Passing the Gospel Through Generations

Well, good evening. And I might refer to this a few times, but I'm not being slovingly dressed tonight with my Father's Day jumper on.

I know that my signature blue shirt is lying on the back seat, but this is a Father's Day shirt before anybody asks.

And Esther's not here tonight, but Esther took this little picture of Caleb and I not long after he was born.

So that was my present from Caleb today.

So, and I am going to refer to that, so I'm not just excusing it for that today.

But it is interesting because it does actually slightly tie into what we're about to say tonight.

Now, we're continuing in 2 Timothy, and we are now in chapter 2, as Aaron has read.

And we'll spend a little bit of time this evening thinking about this.

Now, I have made a monumental mistake.

I can normally preach from an iPad, and I make the text big enough.

And not that I need glasses, but I have it printed off.

I always have a backup, and it's rather small.

So you might see me peering at this.

I'll just ask that you forgive me.

Now, I want to ask you a question.

And it's not particularly well lit on the screen there, but does anybody know who these people are on the screen?

I mean, spot on.

Spot on.

I'm impressed.

But they are the various Louis.

So they are Louis XIV, Louis XV, and Louis XVI.

And I need to be careful because we have a French man in our midst.

But these are French kings.

And there's an idiom that is often said, especially if you go on any tours.

I've been to Paris hundreds of times.

Not hundreds of times.

I've been to Paris a number of times.

I've got hundreds and hundreds of photographs.

And every time that we go, there's a phrase that sticks in our head.

And it says this.

Louis XIV built it.

Louis XV enjoyed it.

And Louis XVI lost it.

And I don't think I need to say a huge amount more in that for you to have the picture in your head around what that actually means.

You just need to go to the Palace of Versailles.

And you will see that the France that Louis XIV built was just incredible.

In fact, I think he is maybe called the greatest king of Europe.

I might have that wrong, but I think that is right.

And there's lots of good things that have been attributed to him.

Now, I know that we could spend hours and hours on a history lesson on the French kings, which we're not going to do tonight.

But there's lots of things that could be attributed to him.

But one of the things that can be attributed to him is the fact that he built an incredible France.

He's got an incredible legacy.

And I'm sure there's lots of things that we wouldn't necessarily appreciate in his life.

And, but there we go.

Then you get the picture that Louis XV probably just enjoyed that.

And Louis XVI, well, he lost it.

And it kind of ties into what we're going to be thinking about tonight in our verse.

And I'm sure that you can pretty much see where we're going with this tonight.

But you can see here where we're going to go in 2 Timothy chapter 2.

2 Timothy 2 · chapter mention

Now, the last two sessions that we've had from Craig and from Jonathan in chapter 1 have introduced us to some of the enduring themes throughout the letter of Timothy.

You know, I think the slide that we had up there first, passing the baton of the gospel.

You know, this is an enduring theme throughout Timothy.

It's why Craig has given the sermon series the title.

At least I am attributed to you, Craig.

He's given that sermon series the title, passing on the baton of the gospel.

And we're introduced to this quite early on.

You see that in chapter 1, verse 5, where Paul writes to Timothy and he says to Timothy in that verse, he says,

The faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice, and now I am sure dwells in you.

You know, Paul writes to him, fan it into flames, you know, keep it alive.

Something that the French kings couldn't do.

But we see that in this book in 2 Timothy.

We also, I think we see this in 2 Timothy as well, is Paul takes a bit of a step back and he looks at a much bigger picture than maybe we've seen in other letters that Paul has written,

where he's specifically addressing conflict or sin or sorting out other issues in some of the churches that he writes to.

In this letter that he's written to Timothy, he takes a bit of a step back.

He's reflecting a bit more.

And I am sure that as we go through that, you'll maybe see that.

Then Craig and Jonathan both took us through the fact that there was suffering in there.

And I think this is another theme.

And you see that there's a desertion that took place in Asia, verse 15 in chapter 1, where they've all deserted Paul.

And then he comes into chapter 2 and he writes this.

He says,

And Paul is calling Timothy a son and he's thinking about the things that he will pass on to him.

So I've got my jumper on tonight.

It's an enormous responsibility where you have a child.

You do take a step back and you do think about what are you passing on?

What are you impressing on that individual?

And are they going to be able to continue some of the things that I would like Caleb to continue?

And for parents in the room, or all of you have parents as well,

there is probably some input into your lives that your parents would have liked for you to have continued.

Whether that's a piano's lessons when you're 4, 5, and 6 and then you never touch that again.

Or whatever it is, there's certainly an input into a child's life.

And in this sense, Paul is writing to Timothy, not as his own personal child in that way,

but a child of the faith.

It is the output of Paul's ministry into Timothy's life that has made Timothy who he is.

Not singularly, because as I say, both in chapter 1 and in chapter 3,

you see that Lois and Eunice, his grandmother and his mother,

had an enormous part to play in that as well.

