Four Ways 1 Timothy Makes the World Uncomfortable

On Sunday we begin our walk through the book of 1 Timothy. Heads up: moving from Isaiah' prophecy to Paul's prose will mean a drastic slowing down for us. We will not be taking the same-sized bites that we did in our study of Isaiah. Peter famously called Paul's writing "hard to understand" (2 Pet. 3:16), and not in the "prophetic mystery" type of way that Isaiah was a challenge. Paul packs a tremendous amount of content into small spaces, and so we will do the work needed to unpack it. 

This week I want to put out our Sermon Outline early. I hope we are eager to begin being confronted by God's Word from this new angle. 

We will try to overview the whole letter, noticing four ways 1 Timothy makes the world uncomfortable. Our prayer is that it would not make us uncomfortable, but that instead we would be eager to receive it as God's faithful word to His people.

1 Timothy makes the world uncomfortable... 

     I.                   With Calls to Particular Christian Conduct

           a.      Paul gets specific re: alcohol, money, anger, family life

           b.      Willing to challenge lifestyles and life choices

     II.                  With Calls to Particular Christian Instruction

           a.      Paul gets specific re: authoritative, pastoral exhortation

           b.      Willing to criticize our pet interests

     III.                With Calls to Particular Church Administration

           a.      Paul gets specific re: church offices, and use of church resources

           b.      Willing to draw lines between worthy and unworthy

     IV.               With Calls to Particular Truths About Human Nature

           a.      Paul gets specific re: gender distinctions

           b.      Willing to speak with common sense about human differences