The mystery of godliness 1 Timothy 3:161 Timothy 3:16XWaiting for response was all the work of the Spirit, God’s power, which caused Jesus to be born of Mary, anointed him at his baptism, enabled him to teach God’s truth and perform miracles, raised him from the dead, changed him into immortality, and took him to heaven. This same Spirit inspired the apostles to preach the gospel and write the New Testament scriptures. The Spirit also informed the apostles that in the “latter times” of the Jewish commonwealth, at the end of the first century, there would be serious apostasy from the true faith,v.1-31 Timothy 4:1-3XWaiting for response and history shows how apostate Christianity forbad men to marry e.g. their priests, and forbad the eating of certain meats, e.g. fish on Fridays.v.31 Timothy 4:3XWaiting for response Therefore the disciples were urged to keep to “the words of faith and good doctrine”,v.61 Timothy 4:6XWaiting for response to “refuse profane and old wives fables”,v.71 Timothy 4:7XWaiting for response and to exercise themselves in godliness which has “promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come”.v.81 Timothy 4:8XWaiting for response Timothy was also exhorted to “take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee”.v.161 Timothy 4:16XWaiting for response
Verses 1-3
1 Timothy 4:1-3XWaiting for responseThe latter days here refer to the end of the Mosaic Age of which Jesus prophesied would occur with the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple (Matthew 24) so by the end of the first century apostacy had pervaded the Christian congregations with disciples "departing the faith" and "being seduced by false doctrine". Paul spoke of this particularly to the leaders of the congregation in Ephesus, Acts 20:29-31.Acts 20:29-31XWaiting for response Here he tells Timothy how this would develop into a great apostacy which would forbid its priests to marry and all its devotees to abstain from eating certain foods v.3.1 Timothy 4:3XWaiting for response Elsewhere he describes how this apostacy would be headed by a leader who would act as if he were God, 2 Thessalonians 2:3-5.2 Thessalonians 2:3-5XWaiting for response All this was fulfilled by the Roman Catholic Church headed by the Pope.