remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of david, as preached in my gospel, [2 timothy 2:8]
my fourth grade teacher was mrs. godfrey. i’m not sure if that’s how you spell her name. or if she was mrs. or ms. she had gray curly hair and i’m pretty sure she wore glasses. i liked her as a teacher. she had a point system for the class and you could use the points to buy things like cans of coke. and beyond those details, that’s pretty much all i remember about her. what do you remember about your fourth grade teacher? i don’t remember much, obviously. not because she was a bad teacher, or because she didn’t impact my life. but mostly because i haven’t seen or even talked about mrs godfrey in probably 20 years or more. it’s hard for someone to play a significant role in your life if you don’t remember them. if you don’t talk about them. if you don’t bring to mind characteristics about them.
paul is encouraging timothy – remember Jesus Christ. and he brings up two things: he rose from the dead and he is the promised offspring of david. something in these truths about Christ is meant to encourage timothy. the fact that death is no match for God, and that God is always faithful to his promises.
do you have a regular rhythm of remembrance? if you wait 20 years to recall the character of Jesus like i have waited to recall mrs. godfrey, it will be difficult for your heart to be impacted by him. it’s an amazing thing, to sit in the presence of God, search the scriptures, and ask him to remind you who he is. a well of living water that will never run dry. nourishment for your soul.
what things do you remember about Jesus that encourage you today? you might fill your journal with two pages of things. but if you struggle to find one thing that you are encouraged by, don’t count that as a loss. count it as an opportunity to ask him to remind you.
remember Jesus Christ, __________
~ keith kozlowski