Accessing Kingdom Wealth

1 Timothy 6:17-21

Immanuel – 2/15/26

          It was a hot day when we began our journey into 1 Timothy: August 10^th, almost 90° that day. Do you remember what 90° feels like?

Since then, we’ve had 22 weeks in 1 Timothy. What a tremendous epistle!

As you well know, the church in Ephesus was in crisis. False teachers were corrupting the gospel and people were being led astray. Paul sent Timothy to confront the false teachers and destroy their teachings. Timothy was to unwaveringly, unashamedly, proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Apostolic teaching – for the church is a pillar and the buttress of the truth.

And because the church upholds the truth, it is a community meant to embody truth, Paul gave Timothy all kinds of instruction on how to order the church. We heard Paul deliver instructions on prayer, gender roles, leadership roles, godliness, service, honor, treatment of widows, and so on. Paul wants Timothy to bring order to a church in crisis because the church is the household of the Living God, and God is a God of peace and order.

          Because the church is the household of God, a pillar and buttress of the truth (3:15), all of Paul’s instruction, his rebukes and exhortations, had one single aim: love.

          The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.                                                            -1 Timothy 1:5

          The foundational law in the church, governing everything we do, is love: love for one another and love for God. Paul sent Timothy to Ephesus to fight the good fight of faith, that love would abound in the church. The love we have for one another is only possible if we have first been gripped by, transformed by, the love of God.

          Two weeks ago, we saw that it was precisely out of love for God that Paul erupted in doxology. See it in verse 15.

          He…is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

          It would have made some sense for Paul to end his letter right there. But unsurprisingly, Paul has more to say. What is perhaps surprising is that Paul wants to squeeze in some instructions for wealthy people. And though he addresses the rich, his words contain treasure for every man and woman of God, rich or poor. All of us in the household of God need to know how to access kingdom wealth.

          Let me put that another way: If you want to be rich, extravagantly, abundantly, truly, soul-satisfyingly rich, then today’s passage is for you. I’m not talking about the prosperity gospel, but I am talking about a gospel of prosperity; where if you embrace it, you shall inherit the earth, and the kingdom of God will be yours.

          Read vs 17

          The rich in this present age. First, let’s think about what Paul means by this present age. As far as the biblical ages go, the covenantal ages, Paul is referring to the church age – the age in which we also live. From Christ’s ascension to his return is the church age. For during this age, as Paul said in 3:15, the church is the dwelling place of God, a pillar and buttress of the truth. No longer is it about a temple and a bloodline – that belonged to the former age.

          But the words “this present age” also imply that the church age is temporary. It’s passing away. It too will become a former age; for there is an age coming (as Paul implies in verse19) that will never pass away. The writer of Hebrews calls it a kingdom that cannot be shaken (Hebrews 12:28).

          Therefore, the things that make a person rich in this age are passing away. As for the rich in this age is meant to have a temporary feel. They are like leaves turning golden for the briefest moment before falling, shriveled, to the earth.

          So, Timothy, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches.

The wealth of the rich, the influence they wield, corrupts. They become haughty, thinking they have earned their position. They see themselves above others. Others might not be so consciously condescending, but self-reliance corrupts. They need help from no one. They can buy whatever they need. Their money is their refuge and strength. Who is God?

          Let me throw a different spin on this. On the whole, we Americans are regarded as the wealthiest people to have ever lived on planet earth. Consider this: even our poor have access to clean water, access to abundant food, plumbing, heating, electricity, global communication, healthcare, education, and on and on. What we consider basic standards are luxuries people of past centuries couldn’t even fathom.

          I know what it’s like to live paycheck to paycheck, to struggle to make ends meet. I never considered myself to be wealthy…until I looked abject poverty in the face. On three different continents I’ve seen it: crushing poverty that sucks away all hope. And like a fish that doesn’t know it is wet, I had no idea how wealthy I was. My relative luxury was the water I swam in. Like me, have you ever had the experience of looking in the fridge or cabinets and thinking, “There’s nothing to eat”? It means something very different when a Zambian says, “There’s nothing to eat.”

          Even if you are poor in America, in a global and historical context, you are wealthy. I spend time stressing this because I don’t want you to think you are exempt from Paul’s words. Even if you don’t feel superior, it is easy for us to think our money is ours, to become materialistic, self-indulgent, self-reliant.

          By no means am I advocating for a gospel of poverty, and neither is Paul. Rather, the rich are not to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches. Get wealthy, find happiness cannot be bought. Become rich, lose everything in poor decisions or calamity. Just as you brought nothing into the world, so you will leave with nothing. And when you die, all your reasons for arrogance and self-reliance will die with you.

