The Early Church · c. AD 64–67
Chapter 37
The Good Fight
I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have kept the faith.
For parents
Paul writes this letter as a prisoner in chains, and in it he speaks of his coming death: “I am already being offered, and the time of my departure has come” (2 Timothy 4:6). He recalls the persecutions he suffered (3:11) and the harm one man did to him (4:14), and he lists the sins of people in the last days, among them those who take gullible women captive (3:1–9). These are told plainly.
, an of Jesus , wrote a letter to , whom he called his beloved child. Paul was a prisoner when he wrote it. He was in chains like a criminal, and he was not ashamed.
Everyone in had turned away from him. But when a man named was in , he made every effort to find Paul, and he found him. Now only Luke was with Paul. “I am already being offered,” he wrote, “and the time of my departure has come.” He asked Timothy to come to him before winter.
The letter begins: “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, according to the promise of the life which is in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my beloved child: , mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
“I thank God, the one I serve as my ancestors did, with a pure . I never stop thinking of you when I pray, night and day. I remember your tears, and I long to see you, so that I can be filled with joy.
“I have been reminded of the sincere faith that is in you. It lived first in your grandmother and your mother , and I am sure it is in you too.”
“That is why,” Paul wrote, “I remind you to stir up the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God didn’t give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and self-control.
“So don’t be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, his prisoner. But endure hardship for the Good News by the power of God.
“He saved us and called us with a holy calling, not by our works, but by his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before all the ages of time. But now it has been made known by the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus. He did away with death, and through the Good News he brought life and into the light.
“It was for this Good News that I was appointed a preacher, an apostle and a teacher of the . That is the reason I suffer these things too. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know the one I have believed, and I am sure he can guard what I have put into his hands, for that day.
“Hold on to the pattern of sound words that you heard from me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. Through the who lives in us, guard the good thing that was put into your care.
“You know this: everyone in Asia turned away from me, Phygelus and Hermogenes among them.
“May the Lord have mercy on Onesiphorus’ household, because he often refreshed me. He was not ashamed of my chain. Instead, when he was in Rome, he went to great lengths to look for me, and he found me. May the Lord let him find the Lord’s mercy on that day! And you yourself know very well how much he did to serve at .”
“So you, my child,” he wrote, “be strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Take the things you heard from me, with many witnesses there, and hand them on to faithful men who will be able to teach others too.
“Bear hardship as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier on duty gets tangled up in the everyday business of life. He wants to please the one who enrolled him as a soldier.
“And if anyone competes in a sport, he isn’t crowned the winner unless he has kept the rules. The farmer who puts in the work must be the first to get a share of the crops. Think about what I say, and may the Lord give you understanding in all things.
“Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, a descendant of , as my Good News tells it. I suffer hardship for that Good News, even chains, like a criminal. But God’s word isn’t chained. So I endure all things for the sake of the chosen ones, so that they too can receive the salvation which is in Christ Jesus, together with eternal glory.
“This saying can be trusted:
If we died with him,we will also live with him.If we endure,we will also reign with him.If we deny him,he also will deny us.If we are faithless,he remains faithful,for he can’t deny himself.”
“Remind them of these things,” Paul told Timothy, “and tell them solemnly, in the sight of the Lord, not to argue about words. It helps no one, and it ruins those who listen.
“Be eager to show yourself approved by God, a workman with nothing to be ashamed of, who handles the Word of Truth the right way.
“But stay away from empty chatter, because it will go further into ungodliness, and those words will eat away like gangrene, the sickness that makes living flesh rot. Hymenaeus and Philetus are among those who talk like this. They have gone wrong about the truth. They say that the is already over, and they are overturning the faith of some.
“Even so, God’s firm foundation stands, and it has this seal on it: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and, ‘Whoever names the name of the Lord must keep away from wrongdoing.’
“In a large house there are vessels made of gold and silver, but there are also vessels of wood and clay. Some are for honor and some for dishonor. So if anyone cleans himself from these, he will be a vessel for honor, made holy, fit for the master’s use, and prepared for every good work.
“Flee from the cravings of youth. Go after , faith, love and peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. But say no to foolish and ignorant questions, because you know they lead to quarrels.
“The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, but be gentle with everyone, able to teach, and patient, gently correcting those who oppose him. Perhaps God may give them that leads to a full knowledge of the truth. Then they may think clearly again and get free of the trap, where they have been taken captive by him to do his will.”
Then Paul wrote about the last days. “Know this: in the last days, times of great trouble will come. People will love themselves and love money. They will brag, they will be arrogant, and they will . They will disobey their parents. They will be thankless and unholy, without natural love, unwilling to forgive, spreading lies about others, without self-control, savage, with no love for what is good. They will be traitors, headstrong, full of themselves, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. They will keep a form of godliness, but they will deny its power. Turn away from these people too.
“Some of them are people who sneak into homes and take gullible women captive. These women are loaded down with sins and led away by many different desires, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
“Just as and stood against , these men stand against the truth. Their minds are corrupted, and when it comes to the faith, they are rejected. But they won’t get any further, because their foolishness will be obvious to everyone, just as the foolishness of those two became obvious.”
“But you,” Paul wrote, “have followed my teaching and my way of living, my purpose, faith, patience, love and steadfastness, and my persecutions and sufferings, the things that happened to me at Antioch, and . I endured those persecutions, and the Lord brought me out of every one of them.
“Yes, all who want to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.
“But you, stay with the things you have learned and have been made sure of, since you know who you learned them from. From the time you were a baby, you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
“Every Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness, that each person who belongs to God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
“So I command you,” Paul wrote, “before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his Kingdom: Preach the word. Be urgent about it when the time seems right and when it doesn’t. Show people where they are wrong, rebuke them and urge them on, with all patience and teaching.
“The time will come when they won’t listen to sound teaching. With itching ears, they will pile up teachers for themselves to match their own cravings. They will stop listening to the truth and turn to made-up stories instead.
“But you, stay clear-headed in all things. Suffer hardship. Do the work of an , and fulfill your service.
“I am already being offered, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have kept the faith. From now on, the crown of righteousness is stored up for me. The Lord, the righteous judge, will give it to me on that day, and not to me alone, but to everyone who has loved his appearing.”
“Do all you can to come to me soon,” Paul wrote, “because Demas left me. He loved this present world, and he went to . Crescens went off to , and to .
“Only Luke is with me. Take Mark and bring him with you, because he is a help to me in serving. But I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. When you get here, bring the cloak I left at with Carpus, and the books, especially the .
“ the coppersmith caused me a lot of harm. The Lord will repay him as his deeds deserve. Watch out for him, because he fought hard against our words.
“At my first defense, no one came to help me. Everyone left me. May it not be held against them. But the Lord stood by me and made me strong, so that the message might be preached in full through me, and all the Gentiles might hear. So I was rescued out of the mouth of the lion.
“The Lord will deliver me from every evil act and keep me safe for his heavenly Kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. .
“Greet Prisca and Aquila, and Onesiphorus’ household. stayed on at , but I left sick at . Do all you can to come before winter. Eubulus greets you. Pudens, Linus and Claudia greet you too, and so do all the brothers and sisters.
“May the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.”