Introduction
Since the 18th century, 1 & 2 Timothy together with Titus form a distinct group of epistles called the “Pastoral Epistles” because they deal with matters pertaining to pastors. 1 Timothy is an ad-hoc letter written by the Apostle Paul to Timothy whom he left in Ephesus to deal with specific problems within the church while he felt a more urgent need to go to Macedonia (1 Tim. 1:3). The problems within the Ephesian community included the embracing of serious doctrinal errors based on the preaching and acceptance of myths and speculative genealogies, Gnosticism, and ascetic ideals, propagated by false teachers, likely from within the church and who were in leadership positions. However, Paul knew that the crisis was perhaps too much for Timothy to deal with and thus wrote this letter as more of a stop-gap measure to Timothy and the church, hoping that he would be there soon to put things in order himself (3:14-15). You may wish to consult your Study Bible or other conservative commentaries for more information on the background of this epistle and about the relationship between Paul and Timothy.
Also, you may want to consult Donald Guthrie’s commentary on “The Pastoral Epistles” to read his sound refutation of the attacks on the authenticity of this epistle based on literary and grammatical criticisms (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries Series).
(1) Given the fact that this letter, though written to Timothy, would be read to the entire church, consider what he writes in his greetings:
a. What did Paul emphasize about himself and why?
b. Of all things, why did he call Christ Jesus “our hope”? What did hope have to do with the situation faced by Timothy?
(2) His greetings to Timothy appeared to be a bit more than the usual greetings:
a. Why was that?
b. How did he end this letter?
(3) What was the command or charge given by Paul to Timothy as he left for Macedonia?
a. What did these false teachers teach?
b. What do you understand by the teaching of “myths and endless genealogies”?
c. What did their teachings lead to?
(4) What attitude should Timothy adopt in stopping these false teachers? (v. 5)
(5) What had these false teachers turned away from as they turned to meaningless talk? (v. 6)
(6) If these teachers taught false doctrines, myths, endless genealogies and meaningless talk, why would they be believed upon? (v. 7 might give us some clues)
(7) Paul pointed out that these false teachers were “wannabes” when it came to being teachers of the (OT) Law:
a. For whom is the (OT) Law meant? (v. 9)
b. In what possible ways did these false teachers mishandle the Law?
c. Why did Paul choose to compile a list of offenders to the Law and end with including those “contrary to sound doctrine”?
d. Whom did Paul have in mind concerning this last category?
(8) What is the relationship between OT Law and the “glorious gospel”? (See Gal. 2:16, for example.)
(9) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.” (1 Tim. 1:5)
The Church in Ephesus was a church in which the Apostle Paul had invested quite a bit of time to the point that it had become a base for the spread of the gospel to other parts of the province of Asia Minor (Acts 19: 8-10). The impact of the gospel could be seen by the protest launched by the silversmiths whose business in the making of silver idols was directly threatened, “And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and practically the whole province of Asia.” (Acts 19:26)
Ephesus was such a large and important church that Paul had left Timothy in charge as their pastor as he headed to Macedonia. He left him with the specific charge to deal with certain false teachers who presumably were leaders within the church. It is interesting to note that Paul accused them of teaching false doctrines and of devoting themselves to myths and endless genealogies. Paul also mocked them for their focus on the teaching of the (OT) Law. With the powerful teachings of Paul that they had for quite a number of years when he was among them, one wonders how some of the Ephesian believers could buy into such false teachings, especially “law-based” teachings that Paul so passionately opposed. Verse 7 might have provided one of the clues in that these false teachers were teaching “confidently”.
I have found that many believers are attracted to teachers simply because they preach confidently. It is what we see often in the preaching of many TV evangelists. While some are really biblical, many are preaching a prosperity gospel that is simply “contrary to the sound doctrine” of the gospel; some teachings are nothing more than streams of emotion that have nothing to do with the passage from which they are supposed to be expounding. But just the same, as long as they preach with confidence, people believe what they teach! How sad it is!
However, even more pitiful is the reason for their false teachings. Paul says that they have wandered away from “a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1:5). In other words, had they maintained these, the following would result:
- From a pure heart, they would be able to see God and know His words (Matthew 5:8).
- From a good conscience, they would not have used false teachings for their own selfish ends (1 Tim.6:5).
- From a sincere faith, instead of leading others astray, they would have led many to faith in Jesus Christ.
Indeed, all follies, including false teachings, do flow from one’s heart! (Prov. 4:23)
Once Paul talked about the glorious gospel, he could not help but praise God for the power of this gospel which he himself had experienced, even as he also lamented those who preached contrary to it:
(1) Who was the one who appointed him to the service (of being an Apostle)?
