2 Timothy 2:25-26, "Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will."

Interesting points:
1. Expanding on the previous verse, Paul underlines in these verses the reason the Christian should be disciplined/self-controlled in refraining from fruitless arguments and quarreling. Instead, we should act with God’s love, kindness and patience so that we can better speak to the heart of the person and help them see and accept the Truth.

2. The ability to give a mature, loving, and effective response is essential in our spiritual development. Apologetics, or defending the Christian faith, involves both the ability to teach and having a gentle, considerate bearing in instructing others. The apostle Peter explained in 1 Peter 3:15 ("…in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…") that the goal of kindness, teaching, patience, and correcting opponents with gentleness is the repentance and reconciliation of unbelievers to God. It is not to score points by winning an argument!!!

3. In addition to repentance, another goal is to help unbelievers recognize and choose to escape our enemy's influence by helping them understand his lies confining their spiritual lives. Through our loving kindness, we believers build a relationship with unbelievers that compels them to truly consider the gospel and, having heard the Truth, make a decision on whether to follow Christ.

Application.
Brothers, when we recognize unbelievers as prisoners -- not as enemies, we can better tolerate their quarrelsome manner because they believe the lies of our enemy. But those who hear the truth and repent "escape" from the captivity of being locked into sin through his lies.

We all recognize that God’s love is a powerful force but sometimes we forget that we can serve as a channel for His love to others.

May God provide each of us an opportunity to respond with His loving kindness to those that have not yet accepted Christ as Savior. May the Lord prepare their hearts and grant us the ability to speak His Words of life into their lives so that they will decide to follow Him!