1 Timothy
: Welcome to Discipleship Training School
Thirty seven years ago next month I became
a fresher at Sussex University.
I was just settling into my new room when two American missionaries with Campus
Crusade for Christ knocked on my door. Was I interested in doing a survey on
religious opinions? I was. We met again a few weeks later and they led me to
Christ, for which I will forever be grateful.
They
recommended a good church where the Bible was taught and I began attending every
Sunday. Another soul won for the Kingdom. Mission accomplished. Job done? No, not quite. In fact,
definitely not. This is not what Jesus commanded his disciples to do in
the Great Commission. Because this is not the way to reach
the world for Christ. Jesus said,
"All authority in heaven and on earth has been
given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them
to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to
the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20)
What
did Jesus instruct his disciples to do? Make disciples.
What
were they to do? “teach them everything Jesus taught
them. Right? Wrong. That is not what Jesus told them
to do. He said “Teaching them to obey everything I commanded you…” The Church
is a body. It is not just a mouth. We need to put the hands and feet back on
the body of Christ.
When Trent led me to Christ that was
only the beginning of his responsibility for me. You see we are born to reproduce.
After I became a Christian, we met weekly for Bible study and prayer. We went out
witnessing together and I learnt how to share my faith from him. He discipled me. After a year, he
weaned me off my dependency on him by leaving the country.
Before
he left, he wrote in my Bible, “Several guys, mainly one, shared with me about
the love of God found in Christ. It changed my life. I shared that message with
you and it changed yours. Don’t let it stop with you, pass it on.” I began to meet with one of his colleagues for
Bible study and prayer and together we shared our faith, led students to
Christ, took them through some basic Bible studies, showed them how to feed
themselves, took them to a good church, took them out with us to share our
faith, led other students to Christ, let them lead the basic Bible studies and they
began reproducing themselves as well. Trent continued writing me letters from
Easter Europe, like the one Paul wrote Timothy. He challenged me to work with
him.
Over the years I made numerous trips behind the Iron Curtain to help Christians
become disciple makers. In May this year I went back to Beilsko
Bala, in Poland – the venue of my first trip in the
mid 1970s. This time we were training church leaders to use the CE course.
There
are two models of church growth. One that works and one that
doesn’t. One that Jesus endorsed and one that many churches
employ. The difference?
It’s the difference between addition and multiplication. The difference
between encouraging discipleship and encouraging dependency. Jesus said
“make disciples” or “multiply disciples”. He did not say “add dependents” but
that is what we do most of the time. The Church will never fulfil the Great
Commission this way.
Let
me illustrate. If the 12 Apostles had all been as fruitful as Billy Graham and
each led a Crusade mission reaching 5,000 people every day, five days a week,
for 50 weeks of the year, for 50 years, how many people would they reach for
Christ? 750 million people. And the world’s population
is? 6 billion. But if each of those Apostles shared
their faith with one person a day and saw one person come to faith in six
months but during the next six months discipled them and
so that the 24 shared their faith with one person a day and saw one person come
to faith in the next six months, how many people would have heard the gospel in
a year? 6480. How many believers would there be after one year? 48. And if
those 48 disciples shared their faith with one person a day and led one person
to faith in Jesus in the next six months and in turn discipled
them over the next six months as Jesus instructs, how many would have heard the
gospel in two years? 32,688. How many believers would there be after two years?
192. After 5 years how many would have heard the gospel? 780,000. How many
believers? 94,000. Using this simple method, the numbers hearing the gospel and
the number brought to faith in Jesus double every six months. After 50 years
how many people in the world will have heard the gospel? It would not take 50
years. Every person in the world would have heard the gospel within about 18
years – less than half a generation.
Why
hasn’t it happened then? Partly because of isolation, distances involved, war
and language barriers which still inhibit the proclamation of the gospel – but
the greatest impediment is not linguistic, its not lack of technology or the
fault of geography. It’s because the Church is largely content with addition
instead of multiplication. Content with encouraging dependency
rather than discipleship. That is why our mission statement is to know
Jesus and make Jesus known, to win, build and send. And that is why we are
going to study Paul’s these Sunday evenings in the Autumn.
