The First Epistle To Timothy - Executable Outlines

[So the goal of any command of God is love. Not just any love, but a love that springs forth from a
good source...]
II. FROM A PURE HEART, A GOOD CONSCIENCE, AND SINCERE FAITH
A. FROM A PURE HEART...
1. ‘Pure’ can also be translated ‘clean’, suggesting that which is from impurities
2. To love with such a heart requires purification, which comes obedience to the truth - 1 Pe
1:22-23
3. Have our souls been purified by obeying the truth? If not...
a. We will be plagued by spiritual impurities (e.g., greed, covetousness, envy, pride)
b. We will be unable to love God and man as we should
4. Those with ‘pure hearts’ are the ones who will be truly blessed - Mt 5:8
B. FROM A GOOD CONSCIENCE...
1. ‘Conscience’ is defined as “that process of thought which distinguishes what it considers
morally good or bad, commending the good, condemning the bad, and so prompting to do
the former, and to avoid the latter.” - Vine
2. The love God desires is that which comes from a person with a ‘good conscience’
a. To have a ‘good’ conscience, it must be properly set
1) Like a clock, it is accurate only when properly set
2) Otherwise it might lead us astray - e.g., Ac 23:1; cf. 26:9-11
3) A good conscience is one that is set according to God’s standard
b. To have a ‘good’ conscience, it must be properly cleansed
1) For no matter who we are, we are sinners!
a) God says so - Ro 3:23
b) So does our conscience - Ro 2:14-15
c) Any who deny this have ‘rejected’ or ‘seared’ their conscience - cf. 1 Ti 1:19;
4:2
2) What can ‘cleanse’ our conscience?
a) Not any OT sacrifice or worship - He 9:9-10
b) Rather, the blood of Christ - He 9:14
3. Only with a conscience ‘cleansed’ from dead works can we really:
a. Love both God and man
b. Love with a pure heart and good conscience!
C. FROM A SINCERE FAITH...
1. Some translations use ‘unfeigned’ instead of ‘sincere’ (ASV, KJV)
2. It is translated elsewhere as ‘without hypocrisy’ (Ro 12:9) or ‘genuine’ (2 Ti 1:5)
3. The word ‘faith’ involves two interrelated concepts:
a. A strong conviction in that which is believed
b. A strong trust in the object believed
4. A ‘sincere faith’ would be:
a. A true, honest to God, conviction
b. A true-hearted trust in God and Jesus
5. This kind of faith comes only from the Word of God - cf. Ro 10:17; Jn 20:30-31
Mark A. Copeland
Sermons From First Timothy 10