(2:20-26)

Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. (2:20–26)

     A chorus by Audrey Mieir beautifully expresses the spirit of dedication of which Paul speaks in this passage.

Every believer should have that compelling desire to be used of God in whatever way He chooses. The flow of 2 Timothy 2 moves from the call to “be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus” (2:1) to being “a workman who does not need to be ashamed” (v. 15) in order to be “useful to the Master, prepared for every good work” (v. 21).

THE ILLUSTRATION

Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. (2:20)

     As in several other letters, Paul uses the figure of a vessel to describe Christians. For example, in defending God’s sovereign right to save and to condemn according to His own divine and perfect will, the apostle asks rhetorically, “Does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use, and another for common use?” (Rom. 9:21). Pointing up our utter dependence on God’s enabling grace and power in order to minister, he reminded Corinthian believers that “we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing greatness of the power may be of God and not from ourselves” (2 Cor. 4:7).

Using the illustration of a large house whose owners were affluent and which would have many occupants, many rooms, and many furnishings, he says there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor.

As mentioned in the previous commentary chapter, the context strongly suggests that “the firm foundation of God” (v. 19) refers to the church, the earthly custodian of God’s truth (v. 18). God’s ownership of, or “seal” on, the church is in two parts. From the divine perspective, it is His sovereign election of “those who are His,” and from the human perspective it is the righteousness of the faithful believer, the one “who names the name of the Lord” and abstains “from wickedness.”

The large house would therefore represent the entire church of God, the body of Christ, composed of all true believers, the vessels in which represent individual believers—the honorable gold and silver vessels and the dishonorable vessels of wood and of earthenware.

Skeuos (vessel) was used of a wide variety of domestic implements, utensils, and furnishings, including furniture and tools. Because of the materials mentioned here of which these items were made, it seems likely that Paul had in mind serving vessels and perhaps utensils. But whatever the articles might be, his point is the same. Articles made of gold or silver are more valuable and presentable than those of wood or earthenware. The former would be prominently displayed as decorations or used for serving important guests as a gesture of honor. The inferior articles, on the other hand, were strictly utilitarian. They were common, plain, replaceable, unattractive, and often dirty and vile, because some were used for the garbage and human waste of the house. They were used for those duties that were never seen and were kept out of sight as much as possible. To display them before guests would be an act of unspeakable dishonor.

(It should be noted that in this context the wood and clay vessels are despised from the Lord’s perspective, whereas in 2 Corinthians 4:7 Paul is glad to be an “earthen vessel,” because he is there using the analogy to express his personal self-evaluation and humility.)

Honor and dishonor do not refer to true and false Christians, respectively. Jesus makes clear in the parable of the wheat and tares (Matt. 13:24–30) and in His teaching about the sheep and goats judgment of the nations (Matt. 25:31–46) that the visible church on earth will contain both unbelievers and believers until He returns and orders the final separation. But Paul is not speaking about that distinction.

Nor is he speaking here of the God-given differences among believers. In his letter to Rome, he says that “God has allotted to each a measure of faith. For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. And since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let each exercise them accordingly” (Rom. 12:3–6). He emphasizes the same truth in his first letter to the Corinthians, saying, “If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired” (1 Cor. 12:17–18).

The honorable vessels represent believers who are faithful and useful to the Lord. They are the good soldiers, the competitive athletes, the hard-working farmers mentioned in verses 3–6. By contrast, the dishonorable vessels are the cowardly soldiers, the lazy athletes, and the slothful farmers, defiled people fit only for the most menial, undistinguished purposes. Honor and dishonor therefore refer to the ways in which genuine believers are found useful to the Lord in fulfilling the work to which He has called them. In this sense, all believers should be, but are not always, vessels of honor.

