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Please turn in your Bibles to 
1 Timothy 1, as we continue our exposition of Paul's letter to 
Timothy. 1 Timothy 1, we're going to focus 
this evening on verses 18 to 20, where the apostle tells Timothy 
to wage the good warfare. I do want to begin reading in 
chapter 1, because what Paul does in verses 18 to 20, is restates 
the charge he gives in verses 3 to 5. But I'll pick up reading 
in verse 1 of 1 Timothy chapter 1. Paul, an apostle of Jesus 
Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus 
Christ our hope, to Timothy, a true son in the faith, grace, 
mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord. As I urged you when I went into 
Macedonia, remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that 
they teach no other doctrine, nor give heed to fables and endless 
genealogies which cause disputes rather than godly edification 
which is in faith. Now the purpose of the commandment 
is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere 
faith, from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to 
idle talk, desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither 
what they say nor the things which they affirm. But we know 
that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, knowing this, that 
the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and 
insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy 
and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, 
for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, 
for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that 
is contrary to sound doctrine, according to the glorious gospel 
of the blessed God which was committed to my trust. And I 
thank Christ Jesus, our Lord, who has enabled me because he 
counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry. Although 
I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent 
man, but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. 
And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant with faith 
and love, which are in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying 
and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the 
world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. However, for this 
reason I obtained mercy, that in me first, Jesus Christ might 
show all longsuffering as a pattern to those who are going to believe 
on him for everlasting life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, 
invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever 
and ever. Amen. This charge I commit to 
you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made 
concerning you. that by them you may wage the 
good warfare, having faith and a good conscience, which some, 
having rejected, concerning the faith, have suffered shipwreck, 
of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan, that 
they may learn not to blaspheme. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, we thank you for your 
word. We thank you for its clarity. We pray for the spirit now to 
guide us and instruct us. And may we receive good things 
from this passage of Holy Scripture. May we value and prize Jesus 
Christ and his gospel. May we love that truth we just 
sang about. May we see it as most important. May we see it as most essential 
and necessary for the church and for preaching and for ministry. 
Our God in heaven, we exist solely and alone to proclaim the glories 
of Jesus Christ. And we pray that we would take 
that task very seriously, that we likewise would wage the good 
warfare. And we pray through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen. Well, as I said, after 
giving an opening greeting, the apostle gets right to the task 
at hand. He charges Timothy in verses 
3 and following as to what he is to do. He says, as I urged 
you when I went into Macedonia, remain in Ephesus that you may 
charge some that they teach no other doctrine. In other words, 
silence the false teachers. Shut the mouths of those who 
depart from the truth. Keep quiet those men who have 
no right no prerogative, no place in the Christian ministry. There 
were those, according to verse 7, who desired to be teachers 
of the law. However, they understood neither 
what they said nor the things which they affirmed. Paul then 
highlights one lawful use of the law and then indicates in 
verse 11, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which 
was committed to my trust." Having mentioned this about the gospel 
being committed to his trust, he then enters into a digression 
from verses 12 to 17, where he highlights his place. He is thankful 
to the Lord Jesus who enabled him and counted him faithful 
and put him into the ministry. He recounts his conversion and 
how he was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and an insolent 
man, but he obtained mercy. And then he also goes on to say 
that in verse 16, his calling, his conversion serves as an example 
to others. Jesus Christ has long suffering 
and he will most certainly apply that redemption to sinners in 
time by his grace and for his glory. And then having considered 
God's work in his life, he then launches into doxology in verse 
17. He praises. In other words, understanding 
the fact that God saves us ought to lead us to the fact of praise 
to God for what he has done in our lives. So verses 18 to 20, 
he now returns to this charge. But there are some additional 
elements added to it. Just as Paul indicated his own 
personal experience in having been saved, now he appeals to 
something personal in Timothy's life. So Timothy is not just 
being instructed on what he is to do. He got that in verses 
3 to 5. But there are additional elements 
involved in verses 18 to 20. Now there is commitment because 
there were prophecies made concerning you, Timothy, for this particular 
task. You don't have a right to refuse. 
