Getting back to the original sources is an academic research principle I stress to my students over and over. Christian leadership has been refined and developed for 2000 years. We would be foolish to ignore all of that collective wisdom. However, Paul’s instructions to his junior colleague, Pastor Timothy, provide us with the original source—the apostolic guidelines for Christian leaders. What were the key issues about Christian leadership with Apostle Paul?

Recently I did a small reading exercise in 1 Timothy in which I noted three phrases that seem to summarize the heart of Paul’s communication to Timothy. In this sermon, I will share some thoughts based upon that exercise.

Key Scriptures

• 1:9: “. . . for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine . . .”
• 2:8: “I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.”
• 1:19b: “Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith.”

 When I read back through 1 Timothy with these three themes in mind, I was surprised at how much of the book relates to these issues. I will focus on each of these themes but will also point out some key scriptures all throughout the book related to each.

Sound Doctrine

We who are very committed to a personal relationship with Christ and who emphasize experience in our faith are often tempted to play down the importance of doctrine in our ministry. I, like most pastors, am a practical-minded person so we are often more interested in what people do rather than what they believe. Many of us also complain that theologians are often “dead” and boring and talk about things that are not very relevant to our modern world. However, Paul was very committed to the importance of sound doctrine.

Key Scriptures

The following are some of the statements Paul made to Timothy about Christian doctrine.

• 1:3-4: As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work—which is by faith.
• 1:6-7: Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk. They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
• 4:1-3:The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.
• 4:6-7: If you point these things out to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.
• 4:11, 13: Command and teach these things. . . . Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.
• 4:16: Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
• 6:3-5: If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain.

These are powerful statements that demonstrate clearly the importance of sound Christian doctrine. We cannot be casual about knowing and understanding the truths of Christianity.

Emphasis on Teaching

What is doctrine? It is simply the beliefs of our faith. What do you do with doctrine? You teach it so that others will also believe it. Interestingly there is a major emphasis on teaching in 1 Timothy. The book of Romans, the most important doctrinal book in the New Testament, has only six references to teaching in 16 chapters. Galatians, a book about the same size of 1 Timothy and another book that stressed doctrine has only one reference to teaching in it. However, the word “teach” and associated words are referred to 15 times in the six chapters of 1 Timothy. In addition, there are 8 more references to teaching in the four chapters of 2 Timothy and 10 in the three chapters of Titus. What this suggests is that Paul believed that one of the most important duties of the pastor was to teach his people the correct doctrines of the church. Note these key references to teaching:

• 3:2: Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach . . .
• 4:11: Command and teach these things.
• 4:13: Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.
• 6:2b: These are the things you are to teach and urge on them.

I hope these references throughout this book, which are addressed specifically to a pastor have sufficiently made the point. You cannot be a faithful pastor without teaching your people the important doctrines of our Christian faith.

Significance to Us

You must devote yourself to serious study.

You cannot teach sound doctrine unless you understand sound doctrine. I challenge you to read the Bible slowly and take good notes. You will be amazed at what you learn. I challenge you to get a notebook and start writing down daily observations from the passages you are reading. If you have a computer, it will be even easier. Reading and interacting with the Bible is the best single way to learn the Bible. I have four degrees in theology. However, I am convinced I have learned the most about the Bible by simply reading it slowly while taking extensive notes. This has taught me the kind of theology that I really need to know.

There are many other ways you can continue learning including reading books, attending seminars and workshops, gleaning information from the Internet, and engaging in meaningful discussions with friends. Make sure you are growing in your understanding of your faith. That is the only way you will understand and protect sound doctrine.

You must correct key doctrinal errors.

What were some of the key doctrinal errors Paul addressed? I will focus on only two.

A Wrong Understanding of Normal Human Activities. Paul write, “They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth: (4:3). People who encourage people to depart from the normal activities of life which God created have strayed into false doctrine. Paul mentions two specific issues.

• Some were perverting God’s gift of marriage.
• Some were perverting God’s gift of eating.

 Anyone who perverts God’s gift of marriage or God’s gift of food is teaching false doctrine.

Is there anyone perverting God’s gift or marriage today? There are some people who live together without being married. However, usually these people do not claim to be followers of Jesus. The more serious error today is men wanting to marry men and women wanting to marry men and some of these are doing this with the blessing of their churches. This is false doctrine that pastors and teachers must resist and correct. You have to teach your people clearly on this issue or they may be swept away by the western media propaganda.

A Wrong Understanding of Wealth. Note Paul’s argument in this paragraph:

If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain (6:3-5).

Paul starts the paragraph by talking about “false doctrines” and concludes it by saying one false doctrine is that some think “godliness is a means of financial gain.” I will not say much about this right now because this issue will also surface later. However, I am reasonably sure that some of our churches and pastors have made this very point—that godliness will lead to financial gain. Paul calls this a false doctrine.

Here are the key questions: Have we devoted ourselves to studying the Word of God so that we can know sound doctrine and identify false doctrine? Are we teaching sound doctrine to our people so they will not be led away by godless myths and old wives’ tales?