Some Ephesian leaders, including Timothy, were becoming discouraged and apathetic. Part of the problem was their apparent intimidation by false teachers such as Hymenaeus, Alexander, and Philetus, whom Paul specifically denounces (1 Tim. 1:20; 2 Tim. 2:17). Because Paul repeats many of his strong admonitions to Timothy and the other leaders in Ephesus, the serious problems he sought to correct must have been ongoing or recurring.

And because this letter is addressed to Timothy, the foremost overseer, or elder, and apostolic legate in the church at Ephesus, Paul’s admonitions in 2:20–26 seem directed first of all to leaders in that church. That interpretation is supported by the reference to “the Lord’s bond-servant” (v. 24), which, in this context, probably is used as an official term referring to overseers. In addition, the characteristics mentioned in verses 24–25 correspond to several qualifications for that office listed in 1 Timothy 3:2–3 and Titus 1:5–9.

In verses 21–26, Paul sets forth nine characteristics that mark the faithful, godly believer who is the vessel of honor. He will have a cleansed life (v. 21a), a sanctified soul (v. 21b), be useful to God (v. 21c), be prepared for service (v. 21d), have a pure heart (v. 22), and have a discerning mind (v. 23), a gentle manner (v. 24), a humble spirit (v. 25a), and a compassionate attitude (vv. 25b–26).

A CLEANSED LIFE

Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, (2:21a)

     Cleanses is from ekkathairō, an intensified form of kathairō (from which we get “catharsis”), which means to clean out thoroughly, to completely purge. These things refer to the vessels of dishonor mentioned in the previous verse, from which a man who is faithful cleanses himself. As noted, vessels of dishonor are defiled people in the church, and Paul’s exhortation is therefore for godly believers to separate themselves from the fellowship of impure believers, who are not clean, not obedient, not submissive to the Lord, and not eager to serve.

Sin is contagious, and association with openly sinful and shameless people is morally and spiritually dangerous. “He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm” (Prov. 13:20). The Lord’s exhortation to Jewish exiles in pagan Babylon applies to every believer who seeks to faithfully serve Him. “Depart, depart, go out from there,” Isaiah proclaimed. “Touch nothing unclean; go out of the midst of her [Babylon], purify yourselves” (Isa. 52:11).

An immoral and/or doctrinally corrupt believer, especially a leader who is influential, is more dangerous than a pagan or atheist, because weak or careless brothers and sisters may assume—or rationalize—that certain practices and ideas are permissible simply because they are practiced and taught by some church leaders.

Paul explained to believers in Corinth,

You do not expect unbelievers to think, talk, and behave like Christians, and your guard tends to be up against their influence. But, like “worldly and empty chatter” that leads “to further ungodliness” and spreads “like gangrene” (2 Tim. 2:16–17), willing association with ungodly believers, vessels of dishonor, inevitably will cause some of their sin to infect you, whether you realize it or not. “Do not be deceived,” Paul therefore warns; “Bad company corrupts good morals” (1 Cor. 15:33). Fellowship with defiled church members develops tolerance for their defilement.

Faithful service of the Lord requires separation from those who can contaminate you. Warning Jeremiah about associating with ungodly Israelites, God said, “If you extract the precious from the worthless, you will become My spokesman. They for their part may turn to you, but as for you, you must not turn to them” (Jer. 15:19). In other words, the influence should be but one way. If those unfaithful Israelites were led to repentance by Jeremiah’s preaching and example, the Lord would be pleased. But the prophet was never to allow their corruption to infect him.

The writer of Hebrews gives this sobering warning: “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled” (Heb. 12:15). Unchecked bitterness, even in a believer who otherwise is upright, is not a trivial and purely personal sin. It is highly destructive and can seriously demoralize and weaken an entire congregation.

Refusing to associate with sinning believers is also for their own benefit. If they are not disciplined and are readily accepted into church fellowship, they will become more comfortable in their sin. Being ostracized from the church, on the other hand, may help them become ashamed and repentant. “If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter,” Paul instructed the Thessalonian church, “take special note of that man and do not associate with him, so that he may be put to shame” (2 Thess. 3:14).

