Instructing with Kindness and gentleness 2 Timothy 2:22-26.

Timothy was not only to be a contrast to the false teachers in the purity of his life; he was also to differ from them in his manner of presenting the truth. They were quarrelsome and contentious, argumentative and divisive. Paul urged Timothy to take a more constructive approach. In this context, Paul’s reference to Timothy’s ‘youthful passions’ probably did not refer to his sexual drive but rather to the kind of headstrong, belligerent nature that young men often display. Timothy was not to follow the ill-informed, argumentative ways of the false teachers (vs 23). Instead, he was to be gentle, a patient teacher, holding back even when personally wronged (vs 24). Paul called on Timothy to discipline others in all humility (vs 25). Who the opponents of the verse 25 were is not altogether clear. Paul certainly had in mind those who had been taken in by the false teachers. He may even have the false teachers themselves in mind; even they were not beyond the possibility of God’s forgiveness. God could capture them from the devil’s clutches if they genuinely repented (vs 26). Paul’s lesson to Timothy was an important one. Even the truth when presented in a mean and contentious spirit can be divisive. But the truth spoken in love might overcome even the most stubborn opponent.

Source: ‘Paul and His letters’- John B Polhill