Selfish Goal vs. Main Mission
By Anthony Casperson
11-15-25

In the tabletop game Gloomhaven and its sequel Frosthaven, players work together to overcome a number of linked scenarios for an extended campaign. Over the numerous gaming sessions, players level up their characters, increase the number of special perks their character has, and eventually retire one character before starting the process over for another.

Those special perks increase in several ways. The easiest method is the single perk gained at every level up. Also, each new character gains one perk as a “legacy” for each previous character retired by the same player. But the final method of gaining perks comes through Battle Goals.

At the start of each scenario, players are dealt a couple Battle Goal cards. They pick one as their short-term goal for this specific scenario. Examples of what these goals require are: looting more treasure than any other player, making sure there are always enemies on the map at the start of each round, killing a certain number of enemies throughout the encounter, or only taking long rests during the scenario.

Battle Goals can add a little variety to gameplay. But they can also add animosity between players.

Since treasure isn’t shared, having a player who constantly scoops up the loot dropped by enemies might cause their allies to miss out on new equipment for the next scenario. This is especially troublesome if the player with this goal has already been a loot goblin.

A player who wants there to always be enemies on the map will purposefully open a door to a new room before the rest of the team is ready. This triggers a host of new enemies that the other players hadn’t been prepared to face yet. And a few of them might now be upset because they thought that they could get a round to heal up.

When a player seeks a number of enemy kills, they’ll likely need to be on the frontline. This is extremely dangerous for squishier characters, who’ll need to be protected by other teammates. And this character is also more likely to use overly-powered abilities against weaker foes—wasting the damage overage on a weakened foe rather than a more dangerous one—just for the assurance that the enemy will die.

And when a player only ever takes long rests, they’ll not be attacking for a round every 3-6 rounds. And the number of rounds between rests decreases as the game goes on. In particular, this character and the one who wants enemies on the board will be at odds for the entire scenario.

These hidden goals have the possibility of derailing entire scenarios, especially when a player selfishly refuses to let go of their Battle Goal. When a player would rather focus on gaining a special perk than on the goal of the scenario, the rest of the team will need to do all the more work to complete whatever the scenario’s main mission is. And it might just become impossible to successfully fulfil the scenario then.

The issue with this stubborn refusal to focus on the main mission is all the more troublesome when you realize that the benefit of the Battle Goals isn’t even earned if the main mission is failed.

All that effort and nothing to show for it but loss.

This idea of selfish goals competing with the team’s main mission—and leading them to loss—is what we’ll look at from 1 Timothy 6:3-21 for this blog.

While Paul speaks to Timothy—and the church that the young pastor leads in Ephesus—about false teachers as opposition to the kingdom of God, their presence among the followers of Jesus makes them appear to be on the same team as the rest of the church. Thus, the false teachers stand opposed, despite seeming to be aligned with the followers of Jesus.

They take on roles like hidden traitors in other tabletop games. People who you thought were helping, but ended up helping themselves while throwing the game.

In this life, it’s not our job to decide who is or isn’t a true follower of Jesus. But we can look at the actions of others—their fruit—and discern if we should follow their teaching and methods.

The question largely boils down to, “Are they remaining focused on selfish goals, or on the main mission?”

Paul’s discussion concerning this question intersperses the two groups throughout his words. So, we’ll follow suit. Just make sure to keep an eye out for the shifts from the false teachers to the people of God. I’ll try to point them out along the way.

Verse 3 gives us the general statement concerning these false teachers. They proclaim a gospel different than the godliness that Jesus taught. If a person’s words don’t align with the words of Jesus, then they’re not focusing on the main mission.

The Word of God—both Jesus and the bible—shows us who God is and how he desires us to live in relationship with him and others. To act outside of that, or teach others to do so, is obviously opposed to the godliness that followers of Jesus should have. Those false teachings often grow out of selfish desires. After all, what other benefit would people find for spreading falsehood, if not for their own selfish ends?

Paul continues in verses 4-5 with a list of specifics about how this ungodly teaching leads people to behave.

They’re filled with self-importance, while understanding nothing. These false teachers think that they have everything figured out, when in fact, they proclaim their ignorance with every new word. All that comes out strokes the ego—theirs primarily, but also their listeners’ when needed. Such people seek their selfish goals, while saying whatever they need to so that they can soothe over conflicts with others. The words are nothing but lies to appease, while they continue to do their own thing.