          Instead of hoping in riches, or the securities and comforts that can be purchased, the rich are to place their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. God provides everything. You may use money to make a purchase, but whatever you receive comes from the hand of God. It is not something you have earned nor deserved; it is a gift from your Creator.

          See how Paul articulates it in verse 17? God richly provides us with everything to enjoy. God richly provides enjoyments. Let that astound you. Let that drop you to your knees in worship. God is working for your joy!

God is exceedingly rich in joy. He is the essence of joy, the most joyful being in existence. And this joyful God richly provides – generously, lavishly, bountifully. Rich or poor, can you see the wealth of God’s provision? Whatever you have has come from his abundance! And he is working all things together for the good of those that love him (Romans 8:28)!

          Yes, even wealth is counted as a joyful gift from God. Wealth is to be enjoyed, but not for self-indulgence. Wealth is to be enjoyed, but not hoped in. We are not to trust in riches, but in the God who is the source of all wealth and joy! True riches come from hoping in him! Like Paul wrote in verse 6,

Godliness with contentment is great gain.          -1 Timothy 6:6

          At this point, notice what it means for Paul to tell the rich to hope in God. Doesn’t that mean there is a place for the wealthy of this age in the everlasting kingdom of God?

          One day a rich young ruler approached Jesus and asked, “What must I do to gain eternal life?” Eventually, Jesus said, “Go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” The rich man walked away sad, knowing he couldn’t part with his wealth. He valued his possessions and position more than Jesus.

          Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”                                                  -Matthew 19:23-26

          Money will not open the doors of the kingdom of God. There is no reservation the wealthy have earned. In fact, on their own, Jesus indicates it is impossible for them to go to heaven. But God makes possible what is otherwise impossible! There is a place for the rich in the kingdom of God, when God causes greedy hearts to surrender, follow Jesus, and hope in Him who richly provides.

          God has flung wide the doors of his kingdom. Rich and poor have equal invitation. Inside are found the greatest treasures, none greater than God himself! When you place your hope in Jesus, trusting you heart to his care, he gives and he gives and he gives himself to you!

          True wealth is found in Jesus Christ. And with him come heaven’s treasures: love, righteousness, peace, joy, and more. Enough to satisfy your soul. The rich are to trust in him, and they shall discover true wealth – a wealth the poor often find far faster.

          After charging the rich to hope in God, Paul lists five fruits of kingdom wealth.

          Read vs 18-19

          Before I get into these, let’s be clear: Paul’s list of five fruits of kingdom wealth are not ways for rich people to earn a place in heaven. That would contradict everything he has just written. Instead, these five fruits are evidence that a rich person is not trusting in their money but abiding in Jesus and hoping in God.

          The first fruit of kingdom wealth is doing good. God is good and he does all things well. He is pro-enjoyment, desiring the joy of others to flourish. The wealthy are to act in keeping with the good will of God. Their good deeds are to bring joy to others, that joy in God may increase. Apathy and indifference have no place in the church! Doing good requires intentionality. Those who do the good will of God truly have kingdom wealth.

          The second fruit of kingdom wealth is being rich in good works. This might sound redundant at first; but I assure you, Paul is not offering empty words. Be rich in good works has this meaning: Don’t let money make you feel rich. Feel rich when you abound in good deeds.

          Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, made the lame walk, fed the hungry, freed the oppressed, and so much more. Though Jesus is possessor of heaven and earth, his true wealth comes from his good works. Isn’t that why we value him, why we worship him?

          Let us find wealth in doing good to others, and point all praise to Jesus who has transformed our selfish hearts!

The third fruit of kingdom wealth is being generous. The opposite of generosity is stinginess. A rich person might do good to another, so long as it’s easy, so long as the cost doesn’t hurt. A generous person will give even if it hurts. God is so generous he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. A generous person doesn’t work in bare minimums, but to meet maximum goodness.

The fourth fruit of kingdom wealth is being ready to share – a fruit similar to generosity. Within the church, those with financial means are not to live with a closed hand. “It’s mine, I hold it tight, and to let go is to peel my fingers back.” Live with an open hand. Recognize everything in your hand has come from God anyway. Grip nothing tightly. Be ready to give whatever has been given to you – even children (but that’s an aside). Those with kingdom wealth are to live with open hands, ready to share.

          The fifth fruit of kingdom wealth, found in verse 19, is storing up treasures for themselves. I’m quite certain Paul is referencing the words of Jesus.

          “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”                    -Matthew 6:19-21

          When you store something, you remove it from one location and place it in another. It is an activity. And in storing something you preserve it, keep it for later use. Paul, and our Lord, want us to take our hearts affection off today’s transient trinkets, and place our affection on eternity’s treasures.

