2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
Outline of the Books of Timothy
1st Timothy:
1) Faith of the church; doctrine
2) Order of the church
3) Officers of the church
4) Apostasy that was coming
5-6) Duties of the officers
2nd Timothy:
1) Afflictions of the church
2) Activity of the church
3-4) Allegiance of the church
A Suggested Outline of the Book of 2 Timothy
Theme: Preparation for the ministry in the last days
Paul used four appeals to encourage Timothy:
I. The Pastoral Appeal (2 Timothy 1)
1. Courageous enthusiasm (2 Timothy 1:1—7)
2. Shameless suffering (2 Timothy 1:8—12)
3. Spiritual loyalty (2 Timothy 1:13—18)
II. The Practical Appeal (2 Timothy 2)
1. The steward (2 Timothy 2:1—2)
2. The soldier (2 Timothy 2:3—4. 8—13)
3. The athlete (2 Timothy 2:5)
4. The farmer (2 Timothy 2:6—7)
5. The workman (2 Timothy 2:14—18)
6. The vessel (2 Timothy 2:19—22)
7. The servant (2 Timothy 2:23—26)
III. The Prophetic Appeal (2 Timothy 3)
1. Turn away from the false (2 Timothy 3:1—9)
2. Follow those who are true (2 Timothy 3:10—12)
3. Continue in God’s Word (2 Timothy 3:13—17)
IV. The Personal Appeal (2 Timothy 4)
1. Preach the Word (2 Timothy 4:1—4)
2. Fulfill your ministry (2 Timothy 4:5—8)
3. Be diligent and faithful (2 Timothy 4:9—22)
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INTRODUCTION / BACKGROUND
“Help Wanted” Ad
• Men and women wanted for difficult task of building My
church.
• You will often be misunderstood. even by those working with
you.
• You will face constant attack from an invisible enemy.
• You may not see the results of your labor, and you full reward
will not come till after all your work is completed.
• It may cost you your home, your ambitions, even your life.
—Warren Wiersbe
“Be faithful!
It’s always too soon to quit!”
Faithfulness is an important character quality found throughout the
Bible. Hebrews 11
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Noah was faithful in completing the ark despite public ridicule.
Abraham demonstrated faithfulness in offering his son Isaac as
a sacrifice to the Lord.
Moses was faithful as he led the Israelites out of Egypt and
through the wilderness to the entrance of the Promised Land.
David was a faithful king who shepherded God’s people.
Ruth faithfully stayed with her mother-in-law Naomi after her
husband died.
Esther was faithful to her people, risking her life by entering the
presence of King Xerxes of Persia without being summoned
and begging for their deliverance.
Jesus taught the importance of being faithful, drawing attention
to the fact that every disciple is a steward and must be faithful
with the resources that he or she has been given by God.
In those early days of the growing Church, the Church was an new
island in a sea of paganism.
The people in the Church largely came out from heathen religions
and traditions.
It was easy for them to relapse into the pagan standards.
Timothy was not too happy in his church in Ephesus,
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Titus was in a difficult situation on the Island of Crete.
To both of them, Paul wrote:
“Be faithful! It’s always too soon to quit!”
Paul believed that his faithfulness was going to be rewarded, and
this belief was a powerful motivating factor in his life that kept him
growing in his ability to be faithful.
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I
have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown
of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will
award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to
all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Tim. 4:7—8 NIV).
The Pastoral Epistles
The “Pastoral Epistles” are 1st and 2nd Timothy and Titus.
But, they are not only for pastors: they are for every believer.
[Philemon is also considered a Pastoral Epistle since it is
addressed to an individual person rather than a whole church or
group of churches.]
Timothy, Titus, and Philemon were all trusted colleagues of Paul,
men whom he mentored in the faith and charged to carry on the
work of the Lord Jesus.
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Timothy became the pastor of the church of Ephesus,
Titus became the overseer of the churches on the island of
Crete,
Philemon was a businessman whom Paul led to Christ.
Paul instructed each of these men to be faithful to the Lord,
regardless of their role.
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Paul charged Timothy, “And the things you have heard
me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to
reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others”
(2 Tim. 2:2 NIV).
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He told Titus to “appoint elders in every town”
throughout Crete (Titus 1:5 NIV).
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And he asked Philemon to be faithful to his runaway slave
Onesimus, whom Paul returned to him. Paul was so sure of
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Philemon’s faithful character that he said, “Confident of
your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do
even more than I ask” (Philem. 1:21 NIV).
Paul would want Christians in churches today to hear and heed this
same message. We are all in a “full -time ministry” whether we
know it or not
Paul used the Greek word pistos (faithful”) at least 17 times in his
letters of 1, 2 Timothy and Titus.
The theme runs through each chapter:
Be faithful to the Word,
Be faithful to your task,
Be faithful to the people to whom you minister
God is faithful!
The Personal Letters to Timothy
1 and 2 “Timothy” and “Titus” have always been regarded as
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unique, separate group of personal letters. Different from Pauls
open letters sent to churches.
The Muratorian Canon.- the earliest official list of New Testament
books - says that they were written “from personal feeling and
affection.”
They are private rather than public letters.
The Ecclesiastical Letters to Timothy
Though these are personal and private letters, they have a
significance and a relevance far beyond the immediate.
They are addressed to Timothy so, “that you may know how one
ought to behave in the householdof God, which is the Church
of the living God.” 1 Tim.3:15
These letters have both a personal and an ecclesiastical
significance - a benefit to the church as a whole.
The Pastoral Letters to Timothy
Bit by bit they came to acquire the name by which they are still
known - The Pastoral Epistles.
In 1274, Thomas Aquinas said of I Timothy:
“This letter is as it were a pastoral rule which the Apostle
delivered to Timothy.”
In his introduction to 2 Timothy he writes,
“In the first letter he gives Timothy instructions concerning
ecclesiastical order; in this second letter he deals with a
pastoral care which should be so great that it will even accept
martyrdom for the sake of the care of the flock.”
The title, “The Pastoral Epistles” really became attached to these
letters in 1726 when the great scholar, Paul Anton, gave a series of
famous lectures on them using that title.
Faith = confidence in
Faithful = worthy of having confidence in
Minister = a servant caring out an assignment; a representative of
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Ministry = meeting a need; fullfiling an assigned task
Patience = being continually consistent
Endurance = hanging on; never giving up, finishing the task;
long suffering
Divinely Authorized
2 Timothy 3:16
All Scripture is given
by inspiration G2315 of God, θεόπνευστος gk:God-breathed
and is profitable — in four ways
• for doctrine, — what’s right
• for reproof — what’s not right
• for correction, — how to get right
• for instruction — how to stay right
in righteousness.
THE LANGUAGE OF THE PASTORALS
The total number of words in the Pastoral Epistles is 902,
54 are proper names;
Of the 902 words, at least 306 never occur in any other of Paul's
letters.
More than a third of the words in the Pastoral Epistles are totally
absent from Paul's other letters.
175 words in the Pastoral Epistles occur nowhere else in the
New Testament at all;
There are 50 words in the Pastoral Epistles which occur in
Paul's other letters and nowhere else in the New
Testament.
When the other letters of Paul and the Pastorals say the same thing
they say it
 in different ways,
 using different words and
 different turns of speech
to express the same idea.
Many of Paul's favourite words are absent entirely from the Pastoral
Epistles.
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The words for the cross ("stauros") and to crucify ("stauroun")
occur 27 times in Paul's other letters, and never in the
Pastorals.
"Eleutheria" and the kindred words which have to do with
freedom occur 29 times in Paul's other letters, and never in the
Pastorals.
"Huios," "son," and "huiothesia," "adoption," occur 46 times in
Paul's other letters, and never in the Pastorals.
Greek has many more of those little words called particles and
enclitics than English has.
Sometimes they indicate little more than a tone of voice;
every Greek sentence is joined to its predecessor by one of
them; and they are often virtually untranslatable.
Of these particles and enclitics there are 112 which Paul uses
altogether 932 times in his other letters that never occur in the
Pastorals.
“Paul’s Last Will & Testament”
Review: Events in Paul’s Life
• Held coats while Stephen stoned.
• Converted on road to Damascus.
• In Arabian desert during next three years.
• Forced to flee Damascus in a basket.
• Spends 10 years in Tarsus.
• Barnabas brings him to Antioch.
• 1st Missionary Journey.
• The Council in Jerusalem.
• 2nd Missionary Journey.
• Timothy joins Paul.
• 3rd Missionary Journey.
• Arrested in Judea (58 a.d.).
• Imprisoned in Caesarea for two years.
• Appealed to Caesar.
• Shipwrecked enroute to Rome.
• On Malta for three months.
• House arrest in Rome (Acts 28:30-31).
The Book of Acts breaks off at the beginning of this
imprisonment.
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• Wrote the “Prison epistles”: Ephesians, Philippians, &
Colossians.
• Acquitted of charges and released.
• Wrote 1st Timothy and Titus from Macedonia.
• Arrested and put in a dungeon.
• Wrote 2nd Timothy (apparently his final one).
PAUL'S ACTIVITIES IN THE PASTORALS
Paul was arrested in Jerusalem about the year AD 57,
He was confined to prison in Caesarea for two years (Acts
21:19—26:32).
Paul’s voyage to Rome to be tried before Caesar started about
September AD 59.
After shipwreck and a three-month wait on Malta, he arrived in
Rome about February AD 60 (Acts 27—28).
There he lived in his own rented house and had liberty to minister.
Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, as well as Philemon,
were written during his first Roman captivity.
Paul was acquitted of the charges against him and released.
During the two years that followed, he ministered in various places
and wrote 1 Timothy and Titus.
About the year AD 65, he was arrested again and this time put into
a dungeon. It was then that he wrote 2 Timothy, his last letter.
The Pastorals show Paul engaged in activities for which there is
no room in his life as we know it from the book of Acts.
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He has clearly conducted a mission in Crete (Tit.1:5).
He proposes to spend a winter in Nicopolis, which is in
Epirus (Tit.3:12).
This time he was in chains (2 Tim 1:16) and treated as a criminal (2
Tim 2:9), with little light to read by, no sanitation, facing death.
Paul knew his end was near (2 Tim 4:6); he was deserted by all his
associates in Asia Minor (2 Tim 1:5; 4:16).
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He freely forgave the defectors, “May it not be counted against
them,” but cowardly ingratitude always brings pain and
disappointment (2 Tim 4:16).
WAS PAUL RELEASED FROM HIS ROMAN IMPRISONMENT?
The Church organization of the Pastorals is more elaborate than in
any other Pauline letter.
Paul is depicted as carrying out a mission or missions which cannot
be fitted into the scheme of his life as we have it in Acts. But
Acts leaves it quite uncertain what happened to Paul in Rome.
It ends by telling us that he lived for two whole years in a kind of
semi-captivity, preaching the gospel without hindrance
(Ac.28:30-31).
Acts does not tell us how that captivity ended, whether in Paul's
release or his execution.
There is a stream of tradition which tells that it ended in his
release, his liberty for two or three further years, his
reimprisonment and his final execution about the year A.D.
67.
When Paul was in prison in Rome, he did not regard release as
impossible; in fact, it looks as if he expected it.
When he wrote to the Philippians, he said that he was sending
Timothy to them, and goes on, "And I trust in the Lord that
shortly I myself shall come also" (Php.2:24).
When he wrote to Philemon, sending back the runaway
Onesimus, he says, "At the same time prepare a guest room
for me, for I am hoping through your prayers to be granted
to you" (Phm.22).
Clearly he was preparing for his expected release.
Before he went to Jerusalem on that journey on which he was
arrested, he wrote to the Church at Rome, and in that letter he is
planning a visit to Spain.
"I hope to see you in passing, as I go to Spain."
"I shall go on by way of you to Spain" (Rom.15:24,28).
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While there is no Biblical evidence that the Spain visit was ever
undertaken, if he was released, it is possible that it and several
other stops were completed.
Clement of Rome, when he wrote to the Church at Corinth about
A.D. 90, said of Paul that he preached the gospel in the East and in
the West; that he instructed the whole world (that is, the Roman
Empire) in righteousness; and that he went to the extremity
("terma," the terminus) of the West, before his martyrdom.
What did Clement mean by "the extremity of the West"?
There are many who argue that he meant nothing more than
Rome. But Clement was writing from Rome; and it is difficult to
see that for anyone in Rome the extremity of the West could be
anything else but Spain.
It certainly seems that Clement believed that Paul reached
Spain.
The greatest of all the early Church historians was Eusebius.
In his account of Paul's life he writes:
"Luke who wrote the Acts of the Apostles, brought his
history to a close at this point, after stating that Paul had
spent two whole years at Rome as a prisoner at large, and
preached the word of God without constraint. Thus, after he
had made his defence, it is said that the Apostle was sent
again on the ministry of preaching, and that on coming to
the same city a second time he suffered martyrdom"
(Eusebius: Ecclesiastical History, 2.22.2).
Eusebius has nothing to say about Spain, but he did know the
story that Paul had been released from his first Roman
imprisonment.
The Muratorian Canon, the first list of New Testament books,
describes Luke's scheme in writing Acts:
"Luke related to Theophilus events of which he was an
eye-witness, as also, in a separate place, he evidently declares
the martyrdom of Peter (he probably refers to Lk.22:31-32); but
omits the journey of Paul from Rome to Spain."
In the fifth century, two of the great Christian fathers are definite
about this journey.
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Chrysostom in his sermon on 2Tim.4:20 says: "Saint Paul after
his residence in Rome departed to Spain."
Jerome in his "Catalogue of Writers" says that Paul "was
dismissed by Nero that he might preach Christ's gospel in the
West."
Beyond doubt a stream of tradition held that Paul journeyed to
Spain.
In Spain itself there is not and never was any tradition that Paul
had worked and preached there, no stories about him, no
places connected with his name – a strange thing that the
memory of such a visit could become totally obliterated.
It could well be that the whole story of Paul's release and journey to
the west arose simply as a deduction from his expressed intention
to visit Spain (Rom.15).
Most New Testament scholars do not think that Paul was
released from his imprisonment; the general consensus of
opinion is that his only release was by death.
Given the personal comments to close personal friends and
acquaintances of Paul, we see no reason to doubt the Pastoral
letters are directly sent by Paul.
Metaphors: the “church” in the New Testament
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Holy nation: believers common citizenship in heaven (1 Pet
2:9).
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Kingdom: believer’s common submission to the King of Kings
and Lord of Lords (Rev 5:10).
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Priesthood: the privilege that all believers have of direct
access to God (1 Pet 2:5,9)
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Vine: believers’ common connection to the life of God to bear
fruit (John 15:5).
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Temple: being built upon the solid foundation of the apostle’s
doctrine, with Jesus Christ as the chief cornerstone (Eph
2:20-22).
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A Body: believers’ common life and dependence on their Head,
the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor 12:12).
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An Assembly: believers’ common calling to be gathered into
the eternal presence of God (Heb 12:23).
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A Flock: believers’ common need to be led and fed by the
Great Shepherd (1 Pet 5:2-3).
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A Family: the intimacy, care, openness. and love (1 Timothy).
1 Timothy: The Local Church and its Minister
Ten times in the two letters to Timothy, Paul speaks of his “charge”
- committed to him by Christ and which he committed to Timothy the glorious Gospel of the blessed God.
• A Charge: Guard the Deposit Chapter 1
• The Assembly and Its Conduct Chapters 2-3
— Concerning Order Chapter 2
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Men and Public Prayer
Women and Public Mien
— Concerning Office Chapter 3
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Qualification of Elders
Qualification of Deacons
• The Minister and His Conduct Chapters 4 -6
— To the Assembly in General Chapter 4
—To Particular Groups Chapters 5-6
2 Timothy: A Challenge to Faithfulness
Paul’s last letter, as he awaited execution; he did not expect to be
freed this time.
The first letter was a “charge; this one is a “challenge’ to fortitude
and faithfulness, under both
the present testing and
in the end-time testing come.
• The True Pastor under Chapters 1-2
—The True Personal Reaction
—The True Pastoral Reaction
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• The True Pastor and End-time Troubles Chapters 3-4
—The True Personal Reaction
—The True Pastoral Reaction
The Early Church
Paul spent several years in Ephesus.
The Church he left behind when he moved on had a fairly highly
developed ecclesiastical organization.
• There were elders (1 Tim.5:17-19; Tit 1:5-6);
• There were bishops, superintendents or overseers (1
Tim.3:1-7; Tit 1:7-16);
• There are deacons (1 Tim. 3:8-13).
• There were salaried officials. (1 Tim 5:17-18)
• There is at least the beginning of the order of widows who
became so prominent later on in the early Church (1
Tim.5:3-16).
The Pastoral Letters to Timothy
These letters deal with:
• the care and organization of the flock of God;
• they tell men how to behave within the household of God:
• they give instructions as to how God’s householf should be
administered.
- as to what kind of people the leaders and pastors of the
Church should be, and
- as to how the threats which endanger the purity of
Christian faith and life should be dealt with.
The Days of the Creeds Emerges
The word “faith” was changing in its meaning.
In the earliest days it is always faith in a person; the most intimate
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possible personal connection of love and trust and obedience with
Jesus Christ.
In later days it became faith in a creed; it became the acceptance of
certain doctrines; a belief system based on certain tenants.
In the later days men will come who will depart from the
faith and give heed to doctrines of devils (1 Tim.4:1).
A good servant of Jesus Christ must be nourished in the
words of faith and good doctrine (1 Tim.4:6)
The heretics are men of corrupt minds, reprobate
concerning the faith (2Tim.3:8).
The duty of Titus is to rebuke men that they may be sound
in the faith (Tit.1:13).
The Days of the Creeds Emerges
Rev 2:1-7 NASB
(1) “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One
who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who
walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:
(2) ‘I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and
that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the rest
those who call themselves apostles, and they are nor, and
you found the in to be false; and you have perseverance
(3) and have endured for My name’s sake, and have nor
grown weary.
(4) ‘But l have this against you, that you have left your first
love.
Ephesus had replaced their faith in Jesus with faith in
creeds and rules and order and conditions that must be met
in order to accepted.
Requirements had replaced Relationship
(5) ‘Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and
repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am
coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its
place--unless you repent.
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(6) Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the
Nicolaitans which I also hate.
[Nico = rulers; Laitans. = people > those who rule the
people in the church]
(7) ‘He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to
the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of
the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God,’
1 Timothy: Warnings
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“Some have turned aside” 1 Tim 1:6
“Some have made a shipwreck” 1 Tim 1:19
“Some shall fall away” 1 Tim 4:1
“Some have turned after Satan” 1 Tim 5:15
“Some have been led astray” 1 Tim 6:10
“Some have missed the mark” 1 Tim 6:21
In the second epistle the “some have become “all.”
A prophetic profile of our own times.
Our Challenge: Finishing well...
Loyalty
This epistle seems to emphasize one word above others: Loyalty!
– Loyalty in suffering (2 Tim 1);
– Loyalty in service (2 Tim 2);
– Loyalty in apostasy (2 Tim 3-4:5);
– The Lord’s loyalty to His servants in desertion (2 Tim 4:6-22).
Triumph
Paul is encouraging Timothy! Paul was passing the mantle to his
“son in the faith,” urging him to persevere in strength and
faithfulness (2 Tim 2:1).
A DANGEROUS HERESY
It is clear that the situation against which the Pastoral Epistles were
written was the beginning of a dangerous heresy which was
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threatening the core of the Christian Church.
It was characterized by speculative intellectualism.
• It produced questions (1 Tim .1:4);
those involved in it doted about questions (1 Tim .6:4);
• It dealt in foolish and unlearned questions (2 Tim 2:23);
foolish questions are to be avoided (Tit 3:9).
The word used in each case for questions is “ekzetesis” which
means “speculative discussion” - the play-ground of the
pseudo-intellectuals within the Church.
It was characterized by pride.
The heretic is proud, although in reality he knows nothing (1
Tim.6:4).
A DANGEROUS HERESY
The Pastoral Epistles stress the word “all”
The grace of God, which brings salvation, has appeared to all men
(Tit.2:11).
It is God’s will that all men should be saved and come to a
knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:4).
There were some in the church who tried to make the greatest
blessings of Christianity the exclusive possession of a chosen few.
If you are not like us, you can’t be one of us...
True faith stresses the all-embracing love of God.
The tendency to asceticism.
On the one hand this heresy issued in an unchristian asceticism,
and on the other it produced an equally unchristian immorality.
• The heretics tried to lay down special food laws, forgetting that
everything God has made is good (1 Tim .4:4-5).
They listed many things as impure, forgetting that to the pure all
things are pure (Tit.1:15).
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• It is possible that they regarded sex as something unclean and
belittled marriage, even trying to persuade those who were married
to renounce it,
In Titus 2:4 the simple duties of the married life are stressed as
being binding on the Christian.
The tendency to immorality.
• The heretics apparently even invaded private houses and led
away weak and foolish women in evil desires (2 Tim.3:6).
• They professed to know God, but denied him by their deeds
(Tit.1:16).
• They were out to impose upon people and to make money out of
their false teaching.
The tendency to foolish discussion.
• It was characterized by words and tales and genealogies.
- It was full of godless chatter and useless controversies (1 Tim.
6:20).
- It produced endless genealogies (1 Tim.1 :4; Tit.3:9).
- It produced myths and fables (1 Tim .1 :4; Tit.1 :14).
The tendency to legalism.
It was in some extent tied to Jewish legalism and tradition.
— do as I say, become as I am, or you are not one of us...
• Amongst its devotees were those of the circumcision (Tit. 1:10).
• The aim of the heretics was to be the teachers of the law (1 Tim.
1:7).
• It pressed on men Jewish fables and the commandments of men
(Tit 1:14).
Certain of the Jews claimed that it was the Jewish law and the
Jewish food regulations which provided that special knowledge and
necessary asceticism;
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There were times when Judaism and Gnosticism went hand in
hand.
The tendency to another Gospel
Finally, these heretics denied the resurrection of the body.
If the body was evil, there could be no resurrection.
They looked forward to the body’s destruction, not its
resurrection.
They said that any resurrection that a man was going to experience
had been experienced already (2 Tim.2:18).
Some held that the only resurrection the Christian experienced
was a spiritual one
That a believer died with Christ and rose again with him in
the experience of baptism (Rom. 6:4) and should look
forward to a future, actual, physical resurrection.
The Beginnings of a Gnostic Infestation
The one heresy that fits all these errors is “Gnosticism.’
Gnosticism did not fully emerge as a complete belief system until
much later than Paul.
The formal systems of Gnosticism, connected with such names
as Valentinus and Basilides. did not arise until the second
century; but these figures only systematized what was already
there.
In facing Gnosticism the Church was facing one of the gravest
dangers which ever threatened the Christian faith.
At the root of Gnosticism was the belief all matter is essentially
evil and that the spirit alone is good.
That basic belief had certain consequences.
Gnostics believed that matter was as eternal as God; and that when
God created the world he had no alternative than to use this
essentially evil matter
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That meant that to them God could not be the direct creator of
the world.
In order to contact this flawed matter God had to send out a series
of emanations — called aeons - each one more and more distant
from himself until at last there came an aeon so distant that it could
deal with matter and create the world.
Between man and God there stretched a series of these
emanations, each with his name and genealogy.
As a result, Gnosticism literally had endless fables and endless
genealogies.
If a man was ever to get to God, he must ascend this ladder of
emanations;
To do that he needed a very special kind of knowledge including
all kinds of passwords to get him past each stage.
Only a person of the highest intellectual caliber could hope
to acquire this knowledge and know these passwords and
so get to God.
Further, if matter was altogether evil then the body was also
altogether evil - it was composed of this evil matter.
Either:
• the evil body must be held down by a rigorous asceticism in
which the needs of the body were as far as possible eliminated
and its instincts, especially the sex instinct, were as far as
possible destroyed:
or
• Since the body was evil, and there was nothing that could be
done about it, it did not matter what was done with the body and
its instincts and desires could be given full rein.
There was also ‘another gospel’ being advocated from within the
Church itself by the Church’s own members.
The Judizer’s insisted that in order for one to come to Jesus as
Lord they must first submit to Judaic Law and Traditions.
19
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
Their claim was a believer could not recognize Christ unless
they first became a Jewish proselyte and further that the Lord
would not recognize them unless they did so.
This had its various levels or adherence but in all its forms and
requirements was a gospel base on man’s works and deeds
rather than a man’s faith in Christ alone.
Indeed it was another gospel, different from the gospel Paul
preached and delivered to them.
Saul: Born and Bred.... Acts 22:25-29
Saul (later called Paul) was born and spent his early years in
Tarsus—an important Roman city.
He is born a Roman citizen.
Tarsus was also the seat of a famous university, higher in
reputation even than the universities of Athens and Alexandria, the
only others that then existed.
He was taken to Jerusalem as a young boy and educated by the
well-known teacher Gamaliel (Acts 22:3).
He was a Pharisee.
Saul: The persecutor.... Acts 26:9-11
When Stephen was stoned to death for his faith, Saul held the
stoners’ coats.
He became a violent persecutor of the church and was given
authority to imprison Christians.
He traveled to foreign cities (where he had no authority) in order
to root out the Christians.
He was literally, a first century terrorist...
Saul traveled to Damascus to arrest believers.
At midday, near the city, he was confronted by Jesus who charged
him: ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
As a result of the encounter, Saul was left blinded.
20
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
21
Saul’s Work after Damascus before his 1st Journey Acts
9:23-25
Saul was forced to escape from the Jews of Damascus in a basket.
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
He went to Jerusalem to see Peter
The believers still suspected him, but Barnabas introduced him to
them.
He talked with Peter and met James.
But after only 2 weeks he had to be smuggled out because of
opposition from some Jews.
Saul: Caesarea to Tarsus to Antioch Acts 11:25-26
Saul was taken to Caesarea.
From there he left for his home city of Tarsus.
He spent 10 years in Tarsus.
During this time he visited places in Cilicia and Syria.
He was still unknown personally to believers in Judea.
Barnabas (who had been sent to work in the church in Antioch)went
to find Saul in Tarsus.
He brought him back to Antioch and they taught together for 1 year.
22
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
1st Missionary Journey: Acts 13 - 14






