Watch Your Life and Doctrine
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1 Timothy 4:16: "Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers."
My friend C.J. Mahaney led off the Dwell Conference to cleanse the room of sin, pride, self-sufficiency and
spiritual arrogance-all things C. J. admits he has struggled over his many years of ministry. When he finished, I told him it was perfectly executed. (Listen to the audio here)
The Apostle Paul spoke to Timothy in a fatherly fashion in 1 Timothy 4:6 and he summarized it with an exhortation to persistently watch his life and doctrine because it had great ramifications on his soul and the souls of others.
C.J. had three main points.
1. Watch Your Life...
2. Because the War Within Never Ends...
3. And We Cannot Watch Ourselves by Ourselves
Watch Your Life
C.J. said it is easier to study Scripture than it is to study our own life. Yet, this godly character is mandatory to teach and pastor. CH Spurgeon said, "Our character must be more persuasive than our speech." Sound doctrine, while extremely important, is not sufficient by itself without a messenger who preaches and practices that truth.
Because the War Within Never Ends
If we don't watch our own lives, we will weaken. It must be a priority of a pastor's life to persistently enter into battle for the purity of our souls. The minute we fail to go to battle, we will find ourselves like King David, peering over at the beautiful Bathsheba and succumbing.
And We Cannot Watch Ourselves by Ourselves
We need others to watch our lives and be invited to speak into our lives when they observe us walking contrary to the gospel we preach. We must ask our wife how we can more effectively shepherd her and the children. We must specifically and consistently confess our sins in a way that puts to death the sins that we struggle.
Conclusion
After serving as a pastor for 28 years, I can say that the struggles men have in advancing the gospel are found in this highly concentrated verse that C.J. highlighted for us. We must persistently watch our lives for character flaws. We must persistently fight the war within and we must persistently seek out those who can detect the subtle (or not so subtle) sins in our life. As C.J. admonished, we need some friends, family and co-workers who are not afraid to tell us when there is some cream cheese on our face. We are not fit to pastor if we do not persist in these things. The battle against God's man is strong and relentless. Your life and the lives of those you minister need you to persist in the power of God.
Follow-Up Questions:
1. Godly character is unquestionably the preeminent qualification for a pastor or church planter, 
although its cultivation is usually more difficult than learning doctrine, setting strategy, etc. How does a pastor identify and put to death his sinful desires, motives, and patterns?
2. What are the Scripture's clear teaching on the deceptiveness of sin and our need for others in the process of sanctification (Heb. 3:12-13; 10:24-25; James 5:16)? What practices in our life reflect that conviction? What concrete steps can a pastor take to involve others in his pursuit of godliness, making them aware of temptations, and inviting their observations?
C.J. Mahaney leads Sovereign Grace Ministries in its mission to establish and support local churches. After 27 years of pastoring Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland, C.J. handed the senior pastor role to Joshua Harris, allowing C.J. to devote his full attention to Sovereign Grace. C.J.'s books include Humility: True Greatness; Living the Cross-Centered Life; and Sex, Romance, and the Glory of God: What Every Christian Husband Needs to Know. C.J. and his wife, Carolyn, have three married daughters and one son. They make their home in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
The Dwell Conference is going to London July 12.
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All Audio from the NYC Dwell Conference can be found here.
Thank you, Nathan Troester, Video Production Lead at Redeemer, for these amazing pictures.
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