Second Timothy 1:7 says, “For God has not given us a spirit of cowardice, but of power and of love and of sobermindedness.” The spirit that God has given us is such a spirit. According to the Chinese translation, it seems that this spirit denotes our human spirit. In actuality, however, this is still referring to the two spirits mingled to be one spirit. Today within us we have a mingled spirit, a spirit which is of power, of love, and of sobermindedness. Sometimes you are powerful, yet without love; at other times you are very weak, yet full of love. It is very difficult to have both at the same time. Furthermore, once we love, we cannot think clearly. Many times love makes people foolish, but if they are clear, they cannot love. After we discuss a matter and consider the people, we simply cannot love them anymore. It is wonderful that the Lord’s word shows us that God has given us a spirit not only of power but also of love and of sobermindedness. This is a marvelous thing.
In the time of the church’s degradation, these three items are necessary. Your spirit must be strong or else there will be confusion. However, while you have a strong spirit, you must not be without love, and at the same time you must not be without sobermindedness while you are paying attention to love. Otherwise, the church will be a confused mess. During the time of confusion, your spirit must be strong, loving, and sober. The opposite of the word sobermindedness is drunk. To be drunk is to be confused and disorderly. On the contrary, to be sober is to be clear, orderly, and transparent. Dear brothers and sisters, this truly is our present need. We need this kind of a spirit, a spirit with power, love, and sobermindedness, a spirit which is sober in love and loving in power. Only this kind of spirit is adequate for dealing with a confused situation and can meet the need of a degraded condition. What God has given us is such a spirit.
Furthermore, 2 Timothy 1:14 says, “Guard the good deposit through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.” Here, Paul seemed to be saying, “Timothy, you have followed me for so many years and have had so many good and spiritual things entrusted or revealed to you, so you must carefully guard this good deposit through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. The church is degraded, the age has changed, men’s hearts are different now, and everything is not the way it was, but you must carefully guard the good things, the things which have been entrusted to you and deposited in you over the years, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in you.” In the church’s degradation we need such a guarding Spirit to guard the deposit in us today of the things which we received in the past.
The final point is in 4:22, which says, “The Lord be with your spirit.” This statement is not found in any of the other Epistles. What Paul meant by this word was: “O Timothy, I have already spoken so many messages to you, and this is my dying command and parting word to you. Before I die, I want to give you this word: ‘The Lord be with your spirit.’ The Lord is the Spirit, the life-giving Spirit, and this Spirit is with you in your spirit.”
Thus, the Spirit in 1 and 2 Timothy is the guarding Spirit. How does He guard us? From your reading, you can see that He is the indwelling Spirit who dwells in your spirit to make your spirit strong, loving, and soberminded. He is also speaking from within your spirit, showing you the degraded condition of this age. As such a Spirit He dwells in your spirit to be the guarding Spirit.
Now we come to the book of Titus. In Titus there is only one passage that mentions the Spirit. Verses 5b-7 of chapter three say, “He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, in order that having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” The renewing work of the Holy Spirit within us is almost the same as His work of transformation. He is the renewing Spirit whom God poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior. The result of this outpouring is that we have been justified by His grace to become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Thus, the goal of the outpouring of this Spirit is that we may become heirs of God and sons of God.
What is the difference between heirs and sons? Heirs are eligible to receive the inheritance. If a king has eight sons, only the eldest is the designated heir to inherit the throne. The other seven sons are just sons, not heirs. Today we are not just sons; we are also heirs. We have inherited all that God has given to us and all that God possesses. The renewing Spirit does a renewing work within us to make us not only sons but also heirs.
Let me repeat: God saved us through the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom God poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior in order that, on the one hand, we may be justified by His grace, and on the other hand, we may become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Justification is the first aspect, while eternal life is the second aspect. In this way we may become heirs of God.
Verse 25 of Philemon says, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” In order to experience, enjoy, and fully taste the grace of the Lord, we must know the Spirit, because the grace of the Lord is in our spirit. The apostle Paul, realizing that nothing else was more important, gave a final word, saying, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” In the books of 1 and 2 Timothy is the guarding Spirit, in the book of Titus is the renewing Spirit, and in the book of Philemon, we may say, is the Spirit of presence.
Home | First | Prev | Next