God's Word for Me Today
Friday, September 28, 2001
Focus: Our Mission With The World
A note about online study
Introduction to God's Word for Me Today
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, this day give me a Spirit of power, love and self-discipline that I may be bold in sharing Your Good News with the world; compassionate in sharing it with others, and faithful in growing in my own discipleship. May all that I am and all that I do be a witness to the world that Jesus is my Lord, and that the Holy Spirit is directing my life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
God's Word for Me Today: 2 Timothy 1:1-13
1This letter is from Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will, sent out to tell others about the life he has promised through faith in Christ Jesus. 2It is written to Timothy, my dear son.
May God our Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace.
3Timothy, I thank God for you. He is the God I serve with a clear conscience, just as my ancestors did. Night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4I long to see you again, for I remember your tears as we parted. And I will be filled with joy when we are together again.
5I know that you sincerely trust the Lord, for you have the faith of your mother, Eunice, and your grandmother, Lois. 6This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you. 7For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. 8So you must never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me, either, even though I’m in prison for Christ. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the proclamation of the Good News.
9It is God who saved us and chose us to live a holy life. He did this not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan long before the world began—to show his love and kindness to us through Christ Jesus. 10And now he has made all of this plain to us by the coming of Christ Jesus, our Savior, who broke the power of death and showed us the way to everlasting life through the Good News. 11And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News.
12And that is why I am suffering here in prison. But I am not ashamed of it, for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return.
13Hold on to the pattern of right teaching you learned from me. And remember to live in the faith and love that you have in Christ Jesus.
Questions for Reflection
Who in your life is like a father or mother, or son or daughter, who holds no biological relationship to you? What has brought about that bond?
What “roles” do you live out in your daily life? Which do you do the best?
Questions for Exploration
What is Paul’s “job” as an apostle? (1:1)
What is Paul’s “relationship” to Timothy? (1:2-4)
How did Timothy come to be a person of faith? (1:5-6)
Of what does Paul tell Timothy not to be ashamed? (1:7-8)
Why did God save us? (1:9-10)
Questions for Understanding
Why does Paul review Timothy’s coming to faith in Jesus, and remind him of his mother and grandmother’s role in it?
What are the implications of verse 7 for our daily lives? KEY VERSE
What does knowing that God CHOSE us do for your understanding of our role in being saved?
Questions for Application
What one thing can you do today to pass along some aspect of the Good News of Jesus to your children, or if you have no children to a “child” in the faith?
Who are you intentionally mentoring or parenting in the faith? If there is no one, make a list of potential “mentorees” and pray for God to open the way for you to become a mentor in the near future.
Commit this day in prayer to the Lord, asking for boldness to never be ashamed of speaking out for Jesus.
The Vital Link to the World!
When Paul wrote his second letter to his beloved son in the faith, Timothy, he set forth a vital link to sharing our mission with the world----focusing on ONE person. Paul was in the habit of leading people to Jesus Christ, and then nurturing and mentoring those who had potential to be leaders, so that the church would always have new leadership in its future. Paul pointed out to Timothy that he had a great heritage in the faith. It came through his Grandmother, Lois, and his mother Eunice. But biological heritage alone, does not guarantee faith. After all, God has no grandchildren—only children. The faith that was “inherited” by Timothy became an “owned” faith when he received the gift of the Holy Spirit through the laying on of Paul’s hands.
Paul took his ministry to Timothy and many others seriously. He mentored them one on one. He wrote letters of challenge and encouragement to them when he was away from them. He prayed for them daily. All in an effort to see that the Good News of Jesus was shared with the world. Paul’s strategy of mentoring was one he gained from Jesus, who also focused on only twelve men, in order to reach the ENTIRE world with the Good News of His salvation. The next time you want to make an impact on the world for Jesus, find ONE person with whom you can share the Good News and then nurture that ONE to become a leader in God’s kingdom. Through mentoring one person to mature fellowship with Jesus, you make actually be leading hundreds more to Jesus through that ONE!
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