PASTORAL EPISTLES - Tradition holds that Paul was beheaded under Nero. [1] That he was martyred is further corroborated by Clement, the bishop of Rome. [2]

REMEMBERING - We have in this part of Paul’s letter an insightful statement that may tell us something about the earliest Christians. First, the verb to "remember Jesus Christ" is unique to Paul’s exhortations. Paul has a clear, singular focus: "remember Jesus Christ." The present tense renders the line, "keep on remembering."

SHARING IN SUFFERING - [v. 9] because of this message I am locked up in jail. The point is that suffering is not an optional consequence of Christian faith, but almost itself a part of the gospel-to share in Christ’s sufferings as the way in which and the means by which the resurrection from the dead comes to its full realization. [3]

SHARING THROUGH BAPTISM - The sayings in vs. 11-13 may have been an exhortation that formed part of an early baptismal liturgy: it was an invitation to share in Christ’s life and death.

Concentrate on winning God’s approval . . . who knows how to use the word of truth to the best advantage (v. 15, JB Phillips). What are you doing right now in your life that would give God pleasure and honor? What are you doing that would not illicit blessing?

How have you been able to use the truth that you’ve gained from God’s Words that has made positive, healthy contributions?

You have several ways to approach a homily based on this passage.

you might spend your time focused on vs. 8-10: getting the message straight. Following this idea, you would want to explore the basic Christian formulation-it gets simpler the further back we go into early Christianity. C.H. Dodd was one of the first to peel back the layers of the kerygma and that in itself could be useful to a congregation.

You could move to the other end of the passage-v. 15-the encouragement to win God’s approval through a skillful knowledge of truth. That would allow you to explore and share how Scripture can be more than an information book, but a formational book as well.

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[1] Tertullian, Prescript. Against Heresies, 36, in The Ante Nicene Fathers, III, page 260.
[2] 1 Clement 5.
[3] New Interpreter’s Bible XI (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2000), page 843.