Posts that reference the book of 2 Timothy

2 Timothy

Not Ashamed of the Chains

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

When Paul was hauled off to Rome for his final imprisonment, many of his associates abandoned him. Perhaps it was out of fear that association with him might mean their imprisonment. Maybe their confidence in him failed. Maybe they decided the relationship would be too difficult, would take too much effort and too much energy to maintain with the complications of imprisonment. Paul suspected they were ashamed of him. Whatever the reason, they dropped him when he needed them.

This time of year marks an intensified season of prayer for our brothers and sisters around the world who are persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ. Paul’s testimony reminds that we have a responsibility to them.

Paul’s words echo Jesus’s statement of the gospel in action, namely to feed the hungry, to care for those in need and to visit those in prison. According to 2013 statistics over 2 million people were serving time in the United States, or roughly 1 in every 110 people. After the first year of incarceration, they are largely forgotten. Paul prays for the mercy of God to be extended to those who would minister to those in prison.

All of us know someone struggling with a different kind of chain. We know unbelievers who live in the chains of their sins. They can be difficult to engage. They don’t think or behave or react the way we do. Maybe we’re afraid of the association. Maybe we determine it would take too much time or effort or energy to reach out. Maybe we’re ashamed of them. We can’t ignore them because we have the only key.

Finally, unbelievers aren’t the only ones struggling. There are people all around us in the pews on Sunday morning wrestling with depression and other mental illnesses, or family breakups, or financial problems or addictions or any number of issues, and we are called to “refresh” them. The body of Christ is designed to be our safety net and the support network. Think of who you would call in a 3:00 a.m. crisis. If that friend, if that circle, is not part of the body of Christ, then the rest of us are failing you. And if we haven’t made ourselves that available to others in crisis we are not fulfilling our calling.

Investing in the lives of others is often hard and messy and thankless, but it moves the gospel from the theory to practice, from Sunday morning to Saturday nights or Tuesday afternoons. Simply put, it is Christlikeness.

Fear or Victory

By Paula Wiseman

Therefore, tell the people, ‘Whoever is timid or afraid may leave this mountain and go home.’” So 22,000 of them went home, leaving only 10,000 who were willing to fight. Judges 7:3 NLT

In Judges 7, we read the story of Gideon. You probably remember the amazing story of the three hundred soldiers who defeated a Midianite army who outnumbered them 400 to 1. Before the battle, Gideon stands with his army of 30,000 men and God says to send home everyone who is afraid. Twenty thousand men–inexperienced soldiers who have done the math and knew they are facing over a hundred thousand professional soldiers–go home.

God doesn’t berate them, or shame them. Gideon doesn’t beg them to stay or offer incentives. Just a simple announcement, “If you are afraid and want out, you are free to go.” And they did.

It seemed like a rational decision. I’ll be honest, if my husband had been in that number I would have more than glad to see him home early and in one piece.

But here’s the thing. Yes, the fearful survived unscathed, but they didn’t get to participate in the victory.

I know I have had plenty of opportunities present themselves, doors that God has unmistakably opened, and I’ve gone home rather than go forward. I’m afraid I won’t measure up. I’m afraid of what it will cost. I’m afraid it will be hard.

And I miss a victory.

Here’s what I know about fear, though. It makes us take our eyes off Him. It distracts us from what He calls us to do. Fear never comes from God. Paul stresses that in 2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

John reiterates it 1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.”

Perfect love, that’s the kind that God has for each of us. Fear is a sure sign we don’t grasp or trust that love or the God who demonstrates it.

De-Junking My Heart

By Paula Wiseman

Therefore if anyone cleanses himself … he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master. 2 Timothy 2:21

This past May meant the end of another school year and time to clean and declutter my office once again. It’s amazing (and disappointing) how much stuff accumulates in such a short time. It was a process of carrying out bags of junk, packing and filing this year’s papers, taking care of the papers I didn’t have time to deal with because school was going on, then vacuuming and dusting. When my office is neat, it’s an extremely functional space. I love it. All the stuff I need is close by making it easier to accomplish what I need to each day.

When it’s not neat … it’s a completely different story.

I find it’s not just my living spaces that need periodic cleaning. My heart does, too. I know I’ve accumulated a lot of junk, like a box of frustration there, a folder or two of fear stacked on the bookcase, a bad attitude taking up most of the room. When it gets that way, things like joy and peace are hard to find underneath all the other mess. (I know they’re in here somewhere … I remember bringing ‘em in and putting them right over there by that big pile of doubt.)

For a packrat like me, determining what needs to go is often a challenge. There are rare occasions when the right mood hits, and I can toss out with the best of them. However, when it comes to de-junking my heart, the mood never hits. I need outside help. Not just professional help. Divine help.

I have to rely on God and His word to identify the junk in the first place. Psalm 139 says, “Search me, O God and see if there be any wicked way in me.”(Ps. 139:23-24). I appreciate David putting that “if” in there, but we all know He’s going to find stuff.

I have to let go of the junk. Hebrews instructs us, “Let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us.” (Hebrews 12:2). This is a lot easier said than done. I’m used to the junk. It’s comfortable. It’s familiar. But it’s interfering with God’s ability to work in me and through me.

Finally, I need Him clean out the place. Create in me a clean heart, O God. (Psalm 51:10). If I do it, it looks like a group of four-year-olds have been on the job. Not only that, but I tend to bring the junk right back in. God is much more thorough, and He fixes it up the way He likes it.