Puffed up egos love to hear themselves talk, especially about controversies and heated debates. There’s an unhealthy craving within false teachers for these animosities. The way they seek to prove their supposed knowledge is by tearing others down with their words. Because, they seem to think, the one who shouts louder and longer is the one who stands in the right.

False teachers only care about winning the argument, not about actually helping others toward godliness. They want to cause friction between people. And their endless words create nothing but jealous grasping, hate-filled arguments, blasphemous slander, and wicked conjecture that does no good for anyone involved.

Selfish goals cause nothing but fights.

And in the effort to seem knowledgeable about the truth, such people cause minds to spoil while depriving truth from its rightful place. False teaching and its endless controversies leave people unable to even think properly about the godliness that followers of Jesus are called to pursue.

They drive the main mission from our minds, because the controversies and arguments take up so much room in our focus. We get so consumed with preparing for unforeseen enemies that we miss the part of the main mission found in that side room of the scenario.

One clear indicator of a person who follows or teaches ungodly falsehoods is that they perform this work for the clout and recognition, rather than the glory of God. They claim to follow Jesus just for the supposed privileges it provides. Their minds are on what this religiosity can gain them, rather than on the godly good of life with Jesus. They’re just in it for the loot. Theological vultures who’ll move on to the next thing when it provides them greater rewards.

They miss the point that, with Jesus, gain isn’t about money or loot in this life. Rather, the gain of a follower of Jesus is the lesson of contented godliness. The person of God seeks the ways of Jesus, no matter what situation they find themselves in. We should be ready to serve him and others whether we find ourselves in times of plenty or times of lack.

Service might look a little different depending on our circumstance, but this godliness remains the same.

The reason why contentment is better comes from the fact that selfish pursuit of worldly goods is a road to destruction. Verses 9-10 speak to this destructive nature of single-minded focus on the loot.

When all we think about is how to get rich, we’ll tend to fall into the traps of sin. We might be tempted to gain money by illicit means. And more than one person has fallen into the sin of excessive extravagance at the expense of others’ wellbeing.

But do notice the true statement of verse 10, not just the half-remembered misquotation of it that many often proclaim. It says that the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.

In the context of Paul’s argument—which tells us to find contentment in godliness as our main mission—these words remind us not to have our focus on the selfish goal of gaining all the money we can get our hands on. Money itself is not the problem. It can be of use for the benefit of the body of Christ.

But selfishly pursuing money is the problem.

Loving it so much that nothing else matters to us, especially the glory of God. This path leads only to our destruction, and the destruction of others around us.

Paul will say more later about how those who are rich in this world might act in godliness, but in verses 11-16, he tells us how the person of God should act in general.

The broad stroke of the ideal person of God is that we should flee all of those selfish goals shown before. Lay the Battle Goal down in order to serve the main mission. Decide that the attempt at a new perk isn’t more important than successfully completing the main mission.

Rather than pursuing all of those destructive selfish endeavors, seek: the things that God calls right, the commands and ways of God, the faithfulness of our Savior, the selfless love we have received, the patience God has had toward us, and the willingness to be directed as God sees fit.

Ultimately, our activity should be to continue in the faith that we received. Follow Jesus. Act like him. Keep his commands in the purity of an unreproachable life. Keep them for our whole lives. And teach others to follow suit until the day Jesus finally returns.

This includes teaching others who are rich how to overcome the temptations often accompanying wealth. Verse 17 shows Paul command such people of God to not be proud in their riches. It was by the blessing of God alone that they found themselves in that place—even if it was by the blessing of good health, great strength, or a profoundly business-savvy mind.

As well, they should set their minds on God. Focus on him. Remember, the focus on money is the root of all kinds of evil. Thus, keeping our minds on God’s main mission of growing us in godliness leads us away from the possible temptations. And those who are wealthy in this life can showcase this trust and reliance on God as they remain generous with the gifts God has given them.

Generosity in God’s provided gifts should be true of us all, no matter what form those gifts take.

This generosity on earth stores up heavenly treasure. It’s a foundation on which to build future godliness. And it leads to life, the life God wants for us.

Paul ends his letter with one last reminder for the people of God to stay away from the godless babble and contradictions of false knowledge. The endless debates and worthless proofs of supposed truth. All they do is lead us to destructive ends.

There’s no need to follow selfish goals when all they do in the end is cause us to lose.

So, let’s follow the example set before us. The example of Jesus, first and foremost. But also the example of the person of God that Paul writes about in 1 Timothy 6. Flee from the selfish goals of false gospels. And instead pursue the godliness that is content with whatever blessing God gives, always ready to share that blessing with our fellow followers of Jesus around us.