Be strong in grace.

Following on the theme of yesterday, the Wednesday night Bible Study was led by Geoff Chang and we went through 2 Tim 2:1-2, of which v. 1 reads:

You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

This followed along similar lines of Hebrews 12:15 ("see to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God") as well as persevering. In 2 Tim. 1, Paul had just recounted his desertion by Phygelus and Hermogenes and now he is exhorting Timothy to be strong "for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control" (1:7). We should strive to be reliable men and women who are qualified to teach others the gospel (2:2) and share in sufferings as good soldiers of Christ should (2:3). We must guard the gospel with our deeds, thoughts, and words, for we have been entrusted with a dear message, of which a key hermeneutic is the believer both individually and corporately.

Matt Freeman's facebook status reminded me of this when he quoted John Piper: "Sanctification is a fight to the death."

General Updates:

• Heard back from U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission today and they're narrowing down their list and hopefully will be settled on the summer interns soon. Apparently I'm on the short list, so prayer is appreciated!
• Had a fun dinner with Samuel, Sophia, and Jordan tonight at the Westin, at the restaurant that will be providing the food for the wedding reception. Good laughs and good food.
• Lunch at Armand's Chicago Pizzeria on Penn Ave near Union Station with Jon; great deal on the buffet, no wonder why it's not open on Sundays.