Are You Watching Your Life?

“Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” 1 Timothy 4:16

What is more important? Life or doctrine? The bible clearly states both. An analogy that always comes to my mind is that of an airplane. What wing of an airplane is more important to the success of a flight? The left wing or the right wing? The answer is obvious – both are equally important. The railings of a bridge can also apply to this analogy as well. If we are not walking a straight path, we can fall off if one of the railings is not present. In the same way, we must keep God’s standards in both our “life and doctrine” in order to successfully walk the narrow path. As Jesus states in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” What is Jesus saying here? That the majority of people who claim to “religious” will not be with Him? Consider what Jesus says later in verse 21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Only by paying close attention to our “life and doctrine” will we be sure of what God’s will is.

In 1 Timothy 4:16, the apostle Paul gives specific instructions to Timothy, his protégé and leader of the church in Ephesus. Paul speaks in very definite terms that both life and doctrine are essential to salvation, and the perseverance of such values is crucial not only for the individual, but also for the people that hear their message. As disciples of Christ, we are aware that the doctrine of the apostles (and Jesus) is very clear: We must believe that Jesus is the Son of God (John 20:31; Acts 9:20), make the decision to make him Lord of our lives (Acts 2:36; Acts 10:36), repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of our sins, thereby receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38; John 3:1-5), and live a life of making disciples, baptizing them and teaching them to obey as well (Matthew 28:18-20, 1 Corinthians 5:11-13).
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