Introduction to First Timothy (India)

Aim: To give the background, setting for this book, this series and at Jesus Christ who is our hope (v.1)

Life as the Church

We were created to worship, fellowship, grow and go together. We start today an amazing journey through 1 & 2nd Timothy, well, Titus after that too. There is so much we can learn about life as the church in these books.

Background stuff:

• Author: Paul (1Tim1:1)

1 Timothy 1:1NASB95

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope,

• Recipient: Timothy (1Tim1:2)

1 Timothy 1:2NASB95

2 To Timothy, my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

• Date: Believed about AD65

• This would have been after Paul’s first imprisonment in Rome, he had spent time in Ephesus and left Timothy there and went on to Macedonia

• From: Believed Macedonia to Timothy in Ephesus (1Tim1:3)

1 Timothy 1:3NASB95

3 As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines,

• Purpose

1 Timothy 3:15 (NASB95)

15 but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.

• To warn against false teachers, doctrine

• False teachers, false doctrine (teaching) were infiltrating the church then, and still do today so there is much we can learn from the scripture. Paul is trying to equip and energize Timothy while warning him.

• To establish guidelines for the church

• Instructions regarding prayer for all people

• Qualifications for elders, deacons, servants of Jesus Christ.

• To instruct, encourage regarding conduct as the church

• Treatment of members and widows, elders, masters

• About error and greed, warnings about riches and guarding your faith.

Paul is writing to Timothy his young protege and does not spend much time in introduction and gets to the heart of the matter right away. He did not need to get into building up to what he wanted to say, Timothy had a relationship with him so little groundwork was needed for what he wanted to convey.

The books of Timothy and Titus are not without challenges while they are dubbed “the pastoral epistles” which took heart in 18th century there are critics who believe that they were not written by Paul, but someone after the fact due to the different nature of the epistles compared to his other letters. These letters along with Philemon are personal to people not to churches (though we are using for us to learn about conduct as the church in this series).

Paul is not taking on the Apostolic authority role here and commanding, but the pastoral role here in caring and instructing.

(Transition) He starts off right from the beginning with what we are going to focus on today, Jesus Christ is our hope, for without that we all would be eternally hopeless.

So, now, for today when we think of Jesus Christ is our hope we turn to many places in scripture and see the following.

• He is our hope for forgiveness of sins

• He is our hope for reconciliation with God

• He is our hope for conduct in the church (Holy living)

• He is our provision for daily living

• He is our hope, our victory over death.

While the term “Jesus Christ our hope” is only used one other time in scripture

Colossians 1:27NASB95

27 to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

(Transition) So let’s get into it now: Jesus Christ is our hope:

Our hope for forgiveness

Man has a problem, scripture points it out. But God sent Jesus as our hope, our solution to man’s problem

Man’s problem- Sin

• All have sinned (Rom3:23; 1Jn1:8-10)

All sinned fall short, if say no sin we are a liar and God is not in us.

• Sin’s consequences (Rom6:23)

Death

• God’s solution, our hope, Jesus

• Takes away sins (Jn1:29)

• If you had a problem and someone offers a simple solution to the problem and points it out to you, what are you going to do. - John knows the problem and sees the solution and points it out. Or should I say points HIM out

John 1:29NASB95

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

• Redeems us, forgives us (Eph1:7)

• Man’s response to hope offered (Mk16:16, Act2:38, 22:16; Rom6:3-6)

• Repent, be baptized. Be baptized calling on His name

• Man’s continued sanctification (Act8:22, 1Jn1:7-9)

Repentance is not just a one time thing, it is for salvation, but for sanctification it is a continual thing.

Consider (1Jn1:7-9)

1 John 1:7–8NASB95

7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.

1 John 1:9NASB95

9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Look out if not accepting God’s hope, God’s solution to man’s problem.

• God’s warning (Jn8:24)

John 8:24 NASB95

24 “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”

(Transition) Jesus is our hope for salvation, hope for salvation from the guilt of our sin burden. Jesus is our hope for a reconciled relationship with God.

Our Hope for reconciliation

There is sin problem, sin solution and Jesus Christ is our hope for that solution and that brings us to a reconciled relationship with the Father.

• Man’s longing, desire for fellowship with God.

