Be Firm in Your Faith
As Paul closes out the first part of his first letter to Timothy, he writes: "Timothy, my son, I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well, holding on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith. Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme." (1 Timothy 1:18-20)
How to Avoid Shipwrecking Your Faith
Fight the battle well, Paul says. Hold onto faith. Hold onto a good conscience. Don't reject these things and shipwreck your faith!
Some in those days did exactly that. They abandoned their fight for faith, they abandoned a good conscience. Paul says here that he handed them over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme. I take that as Paul saying let them go on their way, and may they learn the mistakes of their ways in their godless life.
Standing Firm When Others Walk Away
You can't force anybody to stand firm. If they want to leave, let them. But Paul says you Timothy - and perhaps you want to put your name there as you hear the great apostle saying to believers all through the ages -
YOU keep fighting for the truth.
YOU keep holding onto the faith.
YOU stay away from meaningless and godless talk.
YOU check your motives, and follow those whose motives for teaching are pure.
YOU repent and turn from the sin in your life.
YOU remember always how merciful He was to you, and offer that same mercy to others.
Choose Your Teachers Wisely
Don't make a shipwreck of your faith by following the false teachers!
In today's world it's so tempting to follow the thinking of people who sound compelling - who emphasise the self, who hate those who don't think like them, who ignore God's call.
But I like what Anglican minister Lee Gattis wrote: "No amount of institutional unity or superficial love or outward conformity can patch up the bleeding wounds and spiritual hurts caused by false teaching."
When you meet Jesus face to face, will He be able to say to you: you stayed faithful? Or will he only be able to say that you went with the false teachers of your day.
I pray that you stay faithful to the gospel.
Paul urges Timothy to hold firmly to his faith and a clear conscience, refusing to let go the way others had shipwrecked their own. Choose one area where you've been drifting, and recommit to holding firm in your faith today.