Paul's Encouragement to Timothy

So we are in Second Timothy. Everybody have a copy of Lesson 2? So we finished up last week with Lesson 1, and we started into Lesson 2. And I sent out Lesson 3. Did everybody get 3? OK. There's two back there also. Is there two there for you, Courtney and Ingrid? My mic is on. I didn't see anybody. I heard that too. It sounded like someone was trying to say something. Yeah, right before you were praying. If you're online, speak up. Who's on? Do you know? Hey, I'm here. Yeah, it sounded like you were going to say something before prayer.

And no, yeah, I was just getting a quick update. I just say we arrived here safely and had a good few days with family and catching up with folks and went to our friend's wedding yesterday and it was a really cool time. Alright. Yeah, you guys would have loved it. It was all about Jesus, so it was really cool. That's nice. Yeah. Anyway, that's what I did.

All your chickens are alive still. And we miss you guys. Yeah, we miss you. Yeah, we miss you guys, too. You're good to get home, so. Did you hear that Courtney said all your chickens are still alive? Yeah. I'm surprised you guys haven't grilled any chickens yet. They were looking pretty tasty the other day. Yeah, they're well fed.

The one thing I will tell you, though, is I had the trap left out, no food in it, and I got a rabbit the other day. So now what do I do with it? So I ended up last night taking it down to the Centennial Ranch with all the big homes down there and let it out in there. So I need you guys. I now don't have the trap out at all. So I don't have the quandary of waiting or capturing rabbits. I figured you'd be feeding it. I thought about it. I thought about it. But that was kind of cruel and inhumane. Okay, lesson two, and we had worked our way down to question eight.

And what the verses are, kind of interesting, verse three and four, Paul says, I thank God whom I serve with a clear conscience the way my forefathers did. as I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day longing to see you even as I recall your tears so that I may be filled with joy so we talked about last week we talked about what night and day meant, we talked about who Paul's forefathers were, and we thought we allowed that probably his forefathers he meant all the way back to Abraham, which is kind of cool. And then we asked the question, when did Paul first begin to serve? Remember the answer? from the womb. He was a servant from the very get-go.

And then we talked about what was the occasion of the tears mentioned in verse 4 and we looked at Acts 20 verses 37 and 38 when Paul was leaving Ephesus and the elders along with Timothy actually uses the word grieving over the word which he had spoken and they would see his face no more and they were accompanying him to the ship so they took him down to wherever the ship was and they're all emotional I guess you would say about his departure. And so the question eight I asked has to do with verse five. What does this verse reveal to us about the Apostle Paul? And we had just gotten into this.

The Apostle Paul, at least I view him as a really tough guy. Not only, he's mentally tough. And he's single-minded. And he's very pointed about the doctrine. But he also was tender-hearted. And a lot of times you don't look at Paul that way. He doesn't come across, at least initially, as being tender-hearted. But he is. He really is. So there's a combination.

What I like about that is that there's a combination within a believer who can be immovable on the doctrine that they believe, but be tender-hearted at the same time. In other words, it's not a my-way-or-the-highway kind of attitude. We'll see this verse pretty soon in 2 Timothy, where he said that he's persuaded that what he has put in the Lord's hand that the Lord will keep it until that day. He's convinced about the things that he teaches, but that doesn't make him hard. Is that all right? You understand what I'm saying?

So when he says the words, I am mindful, really they translate into our having received a reminder, which means that The incident, I think, of remembering going down and saying goodbye to the elders reminded him about how tender-hearted he was, what an emotional event that was for him. A lot of times when you say you've been with somebody you really love and then you have to, either they leave or you've got to leave, it's hard to do. It's hard to say goodbye.

Mike, I was thinking that, you know, that tender-hearted was towards believers particularly, right? Oh, I didn't think of that. I think so. They were, you know, one body, his children, you know, he had, I think he had just the same love that the Lord had for those that he... Well, and I think within the context, who's he directing his tender heartedness to?

