Passing on the Faith.2 Timothy 2:1-2.
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
Dear Ambassadors of the Risen Lord,
The purpose of this letter is to encourage Timothy in ministry. Paul gives him instructions on how to succeed in this venture.
Might (v. 1).In order to be effective in any work, one needs to be strong. Spiritual strength is supplied by the grace of God in Christ Jesus. If we go out in our own strength, we will fail. We must depend on the strength that God gives.
Message (v. 2a). The gospel had been taught to Timothy in public, with many witnesses present. This emphasizes to Timothy the public expectations with regard to his ministry. Being faithful and true is not just about us and God, it is also about all those around us who know of our faith and who would be affected by our success or failure.
Management (v. 2b). Timothy is to entrust the gospel to faithful men. Not all men will be faithful. We need to be selective because we can entrust treasure to people who will squander it.
Multiplication (v. 2c). It is a terrible waste for a person to sit on the good news of salvation and not deliver it to the sinners who need it. Someone did the arithmetic and reckoned that if each believer were to lead one person to Christ every year and train the new believer to do the same, in the first year there would be two, four in the second, eight in the third, and sixteen in the fourth. This is what mathematicians call exponential growth. It would take less than 33 years to reach the 7 billion people in the world today! Let us each invest in another person and help them to know Christ and make him known.
Your Loving Pastor Chris.