2 Timothy "Commit to Faithful Men"
Each book in the Bible gently guides God's people into a more intimate relationship with their Creator, as He knows must occur, for His people to receive Him in the depth of the relationship that He purchased for them. Each day we are covering, in sequential order, one of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament and explaining how each of them is revealing God in a more intimate way than has been given to this point in the scriptures.
Today is the sixteenth day of the series, “The Progressive Revelation of Jesus Christ” and the book is, 2 Timothy, the sixteenth book in the New Testament as it appears in our Bible. 2 Timothy is a follow-up letter written to the leader of churches in Ephesus, and covers a limited revelation of all aspects of God’s people’s time and place of being chosen and set apart from the world, what people who are not of God will do, and the meaning and purpose of scripture in the lives of God’s people.
The first statement I’d like to highlight that Paul makes is, “Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:” In another book before this one in the Bible, it says, “He chose us in Him before…”, this says, “Which was given us in Christ Jesus before…”, and later in another book of the Bible, it says, “Who verily was foreordained before the foundation… “that your faith and hope might be in God.” God is revealing to His people who He is and who Jesus Christ is, when the action occurred, and where and why His people’s faith and hope should be focused.
The next thing that I will point out is when Paul instructs Timothy to do, “…commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” This is the first time in the “Church Age” that anyone had been instructed to raise up other teachers. The “Great Commissions” did not give instructions to do this, but we all know it is certainly the effect of people receiving the gospel; however, Paul tells Timothy “to commit to faithful men” what he had received so they would be able to multiply the efforts of bringing the gospel to as many people as possible. This is the same thing that God is telling His people today, “Find faithful people and commit the things that you have learned that they can teach others also.” And the amazing thing about this statement is, we have not gone all the way through the scriptures, yet we are already being told to go and do this. God knows that His people only know as they have it revealed to them, and He sends them on their mission to accomplish what they have been sent to do. God knows what His people need to know and has already given it to them before and as they go, even if they probably do not realize they have it until they need it.
Paul then tells God’s people, “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come….Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”; therefore, dividing His people further from false believers. Christianity is a real relationship with the Creator, and actions that are against Him are not acceptable in the faith. This seems to be fundamental and extremely basic in nature, but many “Christian” doctrines of false Christianity of today are all accepting and not separated from the world in any way. The Bible clearly teaches and instructs the Church to be separated from the world’s ways of living and to be the pure of God.
Paul continues by saying, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” It is and has been, understood by God’s people that His word is the foundational material for His people to live by, but this is the first time He has anyone to write it plainly for His people to receive it in the clarity that this verse has given it to His people. Many people when Paul wrote this letter to Timothy were apparently questioning the scripture and desiring to do away with it, just like people are today, but it is not permissible by God to dismiss or disregard any scripture, and that is why God had Paul write it as plainly as he did in this scripture.
Paul further warns God’s people by writing, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” God has set us up for victory again. He first tells us that scripture is the way to be “perfect, throughly furnished” and now is giving this warning. God wants His people to know what is coming and not be turned away from Him, like He knows other people will be, because they have not received the truth from Him, but are led by others since they don’t know what the truth is through receiving God’s word. This is also revelational and not found in the New Testament before this point in the Bible.
The examples in this blog are only a limited sample of the deepening relational revelation described through the letter of “2 Timothy” which include committing the gospel to faithful men, covers a limited revelation of all aspects of God’s people’s time and place of being chosen and set apart from the world, what the people who are not of God will do, and the meaning and purpose of scripture in the lives of God’s people.
The intent of the blog is to demonstrate the difference in the revelation that God gives to His people as they intently follow Him and focus on what He has told them through their individual lives and the revelation they’ve received through the Holy Spirit and His Holy Bible.