Life between Two Epiphanies According to Paul’s teaching in the letters to Timothy and Titus, Christians live between two epiphanies or appearances of Jesus Christ: his first coming and his second coming. At his first coming, Jesus brought salvation (2 Tim 1:10; Titus 2:11); at his second coming, he will bring judgment and final salvation… Read More
Paul the Mentor
Paul the Mentor While Paul preached the gospel everywhere he went and planted numerous churches, perhaps his most important contribution was mentoring men such as Timothy and Titus. Many believe Timothy and Titus were pastors of local congregations. More likely these men served, however, as Paul’s apostolic delegates who were temporarily assigned to their locations… Read More
A Theology of the Letters of Timothy and Titus: The Church
The Theology of the Letters of Timothy and Titus: The Church While sustaining a close relationship with Old Testament Israel as the chosen people of God, there is a sense in which the church is a New Testament phenomenon. Properly understood, the church began at Pentecost (Acts 2) shortly after Jesus’ ascension and exaltation with… Read More
A Theology of Paul’s Letters to Timothy and Titus: God, Christ, the Spirit, Salvation
Introduction In previous posts, I’ve discussed the mission theme and the theme of teaching in Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus. As we’ve seen, mission—that is, the mission of Paul and the early church—is the foundational theme in these letters. In conjunction with this mission, there is a multi-faceted emphasis on teaching sound apostolic doctrine that… Read More
A Theology of Paul’s Letters to Timothy and Titus: Teaching
Mission and Teaching As we’ve seen in my previous post, mission is the foundational theme in Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus. These letters are predicated upon the ongoing mission of the early church of which Paul’s mission is an integral part. When Paul wrote these letters, that mission had already been progressing for about… Read More