2 Timothy 3:3-5

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3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. ~ 2 Timothy 3:3-5

The emphasis in 2 Timothy 3 is on the utter importance of biblical knowledge and the responsibility to teach truth. As time marches on, the Scriptures are clear that the people on earth will experience increased difficulty, ending in cataclysmic chaos at the end of the Tribulation.

We return to the middle of Paul's description of the End Times Man who will be living on earth at the end. This person will not be operating out of a personal relationship with the God of the Bible. Yesterday, we considered the first eight hallmarks of the End Times Man, today we con the final ten.

In v.3 we learn of the ninth hallmark of the End Times Man. The Apostle uses the words "without love," which is one Greek word: astorgos. Found just twice in the New Testament (Romans 1:31; 2 Timothy 3:3), "astorgos" means without natural affection, heartless, unloving. This is the natural movement of the soul that knows no love itself. 

The End Times Man will be "unforgiving" due to the fact that he will have no connection with the source of forgiveness. And, since he is not in relationship with the Lord, he can not share forgiveness with others. Since this person will be very familiar with self-love, he will see no need for personal forgiveness. 

As the result of being without love and forgiveness, this person will be a "slanderous" person who is known by tearing others down. The Apostle uses the word that is used in the New Testament for "the devil," which is diabolos. Every time anyone slanders, they are embracing the character of Satan who speaks evil against all who represent God in Christ.  

The next hallmark of the End Times Man is that he will be "without self-control." This is an adjective used only here and it literally means to have no inhibitions. This person is just a slave to his unrestrained lusts. 

Their lack of self-control reveals itself in a number of ways. "Brutal" means “untamed.” When this person cannot get his way, he becomes much like a savage beast. Instead of loving what is good, he will despise what is good and honor what is evil. This person is quite descriptive of many today in our world today where the standards of right and wrong have been twisted so that people literally get away with murder. The prophet Isaiah cries out, “Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil.” 

The word "treacherous" in v.4 describes the person who betrays others and cannot be trusted. Neither friendship nor partnership makes any difference to him; he lies and breaks his   promises whenever doing so helps him get his own way. This word basically means “ready to betray.” It draws attention to the idea of disloyalty.

The word "rash" in v.4 means “reckless, acting without careful thought.” This person is aggressive. This word, "rash," literally means "falling forward." It delivers the idea of moving forward fast, disregarding anything and everything around. It describes someone who is moving recklessly, stopping at nothing in the pursuit of fulfillment of self-loving desire.

The next hallmark of the End Times Man is "conceited." This person is so full of himself, he can not see beyond his faults, nor can he see them at all. The root for this word comes from the word “smoke.” This is the person who blows smoke because he is inflated with his own sense of self-importance.

To wrap up Paul's description of the End Times Man, the Apostle writes, "Lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God." His choice is between loving pleasure and loving God. 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. No one can deny that we live in a pleasure-mad world.

Paul states that this man that he has just described would consider himself religious! "Having a form of godliness" suggests an outward appearance of religion, not true Christian faith, for he has never experienced the power of the God of the Bible in his life. 

This description of the End Times Man describes many in the world around us right now. This is why the Lord is so adamant in His Word that we love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Of course, this side of heaven, we will never accomplish this great feat. However, if we do not aim for perfection, we will never get very far in our attempts. This is the way to conquer diabolical self-love, by loving God as best as we can, and out of that, we seek to love our neighbor as God has loved us.

2 Timothy 3:1-2

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1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy ~ 2 Timothy 3:1-2

The emphasis in this chapter is on knowledge and responsibility. In this chapter, the Apostle Paul informs us about the nature of the last days, and then instructs us on how to reach out to those caught in the spider's web. Our actions must be based on knowledge and our knowledge must be informed by the Scriptures. 

Within this period of “last days” there will be “times” of different kinds, but as the “times” draw to a close, they will become more and more dangerous. This word "times" is the same Greek word that is used to describe the two violent demoniacs in Matthew 8. Suggested in the usage of this word is the idea that the violence of the last times will be energized by demons. In other words, evil will not simply be ugly to watch, and grievous to the godly mind, it will be at times violent and fierce.

There is no doubt that these characteristics started to appear in Paul’s day, and now they have increased in intensity. As time advances, evil will increase in its intensity, and slowly it will be accepted by the average guy because of its gradual increase. It is not that we have small pockets of rebellion here and there. All of society is in rebellion and we are indeed living in “terrible times.”

In v.2-5, the Apostle Paul gives eighteen characteristics that will mark society at the end. We will just consider the first eight today. The first is love of self. The heart of every problem is a problem in the human heart. God commands us to love Him supremely, and our neighbors as ourselves, but if we love ourselves supremely, we will not love God nor will be able to love our neighbors.

Of course, if someone loves and worships himself, the result will be “You shall be as gods” was Satan’s offer to Eve in the Garden in Genesis 3:5. And, the result: man "changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than rather than the Creator." When we rebelled from God, we became our own gods; defining ourselves for ourselves! 

The next hallmark of the End Times is man will love money which flows out of self-love. If we love ourselves, then we will love money because we see money as the means to a more comfortable lifestyle. If we believe in the self-love philosophy, then we’re going to believe in the prosperity gospel, because if we are the most important person, and self-esteem is the highest virtue, then whatever feeds this philosophy is what we will pursue. 

The next characteristic of the end times man is he will be boastful, proud and abusive. These three go hand in hand because as we put ourselves at the center of our lives we will be all about self, pompously looking down our noses at others. 

The word the Apostle uses for abusive we get our English word blaspheme. In this universe there is God, and there are people and things. We should worship God, love people, and use things. But when we worship self, we will ignore God and start loving things and using people. This is the formula for a miserable life, yet it characterizes many people today. The worldwide craving for things is just one evidence that people’s hearts have turned away from God and we are certainly living in the end times.

The church of our day has gone into the entertainment business! People must be amused, and as the church needs the people’s money, the church must supply the demand and meet the craving! Since the people like drama more than sermons, then, the thinking is, give them more drama and less preaching! But, be careful not to mention sin, because they may start loving God instead of self.

The irony of it all is genuine pleasure is not to be found in all of the forms of entertainment that our culture so devotedly provides. David had it right when he wrote in Psalm 16:11, “In Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand are pleasures forever.” It’s not wrong to pursue pleasure as long as it is not outside of God. In fact, we are commanded to pursue and maintain our greatest joy in God Himself.

Finally, the last three hallmarks of the end times man are: disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, and unholy. As we descend to the end, rebellion, a lack of gratitude and the lack of the desire to be whole will begin the cascading march of evil, as God loosens His reigns on the devil. And, those who give themselves to evil will regret the day they said "no" to the God of all mercy. Until then, we must be diligent to share the life-giving message of the gospel to all who will hear. We will not stop the march of evil, but we can snatch as many as we can from its fires.

