Lesson Five of the Letters to Timothy

“Fight the Good Fight”

Sometimes carrying out the work the Lord has for us seems overwhelming. Paul sensed this in Timothy as he faced various trials in leading churches. Everyone has trials in day-to-day life. Even if you know exactly what God wants you to do, it can feel like a crushing weight some days. Today we are going to learn how God enables each of us to get through these times. It’s a lesson of hope and encouragement.

Read 1 Timothy 1:18-20. What does Paul call Timothy? What does this indicate about their relationship to you?

Paul gives Timothy instructions according to what?

What three  things does Paul tell Timothy to do according to the prophecy made about him? 

1. __________________________________________________________
2. __________________________________________________________
3. __________________________________________________________

What happens to those who reject these three things in their lives and the work God has for them?

Paul talks about two men who have rejected the three vital things in “fighting the good fight.” Who are they and what happened to them?

Timothy was very dear to Paul, who had no children of his own. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a mentor like the Apostle Paul? I pray you have someone in your life who can encourage you like that. I also pray you will be an encouragement to someone younger than you as well. 

Who has been or is a mentor to you? How have they blessed your life?

Who have you mentored or are mentoring? How has this relationship blessed your life and theirs?

Maybe you have never had someone to encourage you in your life. I hope you will have someone come into your life if you haven’t. My mother was an encouragement and mentor to me. She is in heaven now, but God has blessed me with others who have been there for me in this area. I thank Jesus for them. I have had the joy and honor of mentoring young women and some young men in my life. It is part of our “good fight” Jesus has for us to do. 

Read Titus 2. Whoever you are, be it a older man, older woman, etc., write out what this chapter says you should be doing.

Look at verses 11-14. God’s grace and salvation teaches what?

What are we waiting for as we work for God’s glory?

We are Christ’s “very own.” What should we be eager to do?

Each of us has a role to play for the sake of the Good News each of us has received from God’s hand. We shouldn’t be lax in our efforts as we wait for Jesus to return or take us home. There is vital work to be done. He has equipped us with the Holy Spirit and special gifts unique to every individual Christ follower. These gifts enable us to do good and fight the good fight.

Look back at 1 Timothy 1:18. Paul encourages Timothy to engage in three things. These three things are vital to everyone who has Jesus as their Master. Let’s look at them individually:

The Good Fight

“Oh God, Let me die rather than to go on day by day living wrong. I do not want to become a careless, fleshly old man. I want to be right so that I can die right. Lord, I do not want my life to be extended if it would mean that I should cease to live right and fail in my mission to glorify You all of my days!...” A.W. Tozer

The good fight is doing what God has called us to do to bring glory to His Name. It is the battle of Hope which is to bring others to a saving knowledge and acceptance of Jesus Christ. We use various gifts given to us specifically to do just that. 

Read 1 Corinthians 12:1-11. List the different types of spiritual gifts listed. 

Do you know your gifts? What are they?

Our main purpose in life is to glorify God in all we do. A.W. Tozer, (1897-1963) a pastor, author, speaker and mentor,  wanted nothing more than to live his life to glorify God. He was not formally educated as one would think a pastor of his talent should be, however, he was given tremendous gifts of preaching and teaching. God equipped Tozer to glorify Himself  in his life. We should all want to do the same thing and we’d do well to remember its God who does the equipping.

Holding onto the Faith

Faith is believing God. How do we hold onto something we cannot touch or see? Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”

 We hope for eternal life with Jesus and we have the assurance God has allowed us to approach Him because of our belief in Jesus and all He has done for us. This is our anchor - Jesus.

Read Hebrews 11:6. Why is it impossible to please God without faith?

Who does God reward?

Faith is a requirement in our relationship with God. Without it there is no relationship. It is truly the anchor to our rocky lives. We are tossed to and fro without it. What is so cool is God supplies this faith. All we have to do is receive it.

A Good Conscience

What is your motivation for what you do with your life? Is it self-centered or is it Christ-centered? We should be asking ourselves these questions every time we do something. Our focus must always be to glorify God. In order to have a “good conscience” we must confess our sins before God and be cleansed of our unrighteous behavior.

Read 2 Peter 1:3-10. What things does the Apostle Peter tell us “to make every effort to do”?

Why is it so important for every believer to possess these qualities?

What is the result of not having the qualities evident in our lives?

God gives each believer faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, kindness, love. However, we can choose to ignore these gifts and do things our way. When we live on our own it is as if we have forgotten what Jesus did for us on the cross. It makes me shutter to think I would ever forget His sacrifice, but I do. When I do, my conscience isn’t clear but is full of sin. 

We are called to believe God, love, trust and serve Him through His Son. When we do this we live in good conscience. Our motivation isn’t about self, rather, it is is Jesus and His purposes. 