No Christian should associate with professing Christians who are morally and spiritually defiled. We should not want to be around those whose language and lifestyle do not honor Christ. We should not want to associate with those who have a critical tongue, who tolerate evil in their lives and in the lives of other believers, or whose commitment to the Lord is shallow and artificial. A vessel for honor cannot remain honorable and usable if it is continually contaminated by vessels of dishonor. It cannot remain pure apart from pure fellowship.

A SANCTIFIED SOUL

sanctified, (2:21b)

     A second characteristic of a vessel for honor is a sanctified soul. Sanctified is from hagiazō, which has the basic meaning of being set apart. A Christian is sanctified, set apart, in two ways. Negatively, he is set apart from sin. Positively, he is set apart for God and for His righteousness. Just as the vessels in the tabernacle and temple were set apart from all mundane uses and dedicated solely to God and His service, so are those believers who are vessels of honor in the church. Their supreme purpose as Christians, the purpose from which all duties derive, is to serve God. For that they keep themselves pure. It would be inconceivable that a vessel could alternate between being used for vile waste and for food for guests. An honorable vessel is kept pure.

Sanctified translates a perfect passive participle, indicating a condition that already exists. When we trusted in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, He immediately “became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Cor. 1:30). Every believer has been chosen by God “from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth” (2 Thess. 2:13; cf. 1 Peter 1:2). Salvation itself is a sanctification, setting us apart to God. But it also is the beginning of a lifelong process. It is both a reality and a progressive experience.

Christians not only are sanctified by having a right relationship to God but also are being sanctified as they grow in fulfilling God’s purpose of righteous living. That is the meaning of the term used here. “For this is the will of God, your sanctification,” Paul declares; “that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality…. For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification” (1 Thess. 4:3, 7). The sanctified life is a life of purity, holiness, and godliness. It is a vessel for honor, worthy for the Lord to use.

On the negative side, the believer is being sanctified, or set apart, from unrighteousness. Our new, redeemed life in Christ is to be in stark contrast to our former, unsaved life. “For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification” (Rom. 6:19; cf. v. 22). Honorable vessels are separated from sin, from the world, from the flesh, from Satan, and from the self-will of the old self.

USEFUL TO GOD

useful to the Master, (2:21c)

     A vessel for honor is useful to the Master. Using the same Greek word (euchrēstos), Paul later in this letter speaks of Mark as “useful to me for service” (4:11). The apostle wanted Timothy to be useful to Jesus Christ, the Master, just as Mark was useful to him in his apostolic work.

The deepest desire of Paul’s own heart was to be useful to the Master. He testified, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. And everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable” (1 Cor. 9:24–25). On the other hand, it was the apostle’s greatest fear that he would lose his usefulness to the Master because of sin. “Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim,” he continued; “I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified” (vv. 26–27).

Master translates despotēs, from which we get “despot.” Christians are not simply rightly related to God; they wholly belong to God. He is our sovereign Master, our loving and benevolent Lord, who actually owns us. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?” Paul asks rhetorically. “You have been bought with a price” (1 Cor. 6:19–20).

PREPARED FOR GOOD WORK

prepared for every good work. (2:21d)

     A vessel of honor to the Lord is prepared for every good work. Hetoimazō (prepared) carries the idea of willingness and eagerness as well as of readiness. Like “sanctified,” prepared translates from a perfect passive, indicating a condition that already exists. When we were saved, the Lord placed us in a state of divine preparedness, in which we received His own Holy Spirit to indwell us and empower us. We also have His divine Word in Scripture to teach us His truth and His will. But unlike a metal, earthenware, or wooden vessel, a human vessel has a will. Our full preparedness for the Lord’s service therefore demands more than simply having His Spirit within us and possessing the particular talents and gifts He has provided and knowing the truth He has revealed. It also demands our genuine and unreserved willingness to submit to His Spirit, to use those talents and gifts, and to obey His revealed truth in His service and in His power. In the words of the hymn quoted on pages 85–86, the truly prepared Christian can honestly say, “To be used of God is my desire.”

