3rd SUNDAY  ~ 1 TIMOTHY 2:1-15

PAUL CALLS FOR PRAYER IN THE PLACE OF WORSHIP

With Paul’s instructions to “stop those who are teaching wrong doctrine” (vs. 3), and his encouragement to “cling tightly to your faith in Christ and always keep your conscience clear” (vs. 19), still fresh in their minds, Timothy moves on to read of Paul’s further concerns for the infant church. The Christians of the house church meeting in Ephesus in the home of Priscilla and Aquila would have been challenged as they listened to Paul’s desire that they be a praying church. They realised that it was so easy for times of prayer to be squeezed out of their church programme.

Much Activity - Little Prayer

There would have been many calls on the peoples’ time. Making arrangements for their next meeting. Sorting out the requests for hospitality by Christians visiting Ephesus. Discussing the best way for one of the members to get the  medical treatment they needed. As Robert Banks[1] imagines, “a discussion of the value or otherwise of certain medical creams and on the limited helpfulness of doctors generally.” Other matters for discussion would perhaps have revolved around working out how to handle a problem with one of the servants, or sorting out relationships with the guilds, or perhaps the sharing of recipes among the ladies, or arranging a day to help Priscilla mend some of the torn divans and couches that they reclined on at the meetings each week. Likewise today. There are so many church activities, good though they may be, that can make it hard for members to find time for prayer. Paul encourages the church members to ...

Pray For All People

On hearing these words one of those present leans forward as he asks incredulously, “Surely Paul doesn’t mean that we are to pray for Nero?” The Church  was well aware of Nero’s attitude  towards Christians. He was Roman emperor from 54 AD. William Barclay[2] refers to him as “that monster of cruelty.” Ward Gasque[3] writes of Nero,

   His vanity and lust for power seemed limitless and his suspicions led him to have his closest friends and relatives executed. The fire during July of 64 that destroyed one half of Rome increased his unpopularity. In response to rumours that he had started the fire and recited his own poetry over the burning city, he tried to pass the blame on to the Christians, many of whom were arrested and executed in a most horrible manner.

Paul would have written this letter to Timothy some time between the years of approximately 63-66 AD. This means that the fire in Rome may or may not have occurred at the time the Christians meeting in the home of Priscilla and Aquila were listening to the reading of Paul’s letter. But they certainly knew of the Emperor’s increasing persecution of Christians. It is worth quoting Tacitus[4] as he describes Nero’s response to the rumours that he had started the fire in Rome. His account throws light on the terrible sufferings that Christians were experiencing during the years of his rule. Tacitus himself had no time for Christians as is evident in his scathing but unsubstantiated references to them.

   “Therefore, to scotch the rumour, Nero substituted as culprits, and punished with the utmost refinements of cruelty, a class of men loathed for their vices, whom the crowd styled Christians. Christus, from whom they got their name, had been executed by sentence of the procurator Pontius Pilate when Tiberius was emperor; and the pernicious superstition was checked for a short time, only to break out afresh, not only in Judea, the home of the plague, but in Rome itself, where all the horrible and shameful things in the world collect and find a home.

   “First then, those who confessed themselves Christians were arrested; next, on their disclosures, a vast multitude were convicted, not so much on the charge of arson as for hatred of the human race. And their death was made a matter of sport: they were covered in wild beasts’ skins and torn to pieces by dogs; or were fastened to crosses and set on fire in order to serve as torches by night when daylight failed. Nero had offered his gardens for the spectacle and gave an exhibition in his circus, mingling with the crowd in the guise of a charioteer or mounted on his chariot.”

The question of whether or not Paul meant the people to include Nero in their prayers is understandable in the context of the persecution being experienced in the years of his rule. We may imagine the discussion that followed in Priscilla and Aquila’s home that day as the church thought about the question. As Timothy drew the church’s attention back to the letter he may have replied, “Yes, Paul certainly did mean us to pray for Emperor Nero. Listen to what he writes next.”

