1 Timothy 6:11
But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
But thou, O man of God, is commanded to flee the will and desire to be rich, the love of money and coveting after riches, with its temptation and snare and foolish and hurtful lusts that drown men in destruction and bring sorrow and departure from the faith, and to follow instead after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience and meekness in complete Christian character. Material gain is not godliness and riches do not make a person godly or morally valuable, for the true gain is godliness with contentment, seeking godly character and eternal life and refuge in Christ rather than wealth, fame or position at the cost of righteousness. It is Paul's dying charge to Timothy, given in the sight of God who gives life to all and before Christ Jesus who witnessed a good confession before Pilate, to keep the commandment without spot until the appearing of Christ whom God will manifest as King of kings and Lord of lords. It is not God's will for His ministers and all who labor in word and doctrine to seek to be rich, but to be pure in heart and life and separated from riches by example as well as teaching, devoting themselves in self-denying service to winning souls and turning people toward righteousness. The fleeing and following are joined to fighting the good fight of faith and laying hold on eternal life, warning against latter-day deceptions and prosperity and ambition that endanger salvation, and calling the rich not to trust in uncertain riches but to trust in God, do good and give generously for a lasting foundation.
Setting and Command
Paul's word to Timothy is his dying charge, dictated through a companion while he was shut in a dungeon, pressed down by infirmities, and fearing that wicked Nero would cut his life short before he could see Timothy again, though he had urged him to come without delay. The charge is laid in the sight of God who gives life to all things and before Christ Jesus who witnessed a good confession before Pontius Pilate. Timothy is commanded to keep the commandment without spot and unrebukable until the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. That appearing God will manifest in His own time, for He is the blessed and only Potentate, King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, dwelling in light which no man can approach, whom no man has seen nor can see, to whom belong honor and glory and power everlasting. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, showing all long-suffering as a pattern for those who would afterward believe on Him unto everlasting life.
The things the man of God must flee are the will and desire to be rich and the love of money and coveting after riches. That fleeing includes turning from seeking wealth, fame, or position at the cost of righteousness, and from covetousness, pride, and strife. Such desires fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish and hurtful lusts that drown men in destruction and perdition. They cause men to err from the faith and to pierce themselves through with many sorrows.
The verse exposes the error that material gain is godliness. Riches do not make a person godly or morally valuable, and the true gain is godliness with contentment. The man of God is therefore called to seek godly character and eternal life rather than wealth, and to find refuge in Christ from these spiritual dangers. In place of wealth he must follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and meekness. That pursuit is also understood as seeking righteousness, meekness, holiness, hope, and truth in a complete Christian character.
The verse is a plain warning about the peril of the deceptions arising in the latter days. The fleeing and the pursuing belong together with fighting the good fight of faith and laying hold on eternal life to which the believer is called. That life is held in connection with having professed a good profession before many witnesses. Ambition that leads to presumption is set against this course, and the virtues pursued mark the proper way for ministers and all who would hold fast to eternal life.
Faithful Life and Witness
It is not God's will for ministers and all who labor in word and doctrine to seek to be rich, for the man of God must flee love of money and coveting after riches which cause erring from the faith and many sorrows, and must instead follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and meekness. This separation from riches is to be lived by example as well as by teaching, with purity in heart and life, and with self-denying devotion to winning souls, helping others, and turning people toward righteousness. For the man of God, fleeing these things and following after godliness means leaving jesting, joking, trifling conversation, levity, frivolous talk, superfluities, and earthly and sensual enjoyments, which belong to the world. He is cheerful and happy with the peace of God in the heart, yet serious, with a serenity and peace from watching unto prayer that elevates him above all superfluities and above earthly and sensual enjoyments. The mystery of godliness opened to his mind makes him a partaker of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust, and his open communion with God makes him fruitful in the knowledge of His will, giving him practical subjects to present that solemnize minds, touch the heart, and arouse moral sensibilities to the sacred claims of God on heart, affections, and life.
Seeking money never excuses overreaching or dishonesty, even when claimed for God's cause, and money gained by such means brings no reward from God. The verse governs the wise versus unwise use of money, teaching the man of God to turn away from the pursuit of riches and its dangers and to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and meekness. Prosperity and ambition can lead to presumption and put salvation in danger, so the temptation to love money and to seek wealth, fame, or position at the cost of righteousness must be fled. Those who are rich must not be proud nor trust in uncertain riches, but trust in God, do good, give generously, and lay up a lasting foundation for eternal life.
The pursued virtues form a daily Christian experience through a quiet inward life with Christ, cleansed from sin by the grace of Christ, with conversion and the Spirit turning the heart toward God and steadying it in holy independence. It requires looking to Jesus and yielding the will for strength to resist Satan's temptations, and retaining connection with God by living faith with confidence in His strength to overcome every besetment when Satan seeks to break down the barriers of the soul by tempting to indulge in sin. This means being clothed with the garments of righteousness and bringing the sweetness and fragrance of the character of Christ into practical life, holding right principles but manifesting them with kind Christian courtesy that makes a saving, fragrant impression instead of a disagreeable impression through manner, words, and criticism. It requires learning lessons more perfectly in the school of Christ and being sanctified daily and molded and fashioned by Jesus to become a vessel unto honor, bringing forth the peaceable fruits of righteousness. True practical Christianity gives evidence of sanctification through works, with truth in the heart in contrast to pride, strife, and the pursuit of riches, in a complete character including righteousness, faith, hope, and love as parents act and teach at home without making religion disagreeable to children. Such rightdoing is marked by self-sacrifice, develops strength of character, reveals pure religion in conduct that can win others to Christ, begets confidence in Christian integrity on the part of watchers to see whether religion is a molding power, and bears witness to others in danger of perishing while fighting faithfully and laying hold on eternal life.
The call to be a man of God applies to all who stand in responsible positions in the school, who must be distinct and peculiar, refuse to crave popularity or imitate the customs and practices of the world. They are to do their part to carry out God's purpose to have a college where the Bible has its proper place in educating youth through instruction in the great principles of God's Word and the practical duties of everyday life rather than merely teaching the sciences or following popular plans and desires. It applies also to families to choose faithful service to God rather than worldly gain, following the Lord without putting personal or temporal advantage first. Faithful obedience means making a straight course and helping family members who are wavering or spiritually weak. The command to depart from evil and iniquity and pursue a life shaped by Christian virtue directs the soul to let Scripture guide and correct it rather than relying on human agents. Safety is found only in deep searching of the sure word of prophecy and making that Word the counselor and sure foundation that the Lord knows those who are His, and not turning from the fountain of living waters to drink at the broken cisterns of human agents for light.