Hold Fast to the Faith. 1 Timothy 1:18-20.
This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, Among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
Dear People Belonging to God,
Paul takes up the issue of false teachers again. He wants Timothy to avoid the pitfalls others have stumbled into.
Charge (v. 18). Timothy is entrusted with the responsibility to “wage the good warfare.” This, Paul says, is in line with what was prophesied about him. We do not know what specific content was in the prophecies, but it probably had to do with Timothy upholding the truth and defending it. The duty is Timothy’s, whether it was prophesied or not because he has the responsibility to declare God’s truth, but it is morale-boosting to know that it was prophesied.
Conscience (v. 19a). Conscience is the inner sense of right and wrong in each one of us. We generally do not need to consult a manual in order to do right, because we are guided by conscience. Faith and conscience go together so that there are times when conscience warns one of a position about belief. If one ignores conscience, one only has oneself to blame. Common in our times is the greed for material wealth. It often drives preachers to say things that will bring them money and material wealth from their church members. Conscience should remind them that they are straying.
Consignment (vv. 19b-20).For those who ignore conscience, their faith is “shipwrecked” and they teach falsehood. Paul has handed such over to Satan. He implies here that there are a protection accorded believers within the body of Christ, the church. When that protection is removed through exclusion from fellowship, the errant believer learns by experience the error of his ways. Two of these people are Hymenaeus, also mentioned adversely in 2 Timothy 2:17, and Alexander, probably the same one mentioned in 4:14. Paul deals very harshly with false teachers and sinful behavior, especially where people are unwilling to change. There are times when we should be firm, to exclude those who refuse to toe the biblical line from Christian fellowship.
Your Loving Pastor Chris.