2 Timothy 2:20-26

Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
 - 2 Timothy 2:20-26

Paul makes a very interesting analogy, here. He sets it up by having you picture the fact that there are different types of things in your home, some of which are clean and shiny. This could be things in your kitchen that are clean enough to eat from such as plates and bowls and such. On the other hand, there are things like toilet brushes and garbage cans.

Have you ever been to a restaurant and found that on your fork or your plate, there were still bits of food stuck on it? Imagine something even worse! Just imagine if you went to a restaurant and you saw the server take the used plates from the table next to you, scrape the food into the garbage and then immediately, plop your dinner on top of that plate and set it in front of you. Would you eat it?

Yet, if they carefully and thoroughly watch the dishes before they serve your food on them, that changes things, doesn't it? Suddenly, what was dirty and disgusting, what you would cringe over if it were merely set on the table in front of you is now something you would be willing to eat from. This is what Paul is talking about when we cleanse ourselves from the dirty, nasty things of this world. After that, we are "useful to the Master"and "prepared for every good work."

So, what are these things we need to cleanse ourselves from? Paul points out a few things. Starting at the end of this passage, we see that we start off in captivity to the devil and this is what God helps to lead us away from and "come to [our] senses" in order to "escape the snare of the devil." It is that captivity, that dirty, grungy, grimy world where we find (in v 22) "youthful lusts." Paul is not merely referring to sexual lust. Here, "lusts" refers to anything that we desire to the point of passionate pursuit which we end up putting ahead of our relationship with God.

Instead, we should cleanse ourselves by "pursu[ing] righteousness, faith, love and peace" and gather with "those who call on the Lord from a pure heart." While the "youthful lusts" can cause us to be quarrelsome and unable to disagree with others without being disagreeable, the repentance and cleansing Paul hopes for us will help us to treat others with respect, even when we disagree on important matters. No matter how strongly we disagree with someone, we can still be patient and kind. We will not win people over to our way of thinking by being rude and sarcastic (yes...even I am saying this...as a "sarcasm as a first language" person).

Paul tells that when someone insults us or is mean or rude, we should respond with gentleness and kindness. We do not want to make it more difficult for people to overcome their objections and repent and accept the "knowledge of the truth." As it has been said by people far wiser than myself, the gospel is already offensive enough. We don't need to add any offense to it.

When we are interacting with someone who rejects the gospel, some people will be rude or mean. We cannot respond in kind. Greg Koukl often says, "If I get angry, I lose. If they get angry, I lose." Keep things kind and respectful and, even if they are unkind, there is at least a chance that, upon reflection, they may recognize how you maintained your composure while they did not. This could be the catalyst for them to start thinking that perhaps there is something about this "Christianity thing." If we can demonstrate to them that the Holy Spirit helps us to treat people better than they treat us, it could be one more thing that could potentially overcome their objections. Particularly since so many people outside of the Church seem to think that Christians are judgmental and close-minded.

When we are talking to people to try to help them reach the "knowledge of the truth," it is not the time to point out sinful behaviors or personal short-comings. It is the time for presenting the gospel so that we can show them that we ALL need a savior (see Romans 3:23) and that, except for the person and work of Christ, none of us get to live in the goodness and glory of God.

So, be kind. Be respectful. Ask questions rather than asserting and arguing points. By asking questions, you help people reach conclusions on their own, which is usually a better way as they then own their decision. As Les Brown says, "A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still." Don't convince people against their will. They will just go away and find a reason to justify their previous position. Help them and guide them to the truth and they are more likely to accept it.

Until next week, grace, love and peace.