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).

1 Timothy 5

Bible study with Pastor Terry Gray

TREAT OTHERS WITH LOVE AND RESPECT (1 Timothy 5:1-16)

Treat elders with respect (1 Timothy 5:1-2)
Do not SHARPLY rebuke. Rebuke gently and respectfully with love. After all, the purpose of rebuke is not to shame people; it's to bring people back to the path of righteousness. 

Treat peers and younger men/women like brothers and sisters (1 Timothy 5:1-2)
We can be more blunt with this group of people, but we should do so with respect and love. 

The basic idea of the two commands above is really to just love others as Jesus loves us. 

Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need (1 Timothy 5:3-16)
Back in the days when this letter was written, women completely depended on their husbands for a living. When her husband passed away, leaving behind no grown children or other relatives, a widowed woman often became destitute, because no one would support her, and she would not be able to support herself.

A Christian woman, however, could seek support from her church, physically (food, shelter, etc.) and financially (expenses, etc.). To receive such support, she would need to take a solemn pledge to never remarry again -- Note that this was not God's command; this was a man-made rule to prevent misuse of this benefit.

As with many human organizations, it worked well at first, but then people started to fall away. Families of widows who should be helping them abandoned them. Women who signed up for these benefits became lazy and did not help the church. They took advantage of the kindness and became idle, gossips, and busybodies (1 Timothy 5:13). Some of them even got remarried. The church became a tool that widows used to get by before they found something better. The women who abused this system created a tremendous amount of problem for the church -- It caused dissonance, and worse, it took resources away from those who really needed them.

To handle this issue, Paul made the following recommendations:

- First and foremost, look to God (1 Timothy 5:4-5). If the widow had children, teach them about the ways of the Lord. If the widow had family, her family should not abandon her and take her in (1 Timothy 5:6). Families of faith who abandoned widowed relatives are "worse than an unbeliever" (1 Timothy 5:8), because they (supposedly) knew the Truth, yet they behave as if they didn't.

- Teach the people that "those who live for pleasure (including widows) are dead even while they live" (1 Timothy 5:6), so that no one makes that mistake unknowingly (1 Timothy 5:7).

- To be on the church's list of widows, she had to be over sixty, shown to be a woman in good standing (not just in man's eyes, but in God's eyes as well) (1 Timothy 5:9-10). Why exclude younger widows -- To address the problems of young widows who abused church hospitality until they could find another husband. Paul understood that while we lived in our sinful bodies, we are prone to sin by being overcome by our sensual desires, especially when we are younger (1 Timothy 4:11-12). For the young widows who took advantage of church hospitality, they had already been turned by Satan! Hence, Paul advised us to avoid putting ourselves in a situation where we would sin greatly against God and our brothers and sisters in Christ -- To the young widows, Paul thus recommended young widows to marry, have children, and manage their homes in a manner that gave Satan no opportunity for slander (1 Timothy 5:14). 

The bottom line here is to make sure that THE CHURCH CAN HELP THOSE WHO ARE REALLY IN NEED. The specific example Paul used here pertained to the widows (1 Timothy 5:16), but the underlying principle can be applied generally, especially for churches in dealing with people who come for help.

Churches have limited resources -- There is never enough for all. And even if the churches had unlimited resources, it is not its primary goal to provide, provide, and provide.

The primary goal of any church is to spread the Gospel, to nurture the spiritual care of the people. The church was not placed on Earth to just provide humanitarian services. Jesus taught us to love all people, but Jesus knew the ONLY real help is to make sure we all receive salvation through him. We hunger, and we may care only about getting some bread, but Jesus is the Bread of Life! And so, when churches reach out to those in need, yes, provide to meet the basic needs (food, shelter, clothing) -- but more importantly, lead them to their spiritual safe haven in Jesus!

With the limited resources that churches have, we are to focus on making disciples of Jesus, because that is eternal provision, a provision that lasts. Resources should this be used to get the Gospel out. Any funding that takes away from this is no longer doing the will of God. Churches must stay true to the primary mission. Do not major on the temporary and the physical -- Major on the eternal!

In sum...

1. Churches are to make disciples of Jesus

2. Churches are to help those in need -- but only those who are truly needy. 

Family is the first in line to take care of their own. They need to be taught in the ways of the Lord (1 Timothy 5:7-8), so that they can continue to live in the Lord. Help is not just giving out bread and handing out blankets. By helping families live in the way of the Lord, church resources can be funneled to those who truly cannot provide for themselves, while keeping families walking with the Lord.

3. Churches are to help out Christians. Local churches are to take care of its own, those who are devoted and loyal to Christ.

4. Churches are to smartly use its resources. This goes back to staying true to its primary mission: To spread the Gospel. If it just handed things out, it is not changing anything. Get to know the people it is serving. Understand the people. And then, serve faithfully.


PASTORS SHOULD BE SUPPORTED (1 Timothy 5:17-22)

- Pastors and Christians workers should be supported financially.

- Pastors are to lead the church well and labor in the Word and doctrine.

- Pastors should be protected (1 Timothy 5:19). 

- Pastors are to be corrected (1 Timothy 5:20).