You don't have a right to resist. This is what the Lord God has 
purposed for your life. And as well, it would serve to 
motivate the young man that he may indeed tap into the gracious 
supplies that God the Lord gives to His ministers when they go 
about the task at hand. We'll take up verses 18 to 20 
this evening under two broad considerations. Again, things 
that we've already seen in 3 to 7, but developed, amplified, 
and added to. The first is the restatement 
of his charge, and then secondly, defection in the church. Paul names two specific examples. Again, for Timothy, for his benefit, 
but as well for his caution so that he will keep himself in 
the things, in the truth of God Almighty. So let's first look 
at the restatement of his charge. We already read verses 3 to 5. Notice here in verse 18, this 
charge Or, this commandment, I commit to you son Timothy. Again, he appeals to Timothy 
with this filial attraction, with this affectionate turn. 
He's already referred to Timothy in chapter 1, verse 2. To Timothy, 
a true son in the faith. This is not through bloodlines, 
this is through grace. God having saved Paul, God having 
saved Timothy, has brought them into this unique relationship 
of spiritual father to spiritual son. But as George Knight points 
out, the designation son Timothy is one not simply of affection, 
but rather one that a spiritual father uses with his spiritual 
son and disciple. And that conveys for Timothy 
his role and his responsibility under Paul's apostolic authority. So it's not just a sign or a 
term of affection, but it was also an appeal to Timothy to 
realize that the task at hand is most serious. Paul the Apostle 
has commissioned this man to do this particular thing. So 
he restates the charge, verse 18. Notice the basis of the charge. This charge, I commit to you, 
son Timothy, now notice, according to the prophecies previously 
made concerning you. Now the prophecies previously 
made concerning Timothy were simply this, God's revelatory 
word concerning Timothy in terms of mission, in terms of ministry, 
that others knew of. When this happened, we don't 
know. It's appealed to again in 1 Timothy 4, verse 14. Paul there writes, "...do not 
neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy 
with the laying on of the hands of the eldership." The specific 
timing of when these prophecies were made concerning Timothy 
is unknown to us. but that they were made and they 
serve as the basis upon which Timothy is to take this charge 
seriously and to execute it faithfully is the basis upon which Paul 
appeals. Timothy has a duty and he has 
a responsibility to obey. Paul says, this charge I commit 
to you, I entrust to you, I give over to you. And it's according 
to the prophecies previously made. This wasn't Paul's popularity 
contest. He didn't wander into Lystra 
and say, wow, Timothy's a good-looking fellow, and he seems to get on 
well with the crowd. He seems to have a gift of utterance. 
He seems to have a bit of ministerial polish. I will bring him in, 
and I will make him my protege, and I will use him. No, Paul 
recognized this to be sure, but it was prophecies leveled by 
God with reference to this man. In other words, as Paul has already 
rehearsed in his own life, Jesus Christ counted him faithful. 
Jesus Christ enabled him. Jesus Christ put him into ministry. 
So the same is true with Timothy. In other words, Timothy, this 
charge I commit to you because this is God's call upon your 
life. This is what you are supposed 
to be doing. You are not to take this lightly. 
You are not to take this as if it isn't serious. You are to 
take this with the responsibility that is necessary. Timothy has 
access as well to God's grace in order to obey Paul's charge. Timothy is God's appointed man 
for God's appointed task, and he can rest assured that the 
Lord will enable him to carry out this task. Is everybody with 
me? Everybody following? Everybody 
seeing this? Because it's important. Timothy 
doesn't send himself upon this mission. Timothy doesn't undertake 
this because he wants to engage in polemics. It's not that Timothy 
just wants to be an apologist for the Lord Jesus. There were 
prophecies made concerning this young man. Paul was his spiritual 
father. Paul leaves him in Ephesus because 
there is a problem. There are men who want to give 
themselves to myths and endless genealogies and discussions about 
the law that have no bearing on life and reality. And so Paul 
says, Timothy, I want you to stay in Ephesus and I want you 
to shut their mouths. Now remember that this is a private 
letter to Timothy, but it's a public letter as it would be read to 
the church, so that anybody sitting in the church hearing this letter 
would not have to scratch their head and say, is Timothy really 
the man? Well, when the Apostle Paul, 
under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, says Timothy is 
the man, and that there were prophecies made by the living 
God concerning this man's call in life, as the church in Ephesus, 
you better listen to Timothy. You better understand that what 
this brother has to say is right. He is God's spokesman at God's 
time for God's purpose. That's the emphasis here. That's 
what's going on. By recalling these prophecies, 
Timothy is to realize that he was purposed by God for this 
particular task. And that's probably a difficulty. 
