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II Timothy i beloved son of Paul
Τιμοθέῳ ἀγαπητῷ τέκνῳ

χάρις ἔλεος εἰρήνη ἀπὸ θεοῦ πατρὸς καὶ Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν

To Timothy, my dearly beloved son:

Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Timothy 1:2 KJV

Timothy, beloved son of an Apostle

Paul is about to send Timothy out as his continued Apostolic voice to a next generation of faithful believers.

Paul’s final Epistle from Rome is little different from that of Peter, also sent from prison prior to their forthcoming executions.

“Dearly BELOVED..”
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Do any recognize the greeting of such intimately connected believers so joined in Christ Jesus? 
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This is how Paulos, a Jew of Cilicia, addresses his Galatian gentile protege Timotheus —

Greek by heritage of his father (apparently deceased or absent) and raised Jewish by the faith of his Grandmother Lois and convert mother, Eunice (as we detailed in our Introduction) —

as his SON, a beloved and chosen adoptive son — not just an exceptional student and faithful follower.

τέκνον – teknon – child or son
- Strong’s G5043 – teknon – “a child” (akin to tikto, “to beget, bear”), is used in both the natural and the figurative senses. In contrast to huios, “son” (see below), it gives prominence to the fact of birth, whereas huios stresses the dignity and character of the relationship. Figuratively, teknon is used of “children” of
- (a) God, Jhn 1:12;
- (b) light, Eph 5:8;
- (c) obedience, 1Pe 1:14;
- (d) a promise, Rom 9:8; Gal 4:28;
- (e) the Devil, 1Jo 3:10;
- (f) wrath, Eph 2:3;
- (g) cursing, 2Pe 2:14;
- (h) spiritual relationship, 2Ti 2:1; Phm 1:10.
  - (2X from the Pastoral Epistles of Paul)
- See DAUGHTER, SON.
Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words

As mentioned in our introduction to Timothy, the Apostle Paul has adopted this young man of Galatia and mentored him along with others as trusted servants, sons and companions in his apostolic mission to the Gentiles.

Historical Context:

2 Timothy was likely written around AD 67, during Paul’s second imprisonment in Rome, shortly before his martyrdom. This period was marked by intense persecution of Christians under Emperor Nero. Paul, aware of his impending death, writes with a sense of urgency and finality.

Audience and Purpose:

Paul’s second letter to Timothy, left in Ephesus to oversee the church, guides both him and the broader Christian community. It encourages church leaders and believers in the face of persecution. Paul urges Timothy to protect the gospel, endure hardships, and teach sound doctrine.

source: BibleHub.org

As to the role of Timothy to the Church, we might in a later era address this esteemed son of the Apostle to the Gentiles as Bishop Timothy of Ephesus,

or possibly Arch-Bishop Timotheus of Asia.

But regardless of Timothy’s personal importance to Paul as a fellow servant of Christ and the Gospel, you can see from the definition of son above that his spiritual relationship to the Apostle and Christ’s Church stand foremost to any role of administrative authority (which he had, as did the Apostle Paul) or imaginative royal-like religious title.

and he set sail from Ephesus.

From Personal Sonship to Apostolic Responsibility for the Gospel

In the fifteen or so years since Timothy as a young man had first followed and served Paul, he has proven himself faithful, and a capable pastor (or shepherd trusted with local flocks of followers of The Way, loyal to Paul and true to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Hence I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands;

2 Timothy 1:6 RSV

“.. rekindle the gift of God that is within you..” – the word Paul uses here in this introduction of his pastoral epistle is: anazōpyreō

– stir up that by which the fire is kindled anew or lighted up, a pair of bellows);

Don’t you love Paul’s imagery of a fire of holiness, perhaps neglected and cooling to Christ as its last embers of your faith — REKINDLING through the Holy Spirit (received by the Apostle’s laying on of hands)?

Of course you know Paul’s word for ‘the gift of God’ – the charisma of Theos.
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Paul reminds by building up in the power of the faith already well-known in and to Timothy: 
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for God did not give us a spirit of timidity
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that is, fearfulness of cowardice 
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but a spirit of power and love and self-control.

