{"id":26207,"date":"2020-11-06T13:12:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-06T13:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/2020\/11\/19\/preaching-on-1-timothy\/"},"modified":"2026-01-21T17:18:25","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T17:18:25","slug":"preaching-on-1-timothy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/preaching-on-1-timothy\/","title":{"rendered":"Preaching on 1 Timothy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Evangelical pastors and teachers sometimes assume that preaching from New Testament Epistles is easy. Paul\u2019s first letter to Timothy illustrates the shaky foundation of that assumption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along with 2 Timothy and Titus, 1 Timothy rounds out the Pastoral Epistles which were written to Paul\u2019s apostolic legates Timothy and Titus, located respectively in Ephesus and Crete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 Timothy communicates ideas and commands that often offend modern sensibilities and is similar to Titus in its direct approach and no-nonsense tone. 1 Timothy conveys a sense of other-ness because it refuses to say what we, as contemporary listeners, might want to hear. This is true not only because of its famous\u2014or infamous\u2014text regarding the role of women in the church (2:9-15) but also because of the letter\u2019s rigorous insistence on church structure (3:1-13; 5:1-6:2), orthodox teaching (1:3-11; 4:1-9; 6:3-5), and Christian ethics (4:10-16; 5:8-15; 6:11-15). Yet the letter is also filled with an equal emphasis on the love and grace of God (1:12-17; 2:1-7; 3:16), who is the Savior of all people and gave his only begotten Son as the ultimate expression of that (2:5-6; 4:9-10). Moreover, as Paul fervently communicates, our God richly provides for us both materially and spiritually and calls us to join his redemptive mission to the world (2:1-7; 4:4; 6:3, 17).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For these reasons, and others as well, 1 Timothy beckons pastors and teachers to preach it carefully and clearly in order to promote the spiritual health of their listeners, churches, and themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Historical Background<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Church tradition says that following his release from house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:16), Paul journeyed to Spain but swiftly returned to the Eastern Mediterranean where he had previously planted a number of churches and oversaw their spiritual development (see Acts 16-20). While it\u2019s uncertain that he centered his apostolic operations in the city of Ephesus during this later period, Paul left Timothy in charge of the church there as he made his way once again to Macedonia (1 Tim. 1:3). Thus, given all the external and internal evidence, the best contemporary scholarship argues that Paul wrote 1 Timothy sometime around 62-63 AD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Paul\u2019s apostolic delegate to the Ephesian church, Timothy\u2019s task was formidable. The church was infected with heretical teachers who needed correction or excommunication and its infrastructure needed to be reinforced with wise and godly leadership (1:3-7; 1:18-20; 3:1-16; 6:3-5). To address these problems and provide the necessary solutions, Paul commanded Timothy to give special attention to his own life, teaching, and leadership (3:1-14; 4:11-16; 5:21-25; 6:11-16; 6:20-21). If these things are diligently pursued, then God would endow him with the credibility to move the church towards spiritual health and vitality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The revitalization of the Ephesian church was essential not only for the well-being of its own members, but also for its effectiveness in reaching out with the gospel to the surrounding culture (2:1-4; 7; 3:16). This mission was rooted in the love of God for sinners as demonstrated by Christ\u2019s atoning death (1:12-16; 2:5-6) and, in order to be attractive to those on the outside, the church needed to be orderly, ethical, and generous (2:8-15; 5:3-16; 6:17-19). Only by living in a godly and loving manner could the members of the Ephesian church make a positive spiritual impact on their city (1:5; 2:1-2; 5:11-20; 6:1-2).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chart: Preaching Through 1 Timothy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We know the weekly grind of sermon prep is hard, whether you are in the midst of series or planning a new series. Trying to find key verses you need to highlight in your sermon, finding the historical background to the book, discovering the flow\/structure of book, and even figuring out what is the theme of each section.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is why we created this chart! This chart is designed to\u00a0save you time<\/strong>\u00a0as you prepare to preach a new sermon series from the Book of 1 Timothy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will find a quick visual overview of the movement of the Book of 1 Timothy. It will help orient you and your hearers as you preach through the entire book or sections of the book. It provides, at a glance, one way to divide the book into pericopes. The chart includes key verses in the book, an overarching title for the book, the overall message of the book, and some historical background. It is color-coded to highlight certain defining aspects of the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This chart could be used as a slide in your church service. It could serve as an introduction to a new series or a weekly check-in before you begin preaching. It could even be printed out and given to the members of your church, as a resource to help them grasp the message of the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/span>
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Sermon Series<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Like all of the Epistles in the New Testament, 1 Timothy is an occasional letter which makes it a challenge to preach. As previously noted, this letter is specifically addressed to the leader of a church consumed by some significant internal problems and located in a notoriously pagan culture. The letter also contains some interesting exegetical and hermeneutical issues related to gender roles, church structure, family life, and money. For most contemporary congregations, the most daunting of these have to do with the role of women (2:9-15), Paul\u2019s commands about widows and families (5:3-16), and the apostle\u2019s view of money and its use (6:6-10; 17-19).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, my first suggestion to those preparing to preach 1 Timothy is to give due diligence to these texts and then come to some practical conclusions about how Paul\u2019s instructions relate to church life and Christian practice in one\u2019s own context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My second suggestion is to give a significant number of weeks to the public proclamation of this book, probably at least ten but more likely fifteen weeks. While that may sound like a long time to some pastors, the book\u2019s inherent characteristics demands careful and sensitive exposition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I would suggest using one of the following outlines and freely adjusting it according to the needs and context of one\u2019s particular congregation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

15 Week Outline<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A fifteen week expository series that covers the overall content and flow of the book by focusing sequentially on the following texts and their application to contemporary life inside and outside the church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Text: 1 Timothy 1:1-11<\/h2>\n\n\n\n