God Gives Us Power, Love, and a Sound Mind!

Apostolic leaders need to heed the words the Apostle Paul sent to his spiritual apostolic son Timothy. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7).

Paul appointed Timothy as the leader of the church at Ephesus. As a young novice church leader, Timothy is immediately attacked by Greeks, Romans, Jews, and indigenous peoples who had no confidence he could lead them. On top of that, false teachers were indoctrinating the people, and persecution from Rome and synagogues was a constant pressure.

Paul reminds Timothy, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7). Timothy took these words to heart as he faced the challenges of bringing order to chaos and settling conflicts and crises.

The result: The church grew spiritually and numerically via evangelism.

The great cost: At the age of 70, while Timothy is preaching the gospel, a mob grabs him and takes him to the roof of a high building, and throws him off, intending to murder him. But Timothy lands on the ground with a badly broken body, so the mob takes turns beating him to death.

As a man of courage, Timothy knew the consequences of persevering against persecution. He would endure only through courageous faith and trust in the Word and his Lord and King Jesus.

He was a true apostolic leader.

True apostolic leaders possess courageous faith!