Fighting the Good Fight isn’t something we do on our own. It is an act of faith we hold onto as our secure anchor. God supplies all we need in order to bring glory to Him. On our power we always fall weakly short. Let this encourage you because God is your Source for all things from the easy to the impossible. You can accomplish His purpose and fight the battles you face daily if you place your trust firmly in Him.

Lesson Four of the Letters to Timothy

“A Trustworthy Saying”

The Apostle Paul, in this first letter to Timothy, speaks with an urgency as he teaches and encourages his student. First, he greets and blesses him with all that Christ affords. Next, he warns him about the dangers of false teachers and the poison they inject into the church. He then tells his story in humility as reflects on the grace Jesus had on him, giving him a mission and purpose in life, which is to share the Good News to both Jew and Gentile alike.

In all his years of devotion to God, Paul never thought he would associate with a non-Jew. He kept himself “pure” according to the Law. Of course he felt he was on the right track when Jesus Himself interrupted his life to make an about-face and do something so contrary to everything He knew. As you read the next passage for our study today, you should be able to tell how grateful Paul is for Jesus’ divine interruption. To have your life turned upside-down and taken on a completely different path than you ever thought takes a huge element of trust. You have to trust the One who leads you. In this case for Paul, and for us, we have to trust Jesus.

Read 1 Timothy 1:15-17. What trustworthy saying does Paul tell Timothy is worth full acceptance?

What kind of sinner does Paul consider himself? How many times does he say this?

What reason does Paul say he was shown mercy?

What words does Paul use to give glory to King Jesus?

Let’s look at the word “trustworthy.” The Greek word Paul uses here is, “pistos” which means, “to win over, persuade. Worthy of belief, trust, or confidence. True and just.”

 Paul, who was a staunch Pharisee, bent on persecuting and murdering Jewish Christians, was convinced by Truth Himself, to change the course of his life and follow Jesus. He immediately placed his confidence in the Christ he tried to stop. Jesus had to be trustworthy at the onset to convince Paul to change his ways. 

You may be thinking, “well if Jesus were to appear to me like he did Paul, I could trust Him.” True enough, but I believe when Christ makes Himself known to a person, His presence through the Holy Spirit is powerful and fully convincing and thus trustworthy. A decision on the part of the person encountering Jesus in their life is the reason a life turns. Paul had to make a decision to follow Christ. You and I have to make the decision to follow Christ. It takes believing Jesus is totally trustworthy.

Paul also considered himself to be what he really was, the worst of sinners. When Christ appeared to Paul, the Holy Spirit shown the light on the truth of his sins. We too are sinners. When Jesus makes Himself known to a person, sin is exposed. We can either accept we are sinners or reject this truth. Paul accepted he was indeed a sinner against the Holy One. It was a big blow to him because he had dedicated himself to being a righteous Pharisee.

Read John 3:16-21. Which verse are you familiar with in this passage? Write it out?

What was God’s reason for sending Jesus to the world?

What happens to the person who believes (trusts) in Jesus?

What happens to the person who doesn’t believe Jesus?

Who is the “Light that comes into the world”? Why do evil people (those who refuse Jesus) hate the “Light”? What do they fear?

What happens to the people who “live by the Light”?  Why?

It’s all a matter of trust. When we trust in Jesus our sin is exposed and dealt with. We are then cleansed by the saving blood of Him who died for those sins. When folks don’t trust it is mainly because they don’t won’t to know that what they have been doing is wrong. They don’t want their sin to be exposed for what it is; an affront to God. Because they won’t allow Christ’ light to expose their lives, they hate Him.  They want Him to go away or they refuse to even believe He exists and fight Him to the bitter end.

I fear many churches are trying to make following Christ more palatable. They don’t want to offend people so people will come into their church and fill up the chairs. Entertainment is the main focus, cushioning the reality of Christ dealing with sin. The truth is, Christ light exposes sin for what it is and its not easy to face. It’s offensive to be confronted with our sin. It hurts to know we are not living right. Without the Truth, we will continue on in our destructive and offensive ways before God and the way to Him is blocked.

Jesus is offensive to sin. He exposes it for what it is, thus exposing us. We should feel shame for our behavior and want to turn from it and turn to Him. The beauty of Jesus is that He gives us a way out of ourselves and into a relationship with Him, connecting us to our Creator God.

Who do you trust? Explain.

Jesus is trustworthy. He is worthy of our praise and trust. Are you willing to allow Him to expose the truth of your life? Are you willing, like Paul to stop what you are doing and place all your trust in Jesus? Will you change direction and begin doing whatever Jesus has for you to do? Let us follow Jesus for He alone is trustworthy, loving us beyond all reason and making the way, the only way, to a eternal relationship with God.

