Erica's Bible Study and Journal: 1 Timothy

1 Timothy 5:1-25

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 00:03:26 GMT

Timothy was instructed to never speak sharply to an elder, but to treat him as a father. He was told to treat men younger than himself as brothers. Elder women he was to treat like mothers, and younger women as sisters.

Special care was to be given to the truly widowed. They would be women of a certain age who had no children or family that could care for them. If there was a widow with family, that family needed to be encouraged to provide for her. It was their duty. If they refused, they denied the faith and were in fact unbelievers. Paul described a true widow, to be supported financially by the church, as desolate, trusting in God, and a woman who spent time in prayer. But the woman who had lost her husband and had given herself up to a life of pleasure was spiritually dead while she continued in that way. The true widows were to be cared for by the believers.

It may help if I explain why widows were to be taken care of. It is only in recent history that women were free to work outside of the home. In some places women are still completely dependent on their husbands to provide for them. That was the case when Paul wrote this letter.

The widows taken in by the church also had to meet other criteria. They couldn't be younger than 60 and they could not be a woman that had been married multiple times. Her reputation had to be full of good works and she must have been willing to be hospitable and helpful to others. Women younger than 60 should not become a ward of the church, because in due time they would desire to marry again. Also, a young woman cared for by the church would become idle and a busybody. Paul said they should marry, raise up a family, and live a life above reproach. If any person of faith had widows in their family, they should care for them, so the church is free to care for those that are destitute.

Paul next instructed them to make sure the elders that fulfilled their duties properly and faithfully be well provided for. Leading a congregation and watching over each persons spiritual growth is work and workers should be paid. If someone accused an elder, the accusation should not be considered true unless there are two or three witnesses. It would be easy to discredit someone based on what one person says (we do that all the time) but it is better to make sure the truth is being told before you act. If an elder was found to be living in sin, he was to be chastised in front of the congregation he betrayed in hopes that anyone else who is tempted will think twice. This was to be the standard without partiality.

Paul began this chapter giving Timothy guidelines for the congregation. He next turned to Timothy personally. He told Timothy not to be quick to ordain any man. He'd told him earlier to be sure of any person that is seeking an active role in leadership. If he ordained someone hastily, he became a partaker of that person's sin. In other words he must not be found guilty by association. Apparently, Timothy drank a lot of water, because Paul, aware of some ailments he suffered, told Timothy to use a little wine to help.

The last two verses of this chapter are, to me, a comfort and a warning. Paul told Timothy that some men's sins are obvious and others we don't know till later. Fortunately, the same is true of good works.

Paul packed a lot of practical instruction into these verses. I thank God that He cares enough to preserve this type of wisdom for us all to learn from. Until tomorrow...

If you are blessed by this summary, please leave a comment.

IceRocket Tags: instruction,duties,leadership,elder,paid,congregation,widows

1 Timothy 4:1-16

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 10:32:45 GMT

Paul here warned Timothy that a time would come when people would refuse the truth in favor of deception. They would follow liars willingly and believe doctrines taught by demons. Their consciences would be seared leaving them with no sense of what is right or wrong. They would be bound by laws and doctrines that seek to restrict their diets and prohibit marriage making both a part of salvation.

Paul told Timothy that if he instructed the brethren according to the truth of God's word, he would be a worthy steward. He was told to avoid all fables and myths and to nourish godliness which is beneficial now and in the life to come. They work and suffer because they trust in God, as all believers should.

Timothy was told to live in a way that would prevent others from rejecting him based on his age. He was to be an example of pure, Christ-like living. He needed to give time to studying the word. He was to be mindful of himself and his actions so that his life and his words were aligned. Others would be saved by what they saw from him.

I could say this at the end of each chapter, but the truth revealed by Paul is just as relevant now as it was when he wrote it. Until tomorrow...

If you are blessed by this summary, please leave a comment.

IceRocket Tags: age,conscience,doctrine,laws,salvation,worthy,steward,food

1 Timothy 3:1-16

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 10:33:52 GMT

In this chapter, Paul laid out the criteria for leadership roles in the church. Today all you need is to have a group willing to listen to you talk and you can be a pastor. I believe we could straighten out a lot of mess in today's Church if we returned to the bible.

