2 Timothy 2
Part 2

Paul’s letter to his “son” Timothy is literally bursting with lessons and challenges for all of us, especially those of us who are in ministry. In 2 Timothy 2, he covers a plethora of areas and I have simplified them into five themes. The themes overlap each other throughout and are general to the entire chapter rather than being based on verse sections. Here are the five themes:

Work to do

Word to give

Warning to follow

Ways to live

War to wage

Let’s examine the second one.

Paul not only challenged Timothy about the work he needed to do, he also challenged him about the Word he needed to give.

Verse 2: And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.

Verse 9: Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evildoer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound.

Verse 15: Study to show thyself approved uno God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth,

Verse 24: And the servant of the Lord must not strike; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,

We are to take the truths we have learned and “commit” them to faithful men. The word “commit” includes the idea of making a deposit as one might in a “trust.” We are to know the Bible and are responsible for what we have learned. We are to impart our knowledge to others and there are many ways we can do that. We can preach. We can teach. We can mentor. We can blog. We can write. All of these are good, but notice that Paul’s instruction was not only about “how,” it was also about “who.” We, on purpose, are to be making deposits in the lives of faithful men so that our teaching will be multiplied. I guess all of us need a Timothy or two in our lives!

We are to remember that God’s Word is bigger than we are and rely on its power to change lives. No matter how much trouble we may face in our ministry, the Word of God that we have given will continue to multiply. It is not bound by our limitations. It is not bound by our weaknesses. It is not bound by our hindrances. It is certainly not bound by persecution. We simply need to believe that as we give the Word of God, it will do the work that God intends for it to accomplish.

We are to continually advance in our knowledge of God’s Word and use it wisely to teach truth. We are to study! We are to labor diligently to understand the word of truth. We are to be workman – to toil and labor to be the best teacher we can be. The better we know God’s Word, the more we will be pleasing to God and the more we can advance the truth!

Finally, we are to be men of integrity so we can have open doors to teach and preach the Bible. If we are always quarreling and disputing; if we are not mild towards and kind to people; if we are not willing to be patient; it will hinder our ability to teach God’s Word. We must always remember that it is the teaching of God’s Word that will change lives! So we need to remember that God’s Word is our Authority. We need to do all that we can to Persuade people to receive it. We must continually Teach it. Yes, we are to be “APT to teach.”*

We have the Word of God to give! May God help us to do it to the very best of our ability.

*That little outline was one I learned from my friend and mentor, Bill Rice III.