2nd Timothy Chapter 2 -- John Karmelich
1.
Of
all the positive attributes the world needs more of, I would list the top
priority as courage.
a)
“Fear” prevents more accomplishments any attribute I can
think of:
i)
The fear of not being liked for an action.
ii)
The fear of failing.
iii)
The fear of being intimidated.
iv)
The fear of not being as great as my parents or my
mentors.
v)
The fear of not being to accomplish what my friends or
my hero’s can do.
b)
My favorite biblical character who should have
been intimidated by fear is Joshua.
i)
Joshua was given the wonderful task of being the next
leader after Moses. J
a)
Moses parted the Red Sea.
b)
Moses led millions of slaves out of Egypt.
c)
Moses stood up to the greatest world leader of that day.
d)
Moses was trained to be the leader of the (then)
Egyptian Empire.
e)
Now at Moses death, Joshua is told he has to take over.
ii)
Would you find that intimidating?
a)
How could Joshua ever be able to be as great as Moses?
b)
How could Joshua ever be compared to Moses?
iii)
So what were the first words of encouragement God gave
Joshua?
a)
“Be strong and courageous!” (Joshua 1:6a, NIV)
b)
In fact, Joshua gets told that statement 4 times just in
the first chapter!
2.
Gee John, that’s neat.
What does any of this have to do with 2nd Timothy Chapter 2?
a)
Boy, am I glad you asked that question! J
b)
Timothy was in “the same boat” as Joshua.
c)
Timothy knew that his mentor, his hero, his spiritual
father was about to die.
d)
It was now Timothy’s time to be the leader.
e)
That is a scary thing.
i)
There is a realization in everyone’s life when it is your
turn.
a)
Sometimes it comes when your parents pass away.
b)
Sometimes it comes when you first live out on your own.
c)
Sometimes it comes when there is a major decision to be
made in your life and you realize there is no trusted friend to turn to for
advice. You must rely upon God-given
wisdom to make that decision.
f)
Chapter 2 is a great Chapter to read when those
fears-of-life come at you.
i)
It is a great chapter to study when you need the courage
to step forward in faith.
ii)
Timothy was reading about his mentor’s impending death.
a)
Timothy was facing false teachers in his church.
b)
Timothy in Ephesus was surrounded by an immoral and
corrupt world.
c)
Any of this sound familiar? J
g)
Paul was aware of Timothy’s fears. It is hinted at in both letters. Both of these letters have lots of commands
and recommendations for Timothy.
i)
An interesting word-study to do with Chapter 2 is just
to read all the verbs.
a)
It reads like a general giving orders, like a coach
before a big game, or fill in your favorite analogy. Here are some examples:
b)
Verse 1 says, “be strong”, Verse 14 says, “remind them”,
Verse 15 says, “be diligent”, Verse 22 says, “flee youthful lusts”.
ii)
The point is to notice the “command-style” of all these
verbs that are used.
h)
The opening words of this chapter are to be strong
in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
i)
We’ll discuss the implications of that in a second.
ii)
The big-picture idea to see is that through God
we can overcome:
a)
Our fears of being intimidated.
b)
Our fears of not-being-liked for the decisions we have
to make.
c)
Our fears of not knowing what to do when our mentors are
gone.
d)
Our fears that our situations around us are too
overwhelming for us.
3.
With that introduction, it’s a perfect time to
transition to Verse 1: You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in
Christ Jesus.
a)
If
I had to pick a verse to memorize from this chapter, it would be this one.
i)
Hey,
it’s a short one. It should be
easy. J
ii)
I have to admit I spent more time thinking about this
verse this week, than any other in the chapter.
iii)
The implications of this verse are staggering.
b)
Let me start by teaching what Paul does not say:
i)
He does not say, “Be strong in your self-discipline
ability to pray regularly”.
ii)
He does not say, “Be strong in your daily Bible reading
habits”.
iii)
He does not say, “Be strong in your service to other
Christians.
c)
Paul says to be strong in the grace that is in Christ
Jesus.
i)
There are wonderful books available on the topic of
God’s grace.
a)
It is difficult, if not impossible to summarize this
idea in a few sentences.
b)
That of course, won’t stop me from trying. J
ii)
Let me simply pass on what God has taught me this week
on this topic.
d)
Let’s start with what we are as human beings: “Dust”.
I prefer the synonym, “dirt”.
i)
God told Adam after the “fruit-incident” with Eve:
a)
” For dust you are and to dust you will return.”
(Genesis 3:19b, NIV).
ii)
Basically, we are dirt.
a)
The same elements that make up dirt make up a human
being.
b)
God created us out of the dust of the ground.
c)
Our bodies eventually decay, and become dust, or dirt
once again.
iii)
When Adam & Eve sinned, God have could have wiped
them out completely, and us along with them.
iv)
It is by God’s unmerited love, that we exist and we can
be forgiven of our sins.
v)
God is love in its perfect form, that he gives us life,
and life abundantly.
a)
God wants to bless our life.
b)
We can’t get more blessings by how many good deeds we
do.
c)
That would be glorifying ourselves and not God.
d)
God wants to bless our life because that is
what God wants to do.
(1)
That blessing begins with accepting Jesus as
payment for our sins so God can bless our lives.
e)
A big part of the Christian maturity is to regularly
examine in what way do they trust their own ability and self-discipline
versus trusting in God’s grace to us?
(1)
God does not work on a “tit-for-tat” basis.
(2)
We don’t get more blessings because we prayed harder
today.