THREE gifts of the Spirit required of pastors and the faithful of the flock of every church.
- dynamis – strength power and ability
- agapē – (not just any love, but agapē love) – affection, benevolence, good will, charity, love for the brothers and sisters of the church
- sōphronismos – The KJV translates as sound mind (1x).
  - (this you may not know and in this the saints so often find ourselves lacking)
  - an admonishing or calling to soundness of mind, to moderation and self-control
Power in the Spirit, Agape Love and a yielding of the mind to God

Paul could have easily been forgotten in his prison cell in Rome, even more distant in Europe across the Aegean — than Derbe and Antioch from Ephesus, all in Asia where Timothy remains pastoring the church.

Therefore, be not ashamed

So the Apostle writes:

Do not be ashamed then of testifying to our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel in the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling,

not in virtue of our works but in virtue of his own purpose and the grace which he gave us in Christ Jesus ages ago, and now has manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

2 Timothy 1:8-10 RSV

The faithful and unfaithful to Paul and Apostolic faith
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Paul is about to begin an important point and reason for this second epistle (which we will study more next time), but here he lists some remembered for their works. 
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This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me,

among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes.

The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain;

but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me.

The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that Day—and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus.

2 Timothy 1:15-18 NKJV

NEXT: For this Gospel I was appointed

Comment on Scripture – Share the Gospel
January 10, 2026
The Apostles Creed 10 the Remission (forgiveness) of Sins
We believe in ..the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins…

The Apostles’ Creed — foundational to our Apostolic Christian faith

Today we have reached the second to last points of our brief look at the Apostles’ creed, the forgiveness or remission of sins.

(We’ll also take a brief glance at ‘the communion of saints,’ mentioned in part in our previous look at the Church.)

For an overview and more instructive view of the outline of our SERIES, take a look at the Roman Creed below:

I BELIEVE or WE BELIEVE IN:

Structure of Christian CREEDS

Here’s a brief outline found originally in The Roman Creed:
1. I BELIEVE IN God almighty (or the Father almighty)
2. And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord
3. Who was born of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
4. Who was crucified under Pontius Pilate and was buried
5. And on the third day rose from the dead
6. Who ascended into heaven
7. Siteth at the right hand of the Father
8. Whence He cometh to judge the living and the dead
9. (I or WE believe in:) The Holy Ghost
10. The Holy Church
11. The remission of Sins
12. The resurrection of the flesh
- (and life everlasting).
source: apostles-creed.org

The early church taught what is basically in the Apostles creed…

It was not till heresies and divisions in the church that any creeds were established.

source:

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in

the communion of the Saints,
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If you haven't read our previous post about the Church you may find helpful definitions not repeated here. 
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The Apostles Creed 9 We Believe in The Holy Church

Last time we addressed one of the two definitions included in this section of the Apostles Creed:
- hagios
  - most holy thing, a saint
Today let’s also take a brief look at what the Creed means by communion.

(In a sense, it’s not what you think of first.)

Then they that gladly received his word were baptized..

Acts of the Apostles 2:41a KJV
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(Now they are the saints or Holy ones of Christ, because of the remission of their sins.) 
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And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine

and fellowship, G2842

and in breaking of bread,

and in prayers.

Acts of the Apostles 2:42 KJV

Note that communion here is the fellowship of the saints whick follows learning the teaching or doctrine of the Apostles.

AND that Communion (as we call it) is a corporate breaking of the bread [klasis artos], a symbolic remembrance of Christ’s broken body.

They devoted themselves to

(from the CSB) (and in addition to;)
- the apostles’ teaching,
- to the fellowship (communion of the saints),
- to the breaking of bread,
- and to prayer.
ALL these together, as Christ’s local church, to keep them holy and separate from the sin and surrounding sinners of whom they once embraced.

κοινωνία koinōnía, koy-nohn-ee’-ah; from G2844; partnership, i.e. (literally) participation, or (social) intercourse, or (pecuniary) benefaction (giving to the benefit of the church):—(to) communicate(-ation), communion, (contri-)distribution, fellowship.