I mean, I don't know of any gospel minister, I guess there's some 
out there, but most guys don't like to fight. Most guys don't 
like to wage warfare. Most guys like to preach the 
word to people who agree, and people who love to hear preaching, 
and they amen it, and they smile, and they say, praise God for 
the Lord Jesus. I mean, that's a lot more happy 
than people that can't stand the truth. So for Timothy, what 
Paul is telling him is that his God-assigned role is to shut 
the mouths of false teachers. Timothy needed 1 Timothy. Timothy 
needed this letter. Timothy needed encouragement 
from General Paul. Timothy needed exactly what the 
Apostle is writing to him in, or writing here. It's similar 
to what we find in the book of Deuteronomy. We just concluded 
our studies on Wednesday night. We'll be starting, God willing, 
Joshua in a few weeks. If you've not come out and you 
want to engage in the prophet, or the former prophet Joshua, 
God willing, we're going to follow the exploits of Israel as they 
enter the land, as they take the land, and as they divide 
the land, and hopefully retain the land. But at the end of the 
book of Deuteronomy, there are some public spectacles, some 
public displays of a transition between Moses and Joshua. Why 
is that? So that the people will realize 
that they need to submit to the leadership of Joshua. The same 
sort of thing is going on with this letter. When Paul writes, 
son, Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning 
you, it is that transition, or rather it is that identification, 
that Timothy is God's man. Timothy is Paul's man for the 
task at hand in Ephesus. This was to be a means or the 
basis upon which he is to execute or pursue this charge. Thirdly, 
notice the specific purpose of the charge. He says, in verse 
18, that by them, by these prophecies that were previously made concerning 
them, you wage the good warfare. Now, we know that this does not 
mean Timothy ought to go by himself at 38. He ought to go arm up. He ought to have bandoleros and 
shotguns and holsters and bullets and martial weaponry and all 
these physical elements to go and destroy the false teachers 
in Ephesus. Maybe Timothy would have preferred 
that, I don't know, but that was a joke, brother, just a joke. 
Just to make sure everybody's awake. How does he wage the good 
warfare? Well, he does it by obeying the 
charge in verses 3 to 5, shutting the mouths of false teachers. And he does it as well. I don't 
think we can just focus on the refutation of heresy in 1 Timothy, 
but also the exposition of truth. This is what a minister of the 
gospel is supposed to do. He is supposed to positively 
present the truth of Christ and Him crucified. But as well, he 
is to be able to refute the heretics. He is to be able to silence the 
opposition. You see both elements combined 
in Titus 1.9. Titus 1.9, the qualifications 
for the elder there. It says he must or holding fast 
the faithful word as he has been taught that he may be able by 
sound doctrine both to exhort and convict those who contradict. So that sound doctrine is the 
means by which he exhorts the people of God. He exhorts believers. He preaches truth to them. He 
makes a positive exposition so that they may be instructed and 
informed on how they ought to live. But he must also be able 
to convict those who contradict. So this charge in 1 Timothy 1, 
verse 18, wage the good warfare, means simply this, shut the mouths 
of false teachers and positively preach. Jesus Christ, and Him 
crucified. The Apostle Paul employs martial 
language which demonstrates how serious the charge is that is 
given to Timothy. I think we forget this sometimes. Wage the good warfare. Is Paul 
just engaged in rhetorical flash? Or does Paul see the value and 
the import of truth? Spiritual warfare. Spiritual 
combat. You see, if you go to your doctor 
tomorrow and he misdiagnoses you, and you happen to be a Christian, 
and you die, you still get to go to heaven. But if you go to 
a man of God and he preaches heresy, he preaches falsehood, 
he preaches non-truth, he preaches something that is wrong, you 
die and go to hell. Now I know God is sovereign, 
I understand that, but I also know that God uses means, and 
God is well-placed through the foolishness of the message preached, 
and may I just supply the message preached accurately to save those 
who believe. You see, the New Testament is 
devoid of pep talks. The New Testament isn't about 
motivational speeches. The New Testament isn't about 
you having your best life now. The New Testament is about the 
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. And when men deviate, when men 
depart, when men reject that truth, they will be shipwrecked, 
as Paul goes on to say in our particular passage. You see, 
waging the good warfare is what is emphasized for Timothy in 
the refutation of heresy, in the positive exposition of truth. And may I suggest that that is 
what ought to take center stage in pulpits today. Pep talks, 
motivation, whatever, has no place in the Christian ministry. It is about Jesus Christ and 
Him crucified and resurrected. It is about the gospel. It is 
about God's law. It is about the comprehensive 
nature of truth. It is about His covenant. It 
is about His dealings with man. We are to be about this book. 
