Amado Timóteo

In the presence of God and Christ Jesus
Who will judge the living and the dead
I solemnly urge you
Preach the Word

It is with this imperative
That Paul begins his last words
To your son in faith, Timothy
This is his second letter to the young preacher
And it has unprecedented historical value
After all, besides being a solemn call to the ministry
And, therefore, contain sacred lessons for any Christian with a calling
This is also the last Pauline letter that we have recorded
Apparently, this was his last document
We are right before the last words of the apostle Paul
Not just to Timothy, but to the world
How does a man of God reach the end of his days?
What circumstances surround him in his final moments?
What prompts you to write this letter to your dear friend, to your beloved son?

Paul's request could not be more solemn
Preach the word
This is the summary
Of absolutely everything that Paul has been saying to Timothy
From the beginning of this letter
It's not just any letter
It is a last and urgent call
For Timothy to rise from his limitations
And from your fears and take the place of your guardian

Since Paul
You are really coming to the end of your ministerial journey
It's time for young Timothy to stand up
With even greater commitment and courage
Paul says he remembers Timothy's sincere tears
And of the unfeigned faith which he gladly received
And he welcomed into his chest through the words of his mother and his grandmother Lois
God has not given us a spirit of fear
But of power and love and balance
This is what Paul reminded Timothy of
In the first chapter of this letter
While referring to the holy calling that Christ gave us
Avoid useless and profane conversations
Paul emphasized in the second chapter
Flee from the evil desires of youth
In chapter 3, Paul refuses to hide from his disciple
The dark face of the ministry and says without fear
All who desire to live godly in Christ
They will be persecuted
But you, continue in the things you have learned through the scriptures
Preach the scriptures

This is such a solemn commandment
That the witnesses summoned before whom
Paul commands Timothy to preach God and Christ Jesus
Some had already questioned young Timothy's ministry
But it wasn't the time to be sad about it
Preach the Word!
Others had already ridiculed him
For following a poor guy like Paul
Always persecuted
But it was no time to be ashamed
Preach the word!
Some even suggest
That Timothy's own personality
It would also be a possibly shy and insecure barrier
But it wasn't the time to get lost in himself
It was time to expose yourself
And preach the word in season or out of season

And it is as if God whispered in Paul's ear
About the days to come
Today and then Paul will say
Timothy, the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine
The truth will make your ears itch
People go after harmless sermons
They will set up preachers who will stroke their ego
What an unhappy exchange, the hard truth for the soft lie
Fables and myths can be moving
But they are unable to save us eternally
And that's why Paul insists
Timothy, they can, you can't
Be sober, preach the true gospel
And come suffer with me
Like a soldier in the trenches of a war

The mass abandonment of the gospel
And the collective failure of many of the first converts
These were not the only reasons why
Timothy should take a stand for Christ
Assuming your vocation
Another reason, offered by Paul
It was his imminent death
Or as he liked to picture his libation offering
The rituals and sacrifices practiced in the Old Testament
They included this libation offering
What would be the moment when the altar
On which animals were sacrificed
It would be washed by some liquid
Usually wine or oil
The fragrant aroma of these liquids
He reported that he was already reaching the end of the ceremony
This was the figure used by Paul to describe his death

He doesn't draw this screen with dense, dark colors
But with the bright red of a wine being sprinkled
It doesn't smell like fear or mourning
Your death smells of life and celebration
The rhymes are not sour and melancholic, no
His death rhymes with the sweetness of wine
And this is precisely Paul's invitation to Timothy
Come suffer with me

(Until alone)

We received
Good treasure
It's saved here

Our chest
It has secrets
You can only see

If you look closely
And taste the joy
What is crying?

If you suffer with me
Made a soldier
Anchor yourself in Christ

I know in Whom I believe
I'm sure it has power
And the vocation is holy
That He gave us

To believe in the gospel is to go
And walk safely, even alone
To believe in the gospel is to go
And walk safely, alone, alone

Come take a closer look
And taste the joy
What is crying?

