2 Timothy 4:1-5 New International Version
4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead,(A) and in view of his appearing(B) and his kingdom, I give you this charge:(C) 2 Preach(D) the word;(E) be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke(F) and encourage(G)—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.(H) 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.(I) 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.(J) 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship,(K) do the work of an evangelist,(L) discharge all the duties of your ministry.
The Word of God for the Children of God
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Preach the word.
Three simple words.
One powerful command.
The message of the passage is straightforward.
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, we must faithfully proclaim God’s word and sound teaching regardless of the world’s acceptance or hostility.
So, can we consistently, faithfully, obey this command to preach His Word?
The book of 2 Timothy was written by Paul to Timothy as a letter of instruction as to how he was to pastor and lead the church.
This passage (4:1-5), is often used when giving a charge to a newly ordained pastor – and rightly so.
Yet we should not see this passage as only speaking to or applying to pastors.
The books of our New Testament were mostly letters written to encourage, inspire, individuals and specific churches in their living out of the gospel.
Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the church recognized these letters were instructive for the whole church and carried them around to others for their edification.
Thus with a passage like this one, we can appreciate how much it speaks to a particular group, but we must not lose sight that all of scripture is instructive and beneficial to the whole church.
2 Timothy 4:1-5 commands us to correctly, faithfully, courageously, preach the Word, minister by the full truth, both for God’s glory and mankind’s blessing.
One Body of Christ, ministering together; One God, One Message, One Truth.
The enormous message of One God, One Love, one man, one Cross, one death, one sacrifice, one resurrection; one eternal salvation, have we ever received so complex a message, with such far reaching life altering implications it felt like the full weight of a mountain is on your shoulder—steady, strong, and timely?
Such is the magnitude of accountability, of responsibility, God has placed upon the shoulders of all those whom He summons to communicate His Good News.
Paul’s words to Timothy read exactly like that: a seasoned shepherd speaking to a younger servant, a father in the faith speaking to a son in the faith, from one generation to the next, ad infinitum, until that time when Jesus Christ returns.
Envision the moment.
The room is small, the air is cold, and time is short, yet the tone is warm and courageous and instructive.
Paul doesn’t clear his throat with vague pleasantries.
He firmly sets his gaze on God’s presence and Christ’s appearing, he chains Timothy’s entire life, his entire future, to one unshakeable bedrock of truth.
You can almost hear the quill pause and the chains clink as he writes,
“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead,(A) and in full view of his appearing(B) and his kingdom, I charge you …” 2 Preach(D) the word;(E) be prepared in season and out of season; to correct, and also rebuke(F) and to encourage(G)—with great patience and careful instruction.
Why this specific admonition?
3 For the time will surely come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.(H) 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.(I) 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.(J) 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship,(K) do the work of an evangelist,(L) discharge all the duties of your ministry.
{to satisfy their own desires and to support the errors they hold, 4 and will turn their ears away from all truth and will wander off into myths and man-made fictions [and will accept the unacceptable]}.
God does not change with the passage of time.
God’s truth does not change with the passage of time.
Mankind’s truth changes with every breath they take, maybe even faster.
We need to hear, be taught, that charge which Paul gave to his protege Timothy.
When headlines howl mightier than the greatest most destructive of winds, and hearts feel heavy, when opinions multiply as the value of Pi ends, and attention spans shrink, and biblical education wanes, we need words that steady the soul.
We live in days of dazzling screens and drifting standards—days that can make the faithful feel small and insignificant and God’s message feels outside of time.
So what do we do?
Matthew 7:24-27 English Standard Version
Build Your House on the Rock
24 (A)“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like (B)a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like (C)a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
We remember whose eyes are on us.
We remember whose Word we carry.
We remember the one Foundation, the Cornerstone of God’s gospel, does not, nor will not wobble, even when the ground around us seems sandy and shaky.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
That sentence sounds severe until you remember the One who went first.
Jesus never sends us where he has not already stepped.
He walked into the storm and spoke peace. He walked to the cross and spoke forgiveness.
He walked out of the tomb and spoke life.
So when Apostle Paul says, “preach the word,” he isn’t handing us a burden that utterly shatters our backs; he’s handing us a banner that lifts our heads.
Courage grows when we remember the Caller.
Clarity grows when we remember the message.
Compassion grows when we remember the people right in front of us.
Some of us feel tired—tired of pushing against the current, tired of questions that seem to have quicksand answers, tired of carrying quiet griefs few can see.
Hear this:
God sees you.
Your work in the Word is never wasted.
Your quiet faithfulness is noticed by the One whose appearing shatters the night.
He does not measure your worth by your platform, your pace, or your public applause.
He delights in your obedience.
He strengthens your hands.
He supplies grace for every assignment he gives.
This passage from 2 Timothy 4:1-5 reads like a trumpet—clear, compelling, and calling us to move forward with no regard to whatever might hinder us.
It summons preachers and laity, parents, teachers and teenagers, elders and encouragers.
It whispers to the timid and it wakes the tired.
It tells us, in the plainest way, what to do when trends tangle truth and when trials tap on every door: to open your Bible, open your mouth, open your life.
Speak the Gospel, God’s Word’s of unchanging Truth with courage.
Stand steady in the storm.
Keep going until the last lap is run and the last amen is said.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit ….
Praying ….
Psalm 119:1-16 Complete Jewish Bible
א (Alef)
119 How happy are those whose way of life is blameless,
who live by the Torah of Adonai!
2 How happy are those who observe his instruction,
who seek him wholeheartedly!
3 They do nothing wrong
but live by his ways.
4 You laid down your precepts
for us to observe with care.
5 May my ways be steady
in observing your laws.
6 Then I will not be put to shame,
since I will have fixed my sight on all your mitzvot.
7 I thank you with a sincere heart
as I learn your righteous rulings.
8 I will observe your laws;
don’t completely abandon me!
ב (Bet)
9 How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
10 I seek you with all my heart;
don’t let me stray from your mitzvot.
11 I treasure your word in my heart,
so that I won’t sin against you.
12 Blessed are you, Adonai!
Teach me your laws.
13 I proclaim with my mouth
all the rulings you have spoken.
14 I rejoice in the way of your instruction
more than in any kind of wealth.
15 I will meditate on your precepts
and keep my eyes on your ways.
16 I will find my delight in your regulations.
I will not forget your word.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
