Table Of ContentSeries Introduction
1 Timothy - David Platt
Authority and Hope for a Pastor and His Church 1:1-2
The Centrality of the Gospel in the Local Church 1:3-20
Global Prayer for the Local Church 2:1-7
What About Women, Paul? 2:8-15
The Gospel and Church Leadership 3:1-13
The Family of Faith: Who We Are and What We Do 3:14–4:16
The Family of God 5:1-16
Caring for Elders, Caring for the Church 5:17-25
What About Slavery, Paul? 6:1-2
The Gospel and Materialism 6:3-10
The Church at War 6:11-21
2 Timothy - Tony Merida
The Making of a Gospel-Centered Leader 1:1-7
Gospel-Centered Bravery 1:8-18
Images of Endurance 2:1-13
Images of a Faithful Teacher 2:14-26
Godly Examples 3:1-13
Faithful to the Word 3:14–4:4
Faithful to the End 4:5-22
Titus - Daniel L. Akin
Saved to Serve 1:1-4
Qualifications of a Godly Leader 1:5-9
The Ministry of Confrontation 1:10-16
Pursuing Godliness: The Roles of Men and
Women in the Church 2:1-8
Servant Evangelism: A Biblical Perspective
on Slavery 2:9-10
The Amazing Grace of God 2:11-15
New Birth for a New Life 3:1-8
Church Discipline: A Missing Essential in
the Life of the Contemporary Church 3:9-15
Works Cited
Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary: 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus © Copyright
2013 by David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida Published by B & H
Publishing Group Nashville, Tennessee
All rights reserved.
ISBN 978-0-8054-9590-4
Dewey Decimal Classification: 220.7
Subject Heading: BIBLE—STUDY AND TEACHING \ BIBLE. N.T.
TIMOTHY—COMMENTARIES \
BIBLE. N.T. TITUS—COMMENTARIES
Unless otherwise stated all Scripture citations are from the Holman Christian
Standard Bible® Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible
Publishers. Used by permission.
Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version, copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News
Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture citations marked NASB are from the New American Standard Bible.
©The Lockman Foundation, 1960, 1962, 1968, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995.
Used by permission.
Scripture citations marked NIV are from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW
INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by
International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
All Rights Reserved.
Scripture citations marked NKJV are from The New King James Version,
copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers.
Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living
Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House
Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations from The Message are copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996,
2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.
Printed in the United States of America 16 15 14 13 • 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
SB
Series Introduction
Augustine said, “Where Scripture speaks, God speaks.” The editors of the
Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series believe that where God
speaks, the pastor must speak. God speaks through His written Word. We must
speak from that Word. We believe the Bible is God breathed, authoritative,
inerrant, sufficient, understandable, necessary, and timeless. We also affirm that
the Bible is a Christ-centered book; that is, it contains a unified story of
redemptive history of which Jesus is the hero. Because of this Christ-centered
trajectory that runs from Genesis 1 through Revelation 22, we believe the Bible
has a corresponding global-missions thrust. From beginning to end, we see
God’s mission as one of making worshipers of Christ from every tribe and
tongue worked out through this redemptive drama in Scripture. To that end we
must preach the Word.
In addition to these distinct convictions, the Christ-Centered Exposition
Commentary series has some distinguishing characteristics. First, this series
seeks to display exegetical accuracy. What the Bible says is what we want to
say. While not every volume in the series will be a verse-by-verse commentary,
we nevertheless desire to handle the text carefully and explain it rightly. Those
who teach and preach bear the heavy responsibility of saying what God has said
in His Word and declaring what God has done in Christ. We desire to handle
God’s Word faithfully, knowing that we must give an account for how we have
fulfilled this holy calling (Jas 3:1).
Second, the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series has pastors in
view. While we hope others will read this series, such as parents, teachers,
small-group leaders, and student ministers, we desire to provide a commentary
busy pastors will use for weekly preparation of biblically faithful and gospel-
saturated sermons. This series is not academic in nature. Our aim is to present a
readable and pastoral style of commentaries. We believe this aim will serve the
church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Third, we want the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series to be
known for the inclusion of helpful illustrations and theologically driven
applications. Many commentaries offer no help in illustrations, and few offer
any kind of help in application. Often those that do offer illustrative material and
application unfortunately give little serious attention to the text. While giving
ourselves primarily to explanation, we also hope to serve readers by providing
inspiring and illuminating illustrations coupled with timely and timeless
application.
