Paul’s three letters to Timothy and Titus are called pastorals, because for the most part they are Paul’s counsel to his assistants who served in the pastoral (shepherd-like) functions of the churches in the regions of Ephesus and Crete.1 (The word pastor appears only once in the New Testament, Ephesians 4:11, and literally means “shepherd.” Read Acts 20:28-29 and Peter 5:2-3, where the word flock is used, and note the various functions of a spiritual shepherd, such as feeding, guiding, and superintending Also read Jeremiah 23:1-4.) The Pauline authorship of these epistles has been challenged by liberal critics, but external and internal evidence strongly supports it The place and function of the pastoral letters in the New Testament are seen when they are compared with the other writings of Paul Study Chart 61, page 241, carefully, and note the following: The epistles are listed in the chronological order of writing (Some would place Galatians at a later date.) There are three groups of epistles: travel epistles: written during the years of the missionary journeys prison epistles: written during Paul’s first Roman imprisonment pastoral epistles: Timothy and Titus written after Paul’s release from prison; Timothy written during his second Roman imprisonment The main subjects and general purposes of these three groups were di erent, broadly speaking Do you see a progression in each list? The rst two groups were addressed to churches;2 the pastoral epistles were addressed to individuals The pastoral epistles, especially Timothy and Titus, are about the church and its workers Sometimes the epistles are referred to as Paul’s ecclesiastical letters Second Timothy has a place all its own, since it is Paul’s personal farewell to his most intimate friend and colaborer Note: We will study the pastoral epistles in the order of their writing — Timothy, Titus, Timothy This will be followed by a survey of Paul’s letter to Philemon II BACKGROUND OF TIMOTHY A THE MAN TIMOTHY Timothy is one of the most likable and devoted Christians of the entire New Testament From a human standpoint, his greatest honor was to be chosen as an assistant to the church’s foremost missionary leader Paul He was Paul’s closest friend to the very end, but the apostle recognized his higher worth and relationship when he called him a “man of God” (1 Tim 6:11) The name Timothy appears twenty-four times in the New Testament You may want to read these verses to learn more about the man: Acts 16:1; 17:14-15; 18:5; 19:22; 20:4; Romans 16:21; Corinthians 4:17; 16:10; Corinthians 1:1, 19; Philippians 1:1; 2:19; Colossians 1:1; Thessalonians 1:1; 3:2, 6; Thessalonians 1:1; Timothy 1:2, 18; 6:20; Timothy 1:2; Philemon 1; Hebrews 13:23 Home Timothy was a native of Derbe (cf Acts 16:1 and 20:4), son of a Gentile ... will study the pastoral epistles in the order of their writing — Timothy, Titus, Timothy This will be followed by a survey of Paul’s letter to Philemon II BACKGROUND OF TIMOTHY A THE MAN TIMOTHY.. .of Paul Study Chart 61, page 241, carefully, and note the following: The epistles are listed in the chronological order of writing (Some would place Galatians at a later date.) There are... TIMOTHY Timothy is one of the most likable and devoted Christians of the entire New Testament From a human standpoint, his greatest honor was to be chosen as an assistant to the church’s foremost