Paul's Exhortations & Instructions to Brother Timothy 2nd Letter Volume 3

Paul Recites Timothy's own Faith and Heritage to him

2 Timothy 1:5 When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also. KJV

Right after the Apostle Paul has completed telling Timothy how much he longed to see him again here on the earth and how often he prayed for him, Paul now recounts the faith of this man Timothy whom he had grown to trust greatly with these words, "When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also." (2 Timothy 1:5) (KJV). Perhaps Paul had a flash back of memory of the two of them serving our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ in the city of Ephesus or one of the other cities they went declaring the Gospel of Christ and in doing so God the Holy Spirit brought this to his mind. When Paul writes this first sentence at the beginning, 'When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee', he is using these words to encourage, embolden, and empower Timothy to carry on now even with more vigor, vibrance, and valiance than he had done when he and Paul were side by side teaching and preaching the Word of God. The little English phrase 'When I call' is translated by the Greek word lambanō which is a prolonged form of a primary verb meaning as used here to take (in very many applications, literally and figuratively [probably objective or active, to get hold of. The little English phrase 'to remembrance' is translated by the Greek word hupomnēsis meaning a reminding or (reflexively) recollection: - remembrance. In other words, the Apostle Paul actively petitioned God the Holy Spirit to allow him to get hold of or recall or recollect or remind himself of Timothy serving God the Father together with him with such fervor and singleness of heart and mind.

The English word 'unfeigned' Paul uses here to speak of the 'faith' he witnessed in Brother Timothy is translated by the Greek word anupokritos used as a negative particle meaning undissembled, that is, sincere: - without dissimulation (hypocrisy), unfeigned. In other words, Brother Timothy was not a pretend Christian but a real Christian who loved our Lord Jesus Christ and wanted to please him with what he did and who he was, for Paul had seen the evidence and the proof of Timothy's conversion first hand over the years they were on the road as traveling missionaries together, for Timothy did not practice spiritual wickedness such as wizardry or witchcraft but instead he purposed to do exactly what the Apostle Paul had written to the believers in Rome when he wrote this, "[Let your] love be sincere (a real thing); hate what is evil [loathe all ungodliness, turn in horror from wickedness], but hold fast to that which is good." (Romans 12:9) (Amplified Bible). When Paul writes 'which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice', Paul is simply stating that Timothy grew up in a home where his GrandMother and Mother both loved God and worshipped Him above anything else and they taught Timothy to do the same. They did not teach him about magic or witchcraft (which is evil), but they taught him about the One True God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob 'Elohim'. Despite his GrandMother not seeing the Messiah come in person, she believed in and held hope in the coming Messiah our Lord Jesus Christ all her life and died in the faith of this belief and so her faith was of the same kind as her grandson Timothy. Timothy's Mother 'Eunice' was a Jewess (Acts 16:1) and a believer in our Lord Jesus Christ despite the fact that her husband (Timothy's Father a Greek was apparently a non-believer).

Here is what Alexander MacLaren had to say concerning Timothy's heritage in the faith by way of his GrandMother and Mother, "It is always a memorable moment to a young beginner when a veteran lays his hand on his shoulder and acknowledges his devotion. Nor less fitted to warm Timothy’s heart was the praise of his grandmother and mother. It would not only do that, but would make him feel that his descent added force to the exhortation which followed. Whoever might become careless, one who had such blood in his veins was called on to be true to his ancestral faith. One can well understand how such a beginning prepared Timothy for the succeeding counsels. But this was not art or rhetorical advice on Paul’s part, but deep affection. The soil thus watered by love was ready for the seed." When Paul writes 'and I am persuaded that in thee also', he means that Timothy was truly converted to Christ and given the gift of faith by Christ just as his Mother was true to her faith in Christ, even though she lived with and raised Timothy with a Gentile/Greek unbelieving husband. The little English phrase 'I am persuaded' is translated by the Greek word peitho which is a primary verb; meaning (as used here) to rely (by inward certainty): to believe, have confidence in, and to trust. Here is what Dr. John Gill had to say concerning the certainty of Timothy's faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, "Not only that faith was in him, and that that was unfeigned, but that it also dwelt, remained, and would continue with him to the end of life; for true faith is an abiding grace, it is a gift of God, that is irrevocable, and without repentance; Christ is the author and finisher of it, and prays that it fail not, whose prayers are always heard; it is begun, carried on, and performed by the power of God, and has salvation inseparably connected with it. Now when the same faith is said to dwell, first in his grandmother, and in his mother, and in him, this is not to be understood as if this grace was conveyed from one to another by natural generation; for grace comes not that way, only sin; men are not born of blood, but of God; but the sense is, that the same like precious faith was obtained by one, as by another. This was a rich family mercy, and deserved special notice, as being a thing uncommon, and required a particular thanksgiving; and is designed as a motive and encouragement to stir up Timothy to the exercise of that grace, and every other gift God had bestowed upon him, as in the following verse." 

"Salvation is such a personal thing that it cannot be inherited through Genetics or DNA as is proven in many cases such as with King David and his son Absalom who led a revolt against King David and tried to kill him. But instead Absalom was killed by Joab. This caused David to weep bitterly for his fallen son who had tried to kill him (2 Samuel 18:33), yet David never said of Absalom as he did of his baby son whom the Lord killed 'But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.' (2 Samuel 12:23) (Amplified Bible). King David never said these same words for Absalom because unlike his baby son, he knew that Absalom was not with the Lord. We see that Timothy grew up with an unbelieving Father, yet he became a true believer in our Lord Jesus Christ and it is simply because faith cannot be transferred from Parent to Child or from Child to Parent, but faith in Jesus Christ is a gift from Him to any and every soul who has ears to hear the Gospel of Grace. No person or circumstances or upbringing or ethnicity or anything at all can keep anyone from salvation in Jesus Christ. Remember these words from our Lord Jesus Christ lips, 'Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to part asunder a man from his father, and a daughter from her mother, and a newly married wife from her mother-in-law--And a man's foes will be they of his own household. He who loves [and takes more pleasure in] father or mother more than [in] Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves [and takes more pleasure in] son or daughter more than [in] Me is not worthy of Me; And he who does not take up his cross and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conforming wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying also] is not worthy of Me. Whoever finds his [lower] life will lose it [the higher life], and whoever loses his [lower] life on My account will find it [the higher life].'" (Matthew 10:34-39) (Amplified Bible)." Mr. Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...

Sincerely in Christ,

Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…