Lesson Three of the Letters to Timothy

“The Lord’s Grace”

The Apostle Paul shifts gears in the next portion of his first letter to Timothy. He instructed Timothy on false teachers and now he is focusing on himself and how far the Lord has brought him.

Read 1 Timothy 1:12. What has Jesus given Paul?

What has the Lord considered about Paul?

What did the Lord appoint Paul to?

Paul had every reason to be thankful to the Lord Jesus. First Paul speaks of the strength Jesus has given him. He knew he couldn’t spread the Good News without this strength. He depended solely on the Holy Spirit he had received when he accepted Jesus as Messiah.

Read Acts 9:15. What did the Lord say the Annanias about Paul?

Read Philippians 4:13. What does Paul say in this verse?

Jesus chose Paul “to carry His Name before the Gentiles, their Kings and the people of Israel.” This was no easy task. First, Paul was Jew through and through. He did not associate with Gentiles for they were considered “unclean.” Now Jesus was sending him to the very people he had avoided religiously all his life. It went against everything he knew as a faithful Jew. 

Secondly, Paul was asked to preach the Good News to Israel. He was doing exactly what he fought against. He had persecuted Jews who had accepted Jesus as Messiah. Talk about shifting gears at break-neck speed. Paul had thought he was doing God’s will by going after the very people Jesus was telling him to bring the Good News to.

Have you ever experienced doing something Jesus had told you to do that was completely contrary to everything you ever known? Explain.

Jesus is notorious for asking His followers to go places and do things that are contrary to what they have always known or have always done.  He wants us to grow in Him. He, as God, has always used people who thought they couldn’t do or shouldn’t do the task He asked of them.

Read Genesis 18. What did God tell Abraham?

God used an old man and old woman to birth the nation of Israel, the people our Messiah would come from. 

Read Exodus 3. What did God tell Moses?

God used an outcast and a murderer to liberate His chosen people out of slavery.

Read Judges 6. What was Gideon’s response to God’s assignment for him?

God used a man, who thought he was nothing, for a task only God could accomplish.

We are not unlike these three men. All of us are given tasks while we are on this earth. God knows we are nothing without Him. Because we don’t have the power to accomplish anything on our own, we have to totally rely on Him. He knows our insecurities and uses them to His glory. If we thought we could do it on our own, then the Lord couldn’t use us.

Read 1 Corinthians 1 :26-31. Why does God choose what the world calls “foolish” and “weak”?

For those who call themselves followers of Jesus, who should we boast in? Why?

The truth is we are all weak in and of ourselves. Paul, points this out in his own life. He went from thinking he was a powerful Pharisee persecuting Christians to a humble man totally dependent on God to teach others about Jesus. We would do good to see this in ourselves and understand that we can do all things through Christ Jesus and His Holy Spirit indwelling us.

Read 1 Timothy 1:13-14. What was Paul like before Jesus came into His life? 

Why was Paul shown mercy?

What was poured out abundantly on Paul?

We are all ignorant and unbelieving before we come to Jesus. Because of God’s great mercy in Christ Jesus, our eyes are opened when we believe in Him as our salvation. We have no excuse for sinful behavior after we come into faith. Because God is merciful, He gives us forgiveness even in our sinfulness. However, our actions sometimes requires discipline from His hand. 

It seems as if the trend in churches nowadays is to only preach grace. But, grace without His truth and discipline doesn’t allow for growth and maturity in our walk with Jesus. The Bible teaches us discipline is a necessary component in our relationship with God. He doesn’t discipline us to be cruel but to lead us as His children.

Read the following passages and relate what each says about the Lord’s discipline:

Deuteronomy 8:5 -

Proverbs 3:11-12 -

Proverbs 12:1 -

Hebrews 12:4-11 -

God’s discipline is essential to our growth. Mercy and grace are important for us to receive eternal life. But, His discipline helps us understand how to live as He requires of us. The Apostle Paul knew this. We would do well to know this too. The churches need to teach the whole truth of God’s love for us and this includes learning from the loving hand of God when we go against what we has told us not to do.

God is faithful to those who call Him Lord through the acceptance of His Son Jesus. The Apostle Paul knew this better than most. Christ humbled him, just as He humbles us when we call Him Lord. The Lord’s grace isn’t just His allowing us into His family without the full portion of His love. His love involves truth, grace, mercy, justice and discipline. Without the fullness of His love we cannot grown in faith.

Lesson Two of the Letters to Timothy

“For the Sake of God’s Love”

Controversy is the best distracter from what the Gospel is really about. If we spend our time justifying the Word of God or looking into genealogies and things like that, then Satan rejoices that we are not telling others about the saving grace found in repenting of sin and turning to Jesus. We cannot become distracted but we must focus on what God has called each believer to do, which is to serve Him, accept His Son’s sacrifice and spend our lives telling others about Him. This is all for the sake of God’s love and sharing this perfect love with those God brings into our lives.