We are to prize this book. We are to value this book. It's 
an amazing thing to me that so many Christians who profess fidelity 
to this book go places where this book is not preached. Why? Why would you do that? Don't 
tell me you love the book and then go somewhere where you're 
being told I'll live every day as if it's Friday afternoon. 
That doesn't show fidelity to the book. The book couldn't care 
less if every day is like Friday afternoon to you. The book is 
concerned with Christ and him crucified. The book is concerned 
with you and your soul. The book is concerned with your 
fidelity to God and his truth. So many Christians ask them, 
what's most important in Christianity? Well, the word. Well, then how 
do you settle for 15 minute sermonettes that have nothing to do with 
the book? Is that really an expression of fidelity to the book? It's 
shameful, brethren, what we have settled for in this 21st century 
in North America. What passes for Christian preaching 
has no connection whatsoever to Paul's charge to Timothy. 
Wage the good warfare. I've got to tell you, when you 
preach the book, you get opposition. You just preach how to have a 
happy life, not a lot of opposition, except from people who believe 
the book. They'll tell you you're not to lunch, thankfully so. 
But this is what's in view here. The charge given to Timothy in 
this specific purpose shows that the battle for truth is one of 
utmost seriousness. Paul employs martial language, 
again, not just to show us a rhetorical or literary flash. 2 Corinthians 
chapter 10, the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but they 
are mighty for the pulling down of strongholds. Ephesians chapter 
6, how does Paul tell the Christian he is to enter into this world? 
You're to put on the whole armor of God. Do you realize that when 
you step out in those streets, it's a combat zone? We don't 
think that way. We don't look at it that way. 
We don't hear the bullets whizzing by. We don't smell the napalm 
gas. We don't see the depleted uranium 
floating all about us. But the reality is, for a Christian 
who strives to live godly in Christ Jesus in this present 
age, when you step out of that house, and even within the confines 
of your house, it's a combat zone. Internet porn, billboards, 
and abortion, you name it. You name it, brethren, there 
is everything out there to challenge the fidelity of a godly man in 
this generation. It's combat. It's warfare. This is a charge given specifically 
to a minister of the gospel. But if you ponder for just a 
moment and you look at Ephesians chapter 6, when Paul tells us 
to don the whole armor of God, he's not talking to the ministers. 
Certainly they're included in that, but every Christian must 
be that. Every Christian must be armed. 
Every Christian must realize that when I step out into an 
ungodly world, it's a combat zone. He doesn't say, Timothy, 
you know the case is in Ephesus. They got some heretics there. 
Just cuddle them. Give them a separate study. Give 
them a room where they can enjoy their own take on, no, shut them 
up. They're going to destroy the 
people of God. They're taking souls to hell. 
You wage the good warfare, Timothy. You don't put up with garbage 
in the name of Christian preaching. You need exposition and application 
of the Word of God. That is what you need. This is 
what 2 Timothy 4 tells us. Preach the Word. Be ready in 
season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, and exhort. 
