Preaching
and teaching the word is the Antidote
Insights from 2 Timothy 4:1-5
“I charge you
therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and
the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season
and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and
teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but
according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap
up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth,
and be turned aside to fables.” 2 Timothy 4
A
few weeks ago God spoke to me from 2 Timothy 4. Since that time I keep seeing
it everywhere, it seems. Every time I read it I find more and more treasure.
Here are some insights.
First of all, 2
Timothy 4 seems to be a conclusion or summary of the first chapters. For
example 1:6-7 Paul talks about Timothy’s gift, while encouraging him that fear
is not of God. Why did Paul say that? Persecution comes as we preach the truth
(2 Timothy 4:5).
And what about
preaching the truth? Paul expounds that preaching the truth includes telling
people when they are wrong and convincing them otherwise. (2 Timothy 4:2) This
is fulfilling his ministry—telling people when they are wrong. We can find this
also in 2 Timothy 2:24-26 “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be
gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in
opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know
the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the
devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.”
2 Timothy 4:3
sounds like 2 Timothy 3:1-9 talking of the condition of mankind in the end-times.
Here are some
further insights:
Ø Jesus will judge
the dead and the living at His appearing (this word is only used 6 times: of
the return of Christ—5 times and His first coming—1 time.)
Ø His Kingdom is
also at this time.
· That means when
we are told to pray “Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in
heaven.” we are literally being told, by God, to pray for wrapping up this age so
that the Millennium reign of King Jesus will come. At that time King Jesus will
literally sit on the Throne of David and rule the earth from New Jerusalem.
Ø In view of this
we are to
· “Keep our sense
of urgency” and
· “Preach the word
in season or out of season”
¨ Preaching the
words means: (Greek Lexicon)
This
will not sit well with those who think Jesus is always “nice Jesus” speaking in
soft mono-toned voice, hands folded, saying “just love and get along; unity is
what we want. Don’t cause division by your doctrine.”
·
Convince:
to convict, refute, confute—generally with a suggestion of shame of the person
convicted, by conviction to bring to the light, to expose; to find fault with,
correct, by word, to reprehend severely, chide, admonish, reprove, to call to
account, show one his fault, demand an explanation
·
Rebuke:
to admonish or charge sharply
·
Exhort:
to call to one’s side for the purpose of straightening them out verbally. It
includes entreating, begging, encouraging, comforting, all the way to admonishing.
·
With
longsuffering and teaching: denotes constancy and endurance in teaching to
convince others of the truth concerning doctrine.
¨ Why urgently preach and teach the word?
Preaching and teaching the word is the Antidote
Preaching and teaching the word is the Antidote
“For the time
will come when they will not endure <hold up> sound doctrine
<teaching>.” Why? “Because they have itching ears according to their own
desires.” Due to this they will:
·
heap
up for themselves teachers that tell them what they want to hear
·
and
turn their ears away from true doctrine and instead they will
·
be
turned aside to fables <fiction, myths>.
Ø But you be
watchful in all things, endure afflictions (maybe added because afflictions
come as the truth is preached), do the work of an evangelist (Timothy’s
calling), fulfill your ministry (probably reference to 2 Timothy 1:6-7).
