August 5, 2007 - Letters To My Son: Fan Into Flame The Gift Of God

Scripture Meditation: 2 Timothy 1

INTRODUCTION

• Quiz time!
• Nobody looking at your bulletin
• Let's see if you can answer these questions
• Questions:
• What is the title of this summer's sermon series? Letters To My Son
• Who are these letters addressed to? Paul's ministerial protégé- Timothy
• How many letters did Paul write to Timothy? Two
• Which letter came first? Nobody knows!
• I know that sounds odd
• You'd think a book called 1 Timothy
• Would've been written before a book called 2 Timothy
• But not when it comes to the letters of Paul
• Take his letters to the church in Corinth
• The reason we call 1st Corinthians- 1st Corinthians is because it's 3 chapters longer than 2nd Corinthians
• Simple as that
• In the New Testament we have the rule is: Longer comes first
• Same thing is true with Paul's letters to Timothy
• We call 1st Timothy- 1st Timothy is because it's two chapters longer than 2nd Timothy
• Remember that the next time you're on Jeopardy or Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?
• Anyway- we don't know which letter Paul wrote first
• And even though both letters contain similar themes and ideas
• Each letter is equally important in terms of the truth of God it conveys
• In other words: God has something to say to you in 2nd Timothy
• Things you need to learn- and apply to your life
• So with that in mind- let's turn to 2 Timothy chapter 1. We'll begin with the first verse

CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD

2 Timothy 1:1-2

• I want you to notice something that in just two verses Paul uses the expression Christ Jesus three times
• The Greek word translated as 'Christ' is christos
• Which is a transliteration of the Hebrew word Messiah- which means 'Anointed One'
• For centuries the Jewish people had longed for the day God would send the 'Anointed One'
• The coming of the Messiah had first been foretold in Old Testament prophecy
• Now over the centuries the Jews took Scripture- seasoned it with a lot of speculation
• And came up with a theory about who the Messiah would be- and what He would do
• By the time of Jesus' birth they believed the Christ would be
• A powerful warrior-king who would overthrow the hated Roman oppressors
• And restore glory and honor to the nation of Israel
• But then Jesus came along- and blew all those theories out of the water
• On the one hand-
• He boldly announced that the 'kingdom of God' had arrived
• Which tradition said would signal the arrival of the Messiah
• But then again- He was careful to avoid the political and military implications of the Messianic title
• Read what the Bible says in Matthew 16:13-21
• Folks- Jesus knew exactly who He was
• Rather than being a warrior-king leading an army of conquest
• Jesus came to Earth as the 'Suffering Servant' who was prepared to give up His life to save others
• Read what it says in Isaiah 53:1-5
• Folks- what you've got here is the source of our hope as Christians
• By offering Himself as an atoning sacrifice for us
• Jesus the Christ- the 'Anointed One' of God- provided salvation for a world lost in sin
• It was the truth that-
• Changed Paul's life
• Powered his missionary zeal
• He was willing to live for- and die for

I HAVE BEEN REMINDED OF YOUR SINCERE FAITH...