Source: BlueLetterBible.org

I believe in

the forgiveness of sins

Nehemiah 9:
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After the Hebrews had abandoned the Law of Moses and their priest Ezra reads it to the people.
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.. the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.
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repentant prayer
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.. And the seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers,
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sanctification or holiness apart from the sin of their former life
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and stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers.
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Confession to God precedes asking for forgiveness. 
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But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments,

And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage:

but thou art a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsookest them not.

Nehamiah 9:16-17 KJV

the remission of sins,
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Admittedly 'remission from the Creed is a little 'King James' in its sound. But recognize the New Testament application with which you may be able to relate from a familiar prayer and Scripture. 
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Forgive us our debts
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(Which comes from this OT application of the Law)
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“At the end of every seven years you shall grant a remission of debts.

מִקֵּץ שֶׁבַע־שָׁנִים תַּעֲשֶׂה שְׁמִטָּה׃

Deuteronomy 18:1 LSB

‘And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Gospel of Matthew 6:12 LSB

“For if you forgive others for their transgressions,

your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

“But if you do not forgive others,

then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.

Matthew 6:14-15 LSB – the teaching of Jesus, the Son of Man, to followers

paraptōma – transgressions
- to fall beside or near something
- a lapse or deviation from truth and uprightness
  - a sin, misdeed
Do you imagine that God, in His Holiness and perfect justice, can allow any of these sins or transgressions — without Someone paying your debt?

And you were dead in your transgressions G3900 and sins..

Apostle Paul to the Ephesians 2:1

For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:23 NIV

The remission of Sins through Christ
- the concept of “wages,” which implies a payment or consequence that is earned. In the biblical context,
- sin refers to any action, thought, or attitude that falls short of God’s holiness and commands.
- Death here is both physical and spiritual, indicating separation from God.
  - Theologically, this underscores the seriousness of sin and its inevitable outcome without divine intervention.
Contrasting with the earned wages of sin, the “gift of God” emphasizes grace, which is unmerited favor. Eternal life is not something humans can earn; it is a gift freely given by God.

It is only through Jesus Christ, His death, and resurrection, that believers receive this gift. Jesus is seen as the fulfillment of Old Testament types and prophecies, such as the Passover Lamb (Exodus 12) and the Suffering Servant (Isaiah 53).

Source: BibleHub.org – commentary on Romans 6:23

In Him we have redemption through His blood,

the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.

Ephesians 1:7 NKJV

NEXT: Resurrection!

Talk of JESUS . com

Comment on Scripture – Share the Gospel
December 30, 2025
The Apostles Creed 7 He shall Judge the Living and the Dead
The Apostles’ Creed — foundational to our Apostolic Christian faith

I BELIEVE or WE BELIEVE IN:

The Apostles’ Creed

We believe JESUS will JUDGE the living and the dead.

The Quick and the Dead

Death becomes a more serious matter IF WE consider an inevitable after-life of our lifeless flesh and blood and in a prepared place of our created soul.

This failing flesh, weakening sinews, crumbling of bones, flow through our heart and quickness of brain will not endure…

nor will the very breath of our brief mortal life.

And yet.. this created soul will remain…

What then?

Redemption OR Judgment?

Structure of Christian CREEDS

Here’s a brief outline of the fundamental objects of our faith found in The Creed:
1. God
2. Jesus Christ
3. the Holy Spirit
  - and the Virgin Mary
4. Jesus was crucified
  - and was buried
5. He rose from the dead
6. He ascended to heaven
7. Siteth at the right hand of the Father (ye olde English)
8. Whence He cometh to judge the living and the dead
9. more…
source: apostles-creed.org

We believe Jesus will judge the living and the dead
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During His incarnation as the Son of Man and prior to His crucifixion Jesus had confessed:
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ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν

“I and the Father are [*] one.”

* One in substance, one and the same.

John 10:30 LSB

As Scripture states:

GOD IS ONE IN ESSENCE,

and as the Gospel reveals,

THREE IN PERSON.

More on Trinity from R.C. Sproul
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In our last look at the Apostles' Creed we reminded you of these Scriptures: 
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So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them,
was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.
Gospel of Mark 16:19 ESV

From the Olde English of the King James Version of the Creed:

and sitteth at the right hande of the father: and he shall come again with glory, to judge both the quicke and the dead.

