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10 - 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus |
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LESSON 10 • The Letters to 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus
“That You Might Believe and Have Life In His Name” (John 20:31)
Preparation for New Testament Survey, April 9, 2006
The Letters to 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus
INTRODUCTION
When Paul first met Timothy, Timothy was living in Lystra in the Roman province of Galatia. He was the child of a mixed marriage – his father was a Gentile and his mother was Jewish (Acts 16:1). Timothy along with his mother, Eunice, and his grandmother, Lois, were probably converted during Paul’s first missionary journey recorded in Acts 14:8-25.
It seems that by the time Paul and Silas returned to Lystra a year or two later, Timothy had matured so much as a Christian that the local church recommended him to Paul as a traveling companion (Acts 16:2). However, before Paul took him along, it was first necessary for Timothy to be circumcised. Since his mother was a Jewish, Timothy was considered Jewish and for him to remain uncircumcised would have been a sign of apostasy. Apparently in the eyes of Paul, this would have undercut his ministry to Jewish converts to Christianity.
From this point onward in Paul’s ministry, Timothy seems to be connected with Paul in one way or another. What was the value of involving Timothy in mission work?
Timothy became Paul’s trusted companion on three missions prior to his assignment in Ephesus:
* He went to Thessalonica around A.D. 50 (1 Thes. 3:1-13);
* He went to Corinth between A.D. 53 and 54 (Acts 18:5, 18; 1 Cor. 4:17; 16:10-11). It seemed he was unsuccessful in resolving this church conflict.
* Following this, Timothy was with Paul during this first imprisonment in Rome and it was during this period that he helped pen the letters that we know as Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. The moment Paul was released from this imprisonment, he sent Timothy to Philippi as he promised in Phil. 2:19-24 (sometime around A.D. 62).
But Timothy was not just a colleague of Paul’s. He was a beloved friend and when Paul wanted the Corinthians to “imitate” him, he wrote “I am sending to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus” (1 Cor. 4:17). See also what Paul said in Phil. 2:19-23 and 1 Thes. 3:2.
MONDAY
Paul is now out of prison, so along with Timothy and Titus, he starts on another missionary tour (late A.D. 62 or early A.D. 63). Together they travel to Crete and have good success. But they run into false teachers on the island and Paul is forced to leave Titus behind to look after the new church. He and Timothy then head for Macedonia, stopping in Ephesus along the way. Once again they encounter false teachers and Paul is forced to leave behind one of his companions. Thistime it is Timothy. When Paul finally gets to Macedonia, he writes letters to his two colleagues giving them instructions on how to cope with the problem of false teachers and other pastoral issues. We know these two letters as 1st Timothy and Titus.
2nd Timothy was written a year or so later and under quite different conditions. While traveling back toEphesus, Paul is arrested. He is sent back to Rome. Unlike his first imprisonment where he was allowed to stay in a rented house with guards, this time he is put in a real prison. It is from that prison cell that Paul wrote Timothy the secondtime urging him to come to Rome to be with him. Although he feels close to death (4:6-8), he writes to encourage and admonish his favorite delegate. Nothing new is being communicated to Timothy in this second letter, only reminders of what he already knows, together with the exhortation to hold fast to it.
The combination of all these letters have long been known as the “Pastoral Epistles” primarily because they have been viewed as consisting mostly of advice to younger ministers. Some scholars refer to these letters as “church manuals” in which one finds instructions on church organization and guidelines for pastoral ministry. I’m not sure these letters were meant to be guides to church order.
Furthermore, Timothy and Titus are not being held up as model ministers. They were not permanent, resident ministers, overseeing the growth of particular churches. Instead, they were roving missionaries who were given temporary assignments by Paul to deal with particular problems in these various churches.
TUESDAY
Paul wasted no time in the 1st letter to get right to the primary point which was his growing concern over the false teachers who were endangering the church. The problem is noted right at the beginning of 1st Timothy, “as I urged you when I went intoMacedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may commend certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer” (1:3). Go back and look at the prediction Paul made recorded in Acts 20:17-37.
Who were these false teachers who had upset the church at Ephesus? Were they outsiders who had infiltrated the church? Or were they false teachers who were members of the church?
Most scholars agree these troubling teachers were men who had served or were serving as elders there in the Ephesian church. Evidence of this would be:
* It is clear that the teaching inEphesus was being done by the elders (3:2; 5:17) and Paul makes the point that those who are troubling the church are “teachers” (1:3, 7; 6:3).
* Furthermore, this seems to be the reason Paul devotes so much attention to outlining the qualifications for leaders in the church. These qualifications stand in sharp contrast to what we learn of the false teachers. For example, the false teachers “forbid people to marry” (4:3); and they “think that godliness is a means to financial gain” (6:5) in contrast to the instruction for an elder to “not be a lover of money” (3:3).
* In 5:17-25, Paul gets to the point and outlines the process of selection, discipline, and replacement of elders who sin.
* It is so interesting to note that Paul had a sense that this might happen when in his farewell address to the Ephesian elders recorded back in Acts 20:30 he says, “even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.”
The wrong men had become leaders!