But they have all poured into Timothy.

And in that verse, in verse 1, it says,

You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

Now, if I go back to the Lois here,

you're going to see that the motivation and the will that was in,

and the determination that was in Lois the 14th, wasn't passed on.

The wealth is passed on, the material wealth,

maybe some of the, lots of different things will have been passed on.

But that, let's call it the spirit that was in Lois the 14th, wasn't passed on.

That will, that determination, that motivation, it wasn't passed on.

But when Paul writes to Timothy,

he says this,

You know, it's not a strength that comes from within,

by our own determination or by our own might.

It comes from the Lord Jesus.

It is that that is going to be the continuing motivation in Timothy's life.

That's going to be the source that's going to provide Timothy

with the necessary grace that is going to be needed to keep him strong in this work.

And therefore, there is going to be, as we see later on in our message tonight,

we're going to see that it can be passed on from generation to generation without fail,

unlike the French dynasty.

Now, if we're going to be carrying out the work of God,

and in this context, it is the transmission of the word of God,

then we cannot do it on our own strength.

You know, I think we can all affirm that in our own lives,

but it is a truth that's taught in the scripture.

If we are going to work for God,

and if we're going to carry out the transmission,

so whether that's the preaching of the gospel,

or in this context where Timothy is going to pass on what Paul has taught him,

then we have to do it in the strength that is provided to us by the Lord Jesus.

Now, if you're like me when you're reading and you're preparing,

but certainly when we're having conversation in the house,

quite often different verses will come to mind.

It's something that encourages us at our growth group.

If we think that there's something going to be taught in scripture,

if we think we're uncovering something in scripture,

then where else in scripture is that being mentioned?

It's a way that we can be sure that we are interpreting scripture

in the way that it should be interpreted.

But, you know, if your mind is just wandering slightly there,

and you're thinking, well, if that's the case,

if we can't carry on God's work,

and in this case it's the transmission of God's word in our own strength,

well, is that something that the Bible teaches?

And you know this.

We've taught it with the kids recently, you know,

trust in the Lord and lean on your own understanding.

At our wedding day, I've mentioned this from up here before,

you know, Jim spoke on, you know,

unless the Lord builds a house, then the laborers labor in vain.

A hymn that we could have sang tonight, it says,

we rest on thee, our shield and our defender,

we go not forth alone against the foe,

strong in thy strength, safe in thy keeping tender,

we rest on thee, and in thy name we go.

You know, I think we are very familiar with the fact that as Christians,

we do not do anything for God in our own strength.

We are enabled by him.

If we're going to be something for God,

if we're going to be useful for God,

if we're going to be used for God in the furtherance of the gospel,

then we must rely on him.

Now, I want to be kind when I say this,

and that only makes people sit up because you think I'm going to be unkind,

but I'm going to be kind when I say this.

Quite often, you hear people,

especially, you know, Christians who are talking about something that they're going to do for the Lord,

and again, there's a verse that should come to mind as I say this,

and in their conversation,

they never mention the Lord once.

They talk about the places they're going to go,

the things that they're going to do,

the results that they're going to see,

but they never mention the Lord once.

Either the fact that he has called them,

and that he is leading them to do something,

or that he is enabling them to do something,

it's all about what they are doing.

Now, as I say, I say that kindly,

because we can all be in that situation where we say something,

and because we haven't qualified it,

then, you know, we could be,

you know, I could be speaking to myself in that situation,

but you understand what I'm saying there.

There are people who want to go out in their own strength and do things,

and I think when we come to Scripture,

Scripture clearly teaches us that if we're going to be something for God,

then we have to do it in his strength,

and the strength that was offered to Timothy through the Lord's grace

is also offered to us.

It's the same source of grace that is available to us as well.

Now, not only is Timothy to be strengthened himself,

but he is to provide the spiritual strengthening to others.

You know, if we look in verse 2,

we see there that he has been charged with this responsibility

to communicate to others the inspired teachings

that he has received from the apostle.

Now, as I said at the start there,

you know, I think we can read this letter,

and we can assume that Paul is somewhat anticipating his own death.

He's taking a stand back,

and he's looking at that bigger picture.

I think it's also, you know, a theme in this book, 2 Timothy.

It's just taking that stand back and looking at that big picture.

You know, it's easy for us just to be consumed.

I'm consumed like this,

and, you know, I must admit I don't have a will.

Now, you think that you should have a will,

certainly if you have any assets,

and if you've got any offspring,

then, you know, that would be the logical thing to do.

But, well, I haven't one of my own.

If you go in the file cabinet,

you'll find a big folder of different things

that people have given us,

either Rachel or myself or jointly.

A number of people who have given us,

asked us to either be their power attorney

or to be the executor of their wills.

