Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20120930.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
2 Timothy: God's Directives For Church Leaders Amid Hardships
Part VII: Responding Well To False Teachers Amid Ministry Hardships, 2 Timothy 2:14-4:8
A. Responding Well To False Teachers By An Upright Teaching Ministry
(2 Timothy 2:14-16)
  1. Introduction
    1. Having introduced the need to hold to true apostolic doctrine, Paul directed Timothy on having an effective ministry as a Church leader relative to false teachers that were starting to plague the Church.
    2. The first order of business in this realm is an upright teaching ministry as detailed in 2 Timothy 2:14-16:
  2. Responding Well To False Teachers By An Upright Teaching Ministry, 2 Timothy 2:14-16.
    1. Church leaders must counter false teachers and teachings before the congregation, 2 Timothy 2:14:
      1. They should continually remind (hupomimneske, pres. impv. of hupomimnesko, "remind, call to mind," Arndt & Gingrich, A Grk.-Eng. Lex. of the N. T., 1967, p. 853-854; U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966, p. 733; The Analyt. Grk. Lex., 1972, p. 418) the congregation of God's positive true apostolic doctrines given in 2 Timothy 2:8-13 [that we previously viewed], 2 Tim. 2:14a.
      2. Along with this, Church leaders must continually charge, warn (diamarturomai, with the pres. ptc. that describes the action of the main verb, hupomimnesko , Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.; Ibid., The Analyt. Grk. Lex., p. 93; Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich, p. 185) fellow believers before the Lord of the negative need to avoid " word battles, wordy controversies, and quibbling about words" that fail to edify the hearer, 2 Timothy 2:14b; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, ftn. to 2 Timothy 2:14b.
    2. Church leaders are to fill the vacuum created by their countering false teachers and teachings in themselves doing a proper work expounding the Word of God to the congregation, 2 Timothy 2:15-16:
      1. Church leaders must "make every effort" (spoudazo, Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich, p. 771) to show themselves approved unto God relative to ministering the right versus the wrong way, 2 Tim. 2:15a.
      2. Specifically, they are to make every effort to orthotomeo the Word of the truth (2 Tim. 2:15c), a word used of workmen who "cut a road across country (that is forested or otherwise difficult to pass through) in a straight direction,' so that the traveler may go directly to his destination," Ibid., p. 584. Paul meant Timothy was to counter the excessively wordy, mind-deceiving babble of false teachers by handling the Word of God with simple CLARITY , that the truth might become edifyingly obvious!
      3. In handling God's Word this way, the Church leader would be a laborer who would not be put to shame before God (anepaischuntos, Ibid., p. 64) as will be the false teachers, 2 Timothy 2:15b.
    3. Church leaders must nurture their own hearts to lead the congregation effectively this way, 2 Tim. 2:16:
      1. Paul added that Timothy was himself to keep on "shunning, avoiding" for his own benefit [of being an unashamed workman before God] (middle voice with the pres. impv. of periistemi [Ibid., U. B. S. Grk. N. T.; Ibid., The Analyt. Lex. of the N. T., p. 319; Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich, p. 653] the false teachers' babbling, for indulging in it would eventually make one ungodly, 2 Timothy 2:16 ESV, NIV.
      2. This implies the need for the Church leader to guard his own mind from false teaching by not getting preoccupied with it, but rather absorbing his mind with the Word of God, cf. Psalm 1:1-6. The human mind is a "slippery thing," and a preoccupation with error can lead even the well-meaning astray!
      3. The middle voice of "avoiding" used here to express the benefit of the subject reveals a Church leader has to nurture his own mind so that he can take a firm stand on the truth with others! Of necessity, this means he must not be "open-minded," but protectively "narrow-minded" in focusing on Scripture!
Lesson: To have an upright teaching ministry, a Church leader must keep reminding the congregation of God's positive true doctrines while continually charging them to avoid the bad, all while filling the vacuum he creates in opposing the bad by working hard to expound Scripture with simple clarity that edifies the hearers. To succeed in this effort, the Church leader must also nurture his own heart in not allowing himself to be preoccupied with error, but to avoid it by saturating his mind with Scripture!

Application: May we Church leaders or believers who disciple others heed this directive before God as those who will one day give an account for doing so at Christ's return!