PAUL APPEALS TO TIMOTHY TO SHOW COURAGE

 53.1 BE PREPARED TO SUFFER FOR THE GOSPEL, FOR GOD HAS CALLED US TO A HOLY LIFE AND GRANTED US IMMORTALITY

2 Timothy 1:8-10 - ... never be ashamed of bearing witness to our Lord, nor of me (Paul), his prisoner. Accept, as I do, all the hardship that faithfulness to the Gospel entails in the strength that God gives you. For he has rescued us from all that is really evil and called us to a life of holiness - not because of any of our achievements but for his own purpose. Before time began he planned to give us in Christ the grace to achieve this purpose, but it is only since our saviour Jesus Christ has been revealed that the method has become apparent. For Christ has completely abolished death, and has now, through the Gospel, opened to us men the shining possibilities of the life that is eternal.

53.2 SHARING CHRIST'S SUFFERING MEANS SHARING HIS GLORY

2 Timothy 2:8-13 - Remember always, as the centre of everything, Jesus Christ, a man of human ancestry, yet raised by God from the dead according to my Gospel. For preaching this I am having to endure being chained in prison as if I were some sort of a criminal. But they cannot chain the Word of God, and I can endure all these things for the sake of those whom God is calling, so that they too may receive the salvation of Jesus Christ, and its complement of glory after the world of time. I rely on this saying: If we died with him we shall also live with him: if we suffer with him we shall also reign with him. If we deny him he will also deny us: yet if we are faithless he always remains faithful. He cannot deny his own nature.

FUTURE PROBLEMS, AND HOW THESE SHOULD BE DEALT WITH

 53.3 THE LAST DAYS

2 Timothy 3:1 - ... you (Timothy) must realise that in the last days (before the return of Jesus) the times will be full of danger (from evil men and false prophets).

 

53.4 WE ARE GIVEN INSIGHT OF INFINITE VALUE FROM GOD-INSPIRED SCRIPTURE

2 Timothy 3:15b-17 - (The holy scriptures ...) can open the mind to the salvation which comes through believing in Christ Jesus. All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the faith and correcting error, for re-setting the direction of a man's life and training him in good living. The scriptures are the comprehensive equipment of the man of God and fit him fully for all branches of his work.

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continuing preaching the "Gospel of Jesus", on to Part 54, Hebrews OR back to Harmony of Jesus & Early Church