The Book of Common Prayer – 1549

Quicken me

It’s an olde concept (so to speak) found mostly in the Psalms.

My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word.

Psalm 119:25 KJV

Great are thy tender mercies, O LORD: quicken me according to thy judgments.

Psalm 119:156 KJV

Quicken me, O LORD, for thy name’s sake: for thy righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble.

Psalm 119:11 KJV
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From the Hebrew:
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to live – ḥāyâ – חָיָה

But more importantly in the Apostles’ Creed:

to revive, be quickened
- from sickness
- from discouragement
- from faintness
- from death.
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The Apostle Paul helps us with this look at the judgment of the quick and the dead:
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And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you,

he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

Paul’s epistle to the Romans 8:10-11 KJV

He raises the dead! (that is, quickeneth)

We know it and recognize the the Apostles borrow this from the Gospel of what Christ has taught during His incarnation.

from the Greek [ζωοποιέω] it more specifically means:
- to produce alive, begat or bear living young
- to cause to live, make alive, give life
and as Jesus used it in a parable pointing to death:
- of seeds quickened into life, i.e. germinating, springing up, growing
For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.

Gospel of John 5:21 KJV

Think of the implication of this to a mortal like us as we look toward the dust.

An the Lord Jesus assures the faithful:

It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing:
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and you believers with ears to hear, listen to this:
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the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

Gospel of John 6:63 KJV – the word of Jesus, the son of Man and Son of God

from Christ to the Apostles to Christian Creeds

The Apostle Paul writes to the church in Ephesus — a worldly cosmopolitan city with the temple of the Greek goddess Artemis (the goddess Diana of the Romans) — in about AD 60, quoting the Prophets:

“Awake, you who sleep,
Arise from the dead,
And Christ will give you light.”

See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Ephesisans 5:14b-16 NKJV

And the risen Christ speaks a warning against turning back from sins and heresies leading to hell, which had seduced many of the Ephesian ‘christians‘:

“Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

Revelation of Jesus Christ to John 2:5 NKJV

Their great falling from grace in Ephesus having taken place in the AD 90’s, a mere three decades after the Apostle Paul had pastored their church.

The historical record of the Church beyond the first century AD points to both firm doctrine and similar falling away from Christ.

Augustine of Hippo on the Apostles’ Creed
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Born: AD 354, Augustine lived an early 'willfully, decadent, pagan life' in Carthage, even taking a mistress who bore him a bastard son.  
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Source: The Confessions of St. Augustine, Rosalie DeRosset – intro

In Carthage, Augustine’s knowledge.. he admits, made him, “swollen up with vanity” (Bk 3, chap. 6). — probably made him prey for the Manichean religion. The chief characteristic of this sect was Gnosticism, an extreme dualism that claimed evil and good as equal.

ibid. pp 13-14
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In just four centuries heresies had encompassed and seeped into the churches. Later after after St. Augustine and the fall of Rome, considerable idolatry and various heresies would invade the Catholic Church and later after Luther, the Protestant Church. 
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READ what Augustine later taught about THE APOSTLES’ CREED:

The Bishop’s text here is taken from the Gospel of Matthew 25:

“Thence He shall come to judge the quick and dead.”

The quick, who shall be alive and remain;

the dead, who shall have gone before.

It may also be understood thus: The living, the just; the dead, the unjust.

For He judges both, rendering unto each his own.

To the just He will say in the judgment, “Come, ye blessed of My Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world.” For this prepare yourselves, for these things hope, for this live, and so live, for this believe, for this be baptized, that it may be said to you, “Come ye blessed of My Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

To them on the left hand, what?

“Go into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

Thus will they be judged by Christ, the quick and the dead.

We have spoken of Christ’s first nativity, which is without time;

spoken of the other in the fullness of time,

Christ’s nativity of the Virgin; spoken of the passion of Christ; spoken of the coming of Christ to judgment.

The whole is spoken, that was to be spoken of Christ, God’s Only Son, our Lord. But not yet is the Trinity perfect.

Source: BibleHub.org –

“Thence He Shall Come to Judge the Quick and Dead. …

Next: A second glace at The Holy Spirit

Comment on Scripture – Share the Gospel
December 27, 2025