The Recipient of 1 Timothy
The
assumption in 1 Timothy, made explicit in Paul’s second letter is that they
were in the disciple training business.
“And the things you have heard me say in the presence
of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach
others.” (2 Timothy 2:2).
On the back of Time and Newsweek, there’s often an
advert for Patek Philippe watches. The photograph
shows a father playing with his son and the slogan says “You never actually own
a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the
next generation.” That is what Paul is saying about the gospel in 1 Timothy.
The church does not own the gospel. We are to guard
it and share it with the next generation. Paul
urges Timothy over and over again to remain faithful to what he had taught him
(1:18; 5:12–16, 21; 6:11–13). The letter concludes with Paul’s heartfelt
cry: “Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust” (6:20).
We know Timothy was taught the
Scripture from early childhood by his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois (2
Tim. 3:15). He was born of a Jewish mother and a pagan Greek father (Acts
16:1). He was saved during Paul’s ministry in Lystra
during his first missionary journey (Acts 14:6-23). Timothy was probably a
teenage boy at the time. He became Paul’s disciple, his friend and co-worker.
The words “my true son in the faith”
(v2) denote his affinity or legitimate spiritual birth. By the time this letter
is written Timothy has been Paul’s constant companion for fifteen years. He has
frequently served as Paul’s trouble-shooter and as such was sent to Corinth (1
Cor. 4:17), to Thessalonica (1 Thess. 3:2), Philippi (Phil 2:19) and now
Ephesus. He is probably in early to middle thirties by this point in his life.
In many ways I think this letter resonates with us because we can identify with
Timothy. First, he is not some kind of super-saint but a young man with real problems
and yet used greatly by the Lord. Timothy considered himself inexperienced,
insecure about the burdens and responsibilities being expected of him. Do you
feel like that? I do.
If that is what is inhibiting you from
active service for Christ
then this letter is for you, this series is for you. Second, Timothy was also by disposition not
an outgoing man but by temperament shy and needing affirmation. (2 Tim 1:7).
Third, Timothy did not seem to enjoy great physical health.
He suffered from some kind of reoccurring problem with his stomach. (5:23). So this letter is intended as an encouragement, to motivate
and challenge Timothy to remain faithful to his commission. In effect, this
letter is Timothy’s charge from his teacher and mentor, the apostle Paul. The
recipient of 1 Timothy.
The Purpose of 1 Timothy
The
central purpose of First Timothy is found in 1:3 and 3:15:
“As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay
there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false
doctrines any longer.” (1 Timothy 1:3).
“if I am delayed, you
will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is
the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth. (1 Timothy 3:15)
A primary focus of the letter concerns
false teaching and its devastating effects. The letter as a whole is bracketed
by discussion of the false teaching, and the positive instruction is crafted in
direct contrast to the false teachers. The false teaching apparently involved
speculation about the law (1:7–11) and asceticism (4:1–5). Paul's real concern
is with the results of the false teaching—for example, promoting speculations
(1:4; 6:4), arrogance (6:4), and greed (6:5–10). Paul addresses the content of
the false teaching only in passing but focuses on the fact that true
Christianity is evidenced by lifestyles shaped by the gospel. Those whose lives
are not shaped by the gospel show that they have turned away from the faith
(1:6, 19–20; 4:1; 5:6, 8, 11–12, 15; 6:9–10). 1 Timothy is then a clear call
for the church to live out in tangible ways the ethical implications of the
gospel. The church is God’s primary vehicle for accomplishing His work on earth
(see Matt. 16:18–20). The local church is the hope of the world.
The recipient of 1
Timothy. The purpose of 1 Timothy.
The Key Themes of 1 Timothy
1.
The gospel produces holiness in the lives of believers, and there is no
legitimate separation between belief and behaviour. Thus, those who profess
faith but do not demonstrate any progress in godliness should question their
spiritual state.1:5; 2:8–15;
3:1–16; 4:6–16; 5:4–6, 8; 6:3–5, 11–14, 18–19
2.
