Keeping That Good Thing

“That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.” (2Ti 1:14 AV)

 

If we stay in the immediate context, the ‘good thing’ is the form of sound words found in the preceding verse.  The ‘good thing’ is seen as a singular object rather than pieces of a larger whole.  The sound words are the doctrine Timothy has been endowed with by his grandmother, mother, and now Paul.  What we want to seriously ponder is first, the possibility of a genuine saint falling away from the doctrine that he or she has learned, and the means by which he or she keeps it. To ‘keep’ here could mean to use it in ministry.  However, I think Paul is telling Timothy he needed to do both.  He needed to keep the doctrine his grandmother, mother, and preacher handed down to him so that he could reach others and help them to grow in Christ.  But he also needs to keep that good thing for his own walk.  That good thing is kept by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  The old nature loves to combat the new.  The Holy Spirit teaches and guides.  It is by His influence we hold fast to that which is good.

One might be astounded to hear some walk away from that which they once knew to be the truth.  They learned well.  They even taught in our Sunday Schools or preached in our pulpits.  Then something happened.  Somewhere along the way they picked up a new doctrine or were pressured by others to abandon what they have been taught for something they think is more reasonable.  Some are very smart and very well studied regarding the things of God.  They learned correctly.  They worked hard for grades or recognition.  In the process, they neglected the more practical things of a Christian walk and because of a non-existent devotional life and a greatly neglected prayer life, God is no longer real to them.  Therefore, they abandon all they have been taught.  There are still others who based truth on how they reasoned through it or what they feel about it.  Once that changed, no matter how true the faith was, it becomes weakened and may eventually dissolve altogether.  The point is, that genuinely saved saints can lose what they have been taught.  They can turn their back on it and throw it all away.  There are others, like the saints at Galatia, who changed the very doctrine of salvation because they lacked revelation from Paul.  Some crept in while Paul was away and taught faith plus works for salvation.  The church was rather young at that point and there was no written New Testament as yet, so confusion arose.  The Galatians were ready to give up on salvation by faith alone.  They were ready to be circumcised for salvation.  That is until Paul expounded on the understanding of salvation more perfectly.

The Holy Spirit is the key.  He gets very little attention.  Rightly so.  He is supposed to point to Christ and draw no attention to Himself. But He is no less God than the Father and the Son.  The Holy Spirit works with our whole person; body, soul, and spirit; to mature us into Christlikeness.  It is the Spirit that teaches is the word of God.  It is the Spirit who brings all things to our remembrance.  It is also the Spirit that connects the dots as we reason unto me complicated truth.  Perhaps we should acknowledge Him as we should in the process of growing our faith.  Maybe when we learn something, we can thank Him in prayer.  Maybe upon hearing a verse, it impresses our hearts such as this devotion, we can thank the Spirit for speaking to our hearts.  When we begin to slip from the truth, maybe asking the Holy Spirit to shore up our doubts will keep that which is temporarily compromised from being lost altogether.  If the truth is known, those that fall away do so because they have not yielded to, or depended on, the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  If we are going to remain faithful to that which we have been taught, then the Holy Spirit must be that power by which we remain faithful.