- Pastors are to be selected deliberately, carefully. Churches must know the leaders they elect! Spend time with the person before putting anyone in a leadership position (1 Timothy 5:22).


GOD HEALS MIRACULOUSLY AND MEDICINALLY (1 Timothy 5:23)

Paul told Timothy to "stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses" (1 Timothy 5:23).

Pastor Gray makes several points:

1. God may heal miraculously, but miracles are not necessary when medicinal means are readily accessible.

2. This verse is not saying it's okay to binge drink. Here, wine was used for medicinal purposes, to sanitize the water.

1 Timothy 4

Bible study with Pastor Terry Gray

WE NEED TO BE PREPARED FOR THE END OF DAYS 

As Paul wrote to Timothy, the Holy Spirit is clear about the coming of the end of days, and we need to be ready.

The closer we get to the second coming of Jesus, the worse things will become.

In Matthew 24, Jesus described the end times as birthing pains. Any mom would concur that those are some of the worst imaginable pains. There will also be wars, rumors of wars, famine, deception, etc. In our time, we have already witnessed these events. As we get closer to the end times, these events will increase in intensity and frequency -- just like labor pains.

Great apostasy is coming (1 Timothy 4:1)
In the end times, many will depart from the faith. 

1 John 2:19
"They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us."

According to John, apostasy occurs to those never "belonged to us," aka, those who were never real Christians in the first place. These could be people who often hang out around the Church and may even speak "Christianese." However, their heart does not belong to Jesus. They come to Church not for the glory of God or to glorify God but for ulterior motives, such as fulfilling their own selfish needs or glorifying themselves.

Satan, on the other hand, uses this to his advantage. When we see people leave the Church, especially great leaders, we are confused. How can such a great leader leave? And for many, such instances can put their own faith into question. They might start asking themselves, Do I have the right faith? And things just go spiraling down from there. This type of manipulation will only get worse in the end times.

What are we to do? Stand strong in our faith. How do we make sure we can stand strong? Study the Bible. REALLY KNOW THE WORD OF GOD. Move beyond milk and start digesting solid foods. The only way we can combat Satan's mind games is with a solid understanding of the Word of God.

All false teaching comes from Satan
Ephesians 6:12 
"Our struggle is not against flesh and flood... but against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

False teaching coming from demonically led false teachers cause apostasy. 

Salvation by works is a false teaching (1 Timothy 4:3-5)
Paul used an example here to illustrate the difference between works and heart: There were numerous false teachings back then -- Those that forbade people to marry certain people or to eat certain food. (These are some of the same false teachings we have to deal with today as well!) And what is Paul's response?

1 Timothy 4:4-5
"For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the Word of God and prayer."

The key to salvation is humbling of the heart, not nursing the pride of ego. There is nothing we can do to earn God's favor or to earn salvation. God knows us -- He knows we are of sinful nature, and that on our own, we would kill ourselves. God also loves us -- And because we cannot save ourselves, God has made a way for us to be saved, through Jesus Christ.

And that is the bottom line: There is only ONE way to God -- through Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ ALONE.

If we want to eat only vegetables, great. But that's not going to save us. If we want to stay single and never get married, great. But again, that's not going to save us. We can do whatever we think is "godly," but unless that ONE thing is putting our trust and our heart in Jesus Christ, NOTHING else we do would save us! Salvation is not about what we do; it is about what Jesus has ALREADY DONE.

Be aware of false teachings that pull us away from Jesus. Have our faith be based on the Word of God, not on the empty promises of false teachers. God teaches us, through the Bible, that Jesus is our only way. What do we do when someone else comes along and say, well, hey, all roads lead to God! Counter false teachings with the truth, God's Truth. If God says the path to Him is narrow, that there is only one way to Him, then THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY TO HIM. If all roads lead to God, then where is the value in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Do not let false teachings diminish the Holiness of God.

Be nourished on the words of faith (1 Timothy 4:6)
By standing on the Truth of God, we can stand strong in our faith. And when we can stand strong, we can also instruct others in the Truth, and help others come to God.

Being a disciple requires dedicated discipline and training (1 Timothy 4:7-10)
We are to stay away from myths and tales -- things like mysticism and legends. Why? Because it's not based on God's Truth. Truth is easy to find. It is tangible, it is testable, it is security. There is no guessing. There is no feeling it to be right. Truth is backed by evidence. Unfortunately, many of us today are infatuated with myths and legends. We like the mystery. We like the unknown. We like to feel the force. We want to be one with the world. None of that is about having the Truth. It's all about feeding the selfish wants of the self. It's all about making the self feel good. Friends, what is that going to get us at the end? What are good feelings going to do for us? Good feelings are not going to feel that great in the Lake of Fire. Seek the Truth, love God, and receive what is ETERNAL and REAL.

Instead of seeking good feelings, Paul told us to train ourselves toward godliness. An athlete follows a strict exercise and diet regime in order to increase his chances of winning. That chocolate cake may look delicious, but when he is training, he has to say no. Similarly, as a disciple of Christ, we are running a race. It is a marathon. The finish line is to make it to the second coming of Christ. It is a race that we want to finish. And if we want to finish it, we need to discipline ourselves. Stay away from junk food (myths, rumors, gossips) and store up on healthy meals (Word of God). It takes a lot of work to be a top athlete. It takes a lot of work to be a good disciple.