Holy Hands

Unfortunately, a person can be correct in his theology but still be cold in his heart and wicked in his lifestyle. Therefore Paul says to Timothy, “I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.” Obviously “holy hands” is simply a figure of speech for godly living. God is calling our pastors to not only have pure doctrine but also live holy and godly lives. Godliness and holiness are practically synonyms.

Key Scriptures

Here are some key scriptures related to holiness and godliness.

• 2:8: I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.
• 4:8: For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
• 6:6-10: But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
• 6:11: But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.

In his latter epistle to Timothy Paul says: “So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life . . .” (2 Timothy 1:8-9).

Emphasis on Godliness

Godliness and holiness are linked together in 2:1-2: “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” The first point stressed what the followers of Jesus were to believe. This point stresses who they were, what they were to do and how they were to live. Their lives were to be holy and godly.

What is holiness? It means to be set apart to God. What is godliness? It is simply having the characteristics of God. Paul is saying in this epistle that Timothy and other Christian leaders should be known as godly men and women or are set apart to God.

Significance to Us

There are two specific things identified with godliness in this epistle.

Prayer

Godliness and holiness are linked with prayer. This is illustrated in one of the three principle texts: “I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer . . .” (2:8). When we are praying, we are setting ourselves apart from our normal activities and drawing close to God. This results in holiness and godliness. People who are really set apart to God and who really want to be like God are praying people.

Contentment

Immediately after the startling statement which said, “who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain” we read this statement about godliness:

But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs (6:6-10).

Note these powerful and convicting statements:

• “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” Obviously, this statement must be balanced with other Biblical statements. Jesus did not want people to be content in sin. He told them to go and sin no more. Jesus did not want people to be content in sickness. He told sick people to stand up and walk. Jesus did not want people to be content in Satan’s misery. He came to preach good news to the poor. However, this statement teaches that our lives should not be motivated by greed.
• “But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.” This passage tells us that we should not be spending a lot of physical and emotional energy seeking after material blessings. We need to learn to be content in our circumstances. Contentment is clearly a part of godliness.
• “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.” This passage is a serious warning about allowing our ambitions for financial prosperity to get out of balance. All of us have known people who have yielded to the temptation of money. One of the things that age does for us is to give us a long perspective on life. Most of my life has been happy but one of the things that causes me pain is to remember my friends and acquaintances who have yielded to many foolish and harmful desires and have plunged into ruin. This is one of the realities of life and ministry.
• “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” This is a powerful warning to all of us to be very careful with money.
• “Some people eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” This statement needs little explanation.

The verses teach that godliness is the ability to overcome the appeal and attraction of money.

Pastors, you do not have to be rich to be tempted with the appeal of wealth. It is not the money that is evil. It is the love of money that makes us do evil things.

Other Positive Qualities

When I teach about how to do word studies in my hermeneutics class, one thing I stress is that you can tell a bit about a word by the words that surround it. My mother used to say “Birds of a feather flock together.” The same thing can be said about words. “Words of a feather flock together.” Immediately after warning about the dangers of seeking after wealth, Paul made this statement: “But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness” (6:11). Note the words that are around the word godliness in this context and give us some further insight about the nature of godliness.

• Righteousness. This word simply means doing the right thing.
• Faith. This means believing in and trusting in the truth even though we do not fully understand it.
• Love. Love is not necessarily a strong emotion. It is a decision to treat other people well.
• Endurance. This is continuing to do the right thing even when it is difficult.
• Gentleness. This is the opposite of harshness. It is treating people with respect and kindness.

All of these concepts are related to godliness.

Note the statement in 4:7: “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.” Because of the sin of Adam and Eve, godliness does not come natural. We have to train ourselves to be godly. Training is not easy.

• Athletes put themselves through a lot of suffering to be prepared for athletic contests.
• Soldiers also submit to a lot of difficulties so that during the battle they will know what to do.

Christian leaders should also be willing to put themselves through whatever difficulties to prepare for the temptations and obstacles that will try to keep them from being holy.

We have training programs for evangelism. We have training programs for our musicians. We even send our accountants and church administrators for training programs. The question is: Do you have a training program for godliness?

Shipwrecked Faith

One of the truths that Paul specifically stresses in this epistle is the importance of perseverance in the Christian faith. Paul warns Timothy that some have made “shipwreck of their faith.” This is a sober warning to pastors like you and me.

Key Scriptures

Note these key scriptures that point out the need for perseverance in our faith:

• 1:19-20 “. . . holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith. Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme.” Paul mentions two specific people, Hymenaeus and Alexander, who have made shipwreck of their faith.
• 3:6: “He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil.” This passage warns that leaders who become proud can fall under the same judgment as the devil. What will be the judgment of the devil? Revelation 20:10 says, “And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” We do not want to come under the judgment of Satan.
• 4:1: “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.” To abandon something is to reject or turn away from it.
• 4:15-16: “Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” The end result of persecution will be salvation.
• 5:15: “Some have in fact already turned away to follow Satan.” This is a description of some widows. The implication is that they were following Jesus before but something associated with their becoming widows had encouraged them to turn away from God and follow Satan. These are some of the saddest words in the Bible.
• 6:9-10: “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” The end result of falling into the temptations of the devil is ruin and destruction and many griefs.

