Second Timothy

1:6 – stir up the gift of God that is in you through ordination – God didn't give us a spirit of timidity but...

1:12 – cf. hymn in the Baptist hymn book. He guards what he has entrusted to me – (their hymn reverses the latter – but both interpretations are actually true in life)

1:16 – ashamed of chains – who hangs around a loser? That's where we find what people are made of.

2:3, 5, 6 – persevere in Christian leadership as a soldier, athlete, and farmer.

2:15 – skip hassles and present a positive word of truth.

2:14f – on handling Gnostic controversy – the youthful response is to jump in with passion... don't! Cool it, and be gentle and positive, they may come around.

3:1 – "there will be some times of stress"

3:5 – "holding the form of religion but denying the power thereof". The word denying is in the perfect tense. No claim that Christ is a motivating power in their lives.

3:6 – "silly" women (Greek diminutive of contempt) dissipated life – therefore incapable of distinguishing fraud from genuine Christ. Number of followers is not an essential factor – "eat at Joe's – 10,000 flies can't be wrong!"

3:12 – follow Christ and you're going to get it [i.e. clobbered], (most of us hit by some crossfire of other people's battles in life as well but) you can guarantee this. Christianity is not a ticket to ride, it's an unfailing presence in a walk with him through life as he directs.

3:16-17 – Old Testament books each have a practical value for the minister in his work as "man of God" – tools for the job.

4:1-5 – Paul's charge to Timothy – first of all, preach. Urgent because people will soon have itching ears which they want scratched by what they want to hear and you won't have the audience anymore – turning to myths from truth.

4:6 – like in the film [one of the "Rocky" series?] – the beaten boxer at the end of 15 rounds (and a career) is on the ropes and through his messed-up face calls out defiantly "you beat me – but I'm not down". (Cf. Ephesians 6 – having withstood all, to stand) – me at Westman.

4:8 – a crown – "to all who loved his appearing". Like our gratitude for having had someone around for a while. Such a mysterious man, that Jesus, shrouded in the mists of time, best seen like Rembrandt's later painting by the indirect evidence of the look on bystanders’ faces – than a direct view of him.

4:9 – deserted at the end.

4:10 –Demas – Colossians 4:14, Philemon 24.

4:18 – like Psalm 138, the last few verses.

4:22 – note the singulars and plurals in the benediction.

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