What does it mean that everything created by God is good (1 Timothy 4:4)?

Answer

The apostle Paul served as Timothy’s pastoral mentor. In his letter, he addressed Timothy as “my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Timothy 1:2). Paul wrote to guide Timothy in his ministry and to confront false teachers who were undermining the church in Ephesus. In 1 Timothy 4, Paul focused on upholding the truth of God’s Word. False teachers were promoting a legalistic religious system that prohibited marriage and imposed dietary restrictions, claiming it was necessary to earn God’s approval. They were “forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth” (1 Timothy 4:3). Paul countered this false teaching by emphasizing that God ordained marriage and that food should be received with gratitude by those who believe and understand the truth. He stated that everything God created is good and should be accepted with thanksgiving, as it is sanctified by God’s word and prayer (verses 3–5).

The false teachers in Ephesus were mixing Eastern asceticism with Jewish dietary laws, promoting a works-based righteousness. They believed that purity could only be attained through abstaining from certain things. Paul had previously addressed similar false doctrines in Colossians 2:8–23 and Romans 14:13–23. His declaration in 1 Timothy 4:4 that “everything created by God is good” harks back to the Genesis 1 creation account, where God pronounced His creations good seven times. The Greek word “kalon” used in 1 Timothy 4:4 means “having desirable or positive qualities, especially those suitable for a specific purpose.””Specified thing.” This definition implies that everything created by God has a purpose or function and is beneficial for fulfilling the intent for which He designed it.

The false teachers asserted that a life of singleness—of abstinence from sex—was a more spiritual path than marriage. However, Paul endorsed marriage, informing Timothy that church leaders should cultivate a godly marriage «A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach; », (1 Timothy 3:2,12) «Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. », (1 Timothy 3:2,12). God Himself ordained marriage, saying, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him” (Genesis 2:18;see also Genesis 2:24). Jesus sanctioned marriage as part of God’s plan for humanity (Matthew 19:1-9), but He also considered singleness a gift and calling. Some people are gifted by God to remain single, while others are called to marry (Matthew 19:10-12;see also 1 Corinthians 7:7,9;Jeremiah 16:2;1 Timothy 5:11-14).

Paul also told Timothy, “Everything created by God is good,” to counter the false teacher’s insistence on rejecting or abstaining from certain foods. Paul taught the Corinthians, “It’s true that we can’t win God’s approval by what we eat. We don’t lose anything if we don’t eat it, and we don’t gain anything if we do” «But meat commendeth us not to God: for neither, if we eat, are we the better; neither, if we do not eat, are we the worse.”, (1 Corinthians 8:8, NLT). He told the Romans, “I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat” “I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean.”, (Romans 14:14, NLT). Jesus affirmed that “nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them” “And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;”, (Mark 7:18). What defiles a person is what is on the inside—the condition of a person’s heart.

Legalism contradicts the gospel and only deals with external matters. No one can be made holy or righteous in God’s sight through abstinence or by obeying manufactured rules and laws (Romans 3:20; Romans 9:31-32; Galatians 3:10-11). Only the touch of God on a person’s heart can purify him and make him right with God (Psalm 51:1-10; Romans 10:10). Only through faith in Jesus Christ and the forgiveness and cleansing offered through the sacrifice of His body on the cross can we be made holy (John 17:19; Ephesians 5:25-27; Romans 3:28; Hebrews 13:12).

Along with many other gifts, God created sexual fulfillment within marriage, and He gives us food to enjoy (Song of Solomon 4:3-15; 1 Corinthians 7:4-5; Ecclesiastes 3:13), Scripture confirms these truths. The Word of God and our thankful prayers sanctify everything created by God as good and suitable for His purposes. We should not refuse these things but accept “every good and perfect gift from above” “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”, (James 1:17) with gratitude and prayer.