A PURE HEART

Now flee from youthful lusts, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. (2:22)

     This verse presents five characteristics of a pure heart, which itself is a fifth characteristic of an honorable vessel for the Lord. This verse is almost identical to the apostle’s admonition in his previous letter to Timothy: “Flee from these things, you man of God; and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness” (1 Tim. 6:11).

The first attribute of a pure heart is negative, expressed here in the command to flee youthful lusts. Flee is from phuegō, from which “fugitive” is derived. The Greek verb is here a present imperative of command, indicating that fleeing is not optional but is to be persistent. That meaning is reflected in the term “fugitive,” which refers to a person who is continually on the run in order to escape capture. The faithful Christian is continually on the run, as it were, from the sinful passions that started when we were young.

Timothy was some thirty years younger than Paul when this letter was written. He therefore was relatively youthful and was still tempted by many sinful lusts that are characteristic of young people. These lusts involve much more than sinful sexual desire. They also include pride, craving for wealth and power, inordinate ambition, jealousy, envy, an argumentative and self-assertive spirit, and many other sinful lusts.

Timothy was timid and apparently sometimes embarrassed by his close association with the apostle Paul and the uncompromising gospel he proclaimed. He probably was fearful of persecution and may not have boldly confronted all those who compromised and misinterpreted God’s revealed truth. He seems to have been especially intimidated by older men in the church who resented his leadership (1 Tim. 4:12). Losing the battle to youthful lusts would not help him resolve the problem of leadership or effectively correct wrong doctrine and immoral practices but would aggravate the conflict. For his own sake and the sake of the church, he was to flee such temptations and inclinations.

The next four attributes of a pure heart are positive and comprehensive: righteousness, faith, love and peace. To pursue those virtues is the other side of fleeing youthful lusts. As with flee, the Greek verb translated pursue is an imperative. Paul is not making a suggestion.

A believer who does not run from sin and toward righteousness will be overtaken by sin. “When [an] unclean spirit goes out of a man,” Jesus said, “it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. Then it goes and takes along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first” (Luke 11:24–26). The only way not to “be overcome by evil” is to “overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21). Understanding that truth, the psalmist wrote, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Thy word” (Ps. 119:9). In whatever age the faithful live, the only infallible and effective guide to righteousness is God’s divine Word. Living a pure life does not involve following an esoteric system of ritual, having a mystical experience, achieving a special level of human wisdom, or making a decision to do so. But by faithfully pursuing and obeying the truth of Scripture, even the most unsophisticated child of God is able to successfully pursue the Lord’s righteousness.

The godly believer also will pursue … faith. In this context, pistis (faith) is better rendered “faithfulness,” as it is of God in Romans 3:3 and of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22. The supreme purpose of a believer with a pure heart is to please and glorify God by pursuing integrity, loyalty, and trustworthiness. It was for lack of such “weightier provisions of the law—“justice and mercy and faithfulness”—that Jesus excoriated the hypocritical scribes and Pharisees (Matt. 23:23). The truly faithful Christian will be loyal to God, to God’s Word, to God’s work, and to God’s people.

He also will pursue … love, the first and foremost fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). Of the several words in Greek that are translated love, agapē is the noblest, because it is the word of choice, not of feelings or sentiment, as fine as those sometimes may be. It is the love of the mind and the will, not of emotion or affection even of the highest sort. It is the love of conscious determination, not impulse. It is the love that focuses on the welfare of the one loved, not on self-gratification or self-fulfillment. Agapē love is not based on the attractiveness or worthiness of those who are loved, but on their needs, even when they are most unattractive and unworthy. It is selfless and self-giving.

