Chapter 16:1-8 - Timothy

We are now introduced to Timothy. Timothy is a person who embodies the in-between nature of the early (and present) Christian faith. He did not fit clear categories. His mother was Jewish and his father was a Gentile. Timothy’s presence and indeed his body bring questions for the early church that resonate to this day. So many questions, struggles and disagreements through the years have been around whether this person or that one is acceptable. We are told that Timothy was spoken well of, he is given positive report. However, even to many who were impressed by him, he did not quite fit. The next part of the text has troubled many biblical commentators. Paul circumcises Timothy because some of the people felt that this was one of the lines of acceptability. What are we to make of this? Willie Jennings notes the in-between struggle of acceptability that finds its expression in the body of Timothy. Jennings presents that through history, many people have felt that they have not fit the definitions of acceptability simply because of how they were born or who they were born to. Jennings argues that Timothy, all the way along here, demonstrates love.  
The question of who is in and who is out. The question of who is acceptable can be seen over all of Christian history. 
It may help us to remember a saying of Karl Barth; 
“A person is measured not by what they have done for God, but by what God has done for them.”