Fables, Fiction, and Falsehood!

1 Timothy 1:3-4-As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith. NKJV

In my previous post, I wrote about how Timothy and Paul met, and the special bond they shared in ministry. As a young man, Timothy demonstrated a hunger for the things of God and a love for the people of God. Paul noticed this in him and asked Timothy to join him in ministry. During that time, Paul discipled Timothy, then assigned him the pastorate of the church in Ephesus. In this chapter, Paul encourages Timothy in his leadership of the church.

Paul begins the letter by stating that he was an apostle of the Lord by the commandment of God:

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope…

1 Timothy 1:1 NKJV

What stands out to me in this verse is the fact that Paul reminds Timothy that Jesus is our hope! Paul is reminding Timothy that the life he was living, the ministry he was leading, and the sacrifices being made were all because of the truth that Jesus was and is our hope! A simple reminder that each of us need to hear periodically. Our hope is not only in Jesus, but He is our hope!

This truth causes Paul to immediately delve into the concerns that he had over false teachings entering the church.

As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine…

1 Timothy 1:3

Paul tells Timothy to remain in Ephesus. I have read this book on many occassions but have never noticed this verse or instruction before: remain in Ephesus! Was it because Timothy wanted to leave or because he wasn’t supposed to stay there so long? Whatever the case, Paul told Timothy to stay in Ephesus, just like he had previously instructed him to do and it appears that Timothy wanted to do something different.

Why did Paul want Timothy to stay in Ephesus? That’s easy! Because Paul wanted Timothy to help the people in Ephesus see that they were not to teach any other doctrine save the gospel of Jesus Christ! I heard it said that the mission of every pastor in the body of Christ is to make sure that the church stays true to the gospel of Jesus Christ! Even when it is tough and unpopular, this is the assignment of church leadership! Stay true to the gospel!

We’ve all heard things added to the gospel. Some teach that we can’t wear jewelry, or we have to wear long dresses, or no make-up, etc. They look at one verse in the Bible, or they take something out of context, and before you know it, it’s their gospel truth!

Although Timothy seemed to be reluctant, and although we later hear Paul telling him that God had not given him a spirit of fear, we can also recognize the truth that Paul believed in Timothy! Yes, he and Timothy had a great relationship and a strong bond, but ministry was serious and important to Paul and he would not have given Timothy this assignment had he thought Timothy incapable of handling it. Not to forget that Timothy was of both the Jewish and Gentile culture, making him perfect as the pastor for this diverse congregation of believers.

Paul also told Timothy:

nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith.

1 Timothy 1:4 NKJV

Paul called the false teachings that were trying to creep into the church fables and endless genealogies. We recognize the endless genealogies as part of Jewish traditions and the fables as a reference to the Gentile culture in Ephesus. Since Ephesus was considered the most important city of Asia Minor, the diversity of the city would have been considerable. Not only that, the famed Temple of Diana was located in Ephesus attracting people from all over the Roman empire. Timothy and the converts of Ephesus had much to navigate themselves through in terms of ridding themselves and the church of fables and genealogies.

There truly is nothing new under the sun. Today we have many of the same concerns Paul had when he penned this letter to Paul. There are all kinds of philosophies and religious ideologies in the world today. Many are asking, what makes Christianity so great when there are numerous ways to God? Just as it was important to rid the church of falsehoods, fables, and endless genealogies when Paul wrote this letter to Timothy, that is still a great concern today.

Paul explained why it was important for Timothy to stand against false doctrine while not getting caught up in all the false teachings that he would hear about:

Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith, from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.

1 Timothy 1:5-7 NKJV

Paul warned Timothy that these things were distractions and held no spiritual value for those whose hope was Jesus! Paul understood the purpose of the church, the purpose of the pastor or leader, and the things the enemy used to get them distracted from that purpose. Many, Paul stated, had left the faith and turned aside to foolish talking about things they didn’t understand but staunchly defended.

It was disturbing in the early church and it is disturbing now! False teacherss aren’t as easily identified as the Jews and the Gentiles were in Paul’s day, but they are just as dangerous, causing people to stray from the gospel of Jesus.

I remember the Jim Jones cult in the late 70s. According to his biography, he started out as a believer and ended up as a leader of a cult, causing many to stray from the faith and to later commit suicide. (I went back that far because I didn’t want to point a finger at those who are popular today). But if we are honest with ourselves, we can recognize that there are many wolves dressed up in sheep clothing bringing harm to the body and causing people to stray.

Paul said that the people of God would be known by their adherence to the commandment of love. The one Jesus left for us before He went to the cross:

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

John 13:34-35 NKJV

Paul knew that the believers needed to focus on having a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith. I don’t believe Paul was encouraging Timothy to ignore his surroundings because he told Timothy to be aware of all that was taking place! Understand the times in which you are living Timothy and the things you will have to contend with and possibly have to address in the church! But don’t get sidetracked and remember the things that separate you (as a believer) from them (unbelievers)!

I believe that is a relevant message for today. Pastors and leaders in the church need to address wrong teaching in the body of Christ. It’s dangerous to the body when our leaders stick their heads in the sand and ignore what is happening. However, anything that causes us to hate others is not something we need to get involved in. They are fables, falsehoods, and endless geneaologies! Anything that pulls us away from a sincere faith in Jesus towards a passionate stance for something outside the kingdom of God is distracting! And when our hearts are not pure, and our conscience is troubled, we need to recognize the signs for what they are, things that are contrary to sound doctrine!

Sometimes the truth can be hard! The mirror of God’s word doesn’t show us what we want to see, but what we need to see. Each of us need to examine our hearts to make sure the things we are passionate about are things Jesus is passionate about. We need to identify if our thinkology needs to be realigned to His theology because one day we will stand before Him and give an account of our lives; and we don’t want to be guilty of having followed fables, fiction, and falsehoods! Wonderful Jesus!