We all know that greed and the love of money are dangerous. We learn it as children. We read about it as adults. Rags-to-riches-to-rags stories show up in the news regularly. People who come into sudden wealth and are ruined by it. Lottery winners who end up bankrupt and miserable, saying, “I was much happier when I was broke.”
Jesus taught often about money and made it crystal clear how dangerous the love of money can be.
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:19-20). When we love money, we can lose it all anyway. Moths and rust destroy what we have. Thieves take the rest.
But what Paul reveals in the final chapter of 1 Timothy is that the situation is actually far worse than that. The love of money is not only bad for us. It is truly mutually exclusive with living a life of faith. Jesus said it plainly: “No one can serve two masters. You cannot serve God and money” (Matthew 6:24).
We must choose. Fortune or faith. One or the other. Not both.
The theologian Haddon Robinson put it this way: “Money has a way of binding us to what is physical and temporal, and blinding us to what is spiritual and eternal.” That is the core of the choice each of us must make. Will you live for the physical and temporal, or for the spiritual and eternal?
This chapter is Paul’s closing charge to Timothy. Throughout the letter, Paul has addressed false teaching, the character of leaders, the importance of godliness, and the care of the gathered community. Now he arrives at the most fundamental thing Timothy must guard: his faith, and the gospel message entrusted to him. This is a message for us, too. The most important thing we can guard is faith, our personal faith and the gospel entrusted to each of us. God works through us to share his good news with the world. And if we are not careful, we can allow the pursuit of fortune to cause us to wander from our faith, leading us to spiral into misery and robbing countless others of the chance to experience God’s love and hear the gospel.
Consequences of Living for the Physical and the Temporal
False teachers have been a problem throughout this letter. Paul has repeatedly warned Timothy about them and given him guidance on how to deal with them. Until now, though, Paul has not said much about what motivates these false teachers. Here he zeros in on a key motivation: their belief that “godliness is a means of gain.”
This kind of teaching is alive and well today. It goes by many names: the prosperity gospel, “name it and claim it,” the health and wealth gospel, positive confession theology. Simply put, it teaches that God guarantees all believers will attain physical health, material wealth, and personal happiness based on what they do. This teaching has fundamental disagreements with accurate biblical teaching.
It is a challenging and subtle topic. It is hard to disagree with it on the surface. When a person first becomes a believer, when they understand for the first time that God is not some cosmic policeman waiting to punish them, when they first taste the freedom and closeness of God’s personal love, it is easy to take that feeling too far. It is easy to start imagining that God must want them to be happy and wealthy in every way, on their own terms.
God does want us to flourish, but according to his definition, not ours. When we start to believe we are entitled to health and prosperity on our terms, we have a problem. Because of sin, we do not deserve anything but death. Everything God gives comes from his love and mercy.
That is why it is wrong to pursue wealth, to go after it, to grasp it. That is why false teachers who say we can chase after godliness as a means to gain wealth are wrong. It is backwards.
Paul plays with the words beautifully in verse 6: “Godliness with contentment IS great gain.” Ironically, godliness will lead to gain, just not the kind you think you want. The word “contentment” is essential. Being content with what you have is the exact opposite of being driven to pursue, go after, and grasp what you do not have.
The climax of Paul’s warning is one of the most often misquoted verses in the Bible. Verse 10: “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” How often have you heard someone say, “Money is the root of all evil”?
Money itself is not evil. Not all evil is caused by money. There is no spiritual virtue associated with poverty, and there is no inherent wickedness associated with wealth. Wealth is not a sin. It is not a problem when we possess wealth. It is a problem when wealth possesses us. When we love money. When we choose fortune over faith.
Discussion
- What does the prosperity gospel look like today? What is it teaching that does not agree with the sound words of Jesus Christ?
- What is the difference between possessing wealth and being possessed by it?
Key Takeaways
- Godliness with contentment is great gain. But it is a different kind of gain than the world promises. Contentment is the opposite of grasping.
- The love of money is the root, not money itself. Wealth is not a sin. The danger is when wealth possesses us instead of us possessing it.
- False teachers twist godliness into a formula for prosperity. Test this against Scripture. God’s definition of flourishing may not match ours.
The Far Better Alternative: Living for the Spiritual and the Eternal
Paul draws a direct and intentional contrast. “But as for you, O man of God, flee these things.” The gist of his message is that our focus should be on accountability to God and the reality of eternal life.
Look at the verbs Paul uses. They are active and forceful. Flee. Pursue. Fight. Take hold. Keep. These are not the words of a passive faith. If you disagree with the prosperity gospel, someone might accuse you of just sitting around waiting for God to take care of you. But Paul makes it clear that the right way to live as a Christian is anything but passive. The words he uses make it sound like we are living in a war zone, on a battlefield.
And we are.
Sometimes we have no choice but to flee from the enemy, so we can live to fight another day. Sometimes we are called to fight right here, right now. At all times we are called to pursue, to go after, to take hold of, not money, but the currency of the spiritual realm: righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Chase after these things with the same intensity that a worldly person chases after money.
That is what the Christian life looks like. That is what it looks like to choose faith over fortune.
Then Paul lifts his eyes to the One who makes it all worthwhile. He breaks into a doxology: God is the “blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light.” This is the God we serve. This is the God we fight for. This is the God whose eternal kingdom makes every earthly fortune look like pocket change.
Discussion
- Paul describes the Christian life with active and forceful verbs: flee, pursue, fight, take hold. What do these mean to you in everyday life?
- How does Paul’s description of God in verses 15-16 reframe the choice between fortune and faith?
