How Many Spiritual Sons Did Paul Have

We don't know much about Timothy. We know he had a Greek father and a Jewish mother (Acts 16:1), that he lived in Lystra, and that his grandmother's name was Lois (2 Timothy 1:5), and that it was a holy home (2 Timothy 1:5). (2 Timothy 3:15). When Paul and Barnabas went on their first missionary tour, they stopped in Lystra when Timothy was about 15 years old (Acts 14:6-7), and it seems likely that Timothy was converted at that time. “The brothers…spoke favorably of him” when Paul returned to Lystra six years later (Acts 16:2). Paul urged Timothy to join forces with him during this second visit (Acts 16:3), and the two were afterwards seen together in Corinth, Athens, Antioch, Philippi, and Rome. Paul was probably around 65 years old when he penned this epistle to the Philippians, while Timothy was around 35. Turn to Philippians 2:19-23 and take note of the following:

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PAUL'S SPIRITUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH TIMOTHY

  • Compare 1 Timothy 1:2 and 1:18 for the words “Father and Son.” Look up 1 Corinthians 4:15 to learn about Timothy, Paul's spiritual son.
  • (verse 19: “to dispatch”) Of Master and Assistant Timothy was willing to carry out Paul's orders, and he recognized Paul as his spiritual leader and superior. Although we are “all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28), there are instances when we must submit to those in positions of faith authority.
  • In the Gospel of Fellowship (verse 22). Paul does not state “he has served with me,” but rather “he has served under me.” This demonstrates Paul's humility and graciousness. It was a team effort, and Paul and Timothy were both “God's coworkers” (2 Corinthians 6:1).

PAUL'S TENDER AFFECTION FOR TIMOTHY

Examine the apostle's two letters to Timothy, his young son in the faith, and note how frequently Timothy is addressed in language of great fondness. Look at verse 20: the term “likeminded” might be transliterated as “so dear to me” in the KJV. With the exception that Paul being thirty years older than Timothy, this reminds us of David and Jonathan (2 Samuel 1:26). Many of us are grateful to spiritual dads, counselors, and mentors who have loved and guided us!

PAUL'S GRACIOUS COMMENDATION OF TIMOTHY

In verse 22, the apostle said something wonderful about Timothy; the words “has proven himself” might be interpreted as “He has stood the test.” Is there any higher compliment than this? Being a Christian, a missionary, a worker of God, or a pastor will inevitably lead to trial. It was the case with Timothy, and it must be the case with us. Timothy, on the other hand, passed the test. Timothy was praised by Paul for:

  • His genuineness was apparent (verse 20). Take note of the term “genuine” in this sentence. Timothy was a real person on the inside and out.
  • His lack of self-awareness (verses 21 and 22). In verse 22, pay special attention to the word “but.” In verse 21, Timothy was apart from “everyone.”

To wrap up this study, we'll look at Paul's Second Epistle to Timothy, “which deals with the personal walk and witness of a true servant of Christ in a day of apostasy and declension” (Scofield), and we'll look at:-

PAUL'S LOVING COUNSEL TO TIMOTHY

We've chosen seven of the many exhortations found in 2 Timothy, each of which is preceded by important words.

