Moronic Arguments

“Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels” (2Tim 2:23).

Rude attacks. Cheap shots. Disgusting vulgarity. Sleazy rumors. Shameless lies. They’re everywhere you turn. Network newscasts. Your Facebook feed. The Twitterverse. The customer line at your local overpriced coffeehouse.

And just when you think this latest campaign couldn’t slide any further down the sewer pipe, there’s another soundbite, another commercial, or another slimy allegation. Is it any surprise that one of the debates was the same night as a WWE pay-per-view? Don’t think it didn’t cross Vince McMahon’s mind to combine the two.

Cool your jets. I’m not gonna use the Bible to endorse or condemn anybody. But if you or either of our presidential candidates are willing to listen to timeless truth, the Apostle Paul has has some incredibly wise words. “Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels” (v23). Don’t get sucked into ludicrous debates that don’t make a difference. Nobody wins. Everybody loses. These arguments just give birth to more battles.

A couple of thousand years before America was a twinkle in the founding fathers’ eye, Paul is behind bars and in chains in Caesar’s SuperMax (2Tim 1:16, 2:9). He knows full well that he’s doing his final days on Death Row in Rome (2Tim 4:6-7). The man from Tarsus scribbles down what will be his letter to his protege Timothy with two purposes. One, he pleads with Tim to come see him one last time (2Tim 4:9, 21). Two, he desperately passes the torch of spreading the message of Jesus to the young pastor (2Tim 2:1-4:5).

What a powerful reminder of the original purpose of what we call the New Testament. It’s really a collection of documents. Some are short bios of Jesus. Most of the others are letters. This is the latter. A letter from one real person to another real person. If we’re going to get a grip on how we’re to read and apply it today, we need to get a handle on what was going down when it was written in the First Century. In this case, it’s one last letter from a mentor to his spiritual son with their eyes locked on Jesus (2Tim 1:1-2).

Before we dig into this verse, let’s go back up the page just a bit. We see this is actually Paul’s third warning in chapter two against getting sucked into a war of words. Call it Word War III. It’s not a prophetic warning about the presidential campaign of 2016. Well, at least I don’t think so. The apostle sounds the first alarm when he tells Tim to make sure folks don’t start a War of the Words which that leaves the church look like a post-apocalyptic wasteland. (2Tim 2:14).

We see the second alert right after that when Paul instructs him to steer clear of “irreverent babble” which not only drives people away from Jesus but spreads like a cancer (2Tim 2:16-17). A couple of knuckleheads named Hymenaeus and Philetus have turned the lives of believers upside down by telling folks they’ve missed the resurrection of the dead.

Which brings us to warning number three. Right after Paul instructs Tim to put on his big boy pants (2Tim 2:22), he cautions him a third time, “Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies” (v23). A closer look at the original language reveals the verb  παραιτεομαι (paraiteomai) which means to beg off, reject, or refuse to listen to someone. It carries the idea of declining an invitation and intentionally ignoring what’s going on. In other words, make your RSVP clear. You are are NOT going to be part of that scene.

Back in his first letter, the apostle tells Tim to decline every invitation when someone wants to peddle any message that’s not grounded in reality. “Have nothing to do with” (Gr. παραιτεομαι/paraiteomai) irreverent, silly myths” (1Tim 4:7). Jesus compares our refusal to God’s kingdom to a man who throws an awesome party but people continually RSVP with regrets. “But they all alike began to make excuses (Gr. παραιτεομαι/paraiteomai)” (Lk 14:18). The writer of Hebrews warns us not to ignore Jesus’ invitation and “do not refuse (Gr. παραιτεομαι/paraiteomai) Him” (Heb 12:25).

It’s like those times we’ve been chatting with someone who suddenly sends the conversation somewhere we want nothing to do with. Rumors start to spread. Reps begin to be ruined. That’s when you hit them with,“Oh, no you di’n’t! Don’t go there!” And from what I’ve seen on Jerry Springer, it’s always more effective if you wag your head with your hands on your hips as you say it. Excuse yourself from the discussion. Make it clear that you will not join in their ridiculous reindeer games. Decline their invitation immediately. RSVP ASAP.