Focus on Perseverance

One of the most important truths of Christianity is the reality of temptation, the consequences of loosing our faith and, therefore, the importance of perseverance. One of the most sobering verses in the Bible is 1 Corinthians 9:27 which says: “No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” The KJV makes this point even more sharply: “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” Although Paul had written 1 Corinthians several years earlier, this thought was no doubt in his mind when he wrote to Timothy. The thought of being a castaway or being disqualified for the price was a great motivator to him to keep the faith. Paul recognized that the enemy is very subtle and will do everything he can to derail a pastor. Pastors are very big targets. Therefore, the enemy is going to unleash his biggest weapons on pastors to try to get them to stumble and fall and forfeit their faith and discredit Christianity.

And this was not just a theoretical possibility. Note this series of verses:

• Colossians 4:14 (written while Paul was a prisoner in Rome): “Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.”
• Philemon 1:23-24: “Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends you greetings. 24 And so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas and Luke, my fellow workers.” This passage tells us that Demas was one of Paul’s fellow workers.
• 2 Timothy 4:9-10: “Do your best to come to me quickly, for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica.”

These verses tell us that Demas who had been a faithful co-worker with the Apostle Paul himself had turned his back on the gospel, had abandoned Paul and had apparently made shipwreck of his faith because of love for the world.

All of us have known people who have turned their back on Christ. When I was a young pastor doing an internship in a church, one day I met a man whom I had been told about. He had been an outstanding pastor and had climbed up the ladder of ecclesiastical success. However, for some reason, he rejected it all and had not only left his church but had abandoned his faith. I asked him, “When are you going to return to the faith?” He looked at me squarely in the eyes and said, “I have no plans to return.” I can think of hardly anything sadder than that.

Significance to Us

Pastor friends, I want to remind you that the enemy is aware of who you are. He is going to put all kinds of temptations and obstacles in your path to try to get you to turn from the faith. Note some of the strategies the devil uses.

The enemy will use your anger against you.

Ephesians 4:26-27 says: “In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” This is very similar to what James 3:14-15 says: “But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such ‘wisdom’ does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.” Uncontrolled anger can seriously weaken your faith.

The enemy will use your pride against you.

Paul says this about Christian leaders: “He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil” (1 Timothy 3:6). Pride creates many shameful thoughts and makes one feel he or she is deserving of unwholesome desires and these have helped to corrupt the faith of many pastors and church leaders

The enemy will use your suffering against you.

Revelation 2:10 declares: “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Sometimes when we suffer, we are tempted to think God does not care for us. That can destroy our faith.

The enemy will use your lack of self control against you.

Peter wrote: “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings” (1 Peter 5:8-9). Lack of discipline or self-control is one of the places that Satan will attack us the most. The words of 1 Kings 11:4-6 are some of the saddest words in the Bible:

As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

Solomon was declared to be the wisest man in the world at one time in his life (1 Kings 4:29-31). However, his faith was weakened by lust for women and, at the end of his life, he turned away from God. Solomon is a powerful example of a great man who turned aside from God to follow his own desires which had been manipulated by the enemy.

Are you vulnerable to the deceptions of Satan? We are all vulnerable. What can we do to protect ourselves from the attacks of Satan? Most of you have probably preached sermons on this topic before so I am not sure that I can say anything more than you already know.

• “Be self-controlled and alert.” Expect the enemy’s attacks and be prepared for them.
• “Watch your life and doctrine closely.” If you allow yourself to accept and believe bad doctrine, you will eventually succumb to sinful behavior.
• “Train yourself to be godly.” Godliness is the best antidote to an attack on your faith.

If you focus on sound doctrine and lift up holy hands, those two commitments will prepare you very well to stand against shipwrecked faith.

Conclusion

I am an optimistic person and do not like to end sermons on a negative note. I would much rather conclude a sermon by telling a story that would make everyone feel good. However, I will end this presentation where Paul ended his letter to Timothy. Here are the last two verses Paul wrote to this experienced pastor:

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 wandered from the faith. Grace be with you (6:20-21).

Interestingly, all three of the concepts we have seen throughout this epistle are found in this closing statement.

• Sound Doctrine: “Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from . . . the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge . . .”
• Holy Hands: “Turn away from godless chatter . . .”
• Shipwrecked Faith: “. . . which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith.”

 This is the message of Apostle Paul to his younger pastor friend, Timothy. It is also God’s message for pastors and church leaders today.

 presented to the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) at El Shaddai Church, Jos, Nigeria on 14 September 2010 by Prof. Danny McCain, University of Jos