What does “evangelism” mean? Sharing the good news! Or, as Paul says in 2 Timothy 1, “promote the promise of life in Christ.”
Scripture:
Joel, chapters 1-3; 2 Timothy, chapter 1
2 Timothy 1:1-7 (CEB):
From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will, to promote the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus. To Timothy, my dear child. Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
I’m grateful to God, whom I serve with a good conscience as my ancestors did. I constantly remember you in my prayers day and night. When I remember your tears, I long to see you so that I can be filled with happiness. I’m reminded of your authentic faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice. I’m sure that this faith is also inside you. Because of this, I’m reminding you to revive God’s gift that is in you through the laying on of my hands. God didn’t give you a spirit that is timid but one that is powerful, loving, and self-controlled.
Observations: The Promise of Life
One of the reasons I like to change translations each year for my daily reflections is that different versions often bring new insight. For example, the NIV translates verse 1 this way: “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus.” That translation implies that Paul is an apostle because God extended the promise of life to him. Now, Paul’s ministry began with God’s offer of life to him, but the CEB translation identifies the promise of life as the purpose of Paul’s ministry – to promote the promise of life.
I believe that this difference ought to influence everything that we do in sharing our faith with others. God has called each of us to promote the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus. That shifts our focus away from telling others “what they’re doing wrong,” and places it on what Jesus does right. Life comes from Jesus. Grace, mercy and peace come from God the Father and Jesus Christ. The core of the good news – the gospel – is that Jesus lives; because He lives, we live.
Revive God’s Gift
Paul makes it clear in other letters that each believer is given a spiritual gift for the benefit of the Church. For example:
- “In the same way, though there are many of us, we are one body in Christ, and individually we belong to each other. We have different gifts that are consistent with God’s grace that has been given to us” (Romans 12:5-6)
- “A demonstration of the Spirit is given to each person for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7)
- “He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. His purpose was to equip God’s people for the work of serving and building up the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-12)
In that regard, Paul urges Timothy to revive God’s gift that is in you. The word “revive” literally means to “fan into flames.” That does not mean that Timothy’s fire had “gone out”; rather, Paul was encouraging him to “stir up the coals” to make the flame burn even hotter. The NIV translation of verse 6 uses “fan into flames” for this Greek word.
In other words, Timothy was still “on fire” for Jesus; Paul just wanted to fan those flames even more. The promise that Jesus would baptize “with the Holy Spirit and with fire” (see, for example, Matthew 3:11) connects that “spiritual fire” with the presence and power of the Spirit. In that vein, Paul reminds Timothy in verse 7: God didn’t give us a spirit that is timid but one that is powerful, loving, and self-controlled. That’s what God wants us to fan into flames!
Application: Promote the Promise of Life
As I was looking up the Greek word that is translated “revive” (CEB) or “fan into flames” (NIV), I noticed that there is one instance that the same Greek word is used in the Greek Old Testament. In Genesis 45, Joseph’s brothers return to Jacob with news that Joseph is alive and wants the whole family to come to Egypt. When they first told Jacob that Joseph was alive, “Jacob was stunned; he did not believe them” (Genesis 45:26, NIV). The next verse says: “But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived” (45:27, NIV, emphasis added).
Jacob had been convinced that Joseph was dead. It had been years since Joseph had “disappeared.” His brothers had sold him as a slave, and duped Jacob into thinking Joseph had been killed by a wild animal (see Genesis 37:31-35). But even after all that time, his hope and joy was still capable of being “fanned into flame.”
That’s exactly what God does for each person who experiences new life in Christ! And that’s what he calls us to share – to promote the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus.” We don’t do that through arguments and conflict, by browbeating people into faith. Instead, God gave us a spirit that is powerful, loving, and self-controlled. The evidence of the Spirit’s presence in us is not primarily a “gift”; it is the Spirit’s fruit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against things like this. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified self with its passions and its desires” (Galatians 5:22-24, CEB).
Prayer:
Father, help us to reflect the presence of the Spirit within us by the fruit of the Spirit. As today’s passage reminds us, you have given us a spirit that is powerful, loving, and self-controlled. The spirit of the age is one of anger and bitterness and conflict; your Spirit within us promotes the promise of life in Christ. Lead us today to live so that others will see the promise of life that you offer to everyone. Amen.
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