[One hundred and third in a series of posts on Bible Stories]
Encore Post:
Timothy was one of the very first Christians to grow up in a Christian family. His grandmother, Lois, and his mother, Eunice, came to faith in Christ before Timothy was born and carefully taught him the Scriptures as he grew up. His father was a Gentile, so Timothy was not circumcised. From childhood, however, he knew God’s Word and trusted in Christ.
Paul met Timothy in his hometown of Lystra, probably during his first missionary journey. The apostle quickly recognized the gifts God had given the young man and invited him to travel along as a helper and companion. Before joining Paul, Timothy was circumcised so that his lack of circumcision would not become an obstacle when they preached among Jewish communities.
As Timothy matured, Paul entrusted him with increasingly important responsibilities. He delivered letters to churches, represented Paul in difficult situations, and helped strengthen young Christian congregations. Eventually, Paul left Timothy in Ephesus to serve as a pastor and to address false teaching that had arisen there. Two of Paul’s New Testament letters were written directly to Timothy, encouraging him in his work and showing future generations what faithful pastoral ministry looks like.
Later, Timothy was imprisoned and released. The Letter to the Hebrews mentions him as a traveling companion of its author. According to ancient church tradition, Timothy became bishop of Ephesus and eventually died as a martyr for the faith.
Timothy is especially important because he represents a new generation of Christians. Peter, John, and Paul came to faith as adults. Timothy grew up hearing the Gospel from his family. Through Lois, Eunice, Paul, and many others, God’s Word was passed from one generation to the next.
That same work continues today. Parents, grandparents, pastors, teachers, and other Christians share God’s Word with children, who one day pass it on to others. Timothy reminds us that God’s Church grows not only through missionaries and martyrs, but also through faithful families who teach the faith to the next generation.
Originally posted at What Does This Mean? Blog: What Does This Mean?
The posts in the blog What Does This Mean? are now available at What Does This Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack
Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana
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Hi Robert. Off topic question:
No two Gospels describe the same resurrection appearance. Therefore, there is no corroboration of any specific sighting of a walking, talking resurrected corpse. As a believer, doesn’t that bother you? If three book authors today each claim that the deceased Elvis Presley appeared to different individuals and groups of people 30 years ago, but never describe the same Elvis appearance, wouldn’t you be dubious? There is no corroboration of any specific appearance claim. (That means these claims could all be made up/fiction.)
Not at all. Have listened to reports of verified eyewitnesses? They almost never report the same details. If they did, then you would expect it was rehearsed. So that the four gospels differ goes to authenticity. Among many more things a comment thread cannot cover.
I agree with you 100%, Robert. If multiple people witness an auto accident, there will be minor discrepancies in their eyewitness testimonies. They may disagree on the color of the autos involved or the model of the autos. But they won’t disagree on which city and state in which the accident occurred, will they? Not if they are truly eyewitnesses.
The Gospels tell us about multiple appearances of the resurrected Jesus but no two Gospels describe the same appearance, the same “auto accident”. One author describes an appearance on a mountain in Galilee, another author describes an appearance on the road to Emmaus, another author describes an appearance on the Sea of Tiberius. All these resurrection appearances may well have occurred but since no two Gospel authors describe the SAME appearance, there is no corroboration. It is no different than multiple authors claiming that the deceased Elvis Presley has appeared to multiple individuals and groups, but none of their stories corroborate any specific appearance of The King. Without corroboration, these stories about Elvis may well be the inventions of the authors, right?
We could go on at length here, but I expect you and I will not agree on this. Such exchanges really do not work online. So, let’s let this go with my prior answer. I also will refer you to the podcast below. I agree, more or less, with what is said there. Have a nice day.
If you’re interested, the evidence for the physical resurrection of Jesus from the dead is considered on this podcase episode: https://issuesetc.org/2023/09/03/objections-overruled-chapter-two-jesus-didnt-physically-rise-from-the-dead/