2 Timothy 4:9-22

Follow Up Questions:

Questions: This week’s discussion is more reflective than usual. Take some time to consider each of the following questions throughout the week as you review the scriptures that we have studied, prayed, discussed and wrestled our way through. (For a really thorough experience, read through them all again.)

Come with two or three of the most significant insights that you have had as we have studied through Paul over these past three years. How has your life changed in response to this knowledge? Come to group prepared to share your responses.

Now what? How do you feel you are being led to move forward in continued obedience to the Spirit’s direction?

Here is the order in which we have studied the letters:
Galatians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Romans, Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians, Philippians, 1 Timothy, Titus, 2 Timothy
 

2 Timothy 4:9...

9 Do your best to come to me quickly, 10 for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry. 12 I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13 When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, and my scrolls, especially the parchments.
14 Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15 You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
16 At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17 But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Final Greetings

19 Greet Priscilla and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. 20 Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. 21 Do your best to get here before winter. Eubulus greets you, and so do Pudens, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers and sisters.
22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all.

2 Timothy 3:10 - 4:8

Follow Up Questions & Leaders Notes:

2 Timothy 3:10 ...

10 You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11 persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12 In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13 while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

1.  This is one of those sections that presents the challenge of both a list and a familiar verse.  Instead of getting bogged down in the list or assuming we know what verse 16 means, let’s look at the passage with an eye on the story it is part of.  In the midst of his imprisonment and in anticipation of the difficult days ahead for Timothy, how does Paul encourage Timothy to pursue a godly life?

2.  How might the Old Testament Scriptures “make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus”?

2 Timothy 4 ...

1 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.

3.  A problem with Paul is that he often describes people in ways they would never describe themselves, particularly when he is offering a rebuke of them.  Read these verses and consider the possibility that you have become the sort of person Paul is describing in vv. 3-4.  How might someone like a Timothy who is following Paul’s admonitions in vv. 2 & 5 impact you?

6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

4.  We are at the end of Paul’s story.  Describe your response to Paul’s apparent peace and resolve.  How will your story end?

2 Timothy 2:14-3:9

Scripture & Follow Up Questions:

2 Timothy 2...

14 Keep reminding God’s people of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 16 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have departed from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some. 19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”
20 In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use. 21 Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.
22 Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23 Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25 Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,26 and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

2 Timothy 3...

1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.
6 They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 7 always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. 8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9 But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone.

Notes: This week we are going to approach our study in a little different manner. We have to start with remembering the context of an overriding expectation that Jesus was going to come back in the very near future. And His return couldn’t happen soon enough for most people as the persecution was a very current reality. This served to make these issues of the utmost priority. But what about us? Without the “pressure” of an ever present expectation of both persecution and deliverance, how do we live lives that are profitable? That stay on the path? That are pursuing in the right direction?

One way is to stop and reflect, to honestly take stock of where our actions, attitudes, & affections are leading us? How do we see ourselves reflected back in the eyes of others? How is it affecting our relationship with God?

1. Take the entire text and list the things that we should flee from and the things we should pursue.
2. Now note the effects of these things (really not rocket science, is it?)
3. Finally, take some time to look at how your own affections, attitudes and actions line up with what you see in the text. What you are fleeing from and what are you pursuing in various areas of your life? What are you experiencing as a result?

2 Timothy 1:13 - 2:13

2 Timothy 1:13...

13 What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. 14 Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. 15 You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. 17 On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. 18 May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus.

1. Here Paul refers to two individuals (negatively) and one household (positively). Does it seem unfair for Paul to be “calling out” the ones who deserted him? What does this say about the importance of community in the life of any individual?
 

2 Timothy 2...

1 You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.

* Personal Application: Not all of us are called to teach as a vocation or in front of large groups, but all of us teach. Take some time to really consider who you are teaching and what they are learning.

3 Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer. 5 Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules. 6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.

2. Paul gives Timothy three metaphors for him to emulate as a faithful follower of Jesus. Let’s consider the implications of each them.

2.a. What are the primary characteristics of a soldier?
2.b. What about those of an athlete?
2.c. What benefit does Paul use to describe role of a farmer?

3. Now, how do these characteristics and benefits help us grow in grace and gain insight from God?

Additional thought to Contemplate: Richard Foster writes about the problem most modern Christians have with the concept of “wrestling with” or struggling to understand God.

“Our difficulty is due, in part, to our culture’s inability to reconcile struggle with love. We assume a loving relationship by its very nature must be peaceful and harmonious, and yet even on a human level those things we care about most deeply we argue for the most passionately. Struggle is consistent with love, for it is an expression of our caring.” ~ Prayer by Richard Foster.

Bonus: How do each of these metaphors represent struggle?
 

8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. 10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

4. Paul gives a quick summary of “his” gospel, he thing for which he is suffering. What is it? How does it line up to what you consider the gospel?


11 Here is a trustworthy saying:
  If we died with him,
  we will also live with him;
12 if we endure,
  we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
  he will also disown us;
13 if we are faithless,
  he remains faithful,
  for he cannot disown himself.

5. On the surface, this passage can present a serious problem. It might appear that everything hangs on our actions and our ability to be faithful. But when we go back and read just a few verses back in chapter 1:9 we see Paul’s assurance that our faith is in Jesus and not our own actions. How can we reconcile these apparent contrasts?

2 Timothy 1:1-12

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,
2 To Timothy, my dear son:
  Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

1.  Given what we know about Paul’s situation as he writes this letter, what do you suppose Paul means by “in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus”?

3 I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4 Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

2.  Even at this early stage in Christian history (less than 35 years after the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus), there are families developing a heritage of faith.  How can we do the same?


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 the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 8 So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. 9 He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10 but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 11 And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.12 That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.

3.  Talk about the significance of Paul’s words in vv. 6-8 in light of their historical context.

4.  Consider the connection between what Paul teaches in vv. 9-10 with the confidence he expresses in v. 12.  How does Paul’s belief produce that confidence?