Session 4: Not Ashamed

2 Timothy 2:14-26

Discussion Questions

What are the marks of an unapproved workman?
Unpack answers (for example)
- What does it mean to quarrel about words?
- Is godless chatter something different?
- What’s the fruit in their own lives, and the lives of their followers?
- How is Hymenaeus and Philetus’ teaching so ruinous?
- What form might such teaching take today?
What are the marks of the approved workman?
- How then should we be praying for our leaders?
Despite such ruinous teaching threatening the church, what is Paul’s encouragement in v.19?
On what basis is this encouragement made? – Unpack the twin truths the two quotations point to.

Get people to explain the illustration in v20.
[I take it that the “house” refers to the church, which will contain both believers and false teachers, as was true during the time of Korah’s rebellion in Nus.16 (cf.v.19) and will be true of the church till Christ returns (cf. Matt.13:24-30).]
How does Paul apply the illustration to Timothy?
[NB in v.21 Timothy is being told to cleanse himself, not the church, so I think it means he must cleanse himself from any taint of this false teaching; in v.22 the cleansing is moral.]
What are “the evil desires of youth”?
[NB vv.22-26 gives plenty of pointers.]
How do you think they are different from the evil desires of middle age, or old age?
What does the word “flee” suggest about these evil desires?
What are we to pursue?
Why these things, do you think – apart from the obvious fact that they’re good?

Is arguing always wrong? When is an argument “foolish and stupid”? Give an example.
How might the Christian leader be tempted to respond to error?
How should they respond?
What does v.26 teach about the root cause of error? How should that affect how we respond to it?

Given that this passage is addressed very much to church leaders, how should this direct how we pray for our leaders?
What are the principles we should also apply to ourselves?