Key Verse: Verse 12 - "Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."
Key Words: but be thou an example of the believers
Not every time that you find the word example in the Bible does it carry the idea of spiritual maturity; but when Paul tells Timothy to be an example, this certainly incorporates the idea of being spiritually mature. Timothy was to be an example in six ways.
First, with his words…what he said and how he said it was important. That takes maturity.
Secondly, conversation…that’s his manner of life, how he lives: his behavior is unoffensive.
Thirdly, charity…his love for giving. Now, if you find someone who loves to give, you have found a mature believer (or at least one who is maturing).
Fourth, his spirit…that’s his attitude. Keeping a spiritual attitude while working with people really does take maturity.
Fifth, his faith…his spiritual thermostat. It tells us a lot about our spiritual maturity.
Sixth, his purity…cleanliness. Keeping ourselves unspotted from the world is certainly showing our spiritual maturity.
Charles Spurgeon once said, “A man’s life is always more forcible than his speech. When men take stock of him they reckon his deeds as dollars and his words as pennies. If his life and doctrine disagree the mass of onlookers accept his practice and reject his preaching.
That’s the reason that we must be an example of the believers in every area, not just some areas. And that, my friend, takes spiritual maturity.
What to do:
✞ Let your words and your actions show forth your maturity.
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