What kind of invitations are we to turn down immediately? Paul describes them as “foolish, ignorant controversies” (v23). Foolish” (Gr. μορος/moros) means something stupid, intellectually weak, irrational, rude, crude or with no respect for God. It’s where we get our word moron. Jesus says any doofus stupid enough to hear His words and fail to apply them is “like a foolish (Gr. μορος/moros) man who built his house on the sand” (Mt 7:26). Christ calls the religious bullies of Israel “blind fools (Gr. μορος/moros)!”

Paul tells the incredibly dysfunctional Corinthians how God loves to purposely picks knuckleheads and “what is foolish (Gr. μορος/moros) in the world to shame the strong” (1Cor 1:27). In other words, He loves to show off by using morons like you and me to embarrass the best and brightest. You see, Jesus and His team of ragtags, losers, and goofballs will beat a roster full of five-star recruits and first-round draft picks every single time. And if we’re going to be morons, let us be “fools (Gr. μορος/moros) for Christ sake” (1Cor 4:10).

The apostle goes further to tell Tim to avoid invitations to discussions which are “ignorant” (Gr. απαιδευτος/apaideutos). This is the only time we find this word anywhere in the entire Bible. I don’t have to tell you that this term paints a very unflattering picture of someone or something stupid, uneducated, untrained, rude, or crude. One commentator named Parry calls it “speculations of a half-educated mind.” In other words, these dipsticks know just enough to be dangerous. (Insert your favorite political joke here!)

What makes these discussions so moronic and dangerous is that there’s conclusion to them. The ESV uses the word “controversies,” which is the Greek noun ζητησις (zetesis). This term doesn’t just describes a heated discussion or dispute, but a forceful expression of differences of opinion with zero chance of seeking a solution. You won’t find anybody willing to agree to disagree. Listen, we all know someone who will argue about anything and everything, including the color of the sky. (If you don’t know someone like that and totally disagree with me, it’s probably YOU!).

Check out how the writers of the NT use this word. John remembers the time folks tried to stir up a fight between John the Baptizer and his cousin. You may have heard of Him. His name is Jesus Christ. “Now a discussion (Gr. ζητησις/zetesis) arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification” (Jn 3:25). John didn’t take the bait. He drops the mic when he tells everybody that his rep own must be reduced while the Son of God’s must continue to grow (Jn 3:30).

The term shows up a couple of times in Paul’s prequel when he orders Tim to shut down anybody who teaches goofball doctrine because all they do is “promote speculations (Gr. ζητησις/zetesis)” and drive people further from Jesus (1Tim 1:4). 

A little later in that same letter, he tells the young pastor that any spiritual huckster who peddles a counterfeit gospel is not only full of himself but also “has an unhealthy craving for controversy (Gr. ζητησις/zetesis) and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth” (1Tim 6:4-5).

Paul warns us that these arguments are a real lose-lose proposition. Why? Because “they breed quarrels” (v23). The cycle just spins. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. Mudslinging word wars are fertile ground for further conflict. Maybe it’s all the fertilizer (if you know what I mean and I think that you do). Before you know it, you’re in an endless dispute loop. Go ahead and Google “fastest breeding animal.” I don’t care what the interweb tells you. Rabbits, rats, cockroaches, and bandicoots finish a distant second to pointless debates. They give birth to even more battles.

In a note to another one of his direct reports, Paul uses some of the very same language and gives some of the very same orders. He tells Titus, “Avoid (Gr. παραιτεομαι/paraiteomai) foolish (Gr. μορος/moros) controversies (Gr. ζητησις/zetesis), genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels (Gr. μαχη/mache) about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless” (Titus 3:9). Don’t take the bait. Don’t get sucked into moronic arguments. They are a total waste of time.

So what does this mean for you and me 2,000 years later? It doesn’t mean we just crawl into our backyard bomb shelter and just wait for Jesus to come back. There will be times when we should take a stand for Christ. But we need to remember who the real enemies are. If you need a quick refresher, they are Satan, the world, and our own flesh. Notice nowhere on that list do you see democrats or republicans.

Our Savior came to our rescue so that we be active agents of His love and His light in this fallen world. That’s not simply having a warm fuzzy feeling toward folks. It’s actively loving and serving the people God brings into our path. They don’t have to earn it. Remember, we certainly did nothing to deserve His love (Rom 5:8). 

Just before He headed home to heaven, Jesus gave us one last command. “Love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13:34-35).

