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Q4. Exhortation


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So he would not forget to follow them. Fight the good fight is to follow the Lords ways in all you do to not deviate no matter what.

Timothy might be tempted with ways of the false doctrine at the Church at Ephesus. Paul reminds Timothy to hold on to his faith in God and keep a good conscience to not wander away from the truth

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Remembering the personal prophecies will help Timothy fight the good fight. To reject faith and good conscience could cause one to become shipwrecked in their faith. Paul exhorted Timothy not to give into teachers of false doctrines. There must have been pressure to give in to their false doctrine and allow them to continue to teach and pollute the body of believers.
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1. I believe he reminds Timothy of the prophecies in order to encourage him. It seems that Timothy is on his own, no truly godly man to encourage him. He might have been getting burned out, overwhelmed, tired.

2. Fight the good fight means to continue on the path God has laid before you. When it gets hard we sometimes abandon the path, maybe for good, maybe just for a while. Paul encourages Timothy to stay the path, do not allow himself to get distracted by the humanness of those around him. Continue to set a good example even in the face of doing it all alone.

3-4. Timothy may have started becoming either discouraged or introverted. Wanting to spend time alone rather than continuing. I have been there, when it seems that everyone around you is just discouraging you from staying the righteous path. Sometimes it is easier to go it alone. Sometimes it seems the only way to stay on the path is to stay on it alone. Yet we are called to encourage others and reach out to them. When beaten down, how do we respond? With isolation or with an enthusiasm for Christ.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Timothy was having to stand against false doctrines not just from the 'ordinary' members but also from 'leaders'. as a young man it must have been hard to maintain his faith and committment, he problably felt very alone at times. Paul was encouraging him to remember the prophecies spoken over him to confirm that he was in Gods will and to encourage him to remain faithful even when things were tough. We all go through times when our faith is battered by outside circumstances, thats when it is so important to hold on to what faith we have ie fight the good fight, to remember the promises and commisions that have been spoken over our life. Encouragement by other christians can often give us that second wind to press on in.

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It is to remind Timothy that God's power and strength are with him and that God has fitted him for this task.

Fight the good fight means to stand strong in the face of evil, give God 100%, don't compromise, stand your ground.

Timothy can do this by holding onto faith and keeping a good conscience in order to keep from falling into the temptation of passiveness.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Paul encourages him by reminding him of the prophecies spoken over him. He has been called by God for this work, this is his ministry and he shouldn't give up. Paul warns him not to wander away from the word of God as these false teachers have done, but correct them out of love and a pure heart. Paul was trying to counter his fears by reminding him of his calling and encouragement to finish.

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It is easy sometimes to forget that even it a task seams so great so big that we tend to back away from it. Paul was reminding him do back down. He has been called to this work. lastly he is reminding him not to be swayed to stand firm in the faith so he is not broght to the other side

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Q4. (1 Timothy 1:18-19) Why does Paul need to remind Timothy about the prophecies spoken over him? In practical terms, what does "fight the good fight" really mean? Why does Paul tell Timothy to "hold on to faith and a good conscience"? What temptation is Paul trying to counter in his prot
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Q4. (1 Timothy 1:18-19) Why does Paul need to remind Timothy about the prophecies spoken over him? In practical terms, what does "fight the good fight" really mean? Why does Paul tell Timothy to "hold on to faith and a good conscience"? What temptation is Paul trying to counter in his prot
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Q4. (1 Timothy 1:18-19) Why does Paul need to remind Timothy about the prophecies spoken over him? In practical terms, what does "fight the good fight" really mean? Why does Paul tell Timothy to "hold on to faith and a good conscience"? What temptation is Paul trying to counter in his prot
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  • 3 weeks later...

He didn't want Timothy to lose sight of his calling and wanted him to continue the good fight of faith. He wanted him to hold fast of his faith and lean into God to fullfill his calling

Faith is a substance of things hope for and things not seen, so fighting the good fight of faith means to hang onto Gods word regardless of the circumstances, even tho it doesn't look like anything has changed around you.

Because Paul had seen how some had fallen away from sound doctrine, they had gone back to the law and they were not trusting and having faith in God.

A lot of false doctrine was being taught and he did not want Timothy to fall away from the truth. I believe Timothy was under a lot of warfare from the enemy. Paul wanted to encourge Timothy to lean into the word of God and keep the faith.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Paul is reminding Timothy that he is not there of his own will, but of God's will; to spread the good news of Christ.

To fight the good fight means ,to me, to stand firm im the truth of Christ's love and God's forgiveness. Not to be shaken by the world around me or the forces that may try to knock me down.

Paul is encouragind Timothy to stay strong. Even though things seem hopeless, hope is never lost.

Paul is trying to counter the temptation to go along with the crowd. It would be easy for Timothy, in his youth, to go along with what is popular.

This is a reminder to us all to stand firm in our faith, regardless of what is considered popular. The enemy tries to trick us every day into doing what is not right, we need to remember that even when things are hard, God is with us. As long as we stand firm, we will be safe in his arms.

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I think it is important for any minister to be reminded of his calling and the circustances that surrounded that calling. In this case it is the prophecies spoken of Timothy. One can get so caught up in the work of the ministry that he/she may lose sight of why he/she's doing it in the first place. This just reinforces Paul exhortation to keep the faith and keep serving the people of Ephesus.

Fighting the good fight means to keep serving good and doing the work of the church. It means to keep loving people and in this case drawing them back from the controversies and false prophets. It means to keep doing what God wants you to do.

I think Paul is trying to prevent Timothy from giving up. In order to do this, he is encouraging to hold on to faith and a good conscience. In other words, to trust God and keep doing what you know to be right and moral to do.

