Letters to Timothy and Titus are known as the Pastoral letters in the Pauline Corpus and they are addressed to the leaders of the Church and the pastors in the early Christian communities. Though the direct authorship of Paul is not confirmed, these letters are considered as part of the Pauline corpus and they give a glimpse of the early ecclesiastical structures. Timothy was the head of the Church of Ephesus and a close associate of Paul during his missionary journeys.
Paul mentions about the duty of a believer in 2:1-2 and emphasizes that the reception and the transmission of the Christian faith, a believer must be loyal and faithful enduring even sufferings. The Greek for faithful, pistos, is a word with a rich variety of closely connected meanings. A man who is a pistos is a man who is believing, a man who is loyal, a man who is reliable. He uses three metaphors here to highlight the features of faith commitment expected from a Christian- that of a soldier, an athlete and a farmer.
Soldier is an important image used by Paul in his writings. In 1 Corinthians 9:7, this image is used in a discussion of church workers receiving payment, with a metaphorical reference to a soldier’s rations and expenses. Ephesians 6:10–18 discusses faith, righteousness, and other elements of Christianity as the armour of God, where a soldier has to wear them. The picture of man as a soldier and life as a campaign is one which the Romans and the Greeks knew well. “To live,” said Seneca, “is to be a soldier” (Seneca: Epistles 96: 5). The Roman soldiers of Paul’s day were the toughest, most disciplined, and most resourceful soldiers in the world. They marched 20 miles a day with 50 pounds of gear. When not in battle, they practiced for battle, plus they built roads and public buildings. Paul took this picture and applied it to all Christians, but specially to the leaders and outstanding servants of the Church. He urges Timothy to fight a fine campaign (1 Timothy 1:18). He calls Archippus, in whose house a Church met, our fellow soldier (Philemon 1:2). He calls Epaphroditus, the messenger of the Philippian Church, “my fellow soldier”, (Phil_2:25).
2 Timothy 2:3-4 is an invitation to share in suffering like a fine soldier of Christ Jesus. What then were the qualities of the soldier which Paul would have repeated in the Christian life? We may find them as concentration, obedience, loyalty, readiness to be sacrificed etc. The soldier’s service must be a concentrated service. No other preoccupations are expected of him. No soldier who is on active service entangles himself in ordinary civilian business; he lays aside such things, so that by good service he may please the commander who has enrolled him in his army. Clearly Paul saw in the life of the soldier a picture of the life of the Christian. The Christian must concentrate on his Christian witnessing. He must use whatever task he is engaged upon to demonstrate his Christianity. The soldier is conditioned to obedience. The early training of a soldier is designed to make him unquestioningly obey the word of command. The decisions he must leave to the commander who sees the whole field. The first Christian duty is obedience to the voice of God, and acceptance even of that which he cannot understand. The soldier is also conditioned to sacrifice.
The main verb, “suffer hardship”, does not sound fun and it isn’t friends. It is a compound verb translated elsewhere as share my pain, take your part in suffering, accept your share of unjust evil, take your part of rough treatment, endure harshness. The word “suffer hardship” literally means “to suffer evil, to suffer trouble, and to endure injustice.” The Christian must ever be ready to sacrifice himself/herself, his wishes and his fortune, for God and for his fellow-men.
The soldier is conditioned to loyalty. When the Roman soldier joined the army he took the sacramentum, the oath of loyalty to his emperor, “you must hold on at all costs.” You might be facing embarrassment, the removal of benefits and the loss of freedoms. The soldier’s supreme virtue is that he is faithful unto death. The Christian too must be loyal to Jesus Christ, through all the chances and the changes of life, down even to the gates of death.
The image of soldiering paints a passionate picture for each believer to pursue- deep loyalty, rigid self-discipline, bold in speaking out and valour in defence of the truth. These qualities should characterize each one of Christ’s servants–reminding you that the path of devotion to Christ is not easy or instant, it is long and difficult. Every Christian is a soldier in the army of Christ. As a soldier you fight on the Lord’s side, serving under Him, remaining focused to your task, obeying His orders instantly and seeking to please Him in all things. Like a soldier, we live with endurance under hardship.
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