Paul says a man that reaches out for the office of a bishop (church leader) longs for something good. However, he has to measure up to the position. He must be blameless, meaning any accusation made against him would be found false and without merit. He must be a man with only one wife. In Paul's day it was customary for men to have many wives and to have been divorced many times (not entirely unlike today). This lifestyle had no place in the church. The bishop was to be self-controlled, hospitable, and able to teach. He was not to be given to wine (refers, I think, to a person who is always near the wine when it is being poured. If you look for this person at a gathering, look for the alcohol and there they will be. It could also be a prohibition against alcohol entirely if you are a leader).

A bishop was not to be quarrelsome or greedy for money (imagine that!), but instead patient and peaceable. His own home was to be in order, meaning his children were well behaved. Why? Well verse 5 sums it up. If he can't lead in his home, how can he lead God's flock.

This reminds me of my childhood and all the "preacher's kids" I knew. They were in church with mom and dad for every service, but when they weren't in church, they were running a muck. Now I think I know why. Because they saw mom and dad behave one way in public and another at home. I think if any parent lives a life consistent with what they say they believe, the children are better for it.

Moving on. A bishop was to be a mature believer to reduce the risk that he will become prideful. He must have a good reputation everywhere, not just within the church so that he won't bring scandal into the church.

Paul moved on to the deacons. A deacon must also be self-controlled, consistent in his speech (not saying one thing here and something else there), and not be a drunkard. Like the bishop, he also was not to be motivated by financial gain. He should keep the faith with a pure conscience. They were to prove that these things were true about him before they let him serve.

Verse 11 discusses the wives. The wives were to be self-controlled as well. They weren't to be gossipers or slanderers. And they needed to be faithful in all they did and said. The deacons were only to have one wife and they must have their homes in order. Those that served according to God's will would be blessed for their faithfulness.

Paul wanted to go to Timothy but he wrote this letter so that in the meantime, he would know how things were to be conducted and how they were to behave as representatives of God on the earth.

I can only imagine what the church would look like if we still adhered to these criteria when giving people positions of leadership. It really saddens me to compare this chapter to what we see almost everywhere we look. Until tomorrow...

If you are blessed by this summary, please leave a comment.

IceRocket Tags: wives,deacons,bishop,imagine,criteria,church

1Timothy 2:1-15

Fri, 11 Jan 2008 21:59:41 GMT

In this chapter, Paul urged Timothy to pray for all men especially those in power so they might live in peace with the freedom to follow Christ. He told Timothy that such prayer was good and acceptable to God because it is His desire that all be saved from hell and grow in the truth. The truth is that there is only one God and one person that acts as mediator between God and men. That one person is Jesus. He alone gave Himself as a ransom to purchase our freedom from sin.

Paul expressed his desire that every person pray wherever they were. He instructed the women to dress modestly and appropriately. They needed to show and believe that outward adorning was nothing compared to inward adorning, good works, and godly behavior. Women were told to learn quietly from the men when assembled and not to seek to have authority over men.

This upsets a lot of people and ,before I began reading the bible and following Christ (as best I can), it used to upset me. But I have learned a few things. One, God created a hierarchy that is throughout the bible. Children submit to their parents, wives submit to their husbands (not ALL men, just their husbands) and husbands submit to God. That is God's perfect plan. It creates order and eliminates strife because each person submits to someone with more authority. Also, submission is something done willing. It should not be confused with oppression.

I also learned that when the bible tells wives to submit, it also tells the husbands to honor their wives, to love them as his own flesh, to care for them as the weaker vessel, and to love them sacrificially as Christ loved the church. A wife's willful submission was not a license for her husband to oppress, abuse,neglect or otherwise mistreat her. That happens because of us not, because God doesn't know what He is talking about, nor because Paul was a chauvinist, as some would claim.

Now, women were not to teach men in the church because that was taking an authority that wasn't theirs. However, women were obliged to teach their daughters and SONS, and could teach other women.