Read 1 Timothy 1:3-5. What is the command Paul is referring to? (Look back at verse 3).

What is the goal of this “command”?

Where does it come from?

We are commanded to stop false teachers in the Church and turn them around to Jesus and the purpose of the Good News. It’s important to know we should not be caught up in the controversy but rather to point others back to God’s saving grace through His Son Jesus. 

Some of the Jews wanted to focus on the Law and the heritage of their faith. They still relied heavily on the ritualism of the Law instead of finding the true freedom found in the salvation in Jesus. Paul, who was called to bring the Good News (as are we) to the world, knew these Jews and their teachings we causing division and confusion. He wasn’t saying the Jewish faith or the Law was wrong, he was saying the Law was not what makes a person right with God. Rather, the Good News (Gospel) had replaced the Law. This Good News is that Jesus had completed the Law and through faith in Him we have a relationship with the Father. 

Notice in verse five Paul tells us the goal of the command to “not teach false doctrine, devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies,” is love. The Greek word for “love” used in this passage is “agapao” and means to “love, cherish, esteem, favor, honor, respect, accept, prize, relish, to devoted to.” 

In other words, instead of the loveless, ritualism of religion, the goal of the Good News is perfect which is the abiding love found in Christ Jesus. The rest is just a waste of time and causes confusion among the Church. 

Look at verses six through seven. What have these false teachers wandered away from? (refer to verse 5b).

What have they turned to?

What is the goal of these men?

What don’t they know?

These false teachers, Timothy is encountering and Paul is warning him about, are 

so caught up in promoting controversies instead of God’s work, they miss the point. We learn from Paul, that God’s work for each believer is faith. This  means our task, our assignment on this fallen world is to believe God. You see, these controversies are a distraction, used by Satan, to stop God’s work in us...faith...believing God.

False teachers come in all shapes and sizes, who knowingly or unknowingly promoting dissension within the Church. As believers, we need to check our belief s, what we place our faith in and see if it lines up with the Word of God. This means we have to believe, have faith, in His Word as fully and wholly inerrant. Sometimes we just don’t know the answer to our questions about why things happen or how the Bible lines up to what we think we know. This is where faith, believing God, comes into play. It is our job, our task, our goal to believe God in all things.

Read Deuteronomy 29:29. What belongs to the Lord?

What belongs to us?

Somethings we just won’t understand certain things. This is because God reveals only what He wants us to know. In Deuteronomy, there were some things God kept hidden from the Israelites, that He has since revealed to us through His Son. He has revealed that through Christ Jesus we can have a relationship with Him. They could only approach the periphery of God through the Law. 

Read 1 Timothy 1:8-11. How is the Law viewed as good?

What was the Law made for?

What do you think “contrary to the sound doctrine that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God” means?

Without Christ Jesus, we are all in sharp contrast as sinners to the holiness of God. There is no way we can reach Him on our own. No amount of trying to follow a set of rules will get us into relationship with God. The Law only points out how we fail in our feeble attempts to be made right with Him. There is only one way to have a right relationship with our Creator.

Read 1 Peter 3:18. What did Christ die for? Why?

This is the Gospel...Good News...Christ Jesus took our punishment for the sins we committed against our Holy God, Creator of all things. Satan wants us to be distracted and look elsewhere for meaning. Our purpose in Jesus is to have relationship with God through Him. This is the very meaning of life to us. When we focus on stupid things like religion instead of relationship with Christ Jesus, we lose out on the delight we find in the presence of our God.

Are there things that distract you from a full relationship with God? What do you need to lay down in order to place your full attention on righteousness found in Christ? Don’t be distracted by the religious who want to argue and point out things that don’t really matter. If you abide in Christ, be obedient to His Will and Word, righteousness comes automatically. If you try and become righteous on your own by following a list of rules, then you will be sure to stumble out of the presence of the Holy One.

Controversy distracts us from what is from God. He wants to be in relationship with us. Let’s focus on Him alone and believe Him fully. Get rid of those in your life who keep distracting you from righteousness in the presence of God. Watch out for those in the Church who are causing distraction. Avoid them. Point them out to the leadership in your Church. If they are your leadership, then ask God to lead you elsewhere. Seek Him in all things. Don’t get distracted but remain focused on Jesus and His redemption for the sake of God’s love.

Lesson One of the Letters to Timothy

“A Warning”

Most of us know to move out of the way when a Mac Truck comes barreling towards us. All of our senses scream at us to “GET OUT OF THE WAY!” The sound of the big semi and its big engine, the smell of the diesel, the sight of its grill and headlights warn us to MOVE!! It’s easy to see and hear the warning of danger in this situation but in some situations we don’t because of their subtly or our desires to get closer and experience the danger. 