Timothy. Timothy, you know. He's encouraging Timothy tenderly, but he... I mean, it fits within the mold. He doesn't compromise. what his approach is to Timothy in terms of how Timothy ought to conduct himself. He doesn't compromise that because Timothy is a little timid, but he is soft-hearted about how he expresses it and puts it together. So, question nine. The word sincere describes Timothy's faith So how is it described?

The word sincere, I'm not going to read the Greek, it's hupokroniomai. It means to judge under, thus to act beneath a disguise. Now, if you look at the word, it's a, A-N-U-O-P-K-R-I-T-O-S. Whenever there's a Greek word that has an A in front of it, what does it mean? It's a simple grammar rule. It means that word is now a negative. So what he's saying is that to act beneath a disguise, it's like the Greek actors had masks on all the time.

They were called Hupacrates. But if you put an A in front of it, they're not hypocrites. They're genuine. You see that? So the alpha put before the word negates its meaning, thus unhypocritical. That's really what he's saying here. That sincere means he was not hypocritical. Did that make sense? Okay. That's one of those times that one letter changes the whole meaning of the sentence. The letter A. So the true nature of Timothy's faith, how would you describe it then based on this word? He wasn't play-acting. He was sincere. that he had what we would say a sincere faith. He wasn't faking it until he made it.

And I think it's a really important point because a lot of times you learn things from God's word and you can articulate them, but you really don't own them, so to speak, or have a handle on it, so you try to verbalize it so people think that you really own it. But in this case, he's telling Timothy, you have a sincere faith. It's noticeable. I can see it. You're not a hypocrite about it. Is that all right? I had a call from a guy this morning, our buddy Calvin.

He said, I'm on my way to a basketball camp. And I'm supposed to give a 30-minute talk to 60 basketball players, high school. And he said, you know, USA Basketball doesn't, they don't care if you, what you talk about, but he said they're not real big on you being a propagating the Lord Jesus Christ. So what do I say? I said, I have no idea. It's your camp. But we talked about it for about 10 minutes, you know, and I said, well, Calvin, what do you think? What are you about? Tell them about what you're about. And talk about being a servant. You know, talk about the aspects of being a Christian without, you know, you can mention the name of the Lord Jesus, but talk about what that, what those characteristics are like and how it relates to the team sport.

So he got all excited. He said, oh, that's good. I'm going to do that. That's after, I think, he sat down and probably wrote out what he was going to say. But anyway. So when you're in a position like that where you're teaching or coaching or interacting with somebody, you really do want them to understand who you are spiritually without telling them. And that's what Paul is saying about Timothy. You have a sincere faith. Everybody knows what you're about. We know what you're about. Does that come together? Okay.

So, 10, describe this sincere faith that dwelt in Timothy's grandmother and mother. These two women must have been really something. The verse five says, for I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that is in you as well." So look at the influence of these two women. Now think about it, were these women, when Timothy was two years old, four years old, eight years old, were these women Christians?

No, they weren't. They weren't Christians. What were they? They were Jewish. And they were godly Jews. And they were sincere about the faith that they had in Jehovah. And this sincerity means to be at home, it comes from the word oikos, which means home, to live at home. The supernatural faith resident in Timothy was at home in him in the sense that it held free sway over his life, the same way that faith held sway over his mother and grandmother. Not Christianity, because there wasn't any Christianity then. but there were godly people on the earth, especially Jewish people, who believed the Old Testament, we call the Old Testament.

So, don't you find it interesting that here's two Jewish women and what does the Apostle Paul compliment them about? Keeping the law? Doing all the right stuff? No, it's their faith. So weren't they believers though? Eventually they were. Eventually they were, but they're the ones that taught Timothy the Old Testament and taught him about faith. They would go through the scriptures with him and issue his belief. There are Christians, no question about that at this point. But Timothy was, you know, He wasn't brought up in Christianity, he was brought up in Judaism. See that? You know, and there's nothing wrong with that.

