This talk was originally given at Maximise 2025.

What are the fundamentals of Christian ministry? What do you really need to know? Well, if we’re going to get some clear, simple, quick answers to that few places, then there’s nowhere better go to than to 2 Timothy!

Once upon a time, I too was a ministry trainee at this conference and I remember it very well – sitting under the teaching of 2 Timothy. Since then I’ve regularly gone back to, re-read and pray through 2 Timothy to you. So I commend this book to you. It’s a great place to learn ministry. But I wonder if you’ve considered how strange it is that a letter all about Christian ministry is actually a prison letter. Remember – most of the letters we’ve got in the New Testament were not written from the safety of a Christian conference centre or a suburban minister’s study. No! They were written from prison.

A number of years ago, I got a letter from someone in 21st century prison. He was in prison in Bristol – his name was Kevin. We exchanged a few letters and talked about Bible and faith in Jesus. Now the thing that was special about that exchange was that Kevin and I knew each from before he went to prison. He was the first person to ever share the gospel with me – he’d been the youth leader in my church. He’s still in prison today. But the letter we’ve got here in front of us is also from prison. It’s not from someone guilty of any great crime –not for stealing or violence or abuse – no, here we have a letter from a man who’s in prison only because of the gospel of Christ. This is a letter from Paul… the apostle of apostles writes here his final letter as he languishes in jail in Rome, waiting a final trial.

At this point, Paul’s made his initial defence and the result has been positive (see 2 Timothy 4:17). But though he’s got an initial reprieve, he knows he is most likely gonna be condemned and executed. Tradition tells us Paul was beheaded during the reign of Nero. In this letter, he writes to the younger leader he has mentored and worked with: Timothy, who is working in city of Ephesus. Paul writes to encourage and exhort Timothy in the face of a whole load of challenges. Timothy’s challenges have come both from without and within the Ephesian churches. It’s clear that there’s problem from without… Paul is in prison after all! There’s danger all around. And we know from Hebrews 13:23 that Timothy himself was imprisoned too, though we don’t know when. So yes, there are problem without.

But there are also problem from within. There’s a problem with false teachers. These guys are getting an increasing influence within the churches. We’re not exactly sure what kind of false teaching this is, but it seems to be some kind of mixture of Jewish and other religious teachings. Paul does not mince his words: it has “the appearance of godliness” but lacks power (2 Timothy 3:5); he says their teaching eats you up like gangrene (2 Timothy 2:17). It’s not a complimentary description, is it? If someone says your talk is unholy chatter, senseless babble, foolish speculation and flesh-eating gangrene, you know they haven’t rated it too highly!

What is Paul’s response to this? Simply to centre Timothy on the gospel – on its:

• divine origin,
• apostolic pedigree,
• worth,
• power,
• and truthfulness.

2 Timothy is basically one big exhortation to hold to the gospel – to stand on the gospel – to proclaim it – to defend it – to live by it – and to get others after Timothy to do the same. And the fundamental point of the book – and this is key – is that ministry is gospel ministry. Anything else is false and corrupt and doomed. Now it’s also clear that that gospel is bound up with Paul himself. There is only one gospel – the apostolic gospel. And Paul is Christ’s delegate/ambassador/representative. That means that the way we treat Paul is the way we treat Christ because Paul represents Christ. So both Timothy and we should be very wary of anyone who wants diminish Paul’s ministry and teaching in the New Testament.

And that’s the context of 2 Timothy – it’s written from prison as Paul faces execution to Timothy in Ephesus where false teaching abounds. Paul is exhorting both Timothy and us to keep going with gospel ministry, even in the face of all those challenges.

The apostle and his son (vv 1–5)

These verses are obviously the introduction to the whole letter. And in this introduction, Paul is reminding Timothy of the spiritual legacy that has been deposited in his life and of big spiritual realities that have defined him.

