Will Vaus

What does a preacher look like? The photo above shows what I thought a preacher looked like when I was growing up. But ultimately, it does not matter what a preacher looks like. What matters most is what is preached. And that is what we are going to talk about as we examine Paul's Second Letter to Timothy today in our journey along "Route 66"... Author As we saw last week, Pauline authorship of the Pastoral Epistles has been questioned by many modern scholars. But the internal claim to Pauline authorship is clear in each of these letters and the early church was agreed that Paul wrote the Pastoral Epistles. Moreover, as I mentioned last week, I find all the personal references in these letters to be conclusive evidence of Paul’s authorship. I find it difficult to believe that another author would have made up all these references to fit “just so” and deceive his readers into thinking that these letters were written by Paul. Date   I also mentioned last week how many schol...

Today's lectionary reading comes from 2 Timothy 1:1-9.... Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus,   To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.   Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospe...

2 Timothy has long been one of my favorite books in the Bible. I suppose that is the case because when I was a young man, planning to enter full time ministry, and then when I was a young pastor, I totally identified with the character of Timothy as Paul’s young protégé. I could imagine what he was like and I could picture myself in his place. Now that I am older, I think I look at and feel about this letter, in a different manner. But I think we all can benefit from the Bible by “putting ourselves in the picture,” by imagining what it would be like to be Timothy, or Paul, or Priscilla, or Deborah, or a hundred other characters in the Bible—even Jesus—because, after all, we are called to “put on” Jesus Christ. One of the most memorized verses in 2 Timothy is 3:16-17, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.” ...

On 28 December 1961 C. S. Lewis wrote to a correspondent: "Beware of the argument 'the Church gave the Bible (and therefore the Bible can never give us grounds for criticising the Church)'. It is perfectly possible to accept B on the authority of A and yet regard B as a higher authority than A. It happens when I recommend a book to a pupil. I first sent him to the book, but, having gone to it, he knows (for I've told him) that the author knows more about that subject than I." Collected Letters , Volume III, pp. 1307-1308 "Yet you must go on steadily in those things that you have learned and which you know are true. Remember from what sort of people your knowledge has come, and how from early childhood your mind has been familiar with the holy Scriptures, which can open the mind to the salvation which comes through believing in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the faith and correcting error, for re-setting t...