I mean, we got to remember that that was the revealed Word of God up to that point in history. And they put their faith in what God had said. And then when they were presented with the message of Jesus Christ, they accepted it. And that's exactly what the Lord intended. And obviously Paul's the guy who gave them the message, you know, about Jesus Christ. So yeah, they're Christians now.

But what he instilled in them, what those ladies instilled in Timothy was the issue of a strong faith. It's the same thing as Back in verse 3 when I thank God I serve in a clear conscience That my forefathers as my forefathers did his forefathers go all the way back to Abraham. They were men of faith That's who they really were That's what Hebrews 11 is all about that's exactly right Hebrews 11 is the Hall of Fame of faith and And so these women are women of faith. And they're teaching Timothy about this thing called faith and belief in the Word of God. And then Paul comes on the scene and gives them the Christian message. And they exercise the same faith in that message as they did in the Old Testament message.

See that? OK. A note I put, mention of his mother and grandmother probably indicates that they had become Christians under the preaching of Paul in his first missionary journey. Probably when it happened. Okay, now he changes horses a little bit in verse 6. For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of hands. So For this reason I remind you. What is the reason for reminding him or remembering?

I'll just back up to verse four and five, and it's all in those verses. Verse four speaks of Timothy's spiritual strength and sincerity of faith. And verse five points to his spiritual heritage. So there's a lot of positive influences on Timothy in terms of what his background is and where he came from. And you know what's interesting, what struck me about these verses as I was spending time in them? You know, we as parents, or whatever kind of influence we have on younger people, they should be able to see this in us. And it's this idea of faith should be transmittable to them.

If you've ever taught children's Sunday school, when you kind of get down to it, it isn't the doctrine. It isn't the words that you say. They're watching you. And do you really believe what you're telling them? And does it play out? You can't fool a nine-year-old. You just can't. You're either real to them or you're faking it. So what Paul is telling Timothy here is, I'm reminding you about who you are, where you came from, and the faith that you have. This is all true of you. I'm not trying to create something that isn't there. This is genuine.

But then he says, There are two reasons why you should rekindle his spiritual gift. Now, it's really interesting when you get to this word rekindle. How would you describe that? What was that activity gonna be like? It would be like if I came to one of you and said, look, I want you to come over and we're gonna work on rekindling your faith. What am I saying? It must need to be kindled. The word kindle is a really interesting word. It means to stoke the fire.

Does that come with a meal? Yeah, it comes with a meal, sure. But, I mean, don't we do that? I do it. You know, if I spot somebody or see something or hear something or have a sense about somebody, I want to spend time with them and see what's going on and see if I can't walk beside them in some manner. See that? So that's what Paul is doing with Timothy. He's stoking the fire. The fire is there, but you need to shake it up a little bit, maybe add a log or two.

Was there some thought there about Timothy being a little on the shy side, that he approached his gift by faith the same way that he approached his belief by faith? Yeah, you know, I get the impression that Timothy was a guy that and we'll see more in a second, that personally believed what he knew.

But he didn't have the confidence, like Paul had, to bring it to you. And if you pushed back or you shied away or something, he would be quiet. when in fact, what he's saying to them, let's rekindle this life that's in you, this fire that's in you, anew so that you keep the blaze going. I think, you know, remembering in 1 Timothy, he was, Paul, encourages him, because of his youth, and he's in amongst a bunch of old brethren, believers, and he's trying to, I'm looking at the mirror myself, and he's encouraging him to, in your youth, don't back down, don't do anything, and kinda, this is the pep talk for him again. And remember, this is also right before, this is Paul's last letter, knowing that he's gonna die soon, he's gonna be martyred. And, you know, this is a pep talk for Timothy.

