Principles of Christian Living

Lesson 4

Lesson Text—II Timothy 2:1-4

II Timothy 2:1-41 Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.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.

Lesson Text—II Timothy 2:1-4

3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

Lesson Text—II Timothy 2:5-7

II Timothy 2:5-75 And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.6 The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits.7 Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.

Lesson Text—II Timothy 2:15-18

II Timothy 2:15-1815 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.

Lesson Text—II Timothy 2:15-18

17 And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.

Lesson Text—II Timothy 2:19

II Timothy 2:1919 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let everyone that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

Focus Verse—II Timothy 2:13

II Timothy 2:13If we believe not, yet he abideth

faithful: he cannot deny himself.

Focus Thought

God is always faithful. It is His will

that we strive for the same

faithfulness in serving Him.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyCULTURE CONNECTION

True Faithfulness Requires Mentoring

The apostle Paul was a great mentor. He recognized the need to prepare others who would carry on the work beyond his ability to continue. Because he considered the gospel work vital, he considered preparing for its future continuance indispensible. Even business leaders recognize the importance of mentoring.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyIn the April 7, 2010, issue of the

Financial Post, in an article titled “If You Are a Leader, You Are a Mentor,” Mary Donohue wrote, “So what is mentoring in the context to which I'm referring? Mentoring is defined as an activity that builds relationships, creates dialogue and matches word and deed. The philosophy behind mentoring is framed by ethical leadership principles developed in the 1970s by Robert Greenleaf and others.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThe programs designed in the 1970s assumed people knew how to mentor and they understood how to be a mentee.

“I didn't assume. I created a program that works with the rigour and structure of human resources programs today. I did my best to emulate the configurations Peter Drucker developed when he brought structure to management. All managers need to be mentors.

I. Paul’s Advice to Timothy“If you are in a leadership position and have more than one person who answers to you, most likely you are already in a mentoring position and need some guidelines. If you are volunteering at a charity, more than likely you will also soon be in a position to mentor. People who are great mentors are people who work with other people and care about the success of those people.”

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyIf we care about the mission of the

church and the spreading of the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world, we have a responsibility to teach others to take our place—to follow in our passion for reaching the world. It is our responsibility and an aspect of faithfulness.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyContemplating the Topic

Faithfulness equals trustworthiness. Faith and trust come from the same Greek word mah. When writing of faith, Paul used the word mahahh, which means “good faith, faithfulness, sincerity.” He used the word mah to denote trusting someone enough to commit something valuable to his charge.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyFaithfulness is one of the crucial

character traits necessary for strong apostolic ministry. It gives a person a firm conviction that will help him overcome the challenges of sweeping change. The Master takes note of the faithful and entrusts His valuables and His mission to them.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothySearching the Scriptures Paul’s Advice to Timothy

Ministry is always in transition. Whether one is willing to embrace this concept or not, it does not negate the fact that change is constant. For those who are set in their ways, it can be unnerving and paralyzing. But for kingdom-minded laborers in the field, transition can empower a sense of vision that is necessary to accomplish great things for God.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThe situations Paul and Timothy faced in the first century were no different or more difficult than what the present North American Apostolic church faces in its times. However, Paul and Timothy have exited from the stage and it is now our turn to take center stage. Whether the church is in a thriving metropolitan hub or a quaint rural hamlet, the truths Paul and Timothy embraced and taught are the same truths we hold in trust and teach.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyPaul’s advice to Timothy is timeless. Not only has that truth withstood the tempests and trials since its inception, it will withstand the frequent transitions and upheavals we face today. This powerful truth has the capacity to transform our churches and the lives of all who hear it preached.

A. What You Have Heard of Me Is Faithful to the Truth

A. What You Have Heard of Me Is Faithful to the Truth

One who strives to assure that his ministerial identity remains static and unchanged will become unfruitful. A ministry that preserves itself and jealously guards against change will never pass along important things to the next generation. For example, some of the disciples of John the Baptist informed him that people were flocking to Jesus Christ, the one John had baptized and to whom he had borne witness.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyInstead of reacting with indignation and doubling his efforts to corral his disciples, he summed up his understanding of ministerial transition in one simple sentence: “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30).