But what they've done is they've taken a step back,

and they've realized that they're not here forever,

that at some point that they're going to be called home,

they're going to leave this earth,

and that their affairs should be in order.

And they've asked us,

they've entrusted us to carry that out.

And that is just in the reflection

that when you're young,

you don't really think about this.

It's normally when you get older,

you think of all the coulda, shoulda, woulda,

and you put your will in order at that point,

and you tell your family what it is,

and you've reflected on where you are in life.

Now, I think Paul has slightly done that in here

as he's writing this.

He's anticipating that he will go to be with the Lord soon,

and he is writing this letter to Timothy,

and I think there's various verses that we could pull out

that would maybe confirm that.

But, you know, he's faithfully taught Timothy

in the presence of many witnesses.

You come into verse two, and it says this,

and what you have heard from me

in the presence of many witnesses

is entrusted faithful men

who will be able to teach others also.

You know, not only is Paul looking at his own life

and going, actually,

my days on this earth are numbered,

and I want to ensure that the message

that has been entrusted to Paul

is passed over to Timothy,

but his life too is short,

and his service for the Lord will be shorter,

and he should also order his ministry

in the same way,

so that others could be prepared

to carry out the teaching

that Paul has entrusted to Timothy,

and that Timothy will entrust to others.

Now, not that we're going to spend

a huge amount of time on this.

I don't necessarily,

in fact, I believe this to be the case.

I don't think this is teaching us

about any kind of apostolic succession.

I don't think that we envisage that

in the New Testament.

I also don't think it necessarily correlates

with anything that you see in other churches

where there's an installation

and an ordination of a minister

or anything like that.

I think this teaching that we have here

in 2 Timothy 2

is just simply God's instructions

for how the church is going to ensure

that there's a succession

of competent teachers,

and it starts here from Paul to Timothy,

and then it goes forward.

You know, Craig's points from the first week,

and JT iterated them last week as well,

around these three ways

that that was going to happen.

One was in evangelism.

There's also in discipleship,

and there's also in training.

You know, I don't think that Timothy is writing,

sorry, Paul is writing to Timothy

who's envisaging that this is only going to be taught

to elders because you see that,

that it's in the presence of men and witnesses.

Nor do I think that this has only been taught

to those who will be teachers.

This has been taught to the church as a whole,

and in the way that Paul has taught Timothy

in the presence of men and witnesses,

then Timothy will go and do likewise.

You know, it's nothing that should be done

in secret or behind closed doors.

You know, I believe that the teaching

is for everyone,

even though not everyone will become a teacher,

as we see in the qualifications in Timothy,

and also as is mentioned in James.

But we see here that Paul is entrusted

something to Timothy,

who's then going to entrust it to others,

and we see here a picture of a steward.

Now, it's not explicit in here,

but there are four pictures we're going to look at.

The steward, the soldier, the farmer,

the athlete and the farmer.

The steward is not necessarily mentioned explicitly,

but he is in here.

Something that has been deposited to Timothy

that he is going to take care of,

and he is going to then pass on to others.

Now, I think that is a fairly normal concept.

The things that, in life with us,

the things that I've acquired,

put into a will,

I'll ask for it to be distributed to whoever,

and on and on it goes.

And you see there the legacies in Britain

and elsewhere,

where faithful generations have stewarded a possession.

Now, it normally comes to ruin

over somebody who's very self-indulgent.

Not only did we see that in the kings,

but if you even look in our day and age,

and Scotland is littered with castles and houses

that were in custody of families

for generations and generations,

and then somebody was self-indulgent,

and they lost it.

But Paul is writing to Timothy,

and he is pointing out

that there's four generations here,

so unlike the three generations

and these French kings,

there's four generations here,

so it's neat the fact

that there's four rather than three.

But you first get Paul,

so Paul is the first generation there.

He's anticipating that he has passed it on to Timothy

and the many witnesses.

They, in turn, are going to pass it on to faithful men

who, in turn, are going to pass it on to others.

And as I say,

this is all done in the strength

that is provided by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

You know, I think the Bible emphasizes

the importance of an every-member evangelism.

We had a young couple over for lunch recently,

and I had mentioned wryly

this priesthood of all believers.

If you've been brought up in a church

like I was brought up in,

then that would have been a common phrase.

It normally goes over the head of most

because it's a slightly old-fashioned phrase,

but what we would say in Brunsfield

is an every-member ministry

or an every-member evangelism.

You know, the job of evangelizing

is not just for the pastor

or for elders or for church staff.

It is for us all.

Now, obviously, if these people aren't evangelizing,

then there's serious questions

that should be asked,

but it is something for us all to do.

It's what the Bible teaches.

It's what's envisaged.

It's what we believe here at Brunsfield

is that there is a part to play for everybody,

and everybody should play their part.