2 Timothy 2:23-26

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23 Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25 Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will. ~ 2 Timothy 2:23-26

When the Apostle Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy from his dungeon in Rome, he realized that Timothy was living in a world that was about to explode in conflict. Fueling this was the threat that the Church in Ephesus was about to split apart and divide into factions over arguments and divisions which were separating believers. So, in this letter, the Apostle tells how to handle the problem, how to live in a world threatened with conflict, and how to live in a church that is threatened with controversy.

In v.23 we read, "Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels."

From the word translated "foolish" we get our word, moron. Paul references moronic controversies, foolish, trivial matters which, even when they are settled after long and loud debate, do nothing for us. These moronic ideas do not advance the cause of Christ in the least. Such trivial matters may be interesting in some limited way, but they should never be allowed to become controversies and have people divide over them. One example of this would be the age of the earth. Some believe in a literal interpretation of Genesis 1-2 and others believe in a figurative interpretation of those passages. In the end, what difference does it make? We must not divide over such.

The word "stupid" in v.23 really means unlearned, arising out of ignorance. As such, it refers to questions that can not be answered. With these topics, God has not clearly revealed enough in His word and we do not know enough to answer the questions that are being asked.

In v.24 we read, "And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful."

The word “servant” is the Greek word doulos which means “slave.” A slave has no will of his own; he was totally under the command of his master. Once, we were the slaves of sin, but now we are willingly the slaves of God. And, if we do not have this basic understanding of this life, we will see no need for a Savior.

Paul admonished Timothy to avoid the arguments that creates strife, but not to ignore the people. He must not argue or fight. He must be patient, gentle, teaching the Word of God in meekness. It is not enough just to expose error and refute it; we must also teach God's word and establish believers in the faith.

The Greek word translated "teach" in this verse is only used one other time in the New Testament, and that’s in 1 Timothy 3:2, and it means skilled in teaching. The emphasis here is on how well he communicates the Scriptures to those who want to learn.

God requires those who "teach" to be kind and not overbearing. The one who teaches must be skilled at communicating the truth in a gracious, gentle way. The final two words in v.24 means he must be ready to endure mistreatment, without resentment. Our work is unto the Lord and if we keep it that way, we have no one to be angry with, even when they treat us wrongly.

In v.25 we read, "Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth."

The word translated "gently" is better translated mild, meek, or humble. And there is to be a humble spirit which says, “I’m not the issue; you can attack me, you can do whatever you want to me; I’m not the issue. The truth is the issue."

Translated repentance, the Apostle Paul uses the word metanoia, emphasizing a change of mind and heart, resulting in a change of direction. God's desire is that we all come to the knowledge of the truth. Given that we were dead in our sins and trespasses, we had no power to turn from evil and back to Him. So, repentance is a gift of God. 

The motive for this correction is restoration. The only place repentance will ever come from in this world is from God. Repentance is a gift of God’s grace. 

In v.26 we read, "and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will."

The devil's traps are always designed to destroy, to wreck, to ruin, and to hurt people. But, his initial presentation is much different. He always makes sin to appear attractive. Then, he turns the tables on us. These traps are designed to take away our joy and peace and love and purpose. The devil does this by trapping people in ways that confuse and deceive them.

The word "escape" describes a man coming out of a drunken stupor. Satan makes people drunk with his lies, and our task is to sober them up with God's word, so that He can rescue them. After they come to their senses, they are taken captive to do God’s will.

2 Timothy 2:22

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Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. ~ 2 Timothy 2:22

We come back to the 2 Timothy 2 which began with a command to be strong in the grace of God. When we are becoming stronger in God's grace we will be more and more defined by those things which are most dear to the heart of God.

In our text today, the Apostle Paul commands Timothy to "Flee the evil desire of youth." The first word of this verse, "Flee," is the word from which we get our English word fugitive. The believer in the Lord Jesus should be a fugitive from all that is contrary to what God has said is good in His word. 

These evil desires begin in our youth, not because they end there. These are those desires which were activated when we became adults. Paul reminds us to run from these powerful lusts and we are to keep on running. These desires could be an inordinate craving for money, a craving for power, a never ending desire for material things, jealousy, envy, or pride. The idea is these desires were birthed in the domain of darkness and we do not want to embrace them or we will experience some measure of destruction.

Notice the choice is up to us, but, according to this verse, the separation from evil, the cleansing, precedes our pursuit. It is never the other way around. Everybody wants to be used of God, but we cannot be used of God for good purposes unless we are willing to say "No" first. We have to reject the philosophies of the one who is urging us to live for self. We cannot go on living like we had before and expect God to use us. 

In the next part of this verse, the Apostle Paul writes, "Pursue." This imperative pictures one who is chasing, running, or continuing to seek. The picture the Apostle is painting here is the pursuit of one who long's for another. And, we are to pursue four specific things: righteousness, faith, love and peace.

Note the ratio here between the way of God and the way of the enemy: it's a four to one ratio. Given that we were born into sin and we are waging this war on enemy turf, it is much easier to go the way of the enemy than it is the way of the Lord. 

The incredible thing about these four things is that every one of them is presented in the Scriptures as a gift from God. Though God wants to give them to us, we will not get them unless we pursue them. We have to go after them, they just do not fall into our laps. Receiving these things must be the result of our deliberate choice that continues daily. Our pursuit of these is essentially our pursuit of God for He is these and, of course, more.

The word the Apostle uses for "righteousness" means that which God has defined as right. This is obedience to God's word, His definition of things. There are times when we are called upon to choose between what we know to be wrong and what we know to be right. When we choose what God has said is right, we choose faith in Him and His word. When we choose contrary to what God has said is right, we choose unbelief in Him.

We’re not only pursuing righteousness we are also pursuing faith. This word is better translated faithfulness which speaks of our loyalty to God. 

Many believers struggle with little faith, most often this is due to their lack of being in God's word which is what He uses to awaken and feed our faith. In Romans 10:17 we read, "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." 

The more we avail ourselves to God's voice, the more of His word we will know. Then, we will be positioned to have an awakened faith, a faith that recognizes that it is foolish to not obey God. When we do not have time for the Scriptures, we will not hear His voice which is what creates faith in us. 

In addition, we must deliberately choose love, agapē, the love of choice, the love that works in the realm of the selfless, the love that works sacrificially. Love towards God is the idea. We want to be faithful to the one we love. This will equip us to love others in the way we want to be loved. 

Then, we have to deliberately seek peace, undisturbed tranquility. When we run toward righteousness and we run toward faithfulness or loyalty and we run toward the love of God and the consequent love for others, we are running toward a life of peace. Obedience, faithfulness, love, and peace are four marks of holiness. 

