As believers in Christ, we need to be those who war the good warfare against any different teachings by preaching and teaching God’s New Testament economy so that we may remain in the apostles’ teaching and be preserved in the genuine church life for the fulfilment of God’s purpose. Amen!
Today there are many wars going on around the world, including the war in Ukraine and the war in Israel and the Gaza Strip, but not all wars are good warfare.
There is a warfare today that is good, for the Bible calls it the good warfare.
As believers in Christ, we want to keep the peace with all men and we take Christ as our peace.
We even allow the peace of Christ to arbitrate in our hearts so that God as peace may keep our hearts.
However, though we have peace inwardly and also outwardly with other people, we believers in Christ are involved in a fight. We are involved in the good fight of the faith.
When Paul was about to be martyred, in his last epistle, he said, I have fought the good fight. There is a good fight to be fought, and there is a good warfare to be fought.
Paul instructed and even charged his young co-worker Timothy to also fight the good fight and to war the good warfare.
We may be peaceful persons, always seeking to make peace and keep the peace, but when we love the Lord and are infused with what He is through His word, we will be one with the Lord to fight the good fight of the faith.
There are many deviations from the faith today.
Many teachings in Christianity seem to be largely accepted and welcomed, but these teachings are not in God’s word; rather, they are different teachings.
The unique teaching in the word of God is the teaching of the apostles, which is based on the teaching of the Lord Jesus.
Anything that is not according to the teaching of the apostles is a different teaching and should be rejected.
The teaching of the apostles focuses on God’s economy, His plan to dispense all that He is into man so that He may obtain the church as the Body of Christ, the fullness of Christ, for God’s corporate expression on the earth.
The teaching of the apostles is concerning Christ and the church.
Anything that does not match the teaching of the apostles is something different and, no matter how interesting it may sound, needs to be rejected and set aside.
Our fighting the good fight and warring the good warfare has to do with the teaching, for the teaching can bring in degradation, decline, and division.
War the Good Warfare by Preaching and Teaching God’s New Testament Economy in Faith
![This charge I commit to you, [my] child Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you might war the good warfare. 1 Tim. 1:18](https://i0.wp.com/www.agodman.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/This-charge-I-commit-to-you-my-child-Timothy-according-to-the-prophecies-previously-made-concerning-you-1024x1024.jpg?resize=750%2C750&ssl=1 "This charge I commit to you, [my] child Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you might war the good warfare. 1 Tim. 1:18")
The apostle Paul told Timothy that, according to the prophecies previously made concerning him, by them he might war the good warfare (1 Tim. 1:18).
He charged his young co-worker, his child in the Lord, to war the good warfare.
These prophecies made concerning Timothy were at the time he was initiated into the ministry.
Most likely Paul and the elders laid their hands on Timothy and spoke some words of prophecy concerning this young co-worker, and he received a gift, the gift of teaching others.
So Paul told him to fight the good fight, that is, war the good warfare, according to the prophecies made concerning him.
This warfare is not with flesh and blood; it is not an outward warfare, but it is a warfare by speaking God’s word.
We who have the gift of God in us, the believers in Christ, can speak the word of God and war the good warfare by preaching and teaching God’s New Testament economy in faith.
The gift we have received is the Spirit that was dispensed into us.
When we were saved, we received the gift of God into us, and now we war the good warfare by remaining in the apostles’ teaching and speaking the economy of God.
To war the good warfare is to war against the different teachings of the dissenters and carry out God’s economy (1 Tim. 1:3-4).
The decline and degradation of the church was brought in by the different teachings, the teachings that are different from God’s economy, which is in faith.
In the beginning of the church life, as seen in Acts 2:42, the saints remained and enjoyed the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles.
They continued steadfastly with one accord in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles; therefore, the Lord had a way to increase them with many people like a flock, and the word was spreading.
The teachings of the apostles are the ministry, the unique ministry.
The apostles preached and taught nothing else but Christ and the church.
They didn’t preach morality, ethics, how to raise one’s children, or how to be better workers and make more money to be prosperous.
