TIMOTHY - YOUTH

Let no one despise or think less of you


"And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ...." Eph 4:11-12

Timothy (a teenager) was to be one of the chief coworkers with Paul. Since Timothy was partly of Jewish heritage, Paul had him circumcised. But Titus (another coworker) was Gentile, and Paul refused his circumcision (Gal. 2:3). Timothy was with Paul on his second missionary journey (1 Thess 3:1-2), his third journey (1 Cor 4:17), and his Roman captivity (Phil. 2:19-22).


1. Why had Timothy not been circumcised by his parents?


"Paul wanted to have him go on with him. And he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in that region, for they all knew that his father was Greek." Acts 16:3

J.G.Malphurs thought that Timothy’s family became Christians at Pentecost in Acts 2.

"From this it seems that both the mother and grandmother had preceded him into the kingdom; for it is clearly of their faith in Christ, and not of their Jewish faith, that Paul here speaks. With such an example before him, it is not surprising that the young disciple should be found well attested by all the brethren who knew him. The fact that he was thus attested not only at Derbe and Lystra, within the vicinity of his residence, but also in the more distant city of Iconium, renders it probable that he was already known as a public speaker." McGarvey


2. Young, but with the authority of God.


"Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. 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. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you." 1 Tim 4:12-16

Do not let. "Do not let anyone ignore what you say just because you are young. Use your authority, which belongs to the rank of an evangelist." Timothy was probably in his early thirties, but the first century worshipped age. Anyone under fifty years old was "just a kid." Compare John 8:57. The church leaders were probably all older than he was, and there was a real danger that they (or the false teachers especially) would look down on him. But be an example. "Your life should be good enough to set a pattern for others." 13. To the public reading. Since the printing-press had not yet been invented, books were handmade and scarce. Public reading of the Scriptures was an important part of the church meeting. 14. Do not neglect. "Do not fail to make use of the spiritual gift that you received when I laid my hands on you (2 Tim. 1:6), at the time you were publicly identified (ordained) as an evangelist of the Good News Gospel." Compare notes on Acts 13:1-3; 16:l-3.


3. Entrust the Faith to reliable people.


JESUS is the Truth. "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
John 14:6

"You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men (anthropos = both men and women) who will be able to teach others also." 2 Tim 2:1-2

a) As for you, my son. The Circumcision Party (Judaizers) in the province of Asia had all rejected Paul as apostle (Acts 15:1-2), therefore he will no longer be able to reason with them and oppose their false teaching. This burden must now fall on the shoulders of Timothy (and others like him). Paul is intensely anxious about how Timothy will act in the future. This does not mean that Paul expects him to fail, but he feels about this as a father whose son goes off to war. b) Take the words. Paul sees apostolic succession as a matter of teaching, not of administration. What Paul preached was the Good News of God’s act in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17-21) and all that formed part of this (verse 8). In other words, it is the entire New Testament. [Timothy died about the time the last Book was written, but he had been taught everything that would be in it.] Timothy is to pick those who can be trusted and pass on this message. The seed is the word of God (Luke 8:11).

"To you and to all, I repeat: never yield to discouragement, do not lose trust, do not allow your hope to be extinguished. Situations can change, people can change. Be the first to seek to bring good, do not grow accustomed to evil, but defeat it." WYD