This is NOT a call to excuse yourself from the political process. Be a good citizen who’s fully involved wherever you live. But when someone invites you to join in a endless argument, RSVP ASAP. Refuse the request quickly and clearly. There are always going to be controversies that are nothing more than vicious cycles. Check out how the Message paraphrases Paul’s words. “Refuse to get involved in inane discussions; they always end up in fights” (v23 The Message).

Before you get your undies in a bundle one more time, it’s probably time to turn off the debate and turn on God’s love. That message will get Jesus’ vote every single time.

Fight on and Keep on Fighting on

“I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in His testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1Tim 6:13-14).

This one is going the distance. Like Rocky and Apollo (both times). Like Rocky and Clubber Lang. Like Rocky and Drago. Like Rocky and (Insert name of opponent from any sequel here. You get the idea.) This slugfest that won’t end early. No matter the foe and no matter the flick, the Italian Stallion will fight on and keep on fighting on. Yo, Adrian!

A couple of thousand years before Stallone gave us the original Balboa, a young slugger named Timothy was in the fight of his life. But check out who he had in his corner. Paul. We’re talking about THAT Paul. Yeah, the APOSTLE Paul. The same Paul who wrote a hefty chunk of the New Testament. You think that’s something? Father God and Jesus Christ are right there too giving Tim the supernatural strength and encouragement to go the distance. 

We pick up the action late in the fight. The camera zooms in on Tim’s corner. Let’s listen in to what Paul tells him. “I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in His testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v12-14). Don’t give up. Don’t EVER give up. Fight on and keep on fighting on.

Because Jesus fought hard for us when He was cornered, we can to! Yo, Timothy!

It’s been a brutal battle so far. A team of false teachers dominated the middle rounds at the church in Ephesus. They used all sorts of funny business to fool the followers of Jesus. Wacky religious theories and complicated family histories (1Tim 1:4-7). Outright lies and downright demonic doctrine (1Tim 4:-2). And you thought Mike Tyson chomping down on Evander Holyfield’s ear was a dirty move! By the way, folks are still throwing these low blows in church’s today.

But truth made a comeback. Then again, God’s truth always does. Jesus’ church gets up off the canvas and fights back to take control. In the corner, Paul grabs Tim’s tired shoulders. “I charge you” (v13). He uses a Greek verb (Gr. paraggello) which means to give strict orders or make specific instructions. It’s the same word Matthew uses when Jesus orders His posse to do advance work for one of His preaching tours. “These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing (Gr. paraggello) them” (Mt 10:5). He gave them detailed instructions just as the apostle coaches up his protege.

I’m no different than Timothy. God has to get up in my grill to get my attention too. Sometimes I forget I’m in a fight. Other times I get tired. Or distracted. He has this amazing ability to reset my focus. He’ll do it through a friend. Maybe through prayer. But consistently use His Word through people like Paul. The Lord regularly grabs me by the shoulders and gives me a hard shake when I’m reading Scripture. It’s time to fight on and keep on fighting on!

Paul then reminds Tim of Who’s in his corner. God the Father. God the Son. You can bet God the Spirit is there too but He’s not the One to draw attention to Himself. The Trinity is total agreement on the strategy. The apostle encourages his spiritual son that our Heavenly Dad is the One “who gives life to all things” (v13). God is not just the Life Producer but the Life Preserver. Take a look around you right now. What do you see? What’s alive? Well, if it’s breathing, creeping, barking, hopping, flying, blooming, or growing, God is the One who makes it happen.

The Son of God is there and brings a ton of experience to Team Timothy. Paul tells his young fighter how it was “Christ Jesus who in His testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession” (v13). This is certainly a big bout but it’s nothing compared the fight Jesus won against sin and death for us. Forget the Fight of the Century. It’s the Fight of Eternity! And Christ won the belt!! Place your trust in what He did that we could never do. 

The apostle jogs Tim’s memory about one specific aspect of Jesus’ fight on our behalf. In one of the toughest rounds, Christ stood toe-to-toe with a local Roman governor and “made the good confession” (v13). Let’s swing over to the Gospels to see what made His confession so good. When Pilate interrogates the Rabbi/Carpenter directly and asks if He really is the king of the Jews, Jesus replies “You said it” (Mt 27:11; Mk 15:2; Lk 23:3; Jn 18:37). When backed into a corner, Jesus delivers a devastating short right of truth. He is indeed the One the Father promised would come to rule and reign (2Sam 7:12-16).