Many people may think being a Christian is no fun at all. I think this is all a matter of perspective. What are your goals? Continuing with the example of an athlete, what is his goal? To win. To him, giving up smoking, excessive drinking, late night parties, binge eating, etc. is a matter of discipline. Does he think it's no fun at all? On the contrary, he thinks those activities are detrimental for the health of his body and could not understand why anyone would put his body through those activities.

If your goal is to do whatever you want and live however you want to, then yes, the Christian life would be nothing but rules to you. However, if your goal is to obtain for what is real, to obtain eternal value, then you will train like an Olympian who has his eyes on Gold. It's not so much about the rules as it is about goals. Once we figure out what is important to us, we can then take the necessary actions to live accordingly -- and then, be aware of the consequences and be darn okay with them before heading down that road. I pray that we all go after what is real.

Labor to the point of exhaustion (1 Timothy 4:10)
Both Paul and Timothy labored hard to get the Word out. They were serious about it. There is so much to do and not enough people to do it!

Jesus said, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few" (Matthew 9:37). Be one of Jesus' hard workers!


SET AN EXAMPLE (1 Timothy 4:11-16)

Do not stumble (1 Timothy 4:12)
In Timothy's case, his youth was a stumbling block. He was young and therefore lacked confidence to demand authority. Paul encouraged Timothy here to not let that get in the way of his mission: To preach and teach the Word. Just set an example. Be an example of what a Christian should be -- in speech (the way we speak), in conduct (the way we live; how we treat others), in love (our enthusiasm, excitement), in faith, in purity.

Continue to preach and teach the Word (1 Timothy 4:13) 
Timothy's spiritual gift was to be a pastor teacher. This gift was confirmed by the elders; otherwise, they wouldn't have voted to have Timothy be anointed. Obviously, preaching and teaching the Word is the calling of a pastor, but all Christians should preach and teach the Word. As Christ's disciples, our number one priority is to spread the Gospel. We may not speak to a congregation from the pulpit, but we can all do our part in getting God's Word out.

Do not neglect our gift (1 Timothy 4:14)
Timothy was shy and timid and lacked confidences. When faced with challenges, he would prefer to shrink back than to face them head on like Paul. Paul understood that this was a trying period for Timothy, but he did not want Timothy to shrink back. Paul thus encouraged Timothy to remember that God has given him the gift of preaching. He should not let that gift go to waste and should bravely use it.

God has given each one of us a gift. We need to first discover what it is, and then, use it to do the Will of God!

Be existing in our calling (1 Timothy 4:15)
It is one thing to study the Word. It is another to LIVE it. If all we ever do is analyze and memorize when we study the Bible, then it's nothing but academics. There is little meaning beyond the pages. It is only when we breathe it, live it can we then allow the Word of God to permeate throughout our lives. God is after our heart, not our academic achievements.

Save ourselves, save others (1 Timothy 4:16)
One of the best way to spread the Word is through action. We can stand here and talk to people all day long about Christ, but if we live a life that is completely removed from what we preach, we will convince no one. Right our heart. And with a righted heart, right our behavior. Once our heart and behavior are one, we can then effectively speak for Christ. How we live is our most convincing testimony. Before we can convince others that we have Good News, we ought to be convinced with it ourselves first. LIVE the Word. Only then can we bring others to Christ!

1 Timothy 3

Bible study with Pastor Terry Gray

HOW SHOULD A CHURCH BE STRUCTURED?

First and foremost, Jesus is the head
Jesus is the head of not just the entire body of the Church but also of all local churches as well.

Leadership in the Church can be summed up in two major types

1. Leaders in charge of the spiritual care of the church: elders, overseer/bishops, pastors

2. Leaders in charge of the practical and administrative care of the church: deacons


Acts 6:1-7 gives us an idea of the organization of the Church when it first started

The early Church was growing exponentially. It was an exciting time, but along with growth also came problems: Hellenistic Jews were being mistreated.

The 12 disciples delegated the solution to godly men. The 12 apostles are the spiritual leaders. They were capable of handling the situation, but they didn't. They delegated. Why? Because their job was in spreading the Word and focusing on the spiritual care of the congregation (Acts 6:2). For administration care, they thus raised 7 men to look after that. The  7 men chosen became the first deacons of the Church.

This was a great solution. It not only resolved the problem that Hellenistic Jews faced but also allowed God's Word to continue to spread, leading multitudes of people to salvation.

QUALIFICATIONS OF BISHOPS/OVERSEERS (1 Timothy 3:1-7)

Bishops/overseers are synonymous with spiritual leaders of the Church, such as pastors.

Having the desire to be a spiritual leader is a good thing (1 Timothy 3:1). In fact, if you are called to do it, God will place that desire in you. If you are not called, you will not have this desire. This desire is not prideful or being contentious. This desire is out of love for the body of Christ and the will to lead it for God's work.

