How Churches Go Bad

The church at Ephesus, where Timothy was ministering, had very favorable beginnings. Planted by the combined efforts of Paul, Apollos and Priscilla and Aquila, it had a good start. There were great miracles that took place there through Paul. Those who practiced magic publicly confessed their sins and came and burned their magic books, valued at a great price. Such advances were made for the gospel against idolatry, that the silversmiths, worried about their income from the idol business, threw the city into a two-hour riot. Timothy was sent to pastor the church in Ephesus and it also received the pastoral care of the apostle John at some point. But in 2 Tim. 4, Paul warns Timothy that things are going to go bad at Ephesus. The people will turn away from the truth and turn to myths. They will not endure sound doctrine any longer but will accumulate teachers in accordance with their own desires, who will tickle their ears and tell them what they want to hear. How did this happen? How could a church so favored and blessed go bad? If favored Ephesus can't survive, what church can? In this passage, we consider the road to apostasy and how it is that good churches eventually become bad ones.