries and theological journals to guide them in their ministry. If we were to describe this period of the development and advancement of the early church in human development terms, we might describe it as the “Terrible Twos.”

            You parents understand the reference. Young children finding their way in the world and being very clear about what they want. “I want! I want! No! No!” They were like young children making mistakes as they learned, and grew, and developed.

            Those early Christian communities relied upon the words of Jesus, the teaching and leadership of Paul, as well as the pastoral letters written by Paul to help them find their foundation. These letters were intended to help people like Timothy and Titus, and in turn, help their communities.

            And as is the case in most of these letters, they addressed some very specific concerns. The verses just prior to this passage that open chapter six addressed the very serious concerns of false teachers and false teaching.

            I do not want to dig too deeply into this, but I do think that it is important to understand the context and the situation that our passage addressed.

            The previous verses of the letter did not say specifically what the false teaching was, rather it addressed the false teachers themselves. They addressed the characteristics of the false teachers and the impact that they were having on the community.

            The false teachers were hypocrites. They did not apply godly teaching to themselves. They were arrogant, inflated with pride. They were teachers without understanding. They felt no need to study and were addicted to speculations and battles with words. And the consequences were that they became sources of envy and strife. They exchanged insults and shared evil suspicions which created division and resulted in altercations with others. And if all of that was not of concern enough, some of the “teachers” believed that their practice of religion was for making personal gain or profit.

            That is why the author of the letter focused upon the pursuit of wealth in the verses that we read this morning. We know that there is a pantheon of things that tempt us, and distract us, and lure us away from God’s Way, but the pursuit of wealth by false teachers was the issue that needed to be addressed in this pastoral letter.

            Now, you may be thinking, “Well, Scott, I am not a false teacher of the Word, so we are all good here, right? Let’s get to coffee hour!”

            Well … not quite yet. Let us look at what these verses can mean for us.

            Being a prideful and arrogant hypocrite is still a category that any of us could fall into. But let us look at those verses that help us understand what it is that we should be pursuing.

            First of all, think of an animal or creature that terrifies you … a lion, a bear, a snake or a spider … then imagine that those who are greedy, arrogant, prideful hypocrites are akin to that creature. We should do everything that we can to run away from them; get as far away as possible.

            And then let us consider that which we should pursue. Think of someone, or something that you love … that you adore. Think of someone, or something, for whom your heart longs. That is how we should think of those virtues that we should pursue. These are not habits or hobbies that we should dabble in from time to time. Rather, they are to be our hearts’ desire.

            The author of the letter tells us that practicing religion and teaching falsely in order for personal gain is contradictory to the Way of God. He began our verses for this morning saying, “there is great gain in godliness combined with contentment.” We have come back to where we began … godliness. But not godliness that is haughty, or arrogant, or self-serving, because that would not be genuine godliness, or authentic godliness. We are to pursue godliness combined with contentment.

            I would like for you to ponder that word for a moment. What does contentment mean? What does it mean to you? Does it give you a sense of peace? Does it allow the stress or anxiety that you experience slip away. Does contentment fill you with a sense of calm?

            In the context of this letter, contentment means “self-sufficiency.” It means having a mind and soul that is completely independent of external or outward things. It refers to “a happiness that is completely contained within oneself.”

            In one of the commentaries that I read this week, I came across this phrase, “the Christian disentanglement of the heart.” It is the mind, the soul, the heart that has learned to appreciate the moral beauty of life, both with regard to God and with humanity.

            First century Greek philosophy characterized contentment as an attitude that cherished simplicity and a life lived in acceptance of the hand that Nature or fortune had dealt.

            All of that is to say that possessing a sense of contentment allows us the freedom to pursue those virtues that are godly, rather than always chasing after, grabbing for, something more. Contentment means being satisfied with what you have rather than desiring after that which you do not have. Christian contentment finds value in … finds great gain in … our relationships with God, with Jesus Christ, and with one another.

            Pursuing those temptations and distractions that are not God’s way may cause us to wander away from our faith. Therefore, we are to be determined and disciplined and intentional in the practice of our faith. The author called Timothy “man of God.” The phrase carried a special significance. It was not phrase that was used lightly. “Man of God” or “Person of God” were phrases that referred to that ancient Hebrew title for someone who was a prophet or who was lifted up by God for a special purpose. “But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.” (1 Timothy 6:11)

            You may have a little difficulty seeing yourself as “Man of God,” or “Woman of God,” or “Child of God.” You may have difficulty thinking of yourself as someone who has been lifted up by God and given a special purpose for your life. Sometimes it can be hard to imagine or believe that God could use “someone like me.” But God does and God will. Yes, Child of God … God calls YOU!

            As we entered into the doors of this sanctuary this morning, we did not leave the world behind. It is still out there. It is still needing God. It is still needing US … needing me and needing you.

            We can look at the world and see the pain and damage and evil that greed and avarice and gluttony and selfishness have wrought. We can see the horrors of death and violence and suffering. And we can see the need for godliness. We can see the need for righteousness. We can see the need for faith and love and patience. We can see the need for grace and mercy. We can see the need.

            The righteous person upholds their responsibilities toward God and their fellow humans.
            The faithful person is one that is loyal to God in all circumstances, good and bad, beautiful and traumatic.
            The person with endurance … or patience … is one that is constant in their faith and piety in spite of adversity. They are not conquered or defeated by adversity.
            The gentle person is one that does not flash with anger. They are those who possess a spirit which forgives rather than holds grudges. They are those who are humble and feel honored to be called by God. They are those who treat others generously with courtesy and dignity and respect.
            The person that possesses agape love is one who can never forget all that God has done for them and offers the same selflessness to others.

            Children of God, created by God, called by God this is the Way of God. The pursuit of godliness says that this is our deepest desire. This is the manner in which our lives reach their perfection or fulfilment in God and for God.

            Stop chasing after those things that take your attention away from those things that truly matter in our lives. That chase only results in disappointment and resentment and bitterness.

            Instead, pursue that which is godly. Pursue that which builds relationships and community. Pursue that which brings peace and tranquility.
            Do good … not for show, or for accolades or applause. Do good for the sake of doing good, nothing more.
            Be humble, and patient, and generous in all things.
            Center our hearts and lives around God.

            Breathe deeply, beloved children of God. God is with you. God is within you.
            Amen.

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