September 2, 2007 - Letters To My Son: I Am Now Ready

Scripture Meditation: 2 Timothy 4

INTRODUCTION

• Scientifically speaking-
• The summer of 2007
• Began on the 21st day of June
• And will not until Sunday, September the 23rd at 5:51 AM
• But you know what? Most of us could care less what astronomical science says.
• And far as most rational human beings are concerned-
• Winter runs from the 1st of December through the end of February
• Spring begins on the 1st of March- and ends in May
• Fall begins on the 1st of September- and ends on the 30th day of November
• And as for summer it more or less...
• Begins on Memorial Day- and ends on Labor Day
• Am I right? Of course I am!
• The fact that tomorrow is Labor Day means this is a good time to end our summer-long sermon series on the books of 1 & 2 Timothy
• I hope these messages have been a blessing to you
• That you've learned a few things along the way
• And been able to apply God's truth to your daily walk of faith with the Lord
• Having said that- let's wrap up this series this morning by focusing on the last chapter of 2 Timothy

IN VIEW OF HIS APPEARING

• Please read 2 Timothy 4:1
• One of the most important things the Bible tells us about God is that He is the Judge of the Universe
• But here in 2 Timothy 4 it says JESUS will judge the living and the dead. This statements PROVES that Jesus-
• Was more than just a man
• Was the Christ
• The Son of the Living God
• The Second Person of the Holy Trinity
• That He was God- in human flesh
• Now you might be thinking: Steve- I've been in church a long time. I've heard this hundreds of times. Tell me something I don't already know!
• Well here's why this truth needs to be repeated over-and-over-and-over again:
• If Jesus was just another human being then His death on the Cross has no power to save you from your sin
• But the fact is Jesus was fully God- and fully man
• Which means His death on the Cross is all-sufficient
• It's all you need- in order to be saved!
• Please read how 2 Corinthians 5:14-19 puts it
• By the way: One other thing about Jesus being the One who will judge the living and the dead
• Because the Judge of the Universe is also the One who died to save you!
• You can be absolutely certain that you will NEVER be separated from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord
• Your salvation is 100% secure
• Because it's safe in the hands of Jesus!
• The point Paul is making is that everything Timothy does in ministry must be done in the context of Jesus' Second Coming
• The fact that this world is passing away- that Jesus is Coming Again
• Should be all the motivation Timothy needs to faithfully complete the mission and ministry he's been given
• Which is the same mission and ministry EVERY born-again child of God has been given
• In Acts 1:8 Jesus said: "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
• As Christians our job is to be Jesus' witnesses- to share Jesus' love-
• In our Jerusalem (Charlotte)-
• Our Judea (North Carolina)-
• Our Samaria (The United States)-
• And to the ends of the Earth
• Until Jesus Comes Again!

PREACH THE WORD

• Let's read on. Verse 2
• I'm fifty years old
• And with the exception:
• Of a few summers in high school and college
• I've NEVER had a regular 8-to-5 job governed by a traditional job description
• Granted-
• You can find a 'Pastor's Job Description' in the Church Manual
• But it's so general- so non-specific- it's almost meaningless
• The fact is my job description is found here in 2 Timothy 4. Read what it says.
• Preach the Word
• The Greek word translated as 'preach' means 'to proclaim'
• In other words: My job as your pastor is to boldly proclaim the truth of God's Word
• Notice what I said:
• I must proclaim God's Word- not my word
• See you can't build a life based on the wit and wisdom of Steve Bass
• But you CAN build a life filled with joy and purpose on the foundation of God's holy, infallible, inerrant Word
• As your pastor my responsibility is to rightly divide- or correctly interpret- the Bible so you'll be able to live a life that is pleasing to God
• Preach the Word...
• be prepared in season and out of season
• I have to prayerfully study and prepare myself
• Before I step into this pulpit and preach the truth of God
• correct
• The Greek word is elenxon
• Which means to 'convict' or 'reprove'
• rebuke
• The Greek word is epitimeson-
2 Which means to 'censure' or 'admonish'
• and encourage
• The word here is parakaleson-
• It means to 'comfort' or 'exhort'
• -- with great patience
• The Greek word is makrothymia-
• Which carries the meaning of 'loving understanding'
• and careful instruction
• The word is didache-
• It means 'teaching' or 'revealed truth'
• Folks- if you want to know if you're hearing genuine, Biblical preaching ask these questions:
• Did the message convict you of those areas of your life that are not pleasing to God?
• Did the sermon encourage you to submit your will to God's Will?
• And did the preacher patiently and carefully teach you the eternal truths of God's Word?
• If you can answer 'Yes' to all those questions
• You've heard Spirit-filled, God-given preaching
• Otherwise you're just enduring meaningless drive!

