Tag: Timothy

Fatherly Advice

Today’s Reading II Timothy Chapters 1 & 2

Throughout our lives, hopefully we have had the opportunity to interact with our parents. These relationships with our parents can vary from each individual and sometimes differ in our own families.  This past weekend, many families were able to gather and celebrate with each other.  This season of holidays can sometimes be fun and merry, but it can also be difficult and painful.  Sometimes our past and current relationships with our parents can be joyful and beneficial, but sometimes they can have sorrow and pain associated with them.

Currently the relationships that I have with my mother and father are good.  Over the years we have had our differences, but we are at a place where we can each respect each other and our differences.  I know that I might be in the minority of where I have a meaningful and understanding relationship with both of my parents, but I have had to work diligently for years to cultivate these bonds with my mom and my dad. For the last several years I have intentionally worked on these relationships by increasing my communication with them on a more regular basis. I also have an understanding between them that we are all adults and we can be beneficial to each other and not have any negative feelings towards each other for any infraction on anything.

As a child I understood that my parents had the best interest in mind, but my young mind would not be able to comprehend this at that time. As a father I am seeing the same predicament play out with my children as well. Sometimes the children cannot fully understand the choices and decisions that we have to make as adults for their best interest. But as they grow and as I have grown I have seen the emotional toll that it takes older adults to make these hard decisions and that’s part of being a parent.

All these years of listening and being mentored by my father I have had some amazing words of wisdom and fatherly advice. Here are a couple that I can remember :

  • Don’t take any wooden nickels
  • Everything in the mind doesn’t have to come out the mouth
  • This ol’ world is a mean ol world, Cheer a man up in his sorrow, you might be down tomorrow.
  • You know where you came from, but you don’t know where you are going
  • Not every day can be sunny, prepare for a rainy day and keep your umbrella handy.
  • Everyone has the potential to be a thorn, but not everyone can show their inner flower.

We have been given a glimpse of some of these words of wisdom and Fatherly Advice from Paul to Timothy in this book. As we continue to review Paul’s letters and dive deeper into his message to the nine different churches and to his closest friends and associates we come to the letters that he wrote to Timothy. These letters to Timothy are some of the most personal letters that he has written in our Bible to this point. These are personal messages from a father to a son, that we have a glimpse into their relationship. At this point in their lives Paul is a prisoner under house arrest in Rome and Timothy is the principle leader for the church of Ephesus. To see the full extent of their relationship we have to go back to their beginning.

Their Journey started in Acts chapter 16 where Paul meets Timothy in Lystra and Iconium.

Acts 16: 1- 5 : Paul[a] came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers[b] at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.

At this point Paul takes Timothy as a disciple and a son. From biblical references it is assumed that Timothy is about 16. When Paul is writing the this letter to Timothy it is assumed that is about 14 years after their journey began,  so Timothy would be approximately 30 to 40 years old.To see the full picture of the letter you have to understand the relationship between Paul and Timothy. 

Paul has been a mentor and a father figure to Timothy for more than half his life. When we were introduced to Timothy, his father was not mentioned.  The other part of their relationship is that we have to assume that they are communicating to each other on a regular basis. We are only giving a glimpse of some of the communications. They could have thousands of letters written back-and-forth between each other during these times. We have been gifted with a couple of letters between the two. 

In these two letters we can see that Timothy is like us: we are adults but we still need help and assistance from our mentors and our elders. Timothy is one of the leaders or the main leader of one of the largest churches in Asia and needs help. Sometimes we need help. Sometimes we need to know how to ask for help. Sometimes we need to know how to use the help. Sometimes we need to just listen. There are several places in these two chapters that Paul is giving Timothy some sound advice.

II Timothy: 

1: 2-6;9

2 To Timothy, my beloved child:

Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

3 I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. 4 As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. 5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control…..who saved us and called us to[a] a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,

II Timothy 2: 4-7

No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

16-17

 But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, 17 and their talk will spread like gangrene.

