In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage - with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. - 2 Timothy 4:1-5
“Uh, I’m not a minister.” As a student that was my first reaction to this passage. Isn’t Paul taking to a preacher? So what does this have to do with me? Realize that although Paul wrote this to Timothy, he meant for it to be read aloud to everyone in Timothy’s church. And God apparently intended the same thing since he made sure Paul’s letter to Timothy became a part of the Bible. Even those of us who aren’t ministers have a responsibility to tell people about Jesus. Paul reminds us that our culture may one day stop listening, so we have to take every opportunity to preach and teach – no matter where it happens. Keep your eyes open for a chance to talk about your faith, to correct someone if they speak incorrectly about Christ, or to encourage someone with Scripture.
If God gave you an opportunity to talk about Christ today, what would you do?
Ask God to help you speak about him in some way today.
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