What have you set your heart’s affection on?

          Though we may have many earthly possessions, these are fading away while men’s souls will keep going. Personal prosperity and power are passing shadows compared to the All-powerful Possessor of heaven and earth. Our own little kingdoms mean little compared to the advancement of God’s kingdom – a glorious kingdom already here yet not fully arrived. The rich must constantly keep their hearts in check, setting our affections on Christ above all else.

          These five fruits of kingdom wealth are directed at the rich, but they are applicable for everyone in the church, possessing wealth or not. We can all do good. We can all be rich in good works. We can all be generous and ready to share, storing up treasures in heaven. Those who do these things have found true and lasting riches. Praise God, we can all access kingdom wealth through Jesus Christ!

          (Parenthesis)

          Paul is not calling for reckless giving. He does not ask everyone to sell everything and give it to the poor. He is not calling us to impoverish ourselves. God wants wealthy people to work for his kingdom, not for their own. Even Jesus and his band of disciples benefited from faithful and wealthy women supporting them (Luke 8:1-3).

(Close Parenthesis)

Even still, some might think, “Giving money away, helping others while seeing no return, what a waste. What is there to show for it?”  

          The end of verse 19 answers: you build a good foundation for the future. Sow into heavenly things, sow into lasting things, reap everlasting rewards. Do good works and generously share, taste the blessings of heaven! In this way you take hold of that which is truly life.

          The good life the world is selling is no good life at all. It’s self-indulgences are empty and they lead to destruction. The good life is found in Jesus and selflessly working for his kingdom. Such a life will never be taken from you!

          The prize of life is not won by sitting in the grandstand and watching others. Gold medals aren’t given to those cheering in front of screens. True life must be taken hold of, must be fought for. A deposit has been given, and it must be guarded!

          Read vs 20-21

          O Timothy. With his closing words, Paul swells with affection for his true child in the faith. Guard the deposit entrusted to you. This is virtually the same thing as when Paul said Fight the good fight of faith (6:12). Two weeks ago I showed you that this means, “Proclaim the gospel and uphold the purity of God’s word. Toil to cultivate God’s word in people’s hearts, and your own, that faith and love would abound.”

          Those that abandon God’s word, specifically the Apostolic message, live in contradiction to the truth. What they call knowledge is a corruption. They swerve from the faith and shipwreck their souls. Again and again in Paul’s letter to Timothy, we’ve seen how this occurs. Their teachings are demonic, flee from them! Demonic teaching oppress. Godly teachings free.

          When Paul lists the five fruits of kingdom wealth for Timothy, he is not doing it so Timothy can make sure the rich are doing good and being generous and all the rest. Timothy is not being sent to police the morality of the rich. Timothy is putting the household of God in order, creating a space for the wealthy to freely respond to the gospel in love.

          When the commands of Paul and Jesus are heard by a believing heart, they are not commands of a master driving his slaves. They are the commands of a Creator speaking to his creation. Let there be light, and there was. Let there be good works, and good works there shall be. In God’s good creation a bird ought to fly, a fish ought to swim, and new creations in Christ ought to do good and generously share and store up treasures in heaven.

          As a bird has a sky to fly in, a fish has water for swimming, Timothy is to create an environment where the wealthy can soar in their hope for God – and the poor too, and everyone in between!

          Timothy, and every pastor of the church, will create such an environment when they clear away false teachings, uphold the purity of God’s word, proclaim the gospel, and toil to cultivate God’s word in people’s hearts – and their own – that faith and love would abound.

          Grace be with you. Paul’s closing words, and Paul knows Timothy is in desperate need of grace! Grace is God’s unmerited favor towards sinners, which he freely choses to love and save - entirely apart from their works. Grace is not earned. Grace is not bought. Grace is freely given because God has chosen to lavish his love on sinners.

          Timothy’s job in Ephesus is a daunting one. It cannot be done unless God gives grace: grace to be courageous when facing foes of the faith, grace to be patient when pressed, grace to love the unlovable, grace to endure in the midst of trials, grace to be content with little or much, grace to fight the good fight of faith. When God gives grace the powers of heaven stream into our hearts.

          Grace be with you Timothy.

          Grace be with us all.

What should we know? This present age is passing away. True life is found in the age to come.

What should we believe? God works for your joy. Enjoy his provision. Hope in him rather than the things of this world.

What should we do? Birds ought to fly, fish ought to swim, we new creations in Christ ought to live with open hands, live for the good of others, eager to be generous and ready to share. In so doing we shall take hold of that which is truly life and access kingdom wealth!

Grace be with us all.