1 Timothy 6:20

"The deposit" here, as in 2 Tim. 1:14, means the truth God entrusted through His chosen instruments. It is divine revelation given in words taught by the Holy Spirit. It is the pattern of sound words which Timothy heard from Paul among many witnesses. It is not the soul or its salvation. It is not the ministerial office. It is not even the grace of the Spirit. It is the perfect communication of what God is in nature, ways, relationship, and counsels.

We may not overstep our measure or take up the special duties of that honoured colleague of the apostle. But we are just as bound, in our own place, to guard the truth now entrusted to our keeping. In these last days of deception and self-will, one thing is declared to be the tower of safety: to acknowledge and receive every scripture as inspired by God.

The treasures brought from Babylon were weighed both before and after the journey to Jerusalem (Ezra 8:24-34), so that nothing would be missing. In the same way, we must expect a close check of everything entrusted to us. We must guard with zeal, and keep pure, what really belongs to God.

The word is linked to a word meaning "a threshold," which anyone may tread on and make unclean. It stands in contrast to a holy place or shrine, which is fenced in and guarded from defilement. In the New Testament older translations always render it "profane." Three times it describes babblings or empty talk (1 Tim. 4:7; 1 Tim. 6:20; 2 Tim. 2:16).

As soon as God revealed the true knowledge of Himself, the adversary began working to corrupt it... The Greek word translated "science" here is the usual word for "knowledge." The earliest corrupters of the faith were known as the Gnostics, which means "the knowing ones." They took their title from this word. The Apostle John referred to them in particular in his letters.

These words imply that a true science exists, in full harmony with revelation. They also state plainly that even 2000 years ago there was a wrongly-named science which opposed revelation. It was largely made up of the speculations of the philosophers. The wrongly-named science of today is much the same: partial knowledge, based on imperfect or inaccurate observations, mixed with a great deal of speculation, often of the wildest kind.

Nothing undermines the power of the truth we confess more than allowing theories which flatter man and keep the creature busy. Such theories ignore or degrade God and His Son, and in the end they will be found to deny both... This falsely-named knowledge tries to fill the emptiness that unbelief always feels, because it does not really know God and His Son. It fills that space only with its profane ramblings and contradictions. It cannot face the hard fact that sin has ruined man completely. So it avoids the revelation of pure grace, and of a righteousness which is God's own and which can justify the ungodly.

It is sad to know men loving darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil. But there is a deeper sorrow over those who once seemed to run well, and then went fatally wrong about the faith. They are not only the victims of folly and evil. They also blindly dishonour the Name which is above every name.

Avoid the babblings, and AVOID the wrongly-named science just as much as the babblings. We shall need grace from God to do this. So the letter closes with the words, "Grace be with you."