I AND II TIMOTHY, TITUS--THE PASTORAL EPISTLES
Sermon 9
Introduction:
In this lesson we will complete a survey of the Pastoral Epistles. These Epistles differ in style and language from Paul’s other letters. New words are found in these letters which are not used elsewhere in the New Testament. There are 82 new words used in I Timothy, 53 new words in II Timothy, and 33 new words in Titus. Because of these new words, critics have questioned their authorship by Paul. These epistles contain different subjects than his others. The contain pastoral duties, responsibility, and conduct as contrasted with sin, faith, justification, etc.
In Paul’s Church Epistles and to Philemon his salutation is twofold: “grace and peace.” In the “Pastoral Epistles” his salutation is threefold: “grace, mercy, and peace.” All Christians need grace and peace for the experiences of their christian life, but a Pastor needs the added ingredient mercy, because of his position and his dealings with many different types of personalities from all walks of life. Only a Pastor can appreciate this truth.
Pastors need a little extra from God to heal their bruises and give them the life they need. The average churchmember knows nothing of the burdens that the Pastor carries. I want to give you the Pastor’s burdens.
1. He has to conduct 150 or more services a year.
2. He has to produce around 150 sermons in a year. Might I add Fresh Sermons to the same congregation!
3. He has to please all the members of his church.
4. He has to lead Wednesday night prayer meeting week after week with half of the membership absent.
5. He has to endure the vacation months of the summer, and struggle through the sick winter months.
6. He has to visit the newcomers in the community.
7. He has to visit all the sick at home and in the hospital.
8. He has to organize visitation and pump and prime to get 10% of the Church out to win souls!!!
9. He has to attend every special meeting.
10. He’s expected to be at every birthday party.
11. He’s expected to be at every major or MINOR surgery!!!
12. He has to lead when noone will follow.
13. He has to let a little man do a big job and a big man do a little job and make them feel good about.
14. He has to get right in the middle of every fuss and fight.
15. He has to leave vacations in case of an emergency.
16. He has carry the burdens of every member of the Church, Community, his Companion and His Children!!!
17. He has to love when others hate, smile when others frown, praise when other condemn, preach when
others sleep, stand when others run, laugh when others cry, be superman when every one else wimps out!
18. He has to bind up broken hearts and fix broken homes and then gets blamed if it doesn’t work out.
19. He has to smile at empty offering plates.
20. He has to put up with nagging missionaries.
21. He has to guard against the devil’s army.
22. He has to pour out his soul to get men to give themselves to God only to see them set in their pew and pop bubble gum.
THAT’S THE BURDENS OF A PASTOR!!!
I TIMOTHY
I. SURVEY
A. Writer: The Apostle Paul
B. Date: 65 A.D.
C. Purpose: I Timothy is the first of Paul’s three Pastoral letters. It is not addressed to any local assembly, but to
an individual. This Book has to do with the duties of the Pastor of a local Church.
D. Key Verse: “But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of
God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.” I Tim. 3:15
E. To Whom: Timothy, commonly known as Timotheus, is the one to whom the epistle is addressed.
1. He had a Greek father and a Jewish Mother, her name being Eunice.
2. His Grandmother, Lois, was known for her strong faith; thus, Timothy was the third generation of that family
to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
3. It is accepted that he was converted at Lystra and he accompanied Paul on the missionary journey in which
they visited this city for the second time.
II. OUTLINE - THE EXAMPLE OF WHAT A PASTOR SHOULD BE
A. Refuse the Teaching of good works as the Gospel - I Timothy 1:3-20
B. Revere the Church House - I Timothy 2:1-11
C. Restrain Women to their proper place - I Timothy 2:12-15
D. Reguire certain qualifications for Church Leadership - I Timothy 3:1-16
E. Reveal False Teachers - I Timothy 4:1-10
F. Regulate the conduct of the Church - I Timothy 4:11-5:25
G. Rejoice in the Heavenly and not in the Earthly - I Timothy 6:1-19
H. Rebuke anything contrary to Scripture - I Timothy 6:20-21
II TIMOTHY
I. SURVEY
A. Writer: The Apostle Paul
B. Date: 67 A.D.
C. Purpose: To instruct the young pastor, Timothy, how to carry on in the work of God after Paul’s death. The
empasis of this epistle is upon the great apostasy which will exist in the latter days of the Church, just before the
Rapture occurs.
D. Key Verses: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is
laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, sjall give me at that day: and not
to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” I Timothy 4:7-8
II. OUTLINE
A. The Bashful Son - II Timothy 1
1. The Relationship - II Timothy 1:1-2
a. Paul considered Timothy his own son in the faith.
b. Of all the young men with whom Paul came in contact, there was none so dear to his heart as Timothy.
2. The Remembrance - II Timothy 1:3-5
a. Paul Remembered a True Friend - vs. 3-4
1. Timothy had no truer friend than the Apostle Paul.
2. He was the subject of Paul’s constant prayer.
3. He yearned to see Timothy and was mindful of the tears that Timothy had shed when they were separated some time before.
b. Paul Remembered True Faith - vs. 5
1. Timothy as I said earlier was a third generation Christian.
2. Paul knew that Timothy’s faith was genuine, the same as his mother’s and grandmother’s.
3. There was no question as to his standing concerning the Word of God, the Faith once delivered to the saints.
3. The Rebuke - II Timothy 1:6-12
a. Bible Scholars may not agree that Timothy had grown cold, but we will have to agree that the young man was being reprimanded or instructed to exercise the gift of Spirit to a greater.
b. He is admonished to “stir up the gift of God, which is in thee.”
c. The word “stir” is the opposite of “quench”; it is used to rekindle, to stir, a dying fire.
