Remembering Timothy Tow?

 

A Response: “Remembering Servants of God—Rightly”

The call to “remember His faithful servants” (Heb 13:7) is a good and biblical one. God Himself commands His people to honour those who have faithfully taught His Word and lived godly lives before the flock. Indeed, we thank God for those who stood courageously for biblical truth through the centuries—Athanasius against Arianism, the Reformers against Rome, and men of the 20th century who separated from modernism and unbelief to defend the faith once delivered unto the saints.

However, remembering God’s servants must always be done with discernment and truth. Scripture never hides the faults of its heroes: Noah’s drunkenness, David’s adultery, Peter’s denial, Paul’s sharp contention with Barnabas. God’s Word is honest about both faith and failure, because it seeks to glorify not the man, but the God who uses frail vessels.

If we are to remember a man who taught the KJV and Verbal Plenary Preservation, we must also remember that doctrinal purity must be joined with spiritual unity. The Lord Jesus prayed not only that His people would be sanctified by the truth, but also that they “all may be one” (John 17:21). When a servant of God divides and splinters the church or denomination he once helped build, this cannot be brushed aside as though it were a minor footnote. Division, when caused by pride, harshness, or an unyielding spirit toward brethren who hold the same fundamentals of the faith, is not faithfulness—it is failure in love.

Faithfulness to God’s Word includes faithfulness to the spirit of Christ as well as the letter of His truth. One may defend the inspiration and preservation of Scripture, yet deny its transforming power when he refuses peace, forgiveness, or brotherly humility. The Apostle Paul warns, “Though I have all knowledge... and have not charity, I am nothing” (1 Cor 13:2).

We must therefore honour our spiritual forebears rightly:

• With gratitude for their labour in the Word.

• With humility in recognizing their humanity.

• With discernment to learn from both their strengths and their mistakes.

To “remember” them as Hebrews 13:7 commands means to consider the outcome of their way of life and to imitate their faith, not necessarily their every deed or decision. If a man’s ministry ended in division, let that sober us and drive us to deeper self-examination, lest we repeat the same errors while thinking we are defending truth.

So yes, let us remember God’s servants—but let us remember them in the light of the Word of God, not through the lens of uncritical admiration. The true legacy worth preserving is not any man’s institution or movement, but the faith, love, and humility of Christ that must mark all His servants.

“Now the God of peace… make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (Hebrews 13:20–21)