FOR THE TIME WILL COME

• Please read 2 Timothy 4:3-4
• You know-
• What we just read has always been true
• It was true in Paul's day
• And it's true today
• People aren't interested in the truth of God- they want to hear things that tickle their fancy
• That's one of the reasons why there's so much 'Second Coming' fever and fanaticism out there
• Every week you hear about-
• Another 'Prophecy Conference' being held at some church
• Or a new book that contains some outlandish theory about the 'hidden codes' of Revelation
• The truth is people have always...
• Been more interested in wild speculation and hopeless complexity
• Than the simple, straight-forward truth of God's Word
• Listen to me- this Book is not some riddle wrapped in an enigma surrounded by a mystery
• God didn't give us His Word to create confusion and doubt and controversy
• God gave us the Bible to reveal and explain and make known His Will and His Ways
• That's why I practice the 'When In Doubt' theory of Biblical interpretation. It goes like this...
• When in doubt assume the Bible says what it means and means what it says
• I guarantee you:
• If you follow that theory
• You'll rarely go wrong!

DISCHARGE ALL THE DUTIES OF YOUR MINISTRY

2 Timothy 4:5

• With these verses- Paul has begun his final words of instruction- and for the most part- they restate things he's already said in 1 & 2 Timothy
• Keep you wits about you.
• Remain alert.
• Practice self-discipline
• Expect to face persecution and hardship because of your faith and witness
• But above all- don't stop doing what you've been called to do:
• Be an evangelist. Tell people about Jesus
• Fulfill your God-given responsibilities as a pastor
• You know- the word evangelist comes from a Greek word meaning 'Good News'
• In other words: As an evangelist- Timothy must proclaim the Good News about Jesus!
• As long as he keeps doing that God will continue to bless his ministry
• The same thing is true in the church today
• Our job is to proclaim the Good News about Jesus!
• As long as we're doing that- God will pour out His blessings on our efforts
• Unfortunately- one of the failures of evangelical Christianity is that we've forgotten to be in the Good News business
• Walk into a typical evangelical church and you'll hear preaching that's more about...
• Legalistic rules and regulations than the pure truth of God's grace and mercy
• Condemnation and judgment rather than the wonderful love and grace of Jesus Christ
• The problem is- we've fallen into the trap of...
• Trying to change the world through the ballot box
• When the Bible makes it clear that the hope of the world is Jesus Christ!
• Folks- it's high time we get back to doing the work of an evangelist. PERIOD!

THERE IS IN STORE FOR ME...