20-21

Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. 21 Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable,[d] he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.

22-25

So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. 23 Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. 24 And the Lord's servant[e] must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness.

Each on of these pieces that Paul is guiding Timothy with is still valid today in our society.  These are nuggets that Paul is giving his son in how to work with the people in the church and for the body of Christ.  

As we review these points, let us ask ourselves how we are engaging with each other on a spiritual level. One exercise that we could do is write a letter to our father or mother or a mentor.  

What will we say to them? What words of advice would we tell them how we are using their advice? What will we write to a son or a daughter or someone that we mentor to give them advice about what’s going on? How is God using us in our relationships to be encouraging? 

Have a blessed week.

No condemnation

Today’s Reading: Acts 15 and 16
Over the last couple years, Jillian and I have made time for our kids on Friday nights with a movie night. One of the most recent movie nights we chose the movie “The bridge to Terabithia“. I had seen this movie several years ago and we’ve read the book as well. But when you’re seeing it with your children again, you see it with different eyes. The book and the movie tells a story about a friendship and relationship between a new girl, Leslie, at school and an outcast boy, Jesse. Throughout the course of the story, they become really good friends. At one point in the story the young girl asked to go to church with a family of her new friend.
Leslie’s experience from the church experience was jubilant and excited she was so excited about hearing the gospel of Jesus. But in the same moment the Jesse’s sister tells Leslie that if she didn’t believe a certain way that she would be “Damned to Hell“. But the Leslie how couldn’t believe a loving God be could be so condemning. !!!Warning spoiler alert!!!!!As the story progress. The girl has an accidental death not long after her visit to church. And the boy is heartbroken and questions will she go to heaven or hell since she didn’t have a relationship with Jesus.
This revelation was a hard revelation to see with the kids in this movie. The kids asked how did the child die? They asked what was going to happen to her? And I had to reassure them that she was going to be OK. They have a solid foundation in Christ and we have had several times that someone in our lives have died and transitioned to the eternal life.
This week’s reading in Acts 15 and 16 highlights some very critical perspectives that we have in the church. This interaction in the first chapter brings Paul and Peter together.
Acts15:1-2;7-11

But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question.
7 And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, 9 and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. 10 Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”
This interaction shows how some mentalities or perspectives are about condemnation or about punishment. But both of them Peter and Paul wants to show the compassion of Christ not condemnation of the spirit. In this particular situation we are shown compassion and love of Christ that we should share the gospel with everybody no matter what. There are no stipulations that we need to enforce in order to share the gospel of Christ. We don’t have to go to the old ways of connecting with God. We have a new mediator through Christ to intercede for us on our behalf. We don’t have to fear anymore about condemnation because when we accept Christ at any point in our journey on this earth: birth, life or death; Jesus will accept us without any stipulations. He loves us unconditionally.
In the second story we are also shown how Christ interceding for us does not promote condemnation. Christ longs for compassion a relationship with us.
Acts 16: 25-30

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer[e] called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
In the second chapter we are presented with Lydia and the officer in the jail. Christ could have allowed Paul to escape with the guard killing himself. But Christ gave compassion to Paul and to the officer. By showing his compassion he actually saved the all the prisoners and the guard and the guard’s family. In the compassion of Christ we see how the relationships are built and how they can grow. But when we focus on the condemnation of people this stops our relationships, that stops progression, that stops love.
In the these scenarios we are not to see how condemnation will bring Christ to us, but we are shown the compassion of Christ in some of the most tense intense times in the new church. We have this same spirit that Paul and Peter had during this first church. The Holy Spirit that allows us to be compassionate to one another over rules any of the potential condemnation of our past. No matter where we are in our life we can always come back to Christ. He is such a Benevolent father that he continuously wipes away all of our sins and all of our hurts, and all of our pains, and wants to give us love and compassion. If he can do this and we are in him we have to work diligently to give more compassion than condemnation.
Be blessed