We often are exposed to the choice of how we are going to react toward someone who, perhaps, has irritated us, who has done something that makes us upset or angry. Our flesh tells us to get revenge. But, if we want to be used of God, we cannot give in to the flesh. Instead, we deliberately take the high road of humility and give a soft answer that will turn away wrath. Sometimes we must initiate reconciliation. If somebody is angry at us, although we are not to blame, we just cannot keep that within and let it fester, creating frustration in our hearts. According to the Scriptures, we have to go to that person and address the issue with reconciliation as our goal.

Finally, notice what the Apostle writes at the end of the verse, “along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” 

We must be careful to be hanging out with those who are being given God's heart. Of all those who call on the Lord, the ones whose hearts are truly pure are the ones who run from those youthful evil desires and run after God. In order to be effective for God's kingdom, we must defeat sin on the inside of us. We must hang with people who are being given His heart. 

I remind you of the beatitudes which describes the process of a changed heart. We begin with poverty of spirit, then we go to mourning, then we go to meekness, giving up control to God. Then we go to hungering and thirsting for righteousness, which leads to being merciful. After all of that, we come to being pure in heart. It is not that we are perfect or sinless. No, it means we are gaining the heart of the Lord Jesus for others. Are you there yet?

2 Timothy 2:20-21

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20 In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use. 21 Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work. ~ 2 Timothy 2:20-21

Deep in all of our hearts we long to be significant in this world. This is due to the fact that God made us to love others. In fact, He created us with two basic needs: to be loved and to love. The sign that we are getting His love is that we want to love others. If we have no proclivity to loving others, we aren't receiving the love that we need to do so.

In today's text, the Apostle Paul describes what it takes to be used of God. In v.20 we read, "In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use." 

In this verse the Apostle uses "a large house" as an illustration for believers. The foundation of the house is safe and secure because God’s seal is on it. In the Bible, a seal is a mark of ownership and security. The seal of the believer is the Holy Spirit who guarantees that we are the recipients of God's love through His Son. As we grow in our understanding of His love for us, we will be more and more secure and less and less insecure. This is what frees us to love others unconditionally. 

God uses anyone who is available, it really doesn't matter whether we are special or average. Scripture reveals that God even uses the devil to accomplish His work. In Romans 9, we are reminded that Pharaoh was used of God to free Israel from Egypt.

"In a large house there are articles; some for special purposes and some for common use." This is true of all homes. Some are honorable and some are common. This is the way God sees humanity. If we want to understand life as it really is, we have to look at humanity in that way. God sees all of us as useful vessels, some for great purposes and others for average purposes.

When the Apostle wrote, "Those who cleanse themselves," he means we are responsible to utilize the cleansing that has been provided us through God's word and His Spirit. This does not mean that we can cleanse ourselves. We have the responsibility, having believed in the Lord Jesus as our Savior, to use the provisions of His word and His Spirit to prepare ourselves for that which He has called us. This means we have to reject the philosophies of this world in order to be used of God in the lives of others.

God did not make us to live all alone in isolation, however the law of entropy has left its effects on us all. This is why the Lord Jesus was isolated on the cross so that we would not be isolated from God and others. It is out of our loved relationship with the Lord that we are enabled to love others as He loves us.

When we surround ourselves with those who are of the non-Christian view of life we are almost certain to be influenced by them. This does not mean that we are to avoid contact with non-Christians, it just means we must be diligent to be defined by God instead of them. When we are being defined by Him and operating out of His culture, we will be positioned to love others by sharing the life-giving message of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus. 

The key to these two verse is found in the words, "...made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work."

The word "holy" means set apart for the purpose that we were created. God does the setting apart, if we let Him. And when He does this, and we give ourselves to Him and to His purposes, we become increasingly complete and decreasingly insecure. This. is what poises us to be most useful in the lives of others.

Finally, Elton Trueblood said it best when he said, “Evangelism is not a professional job for a few trained men, but is instead the unrelenting responsibility of every person who belongs to the company of Jesus.”

2 Timothy 2:17-19

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17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have departed from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some. 19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”  ~ 2 Timothy 2:17-19

As we have been considering, it is God's grace that empowers us to fight the most important battles of guarding the truth and loving people enough to tell them the truth. Given our failed attempts to love God, His grace abounds so that we are perfect in His eyes through the cross of Christ.

In v.17-18, we read, "17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have departed from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some."

When we totally depart from the truth, corruption will take over. The Apostle uses gangrene which is an infection of the bloodstream that spreads rapidly throughout the body, creating the foulest of smells, to describe what happens when truth is totally rejected. Similar to false teaching, gangrene spreads, infects, and kills other tissue. It spreads and infects the body of believers, the church. This infection must be exposed and removed. Only sound biblical teaching can keep a group of believers healthy and growing.

Hymenaeus was first introduced to us in Paul's first letter to Timothy. Paul wrote of him, "whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme," (1 Timothy 1:20). Evidently, being turned over had not done Hymenaeus any good, because he is still spreading his false doctrine throughout the church, teaching that the resurrection had already happened.

Hymenaeus taught that we experienced spiritual resurrection when we were born again and that is all the resurrection there is going to be. There was a Greek philosophy which was prevalent in Ephesus at that time, which said that the body was evil, so it was unthinkable that God would ever be concerned with resurrecting bodies.

In his teaching, Hymenaeus took only partial truth from the revelation of the Scriptures. This, by the way, is how heresy starts. Hymenaeus ignored the Lord's own words when he predicted that the day was coming when "all who are in the grave shall hear the voice of the Son of God and shall come forth, some to a resurrection of condemnation and some to a resurrection of redemption," (John 5:28b-29).

In v.19 we read, "Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."

This verse begins with one of the most important words in all of Scripture, "Nevertheless". Even though false teachers fool some, the truth of God will triumph in the end. Comforting is the thought that the Lord knows those who are really His and nothing can remove us out of His family. This is so, due to the fact that His life is in us, and His presence will not let us be taken from Him. His presence also causes us to persevere in the faith, so we will not compromise with evil so much that we are banished from His presence forever. 

According to Philippians 1:6, we are those who having had a good work begun in us, that work will be performed until the day of Jesus Christ. We are those who can never be separated from the love of God in Christ. We are those of whom the Lord Jesus said, “All that the Father gives to me will come to me, and I have lost none of them, but shall raise them up at the last day.” 

Paul reminds us that we are sealed. This seal denotes God's ownership of us. The Greek word for "sealed" means marked out as the possession of its owner. And, having believed on His Son for our salvation, He has sealed us with His Holy Spirit. The reason we continue in the faith is because He inhabits us and we are His for eternity.