"Should you then seek great things for yourself? Do not seek them" (Jeremiah 45:5)

There are good desires and bad desires. Good desires seek glory for God; bad desires seek glory for oneself. If God stirs our heart and gives us the desire to strive for certain goals, then by all means pursue it.

A bishop should have godly character (1 Timothy 3:2-7)
This character must be demonstrated in a life of integrity. The fruit of the Holy Spirit must be evident in his life. Godly characteristics include the following:

1) Above Reproach
Blameless. No one should be able to point a finger at a pastor and charge him with an accusation. Pastors should stand head and shoulders above the world. They are NOT perfect. No one is. However, they are to conduct themselves in a blameless manner.

2) The Husband of but One Wife

The pastor should be the husband of ONE wife, a one woman man. This does not mean a pastor has to be married (Paul wasn't!). This also does not mean that a man can be married to only one woman for his entire life time; no divorce, no remarry if the wife dies, etc. 

Pastor Gray elaborated on this issue a bit further: If there is a married man who is called to be a spiritual leader in a Church, the Church needs to look into that. Is his marriage must in good standing? Is the marriage relationship healthy and vibrant -- as defined by God? If a divorced man is called to be a spiritual leader, the Church needs to look into that. Why did he get a divorce? Was it a biblical divorce? If it wasn't a biblical divorce, has he repented and returned to his walk with God? God forgives divorces, so why shouldn't we? If, however, he's been through one failed marriage after another, he's breaking one of God's sacred covenant over and over again. Clearly, he needs to deal with that underlying issue before he can lead other people in the walk with God. If an unmarried man is led to be a spiritual leader, the Church needs to look into that. Is he walking with God?

A man can be a husband of one wife and not walk with God. Does that make this man eligible for spiritual leadership in the Church?

Clearly, the point that "man of one wife" is emphasizing is obeying God's covenant for a man and his wife, and ultimately, it is about our walk with God. If the pastor is married, is he walking with God? If the pastor is a widow, is he walking with God? If the pastor is divorced, is he walking with God? If the pastor is single, is he walking with God?


3) Temperate
Well-balanced. Just as we need to exercise to stay physically fit, we also need to exercise our mind to make sure we are mentally/spiritually fit -- How? Study the Bible.

4) Self-Controlled

5) Respectable

6) Hospitable

7) Able to Teach
A pastor must have the aptitude to teach the Word of God. In order to do that, he needs to study the Word and understand it through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. He must be able and willing to communicate it effectively so that people can grasp it and apply it to their lives. He should be able to refute false teachers who mishandle the Scripture. Perhaps most importantly, he should have the supernatural gift of teaching. He should be anointed by the Holy Spirit to teach. Teaching should be his spiritual gift!

An important key point not to be missed: The pastor is to teach the WORD OF GOD. Not stories. Not personal experiences. Not Christian books. STICK TO THE SCRIPTURE.

8) Not Given to Drunkenness
Being blunt, practicing Alcoholics drug addicts should not lead the Church. However, if God has delivered them, and they have returned to their walk with God, and they are called to lead, there is no reason why "ex-alcoholics" cannot lead. Again, the key here is, is this person walking with God. When a person is addicted to alcohol, sex, drugs, whatever, that person has elevated that addiction above God. His addiction is his god! And thus, until he can repent and be delivered from his addiction, he will not be able to walk with God. And if he is not walking with God, how can he lead the Church?

9) Not Violent but Gentle
Not violent -- Hands laid on people are meant to heal, to hurt!

Gentle -- Patient, approachable, forbearing; willing to make room for others.

10) Not Quarrelsome

11) Not a Lover of Money
No spiritual leader should have financial gains as priority. Again, it's the concept of walking with God. A man cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:24). If money is his god, then he is not walking with God.

12) Manage His Own Family Well
A pastor's home should be in submission to God. His children are not perfect -- Whose children are? However, there should be order and submission. There should be evidence of how he and his family are living the Word of God. If a pastor cannot manage his own home, how can he manage the Church?

13) Not Be a Recent Convert

A pastor is not to be a novice -- a neophyte, a new believer. New believers cannot be ordained as a leader in the Church. They cannot be elders. Why not? It's a disservice not just to the Church but to the new believers themselves.

Just as a newborn cannot run without first learning how to crawl and walk, newborns in Christ need time to grow, to live, and to mature as a Christian. As any new Christian will tell us (and as any mature Christian will remember), it is not easy shedding sins of the flesh and walk in the light. There are moments where we will be weak, vulnerable to Satan's attack. We must first learn to work through these challenged by building our relationship with God and learn to walk strongly in our faith of God before we can stand strong as leaders of the Church. If we tried to lead without having built a solid foundation for ourselves to stand on, what do we do when we fail? It won't just be us failing--We'd take down the whole Church with us! We need to be established as Christians who are walking solidly with God before we can lead God's people. And this goes back to being led by the Holy Spirit -- If we are not spiritually ready to lead, we will not be led to be leaders by the Holy Spirit.


