by Hugh Fulford<\/p>\n
“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth<\/em>” (II Timothy 2:15 KJV).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The preceding verse as cited from the King James Version of the Bible has been what I sometimes refer to as an “anchor text” among those committed to the restoration principle and the restoration plea. It was a passage that I memorized early in my life as a Christian and one that I often quoted in my early preaching efforts (and still quote). It is a tremendous passage, but it needs some unpacking and understanding of what the apostle Paul is actually saying.<\/p>\n
The passage, while applicable to all Christians, was initially addressed to Timothy, a young preacher whom Paul regarded as his son in the faith (I Timothy 1:2). Paul had taken Timothy “under his wings” and nurtured, tutored, and mentored him in the gospel (see Acts 16:1-3). When Paul urged Timothy to “study to show yourself approved to God<\/em>,” he was not speaking so much of the study of scripture or sacred writings (academic study), as he was urging Timothy to give serious reflection, thought, and attention to showing himself a man who was approved by God. Paul wanted Timothy to “study on” (think about) the kind of life he was to live, showing himself to be a diligent worker for the Lord, one who would never be ashamed of his own conduct or of the work he was doing. Included in this was the responsibility Timothy had to correctly handle and properly dispense the word of God to his hearers.<\/p>\n
Other versions of the Scriptures will show the true significance of what Paul had in mind for Timothy (and, by extension, for all Christians of all time).<\/p>\n
\n
- The New King James Version says, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God.<\/em>“<\/li>\n
- The American Standard Version says, “Give diligence to present thyself approved unto God.<\/em>“<\/li>\n
- The New American Standard Version says, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed.<\/em>“<\/li>\n
- The New International Version says, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.<\/em>“<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
What a great description of a faithful preacher! Every man today who preaches the gospel needs to take to heart Paul’s exhortation to Timothy! And, as we shall later see, so does every elder, deacon, Bible class teacher, and individual Christian! Look at other key passages in I and II Timothy and see how they reinforce Paul’s command in II Timothy 2:15.<\/p>\n
“These things I write to you, hoping to come to you shortly, but if I am delayed, that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth<\/em>” (I Timothy 3:15).<\/p>\n
“Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity<\/em>” (I Timothy 4:12).<\/p>\n
“Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you<\/em>” (I Timothy 4:16).<\/p>\n
“But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness<\/em>” (I Timothy 6:11).<\/p>\n
“Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus<\/em>” (II Timothy 1:13).<\/p>\n
“But you continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them<\/em>” (II Timothy 3:14).<\/p>\n
“Preach the word! Be ready in season, out of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and teaching<\/em>” (II Timothy 4:2).<\/p>\n
“But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry<\/em>” (II Timothy 4:5).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Yes, Paul wanted Timothy to study (i.e., give diligent, careful thought and attention) to make himself approved by the Lord! Much as the conscientious farmer, lawyer, doctor, businessman, teacher are always “studying” their ways — their techniques — and trying to become better in their chosen field, so the preacher of the gospel will “study” (give diligent attention and thoughtful reflection) to how he can be approved of God, both in his life and in his doctrine. And, of course, it goes without saying that in so doing, the approved preacher will spend much time reading and studying God’s word, for without such, he cannot know God’s will, either for himself or for his hearers.<\/p>\n
But II Timothy 2:15 is not limited to preachers. Elders, deacons, Bible school teachers, Bible professors, and all Christians (young and old) need to constantly be studying, thinking, and giving attention to how they can be approved to God. The challenge for every child of God is that they “not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of [their] mind, that [they] may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God<\/em>” (Romans 12:2).<\/p>\n
When a Christian arises in the morning and begins his or her day, he\/she needs to thoughtfully and reflectively ask himself\/herself, “How am I going to go about my life today so that I will be a workman that will be approved to God, one that will not be ashamed of the way I conduct myself as a member of the household of God?”<\/p>\n
Find time. Make time every day for reflective thought about how to “let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ<\/em>” (Philippians 1:27). Give studied attention each day to your relationship with the Lord. “Study to show yourself approved to God!<\/em>“<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Hugh Fulford “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (II Timothy 2:15 KJV). The preceding verse as cited from the King James Version of the Bible has been what I sometimes refer to as an “anchor text” among those committed…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[913,1511,558],"class_list":["post-66872","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-bible-study","tag-preachers","tag-study"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":51035,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-preacher-and-his-study\/","url_meta":{"origin":66872,"position":0},"title":"The Preacher and His Study","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 1, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Hiram Kemp The preacher of God's Word is to speak with all the authority God has given him (Titus 2:15). He is to speak as the oracles of God (I Peter 4:11). He is to proclaim the gospel as the power of God unto salvation (Romans 1:16). However, all\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":46461,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/devoted-to-the-word\/","url_meta":{"origin":66872,"position":1},"title":"Devoted to the Word","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 19, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer When the problem of neglected widows came up in Acts 6, the apostles told the church to choose seven men of special quality to take care of it so that they would be able to \"devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word\" (Acts\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":57292,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-elders-children\/","url_meta":{"origin":66872,"position":2},"title":"The Elder’s Children","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 24, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jerry C. Ray The Gospel Guardian, 26 November 1964 In the study of the qualifications for elders, one of the most frequently asked questions is regarding the \"children\" (I Timothy 3:4; Titus 1:6). Does the expression necessitate a plurality, or does it mean that a man is qualified with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33776,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/was-timothys-father-a-christian\/","url_meta":{"origin":66872,"position":3},"title":"Was Timothy’s father a Christian?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 27, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I have a comment on one online question about whether Timothy's father was a believer or not. Philippians 2:22 seems to indicate that Timothy's father was a believer and co-worker with Paul and Timothy. Answer: \"But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18299,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-we-be-in-danger-of-losing-our-salvation-if-we-do-not-study\/","url_meta":{"origin":66872,"position":4},"title":"Can we be in danger of losing our salvation if we do not study?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 7, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it possible to study and understand all of the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments? I was talking to an older man who told me that it was impossible to understand all of the Bible or even most parts of it. I did not agree with him,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":58723,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/advice-to-young-preachers\/","url_meta":{"origin":66872,"position":5},"title":"Advice to Young Preachers","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 4, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Andy Sochor Plain Bible Teaching, 7 September 2011 Some might wonder how it is that someone like myself - a thirty-year-old with no \"full-time\" preaching experience - would be so bold as to hand out advice to young preachers (many of whom would be my peers). 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