Pray For Those In Authority

As Timothy reads from the scroll again the members of the church hear Paul's reasons for saying that they should pray for those in authority. They are asked to pray that rulers will govern in such a way that ‘peace and quietness’ (vs. 2), will spread across the nation. Barclay[5] translates it as prayer for “a life that is tranquil and undisturbed.” It was, he says, “prayer for freedom from war, from rebellion and from anything which would disturb the peace of the realm. That is the good citizen’s prayer for his country.”

A further reason for Christians to pray for their country’s rulers is that they may have opportunity to live lives of “godliness and dignity.” (vs. 2). Litfin[6] makes the comment, “Times of political and social upheaval are excellent times in which to die for Christ, but hard times in which to live for him.” He points out that the word eusebeia [eusebeia], translated ‘godliness’, is used ten times in the pastoral epistles. Barclay[7] says that the word is almost untranslatable into English. He mentions several facets of its meaning. “It describes reverence both towards God and man. It describes that attitude of mind which respects man and honours God ... It never forgets the reverence due to God; it never forgets the rights due to men; it never forgets the respect due to self.” The word translated ‘dignity’ is σεμνοτηs [semnotēs]. Barclay[8] turns to R. C. Trench to help us understand the depth of meaning in this Greek word. “R. C. Trench says that  the person who has 'semnos' has on him a grace and dignity not lent by earth. He is one who without demanding it, challenges and inspires reverence.”

A further reason to pray for those in government is that God “wants everyone to be saved and understand the truth.” (vs. 4). We may imagine this creating some discussion in the house church that day. One person, feeling that Paul might be thinking particularly of Emperor Nero says to the people, “This is certainly a reason to be praying for Nero. The Lord wants everyone to be saved. That includes Nero.” Someone else encourages the church to pray for Nero’s salvation  by reminding them of the evidence that God is at work in the household of Nero. “Don’t forget,” he says, “that Nero’s wife is supportive of the people of Israel and is already a ‘God fearer’. If we pray, it may be that she will become a Christian and influence her husband.”

Another member of the church may have understood Paul’s statement in a wider sense. “Yes,” we may imagine him saying as he contributes to the discussion, “we should be praying for those in authority so that conditions may be favourable for us to make the Gospel widely known.” This could have raised a question for the church. Are good conditions really necessary for the preaching of the Gospel? What about Solomon’s observation, one reminds them, “If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.” (Ecclesiastes 11:4).

The discussion would have been helped if they had at that time been in receipt of Paul’s next letter. They may have returned to the question then as they listened to Timothy reading the second letter Paul wrote to him. “I solemnly urge you ... Preach the word of God. Be persistent, whether the time is favourable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching.” (2 Timothy 4:1-2).

Another may have reminded them that it was the persecution of the Church in Jerusalem which resulted in the Gospel spreading widely. “A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem and all the believers except the apostles fled into Judea and Samaria ... But the believers who had fled Jerusalem went everywhere preaching the good news about Jesus.” (Acts 8:1,4). Paul would have understood this, as he was the instigator of that wave of persecution prior to his conversion. He knew that persecution did not stop the Gospel spreading but still asks the church to pray for their country’s leaders so that its progress not be hindered.

Charles Swindoll[9] writes,

   “Notice the dual purpose. First, prayer can influence authorities to foster an environment that allows Christians to live in peace - which leads to the second, ultimate, purpose of spreading the Gospel. So pray for our leaders, whether they are Christians or not. Pray that they come to faith in Christ. Pray that their decisions honour God and allow for the free spread of the Gospel. Pray that God would reach into the souls of our local, state, national, and world leaders who don’t know him. That he would save them, and incline their wills toward His. Our prayers can make a difference.”

So far in his letter, Paul has spoken of the need for there to be Truth In The Schools Of Theology and for Prayer In The Place Of Worship. Now he speaks of the importance of ... 

ROLE ACCEPTANCE IN THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH

We can imagine the members of the church to be deep in thought as Timothy reads this part of the letter to them. Paul is not writing here about status, for men and women are of equal status and importance as members of the family of God. He is writing about their different roles in the life of the church.

