Purity in Crisis

From the Words to the Preacher

Last week we asked what makes a good sermon, and then disappointed you immediately — because we said it's about where the words come from. What a sermon should be are the words that God wants (chapter 2, verse 15), instead of the words that people want.

This week we're moving from the words to the character and the manner of the person who preaches. So the question I want to put to you is this: how do you respond under pressure? Because tonight we're looking at Timothy under pressure, and asking: What makes a good sermon in a crisis?

Imagine you used to be the leader of a network of growing, successful churches — as Timothy was — and then recently they all deserted you to follow teachers like Hymenaeus and Philetus (2:17). Under that kind of pressure, I think all of us know how Timothy will want to respond, won't he?

He'll want to slam his opponents, get stuck in, mock them, assassinate their character, and whip up people's anger against them. In politics they call it polarization. We prayed for Northern Ireland this week, and a lot of what's going on there is exactly that — people who just want your ears, and so push themselves to be the loudest, the angriest, the most polarized they can be.

And it's everywhere, because it works, doesn't it? I remember a conversation with a man who had recently become a Christian. He'd worked in sales for twenty years, and had given up lying when he started following Jesus. He agreed it was wrong, and he knew Jesus was worth it, but he said, "The trouble is, lying just works. It makes everything easier."

The Main Point: Be Gentle

Paul has one letter to write to his deputy in Asia, in the middle of a crisis and under huge pressure. And what he wants Timothy to know is to be gentle with his opponents. Verse 25 is our main point tonight:

Opponents must be gently instructed in the hope that God will grant them repentance.

It's the opposite of what we find everywhere else — in our politics, in our neighbourhoods, in whatever it is. Slamming people, aggression, polarization — it works. But Paul says to Timothy: Don't do it.

That's why he said "don't quarrel" last week, and says it again in verse 23:

Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.

That kind of thing, verse 22 says, is what a young man does. In our culture we think young is best, but I don't think that's what Paul means here. Maturity responds gently; immaturity is foolish and stupid and gets stuck into the argument and slams the opponents. Timothy is a young man under huge pressure, but Paul expects him to find the strength to be gentle.

Not Timidity, but Self-Discipline

This puts a different flavour on a favourite verse from chapter 1. Verse 7 tells Timothy that the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid. You might think, "Too right — so the good preacher is the bold preacher. Stick it to them, Timothy!"

But the verse goes on:

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

Same thing, isn't it, as 2:22 — "Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace" — with the help of the Spirit who is power, love, and self-discipline.

A Crisis of Our Own

We're not in the same crisis as Timothy in the Church of England, but we are in a crisis of our own. In fact, several all at once — an omni-crisis.

We said last week that, by and large, you get the pastors you deserve. Like politicians, you get the preachers you deserve. The manner of sermon you want and respond well to will influence the preachers we train here.

So no doubt we are in a crisis in the Church of England. Long-standing problems are unwinding, and false teaching and unfaithfulness are in the driving seat in many ways. What kind of sermons do you want about that? What kind of pastor do we want in crisis times?

Because we live in 2026, we can almost answer that question definitively. You can tell by what sermons people listen to, and which commentators they watch on YouTube. People count — you can see the numbers. And the pressures at work in society are also at work in the church: the algorithm, the echo chamber, the competition for clicks. It drives church content away from gentleness and towards foolish and stupid arguments — the evil desires of youth.

I can't quite prove this, but with 1:7 in mind, I wonder if Paul would say that this is really because of fear. Verse 7 says the Spirit should help us with fear, so that we don't have to pressure or slam. Instead, the Holy Spirit gives us power and love and self-discipline — which makes us gentle. That's how chapter 2 holds together as a coherent argument.

First Point: God's House Is Not at Risk

Look back at the verses we ran out of time for last week — verses 19 to 21. I'm going to do them twice this week to make up for it.

The most basic point in these verses is that God's house is not at risk. There are two illustrations: a foundation in verse 19, and then the "cutlery drawer" of a great house in verse 20. Both of them restore confidence in the master of the house.