2 Timothy 2:14-16

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14 Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers. 15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 16 But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. ~ 2 Timothy 2:14-16

We return to Paul's description of what it looks like to be defined by God's grace. Living in a world that is under the control of the one called "the god of this world" is dangerous, but when we are defined by the God of the Bible, we will know His peace.

This is why in v.14 we read, "Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers."

In the church at Ephesus, there were those who were minutely disputing certain words in the Bible which created factions and division. This is why the Apostle Paul writes to Timothy and tells him to remind everyone to be loyal, faithful, and consistent to the Word of God. We are not to be engaged in debates that get so intense and so hot that we forget that the Lord has sent us to teach others about His culture. 

The words "to the ruin of the hearers" literally means "catastrophe." Church arguments can lead to catastrophic results among the people of God. And, the worst is that the name of the Lord is defamed in the community and people turn away from Him.

The believer is to avoid the kind of debate that pits divine truth against human philosophy and makes the Bible answerable to man instead of man to God. We must stand on the Word of God and we must never subject the Bible to an argument that is steeped in the rejection of its authority. 

It is good to discuss the Bible, to debate certain interpretations of a biblical text, to use various passages of Scripture, but what is to be avoided is placing the Word of God under human philosophy.

In v.15 we read, "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

The emphasis in this verse is that the worker needs to be diligent in his labors so that he will not be ashamed when his work is inspected. This word "diligent" gives the idea of hastening oneself to "rightly dividing" or correctly understanding the Word of God which is the treasure that we must guard. Those who use the Word correctly will be on the frontline of what God is doing in this world.

An approved worker diligently studies the Word and seeks to  discern the false by knowing the truth. As we study the Scriptures, we will grow in our ability to recognize and understand the usage of each word in the Scripture. As we drink of His word, our investigative powers will increase and our ability to recognize the false will be heightened. 

In order to "rightly divide the word of truth" we must begin with the understanding that the New Testament is the fulfillment of the Old Testament, and that there is a clear distinction between the Church and Israel in the Bible. 

When we study the Scriptures to understand them, we must be sure to study it verse by verse in its context. Then, we set out to understand the words that are used in that context with other passages in the Scriptures that deal with the same subject. Then, we will be able to understand the subject in the whole context of the Bible. Confidently, we will have a good working knowledge of the Scriptures and we will be that one who does not need to be ashamed.

Paul is dealing here with a very important principle in understanding the truth of Scripture: all Scripture must be understood in the light of the rest of Scripture. We really have not ever understood any single passage until we have carefully tried to fit it with all that the Scriptures say about it. One of the most frequent ways in which error begins is when one group takes a single passage, or a single book, of Scripture and zeros in on a single text, or a few chosen texts, and builds its entire doctrine on that one passage.

In v.16 we read, "But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness."

The word for "shun" is also translated, "walk around." In other words, "Stay away from it; do not get involved in it, walk away from it, because it will give safe haven to more unwholesomeness."

The Bible clearly affirms God is truth, He speaks truth, and He does not lie. The Bible also affirms Satan is a liar and the father of lies and goes around deceiving people. God reveals Himself as truth, and Satan therefore is revealed as the antithesis to God – Satan is the liar. That particular dichotomy descends from the conflict of God and Satan to pervade every area in the universe. There is conflict between the holy angels and the unholy demons, and there is conflict on the earth between the truth and the lies of Satan.

The people of God have always been plagued with false doctrine. The invasion of the false has been something which the people of God have endured since time began. Satan attempts to distort the truth with lies. He attempts to confuse the world so that they cannot perceive the truth of God by drowning them in a sea of deceit. It was his evil intentions and clever misrepresentation of truth to Eve that plunged the whole of the human race into sin.

This is why we must be diligent to study the Word of God. The souls of people are at stake. Time is short, my friends, and we must be careful to expose the darkness by using the light of His Word. We live in a fallen from the truth world and because of this, many question God's love. They look at 'all the suffering' especially of the innocent, and they cannot see that God can possibly be loving. In Jesus Christ the love of God was clearly demonstrated for all to see. Many either have not heard the Gospel or they have a distorted understanding of it. We are here on this earth now to pull back the curtain of confusion and to bring light to the souls of men and women and boys and girls. Will you today share His love with those He brings into your life?

2 Timothy 2:10-13

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10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. 11 Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; 13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself. ~ 2 Timothy 2:10-13

We return to Paul's second letter to Timothy. Its theme is "Faithful Til The End." As we come back to 2 Timothy 2, we are reminded of the theme of this chapter which is being made strong in the grace of God. And, God's definition of strength is quite different than ours. This is why we must be defined by Him and not by ourselves or by this fallen world in which we live.

In the first part of v.10, we read, "Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect." 

When we are defined by God's grace, we will be willing to suffer for the sake of others. The Apostle Paul suffered imprisonment wrongly, yet it was the Lord's will for him to be there. And, boy did we benefit for he wrote 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus while there. 

The elect are those who are called out by God to believe in Him and to have a personal relationship with Him. These are the ones who have responded to the free offer of salvation through the Lord Jesus.

Notice the last phrase in v.10, "that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory." 

Our suffering increases the weight of God's glory or pronounced presence in our lives. As others watch us suffer joyfully for Christ, they are encouraged to draw closer to the Lord and His glory in their lives increases. God's love increases our ability to love Him and others, and others are moved to God because of it.

The Bible comes to us saturated with the blood, sweat, and tears of men and women of the past who were tortured so that we might have the Bible in English. We must never forget that, in a fallen world, there is going to be suffering when the Word of truth is dispensed among people. This just underscores its value. 

In v.11 we read, "Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him."

It is faith in Jesus Christ that gives us victory. We do not fear the enemies, for the Lord Jesus has already vanquished them. Through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ we now realize the practical nature of His victory. Death leads to life! Suffering leads to glory! It must be from this vantage point that we operate in this world.

In v.12 we read, "if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us."

In this verse Paul contrasts enduring faith and disowning faith. Here, the Apostle speaks about those who, at one point, professed to know and follow Christ but now deny Him. Their denial does not make them lose salvation but only reveals that they never possessed believing faith in the first place.

If we have truly believed in Christ, He will manifest Himself through our willingness hearts. Like Peter, there will be momentary hiccups in our faithfulness, and we are not to draw conclusions on a snapshot of our faith. If we are in personal relationship with the Lord Jesus, we will persevere in the faith. If we are not in personal relationship with Him, we will not persevere in the faith. But, we must look at the big picture, not the individual, and temporary setbacks that we all face.

The Lord Jesus tells us in John 3 we learn that people are condemned because they will not believe on the Lord Jesus. You see, we were born into this world condemned. God judged our sin in the body of the Lord Jesus when He hung on that cross. And, He will judge the world's unbelief because He has to; He would not be God if He didn't. Truth would not be truth if He didn't judge our sin.  

