1 Timothy Chapter 1 Series

I Timothy Chapter 1

I Tim 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Savior, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope; (King James Version)

1:1 Paul, an apostle (special messenger, personally chosen representative) of Christ Jesus by the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus (the Messiah, the Anointed) our Hope [the fulfillment of our salvation], (Amplified Bible)

A. Common to list the author’s name first because letters were long rolls. Otherwise you would have to unroll the entire letter if the name was last. (Paul LeBoutillier)

B. Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ.—The letter to Timothy, though addressed to a very dear and intimate friend, was sent with a two-fold purpose. It was an affectionate reminder from his old master, “Paul the Aged,” to his disciple to be steadfast in the midst of the many perils to which one in the position of Timothy would be exposed in the city of Ephesus; but it was also an official command to resist a powerful school of false teaching which had arisen in the midst of that Ephesian Church over which Timothy was then presiding. (To be a pastor, Timothy had to make sure the sheep are well cared for and protected. -- Paul LeBoutillier)

C. So St. Paul prefaces his letter by designating himself an Apostle according to the commandment of God. The commandment especially referred to is to be found in Acts 13:2 : Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. (Ellicott)

D. Christians is to be a connecting link between other people and Jesus Christ. (2) Second, he says that he is an apostle by the royal command of God. The word he uses is epitage. This is the word in Greek for the orders which some absolutely binding law gives to an individual; for direct royal command; and above all for the instructions which come to individuals either directly or by some oracle from God. For instance, a man in an inscription dedicates an altar to the goddess Cybele kat' epitagen, in accordance with the command of the goddess, which, he tells us, had come to him in a dream. Paul thought of himself as a man holding the royal commission. If we can arrive at this consciousness of being sent out by God, a new splendor enters into life. However humble our part may be in it, we are on royal service. (William Barclay)

E. PAUL uses a title which was to become one of the great titles of Jesus—Christ Jesus, our hope'. Long ago, the psalmist had demanded: why are you cast down, O my soul?' and had answered: 'Hope in God' (Psalm 43:5). Paul himself speaks of 'Christ in you, the hope of glory' (Colossians 1:27). John speaks of the dazzling prospect which confronted Christians - the prospect of being like Christ-and goes on to say: All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure' (1 John 3:3). (William Barclay)

I Tim 1:2 Unto Timothy, my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.

1:2 to Timothy, my true son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace [inner calm and spiritual well-being] from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

A. Timothy –Converted to the Christian faith by my instrumentality, and regarded by me with the affection of a father. Paul had no children of his own. He adopted Timothy as a son, and uniformly regarded him as such. He had the same feeling also toward Titus. (Albert Barnes)

B. Grace, mercy, peace.’ The addition of ‘mercy’ to the ‘grace and peace’ of St. Paul’s earlier Epistles is another characteristic of this group (2 Timothy 1; and in some MSS. Tit_1:4). As with the title ‘Savior,’ it is as though advancing years only led him to dwell more and more on that attribute of which he found so striking an example in God’s treatment of himself (1Ti_1:16). ‘Mercy’ and ‘peace’ are found together in Gal_6:16.

C. In grace, means outward grace or favor, beauty, attractiveness, sweetness. Usually, although not always, it is applied to persons. The English word charm comes near to expressing its meaning. Grace is characteristically a lovely and an attractive thing. In the New Testament, there is al-

ways the idea of sheer generosity. Grace is something unearned and undeserved. It is the opposite of a debt. Paul says that, if it is a case of earning things, the reward is a matter not of grace but of debt (Romans 4:4). It stands in opposition to works. (W. B.)

I Tim 1:3 As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other doctrine,