Daily Writing

Sunday, 18 March 2018

And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 2 Timothy 2:2

Paul just told Timothy to “be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” Now, in order that this will continue on beyond Timothy, he gives the admonition of this verse. “And the things that you have heard,” are certainly all of the teachings that have come to Timothy’s ears throughout many travels, in numerous congregations, and in open forums. Paul had been a faithful herald of God’s word to the people he encountered, and Timothy had been with him for a great amount of that time. He wanted Timothy to remember all of what had been entrusted to him. And these things were, as it says, “among many witnesses.”

Paul had spoken before Jew and Gentile; in synagogue and home-church; in marketplaces and on ships; to the high and the low; to kings and to jailers. Whenever Timothy was with him, he was a witness as were these others. Paul implored him to remember these things, and to remember that they were spoken openly and to all. It is the gospel of salvation for all people, and for all circumstances. It was this precious message, and all the doctrine which accompanied it, which he now instructs Timothy to, “commit these to faithful men.”

Timothy is asked to entrust these instructions not just to believers in general, but to faithful men. There are believers who are unfaithful. There are believers who are not competent in the ministry. There are believers who are otherwise morally unqualified because of lingering sin. And so on. These things may be taught to them for instruction, but not as a means of making them instructors. Paul is speaking specifically about furthering the church in a leadership capacity. And this is all the more evident with his final words of the verse, “who will be able to teach others.”

Like being a plumber or an architect, teaching is a skill. It can be naturally acquired, or it can be cultivated over time by some. There are others who will never make good teachers. Paul is asking Timothy to be observant, and to be aware of those who would make good teachers. It is implied that he is then to be aware of those who would not make good teachers as well. The word of God is to be handled carefully, not sloppily or by those who are unqualified to teach it. This is the intent behind Paul’s words in this verse.

Life application: Let us remember the admonition to Timothy in this verse. Churches are not authorized by Scripture to ordain just anyone as a teacher or preacher. Only proven leaders who already possess the necessary qualifications should be behind the ordination and training processes necessary to raise up qualified leaders in such matters.

Heavenly Father, You have given churches the honor of selecting men whom they wish to be their leaders. We pray that each church only select those men who have first proven themselves to other qualified leaders as being properly trained in Your word, and in the ability to teach it and preach it effectively. Without this, there is only one sad direction a church can go, and that is away from You. Help us to be careful in this, O God. Amen.

Saturday, 17 March 2018

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

Paul now redirects his focus and attention on his “son” Timothy. He has been speaking of those who were faithless, Phygellus and Hermogenes of verse 1:15; and of Onesiphous who remained faithful as is recorded in verses 1:16-18. He is also referring to himself as noted in verses 1:11, 12. Now, in his redirect to Timothy, he says, “You therefore…” He is asking Timothy to consider what he has said, and to learn from it.

In essence, “I know whom I have believed, and who will keep what I have committed until that Day. I know who has been unfaithful and who will suffer loss because of it. And, I know who has shown faithfulness to me during my own trials, and who has presented himself strong in the Lord. Understanding these things, my son, ‘be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.’”

There is a well that one can draw from, and which will keep a believer strong and faithful. That well is “the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” As an external source, we can turn to 2 Corinthians 12:9 and see how the Lord provides it to those who need it –

“And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

And as a well which is filled by that external source, and which can then be drawn on in times of need, we can turn first to Ephesians 6:10 –

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.”

The Lord provides the strength, but the believer must be willing to access that strength and apply it when needed. This is again seen in Philippians 4:13 –

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

That this external grace must be worked out by us is then clearly demonstrated by Paul’s words of 1 Corinthians 15:10 –

“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”

Just as rain which falls from the sky rests on the good and bad (a form of grace), the grace of Christ is granted to those who have called on Him. But some will never make use of the rain and store it up for crops and the like. Others will, and they will thus have a well which to draw from. In like manner, the grace leads to labor for the wise. This is what Paul is saying to Timothy.

Life application: You have been bestowed the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ – to apply it to your life, and to use it in good times and in bad. No evangelist, pastor, or missionary has received more or less than you, although it may have been received in a different way than you. The grace of Jesus Christ is open and available to all, to strengthen us and to allow us to then be strong in Him. Let each of us endeavor to use what is available to us now, so that in the ages to come, our rewards will stand as a testimony to our faithfulness in using that which we have been given.

Lord God, You have given us grace in abundance. Your word then asks us to be strong in the power of Your might; to use Your strength for honorable purposes; and to labor abundantly, knowing that You are with us, and will give us all we need to accomplish the tasks set before us. May we understand this, and be strong in You at all times. To Your glory we pray. Amen.

Friday, 16 March 2018

The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that Day—and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus. 2 Timothy 1:18

As noted in verse 16, the words of Paul are taken by some that Onesiphorus was dead at this point, and so Paul is actually making a prayer for the dead. This is the Roman Catholic opinion which is used to justify praying for the dead and the like. Others disagree and state that this verse shows that he is alive and simply not with his household at the time. Thus, the doctrine of praying for the dead cannot be found here.

