टीका वर्तमान में केवल अंग्रेज़ी में उपलब्ध है। हिन्दी अनुवाद प्रगति पर है।
2 Timothy 1 — God Hath Not Given Us the Spirit of Fear
Paul, near the end of his life, writes to Timothy his beloved son in the faith. He recalls Timothy's sincere faith, passed down from his grandmother and mother, and urges him to stir up the gift of God within him. God has given not a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind. Timothy must not be ashamed of the gospel or of Paul's chains, but share in suffering for it, guarding the good deposit by the Holy Spirit.
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
— 2 Timothy 1:7
- v.1-5 Timothy's heritage of faith
- v.6-12 Stir up the gift; be not ashamed
- v.13-18 Guard the good deposit
Not... the spirit of fear. Timothy seems to have been timid by nature. Paul reminds him that fearfulness does not come from God. The Spirit God gives produces the opposite of cowardice.
Three gifts of the Spirit instead of fear — power (strength to act and endure), love (the motive that drives out fear, 1 John 4:18), and a sound mind (self-control, clear thinking). The fearful believer can claim these as God's own provision.
Salvation grounded entirely in God's grace and purpose, not according to our works. The calling is holy and the initiative is wholly God's, planned before the world began.
Grace was given in Christ Jesus before the world began — the plan of salvation predates creation. Before we existed, before we could do anything good or bad, grace was already appointed for us in Christ. This is the deepest security of the believer.
I know whom I have believed. Paul's confidence is not in a system but in a Person. Note he does not say "I know what I have believed" but whom. Faith rests on the trustworthiness of Christ Himself.
Able to keep that which I have committed unto him. Paul has entrusted his soul and his all to Christ, and is persuaded Christ will guard the deposit until the final day. The believer's security is the keeping power of the One trusted.
When fear rises — fear of speaking up for Christ, fear of the cost, fear of inadequacy — preach verse 7 to yourself: the spirit of fear is not from God. He has given power, love, and a sound mind. Fear feels like it comes from realism, but Paul names its true source: it is not the Spirit's gift. Stir up what God has placed in you, and act in the power He supplies rather than the fear He never gave.
Paul faces death with serenity because of one certainty — I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him. Christ is both the one in whom Paul trusts and the one who guards the trust. The whole letter, written from a death-row cell, rests on the keeping power of Christ. The believer entrusts everything to Him and rests, as Paul did, in His ability to hold it safe to the end.
A faith passed down three generations — grandmother Lois, mother Eunice, now Timothy. The quiet ministry of godly women in the home shaped one of the church's great leaders.
Unfeigned faith — sincere, unhypocritical. The faith handed to Timothy was genuine, not mere family tradition. The home is the first and often most lasting place faith is taught, by example as much as words.