“Three Metaphors for the Evangelist” – 2 Timothy 2:3-7
The apostle Paul is in prison when he writes 2 Timothy. He is not expecting to make it out alive, not this time. But he is thankful to God that the Gospel of Christ is not bound and that it, in fact, is entrusted in the hands of faithful men, like Timothy. Paul wants Timothy to share that Good News, even if it means persecution and death for Timothy. “Do the work of an evangelist,” (4:5) is the fundamental command of this letter, we have suggested.
In this paragraph, 2:3-7, Paul pictures the evangelist under three metaphors. Let’s feed on the word…
All of these metaphors tie in with both the command to faithfully entrust the treasure of the Gospel to other faithful men (2:1-2) and also to suffer hardship with Paul (cf. 1:8)…
Metaphor #1 – The soldier – Verses 3-4 – “Share in suffering” is all one word, the same word Paul used back in verse 8. Paul does not mean to suffer as a soldier suffers in losing an arm or a leg or dealing with PTSD. No, he means be willing to do without, be willing to do without the niceties and luxuries of life. That is evident in verse 4.
No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. How easy it is to get “entangled” in the affairs of this life and forget that God has called us to “fight the good fight” (1 Tim. 6:12). We want to please the one who called us into this battle.
Discuss the risks with http://frankkrauseautomotive.com/inventory/ purchase cialis online your personal physician. The “fast cycle” is a specific embodiment following the disease that is defined by the occurrence of four or more episodes browse to find out more viagra prescription per year. Your penis might feel tadalafil cipla cold to the touch. More importantly, the effects of these free cialis sample supplements remain up to 36 hours offering long-lasting support for better performance more than one time with a capsule. We are involved in a war and we get ourselves entangled in the world to the detriment of our own souls. In the parable of the soils, Jesus said that the heart symbolized by weeds is a heart that is choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life and therefore, that Christian does not bring fruit to maturity (Luke 8:14).
Metaphor #2 – The athlete – Verse 5 – If/when you compete as an athlete, you have to do so according to the rules. The word “athlete” is actually a transliteration of the Greek word and it is actually a verb – “to compete.” Let it be duly noted that there are rules that must be obeyed if we are to please Jesus Christ. There is a law under which we live. Law is not antithetical to grace. Law is antithetical to grace only if you view the law outside of and without grace. It is by God’s grace that He even gave us a law that tells us what he expects out of us. So, as a Christian, as an evangelist, we must obey the rules. That’s the point of that metaphor.
An athlete competing in the Olympics had to go through ten months of extensive training and then had to swear an oath that he had gone through those ten months of training. He had to obey the rules.
Metaphor #3 – The farmer – Verse 6 – The hard-working farmer ought to be the first to receive his share of the crops. The focus here is on a “hard-working” farmer.
So, in doing the work of an evangelist, Paul says we should have a single-minded devotion, obey the rules, and work hard.
–Paul Holland
Do the work of an evangelist
“Three Metaphors for the Evangelist” – 2 Timothy 2:3-7
The apostle Paul is in prison when he writes 2 Timothy. He is not expecting to make it out alive, not this time. But he is thankful to God that the Gospel of Christ is not bound and that it, in fact, is entrusted in the hands of faithful men, like Timothy. Paul wants Timothy to share that Good News, even if it means persecution and death for Timothy. “Do the work of an evangelist,” (4:5) is the fundamental command of this letter, we have suggested.
In this paragraph, 2:3-7, Paul pictures the evangelist under three metaphors. Let’s feed on the word…
All of these metaphors tie in with both the command to faithfully entrust the treasure of the Gospel to other faithful men (2:1-2) and also to suffer hardship with Paul (cf. 1:8)…
Metaphor #1 – The soldier – Verses 3-4 – “Share in suffering” is all one word, the same word Paul used back in verse 8. Paul does not mean to suffer as a soldier suffers in losing an arm or a leg or dealing with PTSD. No, he means be willing to do without, be willing to do without the niceties and luxuries of life. That is evident in verse 4.
No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. How easy it is to get “entangled” in the affairs of this life and forget that God has called us to “fight the good fight” (1 Tim. 6:12). We want to please the one who called us into this battle.
Discuss the risks with http://frankkrauseautomotive.com/inventory/ purchase cialis online your personal physician. The “fast cycle” is a specific embodiment following the disease that is defined by the occurrence of four or more episodes browse to find out more viagra prescription per year. Your penis might feel tadalafil cipla cold to the touch. More importantly, the effects of these free cialis sample supplements remain up to 36 hours offering long-lasting support for better performance more than one time with a capsule. We are involved in a war and we get ourselves entangled in the world to the detriment of our own souls. In the parable of the soils, Jesus said that the heart symbolized by weeds is a heart that is choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life and therefore, that Christian does not bring fruit to maturity (Luke 8:14).
Metaphor #2 – The athlete – Verse 5 – If/when you compete as an athlete, you have to do so according to the rules. The word “athlete” is actually a transliteration of the Greek word and it is actually a verb – “to compete.” Let it be duly noted that there are rules that must be obeyed if we are to please Jesus Christ. There is a law under which we live. Law is not antithetical to grace. Law is antithetical to grace only if you view the law outside of and without grace. It is by God’s grace that He even gave us a law that tells us what he expects out of us. So, as a Christian, as an evangelist, we must obey the rules. That’s the point of that metaphor.
An athlete competing in the Olympics had to go through ten months of extensive training and then had to swear an oath that he had gone through those ten months of training. He had to obey the rules.
Metaphor #3 – The farmer – Verse 6 – The hard-working farmer ought to be the first to receive his share of the crops. The focus here is on a “hard-working” farmer.
So, in doing the work of an evangelist, Paul says we should have a single-minded devotion, obey the rules, and work hard.
–Paul Holland