2 Timothy 2:1-13

2 Timothy 2:1-13

This passage is challenging, to say the least. It is pretty easy to pull verses from the text and use them out of context individually. But in the greater context, these verses compose a pretty demanding call and warning to those who would lead. Paul begins by telling Timothy he will need to be strong to hear, accept, and do the work of ministry. We must also appreciate the role Timothy has in the church: he is leading leaders. Under his care and supervision there would be the leaders of many house churches. Additionally, Paul is soon going to be gone. Timothy may have to step into the leadership and administrative roles that Paul has had. Timothy’s circumstances may not be the same as ours, but we can learn some important principles that will work in the life of every disciple, and especially those in leadership positions. 

The first principle is “do not waste time with certain kinds of people.” While we love all and, in certain ways, will serve anyone, we do not want to waste time on “dead-end people.” Dead-end people are those who will gladly receive teaching and lessons but will never pass them on to others. In verse 2, Paul says, “Entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.” It is easy to prepare and present sermons and lessons to a crowd. It is more difficult to recruit, single out, and invest in those who will pass on the gospel. In Jesus’ parable of the sower, we are not taught to keep sowing in the three bad kinds of soil. When the teaching of the church leader becomes a commodity to be consumed rather than the message of life and truth to be passed on, it becomes nothing more than another form of entertainment. If a person is always receiving and never passing on to others, they are a waste of time and need to be jettisoned from the leader’s life. 

The second principle is that with leadership comes suffering. In this passage Paul repeatedly returns to the theme of suffering, hardship, or difficulty. One of the great mistakes of the ministerial education is that too little emphasis is placed on the hardship of the calling. The nostalgia for mid-twentieth-century ministry, the promise of the entrepreneurial church planter, the picture of the cool pastor doing cool things with cool people, or the chaplain in the ‘jobs’ program of the church all fail to communicate the reality of the work of ministry. In fact, they create the expectation of a life that is free from profound hardship. That is nonsense. The first line of verse 3 needs to be memorized by anyone who wants to be a leader in ministry: ‘Suffer with me.’ Paul uses a compound word here, a combination of “with” plus “malicious disposition” plus “painful hardship.” This is not a rare exception but is to be expected and anticipated upon entry into the life of leadership of leaders in the church.

Paul uses three examples of the hard life that is lived by the leader of leaders. The soldier’s training is demanding, his life is hard, and his work is dangerous. The athlete, who competes at the highest level, practices relentlessly and then strives against other elite athletes within a strict set of rules. The farm worker has a simple schedule: he works from when he can see till he can’t see. Paul compares the work of ministry to some of the most difficult and demanding professions in the world. While not as physically demanding as these jobs, the work of a minister is emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually as demanding, if not more so, than these occupations. Not to mention, it can be physically demanding as well. 

A third principle is to not be distracted. The soldier doesn’t allow his life to be entangled, literally platted or braided, into other affairs. This is the description of the willful choice to do other things; this is no accidental or unintentional tangling. The athlete cannot take shortcuts to win. There are no shortcuts to ministry. The farm worker gets the first meals from the farm to keep up his strength so he can keep working the farm. The person who is passing on the teaching of the Gospel needs to be the person who is being fed. The leader of leaders in the church must be taking in a constant diet of good teaching. Oftentimes the shallowness of the teaching and preaching from leaders reflects a lack of personal devotion and study. He is not excited about the message because no one and nothing has excited him about this message. If we stop growing in our personal faith, what might happen to us?

Finally, the apostle turns to sound doctrine. Verses 11-13 may have been a poem or memory tool type of passage. The gist of it is that the Lord is faithful, and if we are also faithful we will enjoy the reward of faithfulness. But if we compromise because of the pressures, our personal weakness, or our faithlessness, we can be certain of loss. 

“Lord, raise up the kinds of leaders of leaders that the church needs.  AMEN”