Paul compares Jesus’ “good confession” of Jesus to with to the time Tim did the same thing and “made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses” (1Tim 6:12). When did this happen? Who were those witnesses? It might have been when the young buck from Lystra first placed his trust in Jesus. It might have been answered God’s call to ministry, which by the way included getting circumcised…as an adult (Acts 16:3)! I’m pretty sure I would have made a confession that day and it wouldn’t have been good!! Or it may have happened once when Tim had his back to the wall as a member of Paul’s team in places like Thessalonica (Acts 17:5-9), Berea (Acts 17:13-15), or Ephesus (Acts 19:23-41). Since the apostle connects these two incidents, you have to believe he’s refreshing Tim’s memory of when God gave his partner the strength to stand strong. Fight on and keep on fighting on!

There are going to be times as a follower of Jesus when you and I are stuck in a corner. Times when we have to stand our ground. Times when we’ll need to make our own “good confession” (v13). When there’s no seeming escape, remember that we don’t have to answer every question. We’re not going to argue anyone into heaven. We simply point to the One who won the fight for us. Or as the writer of Hebrews tells us, run the race with everything we’ve got while keeping eyes locked on Jesus who endured the cross on our behalf (Heb 12:1-2).

In the critical moments of the fight, Tim is “to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v14). Folks have wondered about just what command Paul is talking about here. The best answer is probably his instructions to “fight the good fight of the faith” back in verse 12. That would be the big idea of this entire letter. In other words, there are a some specific things to do in the Ephesian church but the big idea is to fight on and keep on fighting on. 

If you want a more specific commandment to follow, think back to what Jesus tells His dozen disciples the night before His own death. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (Jn 13:34). As a matter of fact, it’s through keeping this command that people around the world can be sure we’re followers of Jesus. You just can’t go wrong when you love the folks God puts in your life. 

Just before the bell rings to start the next round, Paul delivers the last part of his instructions to Tim. Keep this command “until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v14). We win the fight when we continue the fight. Jesus has already won it for us. And He’s returning one more time. In the words of LL Cool J, don’t call it a comeback. Christ isn’t like one of those sad aging heavyweights who continue to come out of retirement for one more shot at former glory. No, when Jesus returns, He returns in top form (Rev 19:11-16). Fire in His eyes. Crown on His head. Tattoo on His thigh. Sword in His mouth. 

This fight is going the distance. But instead of being saved by the bell, we’ll be saved once and for all by God Himself. We don’t know when, but we can be certain He will return. Until then, remember you’re not alone. The Holy Trinity is in your corner. Jesus already won the fight for you. Until then, tell folks about Him. Tell them you trust in Him and not yourself. Remember that He’s returning one final time. Until then, fight on and keep on fighting on.

Because Jesus fought hard for us when He was cornered, we can too! Yo, Timothy!

A Slobberknocker

“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” (1Tim 6:12).

Your team leads late in the fourth quarter of a tight game. Your offense has the ball and must do everything possible to move the chains and get first downs. There’s just one problem. One very BIG problem. You’re facing one of the greatest Ds in football history. They’re agile, mobile, and hostile. They specialize in creating turnovers. As the running back, you won’t just have to fight for every inch but do everything in your power to hang onto the ball. They’re coming after you. They’re coming after it. 

It’s going to be a painful gain, but it’s worth the fight.

You might think you’re watching one of those NFL Films highlight reels. You know the ones with a golden-throated narrator, a symphonic score, and super-slomo shots of spinning footballs. But this is also the scene near the end of Paul’s first letter to Timothy. The game is on the line. It’s been a seesaw struggle. After the apostle’s team got off to a hot start (Acts 19), the team of false teachers got the Big Mo on its side and got rolling big time. They took control with a combo of trick plays, cheap shots, and a demonic defense (1Tim 1:3-7; 4:1-3). 

Just when it looked like the fat lady was warming up her vocal cords, the Ephesian squad makes a miraculous comeback. After Paul knocks out two of the opponents best players (1Tim 1:20), Tim takes over (1Tim 1:3). The apostle gives him the ball in crunch time. He must avoid the same mistakes made by the opposition and start a long, hard drive for the things of God (1Tim 6:11). 