Paul warns Timothy, his beloved prodigy, about false doctrines (beliefs) that rob Christians of truth found solely in the Good News of Jesus. Teaching of false doctrines is not something of the past. It is very prevalent today and the warning of the Apostle Paul should be heeded now. He warns us of the approaching “Mac Semi Truck” of false teaching barreling towards the Church.

Read 1 Timothy 1: 3-4. What did the Apostle Paul urge Timothy to do?

Why did Paul think it was so urgent?

The blaring warning Paul gives Timothy screams to all Christians down through the ages. Today some people who call themselves “Evangelical Christians” are teaching heresy. Their blinding false teaching is polluting many people, distracting them from the truth of the Scriptures. To me it seems as if they are trying to make apologies for the Bible, or when the Bible doesn’t line up with what they want or can’t explain they decide the entirety of God’s Word isn’t true.

“Each generation of Christians faces its own set of theological challenges. For this generation of Evangelicals, the question of beginnings is taking on a new urgency. In fact, this question is now a matter of Gospel urgency. How are we to understand the Bible’s story, if we can have no confidence that we know how it even begins?” Dr. R. Albert Mohler Jr.President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Just like Paul and Timothy faced theological challenges, each generations has their own set of challenges. It’s how we face it and who we believe that matters. Today’s controversies within the Church are not new by any means, but have increased in intensity over that last few years. Three of the issues include the “inerrancy versus the fallibility of the Bible”; “Were Adam and Eve the real parents of mankind”; “is hell real?.... One popular writer, speaker speaks to the topic of whether there is a hell or not:

"A staggering number of people have been taught that a select few Christians will spend forever in a peaceful, joyous place called heaven, while the rest of humanity spends forever in torment and punishment in hell with no chance for anything better. It’s been clearly communicated to many that this belief is a central truth of the Christian faith and to reject it is, in essence, to reject Jesus. This is misguided and toxic and ultimately subverts the contagious spread of Jesus’ message of love, peace, forgiveness, and joy that our world desperately needs to hear." Rob Bell  from"Love Wins"

Rob Bell is a false teacher. We need only read the words of Jesus Himself to know that Hell is a real place and that we should fear it. God’s doesn’t want to see anyone end up there, rather, He made a way for us to be with Him through the ultimate sacrifice of His Son Jesus for our sins.

Read Matthew 10:28. What does Jesus say about Hell in this verse?

People like Rob Bell don’t want the message of the Bible to be scary, threatening or off-putting. Instead they water down the truth of what Christ came to earth to do. His life was a purposeful thirty-three years leading us into a real relationship with God. Our relationship with God was marred from the moment sin entered this world in the Garden of Eden when Eve ate the “apple” and shared it with her husband. It took a Savior to take on our penalty for sin, death itself. Why would He need to die if there was no penalty? No hell? No punishment?

Liberal theology, false doctrine, down-right perversion of the Scriptures has no place in a believer’s life. We don’t have to make excuses for God’s Word or explain away those hard things we read in it. God calls us to believe Him and gave us the supernaturally inspired and inerrant Bible to live our lives by.

Read Romans 16:17-20. What does the Apostle Paul say “to watch out for”? 

Who are these people serving?

How do they deceive others?

What does he want the Roman Church to be wise about? To be innocent about?

What is the promise and blessing Paul gives to the Church in verse 20?

Satan wants nothing more than to destroy God’s beloved ones. He will use any means available to accomplish this. Sometimes what seems like a good idea is really evil. There are many smooth talking pastors and teachers who persuade the innocent to go down rabbits trails away from the Truth of God’s Word. Some of these pastors and teachers are popular evangelists, lead large prosperous churches and are charismatic in their teaching. They have been deceived. Sometimes they are deceived because traditional Christianity seems too strict and narrow-minded. They want to make Christian faith more palatable so people will come back to Church. Instead they are causing people to stumble.

Read Matthew 7:13-14. Where does Jesus say the “broad gate and path” leads to?

How many will enter this way?

Where does He say the “narrow path” leads to?

Who will find this narrow path?

Have you ever heard the phrase, “the path of least resistance”? It is used in nature. For example, water flowing down from the top of a mountain will take the path going downhill not uphill because gravity pulls it down. It is also used to describe human behavior. It is often used as a metaphor for personal effort or confrontation; a person taking the path of least resistance avoids these things. So when we hear of an easier way to get right with God, it is easier to take it and a better way. This is what false teachers do. They point people down a path that appears to lead to God and is easier to follow but in truth leads to destruction. 

Read Mark 8:34-38. What does Jesus say about following Him?

What does a person have to give up to receive true life in Jesus? Why?

Answer the questions Jesus poses in verse 37?

What does Jesus say will happen if we are ashamed of Him?

