2015 Sermon Series
The Pastoral Epistles: 1 Timothy
Pastor Tim Potter leads an in-depth study of Paul's first epistle to Timothy.
1 Timothy 4:11-16
- November 22, 2015
The Integrity and Health of the Pastor and His Church.
If you were asked to write a job description for a pastor, what would you include? Should a pastor's job emphasize creative ideas to be culturally relevant? What tasks are most important? 1 Timothy 4:11-16 tells us what God emphasizes in the personal and public expectations of pastor-teachers.
1 Timothy 4:11-16, Part 2
- November 29, 2015
The Integrity and Health of the Pastor and His Church.
Paul gives Timothy eight imperatives for living at the end of 1 Timothy 4. These instructions to a pastor are useful for every believer to live a well-disciplined life that shows progress in Christ-likeness step by step.
1 Timothy 5:1-16
- December 6, 2015
Nurturing Noble Ministry While Pursuing Primary Ministry.
In ministry and in life, there are many necessary and noble things but fewer primary things. If your child is in the emergency room with a broken arm, you understand when a person with a heart attack is treated first. In the church, there are major ministries and lesser ministries. All need to be addressed. 1 Timothy 5 outlines in detail how the church is to care for widows faithfully and comprehensively in order to please God. The purpose of this ministry, in the context of the whole book, is to protect the church and further the Gospel.
1 Timothy 5:17-25
- January 10, 2016
Respect shown to worthy pastors ensures longevity with integrity for the church.
Why do guests return to a church? What keeps people coming back? Churches can do many good, practical things to welcome and care for their people. These are all the fruit of a stable spiritual reality that begins with the character of church leaders.
1 Timothy 5:22-25
- January 17, 2016
Respect shown to worthy pastors ensures longevity with integrity for the church.
In the second half of 1 Timothy 5, Paul teaches Timothy and the Ephesian churches how to obtain quality leadership. We have already looked at how pastors are to be compensated and how to handle an unrepentant pastor. Paul reminds Timothy that that shepherding God's people is a sober undertaking done "in the presence of God." Next, Paul instructs Timothy how to choose church leaders so he can avoid dealing with the same issues in the future.
1 Timothy 6:1-2
- January 24, 2016
Leaders, their work ethic, and the integrity of the church.
1 Timothy 6 directly addresses four different groups in the church: those in the work force, teachers of unhealthy doctrine, Timothy and future pastors, and those who are wealthy. The way Christians behave in the workplace has a direct impact on their Gospel influence.
1 Timothy 6:3-5
- January 31, 2016
What does the church look like when Jesus is not enough?
The second group Paul addresses in the Ephesian church is a small group of people teaching false doctrine. They were inside the local body but not actually born again in Christ. Paul describes these false teachers and directly addresses Spirit-filled saints about how to recognize falsehood.
1 Timothy 6:6-10
- February 7, 2016
The Secret to Godliness and Contentment.
Last week we learned what the church looks like when Jesus is not enough. The next few verses in 1 Timothy 6 describe life when Christ is our all in all. In contrast to unbelieving false teachers, believers who rest on Christ's sufficiency are able to be content.
1 Timothy 6:9-10
- February 14, 2016
The Secret to Godliness and Contentment, Part 2.
We have been studying through the three sections of 1 Timothy 6:3-10. Professing believers who teach falsehood in the church display their unbelief by their lifestyle. Those who believe Jesus is enough find security and contentment through godliness. Next, Paul addresses believers who are tempted to walk away from the faith. The outcome of their testing is largely dependent on who in the church influences them, unless they are already grounded in Christ and who He is. Paul challenges such believers directly because they are at great risk. The end of falsehood is temporary ruin and possibly eternal destruction.
1 Timothy 6:11
- February 21, 2016
Fleeing temporal influences and pursuing biblical virtue.
Paul continues to address Pastor Timothy directly, yet there is still something for every Christian to learn from his words. Instructions to pastors affect the whole church, because a flock naturally becomes like its pastor.