Paul calls a timeout and wants to talk it over with the young pastor about what is about to happen. “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” (v12). Tim’s totally gassed but he now has to gain some of the toughest yards of his career. And the defense is coming after the ball with everything they have. 

It’s going to be a painful gain, but it’s worth the fight.

The apostle goes all Vince Lombardi and gives Pastor Tim a first century version of “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” He tells his young protege, “Fight the good fight of the faith” (v12). He wants us to know the road ahead will be agonizing. Think I’m being a little melodramatic? Not according to the original language. Check out the two forms of the word “fight” we read in the ESV. 

First he commands Tim to “fight” (Gr. agonizomai). You don’t have to be a freak in Greek to see the English word “agonize.” It means to struggle hard to the point of pain or expend all effort to win. Give it all you’ve got. Leave it all on the field. We’re talking ripped jersey and turf in the helmet stuff. In one of his letters to his friends in Corinth, Paul compares following Jesus to painful training of a long distance runner. “Every athlete exercises (Gr. agonizomai) self-control in all things. They do it receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable” (1Cor 9:25).

This isn’t a scrimmage. It’s no preseason game. This is going to be a “fight” (v12). This time Paul uses the noun agon. There it is again. This time it’s “agony.” The word describes a contest against powerful competition or an incredibly intense conflict. Ancient writers like Paul use it when talking about everything from a race to a game to a battle. The man from Tarsus reminds Thessalonian believers of the wild riots in their city when his team came “to declare to you the Gospel of God in the midst of much conflict (Gr. agon)” (1Th 2:2). 

It was a painful gain, but totally worth the fight.

This fight is all about “faith” (v12). But we’re not talking about gritting my teeth and simply believing in myself. This is faith in Jesus. Faith in what He’s done that I could never dream of doing on my own. It’s not about the strength of my faith. Don’t get my wrong, I want my faith to be super strong. “S” on the chest strong. Faster than a speeding bullet strong. Able to leap tall buildings strong. More powerful than a locomotive strong. But Paul is talking placing our faith in One who is makes Superman look like 98-pound weakling. 

There’s an all out assault on that faith. Paul tells Tim to “take hold of eternal life” (v12). Get both hands on what God is handing to you and do NOT let go! I constantly have to remind myself that eternal life isn’t something I have to wait for. Eternal life starts NOW! And because of that, the opposition is  will do everything they can to pull it from your hands. They’ll talk trash about how you’re going to fumble. They’ll try to get in your head. 

But remember, we’re actually trusting in what Jesus has already done for us. He lived the perfect life that we failed to live. He died the death on a cross for our sin that we should have died. He rose to a spectacular new life that we in no way deserve. Jesus trades His total goodness for our wretched badness (2Cor 5:21). That’s the only way we have a snowball’s chance of meeting God’s perfect standard (Rom 8:3-4). The writer of Hebrews encourages us to run hard and keep our eyes on our Hero who fought the ultimate fight on our behalf from start to finish. “Let us run with endurance the race (Gr. agon) that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the Founder and Perfecter of our faith” (Heb 12:1-2). That’s what we hang onto. That’s Whom we hang onto. You can be sure He’s never letting us out of His hands. He hasn’t lost one yet and it’s not happening here!

It’s going to be a painful gain, but it’s worth the fight.

Do you get the point that following Jesus isn’t for wimps? This is no flag football game at the family picnic. It’s not a lazy game of H-O-R-S-E in the driveway. We’re talking about a knock-down, drag-out slobberknocker. “Game of the Century” kinda stuff. Don’t buy the lie that faith in Jesus is rainbows, unicorns, and an endless supply of Skittles. It’s hard. VERY hard. I must put the crap which destroys me in the rearview mirror and put the hammer down toward the things of God which He uses to build me up (1Tim 6:11). It’s going to be a hard road, not a skip down the path. It’s going to be a fight. Agonizing at times.

Just before his own death, the apostle tells Tim how he’s played he’s emptied the tank for the cause of Christ. “I have fought (Gr. agonizomai) the good fight (Gr. agon), I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2Tim 4:7). He left it all on the field. Following Jesus was hard for the apostle. He gave it everything he had and to the finish line. He had no regrets. Why should we expect anything different? Don’t let our cushy, 21st Century, first world life fool you. Buckle your chinstrap. 

It’s going to be a painful gain, but it’s worth the fight.