Welcome back to another Tabernacle Tidbit. Today, we are beginning 2 Timothy, Chapter 2, and verse number one.
Paul, in his final letter to his protege Timothy, actually his last letter that he would pen, that we would have in inspired scripture, he is now encouraging Timothy for some things that he needs to know as Paul is completing his race, and now he's
giving kind of a final charge to Timothy as he's one of the pastors there at that church in Ephesus. Chapter 2, and verse number one says this, you therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
Or as the English standard version and American standard version have it, be strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the reason they have that slight difference there, you can take the, I'll get just a little nerdy.
This is nerdy as I'll get. That word in Greek that be strong is a present passive imperative verb. And so it can be translated as be strong that, you know, strength is occurring in you or it can be to be strengthened.
Another place that we would find this would be in Ephesians chapter six, where we are challenged to be strengthened in the Lord and in His mighty power. Whereas you might know it, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
And so it's that same kind of thought that we have. And here's the encouragement that Paul gives. Timothy, it can be easy to be fearful.
It can be easy to be afraid of what Rome might do to you, of what the people in your particular church might do or say about you, the accusations that they will make.
Paul was certainly no stranger to the difficulties of ministry life, as he writes to the Philippians in Philippians chapter 1.
He even says, like, people are preaching Jesus just to get back at me, like to try and one-up me and make me sad that I'm no longer doing it.
And I don't know that I've ever made someone such an enemy of my life that they started, you know, a rival church and they started preaching Jesus for the express purpose of trying to reach more people.
And so Paul went through it, man, and he's encouraging Timothy. He says, you can be really fearful about everything in your life.
He says, but I want you to be strengthened by the grace, that unmerited favor, God's special blessings and giftings that we find in Christ Jesus, that as you think about Jesus, it transforms who you are.
You realize that you have strength to go on because Jesus lives inside of you and the person of the Holy Spirit.
You are able to not fear death, not fear people because you know that you have all of the approval that you need in our God, that if you were to die today, you would be within the Lord's presence. And so he says, be strengthened by this.
That phrase there, be strong. This Greek word is, to cause one to be able to function or to become able to function. He says this, let the reason that you get up in the morning, let your ability to function be Jesus.
Realize what he has done for you, what he is doing for you, what he has promised to do for you, and let that move you towards action. So for you today, what is it in your life that you're like, man, I just cannot seem to go on here.
Paul is echoing to you, be strong, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Realize that if God has placed you in your family, you've got a mission and a purpose. If God has placed you in your workplace, then you have a job to do there.
And it's not just to make buttons or to run numbers and crunch numbers.
Your mission is to shine the light of Jesus that when people interact with you, it's like they are working with God himself, that the way that they are treated is with love and compassion, that your work ethic is diligent.
So many other things that Jesus' life in us is meant to do. But then realize this, we cannot maintain for long strength in and of ourselves.
We have to find that strength in God, a lasting strength, that lasting ability to function wherever we are in our churches, our homes, our families, our jobs. It comes through realizing that Jesus loves us and he empowers us every single day.
We have those new morning mercies that we would read about in Lamentations chapter 3.
So I hope today that you would be strong in the strength that is in Christ Jesus and realize that God wants to enable you to do everything that he has called you to. Thanks for tuning in. Tomorrow we are in chapter 2 and verse number 2.
It's a great verse.
