"And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient."
2 Timothy 2:24
Part 2
Yesterday:
“And the servant of the Lord must not strive.”
Being a servant of the Lord is not about fighting, arguing, or “winning.” It is about serving others.
Today:
“But be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient.”
These qualities are how God’s servants are to treat all men.
Be “Gentle.”
Gentle is, “…denoting ‘an outward mildness and gentleness, especially in bearing with others,’ Ellicott; who connects it with one of the Greek roots for ‘speak,’ so that it would have originally meant ‘kind of speech.’” [1]
“But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children” (1 Thessalonians 2:7).
Servants, we are cautious about how we speak to others, both in our tone and our word choices.
Be “Apt to teach.”
Being “apt to teach,” means having an ability “and skillful in teaching”[2] (Thayer).
“A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach” (1 Timothy 3:2).
Not all servants necessarily have the ability to teach. Pastors do need to have this ability. It’s one of the qualifications for “a bishop.”
Be “Patient.”
“Patient,” means being “enduring of ill, that is, forbearing: – patient” [3] (Strong).
Interestingly, the root word for this ancient word “patient” has the idea of holding yourself up against something that’s difficult. It could be standing up and walking against a high wind. Or it could mean putting up with challenging circumstances. In any case, a servant of the Lord needs to have this kind of grit and determination.
To be a pastor, a man must be patient because building a ministry for the Lord is labor-intensive and takes much time. Patience is a requirement for anyone who works with people. Servants, let’s be patient.
Believers, we need to do a self-test to see how our servanthood is doing. Let’s improve our service to those whom God has called us to serve.
[1] Cambridge Bible, the electronic version in eSword.
[2] J.H. Thayer, Thayer’s Greek Definitions, the electronic version in eSword.
[3] James Strong, Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries, the electronic version in eSword.