Agapē love is used countless times of God Himself. It is that love which God the Father has for His own Son, Jesus Christ (John 17:26) and for those who belong to the Son by faith (John 14:21). It is the love which our gracious Lord has for even fallen, sinful mankind (John 3:16; Rom. 5:8). Agape love is so characteristic of God that John twice tells us that He is love (1 John 4:8, 16).

The godly believer also will pursue … peace. Eirēnē (peace) is the word from which we get “serene” and “serenity.” In this context it does not refer to absence of warfare but to harmonious relationships, between men and God and between men and other men, especially between Christians. “If possible, so far as it depends on you,” Paul commands, “be at peace with all men” (Rom. 12:18).

Although the church at Ephesus was one of the most mature and faithful congregations mentioned in the New Testament, at the time Paul wrote his letters to Timothy it was experiencing serious internal conflict. Paul’s prediction to the elders of the church as they met on the beach near Miletus was already being fulfilled. “I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you,” he warned, “not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:29–30). Confronting all of that and maintaining peace requires a delicate balance.

Those who call on the Lord is a description of genuine Christians, referring specifically to their calling on the Lord for salvation—for His grace, His mercy, His forgiveness. To call on the Lord is the equivalent of placing saving faith in Him. “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon Him,” Paul assures believers in Rome. Quoting Joel 2:32, he then adds, “For ‘Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved’” (Rom. 10:12–13). The apostle opens his first letter to the church at Corinth with these words: “Paul, called as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, to the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours” (1 Cor. 1:1–2, emphasis added).

But not everyone who calls on the Lord for salvation continues to faithfully serve and obey Him. From a pure heart therefore further identifies the godly believers who qualify as honorable vessels. The term pure comes from the same root word as “cleanses” in verse 21 and takes us back to where Paul’s thought began—to the truth that a clean vessel is a useful one. They continue to call on the Lord for guidance, strength, and wisdom in living for Him. The Christian with a pure heart diligently pursues the righteousness, faith, love, and peace mentioned in the first half of this verse. He is the “vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work” mentioned in the previous verse.

A DISCERNING MIND

But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. (2:23)

     A vessel of honor to God must develop a discerning mind. An unguarded mind, even of a believer, is subject to deceit, misunderstanding, and confusion, which inevitably produce false doctrine and sinful living. The undiscerning mind is “tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming” (Eph. 4:14).

That danger is what prompted Paul to establish the basic safeguard of discernment with the command to “examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil” (1 Thess. 5:21–22).

Paul also emphasized the importance of discernment in his first letter to Timothy:

Later in that epistle he gravely warns, “If anyone advocates a different doctrine, and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain” (1 Tim. 6:3–5). As he ends the letter, he implores, “O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called ‘knowledge’—which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith” (6:20–21).

As we saw in the second chapter of the second letter, Paul admonishes the younger pastor to warn those under his care “not to wrangle about words, which is useless, and leads to the ruin of the hearers” and to “avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene” (2 Tim. 2:14–17).

The truth and purity of ideas that go into the mind are of the utmost importance. An automobile needs filters to trap harmful objects in the gasoline, oil, and air. If not filtered out, even small particles of dust or grime can cause an engine to lose power, stop running, and suffer permanent damage. In the same way, an accumulation of even seemingly insignificant moral and spiritual pollution can corrupt a Christian’s mind and heart, making him less and less effective and usable in the Lord’s work. The things we allow to enter our minds affect our thinking, our beliefs, our values, our motives, and our priorities. And the more willingly we allow them to enter, the more powerfully they affect us. The writer of Proverbs wisely observed that “a fool does not delight in understanding, but only in revealing his own mind,” and that “a fool’s lips bring strife, and his mouth calls for blows” (Prov. 18:2, 6).

