You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 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. Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer. Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor’s crown unless he competes according to the rules. The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.
Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. 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.
Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him,
we will also live with him;
if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
if we are faithless,
he will remain faithful,
for he cannot disown himself.
A Workman Approved by God
Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 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. Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have wandered away from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some. 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.”
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. 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.
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. Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 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, 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.
My Understanding: Paul began this section of his letter to Timothy with the words “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” We all go through things in this life where we need emotional, mental and spiritual strength and fortitude to endure, to have wisdom and discernment, to make hard choices, to do the right thing, to say what is necessary, even if it is not received well, to forsake sin, to get rid of our idols, to not give way to our fears, to be able to rejoice in difficulties, and to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, etc. This strength is not generated in our own flesh or in the will of men, but in the will and the power of Almighty God at work in our hearts and lives in the person of the Holy Spirit within us, who was given to us by God via his grace and through Jesus’ blood sacrifice for our sins. So, we should give all over to the Lord and should pray for his strength within us.
Then, he told Timothy to take the word of God, which had been entrusted to him, and he should, in turn, “Entrust it to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” Jesus gave his disciples the commandment to go into all the world and to make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching them to observe (obey) all that Christ Jesus had commanded us to obey. We are all Christ’s disciples, if we have come into genuine relationship with him by his grace and through faith. So, we are all commanded to make disciples, not just converts. A disciple is a follower of Christ who has turned from his or her sin, and who has chosen to follow the Lord Jesus Christ in obedience.
So, although Paul was speaking man-to-man with a fellow shepherd of the church, we have all been commanded to make disciples, which is what Paul was talking about when he said that Timothy should take what was entrusted to him, i.e. the gospel of Christ, and he should entrust it to reliable men who will be qualified to teach others. What stood out to me here is that he was to pass it along to “reliable” men. A reliable person is one who is trustworthy, dependable, consistent, steadfast, and unswerving in his or her commitment to the gospel, and to sharing it with others, so that they, too, can come to know Christ, and can be his followers. In other words, we cannot disciple someone who does not want to be discipled, i.e. one who is untrustworthy and/or who is tossed here and there by every wind of teaching, or by whatever happens to grab his or her attention that day, week or month.
The next instruction he gave him was to “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” To “endure” something means to bear up under it, to suffer, to withstand it with grace, to sustain our commitment to Christ, to stand on our faith and what we believe, i.e. the truth of the gospel of Christ, to remain in Christ in fellowship with Him, in his word, in obedience to what he teaches us, to persist (be resolute) in obedience to Christ and his gospel, to persevere, and to continue in Christ in our commitment to forsake sin and to walk humbly in obedience to him and to his commands, found in his word (the Bible).
We are to endure like good soldiers of Christ. A soldier is “someone who serves in a military organization; or somebody who works with dedication for a cause” (Encarta). A soldier’s job is to obey his commanding officer, to fight the enemy, when necessary, to protect, defend, and to be loyal and dedicated in his or her service to God and country, et al. As soldiers of Christ, we are to obey our commanding officer, Jesus Christ, in all things; we are to show this same kind of loyalty, obedience and commitment of service as that of a soldier; we are to be resolute in fighting off the enemy of our souls, i.e. in daily putting on the armor of God with which to fight off Satan’s fiery darts that come against us; and we are to love and care for God’s flock in such a way that we would be willing to lay down our lives and reputations for their freedom from sin and from the control of Satan over their lives.
A soldier does not “get involved in civilian affairs – he wants to please his commanding officer.” As soldiers of Christ, we, too, are to come out from the world and to be separate. We are not to get involved in worldly things that have nothing to do with Christ or with the gospel of Christ. If we fill our lives with the stuff of this world, then Jesus Christ gets shoved in a back corner, and we prove to not be his soldiers, or at least we prove to be unfaithful soldiers who have gone AWOL. There are certain things of this world that we must be involved in, such as working to pay bills, in order to have food on the table, clothing on our backs, a roof over our heads, etc. We need to be involved in our kids’ education. We need to participate in family events and outings that are designed to bond us together as a family, etc. So, when the Lord says to come out from the world and be separate, he is not speaking of neglecting the necessities of life, but he is speaking of worldly, deceptive and sinful influences that would distract us from our pure devotion to Jesus Christ. If Christ is our life, then everything we do in this life should be to honor him and to please him.
An athlete “does not receive the victor’s crown unless he competes according to the rules.” God is comparing us, as his disciples, to soldiers in an army and to athlete’s running a race. God is saying here that we won’t win the victor’s crown in heaven if we don’t compete according to the rules. Some people might think this is works-based salvation in that it mentions “rules,” but it is not. Being under God’s grace does not mean we are free to do whatever we want. Being under God’s grace means we follow Christ’s rules for us for holy living. The “rules” are all through the New Testament. Some of them are listed for us here:
Be strong in Christ. Entrust the gospel to reliable people. Endure hardship like a good soldier. Run the race according to the rules so you get the crown that will last forever. Don’t quarrel about words. Handle the word of God correctly. Avoid godless chatter. Turn away from wickedness. Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Don’t disown your Lord. Be faithful, steadfast, committed and consistent in your walk with the Lord. Cleanse your lives of worldly and ungodly influences, thoughts, and behaviors, so that you can be an instrument for God, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work. Flee the evil desires of youth. Pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace. Call on God out of a pure heart. Don’t get involved in foolish and stupid arguments. Be kind to everyone, able to teach, and not resentful. Gently instruct those who oppose you, hoping God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, so they will come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2 NIV 1984).
Yet:
“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14 NIV 1984).
I don’t know about you, but the Lord Jesus is definitely speaking these days to my heart, and he is encouraging me much to be joyful in all things, to give thanks, to not fear, to let the peace of Christ rule my heart, to stand for what is true, but to not quarrel over words.
Your Heart / An Original Work / October 24, 2011
Tenderly He speaks, softly so.
Gently He calls - His will to know.
Won’t you invite Him in your heart?
Humbly accept Him now.
Bow before Him with contrite heart.
May you obey His will.
Seek Him with all your heart and soul,
And your heart, His Spirit fill.
Jesus died to free you from sin,
Giving you new life to begin,
Walking with Him ev’ry hour,
Obeying His commands.
Won’t you trust Him to be your Lord?
His grace you can’t afford.
Freely He gives you peace within,
When you turn from all your sin.
Live for Him ev’ry passing day.
Meet with Him; read His word and pray.
Serve Him in the way He leads you,
Doing all that He says.
Do unto others as you would
Have them do unto you.
Love them with Jesus love within you.
Your hearts to God be true.
Song lyrics @ Public Domain
Audio, song lyrics and sheet music:
https://sites.google.com/site/psalmshymnssongs2/home/songs/your-heart
Song on video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gc7tEOtSOLM
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