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Q4. (1 Timothy 1:18-19) Why does Paul need to remind Timothy about the prophecies spoken over him?

Timothy must have found work in the ministry to be overwhelming and the feelings of inadequacy crept in. Paul reminded Timothy about the prophecies spoken over him so that he would be encouraged to continue in ministry knowing that he was called by God into service.

In practical terms, what does "fight the good fight" really mean?

It really means to labor in the Christian vineyard, preaching the gospel and bringing in the harvest.

Why does Paul tell Timothy to "hold on to faith and a good conscience"?

Paul encourages Timothy not to give up, but to keep focus as he continue in ministry with good conscience knowing that God who called him to the work will strengthen him.

What temptation is Paul trying to counter in his prot

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Q4. (1 Timothy 1:18-19) Why does Paul need to remind Timothy about the prophecies spoken over him? In practical terms, what does "fight the good fight" really mean? Why does Paul tell Timothy to "hold on to faith and a good conscience"? What temptation is Paul trying to counter in his prot

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Why does Paul need to remind Timothy about the prophesies spoken over him?

That Timothy was commissioned by God and that his power and strength would be with him.

In practical terms, what does "fight the good fight" really mean?

Don't give up.

Why does Paul tell Timothy to "hold on to faith and a good conscince"?

Because this is what the false teachers didn't do. He needs to be focused on his task and at the same time remain pure as he does what he has been called to do.

What temptation is Paul trying to counter in his young protege?

Neglecting his gift and call on his life.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Oh that each one of us would take this to heart. Fight the Good Fight. Stand for righteousness and truth. Hold fast to the gospel message and do not allow any other message to distract us from our purpose.

Paul says that "If anyone else -- even an angel -- should come to you with another gospel, let him be accursed. (Gal. 1:9)

Our stand for the gospel can be a spiritual battle, and I think this exhortation has great application in today's culture of moral relativism. Where people teach that all ways lead to God, and you have your truth and I'll have mine, it is more important than ever to stand firm and fight the good fight.

I think it's important to do this with gentleness and under the guidance of the Spirit. -- the servant of the Lord is not to be quarrelsome, but shoudl be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are inopposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance (2 Tim. 2:24).

It is my prayer that I will be able to echo Paul's words at the end of my life -- that I have fought the good fight, finished the course and kept the faith.

There is a poem by Robert McQuilkin that I found among my Dad's papers after he passed away from a brain tumor in 2004. It's long, but it expresses the prayer to 'end well." If you will endulge me, I've included it here:

Let Me Get Home Before Dark

It's sundown, Lord,

the shadows of my life stretch back

into the dimnes of the years long spent.

I fear not death, for the grim foe betrays himself at last,

thrusting me forever into life:

Life with you, unsoiled and free.

But I do fear:

I fear that dark spectre may come too soon --

or do I mean, too late?

That I should end before I finish or

finish, but not well.

That I should stain your honor, shame you name,

grieve your loving heart.

Few, they tell me, finish well . . .

Lord, let me get home before dark.

The darkness of a spirit

grown mean and small, or fruit shriveled on the vine,

bitter to the taste of my companions,

burden to be borned by those brave few who love me still.

No, Lord. Let the fruit grow lulsh and sweet,

A joy to all who taste;

Spirit-sign of God at work,

stronger, fuller, brighter at the end.

Lord, let me get home before dark.

The darkness of tatered gifts,

rust-locked, half-spent, or ill-spent,

A life that once was used of God

now set aside.

Grief for glories gone or

Fretting for a task God never gave.

Mourning in the hollow chambers of memory,

Gazing on teh faded banners of vitories long gone.

Cannot I run well unto the end?

Lord, let me get home before dard/

The outer decays --

I do not fret or ask reprieve.

The ebbing strength but weans me from mother earth

and grows me up for heaven.

I do not cling to shadows cast by immortality.

I do not patch the scaffold lent to build the real, eternal me.

I do not clutch about me my cocoon,

vainly struggling to hold hostage

a free spirit pressing to be born.

But will I reach the gate

in lingering pain, body distorted, grotesque?

Or will it be a mind wandering untethered among light phantasies or grim terrors?

Of your grace, Father, I humbly ask,. . .

Let me get home before dark.

That poem describes the desire of a believer's heart, I think. We ought to keep on until the Lord calls us home. Keep on in the fight, running the race set before us with our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus Christ the author and perfector of our faith, and with our feet firmly planted in His word.

As a well-known teacher says, "There is not retirement in the time of war." So we need to stay in the battle and follow the lead of our Commander. Fight the good fight.

I apologise for the length of this post -- but I did want to share the poem. Please let me know if it was out of line for me to do so.

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I've never done anything like this before. I mean on line. As I was reading some of what others had written, afraid to post my own I came across yours and the poem. Thank you so much! I just lost my mom, dad and brother. Even if its been a couple of years now the pain is still raw. I started the journey with Jesus holding my hand and then later down the walk I looked down and I was holding my own hand. I don't know where I let go of Christ, I just know I want Him back! I want to be able to say the poem myself. So thank you so much for such a ray of sunlight!

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  • 1 month later...

Timothy,as we know is a protege of Paul.In fact,Paul treat him like a son (Titus 1:4).He has followed Paul all over Asia Minor setting up churches and whilst Paul was in prison,Timothy continue to preach the Gospel.So Paul is reminding Timothy of the gift which the Holy spirit has given him and to continue to spread the faith in spite of mounting opposition from some of the Church leaders.He reminded Timothy not to be influenced or tempted by old wives stories but to remain true to the faith.

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