Finally, as the name suggests, the editors seek to exalt Jesus from every book
of the Bible. In saying this, we are not commending wild allegory or fanciful
typology. We certainly believe we must be constrained to the meaning intended
by the divine Author Himself, the Holy Spirit of God. However, we also believe
the Bible has a messianic focus, and our hope is that the individual authors will
exalt Christ from particular texts. Luke 24:25-27, 44-47 and John 5:39, 46
inform both our hermeneutics and our homiletics. Not every author will do this
the same way or have the same degree of Christ-centered emphasis. That is fine
with us. We believe faithful exposition that is Christ centered is not monolithic.
We do believe, however, that we must read the whole Bible as Christian
Scripture. Therefore, our aim is both to honor the historical particularity of each
biblical passage and to highlight its intrinsic connection to the Redeemer.
The editors are indebted to the contributors of each volume. The reader will
detect a unique style from each writer, and we celebrate these unique gifts and
traits. While distinctive in approach, the authors share a common characteristic
in that they are pastoral theologians. They love the church, and they regularly
preach and teach God’s Word to God’s people. Further, many of these
contributors are younger voices. We think these new, fresh voices can serve the
church well, especially among a rising generation that has the task of
proclaiming the Word of Christ and the Christ of the Word to the lost world.
We hope and pray this series will serve the body of Christ well in these ways
until our Savior returns in glory. If it does, we will have succeeded in our
assignment.
David Platt
Daniel L. Akin
Tony Merida
Series Editors February 2013
1 Timothy
Authority and Hope for a Pastor and His Church1
(1 Timothy 1:1-2)
Main Idea: The God-inspired letter of 1 Timothy was written by the
apostle Paul to Timothy, and the letter was graciously given for the
good of all God’s people.
I. A Brief Introduction
A. Setting the stage for 1 Timothy
1. The author, the recipient, and the occasion
2. The time and the place
3. The many challenges
4. The urgent message
II. A Glorious Greeting (1:1-2)
A. First Timothy is authoritative.
1. It was written by an apostle.
2. It was breathed out by God.
B. First Timothy is timely.
1. It was essential for Timothy.
2. It is essential for every pastor.
3. It is essential for every follower of Christ.
C. First Timothy is filled with hope.
1. God is our Savior.
2. Christ Jesus is our hope.
3. Grace, mercy, and peace are gifts.
In their book Health, Wealth and Happiness, David W. Jones and Russell S.
Woodbridge highlight a disturbing trend in the church: “A new gospel is
being taught today. This new gospel is perplexing—it omits Jesus and neglects
the cross” (Health, Wealth and Happiness, 15).
Jones and Woodbridge report that 46 percent of self-proclaimed Christians in
the United States agree with the idea that God will grant material riches to all
believers who have enough faith (Health, Wealth and Happiness, 16). This
teaching has become known as “the prosperity gospel.” Although it takes many
shapes and sizes, the prosperity gospel promises material and physical blessings
in this life so that central elements of the gospel, such as the finished work of
Christ on the cross and the forgiveness of sins, take a backseat. Sadly, professing
Christians seem to be taking the bait, and not just here in America. The
prosperity gospel is sweeping across large portions of the world. False teachers
are alive and well.
The problem of false teachers and false teaching is by no means a new
problem for the church. In fact, these battles are quite old—approximately two
thousand years old. When Paul was giving his final instructions to the elders in
Ephesus in Acts 20:29-30, he warned them that “savage wolves” would enter the
church and wreak havoc, luring away disciples. When we turn to 1 Timothy, we
see that Paul’s predictions were not exaggerated, and they wouldn’t require
centuries to play out. False teaching was staring the first-century church at
Ephesus square in the face.
For a man like Paul, who gave his life to establishing and strengthening
churches among the Gentiles, false teaching was more than just an apologetic
hurdle. It was a deadly cancer that had to be removed if the church was to
remain healthy and continue its mission. As we move through Paul’s first letter
to Timothy, we’ll also consider other important issues the apostle addressed.
