40 Rules for Christian Ministry (Part 5)

“But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife. And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:20-26

It’s important as we study God’s Word that we don’t lose sight of the ‘context.’ The above verses are the immediate context from the last podcast and for the first part of this one. Paul told Timothy to ‘run away from’ youthful lusts and to ‘pursue’ righteousness, faith, love, and peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. That advice is paramount for any ministry that will be pleasing to God. These are rules, not suggestions.

Paul also told Timothy that a ‘servant of the Lord’ must not quarrel but be gentle to all. That’s where we stopped in the last podcast. We now move to the next words of the Apostle Paul.

Rule #21

A servant of the Lord must be able to teach

Paul didn’t say that a servant of the Lord had to have the spiritual ‘gift’ of teaching, but he did say that a servant of the Lord must be ‘able to teach.’ The Greek word is διδακτικόν (didaktikos) and means ‘apt to instruct, able to teach.’ This ‘aptness’ or ‘ability’ to teach comes from God and from a Christian’s commitment to learning God’s Word. Even a Christian who happens to have the spiritual ‘gift’ of teaching must go through a process of ‘learning’ before they can teach. The root word is didaskó and means ‘to disseminate information.’ The idea is of ‘communicating’ information, either through writing or the spoken word. Paul was writing to Timothy, but Timothy had heard Paul ‘preach and teach’ for years. Paul had the gift for both. He was ‘apt to teach’ and said that’s what a ‘servant of the Lord’ must be able to do.

I can hear some of you saying to yourself that you are not a teacher – that you cannot disseminate information the way a preacher or teacher can. That’s not what Paul was saying. You need to be ‘apt, able’ to teach. Have you ever taught someone how to do something? Have you ever disseminated information to another person so they would learn something? Maybe it was teaching them how to play a game. Maybe you taught them how to do a craft. Maybe you helped a new employee learn the basics of their job. Maybe you taught your child how to behave or act in a responsible way toward other children. All of us have had some experience where we ‘taught’ another person something they didn’t know until we taught them. That’s what every Christian should be ‘able’ to do. You know the Lord. If you’ve read and studied God’s Word, you know many vital things about the spiritual world that other people desperately need to know. You can do that. You ‘must’ be able to teach at every opportunity God gives you.

Rule #22

A servant of the Lord must be patient

Being ‘patient’ is another important attribute for God’s people when they serve God and minister to the needs of others. Many people struggle to understand spiritual things. Even Christians who have been in churches for decades often know very little about the Bible. They need your help, but they also may need your patience. New Christians are often wide open to learning new things about God, but older Christians are often reticent to admit they need to learn new things. That’s where patience often becomes necessary.

The Greek word for ‘patient’ is anexikakos and means ‘enduring of ill, forbearing, patient.’ It’s the idea of enduring or ‘bearing up’ when treated unjustly or when you receive an injury that is undeserved. Believe me when I tell you that happens often in churches. Paul faced that during his entire ministry and knew that Timothy and those he trained would face the same. If you haven’t had to deal with unfair treatment at the hands of others in a church or denomination, you most likely will. Prepare yourself now to be ‘patient’ when it happens.

Rule #23

In humility correcting those who are in opposition

“And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.” 2 Timothy 2:24-26

Also go into any service for the Lord in ‘humility.’ Remember that our Lord ‘humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross’ (Philippians 2:8). Jesus is our example of ‘humility’ in service to God. It is that ‘humility’ that gives us the spiritual attitude to ‘correct’ people who oppose God’s Word and your ministry to them. If you are active in Christian Ministry, you will face opposition. Though Paul told Timothy not to quarrel and be ‘gentle to all,’ that did not mean he didn’t want Timothy to teach and correct them.

One of the primary purposes of ministry is to teach and correct. Paul will tell Timothy a bit later in this letter that: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)

The Greek word for ‘correct’ is paideuó and means ‘discipline, instruct, correct, train up, chastise.’ Timothy’s ministry with Paul as an apostolic associate is different than yours will be, so you may wonder how you would ‘correct’ someone. If you are a parent, an important part of ministering to your children is ‘correcting’ them. That will continue for many years. They will eventually grow up and live on their own. The years you spent ‘correcting’ them will play an important role in what kind of adults they become. If you are a church leader (e.g. pastor, elder), you will have opportunities to ‘correct’ members. You may do it from the pulpit, in group studies, or private meetings. That should continue as long as those members attend your church. As long as you follow Paul’s guidance for how to ‘correct’ them with ‘humility’ and teach them the Word ”rightly divided,’ that will play an important part in what kind of ministry they will have in the world.

