Mark this: there will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God – having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.
They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone. (2 Timothy 3.1-9, NIV.)
Paul’s reference to the ‘last days’ reveals his sense of urgency. The last days began after Jesus’ resurrection when the Holy Spirit came upon the believers at Pentecost. The ‘last days’ will continue until Christ’s second coming. This means that we are living in the last days. So we should make the most of every opportunity God gives us.
In many parts of the world it is not difficult to be a Christian - people are not jailed for reading the Bible or killed for preaching Christ. But Paul’s descriptive list of behaviours describes our society: even unfortunately, the behaviour of many Christians.
The appearance of being religious, or as Paul terms it, ‘having a form of godliness’, is lifestyle Christianity, this means, going to church, knowing doctrine, and following traditions. Such practices can make a person look good, but if the fruit of the spirit is lacking, the outer appearance is meaningless.
When Paul refers to ‘always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth’, this verse is not opposing study, but it is a warning about ineffective learning. It is possible to be forever learning, but never graduate from learning into practice.
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:14-17, NIV.)
Besieged by false teachers and the inevitable pressures of a growing ministry, Timothy could easily have abandoned his faith or modified his doctrine. Once again Paul counselled Timothy to look to his past and to hold to the basic teachings about Jesus which are eternally true. Like Timothy, we are surrounded by false teachings. But we must not allow our society to distort or crowd out God’s eternal truth.
Timothy was one of the first second-generation Christians: He became a Christian, not because an evangelist preached a powerful sermon, but because his mother and grandmother taught him the holy Scriptures. For Timothy, the holy Scriptures were the books of the Old Testament. The Old Testament points to Christ, and faith in Christ; His death and resurrection fulfils the law of the Old Testament.
The Bible is not a collection of stories, fables, myths or human ideas about God. Through the Holy Spirit, God revealed His person and plan to those who wrote the Scripture. Although they wrote from their own personal, historical, and cultural contexts, they wrote what God wanted them to write, because it was inspired by the Lord.
The whole Bible is the inspired Word of God. Because it is inspired and trustworthy, we should read and apply it to our life. The Bible is our safeguard against false doctrine, and guidance for daily living. It is our only source of knowledge leading to salvation. In our study of Scripture, we must always remember that its purpose is to equip us for every good work. We study the Bible to learn how to be like Jesus in this world.
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction. (2 Timothy 4:1-2, NIV.)
There is a coming judgment for all people. We will either receive a reward in the Kingdom when Christ says, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant,’ or there is a punishment for our rejection of Christ. That is why there is such a responsibility to preach the Word faithfully with pure hearts. We believe in Christ because those who went before us were faithful to the Great Commission, so we to, must do our part in the furthering of the Gospel. We should always be ready to serve God in any and all situations, whether it is convenient or not. And do not worry about what you should say, Jesus taught, ‘When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say’ (Luke 12:11-12, NIV).