2 Timothy 2:1-5: Grace for our weakness.(please click here for todays passage)

Who does not feel weak in the face of the challenges, stresses and problems of life? What Christian does not know deep inside that they are inadequate to live as they know they should? Such feelings are good for us, and drive us to our knees to be able to draw, for strength, on all the grace available in Christ. The pressures are great, but the power on our side is even greater. At times the mountain peaks seem insurmountable. They tower over us in an intimidating fashion. But with the Holy Spirit in us (1:14), we can climb them and cross them.

This short passage is about strengthening. Paul writes tenderly to Timothy: ‘’You then, my child…’’ (ESV). This reminds me that it is important to speak well of and to each other. Words are important; how we employ them matters. Life and death are in the tongue. Paul strikes a parental note here (see 1:2). Mums and dads will want to encourage their children in times of fear. I vividly recall one night when I was just a little boy. The next day I had to face a huge challenge with a new teacher I was scared of. I felt terrified. As it happened, everything went well, (and isn’t it regularly like that?) but my fear of the encounter was off the scale. I can still feel now, forty or more years later, my mother’s love and encouragement surrounding me that evening. She wouldn’t let me off the hook. I had to go through with the meeting, but she put nerve into me to face the dreaded day. There was a helpful combination of softness and steel in how she handled me. The ministry of encouragement is invaluable.

Timothy had some scary giants surrounding him, but Paul encouraged his son in the faith. Note:

  • We have all the strength we need in Christ (1), but we have to avail ourselves of it (see also Ephesians 6:10). It’s like, ‘The well is there. It is full of sweet water. It is yours without cost. But you will remain thirsty if you do not go to it, turn the handle, and bring the bucket to the surface.’ You get the picture. There are things we have to do to draw on the strength which is truly ours. The ‘land’ has been given to us, but we must ‘possess’ it.
  • We are strengthened for a ministry of reproduction (2). I feel afresh today the challenge of these words. Who am I building into? Who am I investing my life in? Who am I discipling, mentoring, training? How seriously does the church take this issue? Here are two quotes I’ve read in the last couple of days that have some bearing on the subject: a.) ‘’There is nothing wrong with the church that discipleship will not cure.’’ Dallas Willard: ‘Living in Christ’s presence’, p.16;) ‘’The truth is no church, organization, or company can grow any faster than its ability to grow leaders.’’ Bob Tiede
  • We are given strength to suffer (3). Soldiers on active duty do not expect ease or comfort. The job description involves danger. Many soldiers return home from the field of conflict traumatised because soldiering is not easy. We Christians are in a fierce fight. Things are not easy. But take heart, the strength within us is greater than the foes around us. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord, I am strong in you. Help me to keep remembering who I am and what I have in Christ.