However, be ready for some church members to ‘oppose’ your correction. The Greek word for ‘opposition’ in verse 25 is antidiatithémi and means ‘to set oneself opposite, be disputatious, set oneself up in opposition.’ The purpose of ‘correction’ in this context is that ‘God perhaps will grant them repentance.’ One of the reasons that we correct ‘in humility’ is because changing minds is not something we do – it’s what God does. The word ‘grant’ is didómi and means ‘give, minister, bestow, deliver.’ God can use your ministry of ‘correction’ to guide people to ‘repentance.’ The word metanoia means ‘reversal of previous decision, change of mind.’ People who oppose your ministry can reverse their position through repentance to do what’s right in God’s sight ‘so that they know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.’

This is the oldest ‘rivalry’ in history: God’s will vs. Satan’s will. The devil has been opposing God’s will since before the Garden of Eden. Remember what the devil asked Eve in Genesis 3? … ‘has God indeed said …?’ Satan and his evil kingdom are behind most of the spiritual problems in families, churches, denominations, and other ministries. What can Christians in ministry do about that? ‘… in humility correcting those who are in opposition.’ That’s the part we play. God’s part is to ‘grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.’

Notice that people who oppose Christian ministry need to ‘come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil.’ The Greek word for ‘senses’ is ananéphó and means ‘become sober again, recover one’s self.’ The Greek for ‘snare’ is pagis and means ‘a trap fastened by a noose or notch.’ It was used for both physical and moral traps. The word for ‘captive’ is zógreó and means ‘to capture. ensnare, catch, take captive, take alive.’ That’s what the devil does. What caring Christians need to do is minister to the needs of those who have been take ‘taken captive’ by the devil to do ‘his will.’ The word ‘will’ is theléma which means ‘desire, pleasure, determination, choice.’ Satan takes ‘pleasure’ in choosing to hurt people, which reminds me of this verse from 1 Peter 5:

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” 1 Peter 5:8

Rule #24

Know this about people in the last days

“But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” 2 Timothy 3:1-5

Many members of your church will not remain the same year after year, decade after decade. As Paul prophesied ‘perilous times’ will come in the ‘last days.’ The words ‘perilous times’ are καιροὶ χαλεποί (times, opportunities, seasons, that are perilous, difficult, violent, dangerous). Paul prophesied that these violent times would come ‘in the last days.’ The Greek words are ἐν ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις. The word ἐσχάταις (eschatos) is where we get the word ‘eschatology,’ which is the ‘study of last things.’

Paul did not give exact dates of when these ‘last days’ would occur, but he did describe what those days would be like. People would be:

lovers of themselves
lovers of money
boasters
proud
blasphemers
disobedient to parents
unthankful
unholy
unloving
unforgiving
slanderers
without self-control
brutal
despisers of good
traitors
headstrong
haughty
lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God
having a form of godliness but denying its power

If Paul was describing ‘unsaved ‘unchurched’ people, we could say that almost anytime in the last two thousand years would fit those descriptions. However, since the context of 2 Timothy 2 concerns ‘approved and disapproved workers’ in churches, we see that Paul was describing a time when a massive number of people in churches would fall away from doing God’s will because the devil had taken them captive to do his will.

I think one of the key parts of this section is where Paul wrote – ‘having a form of godliness but denying its power.’ The Greek word for ‘form’ is morphósis and means ‘appearance.’ The word godliness is eusebeia and means ‘holy, devout.’ That’s what we see in many churches and denominations today. Leaders and members live life devoid of godliness, but present themselves as ‘godly.’ They have a ‘form or appearance’ of godliness, but they deny its power. The word ‘deny’ is arneomai and means ‘refuse, reject, disavow, renounce, disown.’ What are they rejecting? God’s supernatural power. The word is dunamis and means ‘miraculous power, force, ability, strength.’

Rule #25

From such people turn away

This was Paul’s advice to Timothy and people Timothy would train. When the people, including leaders, get so bad that they reject correction and choose instead to remain in the devil’s trap, Paul wrote – ‘from such people turn away!’ Why? Paul answered –

“For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith; but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was.” 2 Timothy 3:6-9

This is similar to what Paul wrote Titus in an earlier letter:

“For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain. One of them, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth. To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled. They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work.” Titus 1:10-16

Even as Paul wrote Timothy that the church leaders and members would have a ‘form of godliness’ but deny its power, Paul wrote Titus that people in churches would ‘profess’ to know God, but deny Him in works. Paul told two of his closest associates to watch out for the same problem in the early church. The answer? Correct with instruction until it became necessary to ‘turn away’ from those people. The Greek word for ‘turn away’ is apotrepó and means ‘avoid, deflect, turn away from.’

That may seem harsh to many, but Christians who want to serve God must consider seriously who they are trying to please. God or people? Paul’s choice was obviously God. That should be our choice as well.

I’ll share five more rules for Christian ministry in the next podcast.

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In Christ’s Love and Grace,

Mark McGee

GraceLife / Faith and Self Defense / Grace Martial Arts / Substack