the Fourth Week after Easter
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Daily Devotionals
Day by Day Devotional - Year 5 of 5
2 Timothy 1:1-18
Very different from the first, this second epistle opens in a time of ruin when the imprisoned apostle, at the end of his course, sees the rapid decline of the testimony for which he had worked so hard. But God used this advance of evil, already visible in the time of the apostles, to give us this epistle which shows us the path to follow and the resources of faith in the "perilous times" which are ours today (2 Timothy 3:1). Be of good courage, Paul writes to his "dearly beloved son", do not allow yourself to be frightened. What we possess is beyond the reach of the Enemy, kept by the power of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The latter is still a Spirit of power, of love, of a sound mind, and He dwells in us (v. 14; John 14:17). Our "Saviour Jesus Christ" has not changed. His victory over death was won for eternity (v. 10). Every source of outside help has failed and faith is brought to rest only on the Lord (v. 12; Psalms 62:1). It is not when everything is going well but when everything is going badly that the faithfulness of each one is put to the test (Philippians 2:22). In adversity, many had deserted the apostle (v. 15), while a devoted brother, Onesiphorus, had searched for him and visited him in prison. He belonged to the merciful to whom mercy will be granted (v. 18; Matthew 5:7; Matthew 25:36 end).
