Who, When, Where

Written by Paulus (Paul). Paulus was originally a fanatical Pharisee, persecuting, imprisoning, and even killing Christians for teaching what he thought was heresy, that Yeshua was the Anointed, (The Jewish Messiah). After meeting Yeshua in a miraculous way on the road to Damascus, Paulus became not just a Christian but one of Christianity’s most fervent preachers and teachers. He spent most of his life as an itinerant missionary, with all the life threatening perils that that brought with it, to the towns and cities which lay along the route between Jerusalem and Rome. Paulus died in Rome somewhere in the 60’sAD, and he wrote most of the letters which we have in the New Testament.
Almost certainly Paulus wrote this just before he died, while he was in house arrest in Rome in 66 or 67AD.
Paulus wrote this letter from Rome, where he was under house arrest and had been abandoned by many of his group of fellow workers.

Summary

Paulus knows that his time on the planet is drawing to an end. This is probably going to be the last time he ever writes to Timotheos.
What will he say? What final advice will he give?

Before You Read

What advice would you give a young Christian about false teachers?
How should they treat others who want to learn?
How should they treat others who don’t want to learn?

Have you ever gotten into a full on argument with someone about a Bible truth?
Did you win?

How close to the end times do you think our society is?

If you knew you were going to die in a week, what kind of letter would you write to your disciples, or your children?

Key Verses

2 Timothy 1:6

For this reason, I remind you to rekindle the endowment of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

How is God’s gift to you functioning? On fire? Raging? Just smouldering? Only a hint of smoke? Out?
Rekindle it. Embrace it with passion. You know that you will only feel satisfaction with yourself when you do.

2 Timothy 1:7

For God didn’t give us a spirit of cowardice, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

God didn’t give Timotheos a spirit of timidity. You either. God makes you brave. I was SO shy before I was a Christian. Now it’s hard to shut me up.
Be brave. God is standing with you. How can you possibly fail!

2 Timothy 1:9

who saved us, and who called us to a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Anointed Yeshua before times everlasting

What an incredible statement. You were saved in Yeshua before the world was created. Before you even had a chance to earn it. (Or lose it).
Your salvation is 100% based on what Yeshua has already done, and 0% dependent on anything that you have or will do.

2 Timothy 1:12

I know in whom I’ve trusted, and I’m persuaded that he’s able to guard what I’ve entrusted to him until that day.

Who are you trusting? Are they reliable?
You might trust me with your wallet. You might trust me with your life. But the message of the Bible is that you can trust Yeshua with your eternal life.

2 Timothy 2:2

The things which you heard from me, along with many witnesses — commit these things to faithful people who’ll also be competent to teach others.

Discipleship has always been part of God’s plan for reaching the world. Discipling your children was even laid down in the Law, (Deuteronomy 6). 
Pass what you know on to others in such a way that they will be able to pass it on to others.

2 Timothy 2:4

Nobody doing military service entangles themselves in the affairs of life…

You cannot serve two masters. If you work for Yeshua you must serve only Yeshua and not be caught up in the affairs of the world.

2 Timothy 2:7

Consider what I say, for the lord may give you understanding in all things.

As Paulus also said in 1 Corinthians 2:14 - the man without the spirit cannot understand spiritual things, because they are spiritually discerned. 
If you don’t understand something - you must ask the holy spirit to explain it to you. You will never be able to understand it in your own intelligence.

2 Timothy 2:14

Remind them of these things, earnestly pleading with them in the sight of the lord, not to be warring about words, which results in nothing useful, to the subversion of those who hear.

So we’re obligated to remind them, but if it degenerates to a war of words, … walk away.. That kind of “debate” doesn’t benefit anyone. 
”Walk away” is difficult teaching, and many Christians struggle to accept that this could be the right thing to do. But this is definitely what Paulus is teaching, here and in other places.

2 Timothy 2:15

Be diligent to present yourself approved by God, a worker having no cause for shame, cutting the message of truth in a straight line.

You are responsible for you. I’m not. So do your best to present yourself well. Do your homework. Get to know what the Bible says. Learn to find the truth in an argument. Study.

2 Timothy 2:16-17

But give a wide berth to profane idle talk, for it’ll lead to further ungodliness 17and their message will spread like gangrene.

