God’s Word for You

2 Timothy 2:1-2 Be strong… and entrust

by Pastor Timothy Smith on Tuesday, June 9, 2026

This chapter has two distinct parts. First (verses 3-13), Paul encourages Timothy to endure during many hardships, just like a soldier, or an athlete, or a farmer, with encouragement from the resurrection of Jesus and from Paul’s own life. In the second part (verses 14-26), he wants Timothy to avoid arguments over words and even to remind other people to do this, since such things spread like gangrene (2:17). To this he adds a more general warning or caution about avoiding strife. But before all of this, there is a call to train more workers for the kingdom.

2:1 You then, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus; 2 and what you have heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will also be able to teach others.

The term “be strong” is accented as a middle imperative, which means that there is an idea of strengthening yourself, keeping in the word of God and in the sacraments, to receive the grace that Christ offers. There is another instance of this with the same term in Ephesians 6:10, “be strong in the Lord.” Grammatically, these words are known as gospel imperatives, which means imperative or command words that give rather than command. Augustine said in a prayer, “Give what you command, and command what you will.”

While we have already been reminded of this for all Christians, the pastor must not forget to spend time in the word every day. Not just in a professional sense, but in a devotional way. I have encouraged my sons to spend time in the Catechism, too. We do this by reading small pieces (one commandment and its meaning, and so on) before the table prayer at dinner time. This is good for all of us, since it means we’re visiting parts of the word of God that are important for everyday life on a regular cycle of reading.

In verse 2, Paul uses the term “entrust” (παράϑου). This is the task of training called workers. This is one of the important functions of the church. Paul said in Acts: “Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood” (Acts 20:28). And since Jesus also said, “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20), we remember that our schools for training called workers are also a form of the Christian church on earth. The specific work of such schools is to train men to be pastors, preachers of the Gospel, and also to train men and women to be teachers and staff ministers for teaching our people and to assist pastors in many ways. This training begins in the word of God, and includes other focuses of ministry such as preaching, counseling, church history, and a thorough study of the confessions of the church, and so on.

But notice that Timothy’s instruction from Paul is not only to train others for ministry, but to train men who will in turn train others. Now, on the one hand, this is the work of the pastor as he teaches his people and especially those young people who will soon be confirmed. But there are other forms of ministry. There are school teachers, deacons, congregational visitors, missionaries, professors, synodical executive officers, staff ministers, vicars, and so on.

There is also in the word “entrust” the idea of the divine call. The forms of calling may vary from age to age in the church. In Acts chapter 6, there was a request for seven men to assist the apostles, and this was done by an election (Acts 6:1-6). At other times, workers were appointed (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5). Sometimes it is expedient for a church or especially a school or college to delegate the actual calling to a committee. But it would be unwise and perhaps disorderly for a congregation not to avail itself of the advice of experienced pastors, such as Timothy and Titus, or our own synodical and district leaders.

Before he was executed, Ignatius of Antioch asked a respected colleague to go and select someone to replace him: “Summon a godly council and choose someone dear to you and who is energetic, who can be called God’s courier. Appoint him to go to Syria to glorify your eager love to the glory of God” (Ignatius to Polycarp 7:2). This was in 107 AD, but the need to fill vacancies in our pulpits and even the basic manner of the selection is the same today. And later in the same letter, Ignatius even sent a greeting to whomever that pastor would be, from his predecessor, who by that time would have been martyred and would be with the Lord. He said, “I greet the one about to be appointed to go to Syria. Grace be with him through all and with Polycarp, who sends him” (Ignatius to Polycarp 8:2).

And so the work goes on with us, as we pass along the joyful labor of training new shepherds to serve under Christ, watching over his flock until he comes again in glory. Pray for your pastors and other leaders, but pray also that the Lord would send the desire into the hearts of more and more men and women, young or second-career candidates, that they would put themselves forward to be trained and be eligible for a call into the ministry. And if you know someone whom you even suspect might have some of those gifts, talk to them, encourage them, and pray for them. When I began that training, I was ten years older than all of my classmates at old Northwestern College. It wasn’t too late to start. Consider that, too—there might be someone you know like that, or someone you see in the mirror. Our church will train us; our God will call us. But sometimes we need a little help to say with Isaiah, “Here am I, send me” (Isaiah 6:8).

In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith

 

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