2 Timothy 3:10-17

2 Timothy 3:10-17 
English Standard Version (ESV)

  I hear from my kids quite a bit that life isn't fair.  Sometimes they're fighting over who gets to pick the songs in the car, sometimes they fight over who gets to brush their teeth first, and sometimes it's over who gets to use the vacuum cleaner.  Really important debates going on in our house!
  Paul, here, is addressing the church's sense that life isn't fair.  The church is watching their loved ones be persecuted, while the evil ones seem to escape without punishment.  (Someone once said that while history doesn't repeat itself, it often rhymes.) 
  Meanwhile, Paul exhorts the church to endure, and then reminds us that all of Scripture is helpful.  It's easy to pick out the parts we like and ignore the rest, but Paul reminds us that it is all there for a reason.  It teaches us, even the parts we don't like, and helps equip us to grow in Christ.  Those parts you struggle with?  Press in on those -- study how they fit together, what makes you uncomfortable, and why.  That's crucial -- Scripture should challenge us and make us examine who and how we are.  We can't get too comfortable.  The Holy Spirit is always at work, refining us, pulling us forward into the future God has in mind for us.  So press in.  Linger on those difficult passages, and trust that God is speaking through them.