The Good Warfare:

[Liudmilla]

1 Timothy 1:18-20; 2:8-15, especially vs. 18: "This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare." "The Faith once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3) must not be transmitted haphazardly, but conveyed well, without dilution or corruption of the truth which is our inheritance from the Apostles. Thus, succeeding generations remain true to the life-giving teaching and "wage the good warfare" unto "triumph in Christ" (2 Cor. 2:14).
Without surprise then, as we read First Timothy, we find one of the chief Apostles writing to charge an apprentice Apostle to apply his attention especially to matters of doctrine and worship. Rightly so, for as right doctrine and right worship (orthodoxia) are upheld, the Church is assured of continuing the Orthodox struggle "against...the darkness of this world" (Eph. 6:12).

Historically in Orthodoxy, worship and doctrine have been inextricably woven together. Therefore, to know what the Church teaches, one needs mostly to pay strict attention to the language and texts of the Divine Liturgy. At worship, the Church repeatedly affirms the basic truths which she proclaims to the world, teaches to the Faithful, and expects her members to uphold in their living. As doctrine and worship are rightly received, they enable us to have "faith and a good conscience" (1 Tim. 1:19), to pray "lifting up holy hands" (vs. 2:8) and to "continue in faith, love, and holiness with self-control" (vs. 2:15). These are the spiritual works we are to realize in ourselves and to pass on, that "the good warfare" may continue until the Lord returns.

How do we attain "faith and a good conscience"? We must acknowledge immediately that one cannot have faith in Christ with a "bad" conscience. The two are incompatible. Faith is sought for healing. So "straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help Thou mine unbelief" (Mk. 9:17-24). One dying thief rebuked his companion for bitterness and then confessed his own sins (Lk. 23:39-41). Thereby he was enabled to cry out with faith, "Jesus, Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom" (Lk. 23:42).

When the inner eye of the heart is defiled by sins and passions, it must be purified, a work that is performed only with the aid of the Holy Spirit. As Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos says, "When the Mighty One enters the soul and overthrows the despoiler, then what has been taken captive can be set free." Then faith that languished blossoms under the attendant gift of the Holy Spirit as He purifies our conscience "from dead works to serve the living God" (Heb. 9:14).

Consider the alternative. If we indulge our passions and do as we please, rejecting the faith, there is bound to be "shipwreck" (1 Tim. 1:19). Let us not confine our lives to this dark world and be among those "delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme" (vs. 20).

How are we to be sustained by prayer? Again, listen to Metropolitan Anthony Bloom: "Unless the prayer which you intend to offer to God is important and meaningful to you first, you will not be able to present it to the Lord. If you are inattentive to the words you pronounce, if your heart does not respond to them, or if your life is not turned in the same direction as your prayer, it will not reach out Godwards." Let us pray to the Lord and say, "Lord have mercy."

Finally, heed what the Apostle says to Timothy: let us pray, "lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting" (vs. 2:8), but "with propriety and moderation" (vs. 2:9), "with good works" (vs. 10), "in silence with all submission" (vs. 11) to our spiritual elders. Thus shall we continue the good warfare "in faith, love, and holiness, with self control" (vs. 15). Thus shall we be granted triumph in Christ and the joy of passing on a living Faith to generations yet unborn.

Keep us in Thy holiness that all the day long we may meditate upon Thy righteousness

[Liudmilla]

1 Timothy 3:1-13, especially vs. 10: "But let these also...be tested, then let them serve...being found blameless." The Epistle reading today contains advice from the Apostle Paul concerning the identification, training and appointment of competent leaders for the Church. Its message continues a major theme of this letter, the transmitting of the Faith to succeeding generations, for without blameless, competent, and mature clergy, the communication of the Faith to succeeding generations falters, leaving the Church weakened and less effective.
The present-day Orthodox reader will find notable differences between the kinds of leaders described in this first-century letter and today's ordained clergy. For instance, Bishops as well as Deacons normally appear to have been drawn from the ranks of married men (vs. 2). Further, as one would expect, there was a presumption of these Bishops having children (vs. 5).

Let the reader who is not familiar with the development of the Church's ministry through history realize that the clergy of the early Church were men with weaknesses and strengths, very much human beings like the clergy today, even though their social circumstances differed.

The unfolding of the Church's ministry is analogous to the way in which living organisms develop. For instance, as many seeds sprout and push up through the soil, their young seedlings first appear as "dicotyledons," tiny shoots formed like a two-leaf plant, yet even the growing plant that follows and the mature plant after it, will look much different. Similarly, the earliest historical records concerning the clergy, reveal an ordained ministry of much different shape than the more evolved orders found today within the Church.

The point is this: the ministry was a growing part of the developing Church and took different forms at different stages of its development, even though all the Church's clergy are organically related in the Body of Christ. As St. Paul discloses, the Church always has required men who are morally pure, mature in personality, and known to have a good testimony in all their relationships within and without the Church. Such have been and are the godly clergy always.

Note the emphasis the Apostle places on worthy moral character. As he asserts, the clergy must be "blameless" (vss. 2,10), have "good behavior" (vs. 2), "not given to wine" (vss. 3,8) and not be "violent, greedy" (vss. 3,8), not "quarrelsome" nor "covetous" (vs. 3). Also, they must not be filled with "pride" (vs. 6), nor be "double-tongued" (vs. 8), but hold "the mystery of the Faith with a pure conscience" (vs. 9). Much mischief has been inflicted on Church communities because of just a few clergy who have fallen into immorality! Thank God, the great majority of our ordained Pastors are men who lead pure, moral, and faithful lives.

The Apostle admonishes Timothy to be most careful about the maturity of both Bishops and Deacons. He mentions that they must be "the husband of one wife," not polygamous (vss. 2,12). They must be sober-minded (vs. 2), temperate (vss. 2,11), gentle (vs. 3), and never novices to the Faith (vs. 6). Observation over time is essential (vs. 10) for identifying demonstrated capacity to be "faithful in all things" (vs. 11). The pressures of life are such that clergy need to be balanced and settled in themselves as persons, which is why our hierarchs today take great care to assure a general education, seminary training, and other testing before they ordain men.

Finally, the Apostle urges that clergy have "a good testimony among those who are outside" (vs. 7), and that they are able to rule in their own homes (vss. 4,12). Here again are two arenas where telling criticism can appear to weaken the clergy's witness. Pray for our clergy.

O Lord, may Thy Holy Spirit guide the leaders of the Church always to choose, and ordain worthy men to stand before Thy Throne and to edify and feed Thy beloved children.