First of all, Paul reminds Timothy of his, Paul’s, apostleship. Paul doesn’t need to do that – Timothy knows that Paul is an apostle – he’s worked with him! He doesn’t need be told that. But the point is this… as Paul faces execution, he still knows exactly who he is. He’s not wavering, he’s not unsure, he’s not throwing in the towel, he’s not backing off. Nope – ‘Timothy, I’m still Christ’s apostle: I know who I am and God has made me this.’ Paul wants to help Timothy understand that this is God’s will. And as Paul faces execution, he revels in the promise of life in Christ (v1). This matters because apostleship is not just a foundation for Paul – it’s also foundational for Timothy. If you have a Kevin writing to you from prison, you might ask yourself ‘who can I trust?’ But Timothy didn’t need to ask that. Paul is solid in his convictions – as an apostle of God, he can stand on the day of evil (cf Ephesians 6:13). And if Paul stands, then Timothy can too. Timothy hasn’t wasted his time being mentored by Paul – the spiritual legacy stands.

In v5, Paul reminds Timothy of his own family – of his gran and his mum. Remember Timothy, they were believers too. They took you to church and you sat on their lap – they went to holiday club with you and helped you cut out crowns in Sunday school. They taught you the faith. Paul even tells Timothy that his own faith is real and genuine (v5). The point is, Timothy, a spiritual legacy has been deposited in your life, so keep going – keep believing. This letter is a great resource for our encouragement. We also have a spiritual legacy. And this is how we resist wobbling and wilting. We have the apostolic deposit here in Scripture and we have people who’ve been spiritual influences on us – faithful family or friends or a leader or someone in church. We can remind ourselves of all these things. And let’s do this so that we won’t wobble or wilt.

One more thing that’s also clear from these verses is this: there is a deep and profound relationship between Paul and Timothy. The commands and teaching in this letter are grounded in this relationship between the two of them. And it’s a personal relationship – other New Testament letters are written to individual churches or even multiple churches across a region. A few New Testament books are written to individuals and this is one of them. But this letter is almost certainly the most personal and poignant of them all. Notice how Paul addresses Timothy in v2: “To Timothy, my dear son”. These words are the dying testament of a spiritual father to his spiritual son. They had partnered loads in ministry. And so underneath all the exhortations here is a huge warmth.

In Philippians 1:19, Paul says he has no one like Timothy. Back in 2 Timothy 1, Timothy is a dear son (v2); in v3, Paul is grateful for Timothy and he also prays for Timothy; in v4, Paul delights in Timothy and Timothy delights in him; and in v5, Paul knows Timothy’s family really well. So this is not just a professional relationship – Paul is not some distant guru who barks out orders. No, these men have walked together, served together and suffered together. There’s profound emotion and warmth and care here. It’s clear that ministry is all about relationships. This is the atmosphere in which we do things. Pastoral ministry is not a transactional business nor simply a task. No, ministry is deeply relational.

Now I know that men crying as they do in these verses as they’re telling each other they long to see each other… it doesn’t fit too well with English masculinity. I know those of you who are blokes here are tough guys – I know most of you prefer say ‘Alright bruv…alright mate?’ But maybe we need to learn something here – something that many women in our room get much more easily. Relationships matter now. Don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying we necessarily need to become culturally Mediterranean! But let’s be challenged by the warmth and care and concern that run through the letter. Ministry is about relationships.

It may be that you’re not naturally very relational – perhaps you prefer to be left alone to sit quietly in the corner and not talk to anyone. That’s OK – we all have different temperaments. But if we want to be spiritual leaders – if we’re considering longer term ministry – we can’t escape demand for relationality. I’m not saying we need to blubber over everyone or to become Mr or Ms Extrovert. But relationships are our currency. If we don’t want relationships and we just want to be left alone, we should consider whether ministry really is the right thing for us. That’s the impact of the relationship between the apostle and his spiritual son.

Don’t be ashamed of the apostle and his gospel (vv 6–14)

In this next section, Paul wants to encourage Timothy to stand. It’s not because Timothy is about to throw in the towel. Don’t think of Timothy as being at the end of his tether. It’s rather that he is under pressure. So in vv 6–7: “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.” A gift only needs fanning if there’s some struggle – maybe a pressure to back off a bit. And note that Paul only says “Spirit”, not ‘Spirit of timidity’, as if there is a temptation to be timid. In fact, some say the word that the NIV translates as “timid” should be translated instead as “cowardice”. The ESV renders it as “fear”. The point is not that Timothy is giving up or a coward but that he is under pressure from false teachers and his mentor and apostle is facing execution.

