1 Timothy 6:20-21 - Paul's Exhortation to Timothy
Taking Things Apart
Well, it’s good to be with you here this week. If you happen to be a guest with us and we have not met, my name is Brad. I am just delighted to be with you. You catch us on the final week of a long series through 1 Timothy. We are covering two incredible verses that are going to lead us on our way.
1 Timothy 6:20-21 (NASB)
O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly [and] empty chatter [and] the opposing arguments of what is falsely called ’knowledge ’– which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.
As we get started, I don’t know what your family of origin was like. I grew up down the street near Nees and Temperance, basically right where the canal bank is. I spent most of my childhood finding things that people threw into the canal thinking it was a dump site. We lived on five acres, and we were pretty poor at that time, so we just accumulated things. Someone would call and say, “Hey, I have an axle for a 19-whatever truck, do you want it?” Yes, we’ll take it! So we ended up collecting stuff, with fractional vehicles everywhere—that typical farm vibe.
I would pull TVs and blown-up go-karts out of the canal and drag them home. One of the things I loved doing—and maybe you were like this too—was taking things apart. Did you ever do that? I would pretend I was an electrician taking a TV apart, as if I had any clue what I was looking at. But I was just fascinated by the process. My dad had a huge Craftsman tool set he got from Sears, so I’d find the right tool, take the thing apart, and thoroughly enjoy myself.
Now, I wasn’t very good at putting things back together. Putting it together actually required skill, and I didn’t have any of that. As I took these things apart, what would have been helpful was some sort of manual, but that had been gone for years. A lot of my childhood memories are of taking things apart and leaving pieces scattered everywhere.
The Cultural Backdrop of Ephesus
In the context of 1 Timothy, the backstory takes place in a city called Ephesus in modern-day Turkey. Ephesus was growing more and more secular. Philosophies and ideas from all over the world were flowing in and out of the city. Ephesus was a massive metropolis, one of the finest cities in the ancient world, with a beautiful port. Any city in the ancient world with a major port enjoyed immense affluence because that was where trade happened. Even today, the wealthiest cities in the world almost always have a port system.
What was coming into Ephesus, however, was not just material resources, goods, and services, but culture and religious ideologies. Coming into Ephesus, they gained Roman civic rule and military protection, but they also imported the Greco-Roman pantheon. They unloaded spices from India, but they also imported Hinduism and Buddhism. They unloaded silk from China, but they also imported Confucianism and Taoism.
Present in seed form were also the mystery religions that were forming there—what we know as early Gnosticism. These were religions built on the premise that only a select few had the true “secret knowledge,” and if you wanted it, you had to go through them. All of these religions found a home in Ephesus, creating an eclectic, challenging backdrop.
Gnosticism became especially prominent in the second and third centuries. The word gnosis is where we get the word for knowledge. Gnosticism taught that there was a strict division between the spiritual and the physical, that there was a “divine spark” inside everyone, and that you needed an enlightened guide to help you find the God within yourself. It sounded appealing, but it was a dangerous heresy that directly contradicted what the Bible reveals about God.
All of these competing ideas collided in Ephesus—the worship of pagan gods, the spread of Eastern religions, and the rise of early Gnosticism—all attempting to explain life apart from the God revealed in Scripture.
Guard What Has Been Entrusted
It is into this cultural storm that Paul closes his letter to young Timothy with a clear charge:
1 Timothy 6:20 (NASB)
O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly [and] empty chatter [and] the opposing arguments of what is falsely called ’knowledge ’–
Paul tells him: “O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you.” Guard it, fight for it, protect it. Some translations say, “guard the deposit.” That begs the question: What was Timothy entrusted with that he was commanded to guard?
If you trace the letter of 1 Timothy from beginning to end, the answer is unmistakable. In chapter 1, verse 3, he is told to guard sound doctrine. In chapter 1, verse 10, sound teaching. In chapter 2, proper instruction. In chapter 3, appointing elders who are able to teach. In chapter 4, verse 6, the words of faith and sound doctrine. In chapter 4, verse 11, to teach these things. In chapter 4, verse 13, to give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, and to teaching. In chapter 4, verse 16, to pay close attention to his life and his teaching and persevere in them. In chapter 5, verse 17, elders are to work hard at preaching and teaching. In chapter 6, verse 1, to live so that God’s name and our doctrine are not defiled. In chapter 6, verse 2, to teach and preach these principles. And in chapter 6, verse 3, to focus on sound words and sound doctrine.
Timothy was entrusted with the foundational principles of the orthodox Christian faith. His responsibility was to learn these truths and teach them faithfully—to show this influential body of believers what it means to walk with God in a pagan city.
Paul summarized the whole purpose of his letter earlier in chapter 3:
1 Timothy 3:14-15 (NASB)
I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, [I write] so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.
