Deposit

Personal Note:
I have taken some time off from writing to be able to return with a fresh perspective of what God is showing me in my personal walk with Him.  I hope you find this topic relevant in your personal walk with Jesus as it has for me, and I pray that you may grow deep in the understanding of His wonderful grace.
Stephen Barnett

A deposit made into a bank is one of valuables or personal wealth.  We deposit our money or valuables into the safe keeping of a bank which insures our deposit and offers us interest on our deposit of some type of beneficial return. 

1 Timothy 6:20-21 (ESV)

²⁰ O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you. Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called “knowledge,” ²¹ for by professing it some have swerved from the faith.

There are many directions one could take with this verse where Paul is instructing Timothy, the context of verses 11-21 is ‘fighting the good fight of faith’.  In chapter 5, Paul was giving Timothy basic instructions for the Church, here in chapter 6 verses 1-10 Paul is teaching how to identify false teachers and how to live with contentment.  Here we come to fighting the good fight of faith with Christ Jesus as our example.

A very interesting statement is in verse 20 …“guard the deposit entrusted to you.” 

What is the deposit Paul is speaking of?  Mentoring?  Teaching?  Personal Accountability?  Truth?  All of these are things that Paul had invested into Timothy's life and Timothy benefited greatly from.  But was that the deposit Paul was speaking of?  I believe Paul was referring to something more.

I am sure Paul told Timothy the he ought to call upon the power of the Holy Spirit to guard what has been entrusted to him to avoid being misled or spoiled by worldly knowledge which is contrary to the purposes of God.

If we dig into the Greek language for the meaning of the word translated 'deposit', Strong’s concordance says this: “a deposit, a trust or thing consigned to one's faithful keeping used of the correct knowledge and pure doctrine of the gospel, to be held firmly and faithfully, and to be conscientiously delivered unto others.”

1 Peter 1:10-12 (ESV)

¹⁰ Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, ¹¹ inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. ¹² It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.

We find that the Old Testament prophets craved to understand the meaning of what had been revealed to them which is Christ in us, and even angels looked into it to no avail, for this was a special revelation which would be entrusted only to us, The Church of Jesus Christ.

As we die to ourselves and surrender to Christ, He becomes alive in our minds and our lives through our actions.

Colossians 1:24-27 (ESV)

²⁴ Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, ²⁵ of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, ²⁶ the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. ²⁷ To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Paul as well as Peter went to great pains to bring this revelation of Christ to us.  Not just that Jesus died for our sins which is a vital truth, but that Jesus now inhabits His church.  Not buildings made of wood, glass or stone, but flesh and blood people who call on His name and embrace this truth.

Philippians 2:5-11 (YLT)

⁵ For, let this mind be in you that is also in Christ Jesus, ⁶ who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal to God, ⁷ but did empty himself, the form of a servant having taken, in the likeness of men having been made, ⁸ and in fashion having been found as a man, he humbled himself, having become obedient unto death -- death even of a cross, ⁹ wherefore, also, God did highly exalt him, and gave to him a name that is above every name, ¹⁰ that in the name of Jesus every knee may bow -- of heaven, and earth, and what are under the earth -- ¹¹ and every tongue may confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Our example is stated clearly here.  We are created in the image of God (Genesis 1: 27) but have fallen from that image due to sin.  Jesus being God in the flesh took the role of man, and in doing so emptied Himself of all of His Heavenly Royalty – God traded His position as a Royal King and became a man to identify with the human condition.  He humbled Himself even further becoming a lowly servant.  He then gave Himself up to be slaughtered by evil men.  His death was not a common death as was deemed by the Jewish leaders and Roman authorities of His day, His death signified and declared the end to the power of sin and death over all Mankind from that day forward.  A restoration has taken place.  There is a requirement though on our part.  That requirement is to believe (trust in and rely on) the finished work of Jesus. 

Galatians 2:20 (DARBY)

²⁰ I am crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me; but in that I now live in flesh, I live by faith, the faith of the Son of God, who has loved me and given himself for me.

If we are ‘crucified with Christ’ then we are dead, and a dead man cannot produce anything.  We cannot produce faith, works or anything pertaining to life.  It is Jesus himself who raises us to newness of life, it is Jesus himself who gives us His faith to believe in Him.  We couldn't produce it, we were dead, remember?  It is God’s plan that He inhabit our lives and become our salvation, it was something that we could never do, Jesus did it all for us then, and now continues to do it all for us.  His salvation is sufficient to save us completely!

"Make Christ your strength, and not yourself; nor your acquirement's or experiences. "Put on the Lord Jesus Christ" day by day, and make not the rags of yesterday to be the raiment of the future. Get grace fresh and fresh. Say with David, "All my fresh springs are in thee." Get all your power for holiness and usefulness from Jesus, and from him alone. "Surely in the Lord have I righteousness and strength." Rely not on resolves, pledges, methods, prayers; but lean on Jesus only as the strength of your life."

            Charles Haddon Spuregon - from his sermon “Christ Put On” February 23rd, 1890

The deposit that Paul was speaking of is actually Christ Himself. Christ in you the hope of Glory!

↓ Click Here to listen to the song

Jesus Be the Centre

Words and Music by Michael Frye

Jesus, Be The Centre

Be My Source,

Be My Light

Jesus

Jesus, Be The Centre

Be My Hope,

Be My Song

Jesus

(Chorus)

Be The Fire In My Heart

Be The Wind In These Sails

Be The Reason That I Live

Jesus, Jesus

Jesus, Be My Vision

Be My Path,

Be My Guide

Jesus

(Chorus)

Be The Fire In My Heart

Be The Wind In These Sails

Be The Reason That I Live

Jesus, Jesus

Be The Fire

Yes, Be The Fire

(Chorus)

Be The Fire In My Heart

Be The Wind In These Sails

Be The Reason That I Live

Jesus,Jesus

Jesus, Be The Centre

Be My Source,

Be My Light

Jesus

Be My Source,

Be My Light

Jesus

©1999 Vineyard Songs (Uk/Eire)

The music above is copyrighted by the respective artists, and is demonstrated here for educational purposes only.