Word of Encouragement (8/10/2021)

Today, we move on to 2 Timothy. The first prayer we will reflect on is, “I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well” (2 Tim. 1:3-5). Paul begins with a prayer of thanksgiving and goes on to reflect on certain things about Timothy. But it is easy to see that what he remembers about Timothy is part of his thanksgiving.

We know that this is a prayer of thanksgiving because he begins with, “I thank God....” But before he speaks of what it is that he is grateful for, he speaks of his relationship with God (“God whom I serve, as did my ancestors”) and of how he serves God (“with a clear conscience”). Why does he introduce God in this way—mainly, by way of talking about himself? Isn’t this a bit too self-centered?

As we read on, we realize that that is not the case at all. The main subject of Paul’s thanksgiving is Timothy—“as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day.” Particularly, Paul is grateful for Timothy’s affection for him (“As I remember your tears,” which he must have shed at the time of parting from Paul) and for his sincere faith (v. 5). But what does he say about his faith? “...a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well” (v. 5). Do you see? As Paul thinks about the legacy of faith Timothy received from his grandmother and mother and gives thanks for his sincere faith, he cannot help but think about the legacy of faithful service he has received from his ancestors.

This is another way, by which Paul acknowledges, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain” (1 Cor. 15:10). He sees God’s grace in calling him to be an Apostle of Jesus Christ to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ even though he was a persecutor of the church of God (1 Cor. 15:9). But he also sees God’s grace in the heritage of faith he has received from the saints of the Old Testament—Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, etc. In his murderous zeal against Christ and His church, he was opposing God and his faithful ancestors. But Christ granted him a radical conversion, by which He brought him into the lineage of God’s holy saints. How wonderful it is that, when we believe in Jesus Christ, we too are brought into the same lineage!

But this lineage exists on a smaller scale, too—within a covenant family. The legacy of faith Timothy received from his grandmother and mother is a wonderful example of this. Remember what Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost: “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself” (Acts 2:38-39). This does not guarantee that every covenant child will be saved. But we can hold on to this promise and plead with God for our children’s salvation, looking forward to giving thanks to God when our children profess their faith in Jesus Christ as we have done! And if they have done so already, let us not cease to give thanks to God for their saving faith. After all, what greater joy can our children bring to us than their sincere faith in our wonderful Savior?

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