(a)
One has to be careful with that last statement. Additional prayer, service for God etc., has
blessings for our lives. The danger is
to depend upon that blessing and say, “OK, God, you owe me because I did
this or that.”
e)
Which leads us back to Verse 1: “Be strong in the grace that is in
Christ Jesus”, period.
i)
In terms of our “Christian walk”, which is our daily
dependence upon God,
I believe the two most important statements made in the Bible are:
a)
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; (Psalm
110:10a, NIV)
b)
“Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus”
(2nd Timothy 1, NIV)
ii)
That combination, to a Christian, keeps our focus on the
eternal perspective.
iii)
Most Christians who have been around for a while can
tell of at least one devout mature Christian who has “fallen” or a major pastor
who has resigned in disgrace.
a)
I have found the root-cause of those incidents come from
either failing to continually trust in God’s grace or lacking a
“healthy” fear of God.
b)
God holds us accountable for our actions. We are his witnesses. A fear of God is not the fear of being
“zapped”, but the fear that we will fail to be his witnesses before Him.
c)
I have seen people who do all the things Christians are
supposed to do and still being given over to some great sin. What is the reason? They are trusting in “those” things they are
supposed to do and not God’s grace.
f)
Getting back to Timothy, I believe that is what Paul is
trying to communicate here.
i)
Paul is urging Timothy that his strength as a pastor, as
a leader, as a God-fearing Christian must continually stem from God’s
grace and nothing else.
a)
All the habits one develops as a Christian must
stem from God’s grace and not our self-disciplined ability.
b)
This is how we can overcome our fears and have
boldness for Christ.
c)
This is how we can stand up to do whatever God has
called us to do.
d)
Personally, I know of no other thrill in life greater
than to be used by God.
e)
That thrill comes when we make ourselves available
to God for service.
f)
But we must remember, it starts with God’s grace.
g)
His unmerited favor of love to us, His free gifts he
gives us as believers that is the root of all we can do for him.
ii)
Let me sum all of this up with another quote from Paul:
(2nd Corinthians 12:9, NIV)
a)
“But he (God) said to me, “My grace is sufficient for
you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the
more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
4.
Believe it or not, we made it to Verse 2 J: And the
things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to
reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.
a)
Timothy was a traveling companion of Paul on his
missionary journeys.
b)
Timothy heard Paul speak to other pastors and elders
many times as well as himself.
c)
Paul is saying to Timothy, “Hey don’t just rely on what
I’m saying in this letter, it is about all the things I have taught you
over the years. It is about all the
things you have heard me say as a teacher.”
d)
The Word of God is meant to be past on from generation
to generation. The Gospel message is
never meant to be exclusive property to any one person or teacher.
e)
Paul is teaching, “pass it on Timothy, because my time
is almost up. It is time for you, as
well as other Godly men I have trained, to lead the next generation.”
i)
Part of our responsibility as Christians is to raise up
the next generation.
f)
One of the amazing things to think about is how
Christianity has survived for centuries.
i)
It has survived through violent oppression, through
emperors, through good and bad kings, through good and bad Christian leaders,
through wars, through prosperity, depressions, through the most immoral of
conditions, etc.
a)
You name it, Christianity has survived through it.
b)
Yet despite two thousand years of history, the
Word of God has survived.
c)
A great thank-you goes to the Godly “Paul’s and
Timothy’s” through the centuries who have paved the way with their own blood so
that the Word of God may continue to another generation.
5.
Verse 3: Endure hardship with us like
a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets involved in
civilian affairs--he wants to please his commanding officer.
a)
Paul
will now go on to give 3 examples of how to be strong witness for Jesus.
i)
All three examples are occupations that were common
during that time era.
a)
The
first example is that of a soldier.
b)
The
second is an athlete.
c)
The
third is a farmer.
b)
Paul
says in Verses 3 and 4 that being a Christian can be compared to the life of a
soldier.
i)
Let’s
face it; life in any army in anytime in history is not a life of
luxury.
ii)
One
does not join the army for the financial benefits.
iii)
One
joins an army out of a sense of duty.
There is a “calling” to defend and support one’s country.
c)
That
is the idea Paul is preaching here.
Paul is asking Timothy to deal with hardship because that is the
price to be paid to be a Christian.
d)
Whether
or not you like it, you are a “soldier” in warfare.
i)
If
you are being a good witness for Jesus, there are spiritual forces
opposing you.
ii)
“For
our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against
the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the
spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:9 NIV).
iii)
Timothy
struggling with forces outside the church (immoral world, those trying to kill
Christians) and those within the church (false teachers).
iv)
Did
you ever stop and think that there are evil forces behind those attacks?
v)
To
use one of my favorite quotes, “If you don’t think Satan is real, try opposing
him for awhile”.
e)
Let’s
get back to these verses. What is the
motivation for dealing with all this hardship?
i)
Paul
says in Verse 3 it is “to please his commanding officer.”
a)
If
you have turned your life over to Jesus, He is your commanding officer!
b)
I
stated earlier I know of no greater purpose in life than to be used by God.
c)
One
must think of God as our commanding officer.
(1)
Remember
we pray to God the Father.
(2)
We
pray through Jesus, who paid the price for us.
(3)
The
Holy Spirit guides us in our lives in service for God the Father.
d)
We
serve God out of gratitude for our salvation.
e)
We
serve God by His grace that He has given us for the ability of service.
6.
Verse
5: Similarly, if anyone competes as an
athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to
the rules.
a)
Notice
the first word “similarly”. Paul is
using more than one occupational example as models (i.e., “similarly”) for us
as to how to live the Christian life.
b)
The
next example Paul gives is one of an athlete.
c)
Paul
focuses on the rules of competition.
d)
To
paraphrase Paul, “there are no short-cuts in being a Christian”.
i)
Let’s
face it. Being a good Christian is hard
work. It can be dull at times.
