Continue Being Prepared

Paul again points to his own experience to instruct Timothy. He reminds Timothy of his own sufferings - which were likely formational for Timothy seeing as how the ones Paul mentions occurred when he and Timothy first met! And he uses this opportunity to make two things very clear to Timothy: Christians WILL be persecuted. And the Scriptures ARE sufficient to equip you for them. Are you spending more time and effort looking to avoid suffering? Or preparing for it? Because those who follow Christ will be persecuted. How much time have you spent in the Word being equipped for that? There is no profit trying to engineer a suffering-free version of the Christian faith. There is much profit in immersing yourself in the Word so that you might be prepared for the suffering that will come.