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine. 
What is the answer and the antidote to those who will not endorse 
sound doctrine? Preach the word to them. You don't find Paul 
saying, well, you know, tailor your message. Make your pulpit 
little. Get the guitar up there. Coddle 
them. Make them feel at home. Preach 
the Word. Let God do His job. You do your 
job, God will do His job. You preach the Word, He's faithful. 
The Spirit works. He's alive. He's real. He'll 
affect man. He'll bring people to repentance. 
He will create faith. He will sanctify. You just be 
faithful and do what you're supposed to do. Timothy, wage the good 
warfare. Notice, it is a good warfare. 
Again, George Knight says, by adding good to warfare. Paul 
makes clear that the fight is a good and noble task, and in 
accord with the gospel. The context depicts the fight 
in terms of a warfare against opponents such as Satan. and 
more concretely those who abandon a good conscience and faith, 
who blaspheme and who teach heterodoxy. In his use of soldier imagery 
in 2 Timothy 2, 3, and 4, Paul elaborates in effect on what 
is involved in such a fight, namely willingness to suffer 
hardship and to be completely faithful to one's commander. 
See, it could cost you everything, Timothy, when you wage the good 
warfare. Later in 1 Timothy 6, he calls it the good fight. How 
does Paul summarize his life? I have fought the good fight. It's good because it's God's. 
It's about truth. It's about righteousness. It's 
about the Lord Jesus Christ. He restates his charge, he grounds 
it in these prophecies made concerning Timothy, he gives the specific 
purpose of the charge, and then finally the necessary elements 
to comply with the charge. Verse 19a, having faith and a 
good conscience. How is Timothy to engage his 
task? By having faith in Christ. This 
probably refers to his subjective hold on Christ and his gospel. Timothy, you can't successfully 
defend that, which you know nothing of. You need to have faith and 
a good conscience. The faith there describes, by 
God's grace, Timothy's hold upon the Savior, his hold upon the 
truth of the gospel. The good conscience there, in 
the language of Knight, is a state in which one's moral self-evaluation 
accurately registers that one has been obedient to God. In 
other words, if faith refers to the Spirit and its connection 
to Jesus, then this good conscience is practical obedience. This 
good conscience is behavior. This conscience, or this good 
conscience, is doing what the Lord God commands. Again, not 
perfectly. Timothy was not a sinless being, 
but he could in fact maintain a good conscience, having faith 
in the Lord Jesus. William Mount says, for Paul, 
what a person believes and how that person behaves are inseparable. What a person believes, in our 
text, faith, and how a person behaves, conscience, are inseparable. This faith, this good conscience, 
would be absolutely crucial for Timothy in order to obey the 
charge and to wage the good warfare and to maintain fidelity himself. Probably Hymenaeus and Alexander 
didn't start off as heretics. Probably Alexander and Hymenaeus 
didn't start off rejecting the faith. The fact that Paul can 
mention Hymenaeus and Alexander in a context like this, without 
any further description, seems to indicate that Hymenaeus and 
Alexander were not only known by the church, but quite possibly 
were prominent men at one time within the church. And that brings 
us to consider defection. versus 19b and 20. The unfortunate 
reality. Timothy having faith and a good 
conscience, which faith and a good conscience, some having rejected, 
You see, not everybody has that grip on the Lord Jesus. Not everybody 
has that conformity to the law. Not everybody wants it. And in 
fact, some, the verb suggests, a deliberate act, reject those 
elements. They didn't want faith in Jesus. They didn't want conformity to 
God's law. They would rather stroke their 
beards and talk about men's. They'd rather be impressed with 
endless genealogies. They desired to be teachers of 
the law, having no clue what the law really said, what it 
really meant, or how it was to be used. And in this, they reject 
faith, they reject a good conscience. The apostle and his son Timothy 
maintained fidelity in these areas, some, however, had deviated 
from biblical Christianity. So if this having faith and a 
good conscience means that Timothy is engaged in authentic Christianity, 
those who had rejected these things had abandoned Christianity. Now, in the context, it doesn't 
seem that they abandoned Christianity and then went and joined the 
Moonies. They didn't go get orange robes and bang tambourines at 
the airport. They didn't go join some cult. 
