In the beginning of 2nd Timothy, Paul reminds Timothy that Paul’s reason for NOT being ashamed of the gospel was that he trusted that God was able to guard what Paul had entrusted to God: his very life, both then and for eternity. Paul now goes on to remind Timothy about what he (Timothy) needs to guard. With God guarding our very eternal life what should we need to guard? According to Paul, we need to guard “…the pattern of sound teaching…” And how is it done? The answer here is, “…with faith and love in Christ Jesus…and with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.”This is a valuable model for our lives today. While we have entrusted our very lives to Christ, it is important that we remember that it is only through the sound teaching of Christ Jesus that our faith grows. Without sound teaching we begin to falter and lose balance in our daily life. Our eternal security is firmly in place, but the day to day can become very difficult without sound teaching and resting our life in Christ’s teachings. Sound teaching is also a method God uses to bring others to Him. We know when others are wrong, when their teaching is not sound and not according to God’s word. Thanks be to God for His Good News!