Why do people behave badly in a crisis? Normally it's because they are afraid. Everything feels out of control, so you ditch the good ways of behaving and you lash out to try to regain control.

Timothy's churches have gone after teaching like "the resurrection has already taken place." Nearly everybody, including his best friends, has joined in. It is ruining those who listen, and it is like gangrene in a healthy body. But for all of that, God's house is not at risk:

God's solid foundation stands firm.

It's the same point as in 1:12 and 1:14. Paul is willing to suffer to guard this gospel because he is absolutely convinced that God will guard it and stand it up forever. Nobody really wants to go down with the ship — but I might give my life for the household of God if I knew God was utterly committed to its growth and success. No matter how it looks right now, the foundation is solid.

The Lord Knows Those Who Are His

Sealed on that foundation is an important truth:

The Lord knows those who are his.

This is a letter full of names, and most of them are tragic — people who would have been indistinguishable from Timothy only five minutes ago, but are now false teachers, deserters, or opponents. That is the huge pressure for Timothy. And Paul says: Just look at what's written on the foundation.

In other words, the Lord is not confused in this situation. Everyone else is confused. Hymenaeus and Philetus are leading what used to be Timothy's churches, and people are flocking to them, believing their claim that they are the smartest, the most spiritual, more biblical than Paul and Timothy. But Jesus is not confused.

It's actually a quotation from Numbers chapter 16 — another time of crisis. Early in the story of Israel under Moses, 250 men whom Moses had appointed as leaders came together under a man called Korah, Moses' first cousin, and said, "You have gone too far this time." They wanted to be priests too.

Moses invited them to try the next morning: "All 250 of you, put hot coals in your incense burners and let's see what happens." And they did. But the Lord knows those who are his. The next morning Moses told everyone else to move as far away as they could from those men and their tents — not to touch anything belonging to them, or they would be swept away because of their sins. It's a vivid and disturbing story.

So in a situation of crisis, God's house is not at risk. He knows who are his. The faithful Timothy needs to turn away from wickedness and wait for God to protect his house. And it's more than just staying away — it's dangerous to join in with their wickedness.

Two Risks for Timothy

There are two risks here, and I wonder if you've made the connection. Since God's house is not at risk, you certainly don't join in with their false teaching — that's the obvious thing not to do. But more than that, don't let the temptation of the crisis make you become just like them.

• Timothy could be at risk if he deserts alongside them.
• Timothy could also be at risk if he chooses a wicked way to fight the crisis.

It's the same point in verses 20 and 21, with a different illustration. Now we're inside the house. Our translation uses "special purposes" versus "common use," which makes us all identify with the wood and clay — but I don't think that's what Paul means. Literally, it is honourable and dishonourable. It's a shame word, like in chapter 1.

So Timothy is the honourable gold; Hymenaeus is the dishonourable wood. But the point is that the master is still in charge, and it is the master who decides what to do with them all. So Timothy is told to cleanse himself from everything dishonourable — everything like the "evil desires of youth" in verse 22, meaning quarrels — and instead to be gentle, because that is the gold way.

Being Realistic

In this series I want to help us be realistic. The Church of England is in very great trouble, as are nearly all the historic denominations in the West. I don't know if there will be a Church of England in twenty-five years' time. I don't know if God is deliberately bringing the whole thing to an end.

But whatever happens, there is nothing actually to worry about. God's house is not at risk. God can manage fine without the Church of England, without All Souls, without Hymenaeus, Philetus, Timothy, Charlie, or you. The global church will be fine. Even in England, he will bring something new out of the ashes of the old.

That is the confidence you need to cleanse yourself from becoming just like your opponents — from the aggression and polarization that looks like it works, but which God does not want.

Second Point: Christ's Leaders Are Still Gentle Leaders

Timothy is facing an utterly quarrelsome group of people. They want him to quarrel — that's what they're good at, that's how they'll prove they're smarter than him. And you can be sure they are saying horrible things about him all the time.

