For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.   2 Timothy 1:7, 8

I would like to pick up a few themes of this letter before leaving it.  One has to do with encouraging and praying for those who are now being given the awesome responsibility and unique privilege of lifting up Jesus in their time.  As background, the Apostle Paul and Timothy were, as we say, natured differently.  When Saul of Tarsus bursts onto the scene, he is aggressive, self-assured, almost boisterous in promoting his belief that the way to really please God was to live absolutely consistent in obeying every jot and title of the Law.  We see not one ounce of timidity!  He believed absolutely in what he was doing and no one could shift him from that bed-rock certainty.  He grew up in a Law-obeying home, not in Israel, but in southern Turkey. Many Jewish families in diaspora soft-pedaled their Jewish faith and tradition, not Saul’s family. As a fiery student when he came to Jerusalem to study he was admired by every Pharisee!  Psychologically, he was self-assured, beyond most.

But how about Timothy?  He, too, was born and raised in southern Turkey but he was, in a sense, a half-Jew, we might say.  His mother and grandmother were Jewish but his father and grandfather were Greek Gentiles.  Was Timothy a Jew or a Greek?  This may have shaped his personality, making him unsure of who he is and even timid in trying to explain who he is.

Paul is extraordinarily self-assured.  Timothy is extraordinarily timid! Now, listen to Paul.  For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.  Timidity can be a virtue if it is a personality trait because when the overpowering presence of God’s Spirit breaks into a life that is naturally timidity, that becomes the context of a marvelous and unexpected change. Paul describes it as a new power, new love and new self-discipline. Listen carefully to Paul, “Join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.”  That is an entirely new way to live!  I want to know more of it.