The Apostle Paul was called by God and he gave his life fully for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. His aim was to know Christ and to make Him known. And for the sake of Christ and His Gospel Paul endured suffering, imprisonment and eventually death. But through it all he maintained joy and hope and he believed that greater joy awaited him beyond this life. Near the end of his life, from a Roman prison, Paul wrote a letter to his faithful partner in the Gospel, Timothy. In this letter he is calling on Timothy to take up the mantle and continue the work of Gospel ministry. As we read this letter it serves as a good reminder to us that we too are called to this work. In chapter 1 Paul makes his initial appeal, calling Timothy to be unashamed and to commit himself to guarding, stewarding and proclaiming the Gospel. Now, as we come to chapter 2, it seems Paul is moving more into instruction. He’s giving Timothy instruction about the specifics of the ministry – what he should do and what he should expect. He is helping Timothy see what faithful Gospel ministry looks like.