1 Timothy

Paul writes this epistle to Timothy to instruct him in matters pertaining to church life. At the time, Timothy was charged to shepherd the church at Ephesus because Paul was leaving for Macedonia (1:3). In this connection, Paul instructs Timothy to keep a close guard on his lifestyle to set an example for the flock. Moreover, Paul charges Timothy to be prepared to tackle various issues that may arise in the complex of church life. In this epistle, Paul walks through issues the church in Ephesus was facing at the time and explains how to remedy each.

False teachers were beginning to infiltrate the church in Ephesus and promote unprofitable ideas (1:3-4) leading to vain discussion (1:6). Paul urges Timothy to stop these false teachers from spreading false doctrine (1:3), noting that ’a little leaven leavens the whole lump’. It is extremely important to guard against false teaching so that those in the church who are weaker do not fall prey to deception. Paul recognizes there will inevitably be some who depart from the faith and embrace false doctrine (4:1). Despite this, he reminds Timothy that every minister has the responsibility to combat false teaching and persist in the truth for the benefit of his flock (4:16).

Next, Paul goes through various aspects of church life. First, he distinguishes between the roles of men and women; namely, men should engage in prayer for all people (2:1,8) and women are to learn quietly in submissiveness (2:12). Then Paul enumerates the qualities of overseers and deacons chapter 3. Interestingly, both overseers and deacons must manage their own households well (3:4, 12), so as to prove they are able to care for a smaller household before moving on to a larger spiritual household. Paul also provides instruction on how the church ought to help widows. He makes it very clear that the primary source of aid should come from the widows’ own household (5:4). Only in the case when the widow has no relatives, must the church bear the responsibility to provide (5:16). For elders, Paul teaches that they are to be honoured in the church (5:17), provided for monetarily (5:18), and guarded against false accusations (5:19). Regarding master and slave relationships, Paul exhorts slaves to respect their masters and serve them wholeheartedly whether they are in the faith or not (6:1-2).

Finally, Paul describes the godly life. Godliness is of great value and holds promise for both this life and the life to come (4:8). Paul advises Timothy not to get involved with the doctrine of false teachers (4:7). Note, no matter how firm someone is in their doctrine, they must be wary not to get entangled with vain and meaningless teachings. Rather, the good servant of Christ Jesus will deliver truth to the church (4:6); this is primarily done through the public reading of Scripture, exhortation, and teaching (4:13). After addressing the issue of false doctrine, Paul addresses the issue of true contentment. The consequence of true contentment is contentment with very little (6:8). The godly man must not be greedy, but generous (6:17-19); he must flee from the sin of discontentment and pursue instead righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness (6:11).

Although 1 Timothy is Paul’s personal letter to Timothy over two millennia ago, it provides incalculable value for the present day church. 1 Timothy establishes the importance of faithful leaders in the church and explains how a church ought to operate. Church life is crucial to every believer; those who are in positions of leadership in the church must be dedicated to feeding their flock, and those in the church must adopt the principle of charity. False teachers will certainly enter the church to devour and destroy, so the church must always be on guard. What Paul wrote to Timothy two millennia ago is just as relevant to every Christian today: “Fight the good fight of the faith” (6:12).