Opposition to false teachers is a significant topic in Paul’s first letter to Timothy. In chapter one Paul described their speculative theology. Near the end of the letter, Paul paints a realistic picture of the false teachers themselves—their motives and the results of their work. Paul speaks with the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. His words encourage pastors today to build faithfully on the foundation of God’s Word.
3 εἴ τις ἑτεροδιδασκαλεῖ καὶ μὴ προσέρχεται ὑγιαίνουσιν λόγοις τοῖς τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ τῇ κατʼ εὐσέβειαν διδασκαλίᾳ,
Translation of the protasis: “If anyone teaches otherwise and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and with the teaching that results in godliness…”
These three verses make up one long sentence. Two finite verbs in the protasis and one finite verb in the apodosis form the frame of this conditional sentence: “If someone teaches otherwise (ἑτεροδιδασκαλεῖ) and does not agree (μὴ προσέρχεται)…, he is puffed up (τετύφωται)…” Dependent clauses and participles add flesh to this frame.
I draw your attention to three words/phrases in the protasis: προσέρχεται, ὑγιαίνουσιν λόγοις, and κατʼ εὐσέβειαν.
At the end of April, we had Arbor Day on our campus. With rake in hand, I spoke to a woman who was walking by. In our short conversation she said she was not involved in organized religion but was religious “in her own way.” I responded that the important thing about religion is that it agrees with what God has said to us through Jesus.
Paul was addressing teachers who wanted religion to be their own way, at odds with the word of Christ, and apart from him. Paul said that every false teacher needs to leave his speculations and “come over to” (προσέρχεται) the words of the one who has all authority, the Lord Jesus Christ. Those words were spoken by Christ and recorded in the holy Scriptures by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Those words are proclaimed by faithful servants of the Word.
Every faithful proclaimer of God’s word has abandoned human wisdom and come over to ὑγιαίνουσιν λόγοις. The words of the Gospel come from God, with his power. They are sound. They are correct. They are reliable and restorative. As ministers of the gospel, we proclaim the depravity of mankind and the grace and mercy of God shown to us in Christ Jesus our Savior. We proclaim the Savior who has prepared a place for us in the perfect world to come and who has gone there ahead of us. This message changes our hearts, our status before God, our destiny, our attitudes, our priorities—everything.
This teaching is also κατʼ εὐσέβειαν. It is in line with godliness, producing the kind of piety that God wants: men, women, and children serving their heavenly Father as his priests, wearing the righteous robes of the Great High Priest who lived and died for them—the risen and ascended Savior who lives in them.
False teachers do not have the life-giving, life-changing Gospel of Christ. By God’s grace, we do. God help us to be strong in the Gospel; to soak it up and speak it daily; to serve God faithfully in our roles in church, family, and society; and to equip God’s people to do the same!
4 τετύφωται, μηδὲν ἐπιστάμενος, ἀλλὰ νοσῶν περὶ ζητήσεις καὶ λογομαχίας, ἐξ ὧν γίνεται φθόνος ἔρις βλασφημίαι, ὑπόνοιαι πονηραί, 5 διαπαρατριβαὶ διεφθαρμένων ἀνθρώπων τὸν νοῦν καὶ ἀπεστερημένων τῆς ἀληθείας, νομιζόντων πορισμὸν εἶναι τὴν εὐσέβειαν.
Translation of the apodosis: “…he is puffed up with pride, understanding nothing. Instead, he has an unhealthy desire for disputes and word-battles, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive speech, evil suspicions, and constant frictions among people whose minds are corrupted, who have been deprived of the truth, and who consider their religion a means to financial gain.”
There are a lot of “bad words” in this section. Some of them point to inner problems: envy and evil suspicions, corrupted minds, loss of the truth, carnal attitudes towards ministry. Some of them point to outer manifestations of evil: disputes, word-battles, strife, abusive speech, incessant irritations. Where there is smoke, there is fire. When the fruit is bad, the tree is bad.
There are two amazing things about these puffed-up false teachers. The first is that they keep going with their ministries. They love earthly gain so much that they keep spewing human ideas. Those who follow these puffed-up teachers are in grave danger.
Dear brothers, I pray you have great endurance and joy in your ministry to God’s holy people. Preach law and gospel to your own heart and to the hearts of your people. Preach as well as you can. Pray without ceasing. Listen to your people attentively, asking good spiritual questions, so that your preaching and prayers for them will be informed. Pay attention to the lies all around us and refute them with God’s truth. Guard and protect the flock entrusted to your care. Win new souls for Christ.
Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, please bless my church family, my family, and me during this summer, now beginning. Give me many opportunities for study of your word, for prayer, and for meaningful interactions with others. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. All thanks and praise to you for sending him! By your Spirit, help me to live in him and to invite many others to join me on the my journey towards you; in the name of my risen and ascended Savior. Amen.
P.S. For further reading, we recommend Pres. emeritus David Valleskey’s recent book, The Splendid Task of the Ministry: A Pastoral Commentary on the Pastoral Epistles (NPH, 2023).