Christ rather than words

"Put all this in memory, solemnly warning before the Lord that there are no arguments of words, which is without any profit, but for the ruin of the hearers." 2 Timothy 2:14

What should Timotheus remind Christians ? Essentially : "Remember Jesus Christ" (2 Tim 2: 8) ; it is worthwhile to serve him, even at the price of the sufferings that Paul endured as a prisoner "bound with chains like a malefactor" (v. 9). Also this : the Christian life is a life of consecration, obedience and patience (v. 3-6). And finally : the end of this life is eternal glory with Jesus (10-12).

The apostle knew well that an entire consecration to the Lord brings joys but also suffering ; it is therefore easier to talk about than to set an example. He also knew the Jewish habit of endless discussion of the symbolic meaning of the words of the Holy Scriptures. Some of those who had turned to Christianity had retained this habit and Paul calls them elsewhere "vain talkers and deceivers" (Titus 1:10).

Nowadays, the danger is always great to replace the practice of the Christian life with words. Laziness, the fear of essential renunciation, the shame of being seen as we are, all that drives us to it. But today we need to live our faith.

To practice piety is to maintain one's relationship with the Lord. It is to be guided by the Holy Spirit to receive what God wants to teach us, at a given time and according to our inner state, in order to make us act to his glory. To have only the form of it, it is for example to content ourselves with studying carefully Biblical texts, without really thinking to better honor and serve God. We then use our intelligence to find subtle nuances between the different words that the Bible uses to designate the same thing, or we bring words together to build a literary reasoning, forgetting that we especially have to learn Christ (Eph 4 20).

Paul exhorted Timothy for his oral teaching in the assemblies. Even if we are not all called to such a service, let us each receive these instructions, not to let our meditation of the Word deviate to the passion of words. On the contrary, let us seek, in the dependence of the Holy Spirit, to discern the thought of Christ concerning what we have to live today and now.

Source (Pleasing the Lord)