It’s so easy to read things quickly during your morning Bible reading and miss out on blessings simply because you are not understanding what the words mean. Take this passage for example:
2Ti 1:6 Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.
2Ti 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
Verse 6 sounds great. Stir up the gift of God…yeah yeah, but what does that mean? What is the “gift of God? And why should we stir it up? Why does the next verse say “For…” and how are they related? These are the questions that we should always be asking ourselves as we read the Bible.
The key to interpreting the Bible is to let God’s word interpret itself for you. We are told in Ephesians 2 that our salvation in Jesus is the gift of God. Now it makes sense that Paul would tell Timothy not to fear when stirring up the gift of God. Many people are timid about soul winning and we shouldn’t be ashamed of the gospel.
The 8th verse in this chapter backs up our interpretation:
2Ti 1:8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;
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December 13th, 2010
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