They had rejected faith in Christ. They had rejected a good conscience. 
And yet, they wanted to remain in the church and be teachers. 
That's the worst. If you're going to reject that, 
just get out. At least be honest enough to get out. Who are these men? Well, let's 
first look at the destructive consequences. Interesting verb 
choice here. Having faith and a good conscience, 
which some having rejected concerning the faith, have suffered shipwreck. They have suffered shipwreck. 
Look at Paul's language here. Wage the good warfare. Timothy, you must be a good soldier. Maintain faith and a good conscience. Timothy, you must be a good sailor. 
You don't want to go shipwrecked. You see, everything depends upon 
this faith in Christ. Everything depends upon His Gospel. Everything depends upon fidelity 
to the Lord and to His truth and to His Word. When these men 
deliberately reject, when these men deliberately throw out, when 
these men deliberately deviate from the truth of Christianity, 
good is not in sight. What we find here is which some 
having rejected concerning The faith. Now that could be their 
own subjective hold, or it could be the Christian faith. I think 
it's a combination of both. When you reject your subjective 
hold on Jesus, you reject the Christian system of truth. And 
these men, being in a position of leadership and teaching others, 
according to 2 Timothy 2.17 and 18, they are able to make shipwreck 
of the faith of others. It's a dangerous position. The 
Christian life is navigated correctly by faith and a good conscience. As Christians, we must be both 
good soldiers and good sailors. As Christians, we must maintain 
fidelity to the word. Now, I'm not a navigational expert. I know nothing about the sea, 
nothing nautical, except I like it. It's pretty. But I think 
that if you're in a ship and you begin to veer just a little 
bit initially, when all is said and done, you're way off the 
mark. You see, it's not the case that 
somebody's sailing to Hawaii and ends up, I don't know, wherever 
the opposite of Hawaii is. It starts slow, doesn't it? This 
I do know by experience. Going into the water where there's 
a riptide and it's a foggy morning, body surfing. And then when the 
fog lifts, you're like three lighthouses down from where you 
started. You didn't know that. It was 
imperceptible. You didn't feel it. It's the 
same with this. We shave a little truth here, 
we pare off a little edge here. Most men don't wake up on a Sunday 
morning and say, you know, I'm going to deny Jesus, I'm going 
to worship Satan, and I'm going to lead the church to hell. That's 
generally not the way that it goes. It begins subtly, it begins 
small, it begins with just a little bit of veering from the truth. 
And what happens? They end up shipwrecked. This 
is the choice of verb that the Apostle utilizes, again, in a 
martial context where Timothy is called to be a good soldier, 
he's called to be a good sailor. The specific examples are given 
of Hymenaeus and Alexander. Hymenaeus is mentioned in 2 Timothy 
2, verses 17 and 18. You can turn there. 2 Timothy 
2, verses 17 and 18. By the fact that he's still being 
mentioned all the way into 2 Timothy 2, it seems to indicate he didn't 
take the hint back in 1 Timothy 1. That he's still around or 
somehow still plaguing them, which Alexander the coppersmith 
seems to be as well. It's an interesting thing also. 
Heretics don't just say, okay, I'll leave. You're right. You 
won. I'm gone. It's like leeches or 
barnacles. You gotta, you know, peel them 
off. Go already. Get out. We don't want you here. 
You're wrong. Notice what Hymenaeus was about. 
2 Timothy 2.17, and their message will spread like cancer. Hymenaeus 
and Philetus are of this sort, who have strayed concerning the 
truth, saying that the resurrection is already past, and they overthrow 
the faith of some. Now you might wonder, how in 
the world could anybody think that the resurrection had already 
passed. The same heresy, the same problem, 
seemed to have affected Corinth. It's what's called an over-realized 
eschatology. In fact, that's one of the reasons 
why Paul writes 1 Corinthians 15 in terms of that long-developed 
chapter on the resurrection. It's because some said there 
was no resurrection. Probably because they thought 
it had already occurred. Hymenaeus and Philetus were of 
this mind. The resurrection has already 
taken place. This has surfaced in the last 
several years. There are those out there today 
that teach that all biblical prophecy was fulfilled at the 
destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. So we're now living in the 
eternal state. You ask the simple question, 
well why do we still get married? They don't have basic answers 
for that. Maybe they do, I just haven't been impressed with that. 
