We continue this session in 2 Timothy with Joby Martin teaching us about 2 Timothy chapter 3.
Main Idea: When we devote ourselves to God’s Word, God will enable us to resist the world’s pull toward godlessness and instead pursue righteousness.
Head Change: To know that Scripture is God’s Word to his people.
Heart Change: To feel confident that God will use his Word to empower us for wise and righteous living.
Life Change: To commit to reading the Bible regularly to cultivate a love for God’s Word.
Have you ever been driven by an ocean or river current that you didn’t realize was there? How strong was the current? How long did it take before you realized you were being pulled downstream or down the beach? How far did it take you?
Like an ocean current, dragging you unknowingly up and away from your spot on the beach or shore, the world also has a current that pulls us away from where we’re intended to be as God’s people. In this session, Joby will show us how God equips us to go against the flow of the world with the help of his Word.
1But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. 8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. 9But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.
All Scripture Is Breathed Out by God
10You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, 11my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. 12Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. – 2 Timothy 3:1-17 ESV
Watch RightNowMedia – Session 5: 2 Timothy 3:1–17 (11 minutes).
Joby opened this session by highlighting the reality that the world as we know it is constantly pushing us toward godlessness. And this portion of Paul’s letter to Timothy serves both as a warning and an encouragement.
Paul opens chapter 3 with a phrase that can sometimes make us nervous: “in the last days.” What thoughts come to mind when you hear the phrase “the last days”? Does it frighten you? Give you hope? Why?
Paul says that in the last days “there will come times of difficulty,” and he tells us why. In verses 2–5, he includes a long list of sinful behaviors that people will assume upon themselves. “People will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant,” and many other things. Looking at this list, to what extent would you say Paul describes our time? Which of these sins stands out as especially prevalent today?
Which of these things do you struggle with personally? How do you seek to put these sins to death?
At the end of verse 5, Paul instructs Timothy to “avoid such people.” What sort of company do you keep? How do you balance Paul’s instruction to avoid these kinds of people with Jesus’s command to be salt and light in a world drawn to godlessness?
Paul goes on, further describing the depravity of “such people.” They’re manipulative, and though they’re “always learning,” they never “arrive at a knowledge of the truth.” Have you ever encountered someone like Paul describes? How did you handle your relationship with them? What are some of the things that keep people from finally “arriving at a knowledge of the truth”?
In verse 8, Paul introduces two Old Testament characters to readers: Jannes and Jambres, the Egyptian magicians who opposed Moses in Exodus 7. And he equates them with the people he described in the previous verse—people who “oppose the truth” and are “corrupted in mind.” In what ways does our culture exhibit an opposition to truth like Paul describes? In what ways has our culture become “corrupted in mind”? How can we stand firm in the truth when our culture’s current is pushing us toward godlessness?
In verse 10, Paul makes a sharp turn. He affirms Timothy, saying (to paraphrase): You are not like these people, Timothy. Timothy was “the real deal,” we might say today, because he imitated Paul in every way—even in difficulty. Who in your life affirms you the way Paul does Timothy? How have they helped you? What specifically have they said that’s been so helpful? What difference has their influence made on your faith?
Though we may find it uncomfortable, Paul pauses in verse 12 and expounds on his mention of persecutions. He says it’s normative for people who go against the flow of godlessness to experience persecution. What’s your reaction to Paul’s statement that “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted”?
To what degree have you experienced persecution for your Christian faith? How has God sustained you through your experiences of “persecutions and sufferings”?
As chapter 3 nears its end, Paul turns from affirmation to instruction. He tells Timothy in verse 14 to hold on to what he has come to believe. Who are the people in your life who instruct you in the faith? How do they encourage you to continue in what you have believed?
Paul anchors his instructions in what he calls “the sacred writings,” or what we know as the Bible. When we think about growing in the faith and remaining faithful through hardship, the Scriptures are crucial because they contain truth that strengthens and encourages us. How has God used his Word to strengthen and encourage you? Can you think of a specific example when God encouraged you with Scripture? If so, feel free to share.
In verse 18, Paul makes a statement that is very well-known among Christians, that “all Scripture is breathed out by God.” And using this verse, Joby introduced us to the Greek word theopneustos, which literally means “God-breathed.” In what ways does it encourage you to know that the Scriptures have been breathed out by God himself? How does the inspiration of Scripture affect the level of trust you have in the Bible?
Since the Scriptures have been breathed out by God, we should obey what they say. In what ways do we sometimes fail to act like the Bible is from God? What can we do to remind ourselves to obey God’s Word?
According to Joby, we stand firm in a culture drifting steadily toward godlessness by anchoring ourselves to the Word of God. How regularly do you read your Bible? What attitude do you bring to your Bible reading? What prevents you from reading your Bible regularly?
What one change—large or small—could you make today that would deepen your investment in the Word that God has breathed out for you?