The temptation to shame is very clear in v8: “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.” Timothy is a gospel minister but he’s still tempted to be embarrassed about the gospel he preaches. He’s Paul’s spiritual son, but tempted to be embarrassed about his spiritual father. Just think about it: which of us wouldn’t wilt and wobble in the face of the things Timothy is facing? We’re all much more frail and scared and cowardly than we care to admit! Our boldness is much more circumstantial than we like to think. But what is the shame mentioned in v8? Well, shame is the experience of finding yourself unacceptable, unworthy and failing before significant others. It’s the feeling that you ‘are not what you should be’ before those who matter.

I think it’s helpful to distinguish between shame and being ashamed. Every gospel teacher carries some social shame because of their association with Jesus. We take up our cross – which is to take up shame. To be a gospel minister is to be looked down on or seen as an outsider. It’s seen as a bit of a weird experience, a diminished social status. But being ashamed – that’s the internalisation of that shame. It means the shame takes over. Social shame can’t be avoided. That comes from the cross. It’s part and parcel of following Christ. But our temptation is to internalise that shame so we become ashamed of Christ. Probably the biggest shaming pressure on us at the moment comes from sexuality/transgender issues. As we hold to the Scriptures on this, we are shamed by our culture and diminished in the eyes of others. The danger is that we become ashamed and we run from Christ and his gospel and the people associated with him. So how do we avoid becoming ashamed?

There are two pointers in the passage. First, he says “join with me in suffering for the gospel” (v8). We join with others. Being persecuted is a team experience. Shame is by its nature isolating. But here, we remember our solidarity. We bear the shame in fellowship with others – with Paul and, by extension, with a whole multitude of suffering leaders in church history. We stand with brothers and sisters down through time and across the world. We’re not cut off. We join with others in the struggle.

Second (also in v8), we do it by the power of God. Paul says, “join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God”. He’s already mentioned the “gift of God” (v6) and “the Spirit of power” (v7). In v14, he says guard thee gospel by the power of the Spirit. It’s clear that we’re not without resources – we’re not just moping along as best we can, eking out ministry all alone. No – we have power of God! Yet there’s also a paradox here. The combination of power and suffering goes all through the Bible. We have power – but that power of God doesn’t simply lift us out of shame and suffering. No, it enables us to walk in cultural shame for the sake of gospel.

In vv 9–10, Paul lifts our eyes to the God of this gospel. This is probably a foil to the false teachings that are going around. Paul gets us to look up to the God of the gospel: to the God of inexplicable grace – the God who saves us sovereignly by his own purpose – the God who chose us before beginning of time – the God who has appeared in Christ – the God who has destroyed death – the God who brings eternal life. That is the God who has called you to preach his gospel. And this is the good news we suffer for and carry shame for – it is a wonderful, God-given, grace-filled, life-giving Word. It’s not some rubbish passing fad, not some viral instagram post, not the ramblings of a celebrity. It’s the gospel of the living God.

As Paul faces death, he reminds Timothy of the gospel that brings life. Don’t be ashamed and don’t be embarrassed of it, but join in with my suffering. Paul makes clear that this suffering is the pattern of apostolic ministry (vv 11–12). Notice the link between v11 and v12. “And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.” Paul is herald of the gospel, an apostle of the gospel, a teacher of the gospel and that, according to v12, is why he is suffering: “That is why I am suffering as I am.” If he wasn’t a herald, an apostle, a teacher – he wouldn’t be suffering! The very call on Paul’s life leads him into suffering. Gospel ministry and suffering are joined at the hip. And Paul is not ashamed. He knows the pattern of apostolic ministry is suffering.