Like any missionary or church planter, Paul cared deeply about the people to
whom he ministered, and he knew that what they needed was not human
wisdom. They needed to stand on the truth of God’s Word and to fix their hope
on the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
A Brief Introduction
We’ll begin by setting the stage for 1 Timothy, considering both the context
and the background of the letter. The letters of 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus
are often referred to as the Pastoral Epistles. These epistles, or letters, are labeled
as “pastoral” because they have so much to say about the responsibilities of
pastors in leading and ministering to God’s people. While these letters have a
number of similarities, each letter has its own unique aspects. Below we’ll look
at some of the specifics related to 1 Timothy under the following headings:
• The author, the recipient, and the occasion
• The time and the place
• The many challenges
• The urgent message
First, as we think about this powerful letter, we need to consider the author,
the recipient, and the occasion. First Timothy was written by the apostle Paul
to his “true son in the faith,” a man named Timothy (1:2). Timothy was younger
than Paul, possibly in his thirties (Ryken, 1 Timothy, 5), and he had assisted Paul
in a number of different ministry contexts (see for example, 1 Thess 3; 1 Cor
4:16-17; 16:10-11; and Phil 2:19-24; Towner, Letters, 52). Paul, the apostle to
the Gentiles and author of 13 letters in the New Testament, had stationed
Timothy in Ephesus to do the difficult work of combating false teaching (1 Tim
1:3). Timothy was also told to lead the church to be faithful in a number of
different areas, including godly living. Leading God’s people is no easy task.
However, it is a glorious task worth giving one’s life to, and Paul wanted
Timothy to be faithful in his calling as a minister of the gospel.
Other factors we need to consider include the time and place of the letter.
Followers of Christ have always had to face a unique set of challenges related to
their ministry context. For example, pastors and churches in our own culture
continue to face complex questions related to who we are as humans. Could
anyone have imagined, even a generation ago, that Christians would have to
think through biblical positions on cloning or gender reassignment?
Nevertheless, we would be seriously mistaken to think we are the first
generation of Christians to face complex issues. The church at Ephesus is a case
in point.
Consider the context for Timothy and the church at Ephesus in the mid 60s of
the first century AD (see Carson and Moo, Introduction, 571–72). At this time
the city of Ephesus was large, diverse, religiously complex, and flourishing
commercially (Towner, Letters, 38), not unlike a major metropolitan area of the
United States today. Since the temple of Artemis was located in Ephesus, the
cult of Artemis was especially influential in this Imperial capital. This cult
affected commercial activity, and it seems to have engulfed a number of other
cult practices such as “the practice of magic, sorcery, and soothsaying” (Towner,
Letters, 38). Needless to say, Timothy was not ministering in a culture founded
on Judeo-Christian values. Ephesus had its own particular brand of sin and
rebellion, but this doesn’t mean Paul’s instructions have no relevance for us
today.
The many challenges facing Timothy and the church at Ephesus went beyond
their immediate cultural context, as difficult as that context must have been.
Consider some of the issues Paul addressed within the church: men and women
needed to be instructed about their God-given roles and conduct in the church’s
gathering, faithful elders and deacons needed to be identified and appointed,
widows needed to be cared for properly, and the pursuit of wealth seemed to be a
real temptation for some in the congregation. Does any of that sound familiar?
Paul’s concerns could easily be copied and pasted into a list of issues the church
continues to face in the twenty-first century.
As we mentioned earlier, the church at Ephesus was also dealing with the
deadly serious problem of false teaching. Paul mentioned Hymenaeus and
Alexander as two individuals who had to be excommunicated, or removed, from
the church for rejecting “faith and a good conscience” (1:19; see also 2 Tim
2:17). It’s not a good sign when two of your elders have to be taught not to
blaspheme! We can’t be too precise with regard to the content of the false
teaching, but Paul did give us some clues throughout the letter. Here is some of
what we can piece together about the false teachers:
• They were straying in their doctrine (1:3).
• They were preoccupied with myths, genealogies, and speculation (1:4).
• They misused the law (1:7).
• They were apparently immoral (1:19-20).
• Their consciences were seared (4:2).
• They were forbidding marriage and certain foods (4:3).
• They craved controversy and quarrels (6:4).
• They were using godliness for material gain (6:5).
The false teachers in the Ephesian church may have been influenced by early
seeds of a heresy that later became known as Gnosticism. This heresy came onto
