Growing Strong in God 在神里刚强成长

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Dexu Xia

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Oct 24, 2025, 2:34:02 AM10/24/25

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Fight the battle well, holding on to faith and a good conscience. 1 Timothy 1:18-19

day's Scripture 1 Timothy 1:12-20

Today's Insights

Paul left Timothy in Ephesus to work with the young and troubled church there. Although Timothy was to aid the church in its struggles against false teachers (1 Timothy 1:3-7), Paul instructs him that he also needed to grow in his own faith (vv. 18-20). He was to “fight the battle well” (v. 18), most commonly referring to spiritual warfare (see Ephesians 6:10-18); “[hold] on to the faith” (1 Timothy 1:19), referring to trust in Jesus (see Titus 1:1-3); and maintain “a good conscience” (1 Timothy 1:19), keeping his actions commendable (see Titus 3:14-15). The journey of discipleship is lifelong. Actively nurturing our relationship with God helps us grow strong in our faith and avoid spiritual shipwreck.

Today's Devotional

As a boy, I loved reading stories about pirates. How those adventures spurred my imagination! Now I live in an area where one of the most infamous of those pirates—Blackbeard (real name, Edward Teach)—had his headquarters. Shipwrecked in the waters off the coast here is Blackbeard’s ship, the Queen Anne’s Revenge.

We can easily romanticize the wrecks and the high-sea adventures of history. The apostle Paul, however, wrote about a very different kind of shipwreck that provides us with a caution and an exhortation. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul warned his son in the faith to “[hold] on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith” (1 Timothy 1:19). What is this “shipwreck”? Two men, Hymenaeus and Alexander, had in some devastating way departed from the true faith, and the apostle turned them over to Satan “to be taught not to blaspheme” (v. 20). Paul desired them to repent, but the consequences of their actions were dire.

Our faith isn’t static, nor can it exist in a vacuum. We must actively nurture and cultivate our relationship with God to grow strong and healthy in faith and good conscience. May we join with other believers, yield to God’s Spirit, and allow Him to work in us. We can avoid shipwreck.

Reflect & Pray

How would you describe your relationship with Jesus? If you’ve drifted from Him, what’s the first move you can make back to Him?

Wise Father, may Your Spirit work in my heart to keep me close to You and growing in my faith.

By Bill Crowder

“叫你因此可以打那美好的仗，常存信心和无亏的良心。”（提摩太前书 1:18-19）

今日经文：提摩太前书 1章12-20 节

今日洞见：保罗把提摩太留在以弗所，事奉那里成立不久且困难重重的教会。虽然提摩太要帮助教会对抗假教师（提摩太前书 1:3-7），但保罗指示他，他自己的信心也要成长（18-20 节）。他要“好好打仗”（18 节），这通常是指属灵争战（见以弗所书 6:10-18）；“持守所信的道”（提摩太前书 1:19），指的是信靠耶稣（见提多书 1:1-3）；并持守“无亏的良心”（提摩太前书 1:19），使他的行为值得称赞（参见提多书 3:14-15）。门徒训练的旅程是终生的。积极地培养我们与上帝的关系，有助于我们增强信心，避免灵性沉没。

今日灵修 小时候我喜欢读海盗的故事。那些冒险经历激发了我的想象力！现在我住的地方，正是那些最臭名昭著的海盗之一，黑胡子（真名爱德华·蒂奇）的总部所在地。黑胡子的船“安妮女王复仇号”就在这片海域失事。

我们很容易将历史上的沉船和海上冒险浪漫化。然而，使徒保罗却写到了一种截然不同的沉船事件，它给了我们警示和劝诫。保罗在写给提摩太的第一封信中，告诫他那位信实的儿子“要持守信心和无亏的良心。有人丢弃良心，就在真道上如同船毁了一般”（提摩太前书 1:19）。这“船毁了”是指什么呢？许米乃和亚历山大这两个人，以某种毁灭性的方式背离了真道，使徒保罗把他们交给撒但，“叫他们受教训，就不再亵渎了”（提摩太前书 1:20）。保罗希望他们悔改，但他们行为的后果却十分可怕。

我们的信心并非一成不变，也不能凭空存在。我们必须积极地培育和滋养我们与神的关系，才能在信心和无亏的良心上成长，变得坚固健康。愿我们与其他信徒一同顺服神的灵，让祂在我们里面动工。这样，我们就能避免船毁了的沉沦。

反思与祷告你会如何描述你与耶稣的关系？如果你已经远离了祂，你首先可以做什么来回到祂身边？

智慧的天父，愿你的灵在我心中运行，使我与你亲近，并在信心上不断成长。