Salamis Acts 13:5
Paphos
Acts 13:6
Antioch (Pisidia) Acts 13:14
Iconium Acts 13:51
Lystra and Derbe Acts 14:6, 20
Return journey
Acts 14:21, 22
Mission to the Galatians Acts 13:1-13
Paul and Barnabas were sent out by the Antioch church, with John
Mark (Acts 13:14).
John Mark left them to go back to Jerusalem (Acts 13:13).
At Paphos they encountered Bar-Jesus, false prophet and friend of
the governor.
Bar-Jesus was struck blind.
The governor believed and from the Paphos .events on, Saul
became known as Paul.
Mission to the Galatians Acts 13:14-14:28
23
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
Paul preached to Jews and Gentiles. They stayed a long time.
The Jews became jealous and stirred up opposition (Acts
13:14-52).
Many Jews and Gentiles became believers, but a Gentile plot on
their lives forced them to move on (Acts 14:1-7).
Paul healed a cripple. They were hailed as gods.
Enemies arrived from Antioch and Iconium — they were almost
killed (Acts 14:8-20), but many more disciples were won.
They returned the way they came, encouraging the young churches
(Acts 14:21-26) and reported everything to the church in Antioch
(Acts 14:27-28).
Saul, Barnabas, and Titus traveled to Jerusalem with famine relief
money for Judea that they had collected from the new converts.
The Council in Jerusalem: Acts 15
While in Jerusalem they met privately with the church leaders.
Despite some disagreements, the leaders recognized Saul’s
ministry to the Gentiles (Acts 11:27-30; Galatians 2:1-10).
Considerable controversy erupts over the obligations incumbent
upon Gentile believers.
Paul, Barnabas. and others seek the direction from the elders in
Jerusalem for resolution.
The Two Problems were Raised
• What must a Gentile do to be saved?
• What is to become of Israel?
The Council in Jerusalem: Acts 15
Peter’s Testimony
Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the
neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we
were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of
the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.
Acts 15:10-11
Note: Peter testified — He was a witness before the Jerusalem
church leadership.
24
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
Recent discoveries in Israel have revealed definitive evidence of
James leadership of the Jerusalem church.
(The Vatican had attempted to sequester the materials:
however, Robert Fisher, among the excavators, let the
cat-out-of-the-bag!)
James’ Response
Men and brethren, hearken unto me: Simeon hath declared
how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to rake our of them a
people for his name. And to this agree the words of the
prophets; as it is written, “After this I will return, and will build
again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will
build again the ruins thereof, and! will set it up..” Acts
15:14-16
James is quoting Amos 9:11-12.
The Resolution(s)
1) The converted Gentile believers should:
• Abstain from idols:
• abstain from fornication;
• abstain from things strangled, and
• abstain from blood.
No commitment to Mosaic practices: ceremonial laws.
circumcision, etc. required from them
2) The issue of Israel’s destiny was addressed by Paul in Romans
9, 10, 11
25
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
26
2nd Missionary Journey: Acts 15:36 — 18:22
• Philippi
• Thessalonica
• Berea
• Athens
• Corinth
• Ephesus
2nd Missionary Journey: Acts 16:1 — 7
Paul and Barnabas agree to revisit the Galatian churches.
But, they disagree about taking John Mark who had left them on
the earlier mission.
After an argument,
Barnabas takes Mark to Cyprus.
Paul takes Silas to Galatia.
At Lystra, Paul asks Timothy to join them (Acts 16:1-3).
They revisit the towns, telling the believers the decisions of the
Jerusalem Council about Gentile converts (Acts 16:4-5).
Paul tries to go to Bithynia, but is blocked by the Holy Spirit (Acts
16:6-7).
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
2nd Missionary Journey: Acts 16:8 — 40
At night. Paul has a vision:
a Macedonian urges him to come to help.
At this point Luke joins them:
They sail for Macedonia (Acts 16:8-10).
Paul delivers a girl medium from an evil spirit in Philippi
The girl’s owners protest;
A Crowd attacks;
They are arrested, flogged, imprisoned;
They are freed by earthquake.
The Philippian jailer is converted (Acts 16:11-40).
2nd Missionary Journey: Acts 17:1 —34
They travel to Thessalonica (Acts 17:1).
Paul convinces both Jews and Greeks.
Some Jews stir up a riot — Paul leaves secretly but Silas and
Timothy stay behind (Acts 17:10-15).
Paul speaks to the court of the Areopagus Athens, which met to
consider new religions.
His mention of the resurrection divides his audience:
some laugh,
some believe (Acts 17:16-34).
2nd Missionary Journey: Acts 18:1-17
Silas and Timothy arrive from Thessalonica with news.
Paul writes 1 and 2 Thessalonians. encouraging that church in its
difficulties.
They spend almost two years in Corinth! building up the church.
Despite Jewish opposition, they are able to stay.
27
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
Mar 10:42 [MKJV] But Jesus called them and said to them,
You know that they who are accounted rulers over the nations
exercise lordship over them.
And their great ones exercise authority on them.
43 But it shall not be so among you. But, whoever desires to
be great among you, let him be your servant.
44 And whoever of you desires to become first, he shall be
servant of all.
45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served,
but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.
Titus 1 [CEV]
5 … appoint leaders for the churches in each town. As I told
you,
6 they must have a good reputation and
be faithful in marriage.
Their children must be followers of the Lord and
not have a reputation for being wild and disobedient.
7 Church officials are in charge of God's work,
and so they must also have a good reputation.
They must not be bossy,
quick-tempered,
heavy drinkers,
bullies, or
dishonest in business.
8 Instead, they must be
friendly to strangers and
enjoy doing good things.
They must also be sensible,
fair,
pure, and
self-controlled.
9 They must stick to the true message they were taught,
so that their good teaching can help others and correct
everyone who opposes it.
10 There are many who don't respect authority, and
they fool others by talking nonsense….
11 But you must make them be quiet.
They are after money, and
they upset whole families by teaching what they should not.
12 …. They are greedy and lazy like wild animals."
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2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
13 …. And you should be hard on such people,
so you can help them grow stronger in their faith.
1 Timothy 3 [KJV]
1 This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop
[overseer / elder / church leader], he desireth a good work.
2 A bishop then must be
blameless,
the husband of one wife,
vigilant,
sober,
of good behaviour,
given to hospitality,
apt to teach;
3 Not given to wine,
no striker,
not greedy of filthy lucre;
but patient,
not a brawler,
not covetous;
4 One that ruleth well his own house,
having his children in subjection with all gravity;
5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house,
how shall he take care of the church of God?)
6 Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the
condemnation of the devil.
7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are
without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
8 Likewise must the deacons [those who minister to the
church / helpers / those who serve]
be grave,
not double tongued,
not given to much wine,
not greedy of filthy lucre;
9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.
10 And let these also first be proved; then let them use the
office of a deacon, being found blameless.
11 Even so must their wives
be grave, not slanderers,
sober,
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2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
faithful in all things.
12 Let the deacons be
the husbands of one wife,
ruling their children and their own houses well.
13 For they that have used the office of a deacon well
purchase to themselves a good degree,
and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
1 Timothy 5 [CEV]
17
Church leaders [elders who rule / spiritual rulers] who do
their job well deserve to be paid twice as much,
especially if they work hard at preaching and teaching.
18
It is just as the Scriptures say, "Don't muzzle an ox when
you are using it to grind grain."
You also know the saying, "Workers are worth their pay."
19
Don't listen to any charge against a church leader,
unless at least two or three people bring the same charges.
20
But if any of the leaders should keep on sinning, they
must be corrected in front of the whole group, as a warning to
everyone else.
21
In the presence of God and Christ Jesus and their
chosen angels, I order you to follow my instructions!
Be fair with everyone, and don't have any favorites.
22
Don't be too quick to accept people into the service of the
Lord by placing your hands on them.
Don't sin because others do, but stay close to God
30
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
31
3RD Missionary Journey: Acts 15:36— 18:22
Paul revisits Ephesus where he stays for almost 3 years building up
the church and grooming local converts — including Timothy for
church leadership.
They tour some of the other cities they had visited in previous
journeys and where churches had been established.
On their return, they stop briefly outside Ephesus at the nearby port
city.
He debates with the Jews who want him to stay longer (Acts
18:18-21).
They travel back to Antioch via Caesarea and Jerusalem (Acts
18:22).
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
Paul’s arrest: Jerusalem to Rome Acts 26 — 28
Now about 57 AD Paul back in Jerusalem is arrested. (Acts 22-25).
He was imprisoned in Caesarea for two years (Acts 26:19 - 26:32).
Paul’s voyage to Rome to be tried before Caesar started about
September, 59 AD.
After a shipwreck and a three-month wait on Malta, he arrived in
Rome about February, 60 AD (Acts 27-28).
There he lived in his own rented house and had liberty to minister.
Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, and Philemon were written
during this first Roman captivity.
Although scripture does not recount the details of Paul’s life and
ministry after this point, historians fill in some blanks.
Paul was acquitted of the charges against him and released.
During the two years that followed, he ministered in various places
and wrote 1 Timothy and Titus.
About 65 AD, Paul was arrested again, and this time put into a
dungeon.
It was then that he wrote 2 Timothy, his last letter.
Paul was not released again but was put to death in Rome.
32
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
2Ti 1:1-18 NASB
(1) Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
according to the promise of life in Christ Jesus,
(2) To Timothy, my beloved son: Grace, mercy and peace
from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
(3) I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience the
way my forefathers did, as I constantly remember you in
my prayers night and day,
(4) longing to see you, even as I recall your tears, so that I
may be filled with joy.
(5) For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which
first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother
Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well.
(6) For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of
God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.
(7) For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of
power and love and discipline.
(8) Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our
Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering
for the gospel according to the power of God,
(9) who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not
according to our works, but according to His own purpose
and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all
eternity,
(10) but now has been revealed by the appearing of our
Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life
and immortality to light through the gospel,
(11) for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle
and a teacher.
(12) For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not
ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am
convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted
to Him until that day.
(13) Retain the standard of sound words which you have
heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ
Jesus.
(14) Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the
treasure which has been entrusted to you.
33
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
(15) You are aware of the fact that all who are in Asia turned
34
away from me, among whom are Phygelus and
Hermogenes.
(16) The Lord grant mercy to the house of Onesiphorus, for
he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains;
(17) but when he was in Rome, he eagerly searched for me
and found me-(18) the Lord grant to him to find mercy from the Lord on
that day--and you know very well what services he
rendered at Ephesus.
2Ti 2:1-26 NASB
(1) You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in
Christ Jesus.
(2) The things which you have heard from me in the
presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men
who will be able to teach others also.
(3) Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ
Jesus.
(4) No soldier in active service entangles himself in the
affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who
enlisted him as a soldier.
(5) Also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win
the prize unless he competes according to the rules.
(6) The hard-working farmer ought to be the first to receive
his share of the crops.
(7) Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you
understanding in everything.
(8) Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead,
descendant of David, according to my gospel,
(9) for which I suffer hardship even to imprisonment as a
criminal; but the word of God is not imprisoned.
(10) For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those
who are chosen, so that they also may obtain the salvation
which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory.
(11) It is a trustworthy statement: For if we died with Him,
we will also live with Him;
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
(12) If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny
35
Him, He also will deny us;
(13) If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot
deny Himself.
(14) Remind them of these things, and solemnly charge
them in the presence of God not to wrangle about words,
which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers.
(15) Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a
workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately
handling the word of truth.
(16) But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to
further ungodliness,
(17) and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them
are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
(18) men who have gone astray from the truth saying that
the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset
the faith of some.
(19) Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands,
having this seal, "The Lord knows those who are His,"
and, "Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to
abstain from wickedness."
(20) Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver
vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and
some to honor and some to dishonor.
(21) Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these
things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to
the Master, prepared for every good work.
(22) Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness,
faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord
from a pure heart.
(23) But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing
that they produce quarrels.
(24) The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but
be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged,
(25) with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition,
if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the
knowledge of the truth,
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
(26) and they may come to their senses and escape from the
36
snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do
his will.
2Ti 3:1-17 NASB
(1) But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will
come.
(2) For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful,
arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful,
unholy,
(3) unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without
self-control, brutal, haters of good,
(4) treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure
rather than lovers of God,
(5) holding to a form of godliness, although they have
denied its power; Avoid such men as these.
(6) For among them are those who enter into households
and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led
on by various impulses,
(7) always learning and never able to come to the knowledge
of the truth.
(8) Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these
men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind,
rejected in regard to the faith.
(9) But they will not make further progress; for their folly
will be obvious to all, just as Jannes's and Jambres's folly
was also.
(10) Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose,
faith, patience, love, perseverance,
(11) persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at
Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I
endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me!
(12) Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will
be persecuted.
(13) But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to
worse, deceiving and being deceived.
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
(14) You, however, continue in the things you have learned
and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have
learned them,
(15) and that from childhood you have known the sacred
writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads
to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
(16) All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for
teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in
righteousness;
(17) so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for
every good work.
2Ti 4:1-22 NASB
(1) I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of
Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and
by His appearing and His kingdom:
(2) preach the word; be ready in season and out of season;
reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and
instruction.
(3) For the time will come when they will not endure sound
doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will
accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their
own desires,
(4) and will turn away their ears from the truth and will
turn aside to myths.
(5) But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the
work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
(6) For I am already being poured out as a drink offering,
and the time of my departure has come.
(7) I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I
have kept the faith;
(8) in the future there is laid up for me the crown of
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will
award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to
all who have loved His appearing.
(9) Make every effort to come to me soon;
37
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
(10) for Demas, having loved this present world, has
deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone 38
to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.
(11) Only Luke is with me. Pick up Mark and bring him with
you, for he is useful to me for service.
(12) But Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus.
(13) When you come bring the cloak which I left at Troas
with Carpus, and the books, especially the parchments.
(14) Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm; the
Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
(15) Be on guard against him yourself, for he vigorously
opposed our teaching.
(16) At my first defense no one supported me, but all
deserted me; may it not be counted against them.
(17) But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so
that through me the proclamation might be fully
accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I
was rescued out of the lion's mouth.
(18) The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will
bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the
glory forever and ever. Amen.
(19) Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of
Onesiphorus.
(20) Erastus remained at Corinth, but Trophimus I left sick
at Miletus.
(21) Make every effort to come before winter. Eubulus
greets you, also Pudens and Linus and Claudia and all the
brethren.
(22) The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
2 Timothy 1
AN APOSTLE'S GLORY AND AN APOSTLE'S PRIVILEGE
Christians Courageous!
(2 Timothy 1)
When Paul wrote the letter we know as 2 Timothy, his situation had
changed drastically.
He was now a prisoner in Rome and was facing certain death (2
Tim. 4:6).
Almost all of Paul’s associates in the ministry were gone and
only Luke was at the apostle’s side to assist him (2 Tim. 4:11).
But Paul’s great concern was for Timothy and the success
of the gospel ministry.
Paul encouraged his beloved colleague to be faithful.
Timothy seems to have been timid, suffering from physical
ailments, and was tempted to let other people take advantage
of him and not assert his authority as a pastor.
Paul sent Tychicus to replace Timothy at Ephesus so that Timothy
might join Paul at Rome (2 Tim. 4:9, 12).
God would soon move Paul off the scene, and Timothy would take
his place and continue to give spiritual leadership to the churches.
It would not be an easy task, but Timothy could succeed with the
Lord’s help.
2 Timothy 1:1-7
"This is a letter from Paul, who was made an apostle of Christ
Jesus by the will of God, and whose apostleship was designed
to make known to all men God's promise of real life in Christ
Jesus, to Timothy his own beloved child. Grace, mercy and
peace be to you from God, the Father, and from Christ Jesus,
our Lord.
"I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience, as my
forefathers did before me, for all that you are to me, just as in
my prayers I never cease to remember you, for, remembering
your tears when we parted, I never cease to yearn to see you,
that I may be filled with joy. And I thank God that I have
received a fresh reminder of that sincere faith which is in you,
39
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
a faith of the same kind as first dwelt in your grandmother Lois
and in your mother Eunice, and which, I am convinced, dwells
in you too. That is why I send you this reminder to keep at
white heat the gift that is in you and which came to you
through the laying of my hands upon you; for God did not give
us the spirit of craven fear, but of power and love and
self-discipline."
Courageous Enthusiasm
The ministry of the gospel is no place for a “timid soul” who lacks
enthusiasm. In fact, courageous enthusiasm is essential for
success in any kind of work.
Paul compared this attitude to stirring up a fire into full flame (2
Tim.1:6 NIV).
Timothy was not backslidden or lacking in spiritual fire.
Rather, Paul was encouraging his associate to keep the fire
burning brightly so that it might generate spiritual power in his
life.
Paul gave Timothy four encouragements.
The Will of God
1] Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God,
according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,
The herald proclaims a message that holds out the promise of
life (2 Tim 1:1).
Paul’s own circumstances were difficult, and yet he was greatly
encouraged.
For one thing, he was Christ’s ambassador (“apostle”), and he
knew that his Master would care for him.
Whatever happened to him was in the hands of God, so
there was no need to fear.
The Will of God: there are four:
1) His Sovereign Will - “The Mystery of His Will”
2) His Revealed Will - The Word of God
3) His Will for mankind - Salvation
40
2 Timothy
TJL compiled notes
4) His Will for the Believer - Sanctification
When Paul speaks of his own apostleship he was always certain:
His apostleship was an honor.
He was chosen to it by the will of God.
Every Christian must regard himself as a God-chosen
man.
His apostleship was a responsibility.
God chose him because he wanted to do something with
him. He wished to make him the instrument by which the
tidings of new life went out to men.
No Christian is ever chosen entirely for his own sake,
but for what he can do for others.
A Christian is a man lost in wonder, love and praise at what
God has done for him and aflame with eagerness to tell
others what God can do for them.
His apostleship was a privilege.
Paul saw it as his duty to bring to others--the promise of
God, not his threat.
To him, Christianity was not only a threat of damnation;
it was the good news of salvation.
It is worth remembering that Paul, the greatest evangelist
and missionary the world has ever seen, was not out to
terrify men by shaking them over the flames of hell, but to
move them to astonished submission at the sight of the love
of God.
The dynamic of the gospel message is love, not fear.
Timothy, Paul’s Spiritual Son
2] To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and
peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
THE INSPIRING OF TIMOTHY
“Timothy, my dearly beloved son” is much stronger than
“Timothy, my own son in the faith” (1 Tim. 1:2).
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It is not that Paul loved Timothy less when he wrote that first
letter, but that Paul was now expressing it more.
As Paul’s life drew to a close, he realized in a deeper way
how dear Timothy was to him.
Paul had “the promise of life” in Jesus Christ, and Christ had
defeated death (2 Tim. 1:10).
Paul was able to extend to Timothy “grace, mercy, and peace.”
It is interesting that Paul added “mercy” to his greeting when he
wrote to pastors (1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; Titus 1:4).
Paul knew that pastors earned the need for mercy!
God’s Love is expressed in His continual Mercy and Grace
which result in our experiencing Peace with God
Love to be committed to Sacrificial commitment to and for
another.
Seeking the best for another, even if at our
own expense. Love cannot wait to give for the
betterment of its object.
Indifference / Apathy is the opposite of love;
Hate is negative love – both love and hate care deeply
Mercy Punishment reprieved [Mercy and Grace always
work together - never one without the other. They
always result in Peace with God] NOT receiving the real
justice that we actually deserve but rather receiving
Grace that we do not deserve – punishment set aside
Grace Undeserved favor
To receive good we don't
deserve
One who stoops down low to offer kindness
to someone beneath him. God’s Riches At Christ’s
Expense
[Grace and Mercy always work together never one without the other. They always result in
Peace with God]
Peace Being right in God's eyes
Possessing confidence
and contentment without fear
Whenever Paul speaks to or of Timothy there is a warmth of loving
affection in Paul's voice.
"My beloved child," he calls him.
Timothy was his child in the faith.
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Timothy's parents had given him physical life; but it was
Paul who gave him eternal life.
Paul's object in writing is to inspire and strengthen Timothy for his
task in Ephesus.
Timothy was young and he had a hard task in battling against
the heresies and the infections that were bound to threaten the
Church.
In order to keep his courage high and his effort strenuous, Paul
reminds Timothy of certain things.
He reminds him of his own confidence in him.
There is no greater inspiration than to feel that someone
believes in us.
The fear of letting down those who love us is a cleansing
thing.
He reminds him of his family tradition.
Timothy was walking in a fine heritage, and if he failed, not
only would he smirch his own name, but he would lessen
the honor of his family name as well.
A fine parentage is one of the greatest gifts a man can
have. Let him thank God for it and never bring
dishonor to it.
He reminds him of his setting apart to office and of the gift
which was conferred upon him.
Once a man enters upon the service of any association with
a tradition, anything that he does affects not only himself nor
has it to be done only in his own strength.
There is the strength of a tradition to draw upon and the
honor of a tradition to preserve.
That is specially true of the Church. He who serves it has
its honor in his hands; he who serves it is strengthened by
the consciousness of the communion of all the saints.
He reminds him of the qualities which should characterize
the Christian teacher.
There was courage.
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It always takes courage to be a Christian, and that
courage comes from the continual consciousness of the
presence of Christ.
There was power.
In the true Christian there is the power to cope, the
power to shoulder the back-breaking task, the power to
stand erect in face of the shattering situation, the power
to retain faith in face of the soul-searing sorrow and the
wounding disappointment.
The Christian is characteristically the man who could
pass the breaking-point and not break.
There was love.
In Timothy's case this was love for the brethren, for the
congregation of the people of Christ over whom he was
set.
It is precisely that love which gives the Christian pastor
his other qualities.
He must love his people so much that he will never
find any toil too great to undertake for them or any
situation threatening enough to daunt him.
No man should ever enter the ministry of the Church
unless there is love for Christ's people within his heart.
There was self-discipline.
The word is "sophronismos," one of these great Greek
untranslatable words.
Some have defined it as "the sanity of saintliness."
and as "control of oneself in face of panic or of
passion."
It is Christ alone who can give us that self-mastery
which will keep us alike from being swept away and from
running away.
No man can ever rule others unless he has first
mastered himself.
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"Sophronismos" is that divinely given self-control
which makes a man a great ruler of others because he is
first of all the servant of Christ and the master of himself.
In My Prayers
3] I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure
conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee
in my prayers night and day;
Paul’s praying was not routine: it was done with passion and real
concern.
How’s your prayer list?
Who is always on it, even without asking?
How serious (fervent, passionate, focused) are you in prayer?
Note Paul’s example!
Paul, who knew Timothy’s weaknesses and problems, was able to
pray definitely and with a real burden on his heart.
His praying was not routine; it was done with compassion and
concern.
Paul realized that his Jewish faith, brought to him through his
forefathers, was but preparation for the fulfillment Christ gave him in
Christianity.
He heard about the true God from his forefathers, and now he
was serving that God with a pure conscience.
The fact that he had a pure conscience helped give power to
his prayers.
4] Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that
I may be filled with joy;
Knowing that he would soon die, Paul was anxious that Timothy join
him at Rome for those last days of fellowship and ministry.
This would bring joy to Paul’s heart.
Paul did not think that Timothy’s tears were evidence of failure or
insincerity.
Timothy’s tears may have been based in Paul’s impending
death or the trials and failings of the Church in which he served
or both…
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Paul was sure that Timothy’s faith was genuine, and that this
faith would see him through in spite of the troubles he was
facing.
Paul’s confidence in Timothy
5] When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in
thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy
mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.
Lois, Timothy’s grandmother, was the first one in the family to be
won to Christ; then his mother, Eunice.
Timothy’s father was Greek, so Eunice had not practiced the
orthodox Jewish faith (Acts 16:1).
Even so, they had seen to it that Timothy was taught the
Scriptures (2 Tim 3:15).
When Paul came to Lystra on his 1st missionary journey, it may
have been the occasion for Timothy’s conversion.
On his return on his 2nd journey, he enlisted Timothy into Christian
service.
Paul had watched Timothy’s life and service during those years
they were together.
He was certain that Timothy’s faith was genuine.
Timothy’s heritage was a great one
He was reared in a godly home, trained by a wonderful
apostle, and given marvelous opportunities for serving
the Lord.
Timothy had every reason to be encouraged and to have spiritual
enthusiasm in his ministry.
Paul loved him and prayed for him. His experiences in life had
been preparation for his ministry, and Paul was confident of the
genuineness of Timothy’s faith.
The Spirit within him would give all the power needed for
ministry.
What more could he want?
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God’s gift to Timothy
6] Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the
gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.
The preacher’s gift comes from God (2 Tim 1:6).
The gift of a herald must be fanned into flame (2 Tim 1:6): that
is, stirred up by constant use.
Timothy did not need any new spiritual ingredients in his life; all he
had to do was “stir up” what he already had.
Paul had written in his first letter, “Neglect not the gift that is in
thee” (1 Tim. 4:14).
Now he added, “Stir up—stir into flame—the gift of God.”
The Holy Spirit does not leave us when we fail (John 14:16),
but He cannot fill us, empower us, and use us if we neglect
our spiritual lives.
It is possible to grieve the Spirit (Eph. 4:30)
It is possible to quench the Spirit (1 Thess. 5:19).
How many in the ministry flee any real accountability?
Timothy was a partner with Paul. . .
Paul reminded Timothy of the time God called him into
service and the local church ordained him.
Paul had laid his hands on Timothy (1 Tim. 4:14).
Through Paul, God had imparted to Timothy the spiritual gift he
needed for his ministry.
The laying on of hands was a common practice in apostolic days
(Acts 6:6; 13:3), but no believer today has the same authority and
privileges that the apostles did.
Today, when we lay hands on people for the ministry, it is a
symbolic act and does not necessarily impart any special
spiritual gifts to them.
7] For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power,
and of love, and of a sound mind.
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2Ti 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of timidityG1167, but of
powerG1411 and loveG26 and disciplineG4995.
The preaching gift must be exercised with love, power and
self-discipline (2 Tim 1:7).
“Fear” = deilia G1167 (only here): timidity, fearfulness, cowardice.
It is the Holy Spirit who enables us to serve God, and through
Him we can overcome fear and weakness.
“Power” = dunamis G1411; from G1410; (miraculous) power, might,
strength: ability
The Holy Spirit gives us power for witness and for service
(Acts 1:8).
It is futile for us to try to serve God without the power of
the Holy Spirit. Talent, training, and experience cannot
take the place of the power of the Spirit.
“Love” = agapē G26 from G25; love, goodwill:
The Holy Spirit also gives us love. If we have love for lost souls
and for the people of God, we will be able to endure suffering
and accomplish the work of God.
Selfishness leads to fear because, if we are selfish, we are
interested only in what we will get out of serving God, and
we will be afraid of losing prestige, power, or money.
True Christian love, energized by the Spirit (Rom. 5:5), enables
us to sacrifice for others and not be afraid.
The Spirit gives love (Gal. 5:22).
“Sound mind” = sophronismos G4995, an admonishing or calling
to soundness of mind, to moderation and self-control; thus
discipline... but not brashness!
He is also the One who gives self-control (“a sound mind”).
This word is related to the words sober and sobriety that we
often meet in the pastoral letters (1 Tim. 2:9, 15; Titus 1:8;
2:2, 4, 6, 12).
“Self-discipline” is a better translation of “sound mind”
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It describes a person who is clear headed, sensibly
minded and balanced, who has his life under control.
The Amplified Version reads, “calm and
well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.”
A GOSPEL WORTH SUFFERING FOR
2 Timothy 1:8-11
"So, then, do not be ashamed to bear your witness to our
Lord; and do not be ashamed of me his prisoner; but accept
with me the suffering which the gospel brings, and do so in
the power of God, who saved us, and who called us with a call
to consecration, a call which had nothing to do with our own
achievements, but which was dependent solely on his
purpose, and on the grace which was given to us in Christ
Jesus: and all this was planned before the world began, but
now it stands full-displayed through the appearance of our
Saviour Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life
and incorruption to light by means of the good news which he
brought, good news in the service of which I have been
appointed a herald, and an apostle and a teacher."
Afflictions of the Gospel
8] Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord,
nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions
of the gospel according to the power of God;
A gospel minister must not be ashamed to testify about the Lord
(2 Tim 1:8).
Timothy’s natural timidity might make it easy for him to avoid
circumstances that demanded witness and involved suffering.
“Not ashamed” is a key idea in this chapter.
Paul was not ashamed (2 Tim. 1:12);
He admonished Timothy not to be ashamed (2 Tim. 1:8);
He reported that Onesiphorus was not ashamed of Paul’s chain
(2 Tim. 1:16).
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None of us enjoy suffering.
Even our Lord prayed,
“Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me” (Lk
22:42).
Jesus made it clear,
“In the world ye shall have tribulation (trouble): but be of
good cheer; I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33).
“If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it
hated you” (Jn 15:18).
Paul prayed three times for God to remove his painful thorn in
the flesh (2 Cor. 12:7—8).
Christians should not suffer because they have done wrong (1
Peter 2:20; 3:17);
rather, they sometimes suffer because they have done right and
served God.
Suffering may well be a part of a faithful Christian life.
‘When we suffer for doing good, then we are sharing
Christ’s sufferings (Phil. 3:10) and suffering on behalf of
the whole church (Col. 1:24).
God gives us the power to endure suffering for His name and
kingdom.
Eschatalogical Cop-out?
We believe that Christians will not go through the “Tribulation,”
But, we will not be spared what most of the Body of Christ,
throughout most of the world, for most of the last 2000 years, has
had to endure.
We, who have been spoiled in the past by the fruits of a unique
Republic, may be in for some very unpleasant shocks in the
years ahead!
Suffering is a part of His plan.
Jesus Christ suffered in the will of God here on earth.
All those who trust in Him will also suffer.
God has called us by His grace (v. 9).
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9] Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not
according to our works, but according to his own purpose and
grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world
began,
The gospel must not simply be preached, but suffered for if
necessary (2 Tim 1:9).
What they proclaim is a gospel of salvation, holiness, grace and
life (2 Tim 1:9-10).
We are part of a great eternal plan that God determined “before the
world began.”
All along God had a plan for us! (Eph 1:4).
He alone knows the end from the beginning.
He has purposes for His people to accomplish for His glory.
It is His purposes that we are to fulfill, and if these purposes
include suffering, then we can accept it by faith and know that
God’s will is best.
This is confidence in the wise plan of our gracious heavenly
Father.
The emphasis in this verse is on grace. God saved us; we did not
save ourselves (Eph. 2:8—9; Titus 3:5).
He called us, not on the basis of our good works, but wholly on
the basis of His grace.
All of this grace is the grace of God and was given to us in
Jesus Christ.
We could not earn it; we did not merit it. If we could, it
would not be grace.
Christ has defeated death (v. 10).
10] But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour
Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life
and immortality to light through the gospel:
“Abolished death” = since He has made of none effect death.
Remember Paul is writing this letter from prison where the sentence
of death is upon him.
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Man cannot be saved by perfect obedience, because he is
incapable of rendering it.
He cannot be saved by imperfect obedience, because God will
not accept it.
The only solutions is
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life:
no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14:6
When we are timid it is because we are afraid.
But what are we afraid of?
Suffering and possible death?
Jesus Christ has defeated our last enemy, death!
“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy
victor?” (1 Cor. 15:55).
By His own death and resurrection, Christ has “abolished
death” (made it inoperative, taken out the sting).
Christ is not only the Destroyer of death (Heb. 2:14—15),
He is also the Revealer of life and immortality.
In the Old Testament the doctrines of eternal life, death,
resurrection, and the eternal state were in the shadows.
Here and there you find glimpses of light; but for the most part,
the picture is dark.
Jesus Christ shined His light on death and the grave.
Through the gospel, He has given us assurance of eternal life,
resurrection, and the hope of heaven.
Religious groups that teach “soul sleep” and other strange
doctrines usually get their ideas from the Psalms and Ecclesiastes.
Instead of allowing the clear light of the New Testament to shine
on the Old, they look at the New through the shadows of the
Old!
If you turn your back on the light of the gospel, you will only
cast a dark shadow.
“Immortality” means “incorruptibility,” and refers to the resurrection
body.
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The present body is corruptible; it dies and decays.
But the glorified body we shall have when we see Christ will not
be subject to decay or death (1 Cor. 15:49—58; Phil. 3:21).
The heavenly inheritance that we share will be
“incorruptible, and undefiled, and [one] that fadeth not
away” (1 Peter 1:4).
Not Ashamed
11] Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and
a teacher of the Gentiles.
Be not ashamed of the Lord’s prisoner (vv. 11—12).
The gospel can be, and must be, both heralded and taught (2
Tim 1:11).
Though a prisoner, Paul was still bearing witness for the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
Sad to say, the people in Ephesus had deserted Paul in his time
of need.
Many of them could have come to Rome to witness on
Paul’s behalf, but they did not.
They were even ashamed to be identified with the apostle!
It would have made Timothy’s ministry in Ephesus (and in the
surrounding cities; see 2 Tim. 4:13) much easier if he had gone
along with the crowd, but Paul admonished him to remain true.
Paul gave four reasons why Timothy should not be ashamed of his
association with Paul, the prisoner.
Paul was called by God.
Jesus Christ had met Paul on the Damascus road (Acts 9) and had
personally called him into the ministry.
Paul was a herald (“preacher”) of the gospel.
In ancient times, a “herald” was the official messenger of the
king or emperor, and his message was treated with great
respect.
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The fact that professed believers in Asia were rejecting Paul
did not change his calling or his message.
Paul was not only a herald; he was also an apostle, “one sent with
a commission.”
Not every Christian was an apostle of Jesus Christ,
A person had to meet certain qualifications and be chosen
by the Lord personally, or through His Spirit (see Acts
1:15—26; 1 Cor. 91 2 Cor. 12:12).
An apostle represented Jesus Christ.
To reject an apostle was to reject the Lord.
Paul was a teacher of the Gentiles.
This meant that he shepherded local churches.
It was this word Gentiles that put him into prison in Rome the
first time (Acts 22:21ff.).
The Gentile believers in Asia should have shown their appreciation
of Paul by rallying to his support, for after all, it was Paul who
brought them the good news of salvation.
But instead they were ashamed of him and tried not to get
involved.
Loyalty to the gospel will bring trouble.
For Timothy, it meant loyalty to a man who was regarded as a
criminal, because as Paul wrote he was in prison in Rome.
Here Paul sets out the gospel in all its glory, something worth
suffering for.
It is the gospel of power.
Any suffering which it involves is to be borne in the power of
God.
To the ancient world the gospel was the power to live.
That very age in which Paul was writing was the great age of
suicide.
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The highest-principled of the ancient thinkers were the
Stoics; but they had their own way out when life became
intolerable.
They had a saying: "God gave men life, but God gave
men the still greater gift of being able to take their own
lives away."
The gospel was, and is, power, power to conquer self, power to
master circumstances, power to go on living when life is
unlivable, power to be a Christian when being a Christian looks
impossible.
It is the gospel of salvation.
God is the God who saves us. The gospel is rescue. It is
rescue from sin; it liberates a man from the things which have
him in their grip; it enables him to break with the habits which
are unbreakable.
It is the gospel of consecration.
It is not simply rescue from the consequences of past sin; it is a
summons to walk the way of holiness.
It is here that so much of our Church Christianity falls down.
It does not change people; and therefore is not real.
The man who has known the saving power of the gospel is a
changed man, in his business, in his pleasure, in his home, in
his character.
There should be an essential difference between the
Christian and the non-Christian, because the Christian has
obeyed the summons to walk the road to holiness.
It is the gospel of grace.
It is not something which we achieve, but something which we
accept.
God did not call us because we are holy; he called us to
make us holy.
If we had to deserve the love of God, our situation would be
helpless and hopeless.
The gospel is the free gift of God.
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He does not love us because we deserve his love; he loves
us out of the sheer generosity of his heart.
It is the gospel of God's eternal purpose.
It was planned before time began.
From the beginning of time God's love has been searching
for men, and his grace and forgiveness have been offered to
them.
Love, mercy and grace in action, is the essence of the
eternal nature of God.
It is the gospel of life and immortality.
It is Paul's conviction that Christ Jesus brought life and
incorruption to light.
The ancient world feared death; or, if it did not fear it,
regarded it as extinction.
It was the message of Jesus that death was the way to life, and
that so far from separating men from God, it brought men into
his nearer presence.
It is the gospel of service.
It was this gospel which made Paul a herald, an apostle and a
teacher of the faith.
It did not leave him comfortably feeling that now his own
soul was saved and he did not need to worry any more.
It laid on him the inescapable task of wearing himself out in
the service of God and of his fellow-men.
This gospel laid three necessities on Paul.
It made him a herald.
The word is "kerux".
The "kerux" was the herald who brought the
announcement from the king.
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The "kerux" was the emissary when two armies were
opposed to each other, who brought the terms of or the
request for truce and peace.
The "kerux" was the man whom an auctioneer or a
merchantman employed to shout his wares and invite
people to come and buy.
So the Christian is to be