14) Have a Good Reputation with Outsiders
A pastor must have good testimony among not just the Church but the non-believing world as well. The point here is consistency, and it also resonates with the earlier point of "above reproach." A man whose heart is walking with God walks with God 24/7. He is not one man in Church and another at work. He is consistently following the Lord. The leader of the Church needs to lead by example. If his non-Christian co-workers cannot corroborate with how he is known inside the Church, how can the Church trust him as its leader? Furthermore, if he cannot stand for the Word of God and lead non-believers to Christ, and instead, be led into the world, what hope is he as a leader for the Church?

QUALIFICATIONS OF DEACONS (1 Timothy 3:8-12)

Deacons are responsible for administrative leadership. The literal translation of the word, "deacon," means "servant leader." (All leaders should be servant leaders, including spiritual leaders and elders. Jesus came as a servant leader!)

The qualifications of deacons are similar to bishops/overseers (1 Timothy 3:8-12)
Although deacons are not required to teach, they still need to have a deep and profound understanding of the Word of God.

They must first be tested (1 Timothy 3:10)
Deacons need to be proven in their walk of life. This is similar to the earlier point that leaders of the Church cannot be recent converts.

Their wives are to be women worthy of respect (1 Timothy 3:11)
In the KJV, "their" is written in italics, signifying that the word is not found in the original Greek text. Thus, some scholars say that this statement is referring to women in general. However, there are also scholars who believe this passage is talking specifically about the wives of deacons.

My take on this is simple: One of the characteristics of leaders of the Church is that their homes are in order, that they are all walking with God. All godly woman -- be them newborns or mature -- strive to be worthy of respect. It isn't because they are wives of pastors or deacons that they strive to be respectable. It is because they strive to be like Christ.

I thus think that men AND women are to be worthy of respect. None of us should talk maliciously about others, spreading rumors and promoting gossip. We should all be trustworthy and temperate, because our walk is our testimony! The best way to convince a person that we are Christians is by living the Christian life. Actions speak louder than words.

"Well done, my good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:14-30)
When we stand in front of Christ, will we hear Jesus tell us, "Well done, my good and faithful servant"? How do we know we are doing the will of God? Serve well (1 Timothy 3:13). Serve in the name of Jesus.


THE CHURCH (1 Timothy 3:14-16)
The global Church includes ALL Christians. The local church is the assembly of Christians. Both the global and the local are under the ultimate leadership of Jesus!

The Church is not a building. It is the PEOPLE that come to gather in the presence or God -- the called out ones.

Jesus called us out of the world to enter into His Kingdom
John 15
Jesus told His disciples that they didn't choose Him but that He chose them. He called them out of the world into God's Kingdom, God's community.

To belong to the Church, accept salvation offered by Jesus.

Pictures of the Church

"House of God" (1 Timothy 3:15)
The Church is likened to a building though it's not. The Church has also been called the Temple or the spiritual house.

"Living stones of God" (1 Peter 2)
The elders and deacons are the foundation, but Jesus is the capstone. 

"Household" (Ephesians 2)

"Body" (1 Corinthians 12)
The Church is not an organization. It is an organism. Jesus is the head and we are the members of His body. 

The pillar and foundation of the truth is God and God alone (1 Timothy 3:15)
Some scholars say this phrase means that the Church comes up with truth, invents truth, is the source of truth. The Church is the authority on what is the truth.

This theory led human history into some of the darkest times.

First, all humans are flawed. ALL. The Church is made up with humans. How then, could the Church possibly be the SOURCE of truth, especially when the HEAD of the Church is Jesus?

Second, let us elaborate on why this theory is a problem. Some church denominations rely extensively on church dogma, church traditions, traditions of the fathers and elders. The idea is that the clergy interprets the Bible. The average Joe's and Jane's are discouraged from reading the Bible. Under certain situations, the teachings of those traditions take higher priority than the teaching of the Word of God. And over time, church dogma gains more authority on the truth than the Bible! Honestly, this theory might be okay if we can trust the clergy. But, can we?! We are taught to be aware of false teachers. We are taught to be careful about who we place our faith in. Our faith belongs to God and God alone. Why? Because God is consistent. God is perfect. God never fails. Put our faith in the clergy? Uhm, no thanks. I'll stick with God.

This scenario of the clergy failing is nothing new. The Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Scribes were all religious leaders of Jesus's day and had elevated their own traditions above the Word of God. Their biggest dispute with Jesus was upholding traditions against the written Word of God. These religious leaders took the Word of God and added to it. The teachings of the elders and the oral traditions began to eclipse the Word of God.

For example, these religious leaders took, "thou shall not work on the Sabbath" to an extreme. They started to define what God meant by "work." They made hundreds of laws defining what work is. Spitting is work because the spit digs a furrow in the ground. There are Sabbath elevators in Jerusalem TODAY that just automatically go from floor to floor because pushing a button is work!

What is missing here? Heart. Why are they doing all these things? Not out of love for God but out of pride that they could fulfill the law down to the T. Not only is such a heart condition sinful, but it is all salvation by works! IT DOES NOT WORK!

Read the entire chapter of Matthew 23. See what Jesus had to say about about religious leaders and their desire to fulfill the law.

"Woe to you, teachers of the the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness" (Matthew 23:25-28).