You know, just remember your faith. And then as we get to the gift of God, and, you know, this is what you're saying with Calvin, you know, to encourage the team. Paul is in, you know, and this is one of his beloved children and is just encouraging him. And you have the gift of God. Remember that. And don't be beat up like in the first letter. Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid of these guys. You're young. You know what you're talking about. And notice that this is in the present tense. It's an infinitive, but it's in the present tense. It means keep on doing this.

So Paul goes off the scene. Now who does Timothy turn to? I remember when... Miles Stanford died, I was praying one day, I said, Lord, the three guys in my life that I always called up when I had, they're all gone, what do I do now? And the answer came back, he said, what about me? You know? And so part of the dynamic of the body of Christ is right here. That we walk beside other believers, what are we doing? We're kindling that fire. You know, because we human beings are living like this all the time. And when we see somebody who, circumstantially or whatever, is kind of in a dip, the best words I've ever read in the Bible for kindling is to walk beside.

You don't lecture. You don't pull them, you don't push them, you walk beside them. That's what it says in Hebrews 11 and 12. Walk beside. And there's a metaphor. That's why it says, let me remind you. It comes across, not a hammering it. You already know this. Hebrews 12 is a metaphor of a marathon race. And everybody, if you've ever run in one of those street races, you know, you always, about halfway through it, you're looking around and there are people slowing down and, you know, and the metaphor is, is if you see a believer slowing down, go over and walk beside him, run beside him.

And, you know, I had a woman one day when I was having a tough time come beside me and she handed me a lemon drop. I put it in my mouth, and boy, you talk about rekindling. That was great. So I think the body of Christ functions that way. Not that we're in everybody's business. It's not that way. You just look around, there's somebody that, oh, I just need to walk beside him, I just need to go and say hello to him, and how's it going, you know, that kind of thing. We're really good at it when everybody has medical problems. We're not so good at it when they get down.

I know, even when I think of our trip to Italy, just with believers, and say, some of the talks we have, or even our Bible study echoes, or something like that, just after the study is done, some of the discussions that we have, that I think is the similar rekindling, or just a refreshing, or coming aside. Or when you meet a believer and you just get refreshed by, you know, out in the world and you find a believer.

Yeah. And how refreshing that is. Yeah. You know, it's just, I think it's that kind of stuff where you just, you're refreshed by a common believer. Now I think this is what Paul is telling them. Just, hey, you know, remember what I've done with you. Remember all the teaching. Remember I've come beside you. Remember that now. Remember it. Be refreshed.

Yeah. I think Bible studies themselves are like that. They are. You know, you may not have to say something. Hey Mike, I was going to say last night at the receptions, this was a Nigerian wedding. Go ahead. Sorry, was that coming through there? Yeah. Yeah, we're good. We can hear you. Okay, sorry. My audio might be bad at the moment. I was just saying, we're talking about kindling the face and mother and grandmother passing on the face and so forth.

We got to this reception yesterday and they get going and everybody starts singing. I wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but the Nigerian guy next to me whispered, he said, we're having a family devotion. He said, this guy's coming around with a microphone and he gets to you and you get to start singing the next song. And it was amazing. He said, this is what we do every night with our families. We just we sing the songs of the faith together and we just go around and people you know, someone starts another one.

And anyway, it was just, it was just pretty neat. You know, that idea of kindling the faith in our children and grandchildren, they're very, very intentional about that. So. That's cool. Kind of cool to see. That's really cool. Mike Paul's been trying to pull that off for three weeks. He keeps trying to get us to sing on Wednesday night and whenever, Tuesday noon. The problem is, is that Zoom doesn't pick up music. No. Anyway.

13. What was the gift given to Timothy? What do you think it was? It was the gift of administration.

So Timothy had a spiritual gift that was given to him by the Holy Spirit. And that gift is designed for Timothy, or whoever has it, to be able to deal with the affairs of a body of believers. So what he's saying is, look, you've got a particular gift from God. And it was determined by the context which speaks of fearfulness. In other words, this gift you got is not something that you demonstrate fearfulness in it. The gift is a gift. The word gift is charis, which means it is a gift.