the man who brings the message to his
fellow-men;
the man who brings men into peace with God;
the man who calls on his fellow-men to accept
the rich offer which God is making to them.
It made him an apostle, "apostolos," literally one who is
sent out.
The word can mean an envoy or an ambassador.
The "apostolos" did not speak for himself, but for him
who sent him.
He did not come in his own authority, but in the
authority of him who sent him.
The Christian is the ambassador of Christ, come to
speak for him and to represent him to men.
It made him a teacher.
There is a very real sense in which the teaching task of
the Christian and of the Church is the most important of
all.
The evangelist's task is to appeal to men and confront
them with the love of God.
In a moment of vivid emotion, a man may respond to
that summons.
But a long road remains. He must learn the
meaning and discipline of the Christian life.
The foundations have been laid but the edifice has still
to be raised.
The flame of evangelism has to be followed by the
steady glow of Christian teaching.
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It may well be that people drift away from the
Church, after their first decision, for the simple,
yet fundamental, reason that they have not been
taught into the meaning of the Christian faith.
Herald, ambassador, teacher-- is the threefold function
of the Christian who would serve his Lord and his
Church.
It is the gospel of Christ Jesus.
The word Paul uses for appearance is "epiphaneia", a word
which the Jews repeatedly used of the great saving
manifestations of God in terrible days
To the Jew "epiphaneia" denoted a rescuing intervention of
God.
To the Greek this was an equally great word.
The accession of the Emperor to his throne was called his
"epiphaneia." It was his manifestation.
Every Emperor came to the throne with high hopes; his
coming was hailed as the dawn of a new and precious day,
and of great blessings to come.
The gospel was full displayed with the "epiphaneia" of Jesus;
the very word shows that he was God's great, rescuing
intervention and manifestation into the world.
TRUST HUMAN AND DIVINE
2 Timothy 1:12-14
"And that is the reason why I am going through these things I
am going through. But I am not ashamed, for I know him in
whom my belief is fixed, and I am quite certain that he is able
to keep safe what I have entrusted to him until the last day
comes. Hold fast the pattern of health-giving words you have
received from me, never slackening in that faith and love
which are in Christ Jesus. Guard the fine trust that has been
given to you through the Holy Spirit who dwells in you.
Paul was confident in Christ
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12] For the which cause I also suffer these things:
nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have
believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I
have committed unto him against that day.
I am not ashamed.
Paul knew that Christ was faithful and would keep him.
Rom 1:16; “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of
Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every
one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the
Greek.”
Anyone who has a personal computer doubts the adage that
“once saved, always saved”!
God is NOT a personal computer – He is a personal Savior
Note his emphasis on the person of Christ:
“I know whom I have believed.”
Not what he believed but who he believed
Salvation is not the result of believing certain doctrines, though
doctrines are important.
A sinner is saved because he believes in a Person—Jesus
Christ the Savior.
committed unto him
Paul had deposited his soul in the care
and keeping of the Savior, and was sure that Jesus Christ would
faithfully guard that deposit.
It is important that we stand true to Christ and be willing to suffer
for Him if needs be and not be ashamed.
We may not be put into prison, as was Paul; but we suffer in
other ways: the loss of friends, being bypassed for a
promotion, loss of customers, being snubbed by people,
and so forth.
It is also important that we stand by God’s servants who are
suffering for righteousness’ sake.
against that day
What difference did it make to Paul what
happened on any certain day?
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What really mattered is what will happen on “that day” when
Jesus Christ rewards His servants (2 Tim. 1:18; 4:8).
“...committed”: deposited. You and I are His debtors! (Cf. Jn
10:28, 29.)
Throughout the centuries God’s work has been done by men and
women who stood steadfast in their hours of trial.
It would have been convenient for them to have compromised,
but they stood firm.
Paul was such a man, and he encouraged Timothy to follow his
example in a twofold loyalty.
Be loyal to God’s Word (v. 13—14).
Be loyal to God’s servant (v. 15—18).
Be loyal to God’s Word
Hold Fast
13] Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard
of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
There is a pattern of sound teaching against which every
sermon can be measured (2 Tim 1:13).
We are not just to preach the truth; we are to preach ‘with faith
and love’ (2 Tim 1:13).
God had given the deposit of spiritual truth to Paul (1 Tim.1:11),
Paul had given it to Timothy (1 Tim. 6:20).
It was now Timothy’s solemn responsibility to
“hold fast” (2 Tim. 1:13) and
“guard” (2 Tim. 1:14 NIV)
the precious deposit of Christian truth, and
to pass it along to others (2 Tim. 2:2).
The word “form” (2 Tim. 1:13) means “a pattern, an architect’s
sketch.”
“sound words”
Verbal plenary inspiration of the Scripture:
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When a church or other Christian organization goes liberal, it
usually starts with a weakening of their leaders’ convictions
about the Word of God.
There was a definite outline of doctrine in the early church, a
standard by which teaching was tested.
If Timothy changed this outline or abandoned it, then he would
have nothing by which to test other teachers and preachers.
We today need to hold fast to what Paul taught for the same
reason.
Timothy’s orthodoxy was to be tempered with “faith and love.”
“Speaking the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15) is the divine pattern.
How easy it is to become pugnacious in our desire to defend
the faith, or a witch-hunter who creates problems.
14] That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by
the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.
The gospel doesn’t just need to be preached, it needs to be
guarded (2 Tim 1:14).
It was the Holy Spirit who committed the truth to Timothy, and He
would help him guard it.
Apart from the ministry of the Spirit, we are in the dark when it
comes to understanding the Word of God.
It is He who must teach us (John 16:13) and enable us to
guard the truth and share it with others.
From the beginning of human history, Satan has opposed God’s
Word.
“Yea, hath God said?” was Satan’s first word to mankind
(Gen. 3:1), and he continues to ask that question.
Throughout the history of the church, the Word of God has been
attacked, often by people within the church, yet it still stands
today.
Dedicated men and women have (like Paul and Timothy)
guarded the deposit and faithfully handed it to a new
generation of Christians.
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The Christian life can be lived only in the power of the Holy Spirit.
That good thing which was committed unto thee
Paul talks of that which he has entrusted to God; and he urges
Timothy to safeguard the trust God has reposed in him.
In both cases the word is "paratheke," which means a deposit
committed to someone's trust.
A man might deposit something with a friend to be kept for
his children or his loved ones;
He might deposit his valuables in a temple for safe keeping,
for the temples were the banks of the ancient world.
In each case the thing deposited was a "paratheke."
In the ancient world there was no more sacred duty than the
safe-guarding of such a deposit and the returning of it when in
due time it was claimed.
To the Greeks a "paratheke" was completely sacred.
Paul says that he has made his deposit with God. (v.12)
He means that he has entrusted both his work and his life to
him.
It might seem that he had been cut off in mid-career; that he should
end as a criminal in a Roman gaol might seem the undoing of all his
work.
But he had sowed his seed and preached his gospel, and the
result he left in the hands of God.
Paul had entrusted his life to God; and he was sure that in life and in
death he was safe.
He knew whom he had believed in.
Paul does not say that he knew what he had believed.
His certainty did not come from the intellectual knowledge of
a creed or a theology;
It came from a personal knowledge of God. He knew
God personally and intimately; he knew what he was
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like in love and in power; and to Paul it was
inconceivable that he should fail him.
If we have worked honestly and done the best that we can, we
can leave the result to God, however meagre that work may
seem to us.
With him in this or any other world, life is safe, for nothing
can separate us from his love in Christ Jesus our Lord.
There is another side to this matter of trust; there is another
"paratheke."
Paul urges Timothy to safeguard and keep inviolate the trust
God has reposed in him.
Not only do we put our trust in God; he also puts his trust in us.
The idea of God's dependence on men is never far from
New Testament thought.
When God wants something done, he finds a man to do it.
If he wants a child taught, a message brought, a sermon
preached, a wanderer found, a sorrowing one
comforted, a sick one healed, he finds some man or
woman instrument to do his work.
The trust that God had particularly reposed in Timothy was the
oversight and the edification of the Church. If Timothy was truly to
discharge that trust, he had to do certain things.
He had to hold fast to the pattern of health-giving words.
He had to see to it that Christian belief was maintained in all its
purity and that false and misleading ideas were not allowed to
enter in.
This down not mean that in the Christian Church there must
be no new thought and no development in doctrine and
belief;
It does mean that there are certain great Christian truths
which must always be preserved intact.
The one Christian truth which must forever stand is summed up
in the creed of the early Church, "Jesus Christ is Lord"
(Php.2:11).
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Any theology which seeks to remove or diminish Christ from
the topmost niche or take from him his unique place in the
scheme of revelation and salvation is absolutely wrong.
The Christian Church must always be restating its faith
--but the faith restated must be faith in Christ.
He must never slacken in faith.
Faith here has two ideas at its heart.
It has the idea of fidelity – faithfulness, worthy of the
confidence being placed
The Christian leader must be for ever true and loyal to
Jesus Christ. He must never be ashamed to show
whose he is and whom he serves. Fidelity is the oldest
and the most essential virtue in the world.
Faith also has in it the idea of hope – confidence in God
faithfulness.
The Christian must never lose his confidence in God; he
must never despair.
For the Christian who has given himself to faith in
God, placing his confidence in God, there must be
no pessimism, either for himself or for the world, in
the heart of the Christian.
He must never slacken in love.
To love men is to see them as God sees them.




It is to refuse ever to do anything but seek their highest
good.
It is to meet bitterness with forgiveness;
It is to meet hatred with love;
It is to meet indifference with a flaming passion which
cannot be quenched.
Christian love insistently seeks to love men as God loves them
and as he has first loved us.
THE FAITHLESS MANY AND THE FAITHFUL ONE
2 Timothy 1:15-18
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"You know this, that as a whole the people who live in Asia
deserted me, and among the deserters are Phygelus and
Hermogenes. May the Lord give mercy to the family of
Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me, and was not
ashamed of my chain. So far from that, when he arrived in
Rome he eagerly sought me out and found me--may the Lord
grant to him mercy from the Lord on that day--and you know
better than I do the many services he rendered in Ephesus."
15] This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned
away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes.
Be loyal to God’s servant (vv. 15—18).
The Province of Asia
“Asia Minor” = the area we know as Turkey…
The province of Asia included the Roman districts of Lydia,
Mysia, Caria, and Phrygia.
Paul was forbidden to minister in this area on his 2nd
missionary journey (Acts 16:6).
On his 3rd journey, he stayed nearly 3 years in Ephesus, the
capital of Asia, and evangelized the entire area! (Acts 19;
20:31).
The Seven Churches of Asia were all in this area (Rev 1:4, 11;
2 & 3).
When Paul was imprisoned his friends abandoned him--most likely
out of fear.
The Romans would never have proceeded against him on a
purely religious charge;
The Jews must have persuaded them that he was a
dangerous troublemaker and disturber of the public peace.
Paul would be held on a political charge of insighting insurrection,
not a Jewish disagreement over an ethnic religious (philosophical)
dispute.
To be a friend of a man like that was dangerous; and in his hour
of need his friends from Asia abandoned him because they
were afraid for their own safety.
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Paul gives the actual names of those who have been unfaithful to
him.
We do not know who Phygelus and Hermogenes (2 Tim.
1:15) were.
It is likely that they were leaders in the church who opposed
Paul and would not come to his defense in Rome.
You would think that the Asian believers would have stood by Paul,
but instead, they were ashamed of him and at the same time
(whether they knew it or not) ashamed of Christ (2 Tim. 4:16).
It was certainly a dark hour for Paul.
Demas had forsaken him (2 Tim. 4:10).
His other associates had been sent to distant places of ministry.
False doctrines were spreading in the church (2 Tim.
2:17—18).
Paul would have loved to be free to preach the Word and defend
the faith—but he was in a Roman prison.
It was up to Timothy to get the job done.
16] The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for
he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain:
Some believe Onesiphorus was also arrested and persecuted
(“household” in 2 Tim 4:19).
Some believe that Onesiphorus had died which is why Paul prays
for mercy to his household…
If Onesiphorus was dead, then Paul prayed for the dead (2 Tim.
1:18), and we have no authorization in the Bible to pray for the
dead.
We have no proof that Onesiphorus was dead when Paul wrote
this letter.
The fact that Paul asked God to bless the man’s household,
but that he did not mention the man, simply means that at
the time Onesiphorus was not with his household. “When
he was in Rome” (2 Tim. 1:17) suggests that, at that
writing, Onesiphorus was not in Rome.
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Therefore, he was somewhere between Rome and Ephesus, so
Paul prayed for him and his household.
There was no need to greet Onesiphorus,for Paul had just
spent much time with him, so Paul only greeted his household.
Onesiphorus was one man who dared to leave Ephesus and come
to Rome to assist Paul.
His name means “profit-bearing,” and he certainly was a
profitable friend to Paul.
It is possible that he was a deacon in the church at Ephesus
(“ministered” in 2 Tim. 1:18 comes from the word that gives us
“deacon”).
During Paul’s ministry at Ephesus, Onesiphorus was a faithful
minister, along with his household.
Since Timothy had pastored the Ephesian church, he would
know this choice saint.
Every pastor is thankful for those faithful members who assist
him in the work of the Lord.
These choice saints are people:



whose homes were open to God’s servants (and they
didn’t tell the whole church they were there to give them
a time of rest and refreshing!),
whose hearts felt their burdens and needs, and
whose prayers sustained them in difficult times.
These believers minister quietly, humbly, behind the
scenes, but the Lord will reward them openly “in that day”
(2 Tim. 1:18).
17] But, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very
diligently, and found me.
Onesiphorus traveled from Ephesus to Rome and diligently looked
for Paul so he might minister to the prisoner’s needs.
It seemed difficult for him to find his former pastor (2 Tim. 1:17).
Perhaps some of the Roman Christians were still opposed to
Paul as they had been during his first imprisonment (Phil.
1:12—17).
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Perhaps the Roman officials were not cooperative and did not
want their choice prisoner to receive an help.
In his first imprisonment, Paul was in his own house (Acts 28:30),
but now he was in a Roman prison under careful guard.
Onesiphorus persisted and he located Paul and risked his own
life to stand with him and assist him.
Onesiphorus was not ashamed of Paul’s chain.
The apostle was manacled to a Roman soldier twenty-four
hours a day.
Onesiphorus could have invented many excuses for staying in
Ephesus.
Instead he made the dangerous journey to Rome and
ministered to Paul.
“He often refreshed me” was Paul’s description of this man’s
ministry.
The Greek word means “to cool again.”
“Bracing me like fresh air” is the way the Amplified Bible
translated it.
Thank God for Christians who are “a breath fresh air” in our
hours of trial and not a “blast of bad breath”; whining and
moaning, one upping the trials of those they meet.
18] The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord
in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at
Ephesus, thou knowest very well.
Were it not for Paul’s letter, we would never know that Onesiphorus
had served Paul and the church.
But the Lord knew and will reward him “on that day.”
The essentials for a successful ministry have not changed:
courageous enthusiasm, shameless suffering, and spiritual loyalty.
The Bible bangs us face to face with a question which is real for
every one of us.
The Bible introduces and dismisses a man from the stage of
history with a single sentence.
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If we were to be described in one sentence, what would it be?
Would it be the verdict on a traitor, or the verdict on a disciple
who was true?
Hermogenes and Phygelus--we know nothing whatever of them
beyond their names and the fact that they were traitors to Paul.
Onesiphorus--we know nothing of him except that in his loyalty to
Paul he risked--and perhaps lost--his life.
Hermogenes and Phygelus go down to history branded as
deserters;
Onesiphorus goes down to history as the friend who stuck
closer than a brother.
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QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION OR GROUP
DISCUSSION
1. Describe the most enthusiastic Christian you’ve ever known or
seen.
2. Paul prayed for Timothy. What difference do the prayers we offer
up for others make in their lives and in ours?
3. What kind of circumstances caii cause us to be fearful as we
seek to follow God?
4. How has the Holy Spirit given you strength to move beyond fear
in serving God?
5. List some examples in which the Holy Spirit has given you a
supernatural love for someone.
6. In what ways does the Spirit of God give us self-control as Paul
promised Timothy?
7. How does it change our lives that Christ defeated death?
8. How does focusing on God’s call in our lives help us endure
suffering?
g. Paul encouraged Timothy to be loyal to God’s Word. In what
ways can we be loyal to God’s Word?
10. Paul affirmed the people who had helped him. How can we
provide help and refreshment for our church leadership?
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THE CHAIN OF TEACHING
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"As for you, my child, find your strength in the grace which is
in Christ Jesus; and entrust the things which you have heard
from me, and which are confirmed by many witnesses, to
faithful men who will be competent to teach others too."
Activity of the Church
1] Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in
Christ Jesus.
If you think you can live the Christian life through your own
committed strength, etc., you are in for a serious disappointment!
How does one “be strong”?
Paul tells us in Ephesians (6:10-18) to “put on the whole armor
of God...”
What are they? When does one do that? ...an essential study
for the serious Christian.
Warfare: Our Armor
We are in a warfare (Eph 6:10-18).
You have a real enemy. He is knowledgeable and
resourceful. And you are on his turf!
Our Armor: Ephesians 6
Having”
• Girded with Truth
• Breastplate of Righteousness
• Feet shod with preparation
Take
• Shield of Faith
• Helmet of Salvation
• Sword of the Spirit
• Our Heavy Artillery: Prayer
2] And the things that thou hast heard of me among many
witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be
able to teach others also.
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As sons of God, you must be concerned about your Father’s
business.
The Steward (2:1—2)
Ministry is not something we get for ourselves and keep to
ourselves.
We are stewards of the spiritual treasure God has given us – the
gospel
1Co 15:1-8 NASB
(1) Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which
I preached to you, which also you received, in which also
you stand,(2) by which also you are saved, if you hold
fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed
in vain.
(3) For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also
received,


that Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures,
 (4) and that He was buried, and
that He was raised on the third day according to the
Scriptures,
(5) and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.
(6) After that He appeared to more than five hundred
brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but
some have fallen asleep;(7) then He appeared to James,
then to all the apostles;(8) and last of all, as to one
untimely born, He appeared to me also.
2Co 5:14-21 NASB
(14) For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded
this, that one died for all, therefore all died; (15) and He
died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for
themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their
behalf.
(16) Therefore from now on we recognize no one
according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ
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according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no
longer.
(17) Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature;
the old things passed away; behold, new things have
come.
(18) Now all these things are from God, who reconciled
us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of
reconciliation,
(19) namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world
to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them,
and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
(20) Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though
God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on
behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
(21) He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our
behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God
in Him.
Parables of the Talents Mat 25:15-30
Luk 19:10-27
It is our responsibility to guard the deposit and then invest it in
the lives of others.
They, in turn, are to share the Word with the next generation
of believers.
It is important that we get our original treasure from the Word of
God, and not from the ideas and philosophies of men.
Do not test teachers by their popularity, education, or skill.
Test them by the Word of God, and particularly the doctrines of
salvation by grace alone as given by Paul.
It takes strength to teach the Word of God.
We must dig out of the rich mines of Scripture the “gold, silver,
precious stones” that are hidden there
(Prov. 2:1—10; 3:13—15; 8:10—21; 1 Cor. 3:10—23).
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This strength can only come from God’s grace.
The ability to study, understand, and teach the Word of God is a
gift of God’s grace.
“Apt to teach” is one of God’s requirements for the pastor (1 Tim.
3:2 Tim. 2:24).
“Apt to teach” implies apt to learn; a steward, a teacher must
also be a diligent student of the Word of God.
Here we have in outline two things--the reception and the
transmission of the Christian faith:
2] And the things that thou hast heard of me among many
witnesses,
The reception of the faith is founded on hearing.
It was from Paul that Timothy heard the truth of the Christian
faith.
But the words he heard were confirmed by the witness of
many who were prepared to say: "These words are
true--and I know it, because I have found it so in my own
life."
It may be that there are many of us who have not the gift of
expression, and who can neither teach nor expound the
Christian faith.
But even he or she who has not the gift of teaching is able to
witness to the living power of the gospel.
the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to
teach others also.
The faith is to be transmitted to faithful men who in their turn will
teach it to others.
It is not only a privilege to receive the Christian faith; it is a
duty to transmit it.
The Christian Church is dependent on an unbroken chain of
teachers.
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The teacher is a link in the living chain which stretches
unbroken from this present moment back to Jesus Christ.
So, these teachers are to be faithful men.
The Greek for faithful, "pistos,"
A man who is a "pistos" is a man who is believing, a man who is
loyal, a man who is reliable. Worthy of having the faith of
others placed in him…
The teacher's heart must be so stayed on Christ that
no threat of danger will lure him from the path of loyalty and
no seduction of false teaching cause him to stray from the
straight path of the truth.
He must be steadfast alike in life and in thought.
THE SOLDIER OF CHRIST
2. The Soldier (2:3—4, 8—13)
Paul often used athletic and military illustrations in his letters.
He ministered in the area where the Olympic, Corinthian and
other ‘world games’ were held. See beginning at verse 5…
He lived in a military state and was in often under military guard
himself
Here, what he described in these verses are the characteristics of a
“good soldier of Jesus Christ.”
2 Timothy 2:3-4
"Accept your share in suffering like a fine soldier of Christ
Jesus. No soldier who is on active service entangles himself
in ordinary civilian business; he lays aside such things, so
that by good service he may please the commander who has
enrolled him in his army."
The Battleground
3] Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus
Christ.
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4] No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of
this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a
soldier.
If you are in “Special Operations,” you cannot afford to carry any
excess baggage or entanglements; you need to be deadly serious
what you are about . . .
The Christian life is a battleground, not a playground.
3] Thou therefore endure hardness . He endures hardship
Many people have the idea that ministry is a soft job.
A dedicated Christian minister is in a battle that requires
spiritual endurance.
4] No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of
this life
He avoids worldly entanglements
He is totally committed to his Commanding Officer, in our case
Jesus Christ.
It is sometimes necessary for a pastor, or a pastor’s wife, to be
employed because their church is not able to support them.
This is a sacrifice to them and to the ministry they have been
called to perform for the Lord.
A pastor who is fully supported should not get involved in sidelines
that divide his interest and weaken his ministry.
I have met pastors who spend more time on their real estate
ventures than on their churches.
Our purpose is to please the Lord, not ourselves.
The picture of man as a soldier and life as a campaign is one which
the Romans and the Greeks knew well. "
Paul took this picture and applied it to all Christians, but specially to
the leaders and outstanding servants of the Church.
He urges Timothy to fight a fine campaign (1Tim.1:18).
He calls Archippus, in whose house a Church met, our fellow
soldier (Phm.2).
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He calls Epaphroditus, the messenger of the Philippian Church,
"my fellow soldier", (Php.2:25).
Paul saw in the life of the soldier a picture of the life of the Christian.
(i) The soldier's service must be a concentrated service.
The Roman code of Theodosius said: "We forbid men
engaged on military service to engage in civilian
occupations."
A soldier is a soldier and nothing else; the Christian must
concentrate on his Christianity.
That does not mean that he must engage on no worldly
task or business. He must still live in this world, and he
must still make a living;
It does mean that he must use whatever task he is
engaged upon to demonstrate his Christianity and
mission from the Lord.
(ii) The soldier is conditioned to obedience.
The early training of a soldier is designed to make him
unquestioningly obey the word of command.
There may come a time when such instinctive
obedience will save his life and the lives of others.
There is a sense in which it is no part of the soldier's duty "to
know the reason why."
Involved in the midst of the a battle, he cannot stop to
understand and assess see the over-all picture.
He must leave the overall to the commander who sees
the whole field.
The first Christian duty is obedience to the voice of God,
and acceptance even of that which he cannot
understand.
(iii) The soldier is conditioned to sacrifice.
The Christian must ever be ready to sacrifice himself, his
wishes and his fortune, for God and for his fellow-men.
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Anything he holds back, he must carry and it will limit and
slow him down.
(iv) The soldier is conditioned to loyalty.
When the Roman soldier joined the army he took the
"sacramentum," the oath of loyalty to his emperor.
He must hold the ground at all costs.
The soldier's supreme virtue is that he is faithful unto death.
The Christian too must be loyal to Jesus Christ, through all
the chances and the changes of life, down even to the gates
of death.
THE ATHLETE OF CHRIST
2 Timothy 2:5
"And if anyone engages in an athletic contest, he does not win
the crown unless he observes the rules of the game."
3. The Athlete (2:5)
5] And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not
crowned, except he strive lawfully.
Paul has just used the picture of the soldier to represent the
Christian, and
now he uses two other pictures –
those of the athlete and
of the toiling husbandman.
He uses the same three pictures close together in
1Cor.9:6-7,24-27.
“Strive” refers to contending in the game; committed to winning,
and winning by the rules.
The Greek is "athlein nomimos"
In fact that is the Greek phrase which was used by the later
writers to describe a professional as opposed to an amateur
athlete.
The man who strove "nomimos" was the man who concentrated
everything on his struggle.
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His struggle was not just a spare-time thing, as an amateur;
It was a whole-time, full time dedication of his life to excellence
in the contest which he had chosen; a professional.
The spare-time Christian is a contradiction in terms;
a man's whole life should be an endeavour to live out his
Christianity.
Paul sometimes used athletic illustrations in his writings—wrestling,
boxing, running, and exercising.
The Greeks and the Romans were enthusiastic about sports,
and the Olympic and Isthmian Games were important events to
them.
Paul frequently uses athletic allusions from his familiarity
with the Olympic and Isthmian games: Phil 3:14; 1 Cor
9:24-27.
The only exercise some Christians get is:
• jumping to conclusions,
• running down their friends,
• sidestepping responsibility,
• and pushing their luck.
There was nobody in the grandstands cheering for Paul,
“all they which are in Asia” had turned away from him (2 Tim.
1:15).
He was in prison, suffering as an evildoer.
Yet, Paul had kept the rules laid down in the Word of God, and one
day he would get his reward from Jesus Christ.
Paul was saying to young Timothy,
“The important thing is that you obey the Word of God, no
matter what people may say. You are not running the race to
please people or to get fame. You are running to please Jesus
Christ.”
The athlete is a man under discipline and self-denial.
He must keep to his schedule of training and let nothing
interfere with it.
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There will be days when he would like to drop his training
and relax his discipline; but he must not do so.
There will be pleasures and indulgences he would like to allow
himself; but he must refuse them.
There must be discipline in the Christian life.
The athlete who would excel knows that he must let
nothing interfere with that standard of physical fitness
which he has set himself.
There are times when the easy way is very attractive;
There are times when the right thing is the hard thing;
There are times when we are tempted to relax our standards.
The Christian must train himself never to relax in the
life-long attempt to make his soul pure and strong.
Paul had already urged Timothy to exercise like an athlete (1 Tim.
4:7—8).
Now Paul admonished him to obey the rules.
A person who strives as an athlete to win a game and get a
crown must be careful to obey all the rules of the game.
In the Greek games in particular, the judges were most careful
about enforcing the rules.
Each competitor had to be a citizen of his nation, with a good
reputation. In his preparations for the event, he had to follow
specific standards.
If an athlete was found defective in any matter, he was
disqualified from competing.
If, after he had competed and won, he was found to have broken
some rule, he then lost his crown.
The athlete is a man who observes the rules.
After the discipline and the rules of the training, there come the
contest and the rules of the contest. An athlete cannot win
unless he plays the game.
The Christian, too, is often brought into contest with his
fellow-men.
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He must defend his faith;
He must seek to convince and to persuade;
He will have to argue and to debate.
He must do so by the Christian rules.
No matter how hot the argument, he must never forget his courtesy.
He must never be anything else but honest about his own position
and fair to that of his opponent.
The "odium theologicum," the hatred of theologians, has become
a byword.
There is often no bitterness like religious bitterness.
The real Christian knows that the supreme rule of the
Christian life is love, and he will carry that love into every
debate in which he is engaged.
THE TOILER OF CHRIST
2 Timothy 2:6-7
"It is the toiling husbandman who must be first to receive his
share of the fruits. Think of what I am saying, for the Lord will
give you understanding in all things."
4. The Farmer (2:6—7)
6] The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of
the fruits.
If you leave a field to itself it will produce mostly weeds. A farmer
has to work.
And if he works the field, he gets first cut of the income they
from the crop the field generates.
(Solomon had this is mind when he wrote about the field of a
sluggard: Prov 24:30-34.)
Pro 24:30-34 Near the field of a slothful man I passed by,
And near the vineyard of a man lacking heart. 31
And lo, it hath gone up--all of it--thorns! Covered its
face have nettles, And its stone wall hath been broken
down. 32 And I see--I--I do set my heart, I have
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seen--I have received instruction, 33 A little sleep--a
little slumber--A little folding of the hands to lie down.
34 And thy poverty hath come as a traveller, And thy
want as an armed man!
Real ministry is hard work, and pastors (and church members)
ought to work in their spiritual fields as diligently as farmers work in
their fields.
The husbandman must be content, first, to work, and, then, to
wait. A farmer needs patience.
“See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its
valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and
spring rains” (James 5:7 NIV).
“The harvest is not the end of the meeting—it is the end
of the age.”
More than any other workman, he has to learn that there are no
such things as quick results.
The farmer has teamed to wait with patience and so must the
Christian teacher and the Christian parent.
A teacher has often to teach, and see no difference in those he
teaches.
Often he must sow the good seed of the word into the hearts
and minds of his hearers and see no immediate result.
A parent has often to seek to train and guide, and see no
difference in the child.
It is only when the years go by that the result is seen;
It often happens that when that same young person has
grown to manhood, he or she is faced with some
overmastering temptation or some terrible decision or
some intolerable effort, and back into his mind comes
some word of God or some flash of remembered
teaching; and the teaching, the guidance, the discipline
bears fruit, and brings honor where without it there
would have been dishonor, salvation where without it
there would have been ruin.
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A farmer deserves his share of the harvest.
“The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a
share of the crops” (2 Tim. 2:6 NIV).
A pastor deserves to be supported by his ministry.
1Co 9:7 who doth serve as a soldier at his own charges at
any time?
who doth plant a vineyard, and of its fruit doth not eat?
or
who doth feed a flock, and of the milk of the flock doth
not eat?
1Ti 5:17-18 AMP
(17) Let the elders who perform the duties of their
office well be considered doubly worthy of honor
[and of adequate financial support], especially
those who labor faithfully in preaching and
teaching.
(18) For the Scripture says, You shall not muzzle an
ox when it is treading out the grain, and again, The
laborer is worthy of his hire. [Deut. 25:4; Luke 10:7.]
Paul deliberately gave up his right to ask for support so that
nobody could accuse him of using the gospel for personal gain.
1Co 9:14-15 NASB
(14) So also the Lord directed those who proclaim the
gospel to get their living from the gospel.
(15) But I have used none of these things. And I am
not writing these things so that it will be done so in my
case; for it would be better for me to die than have any
man make my boast an empty one.
But Paul was the exception to the normal rule for God’s
servants.
The husbandman must be prepared to work at any hour.
In harvest time we can see farmers at work in their fields so long
as the last streak of light is left; they know no hours.
Neither must the Christian.
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The trouble with so much Christianity is that it is
spasmodic working for its ‘time off’ rather than for the
Lord.
From dawn to sunset the Christian must be for ever
at his task of being a Christian.
7] Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding
in all things.
Paul once compared the local church to a cultivated field in which
all the believers worked together.
1Co 3:5-9 NASB
(5) What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants
through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave
opportunity to each one.
(6) I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the
growth.
(7) So then neither the one who plants nor the one who
waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.
(8) Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but
each will receive his own reward according to his own
labor.
(9) For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field,
God's building.
Each Christian has his particular task to perform—plowing, sowing,
watering, or harvesting—but it is God alone who gives the increase.
As a local church or ministry grows and progresses, the people
ought to faithfully increase their support of their pastors and other
staff members.
“If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much
if we reap a material harvest from you?” (1 Cor. 9:11 NIV).
It is sad to see the way some local churches waste money on
buildings and grounds and decorations and fail to care for their own
laborers.
God will honor a church that honors His faithful servants.
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Something else is true in this image of the farmer: The worker, the
spiritual leaders who share the Word with the people, are the first
ones to enjoy its blessings not only from the people but first from
God Himself.
The preacher and the teacher always get more out of the
sermon or lesson than do the hearers because they put much
more into it.
They get great joy out of seeing planted seeds bear fruit in the
lives of others.
Farming is hard work, and it can have many disappointments; but
the rewards are worth it.



The soldier is upheld by the thought of final victory.
The athlete is upheld by the vision of the crown.
The husbandman is upheld by the hope of the harvest.
Each submits to the discipline and the toil for the sake of the
glory which shall be.
The Christian struggle is not without a goal; it is always going
somewhere.
The Christian can be certain that after the effort of the
Christian life, there comes the joy of heaven; and the
greater the struggle, the greater the joy.
THE ESSENTIAL MEMORY
2 Timothy 2:8-10
"Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, born of the
seed of David, as I preached the gospel to you; that gospel for
which I suffer, even to the length of fetters, on the charge of
being a criminal. But though I am fettered, the word of God is
not bound. Therefore, I endure everything for the sake of
God's chosen ones, that they too may obtain the salvation
which is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory."
8] Remember [that] Jesus Christ of the seed of David was
raised from the dead according to my gospel:
“That” is not in the text; it was supplied by the translators.
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Endure All Things
9] Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evil doer, even unto bonds;
but the word of God is not bound.
He magnifies Jesus Christ (vv. 8—9).
The preacher will inevitably endure some suffering, but God’s
Word is not chained (2 Tim 2:9).
“Remember Jesus Christ!” is the way this phrase should be
translated.
Jesus is the Captain of our salvation (Heb. 2:10), and our
purpose is to bring honor and glory to Him. W
He died and rose again, proving that suffering leads to glory,
and that seeming defeat leads to victory.
Jesus was treated as an evildoer and His soldiers will be treated
the same way.
Paul was bound, but God’s Word cannot be bound.
“His Word runneth very swiftly” (Ps. 147:15).
“The Word of God grew and multiplied” (Acts 12:24).
10] Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they
may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with
eternal glory.
“The elect” are God’s people, chosen by His grace and called by
His Spirit.
2Th 2:13-14 NASB
(13) But we should always give thanks to God for you,
brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen
you from the beginning for salvation through
sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.
(14) It was for this He called you through our gospel,
that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul not only suffered for the Lord’s sake, but he also suffered for
the sake of the church.
There were yet many people to reach with the gospel, and Paul
wanted to help reach them.
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A soldier who thinks only of himself is disloyal and
undependable.
From the beginning of this letter Paul has reminded Timothy of his
own belief in him and of the godly parentage from which he has
come;
He has shown him the picture of the Christian soldier, the
Christian athlete and the Christian toiler.
Paul calls Timothy to heroism by calling upon him



to remember Jesus Christ,
to remember the continual presence of the risen Lord, to
remember the sympathy which comes from the manhood of
the Master,
to remember the glory of the gospel for himself and for the
world which has never heard it and is waiting for it.
Remember Jesus Christ risen from the dead.
The tense of the Greek does not imply one definite act in
time, but a continued state which lasts forever.
"Remember your risen and ever-present Lord."
We do not depend on a memory, we enjoy the power of
a presence.
When a Christian is summoned to a great task that he
cannot but feel is beyond him, he must go to it in the
certainty that he does not go alone, but that there is with him
forever the presence and the power of his risen Lord.
When fears threaten, when doubts assail, when inadequacy
depresses, remember the presence of the risen Lord.
Remember Jesus Christ born of the seed of David; the
manhood of the Master.
We have with us the presence not only of the glorified
Christ, but also of the Christ who knew the desperate
struggle of being a man and followed to the bitter end the
will of God.
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Remember the gospel, the good news.
Remember that it is good news and that the world is waiting
for it.
However hard the task the gospel offers, that same gospel
is the message of liberation from sin and victory over
circumstances for us and for all mankind.
THE CRIMINAL OF CHRIST
When Paul wrote these words he was in a Roman prison, bound by
a chain.
This was literally true, for all the time he was in prison night and
day he would be chained to the arm of a Roman soldier.
Rome took no risks that her prisoners should escape.
Paul was in prison on the charge of being a criminal.
This was not the complaining of the Jewish leadership directed at
Paul, this was a Roman charge against him.
Rome had an empire which was almost coextensive with the
then known world.
The peace had to be kept and every possible centre of
disaffection had to be eliminated.
One of the things about which Rome was very particular was the
formation of associations.
In the ancient world there were many associations.
There were, for instance, dinner clubs who met at stated
intervals.
There were what we would call friendly societies designed for
charity for the dependants of members who had died.
There were burial societies to see that their members were
decently buried.
So particular were the Roman authorities about associations that
even these humble and harmless societies had to receive special
permission from the emperor before they were allowed to meet.
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The Christians were in effect an illegal association; and that is one
reason why Paul, as a leader of such an association, might well be
in the very serious position of being a political criminal.
On 19 July A.D. 64 the great fire broke out. It burned for six days
and seven nights and devastated Rome.
The most sacred shrines and the most famous buildings
perished in the flames.
But worse--the homes of the common people were destroyed.
The greater part of the population lived in great tenements
built largely of wood and they went up like tinder.
People were killed and injured; they lost their nearest and
dearest; they were left homeless and destitute.
It was commonly believed that Nero, the emperor, himself was
responsible for the fire.
It was said that he had watched the fire from the Tower of
Maecenas and declared himself charmed with "the flower
and loveliness of the flames."
It was said, that when the fire showed signs of dying down,
men were seen rekindling it with burning brands, and that
these men were the servants of Nero.
Nero had a passion for building, and it was said that he had
deliberately torched the city so that from the ruins he might build
a new and nobler Rome.
Whether the story was true or not -- Nothing would kill the rumour.
The destitute citizens of Rome were sure that Nero had been
responsible.
The Roman government had to find a scapegoat.
Tacitus, the Roman historian:
"But all human efforts, all the lavish gifts of the emperor, and
the propitiations of the gods did not banish the sinister belief
that the conflagration was the result of an order.
Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the
guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class
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hated for their abominations, called Christians by the
populace" (Tacitus: Annals 15:44).
Slanders were already circulating regarding the Christians, no
doubt the influential Jews were responsible.
The hated Christians were saddled with the blame for the
disastrous fire of Rome.
Paul was a Christian. More, he was the great leader of the
Christians.
Part of the charge against Paul may have been that he was one
of those responsible for the fire of Rome and the resulting
misery of the populace.
Paul was in prison as a criminal, a political prisoner, member of an
illegal association and leader of that hated sect of incendiaries, on
whom Nero had fastened the blame for the destruction of Rome.
It can easily be seen how helpless Paul was in face of charges like
that.
He was in prison on charges which made release impossible,
Yet, Paul was not dismayed and was very far from despair.
He was certain that, though he might be bound, nothing could
bind the word of God.
You can exile a man, but you cannot exile the truth.
You can imprison a preacher, but you cannot imprison the
word he preaches.
The message is always greater than the man; the truth
is always mightier than the bearer.
Paul was quite certain that the Roman government could
never find a prison which could contain the word of God.
Men cannot limit, much less destroy, that which is
immortal.
Paul was certain that what he was going through would in the end
be a help to other people.
His suffering was not pointless and profitless.
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When anyone has to suffer for his Christianity, suffer for His
Lord, let him remember that his suffering makes the road easier
for someone else who is still to come.
In suffering we do our own small part in the bringing of
God's salvation to men.
THE SONG OF THE MARTYR
2 Timothy 2:11-13
"This is a saying which can be relied upon:
If we die with him,
we shall also live with him.
If we endure,
we shall also reign with him.
If we deny him,
he too will deny us.
If we are faithless,
he remains faithful
For he cannot deny himself"
We do not fear the enemies, for He has already conquered them.
Through our identification with Christ in death, burial, and
resurrection, we have won the victory (see Rom. 6).
11] It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall
also live with him:
"If we die with him, we shall also live with him."
There are those who take these lines as a reference to baptism.
In Rom.6 baptism is likened to dying and rising with Christ.
"We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death,
so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of
the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."
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"But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall
also live with him" (Rom.6:4, 8).
No doubt the language is the same; but the thought of baptism
is quite irrelevant here; in context it is the thought of martyrdom
that is in Paul's mind.
The Christian inherits Christ's Cross, but he also inherits
Christ's Resurrection. He is partner both in the shame and
in the glory of his Lord.
Other “faithful sayings:” (1 Tim 1:15; 4:9; Titus 3:8).
1Ti 1:15 It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full
acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.
1Ti 4:7-9 NASB
(7) But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old
women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the
purpose of godliness;
(8) for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness
is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the
present life and also for the life to come.
(9) It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance.
Tit 3:5-8 NASB
(5) He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have
done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the
washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,
(6) whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus
Christ our Savior,
(7) so that being justified by His grace we would be made
heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
(8) This is a trustworthy statement; and concerning these
things I want you to speak confidently, so that those who
have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds.
These things are good and profitable for men.
It is faith inJesus Christ that gives victory (1 Jn 5:4).
1Jn 5:1-6 NASB
(1) Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of
God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of
Him.
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(2) By this we know that we love the children of God, when
we love God and observe His commandments.
(3) For this is the love of God, that we keep His
commandments; and His commandments are not
burdensome.
(4) For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and
this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.
(5) Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who
believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
(6) This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus
Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with
the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is
the truth.
12] If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him,
he also will deny us:
“If...”:
: "If we endure, we shall also reign with him."
It is he who endures to the end who will be saved.
Without the Cross there cannot be the Crown.
Scholars such as J. Vernon McGee, Joseph Dillow, et al., believe
that not all believers are going to reign with Him.
On the basis of this verse, it would appear only those who have
suffered for Him.
In the Roman world of Paul’s day—and also our own—there are
many who were—and are being—martyred.
According to Fox, five million of them, because they refused to
deny Christ. Faith without works is dead. [Review our study of
the Epistle of James!]
Death leads to life!
Suffering leads to reigning in glory!
We have nothing to fear!
The important thing is that we not “disown” our Lord, for if we
disown Him here, He will disown us before the Father (Matt. 10:33).
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In that great “roll call” in glory, when the “medals” are given out,
we will lose our reward if we disown His name.
Unfaithful servant, talent parables, etc.
I never knew you…
`If we walk worthily of him,
So shall we reign with him'."
13] If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny
himself.
But Paul makes it clear that even our own doubt and unbelief
cannot change Him:
“He abideth faithful; he cannot deny himself.”
We do not put faith in our faith or in our feelings, because they
will change and fail.
We put our faith in Christ.
J. Hudson Taylor, “It is not by trying to be faithful, but in looking
to the Faithful One, that we win the victory.”
God cannot deny Himself.
He cannot accept as true one who is false.
That’s why He gave such a scathing denunciation of the religious
leaders of His day.
He called them hypocrites because they were pretending to be
something they were not.
We need to be genuine, too.
A man may deny himself, but God cannot.
"God is not man that he should lie, or a son of man that he
should repent" (Num.23:19).
"So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will
acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; but whoever
denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is
in heaven" (Matt.10:32-33).
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Jesus Christ cannot vouch in eternity for a man who has refused to
have anything to do with him in time; but he is forever true to the
man who, however much he has failed, has tried to be true to him.
God will never fail the man who has tried to be true to him, but not
even he can help the man who has refused to have anything to do
with him.
THE DANGER OF WORDS
2 Timothy 2:14
"Remind your people of these things; and charge them before
the Lord not to engage in battles of words--a thing of no use at
all, and a thing which can only result in the undoing of those
who listen to it."
14] Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them
before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit,
but to the subverting of the hearers.
“Strive about words” means disputes of words.
Major on the essentials. Don’t “major on the minors.”
“Words to no profit” only undermines God’s work (1 Tim 6:4;
Titus 3:9).
Remember that the Pastoral Epistles were written against a
background of those Gnostics who produced their long words and
their fantastic theories, and tried to make Christianity into a
recondite philosophy instead of an adventure of faith.
There is both fascination and peril in words.
They can become a substitute for deeds.
There are people who are more concerned to talk than to
act.
If the world's problems could have been solved by discussion,
they would have been solved long ago.
Words cannot replace deeds.
One of the most suggestive things Jesus ever said was:
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"If any man's will is to do his will, he shall know whether the
teaching is from God" (Jn.7:17).
It often happens that the best way to understand the deep
things of Christianity is to embark on the unmistakable
duties of the Christian life.
IT’S TIME WE STOPPED ASKING EACH OTHERS OPINIONS
AND STARTED WORKING TOGETHER TO DETERMINE GOD’S
OPINION.
Too much talk and too much discussion can have two dangerous
effects:
First, they may give the impression that Christianity is nothing but a
collection of questions for discussion and problems for solution.
The discussion circle is a characteristic phenomenon of this
age.
The discussion circle must be balanced by the action group.
Second, discussion can be invigorating for those whose approach
to the Christian faith is intellectual, for those who have a
background of knowledge and of culture, for those who have a real
knowledge of, or interest in, theology.
A simple-minded person finds himself in a group which is
tossing heresies about and propounding unanswerable
questions, and his faith, so far from being helped, is upset.
It may well be that that is what Paul means when he says that
wordy battles can undo those who listen to them.
The normal word used for building a person up in the Christian faith,
for edification, is the same as is used for literally building a house;
The word which Paul uses here for ruin ("katastrophe") is what
might well be used for the demolition of a house.
And it may well happen that clever, subtle, speculative,
intellectually reckless discussion may have the effect of
demolishing, and not building up, the faith of some simple
person who happens to become involved in it.
As in all things, there is a time to discuss and a time to be silent.
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THE WAY OF TRUTH AND THE WAY OF ERROR
2 Timothy 2:15-18
"Put out every effort to present yourself to God as one who
has stood the test, as a workman who has no need to be
ashamed, as one who rightly handles the word of truth.
Paul urges Timothy to present himself, amidst the false teachers,
as a real teacher of the truth.
The word he uses for "to present" is "parastesai," which
characteristically means to present oneself for service.
Key Verse: “Study”
15] Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
The preacher should correctly handle the word like an
unashamed workman (2 Tim 2:15).
“Study” = (not books): to be diligent, be zealous.
Each of us as God’s workman will be either approved or
ashamed.
The Greek for one who has stood the test is "dokimos," which
describes anything which has been tested and is fit for service.
It describes gold or silver which has been purified of all alloy in
the fire.
It is therefore the word for money which is genuine, or, as
we would say, sterling silver.
It is the word used for a stone which is fit to be fitted into its
place in a building.
A stone with a flaw in it was marked with a capital A,
standing for "adokimastos," which means tested and found
wanting.
Timothy was to be tested that he might be a fit weapon for the work
of Christ, and therefore a workman who had no need to be
ashamed.
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“ approved” means “one who has been tested and found
acceptable.”
The word was used for testing and approving metals.
Each trial that we go through forces us to study the
Word to find God’s will.
As we rightly use the Word, we succeed in
overcoming our trials, and we are approved by God.
We cannot be approved unless we are tested.
“ashamed” If a workman’s work is below standard and cannot
be accepted he is certainly going to be ashamed of it.
It means loss of reward.
In Paul’s day, a builder was not paid and was fined if he
failed to follow the specifications.
When the Lord judges our works, it will be revealed whether
we as workmen have handled the Word of God honestly
and carefully.
Some who are now first will end up last!
The word study has nothing to do with books and teachers. It
means “to be diligent, be zealous.”
It is translated in this way in 2 Timothy 4:9, 21, and also in
Titus 3:12.
The emphasis in this paragraph is that the workman needs to
be diligent in his labors so that he will not be ashamed when his
work is inspected.
“Rightly dividing” "orthotomein," means “cutting straight”
cutting a straight board,
sewing a straight seam.
dividing out the food at a meal and cutting it up so that each
member of the family received the right portion.
cutting up of sacrificial victims so that each part was correctly
apportioned to the altar or to the priest.
driving a straight road across country,
for ploughing a straight furrow across a field, and
for the work of a mason in cutting and squaring a stone so that it
fitted into its correct place in the structure of the building.
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One who rightly divides the word of truth,



drives a straight road through the truth and refuses to be
lured down pleasant but irrelevant bypaths;
he ploughs a straight furrow across the field of truth;
he takes each section of the truth, and fits it into its correct
position, as a mason does a stone, allowing no part to usurp
an undue place and so knock the whole structure out of
balance.
The Word is a treasure that the steward must guard and invest.
It is the soldier’s sword and the farmer’s seed.
It is also the workman’s tool for building, measuring, and
repairing God’s people.
“Workman” = The Word is a treasure that the steward must guard
and invest. The soldier’s sword and the farmer’s seed.
One of the great discoveries is that the Bible is a well-organized
integral whole. It must be studied in its entirety.
The pastor is a workman in God’s Word.

The preacher and teacher who use the Word correctly will build
their church the way God wants it to be built.
A sloppy worker will handle God’s Word deceitfully in order
to make it say what he wants it to say (2 Cor. 4:2).
When God tests our ministries in His local churches, some of it,
sad to say, will become ashes (1 Cor. 3:10ff.).

An approved worker diligently studies the Word and seeks to
apply it to his own life.
An ashamed worker wastes his time with other “religious
duties” and has little or nothing to give his class or
congregation.