When he heard the report about the rise of Jesus’ ministry, John realized that instead of upstaging his own ministry, the emergence of Jesus evidenced the fact that John had completed his mission successfully. It was time for him to move on to another phase of ministry.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThrough observation and experience,

the apostle Paul understood the fluctuations and transitions of ministry. He rejoiced over great victories but also endured great hardships while remaining faithful to the message and the mission. (See II Corinthians 11:23-33.) He paid a great price for his faithfulness, but his driving passion goaded him to keep striving. Not only did Paul tell Timothy to keep that which was committed to him, he showed him how to do it by example.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyGod demands faithfulness with every aspect of life and ministry to which He calls a person. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul pointed out the discrepancies and errors in their behavior and directed them as to what they were to do to set things right. However, II Corinthians revealed to them the depth of Paul’s passion and commitment to apostolic ministry. Thus he taught the Corinthians both by what he said and by what he did.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyIn this second letter to the

Corinthians, Paul mentioned numerous things often associated with faithfulness: tribulation, trouble, affliction, suffering, pressed, despair, under sentence of death, heaviness and anguish of heart, no rest in my spirit, grief stricken, many tears, punishment, thanks.

The idea of “thanks” in this setting of difficult and challenging situations seems incongruous, but the faithful will find that all of these words interplay in a life of ministry for JesusChrist.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothySome would rather bypass the difficult aspects of these circumstances, but it is impossible to do so when one remains faithful to God. A faithful servant must endure whatever comes. (See I Corinthians 15:57-58.)

The most vital key to remaining faithful to the call to minister within the church, whatever that ministry may entail, is that a person conform to the image of Jesus Christ, the One to whom and for whom he ministers. One cannot conform to the image of Christ merely by consistent and busy discharge of his duties.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyRather, he conforms to the image of Christ only through spending time with the Master and studying His Word. When a believer immerses himself in the Word and in studying the person of Jesus Christ, Christ begins to be formed in him. (See Galatians 4:19.) The image of Christ filled the life of the apostle Paul, and he saw the necessity of this growth taking place in those whom he shepherded and mentored.

Galatians 4:19

“My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed

in you” (Galatians 4:19).

B. Commit These Things to Faithful Men

B. Commit These Things to Faithful Men

“Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 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” (II Timothy 2:1-2).

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThe idea of committing the gospel to

faithful individuals who will carry on the work after us is a biblical model. For instance, consider the men who accompanied Paul in Acts 20:4. While we may have only limited information about them, it is clear Paul was modeling the idea of mentoring others who can learn from us and continue the work of apostolic ministry. It appears those who “accompanied” Paul in his travels were instruments, or extensions, of his ministry whose lives he was fashioning and molding with faithfulness.

I. Paul’s Advice to Timothy They took note as Paul modeled teaching and preaching both in season and out of season. He planted churches, solved problems that cropped up, and trained and appointed faithful believers to serve in the kingdom of God. They watched Paul endure unspeakable things, none of which moved him or distracted him from his mission.

Paul made himself vulnerable to his companions by letting them see him not only in times of victory but also in times of defeat, neediness, pain, illness, and discouragement.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyEven those involved in apostolic ministry sometimes drop suddenly into a low state; and if a man is not careful, he might use the frustrations as a soapbox. The man who devotes himself faithfully to ministry continues to cope with the demands and stresses and burdens that accompany the vision, but he keeps pressing “toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).

C. That They Might Faithfully Teach

C. That They Might Faithfully Teach

Also of great interest is how Paul viewed the “assignments” of apostolic ministry. He did not measure success by the size of the building, the crowd, or the offering total. Instead, he appointed faithful individuals to work where their skills and talents would best benefit the kingdom.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyOnesiphorus was a laborer from Ephesus whose ministry consisted of helping Paul, both in Ephesus and during Paul’s imprisonment in Rome. When Paul wrote to Timothy from a Roman prison, he expressed gratitude that Onesiphorus had traveled to Rome, sought him diligently, ministered to his needs, and provided whatever comfort he could.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThese and other examples show

Paul’s conviction that God is more concerned with obedience to the call and faithfulness to the vision than He is with the size and difficulty of the task—or even the specific type of ministry. Every ministry in the church is vitally important. Too often modern Christianity is geared toward “personal success” and self-fulfillment. To many people today, it seems the larger the ministry and greater the renown, the better.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyWhile our culture may crave these things, they are not necessarily the true accompaniments of apostolic ministry.