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  • 1:6-7 – “FAN INTO FLAME” Timothy's gift, which he was to “fan into flame,” was clearly a Holy Spirit gift. “Let the Holy Spirit flame up and put your whole being on fire,” Paul seems to be saying to Timothy in Ephesians 5:18! We need this encouragement, and observe in verse 7 that we will experience liberation, enduement, enrichment, and enlightenment if we “fan into flame the gift of God.”
  • 1:13 – “KEEP” 1 Timothy 6:3, for example, defines what is meant. Because he, like us, lived in an age of apostasy, Paul encouraged Timothy to cling on to the truth. See 1 Timothy 1:3-10; 4:6; 4:16; and 6:20. Compare Ephesians 4:15 to see how we are to keep hold of the truth: in faith (God-ward) and in love (man-ward).
  • 2:3-4 – “ENDURE” Timothy was a soldier, and as such, he had to be prepared to face adversity. It is hardly a “bed of roses” to live a Christian life. Grace is required (verse 1), but grit is also required (verse 3); see Luke 9:23. We are to remove ourselves from every entanglement since there is a conflict going on (verse 4), and observe why we are to do this (verse 4).
  • 2:15 – “PRESENT” Timothy's greatest desire was to win God's approval. The only way to attain this goal is to give the Bible its appropriate place in our life, which will protect us from verses 16,17, 18, and 23, as well as 1 Timothy 6:20-21.
  • 2:22 – “FLEE” Compare 1 Timothy 6:9-11, where this merely means “to flee from.” What exactly are we trying to get away from? – “evil inclinations of youth” – and 1 Timothy 4:12, i.e. those impurity temptations that are especially dangerous during youth. We're supposed to “flee” from any hint of impurity, then “pursue” four things (verse 22). Compare Genesis 39:7-12 to Proverbs 18:10.
  • 3:14 – “CONTINUE” Look up John 8:31 and 15:9 in the Bible, and compare Acts 1:14; 2:42; 13:43; 14:22; Colossians 4:2 and Hebrews 13:1. Look up Luke 9:62 as well as 2 Timothy 4:10.
  • “KEEP YOUR HEAD” is a phrase that means “keep your head.” – a ratio of 4:5. Look up Matthew 26:41 in the Bible, as well as Colossians 4:2 and 1 Peter 4:7 in the New Testament.

Who is Paul's son?

The Eastern Orthodox Church honors Timothy as an apostle, saint, and martyr, and his feast day is January 22. Timothy and Titus are commemorated on the General Roman Calendar on January 26th, the day after the Feast of Saint Paul's Conversion. The feast of Timothy (alone) was celebrated on the 24th of January from the 13th century until 1969, the day before the feast of Saint Paul's Conversion. Timothy is remembered by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Episcopal Church on January 26th, together with Titus and Silas. The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod celebrates Timothy's feast day on January 24.

On the 26th of January, the Church of England commemorates Timothy (together with Titus) with a Lesser Festival.

Timothy's relics were moved from Ephesus to Constantinople in the fourth century and put between the tombs of Andrew and Luke in the Church of the Holy Apostles. The relics appear to have been transferred to Italy by a count returning from the crusades later in the 13th century, and interred in the Termoli Cathedral about 1239. During repair work in 1945, the remains were rediscovered.

The protagonist of Gore Vidal's novel Live from Golgotha is Saint Timothy (1992).

Is onesimus Paul's son?

Many Christian faiths consider Onesimus to be a saint. On February 15, the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod honors him and Philemon.

On February 15, the Eastern Churches commemorate Onesimus. The 16th of February is the traditional Western remembrance of Onesimus. Onesimus, on the other hand, is mentioned under 15 February in the 2004 edition of the Roman Martyrology. “Runaway slave, whom the apostle Paul received to the faith of Christ while in jail, treating him as a son of whom he had become father, as he himself wrote to Philemon, Onesimus' master,” he is characterized there.

Did the Apostle Paul have family?

The Book of Acts and the autobiographical sections of Paul's letters to the early Christian communities are the two main sources of material that provide access to the earliest segments of Paul's career. Paul was most likely born sometime between 5 BC and 5 AD. Although the Book of Acts claims that Paul was a Roman citizen by birth, Helmut Koester questions the text's proof.

He was from a religious Jewish family that lived in Tarsus. Tarsus had been one of the most powerful cities in Asia Minor since the time of Alexander the Great, who died in 323 BC. It was one of the largest centers of trade on the Mediterranean coast and was known for its university.

“Of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee,” Paul said of himself. Paul's family is only briefly mentioned in the Bible. According to Acts, Paul described himself as “a Pharisee, born of Pharisees.” Acts 23:16 mentions Paul's nephew, the son of his sister. His relatives, Andronicus and Junia, were Christians before he was and were prominent among the Apostles, according to Romans 16:7.

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The family had a long tradition of religious observance. For generations, the family lineage appeared to have been deeply dedicated to Pharisaic rituals and observances. According to Acts, he worked as a leather craftsman or a tent maker. This was to be his first meeting with Priscilla and Aquila, with whom he would later collaborate in tentmaking and become very significant teammates as missionaries.

