The Apostle Paul was teaching Timothy to be a leader in the early Christian movement. Timothy was a young man and needed to be careful with his choices so that he could fulfill his calling to the ministry. It has been said that the most significant influences in a person’s life choices occur in their early twenties.

Paul gave Timothy advice that all ministers and all Christians should consider. Paul taught Timothy to “have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths.” There were a lot of those myths in the first-century Greco-Roman culture, and those philosophies had crept into the church.

The mythology of the Greeks and the famous Greek philosophers were very popular in the first century. We might compare that influence with the influence that media and technology have on our culture today. The early Christians enjoyed the plays and speeches they heard at the coliseums. When popular or smart people trusted a false god for their crops, their health, or their politics, it was easy for the early Christians to want to add those gods to their thinking as well. Every culture has had popular influences that were not godly thinking.

Paul used a good example for how to handle an ungodly influence. He said “bodily training” is often a good thing but then talked about how much more important it was to train for and value what was godly. Some of the popular influences in our lives can make our earthly lives more successful, but Paul discussed our greatest influences should positively impact our eternal lives as well.

There are benefits to reading the “experts” in their fields and learning from their advice.  Working for success in this world isn’t a bad thing. Paul was teaching Timothy that those “advisors” were not giving the most important advice. Paul wanted Timothy to surround himself with people who had a godly perspective. Their advice would be helpful on earth and helpful to Timothy’s kingdom purpose as well.

One of the greatest myths of the first century and our culture today is that we can separate our lives from our religion. Some teach that the rules of the church don’t apply to the rules of the office. That isn’t biblical thinking, but it is increasingly popular thinking. 

Have you been influenced by the irreverent, silly myths that have always existed in popular thought? Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. We all need to train ourselves to live with a biblical perspective on all things. That will be our blessing on earth and our blessing for life eternal.