In v.13 we read, "if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself."

Paul wrote these words to keep us from concluding that we could lose something that we can never earn. And, the Lord led Paul to write these words because He knows that all men of faith struggle with doubt. Here, the Apostle makes it clear that even our own doubt cannot change the Lord Jesus' disposition towards us once we are saved. We do not put faith in our faith or in our strength, because they will change and fail. We put our faith in Him. It is not by trying to be faithful, but in looking to the Faithful One, that we win the victory.

2 Timothy 2:8-9

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8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. ~ 2 Timothy 2:8-9

We come back to Paul's instructions to Timothy regarding what it takes to be faithful til the end. The cross meant death. This is where our motivation for our obedience comes from, the choice He made to lay down His life so that we could become children of God. When we lose sight of the greatest display of love mankind has ever known, we lose the motivation to follow Him in everyday life. This is why the Apostle admonishes us to "Remember Jesus Christ" in v.8.

We must never lose sight of the cross of the Lord Jesus for it is the cross hairs through which we come to understand all things. From the teachings of the Lord Jesus, it is apparent that following Him involves sacrifice. For some it involves the sacrifice of their life in death. For others it involves the sacrifice of their life in life, saying no to their ambitions and desires and self-will and all of the things that might be on their own agenda for the sake of the will of Christ.

After reminding us to "Remember Jesus Christ," Paul reminds us that He was "raised from the dead." When we remember that we have a source of strength that nothing in this world can defeat, we can endure anything because we know this is not the totality of reality. The resurrection of the Lord Jesus is what gives us hope when others see the situation as utterly hopeless. We hang on when everybody else quits, because we see the resurrected Lord at work in and through our lives on a daily basis.

When we consider the resurrection, we see God ripping off the shackles of death from the willing. The resurrection of Christ was God the Father's response to His sacrifice made on our behalf. The resurrection was the amen of God to the blessing made by the Son.

In v.8 Paul continues with, "descended from David." The Lord Jesus descended from King David. Right out of the very loins of David came the Lord Jesus. It speaks of Christ's humanity. But, this also speaks of Christ's deity, because He is the fulfillment of the promise to David that One is coming who will sit on the throne of David forever.

The Lord Jesus was the fulfillment to the Old Testament promises of the Savior. He is God's long promised Savior. He is Son of God and He is the Son of Man at the same time. He is the rightful heir to David’s throne, and He is now set down at the right hand of the Father on high. He is living, and He is reigning. This means He is our High Priest and He is the sovereign who controls everything.

In v.9 we read, “for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained.” 

Even though the Apostle was chained, “the Word of God was not.” Paul was locked up, but he still preached to the Roman guards and the members of Caesar’s household. The more the enemies of God try to stop the word of God, the more it is used of God to change lives.

In 1971 a Vietnamese man named Hien Pham was imprisoned on accusations of helping the Americans. His jailers tried to indoctrinate him against the Christian faith. He was tempted to no longer believe in the God of the Bible. It was then that he decided that when he awakened the next day, he would not pray anymore or think of his faith.

The next morning, he was assigned the dreaded chore of cleaning the prison toilets. As he cleaned out a tin can overflowing with toilet paper, his eye caught what seemed to be English printed on one piece of paper. He hurriedly grabbed it, washed it, and after his roommates had retired that night, he retrieved the paper and read the words of Romans 8:38-39 which reads, "38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

After reading these words from what he knew to be the Bible, Hien wept. Hien knew that there was not a more relevant passage for one on the verge of surrender. He cried out to God, asking forgiveness, for this was to have been the first day that he would not pray. God had other plans. What his tormentors were using for refuse, the Scriptures, could not have become more treasured to Hien.

2 Timothy 2:6-7

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6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this. ~ 2 Timothy 2:6-7

The overall theme in 2 Timothy 2 is growing stronger in God's grace, for it is when we are being trained by grace that we will embrace the economy of God the best. Having consider the first three steps in the process of growing in His grace in this section of this letter, the Apostle Paul provides yet another analogy to convey to us elements of spiritual strength that is the product of growing strong in God's grace. 

The hardworking farmer metaphor pictures a man who works to the point of total exhaustion. His all is invested because this is his livelihood. Unlike the teacher, the soldier, and the athlete who fairly quickly enjoy the results of their hard work, the farmer waits and is unsure of the results while he waits.

Farming is backbreaking, dirty, detailed work, and, most of all, it is risky. There aren’t any guarantees in farming. The farmer looks at his failed crop as a tangible reminder that the harvest inevitably belongs to the Lord. The farmer must be faithful to lay the groundwork for the harvest, but the harvest cannot be forced; it can only happen through the Lord’s providence.

In the same way that God made the farmer to care for His creation and provide food for humanity, He trains us by His grace to patiently share the Gospel of the Lord Jesus with the lost and to provide nourishment for them spiritually. 

The Greek participle "hardworking" is descriptive. It informs us that we are involved in a never-ending investment this side of heaven. The verb means on-going labor, recurring trouble, incessant difficulty and persistent fatigue to the point of exhaustion. 

Being trained in grace results in the farmer being able to taste of His fruit, and the fruit is the sinner entering into a personal relationship with God. And, we somehow factored in on the fruitfulness of one being turned from hell to heaven.

When we are being trained by grace, we will gain God's heart increasingly. When this happens, we will be more proficient at giving His truth away, we will be more proficient at enduring hardships in the battle, we will be more proficient in learning endurance and in practicing patience as we work with those who God has seen fit for us to help. 

This analogy of the farmer informs us that our walk with Christ is mostly made up of daily faithfulness and everyday dependent obedience, often pursuing the mundane responsibilities of life. This analogy reminds us that we do not stop doing the basics, including the study of God's Word, prayer and sharing the gospel.

In v.7 we read, "Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this."

The verb "reflect" is used only here in the New Testament. It denotes perceiving clearly with the mind, of understanding fully, of considering carefully, of pondering and deeply mulling over. It is an imperative, indicating a strong admonition, not mere advice. It challenges us to ponder carefully the importance of our work for the Lord. 

The reward for the farmer is always in sight. There is joy in the harvest, and the greatest satisfaction belongs to the one who carefully cultivated it all along the way. For the hard-working farmer joy results from His long-term faithfulness. He is content in His work and he has learned the secret joy of trusting in God’s providence and experiencing His constant goodness. 

But there is also joy for the farmer in what he cannot see. One tiny seed becomes a huge plant that produces a thousandfold of seeds. The harvest multiplies itself and goes out into the world in a way that he will never see with his own eyes. But because he can’t see it doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.