2 Timothy 4:6

• The idea of being poured out like a drink offering is an Old Testament analogy
• According to the book of Deuteronomy
• Once the lamb of sacrifice had been slaughtered- a bottle of new wine would be poured on its carcass
• The lamb's carcass- soaked in wine- would then be roasted on the altar as an offering to God
• Over the centuries this drink offering came to be understood as a symbol of a life totally committed to God
• The interesting thing is that in Philippians 2:17 Paul uses this same symbolic language
• I want you to notice the two-letter difference between Philippians 2:17 and 2 Timothy 4:6, It's the word 'If'
• In Philippians Paul says: IF I am being poured out like a drink offering
• In other words: Paul's ready to sacrifice his life for Christ's glory
• But he sees it as something that will happen in the distant future
• In 2 Timothy 4 he says: I am ALREADY being poured out like a drink offering,
• Paul knew he was about to be executed for his faithful service to Christ
• And he's OK with this
• He's not only OK with this-
• He is at peace with himself
• And absolutely confident about the future
2 Timothy 4:7
• Here's another case of Paul using athletic metaphors in his letters
• He says he's fought the good fight
• The Greek word he uses is agonizomai
• It means to 'compete in athletic competition'
• He goes on to say he has finished the race
• The word for race is dromon
• It means to run a race course
• Finally he says: I have kept the faith
• The idea is to play by the rules
• To do the things you're supposed to do
• To paraphrase: I am satisfied at having competed well in the contest of a life totally committed to Christ. 'I have run the racecourse the Lord had set before me. I have kept the rules and not been disqualified by the Savior'
• Folks- I hope that at the end of my life I'm able to have the same peace of mind Paul had
• I hope that I'll be able to say: I have faithfully fulfilled the responsibilities God has given me!
2 Timothy 4:8
• Something interesting about the expression crown of righteousness
• The Greek word for 'crown' is stephanos
• Which refers to the laurel wreath that was given to the winner of the Olympic marathon
• So notice what Paul's saying:
• The Lord- the judge of the contest- is ready to reward me with a laurel wreath at the end of my race
• It's not a crown symbolizing royalty. It's a crown symbolizing victory through faithfulness
• And here's the thing: It's a crown available to EVERY born-again child of God
• Look- I'm not going to receive extra credit for being a missionary evangelist.
• This same reward will be given to everyone who does what God has called him or her to do
• What does all this mean?
• If you are faithful in the things God has called you to do in this life
• You'll receive the same 'crown of righteousness' Paul and Peter and Timothy and Billy Graham will receive
• A crown which will be presented with these words:

'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' (Matthew 25:21)

GET MARK AND BRING HIM WITH YOU

• Now to be honest- the last few verses of 2 Timothy 4 deal mostly with personal matters
• Remember- this is a private letter we're reading
• But there are a couple of interesting things I want to point out
2 Timothy 4:9-11
• If you ever doubt that God is a God of second chances-
• You need to bookmark 2 Timothy 4:11
• And read it anytime Satan tries to drag you down with feelings of guilt, shame and discouragement
• Please read Acts 15:36-40
• Nobody knows why John Mark left Paul and Barnabus in Pamphylia
• Some folks.../Others...
• Have suggested he got scared- especially when they began to experience persecution and opposition
• Believe he may have been offended by Paul's determination to share Christ with the Gentiles
• In any event- Mark abandoned Paul during an especially difficult time in his life
• Here in Acts 15 Paul is ready to begin another missionary journey
• Barnabus- who is Mark's cousin- says: 'Let's give the guy another chance'
• Paul thinks that's a bad idea: 'He left us once- who's to say he won't do it again'
• The Bible doesn't sugarcoat what happened next
• Paul and Barnabus had such a heated disagreement over Mark they finally decided they could no longer work with one another
• It was a tragic end to a great missionary partnership
• By the time of 2 Timothy 4 many years have gone by
• And Paul recognizes that Mark has changed
• Notice what he tells Timothy: 'Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry'
• The man who had abandoned Paul in Pamphylia had become a helpful partner in ministry
• There was only one way Paul could have known about the changes in Mark's life:
• At some point God lead Paul to give Mark a second chance
• Paul could be a stubborn guy. Only the Lord could have convinced him to give Mark another chance
• Folks- I don't care how bad you've failed- or how far you've fallen
• God believes in giving you a second chance- and a third chance- and as many chances as you need after that
• All you have to do is come to Him with a humble heart- ask Him to forgive you- and He WILL give you another chance
• 1 John 1:8-9

THE LORD...WILL BRING ME SAFELY TO HIS HEAVENLY KINGDOM

2 Timothy 4:12-18

• It's interesting- and not coincidental- that Paul ends his letter to Timothy on a note of hope
• Despite the persecution- the opposition- the intense suffering- and the sword of death that was hanging over him
• Paul was filled with hope
• He KNEW that Jesus was His Savior
• He KNEW God would be found faithful
• He KNEW that the moment his life on Earth ended- he would immediately go to be with the Lord in heaven
• Folks- do you have that kind of quiet confidence in Christ?
• Are you absolutely certain that Jesus is your Savior?
• Are you convinced- beyond a shadow of a doubt- that God will be faithful?
• Are you filled with the hope of knowing that the moment your life on Earth ends- you will go to be with the Lord
• If your answer is...
• 'Yes'- Offer praise and thanksgiving to God for this wonderful gift
• 'No' or 'I'm not sure'- would you like to leave here today with that sense of hope and joy?
• Let us pray