To believe in the gospel is to go
And walk safely, even alone
To believe in the gospel is to go
And walk safely alone

(Elucidation)

Come quickly to meet me
For Demas, loving this world, has forsaken me
Crescent went to Galatia
Tito to Dalmatia
Only Lucas is with me
Bring Marcos, he is useful to me
Bring a cloak and my books

See the risk Timothy is taking
Paul's Solemn Call
It looks more like a castaway adrift
Insisting smiling
For the sailor to abandon the safety of the ship
And throw yourself into the sea with him

Come quickly Timothy
Let go of your frustrations
Your insecurities
There is no time to waste on trivial questions about approval
Don't even expect them to approve of you that much
Come quickly

And why the rush?
Paul will say that first of all
Timothy should hurry because Demas has abandoned him
Loving the present century
He abandoned him

This is the same Demas
Which was cited in the letter of Colossians alongside Luke
Certainly a companion on the Pauline journey
He was later mentioned again in Philemon

As a co-worker of Paul
And here he ends his journey
Receiving the worst of adjectives for a Christian
runaway

Now look
If Demas abandoned the gospel
For loving that primitive century
What would our chances be?
How do I make sure I do too?

Don't be taken as one of those who
Cooperate in the noble cause of the gospel
But do they flee at the time of death?
Made those who followed Jesus

But they refused to eat his flesh and drink his blood
How did Timothy remain?
How could I stay?

Paul reminds Timothy
Still in that letter
That your success would not be guaranteed by the strength of your own arm
But in grace
In the unmerited favor of Christ

It was for this grace that Peter cried out
One of the golden affirmations of the Christian faith
How could I escape?
Where else would I go?
Only you have the word of eternal life

And the abandonment of Demas
It's not the only reason why
Timothy needs to hurry up
Paul will continue saying that
Crescent went to Galatia

Tito to Dalmatia
And in that case
It is not about abandoning faith
It's about unfolding
In as many as I could
In order to meet a huge demand

The fields were white
And few were the reapers
And the few who still remained faithful to the gospel
They unfolded
And that's why Paul says

Come quickly Timothy
I know you're taking care of the church in Ephesus
But your presence here is very necessary
I have already sent Tychicus to take his place
Come because the fields are white

Even though I grew up in the church
I have never seen any missionary
Bearing witness to the fact that your field of work
It's full of labor
It is always the opposite that is seen

Because this is how God's work is done
In absolute dependence
Praying to the Lord of the harvest
Send workers quickly
God's work will always be greater
What I think I can bear

Take Paul for example
The great Paul was flawed
And sometimes inflexible
At the beginning of her relationship with Marcos
He didn't have the patience to endure it
The sensitivities of young Marcos

But here
At the end of your journey
As one of his last wishes
Ask Timothy

Bring Marcos with you, he is useful to me
God's work is done by flawed people like Paul
But to Paul's model
If you let yourself be persuaded
By the action of the Holy Spirit through time

Has any Paul ever hurt you?
Forgive
Give it time
Has a Marco ever gotten on your nerves?
Wait
And see if he doesn't end up being in the end
Helpful for you on your Christian journey

All this Pauline loneliness becomes even more evident
In the next sentence
Bring me a cloak and don't forget my books
Paulo is alone, he feels cold, he misses
And I need to ask you seriously

Do you want this gospel?
Maybe they lied to you
And promising a gospel of glamour
But look right here
That the greatest missionary of the church
You're ending your days like this

Stuck, cold, and asking someone to bring him at least some books
Remember Christ on the cross
Missing not anything else
But the lack of one's own father
Do you want this gospel?

Even knowing that you are at risk
To take the same path
And end your days asking a distant friend
Bring me a cloak and some books

An ancient voice once said
God, if you treat your closest friends like this
No wonder you have so few

This is Paul
Coming to the end of his days

(The match)

Tired hands
Untying
We who hold him here
Release the boat
Waiting for the time to leave
But your song doesn't carry the pain of those who leave

Marked hands
For the fights had without running away
They empty the whole boat
Of everything, of yourself
Because your song does not carry the pain of those who leave
And in his heart he keeps the faith that made him find peace

Hands that when seeing the winter cold
Don't lose your smile
Warmed by grace they repeat again

No pain compares
With glory to come

No pain compares
With glory to come

No pain
naked soul
I'm coming there

(Application)

Alexander the blacksmith caused me much harm
The Lord will repay you for what you have done
Protect yourself against it
Because he strongly opposed our words
In my first defense
No one showed up to support me
Everyone abandoned me
May this not be charged to them

When we have in mind
May this letter from Paul to his beloved Timothy
It is, in fact, a solemn summons
For the work of the ministry

This session here where he speaks
About Alexander's betrayal
And the abandonment he suffers during his first defense
It demonstrates Paul's level of sincerity towards Timothy