The Scriptures, especially the New Testament epistles, call believers to lives of service and even servitude. Many members of the church—from the first century until the present—have died for their faith. They followed the example of Christ, who came to fulfill His mission, not Himself.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyHe lowered Himself to the level of a servant and spent Himself in ministry to others. His mission led Him to Calvary, a place of extreme personal sacrifice. How can one reconcile that with a life of pursuing only self-fulfillment?

II. Paul’s Assurance to TimothyPaul’s Assurance

to Timothy

Along with Paul’s advice to Timothy came the assurance that some would forsake the faith.

A. Individuals Are Subject to Failure

A. Individuals Are Subject to Failure

Demas, first mentioned in Colossians 4:12-14, had been closely associated with Paul for several years. In the Book of Philemon, Paul established that Demas was a “fellowlabourer” (Philemon 24). Demas had not only studied and followed Paul’s example and pattern for ministry, he also was closely associated with great New Testament figures such as Epaphras, a powerful, prayerful pastor in Colosse.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyHowever, all possibilities for

Demas’s success came to a disappointing end: “Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed into Thessalonica” (II Timothy 4:10).

Demas fell into possibly two of the categories or types of soil the Lord described in Matthew 13. Like the rocky soil, seeds of the gospel sprang up in his life only to wither because of stunted roots. He apparently lacked depth in his experience with Christ Jesus.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyWhen persecution and suffering removed Demas’s rose-tinted glasses, his favorable attitude changed from disillusionment to indignation to rejection. Like the weed-choked soil, the cares, stresses, and hardships of ministry gained a foothold in Demas’s life and choked out the tender plants of the gospel.

Demas sinned through his backsliding and defection. First, he sinned against what he had learned about the Christian walk and ministry.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyHe could not plead ignorance or lack of instruction, because others whom Paul had taught were thriving in spiritual growth and ministry. Second, by his defection he sinned against the great love and faithfulness of God; he could not claim God had left him alone to wander away from the assigned task. Third, he sinned against the great light of good examples and mentors like Paul, Luke, and Epaphras. He could not use the excuse that no one had shown him what to do.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyFinally, he sinned by using his influence in a negative way, for others who followed him might have been drawn into the same web of deceit and brought further reproach to the early church.

Mere association with the church and holy things does not guarantee one’s salvation. Every believer will be tested to reveal whether he loves the things of God or the things of this world.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyWhen time and truth go hand in hand in the life of a believer, his ministry becomes an asset to the kingdom of God. On the other hand, when a soul revels in worldliness, that person becomes a liability to God’s kingdom.

B. God Abides FaithfulB. God Abides Faithful

Unlike Demas, Paul kept the faith with tenacity and desire. In Antioch, he persevered through their outbursts, interruptions, contradictions, and accusations of blasphemy. In Iconium and Lystra, he held steady when envious Jews stirred up the people to stone him. When Peter opposed Paul over a decision he had made, Paul stuck to his convictions. In Philippi, he praised God even while they beat and locked him in prison.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyIn Athens, he confronted the Mars’ Hill philosophers for their idol worship and told them of the one true God.

Paul did not give up in exasperation at the unrestraint of the members of the Corinthian church and their misuse of spiritual gifts. Instead, he instructed them in a more perfect way. In Ephesus, he boldly pointed people to Christ and away from the goddess Diana. In Jerusalem, he remained undaunted when enemies bound him with iron fetters and threatened his life.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyIn Caesarea, when summoned before King Agrippa, he faithfully gave his testimony. In a Roman prison during the closing hours of his life, he dispatched letters of blessing, encouragement, instruction, and thankfulness to fellow Christians.

All of these examples from Paul’s life reinforce the fact that we must give ourselves diligently to the service of the kingdom no matter where we are or how difficult the assignment.

III. Paul’s Admonition to Timothy

Paul’s Admonition to Timothy

The last aspect of Paul’s admonishment to Timothy revolved almost solely around the integrity of his presentation of the Word of God. Every church that has a pastor who faithfully preaches and teaches the Word of God in its proper context and is motivated by truth ought to highly honor and treasure this individual.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyWhile the shifting winds of doctrine blow (Ephesians 4:14), the pastor who is faithful to the Word will lead a spiritually healthy church. We will look at four attributes inherent in Timothy and in every person who faithfully proclaims the Word of truth.

