Bible Survey 1 Tim-Philemon — E.A. Johnston

Pastoral Leadership and Church Order in 1 Timothy

All right, friends, we're going to pick up our Bible survey, the Book of the Bibles, with 1 Timothy. The central message of 1 Timothy is this. 1 Timothy is a letter directed to Paul's dearest disciple, Timothy.

It's a letter of advice on personal conduct and pastoral ministry. For the church, there is much value in this prison epistle, the qualifications for the offices of pastor, elder, and deacon, instructions for church administration, and exhortations to church members, particularly rich ones.

1 Timothy is the first of the pastoral epistles, and though it is less personal than 2 Timothy, it is no less practical. Paul knows what it is like to be a pastor, and he knows what dissensions can arise from a church body.

Therefore, his advice to young Timothy, a man in his 40s, is practical, purposeful, and personal. Paul gives his disciple, Timothy, a charge, a challenge, and a commitment. The charge is found in chapter 1 and verse 18.

This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare. And the challenge is found in chapter 4, verses 14 through 15.

Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things. Give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all.

And the commitment is found in chapter 6 and verse 20. O Timothy, guard what was committed to your trust. The central events, friends, are these, Paul's directions to his disciple Timothy on how to exercise spiritual gifts and order the business of the church.

The central figures, of course, are Paul and Timothy. The central verse is chapter 3 and verse 15. But if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and the ground of the truth.

And the central application is this, friends. The key application for today's Christian believer is the knowledge that as the closer we get to the Lord's return, there will be a manifestation of apostasy, false teachers will abound with false doctrines, and many will be deceived.

Does that sound familiar today? Are these not the days in which we live and prophesied by Paul? How many in your church are falling away from the truth? How many come to your front door with a false doctrine?

How many false prophets control the airwaves of television and radio? Many are deceived. We must strive to be good servants of Jesus Christ in these last days and exercise yourself towards godliness. We, too, like Timothy, must be an example to believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity, and let us ask the Lord to help us as we fight the good fight.

Faithful Endurance and Discipleship in 2 Timothy

Well, we're going to look now at a Bible survey of 2 Timothy, and the central message of 2 Timothy is this, 2 Timothy is Paul's swan song to his beloved disciple. We see the heart of the aged apostle as he pours it out to his dear son in the faith.

This epistle is a deathbed advice to a dear son in the faith. Paul instructs Timothy to be loyal, to be strong, to be a man of God, to preach the word, to not be ashamed of the gospel, to share in the sufferings of Christ, and to disciple other men in the manner in which he was taught.

Let's look at these one by one. To be loyal, hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. To be strong, you therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

To be a man of God, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work, and to preach the word. Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching, and to not be ashamed of the gospel.

Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, and to share in the sufferings of Christ, but to share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, and to disciple other men in the manner in which he was taught.

And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. The central events, friends, are instructions by Paul to Timothy to endure in the midst of suffering and remain faithful to the end of his ministry.

The central figures are Paul, Timothy, Luke, and Mark. The central verse is found in chapter 4 and verse 5. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

And the central application is this, friends. The key application for today's Christian is found to be found faithful and be reproducers. Not only shall we commit to finish the race, but we must convince others to run the race with us.

Each of us should ask the Lord to give us a Timothy to disciple and to train for God's use and glory. Why should we sit on the knowledge and gifts that we have from Christ? Dawson Trotman, the founder of the Navigators, used to say, man, where is your man?

Women, where is your woman? May we be able to say with Paul near the end of our race, therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

Godly Character and Healthy Church Order in Titus

Well, now we're going to do a Bible survey of the book of Titus, friends, and the central message is this. Titus is a book of counsel to a young pastor. One of Paul's converts, Titus, is a co-laborer in the faith who would often stay behind and strengthen the churches which Paul had planted.

Paul instructs his disciple Titus, a Greek, to order the church and strengthen the members. We can discern from reading this epistle that character takes precedence over one's gifting and actions take precedence over one's profession of Christ.

They profess to know God, but in works they deny him being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work. Titus lays the foundation for what a healthy, grown church should be like, a healthy church.

It's a pattern to follow. It's a house of integrity built upon sound truth. It's a place of reverence for God, and it is immune to spiritual corruption. A healthy church has members who speak evil of no one and members who avoid dissension, but avoid foolish disputes.

Titus is instructed to encourage others to good works. He himself has been found faithful and is dearly loved by the apostle Paul. The central events of this book, friends, are Paul instructs his disciple and co-laborer in Christ in the doctrines and duties of the ministry.

The central verse is found in chapter 2, verses 7 through 8, in all things, showing yourself to be a pattern of good works in doctrine, showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you.

And the central application is this, friends. The key application for today's Christian believer is to realize that we are heirs of grace, and that comes with stewardship and responsibility in the outworking of good works that haven't been justified by his grace.

We should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. And because it is heavenly inheritance, we should walk worthy of our calling.

We should live carefully so that others will have nothing evil to say of you. And we should live Christ-like so that we will be people of God who are zealous for good works. And I want to end our session with a study of this little tiny book, Philemon.

Forgiveness, Reconciliation, and Christian Tact in Philemon

Philemon, its central message is this. It's a private letter written by the Apostle Paul to Philemon, a slave, well actually he was a convert in the faith, and a slave of Philemon's had run away, and this slave's name was Onesimus.

And Onesimus had been converted by Paul's ministry during Paul's first imprisonment in Rome, and Paul writes to Philemon to reinstate Onesimus in his former master's good graces Paul informs Philemon that Onesimus had become more than a slave, a beloved brother, especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord, that's in verse 16.

And Paul pleads for Philemon to forgive the runaway slave and restore him to his former state. Paul even offers to pay any money that the slave is costing on her. This is seen in verse 18, but if he has wronged you or owes anything, put that on my account.

In this little letter, Paul's personality is revealed to be of one of utmost courtesy. In this letter, Paul displays true Christian principle and practicality. He speaks on behalf of one man to another, both Christians, but both in a delicate circumstance.

The one, a runaway slave, fearful of returning to his former master, and the other, the slave owner, reluctant to take back the disobedient slave. The apostle Paul proves he is a master at solving personal issues in the life of the church, and it showcases his pastoral gifts and wise counsel.

After receiving and reading this personal appeal, how could the outraged Philemon still remain angry and reject the return of the slave? We do not know the outcome, but we can surmise with much certainty the happy reunion of the true Christian man at Colossae, for Colossians 4 and 9 informs us of this, with Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother who is one of you.

The central events are this, the pleas of Paul and a personal letter to the slave owner of Philemon to take back his runaway slave, Onesimus, and the central figures are those three men, and a central verse is found in verse 10, I appeal to you, my son, Onesimus, whom I have begotten while in my chains, and the central application is this, friends, the key application for today's Christian believer is one of tact.

Circumstances will arise in the Christian life where a difficult situation will test our spiritual mettle. How we react to delicate situations in both the world we live in and the church we serve in is a testimony in itself to our Christian character and conduct.

Others are watching us to see if we act and behave as we claim we believe. Any pastor can learn lessons from reading this private letter of Paul, and every believer can benefit from the godly wisdom displayed by the mighty apostle.

Well, that ends our session here. We'll pick up the next session with the book of Hebrews.