Scripture Reference: 2 Timothy 3:1-17 (AMP), Titus 1:16

When we find Paul speaking to Timothy in this 3rd chapter. He starts by saying “in the last days, there will be difficult times”. What will these be represented by; People loving themselves, money, being proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, irreconcilable… holding to a form of outward godliness (religion) but denying its power for their conduct nullifies their claim of faith.

When you hear these things, do they ring a bell? Do they sound familiar? I’ll bet you would agree that we are definitely in the last days, yes? People loving money, abusive? How about disobeying parents? Ungrateful? Are these things a little closer to home? Now these are the acts that come with the difficult times. What are these? They are forms of godliness. Outwardly appearing to be godly but denying the power of the ‘godly-God’. What forms have we possibly embodied? What things have become imitations but are not the real-authentic-essence of what God calls of us to walk in? are we walking in forms of kindness? Giving someone something but expecting something in return even when the Bible calls us not to [Luke 6:35]? Forms of purity? It is not like we are having sex but in our minds we have already committed adultery? Forms of obedience but doing only half of what we have been commanded to do? Titus 1:16

So how do we OUTGROW- these forms?

1. We learn and remember who we are called to and are modeling.
   1. This means, the things that God hates, disapproves, calls caution to, must be the same things we are governed by. The standard is not ours to make. God’s standard ought to become our standard. What is his standard? Colossians 3:1-10 AMP
   2. Having God make the standard means opening our hearts for Him to expose the forms we have called norms. It means coming out of the places that have allowed us to ‘be okay with unholy chatter, places enabling us to disobey, influencing ingratitude’. It means putting to death what is earthly [Col 3:5]
   3. Having been called to the a high calling, we must walk worthy of it [Ephesians 4:1-3, Colossians 1:10]
2. We submit ourselves to His shepherds and to growing
   1. Paul was a father and mentor to Timothy. Paul starts by commending Timothy for carefully following his teachings. Verse 14, he affirms him to continue in the things He has learnt from ever since they met, and even highlights how His mother and grandmother played a role in his exposure to the scriptures.
   2.  For some, exposure to teachers, mentors has only been in one area of our lives. This means we still need to be taught in some other aspects. We need to outgrow the form of “spiritual independence”. [Zechariah 10:2b, Jeremiah 3:15] We therefore need to choose to give ourselves to the teachers God has sent us. Learn and Workout. This means, being accountable. It means being vulnerable. It means being open to receive help.
   3. God calls us a body.  He has placed people above us to teach us and around us to help us.
   4. However, like a pendulum, we should swing from one side to the extreme. The form of outward godliness, of ‘being raised in a Christian home and just coming to church’ is what we also need to outgrow. Mentors and Pastors can pray for you, but they cannot walk the walk of salvation for you. You and I must work out our own salvation (Phil 2:12)
   5. Growing: 2 Peter 1:5-8 [AMP]; the levels of growth look different to God. They look like growing from virtue to virtue.
3. We accept to be shaped by the word 
   1.  Let the [spoken] word of Christ have its home within you [dwelling in your heart and mind—permeating every aspect of your being]… Col 3:16
   2. The difference between Christianity and other religions is that we believe that this word is alive and full of power (Heb 4:12, 1 Cor 2:1-5). It keeps us in checks.
   3. To accept this word is to accept its power. To accept its ability to expose, rebuke, correct and to allow it to transform [2 Tim 3:16-17].
   4. The goal of His word is to make us complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. It is to make us know Him.
   5. God’s word builds us [Acts 20:32]. The background to Paul’s words in Acts 20 is he is in a meeting with church leaders and elders, probably for the last time having received warnings of his arrest in Jerusalem, and he says if he was to recommend anything, it would be God’s word!

ALTAR CALL: Surrender & Repentance

• Sometimes we have idolized ‘forms’ of even our own lives. Forms of how we do life (unholy chatters, exposure to things not growing our inner man but taking space) or where we should have been in life (causing discontentment). And as we have done that, we have lost; sight of God’s standard, our teachers, stopped growing and have hardened our hearts and have failed to receive and accept His word, which has the ability to change us and transform us. This moment provides an opportunity to surrender those forms and ask God for forgiveness, and renewal! To renew in you a right spirit, and uphold you by his spirit.