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ToBeLikeHim.com Return to Timothy Series Timothy Series - Lesson Six: 1 Timothy Chapter 1 Verses 18 - 20 John
Baugh Fight the Good Fight 18This command I
entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance This command I entrust to you,
Timothy my son: There can
be no doubt that Paul loved Timothy. During their time together, he had grown
to think of the young disciple as his “true child in the faith” (1 Timothy
1:2 NASB). In 2 Timothy, He addresses the disciple as, “my beloved son” (2
Timothy 1:2). The command (instruction) he is about to entrust is offered in
the love of a father to his son. The word
“entrust”, used in the NASB is an interesting word. The KJV uses the word
commit. NIV uses the more generic word, “give” The words translated in the
KJV and NASB are banker words used by inverters to describe something
extended in anticipation of a return on investment. The word in the Greek
that is translated into “entrust or commit” is “Paratithemi”, which Paul uses
in the in the middle indicative tense. For middle tense verbs, the subject
initiates the action and participates in the results of the action – performs
the action for their own benefit. The indicative mood is the mood of
certainty. It indicates a simple statement of fact. If an action really occurs
or has occurred or will occur, it is stated in the indicative case vs
subjunctive case which states probability or uncertainty. What Paul
seems to be saying is he is certain that this commitment (investment) in
Timothy will benefit his end desire, which is to benefit the church in In accordance with
the prophecies previously made concerning you: Paul wanted to be clear that there was a reason for his
selection of Timothy. His selection of the young disciple to address the
problems with the church in What were the Prophecies that were made concerning Timothy?
(We don’t know). They probably were related to another reference Paul made
concerning Timothy’s spiritual gift (1 Timothy 4:14), perhaps made evident at
his ordination. Do not neglect the
spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic
utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. (1 Timothy 4:14 NASB) Paul
writes about this gift again in 2 Timothy 1:5-7. I have been reminded
of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your
mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. For this reason I
remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the
laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a
spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1:5-7 NASB) Paul
placed a high value on the gift of prophecy. This is what he wrote to the
church in Pursue love,
yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.
For one who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God; for no one
understands, but in his spirit he speaks mysteries. But one who prophesies
speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation. One who speaks
in a tongue edifies himself; but one who prophesies edifies the church. Now I
wish that you all spoke in tongues, but even more that you would prophesy;
and greater is one who prophesies than one who speaks in tongues, unless he
interprets, so that the church may receive edifying. (1 Corinthians 14:1-5 NASB) That by them, you fight the good
fight Paul's
letters are characterized by certain themes. He uses sports analogies,
military terminology and medical reasoning to make his points. Here he
challenges his young disciple to fight the good fight. Paul may have known
boxing and this challenge may have been a sporting reference, since boxing
was a popular sport with the Greeks, going to the 8th century BC
(known as Pyx, Pygme or Pygmachia in Greek). Even in ancient times, the sport
had rules, such as no holds or wrestling and no gouging with the fingers.
Judges to boxing matches of that time held the authority to strike offenders
with a switch. This
reference used by Paul may also have been a military term, challenging
Timothy to stick to the fight as in battle. Whether
referencing boxing or military battle, Paul was challenging Timothy to fight
an honorable battle. Paul
references two goals for Timothy as he fought. 1 - He
urged Timothy to keep the Faith. This would have been as important to Paul as
it was to Christ Jesus. Faith determines our relationship with both Father
(God) and Son (Christ). As our faith goes, so goes the battle. Little faith
in the power of Christ, supplied through the Holy Spirit would lead to
failure on Timothy's part. Great faith would assure victory over the problems
Timothy would encounter with the church in 2 - Paul
urged Timothy to fight in good conscience. Conscience is what we feel about
our actions when we share our feelings with no one else. Our conscience is
our inner sense of right and wrong. Paul wanted his disciple to have the
moral and spiritual strength to only do those things that were spotless and
proper in the eyes of the Lord. These days, a popular saying is "What
would Jesus Do?" Ministering to the church in Which some have rejected and
suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. Paul hoped
for and expected good faith and conscience from Timothy, but he knew that
others had drifted or willingly moved away from those qualities of a good
disciple of Christ. In Paul's mind, variance from these marks of character
could lead to disaster. Paul had experienced disaster and the best
descriptive word he could share with Timothy to describe a disastrous event
was shipwreck. I am certain that Paul had a vivid picture in his mind of the
shipwreck of loss of faith. To be on the sea in storm weather, in a ship that
is going down, with no hope of rescue, or in a ship that is tearing apart on
stormy seas or breaking apart on the rocks in a storm is the worst fear that
those who trust their lives to a craft on the sea might imagine. Paul chose
to use this analogy to describe the fates of some who turned away from faith. Among these are: 1 - Hymenaeus
- is mentioned twice by Paul Here (1 Timothy
1:20) Also (2 Timothy 2:16-18) Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will
become more and more ungodly. Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among
them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have wandered away from the truth. They
say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith
of some. 2 - Alexander - of In Acts 19:23-41 He was presented as a Jew who was
involved in the Silversmith Riots in In 1Timothy 1:20
(here) In 2 Timothy 4:14-15
- Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay
him for what he has done. You too should be on your guard against him, because
he strongly opposed our message. whom I have handed over to Satan,
so that they will be taught not to blaspheme. By writing
this, Paul may have been saying that spiritually these men were on their own,
having sinned against the Lord to the point that there was no help for them
through anything the church might do.
Perhaps you know someone who is so opposed to any spiritual contact
that there is no way to approach them, short of prayer for the Lord to deal
with them, and concern for their soul. When Paul uses the term blaspheme,
meaning to indulge in profane oaths, verbal hostility and profanity against
the Lord. Evidently the actions, speech and hostility of Hymenaeus And
Alexander of Ephesus were beyond Paul's capability to address. Paul
mentions both men a second time in the second letter to Timothy, indicating
more about the problems they were still causing the church in It is not
unreasonable to think that if these two men were beyond Paul's ability to
address that Timothy would have similar problems with them. Copyright © 2008, ToBeLikeHim Ministries |