All Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible, 1995 Ed. (NASB95), published by The Lockman Foundation

In recent months, I’ve been pressing home the great faults and failures of Christians in western society. I’ve noted a few of our greatest besetting sins, glaring errors, and false beliefs, and have given many instructions on how these weaknesses ought to be fixed. With all this criticism and correction, one might be tempted to think that I believe every western Christian is a mess, and that I simply want most believers to think of themselves as miserable wretches that can do nothing but grieve over their sins and deficiencies, and live in a perpetual struggle. This is nowhere near the truth. I write articles of rebuke and correction because I love my brethren in Jesus, and because I love the Lord Himself. Further, the New Testament is clear that believers are holy and righteous new creations in Jesus who possess the life and power of the Holy Spirit within them, and reflect the love and holiness of God in their core affections and desires.

Given the transformed character of believers, and their righteous nature and love for God, it’s only right for us to expect believers to think and live in a way that’s consistent with their nature. For this reason, my goal is to cultivate and stimulate the growth of Christians’ love, holiness, and righteousness, so they’ll become more like Jesus, and win more people to Him. This is why it’s important to always have in the back of our minds the goal and aim of all that we do as children of God. That goal is love. Not the love of the world; not a sentimental love of nominal Christianity; but Christlike, sacrificial, self-giving, and others-centered love.

In his first letter to the evangelist Timothy, Paul defines the goal of his, and Timothy’s, instruction for people in error thus:

“But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion . . .” – 1 Tim. 1:5-6 (NASB95)

In this passage, Paul sums up his main purpose for all of his teaching and instructions. As we seek to be faithful servants of our Lord Jesus, it serves us well to thoroughly understand what Paul means by this statement, to understand why this is his goal, and to understand the consequences of “straying from these things.” In helping you to grasp what these verses teach us, and how they apply to us, I also want to show you how often this mission is repeated throughout the New Testament.

I’ll begin by noting some of the common replacements for the goal of Christian instruction in our society. Second, we’ll examine what Paul means by “instruction”. Third, I’ll outline what true Christian love is. Fourth, I’ll explain what the three engines of this love are — a pure heart, clear conscience, and genuine faith. Finally, I’ll note the major ways in which western Christians have strayed from these things, and given themselves to “fruitless discussion”.

Wrong Goals for Christian Instruction

The most obvious mistaken goal for Christian instruction is simply an increase in knowledge. Paul makes it clear that learning more information, and loving because of what one knows are in direct opposition. He chastises the Corinthian saints in his first letter to them by declaring,

“Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he has not yet known as he ought to know . . .” – 1 Cor. 8:1b-2

The danger with seeking Christian instruction simply to gain knowledge is that knowing information is never the intended goal of biblical truth, since mere intelligence inevitably leads people to thinking themselves to be better than others who are ignorant. Rather, the goal is knowing God through the revelation of His works and will. And if you come to know God more, you’ll be reminded that every good thing you possess is a gracious gift from Him, and not from you.

Another false purpose for giving or receiving Christian instruction is to make the learner feel happier in that moment, or even for the rest of their lives. The problem with pursuing happiness through biblical instruction is that happiness never lasts long, nor does it always produce the obedience that the Lord requires of us. Nowhere in Scripture is the earthly purpose of our learning described as simply feeling good. It’s faithfulness that we’re after, not a feeling. Having said this, I must concede that we ought to do all we can to always be in a condition in which we can express happiness. But, as Paul says in Philippians, the source of our joy can only come from thinking about, or depending on, the Lord. For, he urges, “rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!” (Phil. 4:4).

Lastly, I wish it could go without saying, but hopefully I can remind you that one of the top goals of Christian instruction should never be to enable you to have great wealth, many possessions, or be financially successful. If this was the case, it would betray a love of money or wealth, which Paul condemns in 1 Timothy 6:9-10.

Now, we’ll briefly describe the love that Paul sought to motivate in his followers and hearers.

Love is the Goal

To emphasize that the production of love in his students was always the goal for his teaching, I’d like to quote a few Scriptures in which Paul says as much. First, Paul writes to the Philippians,

“And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment . . .” (Phil. 1:9)

Also, in his first letter to the Thessalonians, he encourages them like this:

“Now as to the love of the brethren, you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another . . . But we urge you, brethren, to excel still more . . .” (1 Thess. 4:9-10)

Again, he earlier describes his praying for them by saying,

“. . . may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people . . .” – 1 Thess. 3:12

Thus, it’s clear that Paul’s concern for the love of his audience wasn’t confined to those under the care of Timothy, but that this was a universal concern. But it remains for us to specify what kind of love Paul wanted Timothy to encourage in his hearers in 1 Timothy. Obviously, he details what motivates and produces the love he’s advocating. But what does he mean specifically by “love”?

