How Do We Know Whom We Believe?
How do we know who to believe? | Translation of verse 2 Timothy 1:12
For this reason I endure these hardships, yet I am not ashamed because I know in whom I have believed and I am confident that he is able to keep what I have entrusted to him until that day (2 Timothy 1:12).
This verse is a familiar verse. Often this verse is among the verses that children memorize during their time in children’s religious groups, in the church where they grew up. Many adults also believe in the correctness of this verse. This verse inspires believers of all ages to have confidence in life.
However, understanding the true meaning of this verse and the context of the surrounding text is worth a deeper investigation to gain a new understanding and appreciation of the teachings of this text.
What is the significance of 2 Timothy 1:12 in faith?
The masculine pronouns in this verse (“he” and “them”) and the fact that these words are capitalized in most, if not all, English translations of the Bible clearly point to Christ as the subject of the main promise in this verse. has it. This is the promise that God is able to preserve what we have entrusted to Him.
The general context of this section also leads the reader’s mind to the Lord Jesus Christ. Other verses that relate directly to 2 Timothy 1:12 show that the apostle Paul (the human author of this letter to his young disciple Timothy) is writing about the trust that believers can have in their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
We also know that the law is not for the righteous, but for lawbreakers and rebels, godless and sinners, ungodly and irreligious, for those who kill their parents, for murderers, for adulterers, for homosexuals, for slave traders and liars. and they swear falsely – and for everything that is contrary to sound teaching…though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, yet I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief (1 Timothy 1:9,10, 13).
Chapter 1 of this epistle also mentions several other things about Jesus Christ. Pay attention to verses 1, 2, 8, 16 and 18.
Even a cursory reading of this chapter leaves no doubt that its key theme is that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can and will fulfill this promise. He is actually able to “hold” or guard or protect whatever we have “entrusted” or “entrusted” to Him.
Paul emphasizes his confidence in the Lord by using the word “assured” – meaning he was convinced with confidence. He believed in God and was willing to act on that faith. Paul’s trust for salvation and his life and ministry was found in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
He knew the Lord because he had put his faith and trust in Christ (see the story of the apostle Paul’s conversion to Christ in Acts 9:1-19), and Christ had proved his faithfulness throughout his life and ministry. .
But God stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message would be fully announced and all nations would hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth (2 Timothy 4:17).
Today in the article : How Do We Know Whom We Believe? We reviewed useful information about the Bible and the way of Jesus. If you wish, you can view other articles of Ali Vahidi about Christianity