2 Timothy 1:7 – Sanity

For God gives us, not a spirit of timidity, but of power and of love and of sanity.

It is remarkable how often ‘sanity’ (in all its forms) is presented as virtue in the NT. Unfortunately, in most Bible translations this is not well reflected in the fact that it is also represented with words such as e.g. staid, sober, thoughtful and modest. In Greek, the specific word for ‘sanity’ is made up of two elements. The first (soo) is ‘saving’ and the second (phron) is ‘minded,’ which refers to the inner and the mind. In the Titus letter, sanity is the virtue mentioned for overseers, older men, young women and men and for believers in general.

Sanity is different from knowledge. It is the attitude to make maximum use of your mind (received from God). Sanity cannot be intimidated by feelings. Common sense attaches importance to “logical devine service” (Rom. 12: 2). Sanity makes it possible to unmask fallacies and make wise choices. In a world that is carried away by hypes, emotions and treacherous reasoning, it is a blessing to be able to use sanity!

Delen: