The New Testament Church

As the New Testament Church grew and became established , it began to encounter an ever-mounting number of challenges to both core doctrine and practical growth. These challenges were compounded as the Gospel spread beyond well-established Jewish roots into Samaritan and Gentile cultures and lands. Men and women walked in the presence and authority of God's Spirit and saw the outpouring of His Spirit and demonstrations of His power just as Jesus had promised! (Joel 2:28, John 1:50) However, with growth came the need for new believers to be established in sound doctrine and God 's Word . It was important that those converted were soundly rooted in their relationship and knowledge of God, gaining spiritual maturity, so that they would not be as gullible as children, being 'tossed about' with every 'wind of doctrine' (Ephesians 4 :14). The establishment of new believers and development of prepared and qualified leaders to propagate the continuation of growth and establishment became a priority among the apostles as church leadership. The epistles of the New Testament served to correct and instruct the churches in sound doctrine. Some, such as those to Timothy and Titus, also served to establish qualifications and preparation for developing leadership for establishment of local churches and evangelism.

His mother and grandmother were Jews but his father was not. His mother and grandmother are referred to as devout, and most likely taught Timothy the Law and Prophets well. Timothy caught Paul's attention with his very genuine faith (2 Timothy 1:4) which Paul also attributed to his mother and grandmother before him. Paul saw in Timothy a love for God and His Word. The foundation that Timothy had in the scriptures was