Following the “path of least resistance” by listening to and believing those false teachers who, point people down easier paths and teach false doctrines making excuses for the Word of God’s position on sin, will find themselves in a world of hurt. Laying down our propensity to sin and taking up our cross of repentance in the Name of Jesus, is the only way to be saved. There is no other way.

Read Proverbs 16:25. How does this proverb apply to our lesson today?

The writer of this proverb tells us the path we often choose seems right in man’s eyes because it looks easier and doesn’t require sacrifice on our part. Jesus tells us the road to God, through Him, requires us to give up our right to live our lives for ourselves. It’s not easy. There is no room for sin on this path. He has made it possible to follow Him by forgiving us of our sins against God by sacrificing Himself on the Cross of Calvary.

The Apostle Paul firmly warns Timothy of the false teachers of his day. God in His great wisdom and mercy has allowed this warning to reach our ears today. Watch out! Choose the narrow way. Don’t follow the crowd to the path of least resistance. Move out of the path which leads to destruction. Stand up for what the Bible teaches. Believe it in its entirety for it truly is the Word of God. We aren’t called to make the Bible fit or make excuses for it. We are called to believe and trust it. 

Study of First and Second Timothy

Introduction to 1st and 2nd Timothy

The two letters to Timothy deal with special instructions given for the Church to chose leaders. It is believed they were written around 66 BC a little before Paul was executed. Each letter feels like Paul is preparing for others to take over his ministry as he awaits the day he will be reunited with his Lord Jesus.

Timothy was very special to Paul, almost like a son. He was a native to Lystra, a Roman colony, that served as a market town of Lycaonia in south central modern-day Turkey.  Paul preached here on his first missionary journey (Acts 14:6-22). Interestingly, Timothy’s mother was a Jewess and his father was a Greek. Timothy, more than likely, became a believer of Jesus during one of Paul’s missionary trips there. He had been instructed in the Scriptures (The Old Testament) by his Mother and Grandmother.

Paul took Timothy with him after his second mission trip to Lystra. Wanting to avoid criticism from other Jews, Paul circumcised Timothy. Timothy grew in his faith and Paul trusted him and sent him out as his representative to various places when Paul couldn’t go himself. Timothy was also with Paul while he was imprisoned in Rome. After Paul was released, he went on to further the Gospel in the East and left Timothy to deal with false teachers, watch over public worship, and assist the church in appointment of their leaders. It was Paul’s hope to reunite with Timothy there, but wrote a letter to him just in case he was delayed. Paul sent a second letter to Timothy after he was re-arrested and put on trial for his life.

Timothy faced arrest himself later on, but not much is known about him after these letters were written. Paul wrote to instruct Timothy on how to deal with false teachers who were infiltrating the Ephesian Church. Paul had warned this would happen five years prior. He encouraged Timothy, though young, to be bold and withstand these evil men by upholding the Truth of God’s Word and the Gospel of the Lord Jesus.

Read 1 Timothy 1: 1-3. How does Paul describe himself? Who’s authority does he say he is under?

How does Paul describe Timothy? What words does he use to bless Timothy with?

Paul greets Timothy by stating who he is and who’s authority he is under. Notice how the salutation includes this? Paul knew the importance of Christ’s authority in his life. He also tells Timothy how precious he is to him. Most importantly, Paul blesses him with the wonderful truth of Christ’s grace, mercy and peace. Now that’s a great intro to any letter isn’t it?

Take the time to define each of the following words, first with your own definition and then second by looking each word up in a bible dictionary. You can use biblegateway.com if you would like:


Grace: Your definition:




Bible dictionary definition:




Mercy: Your definition:




Bible dictionary definition:




Peace: Your definition:




Bible dictionary definition:




Did your first definition match the bible dictionary definition? If so, how was it different?


Sometimes we have a different understanding of what something means. That’s ok, but, as you are studying the Bible is it good to look at what things may mean from a trustworthy source such as a dictionary, to see if you are on the right track. I often look at the Hebrew (Old Testament) and Greek (New Testament) definitions to go even deeper. Below are the Greek translations of the three words we are looking at:

Grace: (charis-pronounced khar-is) That which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness: grace of speech.


Mercy: (eleemosyne-pronounced el-eh-ay-mos-oo'-nay) Compassion, pity.


Peace: (eirene-pronounced i-ray'-nay) It denotes a state of untroubled, undisturbed, well-being.

Grace, mercy and peace - these three words should be common words to believers. I contend they are words which go deeper and mean more than we afford them. God’s grace is an invitation to delight in Him, to find pleasure in our relationship with Him through Jesus. It is a lovely, sweet, charimg, yet powerful place to be. In His grace we are thoroughly filled by Him. God’s mercy affords us this grace. He doesn’t have to give anything to us or forgive us. But, God in His unexplainable mercy, His compassion, took pity on us and invites us to Him. In the arena of His grace and mercy, He gives us His perfect peace. God’s peace is untroubled, undisturbed and we have a sense of well-being as our lives encounter rocky areas. This isn’t like the peace of this world. It is a peace, despite the troubles we face, allows us to live our lives knowing God is in control of all things good or bad.

