A.Our lesson is found in 1Timothy 3:16 – “By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, was vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.”
B.Let us seek to answer a few questions pertaining to this verse:
1.What is this mystery?
2.What is its greatness?
3.How does it relate to godliness?
II.GREAT IS THE MYSTERY OF GODLINESS
A.The phrase “by common confession” (“without controversy” – KJV) expresses that the greatness of the mystery of godliness is undisputed.It is universally recognized as a great mystery.
B.The mystery of godliness is great because of the importance of its message, not because it is an unknowable enigma.
1.A mystery is something that is concealed.Something that was once concealed but later revealed may still be called a mystery, and the gospel is such a mystery.
a.As we will see below, the mystery of godliness is the gospel of Jesus Christ, which has been revealed.
i.Notice Colossians 1:26 – “…the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints.”
ii.This mystery has been revealed by the Holy Spirit to the prophets and apostles, and they have communicated it to us through the written word (1Cor. 2:6-13; Eph. 3:4).
b.Because this mystery has been revealed so that we can understand it, its greatness cannot be due to our inability to understand it.
2.Truly, this mystery is called great because it consists of the facts of the gospel, and those facts are the most important events in the history of the world.
C.Let us understand the reason that these facts are called “the mystery of godliness.”
1.Godliness is piety or religion.The Greek word for “godliness” literally means “good worship.”
2.The connection between godliness and the formerly concealed facts of the gospel is that true godliness is founded upon these facts.
a.Notice 1Corinthians 15:1-4 – “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared…”
b.Faith in these facts is the means by which Christians are saved and have been made godly.Any attempt to attain or maintain godliness must be based upon these truths.This is why it is the mystery of godliness.
III.WHAT IS THE MYSTERY?
A.Jesus Christ “was revealed in the flesh.”
1.The mystery of the promised Christ (Messiah) was fulfilled when the Word, through whom all things were made, “became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1-3, 14).
2.His fleshly carnation was necessary for Him to accomplish the purpose of the Father, which was to deliver mankind from the power of Satan and the bondage of death (Heb. 2:14-15).
3.Confession of this fact is essential to godliness (Rom. 10:10; 1John 4:2).
B.Jesus Christ “was vindicated in the Spirit.”
1.Jesus was counted as guilty even by His own people.
a.Isaiah prophesied, “…we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted” (Isa. 53:4).
b.John said that “He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11).Indeed, they thought He deserved to die (John 19:7).
2.However, Jesus was vindicated, which means He was justified or proved to be right.
a.Whether “spirit” (Gr. pneuma) indicates the Holy Spirit or simply the spirit as opposed to flesh is a matter of interpretation.It is immaterial to the message.
b.The point is that Jesus was proved to be right by spiritual means, which includes the power of the Holy Spirit (via His miracles, prophecy, revelation, the resurrection, etc.).
C.Jesus Christ was “seen by angels.”
1.Whereas the Lord’s own generation did not receive Him, the angels always saw Him for who He was and is – the Son of God and the Christ.
2.Angels attended the Lord throughout His time on earth.
a.They announced His birth (Luke 1:26-38; 2:8-14).
b.They ministered to His needs (Matt. 4:11).
c.They announced His resurrection (Matt. 28:1-8).
d.They promised His return (Acts 1:9-11).
3.Notice that the events of the Lord’s coming and His gospel were concealed from even the angels until the fullness of time came (1Pet. 1:12).
D.Jesus Christ was “proclaimed among the nations.”
1.Jesus Christ did not come for the Jews alone, but He came for all people of all nationalities (Rom. 1:16).This message has been preached throughout the world ever since it was revealed (Col. 1:23).
2.Paul described this aspect of the mystery in Ephesians 3:1-13.Notice verse 6 – “…that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.”
E.Jesus Christ was “believed on in the world.”
1.As a result of Christ being proclaimed among the nations, He has been believed on around the world by the Gentile nations.
2.Believers in the facts of the gospel are motivated to pursue godliness.The depth of their belief in Christ will determine the quality of their piety toward God.
F.Jesus Christ was “taken up in glory.”
1.The apostles witnessed the Lord ascend from the earth into the clouds (Acts 1:9-11).Certainly, this was a glorious sight.
2.However, the greater glory of the Lord has not yet been witnessed by man.
a.Before the Lord was arrested, He prayed to the Father, “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17:5).He is now glorified in heaven at the right hand of God (Acts 2:33).
b.Perhaps the best expression of Christ’s present glory in heaven is found in the figures of the book of Revelation.
c.Notice that John wrote, “We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is” (1John 3:2).
IV.CONCLUSION
A.Thus, let us understand the phrase “great is the mystery of godliness” to mean “great is the gospel of Christ that leads us to godliness.”
B.Let us close by noticing the context in which this message was stated and taking two lessons from this context.
1.This message is preceded by an admonition regarding the conduct within the church.The lesson for us is to conduct ourselves in a godly way within the church such as is fitting with the greatness of the mystery of godliness.
2.This message is followed by a warning that there would be an apostasy.The lesson for us is that despite the greatness of the mystery of godliness, some will embrace ungodliness.May we be among those who believe in the great mystery and pursue godliness and salvation.