The religious leaders condemned anyone who did not obey THEIR laws. And yet, Jesus admonished the Pharisees, "And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?" (Matthew 15:3)

The Pharisees were guilty of breaking the written word of God because they kept man-made traditions. Today, there are plenty of denominations that fall into the same problems, holding church dogma above the written Word of God.

It is clear where Jesus stands on this issue. The Word of God is the Truth. HE IS THE WORD OF GOD (John 14)! How did Jesus resist Satan's temptations? Not with church dogma. Not with church traditions. Jesus defeated Satan's attempt to corrupt Jesus by quoting the Scripture.

The Church is NOT the source of the the Truth. God is. Jesus is. The Holy Spirit is.

Our job as the Church is to proclaim God's Truth, to defend the Truth. Anyone who says anything different, be aware of false teachers.

Not all traditions are bad (1 Timothy 3:16)
Paul ends this chapter with a traditional hymn. We see firsthand that there are good traditions and bad. When traditions take over the authority of God, that is hypocrisy. However, when traditions reflect the truth and bring more people to God, then they are holy.

Look at truth and the theologies that are packed into the traditional hymn shared by Paul! Each phrase is a prophecy fulfilled. Each phrase is a study of its own!

"He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory" (1 Timothy 3:16).

Every Christian generation puts their theology in music. If you want to know the health of their theology, listen to their music, their worship songs.

At the end of the day, it is about our walk with Jesus. Does our heart belong to Him? Are we allowing Him to work through us and through our lives? Like Jesus said to the Pharisees, "First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean."

1 Timothy 2

Bible study with Pastor Terry Gray


PAUL CALLS US TO PRAY (1 Timothy 2:1)

Prayer is the top priority of a church, of our personal lives -- Jesus didn't call His house a House of Preaching or anything else; He call it a House of Prayer (Matthew 21:13).

Pray for Supplication
Pray to have people's needs be met according to God's will. It isn't just about fulfilling selfish needs. It is about following God's will. For example, if a person is looking for a job, pray for him, not just that he gets a job but that he finds a job that would allow him to fulfill the will of God (bringing the Word to that particular community, etc.). 

Pray for Intervention
People need saving, so save them. Christians are walking away from the Lord, pull them back. Pray for the Holy Spirit to move hearts.

Prayer of Thanks
We don't just pray because we need things from God. Prayer is communication with God. When our prayers are answered, and we are thankful, we can pray a huge thanks and praise God!

The list above is is isn't an exhaustive list. There are prayers of adoration, prayer without any agenda, etc. Pray to just enjoy God's presence, to be in God's company.


PRAY FOR EVERYONE: OUR LEADERS, FRIENDS, FOES (1 Timothy 2:2)

Pray for everyone. Friends. Enemies. Leaders of our nation.

Paul wrote this letter when Nero was the king. He was the king that burned down Jerusalem and blamed it on the Christians, who were then persecuted because of his faulty accusations.

We see that despite being under horribly corrupted leadership, Paul continued to pray for Nero, the leader of the nation. Why? Because all authorities are appointed by God (Romans 13:1). Not some. ALL. Yes, there are corrupted leaders all over the world. God did not appoint them to be corrupted leaders. God appointed them to lead well, but they did not, and they will have to answer to God on Judgment Day. And just because we have a horrible dictator above us does not mean we can get away with disrespecting them. God will hold us accountable for our submission not just to God but also the leaders He has appointed us. Besides, disrespecting our "enemies" is not a Christ-like method to solve our problems. Jesus never once disrespected the Pharisees, the Jewish leaders, or Caesar. He submitted to their authorities, although He always tried to teach them about God's way.


WE PRAY BECAUSE IT IS GOOD (1 Timothy 2:3)

Why pray? Because prayer is good. It is acceptable to God. It is pleasing to God.


THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF ALL PRAYERS IS SALVATION (1 Timothy 2:4)

As mentioned above, we don't just pray for things that we want. We pray for things accomplished that lead to salvation, to doing God's will. We pray not only that we will receive answers but that we will be closer to God.

It is God's will to save all. Some may ask, Why doesn't He just force us all to accept him then? God will not force His desires upon us at the cost of making us into robots. When God made us in His image, we received free will. And with free will, we get to CHOOSE whether or not we want to be saved.


IN GOD'S RIGHTEOUSNESS, HE CONDEMNS SIN
IN GOD'S LOVE, HE PROVIDES SALVATION
(1 Timothy 2:5-6)

There is only one mediator: Jesus. Not Mary. Not saints. Only Jesus. Only Jesus died on the Cross for us. No one else did. And even if someone wanted to try, he wouldn't be good enough. Because only Jesus was the perfect man that was the Lamb of God. Only His blood was pure enough to cleanse our sins forever.


SUBMIT TO ONE ANOTHER OUT OF REVERENCE FOR CHRIST (EPHESIANS 5:21)

As mentioned above, we are taught to submit to all levels of authority (Romans 13:1). It has to do with STRUCTURE. Without structure, there is chaos. Paul elaborates on this point in Ephesians 5-6.

