Some people spend more time thinking about their faith than they do about Jesus. They worry they don’t have enough faith or they may lose it. Which is a pity. If they spent more time thinking about Jesus, they wouldn’t worry about their faith.
Others worry that their faith is too small and needs to grow. And some fear they have shipwrecked their faith.
What does it mean to shipwreck your faith? It means your faith has sunk beneath the waves and you are going nowhere. The picture of shipwrecked faith comes from this verse.
Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight, keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. (1 Timothy 1:18–19)
There are three actions in this passage, and if you do the first two – fighting and keeping – and don’t do the third – rejecting – you will never shipwreck your faith.
How do we fight the good fight?
We fight the good fight by refusing to give ground to anything that might distract us from Jesus. We refute those lies that say, “You are not good enough for God” or “You must work to make yourself acceptable and pleasing to the Lord.”
How do we keep the faith?
We keep the faith by keeping ourselves in the love of God (Jude 1:21). When we hear that we must do things to earn our Father’s love, we take those lies captive and make them bow to Jesus. We remind ourselves that if God loved me when I was a sinner (see Rom. 5:8), he surely loves me now.
Note there are two things we must keep: the faith and a good conscience. Fail to keep a good conscience and you will shipwreck your faith.
How do we keep a good conscience?
A good conscience has been washed by the blood of Christ. A good conscience is a guilt-less conscience. It’s a mindset that says, “Because of Jesus, I am free from sin and its effects.”
A good conscience that responds to the leading of the Holy Spirit is a wonderful thing. But a conscience riddled with guilt and condemnation can sink you.
The opposite of a good conscience is a condemning conscience, and that’s what you have when you fall from grace back under law. If you start thinking, “I must do X, Y, and Z before God will bless me,” your conscience will drive you towards the rocks of destruction.
Condemnation is a faith-killer. Condemnation will cause you to be timid before God making it hard for you to receive from the abundance of his grace.
If your conscience is constantly telling you that you’re unworthy, you’re a hopeless case, and you don’t deserve to be in the kingdom, you will be in danger of shipwrecking your faith.
How do we shipwreck our faith?
We shipwreck our faith by refusing to believe the good news of Jesus. We sink our faith by buying into a mixed-up message that says you must work to be saved, sanctified, or secure. This is what happened to two men in the Bible:
Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan, so that they will be taught not to blaspheme. (1 Timothy 1:20)
Paul warned Timothy of certain men who taught strange or different doctrines (1 Tim. 1:3). Two of the worst offenders were Hymenaeus and Alexander.
Hymenaeus and Alexander were among those preaching Jewish myths or law (1 Tim. 1:7). Hymenaeus also taught that the resurrection of the saints had already taken place (2 Tim. 2:17–18). The influence of these false teachers was toxic, said Paul (2 Tim. 2:17). They had to go.
(Sidebar: When Paul says, “I have handed them over to Satan,” he’s saying, “Tell everyone that I said to remove them from the church.” Don’t give them a platform. Don’t endorse their mixed-up ministry. Since these men refuse to listen to the Spirit, he’s saying, “Let sin be their teacher.” Let them learn the hard way that sin has consequences, and maybe then they will see their need for a Savior.)
How do we unshipwreck our faith?
If you are stranded on the rocks of doubt and unbelief, fear not. If your conscience condemns you as a poor Christian, receive some good news.
You are a dearly loved child of God! You may have a guilty conscience, and you may have shipwrecked your faith, but rest assured that your heavenly Father will never kick you out of his family. Once saved, always saved.
If your thoughts are condemning you as flawed and imperfect, fight the good fight of faith! Bring those thoughts to Jesus and choose to believe what he says about you. You are loved, forgiven, accepted.
If your self-worth has been shattered, see the cross. See what Jesus did for you and fix your eyes on his glorious perfections. You are one with the Lord. You are clothed and hidden in Christ, and as he is, so are you in this world (1 John 4:17).
As you allow the Spirit of Christ to remind you of your true identity, you will find your faith rising off the rocks.
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