Of the ten billion or so cells in the human brain, by far the majority are used for memory. And although the ease of forgetting makes it hard to believe, scientists have determined that everything the brain registers it retains. The passing of time and lack of use make information harder and often impossible to retrieve, but all the information received is still there, no matter how far it recedes from consciousness. The memory cells are interconnected by equally microscopic fibers, which enable stored facts, ideas, visual images, feelings, and experiences to be associated with each other to produce thought patterns, which store still more permanent information in the brain.

Paul may not have been aware of those facts of physiology, but he well understood the power of ideas on a Christian’s mind and knew that the only protection against false and evil notions is God’s truth and righteousness. He therefore advised, “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things” (Phil. 4:8). Our mind is to be a treasure house, not a garbage dump.

From the early days of the church and continuing almost unabated to our own day, many believers have carelessly forsaken personal study of Scripture and have fallen prey to every sort of false idea and practice. Not bothering to check what they read and hear against God’s own Word—as did the God-fearing, noble-minded Jews in Berea (Acts 17:11)—they are corrupted by foolish and ignorant speculations, which make them stumble and fall, often without knowing it.

Mōros (foolish) has the root meaning of being mentally dull, silly, or stupid, and is the word from which we get “moron.” Apaideutos (ignorant) means unlearned and untrained and often carried the additional idea of undisciplined. Zētēsis (speculations) refers to that which is controversial and seriously disputed, having no certain basis in truth.

Paul is not, of course, advising believers to avoid all controversy and discussion of the faith. We are to “sanctify Christ as Lord in [our] hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks [us] to give an account for the hope that is in [us],” and we are to do so “with gentleness and reverence” (1 Peter 3:15). Paul spent much time presenting and defending the gospel as he went from city to city. “According to Paul’s custom,” Luke reports, “he went to them [Jews in the synagogue at Thessalonica], and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures” (Acts 17:2). “He was reasoning in the synagogue [at Corinth] every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks” (Acts 18:4). He began his ministry at Ephesus in the same way (18:19). In defending the gospel and himself as he stood before the Roman governor Felix in Caesarea, “he was discussing righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come” (Acts 24:25). In the above passages, “reasoned,” “reasoning,” and “discussing” all translate dialegomai, from which we get the English “dialogue.”

In this Timothy passage, Paul makes clear that he is not speaking about responsible discussion of Scripture and theology, either with the unsaved or among believers. He rather forbids speculations, fruitless and unproductive debates that … produce quarrels. Such speculations not only are worthless but are ungodly. They question Scripture, distort the truth, create doubt, weaken faith, undermine confidence in the Lord, often lead to compromise of convictions, and produce quarrels. Earlier in this chapter, the apostle commanded Timothy to “solemnly charge [believers] in the presence of God not to wrangle about words, which is useless, and leads to the ruin of the hearers” (v. 14).

Paul gives almost identical counsel to Titus, warning him to “shun foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the Law; for they are unprofitable and worthless” (Titus 3:9). Any church member who persists in such “unprofitable and worthless” behavior is to be severely disciplined. “Reject a factious man after a first and second warning,” the apostle continues, “knowing that such a man is perverted and is sinning, being self-condemned” (vv. 10–11).

A GENTLE MANNER

And the Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, (2:24)

     Doulos (bond-servant) is a description Paul frequently used of himself. In several epistles he refers to his being a bond-servant of the Lord—ranking himself with all other believers—before declaring his divine call as an apostle (see Rom. 1:1; Phil. 1:1; Titus 1:1). Here he uses the description the Lord’s bond-servant to refer to Timothy and to other preachers of divine truth.

Every bond-servant of the Lord’s is to take care not [to] be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged. Similarly, in his first letter he points out that pastors “must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, uncontentious, free from the love of money” (1 Tim. 3:2–3). The apostle gives an expanded list of qualifications in his letter to Titus: “The overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain, but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, that he may be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict” (Titus 1:7–9).

