Queen's Road Cell

  The praise of the wise Psalm 111  Praise the Lord ! אֹ I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, גְּ     in the company of the upright, in the congregation. גְּ 2  Great are the works of the Lord , דְּ      studied by all who delight in them. הֹ 3  Full of splendor and majesty is his work, וְ      and his righteousness endures forever. זֵ 4  He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; חַ      the Lord is gracious and merciful. טֶ 5  He provides food for those who fear him; יִ      he remembers his covenant forever. כֹּ 6  He has shown his people the power of his works, לְ      in giving them the inheritance of the nations. מַ 7  The works of his hands are faithful and just;   נֶ     all his precepts are trustworthy; סְ 8  they are established forever and ever, ...

 4. For each of these vices in 2 Timothy 2:3-4, write down a word or phrase that describes its opposite, the trait a Christian should have: I asked whether we felt that we might think of ourselves as being in the group with all these vices that Paul speaks of. I think we sometimes exhibit some of these traits in small measure, and we often fail to exhibit the opposite character in Christ-like fullness. boastful (proud)      says little of own worth, self- effacing, does not feel the need to look good, authentic  proud (arrogant)    humble, does not put oneself first, prioritises others. abusive (revilers)      encourages, reluctant to say negative things. disobedient to parents      honouring parents and willing to submit to authority ungrateful          ...

 1. What is Paul trying to impress upon Timothy in this passage? Ministry will be difficult because of sinful men who will oppose him, but these will be proven false before all. I think this passage may refer to a broad group of non-Christians, but especially ('among them', v.6) to false teachers. These people, unlike non-believers in general, should be 'avoided' (v.5) Paul prefaces this passage with a 'but', because he has expressed hope in the closing verses of Chapter 2 that some false teachers will repent.   The "last days" are those that come after the first and before the second coming of Christ, e.g. "in these last days he (God) has spoken to us by his Son" (Heb 1:2); Christ "was revealed in these last times for your sake" (1 Pet 1:20). )The Holy Spirit is also given in the last days (Ac 2:17). No further outworking of redemptive history or new revelation will come before Christ returns to close out the age. So Paul's wa...