This isn't just words, either — it's also sticks and stones. Paul is in prison, about to be executed. It is dangerous to be one of Paul's kind of Christians. Hymenaeus and Philetus want Timothy out of the way, and they know where the chief of police lives in Ephesus. This is dangerous.

So Timothy must really want to serve them back the same way. And Paul says: No.

It's About Outcome, Not Just Morality

Everything Paul says in verses 22 to 26 is not actually about morality — it's about effectiveness and outcome. Angry, ranting, slamming feels good in the moment. As a listener it makes you feel like your team is the winning team. But look at what it does:

• Verse 23 — it only produces quarrels, more and more arguments.
• Verse 16 — "avoid godless chatter."
• Verse 14 — "warn them about quarrelling about words," because it is of no value.

And here's the outcome you might miss out on:

Opponents must be gently instructed in the hope that God will grant them repentance, leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

These people are being horrible to Timothy, and Paul tells him not to do it back — because he wants Timothy to be all about doing them good. That's the goal.

You can see how the example of Jesus has shaped this. It is his house. He does not need you to be horrible back; he wants you to be gentle. And underneath there is a particular view of these people: they are opponents doing real harm, yes — but really, they are captives. They need sympathy and rescue. They're stuck in a trap of the devil, forced to do his will, and what you should want most is their rescue. That will only happen if God grants them repentance and leads them back to the truth.

So tell me — YouTube preacher, church politician — what is more likely to do them good? You have to tell them they are wrong. This isn't 21st-century nonsense about never hurting anyone's opinions. Verse 24:

The Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome, but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.

Able to teach includes pointing out where they're wrong — but not resentfully.

Holding Us to Account

So I'm inviting you to hold us to account on this in the Church of England crisis. From time to time we will name people, as Paul does, if they are teaching falsehood — but:

1. Only after it is clear and obvious.
2. Normally only after appealing to them first in person.
3. Always gently and kindly, not attacking them as people.

We'll try to explain why it's not okay to go against what God has clearly said. We'll take steps so you won't hear those people preach here, so the gangrene can't spread. But we will continue to pray for those people to escape the trap, and we'll seek always to be kind and gentle.

There will never be an All Souls YouTube channel full of takedowns of false teachers or mocking people for their ideas. And we won't do that — (a) because it's sinful; (b) because it's the most likely way to become just like them; and (c) because it has no chance whatsoever of rescuing them, which is what we should want most of all.

A Cautionary Tale

Many years ago I went to a conference in Chicago and heard a real list of famous men preach on 2 Timothy. I still remember clearly the sermon on this passage. In my view the preacher hit the nail on the head. He was American, and he kept saying: "In church there are always the negatives — but don't let the negatives turn you into a negative. Be a positive."

That's the point here. Whatever they do to you, Timothy, you can keep being positive, gentle, and kind, because you know it's all up to God and the house is not at risk.

But here's the irony. He got the passage right that day — yet there is no better-known cautionary tale to illustrate these verses than the man who gave that talk. Even that day, while saying those things, he was breathtakingly rude about people from the past in his church who disagreed with him, and breathtakingly rude about one of the musicians sitting two feet behind him.

After that year he built a reputation and a following on being prepared to shock, attack, and be outrageous in the pulpit. Five years later he had resigned for that very reason. And one of the most striking things that came out afterwards was this: his was one of the first churches to push its sermons online and track what made people click and listen. What they discovered was that on the weeks when the preacher got angry, there was a huge spike in listening. So they decided he should get angry more often.

Which is the wrong choice, isn't it? It makes sense in a clickbait world. But he let the negatives turn him into a negative.

Gold, Silver, Wood, and Clay

So what are you like under pressure? What do you think makes a good sermon in a time of crisis? This is where I want to come back to the articles of gold, silver, wood, and clay in the great house, verses 20 and 21.