1. It seems that Timothy had was in this condition spiritually. We all get here at times.
2. At one time he was a flaming minister of God, but now he was only as smoking embers. WHY?
a. It might have been the severe persecution that was prevailing.
b. It might have been that he was finding things too easy where he was.
3. Whatever the cause for his coldness does not matter; the fact remains that he was instructed to revive his gift.
4. The Results
a. We learned from History that Timothy was used of God.
b. Timothy served as Pastor at Ephesus until A.D. 97.
c. In that year, the Ephesian pagans were celebrating a feast called “Catagogion.” When Timothy saw there
pagan procession, he blocked their way and severely rebuked them for their idolatry. His holy Boldness
angered the pagans and they attacked him with clubs and beat him to death.
B. The Brave Soldier - II Timothy 2:1-26 - The second chapter of this great book is one of encouragement and
exhortation. Paul is urgin Timothy to exercise some things.
1. Paul’s urges him to Stand - 2:1
2. Paul’s urges him to Strive - 2:2
a. The Preacher is never to withhold Bible truths; this second verse is God’s instruction, and man’s opportunity, to establish Bible schools, colleges and seminaries.
b. The truths which we have heard are to be given to others, who will in turn give them to others.
c. We preachers are to strive with all the power we have to spread the gospel to every creature!!!
3. Paul’s urges him to Suffer - 2:3-14
a. Soldiers of the cross are not to be entangled with the things of this world, that they may be completely free to obey their Commander-in-Cheif’s commands.
b. The path of the Christian soldier many times leads to danger and much suffering.
1. Some of God’s people are cumbered about with many weights and entanglements, which restrain them from serving God completely.
2. The weights may be debts, great possessions, family matters, or anything that comes between you and serving God.
3. We needed to be rooted in this world to the point that we are not freelance christians but we also need to be ready to go when he calls.
4. Paul’s urges him to Study - 2:15
a. All through God’s Word He exhorts the believer to study his word, and this verse is no exception.
b. However, this word “study” has reference to one’s own self rather than the Bible.
c. We need to study the Word as a mirror so that we can present ourselves holy to God and rightly divide (straightly cut) the Word of Truth.
5. Paul’s urges him to Shun - 2:16-23 - D.L. Moody wrote in the cover of his Bible, “This Book will keep you
from sin and sin will keep you from this book.”
6. Paul’s urges him to Serve - 2:24-26
C. The Bold Servant - II Timothy 3 & 4 - If there was ever a brave soldier that we can use as a good Godly
example it was the Apostle Paul. The last two chapter of this book clearly show that.
1. He gives the Condition of the World - 3:1-13
2. He says Continue in the Word - 3:14-17
3. He gives a Challenge to the Word - 4:1-7
4. He gets a Crown from the Living Word - 4:8
TITUS
I. SURVEY
A. Writer: The Apostle Paul
B. Date: 67 A.D.
C. To Whom: A young Gentile convert, a Greek, who like Timothy, was one of Paul’s understudies. He
accompanied Paul to the Church council at Jerusalem in Acts 15. Though he was a Gentile hw was not
compelled to be circumcised by those in authority, thus proving that the Gentiles are not and never have been,
under the Law.
D. Purpose: To instruct this young Pastor in his pastoral duties. This epistle, along with I and II Timothy,
composes what we know as the Pastoral Letters.
E. This Book contains all the cardinal doctrines of the Word, except angelology, which includes the doctrine of
Satan. Even though Satan is not mentioned, we find his work prevalent in this epistle. Approximately forty-two
sins are mentioned by name, and approximately forty-five person are named also.
F. Key Verse: “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus
Christ.” Titus 2:13
II. OUTLINE
A. The Request for a Preacher - 1:1-5
1. GOD MAKES THE REQUEST!!!
2. We have to many so called preachers in this day that are truly not God called Preachers.
a. Paul said he was a servant of God
b. Most preachers that we have today are men pleasers but the number one job of a Preacher is to please God.
B. The Reguirements of a Preacher - 1:6-9
C. The Responsibilities of a Preacher - 1:10 - 3:15
D. The Reward of a Preacher - 2:13
PREACH THE WORD
I am greatly diappointed in the preachers of today,
With their logic and their ethics, their aristocratic way;
With their science and their theories and their new theology,
Full of everything but Jesus and His love for you and me.
There is plenty in the Bible for preachers of today
If they will but search it pages and for help Divine would pray;
For God’s word is everlasting, it never will grow old,
‘Tis indeed a priceless treasure far more precious than pure gold.
If the Preachers in our Church would preach Jesus crucified,
How through love for us he suffered and through love for us he died,
Then our lives would not be empty as so many are today,
But be filled to overflowing in the good Old Fashioned way!!!
What we need is just plain gospel, just good old fashioned Preaching,
Not Emerson and Shakespeare, or this modern, liberal teaching.
What care we for all their saying, or teaching true and tried?
I want the the dear old story of my Saviour cricified!!!
What we need is consecration in a good true man of God,
With a Bible education, and a love for God’s dear Word;
Who can lead us and direct us to the truth, the Life the Way,
Who brings peace to the soul and body through the burdens of each day/
This alone can save the sinner, this alone can set men free,
Just the precious dear old story of God’s love for you and me;
That is what the people’s needing, that is what they need to see,
The preaching of Bible stories that they heard at mother’s knee!