In our work and in our weariness, let us look to the farmer. Let us keep the deep-root, big picture in mind. If we don’t give up, one day we will enjoy the final harvest and its bountiful rewards. Unlike our farming friends, this harvest, one cultivated by faith, is absolutely guaranteed.

As a result, “The Lord will give us insight into everything.” God has entrusted us with His word, our experience with Him, our gifts, and the Holy Spirit to be engaged in the lives of people in such a way to train them in the grace of God.

2 TIMOTHY 2:5

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"Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules." ~ 2 Timothy 2:5 

We come back to 2 Timothy 2 where the theme of growing stronger in God's grace is found. Having considered the first two steps in the process of growing in His grace, in this section of 2 Timothy, the Apostle Paul provides another analogy to convey to us elements of spiritual strength that is the product of growing strong in God's grace. 

Paul wrote, "Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete." 

The word "anyone" clearly shows any believer in Christ can do this. But, we must be well-trained spiritually by the grace of God which is His undeserved favor that equips us to compete, to endure, to persevere. And, the competition that believers in the Lord Jesus are called to is different than any other. This is really a competition against ourselves, fighting off those things that prevent us from investing in others.

The first thing the Apostle points out here in this verse is the idea that the athlete competes. In doing so, he uses the Greek verb athleō for the word translated "competes." This means the athlete gives great effort to be defined by God, and in so doing, he points us back to the Word of God. 

That which separates the winners from the losers is not always talent, but it is always the effort to be defined by God. And not just the effort of being defined at a particular time, itself, but the effort long before the definition was needed. If anyone is going to compete as an athlete, there is a tremendous price to pay in terms of discipline by and preparation in the Word of God. This work is done while meeting with God through His Word.

Just as the athlete competes to win the contest, the believer who is growing stronger in God's grace does not run the race without forging to the finish line. There has to be a goal in mind. The believer who is being trained in this way is a competitor who presses foward to victory. And, if we win, it will be due to the tremendous work ethic and internal passion that is produced by the Word of God as we study Him. The competitive athlete will be the picture of self-denial, self-sacrifice and tremendous effort because this is who the Lord Jesus is, and He is revealing Himself through the yielded believer.

The Greek word the Apostle Paul uses here translated in the English as "the victor's crown" is stephanos. Used eighteen times in the New Testament, "stephanos" is used to describe the reward for the running the race well. This crown does not represent salvation, otherwise we would be teaching that we earn our salvation which we could never do. This crown is used of one who is motivated by God's grace to endure tremendous testing which yields a tremendous testimony in the eyes of others and God.

In the Greek games, there were three prerequisites that every athlete had to fulfill. One, he had to be a true-born Greek. Two, he had to prepare for ten months and stand before a statue of Zeus and swear that he had prepared for ten months. And if he had not, then he gave Zeus the liberty to take his life. Then, he had to stay within the rules of the event. 

Now, if he was found not to be a true-born Greek, if it was found to have not prepared for a full ten months, and if it was found to violated the rules of his event, he was disgraced and instantly disqualified.

This is the picture the Apostle Paul had in mind as he wrote our text for today. The Greeks were very careful to keep the rules of training, the rules of birth, and the rules of competition. In like manner, the believer who is being trained by God's grace must be related to God as His son through the Lord Jesus Christ. He must have trained in the matters of self-denial, given over himself full-time to spiritual training. And, when those things are in place, he will compete according to God's definition of all things.

Like the competitive athlete, the believer in Christ is one who is learning to be retrained to think like God. With the aid of the Holy Spirit, the believer's mind is being reprogramed by God and His Word. It takes years of time to be trained by the Lord Himself, so be patient with yourself and the Lord as He makes you strong in His grace.

2 Timothy 2:3-4

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3 Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer. ~ 2 Timothy 2:3-4 

Having considered the first step in the process of becoming stronger in the grace of God, being a teacher, today, we come to the second step, being a good soldier. 

In v.3 we read, "Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus."

It is only as the result of growing stronger in the grace of God that we choose to enter the war. In this section of 2 Timothy, the Apostle Paul uses analogies to convey to us elements of spiritual strength that is the product of growing strong in God's grace. Let me remind you, growing strong in God's grace is not an over night thing, so be patient with yourself as He grows you to be stronger by revealing His great grace to you on a daily basis.

The amazing thing is there is a link between suffering and passion. You see, passion finds its root in the Greek word which means “suffering”. There is no testimony without the tests. We can not be passionate about something if we are not willing to suffer for it. Suffering is not a prerequisite for passion, it is the result of passion. As believer's in the Lord Jesus, we are in a war, and we are called to be at the forefront in this war. Since this war is spiritual in nature, we must be careful to do battle with the spiritual weapons that the Lord has given us. Our primary weapons are: the Word of God, the Spirit of God and prayer. And the many battles being waged for the hearts and souls of people.

Now, being a soldier involves “Joining in the suffering.” The best translation of this first part of the verse is: “endure affliction together.” In view of the cross, we are postured to grow in our passion for Him. And, after we have entered into the battle, we must not be surprised by suffering when it comes. As any soldier engaged in battle, we collect wounds as we factor into the war. But, we willingly enter the battles because we have seen our Lord's willingness to do everything He asks His soldiers to do and more. In fact, we are quick to lay down our lives for Him because He laid down His life for us, and we, subsequently, have eternities values in view.

It is odd how all of this works, but as we teach others what God has revealed to us and we suffer while being engaged in the conflict, we grow in the grace of God. You see, as we are put in these positions, we are given a front row seat to how the grace of God works in our lives first. Then, as we share the truths we have garnered in the various battles with those whom we influence, we then are able to help them through our battles.

In v.4 we read, "No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer."

This war only has a frontline, and we’re all in it together. And, the practical stuff of life is of less importance to us than the eternal stakes that are at hand. Since we have a soldier's mindset, we do not not get distracted by the temporary, we are focused on what will last for eternity. Most live for the things of this world, they do not possess an eternal perspective.Those who are strong in the grace of God are motivated to be engaged in the war.

At the end of v.4 we read, "but rather tries to please his commanding officer." 

When we have come to appreciate the grace of God that He has lavished upon us, we will be anxious to do those things that are dear to Him. Of course, we do this not to gain His favor, but to merely say, "I love you" in return. As soldiers in the Lord's army, we live to serve Him. The greatest joy of the soldier is to please the Lord. 

This was particularly true in the Roman army; a commander would gather around him men whom knew him, loved him, trusted him and would follow him anywhere. Those were the ones who won the great battles for Rome. The apostle uses that analogy to drive home the thought: The faithful soldiers serves the One who laid down His life for him. Our one objective is not to get something for ourselves, it is to please Him.

The motive here is love and passion, not duty. The One we are following has laid down His life for us. He has secured our eternity in heaven with Him. And, when this grips our being we will choose to lay down our lives for Him. And, primary on His heart are those who are yet trapped by the wrong passions.