And the reason Paul knows that he got it is because he was there when he got it. So he's saying to him, and oh, by the way, we're not going to have a session where you have to write down what you think your gift is and you need to stoke the fire. We're not going to do that.

But the point is, is that God has given a gift, a spiritual gift, to every believer. And I think believers ought to know what they are. And they ought to operate within the sphere of what that gift is. And it can be this, maybe you have the gift of picking up trash. I don't know what it is. But you have it. and should know about it. And I'm sure you've all been to spiritual gift Sunday school classes where they handed out a sheet and you had to check off all this stuff and said, well, based on everything you checked off, you have the gift of parking cars. Or driving a bus or whatever.

But in this case, Paul is specifically telling Timothy, you were given this gift. And stoking the fire of that gift is something that should go on all the time. And that translates to us. If you have the gift of teaching, you should be teaching all the time. All the time.

There are two observations made here. about a spiritual gift. First, it was possible for a gift to lie dormant and unused. Does that, do you believe that? For a gift and a believer to lie dormant or not even to be used? I think that's absolutely, you know. And, which means that in order for it to be effective, it has to be used all the time.

All the time. You know, some of all the questions that come up on this, you know, can you have more than one gift? Can the gift change over time? You're gifted in an area early on in your belief. spiritual growth and have another one, you know, or is it one and done and that's all you have and that's all you're supposed to do and, you know, and, you know, a lot when you start analyzing gifts it gets convoluted very fast.

It does. And I think this maybe tells us that when you have a gift and it is an exercise and it goes dormant, then you think, well, I must have another gift. That one isn't working out. No. That's it. You know, that's it. And most of them are pretty simple. You know, they're pretty simple.

I told Calvin this morning, I said, you have the gift of coaching. He does. I said, and oh, by the way, you have the gift of coaching defense. That's his specialty. And what he's trying to do, which I think is really cool, is to incorporate the principles of being a believer into coaching defense. I said, you can do that. Stick with the Lord. He'll have you do that.

Where's that gift listed? Is that in First Californians or what? Yeah. But he's really, I mean, he's a high school teacher and he teaches underperforming kids. And he's a coach. You know? So, if you've ever watched one of his teams play, they're motivated.

He took teams that, well that one team in Hesperia had 12 players, not a single one of them had a father living at home. And they were, you know, throwaway kind of kids. They went to the state finals. He took these 12 kids to the state finals. That's a gift to motivate young men like that.

Last question. Easy question. So it says at the end of this verse, which is in you through the laying on of hands. So the question is, What does the laying on of hands point to? What is it all about? So after class, I'm going to lay hands on, oh, I don't know, Wayne. Better have a reason for that. See, the point is real simple. The laying on of hands doesn't do anything.

The gift is given to you by the Holy Spirit. All the laying on of hands is that I recognize, by putting my hands on you, that you got the gift from Him. Public recognition. You know, we're going to ordain Myles coming up. And we'll put our hands on him and pray for him. What does it say? That God has done this. We're just acknowledging what He's done. Similar in baptism. Same thing. Same thing. Yeah, T. Austin Sparks commented on this, Christ is the head. The laying on of hands, you're the hands of the body, representative of the head. Christ is the one who has done this and you as his body are recognizing it. Yeah, so bottom line to end this up, the whole point of these verses was, is, Don't neglect the spiritual gifts that's within you.

The verb translated neglect literally means to be careless about it. Don't be careless about it. And trust me, the Lord will give you ample opportunity. It'll be there all the time. Okay, let's close. Father, how we thank you for your word, how careful you are for us to learn precisely through your servant Paul about spiritual gifts and how they function within each one of us and how we are not to be careless about them. To trust you to grow in the knowledge and grace of the Lord Jesus so that what you have designed for us would be active all the time. So we thank you for that. We pray in your son's name. Amen.