Avoiding Irreverent Babble and False Knowledge
With all these competing philosophies swirling around, Paul gives a second command in verse 20: avoid worldly, empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called knowledge.
Some Bibles translate this as “irreverent babble.” In 2 Timothy, Paul uses the exact same imagery.
2 Timothy 2:16-17 (NASB)
But avoid worldly [and] empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
Paul tells Timothy that this kind of empty talk spreads like gangrene, and he even names two men—Hymenaeus and Philetus—who were spreading false teaching. When it comes to sound doctrine, Paul says to guard the truth, and if someone is spreading falsehood that destroys faith, don’t be afraid to call it out. The consequences of false teaching are severe; when error takes root, people drift from the truth.
What is this worldly, empty chatter? Simply put, it is any attempt to explain life apart from God—whether through secular humanism, pagan philosophy, or cultural trends. These ideas claim to be wise, but as Scripture reminds us, worldly wisdom apart from God is foolishness.
Romans 1:21-22 (NASB)
For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools,
Timothy had a difficult assignment. Imagine Timothy standing up to preach in Ephesus. He proclaims that there is only one true God who does not live in temples made with human hands, and the Romans, who worship twelve deities in their pantheon, scoff at him. He proclaims that salvation is found in Jesus alone, and the polytheistic Hindus scoff at him. He preaches that it is appointed for man to die once and after that comes judgment, and the Buddhists who believe in reincarnation scoff at him. He preaches that God has revealed Himself objectively in His written Word, and the Gnostics scoff at him.
Paul tells Timothy: avoid these things. To avoid means to turn aside and walk the other way. Do not entertain false teaching. Do not toy with it. It is subtle, sneaky, and highly contagious. Notice what Paul warns in verse 21:
1 Timothy 6:21 (NASB)
which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.
Some have embraced these philosophies and drifted away from the faith. Have you ever been to the lake on a warm summer day, floated out on an inner tube, closed your eyes for thirty seconds, and when you opened them, realized you were halfway across the lake? That is how drift happens. When you lose your anchor and entertain subtle falsehoods, the drift begins before you even realize you are moving.
Throughout our study of 1 Timothy, we have referenced a plumb line. A plumb line shows you what is truly vertical. The closer you are to the top of the line, the closer you stay to true plumb. But if you deviate just a fraction of an inch at the top, and you extend that line over time, you end up completely off-center and completely out of alignment. That was Paul’s great concern for the church.
Where Is Our Authority?
Our God is a self-revealing God. We do not need secret knowledge or mystery rituals. God has revealed Himself through creation, through the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and in His written Word. A subtle departure from the revealed Word of God can produce catastrophic results.
In our modern world, the temptation to drift is stronger than ever. In the first century, an idea had to be written on a wax tablet or parchment and carried on foot or by ship over months. Today, someone can record an opinion, post it on social media, and have it go viral in minutes. We are inundated with cultural noise, secular commentary, and quasi-biblical philosophies whispering in our ears, subtly leading us away from Scripture. Many professing Christians have allowed their primary authority to shift from God’s Word to the surrounding culture.
Let me ask you a few direct questions. When Timothy preached the gospel, various groups scoffed at him. I wonder if any of the clear teachings of Scripture cause you to hesitate or push back because of cultural pressure.
According to Scripture, God created the world by the power of His word out of nothing.
Genesis 1:1 (NASB)
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Does it bother you when Scripture says God fashioned humankind distinctly in His own image, rather than as a product of undirected natural processes?
Genesis 1:27 (NASB)
God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
Does it bother you when Scripture declares that life begins at conception and that every child is known and formed by God in the womb?
Jeremiah 1:5 (NASB)
‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.’
Psalms 139:13-16 (NASB)
For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, [And] skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained [for me], When as yet there was not one of them.
Does it bother you that Scripture reveals God created humanity intentionally as male and female? Does it bother you that God designed marriage as a lifelong covenant between one man and one woman, and that sexual intimacy is a gift reserved exclusively for that covenant? Does it bother you that God created the beauty of every ethnicity from one bloodline, calls us to make disciples of all nations, and gives every person equal dignity and worth as image-bearers of God in Christ?
Matthew 28:19 (NASB)
’Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
Galatians 3:28 (NASB)
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Does it bother you that God created distinct, complementary roles for husbands and wives to reflect Christ and the church?
If any of those biblical truths create discomfort in you, ask yourself why. Is it because the Bible is unclear, or is it because our culture has said, “We do not believe that anymore”?
I understand the tension. There are hard things in Scripture that challenge our personal desires and cultural comfort. But we do not have the authority to edit God’s Word, keeping what we like and tossing out what we don’t. When we stand before the culture, biblical truth will often be offensive. But Paul tells us to guard the deposit of truth and avoid the chatter that contradicts it.