There is no intention
To disguise the reality of the ministry
Timothy was not being deceived
As to the terrible dangers of setting out on the precious journey
Which is the proclamation of God's truth
As for old Paul, he prepares his young successor
To the reality of the pains of ministry

He could give a lot of advice
When the subject was suffering and loss
No one better to fill the agenda
From personal experiences of what Paul
He could talk about the pain of the whipping
Or the imprisonments in the rings there
From the dungeons

He could tell Timothy
About shipwrecks
Stonings
All this Paul suffered
All this could happen to Timothy
But what does Paul consider
Of singular importance in the end
It is preparing Timothy for betrayal in the field

Timothy, Alexander, this hurts
If even our Christ
Had to go through the bitter evening
From a friendly kiss
Which led him straight into the arms of his pursuers

Would Paul be free from suffering the same?
Should Timothy be mistaken?
As for the real possibility
To also taste that kiss on your face?

Apparently
According to some commentators
Alexander would have been someone influential
Who could Paul have counted on?

During his first trial
But instead of offering help in Paul's case
Alexandre would have been his main opponent
During the session of his defense

As if that wasn't enough, there's old Paulo
Launched like an animal
Tied before his prey
He gets up with difficulty to speak in his defense
But when you look around you
Find the magistrates
Your pursuers are there
There are even curious people
But you can't even find a friendly face

Old Paulo is living his most difficult days
In absolute solitude
He who so desired to share in Christ's suffering
If you see him now on his cross
Abandoned by his friends

Who among us could withstand that pressure?
Without cursing yourself
Without discrediting your own journey?
Was it worth it Paul?
Look around you
He spent his life for so many people
Hugged so much around here
And on the day of his terrible pain
How many are here to return this hug?
Was it worth it old Paulo?

And the question comes back to you
Do you want this gospel?

Take a good look at this text and answer me
Do you really want to take the risk?
Reaching the final days of your journey
Like old Paul
Like your Christ?

Take a good look
You see, if you start getting too involved
With this church business
Of Christ
Of gospel
You're gonna have to start losing some things
That anyone considers of great esteem

If your involvement goes up to your neck
It is possible that you will lose some friends
Maybe that long-awaited promotion in your professional career
Because the ideas of the gospel
They'll mess with your head in a really weird way at first
And you run serious risks
Of having to configure your posture and privacy
Do you want this gospel?

If you get to the point of getting involved
Until submerging in the ocean of this gospel
And no longer knowing who you are and who Christ is
Where does Christ begin in you?
And how far will you go in Christ
You can indeed reach the point of being alone
Writing to a distant friend
Hey, send me a cover and some books

But the scriptures assure us that
It is not possible at all
That you reach your last day
Without the presence of the same Christ who found him
With the same compassionate look that welcomed him
Paul continues the text saying

But the Lord stood by me
And gave me strength so that for me
The message was fully proclaimed
The Lord will deliver me from every evil work
And take me safely to your heavenly kingdom
To Him be the glory forever and ever
Amen

Old Paul's invitation to his beloved Timothy
It wasn't to play in absolute insecurity
In the rough sea after all, no
It was the opposite

Paul's invitation was for Timothy
Climb aboard the strongest ship
In fact, that he climbed the unshakable rock
What is Christ?
Hence the insistence

Timothy, they can regress
It may happen that one over there betrays you
And the other hurts you
Actually, it will happen
Of many turning their backs
For the gospel you proclaim
But you, stand firm
Timothy
They can
You don't

(You, however)

In the twilight of time
The truth will see
In freedom, ambition
Dancing with your masters
On holy ground

Each one, in contempt
Abandon the other
Each one, despair
Just hug and that's not enough

There is no sky, no ceiling, no floor
Truth trapped in darkness
In the darkness

You, however
Remain in me
You, however
Remember what I said
You, however
Fortify yourself
That's enough
The Grace I Left

You, however
I know about the others

You, however
They can
You, however
There will be many
You, however
Be faithful until the end

Just come
Bring the cover here too
Book, friends
And just come
I'm alone
You, however
Be faithful to me

And if you lose everything you have there
So rejoice in knowing: God is there!

