Last week we began a new series about the Pastoral Epistles on Sunday mornings. 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy and Titus are referred to this way, because they are written by Paul to ministers in the church. Most of us are not full time ministers, but there is still a great deal to learn from these letters. For that reason, I like to think of them as letters for the church. I would encourage you in the coming weeks to read each of these letters. They are short enough that it can easily be done in one sitting. When reading the letters this way we can often see things we haven’t noticed, and we are much more aware of context.

Paul’s three short letters to his sons in the faith, Timothy and Titus, might be compared to locker room speeches or a commanding officer trying to inspire his troops. In these three letters, Paul describes the type of work these young ministers ought to be doing. I noticed that there are at least three areas Paul focused on when he described the duty of these ministers.

 

The Minister’s “Charge”

One of the recurring words, especially in Paul’s letters to Timothy, is the word “charge.” Paul had “charged” both of these young ministers to do a job. He had entrusted them with great responsibility. Timothy had been sent to work with the Ephesus church and Titus with various churches on the island of Crete. Like soldiers sent on a mission, these were their marching orders.

 

Be A Teacher

The primary area of responsibility on which Paul told Timothy and Titus to focus was teaching. Both communities with which these men were working were plagued with false teachers. So the church in both communities needed men who would devote themselves “to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching.”

 

Be A Leader

I find it undeniably true that Timothy and Titus were entrusted with positions of leadership. Like a chain of command, Paul gave marching orders to these two men and they were expected to turn around and command, charge, and entrust various responsibilities to other Christians in their local communities.