Leaders in the church, are not [to] be quarrelsome, but … kind to all. Those qualities characterized Jesus in His incarnation. He said of Himself, “Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart” (Matt. 11:29). In recording Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Matthew quotes Zechariah: “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold your King is coming to you, gentle, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden’” (Matt. 21:5). In his second letter to them, Paul reminded Corinthian believers of “the meekness and gentleness of Christ” and of his own meekness as an apostle, “I who am meek when face to face with you” (2 Cor. 10:1).

As much as we are to speak boldly for the Lord without compromise, we are to do so with the attitude of meekness, gentleness, and humility. We are never to be harsh, abusive, overbearing, unkind, thoughtless, or pugnacious. There is to be a softness in the authority of a Christian leader, just as there was in Paul’s and in the Lord’s when He was on earth. “We proved to be gentle among you,” Paul reminded believers in Thessalonica, “as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children” (1 Thess. 2:7).

The responsible and godly preacher must also be able to teach. That phrase translates the single Greek adjective didaktikos, which carries the idea of being highly skilled in teaching. The only other time it is used in the New Testament is in Paul’s first letter to Timothy, where it is also applied to elders (1 Tim. 3:2). The term does not refer so much to possessing vast knowledge or understanding as to having notable ability to communicate effectively whatever knowledge and understanding one may have—in this case, knowledge and understanding of God’s Word.

The godly leader who is an honorable vessel must be patient when wronged, which is perhaps the hardest qualification mentioned here. If the old self is not firmly resisted, we are likely to become more offended when we ourselves are wronged than when our Lord and His truth are attacked. When we are faithfully witnessing and living for the Lord, it is not easy to graciously accept unjust criticism. But again Jesus is our example. “Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,” Peter reminds us. He “committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously” (1 Peter 2:21–23). In addition to being our example, Jesus is also our resource for being patient. Patience is a fruit of Christ’s own Holy Spirit (cf. Gal. 5:22), who will provide the strength we need for bearing His fruit.

The effective bond-servant of the Lord is not concerned about justifying or vindicating himself but about serving the Lord without bitterness, vengeance, or anger, and with graciousness, kindness, and patience.

A HUMBLE SPIRIT

with gentleness (2:25a)

     Prautēs (gentleness) can also be rendered “meekness.” In the ancient Greek world the word was used of colts that were broken for riding. In such training, care must be taken to bring the animal’s will into submission to the rider without breaking its energetic and lively spirit. Contrary to the connotation that “meekness” often carries today, prautēs has no relation to weakness but denotes power that is under willing control.

Again Jesus is the supreme example. In the two passages already cited referring to His manner, the adjective praus describes Him as gentle, or meek (Matt. 11:29; 21:5). Although He was God incarnate, and at any moment could have destroyed His enemies with a word or had at His “disposal more than twelve legions of angels” (Matt. 26:53), He chose rather to submit to every indignity, because that was His Father’s will for Him in His incarnation.

In the same way, though to a much more limited degree, the faithful bond-servant of Jesus Christ who has great strength of conviction, and who may have leadership authority in the church, willingly expresses and defends his convictions and exercises his authority in a spirit of gentleness. The truly meek person is submissive as a matter of choice, because he wants to obey his Master and to be like Him.

In my book Kingdom Living Here and Now, I commented,

The prautēs kind of gentleness reflects a spirit of humility that does not focus on self but on the Lord and on others in His name. It has nothing to do with impotence or shyness or weakness or cowardice. It is power supplied by, and willingly put under the control of, the Holy Spirit, in faithful submission to the Word and will of God. When one is truly meek, he talks not of himself but of his Lord.

A COMPASSIONATE ATTITUDE

correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. (2:25b—26)

     Finally, an honorable vessel and bond-servant of the Lord will have a compassionate attitude. Paul here focuses on the expression of compassion and meekness when correcting those who are in opposition.

Correcting is from paideuō, which means to instruct, educate, or give guidance. Because the objects of this instruction are those who teach false doctrine and live ungodly lives, this particular instruction is in the form of correction.