And this has always been the case. Let me fastforward a moment from the 1st century to the 20th century, from Rome to Romania during time of Communism. Let me take you inside a prison where a bunch of Christians were jailed and tortured for no other reason than being believers. Here’s a quote from eyewitness Richard Wurmbrand: “It was strictly forbidden to preach to other prisoners [in the prison]… It was understood that whoever was caught doing this received a severe beating. A number of us decided to pay the price for the privilege of preaching, so we accepted their terms. It was a deal: we preached and they beat us. We were happy preaching; they were happy beating us—so everyone was happy. The following scene happened more times than I can remember. A brother was preaching to the other prisoners when the guards suddenly burst in, surprising him halfway through a phrase. They hauled him down the corridor to their ‘beating room.’ After what seemed an endless beating, they brought him back and threw him—bloody and bruised—on the prison floor. Slowly, he picked up his battered body, painfully straightened his clothing and said, ‘Now, brethren, where did I leave off when I was interrupted?’ He continued his gospel message!” It’s worth thinking about that next time we feel unmotivated in sermon prep or are feeling sorry for ourselves.

The pattern of apostolic ministry is suffering. But I’m not sure we think that’s really true. One of the reasons is that so many of our role models are taken from successful western pastors rather than the Bible or the suffering church. So we naturally look up to pastors who’ve never been arrested. We look up to pastors who have led big churches who’ve never been beaten with rods but are conference speakers who The pattern of apostolic ministry is suffering. But I’m not sure we think that’s really true. One of the reasons is that so many of our role models are taken from successful western pastors rather than the Bible or the suffering church. So we naturally look up to pastors who’ve never been arrested. We look up to pastors who have led big churches who’ve never been beaten with rods but are conference speakers who have experienced lots of evangelistic success but have never known a moment’s hunger or thirst or danger as they’ve preached from their famous pulpits. They’ve never been in prison. But what does that do to us? It makes us comfort-seeking and a bit weak at the knees. I’m not saying we should jettison all our role models, but don’t we need more exposure to Pauls and Richard Wurmbrands and pastors like them? Maybe we would do well to spend more time on open doors website than gospel coalition. Maybe we’d do well to look more often at the North Korean church and not just at the North American church.

Paul says in Romans 1:16, “I’m not ashamed of the gospel”. He knows his Saviour and he’s willing to suffer (2 Timothy 1:12). And in vv 13–14, he’s really saying same thing as earlier in the passage. But here he phrases it positively (in contrast to the negative version in v8). He says, ‘Keep and guard this gospel – don’t trim it down, but keep the pattern God has given you.’ That word translated as “pattern” is hypotyposis. Literally it means ‘plans’ or ‘sketches of a building’. Paul is saying, ‘Don’t go messing with the blueprints, Timothy, but guard it!’ The point is this: ‘Timothy, it’s over to you – Maximise people, it’s over to you!’ Paul can’t guard the gospel for us any more, can he? It’s over to us now.

Don’t misunderstand me – it’s not over to us in an ultimate sense. In v12, Paul reminds Timothy that God is the one who ultimately guards the deposit. And yet we have been given a responsibility. Of course, we prefer not to take a beating in Romanian prison or to go to our death like Paul. But this is a solemn call nevertheless: we are heirs to a suffering gospel ministry. Let’s not be ashamed but be willing to join in with suffering. Keep to the hypotyposis. Guard the gospel.

That becomes particularly important in light of v15, as we’re about to see.

How others have treated the apostle and his gospel (vv15-18)

At the end of chapter 1, Paul serves up two examples for Timothy about how people have treated him, Paul, the suffering apostle. These examples are really an extension of P’s command not to be ashamed of him (v8). He’s languishing in prison facing execution and different leaders responding in different ways.

First, Paul gives Timothy a negative example (v15): “You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.” Everyone in the province of Asia has deserted Paul. There’s more detail in chapter 4, but here particularly are mentions of Phygelus and Hermogenes. We don’t know why exactly these names only appear here in the New Testament. Possibly they’re significant leaders. They’re known to Timothy at least. But at any rate, large number have turned away from Paul – and by so doing, turned away from his gospel as well. Maybe it felt like the Christian cause was now lost. Just think how heart-breaking that is – think of how deeply wounding that is. In Acts 19, we’re told that the gospel rung out across Asia but now Asia has turned away from Paul. The great awakening has become the great apostasy.