It requires the discipline of an athlete.
ii)
A
great athlete is one who is obsessed during times of practice prior to
the actual sporting event. Usually,
nobody is cheering on the athlete during practice.
iii)
Being
used of God often requires a lot of unappreciated and unnoticed hard work. Other than God himself, our service to God
often goes unnoticed.
iv)
Paul
focuses on the “rules”. So what “rules”
are there for being a Christian?
a)
I
don’t have a one-sentence answer for you here.
It is essentially all the lessons one can learn through a lifetime of
being a Christian.
b)
The
rules are what God commands you do in obedience to Him.
c)
If
you don’t know, ask God. You may be
surprised by the answer! J
d)
I
believe one of the greatest prayers one can pray is “How can I be of service to
you? What would you like me to
specifically pray for today? Who would
you like me to help today?
(1)
I
believe God delights in answering that prayer.
(2)
Our
job is to give glory to God.
(3)
The
athlete-reference used here, focuses on the “rules” that God commands and
teaches us through his Word.
7.
Verse 6: The hardworking farmer
should be the first to receive a share of the crops.
a)
The final example of how a Christian is to live is that
of a farmer.
b)
The emphasis here is that the farmer is the first
to receive the crops he gets.
i)
Does that mean the farmer gets the best of the produce
he plants? Probably.
c)
I believe the idea here is that the suffering we go
through as a Christian is worth it.
d)
The eternal rewards we receive for the endurance and
patience needed to be Christian far outweighs whatever suffering we must go
through.
e)
The rewards here and now are often beneficial.
i)
For example, for me as a teacher, I probably get far
more out of these lessons than those of you who read them.
ii)
The best way to learn the Bible is to teach it. That is a big part of my motivation for
these studies. God has blessed my life
and matured me in so many ways due to these studies. That is how I receive “the first share of crops”.
iii)
For others it may be seeing the joy on people’s faces as
they work in service for others. For
others it may be through some artistic gift or as a musician. For others, it may be raising Godly children
and seeing them grow in the Lord.
iv)
Others benefit from the gifts God has given us, but we
also can take joy in our service to God, whatever it may be.
v)
For some, especially those who were called to be martyrs
for the faith, they may not see the benefit until they get to heaven.
8.
Verse 7: Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give
you insight into all this.
a)
Hopefully,
that is what I have been doing for the last 4-5 pages. J
b)
Even
with all I have said, there is still far more that God can give you
insight on these verses and occupational examples.
c)
God
calls on us to meditate on the Bible.
That simply means to think about it.
i)
That
is what Paul is calling Timothy to do with these ideas, to think about them.
ii)
Hey,
I got four pages out of them. Imagine
what God can do for you! J
9.
Verse
8: Remember Jesus Christ, raised from
the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,
a)
Paul says this is my gospel. This is our gospel too, not just
Paul’s.
b)
Paul emphasizes two things:
i)
1) Jesus was raised from the dead.
a)
The idea is that we serve a living God, not one
who is dead.
b)
God the Father raised Jesus from the dead as validation
that his sacrifice was sufficient as payment for our sins.
c)
The emphasis is on the God-aspect of Jesus.
ii)
2) A descendant of David.
a)
King David was promised that a descendant of his would
rule forever.
(See 2nd Samuel 7:12-14).
b)
The emphasis is on the humanity-aspect of Jesus.
iii)
Only an entity that is 100% God and 100% man can relate
to our suffering as well as be a perfect sacrifice of sins on our
behalf. A perfect sacrifice must
be perfect.
It must be God himself to perfectly pay for our sins.
10.
End of Verse 8 and Verse 9: 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.
a)
Visualize
Paul in a dark jail cell. Maybe he was
alone, or maybe full of prisoners.
b)
I
suspect by this date in history, Paul may have been notorious as a Christian
leader.
c)
He
was probably chained to the walls or other Roman guards.
d)
His
only privilege was the ability to dictate a letter to Timothy.
e)
His
horrible crime for this punishment?
Preaching the gospel.
f)
I
love how Paul compares his chains to the lack of chains of the Gospel
message.
g)
I
can give you lots of historical examples of how the Gospel has survived
history.
i)
Among
my favorites is that of 20th Century (communist) Russia and China.
ii)
During
the era of communism, they did their utmost to stamp out Christianity.
a)
The
gospel message was banned. Atheism was
taught in schools.
b)
Despite
generations of communism, the gospel stands in both places today.
c)
After
the fall of communism, the message of Jesus still rings out.
d)
There
was even an evangelistic movement in the 1990’s through Russia and China that
is spreading today.
e)
You
can’t kill the gospel. People have
tried for 2,000 years. The more the
persecution has existed, the more it has flourished.
h)
I
love this quote about Jesus: "I
know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between Him and every
other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander,
Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the
creation of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded His empire upon love;
and at this hour millions of men would die for Him."—Napoleon
i)
I end with another famous quote, “"Scripture is
like a lion. Who ever heard of defending a lion? Just turn it loose; it will
defend itself." Charles Spurgeon
11.
