TOPIC:
HOLDING FAST SOUND WORDS
Read 2 Timothy 1:13-14
13 Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.
14 That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.
MEMORISE:
Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 1:13)
EXPOSITION
Paul’s repeated emphasis on sound doctrine in his epistles implies that the body of teaching in the church is more than just a gospel about Christ. It is the gospel of Christ – what He taught and lived in His own life, and what He expects us to follow as well. His doctrine is ‘the pattern of sound words’, the original and fundamental revelation of Christ, the body of truth, once for all delivered to the apostles, and taught to Timothy by Paul. This has been passed down to the Church from generation to generation.
Timothy and every Christian must hold these truths fast in faith and love toward Jesus Christ, never departing from them, and not compromising them, even if it means suffering, rejection, disgrace and death. God inspired the writers of the New Testament to warn us that His Church must have a solid foundation in the truth of Christ to defend and contend for the faith, because of the constant bombardment of false doctrines (Jude 3). The only way to keep the doctrines is both to live it and proclaim it with faith and love. Paul is concerned, not just about the truth, but also about how it is preserved, in faith and love (2 Tim. 2:1,2).
Guarding of the deposit of faith must be done with the help of the Holy Spirit. It is He who inspired the infallible truth of the Scripture, and it is He who is the great Guide and Defender of the Truth (Jn. 16:13; 2 Pet.1:21).
PRAYER POINTS
1. Lord Jesus, grant me the grace to hold fast the pattern of sound words once and for all delivered to the apostles, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.
2. Holy Spirit, empower every Christian to hold these truth fast in faith and love towards Jesus and never to depart from them.
3. Lord Jesus, enable all Christians to guard the deposit of faith in us with the help of the Holy Spirit.
EXTRA READING FOR TODAY:
Job 38:28 – 40:19, Acts 28:20 – 28:31; Rom 1:1 – 1:10
HAVE A LOVELY FRIDAY…………..SHALOM