Continuing to read the Epistles in our goal of reading through the Bible by the end of the year, we come to 2nd Timothy. Paul shares a very important principle in 2nd Timothy 2:2 for developing leaders in the church. Timothy was one he mentored to be a leader. Now he’s encouraging him to do the same with others.
It’s a process of reproducing yourself so when your work grows or you need to move on, the baton can be passed on to someone who is ready to assume leadership. Listen: “The things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” The leadership role he was referring to was a teaching leader. The principle, however, can be applied to other leadership roles as well.
Notice some obvious, important points he makes. Paul and Timothy were leaders. Paul wanted Timothy to implement a process of developing other leaders. To start, he was to identify reliable people to train. Once training starts it will not be complete until those being trained are able not only to lead, but also to reproduce themselves in the lives of other reliable individuals.
Critical to this process is having a pool of “reliable or faithful people.” Once you’ve identified such people a significant part of the process is already in place. As you read 2nd Timothy you’ll discover some qualities to look for in identifying a reliable or faithful person.