Read Ephesians 1:5-7. How are we “adopted” into the family of God?




What does “pleasure” mean in verse 5?




Who is God’s grace poured out on? Why?




How do we afford God’s grace? In other words, how do we experience this wonderful gift from God?


The Most Holy One, God Himself, decided long ago He would extend His grace to people even though sin had marred us beyond recognition. He found, and still finds, pleasure in extending this grace to us through His Son Jesus. Those who accept His Son as God and Savior, experience this unfathomable grace. If you are a believer, you have been given this wonderful gift. We enter into the delight of God. We should immerse ourselves in this delight. This isn’t the giddy emotion of the world. It is the confidence in knowing we have a relationship with the Creator of the Universe through Jesus. It is knowing we have a place in eternity with Him. It is knowing Jesus will return and set up His perfect Kingdom on this earth. It is knowing this life is but a puff of smoke leading to the next life, more real and vibrant than where we live now.

Read Ephesians 2:4. What is God “rich” in? And what does this lead to?


What does it mean to be “dead in our transgressions”?


How are we “made alive”?

I’ve never really thought much about God pitying me. He felt for me. He knew I was doomed to eternal death without His great compassion and pity. Sometimes I just take the eternal life I have through Jesus for granted. His passion and pity is given beyond all reason. It is important to know, when we accept God’s forgiveness, because of what Jesus sacrificed for us, it is because of God’s mercy, His pity, His compassion for us, we can have a relationship with Him which leads us to eternity with Him. I praise Him for this wonderful life and relationship with and through Jesus.

Read John 16:33. In Whom do we find peace? Why?


What does Jesus mean by “I have overcome the world”?

Christ’s peace is nothing like the peace this world affords. The world’s peace, the view of mankind’s peace, has to do with pseudo calmness and security. It lulls us into thinking we will never face trouble and have our feathers ruffled. Christ’s peace tells us He will get us through the inevitable tough times we will experience in our lives on this fallen world.

An example of the world’s peace would be like a glassy lake in the mountains, with nothing disturbing it except an occasional deer getting a sip of water or trout jumping out of it. It’s not a bad picture at all. I am attracted to this kind of peace. The problem with it is, it is not an attainable picture in this fallen world.

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 16:31

Jesus spoke the truth when He said we would have trials and sorrows while we live on this sin-ridden soil. He didn’t leave us alone but came here to make things right for those who choose Him. Christ’s peace is more like a mountain river. It takes us over the boulders we encounter. We never stop flowing, but continue on with our journey in this life toward the end of our river when we flow out into His perfect eternity.

Christ’s peace is perfect, lifting us, moving us, flowing with us as we abide in Him. When we aren’t in His will we get stagnant because we are hung up on a problem we won’t allow Him to solve or we are disobedient to His perfect will and don’t flow with His life-giving Spirit.

Read Isaiah 48:17-18. What does the Holy One do for us? (Verse 17)


How can we have “peace like a river”? (Verse 18)


How does He describe righteousness?

Did you notice the powerful picture we get of peace and righteousness? They are active words, moving towards something, not placid. The vision we see is of God’s mighty power moving in our lives as we remain in constant obedience to Him. Faith is an active word. Our faith doesn’t remain still, it moves us down on our knees in prayer and up in active obedience to our God.

Where are you in your pursuit of God’s peace through Christ Jesus? Has your view of peace changed since studying this lesson? Explain.

Like Timothy, we too have a mission in this life and it is only by remembering and actively believing in God’s grace, mercy and peace, we can get through this our time on earth and glorify Him. It is a humble person who can lay down their view of these three words ... mercy, grace and peace...and take up the supernatural definitions of God. Let’s take hold of His truth and live a life focused on Jesus and live according to His perfect plan and purpose for our lives. His mercy... His grace...His peace.

Study of Prayer ~ Week One Lesson Five

  “Magnifying God in Prayer”

Let’s begin this lesson by reading Psalm 34:1-3 again, but this time we’ll read it in the King James Version. I will supply the text for you:

I will bless the LORD at all times;

His praise shall continuously be in my mouth.

My soul shall make its boast in the LORD;

The humble shall hear it and be glad.

O magnify the LORD with me,

And let us exalt His name together.

Please underline: bless, praise, boast and magnify. These words help us focus on the Lord Almighty. They are essential to magnifying Him in our prayers.