What the apostles preached and taught was a Christ that was incarnated, crucified, resurrected, and ascended so that, as resurrection life, He may be imparted into His believers to produce the church.
In the Epistles, we see teachings concerning other things also, but the focus of the ministry of the apostles was the wonderful person of Jesus Christ and His work that issue in the church, the Body of Christ, as God’s house and His kingdom.
The focus of the ministry of the apostles is the incarnated, crucified, resurrected, ascended, and glorified Jesus Christ who is our Savior, our life, and our everything so that we may become the church as the Body of Christ, the duplication and enlargement of the all-inclusive Christ.
This is the vital focus of the New Testament revelation, and this is God’s economy.
We need to remain in the focus of the New Testament and teach this unique matter, the New Testament economy of God.
Anything else that we emphasize apart from the teaching of the apostles can lead to division and can bring in degradation.
We may have a good heart and desire to teach the saints concerning things such as the gifts of the Holy Spirit, foot-washing, head covering, the proper order in the service of the church, raising the children for the Lord, and many other things, but if our focus is not God’s economy, we may bring in degradation and decline in the church.
Throughout the centuries many were raised up and very much used by the Lord, but eventually, they taught their own thing, for they were quite smart and knowledgeable, and they thought that they can just speak these things.
May we be saved from the decline of the church by remaining in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles.
May we war the good warfare today by preaching and teaching only the economy of God according to the New Testament.
And may we stand against any different teachings, exposing them and repudiating them (1 Tim. 6:12; 2 Tim. 4:7).
On the negative side, we need to war the good warfare against the different teachings of the dissenters.
On the positive side, we war the good warfare by preaching and teaching God’s New Testament economy to unveil others to see what is in His heart, open to Him, be infused with Him, and be built up as the church, the Body of Christ, for His corporate expression on the earth.
Lord Jesus, thank You for unveiling us to see the New Testament economy of God, the unique teaching of the apostles! We want to war the good warfare today by rejecting any different teachings and focusing only on God’s New Testament economy. Amen, Lord, our focus in our preaching and teaching is Christ and the church as the center of God’s economy! We open to You, Lord, and we come to Your word to contact You and be freshly infused with You. Work Yourself into us a little more today. Keep us in the central lane of God’s economy. Save us from giving heed to any teachings that differ from the apostles’ teaching. Oh Lord Jesus, keep us in an organic union with You in our daily living. Keep us in the healthy teaching of the apostles so that we may be constituted with and speak only God’s economy. We want to war the good warfare according to God’s economy and against the different teachings for the keeping of the oneness in the church and for the church’s going on and being built up!
Today we Preach and Teach God’s Economy concerning Christ and the Church – this is to War the Good Warfare
The good warfare which we war today is according to the apostles’ ministry concerning the gospel of grace and eternal life for the glory of the blessed God (1 Tim. 1:11-16).
What a gospel we have! This gospel is of grace and eternal life, and the result is the glory of the blessed God.
We do not preach an ordinary gospel about joy, blessings, and prosperity; our gospel is not so low that we teach people to believe in Jesus so that they don’t go to hell.
Our gospel today is the gospel of grace and eternal life so that the blessed God may have an expression and be glorified and blessed.
On one hand, we need to war against the different teachings; on the other hand, we need to carry out God’s economy according to the ministry of the apostles.
What does it mean for us to war the good warfare? According to 1 Tim. 1:1-18, to war the good warfare is to teach and preach God’s economy concerning Christ and the church.
Christ is the embodiment of God; He is all-inclusive and extensive, and He is the centrality and universality of God and of the universe.
He has the first place, He has the preeminence, and He is the center of both God and man.
And this Christ wants to gain a Body, a corporate expression in the universe; this Body is the church, the fullness of Christ.
Christ is the mystery of God (Col. 4:3) and the church is the mystery of Christ (Eph. 5:32).
The major content of God’s economy is Christ and the church, the mystery of God and the mystery of Christ.
