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"Lives
Fueled By Grace" • 7.31.16 • Calvary
Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro.
- In the final days of his life, the Apostle
Paul has set his heart upon his son in the faith. Timothy is a younger man,
Pastoring the Ephesian church that Paul left to him.
- He has been encouraging and challenging
Timothy to remain faithful in the face of persecution, commanding him and
reminding him of examples, most notably of Onesiphorus.
- He is a man who had found the courage to minister
to Paul in Rome, despite the danger to himself. He is the embodiment of what
Paul describes next. Let's pick it up in verse 1.
Text
• II
Timothy 2:1,2 : "You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ
Jesus. And the
things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to
faithful men who will be able to teach others also." :
Paul
speaks directly to his own child, proverbially looking him in the eye, saying,
"You, regardless of any other person's response, be strong in the grace
that is in Christ Jesus."
- To be strong means to be enpowered in the
world of grace. This is the 4th command in this book to Timothy and one that is
particularly good for us: find strength in the grace of Christ Jesus.
- We usually think of grace as the unmerited
favor of God directed toward the infinitely ill-deserving, issuing in a
person's conversion and salvation. That is the initial deposit of grace.
- However, grace is not only the saving
mechanism that draws us to Christ. It is the sustaining engine that drives the
person of God in their pursuit of Christ!
- The grace of God is available to you, not
simply for your times of failure, but preceding your greatest success in Him!
- In the mundane, His grace shapes and forms
Christ's image in you. Therefore, Timothy, believer, tap into the grace that
empowers you that is found in Christ Jesus alone!
- Be impressed with the grace of God in your
own life and learn to dispense it towards others! Remember that grace is
greater than any person's testimony to the contrary!
- As we have commented before, Timothy is
facing the very real danger of imprisonment and the potential danger of
execution. He cannot simply will himself to be brave.
- Christianity cannot be lived in the power of
my own will. It must be that the believer learns to yield to His grace for
their present circumstance! "Lord, give me more of your grace today!"
- If Timothy is strong in the grace, God will
make Him stand when his day comes! He needs his grace to follow his path, but
also to choose leaders to succeed him.
- Timothy needed grace to cover his choice of
worthy successors. He is to commit to them specifically what he has heard. There
isn't a need for creativity or improvement.
- It's what Paul spoke everywhere he went.
There were witnesses from Cyprus to Malta, Antioch to Galatia, from Corinth to
Ephesus. Everywhere Paul went, the message was the same!
- Timothy was to take this very message,
without dilution or improvement, and commit them to faithful men. This is the
third time that we've seen the word "commit" in this epistle.
- It speaks of a deposit or investment of
something. Timothy was to make a spiritual deposit, transfering what he had
received from Paul, into the hearts of faithful, or reliable men.
- Consider this very carefully. Paul knows that
he is asking Timothy to live his faith out until he faces the executioner's
blade himself. The writing is on the wall.
- Paul is about to die. Peter is about to be or
already has been martyred. Timothy is likely next in line, but the church is
going to go on! "Commit these things to faithful men!"
- The most important deposit that can be made
in your souls is that which is found in the pages of scripture! This is the
most valuable thing that the church possesses!
- God has ordained that the leaders of local
churches steward the contents of the scripture for the people of God to be fed
by. Since that is the case, what sort of men are needed? Faithful men!
- The church has never been about celebrities
or outstanding men with exceptional talent. The true value of a servant of God
has always been found in faithfulness, reliability.
- If Paul had said, "Commit these things
to entertaining" or "talented" men, the church would have died
in the first century with the Apostles!
- On the other hand, consider this: The church
has always survived because God has raised up faithful men to carry on her
essential teachings! That is the grace of God!
- In my life, I may not see a great
multiplication personally. Our church may never grow beyond the limits of this
building. But, I've entrusted you with this same set of doctrines.
- It will always be that the healthier the
lamb, the greater their reproduction will be! Healthy sheep beget healthy
sheep!
- Timothy is to be strong in the grace to
finish the race and ensure that another carries the baton. What sort of
attitude does accompanies the grace of God? Look at verse 3.
• II
Timothy 2:3-6 : " You therefore must endure hardship
as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of
this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. And also if anyone competes in
athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. The hardworking farmer must be
first to partake of the crops." : Paul
describes the grace governed life by alluding to three types of people whose
life choice spoke volumes to him.
- Don't get the impression that Paul is calling
him to begin acting in the way the he describes.
- The tense behind the words, "you
therefore must" indicates that he has made the decision to act this way
and now must continue what he has begun. Paul begins with the good soldier.
- A good soldier must endure hardship. Focus on
the word "endure." We would rather use the verbs, "avoid,"
"limit" and if possible, "retreat from." These aren't the
choices that good soldiers make.
