Today’s Thoughts – 5 February 2021
By T. S. Candee on February 5, 2021 in Second Timothy Thoughts
But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
In contrast to what we’ve been discussing about false teachers, Paul begins to encourage Timothy to keep true to what he has learned from Paul and from his mother and grandmother when he was a child. Timothy, and us today, must continue in these things because evil will continue to get worse and worse.
People today can be fake, cheat, and only out for themselves. Thus, they will deceive others to get what they want. Eventually, because error feeds on itself, they too will deceive themselves, and evil will continue to get worse and worse. In a world like this in which we live this very day, how are we to keep true to the Word of God?
First, we must, like Timothy, continue in the Word of God. We must first go to the source which is the Holy Scriptures. And they are holy, they will not change, they are pure, they are literally God’s words (more on that in our next post).
We must also continue in the teachings of those who have taught us. So long as they too are getting their wisdom and knowledge from the Word of God, they will be able to help us understand and apply the Word of God in our lives.
The best place for this is in the home. The family is the first institution made by God (not the church). And knowing the Scriptures must start in the home, and it must start at an early age. When our kids grow older and begin making their own decisions, it will be far better for them if they make them through the lens of the Word of God because they knew it from a child.
Timothy was taught young by his mother and grandmother. This prepared him for being taught by Paul. Which prepared him for full-time service for the Lord and the many lives that he touched with his ministries. If it wasn’t for a faithful mother and grandmother, Timothy’s life would be drastically different. Right now, we have an opportunity to shape our children’s future by continuing in the Word of God and starting them young to understand the Holy Scriptures.
Finally, the Word of God contains the knowledge of salvation. Why would Timothy need to know this since he was already saved? Salvation is larger than the time and place when we accepted Christ into our lives. This is where it begins.
Justification (I have been saved): This is the first step of salvation when we accept Christ and are gloriously transformed into a child of God. This is a one-time transaction and does not need to be repeated. This would have happened in the past (Romans 8:1).
Sanctification (I am being saved): This is the second and continuous present step of salvation. Our salvation is continually being worked out in our lives. We won’t ever be perfect while in this body, but we strive to live a separated and sanctified life for God’s glory!
Glorification (I shall be saved): This is the final and future step of salvation which occurs when Christ comes back for the saints and raptures us to heaven. We will be in our glorified body and won’t have to deal with sin anymore (1 John 3:2).
And all of this comes through faith in Jesus Christ. For salvation is only by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). This is the antidote, if you will, to apostasy and false teaching – to continue in the Holy Scriptures, to learn from others, to teach others, and to live a sanctified life through the graceful salvation given to us by God.
