Hi James and Ellen,
1 Timothy is the first of two letters that a mega groundbreaker for guys and gals to become Christ-followers penned to be couriered to a neophyte Christ-follower advisor who he had asked to take on an oversight role over the elders of the emergent Christ-follower fellowships in the city of Ephesus. 1 Timothy was penned and taken to the city of Ephesus – to where Timothy was, sometime between 63 A.D. and 65 A.D. Paul – who was the consummate advocate for guys and gals to become Christ-followers, was on his fourth missionary journey when he penned the six chapters that make up 1 Timothy. Paul was in the land area of Macedonia – possibly in the city of Philippi, where he was encouraging the guys and gals in the Christ-follower fellowship that was in the city that he was in when he penned his first letter that he sent to Timothy. It is possible that while Paul was in the city that he was in that he realized that he was not going be able to go again to the city of Ephesus. The first visit that Paul made to the city of Ephesus was during his second missionary journey – which was around ten years earlier. Paul’s initial visit to the city of Ephesus became an extended stop that lasted around three years. Your grandpaa thinks that during those three years that Paul was in the city of Ephesus, that Paul was the principal teacher in the two year Christ-follower Bible education and leadership enablement program that was taught in Tyrannus Hall. Your grandpaa also thinks that the elders in the Christ-follower fellowships that were in the city of Ephesus – who Paul had sent Timothy to oversee, were alumni from Tyrannus Hall’s training center.
It seems apparent to your grandpaa that Paul wrote 1 Timothy in response to disquieting news that he received regarding misguided and false teachers who had infiltrated and become embedded in the Christ-follower fellowships of guys and gals that were in the city of Ephesus who were distorting the Good News message that he had diligently taught the city of Ephesus fellowships’ elders for them to teach to the guys and gals who were in their fellowships of Christ-follower guys and gals. 1 Timothy to your grandpaa is a task directed document that Paul sent to a young guy who your grandpaa believes had been hardwired by God with a compassion gift. Your grandpaa thinks that when Paul sent Timothy to the city of Ephesus to oversee the Christ-follower elders who were there that Paul had invested over fifteen years mentoring Timothy. After traveling for years with Paul, Timothy became one of Paul’s trusted envoys who Paul would send to Christ-follower fellowships that he had been responsible in instigating through his preaching, teaching, evangelizing and holistic efforts. Timothy was living in the city of Lystra when Paul first met him. Even though Timothy’s dad was a Greek pagan, Timothy’s dad allowed Eunice – who was Timothy’s ma, and Lois – who was Timothy’s grandma, to instruct Timothy from early childhood in traditional Jewish beliefs. Eunice and her ma Lois were devout Jews. After hearing Paul preach during his visit to the city of Lystra – which was on Paul’s first missionary journey, Lois, Eunice and Timothy made decisions of faith to become Christ-followers. Even though Timothy very possibly witnessed the persecution and suffering that Paul and his traveling companion – who was Barnabas, experienced from guys who were in direct opposition to Paul’s preaching and teaching, Timothy was still willing to put his life on the line to learn from Paul what life was like as a totally committed Christ-follower. The fact that Timothy would be at some point ordained by Paul’s appointed elders implies to your grandpaa that Timothy probably was already a young guy when he began to tag along with Paul on Paul’s missionary journeys. What to your grandpaa stands out the most in Timothy’s God-designed character makeup was Timothy’s devoted amiableness and steadfast faithfulness – in spite of having an overt timidity that comes with a reticent personality.
1 Timothy is really not a dated letter. The spirit of heresy has invaded Christ-follower fellowships of guys, gals and kids throughout the United States. Paul’s explicit instructions about who to pray for, what gals are to do, who among guys are qualified to be an elder and who can be elected by his peers to be deacons are not being completely adhered to today in any Christ-follower fellowship that your grandpaa knows of in the United States. It appears to your grandpaa that Paul wrote 1 Timothy to be a Christ-follower administrative tool for Timothy to use to get the right guys with the right stuff in a place to combat the growing cancerous apostasy that was trying to destroy the intentional effort that Paul had made to insure mature Christ-follower fellowships in the city of Ephesus. Paul’s charge to Timothy was to do what he was telling him in his letter to do – which was that he did not want Timothy to in any way compromise with the guys who were undermining his teachings. Paul also wanted Timothy to make sure that the Christ-follower fellowships that were in the city of Ephesus did not marginalize widows, the aged and slaves who were adherents in their fellowships. Your grandpaa believes that the United States traditional Christ-follower fellowships have already succumbed to a belief paradigm that has gone over the red line of putting others before oneself to one that legitimizes putting oneself before others. Paul’s first letter to Timothy really is a critique on what happens to a Christ-follower fellowship when God is replaced on His front and center throne by a self-serving guy.
1 Timothy