“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” – 2 Timothy 2:15

Paul has been working hard to remind Timothy on all that he needs to do to help the word of God to continue to go forth. It is going to require a lot of intentional acts in his life to see the work of the gospel expand. As the letter of 2 Timothy continues Paul wants to encourage Timothy by providing 3 illustrations or pictures of faithfulness.

This week during Refuge we unpacked the first of these pictures, “The Unashamed Worker.”

An Overview of the Picture

The image is broken down by comparing a good workmen with a bad workmen.

The Good Workman

• They are diligent and hard working
  • “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved”
  • To do your best is to strive, be diligent or to make every effort
  • People are called to be holy, or to be “approved by God” and so that is why Paul had earlier told Timothy to “train yourself for righteousness” (1 Timothy 4:7).
  • The good workman will be diligent in increasing godliness in their own lives but will also be hard working in preparing to teach others the truth from God’s words.
• They are focused on God
  • “a worker who has no need to be ashamed”
  • The challenge is are we striving for the approval of those that are around us or are we striving for the approval of God.
  • During difficult or tough times if our focus is on God then it will help us put things into a proper perspective that we ultimately are seeking to follow God who is the one ultimately brings us life.
• They are careful and accurate in their teaching
  • “rightly handling the word of truth”
  • The image behind “rightly handling” is that of a road builder cutting a straight path.
  • “Timothy must teach the Word carefully and clearly to help the hearers stay on the path of life.” – Tony Merida
  • Good workmen will desire to first understand but then teach others the truths of God’s words rightly and accurately, that truth would be promoted and not just the opinions of man.

The Bad Workman

• They wander from the truth
  • Bad workmen swerve from the path and they miss the mark of truth.
  • For those teaching God’s word to others it must hold to orthodox Christian beliefs and must hold to a core set of beliefs. For those around Timothy they were teaching falsely about the resurrection from the dead.
• Their work has devastating effect
  • “for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness…They are upsetting the faith of some.” – 2 Timothy 2:16,18
  • Those who are listening to bad workmen are led down the wrong path that leads to ungodliness, away from true faith in God, and ultimately to death. This turning away slowly affects individuals and then also the church as a whole as it spreads from one member to another.

Application for Today

God has given a command in 2 Timothy 2:2 (recap here) to work hard in taking the truths of God’s word that we received and to take it and teach it to others with the expectation that they would do the same.

Following this command we are encouraged by remembering that the word of God is unbound and it will accomplish what it is set out to do. It will change lives and bring people to salvation in Christ.

In this passage, we are encouraged to remember that God is choosing to use us to accomplish His will but that we will only do so if we work like the good workmen.

• In what area do you need to be more hard working in deepening your own faith? How do you need to be more diligent in sharing the truths you have received with others?
• Who are you trying to please with the actions you take? Are you after the approval of men or the approval of God?
• What areas do you need to grow in to better understand God’s word? What ways do you need to improve in order to better help others to better understand God’s word as well?

During Refuge this week we reached a section of 2 Timothy that included our theme verse for this semester.

“But the word of God is not bound!” – 2 Timothy 2:9

Paul was writing to Timothy from a Roman jail. He was imprisoned under the Roman Emperor Nero who was heavily persecuting Christians. He was placed in chains for his teaching of and support of the truth that is found in God’s word.

In what would seem like a hopeless situation, Paul has a surprising response: “You can chain me, you can beat me, you can leave me for dead…but that won’t stop the gospel message! The word of God is not bound!”

The Promise and Application for Today

1. God’s word will accomplish its intended purpose
   • Isaiah 55:11 – “So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”
   • Through God’s word we see that He desires to change lives. God is offering salvation from sin and the promise of a new life. God will see that this is accomplished!
2. God’s word can overcome any perceived obstacles
   • We like to list reasons why we things will be hard:
     • Our culture doesn’t like any claim that there is absolute truth.
     • We feel like we aren’t knowledgeable enough to talk and share about God’s word
     • It takes time and energy to devote to God that I just don’t have
     • People ridicule me when they hear that I’m a Christian
   • We may feel all of these things, just like Paul should have felt that his situation was hopeless while in Prison. Yet, God’s word overcomes all things.
3. Therefore, endure in everything for the sake of others
   • 2 Timothy 2:10 says, because the word of God is not bound then endure all things in order to have God’s word impact others.
   • In the section of scripture just before this Paul encouraged Timothy to work hard in passing on the gospel.
   • The reason Paul can tell Timothy to pass on to others what he has learned from God’s word (2 Timothy 2:2) is because the word of God is not bound!

Recap

What is God’s desire?

• To see His word be unbound on this campus,
• to see it set free to change lives
• to see it heal brokenness
• and to see it restore hope

How will this gospel expansion be accomplished?

• Through individuals who are faithful to endure in all things
• taking what they have learned about God and His purposes from His word
• applying them first to their own lives
• and then through sharing these truths with others

So what do you think? Do you believe that God’s word is unbound?

“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” – 2 Timothy 2:2

Last night in Refuge we spent a lot of time unpacking this verse.

What Paul had received through the Holy Spirit he had given to Timothy. Now the expectation was that Timothy would in turn take what he had received from Paul and teach it to others, and that Timothy was specifically to look for those who were faithful and who would teach others also.

The Challenge and Application For Us

1. How are we learning about the things of God? How are we becoming more fluent in the Bible and being familiar with the gospel message? Here are a few suggestions:
   • Through reading the Bible.
     • This will involve meditating on scripture to gain further understanding of it (2 Timothy 2:7)
   • By being in large and small gatherings where the Bible is taught
     • Attending church, participating in small groups, attending Refuge, hearing lectures on Biblical topics are all good examples of applying this.
   • Living life with other individuals where we can easily learn what it is like to live as a Christian
     • This will involve times of studying the scriptures together, but it also includes doing normal tasks such as shopping, or driving somewhere, or spending time in a person’s home to see how they interact with their family. How to live as a Christian is learned in a lot of different ways!
   • Reading further into issues. Study from the writing of Biblical scholars. Read biographies of Christians and learn from their example. We can learn from how they did good as well as by avoiding the mistakes they have made.
2. Who can we pass these truths on to?
   • Who has God providentially placed in your life?
     • People in your dorm, classmates, lab mates, Fraternity or Sorority members, family members, people in other student groups you participate in.
   • How can you begin sharing with them, even in small ways?
   • Our verse taught that we teach what we have already received. You may not feel like you understand a lot of the Bible, but if you understand even a little then that is worth sharing with someone else.
3. Learn in Preparation to Teach
   • “You are never learning for yourself, you are learning for the person behind you.” -Robby Gallaty
   • As you learn more about God, the Bible, and Christian living don’t only learn for how it should be applied to you.
   • Learn with the posture that some day you will need to teach this information to someone else. If we do, we will understand the things of God better and we will be better equipped to fulfill the mission that God has given to all of us.

God has great plans and his gospel will go forth unbound. To do so, he chooses to use us in this mission. What will you do to best fulfill this call on your life to share God’s truths with others?