� � of 21The Good Fight, Week of October 22, 2017

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HIGHLIGHT: 2 Timothy 2:20-22 20Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also those of wood and

clay; some for honorable use and some for dishonorable. 21So if anyone purifies himself from

anything dishonorable, he will be a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master,

prepared for every good work.

22Flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with

those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

EXPLAIN

In the last section, Paul reminded Timothy to be a faithful teacher of God’s Word. Now, he is going to explain how to be the kind of person God will use. If you want to ensure that God will use you in this life, Paul has the answer: purify yourself from things that are dishonorable.

v.20 Here, Paul is using an analogy that everybody can connect with: dishes. We all have dishes in our homes that we use for various things. Some people have decorative dishes that merely look good. Some have a sink full of dirty dishes that they’d never dream of serving food on. In this analogy, Paul is imploring Timothy to be a vessel that plays an important part in the household—one that is used to get things done. You don't want to just sit on a shelf, and you don’t want to lie dirty and useless in the kitchen sink.

Notably, the people that Paul is comparing to dishes in this verse are believers. He is not making a statement about every person in the world; the things addressed in the following verses are not necessarily salvation issues. While someone’s actions do display the state of their hearts, Paul is not saying that one set of vessels will receive eternal life and the others will not. Instead, he is drawing a distinction between which will be useful to the Master and which won’t. A believer who has been saved by the grace of God will want to be put to good use by the One who saved them.

� � of 22The Good Fight, Week of October 22, 2017

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v.21 The previous section referred to teaching and doctrine, which can certainly be dishonorable, but here, “anything dishonorable” refers more specifically to behavior. We can tell this because it is sandwiched between two verses that speak of personal holiness: “turn away from wickedness” in verse 19 and “flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness” in verse 22. Honorable vessels pursue both honorable doctrine and clean living.

v.22 Many times, “youthful passions” is translated as simply sexual sin. However, Paul means more than simply fleeing sexual sin. By examining the context, especially verses 23-25, we notice that youthful passions includes the temptation to quarrel, to be unkind or respond brashly to others, and being cruelly harsh. In light of this, “youthful passions” seems to mean general unrestraint, the way childishness is unrestrained. If a believer is pursuing righteousness and desiring to be used by God, that person will display self-control (Titus 1:8, James 1:19-21).

The condition of your usefulness is not how skilled you are, but your holiness. Spurgeon wrote, “But let a man once become really holy, even though he has but the slenderest possible ability, and he will be a fitter instrument in God’s hand than the man of gigantic accomplishments who is not obedient to the divine will, or clean and pure in the sight of the Lord God Almighty” (Soulwinner, 41).

APPLY

1. What stuck out to you or challenged you in what you heard in the sermon or read in the text?

2. What is the difference between “honorable” and “dishonorable” use? What are examples of things that have these types of use in your own home?

3. What are examples of “dishonorable” things that believers may be engaged in? What does “youthful passions” mean, and what are some examples?

4. Why is it important for believers to be “set apart” for good use? What kinds of things can believers be used by God for? Judging by the gifts and talents He’s given you, what do you feel God has set you apart to do?

5. How can discipleship help us both avoid dishonorable things and pursue righteousness? What are some ways you’ve seen discipleship help you in these areas?

RESPOND

• Spend five minutes in prayer. Ask God to shine a light on your heart and search it for things that need to be removed so that you can be a pure, useful vessel for Him to use. Then ask God to use you this week, and come back next week prepared to share how you saw the Lord using you.