If you ever took a science class you should remember looking through a microscope at some pond water? What looked like a clear liquid on a tiny slide, when viewed through a microscope, was in fact teaming with the activity of tiny organisms. In order for you to see clearly, when you looked into the microscope, you had to turn the fine tuning knobs and line up the slide so the microorganism could be brought into clear view. 

This is the case with prayer. Blessing, praising and boasting in Him, are the “knobs” that help magnify God. He is magnified in our honor of Him. The unseen things of God are brought into plain view. This is the first essential step in our approach to Him. The fuzziness of life and the daily distractions we encounter fade away and our view of God is made clear.

This week we have focused on the fine tuning process of magnifying God by learning to:

1. Recognize God’s Position
2. Honor God
3. Celebrate God
4. Extolling God

These elements of glorifying God fine tune our vision of Him. He is magnified and we can see Him. He is brought into plain view. 

Turn to Psalm 63:1-3. Let’s break these verses down:

Verse 1: Why do we seek God according to the Psalmist?

Verse 2: What do we see in the sanctuary of God?

Verse 3: Why do we glorify God?

We read in this Psalm that when we seek God, we behold His power and glory and glorify Him in our lives. Let’s take a closer look at these three verses individually.

Behold His Power and Glory!

Seeking God

We seek God because our souls need to be filled by Him. This world offers only temporary satisfaction. Just like a candy bar leaves us feeling hungry shortly after we have eaten it, so does the satisfaction the world offers.

In our communication with God, we seek Him so He can fill us. This life and this world do not offer the essentials for our souls, only God does. He’s the only one who can meet our needs.

Turn to Psalm 42:1 & 2. What does our soul pant for?

What does the Psalmist ask in verse 2?

The two Hebrew words used for “meet with” are “ra’ah” which means “to see, to understand intellectually and perceive,” and “pa’neh” which means “before, in front of; face or in the presence of.” When we pray, we seek fulfillment in the very presence of our Holy God. We understand that He is God and the supplier of our every need. He quenches our thirst and fills us with the sustenance of His love.

What do you suppose is the answer to the Psalmist’s question, “When can I go and meet with Him?”

We can meet with God at any time. He is brought into clear view when we bow in His presence through prayer. We magnify God by being in His presence. We are in His presence anywhere and everywhere as followers of Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit living within us. Our physical bodies and this physical world cannot confine us. We are always in the presence of the Lord. We just need to acknowledge this and seek Him.

God is present.

Seek Him.

Beholding God’s Power and Glory

By being in the very presence of God, we clearly see His power and glory. The unseen power and glory of God is magnified, brought into focus, as we behold Him. We cannot behold the unseen attributes of God without being in His presence. Throughout our day, we can walk in His presence as we glorify Him in our thoughts, words and actions.

Read Psalm 27:4. (NIV) Fill in the blanks:

“One thing I ________ of the Lord, this is what I _________: that I may __________  in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to ________ upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.”

The Psalmist asks one thing of the Lord, but it has three elements to it. What are they?  

1.

2. 

3.

Employing these elements in our lives magnifies God. This is how:

1. “To dwell” means “to live our lives in the presence of God.”  We are never without Him. He is part of us because we have chosen to live in His presence.

2. “To seek” means “to direct all our questions to God.” We seek direction from Him. We want to be in His presence and to do this, we must inquire of Him. This is an act of obedience. To remain in His presence, we must seek Him.

2. “To gaze” is “to keep our eyes focused on Him.” He should always be in our sight. This keeps us on the right path and in a right relationship with Him.

Glorifying God

We glorify God because His love is better than life! His love, His provision, is better than what this earthly life provides.

Read Psalm 36:5-9. Answer the following:

How far does God’s love reach?

How far does His faithfulness reach?

What is His righteousness like?

What is His justice like?

What is priceless?

Who takes refuge in the shadow of His wings?

When refuge is taken in God, what do we feast on?

Where does God give us drink from?

In God we find the what?

In His light we see what?

God’s love is infinite and His faithfulness is eternal. His righteousness stands strong and majestic. His justice is deep, reaching all the hidden places we think we can hide from Him. His love is priceless, because it never fails. Everyone who seeks Him finds refuge in His strong arms.  The Lord not only provides refuge for those who seek Him, He gives from the abundance of His house. We have access to all He has and when we drink from His living water, we are filled with delight in Him. The river of delights is supplied by the Fountain of Life ~ Jesus Christ ~ and we bask in His light. We see Him clearly when He is brought into plain view through our time with Him in prayer.  He is magnified! When we live our lives for Him and in Him, He is magnified. 

God’s love is infinite and His faithfulness is eternal!

Prayer Time

Go to your Prayer Journal and take this time to bow in prayer, allowing Him to be brought into plain view. Adjust the fine tuning of magnification by:

• Recognizing God’s position. 
• Honoring God by telling Him what you know to be true about Him.  
• Celebrating God and all He has done. 
• Extolling God.