Paul has suffered and served at huge personal cost. He’s preached the gospel up and down the Mediterranean. He’s planted churches and given his life for the lost. But in the moment of his need, fellow believers turned away from him. They’ve not turned away from him because of scandal or because he’s corrupt or because he’s done something criminal or even because he’s become a false teacher. They’ve turned away from him because of his suffering. They’re ashamed of him. It’s heart-breaking isn’t it? It’s a strong cup of coffee for us. It’s sobering for our expectations of ministry. The Lord may grant you an easy path or he may not, but be ready – and don’t desert others in their hour of need. Stick by them.

So that’s the negative example but there’s also a positive example here in vv 16–18. The wonderful Onesiphorus. He says, “May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus.” Everyone deserted Paul – but not Onesiphorus. This one person makes a huge difference. His awkward-to-pronounce name actually means ‘one bringing usefulness’ and he has lived up to his name. He’s described in glowing terms – he refreshed Paul. This may have included physical aid, as prisoners were often responsible for their own upkeep. Onesiphorus did that often. It wasn’t a one-off bit of help. It was regular. In fact, v18, he had done it before in Ephesus.

Notice also the reference to shame again in v16. Onesiphorus was not ashamed of Paul but instead he was willing to share in Paul’s shame. He was willing to be associated with the embarrassment that Paul had become but he is not ashamed. Paul’s imprisonment does not put him off. See his activism on Paul’s behalf, v17. We’re told that he searched until he found Paul. It’s not circumstantial. It’s not that Paul just happened to be down the road. No, Onesiphorus went looking. He didn’t know where Paul was but he didn’t give up. He was determined – ESV says he searched “earnestly”. In the original Greek, this word is spoudaios, which carries a sense of dilligence.

Phygelus and Hermogenes run away from Paul but Onesiphorus runs to him again. This is true spiritual friendship at work. Let’s consider Onesiphorus. Did he do miracles? Not as far as we know. Did he plant churches? Not as far as we know. Was he a great preacher man? Not as far as we know but what he did was hold up the arms of Paul and visit him when he when in danger of discouragement. The apostle of God was kept going by this man. And for that he is eternally remembered in the word of God. Let’s be an Onesiphorus.

But let’s also be like Paul in his neediness. Notice Paul’s dependence here. He needed Onesiphorus. Didn’t Paul know the word of God? Of course he did: he’s the one who wrote that God works for good in all things (Romans 8:28). Didn’t Paul pray? Of course he did! He told Timothy earlier in this chapter that he’s been praying for him. Paul had his quiet times with God. But he also needed an encourager. An apostle’s faith needed buttressing. All you have to do is to live a bit to learn how fragile you are – to see that you’re not the messiah. You just have to experience a few self-caused pastoral disasters, to experience your own sin and suffer a bit. Then you get to know you are not master of universe and you’ve definitely not mastered discipleship, marriage, parenting, prayer, church growth or anything else. If Paul – the Spirit-filled apostle of God, the miracle worker and church planter – needed refreshment and encouragement, then so do we. If Paul couldn’t make it without an Onesiphorus, then neither can we. So let’s be an Onesiphorus and let’s be a Paul, open to being encouraged.

Conclusion

So here we are. Paul writes his final letter to his trusted friend. It’s poignant and emotional but the real centre in everything Paul writes here is this: all authentic ministry is gospel ministry. There is no other kind of ministry. This is what Paul’s preoccupied with. He’s not focused on what’s going to happen to him or the conditions of his prison. It’s not about how he feels. His eye is on the gospel of Christ and the ministry of proclaiming it. His obsession is not with outcome of next trial but with the defence and preaching of Christ in the next generation. He wants Timothy and those after him to keep doing that. Given his context, those priorities are just from another world aren’t they? Let’s pray that God would give us this gospel mindset. Let’s pray that God would fill us too with the Spirit of power, love and self-discipline and that we would “fan into flame the gift of God”. Let’s pray that we would unashamedly make gospel know to our country.