An approved worker does not waste his time arguing about
“words to no profit” (2 Tim. 2:14) because he knows that such
arguing only undermines God’s work (see 1 Tim. 6:4; Titus
3:9).
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An approved workman will shun “godless chatter” (2 Tim. 2:16
NIV; and see 1 Tim. 6:20), because he knows it only leads to
more ungodliness.
Some of our “sharing times” do more harm than good as
well-meaning people exchange their “spiritual ignorance.”
Dispensations: God’s program and method of relating to
mankind
There are two (often misunderstood) words which must be
discerned concerning this issue of “rightly dividing” the Word of
Truth.
Age: aion. This is translated “world” 31 times, but really means a
block or period of time.
The entire revelation respecting successive ages was soon
lost to view due to this mistranslation.
Confusion can only result unless these translations are studied
carefully:
Heb 1:1-2; Mt 13:38-40; 24:3; 28:20; Mk 4:19; 10:30;
Rom 12:2; 1 Cor 2:6; 2 Cor 4:4; Gal 1:4; Eph 2:2; 2 Tim
4:10; Heb 11:3, et al.
Dispensation: oikonomia: the management of a household or of
household affairs; specifically, the management, oversight,
administration, of another’s property; the office of a manager or
overseer, stewardship; administration, dispensation. [Source:
Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology, Wheaton IL, Van
Kampen Press, 1948, Vol VII, p.121-122]
A stewardship: a divine economy, a commitment from God to
man of a responsibility to discharge that which God has
appointed him.
While much can be said in this controversial area, the distinction
appears undeniable between the Law (Lk 16:16) and Grace (Eph
3:1-2).
If there is but one covenant of grace operating uniformly in
every age, to what must the Apostle be referring when he
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asserts that a dispensation respecting a hitherto unrevealed
program was committed to him? (Eph 3:1-10):
“Dispensations” (Traditional View):
• Innocence Gen 1:28
• Conscience Gen 3:7
• Human Government Gen 8:15
• Promise Gen 12:1
• Law Ex 19:1
[Moses to John the Baptist] Lk 16:16; Mt 11:13
• Church (“Grace”) Acts 2:1
• Millennial Kingdom Rev 20:4
Classic Dispensations
Each dispensation involved grace as the basis of salvation:
Abel and Abraham brought little lambs to sacrifice to the Lord
(But today. you didn’t take a lamb to church last Sunday did
you!) .
The Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world has
already come (Jn 1:29).
The OT offerings simply pointed toward this consummate
cosmic, once and for all NT act.
16] But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase
unto more ungodliness.
Even “Bible-babble” can prove vapid unless applied to the “real”
world.
A mild inoculation can serve to make you immune to the real
thing.
The false teacher engages on what Paul would call "godless
chatterings."
The Greeks had a favourite word for making progress
("prokoptein").
It literally means to cut down in front;
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to remove the obstacles from a road so that straight and
uninterrupted progress is possible.
Paul says of these senseless talkers that they progress further and
further into ungodliness.
They progress in reverse.
The more they talk, the farther they get from God.
If at the end of our talk, we are closer to one another and to God,
then all is well;
but if we have erected barriers between one another and have
left God more distant, then all is not well.
The aim of all Christian discussion and of all Christian action
is to bring a man nearer to his fellows and to God.
17] And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is
Hymenaeus and Philetus;
“Canker” = gangrene: spreads, infects.
False doctrine is dangerous.
An approved workman knows that false doctrine is dangerous, and
he will oppose it.
Paul compared it to gangrene (2 Tim. 2:17). Much as gangrene
spreads, infects, and kills other tissue, so false doctrine spreads
and infects the body of believers, the church.
This infection must be exposed and removed.
Only the “sound [healthy] doctrine” of the Word of God can keep
a church healthy and growing.
Paul named two men who were false teachers, and he also
identified their error.
It is likely that the Hymenaeus named here (2 Tim. 2:17) is the
same man named in 1 Timothy 1:20.
We know nothing about his associate, Philetus.
Both of them “wandered from the truth” by teaching that the
resurrection had already taken place.
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Perhaps they taught that salvation is resurrection in a spiritual
sense, so a believer must not expect a physical resurrection.
18] Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the
resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.
Hymenaeus and Philetus said that the resurrection had already
happened.
This of course does not refer to the Resurrection of Jesus;
It refers to the resurrection of the Christian after death.
In that day, there were some who were teaching that the
resurrection had already taken place, which meant that those still
living had missed it!
The denial of a physical resurrection is a serious thing (see 1 Cor.
15:12ff.), for it involves the resurrection of Christ and the
completion of God’s plan of salvation for His people.
No wonder these false teachers were able to “overthrow the
faith of some” (2 Tim. 2:18).
The resurrection is a foundational truth of the gospel.
This was the reason for Paul’s earlier 2nd letter to the
Thessalonians — responding to a forgery of a purported letter from
Paul that purported that the resurrection / rapture had already taken
place.
Much confusion can be eliminated by a careful exegesis of 2
Thess 2.
When Hymenaeus and Philetus and their like taught that the
resurrection had already happened,


either at the moment of baptism
or in a man's children, they were teaching
but they were also teaching something which undermined
one of the central beliefs of the Christian faith.
1Co 15:16-19 NASB
(16) For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has
been raised; (17) and if Christ has not been raised, your
faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. (18) Then those
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also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. (19) If
we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men
most to be pitied.
(i) It was claimed that the real resurrection of the Christian took
place at baptism.
In Rom.6 Paul had written vividly about how the Christian
dies in the moment of baptism and rises to life anew.
There were those who taught that the resurrection
happened in that moment of baptism and that it was
resurrection to new life in Christ here and now, not after
death. It was only spiritual symbolism, not a physical
reality.
(ii) There were those who taught that the meaning of individual
resurrection was nothing more than that a man lived on in his
children.
The trouble was that this kind of teaching found an echo in
both the Jewish and the Greek side of the Church.
On the Jewish side, the Pharisees believed in the resurrection
of the body but the Sadducees did not.
Any teaching which did away with the conception of life after
death would appeal to the Sadducees;
The trouble with the Pharisees was that they were wealthy
materialists, who had so big a stake in this world that they
were not interested in any world to come.
In the early days of Christianity, the Greeks, generally speaking,
believed in immortality but not in the resurrection of the body.
The highest belief was that of the Stoics.
They believed that God was what might be called fiery
spirit. The life in man was a spark of that spirit, a spark
of God himself, a scintilla of deity.
But they believed that when a man died that spark went
back to God and was reabsorbed in him.
That belief abolishes personal survival after death.
Further, the Greeks believed that the body was entirely evil.
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They had their play on words as a watchword: "Soma
Sema" "The body is a tomb (marker)."
The last thing they desired or believed in was the
resurrection of the body; and therefore they, too, were
open to receive any teaching about the resurrection
which fitted their past traditional beliefs.
Any teaching which removes the certainty of the personal survival
of each individual man in the resurrection strikes at the very root of
Christian belief.
THE FIRM FOUNDATION
2 Timothy 2:19
"But the firm foundation of God stands fast with this
inscription:
`The Lord knows those who are his,' and,
`Let every one who names the name of the Lord depart
from unrighteousness.'"
This Seal
19] Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having
this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every
one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.
In this illustration, Paul described a “great house,” which is the
professing church.
The foundation of the house is safe and secure because God’s
seal is on it.
In English we use "foundation" in a double sense.
We use it to mean the basis on which a building is erected; and
we talk about the foundation of a house;
Also in the sense of an association, a college, a city which has
been founded by someone.
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we also talk about the Ford Foundation or Carnegie
Foundation.
Greek used the word "themelios" in the same two ways;
the foundation of God here means the Church - the
association which he has founded.
“This seal” = a mark of authentication, security and ownership.
No one would dare break a Roman seal.
The Israelite was to use his house as a billboard for the Word of
God (Deut 6:8-9).
How do you advertise the fact that you are a child of God?
“Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from
iniquity” (Ps 6:8; Prov 16:6; Mt 7:23; Lk 13:27).
The Church has a certain inscription on it - "sphragis" whose usual
meaning is seal.
The "sphragis" is the seal which proves genuineness or
ownership.
The seal on a sack of goods proved that the contents were
genuine and had not been interfered with; and
it also indicated the ownership and the source of the goods.
"sphragis" was also used to denote the brandmark, what we would
call the trademark.
Galen, the Greek doctor, speaks of the "sphragis" on a certain
phial of eyesalve, meaning the mark which showed what brand
of eyesalve the phial contained.
"sphragis" was also the architect's mark.
An architect put his mark on a monument or a statue or a
building to show that he was responsible for its design.
The "sphragis" can also be the inscription which indicates the
purpose for which a building has been built.
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The Church has a "sphragis" which shows at once what it is
designed to be.
The sign on the Church Paul gives in two quotations.
Neither is a literal quotation from any part of scripture but
both represent a directing principle given by God.
Paul quoted Moses: “The LORD will shew who are his” (Num.
16:5). Cf: Matt.7:22

This refers to the Godward aspect of the Christian life:
God chose us who trust Him as His elect (see 2 Tim.
2:10).

There is also a manward aspect of the Christian life:
“Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from
iniquity” (2 Tim. 2:19).
This refers back to Numbers 16:26, where the Lord
warned the people to get away from the tents of Korah
and the rebels.
Those who are the elect of God prove it by living godly lives.
We are chosen in Christ “that we should be holy and
without blame” (Eph. 1:4). Cf: Lk.13:27
The early Christians always read the Old Testament in the light of
the words of Jesus;
They brought the general sense of the whole range of scripture
to every situation.
Still excellent principles by which to read and use scripture.
The two texts give us two broad principles about the Church:
The first tells us that the Church consists of those who belong to
God,
Those who have given themselves to him in such a way that
they no longer possess themselves and the world no longer
possesses them, but God possesses them.
The second tells us that the Church consists of those who have
departed from unrighteousness.
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That is not to say that it consists of perfect people.
God is not so much in where a man has reached, as in
the direction in which he is facing.
The Church consists of those whose faces are turned to
righteousness.
They may often fall and the goal may sometimes seem
distressingly far away, but their faces are ever set in the
right direction. 1Sa 13:14 > Act 13:22
The Church consists of those who belong to God and have
dedicated themselves to the struggle for righteousness.
VESSELS OF HONOUR AND OF DISHONOUR
2 Timothy 2:20-21
"In any great house there are not only gold and silver vessels;
there are also vessels of wood and earthenware. And some
are put to a noble use and some to an ignoble use. If anyone
purifies himself from these things, he will be a vessel fit to be
put to a noble use, ready for any good work."
Vessel of Honor
20] But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and
of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour,
and some to dishonour.
21] If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a
vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use,
and prepared unto every good work.
This great house not only has a solid foundation that is sealed, but it
The name Timothy comes from two Greek words which together
mean “God-honoring.”
Paul was encouraging Timothy to live up to his name!
also has vessels (utensils of various kinds) for performing
household functions.
Paul divides the utensils into two categories:

those of honor (gold and silver) and
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those of dishonor (wood and clay).
He is not distinguishing between kinds of Christians, but is
making a distinction between true teachers of the Word and
the false teachers he described (2 Tim. 2:16—18).
A faithful pastor is like a gold or silver vessel that brings honor to
Jesus Christ.
The head of a house displays his costliest and most beautiful
utensils and gets honor from them.
That is the kind of beauty God gives to his servants who
faithfully handle the Word of God.
False teachers are not valuable; they are like wood and clay.
They are utensils to dishonor, no matter how popular they may
be.
Wood and clay will not survive the test of fire.
Honorable vessels not be contaminated by the dishonorable ones.
Paul was admonishing Timothy to separate himself from false
teachers.
If he did, then God would honor him, set him apart, and equip him
for service.
“Useful to the Master” (2 Tim. 2:21 NIV) — what a tremendous
honor that is!
Ministers and members should labor together in the work of the
Lord.
Church members need to pray for their pastors and encourage
them in the work of the Lord.
Church officers should faithfully do their work so that the
pastors can devote themselves to their own ministry (Acts
6:1—7).
Churches should provide enough financial support for the
ministers so that they can fully devote themselves to the work of
the ministry.
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2 Timothy 2:22-26
"Flee from youthful passions; run in pursuit of righteousness
in the company of those who call on the Lord from a clean
conscience. Have nothing to do with foolish and stupid
arguments, for you know that they only breed quarrels. The
servant of the Lord must not fight, rather he must be kindly to
all, apt to teach, forbearing, disciplining his opponents by
gentleness. It may be that God will enable them to repent, so
that they will come to know the truth, and so that they will
escape from the snare of the devil, when they are captured
alive by God's servant that they may do God's will."
Paul had just given a great and high definition of the Church as
consisting of those who belong to God and are on the way to
righteousness.
How do you explain the existence of the chattering heretics in
the Church?
How do you explain the existence of Hymenaeus and Philetus?
So long as the church is an earthly institution it must be a mixture.
Just as it takes all kinds of people to make a world, so it takes all
kinds of people to make the Church.
That is a practical truth which Jesus had stated long before,
in the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares
(Matt.13:24-30,36-43).
The point of that parable is that the wheat and the tares
grow together, and, in the early stages, are so like each
other that it is impossible to separate them.
He stated it again in the Parable of the Dragnet
(Matt.13:47-48).
The drag-net gathered of every kind.
In both parables Jesus teaches that the Church is necessarily a
mixture and that human judgment must be suspended, but that
God's judgment will in the end make the necessary separations.
It is the duty of a Christian to keep himself free from polluting
influences.
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If he does, his reward is not special honor and special privilege
but special service.
His glory will not be in exemption from service; it will be in still
more demanding service.
Flee Youthful Lusts
22] Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith,
charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure
heart.
23] But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that
they do gender strifes.
“flee from youthful lusts.”
The life of the preacher matters; they must be fleeing sin and
pursuing righteousness (2 Tim 2:22).
This includes the sins of the flesh as well (2 Tim. 2:22).
Paul used a similar admonition in 1 Timothy 6:11—12—”Flee
follow ... fight.”
The faults of youthful lust can infect all ages and are matters not for
austere condemnation but for sympathetic correction, for everyone
has a virtue hidden beneath it.
They are far more than the passions of the flesh. They include:

impatience which has never learned to move forward slowly
and has still to discover that too much hurry can do far more
harm than good;

self-assertion, which is intolerant in its opinions and
arrogant in its expression of them, and which has not yet
learned to see the good in points of view other than its own;

love of disputation which tends to argue long and act little,
and which will talk the night away and be left with nothing
but a litter of unsolved problems;

love of novelty which tends to condemn a thing simply
because it is old and to desire a thing simply because it is
new, underrating the value of experience.
The faults of youth are the faults of idealism.
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It is simply the freshness and intensity of the vision which
makes youth run into these mistakes.
A useful human vessel of honor does not get involved in the popular
things of the world, even the “religious world.”
He must remain holy and this means he must be separated
from everything that would defile him.
“follow righteousness”
The Christian teacher and leader is to aim at

righteousness, which means giving both to men and to God
their due;

faith, which means loyalty and reliability which both come
from trust in God;

love, which is the utter determination never to seek anything
but the highest good of our fellow-men, no matter what they
do to us, and which has forever put away all bitterness and
all desire for vengeance;

peace, which is the right relationship of loving fellowship
with God and with men.
“with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Tim.
2:22).
In the “great house” of the professing church, there are true
believers and false.
These things are to be sought in the company of those who call
upon the Lord.
The Christian must never seek to live detached and aloof from his
fellow-men.
He must find his strength and his joy in the Christian fellowship.
True Bible separation is balanced:
We flee sin, but we follow after righteousness.
If we are not balanced, then we will be isolated instead of
separated.
This is the purpose of the ministry of the Word (1 Tim. 1:5).
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We must exercise spiritual discernment and be careful that we
are vessels sanctified unto honor.
For God to be able to use us as vessels, we must be empty, clean,
and available. (1 Jn 1:9).
He will take us and fill us and use us for His glory.
If we are filled with sin or defiled by disobedience, He will first
have to purge us,
That might not be an enjoyable experience.
foolish and unlearned questions avoid
The Christian leader must not get involved in senseless
controversies which are the curse of the Church.
In the modern Church Christian arguments are usually doubly
senseless, for they are seldom about great matters of life and
doctrine and faith, but almost always about unimportant things
like teacups and carpet colors and what they heard
somebody say, somewhere, sometime and the like.
Once a leader is involved in senseless and unchristian controversy,
he has forfeited all right to lead.
24] And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle
unto all men, apt to teach, patient,
doulos was a bond-servant.
A slave had no will of his own; he was totally under the
command of his master.
Paul called himself “a doulos of Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1:1; Phil.
1:1).
Once, we Christians were the slaves of sin, but now we are the
servants of God (Rom. 6:16ff.).
Like the servant in Old Testament days, we say,
“I love my master ... I will not go out free” (Ex. 21:5).
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25] In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if
God peradventure will give them repentance to the
acknowledging of the truth;
The Christian leader must be kindly to all;
even when he has to criticize and point out a fault, it must be
done with the gentleness which never seeks to hurt.
He must be apt to teach;
he must not only know the truth, but also be able to
communicate it not so much by talking about it as by living in
such a way that he shows men Christ.
He must be forbearing; like his Master,
If he is reviled or insutled, he must not revile again;
He must be able to accept insult and injury, slights and
humiliations, just as Jesus accepted them.
He must discipline his opponents in gentleness;
His hand like the hand of a surgeon, unerring to find the
diseased spot, yet never for a moment causing unnecessary
pain.
He must love men, not batter them, into submission to the truth.
A servant’s purpose is to win souls, not arguments.
Some say “silence is golden”, usually it is just yellow.
Paul admonished Timothy to avoid arguments that create strifes,
but not to ignore the people.
He must not argue or fight.
He must be patient and gentle, teaching the Word of God in
meekness.
It is not enough just to expose error and refute it; we must also
teach positive truths and establish the saints in faith.
26] And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of
the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
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In Sunday School, a little boy was asked which of the stories he
liked best: “The one where everybody loafs and fishes” was his
memorable reply.
Seven Aspects of Ministry
1) Be Strong
2) A Worthy Workman
3) Be Faithful; Endure All Things
4) Study to Rightly Divide the Word
5) Avoid Vain Babblings
6) Seal and Cleanse this Vessel of Honor
7) Flee Youthful Lusts
Reviewing these seven aspects of the ministry, it is demanding:
there is no place for a loafer.
God’s servant does not have an easy time teaching the Word.
Satan opposes him and tries to trap his listeners (2 Tim. 2:26).
Some people are just naturally difficult to teach.
They enjoy “foolish and stupid arguments” (2 Tim. 2:23 NIV)
and have no desire to learn and feed on the Word of God.
It would be easy to ignore them but then Satan would get
them.
A servant of God must instruct those who oppose him, for this is the
only way he can rescue them from Satan’s captivity.
Satan is a liar (John 8:44).
He captures people by his lying promises, as he did Eve (see
Gen. 3; 2 Cor. 11:3).
The word recover (2 Tim. 2:26) describes a man coming out of a
drunken stupor.
Satan makes people drunk with his lies, and the servant’s task
is to sober them up and rescue them.
The last sentence of this passage is in very involved Greek,
“taken captive by him at his will” can be interpreted three ways:
(1) they are delivered from the snare of the Devil who took them
captive to do his will;
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(2) they are taken captive by God’s servant to do God’s will;
(3) they are delivered out of the snare of the Devil, who took
them captive, to do God’s will.
I prefer the third interpretation.
It is God who awakes the repentance;
It is the Christian leader who opens the door of the Church to the
penitent heart.
The Christian leader as a proper representative and
spokesman for God will permit by his example, God to awaken
repentance and the desire for the truth in the hearts of men, so
that those who are caught in the snare of the devil may be
rescued while their souls are still alive and brought into
obedience to the will of God.
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QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION OR GROUP
DISCUSSION
1. What do you think are the top three traits of a good pastor?
2. A pastor is the steward of what treasure?
3. How does a good pastor function like a good soldier with a
country to protect and a superior officer to obey?
4. How should a good pastor stay in training like a professional
athlete?
5. How is a good pastor like a craftsman who must hone his craft?
6. What kinds of tools does a pastor use in his craft?
7. How does God fill a good pastor like a vessel used for serving?
8. If a pastor is like a vessel, in what ways does he share with us the
truth of God?
9. In what ways does a good pastor show his servant spirit even
though he is the leader of the church?
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What to Do Before It Ends
The emphasis in this chapter is on knowledge and responsibility.
Paul informs Timothy about the character of mankind the last days,
and instructed him how to respond.
Action must be based on knowledge.
Many are like the pilot who informed his passengers,
“We are lost, but we are making very good time.”
The period of time called, “These last days”, began with the
ministry of Jesus Christ (Heb. 1:1—2) and will continue until He
returns.
Heb 1:1-2a God, who at various times and in various ways
spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in
these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has
appointed heir of all things,
They are the “last days” because in them God is completing His
purposes for His people.
Because our Lord has delayed His return, some people scoff at
the promise of His coming (2 Peter 3:3ff.), but He will come as
He promised.
2Pe 3:3 knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last
days, walking according to their own lusts,…
Within this period of “last days” there will be “times” (seasons) of
different kinds, but as the “times” draw to a close, they will become
perilous.
TIMES OF TERROR
2 Timothy 3:1
"You must realize this--that in the last days difficult times will
set in."
The Antidote: The Word of God
1] This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall
come.
Christianity was cradled in Judaism and very naturally thought
largely in Jewish terms and pictures.
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The Jews divided all time into this present age and the age to come.



This present age was altogether evil; and
The age to come would be the golden age of God.
In between there was The Day of the Lord, a day when God
would personally intervene and shatter the world in order to
remake it.
That Day of the Lord was to be preceded by a time of terror, when
evil would gather itself for its final assault and the world would be
shaken to its moral and physical foundations.
The early Church expected the Second Coming at any moment.
It is in terms of the last days that Paul is thinking in this passage.
“Perilous times shall come” = dangerous, hard to deal with;
savage; difficult
Difficult is the Greek word "chalepos."
It is the normal Greek word for difficult. There is the idea of
menace and of danger in this word.
Mat 8:28 it describes the 2 Gergesene demoniacs who met
Jesus among the tombs. They were violent and dangerous..
It is also used by ancient writers on astrology to describe
what we would call a threatening conjunction of the
heavenly bodies.
This suggests that the violence of the last times will be
energized by demons (1 Tim 4:1).
It doesn’t look like the conversion of the world. .
The “last days” for Israel: “the end of the age,” “the time of the
end” = the Great Tribulation.
The “last days” for the church: immediately preceding the harpazo
= “the Rapture.”
Paul warned the Ephesian elders that the apostasy would start
even then (Acts 20:29-30).
The Bible doesn’t teach that the Church will bring in the Millennium
and convert the world.
The picture Paul paints is that it is going to get worse, not better.
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The heart of every problem is a problem with the heart.
In the last days there would come times which would menace the
very existence of the Christian Church and of goodness itself,
a kind of last tremendous assault of evil before its final defeat.
In the Jewish pictures of these last terrible times we get exactly the
same kind of picture as we get here.
There would come a kind of terrible flowering of evil, when the
moral foundations seemed to be shaken.
There was to be a final show-down with the forces of evil.
There is no doubt that these characteristics started to appear in
Paul’s day, and now they have increased in intensity.
It is not simply that we have more people in the world, or better
news coverage.
It appears that evil is deeper and of greater intensity, and that it
is being accepted and promoted by society in a bolder way.
It is not that we have small pockets of rebellion here and there.
All of society seems to be in ferment and rebellion.
We are indeed in “terrible times” and they are growing
worse and worse…
Paul gave Timothy three instructions to obey in order that his
ministry might be effective during perilous times.
1. Turn Away from the False (3:1—9)
2. Follow Those Who Are True (3:10—12)
3. Continue in God’s Word (3:13—17)
THE QUALITIES OF GODLESSNESS
2 Timothy 3:2-5
"For men will live a life that is
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centred in self;
they will be lovers of money,
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braggarts,
arrogant,
lovers of insult,
disobedient to their parents,
thankless,
regardless even of the ultimate decencies of life,
without human affection,
implacable in hatred,
revelling in slander,
ungovernable in their passions,
savage,
not knowing what the love of good is,
treacherous,
headlong in word and action,
inflated with pride,
lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.
They will maintain the outward form of religion, but
they will deny its power.
Avoid such people."
Paul describes 19 characteristics of Godless men in those days.
One of the most terrible pictures in the New Testament of what a
godless world will be like, with the terrible qualities of godlessness.
2] For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous,
boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents,
unthankful, unholy,
1] Lovers of their own selves: self-lovers.
2] Covetous: lovers of money (1 Tim 6:10).
3] Boasters: swaggerers. Proud.
4] Proud: haughty.
5] Blasphemers (or better): railers.
6] Disobedient to parents.
Attacks on the family are part of Satan’s essential program
7] Unthankful. (And uncourteous...)
8] Unholy: profane.
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They are actually against God in their conversation and
manner of life.
There is an emphasis on love:
“lovers of their own selves,
”lovers of money (“covetous”),
“lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God.”
The heart of every problem is a problem in the heart.
God commands us to love Him supremely, and our neighbors
as ourselves (Matt. 22:34—40), but if we love ourselves
supremely, we will not love God or our neighbors.
In this universe there is God, and there are people and things.
We should worship God,
love people, and
use things.
But if we start worshipping ourselves, we will ignore God and start
loving things and using people.
The worldwide craving for things is just one evidence that people’s
hearts have turned away from God.
centred in self. The adjective used is "philautos," which means
self-loving.
Love of self is the basic sin, from which all others flow.
The moment a man makes his own will the centre of life, divine
and human relationships are destroyed, obedience to God and
charity to men both become impossible.
The essence of Christianity is not the enthronement but the
obliteration of self. Reckoning self to be dead, taking up
our crosses daily and crucifying self.
If someone loves and worships himself, the result will be pride.
“Ye shall be as gods” was Satan’s offer to Eve (Gen. 3:5),
the result was that people
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“changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and
served the creature more than [rather than] the Creator”
(Rom. 1:25).
Man became his own god!
The creature is now the creator; creator of a lie.
lovers of money ("philarguros").
Timothy's work lay in Ephesus, perhaps the greatest market in
the ancient world.
Trade tended to flow down river valleys; Ephesus was at the
mouth of the River Cayster, and commanded the trade of one of
the richest hinterlands in all Asia Minor.
At Ephesus some of the greatest roads in the world met.
There was a great trade route from the Euphrates valley
which came by thru Colosse and Laodicaea and poured the
wealth of the east into the lap of the then port of Ephesus.
There was the road from north Asia Minor and from Galatia
which came in via Sardis.
There was the road from the south which centered the trade
of the Maeander valley in Ephesus.
Ephesus was called "The Treasure-house of the ancient world,"
"The Vanity Fair of Asia Minor."
John may well have been thinking of Ephesus when he
described the merchandise of men:
"The cargo of gold, silver, jewels and pearls, fine linen,
purple, silk and scarlet, all kinds of scented wood, all articles
of ivory, all articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble,
cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil,
fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots,
and slaves, that is, human souls" (Rev.18:12-13).
Ephesus was the town of a prosperous, materialistic
civilization; it was the kind of town where a man could so
easily lose his soul.
When men measure prosperity by material things they may lose
his soul far more easily.
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Certainly more are lost in prosperity than in adversity.
Men are on the way to losing his soul when they assess the
value of life and success by the number of things which they
possesses.
braggarts and arrogant. In Greek writings these two words often
went together;.
Braggart is the word "alazon"
It was derived from the "ale," which means a wandering about.
Originally the "alazon" was a wandering quack.
It was used to describe a quack doctor.
The "alazon" was a person who deceives others,
especially in order to trick them out of their money; a
charlatan, swindler, confidence trickster, fraud,
fraudster, impostor, trickster, hoaxer; mountebank who
wandered the country with medicines and spells and
methods of exorcism which, he claimed, were panaceas
for all diseases.
We can still see this kind of man in fairs and market-places
shouting the virtues of a patent medicine which will act like
magic.
Then the word went on to widen its meaning until it meant any
braggart.
The Greek moralists wrote much about this word.
"alazoneia" as: "The claim to good things which a man does not
really possess."
"alazon" as "the man who pretends to creditable qualities that
he does not possess, or possesses in a lesser degree than he
makes out."
Those who pretend that they are richer (in skills or
possessions) than they actually are or claim to be braver
than they are, and to those who promise to do what they
cannot do, and for the sake of getting something or making
some personal gain.
The world is full of these braggarts to this day;
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the know-alls who deceive people into thinking that they are
wise,
the politicians who claim that their parties have a program which
will bring in the Utopia and that they alone are born to be
leaders of men,
the people who crowd the advertisement columns with claims to
give beauty, knowledge or health by their system,
the people in the Church who have a kind of ostentatious, look
at me goodness.
Arrogant is "huperephanos."
derived from two Greek words which mean "to show oneself
above."
The man who, has a kind of contempt for everyone except
himself.
He is guilty of the "sin of the high heart."
God receives the humble but resists the man who is proud,
"huperephanos".
Jas 4:6 KJV But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith,
God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
1Pe 5:5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the
elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be
clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth
grace to the humble.
Pro_15:25 The LORD will destroy the house of the proud: but
he will establish the border of the widow.
Pro_16:5 Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to
the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be
unpunished.
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The braggart is a swaggering creature, who tries to bluster his
way into power and eminence. No one can possibly mistake
him.
The sin of a man who is arrogant is in his heart, his attitude, and
thoughts about himself.
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He might even seem to be humble; but in his heart there is
contempt for everyone else.
He nourishes an all-consuming, all-pervading pride; he
bows down before himself.
The qualities of the braggart and the arrogant man inevitably result
in love of insult ("blasphemia").
"Blasphemia" is the word which is transliterated into English as
blasphemy.
We usually associate it with insult against God, but in Greek
it means insult against man and God alike.
Pride (lifting up of self) always begets insult (putting down of
others)
It is disregard of God, thinking that it does not need him and
that it knows better than he.
It begets a contempt of men which can issue in hurting
actions and in wounding words.
The insult which comes from anger is bad, spoken out of the
heat of the moment; a cold insult comes from arrogant pride.
It is an ugly choice made with the intent of hurting and
harming another..
Men will be disobedient to their parents.
The ancient world set duty to parents very high.
The oldest Greek laws disfranchised the man who struck his
parents;
To strike a father was in Roman law as bad as murder;
In the Jewish law honor for father and mother comes high
(#5) in the list of the Ten Commandments.
It is the sign of a decadent civilization when youth loses all
respect for age and fails to recognize the unpayable debt and
the basic duty it owes to those who gave it life.
Children are “unthankful” and do not appreciate what their
parents have done for them.
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They are “unholy” in their attitude toward their parents.
“Honor thy father and thy mother” (Ex 20:12) is not
widely taught or respected.
Men will be thankless ("acharistos").
Ingratitude is the most hurting of all sins because it is the
blindest.
It refuses to recognize the debt owed to God and to men.
Lear's words remain true:
It is the sign of a man of honor that he pays his debts;
Every man has a debt to God.
There are debts to fellow-men which must be remembered
and repaid.
refuse to recognize even the ultimate decencies of life; men
will become "anosios."
Anosios does not so much mean that men will break the written
laws;
it means that they will offend against the unwritten laws
which are part and parcel of the essence of life.
"anosios" to refuse burial to the dead;
it was "anosios" for a brother to marry a sister, or a son a
mother.
"anosios" offends the fundamental decencies of life.
The man who has exhausted the normal pleasures of life and
still unsated, will seek his thrill in pleasures which are abnormal.
3] Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers,
incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
9] Without natural affection: homosexuality being accepted as
normal.
10] Trucebreakers (keeping the lawyers employed...): The
changes in atmosphere on Wall Street and the boardrooms
are increasingly obvious.
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11] False accusers: slanderers; certainly characteristic of our
times—even within the Body!
12] Incontinent: without self-control. Characteristic of our
present society.
13] Fierce: means savage; untamed; brutal. Our streets and
schools are unsave, even in daytime.
14] Despisers of those that are good. Better translated, “haters”
of the good.
without natural affection ("astorgos").
If there is no natural human affection, the family cannot exist.
In the terrible times men will be so set on self that even the
closest ties will be nothing to them.
The phrase “without natural affection” is the translation of one
word that describes “family love.”
"Storge" is the word used especially of family love, the love
of child for parent and parent for child.
In place of the natural love that God has put into men and
women and families, today we have a good deal of natural love
that God has condemned (see Rom. 1:18—27; 1 Cor.
6:9—10).
It is confusion, and God will judge it (Rom. 1:28—32).
implacable in their hatreds ("aspondos").
"Sponde" is the word for a truce or an agreement.
“Truce-breakers” describes people who will not try to agree.
They are unyielding and irreconcilable and must have their
own way.
"Aspondos" can mean two things.
It can mean that a man is so bitter in his hatred that he will
never come to terms with the man with whom he has
quarrelled.
It can mean that a man is so dishonourable that he breaks
the terms of the agreement he has made.
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The word describes a harshness of mind which separates a
man from his fellow-men in unrelenting bitterness.
Since we are only human, we cannot live entirely without
differences with our fellow-men, but to perpetuate these
differences is one of the worst and the commonest of all
sins.
When we are tempted to do so, remember the voice of
our Lord on the Cross: "Father, forgive them."
slanderers is "diabolos" the English word devil.
In order to defend and elevate themselves and their positions,
men become “slanderers” [“false accusers”]
They try to tear down the reputations of others.
Even “Christian leaders” accuse one another.
Often we know more about what they are against
than what they are for.
The devil is the chief of all slanderers. It often show up in
gossip and is spread by gossipers.
If a man's goods are stolen, he can set to and build up his
fortunes again; but if his good name is taken away, irreparable
damage has been done.
Many men and women, who would never dream of stealing,
think nothing--even find pleasure--in passing on a story
which ruins someone else's good name, without even trying
to find out whether or not it is true.
Gossip / slander is the unseen elephant in the room of many
churches and the live of ‘good moral Christians’.
ungovernable in their desires ("akrates").
The Greek verb "kratein" means "to control."
“Incontinent” ("akrates") means “without self-control.”
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“Do your own thing”
“If it feels good do it!”
“Have it your way!”
This lack of self-control reveals itself in a number of ways.
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Men can reach a point so far from controlling his desire that he
becomes a slave to some habit or desire.
No man can master anything unless he first masters
himself.
“Fierce” means “untamed, brutal.”
When people cannot have their way, they become much like
savage beasts.
Instead of honoring what is good, they despise what is good
and honor what is evil.
Savage
"anemeros"
It denotes a savagery which has neither sensitiveness nor
sympathy.
This would be more fittingly applied to a wild beast than to a
human being.
Even a dog may be sorry when he has hurt his master, but there
are people who, in their treatment of others, can be lost to
human sympathy and feeling.
Men can be savage in their rebuke or others and savage in
pitiless action
no love for good things or good persons ("aphilagathos").
In society today the standards of right and wrong have been
twisted, if not destroyed.
“Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil,” cried
Isaiah the prophet (Isa. 5:20).
A man has sunk far when he finds even the presence of good
people something which he would only wish to avoid.
There can come a time when the company of good people
and the presence of good things is an embarrassment.
His mental palate loses its taste.
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He who feeds his mind on cheap literature can in the end
find nothing in the great masterpieces.
4] Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than
lovers of God;
15] Traitors are betrayers.
There are some that you don’t trust—even within the
Body of Christ!
16] Heady = reckless.
17] Highminded: blinded by pride; conceited.
18] Lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God.
Characteristic of our age. Measure the budgets for
entertainment vs. charitable commitments, etc.
Treacherous
("prodotes")
a traitor.
“Traitors” describes people who betray others and cannot be
trusted.
Neither friendship nor partnership makes any difference to
them;
They lie and break their promises whenever doing so helps
them get their own way.
This was written at the beginning of the years of persecution,
when it was becoming a crime to be a Christian.
In the ordinary matters of politics one of the curses of Rome
was the existence of informers ("delatores").
There were those who would revenge themselves on an
enemy by informing against him.
Paul may be thinking of those who will pay back an old score by
informing on another.
headlong in words and action. "propetes"
“Heady” means “reckless, rash, acting without careful thought.”
It describes the man who is swept on by passion and impulse to
such an extent that he is totally unable to think sensibly.
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Paul did not condemn honest adventure, but foolish
endeavor and rash action is to be avoided.
Many and many a time we would be saved from hurting
ourselves and from wounding other people, if we would
only stop to think.
Men will be inflated with conceit ("tetuphomenos").
“High-minded” does not describe a person with loft thoughts.
It describes a person who is “puffed up” with his importance.
“Conceited” is a good synonym.
The word is almost exactly the English swelled-headed;
inflated with a sense of their own importance.
There are still Church dignitaries whose main thought is their
own dignity; but the Christian is the follower of him who was
meek and lowly in heart.
They will be lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.
Here we come back to where we started; such men place their
own wishes in the center of life.
They worship self instead of God.
“Lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God” does not suggest
that we must choose between pleasure and God, for when we
live for God, we enjoy the greatest pleasures (Ps. 16:11).
Psa 16:11 You will show me the path of life; In Your
presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures
forevermore.
If we love God, we will also enjoy fullness of life here and
forever, but the pleasures of sin can only last for a brief time..
Heb 11:25 …choosing rather to suffer affliction with the
people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin,
We live in a pleasure-mad world; but these pleasures too often
are just shallow entertainment and escape; they are not
enrichment and true enjoyment.
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5] Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof:
from such turn away.
19] Form without force; religion without reality.
Note: this has all described the church-going crowd, not just
worldly society at large!
“Having a form of godliness....” = rituals without life and reality.
These people he has just described would consider themselves
religious!
This suggests an outward appearance of religion, not true
Christian faith,
for they have never experienced the power of God in their
lives.
Form without force.
Religion without relationship.
they retain the outward form of religion but deny its power.
They go through all the correct movements and maintain all the
external forms of religion; but they know nothing of Christianity
as a dynamic power which changes the lives of men.
“From such turn away”:
A faithful believer should have nothing to do with the people Paul
described in this section.
It is important to note that these people operate under the guise of
religion:
They are “religious” but rebellious!
If you are in a dead, cold, liberal church—and if you are a true
believer—what are you doing there?
The Word of God says to avoid such things!
Remember: these people operate under the guise of
religion.
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SEDUCTION IN THE NAME OF RELIGION
2 Timothy 3:6-7
"For from among these there come those who enter into
houses, and take captive foolish women, laden with sins and
driven by varied desires, ready to listen to any teacher but
never able to come to a knowledge of the truth."
The fact that Paul described “silly [weak-willed NIV] women” does
not suggest that all women are like this, or that men are not
vulnerable to the wiles of false teachers.
The Christian emancipation and treatment of women inevitably
brought its problems.
Women in Greek society lived a secluded life of the respectable
She was brought up under the strictest supervision,
She was not allowed "to see anything, to hear anything, or to
ask any questions,"
She never appeared, even on a shopping expedition, alone on
the streets,
She was never allowed even to appear at a public meeting.
Christianity changed all that and a new set of problems arose.
It was to be expected that certain women would not know how
to use their new liberty.
And, there were false teachers who were quick to take
advantage of that.
There would be two ways in which these heretics in the days of
Timothy could exert an evil influence.
They were Gnostics and that the basic principle of Gnosticism
was that spirit was altogether good and matter altogether evil.
We have already seen that that teaching issued in one of two
things.
The Gnostic heretics taught, either,
That since matter is altogether evil, a rigid asceticism must
be practiced and all the things of the body as far as possible
eliminated, or
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That it does not matter what we do with the body and its
desires can be indulged in to the limit because they do not
matter.
The Gnostic insinuators would teach these doctrines to
impressionable women.
The result would often be either that the woman broke off
married relationships with her husband in order to live the
ascetic life, or that she gave the lower instincts full play and
abandoned herself to promiscuous relationships.
In either case home and family life were destroyed.
6] For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead
captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers
lusts,
lead captive is a military term for taking prisoners in war.
Taking their minds and thoughts captive
2Co 10:5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty
thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we
are taking every thought captive to the obedience of
Christ,
Rom 7:23 but I see a different law in the members of my
body, waging war against the law of my mind and
making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my
members.
Today these charlatans can creep in through the television
channels, CD’s, DVD’s, movies, books, etc..
What do you feed yourself with?
What seeds are you sowing?
What do you fill yourself with?
Lives evidence the real condition.
7] Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of
the truth.
Never matured; lives unchanged.
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It is still possible for a teacher to gain an undue and unhealthy
influence over others, especially when they are impressionable.
It is Paul's charge that such people are "willing to learn from
anyone, and yet never able to come to a knowledge of the
truth."
having "intellectual curiosity without moral earnestness."
The type of person who is eager to discuss every new
theory, who is always to be found deeply involved in the
latest fashionable religious movement, but who is
unwilling to accept the day-to-day discipline of living the
Christian life.
We are not meant to titillate our minds with the latest intellectual
crazes; we are meant to purify and strengthen ourselves in the
moral battle to live the Christian life.
Whether men or women, they are burdened with guilt and looking
for some escape from bondage and fear.
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They find themselves unable to control their various desires
(“divers lusts”).
They are always searching for truth, trying this approach
and that, yet they are never able to be satisfied.
This kind of person is fair game for the cultists and the
religious racketeers.
These false religious leaders take advantage of the problems
people have, and promise them quick and easy solutions.
They “worm their way in” and soon control people’s lives.
It is not long before these leaders grab their followers’
loyalty, money, and service.
And their “converts” are worse off than they were before.
They still have their problems, but they have been duped into
thinking that all is well.
Remember, all of this underhanded activity is done in the name of
religion!
“From such turn away.”
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THE OPPONENTS OF GOD
2 Timothy 3:8-9
"In the same way as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so
these also oppose the truth, men whose minds are corrupt,
and whose faith is counterfeit. But they will not get much
further, for their folly will be as clear to all as that of those
ancient impostors."
Between the Old and the New Testaments many Jewish books
were written which expanded the Old Testament stories.
In the Old Testament they are not named, but they are referred
to in Exo.7:11; 8:7; 9:11.
Led Away With Divers Lusts
8] Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these
also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate
concerning the faith.
In certain of these intertestimental books Jannes and Jambres
figured largely.
These were the names given to the court magicians of
Pharaoh who opposed Moses and Aaron, when Moses was
leading the children of Israel out of their slavery in Egypt.
(Ex 7 - 9).
They actually also did miracles, to a point (Ex 8:16-19).
When Aaron’s rod turned into a serpent, the magicians cast
down their rods and they turned into serpents.
Moses turned the water into blood, and the magicians followed
with the same miracle.
When Moses brought up all the frogs, the magicians duplicated
the miracle.
But when it came to the miracle of the lice, the magicians could
not imitate it (Ex. 8:16—19).
Satan does miracles; and he is the great imitator; a counterfeiter.
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Most Christians underestimate the degree to which he
intervenes and manipulates.
The religious leaders in the last days will have a counterfeit faith,
Their purpose is to promote a lie and resist the truth of God’s
Word.
They deny the authority of the Bible and substitute human
wisdom and philosophy.
In their attempt to be “modern and relevant” they deny the
reality of sin and people’s need for salvation.
Reprobate concerning the faith: tested and found counterfeit.
Don’t be surprised to see them in prominent pulpits....
At first these magicians were able to match the wonders which
Moses and Aaron did, but in the end they were defeated and
discredited.
A whole collection of myths and stories gathered around their
names.
They were said to be the two servants who accompanied
Balaam when he was disobedient to God (Num.22:22);
They were said to have been part of the great mixed multitude
who accompanied the children of Israel out of Egypt
(Exo.12:38);
Some said that they perished at the crossing of the Red Sea;
Other stories said that it was Jannes and Jambres who were
behind the making of the golden calf and that they perished
among those who were killed for that sin (Exo.32:28);
Other stories said that in the end they became proselytes to
Judaism.
Amid the stories one fact stands out--Jannes and Jambres
became legendary figures typifying all those who opposed
the purposes of God and the work of his true leaders.
“Reprobate” is the word Paul used to describe them.
This means “tested and found counterfeit.”
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9] But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be
manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.
The defeat of error depends not on skill in controversy but in the
demonstration in life of the more excellent way.
Jannes and Jambres were finally exposed and made fools
of by the judgments of God.
This will also happen to the leaders of false religions in the last
days.
When God’s judgments fall, the true character of these
counterfeits will be revealed to everyone.
The Christian leader will never lack his opponents.
There will always be those who have their own twisted ideas of the
Christian faith, and who wish to win others to their mistaken beliefs.
Paul was sure--the days of the deceivers were numbered.
Their falsity would be demonstrated and they would receive
their appropriate reward.
It may flourish for a time, but when it is exposed to the light
of truth it is bound to shrivel and die.
There is only one test for falsity--"You will know them by their fruits."
Mat_7:16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather
grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
Mat_7:20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
2 Timothy 3:10-13
"But you have been my disciple in my teaching, my training,
my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my endurance,
my persecutions, my sufferings, in what happened to me at
Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra, in the persecutions which I
underwent; and the Lord rescued me from them all. And those
who wish to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted;
while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse,
deceived themselves and deceiving others."
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2. Follow Those Who Are True (3:10—12)
10] But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life,
purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience,
Paul turned from the false leaders to remind Timothy that he
(Paul) had been a faithful servant of God.
It is important in these difficult days that we follow the right
spiritual leaders.
Their lives are open for all to see (v. 10a).
Paul had nothing to hide.
Like the Lord, he could say, “In secret have I said nothing”
(John 18:20).
“Mv manner of life from my youth know all the Jews,” (Acts
26:4).
Timothy had lived and labored with Paul and knew the man
well.
Paul had not hidden behind extravagant claims or religious
propaganda.
They teach true doctrine (v. 10b).
“My doctrine” in Paul’s case meant the true faith, the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
No matter how appealing a preacher may be, if he does not
preach the truth of God’s Word, he does not deserve our
support.
On radio and TV today, we have a great deal of
“pseudo- Christianity” which is a mixture of psychology,
success motivation, and personality cults, with a little bit
of Bible thrown in to make it look religious. Beware!
They practice what they preach (v. 10c).
Paul’s “manner of life” backed up his messages.
He did not preach sacrifice and live in luxury.
He gave to others far more than he received from them.
He stood up for the truth even when it meant losing friends
and in the end, losing his life.
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Paul was a servant, not a celebrity.
Their purpose is to glorify God (v. 10d).
Paul wanted to do God’s will and finish the work God gave him
to do (Acts 20:24; Phil. 1:21).
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The apostle Paul was a man of “faith” who trusted God to
meet his needs.
He was a man of “longsuffering” who bore up under
people’s attacks.
He was a man of love (“charity”) who willingly gave himself
to serve others.
The word patience at the end of 2 Timothy 3:10 means
“consistency, “endurance” - the ability to stay in character
when the going gets tough.”
Paul tells Timothy to be a marathon runner, not sprinter.
They are willing to suffer (vv. 11—12).
11] Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch,
at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of
them all the Lord delivered me.
At Lystra, Paul was stoned and left for dead. Some scholars
believe he was dead, and God raised him.
Paul did not ask others to suffer for him; he suffered for others.
The fact that he was persecuted from city to city was proof that he
was living a godly life.
Some people today have the idea that godliness means
escaping persecution, -- just the opposite is true.
If Paul applied for service with a modern mission board, would he
be accepted?
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He had a prison record;
He had a physical affliction;
He stirred up problems in just about every place he visited.
He was poor, and
he did not cater to the rich or influential.
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Yet God used him, and we are being blessed today because
Paul was faithful.
Paul’s life was an open book, as every Christian’s life ought to be.
Compare Paul’s resume to those aspiring to Christian leadership:
...an extensive prison record;
...physical affliction;
...stirred up problems wherever he went;
...was poor and did not cater to the rich; etc.
Characteristics of a Good Leader
• Teaching: He must be able to teach Godly principles; must
know the Scriptures;
• Conduct: He must conduct himself in a manner that glorifies
God;
• Purpose: He must have a personal mission statement which
lines up with God’s will;
• Faith: He must be a man of faith, including much prayer;
• Patience: He is sensitive to God’s timing;
• Love: [Re. The Way of Agape as a primer...]
• Perseverance: He knows that God is in control. (All studies
about success put this quality high on the list.)
• Persecutions, and Sufferings. Jesus promised us this. [Re:
Faith in the Night Seasons...]
Paul contrasts the conduct of Timothy, his loyal disciple, with the
conduct of the heretics who were doing their utmost to wreck the
Church.
to be a disciple is beyond translation in any single English word.
It is the Greek "parakolouthein" and literally means "to follow
alongside"
It means to follow a person physically, to stick by him
through thick and thin.
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It means to follow a person mentally, to attend diligently to
his teaching and fully to understand the meaning of what he
says.
It means to follow a person spiritually, not only to
understand what he says, but also to carry out his ideas and
be the kind of person he wishes us to be.
It includes the unwavering loyalty of the true comrade,
the full understanding of the true scholar and
the complete obedience of the dedicated servant.
Paul goes on to list the duties, the qualities and the experiences of
an apostle to which Timothy has been his disciple;
THE DUTIES AND THE QUALITIES OF AN APOSTLE
There are the duties of an apostle.
There is teaching.
No man can teach what he does not know, and therefore
before a man can teach Christ to others he must know him
himself.
Real teaching is always born of real experience.
There is training.
The Christian life does not consist only in knowing
something; it consists even more in being something.
The task of the apostle is not only to tell men the truth; it
is also to help them do it. The true leader gives trains in
living by example.
There are the qualities of the apostle.
He has an aim in life.
Teachers should ask themselves: What am I trying to do with
these people whom I teach?
Is it knowledge, or is it life, that we are trying to transmit?
We should sometimes ask ourselves, what are we trying to do
in the Church?
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How do we measure success?
What is our goal?
What, if any, is the unifying purpose which binds all our
activity together?
In all life there is nothing so creative of really productive effort as
a clear consciousness of a purpose.
Being able to answer:
So What ?
There is faith, a complete belief that God's commands are binding
and that his promises are true.
There is patience. "makrothumia";
and "makrothumia," as the Greeks used it, usually meant
patience (consistency) with people.
It is the ability not to lose patience when people are foolish,
not to grow irritable when they seem unteachable.
It is the ability to accept the folly, the perversity, the
blindness, the ingratitude of men and still to remain
gracious, and still to toil on.
There is love. The attitude which bears with everything men can
do refusing to be angry or embittered,
which will never seek anything but their highest good.
To love men is to forgive them and care for them as God
forgave and cares--and it is only he who can enable us to do
that.
THE EXPERIENCES OF AN APOSTLE
Paul sets down the quality of endurance. "hupomone"
"hupomone" is not a passive sitting down and bearing things but
a triumphant facing of them so that even out of evil there can
come good.
It is not the spirit which accepts life,
It is the spirit which masters it.
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The quality of conquering endurance is necessary, because
persecution is an essential part of the experience of an apostle.
Paul was driven from Antioch in Pisidia (Ac.13:50);
He had to flee from Iconium to avoid lynching (Ac.14:5-6); in
Lystra
He was stoned and left for dead (Ac.14:19).
These things happened before the young Timothy had definitely
entered on the Christian way, but they all happened in the district of
which he was a native;
It may be a proof of Timothy's courage and consecration that he
had clearly and possibly personally eyewitnessed what could
happen to an apostle and had yet not hesitated to cast in his lot
with Paul.
12] Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer
persecution.
Yes, even here in America, it will cost you to be a Christian: Melvin
Laird, long before he was Secretary of Defense, made a statement
at a San Francisco convention: “In this world it is becoming more
and more unpopular to be a Christian. Soon it may become
dangerous.”
Five Steps of Persecution
1. Identify the Target Group.
2. Marginalize the Target Group.
3. Villify the Target Group.
4. Pass laws against the beliefs or activities of the Target
Group.
5. Enforce the Laws.
[Summarized from Paul C. Schenck with Robert Schenck in
The Extermination of Christianity: A Tyranny of Consensus,
Huntington House, Lafayette, LA, 1993.]
It is Paul's conviction that the real follower of Christ cannot escape
persecution.
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"When we were with you, we told you beforehand that we were
to suffer affliction; just as it has come to pass, and as you know"
(1Th.3:4).
He returned after the first missionary journey to visit the
Churches he had founded,
"strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to
continue in the faith, and saying that through many
tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" (Ac.14:22).
Jesus himself had said:
"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness'
sake" (Matt.5:10).
If anyone proposes to accept a set of standards quite different
from the world's, he is bound to encounter trouble.
If anyone proposes to introduce into his life a loyalty which
surpasses all earthly loyalties, there are bound to be clashes.
And that is precisely what Christianity demands that a man
should do.
Paul is sure that God will rescue the man who puts his faith in him.
He is sure that in the long run it is better to suffer with God and
the right than to prosper with men and the wrong.
Certain of the temporary persecution, he is equally certain
of the ultimate glory.
He is sure that the ungodly man will go from bad to worse and
that there is literally no future for the man who refuses to accept
the way of God.
3. Continue in God’s Word (3:13—17)
13] But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse,
deceiving, and being deceived.
Seducers —imposters—leading many astray, including
presidents...
The only way to defeat Satan’s lies is with God’s truth.
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“Thus saith the Lord!” is the final answer to ever question.
Evil men and deceivers are going to get worse and worse.
They will deceive more and more because they are being
deceived by Satan!
In these last days, there will be more deception and
imitation,
The only way a believer will be able to tell the true from
the false is by knowing the Word of God.
THE VALUE OF SCRIPTURE
2 Timothy 3:14-17
"But as for you, remain loyal to the things which you have
learned, and in which your belief has been confirmed, for you
know from whom you learned them, and you know that from
childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able
to give you the wisdom that will bring you salvation through
the faith which is in Christ Jesus. All God-inspired scripture
is useful for teaching, for the conviction of error, for
correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of
God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work."
From his earliest childhood Timothy had been taught and knew the
Old Testament;
14] But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned
and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned
them;
The herald must continue with the Holy Scriptures (2 Tim 3:14),
knowing the dependable character of the Scriptures (God
breathed – 2 Tim 3:16).
Adults need guidance even more than children do; their
opportunities and perils are more significant...
15] And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures,
which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith
which is in Christ Jesus.
They are the Holy Scriptures (v. 15a).
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“The sacred letters” is a literal translation.
The suggestion is that young Timothy learned his Hebrew alphabet
by spelling his way through the Old Testament Scriptures.
“holy” means “consecrated for sacred use.”
Treat the Bible as the special book it is.
The way we treat the Bible shows others how much or how little we
respect it.
Paul gives us the right attitude toward the Word of God (1 Thess.
2:13)
1Th 2:13 For this reason we also thank God without ceasing,
because when you received the word of God which you
heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but
as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works
in you who believe..
The Scriptures lead us to salvation (v. 15b).
We are not saved by believing the Bible (John 5:39), but by trusting
the Christ who is revealed in the Bible.
Joh 5:39 You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you
have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.
Satan knows the Bible, but he is not saved.
Timothy was raised on the holy Scriptures in a godly home.
Yet it was not until Paul led him to Christ that he was saved.
The Bible reveals our need for salvation.
It is a mirror that shows us how filthy we are in God’s sight.
The Bible explains that every lost sinner is condemned now and
needs a Savior now. It also makes it clear that a lost sinner
cannot save himself.
Joh 3:18-21 NKJV
(18) "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he
who does not believe is condemned already, because
he has not believed in the name of the only begotten
Son of God.
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(19) And this is the condemnation, that the light has
come into the world, and men loved darkness rather
than light, because their deeds were evil.
(20) For everyone practicing evil hates the light and
does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be
exposed.
(21) But he who does the truth comes to the light, that
his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been
done in God."
The Bible also reveals God’s wonderful plan of salvation:
Christ died for our sins! If we trust Him, He will save us
Joh 3:16-18 NKJV
(16) For God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not
perish but have everlasting life.
(17) For God did not send His Son into the world to
condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be
saved.
(18) "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he
who does not believe is condemned already, because he
has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of
God.
The Bible also helps give us the assurance of our salvation
1Jn 5:9-13 NKJV
(9) If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is
greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified
of His Son.
(10) He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in
himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar,
because he has not believed the testimony that God has
given of His Son.
(11) And this is the testimony: that God has given us
eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
(12) He who has the Son has life; he who does not have
the Son of God does not have life.
(13) These things I have written to you who believe in the
name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have
eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the
name of the Son of God.
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The Bible becomes our spiritual food to nourish us that we might
grow in grace and serve Christ.
It is our sword for fighting Satan and overcoming temptation.
The only antidote against a world of apostasy is the Word of God.
“...make thee ‘wise unto salvation’” = ?
The Tenses of “Salvation”
Past Tense: Separation from the Penalty of Sin Justification
Present Tense: Separation from the Power of Sin Sanctification
Future Tense: Separation from the Presence of Sin Glorification
Justification is for us;
Sanctification is in us.
Justification declares the sinner righteous;
Sanctification makes the sinner righteous.
Justification removes the guilt and penalty of sin;
Sanctification removes the growth and the power of sin.
Paul appeals to Timothy to remain loyal to all the teaching he had
received.
On his mother's side Timothy was a Jew, although his father had
been a Greek (Ac.16:1);
It was his mother who had brought him up.
It was the glory of the Jews that their children from their earliest
days were trained in the law.
They claimed that their children learned the law even from their
swaddling clothes and drank it in with their mother's milk.
They claimed that the law was so imprinted on the heart and
mind of a Jewish child that he would sooner forget his own
name than he would forget it.
16] All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is
profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness:
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The servant of the Word must learn to wield this sword in
different ways: Scripture can be used for teaching, rebuking,
correcting and training in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16).
Everytime we sit together (or even when alone), reading and
pondering (meditating; thinking about, discussing God’s word and
everytime we gain some new insight concerning it, we are
experiencing and proving the presence and work of the Holy Spirit
in our lives.
Jer_1:12
God is watching over His word to perform it
Joh 14:15-26
15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another
Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive,
because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him;
for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see
me: because I live, ye shall live also.
20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me,
and I in you.
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is
that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my
Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt
manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?
23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will
keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come
unto him, and make our abode with him.
24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word
which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.
25 These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with
you.
26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father
will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all
things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
Joh 16:7-14
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7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go
away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you;
but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of
righteousness, and of judgment:
9 Of sin, because they believe not on me;
10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me
no more;
11 Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.
12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear
them now.
13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you
into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever
he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to
come.
14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew
it unto you.
Even when we do not understand it, God the Holy Spirit is at work to
reveal it to us and increase our understanding of it.
It is God’s Word, why would He not watch over it to protect it
and open our understanding of it.
He expects us to take it seriously and apply and follow it in our
day to day living.
Do not reduce it to a ‘good’ story or a fable
Do not turn it into a series of limericks
Do not make it one of many options vying for your attention
If you can’t take it literally and the literal sense doesn’t make
sense, at least take it seriously – apply the principles of the
passage and look for God to open your understanding to
correctly apply the literal truth to your life.
Two things are certain:
God expects you to take His Word seriously
You will be judged by His Word and what you did with it in life
when you stand before Him in judgment. (reward or
punishement)
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“All scripture” = not just the part we understand or agree with.
It doesn’t just “contain” the Word of God;
that would put man in the role of an editor, selecting that
which he agrees with.
[W. C. Fields, when noted he was studying the Bible:
“Looking for loopholes.”]
“Inspiration” = “God-breathed.”
“For reproof” = conviction.
“Correction” = setting things right in your life; correcting errors and
priorities.
“Instruction” = discipline; thinking and acting in accordance with
God’s will.
Doctrine: what is right.
Reproof: what is not right.
Correction: how to get right.
Instruction: how to stay right
Paul speaks of "all God-inspired scripture."
The Gnostics had their own fanciful books;
The heretics all produced their own literature to support their
claims.
Paul regarded these as man-made things;
Paul says that the Scriptures give the wisdom which will bring
salvation. Again and again Scripture has opened for men and
women the way to God.
Jn.18:37: `For this I was born, and for this I have come into the
world, to bear witness to the truth. Every one who is of the
truth hears my voice.'
A book with a record such as it has cannot be disregarded.
No man seeking for the truth has any right to neglect the
reading of the Bible for there is a saving wisdom here that is
in no other book.
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The Scriptures are true and dependable (v. 16a).
“All Scripture is God-breathed” (NIV).
The doctrine of the inspiration of Scripture is vitally important, and a
doctrine that Satan has attacked from the beginning
“Yea, hath God said?” [Gen. 3:1]
It is inconceivable that God would give His people a book they could
not trust. He is the God of truth (Deut. 32:4);
Jesus is “the truth” (John 14:6); and
The “Spirit is truth” (1 John 5:6).
Jesus said of the Scriptures, “Thy word is truth” (John 17:17).
Biblical inspiration is the supernatural influence of the Holy Spirit on
the Bible’s writers, which guaranteed that what they wrote was
accurate and trustworthy.
Revelation means the communicating of truth to man by God;
Inspiration has to do with the recording of this communication in
a way that is dependable.
The Holy Spirit of God used men of God to write the Word of God
2Pe 1:20-21 NKJV
(20) knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of
any private interpretation,
(21) for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy
men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
The Spirit did not erase the natural characteristics of the writers.
God in His providence prepared the writers for the task of
writing the Scriptures.
Each writer has his own distinctive style and vocabulary.
Each book of the Bible grew out of a special set of
circumstances.
In His preparation of men, in His guiding of history, and in His
working through the Spirit, God brought about the miracle of the
Scriptures.
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Whatever the Bible says about itself, man, God, life, death, history,
science, and every other subject is true.
This does not mean that every statement in the Bible is true,
because the Bible records the lies of men and of Satan.
But the record is true.
The Scriptures are profitable (v. 16b).
They are profitable for doctrine (what is right),
for reproof (what is not right),
for correction (how to get right), and
for instruction in righteousness (how to stay right).
A Christian who studies the Bible and applies what he learns will
grow in holiness and avoid many pitfalls in this world.
All theories, all theologies, all ethics, are to be tested against
the Bible.
If they contradict the teaching of the Bible, they are to be
refused.
It is our duty to use our minds and set them adventuring;
but the test must ever be agreement with the teaching of
Jesus Christ as the Scriptures present it to us.
The Scriptures are of use in teaching.
Whatever a man might argue about the rest of the Bible, it is
impossible for the Church ever to do without the Gospels.
Christianity is not founded on a printed book but on a living person,
Jesus.
The only place in all the world where we get a first-hand account
of that person and of his teaching is in the New Testament.
A church which has no Bible Class is a church in whose work an
essential element is missing.
The Scriptures are valuable for reproof.
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It is not meant that the Scriptures are valuable for finding fault;
What is meant is that they are valuable for convincing a man of
the error of his ways and for pointing him on the right path.
It is beyond argument that the Scriptures can convict a man
of his error and convince him of the power of Christ.
The Scriptures are of use for correction.
The Scriptures are the basis for instruction in righteousness.
In them we tap into God’s wisdom.
The Scriptures trains a man in righteousness until he is
equipped for every good work.
The Scriptures equip us for service (v. 17).
The study of the Scriptures must never be selfish, never simply
for the good of a man's own soul.
Paul had called Timothy a “man of God” (1 Tim. 6:11)
here Paul states that any Christian can become a person “of
God” by studying the Word of God, obeying it, and letting it
control his life.
All of the “men of God” named in Scripture — including
Moses, Samuel, Elijah, Elisha, David, and Timothy —
were men who were devoted to God’s Word.
Any conversion which makes a man think of nothing but the fact
that he has been saved is no true conversion.
He must study the Scriptures to make himself useful to God
and to his fellow-men.
No man is saved unless he is on fire to save his
fellow-men.
17] That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished
unto all good works.
“perfect” and “furnished.”
“perfect” means “complete, in fit shape, in fit condition; mature”
It does not suggest being flawless or sinless perfection.
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“Furnished”: “equipped for service; being ready for use.”
The Word of God furnishes and equips a believer so that he can live
a life that pleases God and do the work God wants him to do.
The better we know the ‘Word, the better we are able to live and
work for God.
The purpose of Bible study is not just to understand doctrines or to
be able to defend the faith, as important as these things are.
The ultimate purpose is the equipping of the believers who read it. It
is the Word of God that equips God’s people to do the work of God.
Christians must
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separate ourselves from that which is false,
devote ourselves to that which is true, and
continue in our study of the Word of God.
Then God can equip us for ministry in these difficult days, and we
will have the joy of seeing others come to a knowledge of the truth.
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QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION OR GROUP
DISCUSSION
1. Paul warned Timothy about how to spot evil people in the world
around him. What are the earmarks of the evil you see in the world
around you?
2. Why do we think the most deceiving voices often come from
behind a religious disguise, as Wiersbe said?
3. What evidence do you see that we are caught up in a “me”
society, as Wiersbe described it?
4. One of the negative characteristics Paul listed was a lack of
self-control. What are some examples of a lack of self-control in our
society?
5 Much of 2 Timothy 3 is about Paul telling Timothy who to listen
to. How would you tell a younger Christian how to know which
voices to listen to?
6. Why do you think those of true faith, like Paul, are so often
persecuted?
7. How can we best arm ourselves so that we will be prepared to
face the lies and persecution of this world?
8. What are some of the best ideas you’ve come across for parents
to raise their children up in the Word of God?
9. Describe a time when you found the Scriptures met you at your
point of need.
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2 Timothy 4
PAUL'S GROUNDS OF APPEAL
2 Timothy 4:1-5
"I charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is going to
judge the living and the dead--I charge you by his appearing
and by his Kingdom--herald forth the word; be urgent in
season and out of season; convict, rebuke, exhort, and do it
all with a patience and a teaching which never fail. For there
will come a time when men will refuse to listen to sound
teaching, but, because they have ears which have to be
continually titillated with novelties, they will bury themselves
under a mound of teachers, whose teaching suits their own
lusts after forbidden things. They will avert their ears from the
truth, and they will turn to extravagant tales. As for you, be
steady in all things; accept the suffering which will come upon
you; do the work of an evangelist; leave no act of your service
unfulfilled."
Paul wishes to nerve and to challenge Timothy reminds him of three
things concerning Jesus.
Last Words
(2 Timothy 4)
A great person’s last words are significant.
They are a window that helps us to look into his heart, or a
measure that helps us evaluate his life.
In this chapter, we have Paul’s last words to Timothy and to the
church.
Paul expressed no regrets as he came to the end.
He even forgave those who made his situation difficult (2 Tim.
4:16).
More than seventeen people are referred to in this chapter, which
shows that Paul was a friend-maker as well as a soul winner.
Though his own days were numbered, Paul thought of others.
The apostle gave three final admonitions to Timothy, and he
backed each of them up with a reason.
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Preach the Word! (4:1—4)
2 Timothy 4: Deathbed Testimony
Paul was alone, incarcerated in Mamertine Prison in Rome.
1] I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus
Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his
appearing and his kingdom;
They are charged to preach the Word in the very presence of
God and Christ (2 Tim 4:1).
The second appearing of Christ should always be an event in
the herald’s view (2 Tim 4:1).
“I charge thee” should read “I solemnly witness.”
Paul wanted Timothy to sense the importance of this letter and
admonition.
It was serious, not only because Paul was facing death, but
even more because both Paul and Timothy would be judged
one day when Jesus Christ appeared.
His final appointment was drawing near.
We each have such an appointment; our final exam
has also been scheduled.
This realization would encourage us to do our work carefully and
faithfully.
It would also deliver us from the fear of man; for, after all, our
final Judge is God.
The realization that God will one day judge our works
encourages us to keep going even when we face difficulties.
We are serving Him, not ourselves.
Jesus is the judge of the living and the dead.
Some day Timothy's work will be tested by Jesus himself.
A Christian must do every task in such a way that he can offer it
to Christ.
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1Jn_2:28 And now, little children, abide in him; that, when
he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be
ashamed before him at his coming.
A true believer is not concerned with either the criticism or the
verdict of men.
The one thing he covets is the "Well done!" of Jesus Christ.
Jesus is the returning conqueror - I charge you by his
appearing.
"Epiphaneia" was used for the manifest intervention of some
god;
It was specially used in connection with the Roman
Emperor. His accession to the throne was his
"epiphaneia";
It was used of his visit to any province or town.
When the Emperor was due to visit any place, everything was
put in perfect order.
The streets were swept and garnished and all work was
brought up-to-date so that the town might be fit for
"epiphaneia."
Paul says to Timothy:; you are expecting the "epiphaneia" of
Jesus Christ. Do your work in such a way that all things will be
ready whenever he appears."
The Christian should so order life that at any and every
moment he is ready for the coming of Christ.
Jesus is King - I charge you by his appearing and by his
Kingdom
The day comes when the kingdoms of the world will be the
Kingdom of the Lord;
Paul says to Timothy: "So live and work that you will rank high in
the roll of its citizens when the Kingdom comes."
Our work must be such that it will stand the scrutiny of Christ.
Our lives must be such that they will welcome the appearance of
the King.
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Our service must be such that it will demonstrate the reality of our
citizenship of the Kingdom of God.
Key Verse
2] Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season;
reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
The preacher is called to preach the Word – and nothing else (2
Tim 4:2).
Proclamation is to continue regardless of whether the climate is
favorable (2 Tim 4:2).
A preaching ministry requires not only passion but patience (2
Tim 4:2).
“Preach the Word!” is the main responsibility that Paul shared in
this section. Everything else he said is related to this.
The word preach means “to preach like a herald.”
In Paul’s day, a ruler had a special herald who made
announcements to the people.
He was commissioned by the ruler to make his announcements
in a loud, clear voice so everyone could hear.
He was not an ambassador with the privilege of negotiating;
he was a messenger with a proclamation to be heard and
heeded.
Not to heed the ruler’s messenger was serious; to abuse
the messenger was even worse.
Timothy was to herald God’s Word with the authority of heaven
behind him.
The Word of God is what both sinners and saints need.
It is a pity that many churches have substituted other things for the
preaching of the Word—things that may be good in their place, but
that are bad when they replace the proclamation of the Word.
Paul doesn’t say “preach from the Word.”
He says “preach the Word.”
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be instant in season, out of season;
Instant = diligent. (Or better, urgent.)
Timothy should be diligent and alert to use every opportunity to
preach the Word, when it is favorable and even when it is not
favorable.
It is easy to make excuses when we ought to be making
opportunities.
Paul always found an opportunity to share the ‘Word, whether it
was in the temple courts, on a stormy sea, or even in prison.
“He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth
the clouds shall not reap” (Eccl. 11:4).
Stop making excuses and get to work!
reprove, rebuke, exhort
Reprove = with conviction.
Rebuke = actually, threaten.
Exhort = comfort...
Preaching must be marked by three elements: conviction, warning,
and appeal (“reprove, rebuke, exhort”).
An old rule of preachers is that:
“He should afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted.”
If there is conviction but no remedy, we add to people’s burdens.
If we encourage those who ought to be rebuked, we are assisting
them to sin.
Biblical preaching must be balanced.
with all longsuffering and doctrine.
God’s speaker must be patient as he preaches the Word.
He will not always see immediate results.
He must be patient with those who oppose his preaching.
He must preach doctrine.
He must not simply tell Bible stories, relate interesting
illustrations, or read a verse and then forget it.
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True preaching is the explanation and application of Bible doctrine.
Anything else is just religious speechmaking.
Laodicea Today
3] For the time will come when they will not endure sound
doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to
themselves teachers, having itching ears;
4] And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall
be turned unto fables.
The herald of the gospel should expect ‘competition’ in the form
of other communicators conveying contrary messages (2
Tim 4:3).
FOOLISH LISTENERS
Paul warns Timothy that the day is coming when men will refuse to
listen to sound teaching and will collect teachers who will titillate
their ears with precisely the easy-going, comfortable things they
want to hear.
In Timothy's day it was tragically easy to find such teachers.
They were called "sophists" and wandered from city to city,
offering to teach anything for pay.
They were prepared to teach the whole of virtue for 15 or 20
dollars.
They would teach a man to argue subtly and to use words
cleverly until he could make a worse reason appear the better
reason.
They were the offerers of $5 advanced divinity degrees in
anything you would pay for.
They competed for customers, shouting and abusing one
another, and their disciples, as they called them, squabbling.
Many wrote papers and books to sell which many bought
reading their stupid compositions. Many poets sang their
poems, and many jugglers exhibited their marvels, and
many soothsayers gave the meaning of prodigies, and ten
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thousand rhetoricians twisting lawsuits, and no small
number of traders driving their several trades.
Men in the days of Timothy were beset by false teachers hawking
round sham knowledge.
Their deliberate policy was to find arguments whereby a man
could justify himself for doing what he wanted to do.
Any teacher whose teaching tends to make men think less
of sin is a menace to Christianity and to mankind.
Paul gave the responsibility—”preach the Word” (2 Tim. 4:2)
—and he also gave the reason (2 Tim. 4:3—4).
The time would come) when most people would not want the
“healthy doctrine” of the Word of God.
They would have carnal desires for religious novelties.
Because of their “itching ears” they would accumulate teachers
who would satisfy their cravings for things that disagree with God’s
truths.
The fact that a preacher has a large congregation is not always
a sign that he is preaching the truth.
It may be evidence that he is tickling people’s “itching ears”
and giving them what they want to hear instead of what they
need to hear.
It is a short step from “itching ears” to turning one’s ears away from
the truth.
Once people have rejected the truth, they turn to fables (myths).
It is not likely that man-made fables will convict them of sin
or make them want to repent!
The result is a congregation of comfortable, professing Christians,
listening to a comfortable, religious talk that contains no Bible
doctrine.
These people become the prey of every false cult because their
lives lack a foundation in the Word of God.
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Most cultists were formerly members of Bible believing – but
not necessarily Bible teaching --churches.
Fulfill Your Ministry (4:5—8)
5] But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work
of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
“Preach the Word ... with doctrine.... They will not endure
sound doctrine ... they shall turn away their ears from the truth”
(2 Tim. 4:2—4).
This emphasis on sound (healthy) doctrine runs through all
three of Paul’s Pastoral Epistles
“Make full proof of thy ministry” means “fulfill whatever God
wants you to do.”
Timothy’s ministry would not be exactly like Paul’s, but it would
be important to the cause of Christ.
No God-directed ministry is small or unimportant.
Do not measure the fulfillment of a ministry only on the basis of
statistics or on what people see.
We realize that faithfulness is important and that God sees the
heart.
This was why Timothy had to be “sober in all things” (2 Tim.
4:5 NASB) and carry on his ministry with seriousness of
purpose.
We have met this word “sober” many times in these letters
Sober: Clear headed; serious; focused
Timothy was not only a preacher; he was also a soldier (2 Tim.
2:3—4) who would have to “endure afflictions” (2 Tim. 4:5).
He had seen Paul go through sufferings on more than one occasion
(2 Cor. 6:1—10; 2 Tim. 3:10—12).
Most of Timothy’s sufferings would come from the “religious
crowd” that did not want to hear the truth.
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It was the “religious crowd” that crucified Christ and that
persecuted Paul and had him arrested.
“Do the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim. 4:5)
A preacher, no matter what he is preaching, should keep the lost
souls in mind.
This burden for the lost should characterize a pastor’s private
ministry as well.
Acts 20:17—21 for a description of a balanced ministry.
God has given special men to the church as evangelists (Acts
21:8; Eph. 4:11),
but this does not absolve a pastor or the individual church
member from his soul winning responsibility.
Not every preacher has the same gifts, but every preacher can
share the same burden and proclaim the same saving
message.
THE CHRISTIAN'S DUTY
The Christian teacher is to be urgent.
The message he brings is literally a matter of life and death.
Teachers who really get their message across are those who
have the note of earnestness in their voice.
Any man with the note of urgency in his voice demands, and
will receive, a hearing from other men.
A teacher must believe what he teaches and believe it is
important.
The Christian teacher is to be persistent.
He is to urge the claims of Christ "in season and out of season."
Take your opportunity to speak for Christ or make one.
There should be courtesy in evangelism as in every
other human contact; not pushy or rude but we are far
too shy in speaking to others about Jesus Christ.
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The effect the Christian witness must produce.
He must convict.
He must make the sinner aware of his sin. The sinner must be
made to feel disgusted with his sin.
It is essential to compel a man to see himself as he is.
He must rebuke.
The greatest days of the Church are marked by a fearlessness
in its voice; and because of that things happened.
In its great days the Church was fearless in rebuke.
In our personal relationships a word of warning and rebuke
would often save a brother from sin and shipwreck.
But that word must always be spoken as "brother setting
brother right."
It must be spoken with a consciousness of our common guilt.
It is not our place to set ourselves up as moral judges of
anyone;
It is our duty to speak that warning word when it needs to be
spoken.
He must exhort.
No rebuke should ever be such that it drives a man to despair
and takes the heart and the hope out of him.
Not only must men be rebuked, they must also be
encouraged.
The Christian duty of conviction, of rebuke and of encouragement,
must be carried out with unwearied patience.
"makrothumia," a consistence of sprit and conduct which:
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never grows irritated,
never despairs and
never regards any man as beyond salvation.
The Christian patiently believes in men because he
unconquerably believes in the changing power of Christ.
Paul laid certain duties on Timothy as a true teacher.
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He is to be steady in all things.
"nephein" means he is to be sober and self-contained, like an
athlete who has his passions and his appetites and his nerves
well under control.
The Christian is not to be the victim of crazes;
He is not to be distracted by trivials
He is to exhibit stability as his badge in an unbalanced and
often insane world.
He is to accept whatever suffering comes upon him.
Christianity will cost something,
The Christian is to pay the price, bearing the cost of it
without grumbling and without regret.
He is to do the work of an evangelist.
In spite of the conviction and the rebuke the Christian is essentially
the bringer of good news.
If he insists on discipline and self-denial, it is that an even
greater happiness may be attained than ever cheap pleasures
can bring.
He is to leave no act of service unfulfilled.
The Christian should have only one ambition -- to be useful to
the Church of which he is a part and of which Jesus is the head
and thus impact the society in which he lives.
He must not miss the chance of being of service to his God,
his Church and his fellow-men.
PAUL COMES TO THE END
2 Timothy 4:6-8
"For my life has reached the point when it must be sacrificed,
and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the
good fight: I have completed the course: I have kept the faith.
As for what remains, there is laid up for me the crown of
righteousness which on that day the Lord, the righteous
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judge, will give to me--and not only to me, but also to all who
have loved his appearing."
Paul looked around (v. 6).
6] For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my
departure is at hand.
Paul realized that his time was short.
He was on trial in Rome and had been through the first hearing
(2 Tim. 4:17).
Paul knew that the end was near.
However, he did not tremble at the prospect of death!
“Offered” means “poured out on the altar as a drink offering.”
(Phil 2:17-18 ).
Mentioned frequently in Exodus and Leviticus; the wine was
poured over the sacrifice and would go up in steam.
It would just evaporate and disappear.
In effect Paul was saying, “Caesar is not going to kill me. I am
going to give my life as a sacrifice to Jesus Christ.
I have been a living sacrifice, serving Him since the day I
was saved.
Now I will complete that sacrifice by laying down my life for
Him.”
“Departure” = (not the word in 1 Thess); rather, analusis ,
Paul was about to move off the scene and Timothy would have to
take his place.
Departure also has the meaning of “loosing a prisoner.”
Paul was facing release, not execution!
Paul had been in hard service for many years.
Now his Master would unyoke him and promote him to higher
service.
The word used here for Departure also is used for:
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an unloosing (as of things woven); a departure;
the unyoking of an ox”.
a metaphor drawn from loosing from moorings preparatory to
setting sail and putting out to sea.
It means “to hoist anchor and set sail.”
Paul looked on death as a release from the world, an
opportunity to “set sail” into eternity.
The word also means “to take down a tent.” 2 Corinthians
5:1—8,
Paul compared the death of believers to the taking down of
a tent (tabernacle), in order to receive a permanent, glorified
body (“house not made with hands”—a glorified body, not a
“mansion” in heaven).
Paul looked back (v. 7).
I Have Fought a Good Fight
7] I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have
kept the faith:
He summed up his life and ministry.
Paul is using a picture from the games.
"I have fought the good fight."
The word he uses for fight is "agon," which is the word for a contest
in the arena.
When an athlete can really say that he has done his best, then,
win or lose, there is a deep satisfaction in his heart.
There is no satisfaction in all the world like knowing that we
have done our best.
Like a determined wrestler or boxer, he had fought a good fight; and
like a runner, he had finished his lifelong race victoriously.
He had kept the rules and deserved a prize (Acts 20:24; Phil.
3:13—14).
"I have finished the race."
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It is easy to begin but hard to finish.
The one thing necessary for life is staying-power, and that is
what so many people lack.
Many men who start so strong, fall out on the last lap."
It is easy to wreck a noble life or a fine record by some
closing folly.
It was Paul's claim that he had finished the race.
There is a deep satisfaction in reaching the goal.
The Battle of Marathon was one of the decisive battles of
the world. In it the Greeks met the Persians,
If the Persians had conquered, the glory that was
Greece would never have flowered upon the world.
Against fearful odds the Greeks won the victory, and, after
the battle a Greek soldier ran all the way, day and night, to
Athens with the news - straight to the magistrates.
"Rejoice," he gasped, "we have conquered," and even
as he delivered his message he fell dead.
He had completed his course and done his work, and there
is no finer way for any man to die.
The third image is that of a steward who had faithfully guarded his
boss’s deposit: “I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7).
Paul used this image often in his pastoral letters.
Not only a battle, but a race (1 Cor 9:27; Heb 12:1-2).
"I have kept the faith."
Also a good steward (1 Cor 4:2).
The great games in Greece were the Olympics hosting the
greatest athletes in the world.
On the day before the games all the competitors met and
took a solemn oath before the gods that they had done not
less than ten months training and that they would not resort
to any trickery to win.
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Paul may be saying: "I have kept the rules: I have played
the game justly."
It would be a great thing to die knowing that we had never
transgressed the rules of honor in the race of life.
But this phrase is also a business phrase.
It was the regular Greek for: "I have kept the conditions of
the contract; I have been true to my engagement."
If Paul used it in that way, he meant that he had engaged
himself to serve Christ and had stood by that engagement
and never let his Master down.
Further, it could mean: "I have kept my faith: I have never lost
my confidence and my hope."
If Paul used it in that way, he meant that through thick and
thin, in freedom and in imprisonment, in all his perils by land
and sea, and now in the very face of death, he had never
lost his trust in Jesus Christ.
It is heartening to be able to look back and have no regrets.
Paul was not always popular, nor was he usually comfortable;
but he remained faithful.
Paul looked ahead (v. 8).
8] Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day:
and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his
appearing.
There is a great reward in store for the preacher; but not mainly
for their faithful preaching: they will be rewarded if they have
longed for the appearing of Christ (2 Tim 4:8).
Paul goes on to say there is laid up for him the crown.
The word for “crown” is stephanos—the victor’s crown;
we get our name “Stephen” from this word.
The kingly crown is diadema, from which we get “diadem.”
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In the games the greatest prize was the laurel wreath.
With it the victor was crowned; and to wear it was the greatest
honor which could come to any athlete.
A Greek or Roman athlete who was a winner was rewarded by the
crowds and usually got a laurel wreath or a garland of oak leaves.
Paul would not be given a fading crown of leaves; his would be
a crown of righteousness that would never fade.
Jesus Christ is the “righteous judge” who always judges correctly.
Paul’s judges in Rome were not righteous.
If they were, they would have released him.
Paul had often been tried in one court after another
Now he faced his last Judge—his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
When you are ready to face the Lord, you need not fear the
judgment of men.
In this moment Paul is turning from the verdict of men to the verdict
of God.
He knew that in a very short time he would stand before the
Roman judgment seat and that his trial could have only one
end.
He knew what Nero's verdict would be, but he also knew
what God's verdict would be.
The man whose life is dedicated to Christ is indifferent to the
verdict of men.
He cares not if they condemn him so long as he hears his
Master's "Well done!"
Paul sounds still another note -- this crown awaits not only him
but all who wait with expectation for the coming of the King.
"Timothy, my end is near: and I know that I go to my reward. If you
follow in my steps, you will feel the same confidence and the same
joy when the end comes to you."
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The joy of Paul is open to every man who also fights that fight
and finishes the race and keeps the faith.
The crown of righteousness is God’s reward for a faithful and
righteous life, and our incentive for faithfulness and holiness is the
promise of the Lord’s appearing.
Paul used the return of Jesus Christ as a basis for his
admonitions in this chapter (2 Tim. 4:1).
Paul loved His appearing and looked for it, so he lived
righteously and served faithfully.
We are not called to be apostles, yet we can win the same crown
that Paul won.
If we love Christ’s appearing, live in obedience to His will, and
do the work He has called us to do, we will be crowned with this
crown also.
Crowns Promised
“Crowns” (stephanos): 1 Cor 9:25; 1 Thess 2:19; 2 Tim 4:8;
James 1:12; 1Pet 5:4.
Reward for works (not salvation) Jas 1:12.
Never promised to angels; reward is with Him at the
“Bema” seat:
• Crown of Life (Jas 1:12; Rev 2:10)
for those who have suffered for His sake.
• Crown of Righteousness (2 Tim 4:8)
for those who loved His appearing.
• Crown of Glory (1 Pet 5:4)
for those who fed the flock.
• Crown Incorruptible (1 Cor 9:25)
for those who press on steadfastly.
• Crown of Rejoicing (1 Thess 2:19)
for those who win souls.
Inheritance
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For centuries the theologians have fought the wrong battle:
Calvinism vs. Arminianism; “
Once saved always saved” vs, “conditional salvation.”
The problem is the difference between justification (entrance) and
sanctification (for inheritance).
We need to understand the Metachoi — Partakers.
“...partakers...”: metochoi, those who share in,
companions, comrades; partners (in a work, office, or dignity).
All Christians will be in the kingdom, but not all will be
co-heirs there.
Partakers are the select ones, the “joint-heirs” with Christ (2
Tim 2:11-13).
You and I can also be disqualified from the prize (2 Cor 5:10; 1
Cor 9:27; 1 Jn 2:28).
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ;
that every one may receive the things done in his body,
according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
2 Corinthians 5:10
Our final exam has been scheduled… on the basis of what we have
done…
I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that
beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into
subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to
others, I myself should be a castaway. 1 Corinthians 9:26-27
Paul was “paranoid” about “being a castaway”?! Why?
And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall
appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before
him at his coming. 1 John 2:28
Perseverance of the Saints
And we desire that every one of you do show the same
diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: That ye be
not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and
patience inherit the promises. Hebrews 6:11, 12
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For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of
our confidence steadfast unto the end; Hebrews 3:14
For Paul the end is very near and he knows it.
Paul, the aged warrior, is laying down his arms that Timothy
may take them up.
The word he uses for sacrifice is the verb "spendesthai" which
literally means "to pour out as a libation to the gods."
Every Roman meal ended with a kind of sacrifice.
A cup of wine was taken and was poured out
("spendesthai") to the gods.
He did not think of himself as going to be executed;
He thought of himself as going to offer his life to God.
Ever since his conversion, he had offered everything to
God--his money, his scholarship, his time, the vigour of his
body, the acuteness of his mind, the devotion of his heart.
Only life itself was left to offer, and gladly he was going to
lay it down.
"The time of my departure is at hand."
("analusis")
It is the word for unyoking an animal from the shafts of the cart
or the plough.
Death to Paul was rest from toil.
It is the word for loosening bonds or fetters.
Death for Paul was a release. He was to exchange the
confines of a Roman prison for the glorious liberty of the
courts of heaven.
It is the word for loosening the ropes of a tent.
For Paul it was time to strike camp again.
Now he was setting out on his last and greatest journey; he
was taking the road that led to God.
It is the word for loosening the mooring-ropes of a ship.
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Many a time Paul had felt his ship leave the harbor for the
deep waters.
Now he is to launch out into the greatest deep of all,
setting sail to cross the waters of death to arrive in the
haven of eternity.
For the Christian, death is laying down the burden in order to rest;
it is laying aside the shackles in order to be free;
it is striking camp in order to take up residence in the heavenly
places;
it is casting off the ropes which bind us to this world in order to
set sail on the voyage which ends in the presence of God.
Who then shall fear it?
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2 Timothy 4:9-15
"Do your best to come and see me soon. Demas has
deserted me, because he loved this present world, and has
gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to
Dalmatia. Luke alone is with me. Take Mark and bring him
with you, for he is very useful in service. I have sent
Tychicus to Ephesus.
When you come bring with you the cloak which I left behind at
Troas at Corpus' house, and bring the books, especially the
parchments.
Alexander, the coppersmith, did me a great deal of harm. The
Lord will reward him according to his deeds. You yourself
must be on your guard against him, for he hotly opposed our
words."
In this final chapter, Paul named some co-laborers about whom we
know nothing; yet they too had a ministry to fulfill.
Paul draws up a roll of honor and of dishonor of his friends.
Some are only names to us;
Some, as we read the Acts and the Epistles, we get little
revealing glimpses.
Some of the stories, if we are allowed to use our
imagination, we can reconstruct even if only
circumstantially.
Be Diligent and Faithful (4:9—22)
The second epistle unto Timotheus, ordained the first bishop of the
church of the Ephesians, was written from Rome, when Paul was
brought before Nero the second time.
A Roman trial began with a preliminary examination to formulate
the precise charge against the prisoner.
When Paul was brought to that preliminary examination, not
one of his friends stood by him.
This may not be an act of cowardice but prudence
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It was too dangerous to proclaim oneself the friend of a man
on trial for his life.
This passage has a number of reminiscences from Ps.22.
"Why hast thou forsaken me?--all forsook me."
"There is none to help--no one was there to stand by me."
"Save me from the mouth of the lion--I was rescued from the
mouth of the lion."
"All the ends of the earth shall turn to the Lord--that the Gentiles
might hear it."
"Dominion belongs to the Lord--The Lord will save me for his
heavenly kingdom."
It seems certain that the words of this psalm were running in Paul's
mind.
This was the psalm which was in the mind of Jesus when he hung
upon his Cross.
As Paul faced death, he encouraged his heart with the same psalm
as his Lord used in the same circumstances.
All men had forsaken Paul but the Lord was with him.
Jesus had said that he would never leave his own or forsake them
and that he would be with them to the end of the world.
Paul is a witness that Jesus kept his promise.
Paul would use even a Roman court to proclaim the message
of Christ.
He obeyed his own commandment; in season and out of season he
pressed the claims of Christ on men.
He was so busy thinking of the task of preaching that he forgot
the danger.
A man who is immersed in his task has conquered fear.
He was quite certain of the ultimate rescue.
In time he might seem to be the victim of circumstances and a
criminal condemned at the bar of Roman justice; but Paul saw
beyond time and knew that his eternal safety was assured.
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It is always better to be in danger for a moment and safe for
eternity, than to be safe for a moment and jeopardize eternity.
Paul had already had a preliminary hearing and he wanted Timothy
in Rome was that his next hearing was coming up, and only Luke
was with him.
The believers in Rome and Ephesus who could have stood with
Paul had failed him (2 Tim. 4:16), but Paul knew that Timothy
would not fail him.
Of course, the Lord had not failed Paul either (2 Tim. 4:17)!
The Lord had promised to stay with Paul, and He had kept His
promise.
When Paul had been discouraged in Corinth, the Lord came to
him and encouraged him (Acts 18:9—11).
After he had been arrested in Jerusalem, Paul again was visited
by the Lord and encouraged (Acts 23:11).
During that terrible storm, when Paul was on board ship, the
Lord had again given him strength and courage (Acts 27:22ff.).
Now, in that horrible Roman prison, Paul again experienced the
strengthening presence of the Lord, who had promised,
“I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Heb. 13:5).
Paul’s concern was not for his own safety or comfort.
It was the preaching of the Word so that Gentiles might be
saved. It was Paul’s special calling to minister to the Gentiles
(Eph. 3); and
he was not ashamed of the gospel, even in the great city of
Rome (Rom. 1:16).
It is heartening to see how many people are named in the closing
part of this last letter Paul wrote.
There are about 100 different men and women named in Acts
and Paul’s letters, as a part of his circle of friends and fellow
laborers.
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Paul could not do the job by himself.
It is a great man who enlists others to help get the job done, and
who lets them share in the greatness of the work.
9] Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me:
Preachers need friends (2 Tim 4:9, 4:11).
“Hurry and get here!” is the meaning of the admonition to
Timothy.
In his closing days on earth, Paul wanted his dear “son in the
faith” at his side. But he was also practical:
He needed his cloak for warmth, and he wanted his books
for study.
Paul urged Timothy to “come before winter” (2 Tim. 4:21).
All the ships would be in port during the winter since it would be
too dangerous for sailing.
If Timothy waited too long, he would miss his opportunity to
travel to Paul, and then it would be too late.
10] For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present
world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to
Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.
Some in Paul’s circle were not faithful, and he could not depend on
them.
Demas. There are three mentions of him in Paul's letters; and it
may well be that they have in them the story of a tragedy.
In Phm. 24 he is listed amongst a group of men whom Paul
calls his fellow-labourers.
In Col.4:14 he is just mentioned by name without any
comment at all.
Here (2 Tim. 4:10) it is “Demas hath forsaken me.”
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Here it is said he has forsaken Paul because he
loved this present world. Demas the deserter who
loved the world.
Demas “loved this present world.” He had, as a believer, “tasted
... the powers of the world to come” (Heb. 6:5),
but he preferred “this present evil world” (Gal. 1:4).
Perhaps it was the love of money that enticed Demas back into
the world.
It must have broken Paul’s heart to see Demas fail so
shamefully, yet it can happen to any believer.
Perhaps this is why Paul had so much to say about riches in his
pastoral letters.
Here is the history of a spiritual degeneration.
Bit by bit the fellow-laborer has become the deserter;
He who had a title of honor has become the name of shame.

