2 Timothy 2:24-26 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
When the apostle Paul wrote this letter to his young student Timothy, he taught him some profound truths that I often apply in my life. I suppose when Timothy received these instructions, he was about my age – a young man still developing his skills at evangelism, teaching and instructing.
Early in my Christian walk, I grabbed hold of a passage – let no man despise thy youth, but rather be an example in word, in conversation, in love, in spirit, and in faith. This was my mantra in the first years of my walk.
Now I’m focusing on being a servant able to teach. Paul’s instruction is not to “strive” — I hear him saying “be careful to teach with a proper spirit” and to avoid “trying to prove that you’re right”. I want to be sure that I’m not trying to force my perspective on someone, but rather instruct with meekness, gentleness, and patience.
One phrase in the verse says something about the effect of teaching in the right spirit-– “they recover themselves”! It’s not our job to convince someone of the truth. We “contend earnestly for the faith” allowing the Holy Spirit to do the convincing, so that someone who is in error is free to repent based on God’s conviction, and not my persuasiveness. So let’s be sure we’re leaving room for Him, teaching in a manner that Paul would be proud of.
We’re all called as servants; so let’s strive to be servants that would make our Master proud!
Oh George, I so needed to hear that message. Thank you brother. It is one of those times when you know a message is directed right at one’s own
heart.
Thank you George, Having been a teacher as my profession I can slip into that mode of teacher/student. It was so good to hear you confirm that it is the Holy Spirit`s work in the other person`s life & we are there just to instruct with `meekness, gentleness & patience.` It actually takes a load of pressure off seeing it like that. God bless you & the Lord`s wisdom & clarity of that scripture for our practical walk along side others.
Thank-you so much for this devotional. I am a new member and posted “split in the family”. You will see that I also need to not convince my daughter-in-law to forgive but let the Holy Spirit do His own work. I need to just love and teach by a humble example.
Amen~!
Hi. I’m new and I am lookng forward to interacting with my family in Christ; I just left a long message in the Prayer Room. I’m looking forward to the reply. Although my message is a matter of prayer, I really wanted to get feedback and suggestions. Thank God for this opportunity.