Thursday, October 17 - 2 Timothy 3 and 4 (since there was no blog yesterday)

2 Timothy 3

New International Version (NIV)

3 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.

A Final Charge to Timothy

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.

 

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CONTINUE

   This Sunday is Confirmation Sunday, and it will be my privilege to encourage Kyle, Charlie, David, Joe W and Joe K in their spiritual journey.  One thing I will certainly be saying is that they should always remember that Confirmation is not "Graduation."  That is, a disciple of Christ recognizes that faith requires a lifetime of learning and a continual reliance of the Word of God.  Confirmation is simply one step in this process, but it is certainly not the "end-all."

 

   This is actually a good word for everone to consider.  For far too long, many Christians have been deluded by the concept that once they know the basics of Christianity, there is nothing more to be attained.  And the Bible sits on the shelf, and the Catechism gathers dust.

 

   I wish that they would think of faith more like a race.  A race requires continual training and regular workouts.  Similarly, as our faith is challenged by the temptations of the world, it also requires a regular diet of spiritual exercising.  Prayer, Bible Study, worship, remembering our baptism, participating in Holy Communion, family devotions, and the like, should be a regular part of our growth.

 

  May God bless you in your continuing education.

 

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2 Timothy 4

New International Version (NIV)

4 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.

 

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THE PASTOR'S CHARGE

   "Itching ears" are nothing new.  For as long as the Tempter has been roaming the earth, one of his favorite tricks is to encourage people be their own theologians.  He loves it when anyone rejects the objective truths of God's word for his or her own opinions and feelings.   And the more he can encourage us to "trump" the Word with ideas grounded in sinful humanity, the more he can lead us astray.

   St. Paul reminds Timothy that it is his charge not to pander to "itching ears" so that he can be well-liked or popular, but rather to "preach the word."  This, of course, can be a hard task, because there will always be someone else out there who is ready to jump in and tell people what they want to hear.

   As Christians we ought always have our antennas up.  We should listen to those who purport to be speaking God's truth with our fingers near a Bible to be sure they are accurately reflecting His desires. After all, a diet of spiritual sugar-water will ultimately be bad for our health.

   The "New Age" movement is very popular today for this very reason.  It rejects such long-held, traditional concepts as original sin, and the need for an atoning Savior, for a general quest toward an uncertain "spirituality" not grounded in Christ.   For New Agers, the ultimate goal seems to be more about "being in touch with yourself" rather than being "transformed" by the image of Christ.

   May God help His preachers to indeed be grounded in His Word;  and may He also bless the hearers to seek only the true Gospel that can be found within its pages.

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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.

Personal Remarks

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^[a] 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.^[b]
22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all.