Title: To the Faithful
Contents Bible text: 2 Timothy 2:1-7 Title: To the faithful
1. “Ask people what you have heard from me.”
Verse 2: “And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to the faithful ones…”
The apostle Paul told Timothy, the son of faith, in verse 1
After encouraging them to ‘be strong in the grace that is in Jesus’,
In this verse, Paul tells others to “entrust” the truth of the gospel that he learned from himself.
I am commanding. “Ask people what you hear from me” means
It means to find someone to take charge of the truth of the gospel and to train and nurture him.
This refers to the ministry of making disciples.
Saints! The succession of the gospel ministry must start with making disciples.
The apostle Paul raised Timothy to be a good worker.
“Again, what you… hear from me… ask people.”
Over the years, Paul and Timothy developed a bond as they ministered together.
Trust, love, and personal acquaintance grew thick between the two.
He was determined to invest his life in him.
He accompanied Timothy, teaching and admonishing, and at times independent of him.
He also entrusted the ministry.
In Philippians 2:19 and below, Paul the prisoner took his place.
Sending Timothy to the Philippian church, referring to Timothy
He said, “He labored with me for the gospel as a child does with a father.”
To Timothy, the Apostle Paul said, “Entrust to others what you have heard of me.”
are instructing.
This means ‘what I have learned from me, I can now trust
Pass it on to someone, and invest your life in him.” In other words,
‘Timothy, as I have met you and have been working with you until now, as I have taught you.
It is a command to make new disciples and nurture them.”
Timothy saw and learned almost every aspect of the apostle Paul.
“My teaching, my conduct, my intentions, my faith, my patience, my love, my patience, my persecution,
suffering and suffering, and also in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra,
Surely you saw and knew that you were persecuted, but in all these things the Lord
delivered me” (2 Timothy 3:10-11).
Disciple-making is not just about imparting knowledge.
It is to convey character, and to make it resemble oneself.
If we could see Paul and Timothy up close at the same time now,
Timothy must have been very much like the apostle Paul.
Now, the gospel ministry must continue from us to the next generation.
To this end, we must all listen to the Lord's commands.
“And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to the faithful ones…”
2. It says, “Ask the faithful.”
Verse 2: “And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to the faithful ones…”
The emphasis of this verse is that it is the ‘loyal people’ who are to be asked.
The success or failure of disciple-making depends on these two words. advancing the boat
At the heart of the process is finding loyal ones.
God is also looking for such a person.
“The eyes of the Lord go through all the earth, to look upon him with all his heart,
He gives power for them.” (2 Chron. 16:9).
What is a ‘faithful man’ (Pistos andropos)?
Literally translated, it means ‘faithful person’ or ‘trustworthy person’.
Finding and making disciples who are trustworthy to entrust the truth of the gospel is
It is the most important starting point for the world vision of Jesus.
In verses 3-6, three parables are given about the faithful person.
The first is the parable of the soldier.
“Suffocate with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (verse 3).
A faithful person is one who endures hardship like a soldier.
The saints make people forget their status as soldiers of Christ.
You must resolutely give up your personal life.
The second is the parable of the player.
“Unless those who compete do not compete according to the law, they will not receive the victor's crown” (verse 5).
A loyal person is like a player who follows the rules of the game,
Do your best by keeping the word of God and the teachings of the church.
A person who engages in a spiritual game. Such a person will be crowned with pride,
Immortal crown, crown of life, crown of glory,
You will receive the crowns of righteousness.
The third is the parable of the farmer.
“The toiling farmer ought to receive the grain first” (verse 6).
A faithful person is like a sweaty farmer looking for a bountiful harvest.
In season and out of season, to those who toil and toil and sow the seeds of the gospel,
There are spiritual fruits that have been changed by the sown word, and there is a precious reward in heaven.
I am waiting.
Saints! This kind of faithful person is what God is looking for.
God picks up such people and uses them in a useful way for the work of the kingdom of God.
Are you persevering in hard training like the soldiers of Christ?
Have you ever neglected your duties given by the Lord because of your busy life?
Are you longing for the Word of God?
Have you ever discovered a new word of truth and rejoiced all night long?
Are you prepared to make sacrifices so that God's will may be done in your life?
Are you sweating with your time, material, and effort?
Our God is looking for faithful people.
The succession of the gospel ministry is made through faithful people.
May we all be recognized as faithful by the Lord.
I bless you in Jesus name.
3. “They will be able to teach others”.
Verse 2: “And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to the faithful ones.
They will be able to teach others.”
This stage is the climax of the disciple-making process.
Here are four spiritual generations.
[Paul --> Timothy --> Faithful People --> Others]
All four generations have the faith, character, and passion of a faithful person.
The disciple-making process does not take place in the classroom.
This means that the learner can use the real life experience of the teacher's beliefs, character, and
It is to learn passion, to grow, and to have the ability to reproduce.
Saints! The process of doubling is simple.
But actually, as in the case of Paul, he raised Timothy to make Timothy
Raise loyal people so that they can nurture others - - -
Dear saints,
In the case of salmon, the price for a double is ‘death’.
Salmon swim upstream, lay their eggs in the sand and die.
A grain of wheat must die to reproduce.
This is the law of the grain of wheat established by God.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, a grain of wheat falls to the ground.
Unless it dies, it remains as a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24).
The initial stages of doubling are slow and difficult.
When Paul first met Timothy, he devoted a lot of time and effort to raising him as a minister. Paul overcame difficulties with an amazing vision through Timothy. Each of us must have a vision for ‘my Timothy’ and invest time and effort.
Saints!
Today's churches know this principle and this Lord's method, but with various excuses
In fact, they are showing negligence in the Lord's Great Commission.
Our most frequent excuses are lack of time, talent, finances, and location.
But what was the situation when Jesus gave this command?
The disciples at that time were poor people who had nothing.
But the Lord did not say anything while looking at the circumstances.
It is not “Jerusalem or maybe Judea…”
He said, “Jerusalem, and all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Saints! The modern need lies in ‘people’.
We need dedicated soldiers.
We need reproducers who raise disciples like ourselves.
“I cannot but tell what I have seen and heard”
We need people who speak boldly.
Those who follow Jesus are now fishing for people.
Because Jesus Himself promised.
“Follow me. I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19).
The Lord raised up faithful ones in the past and entrusted them with the gospel.
And the gospel has been passed down to us through the four spiritual generations.
Now it's our turn.
We must now ask ourselves a question.
Who is my Paul? who I should be taught,
Who is the loyal person who helps me become a productive disciple-maker?
Where is my Timothy? He who I help make productive disciples
Where is the faithful man who should be?
When all the members of our church can honestly and positively answer the above questions,
Our church will be the ideal church that Jesus is pleased with,
It will be a church close to the very church Jesus spoke of.
Soli Deo Gloria! Glory only to God!