“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Tim 1:7)
The part of this verse that hits home to me is that we have been given a sound mind, and that fear has no power over us.
The enemy wants into our minds, and fear is one of his favorite tools, but fear only has the power we allow it to have. God has given us the Spirit we need, and the problem is never with what He gives us, it’s what we allow to receive into our lives. He has given us the spirit of power, love and a sound mind, but like any gift, it’s possible to refuse it and live with the mind that we choose for ourselves.
There is much to be fearful of in the world these days – just watch the news for 5 minutes and there will be plenty for us to worry about. As I read about the Roman government when Paul was writing this letter I can tell there was much for Christians living in those days to be fearful about as well. Nero was king, and his rise to power was marked by much death of those around him – many at his own direction as Nero sought to retain his power and position.
Paul wrote 2 Timothy from a dark and damp Roman prison cell, just before his death in AD 67. The Roman emperor Nero had been slowly descending into madness since his ascent to the throne in AD 54, a process exacerbated by the great fire of Rome in AD 64 that burned half the city. With the residents of Rome in an uproar, Christians became a convenient target for Nero, who used believers as scapegoats for his city’s own lack of preparedness.
Nero ordered all manner of creative and brutal persecutions: Some were condemned to be dressed in animal skins and torn apart by dogs, while others were burned to death in nighttime pyres that provided light for the emperor’s garden parties. Paul was one of those caught up in this persecution and was reportedly beheaded by Roman officials soon after writing this letter.
So, when I read his letter understanding what he and other believers had going on around them, I’m even more impressed with how Paul was able to focus on Christ alone, as well as his determination to make sure that the others who would be carrying on after him kept the faith going strong. Paul had the courage to remind Timothy not to give in to fear, but to remember the what God provided: “a spirit of power, and of love and of a sound mind.”
With all that swirls around me in the business of life I need to hang on to this. There is much we can be fearful about if we choose to give in, yet Paul reminds us that is not what God has called us to.
(DISCLAIMER: I read several sources, commentaries, devotionals, etc., when I study the bible. Some of what I write is heavily inspired by what I read, and some sections may not be all my own words. I try to distill and paraphrase but there are way too many great writers who know the depths of God’s Word more than I ever will. I try to give credit where possible, and don’t want anyone to think that everything I write comes straight from my brain – it’s all inspired by God and others He has chosen to write through. I encourage you to look to those who have also studied and written about Scripture, while at the same time remembering they are only men, and the ONLY true standard is the Word of God – everything written by me or any other human MUST be measured against that standard.)
Dead Man Walking 
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