LESSON 1

1 Timothy: Heaven's Truth

(1 Timothy 1)

The two letters to Timothy are affectionately known as the "Pastoral Epistles" because of their rich instruction for "pastors and leaders to help them bring order and ordain elders (pastors) for the churches he [Paul] planted."2 These letters were written as a means of guidance from a spiritual father (Paul) to his spiritual son (Timothy). But they are certainly much more than that. They are letters for churches and their leaders that we might more affectionately rename the "Apostolic Epistles." After all, Timothy was a representative of the apostle Paul to many churches in the Mediterranean world. Timothy was an evangelist, "an itinerant apostle who planted and brought healing and truth to the churches in which he ministered."3

As you read each passage below, jot down what you learn about Timothy and his ministry and character. Also note his relationship to the apostle Paul and Paul's reliance on him.

Acts 17:10-15

1 Thessalonians 3:1-8

1 Corinthians 4:14-17

1 Corinthians 16:10-11

2 Corinthians 1:19

Romans 16:21

Colossians 1:1

Philippians 1:1; 2:19-24

What struck you most about what you learned about Timothy?

Paul's first letter to Timothy provides counsel and instruction on a wide range of topics, including faithfulness, prayer, how to handle false teachers, qualifications for church leadership, and how to live as a servant of the living God. This first letter to Timothy, then, is paramount to the Christian lifestyle, whether an individual serves as a faithful local church member or a leader. Prepare to be challenged, as Timothy most certainly was, because Paul doesn't hold back in laying out the numerous heavenly principles required for Christians as they mature in Christ and as they manage their churches and households.

Authorship, Audience, and Date

The apostle Paul was the human writer of the two letters to Timothy (1 Timothy 1:1; 2 Timothy 1:1). Unlike most of the other letters we have from Paul, which were written to church congregations, these two letters were written to one individual, Timothy. They are, therefore, more personal.

Their recipient, Timothy, was a native of Lystra in Lycaonia (the interior region of Asia Minor, north of the Taurus Mountains). His father was Greek, and his mother and grandmother were of Jewish descent and also Christians. Timothy is first mentioned in the book of Acts, and what is said of him is quite positive: "Timothy was well known and highly respected among all the believers of Lystra and Iconium. Paul recognized God's favor on Timothy's life and wanted him to accompany them [Paul and Silas] in ministry" (Acts 16:2-3).

This meeting happened during Paul's second missionary journey and his third time in Lystra. The first two times he was there, Barnabas was with him. During this first missionary journey and his initial ministry times in Lystra, Timothy and his mother may have become Christians. As Bible scholar F. F. Bruce explains:

His [Timothy's] Jewish mother (Eunice by name) brought him up in her faith, with the added encouragement of her own mother Lois (2 Tim. 1:5); in particular, he was well versed from childhood in the OT scriptures, presumably in their Greek form (2 Tim. 3:15). He first appears in Luke's narrative when Paul (accompanied by Silas) pays his second visit to Lystra, returning to his Gentile mission-field after the Council of Jerusalem. By this time Timothy could be called a 'disciple.'(Acts 16:1); it appears, then, that mother and son had come to faith in Christ during Paul's previous visit to Lystra., two or three years previously (Acts 14:6-20). That Timothy was a convert of Paul's is further implied by his description as Paul's 'true-born child in the faith' (1 Tim. 1:2).4

The remaining references to Timothy in Acts demonstrate the close relationship between Paul and Timothy (Acts 17:14-15; 18:5; 20:4-5), with Paul often dispatching Timothy to represent him (e.g., 19:22). Timothy represented Paul and his ministry in the churches of Thessalonica, Corinth, Philippi, and Ephesus. Moreover, Paul specifically referred to Timothy as his "ministry partner" (Romans 16:21), his "loyal son" (Philippians 2:22), and even his "brother" (2 Corinthians 1:1, where Paul also mentions Timothy as a coauthor of his letter).

Paul mentored Timothy in Christian ministry and church planting. Mentoring, of course, is a rather broad term, covering guidance related to the daily challenges of life to major questions surrounding a person's life goals. Paul's relationship to Timothy included involving him in Paul's apostolic tasks (1 Thessalonians 3:1-8) and guiding him as he found his own calling in ministry (1 Corinthians 4:17; 16:10-11).5

The first letter to Timothy was likely written in the early sixties, probably around AD 62 or 63. The second letter was written near the very end of Paul's life, anywhere between the years 65 and 67.6

Have you had a mentor who had a significant impact on your life? Maybe it was a teacher, a supervisor at work, or a spiritual father or mother? How has that relationship framed your path throughout your life?

Paul entrusted Timothy with a trip to Thessalonica (you can read about it in 1 Thessalonians 3). Have you had a mentor entrust you with an important task? What was it? How did that task work out? What did you learn through it?

Major Themes

There are three major themes in 1 Timothy: (1) false teachers and sound doctrine, (2) qualifications for church leadership, and (3) living in the household of God. These topics cover issues that Timothy confronted while ministering in churches in Asia Minor, especially in the city of Ephesus.

Read through the six chapters of 1 Timothy. As you read, jot down your thoughts about what Paul covers, including questions you hope we will deal with as our study progresses.

Paul didn't pull any punches as he wrote to Timothy. In 1:3, he immediately addressed a pressing concern within the Ephesian church: false teaching. He charged Timothy to remain in Ephesus and make it his task to keep the gospel and sound teaching in the forefront of his work there, confronting those individuals who focus on "deceptive doctrines.cultural myths, traditions, or the endless study of genealogies" in their teaching (vv. 3-4). The reference here may include pagan teachings and legends as well those coming from wayward Jewish groups and writings.7 Paul called such teachings "digressions" that bred "controversies and debates" and were "devoid of power that builds up and strengthens the church in the faith of God" (v. 4).

Have you sat in a class or study group where the topics taught fomented controversy and debate more than anything else? Did you see value in this? Did it help those individuals involved, or did it hinder their personal and communal growth in Christ? Explain.

Now read 1 Timothy 1:3-5. According to Paul, what was to be Timothy's main mission in Ephesus? In other words, what was his primary focus to be as he led the church and taught?

  THE BACKSTORY

The city of Ephesus, where Timothy served in ministry at the time of the writing of 1 Timothy, was "the leading city of the richest region of the Roman Empire." Ephesus was "the Roman provincial capital of Asia Minor" and "the most prosperous commercial center of the time, controlling the financial affairs of western Asia Minor."8 Its harbor was "one of the busiest seaports of the Roman Empire."9 Trade also came into the city by major roadways. So central was the city for the flow of goods coming from the East that milestone markers show that "mileages to other cities in Asia Minor were measured from Ephesus."10 One of its roads east connected to "an ancient road that led all the way into Babylonia."11

Ephesus was also home to magnificent structures, the most renowned of which was the temple of the goddess Artemis. Biblical scholar F. F. Bruce states that this temple "covered an area four times as extensive as the Parthenon in Athens; it was supported by 127 columns, each of them sixty feet high, and it was adorned by some of the greatest sculptors of the age."12 In Paul's day, this temple was considered the greatest of the seven wonders of the ancient world.13 Ephesus also had a large theater that could seat twenty-four thousand people. This theater was "home to the Ephesia, an annual series of games drawing competitors from throughout the province and involving both athletic and artistic competitions, including music and dance."14

Marketplaces, bathhouses, smaller but beautiful temples, gymnasiums, a large civic center that contained several public buildings, and many large homes filled the city of at least two hundred fifty thousand inhabitants. One of the excavated homes of the rich...