Key Takeaways
- The Christian life is anything but passive. Flee. Pursue. Fight. Take hold. These are battlefield words for a real spiritual battle.
- Chase the currency of the spiritual realm. Righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Pursue them with the same intensity that the world pursues money.
- The God we serve makes every earthly fortune look small. He is the King of kings, dwelling in unapproachable light. Living for him is the far better alternative.
Can You Live for the Spiritual and Eternal If You Have Fortune?
Ephesus was a wealthy city, and the church there probably had many wealthy members. Paul’s intention was not to alienate them or make them feel they had no place in the church just because they had money.
Before tuning out these verses as relevant only to “wealthy” people, consider this: a family with a household income of roughly $50,000 per year or more is wealthier than 99% of families around the world. The vast majority of us are wealthy by global standards. We should all pay close attention.
Paul’s counsel is about the heart. No, we should not be greedy and pursue fortune. Instead, our mindset should be humble, not haughty. We should set our hopes on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. And we should be generous, ready to share. When we do, we follow Jesus’ command to lay up treasures in heaven. This is how we “take hold of that which is truly life.”
Having money is not the problem. Trusting in money is the problem. Hoarding money is the problem. Letting money define your identity is the problem. Paul’s answer is simple: be generous. Set your hope on God, not on the uncertainty of riches. And let your wealth become a tool for good works, not a foundation for your security.
Discussion
- How does Paul’s definition of “the rich” apply more broadly than we might first think?
- What does it look like to be “generous and ready to share” in practical terms?
Key Takeaways
- Most of us are wealthy by the world’s standards. Paul’s words to the rich apply to us too.
- Having money is not the problem. Trusting it is. Set your hope on God, who richly provides, not on the uncertainty of riches.
- Generosity transforms wealth from a trap into a tool. Sharing stores up treasure for the future and leads to “that which is truly life.”
Guarding Your Faith Matters
Paul closes the letter with a final charge. “O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you.”
Some translations use the word “deposit,” sticking with the theme of money and fortune. The deposit is the gospel itself, the message of faith entrusted to Timothy and to each of us. Guard it. Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called “knowledge.” Some who professed such knowledge have already swerved from the faith.
This is where the letter began and where it ends. Guard what matters. Guard the faith.
The most important thing for us to guard is faith. Our personal faith and the gospel message entrusted to each of us. God works through us to share his good news with the world. And if we are not careful, we can allow the pursuit of fortune to cause us to wander from our faith, leading us into misery and robbing others of the chance to experience God’s love and hear the gospel.
No matter what we tell ourselves, the Bible is clear that fortune and faith are mutually incompatible as ultimate pursuits. We must choose one or the other. Not both.
Discussion
- What do you think the “deposit” is that Paul tells Timothy to guard?
- What does it look like, in everyday decisions, to choose faith over fortune?
Key Takeaways
- The deposit is the gospel itself. It was entrusted to Timothy and to each of us. Guard it.
- Fortune and faith cannot both be your ultimate pursuit. You must choose. The letter opens and closes with this charge.
- Guarding the faith is an everyday decision. Not just the big crossroads, but the small, daily choices where we decide what comes first.
Something to Sit With
Fortune or faith. That is the choice Paul puts before Timothy. And before us.
Not whether you are allowed to have money. Not whether wealth is inherently evil. But what your life is actually about. What you are pursuing. What you are building. What you are trusting.
Money has a way of binding us to what is physical and temporal, and blinding us to what is spiritual and eternal. The only defense is contentment. Generosity. A heart set on the living God.
This week, as you face decisions large and small, consider which path puts your desire for fortune first and which puts your faith first.
- Where has the pursuit of financial security quietly become more important to you than trust in God?
- What would it look like to practice contentment this week, not just as a feeling, but as a decision?
- Who in your life needs to hear the gospel from you, and could your pursuit of fortune be getting in the way?
“But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.” (1 Timothy 6:6-7, ESV)
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the prosperity gospel?
The prosperity gospel is a teaching that claims God guarantees all believers will attain physical health, material wealth, and personal happiness based on what they do. Paul warns against this in 1 Timothy 6:5, calling out those who imagine “godliness is a means of gain.” Scripture teaches that God provides according to his will and purposes, not according to a formula we can manipulate.
Does the Bible say money is evil?
No. The often-misquoted verse is 1 Timothy 6:10: “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” Money itself is not evil. There is no spiritual virtue in poverty and no inherent wickedness in wealth. The danger comes when we love money, when wealth possesses us instead of us possessing it.
What does “godliness with contentment is great gain” mean?
Paul is playing with the false teachers’ claim that godliness leads to financial gain. He says godliness does lead to gain, just not the kind they mean. True gain is being content with what God provides, rather than endlessly pursuing what we do not have. Contentment is the opposite of grasping.
What does “fight the good fight of the faith” mean in 1 Timothy 6:12?
Paul uses active, forceful language to describe the Christian life: flee, pursue, fight, take hold. This is not passive waiting. It is a real spiritual battle. We fight by pursuing righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness, and by holding firmly to the eternal life to which we have been called.
What is the “deposit” Paul tells Timothy to guard in 1 Timothy 6:20?
The deposit is the gospel message itself, the truth about Jesus Christ that was entrusted to Timothy and to every believer. Paul’s closing charge is to guard this trust, avoiding false teaching and irreverent speculation that leads people away from the faith.
Does Paul say wealthy Christians should give away all their money?
No. Paul does not condemn wealth. He tells the rich not to be arrogant, not to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, and to be generous and ready to share. The goal is not poverty but a heart that trusts God rather than money, and hands that are open rather than grasping.
This lesson is part of the Guarding What Matters series.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway.