Paul's final words exhort Timothy - and by extension, us - to be faithful to the Truth of the Word of God. In 2 Timothy 4:3, Paul warns: "For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths."
Although this reality has punctuated history on many occasions, false teaching today is pervasively perilous. Society shrinks away from calling sin, sin and evil, evil. Paul already reminded Timothy in 1 Timothy 4 that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons. In fact the Bible is full of written warnings to keep us on the path of Truth. We can't embrace Truth without being immersed in God's Word.
Showing posts with label 2 Timothy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2 Timothy. Show all posts
Monday, October 24, 2011
Saturday, October 22, 2011
2 TIMOTHY 3
What a chapter! I could easily write more and say less! The first sentence draws me in: "In the last days there will be times of difficulty." Do you think?
My mind first leaps to the disasters that have occurred and then the deception and violence that pervade our world, but immediately Paul lists the sins of man - not the disasters that will occur.
There are a couple of important things to note in reading the New Testament - and Paul. First, the 'end times' essentially began with Jesus' resurrection - - so we've been in the end times for +- 1978 years, which makes us 1978 years closer to His second coming. Jesus' apostles believed Christ would return in their lifetime. Just want us to be clear on that....the end times are not reserved just to us - though we're certainly closer to the end....and there are prophecies being fulfilled in our day that compel us to pay attention to the very end of the end times.
In fact, according to the guy who missed the date in May, yesterday was supposed to be the real end. For some people it was. I am very aware prophecy is being fulfilled at a rapid rate, and that 'the end' could happen any moment - but I have to be far more aware that my personal 'end' of being in this world is one I can count on - and I live and believe accordingly....my brief rabbit trail for today....
Among Paul's admonitions to Timothy in Chapter 3, he urges him to read what we now call The Old Testament. He calls them the sacred writings. Those writings comprised all there was of scripture in Paul's day, and he reminds Timothy that it was God-breathed and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness, with the goal being that the man of God would be well trained: competent and equipped for every good work.
The Old Testament is a road map that points the way to Christ. The New Testament is a mirror that reflects Him. We need both to gain a broader understanding of who God is. We are so blessed to have the written Word. It truly is sharper than any two-edged sword. It is alive. God speaks to me through His Word, and reveals what He wants me to work on to be more conformed to His image. Still a work in progress.
Today's reading encourages me to be strong in the Lord - to remain steadfast no matter what the circumstances - and I know I can only do that through His grace and mercy, relying on His Spirit to be my strength and guide! Stay tuned....
My mind first leaps to the disasters that have occurred and then the deception and violence that pervade our world, but immediately Paul lists the sins of man - not the disasters that will occur.
There are a couple of important things to note in reading the New Testament - and Paul. First, the 'end times' essentially began with Jesus' resurrection - - so we've been in the end times for +- 1978 years, which makes us 1978 years closer to His second coming. Jesus' apostles believed Christ would return in their lifetime. Just want us to be clear on that....the end times are not reserved just to us - though we're certainly closer to the end....and there are prophecies being fulfilled in our day that compel us to pay attention to the very end of the end times.
In fact, according to the guy who missed the date in May, yesterday was supposed to be the real end. For some people it was. I am very aware prophecy is being fulfilled at a rapid rate, and that 'the end' could happen any moment - but I have to be far more aware that my personal 'end' of being in this world is one I can count on - and I live and believe accordingly....my brief rabbit trail for today....
Among Paul's admonitions to Timothy in Chapter 3, he urges him to read what we now call The Old Testament. He calls them the sacred writings. Those writings comprised all there was of scripture in Paul's day, and he reminds Timothy that it was God-breathed and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness, with the goal being that the man of God would be well trained: competent and equipped for every good work.
The Old Testament is a road map that points the way to Christ. The New Testament is a mirror that reflects Him. We need both to gain a broader understanding of who God is. We are so blessed to have the written Word. It truly is sharper than any two-edged sword. It is alive. God speaks to me through His Word, and reveals what He wants me to work on to be more conformed to His image. Still a work in progress.
Today's reading encourages me to be strong in the Lord - to remain steadfast no matter what the circumstances - and I know I can only do that through His grace and mercy, relying on His Spirit to be my strength and guide! Stay tuned....
Friday, October 21, 2011
2 TIMOTHY CHAPTER 2
Chapter 2 is my chapter for today, but Chapter 1 has nuggets that are significant as well, and I would be remiss to skip past them without at least briefly mentioning them: (7) God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and self-control; (12b) ...for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me; and (10-11) the message of the good news of Jesus Christ in a nutshell: Jesus abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
It is all the more compelling to me that Paul declares these words as his final words, and even though he didn't know they were his final words they are the final legacy that he left.
With that in mind, I read the words of Chapter 2, and Paul's words pluck the strings of my heart. The words he spoke were specifically written to Timothy, but they have application for all who serve the Lord. Knowing that he wrote the following words while he was in chains for his faith is all the more compelling:
Be strenghtened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus. What you have heard from me entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others. Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David.
Nugget after nugget. Reminders of focus, directives that compel us to stand faithfully for the Truth, and affirmation that the Lord knows those who are His.
2 Timothy 2:11b - 13 is a quote familiar to Timothy that Paul includes as a reminder:
If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he will also deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful -
for he cannot deny himself.
Another of my favorite verses in 2 Timothy 2 is verse 15: Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
It is my prayer to faithfully be that worker!
Paul's instructions for Christian living found in 2 Timothy 2 include the admonition to: flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart...(be) kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently endure evil, correct opponents with gentleness.
What a lot packed into one small chapter. It will give me food for thought for more than just today!
We are set apart as holy! The righteousness we seek is 'right living by God's standard' and, though it is impossible to attain on our own, it is the path we are on, for once we accept Jesus Christ as Savior, He lives in us, works in us to conform us more and more to His image, and we are seen by the Father through the filter of His Son. The blood of Jesus Christ who cleanses us from sin is our covering - and God sees us as already perfected....even though we have a long way to go. The reality is, we will never be perfect until we reach heaven's shore. We are all a work in progress!
It is all the more compelling to me that Paul declares these words as his final words, and even though he didn't know they were his final words they are the final legacy that he left.
With that in mind, I read the words of Chapter 2, and Paul's words pluck the strings of my heart. The words he spoke were specifically written to Timothy, but they have application for all who serve the Lord. Knowing that he wrote the following words while he was in chains for his faith is all the more compelling:
Be strenghtened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus. What you have heard from me entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others. Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David.
Nugget after nugget. Reminders of focus, directives that compel us to stand faithfully for the Truth, and affirmation that the Lord knows those who are His.
2 Timothy 2:11b - 13 is a quote familiar to Timothy that Paul includes as a reminder:
If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he will also deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful -
for he cannot deny himself.
Another of my favorite verses in 2 Timothy 2 is verse 15: Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
It is my prayer to faithfully be that worker!
Paul's instructions for Christian living found in 2 Timothy 2 include the admonition to: flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart...(be) kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently endure evil, correct opponents with gentleness.
What a lot packed into one small chapter. It will give me food for thought for more than just today!
We are set apart as holy! The righteousness we seek is 'right living by God's standard' and, though it is impossible to attain on our own, it is the path we are on, for once we accept Jesus Christ as Savior, He lives in us, works in us to conform us more and more to His image, and we are seen by the Father through the filter of His Son. The blood of Jesus Christ who cleanses us from sin is our covering - and God sees us as already perfected....even though we have a long way to go. The reality is, we will never be perfect until we reach heaven's shore. We are all a work in progress!
Thursday, October 20, 2011
2 TIMOTHY AND LIVES WHO TOUCH
In my sequential reading of Paul's letters, I have reached the final book. The suggested order of his writings, as gleaned from the intro commentary in my 1985 NIV determined the order in which I read the books:
1 Thessalonians - written from Corinth c.+- AD 51
2 Thessalonians - written from Corinth about 6 months later - c. +- Late 51 or early 52
1 Corinthians - written from Ephesus - c. +-Spring AD 55
2 Corinthians - written from Macedoni - c. +- Winter AD 55-56
Galatians - written from Ephesus or Macedonia - c. +- AD 57 (Some say 48 - 49)
Romans - written from Corinth or Cenchrea - c. +- early Spring AD 57
Ephesians - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 60
Colossians - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 60
Philemon - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 60
Philippians - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 61
1 Timothy - most likely from Macedonia (?) - c. +- AD 63 - 65
Titus - written from Corinth - c. +- AD 63 - 65
2 Timothy - written from Rome (imprisoned by Nero) c. AD 66 - 67
His writings spanned approximately 16 years, and began after his first missionary journey.
Prior to the writing of his 'prison letters' he had been in prison numerous other times, as well as suffering through many other abuses, which he lists in 2 Corinthians (ESV):
22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?
As for Paul's timeline, information I found online at www.blueletterbible.org* suggests he was born about 5 AD. His conversion on the road to Damascus occurred +- 34 AD. After very brief mentions about Paul that are placed in 37 AD, he drops out of sight completely until +- 47 AD.
Some sources say that his first letter was Galatians, and they place it around 48 AD, but I didn't learn that until well into my reading schedule, so the list reflects my earliest information - and the order I read the letters, even though my order may not reflect reality.
All sources do agree on most of the order and that 2 Timothy was his final letter...in fact these are his final words, for it was very soon after writing 2 Timothy that he was martyred under Nero. (And not long after Paul's death, Nero committed suicide.*)
But what struck me most saliently today was the lives he touched - and those who touched his, and that reminded me that it is the same for us. There are people who come into our individual lives who touch us indelibly. I am so grateful for the witness of others whose lives have been lived faithfully. They are my cloud of witnesses. My list includes pastors and pastor's wives, Sunday School teachers and youth leaders, friends, inspirational testimonies and speakers, and yes, even Paul.
There was a period of time in my life when I avoided Paul. I, quite honestly, found some of his personal views annoying and frustrating...but now I can accept him as human. As with all of us, he wrote from the experience of his journey and his filters. Most of what he wrote is encouraging, challenging, and the Holy Spirit witnesses to my spirit that he was writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. But - he's human, and a few of his personal biases are inserted. I can forgive him for being human. In fact, it's refreshing. Even Paul, the great apostle, had his weaknesses. But his faithfulness through the myriad of difficulties he faced is an incredible testimony to the reality of what he experienced on the Damascus Road.
The first news this morning was that Muammar Gaddafi had been captured - possibly killed. The online news includes a video of his blood-soaked body surrounded by angry people. In one sense it brings relief. In another sense sadness. No matter how evil someone is, there is hope as long as there is life. I'd rather people's lives were turned upside down for Christ - just like Paul's was. That desire reflects God's heart. He doesn't want anyone to perish. Of course, I cannot judge what the last moments of Gaddafi's life might have brought him to confess. That is in God's hands.... And, though I absolutely believe in the possibility of deathbed conversions, deep inside, I suspect he died as he lived.
There is such a marked difference when someone who has lived life for the Lord leaves this world for their eternal home. I am readily reminded of the contrast, having just learned this morning of the death of a woman who stepped into eternity knowing Jesus.
Like this woman, and like Paul, that's the death I am determined to embrace. (And, I'm still hoping He just returns first!) Like I've often said, "I know where I'm going, I'm just not in any rush to get there." I still have things to do - and looking at my timeline, I'd better get busy!
*Blue Letter Bible. Timeline of the Apostle Paul. Blue Letter Bible. 1 Apr 2002. 20 Oct 2011..
1 Thessalonians - written from Corinth c.+- AD 51
2 Thessalonians - written from Corinth about 6 months later - c. +- Late 51 or early 52
1 Corinthians - written from Ephesus - c. +-Spring AD 55
2 Corinthians - written from Macedoni - c. +- Winter AD 55-56
Galatians - written from Ephesus or Macedonia - c. +- AD 57 (Some say 48 - 49)
Romans - written from Corinth or Cenchrea - c. +- early Spring AD 57
Ephesians - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 60
Colossians - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 60
Philemon - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 60
Philippians - from Rome (in prison) +- AD 61
1 Timothy - most likely from Macedonia (?) - c. +- AD 63 - 65
Titus - written from Corinth - c. +- AD 63 - 65
2 Timothy - written from Rome (imprisoned by Nero) c. AD 66 - 67
His writings spanned approximately 16 years, and began after his first missionary journey.
Prior to the writing of his 'prison letters' he had been in prison numerous other times, as well as suffering through many other abuses, which he lists in 2 Corinthians (ESV):
22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?
As for Paul's timeline, information I found online at www.blueletterbible.org* suggests he was born about 5 AD. His conversion on the road to Damascus occurred +- 34 AD. After very brief mentions about Paul that are placed in 37 AD, he drops out of sight completely until +- 47 AD.
Some sources say that his first letter was Galatians, and they place it around 48 AD, but I didn't learn that until well into my reading schedule, so the list reflects my earliest information - and the order I read the letters, even though my order may not reflect reality.
All sources do agree on most of the order and that 2 Timothy was his final letter...in fact these are his final words, for it was very soon after writing 2 Timothy that he was martyred under Nero. (And not long after Paul's death, Nero committed suicide.*)
But what struck me most saliently today was the lives he touched - and those who touched his, and that reminded me that it is the same for us. There are people who come into our individual lives who touch us indelibly. I am so grateful for the witness of others whose lives have been lived faithfully. They are my cloud of witnesses. My list includes pastors and pastor's wives, Sunday School teachers and youth leaders, friends, inspirational testimonies and speakers, and yes, even Paul.
There was a period of time in my life when I avoided Paul. I, quite honestly, found some of his personal views annoying and frustrating...but now I can accept him as human. As with all of us, he wrote from the experience of his journey and his filters. Most of what he wrote is encouraging, challenging, and the Holy Spirit witnesses to my spirit that he was writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. But - he's human, and a few of his personal biases are inserted. I can forgive him for being human. In fact, it's refreshing. Even Paul, the great apostle, had his weaknesses. But his faithfulness through the myriad of difficulties he faced is an incredible testimony to the reality of what he experienced on the Damascus Road.
The first news this morning was that Muammar Gaddafi had been captured - possibly killed. The online news includes a video of his blood-soaked body surrounded by angry people. In one sense it brings relief. In another sense sadness. No matter how evil someone is, there is hope as long as there is life. I'd rather people's lives were turned upside down for Christ - just like Paul's was. That desire reflects God's heart. He doesn't want anyone to perish. Of course, I cannot judge what the last moments of Gaddafi's life might have brought him to confess. That is in God's hands.... And, though I absolutely believe in the possibility of deathbed conversions, deep inside, I suspect he died as he lived.
There is such a marked difference when someone who has lived life for the Lord leaves this world for their eternal home. I am readily reminded of the contrast, having just learned this morning of the death of a woman who stepped into eternity knowing Jesus.
Like this woman, and like Paul, that's the death I am determined to embrace. (And, I'm still hoping He just returns first!) Like I've often said, "I know where I'm going, I'm just not in any rush to get there." I still have things to do - and looking at my timeline, I'd better get busy!
*Blue Letter Bible. Timeline of the Apostle Paul. Blue Letter Bible. 1 Apr 2002. 20 Oct 2011.
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