14I am not writing this to shame you, but to warn you as my beloved children.
15Even if you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.
16Therefore I urge you to imitate me.
17That is why I have sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which is exactly what I teach everywhere in every church.
— 1 Corinthians 4:14-17