2 Timothy 1:1-14
“I know Whom I have believed
And am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed
Unto Him against that day.”
This is the chorus of the hymn “I Know Whom I Have Believed.” These words aren’t words we would use today, but basically they say that I know that God is able to save me. When we ask Jesus to be our friend forever, when we tell God that we know that Jesus died for us and that we want to follow God, we are committing our lives to God. We are saying that God knows better than we do and that we will listen to God and follow what God tells us to do. We will act like Christ by following God. We can trust that God will hold onto us. God will treat our lives as the precious things they are, and God will walk beside us.
This hymn is based on 2 Timothy 1:1-14. From the NIV: “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, To Timothy, my dear son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day. What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
Paul reminds Timothy that God has saved us, not because of what we have done but because of who God is. We don’t know why God has chosen to save us, but thank goodness God has! Our lives are precious to God, and God will guard them. We can trust God with everything, even our lives, because God destroyed death and God’s love is the most powerful thing in the world. Paul reminds Timothy to keep believing no matter what happens, because God gives us God’s power.
Discussion
• Talk about how you have seen God’s power at work in your own life. What has God done in your life?
• If past generations of your family were Christians, tell your family about how God worked in their lives. If they weren’t, talk about how you can see God working in your children’s lives.
• Talk about ways you can talk to others about God’s power. How can you share your own stories of God’s power?
Prayer
Thank God that God holds on to us and never lets us go. Ask God for help in seeing God’s power at work in our lives.
Jessica Asbell is currently serving as the Minister to Children at First Baptist Church of Roswell, GA. She has worked with children in various capacities at several churches, including Winter Park Baptist in Wilmington, NC, First Baptist of Decatur, GA, and Highland Hills Baptist in Macon, GA. She has a Master of Divinity from McAfee School of Theology and a BBA from Mercer University. In her spare time she loves to read, watch movies, and of course spend time with her sweet kitty, Lucy.