• Created by God for God to be in fellowship with God (Act17:26-28)

that man would seek God, find God; for in Him we live, move and exist, for we are His children.

• Man tries many ways to have fulfillment, oftentimes the wrong things (Ecc5:10); in Money, status, position, possessions of any kind.

• Jesus, our hope, is the way, the only way to have fellowship

• Christ is the only way (Jn14:6)

• Through Christ we come to know the Father (Jn14:7-9; Jn1:18)

Know Me, Know the Father.

We come to know God through the only Begotten Son of God, you know Jesus who is our hope (ref: Jn1:18)

• Through Christ we are reconciled (2Cor5:18-20)

• Without Him there is no fellowship (close relationship) with the Father (1Jn2:23, 4:15)

(Transition) So without Jesus, our hope, there can be, is no relationship, fellowship with the Father.

Our Hope, our power

Good people, the majority of the people want to be good people and want to live good lives doing good to family, friend and even employers and society in general.

We all fall short of it, today and in the world of yesterday too.

• Worldly people want to live right, do right, give right.

• Godly people even know the trouble of living Godly.

• Paul’s description and struggle displayed (Rom7:21-24)

I know nothing good is in me, I do what I do not want to do, and do not do what I want to do. I am a wretched man.

Paul described it like under the law. A prisoner to the law.

• Struggle/conflict between flesh and the spirit (Gal5:16-17)

• Peter denotes the warfare with fleshly lusts which wages war against the soul (1Pt2:11)

(Transition): when it comes to power for holy living, Jesus Christ is our hope.

• Jesus Christ our hope for godly living

• Freedom from law of sin and death (Rom8:2)

Romans 8:11–12NASB95

11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. 12 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—

Romans 8:13NASB95

13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

• Power and strength to the inner man (Eph3:16, 20; Php4:13)

Ah, in paraphrase of Eph3:16 - God from the riches of His glory strength you in the inner man, more than you can think or ask (OK brought in Eph3:20 too)

Jesus, our hope, is God’s strength, God’s power to do all things in accordance to His will

(Transition) Jesus Christ our hope, our power and now look, our provision too.

Jesus our hope and provision

In this life, our physical life there are many things we need, things that we even worry about and think that we need.

• Jesus addresses this concern about worry for things we think we need (Mt6:31-32)

We worry about food, clothing, jobs, relationships, we all want to have hope in “things” and Jesus who is our hope wants us to place our hope, our trust, our faith in Him.

• Jesus is our only hope

• The Father knows our needs (Mt6:32)

• Jesus answers the need (Mt6:33-34; Mk10:28-30)

Matthew 6:33–34NASB95

33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

What is the promise here? These things added to you, what things? the needed things provided when we seek Him.

• In Jesus there is hope, there is contentment, there is knowing God will supply all of our needs (Php4:11-12, 19)

• contentment regardless of possessions or position, to have a lot or a little. Knowing that God’s riches in glory in Christ Jesus will supply all of my needs.

(Transition) Our hope, Christ Jesus gives us one more thing needed:

Our Hope for victory

There is no avoiding it, death has entered the world and it has 100% impact on the world. But Christ Jesus is our hope over death.

• Fear of death is common to man.

• Some try to delay it, some try to avoid it

• Some try to ignore it, or even to speak about it.

• Jesus is our only hope

• Jesus came to deliver us from sin and death (Heb2:14-15)

• Proven by resurrection, promised in return (1The4:13-18)

• Don’t be uninformed, have hope (v.13)

• Believe Jesus died, and rose (v.14)

• Rose and promised to come again (v.15)

• He will descend with shout, voice of archangel, trumpet of God, Dead in Christ will rise, then the rest will rise and meet the Lord in the air. So, comfort one another!

(Conclusion - Christ is our hope)

True hope, eternal hope is only found in Christ Jesus.

• For He is the way to the Father

• He is God’s perfect and acceptable sacrifice

• His Spirit makes us aware of our sin, our separation and gives us the solution

• The solution by confessing and repenting and surrendering to God’s work in Baptism

• Then learning to follow His commands and walking in the hope of His love that is in you.

This is the end of our introduction to 1Timothy. There is much teaching, doctrine that we will find as we journey through this together and in preparation to share this with others.