2 Timothy 2:2

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And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others. ~ 2 Timothy 2:2

Yesterday, we considered what it means to be strong in God's grace. Today, the Apostle Paul gives us the first of four steps that will aid us in becoming stronger in the grace of God. 

The most important word in today's verse is the word "teach."  Most of the time we are teaching and we do not know it because people watch our lives more than do our lips. More is caught than is taught because people look more deeply than what we say.

Notice the succession in our verse today: Being taught, then teach and those we teach are to teach. The Lord Jesus modeled this when He taught the Twelve. And they taught the next generation, and they taught the next. We are in a living chain that takes us link by link all the way back to the Lord Jesus. We have entered a relay race where someone gave us the baton, and we are giving the baton to somebody else.

At the beginning of today's verse we read, "And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses."

We often find ourselves questioning what we believe is really real, really true. The fact that there were many witnesses of the revelation that God had given to Paul proves that it went through a process whereby it was proven true. The change in Paul's life was so radical and true that only God can be credited for it.

In Deuteronomy 19:15 we read, “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established." 

In the Old Testament, God taught us the value of having more than one witness in a matter. In this case, there were many thousands of witnesses who confirmed the truthfulness of Paul's testimony and his subsequent teaching. So, Paul is saying, “The things that you have heard from me, not just my ideas, but the Word of God have been confirmed by many witnesses.”

The second part of today's verse reads, "entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others."

This process that you and I are engaged in is discipleship, giving the truth that God has given us to faithful and trustworthy believers who want to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus. We invest in the reliable and then, they pass the teaching along to others who are faithful.

If we are going to grow strong in the grace of God, we will be involved in sharing our story and the revelation that God has given us with others. This will be challenging and humbling because the truth of God reveals our flaws as we instruct others.

I am able teach others the truths that God has taught me because I sought Him in reference to what was going on in my life. Most of the time that something that was going on in my life was caused by my sinfulness or my failure. Then I sought the Lord and He taught me. And, if we are to effectively teach others, we must teach them the whole truth, including our struggle with sin and our subsequent failure. This gives framing to the real star in the show, the word of God.

So, if we are going to be strong believers, we have to see ourselves as teachers, even if we are not gifted as teachers. In our authentic walk with the Lord, we are getting to know Him personally and His truth intimately. And this means we must be diligent to seek Him as we study His word. 

In addition, we must be willing to allow Him to do His work in us and through us. The Lord's primary tool for teaching us His culture is through His word with the aid of the teaching skills of the Holy Spirit. Then, we must be willing to teach others this reconstruction project that is going on in our very lives.

2 Timothy 2:1

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You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. ~ 2 Timothy 2:1

It is so important that we are authentic with ourselves and others. This is so for our posterity because, if we are not, we will train them to be more dependent upon us or themselves rather than on God. We must never forget that we are not the answer, for ourselves or anyone else. 

In order to combat this, I have found that it is helpful to make it a habit of admitting that I struggle and I am not the answer. It is the God of the Bible who is the truth and the answer to all of our struggles. And, we really need Him. In fact, we are most spiritual when we are most dependent upon Him. He is the One that everyone in this world is searching for, whether we know it or not.

When we come to God by way of His word daily, we must come seeking Him. And, when we interact with Him, we must be careful to be honest with Him. It is in this context of honesty that He teaches us the best lessons. Never underestimate His ability to reveal truth to you for He longs to do this, even when you have failed. Don't buy the lie that you somehow must make up lost ground with God in order for Him to bless you. He is not like that.

The secret to Paul’s great ministry was the grace of God. It is also our secret to success. The ability to study His word and understand it, is a gift of God’s grace. This is why in v.1 the Apostle writes, "You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus."

We underestimate God's grace, thinking that our sin is greater. Grace is what God freely gives us through His Son's perfect performance and we do not earn it or deserve it. The initial characteristic of God's grace is the forgiveness of our sins. Oh, the lifting of the guilt of sin. When we trusted Christ as our Savior, a great load of guilt was removed out of our account before God. He forgave us in Christ of all of the things we had done and will ever do here on earth. He even forgave us for the attitudes and shameful actions that we had indulged in to that point. But He didn't stop there, His grace is inexhaustible.  

When we fail to celebrate His forgiveness, we lose sight of the bedrock motivation for pursuing Him in this life. Grace is the most powerful change agent in the world, but if it is not doing its work in our hearts on a daily basis, we lose the motivation to pursue God. So, we preach the gospel of grace to ourselves daily. There is a difference between merely reminding ourselves of grace, and preaching it to ourselves everyday. The latter is consciously and intentionally reminding ourselves of God's provisions through His Son, the Lord Jesus. And, He did this even while we were His enemies.

The heart of 2 Timothy comes to us in the words, “be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus,” which is what produces the theme of 2 Timothy, "Faithful til the end." The only way we are faithful til the end is if we are strong in grace, but most, it seems to me, are malnourished of His grace.

The imperative “be strong” is a present passive imperative, meaning someone outside of us is producing the power. Literally Paul wrote, “Keep on being empowered in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” It is not being strong in our own strength; it’s being empowered in His perfect strength. Let me reiterate that this command is written in the passive voice, which means God is the source of the empowerment.

In Jude 20 we read, “Keep yourselves in the love of God.” We do not earn God's favor, nor do we maintain it. To live out of the posture of God's complete acceptance of us on the basis of Christ's merit is the beginning of being empowered by God's grace. We must stay in His grace. We must not allow ourselves to think that God will ever change His posture toward us, even when we sin egregiously. 

In Romans 5:2 we read, “we have gained access (to God) by faith into this grace in which we now stand.” In the eyes of God, we are perfected in Christ. So, we are never to earn God's favor because the Lord Jesus has done this for us. And, when we learn to wallow in His grace, it gets all over us and we grow in our understanding of it. It is at this point that we begin to understand, and over time, we begin to stand in it with the confidence of Christ Himself. It is His confidence given through His grace that makes us strong in His grace.

Our determination to be good or our strength to be strong factors not in being strong in His grace. We can offer God nothing. In our own strength we can do nothing. We need grace for our justification and our our sanctification. 

It's ironic that we grow in His grace most often on the heels of a reminder of our weaknesses or our failures or our humiliations in life. I have often wondered why God doesn’t just remove the stuff that trips me up in my pursuit of perfect obedience. But, if He did, I'd lean on my own strength instead of His. A few stumbles might be what I need to convince me, once again, that His grace is sufficient for everything in my life, including forgiveness of my sin. And, I am learning to rest in that grace that makes me stronger with each passing day. I like this quote from Max Lucado, "Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off."