- Every soldier commonly faces hardships that we
wouldn't endure. A good soldier wakes before the sun rises and walks miles in
any weather, with whatever clothes he has.
- They sleep with their weapons close at hand,
in holes in the ground, dug by their own hands. All of this is the typical day
in a soldier's life. He endures through every scenario.
- If this is what a Roman soldier endured for
their country, imagine what Timothy must expect to share in as a good soldier
of Jesus Christ!
- Without taking any respect from our armed
forces, what group can say that they are fighting for the eternal consequences
of the people they serve?
- On that basis alone, the suffering that a
person should be willing to endure in this temporal world is worth it, if
Christ is lifted up and adored!
- Your first expectation as a soldier for
Christ is to endure hardship. If you haven't heard this before, understand that
there isn't a misplaced word. The words "must" and "endure"
are there!
- Perhaps you believe that this is only
required of super Christians like Timothy. There is some credence to the fact
that greater suffering will be imposed upon larger targets.
- But the fact of the matter is that being a
Christian in a non-Christian world means that suffering is an inevitability.
Paul will say this explicitly in the very next chapter to all who live godly!
- It's helpful for you and I to comprehend that
this is the cost of our faith. It requires that we endure through manifold
sufferings.
- Personally, it means the surrender of my
identity and my own desires. Socially, it may mean being ostracized and
penalized for values that best represent Christ.
- Ultimately, it may mean the surrender of my
very life. Paul reminds Timothy and I remind you that these have always been
the costs associated with a Christian life!
- He continues by reminding Timothy that a good
soldier, one who wars or battles, must not entangle themself in life's affairs.
- A person who is on active duty, indeed
involved in a war, won't be thinking critically about what is happening on the
home front.
- He will think about home in a sentimental
way, but not in a way which belies a concern for practical areas. The language
bears this out.
- The word "entangle" means to
interweave, as with a fabric. Additionally, it's written in such a way as to
suggest a repeated pattern. He is not looking for ways to weave himself into
worldly affairs.
- Some have come to believe that this means
that they cannot take on business or familial interests. That isn't the case.
- The idea is that a soldier is not so
entangled as to become trapped in them and unable to disengage when the command
of God comes!
- The good soldier belongs completely to the
task at hand because he wants to please the Commander who brought him into his
unit. I wonder if you see your life in this illustration.
- Do you realize that you have been enlisted?
Is your heart completely engaged in the battle? Is your supreme goal to be
pleasing to the One that enlisted you?
- This doesn't mean that you should let go of
all your earthly responsibilities and simply serve God. No! Serve God IN ALL of
your responsibilities!
- See them as an opportunity in an of
themselves or providing for an opportunity by the income that is received! Your
place of work, your family and your neighborhood are places of occupation!
- You have been sovereignly placed there to be
the salt that makes a soul thirsty and the light that leads to Jesus Christ!
- Paul goes on to his second illustration, which
comes from the world of athletics. Any athlete who is competing for a crown
will do so according to the established rules.
- The athlete in question is not one who is
recreational, but professional. He is striving for a mastery. He has put
himself entirely into his sport.
- He is competing expressly for the highest
honor that he can achieve. In our world of "here's a prize because you
actually showed up once" awards, we may miss this!
- Of course, aside from the wreathe of lettuce
that an Olympian or Isthmian would receive, there were great honors bestowed in
the city that an athlete lived in.
- Because of what was at stake, the
"rules" of competition were strictly adhered to. There were three
basic rules that were in play for all athletes.
- They had to be native born Greeks, they had
to take an oath that their training had lasted 10 months on penalty of death
before Zeus and they had to follow their event's stated rules.
- An athlete had to train with all of this in
mind. There is a right way to proceed as an athlete.
- Discipline, rigorous training, specialized
and focused dietary restriction and a rigid sleep schedule is regulated by an
ultimate goal in mind.
- Timothy's life must be lived in the same way,
with an eye to the prize of the upward call of Christ! Every decision, every
investment and every restriction serves the goal!
- There is an incredible focus involved in the
life of the athlete. How much more for the believer in Christ!? Paul completes
this section in to the world of agriculture and the hardworking farmer.
- This speaks both to a man who works with the
soil or a man who dresses the vine. Both jobs seem very easy to the casual
observer, but each requires an intimate knowledge of their craft.
- Every farmer knows his soil and the rotation
of his field and the vinedresser will manage his vines for decades! This type
of knowledge requires intense scrutiny and wisdom.
- And only when that work is completed does the
farmer have the ability to partake of the fruit. This sentence sounds very
strange to us, but that is the sense.
- All of the unseen toil and the endless
detailed work results in the enjoyment of the fruit that has been cultivated.
Verse 7.
