Blog – Page 127 – Read Through the Bible

November 12 / II Timothy 2:1-26

II Timothy 2:1-26

Phygelus and Hermogenes… (v. 1:15b) and Hymenaeus and Philetus. (v. 2:17b) In two chapters Paul mentions four people, with two sets of similar names and with similar charges against them (…turned away from me… (1:15) and …swerved from the truth… (2:18). Is this really one set of two names? Maybe Paul is recalling these names incorrectly? Maybe a misprint? Or maybe – two sets of two different people, as written…? Strange!!

Paul sets three examples for Timothy – soldier, athlete, farmer (vv. 4, 5, 6). And with each of these he offers positive behavioral characteristics – focused, honorable, deserving. It’s easy for us to ask ourselves if we are exhibiting these same positive behavioral characteristics: staying focused on Jesus, both in church and in our everyday affairs; if we are playing “according to the rules” set by society and by our own internal moral compass; and if we are being “rewarded” for our efforts, in whatever fashion that reward may take.

This third item, I think, applies more to spiritual leaders – deacons, priests, ministers, bishops, etc. But also missionaries come to mind here. Maybe it’s just Mark Bruner’s recent visit and his talk with Carol and me about his own financial struggles and his loss of support from churches year by year. Or newsletters from the Harkonens about their difficulties in fundraising. How can it be that people who fully believe that they are called to serve as missionaries can have such difficulties in raising their needed funds? Mystifying!

November 11 / II Timothy 1:1-18

II Timothy 1:1-18

Who was Onesiphorus? I’m surprised that I did not search this question last year. An online article said that “St. Onesiphorus was bishop at Colophon (Asia Minor), and later at Corinth. Both the Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches hold that he died a martyr in the city of Parium (not far from Ephesus) on the shores of the Hellespont.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onesiphorus) From Scripture his only mention is in today’s verse 16 and later in II Tim 4:19. In both of those verses Paul mentions “the household of Onesiphorus”, not Onesiphorus himself. In addition, Paul speaks of Onesiphorus only in the past tense; these two items lead some scholars to believe that Onesiphorus was dead at the time of Paul’s writing. One other item that struck me was the beginning of his name, with the first five letters identical to the slave, Onesimus, of whom we learned in Philemon. Is there some meaning to “Onesi”?

For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you… [and] By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. (vv. 6, 14) My Study Bible commented further on these verses, that any gifting that we have received from the Holy Spirit is not a one-time thing, but an ongoing activity in our lives that needs to be nourished, developed, and used. So when you’ve seen me write or speak of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that exist in each and every one of us, know for sure that those gifts are not yet fully developed. God is working on bringing those gifts to fruition in you!

There are also a lot of comments from last year in the links below.

November 10 / Titus 2:1-3:15

Titus 2:1-3:15

But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the Law, for they are useless and worthless. Reject a divisive person after a first and second warning… (vv. 3:9-10) I have been in many small group discussions and Bible studies. Occasionally these groups have included some people who were strongly antagonistic toward the Catholic Church, for whatever reason. Having been raised Catholic and feeling that I had gained substantially from that background, there were times when I felt it necessary to defend that Church or its teachings. Mostly these “antagonists” would back off a bit, but not always – sometimes coming back in a really argumentative fashion. And with that I would have to be the one to back off, not wanting to engage this divisive (factious) person on that topic. Paul offers good advice in those verses cited above – our Bible study groups and discussions should be about learning and building up the body. It’s OK to disagree – we’ve learned that in our Men’s Group discussions – but that disagreement needs to be gentle. There is much that I have learned when someone offers a second opinion to something I have said – when it’s offered gently!

November 9 / Titus 1:1-16

Titus 1:1-16

[An overseer must] … be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict it. (v. 9b) I find that I am able to “preach the gospel” (when the occasion arises), but I’ve never been good at responding to negative responses. I’ve heard that the best testimony that we can offer in that situation is to ask questions instead of trying to argue for the truth. But I find difficulties in that approach, in that the more a person responds with what they believe, the more committed they might be to that wrong teaching or wrong doctrine. I’m thinking here of Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses. If you let them talk you’ll just get an endless repetition of what they believe – or more specifically, where they find fault with our doctrine. I have found it best to just be polite, commend them for their commitment, but remind them of who Jesus is and what He has done and where they are wrong, then dismiss them and shut the door. Then I am confident that “…the word that went out of my mouth would not return void, but would accomplish that which the Lord intended.”(Isaiah 55:11, edited)

November 8 / I Timothy 6:1-21

I Timothy 6:1-21

In Ben’s first sermon at St. Andrew’s he said something like “Jesus is so much more than anything we can imagine.” Paul is saying the same thing here: [Jesus] is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. (vv. 15b-16) What struck me most here were the phrases, “…who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see …” I’m remembering when Moses asked God to show him His glory and God covered Moses face until He had passed by; then God said, “…you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.” (Exodus 33:18-23) I’m also thinking of “near death” experiences where so many people report seeing a great light in the distance and coming closer. I believe Ben: “Jesus is so much more than anything we can imagine.”

