1 Timothy 1:3–7:

“As I urged you when I was leaving for Macedonia, stay on in Ephesus to instruct certain people not to spread false teachings, not to occupy themselves with myths and interminable genealogies. Such things promote useless speculations rather than God’s redemptive plan that operates by faith. But the aim of our instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. Some have strayed from this and turned away to empty discussion. They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not understand what they are saying or the things they insist on so confidently.”

And I want you to know that Paul is not saying these people are not doing miracles. Paul is not saying signs and wonders are not happening. So you can be deceived because of the operation of the gifts and think that all is well. No.

When you look at 1 Corinthians 13, Paul said, “If I have all faith, so that I can remove mountains, and if I know all mysteries and all knowledge, but do not have love, I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2).

Remember my focus in the last few days is exploring this passage. Yesterday I started focusing on the three things in verse 5, starting with love that comes from a pure heart.

The heart issue. Jesus Christ says there will be people who come to Him and say, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and do many powerful deeds in Your name?” and He will say to them, “I never knew you. Go away from Me, you lawbreakers” (Matthew 7:21–23). When you look at what He lists in the Sermon on the Mount, they are heart issues.

“The aim of our instruction…” What we want to advance is love from a pure heart. That is what we want to see, not just from our hearers, but also in what we communicate and express and advance in ourselves.

And whatever is not helping us help other people to advance in such things, we want to leave aside.

So the second thing he mentions in verse 5, after “love that comes from a pure heart,” is “a good conscience.” Which means the priority has to be a day‑to‑day life of pleasing God, not just knowledge for knowledge’s sake, not just information for information’s sake.

In another place Paul says “knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” (1 Corinthians 8:1). Not just exploration for exploration’s sake; not “anything goes as long as miracles are happening,” not “anything goes as long as the crowds are coming.” That is not what he is saying. And he is not saying those people do not have crowds. It is because they are already gathering crowds that he is telling Timothy they must be stopped—because they are already influencing people and many may fall into their trap. Paul has love for the people and wants to help them.

So any teaching that de‑emphasises your conscience, de‑emphasises a personal walk with God, de‑emphasises a life of holiness, de‑emphasises doing the right thing simply because that is what God wants—that kind of teaching is dangerous.

In another place Paul says we are trying to learn what pleases the Lord (Ephesians 5:10). That is it. That is what we want to do.

And he says that some people “have suffered shipwreck in regard to the faith” because they rejected a good conscience (1 Timothy 1:19). “It doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter”—and I know where that can come from: a wrong valuation of yourself, a lack of humility, a lack of a foundation of repentance, a lack of understanding that Judas also was an apostle, and he fell into transgression. His place was taken away and someone else replaced him (Acts 1:16–20).

When that happened with Judas, what do you think that signals to the rest? “Let the one who thinks he is standing be careful that he does not fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12). That is what it signals. A sense of invincibility, a sense that you are impregnable, a sense that you cannot fall—that is the danger.

But watch out. Watch out. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10 that the things written beforehand were written for our instruction, “so that we would not crave evil things as they did” and so we would learn from the consequences they suffered (1 Corinthians 10:6–11).

Paul did not have that sense of invincibility, even though his call and salvation were powerful. He said, “I punish my body and bring it under control, so that after preaching to others I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27).

That kind of abandonment of conscience—treating people wrongly, with rudeness; thinking because you have a seat, a position, a powerful call, a ministry, that you can do as you like—enters into your head. That is the truth. And you may not even have any public ministry and it will still enter into your head because you have these promises.

Judas also had promises—that he would be one of the twelve judging Israel. Jesus said, “You who have followed Me will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matthew 19:28). Among that twelve was Judas. But Judas is not one of them now.

God bless you.