2 Timothy 1:15-18

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15 You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.16 May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. 17 On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. 18 May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus. ~ 2 Timothy 1:15-18

Today's text begins with desertion. Everyone had abandoned the Apostle Paul for it was dangerous to be associated with him. This was a dark period for Paul. So dark that it was difficult to recognize what God was really doing. False doctrines were spreading throughout the church, and Paul would have loved to be free to defend the faith—but he was in a Roman prison. 

The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 1:12-14 that his imprisonment happened to advance the gospel. He went on to write in Philippians 3:10, "I want to know Christ--yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death." 

The Lord Jesus endured the desertion of God so that we would not.  Everything that separated us from God was absorbed by the Lord Jesus on His cross so that we might know Him intimately in an increasing way. Pain and suffering is unavoidable in this fallen world, yet, there is a silver lining to this very dark cloud: that we might know Him and make Him known. 

In this passage there are two groups of people: those who deserted Paul and those who helped him. The group we choose to identify with will impact our lives the most. In Hebrews 11 there is a group known for their faith in the God of the Bible. This is the group that we want to be associated with because it is much easier to pull someone down than it is to pull them up.

We read in v.16, "May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains."

But there was one man who dared to leave Ephesus and come to Rome to assist Paul, Onesiphorus whose name means “profit-bearing” or "bringer of help." He certainly lived up to his name and was a profitable friend to Paul. We most often live our lives according to what we are beholding at the moment. In fact, in 2 Corinthians 3:18 we read, “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

God made us to receive and to give, and when we give, in some way, we are blessed. Those who live to only get are miserable. We must be careful to follow the example of Onesiphorus by daily looking for those to whom we can be a blessing in one way or another. It may be a simple smile or it may be a long trek from Ephesus to Rome.

There are two bodies of water in the nation of Israel: the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. Both have in common an inlet. These bodies of water receive water everyday by way of the Jordan River. But what sets these two bodies of water apart is what makes them different. You see, one of them teams with all forms of life and the other is known for no life in it at all. The difference is only the Sea of Galilee gives. The Dead Sea only gets and it is the worse for it.

According to v.16, Paul prays that the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus because somewhere on his trip back to Ephesus, he somehow died. We do not know how he died and we are not given much about Onesiphorus but he certainly was a tremendous blessing as Paul faced his final days in prison.

In v.17 we read, "On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me."

Onesiphorus, painstakingly, and at great effort, sought and found the Apostle Paul. That was not easy to do because the Romans told no-one where Paul was imprisoned. But Onesiphorus kept looking until he found him. He found him at great risk to his own life, for, to befriend an enemy of Caesar in those days was to put one's own life in peril.

In v.18 we read, "May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus."

When someone is a blessing to us, our hearts well up for them. We find ourselves praying for them more. This was the case here for Paul toward Onesiphorus. Granted, we do not bless to be blessed, but the principle in nonetheless true. Let me encourage you today to ask God to give you the ability to see the needs around you. Then, look for practical ways to be a blessing to those whom He brings into your pathway.

We all have an orientation to life. Most often it is our pain that makes us most useful to others. God redeems our pain as He brings healing through us to those around us. God gives us opportunities to share the Scriptural truths that He has given us as lifelines. And God gives us the privilege of coming alongside people to believe for them and to pray for them. In this type of giving, we even find healing for ourselves.

2 Timothy 1:13-14

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13 What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. 14 Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. ~ 2 Timothy 1:13-14

In our last passage of study, the Apostle Paul wrote about how his life was entrusted to God. In today's text Paul writes about how God has entrusted the word of God to Timothy. Can you imagine a world without truth? How chaotic it would be. There would be no trust for without the truth trust dies. Trust is quite difficult when we do not know who or what we are trusting.

In v.13 we read, "What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus."

The Apostle begins with, "What you heard from me." The "What" spoken of here in this verse is the truth from God, given to the Apostle Paul. The word "heard" reminds me of Romans 10:17 which reads, "Faith comes by hearing by the word of God." The word used here for "word" is rhema which is the spoken word of God. We do not hear God with our ears, we hear Him with our hearts and minds. It is the experiential word of God that gives birth to faith in our hearts. This is why we must be in the word daily, expecting God to speak to our hearts through His word.

The word “keep,” in our text, means to hold tightly or firmly, to grasp. The idea behind this word is to hold onto in such a way that we interact with it. In this way, it holds on to us. The truth is meant to be interactive. It was given to us by God in order to impact our lives in a qualitative way. We struggle with it and that is good. We must be careful to remain honest with it or we will trump it by what we think is right. Of course, our way is not the way.

We struggle with doubting the veracity of truth and this is normal. The Lord Jesus consistently made a distinction between doubt and unbelief, not doubt and faith. Doubt is the shadow cast by faith. Doubt is can’t believe, whereas unbelief is won’t believe. Doubt is honestly wrestling with the truth, but unbelief is being obstinate with the truth. Doubt is looking for light whereas unbelief is content with the darkness.

The word  “pattern," means "an architect’s sketch.” In v,13 Paul writes, "keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus." This means the pattern came from the architect, God Himself. He is the architect of the truth and we are not making it, it is making us. 

The word "sound" means "healthful and whole," words that will lead us to wholesome living. In Proverbs 14:12 we read,  "There is a way that seems right to a man, but the ends thereof are the ways of death." There is our way that leads to destruction or there is God's way which leads us to a life filled with "faith and love which are in Christ Jesus."

It was the Holy Spirit who committed the truth to Paul, and then, Paul committed God's truth to Timothy. Apart from the ministry of the Holy Spirit, we are in the dark when it comes to having the truth and understanding it. God's word is so important because in it, God has shown us the way, the truth, and the life. And, from the beginning of human history, Satan has opposed God’s Word because "it is the power of God unto salvation for all who choose to believe it."

In v.14 we read, "Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us."

This word "guard" means to retain the standard of sound, wholesome, life-giving words. Be committed to it, to the proper theological structure, the proper interpretation of Scripture, the proper outline of the truth that produces spiritual growth, spiritual maturity. This will result in sound theology.

We live in a world where people get squeamish when we have biblically based convictions, but those with strong convictions must be bold. The "good deposit" is the Scriptures. Though the word truth does not actually appear in this verse, we are to "guard the truth with the help of the Spirit." The glory of Christianity is that it is knowledge that can free us from the lies that the world in its blindness is following to its own destruction.

It is not merely the words of the Bible that make it powerful, rather it is the presence of the Holy Spirit enlightening the words of God contained in the Bible. The Spirit illuminates the Bible so that we can take it to heart. He makes the words of the Bible living words that enlighten our minds, pierce our hearts, words that produce profound changes in attitude and behavior in us that we can't produce ourselves. This is the reason we must keep and guard it because it keeps and guards us.