by Edwin Crozier<\/p>\n
Surprisingly, the letters written to Timothy and Titus, both evangelists, say almost nothing about what we typically mean by evangelism. When we talk about evangelism, we are usually talking about bringing the gospel to those outside of Christ. But these three letters almost exclusively talk about the evangelist’s work among the congregation of believers.<\/p>\n
Even here at the end of I Timothy 4, Paul is talking about working with those who already believe. But notice what he says. “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers<\/em>” (I Timothy 4:16, ESV). Wait! Aren’t these people already saved? Paul is talking about Timothy preaching to the church. He is setting an example for and teaching the believers (see I Timothy 4:12).<\/p>\n In contradiction to the teaching of our Calvinist friends, there is no biblical notion of “once saved, always saved.” Christians need strong teaching to be saved. We need to hear the gospel again and again, even after we have responded to it, or we will drift away from it.<\/p>\n In just about every congregation of which I’ve been a part, I’ve met the brother or sister who thought they no longer needed the teaching. They had heard all the sermons. They had gone through all the Bible classes. They understood the truth. They continued to punch their attendance card. But it was obvious, and sometimes they would even say it out loud, that it was all really beneath them. They really just didn’t get anything out of the classes and preaching because they had been around so long and knew it so well. Oddly enough, these brothers and sisters who know the gospel so well have tended to fall away. Why? Because none of us knows it so well that we don’t need to keep hearing it.<\/p>\n All people need to hear the gospel. Those outside and those inside the church need to hear the gospel repeated again and again. Therefore, those who preach the gospel need to pay close attention to themselves and to the teaching. Only by careful devotion to teaching will even those in the church be saved.<\/p>\n Of course, this means that if we who are in the church want to be saved, we need to pay careful attention to ourselves and to the teaching.<\/p>\n Are you paying attention?<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Edwin Crozier Surprisingly, the letters written to Timothy and Titus, both evangelists, say almost nothing about what we typically mean by evangelism. When we talk about evangelism, we are usually talking about bringing the gospel to those outside of Christ. But these three letters almost exclusively talk about the evangelist’s work among the congregation…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[77,58],"class_list":["post-96449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-doctrine","tag-once-saved-always-saved"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":35973,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/not-too-young\/","url_meta":{"origin":96449,"position":0},"title":"Not Too Young","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 21, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Author Unknown Recent research has revealed what teenagers truly desire from the adults in their lives. The Search Institute study found that teens want parents and other older influencers to do the following: Look at us. Spend time talking with us. Listen. Be dependable. Show appreciation for what we do.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/teens-talking-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":96691,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/agree-with-the-sound-words-of-jesus-christ\/","url_meta":{"origin":96449,"position":1},"title":"Agree with the Sound Words of Jesus Christ","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 15, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Edwin Crozier \"Teach and urge these things,\" Paul tells Timothy. He's already told him the purpose of this letter is so folks will know how to behave as members of the church of the living God, which is the pillar and support of the truth. He's also told Timothy\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":58794,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/preach-and-teach\/","url_meta":{"origin":96449,"position":2},"title":"Preach and Teach","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 7, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by T. Pierce Brown The following statements are made in a bulletin by one who claims to be a part of the body of Christ: \"There is no biblical evidence that anyone ever preached the Gospel to those who had already received it. Preaching is always associated with evangelism in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":25660,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-was-timothy-put-in-prison-in-rome\/","url_meta":{"origin":96449,"position":3},"title":"Why was Timothy put in prison in Rome?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 19, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I was researching the web for any clues I might gain as to the author of Hebrews, when it was written, etc. and I found your web page. As you know, there are many theories. I tend to believe that it was Paul, possibly Luke \u2014 translating Paul\u2019s Hebrew\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":19123,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/take-heed\/","url_meta":{"origin":96449,"position":4},"title":"Take Heed","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffey W. Hamilton Text: I Timothy 4:6-16 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The books of I and II Timothy and Titus are instruction manuals for preachers \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0If you think a moment, there isn\u2019t another role in the church that is discussed at such length \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0And this is besides the numerous comments regarding preaching\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":26995,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-idle-talk-and-idle-babblings\/","url_meta":{"origin":96449,"position":5},"title":"What is “idle talk” and “idle babblings?”","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 30, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I read this\u00a0 answer a question: \"What does \"vain thoughts\" mean in Psalm 119:113?\"\u00a0Could you expand more on the subject for me? I like to have an imagination and to read fiction. I want to be more sure that it is not a sin. 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