Verse 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.
a)
When
Paul says, “the elect” this is referring to those who will be saved.
b)
There
is a classical debate among Christians that has to do with our free will in
choosing to accept Jesus for our salvation versus being “pre-destined” by God
for salvation, because God knows all things and God cannot learn.
i)
In
this verse, God’s “pre-determined knowledge” of who is and who isn’t going to
be saved is being emphasized in the statement “the elect”.
ii)
Yet
in the next verse, it says, “If we died with him (Jesus), we’ll also live with
him.
a)
That
verse teaches that we are involved in the decision.
iii)
People
spend lifetimes debating this issue. I
believe the Bible teaches both, and it is difficult, if not impossible to
reconcile. That doesn’t mean one is to
ignore the issue, but just to see with a sense of “balance” between two extreme
viewpoints.
c)
Back
to the verse: Paul says he “endures
everything” for the sake of those who are saved. That should be the attitude of all Christians.
i)
There
are times in life where we have to give up our rights or give up our desires
strictly for the purpose of helping others see the eternal benefits of turning
over their lives to Christ.
Christianity was never designed to be an exclusive club. God the Father wants all to repent
and turn to him through Jesus (See 1st Tim. 2:4)
d)
Paul
teaches the same concept in his 1st Letter to the Corinthians:
i)
Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a
slave to everyone, to win as many as possible...To the weak I became weak, to
win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means
I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share
in its blessings. (1st Cor.
9:18, 22 NIV)
12.
Verse 11: Here is a trustworthy
saying: If we died with him, we will
also live with him;
a)
Verses
11, 12 and 13 are in a poetic rhythm format, which leads most commentators to
believe that this was either an early hymn or some sort of early apostle’s
creed.
b)
The
first of these 3 stanza’s are: If we
died with him, we will also live with him;
i)
Notice
the “died” is past tense. It is
not about our future body-death.
ii)
When
you accept Jesus into your heart, you are asking him to “take over”.
It is the 100% death of your will vs. what God wants for your life.
a)
Jesus said, ““If anyone would come after me, he must
deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to
save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the
gospel will save it. (Mark 8:34b-35, NIV).
(1)
“Taking up your cross” meant death and death now.
(2)
Think about the combination of “taking up your cross” and
following Jesus. That is the idea of
“spiritual” death of our will.
iii)
The
maturity process for a Christian is to constantly grow and discover God’s will
for your life and moment by moment, turn over your desires for His desires.
13.
Verse
12: If we endure, we will also reign
with him.
a)
I
take the view that as long as you believe in Jesus you cannot lose your
salvation.
i)
Other
Christians, disagree, but they have every right to be wrong. J
b)
If
one believes in Jesus, and then changes their life where they
continually and habitually deny Jesus as God, I do believe you can lose your
salvation.
c)
With
that disclaimer said, the Bible clearly teaches there are rewards
in heaven.
i)
Paul
himself teaches and emphasizes this in both 1st and 2nd
Timothy.
d)
First
and foremost, this verse refers to our eternal salvation.
i)
Remember
that during this time, believers were tortured and killed.
ii)
Paul
is reminding Timothy to publicly declare his belief in Jesus, even at the point
of death. The reward for this is
to reign with Jesus.
e)
It
then leads to the question, “if everyone is in heaven, who are we reigning
“over”?
i)
This
verse supports the idea of a literal 1,000-year millennium where Christ
rules over the earth from the earth. That is what Revelation Chapter 20 teaches.
ii)
Roman
Catholics and some Protestants do not believe in a literal reign of Jesus from
earth. That view is, “Jesus comes back,
we all go to heaven, end of story.
a)
The
problem with that view is the question of us “reigning”.
b)
During
this 1,000-year period, many people will survive the just-ended
7-year tribulation. Those that survive
will repopulate the earth.
We rule with Jesus during that time period.
14.
Verse 13, Part 1: If we disown him, he will also disown us;
a)
I
stated early that if you accept Jesus, and then truly and habitually deny
Jesus as God for the rest of your life, you are not saved.
i)
That
concept is not talking about living the Christian life, having a bad day
and denying Jesus.
ii)
This
is about permanently changing your view.
b)
The
issue here is not “how much you sinned”.
I believe one can sin a lot, still accept Jesus, and go to heaven. You’re rewards in heaven might be minimal,
but you are still saved. Maybe you’ll
be sweeping up for eternity. J (Yes, that’s a joke.)
15.
Remainder of Verse 13:
if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown
himself.
a)
To paraphrase, if we deny Jesus, He won’t go away.
b)
God remains faithful in his promise of eternal damnation
just as He remains faithful in his promise of eternal salvation. That is the idea behind this verse.
16.
Verse 14: Keep reminding them of these things.
a)
What
things? The things Paul has been
talking about in this chapter and this letter.
b)
Our
problem is we have a short memory.
c)
The
problem of Timothy’s church is that they were facing a very-visible Roman army
telling them to deny Jesus declare Caesar as God.
i)
Its
hard for us imagine this lifestyle living in a country that allows
Christianity.
d)
We
have to remind ourselves of this to keep our focus on God and not our problems.
17.
Verse
14 (cont.): Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no
value, and only ruins those who listen.
a)
One
of the great mistakes in Christianity is: “major in the minors& minor in
the majors”.
i)
This
refers to having an all-out-verbal brawl over some Christian debate issue.
ii)
Don’t
get me wrong. There are essential
issues that are non-negotiable. Those
are the one’s you usually find a basic version of “The Apostle’s Creed”. Those are the ideas of Jesus as God; the
only way to salvation is through Jesus, the Trinity, etc.
iii)
To
me, there is the Gospel message and there is debate.
a)
Discussing
all the other issues are fine. Try to
present all the biblical views, and let people come to their own conclusion.
b)
I
have my opinions and you are entitled to your lousy opinions. J
c)
The
point is they should not be church-splitting issues.
iv)
Remember
that God cares about us being His witnesses.
v)
Imagine
what “others” are saying, “Did you hear so-and-so lead 100 people out of that
church down the street? What for? I don’t know. Gee, why would anybody want to join a church where they’re
arguing with each other all the time?
b)
The key word to me is “quarrelsome”.
i)
The
goal of the pastor here is to keep a public lid on such debates.
ii)
Discussions
of such issues in small groups are fine.
