I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 1 Timothy 1-4.

    Paul writes that Timothy is to command certain people (people whom Paul has previously identified to Timothy, but whom he is not identifying here so as to not limit this instruction to just those people) to stop teaching false doctrines and devoting themselves to fables and genealogies. Nothing further in the letter really gives us any idea what the genealogies Paul was talking about, but my guess would be that there were teachers who were claiming authority because of who their ancestors were (or, at least, who they claimed their ancestors were). However, Paul does give us a clear idea about what false doctrines they were teaching, these were false teachings which he wrote against time and again in his letters to the various Churches. These false teachings involved various interpretations of applying the law (primarily, the Law of Moses, but Paul’s writing suggests that there were other rules and laws preached by some of these teachers) to those who followed Christ. It is interesting that Paul both states that following the law has no value for believers and that the law is useful for pointing out their sin to those who broke that law. Such people are sinners and Jesus came into the world to save them, even the very worst of them. Further it is through faith in Jesus that we have been converted from being sinners into being righteous, and this no longer under the authority of the law.

    Paul calls for believers everywhere to pray for all people, but not just pray, pray, petition, intercede, and give thanks for. In particular Paul calls on us to pray for those in positions of authority. This brings us back to Paul’s references in letter after letter to the fact that we should pray constantly. If you do not know what to pray for, go talk to your neighbors. The Spirit will reveal through them something which you should be praying about. As part of this same lesson, Paul tells us that women should dress modestly and adorn themselves with good deeds rather than with jewelry and fancy clothes. I think both that this instruction applies to both men and women and is more directed at focusing our sense of self-worth on doing good than on our looks than at forbidding jewelry. Paul follows this up with the qualifications for leadership positions in the Church. While I think these qualifications are important, because of my lack of time I am going to skip over that and go on to my next paragraph.

    Paul comes back to the false doctrines which he wishes Timothy to preach against. He writes that the teachers of such false doctrines forbid people from marrying and insist that they abstain from certain foods. In response to such teachings Paul emphasizes that all foods are a gift from God to be appreciated by those who will and not avoided for religious or doctrinal reasons. However, Paul grants that there is some value in disciplining our bodies both by physical training and restricting our diets in a limited fashion (not eating too much, fasting occasionally, exercising so as to maintain our health). More importantly, we should focus on disciplining our minds and our spirits so that we develop ever more into the image of God.