Timonaeus and Philetus strayed. They taught that the resurrection 
had already occurred. And in doing so, they made shipwreck 
of the faith of some. There are five Alexanders mentioned 
in the New Testament. There's one in Mark chapter 15. 
He is the son of Simon the Cyrene who carried the cross for Jesus. Probably not that Alexander. 
There's an Alexander mentioned in Acts chapter 4 at verse 6, 
the son of a high priest. Probably not that Alexander. Not only was Alexander a popular 
Roman or Greek name, but it was also popular among the Jews. 
Acts 19, there was a man by the name of Alexander. Some speculate 
that this is the Alexander of whom Paul is speaking. I'm not 
certain. But what we do know is that Hymenaeus 
and Alexander were men Paul specifically named in terms of threats to 
the church. Alexander does come up again 
in 2 Timothy chapter 4. You can look there at 2 Timothy 
chapter 4 at verse 9. Be diligent. I'm sorry, verse 
14. Alexander the coppersmith did 
me much harm. May the Lord repay him according 
to his works. You also must be aware of him. Notice, for he has greatly resisted 
our words. That was Alexander's problem. 
He greatly resisted the truth of the Christian message. He 
vigorously opposed Paul. Paul says, you must resist him. You must beware of him. Again, 
the indication seems to be that when 1 Timothy 1 was read in 
the church, Alexander and Hymenaeus didn't leave and go live on a 
deserted island. They continued to menace, they 
continued to threaten, and they continued to plague the church 
of the Lord Jesus Christ. to the action taken that Paul 
mentions very specifically and finally in our passage. Verse 20, of whom are Hymenaeus 
and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan, that they may learn 
not to blaspheme. The closest parallel to this 
text is 1 Corinthians 5, 5, where that man who had his father's 
wife was delivered over to Satan. And the idea seems to be church 
discipline, vis-à-vis excommunication. In other words, he is put out 
from the people of God and he is put into the realm of the 
devil. So we've got the church that 
is governed by Christ, we've got outside the church which 
is governed or controlled or utilized by the devil to teach 
lessons to people. Knight says it this way. The 
closest parallel to the usage is 1 Corinthians 5.5. Delivering 
over to Satan is an act of discipline for unrepentant sin and involves 
putting the person out of the church, the fellowship of God's 
people, into the realm controlled by Satan. Now, God is sovereign 
and He even uses Satan. Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 
12, there was a thorn in the flesh given to him, a messenger 
of Satan to buffet him. God used that for Paul's well-being. God uses this chastisement and 
this discipline under the means of the devil for good. So Paul's 
purpose in putting these men out, Paul's purpose in delivering 
to Satan these men, first of all, so that they don't continue 
to infect the church. It's an amazing thing. Truth 
has a tough time making its way around. Heresy, boy, it just 
seems to spread like gangrene. It's an amazing thing. We just 
tend to gravitate. I don't know why it is. We tend 
to gravitate toward that. But one, He's delivered over 
to the realm of, or they're delivered over to the realm of Satan so 
that they don't continue to plague the church, but as well so that 
they learn. There's a remedial purpose, notice, 
whom I deliver to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. You see, even in this, God has 
his purposes, God has his plans. 2 Timothy chapter 2 verse 24, 
"...a servant of the Lord must not quarrel, but be gentle to 
all, able to teach, patient, in humility, correcting those 
who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, 
so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their 
senses, and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken 
captive by him to do his will." So under this tutelage of Satan, 
In God's providence, they may learn not to blaspheme, they 
may come back and repent, they may forsake their sin, and they 
may embrace the truth. That is the goal, ultimately, 
is the remedy of the errant sinner. So that is the exposition we 
learn in closing. First, the importance of this 
good warfare. If it was good in Ephesus, it 
is good for our day. Wage the good warfare. The Apostle 
charges Timothy to fight for the truth of the gospel, so must 
we. The Apostle sets forth here his 
appreciation for Christ, for his word, for his truth, and 