It is never meant for a Sunday service. The idea is to not get involved in “quarrelling about words”.
18.
Verse 15: Do
your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not
need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
a)
When we are in service for God, who is our
“audience”? The answer is God himself!
i)
Sometimes when I go to church I like to envision Jesus
sitting in the front-middle of the stage.
That is who our worship is directed toward.
b)
Because we are working and living as ambassadors for God
and because He is the one we are trying to please. Paul is admonishing Timothy
to diligently prepare in his task.
i)
This verse is urging us to be hard-workers for Jesus.
ii)
It goes back to the earlier analogies of the athlete,
training hard for competition.
a)
It also involves the patience of a hard-working farmer
and the determination and hard work of a good soldier.
c)
The next phrase is key.
Paul says, “Correctly handles the word of truth.”
i)
If you are called to be a Bible teacher, it requires a
lot of diligent preparation.
a)
Not to impress the reader, but because we are working for
God.
b)
He is our boss, and we are His witnesses.
ii)
The same concept can apply in however you are involved
in the Christian ministry. I should add
that all who are saved are asked and should be in the ministry in some
shape or form. The ministry includes
raising Godly children, and it includes being a good witness in the
workplace. It means getting involved in
whatever ministry God calls you to do.
19.
Verse 16: Avoid godless chatter,
because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. 17 Their teaching will spread
like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have wandered away from
the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they
destroy the faith of some.
a)
Paul
is calling Timothy to avoid discussions of anything that is not
glorifying to God.
i)
The
emphasis, as shown by example, is on religious philosophy that is not Biblical.
ii)
I
don’t believe Paul is arguing against discussing a sporting event or a
movie. The key is always where one’s
heart is. If you have a heart
for God, your interest in other things becomes limited.
a)
I
always liked the expression, “Love God with all your heart and do whatever you
want!”
b)
Paul
is talking about avoiding teachers with false ideas.
i)
As
examples, he names these two people: Hymenaeus and Philetus.
a)
Hymenaeus
was named in Paul’s first letter as being a troublemaker.
b)
Now
he’s back in the 2nd letter with a new partner in crime. J
c)
What Hymenaeus was trying to spread was the philosophical “new-age” concept
of everything human is bad, everything spiritual is good.
d)
The
false idea of “the resurrection has already taken place” is to 100% deny the
flesh-desires and “be resurrected”. The
fault is that denies the literal resurrection when one dies and
emphasizes one’s present lifestyle.
e)
Like
all false-ideas there is a “grain-of-truth” and it has appeal to make you a
better person. The problem, as always,
is that it leads you away from the teaching of the Bible into false ideas.
ii)
Notice
the results of these guys in Verse 19: “they destroy the faith of some”.
a)
Picture
people saying, “maybe Hymenaeus is right.
It sounds so logical. All my
fleshly desires are bad anyway. Maybe
he’s right. Maybe there is no physical
resurrection and it is about how I life my life.”
(1)
You
can see the mixture of “truth” and “lies”, in false teaching.
20.
Verse 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."
a)
The key phrase to me is “The Lord knows those who are
His”.
i)
Remember I talked a few pages back about those who once
proclaimed Jesus and then habitually turned their back on their faith? I suspect Hymenaeus and his followers fall into his
category.
ii)
There
are times, when a pastor has to focus on those who stay the course and
let those “go” who are false teachers.
If the Hymenaeus’s of the world lead people astray, let them go. A pastor must protect the flock of
believers.
b)
God
calls us to witness to those who don’t believe, and help mature those who do.
i)
To
those who fall away, we can’t become obsessed with them at the price of
ignoring those who have not fallen away. Let me explain this further:
a)
We
can still pray for people like this to turn back to God. We should pray for their influence to be
minimal.
b)
Our primary focus is on the believers and those
who will be believers.
c)
Given that, we have this double focus of believers and
non-believers in Verses 16-19:
i)
1) To get away from the false teachers and those who
desire to lead others away.
ii)
2) To personally “turn away from wickedness” to keep our
focus on Christ.
iii)
That is the idea behind these verses. We are to focus on what God calls us to
do. I stated earlier the Bible does a
very good job of defending itself. All
we have to do is correctly teach it. That
is a better rebuke against false teaching than trying to debate them and their
ideas.
21.
Verse 20: In a large house there are
articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for
noble purposes and some for ignoble.
a)
The word “articles” can be translated “vessels”, as in a
household item used in service for display or use. They include vases, pots, pans, trashcans, etc.
i)
In
most homes I have been in, there is a trashcan under the sink. It is hidden from the public eye.
ii)
There
are also beautiful vases we use for displaying flowers.
iii)
In
Christianity, you can choose to be a beautiful vase, or a trash can. J
iv)
I
know this sounds like a silly analogy, but that it what Paul is teaching here.
b)
In
context of the surrounding verses, Paul is talking about the Christian
life. We want to be of service
to God. No matter how large or small
that service, you are a “gold and silver” vessel in God’s eye if what
you are doing is glorifying God. Those
who turn their lives over to Christ, but don’t do much with their
salvation, are like kitchen trashcans. J
22.