Honour does not come from clicks and downloads. In Timothy's world, honour does not come from where all the itching ears have gathered to listen. Honour comes from the master — from usefulness to the master.

Timothy lives in a church full of different kinds of teachers. These are not good differences of style or personality or background — they are bad differences. Timothy teaches the words of God; the others teach the words people want to hear. What Timothy teaches brings life and immortality; what they teach brings ungodliness and ruin.

So what should Timothy think about the fact that God seems to allow all this to keep going on inside his house? Paul says it's like any great house — there are always lots of different things in the cutlery drawer.

The Silver Spoon and the Wooden Chopstick

I brought some of my cutlery drawer to show you. I don't live in a great house — I live in a tall house — but I still have a cutlery drawer.

We do have some silver. Here's the silver spoon I was born with in my mouth — you can tell because it has my name stamped on it, given to me at my christening. But there's also this: half of one of those disposable wooden chopsticks you get with a takeaway. It came to church tonight in a freezer bag, and I'm not touching it.

Both articles lived in the drawer side by side until a week ago — just as both Timothy and Hymenaeus preach in churches in Ephesus. But here's the point: I am not confused about the difference between these two objects. The precious silver spoon and the disposable wooden chopstick are not the same.

That matters when I'm looking for something to do a dishonourable job. Last week I needed to clear a blocked drain in our bathroom sink — so disgustingly slimed it would no longer drain. I went to the drawer. There were lots of options: the silver spoon, the little spoons my kids used as babies, the weird grapefruit thing you never use — but I chose the dishonourable article for a dishonourable use.

I've always found these verses puzzling, but I think this is the reading that makes them make sense and fits them into the whole chapter. It's all about helping Timothy not to become a negative — not to become the same as his opponents. Even Hymenaeus has a purpose, as do all the opponents of the gospel throughout history and still today in England.

It is entirely up to the Lord whether Hymenaeus is removed in the morning, as Korah was in Numbers 16, or whether he goes on spreading his gangrene for a hundred more years. It's the master's house. He can test us with false teaching and bad behaviour, or he can rejoice us with revival. It's entirely up to him.

But so too is honour. Honour is up to him. Verse 21:

Those who cleanse themselves... will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the master and prepared to do any good work.

That's the opposite of verse 14 — useless, no value. It's the vision of verse 15: the approved worker presented to God with no need to be ashamed. And it's the goal of 3:17: thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Shame Now or Shame Then

This chopstick is going to be thrown away. I'm not going to scrub it and put it back in the drawer — Claire probably won't let it back in the house after tonight. And there will be a day like that. A day like Numbers 16. The day Paul is waiting for in this letter (1:12), the day of all the rewards Pash told us about — the hardworking athlete, farmer, soldier — the day of eternal glory and honour.

That changes the shame decision we spoke about in chapter 1. Remember, in verse 8, Paul asked Timothy to join him in shame and suffering. The options aren't shame or no shame. The options are shame now or shame then.

I imagine it as a snooty waiter showing you the menu. The question isn't whether you want any shame in all your life and all eternity. The question is when. The waiter leans in and asks, "When would you like your shame, sir?"

Hymenaeus has chosen to avoid shame and suffering in 64 AD in Ephesus. He's found a way to be church that avoids the persecution of Imperial Rome — and, as we'll see next week, it makes him rich and lets him indulge his pleasures too. He's found a way to have everything he wants now. It's a smart choice — if you think now is the most important place of all. But the master of the house is no more fooled by Hymenaeus than he was by Korah. And the disposable wooden drain-cleaning thing gets thrown away.

All of this letter is Paul, with tears in his eyes, begging Timothy — whom he loves as a son — not to make the same choice as Hymenaeus. But it's also Paul, with tears in his eyes, begging Hymenaeus — part of the same team until five minutes ago, now trapped by the devil — to cleanse himself of all this before it is too late and he faces shame before Jesus on the last day.

I want to close with verse 12:

If we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us.

I do want your honour on that day, Timothy. Let's pray for our church and our world.