In the current sermon series “Potential,” Pastor Mark reminded us that if we want to grow spiritually and see our God-given potential realized, we need to spend time in His Word. Pastor Mark recommended that if we don’t know where to start, we should spend some time in 1 and 2 Timothy. During the next couple of weeks we will examine the themes and structure of these two epistles.
The epistles of Timothy were written by the apostle Paul and are commonly referred to as “pastoral epistles” because of the instruction and exhortation they contain for church leaders. Paul wrote 1 Timothy around A.D. 62, and the recipient of the letter, naturally, was Timothy, a co-laborer of Paul and the “pastor” of the church at Ephesus. In fact, Paul refers to Timothy as his “true child in the faith” (1:2).
Here’s the situation: men were teaching strange doctrines and paying attention to myths and genealogies (1:3-4), essentially having turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law even though they did not understand what they were saying (1:7). Paul’s purpose in writing was to instruct Timothy to remain at Ephesus and instruct these men not to persist in teaching strange doctrines. Paul, writing from Macedonia (4:12), reveals that he is concerned that Timothy may need something in writing to set before others and is worried about being delayed in arriving in Ephesus himself (3:14-15).
The wisdom Paul offers Timothy in 1 Timothy is valuable for church leaders today. Today’s Bible Drill Wednesday will examine this epistle in two parts: (1) the structure of the book, and (2) the instructions Paul gives to Timothy.
Structure of 1 Timothy
After giving Timothy the charge to instruct the Ephesians not to teach strange doctrines (1:3-11), Paul praises God for His mercy in his own life, giving his testimony (1:12-15) and presenting the gospel message (2:5-6). He gives instruction concerning public worship for men and women (2:1-15) before turning his attention to outlining the qualifications for church leaders.
Paul begins chapter 3 by stating that “if anyone sets his heart on being an overseer [elder], he desires a noble task” (3:1). To be an elder, one must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and free from the love of money (3:2-3). An elder must manage his household well and ensure that his children obey him with proper respect (3:4-5). Paul stresses that elders should not be new converts and should have a good reputation with those outside the church (3:6-7).
Likewise, deacons must be worthy of respect, sincere, not addicted to much wine, and not fond of sordid gain (3:8). They “must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience” (3:9), also being above reproach, the husband of one wife, and good managers of their children and own households (3:11-12).
[NOTE: Although Paul's qualifications for leadership presuppose men taking these roles, the requirements for leadership should be something to which we all aspire, women included.]
Moving on, in chapter 4 Paul warns Timothy that some will fall away from faith (4:1-3) and gives him instructions on dealing with false teachers (4:6-16). He follows this by discussing church discipline and the proper treatment of widows, elders and slaves (chapter 5, 6:1-3) before returning to the familiar warnings about those who teach false doctrine (6:3-5). He also talks about contentment and the foolish love of wealth (6:6-10). He ends the epistle by instructing Timothy and encouraging him in his leadership role (6:11-19), ultimately exhorting him to “guard what has been entrusted to your care” and “turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith” (6:20-21).
As you can see, the entire book of 1 Timothy revolves around the dichotomy between the empty chatter of the world/false knowledge and the pursuit of godliness. For Paul, the best medicine for false teaching is sound doctrine (1:10; 4:3).
Instructions to Timothy
Paul gives many instructions to Timothy in this epistle. For what it is worth, here is a list of some of them for you to ponder as you consider your own role as a leader. To use some NCC small group lingo, these are instructions for “leading yourself well.”
* Keep faith and a good conscience (1:19)
* Fight the good fight (1:18; 6:12)
* Make requests, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving for everyone (2:1)
* Show yourself as an example to those who believe in your speech, conduct, love, faith and purity (4:12)
* Give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching (4:13)
* Do not neglect your spiritual gift (4:14)
* Watch your life and your doctrine closely (4:16)
* Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales (4:7)
* Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness (4:7-8)
* Keep yourself pure/free from sin (5:22)
* Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness (6:11)
* Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called (6:12)
Food for Thought
As a leader, do I adhere to and teach sound doctrine?
Am I leading myself well?
Am I a leader worth following?
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