End of Verse 20: some are for noble purposes and some
for ignoble. 21 If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he
will be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and
prepared to do any good work.
a)
I included the end of Verse 20 with Verse 21 as they go
together.
i)
Notice Verse 21 opens with “If a man cleanses himself
from the latter”.
ii)
The “latter” refer to those “vessels” that are for ignoble
purposes.
a)
Yes, the trash cans under the sink! J
b)
So what does the “noble” and “ignoble” refer
to? Let’s read the rest of Verse 21 for
a clue: “he will be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the
Master and prepared to do any good work.
i)
This is not a salvation issue. This is about being used by God for His glory.
a)
If one wants to be used by God, one has to be made available
to God.
b)
Making daily time for prayer and study of God’s word is
making oneself available to God. God
can’t teach you what he expects of you if you don’t make yourself available to
Him!
c)
The other aspect is actually obeying what God
asks you to do.
d)
This chapter is full of lessons that require
obedience.
(1)
The discipline of a soldier, an athlete and a hard
working farmer are all used as examples.
(2)
The balance is not to rely upon your self-disciplined
ability, but to remember that God is providing you with that ability.
23.
Verse 22: 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.
a)
The verse starts with the phrase, “flee the evil desires
of youth”.
i)
Since it is not explained, it leaves us free to
speculate.
ii)
When I think of youthful desires, I think of “instant
gratification”. Doing things that make you feel good, and feel good now. One can fill in their own “seven deadly sin”
list here and think about their own youth.
iii)
This is not about ignoring one’s needs, but about having
the discipline and insight to realize there is more to life than instant
gratification. It gets back to the
eternal perspective of wanting to please God vs. pleasing oneself.
b)
Let’s review what Paul says we should pursue
instead: “(1) righteousness, (2) faith,
(3) love and (4) peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure
heart.”
i)
The Greek word for “pursue” implies continually
pursue, as to do it regularly.
ii)
“Righteousness” simply means right-standing-before God.
a)
We obtain righteousness only through are trust in Jesus
as a sin payment.
b)
We grow in our maturity to Christ by to regularly
confessing our sins.
(1)
Jesus didn’t just die for your sins prior to being born
again, he died for all your sins, past, present and future.
iii)
“Faith” in this context is a reminder of our purpose in
life and what we believe.
iv)
“Love” is the idea of giving of oneself for other’s
needs over one’s own.
v)
“Peace” is that sense of inner peace. It is the opposite of strife. I believe if you actively pursue the “first
3” on this list, the peace will naturally come.
vi)
The last phrase of this verse emphasizes that
Christianity is teamwork. It says
to do these things along with others who have the same calling.
a)
I believe this verse implies a sense of accountability
to one another.
24.
Verse 23: Don't have anything to do with foolish and
stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.
a)
The last four verses of this chapter focus on the topic
of avoiding arguments.
b)
Have you ever noticed that a week or two after an
argument with your spouse or roommate, you remember the emotion, but you forget
what you fought about?
i)
In the heat of the moment, you say things you regret
later?
ii)
This is the idea Paul is trying to get across here.
c)
Most adults can name at least one person who loves
to argue and debate.
i)
I think it disappoints that type of person when you
agree with them.
ii)
Maturity is the ability to stand back from an argument
and say, “is this argument beneficial?
Can you say, “are we working on resolution, or do we just want our
opinion to be heard?
a)
It reminds me of the classical saying , “some people
have something to say, and some people just need to say something.” J
d)
Paul is emphasizing to avoid those types of
arguments.
i)
The primary purpose is our witness as a Christian
to outsiders.
25.
Verse 24: And the Lord's servant must not quarrel;
instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.
a)
This verse continues the same idea. It adds the charge to: 1) be kind to
everyone 2) able to teach and 3) not resentful.
b)
Let’s start with the phrase, “be kind to everyone”.
i)
Are there people in the church who are tough to get
along with? Of course.
ii)
Are there stressful situations and sleep-deprived
situations where things can get out of hand fast? Of course.
iii)
Given our own strength, I don’t believe its possible to
live out this command. Think how
difficult the concept of, “be kind to everyone” is on a practical basis.
iv)
To be able to be “kind to everyone” again requires the
eternal perspective of being a good witness for Christ as being more
important than being right.
a)
Our ego wants to be “right” on every issue. Our ego wants to be heard.
b)
Paul is trying to teach to be above it. This is about being a good witness.
c)
The next phrase is “able to teach”.
i)
I don’t think it is so much about actual classroom
teaching or pulpit teaching so much as it is about teaching-by-example.
ii)
The few people I know who truly live out this verse are
some of my mentors as Christians. Those
people who prioritize the showing forth the love-of-God over being passionate
about their position teach by example far greater than anything they actually
say.
d)
The last is the phrase is “not resentful”.
i)
Our ego want to end the argument, but still hold it
against them. This clause is simply
teaching the opposite. Again, the
emphasis is our witness to the world as Christians over our rights or
our opinion.
26.
Verse 25: Those who oppose him he must gently instruct,
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.
a)
The last two verses are one sentence, so we’ll take them
on together.
b)
I believe the emphasis here is on false teachers. Reading this in context of the last set of
verses, Paul was mainly concerned about false teachers coming into the
church.
c)
Paul is saying to not get into an in-your-face rebuke of
them. The idea is to gently
instruct them in the truth of God’s word.