Much of the self-righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was based on their carefully following human tradition that had no basis in Scripture and often was in contradiction of it. They “invalidated the word of God for the sake of [their] tradition,” Jesus said (Matt. 15:6). But the godly Christian has no reason for being self-righteous even when he is humbly obeying Scripture, because he knows that his obedience is the product of the Holy Spirit rather than his own goodness. Consequently, when confronting believers who are teaching falsehood and living sinfully, one must never do so with an attitude of personal superiority. Christians are to have compassion for them in their sin just as the Lord has compassion.

Paul is not speaking of personal differences of opinion but of the opposition of disobedient believers. The opposition may pertain to “foolish and ignorant speculations” (v. 23) or to the more serious matters of doctrine or morals they lead to. Every minister encounters situations in the church that demand correction and sometimes rebuke. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,” Paul reminded Titus, “instructing us [that is, every believer] to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” (Titus 2:11–13). The faithful bond-servant of Christ is to be God’s instrument for correcting fellow believers, whatever their position in the church, who persist in “ungodliness and worldly desire” and to admonish them to live “righteously and godly in the present age.”

The motivation of such correction should be the sincere desire that perhaps God may grant them repentance. That is always the motivation of a humble and compassionate heart. Paul told the immature, worldly believers in Corinth, “I now rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to the point of repentance; for you were made sorrowful according to the will of God, in order that you might not suffer loss in anything through us” (2 Cor. 7:9). Even when those who are corrected are resentful of us and unrepentant, as some in Corinth were in regard to Paul, there is never a place in godly correction for personal animosity or judgmental self-righteousness.

The hope that God may grant them repentance is not a last resort. The idea is not that we must try to persuade them to repent by their own efforts and in their own power and that, if they fail, we then hope that perhaps God will grant them the repentance they were unable to achieve for themselves. Metanoia (repentance) does not mean simply being sorry for what we have done. It signifies a genuine change of mind, change of heart, and change of direction. It is for that reason that all genuine repentance must be the product of God’s sovereign grace, just as is every aspect of salvation—“in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:7). No person, no matter how sincere and determined, can truly repent and change his own sinful thoughts and ideas and correct his own sinful life. Only God can work that miracle in the heart. In the same way, we are able to love only “because [Christ] first loved us” (1 John 4:19), “because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Rom. 5:5). God works repentance in the willing heart of one who truly desires holiness.

Repentance leads disobedient believers out of their sin and falsehood into the knowledge of the truth. Epignōsis represents more than mere factual information. It is deep, thorough spiritual knowledge of God’s truth, which, as with repentance, only He can supply.

It is only through God’s gracious provision of repentance and knowledge of His truth that anyone, including sinning believers, may come to their spiritual senses. Ananēphō (come to their senses) literally means to return to soberness, indicating that falsehood and sin produce what might be called a type of spiritual inebriation, a stupor resulting in loss of judgment and proper control of one’s faculties. The destructive effect of false teaching and sin numbs the conscience, confuses the mind, erodes conviction, and paralyzes the will.

God’s provision of genuine repentance and knowledge of His truth enable a believer to escape from the snare of the devil, after having been held captive by him to do his will. As Paul apprised Timothy in the previous letter, even an overseer can “fall into reproach and the snare of the devil” (1 Tim. 3:7). It is a fearful thing that, because of sin and unfaithfulness, the devil can actually snare and hold a believer captive … to do his will. The vessel of dishonor becomes a pawn of Satan to work his evil will within the very body of Christ. Such is the terrible and tragic power of sin.

But our gracious “God is faithful,” Paul assures us. He “will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, that you may be able to endure it” (1 Cor. 10:13). Not only does the Lord know “how to rescue the godly from temptation” (2 Peter 2:9), but He even promises His unfaithful, dishonorable vessels that “if we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).