“In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been following” (1 Timothy 4:6).
A preacher’s job is not to find some “new” thing to present to his audience every time he preaches. If he has been preaching the truth, there is nothing “new” for him to teach without getting in trouble (cf. Galatians 1:8-9). A preacher is to “preach the word” (2 Timothy 4:2), which includes informing, challenging, and reminding.
In the passage above, Paul declared the need to “put the brethren in remembrance” (KJV). This can be applied broadly to anything taught in the word of God, but what did Paul mean in this specific context? Notice what he wrote in the verses leading up to this statement:
“But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer” (1 Timothy 4:1-5).
These were the things that Paul wanted Timothy to “point out” to the brethren. These reminders are still necessary today. Let us briefly consider these points.
The Spirit’s Explicit Warning
Revelation comes from the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:10), and through His work, we are able to say that “we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). The Hebrew writer explained that Jesus is the spokesman of the new covenant (Hebrews 1:1-2), and He sent the Spirit to reveal His message to the apostles:
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you” (John 14:26).
“When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me” (John 15:26).
“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come” (John 16:13).
Paul was not stating his opinion or making a prediction. He was relaying the Spirit’s explicit warning to Timothy. Why were Timothy and other brethren to pay attention? Paul explained that as he continued.
Some Will Fall Away
Many believe the doctrine of “once saved, always saved,” yet the Spirit explicitly refuted that theory. Of course, many religious errors are directly opposed to clear statements of Scripture. Consider how many in the religious world teach that we are saved without baptism, even though the apostle Peter plainly wrote, “baptism now saves you” (1 Peter 3:21). So it is with this. Many will teach that once you are saved, you cannot be lost. Yet the Spirit said that “some will fall away from the faith” (1 Timothy 4:1).
This falling away happens when brethren become hardened by sin, as the Hebrew writer explained: “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called ‘Today,’ so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Hebrews 3:12-13). They will fall away “from the faith” (1 Timothy 4:1) or “from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12). However, note that it does not say they will necessarily fall away from the church. They may still assemble and be involved, but their faith is dead (Revelation 3:1). In fact, this helps explain why “the church” drifted into apostasy after the time of the apostles and evolved into the Catholic and Orthodox denominations. Even today, it is common for people who have departed from the teachings of the apostles, which were handed down by the Spirit, to be part of some church. Being in a church does not necessarily mean that one is in the faith.
Description of False Teachers
The Spirit described them as “deceitful spirits” who proclaim “doctrines of demons” (1 Timothy 4:1). He was not warning about supernatural beings. Instead, these were false teachers, men who would “arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:30).
Consider what we learn from these descriptions:
- Deceitful spirits – Paul warned the saints in Rome that these false teachers “deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting” (Romans 16:18). Therefore, brethren need to be alert, and those who preach need to be on guard and warn the brethren about who is a danger to them.
- Doctrines of demons – They oppose God and His truth. James explained that the wisdom of the world, which is contrary to the wisdom from above, is “earthly, natural, demonic” (James 3:14-15). Therefore, brethren need to practice discernment so they can tell the difference between the message of God and the message of the devil. Those who preach need to help brethren recognize this difference by proclaiming the truth and refuting error.
Consciences Can Be Seared
Our conscience is what causes us to feel guilt for sin. This is what Paul meant when he wrote to the Corinthians about being “sorrowful to the point of repentance,” and that “the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret” (2 Corinthians 7:9-10). A good conscience indicates sincerity, even if it is not always right (cf. Acts 23:1). Therefore, our conscience must be trained by the word of God (Hebrews 5:14).
However, one can have a “seared” conscience (1 Timothy 4:2) so that he no longer feels guilt for sin. We must never allow ourselves to read this point. When we teach, we need to continually emphasize the terribleness of sin so that brethren do not begin to think that sin is inconsequential, develop a casual attitude toward it, and then become calloused about it.
Some Will Bind Where God Has Not Bound
As long as the gospel has been around, man has tried to add more rules to it. The first major controversy in the early church arose because some brethren tried to bind the practice of circumcision on Gentile converts (Acts 15:1-2). When they debated the issue in Jerusalem, Peter said, “Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear?” (Acts 15:10). Those who attempted to make a requirement that God never made were guilty of putting Him to the test.
In addition to circumcision, the Holy Spirit mentioned two other rules that the false teachers had added to the word of God:
- Some were forbidding marriage – Many today want to do the opposite and expand marriage to be for those who have no right to marry one another. We do need to respect the limits God placed on marriage (cf. Hebrews 13:4). At the same time, we must not forbid anyone who has a right to this blessing.
- Some were advocating abstaining from meats – It is fine for individuals to decide on their own that they are not going to eat meat, but this is not a matter of faith (Romans 14:1-3). On matters of opinion, we are not to judge others who do differently than we do.
We need to be content with the rules that God has given in His word. If we go beyond this, we lose our fellowship with Him (2 John 9). John issued this warning at the close of the New Testament: “I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book” (Revelation 22:18). As preachers, we must not make rules that God never made, nor permit others to do this without opposing their error.
Everything Created by God Is Good
James wrote, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow” (James 1:17). The blessings that God provides are a “witness” of His goodness (Acts 14:17). Of course, it is possible to abuse God’s blessings, just as Noah did when he took the fruit of his vineyard, which was “very good” (Genesis 1:31), and “became drunk” and acted shamefully (Genesis 9:20-21). So we need to use the blessings God has given in the proper way, and “in everything give thanks” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
Conclusion
The Spirit gave some explicit warnings about falling away, false teachers, searing the conscience, and man-made rules in religion. We must remember that everything from God is good, including (and especially) the reward of heaven. We need to remain faithful to Him and not fall away so we can obtain that reward.