we as the church must do likewise. We ought to learn that Christ 
and his truth are worth fighting for. They're worth it. They're worth dying for. They're 
worth bleeding for. I know people hear that and they 
say, you guys are wacko. You guys are nuts. Now, there 
are certain things we shouldn't die for. If you're all millennial 
or post-millennial or pre-millennial, don't go die for that. Please? Please. Don't. Don't do that. Don't go die for 
pre-millennialism, especially pre-millennialism. Joke. Because that's the least accurate 
of the three. Yes, I said it. But for justification 
by faith, for the glorious Trinity, for the truth of the Bible, as 
Spurgeon said, this is a blood-soaked book. The blood of martyrs, the 
blood of reformers. blood of men and women who prized 
and valued this book. I sometimes think we in the church 
do not wage the good warfare and we certainly don't take seriously 
this mandate to deliver people over to Satan so that they learn 
not to blaspheme. It's because we don't value and 
prize the truth. To the degree that we value and 
prize the truth, that is the degree we will execute faithfulness 
to this particular mandate given by Paul to Timothy and by extension 
to the Church of Christ in all ages. We are to wage the good 
warfare. Secondly, we see the essential 
elements in a gospel minister. They will be developed, the qualifications 
set forth in chapter 3, verses 1 to 7. But here, notice, essentially, 
what Timothy is to have, faith and a good conscience. He is 
to have a hold of Christ, he is to live consistently, he is 
to let his conduct worthy of the gospel. He is to carry out 
his charge as a servant of the Most Holy One. He is to be a 
man who has experientially known the truth of the gospel that 
he preaches. He is to be a man that lives 
in light of that gospel that he preaches. And by extension, 
brethren, if that is true for gospel ministers, it is true 
for each and every Christian. We must have faith and we must 
have a good conscience should we be useful in the Master's 
hand. And then finally, we see in this 
passage the importance of church discipline. Paul says it very 
clearly. He names two names, Hymenaeus 
and Alexander. He wasn't afraid of being sued. I heard of a lady in Seattle 
that sued a popular database because they put her age on there. 
And she thought if her age was indicated, she wouldn't get jobs. 
She lost. Paul didn't even think in those 
terms. Hymenaeus and Alexander might get a lawyer and they might 
sue me. I can't name them in my epistle. Paul says, Hymenaeus 
and Alexander, whom I delivered over to Satan, so that they may 
learn not to blaspheme. You see, for Paul, the purity 
and the soundness of the church was far more important than the 
delicate sensitivities of two archeratechs. But you see those 
two arch heretics were also in Paul's concern because they're 
there so that they may learn not to blaspheme. The remedial 
purpose in church discipline is that the sinner repents and 
that the sinner comes back and the sinner experiences full forgiveness 
and restoration. We as the people of God, if someone 
is ever put out and they come back broken, humbled, seeking 
pardon, we ought to be large-hearted, we ought to be benevolent, we 
ought to be like that father of the prodigal and fall on them 
and kiss them and put rings on their fingers and bring them 
to the fatted calf. That's what Paul has in mind 
in terms of church discipline. As I said, it doesn't seem to 
have applied or fit or been remedial in the case of Hymenaeus and 
Alexander, but nevertheless, that was its goal. Well, brethren, 
that is 1 Timothy 1, 18 to 20. May God indeed bless us as Free 
Grace Baptist Church, causing us to be faithful to the call 
that we have been given, to preach the word, to be ready in season 
and out of season, to convince, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering 
and teaching. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank you for this, your word. We thank you for this 
letter to Timothy and for the great instruction that it holds 
for us in the 21st century. God, help us to see the importance 
of such things and help us to love the fact that you've given 
us the word and help us to be students of it and help us to 
internalize it and to know that truth. And I pray now that you 
would go with us, that you would cause your face to shine upon 
us, that you would grant us peace and help and grace in this coming 
week. And we ask through Jesus Christ 
our Lord, amen.