1 Timothy 6

Bible study with Pastor Terry Gray


SPIRITUAL FITNESS (1 Timothy 6:1-10)

Correctly represent God (1 Timothy 6:1-2)
To Christian slaves under non-Christian masters, Paul commands: Treat the masters with respect so that the name of God will not be blasphemed.

To Christian slaves under Christian masters, Paul commands: Do not take advantage of the relationship by demanding special treatment. In fact, the relationship should not be strained at all but blossom with God's love shining through the relationship.

The concept here is ambassadorship. When we tell people we are Christians, we need to understand that the best way to show that through our actions. If we are to correctly represent God and His Word, we need to make sure that we not just know it but LIVE it as well.

In the case between a slave and a master -- or, in today's terminology, employee and employer, each position has duties to be fulfilled. As employees, we are taught to respect authorities because authorities are placed there by God. Even if we do not agree with their decisions, leave that in the hands of God's judgment. By judging others instead of leaving them to God, we're essentially calling God inadequate and claiming to know better than God. It is a sign of pride, and it is a sin.

As employers, we are taught to love others as Christ loves His Bride. Christ never uses His power and authority to force anyone to do anything. Instead, He loves everyone of us and guides us in the right direction. When we sin, He does not condemn us but welcomes us into His arms so that we can learn from our mistakes. And by loving Jesus back, we are motivated to refrain from sinning and become more like Jesus.

Our testimony is our behavior. How we treat people directly reflects whether we have the heart of God.

It's not about slavery -- It's about the heart
Why doesn't Paul speak against slavery? Why doesn't the Bible speak against it? 

The Bible does not approve nor condemn slavery. It simply addresses it from a reality perspective. Slavery was a reality when the New Testament was written. There were about 60 million slaves at the time. Wherever Christianity spread,  slavery and inequality in general were abolished. In fact, Christianity was the main reason slavery was abolished in the Roman Empire.

The key concept here is the heart.

When people have the heart of God, things go right. This is why Jesus' first two commandments revolve around love. Learn to love with the heart of God and things all fall into place. 

We can write as many laws as we want to make prejudice illegal, but you and I both know that if it was that easy, we wouldn't be living in the society that we live in today.

Slavery is just the manifestation of a sinful heart. The problem is not slavery -- it is one of the many consequences of a sinful heart! Hence, the only real solution is to check our heart, not write more laws.

Paul's intention was never to lead a military campaign, never to incite rebellion. Instead, Paul preached the gospel, because the gospel changed people's heart -- Changed heart leads to changed behavior. Saved slaves will work to the glory of God. Saved masters will lead to the glory of God. And slowly, we all learn to live as God's people. It then is no longer about job titles but about working together for the glory of God! 

Avoid ungodly people (1 Timothy 6:3-5) 
Avoid divisive, greedy, spiritual, religious, arrogant false teachers. Avoid anyone who does not understand the Word of God, those who twist the Word of God, those who do not care to know the Truth, those who pervert the Truth. They think they know everything, but they are completely ignorant of the Truth. Such false teachers often use religion for personal financial gain.

"Avoid" here is not to say we are to not interact with these people. After all, if we do not interact with those who are not in Christ, then who is supposed to bring the Gospel to them? Instead, we need to make sure that we can stand fast with the Lord first, so that when we interact with non-Christians and even false teachers, we won't be pulled in by them. If we are not mature enough in the Word of God to stand strong, then we must avoid false teachers until we are ready. The general concept here is we ultimately want to be out there doing God's work, bringing the Gospel to all who have not heard -- as exemplified by Paul. However, as we have seen through the life of Paul, Christians on the mission of God will meet GREAT resistance -- not just from man but from Satan as well. Hence, before we march out on to the battle field, we have to make sure we can protect ourselves from enemy attacks -- Because we are not going to very effective if we become the victims. This is why Paul tells us to put on the full Armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20) before we enter the Spiritual Warfare.

Avoid money (1 Timothy 6:6-10)
We are not to be obsessed with getting rich. Many people often say, "Just let me finish school, and then I will serve God." Or, "Just let me get this promotion, and then I will be ready to follow God."

Remember the rich young ruler (Mark 10:17-27). He already possessed all the riches in the world, and he still did not think that was enough. Jesus told him in order to inherit eternal life, he must leave behind all his worldly possessions (Mark 10:22). The rich young ruler could not do it, and he gave up eternal life for his worldly riches! We may think this is unbelievable, but when we put off COMPLETELY following God so that we can go after that raise, or car, or house, or boat, or whatever, we are just like the rich young ruler. We love money and the things it represents more than we love God.

"The LOVE of money is the root of evil" (1 Timothy 6:10). Money itself is not evil. However, when we love it beyond anything else, that becomes evil. Why? Because it pulls us away from God, allowing Satan to come in and use it to his benefit. When we put worldly goods before God and are forced to make a decision between doing the righteous thing versus whatever benefits our worldly collection, it does not take much before we head down the path that is far removed from God.

Solomon said, "I observed everything going on under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless--like chasing the wind" (Ecclesiastes 1:14). King Solomon have seen more riches than most of us have in a life time, and he has been to the bottom of the valley as well. And having walked through such a life, he looked back and said it is all meaningless. He is not being abysmally pessimistic. Instead, he is comparing the chasing of worldly goods to the eternal riches of God. He was a man who had accumulated more wealth than anyone can imagine, and at the end of his days, he knew it was meaningless if he was not saved in the eyes of God.

Do not place too value on worldly goods. Trust in the Lord and the eternity He promises.

Jesus taught us, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on Earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where moth and rust do NOT destroy, and where thieves do NOT break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:19-21).

Fight. Pursue righteousness (1 Timothy 6:11-21)
Exercise our faith! Being a Christian is not a passive walk. Look at all the action verbs Paul encouraged Timothy with!

"Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have departed from the faith" (1 Timothy 6:20-21).