So, how would you feel if you knew you were writing your very last words? Paul was in a Roman jail awaiting execution. Tradition says that Emperor Nero was blaming the Christians for his burning of Rome.....Paul was suffering undeserved blame, yet he was continuing to share the Gospel..in fact, this great apostle (messenger) was passing the torch....Paul knew his life was almost over. He was proud of the race that he had run. Previous letters tell us that he did not fear death. I wish that I was more like that. I think I am more afraid of the unknown. What do you think about death? Death, the final enemy was defeated when Christ rose from the dead, Scripture tells us.....we have eternal life
I love the verse 1:7
For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self discipline....this was because people were opposed to Timothy's message and his leadership.
Paul want the people to be reminded that quarreling doesn't help....we are not to quarrel over doctrine....that alienates people...this is not the love of the gospel....
Do your best to present yourself to god as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. You KNOW what the word of truth is....Paul lists people that have wandered away from the truth and/or abandoned Paul.
Paul points out that there will be Godlessness in the Last Days.....Jesus Christ started this period of "The Last Days"....we are experiencing some of this now....and this is why we need to know what is in the Bible so that we know when people are not preaching Truth.
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. It is for our own good that we know Scripture, not necessarily to quote it, but to be able to find it.
Look what comes up from the depths of the sea.
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Question: In 4:11, he says "only Luke is with me...Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry." Is Luke in jail also.....I thought he was alone in jail.....and where does he want Timothy and Mark to go?
ReplyDeleteWait, I may have somewhat just answered my own question....when he states, "only Luke is with me"...does that mean only Luke stood with him in following Jesus...that the other disciples stopped following the law of Jesus and believing in God's promise? Help me with this please....confused....
Paul was in jail and facing daath...in chains....but continued to have in faith. My Bible point out that Paul was in jail when he wrote a special verse to me...Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
My Bible also states that he asked Timothy to bring some books with him, "especially the parchments". My Bible says the books may have been the Gospels, and the parchments may have been the Hebrew Scriptures. Knowing the apostle Paul, we may assume that he hungered for copies of the Scriptures. In an hour of great loneliness, the Word of God brings great comfort.
I like 2:11-13 "For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him, If we endure, we shall also reign with him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful: He cannot deny Himself."
In those days, friends and family had to supply prisoners with food and supplies. Luke was the one taking care of the food, and Timothy could bring the written material, apparently. Some scholars speculate that since Luke was a doctor, he was taking care of Paul (remember the thorn that Paul prayed to be delivered from? Some speculate that he had eye issues, no one really knows). People were definitely deserting Paul because the way of the Gospel was hard when you were being persecuted...Emperor Nero was particularly hateful to Christians.
ReplyDeleteafter I posted, I went and checked the authors of the rest of the books we have to read .....sure enough.....this is Paul's last writing.....I was kinda hoping there would be one more.....and when I saw this was it..(even thought you had warned me at the beginning of the blog)...it left me kinda sad.....all he did for Christianity....all he wrote in the Bible....and he dies in jail with chains on.....just left me sad.....
ReplyDeleteI know it...it is so unfair. All the disciples die badly (from an earthly perspective). Tradition says that Peter was crucified and because he didn't want to dishonor Christ, so he was crucified upside down....have I cheered you up?
ReplyDeleteoh yeah.....now I know to call you when I need to be cheered up.....lol......I hope we don't read about that......one thing.....after reading all this.....it makes me want to also learn more of the history of the different times.....what was going on with the places and what life was like and all of the different time periods....
ReplyDeleteYeah, me too...Beth Moore does some of it in her studies, and it always intrigues me about what the people were dealing with and what crazy people were ruling at the time.
ReplyDelete