First of all, we can be sure that he wanted the misguided teachers he was concerned with to love God. And according to 1 John 5:3, the love of God is expressed in “that we keep His commandments”. What are His commandments that John is referring to? According to earlier in that letter, he sums up the most important of God’s commandments by announcing,

“This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another . . .” – 1 Jn. 3:23

Hence, it’s clear that the greatest commandment of God — and therefore the greatest way to love God — is to love others. Therefore, we can understand the love that Paul gave as the goal of his instruction as mostly love for others.

But what is the love that God requires His worshipers to exercise toward others? In the New Testament, the love that’s commanded is never a feeling by itself. Rather, Christian love in the teachings of Jesus and the apostles is always a love of action.

In the same chapter just quoted from, John encapsulates the highest form of Christian love in the example of Jesus in these words:

“We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” – 1 John 3:16

From this verse, and many other passages in the New Testament, the picture of Christian love that’s painted is that of Jesus sacrificing His life for the benefit of others. And, as all believers should know, this is the love that’s required of us. In order to truly love someone, we have to be seeking their ultimate good, and using our lives, resources, and time in whatever way we can to meet their need.

But next, we’ll think a little about what Paul means by “instruction” in the context of 1 Timothy, and how it applies to our lives today.

Our Command

The Greek word that gets translated “instruction” in the NASB literally means “command.” So, in the context of the letter, Paul doesn’t have in mind systematic, outlined, and/or educational teaching of a series of truths. Instead, he’s talking about an authoritative demand that he wants to make of the wayward teachers he’s addressing in the first chapter.

Nevertheless, as should be obvious for anyone who knows the way that Scripture lays requirements on people, Paul’s and Timothy’s command wasn’t devoid of truth, information, or reasoning, but was persuasive. Yes, at its heart was simply a divinely-given prohibition of paying attention “to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than . . . the administration of God which is by faith” (1 Tim. 1:4). However, Paul, the other apostles, and Jesus almost always used arguments based on applicable truths to persuade people to obey their instructions.

Therefore, we must avoid thinking that Christian ethics and morality is simply a set of commands and prohibitions. This is never the case in the New Testament, nor in the Old Testament Law. Rather, Christian instruction for how to behave is always based on what’s true about Jesus, about us, and about the way we live.

This is why understanding the essential truths of Scripture, and increasing in our understanding is essential for growing in Christlikeness.

But I want to make one other remark on Paul’s explanation of this instruction to Timothy. Remember from this situation that Paul was confronting error. When he learned of men who were teaching “strange doctrines” and paying attention to these “myths,” which most likely were based on Old Testament history, he didn’t let them go on in their sin. He recognized their sin as sin, and used his authority as an apostle, and Timothy’s authority as his representative to zealously, lovingly, and directly address their error. He told Timothy just before this that he left Timothy in Ephesus for the specific purpose of commanding men to avoid teaching unbiblical beliefs, and to forget their interest in worthless stories and ostensibly factual genealogies (v. 3). In other words, true Christian teaching attacks and fights the errors and sins of others, for their eternal benefit. In doing this, Timothy was to promote the love of these men, and the rest of the Ephesian Christians, which had to be produced by the three virtues Paul goes on to list.

Our Heart, Conscience, and Faith

The three-legged stool that holds up the goal of love in Christian instruction consists of the heart, the conscience, and faith. Paul says that Christian love is “from,” or motivated by these three engines of our souls. We’ll examine them one by one.

The first component of man that motivates Christlike love is the heart, and specifically a pure heart. In Scripture, a person’s heart is never defined as their feelings, but as their soul or engine — the “core” of who they are. This obviously includes the emotions, but these are simply expressions of the heart’s character. What kind of heart can truly love the way God requires? A pure one. And Scripture makes it clear that all true believers in the Lord Jesus have pure hearts. To give just one example of this teaching, out of many, Peter declares in his address during the Council of Jerusalem, in his description of the Gentiles’ conversion that,

“. . . God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith.” – Acts 15:8-9

Notice here that God cleansed these believers’ hearts by faith. Another way to put this would be that He made their hearts pure. Obviously, this doesn’t mean that He made them perfectly righteous, and unable to sin. However, it certainly does mean that He made the core of who they are — along with their greatest affections and desires — to be righteous, and pleasing to Him. My friend, this is what it means to be “born again”! It means that your heart has been transformed from a character that hates God to one that loves, worships, and delights in Him! It’s only such a heart that can truly love others like Jesus did.

