2 Timothy 1:6

In view of the quality of his faith Paul urged his younger friend not to neglect the use of his God-given abilities for the service of Christ. Any person can become less effective in the exercise of his abilities if he or she does not use them regularly. This was Paul’s concern. He wanted Timothy to keep active. He was not implying that Timothy’s gift had left him.

"General Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, once sent this message to those under him: ’The tendency of fire is to go out; watch the fire on the altar of your heart.’ Anyone who has tended a fireplace fire knows that it needs to be stirred up occasionally." [Note: Earle, p. 395.]

Timothy may have received special abilities from the Lord through Paul at his ordination (cf. 1 Timothy 4:14). The bestowal of these may have been a unique apostolic ministry that ceased with that office (Ephesians 2:20; Hebrews 2:3-4).

"Every Christian minister needs at times to return to the inspiration of his ordination, to be reminded not only of the greatness of his calling, but also of the adequacy of the divine grace which enables him to perform it. Indeed, every Christian worker engaged in however small a task requires assurance that God never commissions anyone to a task without imparting a special gift appropriate for it." [Note: Donald Guthrie, The Pastoral Epistles: An Introduction and Commentary, p. 126.]

It seems more likely, however, that what Timothy received was divine enablement to do the work into which God was leading him. We could understand the gift, then, as a special endowment or enablement by the Holy Spirit (cf. 2 Timothy 1:7). [Note: George W. Knight III, The Pastoral Epistles: A Commentary on the Greek Text, p. 371.] Paul may have been referring to Timothy’s conversion at which time Paul laid hands on him and he received the Holy Spirit. [Note: Philip H. Towner, The Letters to Timothy and Titus, pp. 462-63.]

"The laying on of hands was not the cause of Timothy’s receipt of a spiritual gift but was a visible representation and symbol of it." [Note: Thomas D. Lea and Hayne P. Griffin Jeremiah , 1, 2 Timothy, Titus, p. 81. Lea wrote the commentaries on 1 and 2 Timothy in this volume.]