(2) Why was he appointed? Did he deserve such an appointment? Why or why not?
(3) Was it an exaggeration for him to say that he was a blasphemer, a persecutor, a violent man and thus the “worst” of sinners? Why or why not? (See Acts 7:60; 9:1-2)
(4) Paul attributed his unbelief to “ignorance” (v. 13).
a. What is meant by ignorance, in his case?
b. How was his ignorance taken away? (Acts 9:3-6)
c. How did he describe this experience in v. 14?
(5) Reflect on your own conversion from ignorance to belief:
a. How similar was your experience to Paul’s?
b. How would you describe your experience?
(6) In Paul’s opinion, what was the purpose of God in saving such a sinner like him? (v. 16)
(7) What is God’s purpose of saving you then?
(8) What caused Paul to explode into a doxology at this point?
(9) What caused him to say these things of Christ Jesus?
a. He is the King eternal
b. He is Immortal and Invisible
c. He is the Only God
(10) Though we do not know when and what the “prophecies once made about” Timothy were, consider the following:
a. What was the purpose of those prophecies?
b. Why did Paul choose to remind him of them at this point?
(11) Paul gave an example of how he dealt with those who wrecked their faith (presumably by their false teachings). It was the exact punishment or discipline he exercised against the adulterer in Church of Corinth (see 1 Cor. 5:5):
a. What does it mean that he handed them over to Satan?
b. What was the ultimate purpose of such a disciplinary action?
(12) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…” (1 Tim. 1:15)
Paul was a highly respected apostle who basically planted the church in Ephesus (Acts 19) and he wrote this letter to Timothy for the expressed purpose of dealing with the false teachers and to restore discipline and order within the church. However, even with a letter of such a nature that required the use of his apostolic authority, Paul never lost sight of who he was in Christ — the worst of sinners (1:15).
As much as he knew he was a new creation in Christ already (2 Cor. 5:17), he could not forget that he was once a blasphemer, persecutor and a violent man (1 Tim. 1:13). In his words, his conversion was purely the mercy of Christ which demonstrated the unlimited patience of Christ (1:16). To recount his sins and to give honor and glory to Christ in this letter, he was actually telling even the false teachers that he was not better than they were — everything was grace, including his own calling (1:12).
This understanding of grace was also demonstrated in his dealing with false teachers like Hymenaeus and Alexander in that the handing over to Satan was for teaching them not to blaspheme (1:20). While the exact meaning of handing them over to Satan was not clear, this was the same discipline he exercised against the adulterer in 1 Corinthians 5:5, “so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord”. In other words, the ultimate purpose for such a harsh discipline (which probably meant excommunication from the church) was for the sake of restoration.
(1) Why did Paul say that praying for everyone was good and acceptable to God, according to v. 3?
(2) How was it related to the trustworthy saying in 1:15?
(3) What was the purpose for praying for those in authority? (v. 2)
(4) How seriously have you and your church taken this command by the Apostle Paul?
(5) How can the Intercession Chart (a 7 day schedule of prayer for specific persons and groups) at the end of this Devotional Guide help you in this respect?
(6) In refreshing our understanding of the gospel, what did Paul point out as the particular role of Christ Jesus and what He had accomplished?
(7) Since Christ Jesus is the only “mediator” between God and Man, consider the following.
a. How then shall we pray and intercede for the world?
b. For whom should you intercede in particular?
c. While Paul was clear about his role as a herald of the gospel, i.e. being the Apostle to the Gentiles (2:7), are you clear about your role? What might it be?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone — for kings and all those in authorities…” (1 Tim. 2:1-2)
I believe most Christians would pray for their loved ones and friends — for their wellbeing, and in particular, for their salvation. However, in view of the trustworthy saying in 1:15 that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”, Paul urges us not only to pray for our loved ones, but “everyone” because Christ came to save sinners of “the world”. In particular, he urges us to pray for kings and those in authority, because if they also come to believe in Christ, then it would contribute not only to a peaceful and quiet world, but also a world of godliness and holiness (2:2).
As it is, we know that the world that we live in is far from peaceful — wars and rumors of wars abound! Worse, the culture of the world is least conducive to the promotion of godliness and holiness, let alone the belief in Jesus Christ. Could it be because most believers have failed to heed the call of the Apostle Paul to pray for the world, especially the kings and those in authority?
While churches of Jesus Christ should fervently pray for the world and its leaders, I believe, it should begin with individual believers for their own cities and their leaders. I sincerely hope that you will make use of the Intercession Chart at the end of this Devotional Guide to help you heed the call of the Apostle Paul.