We are not here today to give others some spiritual help, to help them to be good people who have a good living; we are here to help people to know Christ as the all-inclusive One.
We are not here to help others manage their finances “for the Lord” or to raise their children “for God”; we are here to speak and preach God’s economy, and all things related to His economy.
We need to enjoy and experience the all-inclusive Christ and also help others to enjoy Him and experience Him.
What we teach is not traditional Christianity or systematic theology but the apostles’ ministry concerning Christ and the church.
Christ is the embodiment of God, the fullness of the Godhead wells bodily in Him, and we want to know Him, enjoy Him, uplift Him, and express Him.
And we don’t do this separately and individualistically; we do this together with the saints.
We are not an “organized group of Christians” but the church, the body of Christ.
If we fail to speak and preach God’s economy, dissensions come in, degradation creeps in, and we enter into a decline.
When Paul was in prison for the first time, some rose up to teach different things, and these different teachings were the seed of the church’s decline.
Things such as Judaism, Gnosticism, and asceticism sound good, and many such teachings may be based on God’s word, but they cause dissension and decline.
Throughout the centuries the church has been poisoned and corrupted by such teachings.
If today in the church life we are not on guard, such different teachings may also cause damage to the Lord’s recovery.
The different teachings are propagated in a subtle and hidden way, and they creep into the church life.
May we war the good warfare today by speaking and focusing only on God’s economy concerning Christ and the church.
May we not allow any different teachings to come in among us but rather, focus only on Christ and the church.
Lord Jesus, we want to focus only on Christ and the church in the church life today. We want to preach and teach God’s economy concerning Christ and the church, thus warring the good warfare. Hallelujah, we have been brought back to the teaching of the apostles and we can continue steadfastly in one accord in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles. Amen, Lord, we stand one with You and one with the saints. We reject any different teachings and focus only on Christ and the church for the building up of the church as the Body of Christ. We want to be on guard and watchful concerning the different teachings so that we may war the good warfare against them. Amen, Lord, have a way to gain a proper church life among us today in which we all closely follow the apostles’ teaching and remain in the unique oneness of the Body of Christ for God to gain a glorious expression among us!
Read this article in the Romanian language – citiți acest articol în limba română la următorul link, Să predicăm și să dăm ca învățătură economia lui Dumnezeu cu privire la Cristos și biserica pentru a lupta războiul bun.
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by the brothers in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of 1 Timothy, msg. 2, by Witness Lee (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Fighting the Good Fight, Finishing the Course, Keeping the Faith, and Loving the Lord’s Appearing in Order to Receive the Reward of Christ as the Crown of Righteousness (2023 ICSC), week 1, Fighting the Good Fight.
- Similar articles on this topic:
– The economy of the Triune God, a portion from, The Economy of God, Chapter 1.
– A Brief Overview of the Economy of God (Part II)—Major Steps of Christ in God’s Economy, via, Living to Him.
– The economy of God in the Holy Scriptures, article in Affirmation and Critique.
– Holding faith and a good conscience, a portion from, Life-Study of 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus and Philemon, Chapter 2, by Witness Lee.
– Does God Have a Plan? Read more via, Bibles for America blog.
– Message 9: Living and Serving according to God’s Economy concerning the Church, a message via, Cebu Conferences.
– God’s New Testament Economy, via, New Jerusalem blog.
– A Good Minister of Christ, outline via, The Church in New York City.
– Why The Economy of God Is a Must-Read for Every Christian, via, Holding to Truth in Love.