Worldwide evangelization is essential and is rooted in God's own evangelistic
desire.1:15; 2:1–7; 3:16;
4:10
3. One key evidence of reception of the gospel is proper
behaviour in corporate worship (evangelistic prayer, unity, modesty, and
submission).2:1–15
4.
Church leaders should be people whose lives are shaped by the gospel.3:1–13; 4:6–16
5.
Appropriate honour is a key element in how Christians should relate to one
another in the church.5:1–6:2
6.
The created order (e.g., wealth) is good and is to be appreciated, though not
worshiped.4:4–5; 6:17–19
7.
It is important to labour for the purity and preservation of the gospel.1:3–7, 18–20;
4:6–16; 6:2b–3, 12, 20–21
These
are the core themes we shall address in the following weeks. For now, here is
an outline of 1 Timothy.
An Outline of 1 Timothy
1. The Church’s doctrine (1:3-20)
2. The Church’s worship (2:1-15)
3. The Church’s church leadership (3:1-16)
4. The Church’s moral behaviour (4:1-10)
5. The Church’s social responsibilities (5:3-6:2)
6. The Church’s attitude towards possessions (6:3-21)
In
more detail:
A. The Church and its Message
- Ch. 1
1. Teaching sound doctrine - (vv. 1-11)
2. Proclaiming the Gospel - (vv. 12-17)
3. Defending the faith - (vv. 18-20)
B. The Church and its Members
- Ch. 2-3
1. Praying men - (2:1-8)
2. Submitting women - (2:9-15)
3. Qualified pastors - (3:1-7)
4. Qualified deacons - (3:8-13)
5. Behaving believers - (3:14-16)
C. The Church and its Minister
- Ch. 4
1. A good minister, preaching the Word - (vv. 1-6)
2. A godly minister, practicing the Word - (vv. 7-12)
3. A growing minister, progressing in the Word - (vv. 13-16)
D. The Church and its Ministry
- Ch. 5-6
1. To older members - (5:1-2)
2. To older widows - (5:3-10)
3. To younger widows - (5:11-16)
4. To church officers - (5:17-25)
5. To servants (slaves) - (6:1-2)
6. To false teachers - (6:3-10)
7. To the pastor - (6:11-16, 20-21)
8. To the rich - (6:17-19)
This
is where we are headed over the next few months these Sunday evenings. I invite
you to read 1 Timothy with me on Sunday afternoons each
week. If you want to read a commentary alongside your Bible, I recommend John
Stott’s in the IVP Bible Speaks Today series. On Monday, December 29, 1913, an article
appeared on page 6 of the Times newspaper.
Sir,--It
has been an open secret for some time past that I have been desirous of leading
another expedition to the South Polar regions.
I
am glad now to be able to state that, through the generosity of a friend, I can
announce that an expedition will start next year with the object of crossing
the South Polar continent from sea to sea.
I
have taken the liberty of calling the expedition "The Imperial Trans
Antarctic Expedition," because I feel that not only the people of these
islands, but our kinsmen in all the lands under the Union Jack will be willing
to assist towards the carrying out of the full programme of exploration to
which my comrades and myself are pledged.
Yours faithfully,
ERNEST H. SHACKLETON.
4, New Burlington-street, Regent-street, W.,
Dec. 27.
The story ran again a week later on January 5th, 1914 indicating that Shackleton was already swamped with applications. The often quoted advert which Shackleton allegedly wrote has never been corroborated.
“Men wanted for hazardous journey,
small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and
recognition in case of success.”
Unlike
Paul’s letter to Timothy, this advert is most probably apocryphal. But it causes
me to wonder what kind of ad Jesus would place today. “Men and women wanted for
the task of helping to build my church. Even those working with you will often
misunderstand you. You will face constant attack from an invisible enemy. You
may not see the results of your labour, and your full reward will not come
until all your work is completed. It may cost you your home, your family, your
friends, even your life.” As we have begun to see, Timothy was willing to
answer the ad. Have you? Will you?
Lets pray.
With thanks to John Stott, Warren Wersbie, Thomas Cash, Dennis
Selfridge and Travis Moore (Sermon
Central), the Nelson Study Bible and English Standard Version Study Bible.