Solomon wrote, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6). Do you know the name of Timothy’s father? Neither do I. In fact, all that the Bible tells us about him is that he was a Greek—a Gentile. If his father played any part in the rearing of Timothy, the Bible is silent on the subject. Who, then, was Timothy, and why should Christians today be interested in or concerned about him? Let us notice the following.
We first meet this young man in Acts 16. Here it is recorded, “Then he [Paul] came to Derbe and Lystra. And behold, a certain disciple was there named Timothy, a son of a certain Jewish woman who believed, but his father was a Greek.” We are further told that this young man was well spoken of by the Christians at Lystra and Derbe.
Now, a question. From whom and by whom had this young man been trained or brought up, and what was the material used in his training? In his second epistle to Timothy, Paul wrote, “…when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and you mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also” (2 Timothy 1:5). Later on in his second epistle, he wrote, “But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 3:14-15).
Again, the apostle wrote, “But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, that I also may be encouraged when I know your state. For I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus. But you know his proven character, that as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel. Therefore I hope to send him at once, as soon as I see how it goes with me” (Philippians 2:19-23).
There are many more references to the young man Timothy, but perhaps these are sufficient to allow us to ask a question. Why did the apostle Paul have such love for and put such trust in this young man? I believe there are at least two things that come into play to cause such an attitude in Paul. First, Timothy had a grandmother and a mother who loved him enough to teach him the Holy Scriptures, and he evidently gladly learned them. Second, from the first time Timothy met Paul until the death of this great apostle, Timothy had an example to follow who was worthy of imitating. By this example which he could follow and imitate in his training and life, this young man learned to be dependable.
Mothers and fathers ought to embrace all of the passages in both Old and New testaments that command and encourage parents, to “Bring up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6). Yes, Proverbs 22:6 is a general statement of what will happen if one follows the stated action; however, it is also true that many, many parents, even in the Lord’s church, do precious little teaching their children the Word of God. Far too many times, the only time some sons and daughters receive any biblical instruction is in a 45-minute class at the church building on Sunday morning. Even then, many parents do not bring their children to the Bible study hour. Fathers and mothers, do you have a set time each day that you study with and teach those precious children that God gave you? A fair, and maybe a heart rendering question, might be, “Where would our children spend eternity if, today, they were to meet their Maker?”
