2 Timothy 2:22-26

No amount of rules can change our attitude. Unfortunately, when we become Christians, most of us need an attitude adjustment. All of us grew up in a world that can be very hard on people, and as a result, we all developed some negative and bad attitudes. Now we are claiming to be Christlike, and yet we still demonstrate the attitudes that we developed living in the world. It would be nice if there could be five or even 10 rules that would allow us to change our actions so that our attitudes were not revealed. That’s not even the least bit possible. Our attitudes were developed by the pressures that the world placed upon us, and our attitudes can only be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

Paul tells Timothy that part of that transformation process involves knowing himself and recognizing what he needs to flee from and what he needs to pursue. We do not all suffer from the same temptations, but if we are honest with ourselves we know what temptations we need to flee. Fleeing evil and pursuing righteousness will have a unique meaning for every Christian. Some Christians have to flee the temptation of arrogance and always believing they are right, while others may need to flee the temptation of being judgmental and looking down upon the weak. Pursuing righteousness is not about playing to our strengths, it is about recognizing our weaknesses and asking God’s help to overcome them.

Paul mentions that the Lord’s servants are not quarrelsome, but are kind to everyone, and are not resentful. We do not know if those were weaknesses that Timothy needed to work on, but we do know that they were only a couple of the many different attitudes that Christians may need to work on.

As Christians we do not need rules that help us act as if we are Christ-like, we need to pursue righteousness and allow that pursuit to change us into Christ likeness.