WEDNESDAY
The context of Timothy’s situation necessitating Paul’s instruction in 1st Timothy 3 is completely different to that of Titus (Titus 1:5-9). For Titus, he was appointing elders on the Island ofCrete for the first time. So again we ask, “why was Paul giving prerequisite qualifications for elders when they already existed in Ephesus?”
Now as to what these false teachers were teaching we don’t know all the specifics, but Paul does say that it involved speculation about doctrine rather than acceptance of apostolic teaching. Furthermore, he says that this speculation led to quarrels and arguments. He noted that these teachers were proud, arrogant, disruptive, and greedy. They promoted using religion to make money and gain power (1:3-7; 6:3-10). They claimed that the resurrection was already past (2:18). Whatever they were teaching, it was a mixture of Old Testament and Greek ideas. Dig in this first letter and highlight the information Paul shares which gives you insight about the false teachers and their teachings.
The key verses in Paul’s first letter to Timothy are found in 3:14-16! Here in one phrase is the whole reason why the pastoral epistles were written – to instruct people in how they ought to behave as Christians.
We now move from the world of 1st Timothy to 2nd Timothy. These two worlds are quite different. We’ve already alluded to the fact that Paul’s circumstances were different – he is now in prison. Conditions are awful. He is alone. But the main point is the difference that had come over Timothy! In the face of the opposition and success of rival teachers, Timothy is discouraged and tempted to give up preaching, particularly since his “father” Paul has little hope for release from prison.
This 2nd letter is very personal and written to fan the flame of spiritual renewal. Rather than being the perfect, model, young minister we have often made him out to be, it seems more accurate to say that Timothy was a young minister in trouble and in jeopardy of losing his fire.
Read this letter through these lens and notice the pressures causing him to lose his focus. The real issue Timothy was facing was “Is this cause something I am willing to die for?” So therefore the theme of this letter is loyalty in the face of suffering. Paul calls upon Timothy to be loyal in three directions: to Christ, to Paul, and to the ministry he had been called.
THURSDAY
Timothy was told “do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner” (2 Tim. 1:8). He later mentions Onesiphorus in 1:15-18 as “not being ashamed of my chains.” He later turns to a series of role models to which Timothy should look for encouragement – the soldier, the athlete, and the farmer. What do we learn about discipleship from these examples?
Here were the realities that faced Timothy –
* If you’re going to be a Christian minister, you are going to have to endure hardship. Life is not easy. See the song in 2 Tim. 2:10-13.
* You must pay a price if you get what you want (2:10, 12;3:10-14; 4:1-5).
* There are only two categories: Those who finish and those who don’t.
* The Christian life is not a sprint…it is a marathon.
* It is easy to get off focus. When we do, we must be reminded of things we already know. We must be called back to the fundamental matters (1:6; 2:8; 3:14).
* The purpose of the scriptures (3:16-17) - it is a tool to help us gain strength and sustaining power.
* Our job as ministers is to deposit the truth in a few individuals who can take care of it when we’re gone.
* Some are going to fall by the wayside (1:15; 2:17; 4:10).
Titus was a Gentile who was probably converted through Paul’s ministry. While Titus is not mentioned in the book of Acts, this able and devoted companion of Paul is referred to in other places. He is mentioned some nine times in Second Corinthians and always with marked affection and appreciation. The strength of character and ability to deal with people are obvious when considering the difficult tasks that were given to him. For instance: (1) the collection for the Jerusalemsaints; (2) when the church atCorinth was having problems, Titus was sent there to help (2 Cor. 7:5-16); (3) he was used to demonstrate a principle in regard to the message going to the Gentiles in Gal. 2:1-5; (4) and then there is the challenge on the Island of Crete that he is given in this letter.
The immorality of the Cretans had reached such a state that they were given over to greediness, licentiousness, lying, and drunkenness. They were a people who could be characterized as unsteady, insincere, and factious.
FRIDAY
In Titus, the pieces that make up the Pastorals puzzle are fitted together in still another fashion. Unlike 1st Timothy, this letter gives a little bit more autobiographical information. Paul instructs Titus to return to him from his temporary duty in Cretewhen Paul sends Artemas and Tychichus to relieve him (3:12). Paul had left Titus at Crete for two primary reasons:
* To amend what is defective;
* To appoint elders in each city.
Much of the letter is taken up with instructions on these matters.
After reading 1:10-16, what do you think was going on in Crete that made the appointment of elders so important?
A fragile Christian community was at stake and was being threatened by those whose teachings were divisive. Titus himself was warned to avoid “foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law” (3:9).
It is important to note that the only specific element of “church order” that is stated in this letter to Titus are the remarks about the elders. Otherwise, the focus is on practical instructions for the household and civic responsibilities for Christians. In 2:1-10, Paul gives a list of attitudes that are appropriate for older men (2:2), women (2:3), younger women (2:4-5), younger men (2:6), and then an exhortation to slaves (2:9-10). In 3:1-2, general civic attitudes of submission to authority and good manners are recommended. All of these can be summed up as the doing of good deeds (2:14; 3:8, 14) that express their new identity, in contrast to the wicked deeds of the opponents (1:16). Why does Paul place such emphasis in chapter 3 on “doing good”?
Over the past year, where have you sensed growth in leading a “productive life” for God (3:14)?
© 2006, Pleasant Valley Church of Christ
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