I Timothy 1:1-11

Good morning once again. It's good to be back with you. Today we are diving head first into our series through the book of I Timothy. This should take us about 10 or 11 weeks and lead right up till the Advent season. Today's sermon is intended to be an intro to the themes covered in I Timothy and a challenge for you and for me to really look at what a church is supposed to look like. Let's pray before we begin.

PRAY

The book itself is actually a letter written by the Apostle Paul to a younger pastor named Timothy with whom he had a close personal, mentoring relationship. Timothy was a younger man, likely in his 30s. Paul had left Timothy in Ephesus to pastor the church. This letter is one of two written to Timothy but is one of three, including Titus, that we refer to as the Pastoral Epistles. Paul is writing to Timothy to help him understand how a church is supposed to work. With that said, there is quite obviously also an intention that this would be a letter for the entire church as well. Anyone who is a Christian should be a member of a local church and should make themselves familiar with how the Word of God says a church is supposed to function. After all, the church belongs to Jesus. This church belongs to Jesus. The church in Ephesus belonged to Jesus. He founded the church by His life, death, and resurrection. The thing about a church that matters the most is what God has said.

In chapter 3, verse 15 this purpose of Paul in writing is fairly clear.

1 Timothy 3:15 ESV

15 if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.

The household of God is not a building. This building is not God's house. The church, those who have trusted Jesus Christ for salvation-those who have been bought with the blood of Christ-they are the household of God.

Ephesus was a large harbor city. It was diverse and complex religiously. It was a place of prosperity that was flourishing commercially. It was not unlike a pre-pandemic American city.

Religiously, it was home to the temple of Artemis. The cult of Artemis was very influential and affected the commerce in the city. They incorporated the practice of magic, sorcery, and soothsaying. This was not a culture founded on Judeo-Christian values. Ephesus had its own brand of sin and rebellion but the words that Paul gives Timothy are still relevant for us today.

Timothy was facing some pretty stiff challenges in Ephesus. There were cultural pressures. Men and women needed instructions about their God-given roles and conduct in the church's gatherings. Timothy needed to know how to appoint godly elders and deacons. Widows needed to be cared for and the people in the church were tempted with the pursuit of wealth. And if all of that wasn't enough, there was the danger of false teachers in the church, possibly even some elders caught up in it. Two men, Hymenaeus and Alexander had to be removed for rejecting "faith and a good conscience."

I. Paul writes to a true believer.

Right away Paul leaves no doubt about his authorship of this letter, using a traditional style. He also leaves no question about his qualification to be writing this letter and giving this type of instruction. He is not a self-appointed apostle or even someone who got their commission from a particular church. He was commissioned for the work of an apostle by Jesus Christ Himself. Therefore, he had authority.

He points to the Father as the source of grace, mercy, and peace. If you look at other greetings in other writings, he has added mercy to his usual wording. As Paul does, that is a tip of the hat to something coming later in the letter.

Timothy, as mentioned was a young man whom Paul had met when he passed through Lystra on his second missionary journey. Timothy was half Greek and half Jewish. His mother, Eunice was a Jew and his father was Greek. Paul, as an apostle, sees Timothy as someone who has believed the true gospel and is a real follower of Christ. This is important moving into the confrontation of false teaching in the church later in the passage.

Sound doctrine flows out of the gospel. Paul believes Timothy has a handle on the gospel and wants him to hold fast to the faith. He trusted him to shepherd the church at Ephesus.

Paul relates to Timothy as a fellow believer in Jesus Christ. He refers to Timothy as his true son in the faith.

II. Paul writes to his true son in the faith.

This phrase may sound a little strange to us today. Paul and Timothy had a close relationship. My friend Jim Reynolds, who was the first pastor I served under in ministry used to say there is a special bond between people who share ministry together. He's right. Paul had heard of Timothy's reputation and invited him to join his missionary team.

Acts 16:1–3 ESV

1 Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

Timothy got the joy of beginning his ministry with the Apostle Paul as his mentor. Let that sink in for a minute. His mentor ends up writing a bunch of the New Testament and we are still talking about both of them today. They became close traveling to Thessalonica, Corinth, and Jerusalem together. Timothy was by Paul's side when he was imprisoned in Rome. They collaborated to write six of the New Testament books.

