The List

After telling Timothy to avoid the pursuit of wealth for its own sake and warning him of its corrupting influence in the process, Paul goes on to tell Timothy what he should be pursuing instead. It's easy to read over the list without really paying much attention to what's on it. Of all the things Paul could have told Timothy to concentrate on, what did he emphasize?

Righteousness: this has to do with covenant membership, NOT BEHAVIOR. The Greek word dikaiosune isn't about doing the right things or being a good person; it's about being the right sort of person. It's about being turned toward God, about choosing to be a part of his covenant with mankind in Christ. This is of utmost importance to ensure that the things that one does come from the right place. After all, one can be a perfectly good, ethical atheist.

Godliness: this is more behavior oriented, but it first requires letting God have access to our inner selves so that he can fix what he needs to fix. Only then does behavior change, and that's why it's senseless to focus solely on behavior. When God has done his work, or while he's doing it, then we can turn away from the lives we've settled for and toward the lives he intends for us.

Love: this one is so easy to gloss over isn't it? Paul uses the Greek word agape here. This is other-centered, choice-based love given at cost to oneself if necessary. Notice its position on the list...#4. The whole list pivots on this point. It's the fulcrum. Nothing happens without this love.

Endurance: there is an element of discipline to this stuff. If we are not willing to make up our minds to keep our commitments despite notable inconvenience and difficulty, then we make it hard for God to give us his best. Our capricious natures will lead us back to the same paths we've always traveled. To put it another way, if you do what you've always done, you're going to get what you've always got.

Gentleness: neither the words on this list nor their order are random. "righteousness" was first for a reason. "Love" was in the middle for a reason. Paul has a purpose behind putting "gentleness" last on the list. Pursuing the five other things on this list can make us hard...on ourselves and on other people. We might develop inflexible concepts of "right" and "wrong", then hold everyone else accountable based on them. We might decide that we are the final arbiters of truth and turn our churches into austere courtrooms where the guilty are tried in abstentia, summarily convicted and sentenced. It's easy to do that. Paul urges gentleness. Fight the urge to become rigid and judgmental.

Choose to stay soft. Be kinder than necessary. Risk being taken advantage of. Love irrationally. Always default toward inclusiveness and acceptance. Don't let your circle shrink. If your circle isn't expanding to include more and more people, something is wrong...because God's does. He's a God who loves and reconciles. We see it over and over in the bible.

After all, God usually responds to the question, "well, when do we just call sin sin" with, "Always. Let's start with yours."