It may be that he had begun to follow Christ without first
counting the cost..
There is a kind of evangelism which proclaims: "Accept Christ
and you will have rest and peace and joy."
In the deepest of all senses, this is profoundly and blessedly
true.
But it is also true that when we accept Christ our
troubles begin.
Up to this time we have lived in conformity with the world and its
standards.
Because of that life was easy, because we followed the line
of least resistance and went with the crowd.
But once a man accepts Christ, he accepts an entirely new set
of standards and is committed to an entirely new kind of life at
his work, in his personal relationships, in his pleasures, and
there are bound to be collisions.
It may be that Demas was swept into the Church in a
moment of emotion without ever thinking things out; and
then when unpopularity, persecution, the necessity of
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sacrifice, loneliness, imprisonment came, he quit because
he had never bargained for anything like that.
When a man undertakes to follow Christ, the first
essential is that he should know what he is doing.

It may be that there came to Demas the inevitable weariness of
the years.
Time has a way of taking our ideals away, of lowering our
standards, of accustoming us to defeat.
The sincerity of ‘call on me any time’ gives way to ‘don’t call
me, I’ll call you’ over time or when people actually do call on
you.
There is no threat so dangerous as the threat of the years to a
man's ideals; and it can be kept at bay only by living constantly
in the presence of Jesus Christ.

Paul said of Demas that "he loved this present world."
His trouble may simply be that he loved comfort more than he
loved Christ,
That he loved the easy way more than he loved the way
which led first to a cross and then to the stars.
Before we condemn Demas or criticize him, recognize that many of
us are like him.
It is just possible that this is neither the beginning nor the end of
the story of Demas.
Demas is a shortened and familiar form of Demetrius and twice we
come upon a Demetrius in the New Testament story.
There was a Demetrius who led the riot of the silversmiths at
Ephesus and wished to lynch Paul because he had taken their
temple trade away (Ac.19:25).
There was a Demetrius of whom John wrote that he had a good
report of all and of the truth itself, a fact to which John bore
willing and decisive witness (3 Jn.12).
Did Demetrius the silversmith find something about Paul and Christ
which twined itself round his heart?
Did the hostile leader of the riot become the convert to Christ?
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Did he for a time fall away from the Christian way and become
Demas, the deserter, who loved this present world?
Did the grace of God lay hands on him again, and bring him
back, and make him the Demetrius of Ephesus of whom John
wrote that he was a servant of the truth of whom all spoke well?
We will never know this side of glory, but it is a lovely thing
to think that the charge of being a deserter may not have
been the final verdict on the life of Demas.
Of Crescens we know nothing at all.
Crescens was sent by Paul to Galatia.
He was another faithful laborer who assisted Paul in an hour
of great need
That Crescens was one of the Seventy, and that he founded
the church in Vienna in Gaul, apparently are traditions without
any trustworthy basis.
Titus was another of Paul's most faithful lieutenants.
"My true child," Paul calls him (Tit.1:4).
Titus was Paul’s close associate and, along with Timothy, a trusted
“troubleshooter.”
When the trouble with the Church at Corinth had been worrying
him, Titus had been one of Paul's emissaries in the struggle to
mend things (2Cor.2:13; 2Cor. 7:6,13; 2Cor. 12:18).
Paul had left Titus in Crete to straighten out the problems in the
churches there (Titus 1:5).
Titus had met Paul at Nicopolis during that period between
Paul’s arrests (Titus 3:12).
Now Paul had summoned him to Rome and sent him to Dalmatia
(our modern Yugoslavia).
11] Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with thee:
for he is profitable to me for the ministry.
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"Luke alone is with me," he says.
We know very little about Luke, and yet even from that little he
emerges as one of the important characters in the New
Testament for us.
Luke was the “beloved physician” who traveled with Paul (Col.
4:14).
He is author of the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts.
Paul probably dictated this letter (2 Tim.) to Luke.
Being a doctor, Luke must have contributed to Paul’s reference
to gangrene (2 Tim. 2:17 NIV).

One thing we know by implication--Luke accompanied Paul on
his last journey to Rome and to prison.
He was the writer of the Book of Acts.
There are certain passages of Acts which are written in the first
person plural and we can be quite sure that Luke is here
describing occasions on which he himself was actually present.
Ac.27 describes Paul setting out under arrest for Rome and
the story is told in the first person.
Therefore we can be sure that Luke was there. From that we
deduce something else.
It is thought that when an arrested prisoner was on his way to
trial at Rome, he was allowed to be accompanied by only two
slaves,
It is therefore probable that Luke enrolled himself as Paul's
slave in order to be allowed to accompany him to Rome and
to prison.
Surely devotion could go no farther.

In Col.4:14 he is described as the beloved physician.
All his Christian life Paul had the torturing thorn in his flesh;
Luke must have been the man who used his skill to ease his
pain and enable him to go on.
Luke was essentially a man who was kind.
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He does not seem to have been a great evangelist; he was
the man who made his contribution in terms of personal
service.
God had given him healing skill in his hands, and Luke
gave back that skill to God.
Kindness is the quality which lifts a man out of the luck of
ordinary men.
Eloquence will be forgotten; mental cleverness may live
on the printed page; but kindness lives on enthroned in
the hearts of men.
Luke was loyal and Luke was kind.

The other definite reference to Luke is in Phm.24; where Paul
calls him his fellow-labourer.
Luke was not content only to write nor to confine himself to
his job as a doctor; he set his hand to the work.
The Church is full of talkers and of people who are there
more for what they can get than for what they can give;
Luke was one of these priceless people--the workers in
the Church.

There is one other possible reference to Luke in the New
Testament. 2 Cor.8:18 speaks of "the brother who is famous
among all the Churches."
From the earliest times that brother has been identified with
Luke.
He was the man of whom all men spoke well.
He was the man who was loyal unto death;
He was the man who was essentially kind;
He was the man who was dedicated to the work.
Such a man will always be one of whom all speak well.
John Mark: John (Grk: Ioannes) represents his Jewish name,
Mark (Grk: Markos) his Roman name.
Mark was a cousin of Barnabas, Paul’s first partner in
missionary service (Acts 13:1—3).
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His mother was a noted Christian in Jerusalem (Acts 12).
After more than a decade, the breach over him that had
separated Paul and Barnabas (Acts 15:39) had been healed
and Mark had been reinstated.
After Paul’s death, Mark became Peter’s companion and
amanuensis.
Mark is suspected of being the young man that fled at the arrest
in Gethsemane (Mk 15:51,52).
Both he and Barnabas came from wealthy Jewish families.
Paul urges Timothy to bring Mark with him "for he is profitable
to me for the ministry."
The word ministry is not used in its narrower sense of the
ministry of the Church but in its wider sense of service.
"Bring Mark, for he can turn his hand to anything."
"Bring Mark, for he is a useful man to have about the place."
Mark had a curiously checkered career.
He was very young when the Church began, but he lived at the very
center of its life.
It was to the house of Mary, Mark's mother, that Peter turned his
steps when he escaped from prison, and we may take it that this
house was the central meeting place of the Jerusalem Church
(Ac.12:12).
When Paul and Barnabas set out on their first missionary
journey they took Mark with them--John Mark was his full
name--to be their assistant (Ac.13:5).
It looked as if he was earmarked for a great career in the company
of Paul and in the service of the Church.
When Paul and Barnabas left Pamphylia and struck inland on
the hard and dangerous road that led to the central plateau of
Asia Minor, Mark left them and went home (Ac.13:13).
His nerve failed him, and he turned back.
Paul took that defection very hard.
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When he set out with Barnabas on their second missionary journey,
Barnabas--he was related to Mark (Col.4:10) --planned to take
Mark with them again.
Paul absolutely refused to have the quitter a second time, and
so fierce was the argument and so acute the difference that
Paul and Barnabas split company and never, so far as we
know, worked together again (Ac.15:36-40).
Tradition has it that Mark went to Egypt and that he was the founder
of the Christian Church in that country.
But, whatever he did, he certainly redeemed himself.
One failure in Christian service need not make one’s whole life a
failure.
By the time that Paul comes to write Colossians from his Roman
prison, Mark is with him,
Paul commends him to the Colossian Church and charges them
to receive him.
And now, when the end is near, the one man Paul wants, besides
his beloved Timothy, is Mark, for he is a useful man to have about.
The quitter has become the man who can turn his hand to
anything in the service of Paul and of the gospel.
Jesus Christ can make the coward spirit brave and nerve the feeble
arm for fight.
He can release the sleeping hero in the soul of every man.
He can turn the shame of failure into the joy of triumphant
service.
12] And Tychicus have I sent to Ephesus.
Tychicus would take Timothy’s place in Ephesus (2 Tim. 4:12).
Tychicus is mentioned five times in the New Testament.
Tychicus was a believer from the province of Asia (Acts 20:4)
who willingly accompanied Paul and probably ministered as a
personal servant to the apostle.
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He was with Paul during his first imprisonment (Eph. 6:21—22;
Col. 4:7—8).
Tychicus had been entrusted with the delivery of the letter to
the Colossians (Col.4:7), and of the letter to the Ephesians
(Eph.6:21).
In Colosse, Tychicus would plead the cause of Onesimus, who
had accompanied him from Rome.
Paul sent Tychicus to Crete to relieve Titus (Titus 3:12).
Now he was sending him to Ephesus to relieve Timothy.
.
13] The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou
comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the
parchments.
Paul has certain personal requests to make. .
Troas was the chief city in the Northwest of Asia Minor, on the coast
of Mysia in the Roman province of Asia.
Here Paul raised Eutychus from the dead (Acts 20:5-12).
Carpus lived at Troas and gave Paul hospitality.
The identity of Carpus is uncertain, but Paul had considerable
confidence in him having committed to his care the priceless “books
and parchments.”
He wants the cloak he had left behind at the house of Carpus in
Troas.
The cloak ("phainole") was a great circular rug-like
garment.
It had a hole for the head in the middle and it covered a
man like a little tent, reaching right down to the ground.
It was a garment for the winter time and no doubt Paul
was feeling his Roman prison cold.
As Timothy hurried to Rome, he could stop in Troas and get the
cloak, books, and parchments .
Paul probably left them there in his haste to depart.
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Paul must have departed in a hurry (was he being sought for
arrest?), because he left his cloak and books behind.
Carpus was a faithful brother; he would guard them until somebody
picked them up to take to Paul. Even such so-called menial tasks
are ministries for the Lord.
He wants the books; the word is "biblia," which literally means
papyrus rolls;
It may well be that these rolls contained the earliest forms of
the gospels.
He wanted the parchments.
They might be Paul's necessary legal documents,
especially his certificate of Roman citizenship;
More likely they were copies of the Hebrew Scriptures, for
the Hebrews wrote their sacred books on parchment made
from the skins of animals.
It was the word of Jesus and the word of God that Paul wanted
most of all, when he lay in prison awaiting death
The “books” would be papyrus scrolls, perhaps of the Old
Testament Scriptures, and the “parchments” would be books
made from the skins of animals.
We do not know what these “parchments” were, but we are
not surprised that a scholar such as Paul wanted material
for study and writing.
Codices
Paul uses a technical term, membranae, a Latin word transcribed
into Greek, referring to a parchment notebook (2 Tim 4:13).
This was apparently a predecessor to the codex, or “book” that
we know today.
They were written on both sides of the sheet, small and
often pocket-sized, they were easy to handle, to skip
through for reference, and to store, and thus led to the
ultimate departure from the traditional scrolls.
We take for granted the ease with which we can make copies of
documents today. In the ancient world, all copies had to be
accomplished painstakingly by hand.
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Thus, the term manuscript, “manu-script.”
The invention of Johannes Gutenberg’s movable type in 1454
ushered in the printing techniques that we also have come to
take so for granted today.
14] Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord
reward him according to his works:
15] Of whom be thou ware also; for he hath greatly withstood
our words.
Then comes the mention of a man who had hindered instead of
helping: "Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of
harm."
We do not know what Alexander had done; but perhaps we can
deduce it.
Paul had previously “delivered him to Satan” (1 Cor 5:5; 2 Cor
12:7) because he withstood the apostle, and made shipwreck of
faith and even blasphemed with Hymenaeus.
The excommunication often brought with it temporal judgment,
as sickness, to bring the excommunicated to repentance (1 Tim
1:20; 2 Tim 4:14,15).
Is Alexander the coppersmith the same Alexander mentioned in 1
Timothy 1:20?
Nobody knows, and there is no value in conjecturing.
The name was common, but it is possible that this heretic went to
Rome to make things difficult for Paul.
Satan has his workers too.
The word that Paul uses for did me much evil is the Greek
"endeiknumi."
That verb literally means to display, and was in fact often
used for the laying of information against a man.
Informers were one of the great curses of Rome at this time.
And it may well be that Alexander was a renegade Christian,
who went to the magistrates with false information against Paul,
seeking to ruin him in the most dishonorable way.
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Was this behind Paul’s second arrest and imprisonment in
Rome that eventually led to his execution?
LAST WORDS AND GREETINGS
2 Timothy 4:16-22
"At my first defence no one was there to stand by me, but all
forsook me. May it not be reckoned against them! But the
Lord stood beside me, and he strengthened me, so that
through me the proclamation of the gospel was fully made so
that the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the
mouth of the lion. The Lord will rescue me from every evil,
and will save me for his heavenly kingdom. Glory be to him
forever and ever. Amen.
"Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the family of Onesiphorus.
Erastus stayed in Corinth. I left Trophimus at Miletus.
Eubulus sends greetings to you, as do Pudens, Linus and
Claudia, and all the brothers.
The Lord be with your spirit.
Grace be with you."
16] At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men
forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge.
His friends forsake him, and he prays that God will forgive them.
His enemies try him, and he looks for opportunities to tell them
how to be saved!
What a difference it makes when the Holy Spirit controls
your life.
17] Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and
strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully
known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was
delivered out of the mouth of the lion.
We never stand alone when testifying to Christ; the Lord stands
by the preacher’s side and gives them strength (2 Tim 4:17)
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“I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion” (2 Tim. 4:17).
This “lion” cannot mean a literal lion because Paul was a Roman
citizen and if convicted, he could not be thrown to the lions.
Instead, he would be executed by being beheaded.
Emperor Nero could not be the lion.
If Paul had been delivered from Nero, then this meant he was
acquitted, yet, he had only had a preliminary first hearing.
The lion is a symbol of Satan
1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the
devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may
devour.
Perhaps Paul was referring to some scheme of the Devil to
defeat him and hinder the work of the gospel.
To be “saved from the lion’s mouth” as a proverbial saying that
meant “to be delivered from great danger”
Psa 22:19-21 NKJV
(19) But You, O LORD, do not be far from Me; O My
Strength, hasten to help Me!
(20) Deliver Me from the sword, My precious life from the
power of the dog.
(21) Save Me from the lion's mouth And from the horns of
the wild oxen! You have answered Me.
Forgiving, even to the end.
18] And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will
preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for
ever and ever. Amen.
The “kingdom” appears to be yet future…
But for a Christian, there are things even more dangerous than
suffering and death.
Sin, for example. This is what Paul had in mind.
He was confident that the Lord would deliver him from “every’
evil work” and take him to the heavenly kingdom.
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Paul’s greatest fear was not of death; it was that he might deny his
Lord or do something else that would disgrace God’s name.
Paul was certain that the time had come for his permanent
departure (2 Tim. 4:6).
He wanted to end his life-race well and be free from any
disobedience.
Finally there come greetings sent and given
Priscilla and Aquila
19] Salute Prisca and Aquila, and the household of
Onesiphorus.
Priscilla and Aquila, that husband and wife whose home was ever
a church, wherever it might be, and who had at some time risked
their lives for Paul's sake (Ac.18:2; Rom.16:3-4; 1Cor.16:19).
Priscilla (the diminutive endearment form of Prisca) and Aquila
were natives of Pontus, doubtless one of the colony of Jews
mentioned in Acts 2:9 and 1 Peter 1:1.
They were refugees from the edict of Claudius which expelled
all Jews from Rome in 52 a.d.
Paul meets them first in Corinth (Acts 18:2).
They taught Apollos in Ephesus (Acts 18:18, 26; Rom 16:3; 1
Cor 16:1).
Now they were in Ephesus helping Timothy with his ministry.
It is wonderful when God’s people do their work regardless of who
their leader is.
Onesiphorus
There is a greeting to the gallant Onesiphorus, (Onesimus) who
had sought out Paul in prison in Rome (2Tim.1:16) and who, it may
be, had paid for his loyalty with his life.
Onesiphorus and his household we met in 2 Timothy 1.
Onesiphorus had come from Ephesus to Rome.
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It was to Paul that the church at Ephesus owed its origin;
therefore it was to him that the Christians there were indebted
for all that they knew of Christ.
Onesiphorus gratefully remembered these facts, and having
arrived in Rome, and learned that Paul was in prison, he “very
diligently” sought for the apostle, which involved much personal
danger at that particular time.
The persecution, inaugurated by Nero against the
Christians, still raged bitterly; this made the profession of
the Christian name a matter which involved very great risk
of persecution and of death.
20] Erastus abode at Corinth: but Trophimus have I left at
Miletum sick.
Erastus was sent with Timothy from Ephesus into Macedonia while
Paul remained in Asia for a while (Acts 19:22) and who, it may be,
was afterwards within the Church at Rome.
“Erastus, the treasurer of the city,” sent greetings to the
Christians in Rome (Rom 16:23).
Paul may be designating him by an office he once held
which he gave up to engage in mission work
There is a greeting to Trophimus, whom Paul had been accused of
bringing into the Temple precincts in Jerusalem, although a Gentile,
The incident for which Paul's first Roman imprisonment began
(Ac. 20:4; Ac. 21:29).
Trophimus from Ephesus was a friend of Tychicus (Acts 20:4),
He had been serving at Miletus, but now he was ill.
Apparently not every sick person is supposed to be
miraculously healed.
21] Do thy diligence to come before winter. Eubulus greeteth
thee, and Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia, and all the
brethren.
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Do thy diligence to come before winter
Paul may have desired his cloak before the weather turned cold
(v.13);
more likely he was concerned about the sailing conditions on
the Adriatic Sea.
With the disheartening desertion of Paul by the Christians in
Rome, it is pleasing to find that there were some among them
who were true, and Eubulus was one of these.
The other people mentioned are unknown to us, but certainly not to
the Lord. Finally there are greetings from Linus, Pudens and
Claudia.
Claudia and Pudens
Claudia: mentioned with Pudens, whose wife she afterward
became;
He was a Roman knight; she was a Briton, surnamed Rufina.
In 1772 a marble was dug up at Chichester, mentioning Cogidunus,
with the surname Claudius from his patron the emperor’s name.
Pudens is also mentioned, Cogidunus’ son-in-law.
Cogidunus’ daughter would be Claudia, probably sent to Rome
for education, as a pledge of her father’s fidelity.
There she was put under the patronage of Pomponia, wife of
Aulus Plautius, conqueror of Britain.
Pomponia was accused of foreign superstitions in a.d. 57,
probably Christianity.
Claudia may have learned Christianity from Pomponia, and
took from her the surname of the Pomponian clan.
—Tacitus, Annals, 3:32
[Opinions differ: Theories compiled from hints (“vast
conclusions from half-vast data”).]
Linus
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There is a tradition that Linus was bishop of the church at Rome.
A list by Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons ~ a.d. 178, commences with
Linus, whom he identifies with the person of this name mentioned
by Paul, and whom he states to have been “entrusted with the office
of the bishopric by the apostles…”
But why is Linus listed between Pudens and Claudia?
22] The Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with
you. Amen.
First directed to Timothy (“thy spirit,” sing.) and then to his
other readers (“you,” pl.),
once again demonstrating that the epistle was designed to be
read widely (1 Tim 6:21; Titus 3:15).
“Grace be with you” was Paul’s personal farewell, used at the end
of his letters as a “trademark” that the letter was not a forgery.
The Bible does not record the final days of Paul.
Tradition tells us that he was found guilty and sentenced to die.
He was probably taken outside the city and beheaded.
But Timothy and the other devoted believers carried on the work!
You and I must be faithful so that (if the Lord does not return soon)
future generations may hear the gospel and have the opportunity to
be saved.
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QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION OR GROUP
DISCUSSION
1. If you were writing your final words to your protégé (as Paul was),
what kinds of things would you want to write about?
2. Describe a time when you saw real power in the preaching of
God’s Word.
3. Wiersbe says that if preaching doesn’t explain and apply biblical
doctrine, it is merely “religious speechmaking.” Of the sermons
you have had heard over the last five years, what percentage
would you say was “religious speechmaking”?
4. Why do you think it is so tempting to measure the “success” of
our ministry by the amount of people in attendance?
5. How do we determine if the ministry we are pursuing is God’s call
or just a good idea we’ve come up with?
6. What should be our perspective if the ministry we feel called to
seems impossible to accomplish at a certain time?
7. Knowing he was near the end of his life, Paul asked Timothy to
bring three things, among them his books. What comfort can
the Word of God be when we face death?
8. How can our love of this world pull us away from ministry, like it
did with Demas?
9. Since we don’t live in threat of Nero today, what do you consider
some of the greatest dangers to ministry now?
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