Study Notes David Anderson

First Timothy Conduct in the household of God

I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you in case I am delayed, to let you know how people ought to conduct themselves in the household of God, because it is the church of the living God, the support and bulwark of the truth. (3:14-15)

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nd On Paul’s 2 missionary journey, the churches in Lystra and Iconium highly recommended a young man named

Timothy (Acts 16:1-2). Paul heeds their recommendation, circumcises Timothy and takes him on missionary journeys to train him. At the end of Acts, Paul is imprisoned in Rome and probably released around AD 62. Paul then travels towards Macedonia and leaves Titus in Crete and leaves Timothy in Ephesus for a very difficult assignment. Unfortunately, Paul’s prediction to the Elders of the Ephesian church was realized, I know that after I am gone fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Even from among your own group men will arise, teaching perversions of the truths to draw the disciples away after them (Acts 20:29-30).

What had gone wrong in Ephesus? The Ephesian false teachers were preoccupied with myths, genealogies, useless speculation, profane chatter, absurdities, so-called “knowledge” (1:4, 6, 4:7, 6:4, 20-21). They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not understand what they are saying (1:7). They wanted to use the Law to make themselves look good, but the Law was given to condemn, convict and to show us that salvation does not come from law-keeping but by Christ’s grace (1:8-17). Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners...and Paul was the worst of them! (1:15, 16). Not only that but the Ephesian false teachers were undermining the roles of men and women in the church (2:9-15).

At the root of all of this was asceticism--the idea that you need to release the soul from the body’s prison. It caused these false teachers to prohibit marriage and abstinence from certain foods (4:3-5). What God had called clean, beautiful and right, man was calling unclean to set up a legalistic hierarchy of spirituality. The false teachers were characterized by envy, dissension, slanders, evil suspicions, constant bickering, godliness as a way of making a profit and have been trapped by money (6:4-10, 17-18).

Paul makes it crystal clear why he wrote 1 Timothy, I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you in case I am delayed, to let you know how people ought to conduct themselves in the household of God, because it is the church of the living God, the support and bulwark of the truth. (3:14-15). In 1 Timothy, Paul instructs Timothy on how to deal with the false teachers of Ephesus; two of them, Hymenaeus and Alexander Paul excommunicates (1:19-20). As Paul so eloquently points out, the church is “the support and bulwark of the truth.” The church was called to defend, uphold, and proclaim the truth and live it out.

Paul loved Timothy as his spiritual child (Phil. 2:19-22, 2 Tim 1:2-4) and gave him some of the most difficult shepherding assignments. This assignment in Ephesus may have been the most daunting in Timothy’s lifetime. Timothy needed to hear his job description as shepherd once again from Paul, his spiritual father. You and I need to be reminded of our specific commission as shepherds in the San Gabriel Valley. What is Paul’s commission in 1Timothy?

Paul’s two-fold commission of grace & truth:

1) Stand fast as a stronghold of truth and 2) Love with a pure heart.

Paul’s two-fold commission to Timothy:

Truth: To stand fast as a wall, mainstay, bulwark of

truth

Grace: To love with a pure heart and conscience

Paul instructs Timothy to stay in Ephesus to instruct certain people not to spread false teachings. Their teachings promote useless speculations rather than God’ s redemptive plan. (1:3-4)

But the aim of our instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. (1:5)

I put this charge before you, Timothy my child, in keeping with the prophecies once spoken about you, in order that with such encouragement you may fight the good fight. (1:18)

To do this you must hold firmly to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck in regard to the faith. (1:19)

By pointing out such things to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, having nourished yourself on the words of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. But reject those myths fit only for the godless and gullible, and train yourself for godliness. (4:6-7)

Do not address an older man harshly but appeal to him as a father. Speak to younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters– with complete purity. (5:1-2)

Command and teach these things. (4:11)

Obey this command without fault or failure until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ... O Timothy, protect what has been entrusted to you. (6:14,20) Elders must an apt teachers. (3:2)

Let no one look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in your speech, conduct, love, faithfulness, and purity. (4:12) Pursue righteousness, godliness, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. (6:11)

But temperate, self-controlled, gentle, not contentious. (3:2-3)

Further instruction on how people ought to conduct themselves in the household of God:

• Character and dress of women; roles/responsibilities of men and women in the local church (2:9-15).

• Elders: above reproach, husband of one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, an

  apt teacher, not a drunkard, not violent, gentle, not contentious, free from the love of money, manage

  his own household well, not a recent convert, good reputation. (3:1-7)

• Deacons: dignified, not two-faced, not given to excessive drinking, not greedy for gain, holding to the

  mystery of the faith, tested first, found blameless, husband of one wife, good managers of their

  households, boldness in the faith. (3:8-13)

• Wives of deacons must be dignified, not slanderous, temperate, faithful in every respect. (3:11)

• Public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. (4:13)

  Christ in 1 Timothy: Christ is the God-Savior of all men (2:3-4, 4:10). He is the one and only interme- diary between God and humanity (2:5) and taking on human flesh (2:5, 3:16), He gave Himself as a ransom for all (2:6). The King of kings and Lord of lords will appear again. He alone possesses immor- tality and lives in unapproachable light and glory (3:16, 6:15-16).

  1 TIMOTHY AND YOU: Where are you as a maturing shepherd of Jesus Christ in this area? The degree to which I love those God has entrusted me is the degree to which I can speak truth into their lives.

  Do you love those God has entrusted to you? Can they receive difficult truth because they know you have a pure heart and you will never let go of them?

  Do you speak truth to those God has entrusted to you? Is your love for them deep enough for you to trust God, grapple with your fears and courageously speak the truth in love?