How you say it is more important that what you say.
i)
One of my favorite proverbs is: “A gentle answer turns
away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” (Proverbs 15:1 NIV)
a)
The key word is gentle. Other translations say “soft spoken”.
b)
I’ve always been amazed in arguments or debates that
when I give a very soft, gentle answer, the other person is more likely to
listen.
c)
Part of the reason is that in order to hear the answer,
one has to strain.
d)
The other is your attitude. When we yell or get aggressive, people naturally get
defensive. To respond softly and humbly
often gets one to listen and think about our response. That is Paul’s idea as
well.
d)
The last part of this sentence can be paraphrased as,
“If you gently rebuke these people, maybe this person will come to their
senses and realize that they are doing Satan’s will and not God’s will.
i)
We tend to think of Satan’s will as committing some
horrible evil or crime.
ii)
Often “Satan’s will” is simply to satisfy our own
desires versus God’s.
a)
It can include some aspect of your life that is not
God’s will for you.
b)
It can include some sort of false teaching that is
turning you away from God. It can
include some part of your life that is preventing you from wanting to go to
church or be around Christians.
c)
I should add that one of Satan’s best weapons is guilt.
One you realize what you’ve done is wrong he’ll say, “well, well, look at
you. You call yourself a Christian,
after what you’ve done. God will never
love you now. You’re no good. You might as well not go back to church this
Sunday.” It is the idea of keeping you away
from confessing and turning from your sin out of a sense of guilt.
iii)
I believe a mistake we make as Christians, to use a baseball
analogy is,
“we try to hit a home run when a single will do”.
a)
To often we feel we haven’t accomplished our job unless
we have 100% convinced that person to change their ways right there on the
spot.
b)
What Paul is teaching is simply “give them something to
think about”. That is what I mean by
“hitting a single vs. a home run”.
Don’t try to get them to change there on the spot, but gently teach
something of God’s truth and let them think about it. Pray for them afterward. Let God work on their conscious vs. you work
on them. That way, God gets the credit
and not you! That’s the idea in the
first place.
27.
On that positive note, it’s a good time to wrap up this
chapter.
28.
Let’s pray: Father, we thank you for these practical
lessons on faith and obedience. Too
often, we desire our own will or what we think is your will for your life. Help us to continually “let go and let
God”. Father, continue to teach us what
is your will for our life. Give us the
grace and strength to make ourselves available to do your life. Finally, help us to be good witness for
you. We like Paul need to live as
witnesses to those who will also be called into salvation, as well as to help
mature others who are already called. For we ask this in Jesus name, Amen.
Bonus Material – Below is the class handouts. It is a “summary” version of this lesson.
Notes for 2nd Timothy – Chapter 2 (Page 1 of 6)
i.
Joshua
was given the task of being the next leader after Moses.
ii.
Would
you find that intimidating, having to follow in Moses’ footsteps?
iii.
So
what were the first words of encouragement God gave Joshua?
1.
“Be
strong and courageous!” (Joshua 1:6a, NIV)
2.
God
told Joshua four times to have strength and courage in Joshua, Chapter
1!
i.
Timothy
knew that his mentor, his hero, his spiritual father was about to die.
ii.
It
was now Timothy’s time to be the leader.
i.
It
is a great chapter to study when you need the courage to step forward in faith.
2nd Timothy,
Chapter 2, Verse 1: “You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.”
i.
We
don’t get more blessings because we prayed harder today.
ii.
Prayer/service
for God etc. has blessings on our lives.
The danger is to depend upon that blessing and say, “OK, God, you owe me
because I did this or that.”
i.
This verse reminds us that our life is God-centered, not
ourselves-centered.
i.
This
reminds us that everything we do depends upon God & not our
willpower.
i.
I
have found the root-cause of those incidents come from either failing to
continually trust in God’s grace or lacking a “healthy” fear of God.
Notes for 2nd Timothy -
Chapter 2 (Page 2 of 6)
Verse 1 (cont.)
i.
That
thrill comes when we make ourselves available to God for service.
ii.
It
starts with God’s grace. His unmerited favor of love to us, His free gifts he
gives us as believers that is the root of all we can do for him.
Verse 2: “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses
entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”
Verses 3-4: “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4
No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs--he wants to
please his commanding officer.”
a)
They are 1) a soldier, 2) an athlete and 3) a farmer.
a)
One does not join the army for the financial benefits.
b)
One
joins an army out of a sense of duty.
c)
There
is a “calling” to defend and support one’s country.
d)
Paul
is asking Timothy to face hardship because that is the price a Christian must
pay.
a)
“For
our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against
the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the
spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:9 NIV).
b)
Timothy
struggling with forces outside the church (immoral world, those trying to kill
Christians) and those within the church (false teachers).
c)
Did
you ever stop and think that there are evil forces behind those attacks?
d)
“If
you don’t think Satan is real, try opposing him for awhile”.
a)
Paul says in Verse 3 it is, “To please his commanding
officer.”
b)
If
you have turned your life over to Jesus, He is your commanding officer!
1.
We
serve God out of gratitude for our salvation.
2.
We
serve God by His grace that He has given us for the ability of service.
Verse 5: “Similarly, if anyone competes
as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes
according to the rules.”
Notes for 2nd Timothy -
Chapter 2 (Page 3 of 6)
Verse 5(cont):
Verse 6: “The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the
crops.”
Verse 7: “Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all
this.”
Verse 8: “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David.
This is my gospel,”
a)
The emphasis is on the God-aspect of
who-is-Jesus.
b)
The emphasis is on the humanity-aspect of
who-is-Jesus.
Verse 8b-9: “This is my gospel, 9for
which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But
God's word is not chained.
a.
His only privilege was the ability to dictate a letter
to Timothy.
b.
Notice
how Paul compares his chains to the lack of chains of the Gospel message.
a.
"I
know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between Him and every
other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander
(The Great), Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did
we rest the creation of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded His empire
upon love; and at this hour millions of men would die for Him."—Napoleon
b.