2 Corinthians

Philippians

Colossians

1 and 2 Thessalonians

Philemon

Of course, Paul was the primary writer. Timothy served as Paul's pastoral representative. He was designated by Paul to lead the Ephesian church that Paul had planted. The people of Ephesus were dear to Paul and who he wanted to lead them was important. After all they had been through together, Paul felt this special relationship with Timothy and uses a Greek term here that hints at Timothy's dearness to him. Paul also considered himself a spiritual father to those who came to Christ under his ministry.

1 Corinthians 4:17 ESV

17 That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church.

Philippians 2:20 ESV

20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare.

Philippians 2:22 ESV

22 But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel.

So this is Paul writing to his protege' and he encourages him to confront teachers who weren't teaching true doctrine.

III. Paul encourages Timothy to confront teachers who don't teach true doctrine. (v.3-7)

Back in the book of Acts, Paul had warned the elders at Ephesus about false teachers coming in after he leaves.

Acts 20:29–30 ESV

29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.

It did not take long for this to come to pass.

The concern for us as we look at this shouldn't be the identity of the false teachers but what effect their teaching had on the people. It was in opposition to the direction of the apostles' teaching. We don't see precisely what this teaching was but throughout the letter, there are hints as to what it entailed.

- **Straying in their doctrine**

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- **Preoccupied with myths, genealogies, and speculation**

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- **misused the law**

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- **apparently immoral**

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- **their consciences were seared**

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- **they were forbidding marriage and certain foods**

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- **They craved controversy and quarrels**

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- **They were using godliness for material gain**

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- **Probably influenced by the early seeds of Gnosticism, though it wasn't around yet.

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- **The false teaching had strong Jewish elements**

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- **It was dangerous because it diverted people's attention away from the Word of God.**

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- 4:1 Paul calls the false teaching demonic.

Paul urges Timothy to remain where he is and defend the faith. He wants him to stay and charge the people not to:

- Teach any different doctrine (After 2,000 years your friend Ron thinks he found a loophole that no one else has discovered...)

- Nor devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies

In verse 5, Paul says that the "aim of our charge is love"... The teaching we find in I Timothy has love as its intended result. It's out of love and encourages behavior rooted in love. False teaching, however, results in meaningless speculation. The sound doctrine in verse 11 gives the sense of healthy or health-giving. False doctrine spreads like gangrene in the body of the church.

This letter shows us the necessity for Christ-focused teaching in the church. It leads to godly conduct and peace in the church. It also advances the kingdom and God's mission in the world. False teaching, on the other hand, leads to conflict in the church and leads to a bad reputation in the local community. The very gospel was at stake. This wasn't about music styles or preferences in the times of service. This went to the heart of what the church was and what it's mission and message were.

IV. Paul teaches a true understanding of the law. (v. 8-11)

Paul needed to do some correcting of their understanding of the Law and Gospel and does so in the final four verses of our passage.

1 Timothy 1:8–11 ESV

8 Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully, 9 understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, 10 the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, 11 in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.

When you bring up the Mosaic Law, a bunch of Christians think of it in a negative light. Paul is clear that it is good. He knows and communicates the truth about the law. The just people don't need the law to restrain them but it is the lawless and those who are disobedient to the Lord who need the restraint of the law. Some of these false teachers were apparently misusing the law. The law was a gift of God to Israel and it shows us where we fall short and need redemption from our sin. Acting rightly in the household of God is made possible only by God's grace. We need to obey and conform to His will. Saving faith produces the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. You can see it.

I Timothy is a letter filled with the hope of the gospel. I hope that as we walk through it together and as you are reading it in your personal time during the week you will see that hope clearly. It begins right there in verse 1.

- God our Savior

- Christ Jesus our hope

All of Paul's writings are given in the context of the gospel. He's not telling Timothy or the Ephesian church to "get their act together" so that they can in some way earn God's favor. WE will never appease a holy and just God by obeying all the rules. We can't do enough to earn the favor of God. Our sin has to be dealt with by something more than our positive actions. God Himself dealt with sin on the cross of Jesus Christ. His death on the cross, in our place, for our sin, was the atoning sacrifice that secured an eternal and unshakable hope for us. God addresses us on the basis of this sacrifice, this payment. We can't deal with our sin but God dealt with it all on the cross. The only way we can conduct ourselves rightly within the church is by the grace of God alone. We have been shown grace and mercy and can have peace with God in Jesus Christ alone.

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