• II
Timothy 2:7 : "Consider what I say, and may the Lord give you
understanding in all things." : Timothy
is commanded to ponder what his elder has said. The NIV uses the word
"reflect." Look at your life and the choices that must be made.
- What do these professions speak to you? What
do they have to say to his life?
- The word translated "understanding"
here has a unique meaning. The word describes the union of two rivers,
metaphorically speaking of allowing the thoughts to flow together.
- Here are people engaged in human endeavors.
How does that inform your spiritual life?
- You are also called to consider these things
and to measure your life against these illustrations. May He give you
understanding as well. Verse 8.
• II
Timothy 2:8-10 : "Remember that Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, was raised
from the dead according to my gospel, for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of
chains; but the word of God is not chained. Therefore I endure all things for
the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in
Christ Jesus with eternal glory." : It's not
as though Timothy forgot about Jesus and needed to recall. Rather, he is to
keep this thought in mind.
- As the HCSB says, he is to keep his
"attention" on Jesus Christ, who was of the royal line and rose from
the dead.
- Jesus endured suffering and was then
resurrected! The resurrection is the emphatic center of Paul's preaching. This
was why Paul was serving time. This was his crime.
- This was why he was in prison and being
treated like a criminal, even one that required the maximum security of chains!
This is where Paul's life led him.
- Don't think that Timothy is missing the
point! He hears Paul loud and clear! He may be chained as well.
- That's where the road will lead him, but the
ministry of the Word of God will not be chained!
- By this, Paul expresses a dual meaning.
First, God's Word in a person will grow and flourish under any condition,
whether free or bound.
- God won't rescind his ministry and he
certainly won't abandon Timothy to the darkness. The difficult and dark times
of our lives are made bearable because God's Word won't be chained!
- The more prevalent meaning however is the
faithful witness of Paul to all his captors! If you have studied Paul alongside
of us, you know that the man was relentless in evangelism.
- He was chained in a Roman prison, but he was
more free than any of the guards who had to attend to his needs! You can't help
but notice that as a prison guard!
- They had to ask what was different about him.
They had to wonder why he hadn't broken. They knew Paul didn't fit there.
- Certainly, the gospel was having it's affect
through Paul to the Roman guards. This was why he was willing to endure
everything that went with his current circumstance.
- He was enduring the hardship for the benefit
of those that belonged to Christ, the elect! He was faithfully serving that
they might have the salvation that he was experiencing!
- Paul was ever aware of his responsibility to
share the gospel even feeling obliged as a debtor to the Gentile nations when
it came to the proclamation of the gospel! (Romans 1:13)
- He looked at the guards that mistreated him
with pity. He saw Nero as the dangerous man that he was, but also as the very
lost man that he was!
- All of these men were consumed with temporal
glory. He knew that what he had in Christ was weighed out with eternal glory!
- We've mentioned in the past that the word
"glory" refers to the value assessed to an object in the market
place.
- Imagine Paul, understanding that he had
obtained an eternal weight, looking at his captors who only had a temporal
weight. They didn't even know about the eternal weight that they could have!
- This must have motivated Paul, even in those
last days, with great evangelical zeal!
•
II Timothy 2:11-13 : "This is a
faithful saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we endure, we shall
also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If
we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself." : This is a trustworthy, a sure saying. Most believe that this
was a part of the early church's hymnal.
-
If we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. When did you die with Him? If
you are a Christian, you are represented in Christ's death on the cross! You
were there!
-
If that has been credited to your account, you will live as He lives! You will
resurrect in the same way that He did!
-
If we endure, the word speaks of bearing up under sufferings, then the promise
is that we will join Him as He reigns!
-
If we prove ourselves to be false, if that is our consistent witness, then
Christ must necessarily deny us. Jesus says this clearly in Matthew 10.
•
Matthew 10:32,33 : "Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him
I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My
Father who is in heaven." : This is very clear and informs
the meaning of the next phrase.
-
For years, I have misunderstood this phrase, believing that if I maintained a
consistent faithlessness, God would simply remain faithful to me. This doesn't
hold up.
-
If my consistent witness is that I am not faithful to the Lord, that does
nothing to change who He is. He will remain true to Himself because He cannot
deny who He is!
-
Literally, He doesn't have the power to disregard His own interests! God will
not simply make up for our continued falsehood. That is not something that His
character will allow Him to do.
Conclusion
- A life fueled
by the grace of God will be committed to the scriptures, endure through any
hardship, live according to God's rule, and will work tirelessy until the labor
is done!
- None of that
is possible without looking to Jesus Christ, the One who deserved to be King,
but was treated as a criminal on behalf of those who have trusted in Him!
- Because He
rose from the dead and reigns, those who find their strength in grace will rise
and reign with Him!
- As Paul once
said to Timothy, so now do I say to you: You therefore, be strong in the grace
that is in Christ Jesus!