A. Be a Student of the WordA. Be a Student of the Word

Those who minister in most cultures deal largely with biblically illiterate listeners; relatively few unregenerate people ever read their Bibles. Even more troubling, many people who sit on church pews and count themselves as Christians are woefully ignorant of the Scriptures and their precepts. We observe this in the very low level of spiritual discernment among many believers in churches today, typically caused by the lack of biblical knowledge.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThe only way to overcome this is for a pastor to devote himself to becoming a student of the Word and aptly convey it to the members of his church. Concerning this widespread problem, the most important things in a pastor’s job description—prayer and ministry of the Word—are shifting to the forefront. Paul wove this priority into the pastoral epistles (I Timothy; II Timothy; Titus). History affirms that all influential revivals and spiritual awakenings have been preceded by a person who gave himself to the prayer and ministry of the Word.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThom Rainer has written several

books that offer different reasons why churches are ineffective and/or in decline. His book Essential Church? should inspire many serious thoughts about preaching. Rainer identified seven sins of dying churches (pp. 16-19), three of which have to do with preaching: doctrinal dilution, failure to be relevant, and biblical illiteracy. A person can overcome these with a strong devotional life, diligent study of the Word of God, and an increased passion for preaching the Word.

Transparency 3

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyA student of the Word gives

himself to diligent study of the Scriptures and saturates what he has learned in consistent, powerful prayers for enlightenment and wisdom. However, his job is not done until he presents these insights in a clear and convicting way to those who hear him.

B. Be a Workman with the WordB. Be a Workman with the

Word

Alexander Maclaren said, “The preacher who has steeped himself in the Bible will have a clearness of outlook which will illuminate many dark things, and a firmness of touch which will breed confidence in him among his hearers. He will have the secret of perpetual freshness, for he cannot exhaust the Bible!”

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyWhen a minister gives himself to

mastering the Word, it will ultimately master him. However, one of the great fringe benefits is that his preaching will encourage true spiritual growth in the church. A person who becomes a “workman” of the Word squelches his tendency to mount hobby horses and ride them into the ground. For instance, some ministers preach only on prayer, others only on revival, others only on evangelism, and others only on faith. There must be balance in ministry of the Word of God.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyWhether or not a pastor recognizes

it, and despite the fact he may be praying and getting a “fresh word” from God, his preaching often tends to follow certain cycles. Furthermore, when a church has problems or difficulties, if a pastor has not given himself to holistic study of the Word, he can become greatly distracted from the real purpose of the pulpit; and he may end up hopelessly chasing down “rabbit trails” or hobby subjects. Such preaching may cater to a superficial understanding of spiritual things.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThe workman who immerses

himself in a milieu of study will prevent this. The powerful treasury of scriptural knowledge makes our lives abundant and our forth-telling of God’s Word dynamic.

C. Be a Right Divider of the Word

C. Be a Right Divider of the Word

To rightly divide the Word of truth one has to be a reader of the Word. The only true way to interpret Scripture is in light of other passages of Scripture and by contemplating the context of every passage. As one faithfully reads and studies the Word of God, he lays a permanent foundation of knowledge upon which he may better understand and interpret other parts of the Bible.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyThe more he reads and studies, the more familiar he becomes with the whole of Scripture. That is the essence of rightly dividing the Word of God. The minister who rightly divides the Word has to be very careful to consider the context of the focus of study. That is, he must understand any passage in the light of the entire chapter, the theme of the entire book, and other passages on the same subject.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyBy taking a passage out of context, the minister basically affirms the idea that what he wants to say about the matter is more important than what the text says.

II Peter 1:20

“Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any

private interpretation” (II Peter 1:20).

D. Be Faithful as God Is FaithfulD. Be Faithful as God Is

Faithful

One need look no further than the examples given in this lesson to realize that Paul endured faithfully because God always manifested faithfulness. When our relationship with God finds its depth in understanding the Word and through power in prayer, it fuels our ability to faithfully discharge the task to which we have been called.

I. Paul’s Advice to TimothyINTERNALIZING THE

MESSAGE

Our society has almost lost its ability to model genuine faithfulness. This is evident in the broken families and even in the broken churches prevalent in our times. But despite the seeming odds against us, if we look to God we can develop a deep relationship of trust in Him that provides us with an unwavering faith to accomplish much for His kingdom.