2 Timothy 3:10-17

2 Timothy 3:10-17 … Paul is writing to Timothy to encourage his steadfast faith in the face of strong opposition, in the face of a public that are “lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive…” (1 Timothy 3:2). That pretty much describes the fabric of many in Timothy’s society and our own as well. After identifying the environment Timothy will find around him, the admonition is to look to the example of Paul (v.10) whose own testimony included dependence on God in the face of fierce opposition and even stoning (Acts 14:19).

Two aspects of inner strength are mentioned for Timothy: one (v.14) is to be in remembrance of the Gospel brought to Timothy by Paul, the other is to rely also on his knowledge of the Scriptures, which in the first century, was the Old Testament alone. Note the testimony concerning the Old Testament (v.15) … which is “able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” If the only Bible we had was the Old Testament, that should still be sufficient to lead us to faith in Christ. That’s quite a testimony for the whole counsel of God in Scripture! Next, we have a great verse … 2 Timothy 3:16-17, which is valuable to commit to memory so that it’s written on the table of our hearts: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”