The Phenomenon of Deconstruction
What does empty chatter and false knowledge look like today? One significant trend is the movement toward deconstruction.
Deconstruction is an outgrowth of postmodern thought. Modernism said, “Prove everything through human reason.” Postmodernism responded by saying, “You can’t really know objective truth; truth is merely a social construct shaped by personal experience.” You see this clearly when people talk about “my truth,” “your truth,” or “our truth.” That is postmodern language.
There are two different ways people use the term deconstruction. The first is actually healthy. There are times when believers need to deconstruct cultural traditions, political baggage, or historical sins that have been wrongly attached to Christianity—such as racism, abuse of power, or consumerism. Stripping away man-made distortions to recover authentic, biblical Christianity is a good and necessary thing.
However, the more common and dangerous form of deconstruction is the dismantling of orthodox Christian faith and the rejection of biblical authority. In this form, a person says, “The Bible was written by fallible men, so I am not bound by what it says. I will define my own faith based on my personal feelings and modern cultural norms.”
When you abandon biblical authority, you end up living in theological dissonance. A man might say, “I know the Bible forbids adultery, but God wants me to be happy, so I’m moving on with someone else.” That is deconstruction in real time: elevating personal preference above the clear Word of God.
Taking things apart is easy; putting them back together requires a manual. When I tore apart TVs as a kid, I could disassemble them in minutes, but without the manual, I was left with a pile of useless scrap. If you deconstruct your faith and throw away the manual—the inspired Word of God—you will be left with scattered pieces that can never sustain your life.
Without Scripture, who is God? Who is Jesus? What is sin? What is grace? What is salvation?
When we decide we know better than God’s revealed Word, we stand in the same dangerous arrogance that God addressed when He spoke to Job out of the whirlwind.
Job 38:4-7 (NASB)
’Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell [Me], if you have understanding, Who set its measurements? Since you know. Or who stretched the line on it? ’On what were its bases sunk? Or who laid its cornerstone, When the morning stars sang together And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
Who are we to challenge the Word of the living God who laid the foundations of the earth?
Navigating Questions with Grace and Truth
I want to acknowledge something important. Many people who struggle with their faith do so because they have experienced real hurt from churches, leaders, or religious institutions. There has been pastoral abuse, hypocrisy, manipulation, and profound pain inflicted by people claiming to represent Christ. If that is your story, I grieve with you.
If you are walking through questions, doubts, or pain, I want you to know that you are welcome here at The Well. We are not a perfect church, and I am certainly not a perfect pastor. But we want to walk with you in grace. We are not afraid of your honest questions. We want to pastor you with love and help you anchor your life to the truth of Scripture.
God has not left us in the dark. He has given us everything we need in Christ and through His Word.
2 Peter 1:2-3 (NASB)
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
How to Flourish in Our Culture
How do we flourish as followers of Jesus in a culture filled with secular noise and theological drift? Let me leave you with four practical commitments.
First, guard what has been entrusted to you. Be a person of the Book. Read your Bible, study your Bible, and let the Bible read and examine your heart. We must know the truth if we are to stand in it.
Second, turn away from the empty chatter that leads you away from God’s Word. When you evaluate ideas, books, podcasts, or cultural opinions, ask the fundamental question: What does Scripture say? If an idea cannot be anchored in the Word of God, do not allow it to become the foundation of your worldview.
Third, love your neighbor. Your neighbors, coworkers, and classmates likely do not share your biblical convictions. Love them anyway. Loving God and loving our neighbor puts the beauty of the gospel on display.
Fourth, be kind.
Ephesians 4:32 (NASB)
Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
We live in an angry, polarized, reactionary culture. It is easy to fire off an angry comment online or engage in hostile arguments. But our convictions should be firm and our demeanor should be gracious. The truth may be offensive, but we must never be unnecessarily offensive in the way we deliver it.
Paul closes this entire letter with a brief, powerful blessing:
“Grace be with you.” Paul knew that standing for truth in Ephesus was going to be difficult. It will be difficult for us, too. Every time you stand on the authority of God’s Word, you will face pushback. You will need God’s grace every single day to drop the plumb line of Scripture, to speak the truth with conviction, and to love people with the heart of Christ.
Let’s pray.
God, thank You for Your Word and for the confidence we have in Your revealed truth. Thank You for giving us a reliable manual for life that shows us who You are and how we are to walk with You. Give us the courage to stand firm where Scripture is clear, the humility to navigate where things are hard, and the grace to love our neighbors well. Put the gospel on display through our lives. May people see Christ in us, the hope of glory, as we walk in kindness, truth, and grace. We pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.