From a young age my mother taught us the truth of 1 Timothy 1:4. She absolutely refused to engage in discussions that she recognized would not have a fruitful outcome. Unlike a friend who often told me she had the gift of "arguing", (although I'm not certain where that "gift" is ever listed in scripture, but I won't deny that she did it well), my mom refrained from participation in conversations that only seemed to waste time and escalate debate. There was not a confrontational bone in my sweet mom's body. She would stand for truth unwaveringly, but she would not engage involvement in unprofitable talk.
I will confess, that a huge pet peeve of mine is sitting with groups of people, possibly even in a Bible study setting, where the topic starts to stray to either a subject matter that has nothing to do with the text we are considering, or a bunny trail down a part of scripture that even the most learned scholars cannot agree on the explanation. Hearing some opinions on different interpretations can be beneficial, but often those participating in these dialogues are presenting their personal views as precepts. Voices start to increase in volume. Sides are chosen. It is not that they are giving insight, they just want to be right.
Paul is encouraging Timothy to involve himself in exchanges with others that help grow faith in God. Too much time is wasted in "endless discussion of myths and spiritual pedigrees. These things only lead to meaningless speculations" that are not helpful at all. Other translations have expressed this verse as teaching Timothy not to give heed to, or devote himself to, conversations that digress from stewarding scripture well with godly edification.
When precious time to study God's Word gets side-tracked by "silliness" (The Message) we miss out on the opportunity for deepening faith and obedience. Years ago, after the first "Harry Potter" book appeared on the scene, its contents became very controversial among Christians. Some were comparing it to the fantasy of C. S. Lewis, while others felt this literature edged more towards witchcraft and demonic. I still recall listening to a radio program one day where a well-known Pastor was fielding a variety of questions. One woman inquired if this leader of a mega church would prepare a sermon giving his response to the "Harry Potter" craze. This gentleman responded that when he finally ran out of content from God's Word as the basis of his sermons, he might then consider answering this request, implying by his answer that it would never happen.
There are also some mysteries in God's Word that can cause more harm than good if over-analyzed and under-recognized as truths that this side of heaven will never be fully understood. Yes, we want to ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten us, but we are encouraged in Deuteronomy 29:29 to spend more time emphasizing the revealed word of God and calling on Him to help us apply the plain truth that is easy to understand yet hard to execute. If we spent more time implementing obedience to teachings we know God is asking of us, there would be less time for debate and speculation.
Life is short enough as it is. Let's not be careless with the time the Lord has given us. Spinning our wheels in trivial matters gets us nowhere. There are some theological arguments that the enemy will use to harm the lives of believers as they become sidetracked from the central message of the Gospel and the life and work of Jesus Christ. When we expend time on topics that will not help us live a life of faith in God, we are not administering or managing truth well. As any discussion progresses, we should ask ourselves, will time spent on this topic allow me to see a clearer view of Christ, resulting in greater faith, making me more like Him? If the answer is 'no', we need to redirect or remove ourselves so that our own commitment to the Lord and His word is not hindered.
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