Stirring Up Spiritual Gifts in Timothy

Paul's instruction to Timothy—"stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands" (2 Timothy 1:6) ^{[1, 2]}—has generated significant disagreement among Christian traditions about the nature of spiritual gifts, their permanence, and whether they require human effort to maintain.

The Nature of the Gift

The phrase "the gift of God" refers to Timothy's ministerial qualification, received through apostolic ordination ^[5]. This much finds broad agreement. The laying on of hands accompanied both the conferral of office and, in apostolic practice, the communication of visible gifts of the Spirit ^[7]. Paul had participated in Timothy's ordination alongside elders (1 Timothy 4:14), a ceremony that consecrated him for ministry ^[7].

Where traditions diverge is on what exactly was conferred. One reading, represented in Reformed sources, emphasizes that spiritual gifts were "dispensed according to [God's] sovereign will" and included both ordinary ministerial abilities and extraordinary charismatic manifestations ^[3]. The apostles communicated gifts "by the laying on of the Apostles' hands" for "the confirmation of the gospel" and "the edification of the Church" ^[3]. Another perspective, found in Wesleyan interpretation, treats the gift more broadly as the Holy Spirit's enablement for ministry, cultivated through Timothy's religious education and now requiring active maintenance ^[8].

Whether Gifts Require Stirring

The metaphor "stir up" (Greek anazōpureō, to rekindle fire) ^[4] implies that spiritual gifts can diminish without attention. Matthew Henry writes that Timothy must "stir it up as fire under the embers," treating the gift as something that can lie dormant ^[4]. This interpretation assumes gifts are not self-sustaining—they require human cooperation. One modern commentary states plainly: "The Spirit's work is not automatic—it must be cultivated" ^[10].

Augustine, however, offers a contrasting framework. Discussing 2 Timothy 1:7 ("God hath not given us the spirit of fear"), he insists that "the spirit of the fear of God" is itself "a great gift of God" ^[9]. His concern is to guard against any notion that we manufacture spiritual realities through effort. The gifts of the Holy Spirit, in Aquinas's later systematization, "are disposed...as regards the motion of the Holy Ghost," who "dwells in us by charity" ^[11]. This tradition emphasizes divine initiative over human maintenance.

The Role of Timidity

Paul's follow-up—"For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control" (2 Timothy 1:7)—suggests Timothy's temperament created the need for exhortation. Jamieson, Fausset & Brown note that Timothy was "constitutionally 'timid,'" and the spirit given at ordination was "not the spirit of timidity...but of 'power'" ^[6]. The gift itself was adequate; Timothy's disposition required reminding. John Gill similarly frames Paul's words as "the part of a kind monitor," addressing Timothy's need for encouragement rather than any deficiency in the gift ^[5].

This raises a pastoral question: does "stirring up" mean recovering what has been lost, or simply exercising what remains latent? The former implies gifts can atrophy; the latter that they await activation. commentators tend toward the latter, treating the exhortation as a call to use what God has already fully provided ^{[4, 5]}.

Shared Ground and Divergence

All traditions agree that spiritual gifts originate with God, are mediated through the church's ministry, and serve the church's edification ^{[3, 7, 10]}. The disagreement centers on anthropology and grace. Traditions emphasizing human responsibility (Wesleyan, some Reformed) read "stir up" as a genuine imperative—Timothy can neglect the gift ^{[8, 10]}. Traditions emphasizing divine sovereignty (Augustinian, scholastic) are cautious about language that suggests gifts depend on human effort, lest grace become conditional ^{[9, 11]}.

The hermeneutical divide reflects prior commitments about whether sanctification is synergistic or monergistic. Those who see growth in holiness as cooperative work between believer and Spirit naturally read "stir up" as a command requiring obedience. Those who emphasize the Spirit's unilateral work read it as a reminder of what God has already secured, with human action as the inevitable fruit rather than the cause.