– The Church’s Continual Warfare Against God’s Enemy, via, A Faithful Word. - Hymns on this topic:
– God has accomplished many things— / He’s planned, created, and brought forth. / The Son is now appointed Heir, / Administrator of God’s worth. / But in th’ economy of God / There is not one, but many sons. / One is the firstborn Son of God / With many other living ones. (Hymns #1322 stanzas 4-5)
– Oh, Christ will come, the Bridegroom, for us, His glorious Bride, / By coming from within us the church is glorified. / His Person is the glory expanding now in us; / This glory is our Person—how glorious! / O Lord, O Lord, by Your economy / So flood us with Your glory, saturate us thoroughly. / Come out, come out, break forth in glory here, / And from the church, O glorious One, in glory soon appear. (Hymns #1177 stanza 3)
– The seven golden lampstands in / The seven cities see, / So burning, shining with this Christ, / It’s God’s economy! / We’re absolute that this become / Our full reality / Upon the earth, within the church / In each locality. (Hymns #1262 stanza 3)
About aGodMan
Life-study of 1 Timothy, second edition, pp. 19-21, by Witness Lee
We need to war the good warfare against any different teachings by preaching and teaching God’s economy concerning Christ and the church.
God’s intention is to dispense Himself into us to gain the church, the Body of Christ.
May our focus be the focus of the ministry of the apostles- the incarnated, crucified, resurrected, ascended, and glorified Christ to be our Savior, our life, and everything to us so that we may become His Body, the church!
Hallelujah, amen!
For centuries, different teachings have led to the decline of the church.
We must follow the ministry of the apostle strictly for the building up of the church as the body.
Amen, brother.
We are called to live His life that has been done by Him passing through incarnation, human living, crucifixion, burial-resurrection, and ascension for God’s economy which is for His Dispensing in us.
All these teachings are based on His word, the Bible.
Therefore, we need to fight against all kinds of teachings other than the teaching of the apostles, which is all about the gospel of Jesus Christ and the church.
Praise the Lord
Amen brother. We need to contact the Word and receive the Word by the Spirit through the Word.
All true apostles teach God’s economy and we should be in fellowship with them, and teach & preach the same thing.
This teaching & preaching of God’s economy concerning Christ and the church is to war a good warfare.
Amen brother. We need to be those who stand and fight for the truth of God’s eternal economy.
Today in His recovery we know the real truth in His word, concerning the incarnated, crucified, resurrected, ascended, and glorified Christ to be our Savior, our life, and everything to us so that we may become His Body, the church.
This is the vital focus of the New Testament revelation, and this is God’s economy. Hallelujah. Amen.
Praise the Lord! 😃🙌🙋🏼🙏
https://youtu.be/_V0TAAoIylg?si=Ie5FLOb6hiV24pzM
As we see that the different teachings from that of the apostles teaching was the source of the decline of the church so we must be on guard to war the good warfare for God’s economy.
Our focus is Christ and the church. We teach and preach that the incarnated, crucified, resurrected and ascended Lord is to be our life and everything for the producing of the church, the Body of Christ.
Through such a teaching we war the good warfare against the different teachings and as we come to the word we are infused with faith for God’s economy.
06/18/24 Fighting the Good Fight (Week 1, Day 2)
In 1 Timothy 1:3-4, Paul charged Timothy to remain in Ephesus in order to carry out one duty—to charge certain ones not to teach different things but to teach the economy of God. Paul told Timothy that some were teaching things such as myths and unending genealogies, which produce questionings rather than God’s economy.
Myths are fables, false stories; and genealogies involve the study of history and probably refer to Old Testament genealogies adorned with fables. In 1 Timothy 1:6- 7, Paul said, “Some, having misaimed, have turned aside to vain talking, desiring to be teachers of the law, though they understand neither the things that they say, nor concerning what they confidently affirm.” Paul’s word indicates that even though the law is good and was given by God (1Tim 1:8; Rom 7:12), it is not the mark of God’s economy.
The vain talking in 1 Timothy 1:6 refers to confusing speaking composed of myths, genealogies, and the law. This kind of vain talking causes confusion and distracts people from God’s economy. Thus, during Paul’s time, the different things that produced questionings rather than God’s economy included myths, unending genealogies, the law, and vain talking. Today, however, there are many more different things that distract people from God’s economy. Even among us, there may be some things that differ from God’s economy.
In 1 Timothy 1:6, the word misaimed can also be translated “missed the mark.” The mark that Paul was referring to is God’s economy. Because certain ones missed the mark of God’s economy, they turned aside to vain talking. Such vain talking issued in confusion and distraction.
