|
News for the Pews |
Home
31st May 2025
SaturdayReflection
************************
Bill Muehlenberg
Commentary on issues of the day
'Difficult Bible Passages'
2 Timothy 2:23-26
************************
There are right and wrong ways to deal with controversy and error
This may not be a really difficult passage as such, but it can cause some confusion or questions as to how we apply it.
It seems to offer somewhat conflicting advice, when in fact it simply offers differing but related instructions to similar sorts of issues.
The passage says this:
23 But keep away from foolish and ignorant arguments; you know that they end up in quarrels. 24 As the Lord's servant, you must not quarrel. You must be kind toward all, a good and patient teacher, 25 who is gentle as you correct your opponents, for it may be that God will give them the opportunity to repent and come to know the truth. 26 And then they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the Devil, who had caught them and made them obey his will.
Verse 23 speaks of not getting into arguments;
verse 24 urges us not to quarrel;
then verses 25-26 urge us to correct others.
A superficial reading of this text of Paul, to Timothy, may seem to present discordant instructions, but not really.
What does seem hard to reconcile is the famous pair of verses found in Proverbs 26:4-5:
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.
Now that does seem to be contradictory!
But even there, it is not as such.
Here we have differing aspects to the issue of how best to respond to disagreements, arguments and error.
The various responses form a coherent whole.
Yes, those who just like to argue and who get their kicks out of picking all sorts of intellectual or theological fights are to be avoided.
There is no need to go down that path with these folks.
And it is also true that the man of God must not be quarrelsome.
But that is NOT to say we should avoid all controversial matters, or wink at obvious false teaching.
The final two verses make this clear: we ARE to take head on those who oppose the gospel message and seek to distort it.
Those sorts of fights we are not to run away from.
It is about getting the biblical balance right, in other words.
Refusing to be drawn into wasteful and useless arguments does NOT mean we just allow false teaching to run riot.
We can stand up for biblical truth while also not getting involved with those who just like to debate stuff and argue all day.
Paul wants Timothy to model a kind of teaching that will not simply refute error and save his hearers but that will also be used by God to rescue those who have already been entangled in the false teaching.
However, Paul is also a sober realist, and the mention of those "captured alive" by Satan to do his will launches him into a final indictment of the false teachers themselves.
And we also know of those who seem to be really nice and gentle leaders, but they never oppose clear error and never speak out for biblical truth when they need to.
Good leaders are God's servants.
They defend biblical truth, not their own opinions.
Second, their demeanour is "kind" or gentle.
The gentleness that Jesus modelled with Thomas and Peter is the standard
Third, leaders are "able to teach".
They deliver the truth with clarity and conviction.
Fourth, when they "patiently endure evil," that are able to put up with it if necessary.
Above all, godly shepherds will "correct their opponents with gentleness".
They may ignore lesser errors so that they can address core issues.
They wait and speak calmly, without haste or anger, so that others can listen.
Their closing words in this chapter are something all of us can take to heart:
"The goal is not to win arguments but to tell the truth so that people repent.
This edifies God's family, which is wounded by both heresy and wrangling.
May the Lord therefore grant us insight to know when to ignore petty disputes and when to correct damaging errors.
And may he grant that good doctrine drive out bad, even as the beauty of peaceful, loving leaders silences contentious men."
><(((°>
This is an edited version.
The full article and Bible references are avaiable on request
Bill Muehlenberg
About CultureWatch
We live in an age where we see evidence of cultural decline, the erosion of values, the decline of civility, the denial of truth and the elevation of unreason.
Many people are asking, "Where is our culture heading?"
This website is devoted to exploring the major cultural, social and political issues of the day.
It offers reflection and commentary drawing upon the wealth of wisdom found in the Judeo-Christian tradition.
It offers reflective and incisive commentary on a wide range of issues, helping to sort through the maze of competing opinions, worldviews, ideologies and value systems.
It will discuss critically and soberly where our culture is heading. Happy reading!
During the Interregnum
March 2025 to ....
Contact the Benefice Office
E-mail:
thebeneficeofbhkandr at gmail dot com
Contact the Benefice Office
Sunday School Rooms, Church Lane,
BUGBROOKE, Northampton, NN7 3PB
Land Line: 01604 830373
E-mail:
thebeneficeofbhkandr at gmail dot com
Mon., Tues., Wed., Thur.
9:00am to 11:30am
For Baptism bookings (Christenings)
to arrange an appointment please contact
the Benefice Office.
For Wedding bookings:
please contact the Benefice Office to arrange
an appointment.
Who Made This?
Seeing as you asked, if you can give helpful
advice or report factual corrections and
'deliberate mistakes',email:-
regparker3 at gmail dot com
Email addresses shown using words in an
attempt to avoid 'spam',
Type the email address replacing 'at' with '@',
and 'dot' with '.'
|