In the reality of the gospel
The reality of things
It usually gains other colors

Death here smells like life
Crying sometimes takes on yellow contours
And it sounds festive

In the subversive reality of the gospel
It is by giving that one receives
I know you've been trained
To retain
Success for us is mass retention
But see, the success of Christ
It was measured by the level of its emptying

While Paul is in the eyes of everyone there in court
Alone, abandoned, dirty, sick
He actually lives his moments of greatest joy
When reporting this episode he lets slip
A beautiful little song of praise
To Him be the glory forever and ever, amen
He was never so welcome as in his solitude
In the reality of the gospel
The reality of things
It usually gains other colors

We are moving towards the last words of this letter
The last recorded words of the great Paul
In fact, of the poor imprisoned Paulo
Because in the reality of the gospel
The reality of things
It's another

Greetings to Priscilla and Aquila
And to the house of Onesiphorus
Erastus remained in Corinth
But I left Trophimus sick in Miletus
Try to come before winter

Eubulus, Prudent, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers
They send you greetings
The Lord be with your spirit
Grace be with you

How does a man of God reach the end of his journey?
Paul arrived like this
Apparently alone
But not a drop of bitterness in the chest
First, greetings and gratitude
Are exhaled through your words

He mentions dear friends
With whom he shared important moments in faith
Priscilla and Aquila who had already shared the missionary road with Paul
On past occasions
Onesiphorus who was already mentioned by Paul
As someone who cheered him up a lot
Quotes Erastus too
Possibly treasurer at the church in Corinth
A church that seems to have demanded much of the apostle's attention
How does a man of God come to an end?

What is Paul busy doing?
In the last moments of your journey?
Well, Paul was doing here
What he did throughout his ministry
He is thinking about others
I left Trophimus sick in Miletus

It's almost like seeing Christ there on the cross
In great pain and agony
But still, setting aside some time
To take care of your mother
And of his youngest disciple
Son, here is your mother
Mother, here is your son

Christ delivered his mother's broken heart
In the care of John
Paul handed over the sick Trophimus
In the care of your disciple
Who among us would think of anyone else
In the hour of your pain?
Paul thought
Christ too

Because in the reality of the gospel
The reality of things
It usually gains other colors

Paulo still finds space to quote
Carefully names of those who
Most likely, they are its last fruits
Eubulus, Prudent, Linus, Claudia and all the brothers
It's like saying
If you get here Timothy and I'm not here anymore
Look for these new converts
And then we actually arrive at the end

For those who followed
The Cinematic Journey of Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring
Remember very well the moving scene that
It was the farewell that this brave little Hobbit and his friends
But the most emotional moment was the last hug
Frodo looks compassionately at his traveling companion Sam
And in solemn silence
The two seem to relive the entire adventure
Who took them out of the Shire and brought them there

It is precisely at this point
From the story of Paul and Timothy we come
The next few sentences are Paul's last embrace of his son Timothy

And he could make vows that Timothy
I was very happy in life
Had lots of friends and everything
But this is not at all what Paul wants for Timothy
Paul knew very well

What saved him from suffering countless times
And suffering here is not in the sense of death, no
Because death is gain for Paul
Remember, in the reality of the gospel
The reality of things
They usually come in other colors

Paul knows very well what to wish for Timothy
Timothy when I was your age
When I was young
I went to God
Desperate
With a thorn that pricked my soul

But God said
Paul, don't be afraid
My grace is sufficient for you
For my power is made perfect in your weakness

And that's what I wish for you, Timothy
The undeserved favor of heaven that
Surely the heavenly gates will open for me
Timothy, may grace be with you

And in saying this, the poet's pen rested
The apostle rested eternally
Mission accomplished
His ministry is over

I don't know if Timothy got there before winter
As Paul wished
But the question is whether you
It will arrive before winter

Timothy, come quickly

(Lose)

If I lose everything I've gathered here
I will rejoice, for I know I have You
I get down on the ground to give thanks
Your love for me, Your blood upon me

Every day
My beauty will be
Every day
My wealth will be
Every day
My glory will be the Lord
Will it be the Lord?

If I lose everything I have here
I will rejoice, for I know: I have You
I bow to the ground to give thanks
Your love for me, Your grace upon me

If I lose everything I've gathered here
Remind me just one more time: I have You
I bow to the ground to give thanks
Your love (ê a ô)

I'm going to the ground to give thanks
Your love (ê a ô)

I'm going to the ground to give thanks
Your love

It is Grace that finishes me
And after I gathered so much
And after so many times
It is Grace that ends
And destroys
Nothing is left
Only Grace!