We know that Christ replaced the law, but we are referring to the aspect and sense of replacing the law in God’s administration. In the New Testament the teaching of the apostles replaced the law. Acts 2:42 says, “They continued steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles.” Immediately after the three thousand were saved on the day of Pentecost, they began to continue steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles. In the Old Testament kingdom of God the constitution was the law, and in the New Testament kingdom of God the constitution is the teaching of the apostles.
The teaching of the apostles is the complete New Testament. It comprises, first, the teaching of the Lord Jesus in the four Gospels. The first group of apostles were charged by the Lord Jesus to teach the new believers what the Lord had taught them. This is clearly recorded in Matthew 28:19-20.
The teaching of the apostles also includes what is recorded in the Acts, the Epistles, and the book of Revelation. The teachings of the apostles are the ministry of the apostles. The entire New Testament, which is the complete teaching of the apostles, is also referred to as God’s New Testament economy.
God’s New Testament economy is a Person ~ the incarnated, crucified, resurrected, ascended, and glorified Christ ~ Who is our Savior, our life, and our everything so that we may become His Body, the church. Christ, as the embodiment of the Triune God, became the Life-giving Spirit to impart His divine life and nature into His chosen tripartite people in order to make them the many members of His Body, the church, for His corporate expression. God’s New Testament economy, therefore, is concerned with Christ, as the embodiment of God, and the Church, as the enlargement of Christ.
Initially, we receive the hearing of the Word when someone preached to us the gospel concerning Christ (Rom 10:14). The Word that we received into our human spirit became Spirit and life to us, infusing us with God and spontaneously producing the operating faith in order for us to believe into Him (Rom 10:17). As we pursue more of the Word, the more we receive Spirit and life into our innermost being (John 6:63). When we are fully saturated with the divine life and nature, we eventually become the corporate expression of God.
We need to preach and teach the complete gospel, which concerns Christ’s redemption and the impartation of His divine life and nature into His believers. This is God’s New Testament economy, and the ministry of the apostles, which we need to carry on in order for us to fight the good warfare.
[Excerpt, HWMR-Week 1 Day 2]
Paul told Timothy that according to the prophecies previously made concerning him, he “might war the good warfare” (1 Tim. 1:18):
✨ To war the good warfare is to war against the different teachings of the dissenters and to carry out God’s economy (v. 4).
✨This war is according to the apostle’s ministry concerning the gospel of grace and eternal life for the glory of the blessed God (vv. 11-16).
✨On the one hand, Timothy was to war against the different teachings; on the other hand, he was to carry out God’s economy according to the apostle’s ministry (vv. 3-4, 18).
✨We must not allow any different teachings to come into the Lord’s recovery.
…The recovery is strictly for the carrying on of the ministry.
✨The focus of our preaching and teaching is Christ and the church.
…To teach and preach God’s economy concerning Christ and the church is to war a good warfare.
Amen Lord for God economy!
May we continue to receive grace to dispense God in Christ as the Spirit into us day by day to be steadfast fighting the good fight for God economy!
Amen! We must avoid bringing in the different teachings.
We need to fight the good fight and war war the good warfare against dissension, decline and degradation of the church brought in because of the different teachings that differ from the ministry of the apostles.
The focus of the ministry of the apostles was the incarnated,crucified, resurrected, ascended, and glorified Christ to be our Savior,our life, and everything to us so that we may become His Body, the church.
This is the vital focus of the New Testament revelation, and this is God’s economy. We need to teach and preach God’s economy concerning Christ and the church to war a good warfare.
Amen! Hallelujah!
What a blessing to continue steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles!
The teaching of God’s economy concerning Christ and the church.
The fellowship that is both with the Father and the Son. Hallelujah!
Dear brother, we need to be watchful for different teachings. We must not allow any different teachings to come into the Lord’s recovery.
The recovery is strictly for the carrying on of the ministry. Which is the Apostle’s teaching.
Listen to the audio version of this article via,
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