We will now resume our look at the pastoral epistles, moving on to Paul's second letter to Timothy.
As often in his letters, Paul reminds Timothy that he, Paul, is an apostle of Christ, chosen by the will of God. He was appointed as an apostle to bring the promise of life that is in Christ. Whatever role we have in the church we need to always remind ourselves that we are here to serve Christ, and as part of God's plan to bring His kingdom and His salvation to the world. Part of our fallen nature is that we become very self-centred. We find true life and destiny when we lose our life, for then we will find it (Matt 16:25). In fact this can be a very useful pastoral point to apply to ourselves. If we are struggling, then sometimes it is good to remind ourselves that we are here for Christ's sake, not our own. Taking the focus off ourselves can be enormously beneficial.
Again as in most of his letters, Paul blesses Timothy with "grace, mercy and peace". This is part of our heritage in Christ.
Paul prayed a lot for Timothy, and did so with thanksgiving. Sometimes Paul is viewed as cold, driven and uncaring, but nothing could be further from the truth. Paul had a deep concern for Timothy, and a deep emotional connection.
Then he draws attention to Timothy's faith. We need to remember how precious our faith is. It is precious to God, and it is precious to us. It is a most valuable thing to have. Each person needs to decide for him or her self to believe in Christ, but one generation can still build a foundation for the next. We can provide a spiritual inheritance for our children.
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