12.1 Key themes⤒🔗

• An elder must not be contentious. (This is the tenth qualification in 1 Timothy 3:1-7.)
• Contention is dangerous because it causes people to forget about the gospel.
• Church leaders and members can be contentious because of
  - pride;
  - selfish desires; and
  - unhealthy doctrines.
• A true overseer is a humble servant who trusts in the power of God’s Word.
• An overseer must not fight for himself. He must fight the good fight of the faith.
• The Lord knows those who are his. He will fight for his people.

12.2 – 1 Timothy 3:3←⤒🔗

^3. …not a drunkard, not violent, but gentle, not contentious, free from the love of money.

© NET Bible

12.3 – 1 Timothy 6:3-5, 11-12 (ESV)←⤒🔗

^3. If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness,

^4. he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions,

^5. and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain.

…

^11. But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.

^12. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

© NET Bible

12.4 The danger of contention←⤒🔗

In this lesson we will look at the third “not” in 1 Timothy 3:3. That is, “not contentious.”

The word “contention” means “fighting and arguing.” If you are contentious, it means that you are someone who likes to fight and argue.

In John 6 we read about a contentious group of people. On the previous day, these people had seen a great miracle. With only five loaves of bread and two fish, Jesus had given food to thousands of people-and to them too (John 6:1-13).

But one day later, these people were not eating together anymore. They were fighting! (John 6:52).

Why were these people fighting? It was because of something that Jesus had said. He had told them, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats from this bread he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh” (John 6:51).

These people should have rejoiced to hear Jesus’ words. They should have asked Jesus, “Please explain this to us. We want to understand. We want to have the life that you alone can give us.”

But that is not what they did. They started to argue about Jesus’ words. They said, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” (John 6:52). They disagreed and became angry with each other.

That is the danger of contention. When we fight and argue, we are not thinking about the gospel. We are only trying to win and to get glory for ourselves. We forget all about God’s glory and grace.

12.5 Where does contention come from?←⤒🔗

Contention always causes great damage-especially when it is found in the church of God. This is clear from Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus.

You may remember that Timothy was a pastor in the church of Ephesus, and that Titus was a pastor in the church of Crete. In both these churches, there was contention. And the contention was caused by church leaders!

What makes church leaders (and church members) contentious? Paul’s letters tell us about three things:

1. Pride←↰⤒🔗

The contentious leaders in Ephesus and Crete were not true overseers. They had not been chosen by the Holy Spirit and by God’s people. They had made themselves leaders and teachers (1 Timothy 1:6-7).

These leaders did not want to listen to the authority of the apostles (Titus 1:9). They thought they had more knowledge than the rest (1 Timothy 6:20). Maybe they thought, “No one can teach me anything. I have the Holy Spirit!” They were spiritually proud.

2. Selfish Desires←↰⤒🔗

The false leaders in Ephesus and Crete wanted to make money (1 Timothy 6:5; Titus 1:11). They each wanted to have the most followers, so that they could become rich from their followers’ money.

The false leaders also wanted power. They liked it when people listened to them, rather than listening to the true apostles of Christ(1 Timothy 6:3-4; 2 Timothy 3:6-8).

Selfish desires (such as the desire for money and power) make a person contentious. That is also what James said to the Christians of his time. He asked them, “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?” (James 4:1, NIV).

3. Unhealthy doctrines←↰⤒🔗

Contention and the gospel do not go together. We have learned this from John 6. We also see this in Paul’s letters.

The false leaders in Ephesus were spreading “false teachings” (1 Timothy 6:3). They did not focus on the good, healthy teaching of the gospel. They focused on many other things, such as:

• What foods may a Christian eat? (1 Timothy 4:3).
• Who of us come from important Jewish families? (1 Timothy 1:4).
• What do the people want to hear? (2 Timothy 2:16-18; 2 Timothy 4:3-4).

When church members stop hearing the gospel, they forget that they are sinners who have been saved by grace. They focus on the things that make them “better” than other church members. Such a church becomes full of “envy, dissension, slanders, evil suspicions, and constant bickering” (1 Timothy 6:4-5a).

Sadly, all these problems can still be seen in churches today. Satan still uses pride, selfish desires, and unhealthy doctrines to bring contention into the church.

12.6 The good fight of the faith←⤒🔗

In 2 Timothy 2:24-25, Paul reminds Timothy, “The Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome [contentious] but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness” (ESV).

A true overseer is a servant. He works for Christ and for the church, not for himself. He is humble. He trusts in the power of God’s Word, not in his own power and cleverness. Because he is humble, he is also willing to learn from others.

An overseer must sometimes fight! But he must not fight for himself. He must fight “the good fight of the faith” (1 Timothy 6:12, ESV). The good fight of the faith is not a fight against people, but against sin and evil (Ephesians 6:12). It is fought with the sword of the Spirit: God’s Word.

When false teachings come into the church, an overseer must fight for the truth. When there is sin and injustice, he must stand up for what is right. But he must always do this with gentleness and patience.

12.7 The Lord knows those who are his←⤒🔗

The good fight of the faith is not an easy fight. There are many people who do not like to hear good, healthy teaching. They would rather hear new teachings and they would rather fight and argue! That is why a church must choose overseers who are strong in the Word of God, and who can teach it patiently and gently.

Timothy was a man just like you and me. The problems in the church sometimes made him tired. Sometimes he even became afraid. But in 2 Timothy 2:19, Paul encourages him with these words: “The Lord knows those who are his.”

An overseer should always remember this. The Lord knows which people belong to him, and which people do not truly belong to him. The Lord will fight for his people. His people do not need to fight for themselves!