2 Timothy 2.25b-The Purpose of Administering Church Discipline with Gentleness
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Wednesday June 17, 2015
Second Timothy: Second Timothy 2:25b-The Purpose of Administering Church Discipline with Gentleness
Lesson # 60
2 Timothy 2:22 Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. 23 But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. 24 The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged 25 with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth. (NASB95)
“If perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth” is expressing the uncertainty or doubt that God will grant these apostate Christians in Ephesus repentance leading to an experiential knowledge of the truth.
“God” is composed of the articular nominative masculine singular form of the noun theos (θεός), which refers to the Father which is indicated by the word’s articular construction which in the New Testament commonly signifies the first member of the Trinity unless otherwise indicated by the context.
“Them” is referring to the apostate Christians in Ephesus who oppose Paul’s apostolic teaching.
“Repentance” is the accusative feminine singular form of the noun metanoia (μετάνοια), which speaks of these apostate Christians repenting in the sense that they change their attitude toward the gospel and thus Paul’s apostolic teaching.
“Leading to the knowledge of the truth” is composed of the following: (1) preposition eis (εἰς), “to” (2) accusative feminine singular form of the noun epignōsis (ἐπίγνωσις), “the knowledge” (3) genitive feminine singular form of the noun alētheia (ἀλήθεια), “the truth.”
The noun epignōsis means an “experiential knowledge” of the truth, which is the mind of Christ.
The noun epignōsis is the object of the preposition eis, which functions as a marker of result which would indicate that knowing experientially the truth is the direct result of the Father granting these apostate Christians repentance.
The noun alētheia refers to Paul’s apostolic teaching and specifically it refers to his apostolic teaching which Timothy was to make it his habit of accurately teaching to the Christian community and non-Christian members of the community.
Second Timothy 2:22 Now you continue making it your habit of avoiding youthful lusts. Instead continue making it your habit of zealously practicing so as to exemplify divine-righteousness, Christian doctrine, divine-love, peace along with those who make it their habit of calling upon the Lord from a pure heart. 23 But continue making it your habit of avoiding foolish, yes ignorant pointless debates because you know for certain that they do produce quarrels. 24 However, in the interests of the Lord’s slave, he must never, as an eternal spiritual truth, be characterized as contentious but rather to be characterized as gentle for the benefit of each and every person, a skillful teacher, patient. 25 The purpose of which is to be characterized as correcting with gentleness those who in their own selfish-interests are in opposition. Perhaps, God (the Father) will grant them repentance resulting in knowing experientially the truth. (Author’s translation)
Paul issues an indirect question in Second Timothy 2:25 which is expressing the uncertainty or doubt that God will grant these apostate Christians in Ephesus repentance leading to an experiential knowledge of the truth.
The uncertainty is not God’s willingness to do this but rather the willingness of these apostate Christians to receive this discipline in humility.
So the direct question here would be “Will these apostate Christians in Ephesus who oppose Paul’s apostolic teaching repent?”
God the Father would grant these apostate Christians repentance in the sense that He would manifest in time His sovereign decree in eternity past to permit them to make a decision to repent.
Timothy was to be the instrument the Father used to correct these apostate Christians.
If they responded to the correction, they would confess their sin of disobedience to be restored to fellowship with the Father and which fellowship is maintained by obedience to the gospel.
If this response takes place, it would be a manifestation of the divine decree in which the Father sovereignly decreed for this repentance to take place in response to Timothy gently correcting them.
Therefore, when Paul speaks of the Father granting these apostate Christians repentance he is teaching that this repentance can never take place apart from the Father’s sovereign will.
When Paul speaks of repentance here in Second Timothy 2:25, he is speaking of these apostate Christians changing their attitude toward the gospel and thus Paul’s apostolic teaching.
This would first involve these individuals confessing their sin of disobedience in order to be restored to fellowship with God (1 John 1:9).
They would maintain this fellowship by obeying Paul’s apostolic teaching or in other words by obeying the gospel.
Consequently by repenting, Paul states that these Christians would possess an experiential knowledge of the truth which speaks of these individuals personally encountering through the process of fellowship the mind of Christ as it is revealed by the Holy Spirit in the pages of Scripture and prayer.
It also speaks of their being affected by this encounter with the mind of Christ and this encounter results in the gaining of practical spiritual wisdom and more of the character of Christ.
So Paul is saying in Second Timothy 2:25 that the Lord’s slave must be gentle, a skillful teacher, patient in order to be able to correct with gentleness the opposition resulting in these individuals having an experiential knowledge of the truth, i.e. the Word of God.
The truth here in Second Timothy 2:25 refers to Paul’s apostolic teaching and specifically it refers to his apostolic teaching which Timothy was to make it his habit of accurately teaching to the Christian community and non-Christian members of the community.
Therefore, it refers to the truth of God in an objective sense as a body of knowledge containing the revelation regarding the will of the Father for the Christian and the non-Christian.
This revelation also contains information regarding the character and nature of the Trinity.
It contains information regarding the consequences of the Christian failing to do the will of the Father or doing His will.
It contains information regarding the consequences of the non-Christian rejecting Jesus Christ as Savior or accepting Him as Savior.
It also contains information regarding what the Father has provided for the Christian through both His Son and the Holy Spirit which enables the Christian to execute His will.
In Second Timothy 2:25, the truth refers to the content of the message of the gospel.
It refers to the divine revelation that was communicated through the apostolic teaching which was communicated to the believers in Ephesus by Timothy and is now recorded in the New Testament.
Specifically it refers to the apostolic teaching communicated by Timothy to the Ephesian church and the non-Christian in Ephesus.
So Paul is teaching here in Second Timothy 2:25 that the purpose of administering church discipline with gentleness to these apostate Christians in Ephesus was so that they would repent resulting in their possessing an experiential knowledge of the truth.
Church discipline is taught in Matthew 18:15-18, Romans 16:17-18; 1 Corinthians 5; 2 Corinthians 2:6-11; Galatians 6:1-3; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-16; 2 Timothy 2:23-26; Titus 3:10; 2 John 9-11.
Matthew 18:15 “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.” (NASB95)
If the person fails to respond, warn them that, according to the instructions of Scripture (Matt. 18:16), you will have to get others as witnesses and return with them to deal with the problem.
Matthew 18:16 “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed.” (NASB95)
If the first step fails, take witnesses to strengthen the effect of the discipline, preferably spiritual leaders, so that if it has to be brought before the whole church it can be firmly proven and established (Matt. 18:16-17; 1 Tim. 5:19).
Matthew 18:17 “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (NASB95)
If the second step fails, seek reconciliation and restoration through the whole body.
If further action is necessary, it is to be taken before the whole church (2 Thess. 3:14-15; Matt. 18:17; 1 Tim. 5:20).
2 Thessalonians 3:14 and 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 along with Matthew 18:17 indicate that the church is to exercise group disapproval by way of social ostracism (refusal to have intimate fellowship).
If this does not work, the church is to remove the offender from the church fellowship.
This must be approved of and done by the entire congregation (2 Cor. 2:6).
The Lord is exercising this discipline through the church’s actions.