Throughout the Scriptures, we see how Jesus showed submission to the authorities. For example, when Jesus went down to the Temple with His earthly parents (Joseph and Mary) as a child, He obeyed the wishes of His parents (Luke 2:51).

Ephesians 5:21
We are to submit to one another because we submit first to God.

This is the key to understanding the rest of God's order, especially in terms of the gender roles set by God.


THERE IS ORDER IN THE CHURCH (1 Timothy 2:8-15)

Here is the gist:
1. We FIRST submit to Jesus.
2. Then, we understand how to submit to one another.

Key: Submit to one another. That is, there is no equality issue. No one is better than another. Every one of us has a role to fill, and the body functions because we all do our jobs.

Based on the above, Jesus is the head, who placed men as leaders of the Church.

Men should lead prayers (1 Timothy 2:8)

Men who lead prayers need to have holy hands. HOLY. That is, they need to lead holy lives. Their testimonies have to match with how they live. They can't get up and pray piously but go on to live their lives poisonously.

They are to lead prayers without wrath. Control anger and lead with love.

They are to lead prayers without doubting, pray faith-filled prayers. Remember what Jesus says whenever He heals someone? "Your faith has healed you." When we doubt, the truth is not in us. And if the truth is not in us, why would we expect doubtful prayers to be answered?


This passage is not saying that women can't pray. There are plenty of passages throughout the Bible that show us that women pray. We should all pray, but men are the leaders of the Church and so should lead public prayers.



We are all equal in God 

As a side note, it is so important to note that having men lead prayers but not women is not about a matter of value but order. This is the same idea that a general is in charge of the brigade, but that doesn't make him better than a captain as a human being!

Where did this order come from? When God first created man and woman -- Adam and eve! Why did they fall? There was breakdown in the structure. Adam was not acting as a spiritual head, and Eve took over.

In the fall and even now during the fall, there are many guys who refuse to lead, and women who refuse to support their men. There is contention.


Many women are offended by Biblical passages that stress women's roles as men's helpers. They think this is sexism and find it disgusting.

Well, frankly, these women clearly do not understand what submitting to God means. Let us check that pride and humble our hearts.

Christianity has liberated more women than any other movement in history. Back during Jesus's time, women were property. Their place in society was lower than slaves. Men did not talk to women in public, not even to their wives or daughters.

Jesus, however, spoke gently to women. He gave them critical roles in His ministry. Deborah was raised as the only female judge of Israel. After His resurrection, Jesus appeared first to women, even though back then women's testimonies don't mean anything! Jesus freed women, recognizing them in society as PEOPLE!

Galatians 3:28
There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Neither male nor female!

Clearly, Paul is not stressing the value between man versus woman. He is stressing the ORDER of God.

Paul has applauded women who were involved in his ministries, saying these women labored with him. He praised Priscella. He worked with women. He ministered with women!

Women should dress their inner beauty (1 Timothy 2:9-10)
Read the text with cultural considerations: This was written to church of Ephesus. Back then, the people of Ephesus worshiped a pagan goddess. One of the ways of their worship was for women to get dolled up with braided hair, dressed with gold, pearls, and expensive cloths to seduce the men to worship the idol.

Paul's bigger point here isn't to tell women what to wear and what not to wear. He is warning us all: Do not let the pagan culture influence the way we dress.

Using women as an example, we should watch how we present ourselves: Expose our inner beauty (which is eternal) as opposed to dressing up the flesh (which is ephemeral).

1. Dress honorably
Do not dress in a way that draws to physical beauty. Do Not dress to seduce.

Paul talked about braided hair and gold and pearls. Are these bad? As always, it's about the HEART. Did we braid the hair to be presentable (as opposed to looking like a slob) or to seduce? Both types of dress code have braided hair but only one has the right heart. It's not about what we wear. It's about our heart.

Matthew 5:28
Jesus taught that when men look even lustfully at women, they have committed adultery. (Again, it's the heart condition that Jesus is addressing here. Our heart condition is reflected in our behavior.) Since we are taught not to cause each other to stumble (1 Corinthians 8:9; Romans 14:13), why would godly women choose to dress in a way that would cause their fellow brothers to stumble? They wouldn't.

This is the same idea as no one would take an alcoholic friend to a bar!

2. Dress modestly
Don't dress in a way that draws ourselves to our social setting. Gold was weaves into their braids to make a statement: I have made it to the high society. I'm well to do. Look at me!

Do not dress to bring glory to ourselves. Dress to bring glory to God. (It thus goes without saying that we shouldn't dress like a slob either...)

The real beauty is inside, which shines through good works. Let our outward dress match our inward dress.

Women are just as important in a church as men
Can a woman speak at church? Can a woman teach? Can a woman have authority in a church?

1 Timothy 2:11
1 Corinthians 14:34
"A woman should learn in quietness and full submission."

Two WRONG understandings:

1. Ultra conservative misunderstanding
Women should not utter a word at church. They don't pray. They don't prophesy. They don't teach. They are given no position of responsibility in the church except with children or other women to teach women how to be better women and housewives. No woman can be ordained. They cannot be pastors or any other position of spiritual leadership.

2. Ultra liberal understanding
These passages are old school and in the past. Paul was only speaking to a particular culture during his time, and his comments no loner apply to our culture today.