Regardless of which is true, using this one verse to build an entire doctrine of praying for the dead is not wise. The words could merely be Paul’s way of saying something in writing that expresses his great appreciation for the efforts of Onesiphorus. One might write to another about Paulinus Maximus and say, “The Lord grant him mercy that he may stumble upon a treasure chest of gold for all he has done to help me.” The meaning would carry the same intent of Paul’s words now. Understanding this, Paul begins the verse by saying, “The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that Day.”

The more unusual aspect of this isn’t whether he is speaking about someone who is alive or who is dead. Rather, it is the mentioning of “the Lord” twice in one verse. What is probably the case for doing this is the highlighting of the action to be taken. The psalms will do this by repeating the word Lord in one verse after another. It then is a way of showing the all-encompassing hand of the Lord, from beginning to end, in what is being relayed.

The words “in that Day,” are speaking of when the saints stand before the Bema seat of Christ to receive judgment for things done in the body (see 1 Corinthians 3:8-15 & 2 Corinthians 5:9, 10). Some scholars speak of “that Day” as the great white throne judgment found in Revelation. That is not the case. Believers in Christ will not be judged for salvation or condemnation which is found in that scene. Instead, they will be judged for rewards and losses as is noted in the letters to the Corinthians.

After this, Paul takes the time to remind Timothy of the marvelous care that Onesiphorus had provided to him, even before coming to Rome. He says, “and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus.” Onesiphorus was a faithful soul all along. He was there to minister to Paul at Ephesus, and he followed through with that same care in Rome. As a note, some scholars see this as care for Paul after Onesiphorus had left Rome, meaning he tended to things requested to be done upon his return. This is explained by Paul having written first about Rome and then about Ephesus. Either way, Onesiphorus was a faithful guy in Paul’s times of need.

Life application: How great is the burden you are willing to bear for others? Are you actually willing to go out of your way to help someone when it may inconvenience you a bit? We get so caught up in time schedules, anticipated projects, lunch engagements, and the like, that we often forget that people’s needs may be a bit more important than getting home to watch a football game. Keep your priorities straight, and use Onesiphorus as an example of how you can be considered a faithful friend as well.

Lord God, there are some folks in the Bible who are mentioned just once or twice, but we can learn so much from what we read about them. They have been remembered for zealous work which honors you, faithful friendships which have comforted others, longtime friends who were always there in times of need, and so on. If You highlighted them in Your word for such reasons, maybe we should consider them as examples of the type of people You are pleased with. May we be remembered by You in a similar, positive light. Amen.

Wednesday, 14 March 2018

The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; 2 Timothy 1:16

In the preceding verse, Paul spoke of those who had turned away from him – Phygellus and Hermogenes. Now he contrasts their faithlessness to the faithfulness of Onesiphorus. He is mentioned only here, and in 2 Timothy 4:19. In both instances, Paul writes of “the household of Onesiphorus.” For this reason, some scholars feel Paul is conveying that he is now dead, and he is asking for mercy upon his household. Others disagree, and say that he was still living (citing verse 18 as a proof) and that he was simply absent from his home at this time.

The reason for supporting the second view is because Paul’s words of verse 18 almost sound like a prayer for him. If this is so, then it would supposedly be evidence that one can pray for the dead. However, Paul’s words in that verse are no different than anyone else who simply refers to the dead in a manner similar to this. It is not necessarily a prayer, but an acknowledgment that their lives were well lived and we are entrusting their judgment to the Lord’s wise discernment.

Either way, living or dead, Paul desires that “The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus.” He trusts that the benefit of mercy hoped for because of Onesiphorus’ life and actions be granted upon his whole household. And the specific reasons for this are given by Paul:

1) For he often refreshed me. Onesiphorus was kind to Paul, ministering to him while others had abandoned him. He lifted Paul up when things were grim and difficult. It is reflective of the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:26 which say, “I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.”

2) [He] was not ashamed of my chain. Paul was a prisoner for the sake of the gospel, but this meant that he was an enemy of the empire. By tending to him as a prisoner in this capacity, Onesiphorus was aligning himself with Paul, and he was thus risking himself in the process. And yet, he was more concerned about Christian charity for Paul than he was for his own safety. While others walked away, Onesiphorus stuck fast to his duty to the chained apostle.

Life application: How faithful are you willing to be to those who have been faithful to the Lord? There may be a time when Christian friends are sick at home, laid up in the hospital, or facing some sort of trial or difficulty. Are you ready to refresh them in their time of distress? Or will a simple post on Facebook, hoping for them to get better, be the extent of your effort? People do remember such things. When your time of trouble comes, they will probably respond in kind to how you extend yourself for them.

Lord God, help us to be willing to do more than just post a note on Facebook when friends are having trouble. Give us the sense to reach out to them personally, and to offer help as they may need it. A call and a prayer with someone is surely something that will help them to readjust and refocus. And a personal visit, when possible, shows that we care enough to go out of our way for them. Give us wisdom in this, O Lord, and help us to be people who demonstrate love with more than just platitudes. Amen.