• Let's read on. Look at it says in verses 3-5
• Paul notes that Timothy's faith was sincere
• The Greek word he uses here is anhypokritou
• Anhypokritou literally means 'unhypocritical'
• Folks- you could accuse Timothy of many things
• Sometimes he...
• Was too tender-hearted
• Got a little discouraged
• Needed to be propped-up with words of support and encouragement
• But the one thing you could not question was the nature of his faith in Christ
• He not only loved the Lord with all his heart- with all his mind and with all his strength
• He lived a life that impressed others- and more importantly- was pleasing unto God
• If Paul were evaluating Sunset Road Baptist Church- I wonder how many of us would be found to have sincere faith?
• 20%? 10%? 5%? 1%?
• Anybody at all?
• Folks- sincere faith is a goal every Christian should strive for. Read what the Bible says in Philippians 2:12-13
• A lot of people misunderstand what's being said here:
• The Bible isn't saying you have to earn your salvation through the things you say and do
• You're saved by grace- through faith- not of works lest any man should boast...
• And that never changes
• But the Word of God is saying that your goal should be to start at your point of salvation- and work to become more like Christ!
• Let me try and illustrate what this means:
• If you are a Christian at some point in your life you accepted Jesus as your personal Savior
• At that point you're absolutely saved
• So much so that if you died one millisecond after asking Jesus to be your Savior- you'd spend eternity with God in heaven
• BUT- your salvation experience becomes the first step in a process of becoming more like Christ
• You can think of it like this (Media Shout slides)
• Here's where you were saved
• Here's where you'll eventually be
• In heaven- with the Lord
• Fully transformed into the person of faith God created you to be
• 1 Corinthians 13:12 puts it this way: Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
• The time between here (salvation point) and here (heaven) is your life
• During your life here on Earth your goal is to become more like Timothy
• A person of sincere faith

...WHICH FIRST LIVED IN YOUR GRANDMOTHER...

2 Timothy 1:5

• Timothy was a 'mamma's boy'
• Ordinarily calling a man a 'mamma's boy' is not a good thing
• Some guys would consider them 'fightin' words'
• They might even 'sucker-punch' you before the words got out of your mouth
• But in Timothy's case- describing him as a 'mamma's boy'IS a good thing
• See- Timothy had been blessed with a grandmother- and a mother-
• Who were committed, dedicated Christians
• Who had taught Timothy to love- and serve- the Lord
• Folks- not every believer can say that
• Some of the finest Christians I know had parents who were-
• Indifferent at best-
• And hostile at worst- to the things of God
• That these folks turned out the way they did is a testimony to the power of God's grace
• But many Christians- including many of you- were like Timothy
• We were blessed with God-fearing parents who-
• Taught us about the love of Christ from birth
• Didn't just send us to church- but were active, ministering members of the church themselves
• Sat down with us at the appropriate time and shared God's plan of salvation
• If you had parents- and/or grandparents like this
• Get down on your knees and thank the Lord
• Because you've been doubly blessed by God

FAN INTO FLAME THE GIFT OF GOD

• Let's read on

2 Timothy 1:6

• Throughout the Bible, fire is the most common symbol of God's presence
• In the book of Genesis God spoke to Moses from a burning bush
• When the children of Israel escaped Egyptian slavery God lead them by a pillar of fire
• When God gave Moses the Ten Commandments- Mt. Sinai was described as a mountain of fire
• At the end of Elijah's life he was taken to heaven in chariots of fire
• In 2 Thessalonians 1:8 Paul is explaining the events of the Second Coming by saying: This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with His powerful angels
• Now here's the amazing part of all this
• The Bible says that if Jesus Christ is your personal Savior and Lord
• The holy fire of God's presence dwells in YOU!
• This incredible truth is a result of two things:
• 1- A promise Jesus made to His disciples
• 2- And the events that took place on the Day of Pentecost
• Read what Jesus says in John 14:16-17
• I want you to understand what Jesus is saying here:
• After I leave you- I'm going to send My personal representative to be with you
• And here's the exciting part: While I could only be with you for a short time- the Holy Spirit will dwell with you FOREVER!
• Now let's turn to the second chapter of Acts
• Here was the fulfillment of Jesus' promise
• The disciples were having a prayer meeting when the Holy Spirit came down and busted things wide open!