Sources

II Timothy “II Timothy 1:6 (YLT) — For which cause I remind thee to stir up the gift of God that is in thee through the putting on of my hands,”
2 Timothy “For this cause, I remind you that you should stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. -- 2 Timothy 1:6”
Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Miraculous Gifts of the Holy Spirit — Foretold -- Isa 35:4-6; Joe 2:28,29. Of different kinds -- 1Co 12:4-6. Enumerated -- 1Co 12:8-10,28; 14:1. Christ was endued with -- Mt 12:28. Poured out on the day of Pentecost -- Ac 2:1-4. Communicated Upon the preaching of the gospel. -- Ac 10:44-46. By the laying on of the Apostles' hands. -- Ac 8:17,18; 19:6. For the confirmation of the gospel. -- Mr 16:20; Ac 14:3; Ro 15:19; Heb 2:4. For the edification of the Church. -- 1Co 12:7; 14:12,13. Dispensed according to his sovereign will -- 1Co 12:11. Were to be sought after -- 1”
2 Timothy (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on 2 Timothy 1:6: Here is an exhortation and excitation of Timothy to his duty (Ti2 1:6): I put thee in remembrance. The best men need remembrancers; what we know we should be reminded of. Pe2 3:1, I write this, to stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance. I. He exhorts him to stir up the gift of God that was in him. Stir it up as fire under the embers. It is meant of all the gifts and graces the God had given him, to qualify him for the work of an evangelist, the gifts of the Holy Ghost, the extraordinary gifts that were conferred by the imposition of the apostle's hands. T”
2 Timothy (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Timothy 1:6: Wherefore I put thee in remembrance,.... Because of the great affection the apostle had for Timothy, and because of that confidence he had of him, that unfeigned faith dwelt in him, as well as because this had had a place in his relations before him; he therefore acts the part of a kind monitor to him, and, upon these considerations, doubts not of succeeding in his following admonition: that thou stir up the gift of God which is in thee; by "the gift" is meant his ministerial gift; for what qualifies men for the ministry, is not anything natural in them, nor acqui”
2 Timothy (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 2 Timothy 1:7: For, &c.--implying that Timothy needed the exhortation "to stir up the gift of God in him," being constitutionally "timid": "For God did not give us (so the Greek, namely, at our ordination or consecration) the spirit of fear." The spirit which He gave us, was not the spirit of timidity (literally, "cowardice," which is weakness), but of "power" (exhibited in a fearless "testimony" for Christ, Ti2 1:8). "Power is the invariable accompaniment of the gift of the Holy Ghost. Luk 24:49; Act 1:8; compare Act 6:6, "full of faith and of the Holy Ghost," wit”
CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 85: laid hands upon their sacrifices. Wherefore, the apostles, by the laying on of hands, intimated that they made an offering to God of him whom they admitted to the ministry; though they also did the same thing over those on whom they conferred the visible gifts of the Spirit ( Acts 8:17 ; 19:6). However this be, it was the regular form, whenever they called any one to the sacred ministry. In this way they consecrated pastors and teachers; in this way they consecrated deacons. But though there is no fixed precept concerning the layin”
2 Timothy (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on 2 Timothy 1 (introduction): Paul's address to Timothy, and declaration of his affection for him, Ti2 1:1-4. His account of the piety of Timothy's mother and grandmother, and the religious education they had given their son, Ti2 1:5. He exhorts him to stir up the gift of God that is in him, and not to be ashamed of the testimony of the Lord, Ti2 1:6-8. How God has saved them that believe; and how Christ has brought life and immortality to light by the Gospel, Ti2 1:9, Ti2 1:10. The apostle's call to preach it, and the persecutions which he had been obliged in consequence to endur”
Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 5: Augustine — Anti-Pelagian — CHAP. 39.--THE SPIRIT OF FEAR A GREAT GIFT: OF GOD. The apostle also says to Timothy, "For God hath not given to us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."[3] Now in respect of this passage of the apostle, we must be on our guard against supposing that we have not received the spirit of the fear of God, which is undoubtedly a great gift of God, and concerning which the prophet Isaiah says, "The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon thee, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of know”
2 Timothy (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 2 Timothy 1:6: 1:6 fan into flames: The Spirit’s work is not automatic—it must be cultivated (see Eph 5:18-21; 1 Thes 5:19-20; cp. Acts 4:31; 7:55; 13:9). • The spiritual gift is the Holy Spirit’s enablement for ministry (see 1 Cor 12:1–14:40; cp. Acts 6:3, 5; 11:24). • when I laid my hands on you: Paul and the elders (1 Tim 4:14) had ordained Timothy for ministry with the ceremonial laying on of hands.”
theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, First Part of the Second Part (Prima Secundae), Of the Gifts, Art. 5: Article: Whether the gifts of the Holy Ghost are connected? I answer that, The true answer to this question is easily gathered from what has been already set down. For it has been stated (Article [3]) that as the powers of the appetite are disposed by the moral virtues as regards the governance of reason, so all the powers of the soul are disposed by the gifts as regards the motion of the Holy Ghost. Now the Holy Ghost dwells in us by charity, according to Rm. 5:5: "The charity of God is poured fo”

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