Truth be told, I need to de-junk my heart a lot more often than I do. I tend to wait until I get tripped up and I’m forced to take some action. By that point, it’s a much bigger job. Even so, I’m always really glad when it’s done.

What about you? Ever had to de-clutter?

Study Tip: Demas in the Details

By Paula Wiseman

“For Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica.” 2 Timothy 4:10

At the end of Paul’s letters, he sends personal greetings to individual Christians. We know next to nothing about most of the people Paul mentions, but occasionally, we can follow a few extra references and get a behind the scenes look at the early church. One of those believers is a guy named Demas. He is first mentioned in Colossians 4:14. “Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you.” Then again in Philemon verse 24. “As do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow laborers.”

So what does that tell us about Demas? We know Colossians was written while Paul was in prison in Rome. Demas’s mention indicates he was committed enough to minister to the apostle while he was under house arrest. In Philemon, Paul calls him a fellow laborer.

Most scholars believe those two letters were written within a couple of years of each other, around AD 60-62. However, by the time 2 Timothy was written five or six years later, the relationship had changed. Drastically. Paul says Demas has forsaken him. The Greek word for forsaken carries the idea of leaving someone helpless in the midst of a dire situation. Demas knew Paul was in a Roman dungeon and he utterly abandoned him. The apostle felt hurt and betrayed.

Demas’s reason? Paul says it was because Demas loved this present world. Interestingly, his name means “popular.” When the persecution amped up under Nero, Demas decided the cost was too great. He was not the first.

What can we learn from the brief account of Demas?

We shouldn’t be surprised when people walk away from the faith. Jesus predicted it would happen in Matthew 13:20-21. While we want everybody who hears the name of Jesus to respond with a lifelong commitment, it doesn’t work that way. Even full-time ministers like Demas are not exempt. We need to ensure our relationship with Christ remains vibrant.

Scripture never shies away from portraying our failures and weaknesses. With that kind of honesty, there is no question that the things accomplished were done by the hand of God through the power of the Holy Spirit. We should aim for transparency in our own lives.

Not everything is for public consumption. Did you notice when Paul had good things to say about Demas, he wrote those in general letters intended to be read in public and circulated among neighboring churches? His criticism came in a private letter written to the man he trusted most, Timothy. (Granted, the letter is in the Bible now where everyone can read it, but I think it’s for this lesson.) Take the opportunity to praise people in public, and highlight their work. Any shortcomings should be kept private.

If you want to study more “footnote” folks, try researching Trophimus, Epaphras, or Aristarchus.

Dishes

By Paula Wiseman

But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. (2 Timothy 2:20-1)

I have some dishes up in the corner of my attic, and every year, usually the weekend after Thanksgiving, I bring those dishes down and put them to use. After New Year’s, I pack them back for another year. In a sense, those dishes are sanctified, set apart for a specific purpose. If I chose, I could use those dishes in July. Or I could use them everyday. Either way, they are still set apart for a purpose, determined by the one who purchased them.

I am set apart for a purpose determined by my Lord, who purchased me.

My dishes are useful. The bowls don’t leak. The plates hold the food. They do what they were designed to do.

I was designed by my Father to function in the roles He assigns. And I’m suited for that role just like the bowl is suited for ice cream.

My dishes can be set apart and can be useful, but if they aren’t prepared- that is, clean and in the cabinet- I can’t use them. My kids have some old plastic dishes in their playhouse outside. The dishes are dirty, stained, and many are chipped and cracked. They are no longer useful. Truth is, they were no longer useful when they were relegated to the playhouse.

I need to ensure I stay prepared, by keeping clean and being available.

Now my nature is to be one of those dishes that gets used every meal, every day. But God in His wisdom knows that’s too much for me. He knows when and how to put me to work to accomplish His purposes and glorify Him.

One more point- what happens if one of my Christmas dishes is used for dirt in the yard? It’s still a Christmas dish that I bought and set aside for that purpose. After it’s been in the yard, I have to bring it inside and run it through the dishwasher on the super-hot “sterilize” cycle before I’d consider using it again.

If get out and get myself dirty, God may have to put me through some really hot water before He can use me again. It doesn’t change the fact that I’m His.

(This is a re-post. Thanks for understanding during NaNoWriMo.)

Missing the Victory

By Paula Wiseman

Judges 7 relates the story of Gideon. You probably remember the amazing story of the three hundred soldiers who defeated a Midianite army who outnumbered them 400 to 1. Before the battle, Gideon stands with his army of 30,000 men and God says to send home everyone who is afraid. Twenty thousand men, inexperienced soldiers who have done the math and know they are facing over a hundred thousand professional soldiers, go home.

God doesn't berate them, or shame them. Gideon doesn't beg them to stay or offer incentives. Just a simple announcement, "If you are afraid and want out, you are free to go." And they did.

It seemed like a rational decision. I'll be honest, if my husband had been in that number I would have more than glad to see him home early and in one piece.

But here's the thing. Yes, the fearful survived unscathed, but they didn't get to participate in the victory.

I know I have had plenty of opportunities present themselves, doors that God has unmistakably opened, and I've gone home rather than go forward. I'm afraid I won't measure up. I'm afraid of what it will cost. I'm afraid it will be hard.

And I miss a victory.

Here's what I know about fear, though. It makes us take our eyes off Him. It distracts us from what He calls us to do. Fear never comes from God. Paul stresses that in 2 Timothy 1:7 "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."

Power. Love. A sound mind. Fear doesn't stand a chance.