“"Scripture
is like a lion. Who ever heard of defending a lion? Just turn it loose; it will
defend itself." Charles Spurgeon
Notes for 2nd Timothy -
Chapter 2 (Page 4 of 6)
Verse 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.”
a.
In this verse, God’s “pre-determined knowledge” of who
is and who isn’t going to be saved is being emphasized in the statement “the
elect”.
a.
That verse implies that we are involved in the decision
to accept Jesus.
a.
Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a
slave to everyone, to win as many as possible...To the weak I became weak, to
win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means
I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share
in its blessings. (1st Corinthians
9:18, 22 NIV)
Verse
11: “Here is a
trustworthy saying: If we died with
him, we will also live with him;”
1.
Verses
11, 12 and 13 are in a poetic rhythm format, which leads most commentators to
believe that this was either an early hymn or some sort of early apostle’s
creed.
2.
Notice
the word “died” is past tense. It is
not about our future body-death.
a.
When
you accept Jesus into your heart, you are asking him to “take over”.
b.
It
is the 100% death of your will vs. what God wants for your life.
c.
Jesus
said, ““If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his
cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but
whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. (Mark 8:34b-35,
NIV).
d.
Think
about the combination of “taking up your cross” and following
Jesus.
That is the idea of “spiritual” death of our will.
Verse
12: “If we
endure, we will also reign with him.”
1.
First
and foremost, this verse refers to our eternal salvation.
a.
Paul
is reminding Timothy to publicly declare his belief in Jesus, even at the point
of death. The reward for this is to
reign with Jesus.
2.
This
verse leads to the question, “If everyone is in heaven, who are we reigning
“over”?
a.
This
verse supports the idea of a literal 1,000-year millennium where Christ rules
over the earth from the earth. That is
what Revelation Chapter 20 teaches.
b.
Some
major Christian denominations (Roman Catholics, et.al.) disagree with this
view.
Verse
13, Part 1: “If we disown him, he will also disown us;”
1.
If
one accepts Jesus, and then truly and habitually denies Jesus as God for the
rest of your life, you are not saved.
This is about permanently changing your view.
Verse
13, Part 2: “If we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown
himself.”
1.
To
paraphrase, if we deny Jesus, He won’t go away.
2.
God
remains faithful in his promise of eternal damnation just as He remains
faithful in his promise of eternal salvation.
That is the idea behind this verse.
Notes for 2nd Timothy -
Chapter 2 (Page 5 of 6)
Verse
14a: “Keep
reminding them of these things.
1.
The
problem of Timothy’s church is that they were facing a very-visible Roman army
telling them to deny Jesus declare Caesar as God.
2.
We
have to remind ourselves of biblical principals to keep our focus on God &
not our problems.
Verse 14b: “Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value,
and only ruins those who listen.””
Verse
15: “Do your
best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to
be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”
Verses
16-17: “Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in
it will become more and more ungodly. 17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among
them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have wandered away from the truth. They say
that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of
some.”
Verse
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."”
Verse
20a: “In a large house there are articles not only of gold
and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for noble purposes and some for
ignoble.”
Notes for 2nd Timothy - Chapter 2 (Page 6 of 6)
Verse
20b-21: “some are for noble purposes and some for
ignoble. 21 If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an
instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to
do any good work.
1.
This is not a salvation issue. This is about being used by God for His glory.
2.
If one wants to be used by God, one has to be made available
to God.
3.
The other aspect is actually obeying what God asks you
to do.
Verse
22: “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.”
1.
The verse starts with the phrase, “flee the evil desires
of youth”.
2.
“The evil desires of youth” refers to immoral
self-gratification; i.e., “do what feels good”.
a.
This is not about ignoring one’s needs, but about having
the maturity, discipline and insight to realize there is more to life than
instant gratification.
3.
Look at what Paul says we should pursue instead: “(1) righteousness, (2) faith, (3) love
and (4) peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”
a.
“Righteousness” simply means right-standing-before God.
b.
“Faith” in this context is a reminder of our purpose in
life and what we believe.
c.
“Love” is the idea of giving of oneself for other’s
needs over one’s own.
d.
“Peace” is that sense of inner peace. It is the opposite of strife and worry.
e.
The phrase “along with those” emphasizes that
Christianity is a team effort.
Verse 23: “Don't have anything to do
with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.”
1.
Maturity is the ability to say, “Is this argument
beneficial?” or, “Are we working on resolution, or do we just want our opinion
to be heard?
2.
Avoid people loves to argue and debate.
3.
“Some people have something to say, others just want to
say something”.
Verse 24: “And the Lord's servant must
not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not
resentful.”
1.
The command of this verse is to: 1) be kind to everyone
2) able to teach and 3) not resentful.
2.
To be able to be “kind to everyone” again requires the
eternal perspective of being a good witness for Christ as being more important
than being right.
3.
“Able to teach”:
It not only includes classroom teaching and pulpit teaching, but also
teaching-by-example.
4.
To be “not resentful” is to not resent/be jealous of
anyone. Do what God called you to do
and let God worry about other people.
Verse 25-26: “Those who oppose him he must
gently instruct, 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.”
1.
I believe the emphasis here is on false teachers. Reading this in context of the last set of
verses, Paul was mainly concerned about false teachers coming into the
church.
2.
Paul is saying to not get into an in-your-face rebuke of
them. The idea is to gently
instruct them in the truth of God’s word.
How you say it is more important that what you say.
a.
“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word
stirs up anger.” (Prov. 15:1 NIV)
3.
Verse 26 can be paraphrased as, “If you gently rebuke
these people, maybe this person will come to their senses and realize
that they are doing Satan’s will and not God’s will.