BIG IDEA:
FALSE TEACHING MUST BE ACTIVELY OPPOSED IN ORDER TO
ACCOMPLISH THE DIVINE OBJECTIVES OF:
- PROMOTING GOD’S PROGRAM FOR THIS CHURCH AGE
- HITTING THE TARGET OF LOVE
- EXPOSING REBELLIOUS SINNERS
- GUARDING THE GOSPEL MESSAGE
INTRODUCTION:
Soccer Illustration: nothing worse in soccer than an "own goal" where you kick the ball into your own goal by mistake.
Are we shooting at the proper goal in our teaching? Are we promoting "the administration of God which is by faith?" Are we hitting the target of love? Are we
exposing rebellious sinners as we use the Law lawfully? Are we being faithful to the stewardship we have received of the glorious gospel of our blessed God?
I. (:3-4A) FALSE TEACHING MUST BE ACTIVELY OPPOSED.
A. Nipping False Teaching in the Bud = a Priority for the Apostle Paul
1. Exhortation to Combat False Teaching Bears Repeating
"As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia"
2. Opposing False Teaching can take Precedence over Missionary Expansion
"remain on at Ephesus"
Timothy and Paul both would have naturally preferred to continue on together
Hendriksen: "Paul, alarmed by the encroachment and influence of dangerous doctrines, once more impresses upon Timothy the idea that this surely is not the
time for him to leave Ephesus."
Stedman: "… the teaching is the most important aspect of the ministry of a church. It must be kept pure and unsullied."
3. Nipping it in the bud requires the proper exercise of Authority
"instruct certain men not to teach …" -- sense is "command"
B. Identification of False Teaching
1. Teaching that Differs from Orthodoxy -- "strange doctrines"
2. Teaching that Majors on Speculation
a. "myths"
b. "endless genealogies" -- tiresome in detail; limitless
c. "which gives rise to mere speculation"
Ellicott: "Rabbinical fables and fabrications -- whether in history or doctrines … the fables and genealogies supplied questions of a controversial nature, but not the essence and principles of the divine dispensation."
Introducing some aspect of human philosophy; in this case with a Jewish rabbinical slant
II. (:4B) SOUND TEACHING WILL PROMOTE GOD’S PROGRAM FOR THIS CHURCH AGE
A. Goal --
"rather than furthering the administration of God"
Bassler: "The phrase usually refers to God’s administration of the universe, including
the divine plan for the universe and the divine execution of that plan (see Eph 1:10; 3:9). This more general sense is probably intended here, for there are hints throughout these letters of a divine plan operating in the universe and coming now to fruition (2:6b; 6:15; 2 Tim 1:8-10; Titus 1:2)."
B. Motivation:
"which is by faith"
Rather than characterized by a questioning, doubting spirit
III. (:5) SOUND TEACHING WILL HIT THE TARGET OF LOVE
A. Goal -- "But the goal of our instruction is love"
not intellectual satisfaction which puffs one up in pride
B. Motivation:
1. "from a pure heart"
2. "and a good conscience"
Guthrie: "involves proper self-judgment … you must have the right standard and your life must be in harmony with the standard so that your conscience is
approving, not condemning"
3. "and a sincere faith"
Stedman: "Now just as error can be detected by what it produces, so too can truth be detected by what it produces. Paul tells us what it is: "the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and sincere faith." Here is how you can
tell, almost at a glance, what is going on in a church. If a church is giving itself to some
subtle form of human philosophy, it will result in endless speculation. (Paul will enlarge on that in just a moment.) But if the truth is being taught and preached and believed, it will always result in a loving congregation. Love is our aim. Love involves activity; speculation involves the mind. Love involves persons, service, compassion, involvement, care, time. That is the way you can tell the difference. The great thrust of the gospel is to produce loving people.
IV. (:6-10) SOUND TEACHING WILL EXPOSE REBELLIOUS SINNERS BY MAKING PROPER USE OF OT LAW
A. (:6) Identification of False Teachers (continued) -- as Rebellious Sinners
1. A Turning Aside = Apostasy
"For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside"
2. A Focus on "Fruitless Discussion" -- not hitting the mark
B. (:7a) Motivation of False Teachers -- "wanting to be teachers of the Law"
Guthrie: "Their main interest was to rival contemporary Rabinical exegesis, rather than
to expound the gospel."
Hendriksen: "wanted to be novelty teachers"
C. (:7b) Ignorance of False Teachers
"even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions."
Kent: "cf. sermon notes of a pastor: ’Logic is weak, Yell louder at this point.’"
D. (:8-10) Proper Use of the Law
1. The Law is Good if used Properly
"But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully"
2. The Purpose of the Law
a. Negatively -- "not made for a righteous man"
b. Positively -- for Rebellious Sinners
1) "but for those who are lawless and rebellious"
refuse to obey authority; throw off the law
2) "for the ungodly and sinners"
they have no regard for the will of God and His standards of holiness
3) "for the unholy and profane"
4) "for those:
a) "who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers"
b) "and immoral men and homosexuals"
c) "and kidnappers"
d) "and liars and perjurers"
5) "and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching"
V. (:11) SOUND TEACHING WILL GUARD THE GOSPEL MESSAGE
A. The Gospel Message is Precious Because it Comes from God
"according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God"
B. The Gospel Message is a Sacred Stewardship from God
"with which I have been entrusted"
* * * * * * * * * *
DEVOTIONAL QUESTIONS:
1) A good exercise is to track through this list of ungodly behavior and match up the verses here in 1 Timothy with the specific Ten Commandments given in Exodus.
2) Am I more interested in messages that engage my mind to think in a novel way about doctrine, or am I more interested in messages that engage my will and my heart to act on what I know in matters of obedience and loving others?
3) Is there hypocrisy in my teaching in the sense that I claim to know and understand much more than my life attests to? Is the fruit of my doctrine seen in my godly behavior?
4) In what ways this past week have I been a faithful steward of "the glorious gospel of the blessed God"?
Download the entire 1 Timothy commentary in pdf
format (including notes on each sermon from other
commentators) from:
http://www.bibleoutlines.com
("Other Free Commentaries" button)
