The Man of God

What is our identity in Christ? To answer the question, Mackintosh takes a cue from Paul’s epistles to Timothy. The first letter begins with instructions about Timothy’s role in a flourishing church. The second letter, however, describes a fractured and broken church in which Timothy barely copes. In this more difficult context, Paul implores Timothy to persevere in spite of challenging situations, and in doing so, to discover how God works through both individuals and broken communities. For this reason, Paul calls Timothy a “man of God.” Yet how does identity in God differ from human identity in nature? In the world? Apart from God? By drawing these contrasts, Mackintosh points to the lessons Timothy learned from Paul, and the lessons we can draw from their correspondence.