He was sent to Jerusalem to study at the school of Gamaliel, one of the most famous instructors of Jewish law in history, when he was still quite young. Despite the fact that modern research accepts that Paul was educated in Jerusalem under the supervision of Gamaliel, he was not studying to be a scholar of Jewish law, and he most likely had no interaction with the Hillelite school. Some of his family may have lived in Jerusalem, as one of his sisters' kids saved his life there afterwards. His biography is unknown until he actively participates in the martyrdom of Stephen, a Hellenized diaspora Jew.

Although it is established that Paul could and did speak Aramaic (then known as “Hebrew”) (from his biography and Acts), contemporary scholarship suggests that Koine Greek was his first language. Paul drew heavily on his expertise of Stoic philosophy in his letters, utilizing Stoic terminology and analogies to help his new Gentile converts understand the Gospel and explain his Christology.

What was Paul's race in the Bible?

Paul was an Asia Minor Jew who spoke Greek. Tarsus, Paul's birthplace, was a significant city in eastern Cilicia, which had been annexed by the Roman province of Syria by the time he was an adult.

Who is the son of faith?

Jesus is referred to as the “son of God,” and his disciples are also referred to as “sons of God.” When it comes to Jesus, the phrase refers to his status as the Messiah, or Christ, God's chosen king (Matthew 26:63).

When was Onesimus born?

Onesimus (late 1600s–1700s) was an African man who played a key role in preventing a smallpox outbreak in Boston, Massachusetts. His real name isn't known. He was enslaved and delivered to Cotton Mather, a New England Puritan clergyman, who renamed him in 1706. Mather was exposed to the theory and practice of inoculation to prevent disease by Onesimus, which established the groundwork for vaccine research. Following a smallpox outbreak in Boston in 1721, Mather utilized his knowledge to argue for population inoculation, which later expanded to other colonies. Onesimus was named one of the “Best Bostonians of All Time” in a 2016 Boston magazine poll.

How many siblings did Paul in the Bible have?

The “Ecclesiastical History” of John of Ephesus is the key source on Paul. It states: “The king summoned his father, an elderly man named Paul, and his mother, as well as his brother, Peter, and two sisters, one of whom was a widow and the other the wife of Philippicus, at the start of his reign. Then he made his father head of the senate and chief of all the patricians, and he gave him and his son Peter, the king's brother, the entire property of the great patrician Marcellus, brother of the late king Justin, which was not much less than the royal demesnes themselves, with his houses and landed estates, gold and silver, and his wardrobe, and everything he had everywhere without exception “.. Then he gave his father and mother a new home near S. Sophia's church and his own palace. John proceeds to describe Maurice's honors given on his extended family, with a particular focus on Domitian, Bishop of Malatya. While John mentions Domitian as Maurice's kinsman, he does not go into detail about the Bishop's relationship to Maurice or Paul. Paul died in 593, according to Theophanes the Confessor.

Averil Cameron, Bryan Ward-Perkins, and Michael Whitby write in “Late antiquity: empire and successors, A.D. 425-600” that Maurice's nepotism in such appointments was probably unpopular with his contemporaries. He had just taken the throne of Tiberius II Constantine, whose generosity had depleted the Byzantine coffers. Maurice, on the other hand, advocated for policies that would “amass and store away” money for the state through reducing government spending. Payments to the Byzantine army were cut and financing was cut, resulting in a series of mutinies by various forces. Maurice quickly earned a reputation for greed, and it was even suggested that he sold public grain for gold. By 602, the people were accusing Maurice of arranging a famine that was still going on. Maurice's obvious kindness to his own family was turning public sentiment against him in this situation. Nikiû's John writes “Now, Maurice, who succeeded the God-fearing Tiberius as emperor, was a highly avaricious man who…welcomed many false, tumultuous people because to his hunger for money. And he sold all of Egypt's grain and changed it to gold, as well as all of Byzantium's grain (Constantinople).” Theophanes the Confessor and Theophylact Simocatta write of a mob in Constantinople accusing Maurice of being a Marcianist. The reference refers to a Christian cult that opposes almsgiving and, seemingly, all forms of charity.

By this time, the practice of granting titles and property on imperial relatives had become quite common. Appointments to high-ranking positions were also expected. It was a necessary step in building a new dynasty. Justin II was the most recent emperor to do so. In comparison to his immediate predecessor, Tiberius II Constantine, who had not lavishly promoted an extended clan to power, Maurice suffered. Tiberius, on the other hand, appeared to be superior in this regard. He does not appear to have a large family, according to primary sources.

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