FOR MEN

Men, writes Paul, are to be men of prayer. Not men who become angry when things don’t go their way in the church. Nor are they to be men who become the cause of division and controversy in the church. They are to be men of integrity—men with ‘clean hands and pure hearts.’ Paul’s words remind us of what David wrote many years before. “Who may climb the mountain of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure, who do not worship idols and never tell lies.” (Psalm 24:3-4).

FOR WOMEN

Paul encourages Christian women ‘to be modest in their appearance,’ to develop an attractiveness that comes from within, to be actively supportive of the work of the church, to be students of the Word. Peter also addresses this issue when he writes …

   Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty  that depends on fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should be known for the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty  of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. That is the way the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They trusted God and accepted the authority of their husbands. (1 Peter 3:3-5).

Paul adds a word of comfort for the women members of that house church—meaningful also for women of every culture in every generation. “But women will be saved through childbearing and by continuing to live in faith, love, holiness, and modesty.” (vs. 15).

Litfin[10] sees four ways in which the words ‘saved through child bearing’ may be understood. (a) A woman will be preserved physically through the difficult and dangerous process of childbirth. (b) She will be preserved from insignificance by means of her role in the family. (c) She will be saved through the child birth of Jesus Christ the Saviour. An indirect reference to the promise contained in Genesis 3:15. (d) She will be kept from the corruption of society by being at home raising children.

Barclay[11] takes the view that,

“... women will find salvation, not in addressing meetings, but in motherhood, which is their crown. Whatever else is true, a woman is queen within her home.”

But, we may ask, what does this mean for us today? Does what Paul and Peter are saying apply to us today? Are the roles they describe practical for life in the church, the home, and the work place today? Or …

IS IT JUST A CULTURAL ISSUE?

Barclay’s comments[12] are helpful as we consider the issue of present day roles for men and women.

   “The ... passage deals with the place of women in the church. It cannot be read out of its historical context, for it springs entirely from the situation in which it was written.” He explains that Paul wrote against the background of both the Jewish and Greek cultures. Jewish culture assigned this role for a woman. “Her work is to send her children to the synagogue; to attend to domestic concerns; to leave her husband free to study in the schools; to keep house for him until he returns.” The value system of Greek culture was such that “... if in a Greek town Christian women had taken an active and a speaking part in its work, the Church would inevitably have gained the reputation of being the resort of loose women.”

With his understanding of these cultural values, Paul is concerned that women not be seen as taking a role in the life of the Church which would have been unacceptable in Jewish culture and as not respectable in Greek culture. It is up to Christians in every cultural group to work out what their role should be. But surely the qualities Paul and Peter describe are something that people of all cultures could aspire to.

A FURTHER CONSIDERATION

With his understanding of the cultural expectations of his time, Paul argues for the roles he has defined by taking his readers beyond their current world views. He takes them back to the beginning of things as he gives the reason for his statement about roles. He writes. “For God made Adam first and afterward he made Eve. And it was the woman, not Adam, who was deceived by Satan, and sin was the result.” (vs. 13-14). Paul’s words to the Christians in Rome on this subject could be remembered here. In his letter to them he says, “When Adam sinned, sin entered the entire human race. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.” (Romans 5:12). Adam is in focus there. The fall of humankind was a shared responsibility. There is no record in the Genesis account of the fall (Genesis 3), of Adam exercising any kind of leadership. He was silent as he and Eve looked at the forbidden tree and its fruit. He failed to exercise moral leadership. Litfin[13] makes these insightful comments …

   Some chauvinists see Paul arguing here that women, as represented in their archetype Eve, are more gullible and thus more susceptible to error, than men. Thus, they say, females should not be in places of teaching or authority in the church. Others believe Paul was saying, in effect, ‘Look what happens when the Creation order is reversed and the man abdicates the leadership role to the woman.’ In any case, Paul was emphatically not excusing or absolving Adam of blame for the fall. Elsewhere Paul put the responsibility squarely on Adam’s shoulders. (cf. Romans 5:12-21).

We have entered a sensitive area of discussion in the life of the Church today. There is an opportunity for you to think about this issue as you review the lesson.