Profane talk is just talk about non-spiritual stuff. It’s basically a waste of time. A little small talk to get to know someone is OK, but if all you talk about every time you meet is sport, or the weather, or some computer game… then it’s time for you to change the topic. You don’t have to be offensive, but talk about important stuff. Ask their opinion. Share yours. Stop wasting your time.

2 Timothy 2:22

Flee youthful desires, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the lord from a clean heart.

We don’t have to defeat sin. Yeshua already did that. So stop fighting it and just run away.
Don’t go to places that lead you to sin. Don’t stay in a circumstance that makes sin easy.
Run.

2 Timothy 2:24-25

A slave of the lord mustn’t quarrel, but be gentle toward all, good at teaching, forbearing, educating those who oppose with gentleness.

When you’re teaching someone who doesn’t get it, or doesn’t want to… be gentle, don’t start a quarrel, be gracious, be respectful.
A gentle answer turns away wrath.

2 Timothy 3:1-5

In the last days there’ll be difficult times. For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, arrogant, speakers of evil, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, without natural affection, implacable, slanderers, without self-control, wild, not loving goodness, betrayers, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a resemblance of devoutness but disowning its power.

Does that sound like where you live? It sounds like here. Maybe it’s been like that for a long time. But to me it seems to be getting worse. People seem less respectful, more self centered, more driven by pleasure.
And even church seems to be more and more shallow, more and more worldly. It resembles devoutness, but it has no power.

2 Timothy 3:12

All those who want to live devoutly in Anointed Yeshua will be persecuted.

If you want to be devout, spiritual, holy… you will be persecuted. There is a price. Are you willing to pay it? Or are you going to be a chameleon Christian who blends in so well with the world that nobody even knows.
We used to worry about wolves in sheep’s clothing infiltrating the church. These days we need to worry about sheep in wolves’ clothing living in the world.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

All the writing is God breathed, and beneficial for teaching, for conviction, for correcting, and for training in righteousness, so that the person of God may be complete, having been thoroughly prepared for every good work.

The Bible has all the answers. It also has all the questions. Read it.
40 authors wrote down what God was breathing out to them.
Get to know it. It’s useful. It can correct you. It can rebuke you. But all this happens for a positive purpose. To equip you, as a person of God, to do the good things which have been prepared for you to do.

2 Timothy 4:3

A time is coming when sound teaching won’t be tolerated, but according to their own desires they’ll heap up teachers to themselves who tickle their ears.

Paulus repeats this message. In the last days people will surround themselves with teachers who teach only what they want to hear.
Don’t we see that happening already! You can pretty much find a church which will teach whatever falsehood you want to justify. Gay marriage is OK, greed is good, God has no standards of behaviour.

2 Timothy 4:5

But you, be sober in all things, suffer, do the work of a good news bringer, fulfil your service.

A good news bringer. More traditionally, an evangelist.
This is an instruction for Timotheos, not for everyone who reads this letter that Paulus wrote to his disciple.
We are NOT all evangelists.. This was Tinotheos’ gift, and his responsibility to make it a priority in his life.
What is your gift? Are you focused on it? Are you training yourself up in it to become better at it? Are you doing the work?

2 Timothy 4:20

I left Trophimus behind in Miletus, ill.

Paulus, the super apostle, the guy who could heal people by letting them touch his handkerchief. That guy, left behind one of his fellow workers… sick.
Clearly he had a reason. It wasn’t because he didn’t know how to heal him. But perhaps because God needed to teach Trophimus something, and being sick was the only way.
God cares more about your character than your comfort, or your health.
And this one verse is proof all by itself that even though many many people were healed in the Bible, and I have personally seem many people healed, even myself several times - God does not always heal Christians.

After You Read

What verses really stood out to you?

How would you summarize this book in a sentence or two? What is it about? What is God trying to say to us?

Do you need to change your topics when you talk with others?
Do you need to change your attitude too?
Are you a bit too agressive?

How much to you trust Yeshua? 100%?
Or are you more the sort of person who likes to cover different possiblities. And you want to live as good a life in your own effort in case the Yeshua thing doesn’t work out?

What is your gift? Are you using it?