Acts 2:1-4

• Pentecost was a once for all time event that has meaning and significance in your life!
• Beginning that day- the Holy Spirit took up residence in the life of every born-again child of God
• Which means- the fire of God's presence is within YOU!
• One of the fundamental challenges in the Christian life is to guard and protect the holy fire that is within you
• This is what Paul is reminding Timothy here in verse 6: For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God...
• Folks-
• God can not use you for His glory- and you'll never enjoy the full measure of abundant life in Christ
• Unless you constantly fan into flame the holy fire that is within you!
• So how do you do it? How do you...
• Guard and protect the holy fire that is within you?
• Fan into flame the gift of God...?
• There are four things you need to do:
• 1- Carefully examine your life to see if there is any unconfessed sin in there

Psalm 139:23-24

• 2- Open yourself to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit
• Genuine spiritual growth is never a result of personal effort
• It is ALWAYS the result of opening yourself up to the power and presence of the Holy Spirit
• 3- Find a prayer partner who will offer you Christian support and personal accountability

Galatians 6:2

• 4- Stop being self-absorbed and find an outlet for Christian ministry and service
• When you're involved in efforts to witness and share the love of Christ with others
• The holy flame within you will ignite into a roaring fire...guaranteed!

FOR GOD DID NOT GIVE US A SPIRIT OF TIMIDITY

2 Timothy 1:6-7

• Throughout his letters Paul frequently does what he did here in verse 7
• First- he makes a negative statement- For God did not give us a spirit of timidity
• Then he follows it with three positive ideas- For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
• The Greek word translated as 'timidity' is deilia
• Deilia literally means 'cowardice'
• Lacking in courage- one who shows ignoble fear in the face of pain or danger
• So notice what Paul is saying:
• Timidity is not the kind of spirit that comes from the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit
• That kind of cowardice indicates a profound lack of faith in God
• Timothy- the Spirit of the living God gives us...
• Power
• The Greek word here is dynamis
• Which means the capacity or ability to do or accomplish something great
• Love
• Agape-love
• The sacrificial love that Jesus demonstrated on the Cross- the kind of love that's defined in 1 Corinthians 13
• Self-discipline
• The Greek word is sophronismos
• It literally means self-control
• Now here's the thing:
• Take a person who is filled with a spirit of power, love and self-discipline
• Have that person be totally committed to serving the Lord
• And you've got someone God can use to change the world!
• When Apple Computer^® founder Steve Jobs recruited John Scully- the CEO of Pepsi^®- to become the CEO at Apple^® he made a simple sales pitch. He said:
• John- do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugar water
• Or do you want to change the world?
• Young people- that's the question you're going to face at some point in your life
• Do you want to spend the rest of your life timidly going through the motions
• Or do you want to let God use you to change the world?

DO NOT BE ASHAMED TO TESTIFY ABOUT OUR LORD

2 Timothy 1:8

• In meditating on this verse I began to wonder if Timothy had ever been embarrassed or ashamed of being a Christian
• Given his sincere faith in the Lord I doubt it
• And yet Paul felt lead to write these words: do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord
• What you've got here is an example of the Holy Spirit guiding Paul's pen
• Paul didn't realize Christians would still be reading this letter in the 21st century
• But the Holy Spirit did-
• These words were intended for us!
• As Christians we've got to stop being afraid- or ashamed- to share the Good News of Jesus with others
• Not arrogantly- or rudely
• But humbly- with a large dose of love
• We've got to let people know that...
• God loves them
• Jesus died and Rose Again for them
• And that they can be saved by accepting Christ as their personal Savior and Lord

I KNOW WHOM I HAVE BELIEVED

2 Timothy 1:8-12

• Folks- what you've got here in verse 12 is the purest expression of Paul's faith found anywhere in the Bible
• I know whom I have believed
• I believe in Jesus of Narazeth-
• The Christ, the son of the living God
• and am convinced
• Confident- assured
• Certain beyond a shadow of a doubt
• that he is able
• More than able
• He is perfect in power and love and grace
• to guard
• Protect- defend- guarantee
• Assure- watch over- to shield from danger or harm
• what I have entrusted to Him
• My life- my spirit- my eternal destiny
• Secure in the hands of the One who died for me on the Cross of Calvary
• for that day.
• The day I will stand before the Almighty Creator of the Universe
• The day I will see Jesus face-to-face
• The day I will enter my heavenly home
• I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day
• Is that your testimony today?
• Do you have that rock-solid confidence in the Lord?
• You can you know. Let us pray.