November 7 / I Timothy 5:1-25

I Timothy 5:1-25

I have learned to share Jesus in small ways as often as it is reasonable. One such time is when someone performs a service for me/us, like a plumber or a mechanic. For those folks it’s reasonable to offer a tip – an add-on to a bill or a $5 or a $10 or even a $20, like we do in restaurants. Then when I do that, I often say, “Scripture says, … ‘The laborer is worthy of his wages.’”(v. 18) It’s a small item, but it tells people that I’m a believer and occasionally leads to a longer conversation. It’s not unlike my departure to the cashier at the grocery store, “The Lord bless you.” While it’s common to say “God bless you”, that small substitution makes a lot of people take notice and they often will reply with a “Thank you” or a “God bless you, too.” And if there’s no one behind me in line and I’ve gotten a nice reply, it’s a simple step further to ask, “Are you part of a local church?” You never know where that small conversation will go! Another reason to use the cashier instead of the self-checkout at the grocery store…!

November 6 / I Timothy 4:1-16

I Timothy 4:1-16

Keep a close watch on yourself…(v. 16a). I think Paul is talking here about responsibility and accountability. We are responsible to ourselves to keep that “close watch”, which is, in effect, our self-control. One way to keep that close watch on ourselves is to allow ourselves to be accountable to another individual or to a group of people. Having an accountability to others helps us in a big way with our own self-control. I have mentioned Freedom Road a number of times and my own interaction with that group. I have seen how they (we) personally hold them/ourselves accountable to each other. Each week the person leading the group that week asks for reports of “recovery threatening or recovery enhancing” issue(s) in the past week (or longer). And this is that time for members of the group to be accountable to each other. Occasionally it is a time for confessing shortcomings (as I had to acknowledge this past week); other times it is a time for offering praise for continuing down a road to recovery. Not everyone in this group is an alcoholic or drug addict. But we are all addicted to something (gambling, sex, food, work, shopping, etc.) and we need each other. Our “General Confession” in our Sunday service is a great time for personal reflection, but too often (for me anyhow) it’s just words that I speak. To really confess (again, for me, at least) is to speak to someone else as to where you are. We can take comfort in Scripture as to the truth of that statement: …confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. (James 5:16a) I don’t know any better way to heed Paul’s words to Timothy: Keep a close watch on yourself…

November 5 / I Timothy 3:1-16

I Timothy 3:1-16

There are a couple of items that stand out for me in Paul’s qualifications for the office of overseer. First, He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive… (v. 4b) This …keeping his children submissive… I remember that when I was growing up I learned the term “preacher’s kid” – and that term seldom implied anything good of that kid! The thought was that PKs would naturally be rebellious. My sense now is that it was in the stricter denominations that these kids tended to be more rebellious – feeling hemmed in by their father’s teachings and rules, but seeing “freedom” in the outside world. And I often wonder how we raise godly children in today’s ungodly world, with so much temptation so prevalent and so near – even just fingertips away! As we chat with Mark Bruner during his stay with us he reports on some of the kids that we knew from our English Camps in Czechia, how so many of these kids have abandoned the faith that we had shared with them, being drawn away by the “glamour” of that outside world. So sad…!

The second item that I noticed was verse 7a: Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders… My sense is that most non-believers hold ministers in high esteem. I’ve heard that ministers are often grouped with teachers and coaches as people who are highly thought of for their service, in particular for their service to the younger people in our society. But there are others in the outside world who see the hypocrisy in Christians they know, and that notion becomes more verified when news stories reveal televangelists whose wrongful deeds have come to light and priests who are charged with molesting young children. Christian leaders do need to be held to a higher standard; they are more prominent as the image of Christ to the outside world.

November 4 / I Timothy 2:1-15

I Timothy 2:1-15

Although the second paragraph in today’s reading (vv. 8-15) is mostly about women, I was struck by verse 8: I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling… I wondered what it was about Ephesus (Timothy’s church at that time) that made for anger and quarreling. You may recall from Acts 19 that Paul had spent 2-3 years preaching and teaching in Ephesus, so the church there should have had a good foundation. But Ephesus was also where a near-riot formed when Demetrius, the silversmith galvanized the people against Paul and his followers (also Acts 19). Or maybe Paul was just making a general comment about churches anywhere. I’m taken back to our own church in 2019 when we saw a number of our friends leave St. Andrew’s. Surely there was anger and quarreling back then – a really sad situation. There’s probably no getting around anger and quarreling in churches today, except for that the beginning of that same verse precedes the anger and quarreling: I desire then that in every place the men should pray…

November 3 / I Timothy 1:1-20

I Timothy 1:1-20

Paul often refers to himself (specifically or in general terms) as an “apostle to the Gentiles”. But in the following verse I see him very much as an apostle to the Jews also. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me … Jesus Christ might display His perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in Him for eternal life. (v. 16) That is, in previous verses (vv. 13-15) Paul spoke of his former life as …a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. (v. 13b) Many Jews had to have seen his reversal from persecutor to preacher. I think Paul is saying that it was his former way of life that became a major source of belief for many who turned to Jesus, both Gentiles and Jews. A few days ago I commented that Archbishop Beach has said the same thing about us on a number of occasions, especially as we face these difficult times in our nation, that we Christians must let the world see Jesus in us. We, with the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, are the only hope for the world today.