Verse 15 gave me pause. I wasn't sure what to make of that. I knew it couldn't mean that women received salvation by virtue of their ability to give birth. I consulted the Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary I downloaded as part of my e-sword bible study software. This is what they say:

"be saved in childbearing — Greek, “in (literally, ‘through’) (her, literally, ‘the’) child-bearing.” Through, or by, is often so used to express not the means of her salvation, but the circumstances AMIDST which it has place. Thus 1Co_3:15, “He ... shall be saved: yet so as by (literally, ‘through,’ that is, amidst) fire”: in spite of the fiery ordeal which he has necessarily to pass through, he shall be saved. So here, “In spite of the trial of childbearing which she passes through (as her portion of the curse, Gen_3:16, ‘in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children’), she shall be saved.” Moreover, I think it is implied indirectly that the very curse will be turned into a condition favorable to her salvation, by her faithfully performing her part in doing and suffering what God has assigned to her, namely, child-bearing and home duties, her sphere, as distinguished from public teaching, which is not hers, but man’s (1Ti_2:11, 1Ti_2:12)."

That I can comprehend. If anyone has another interpretation, I'd be interested to read it. I love all of God's word, even when it goes against what I want to believe. I know His way is right and if I will obey, He will do everything He has promised. Until tomorrow...

If you are blessed by this summary, please leave a comment.

IceRocket Tags: childbearing,however,women,chauvinist,oppress,study,bible study

Slight Changes/1 Timothy 1:1-20

Thu, 10 Jan 2008 21:34:39 GMT

In my first entry I explained my plan for this blog, and I mentioned that it may change as time goes on and as I try to find my "groove". Well, here is change #1. In my haste to get started on this, I didn't go back far enough in my notes to allow myself time to keep up in my reading. Therefore, rather than continue on into 1 Peter, I am backing up to 1Timothy. This is purely for my own convenience. I don't like feeling pressured to produce. This isn't supposed to feel like a second job. I will also, be taking Saturday and Sunday off from blogging. That gives me time to refresh.

Change #2 isn't actually a change. It is more of a clarification. I said in my first entry that I don't skip around. That isn't entirely accurate although it is true. You won't come here today and get a chapter in Matthew, and the next day a chapter in Ezekiel, and the day after that a chapter in Revelation. I go through the entire book before I start another. However, after reading several books of the New Testament, I will pick up where I left off in the Old Testament. For instance, before I finished my last reading of Hebrews, I had recently completed the book of Jeremiah. I do read the books chronologically, but I go back and forth from old to new every few books.

Change #3. My dear friend ,PureBlackbird1 (see My Friends) has pointed me to an excellent bible study resource at e-sword.net. They offer a free downloadable program that allows you to have various translations, commentaries, dictionaries, and maps at your fingertips. They do accept donations, and I encourage you to donate if you download. I will be using this program more frequently than my hard cover bible so if you don't recognize any abbreviated translations, just ask and I will tell you what they are.

Now that I have you completely confused, lets dive into 1 Timothy 1. Paul wrote this letter to Timothy while Timothy was still in Ephesus. Timothy had been asked to remain there to keep that church on the right path. He was to prevent them from teaching wrong doctrine and from arguing over things that meant nothing (such as genealogies and legends). He was to encourage them in their faith and reliance on God, to love one another and to maintain a clean conscience.

There were some among them striving to be teachers of the law as a means of salvation although they didn't even understand the purpose of the law. The law was for the lawless. The law laid out what was sin, otherwise, we wouldn't know what was sin and what was not (Rom 7:7 ALT What then will we say? [Is] the Law sin? Absolutely not! But I did not know sin except through [the] Law. For also I had not known covetousness unless the Law had said, "You will not covet."). Paul admitted he was one of the greatest sinners as far as the world is concerned (although all sinners are in fact equal), but God,in His grace, extended mercy even to him. Paul knew the law and believed he was upholding it in persecuting the church. But God revealed the Truth to him and made him an apostle so that others would see him as an example of God's power to forgive.

He went on to encourage Timothy to remain steadfast and not to put away his conscience. He mentions two people guilty of ignoring their conscience so they could continue in sin. Paul put them out of the assembly of believers in hopes that they would learn not to blaspheme and be restored to the faith.

We should all beware of anyone who teaches salvation through Jesus plus something else. For instance, some say you obtain salvation through Jesus and by keeping a list of rules. God's plan involves accepting Jesus as the Messiah and allowing Him to change us from the inside out. No more, no less. Until tomorrow...

If you are blessed by this summary, please leave a comment.

IceRocket Tags: letter,law,restored,faith,believers,Messiah,among,prevent