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There is one more significant theme to consider in 1Timothy before bringing our studies in this book to a close. It is the theme of Christians and material possessions - a subject that we all need to consider carefully.
Paul introduces this theme in connection with a final warning against false teachers in 1Timothy 6:3-5. He notes that one of the symptoms of false teachers is that they think "godliness is a means to financial gain" (v. 5). This becomes a launching pad for the apostle to discuss the issues of covetousness and contentment, wealth and generosity. Let's explore these subjects further.
At the outset, it is worth reiterating that the matter of material possessions ought to be of deep interest to Christians, and especially to those who live in comparatively wealthy countries like New Zealand and Australia. John Stott puts it this way: "Money and property continue to be matters of conscientious concern to all committed Christian people. This is partly because of Jesus' challenging teaching on the subject, and partly because of the gross economic inequality between North and South, and between groups within each country and region. Approximately 1,000 million inhabitants of the world are destitute, lacking the basic necessities for survival, while a small minority of people live in contrasting luxury. What should be a Christian's attitude to material possessions? (p. 145)
This is the question that forces itself upon every sincere follower of Christ. Before addressing it directly, however, it is perhaps worth dwelling further on the connection between greed and false teaching that Paul makes in 1 Timothy 6:5. As mentioned above, one of the characteristics of the false teachers troubling the church in Ephesus was their fascination with money. They saw religion as a way of getting rich. John Stott goes so far as to say, "they have no interest in godliness itself, but only if it proves to be financially profitable" (p. 148).
This was not something peculiar to the situation in Ephesus - known as the city was for its "opulence, inflated by the trade which the cult of Diana" brought into it (p. 148). "The history of the human race has regularly been stained," Stott writes, "by attempts to commercialize religion... Paul himself found it necessary to declare that, unlike many, he did not peddle the Word of God for profit, that he had never coveted anyone's silver, gold or clothing, and that he had never used religion as a cloak for greed" (p. 148).
Sadly, not all religious leaders since Paul have followed his example. For long periods during the Middle Ages the church was discredited by the sale of indulgences and the overt greed of its high officials. In our day, televangelists and internet marketers make shameless appeals for money - often under the guise of promoting literature and ministry resources. I can still remember the shock I felt back in 1982 when I first heard an attempt to extort money in this way. I was visiting a seminary bookshop at the time and heard a new study Bible being advertised over the radio. The first 200 copies, we were told, had been numbered and were being sold at a special price with a view to becoming collector's items! The price was announced, as well as a convenient pay-by-installment plan. At that moment I understood a little of how Jesus felt when he saw the temple courts corrupted by moneychangers.
Let's take as our starting point as we begin to study this important subject the maxim that there is no place for using the gospel to get rich. That's a mark of a spiritual charlatan.