Looking at the culture back then, Paul, of course, is speaking to the culture. However, these Scriptures are God-inspired (2 Timothy 3:16). Anything that God has to teach us, it's in the Bible. God's words are TIMELESS.

If we pick and choose which ones are timeless and which ones are not, where do we draw the line? If we learn anything about God, we should learn this: God's standards have no gray areas. We are either righteous or sinful. There is no maybe. If there was a maybe, WHY THE HECK DID JESUS HAVE TO DIE ON THE CROSS?!

God means what He says and says what He means. He is straightforward, and He does not bend the Truth. ALL of God's Truth matches up PERFECTLY. If we have to squint to make sense of it, it is not because God speaks gray. It's because we are missing something. This is why we never stop studying the Bible. Because there is always a gem in the Word of God that will shed light on our current understand of the Word of God.

Creating gray areas due to our own inadequate understanding of the Word is just as dangerous as selectively allegorizing the text.

Let's look at this phrase together with 1 Corinthians 14:35.
"If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church."

First, addressing the cultural aspect of this passage, men and women back then sat on different sides of the synagogues. Women would shout across the room to their husbands to ask a question. This was terribly disruptive during a service, to say the least.

Paul thus isn't saying, "Shut up and don't talk, women!" He's saying, Don't be disruptive during the sermons. Save the questions for the home.

The ultra liberal misunderstanding that states the above scenario no longer applies today thus take the stance that none of the above applies to how a church should be organized today as well.

Women have gained much more status today. Yeah? To WHOM?

We need to realize that since day one, since God created Adam and Eve, God has ALWAYS seen man and woman as EQUALS. It is unfortunate that man never saw it that way. Women today are finally getting the same level of respect from men that God has bestowed upon them SINCE THE BEGINNING.

So, to those who say that women have gained much more status today, yes, to MEN. To God, women have no more or no less status.

When Jesus came to free the oppressed, to free the women, we don't hear women fighting against it. However, when we hear God, speaking through His prophets, to remind us of God's order, of God's designed roles for men and women, all of a sudden, women hate the idea of being under men and want to rebel?

Check our pride at the door. It is never about us. It's always about God and God's will. God's standards are clear cut. We don't get to just pick the ones we like and spit out the ones we don't. That is called SIN, and Jesus came to free us from that. So, be freed. Be TRULY freed.

Let's get to the meat of the discussion: What do we learn from Paul here?

The word "silence" in this passage was translated from the Greek word that means quietness that is derived from PEACEABLENESS. UNDISTRUBING quietness. There is another Greek word that means absolute silence -- That word is not used here. Look back to 1 Timothy 2:2
"... that we may live PEACEFUL and quiet lives..."

The Greek word that is translated as SILENCE in 1 Timothy 2:11 is the same word that is translated as PEACEFUL.

As I always stress, whenever we are in doubt, refer to the ORIGINAL text. Looking the at Greek, we gain a new perspective: Paul asked for silence not in the sense of no talking. Paul asked for silence in the sense of no disruption.

That is, we should not be disruptive during church services. It is not that women cannot talk. It just so happens that back then, women were the ones who were causing the disruption (men ask wives questions far less than wives ask husbands questions).

Bottom line, women can speak and testify, just as the men can. Let us all learn in peace without causing disturbance or contention.

Men are spiritual leaders of the church

1 Timothy 2:12
Women were to learn without contention. Without contention with who? With the male spiritual leaders in the church. With God's order.

The greater idea here is not that women should not speak or teach or testify but that women should not break God's order -- and this applies to men as well.

By all means, women should minister! As mentioned above, Paul ministered along sisters in Christ, clearly proving to us that here, he is not supporting the notion that women have no role in the church.

However, women should minister UNDER GOD'S ORDER. Submit to God. And then, submit to GODLY men who are also under submission of God.

Obviously, Paul's comments do not address every detail that churches run into. Hence, pray for guidance. Each church differs from another and may run into different problems. However, as long as we are all under submission of God, God will guide each church along.

1 Timothy 2:15
"But women will be saved through childbearing -- if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety."

This is a difficult phrase to understand, and there is no authoritative conclusion.

Some believe this is saying that women are saved through the physical act of child birth. Well, there are plenty of godly women who died during child birth. Some believe that this is saying that women are spiritually saved by child birth. What about those who are infertile? These theories all support the concept of salvation by works!

Some do take this to mean that women are saved in THE child birth -- the birth of Jesus Christ. They believe that since the woman first sinned, the woman will also bring forth Jesus.

As I have mentioned above, there is no authoritative conclusion on just which understanding is the correct understanding. We need to be careful about falling into false doctrines (such as salvation by works) or jumping to conclusions not supported by the Scripture. The above gives us an idea of the prominent theologies about this passage, but bear in mind that there is no firm conclusion.

Bottom line is, woman should be honored in the church just as men are. We should all work together as ONE in the body of Christ. We are a team. There is no contention between men and women. Heck, there is no contention between women and women or men and men! There should be no power struggle! It is not about fulfilling our selfish desires. It is about doing the work of God!