The second wheel that drives the train of Christian love is a “good conscience”. Paul describes the job of the conscience in his letter to the Romans, in which he details the judgment of non-Jews as coming from their inward law,

“. . . in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them . . .” – Ro. 2:15

Here, we learn that the job of the conscience is to “accuse” and “defend” people’s actions based on their innate understanding of right and wrong. This innateness is conveyed in the very word itself, since “conscience” literally means “with knowledge.” Hence, our conscience is the innate power that tells us whether what we’re doing is right or wrong.

So, what is a good conscience? It is one that’s no longer accusing someone of their condemnation by God, and isn’t aware of any sin in a person’s life that’s ongoing and unrepented of. The author of Hebrews also elaborates on our responsibility to maintain a good conscience when he confesses,

“. . . we are sure that we have a good conscience, desiring to conduct ourselves honorably in all things.” – Heb. 13:18

Thus, to have a good conscience means to be striving to honor God in all of your character and actions. It’s only by protecting our consciences like this that we’ll be able to love others acceptably before God.

Finally, Paul ends with the most important engine of all, which is that instrument of ours that we use. That engine is “sincere faith,” from which both a pure heart and a good conscience stem. Remember that when Peter said God cleansed the Gentiles’ hearts, He did it “by faith”. What is faith? In Scripture, the primary faith of the Christian, which produces love, can be understood as trust. And obviously, this trust is in God and in the Lord Jesus.

But Paul distinguishes the faith that motivates love from all others when he describes it as sincere. The word translated “sincere” literally means “unmixed” or again, pure. This faith can’t be a mere wish or belief in facts, but a welcoming trust in and dependence on the Lord for His salvation, and instruction in what to believe and do.

Again, this is why understanding Scripture is so vitally important to us. The more we understand who Jesus is, the more we’ll remember that He’s trustworthy. And the more we view Him as trustworthy, the more we’ll trust Him with individual issues in our lives, and our decisions. Hence, the more we trust Him, the more we’ll love others by sacrificing our own immediate comfort, happiness, and resources.

To bring this discussion back to the beginning of Paul’s statement, all of these engines can be encouraged and cultivated through the instructions of the apostles and of Scripture. However, if these essential components of Christian love aren’t our focus in our character development, then we’ll wander into harmful teachings that don’t promote our growth in Christlike love. Therefore, we’ll briefly look at the types of worthless talk that western believers often engage in, when they aren’t prioritizing pure, conscientious, and faithful love.

Turning to Fruitless Discussion

In our day, and in our westernized societies, there’s no end to the myriad ways in which believers distract themselves and their minds from the ultimate goal of Christian instruction. When we should be aiming at becoming more loving in the manner of our Lord, we often are engaged in “fruitless discussion” because we’re aiming at worldly goals, and seeking to cultivate worldly character.

Currently, a huge temptation for American Christians is to obsessively and holistically promote American conservative government officials and policies, since the general election is coming in November. This would be to miss the point of our Christian lives, however. Our mission on earth isn’t to make our nations more “Christian” in their laws and policies, but to show people who Jesus is, and to preach His accomplished work of redemption and salvation, so sinners will be persuaded to turn from their rebellion, and submit to the Lord’s authority. Thus, if we find ourselves talking about politics or unbelieving social institutions more than Christlike character, we’ve demonstrated that we’ve strayed from the goal of our instruction.

The same principle applies to any earthly interest that isn’t integrally connected to our growth in Christlikeness. This could be sports, entertainment, food, or making money, which all can have some good value, but aren’t the goal of our Christian learning and instruction.

The indictment Paul gives for these worldly-minded people also shows what kind of discussions we should prioritize in our relationships as brothers and sisters in Jesus. Since we all share the same goal of growth in Christlike love and character, we should be very careful to make sure our interactions and communication with one another promote this goal. In fact, all of our daily habits should fit into our growth in holiness and godliness. To repeat what was said in the beginning, it’s only Christlike love and character that pleases God, and therefore puts His glory on display through us.

We’ve noted throughout that this love and character should increase, so this passage also teaches us that our purity, goodness of conscience, and sincerity of faith can increase. We’re all works in progress, as we repent of the sins from our old selves, and continue to learn how to act like our new selves in Jesus. Hence, we should every day strive to purify ourselves, just as He is pure, to preserve the goodness of our consciences, and to increasingly trust the Lord in more of our thinking and actions. To sum this up, we can think of Paul’s command in Romans 12:2:

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

In closing, keep love the main thing of your learning, study, and teaching, and seek to know the Lord Jesus more, so that you can represent Him to others, and bring perishing sinners to turn to Him in repentance, all for God’s glory and pleasure!