1 Timothy 3:14-15

1 Timothy 3:14-15

At this point Paul steps back from his practical applications of church leadership and takes a bit larger or broader view. The church at Ephesus had fantastic potential. It had a great location along trade routes, which could spread the gospel. It apparently had some outstanding leaders that could direct effective ministry. The church had so much potential that Paul wanted to come and provide his direct leadership. That not being possible, he sent Timothy this letter to give guidance on how he wants him to conduct himself in the critical moments of leading this church.

This may strike us as odd in view of the history of the church. This church had a ‘who's who’ of first-century leadership. Before the letter was penned, the church had been taught and led by Priscilla and Aquila, Apollos, Timothy, and Paul. It had been the scene of Paul's longest located ministry, over two years in duration, and as a result, the whole of Asia had heard the word. It was the scene of marvelous miracles; the aprons or handkerchiefs taken from Paul resulted in the sick being cured and the demonically possessed being set free. It was here that men, who tried using Jesus's and Paul's names as a sort of incantation to cast out demons, failed and were severely beaten. Here warlocks and wizards burned their books and scrolls valued at about 7.7 million dollars (US). Here the fetishes of the temple goddess Diana were so unwanted that their craftsmen started a riot that lasted over 2 hours. 

The church here had become one of the great churches in the first century and, by the time of this writing, was a large and powerful force. So we might expect that this church would be sending and not receiving instructions. Timothy wasn't leading a congregation of a couple of dozen believers. He was leading scores or even hundreds of leaders of groups who were in turn leading small groups or house churches. The directives about careful selection of leadership are critical in such a context. Undoing a bad leadership appointment is always difficult, and in this large setting where close supervision is difficult, it could result in groups going wrong before it was noticed. 

Understanding this helps us to understand the last phrase of vs 15. Almost all translations link the church with the “pillar and support of the truth.” That opinion is not universal. The grammar is not completely cut and dried. Other suggestions include Timothy or other leaders as the pillars and support of the truth. Some think this is a reference to God Himself. Still others refer to the mystery of godliness in verse 16. The best interpretation is that “the church” is the pillar and support of the truth. Hence the priority of good leaders who will remain faithful to what Paul is about to express as the common confession. 

“Lord, grant that I will always be fully committed to the truth. AMEN”