Now, we were in a growth group,

and if you're in my growth group,

then you'll remember this,

but Aaron is one of our members in a growth group,

and he challenged us one night,

and he said, you know,

if we all spoke to one person,

and I'll get my maths wrong

because I'm not a mathematician,

but he said,

if we all spoke to one person once a month,

there's 12 times over the year,

say there was 12 people there,

there's 144 gospel conversations

that could take place

just from our conversation that night.

You know, I think if each of us

done our part in sharing the gospel,

then just think of what the result would be

even in one generation.

Paul is writing to Timothy,

and he's anticipating four generations,

but just think what would be done

if we each took our responsibility seriously

and passed on the message of the gospel,

passed on the message that we find in the Bible,

and just think of what the result could be.

Now, it has to be done

in the strength that enables us to do so,

which is in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

We also understand that there are things

that obstruct us and distract us,

and, you know, namely the flesh,

the world and the devil,

these things come in

and they want to disrupt the work of the gospel.

But I think if we were just to take a step back

like Paul has and just reflect on our lives,

I wonder if we would really say

that we've done what we could have done,

or maybe even we've done what we should have done

in terms of telling others about the gospel.

You know, I think we could do a great deal better

than the record so far in each of our lives,

and I speak to myself in that regard

as much as I speak to anyone else.

Now, if you come back to the passage here,

you'll see here that Timothy

is to entrust the truth to faithful men.

That is men who are believers

and men who are dependable themselves.

Now, if I'm going to leave something,

and this is interesting,

if I'm going to leave something for Caleb,

then I've got to have it first.

There's no point in writing a will

if there's nothing in it.

And I think this is a bit of a challenge for us

because I think,

and I see this in our industry,

and I think maybe you'll smile

if you can see this in your workplace

or in other places.

Some of us want to become people

who pass things on

before we have it for ourselves.

You know, Paul has taken this treasure

and he's given it to Timothy,

and Timothy's understood it.

We're going to see this in verse 7.

Timothy's meditated on it.

He's understood it.

He knows how it applies.

He's then passed it on to dependable,

faithful people

who will then pass it on to other people.

You know, there's a,

I don't know if anybody's ever heard

of a songwriter called Ray Bolt.

I'm thinking maybe Fiona may have.

But there's a line in a song

that he once sang.

It's a kind of 90s album or CD

if you've had it at that point.

And it said,

I think I'll skip all the homework

and still get an A on the test.

And it kind of makes you smile.

As a Christian writer,

it kind of makes you smile.

But I think there's a danger

that sometimes Christians sometimes do that.

They've hardly understood the truth for themselves

before they want to pass it on.

You know, that's not to,

and you'll see this in Paul writes to Timothy,

you know, nobody should prejudice him

because he is young.

That is not what's taught in here.

But there is an expectation

that we have received,

we've understood,

it's put into practice,

and it is then shared.

You know, it's one of the qualifications,

and this is not written to elders,

but it is one of the qualifications

for elders,

that they are able to teach,

and that we can observe

the manner of their life.

That is that they have understood

what the Bible says,

they've put it into life,

they order their own affairs

and the affairs of their house well,

and therefore you can observe it.

And in doing so,

that you have a greater trust

in what they're going to do

and teach and preach,

because you can observe it in their lives.

And I think that that's something,

just to challenge us in here,

even though Paul is writing to Timothy

and saying this is going to be a transmission

that is going to go from you

to others,

to faithful men

who are going to teach others,

I think that's just a challenge

for us in there,

that we should get stuck in,

that we should read the Bible,

that we should know it,

that we should love it,

and that we should allow it

to change our lives.

And without giving the alliteration,

I've just told you

what the four sessions are

at our church weekend away next week.

So you'll also have heard this expression

that says that God doesn't call the equipped,

he equips the called.

And while this is not a verse in the Bible,

I think it's a theme that we see

running through the Bible.

And you'll see it in many people,

you know, you think of Aaron,

Moses, you think of others

who on the face of it

aren't somebody that looks like

they should be used by God,

but God equips the people

who he calls.

And if we are going to find ourselves

in 2 Timothy here,

we don't have, like Moses,

you know, we don't have to come up

with the excuses

that we're not, we can't speak,

we can't, you know,

we're not good at this or that

or the next thing

because what the Bible teaches is

if we are going to be called by God

to transmit the message

that we've received to others,

then he will equip us to do that.

Now, I just want to move on slightly

and I'm just going to pull out

a couple more examples here

as we get into these other pictures

that the Apostle Paul uses

to just to try and illustrate

some of the truth

and some of the qualifications

and some of the caveats

that he's going to give to Timothy

that is going to teach him

of how he's going to do this.

So Paul is asking him to be strengthened

by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

He's then given him this commission

or this charge to communicate

what he has received to others

and Paul is going to give him

a little bit of three pictures

of how he's going to do this.

Now, you come into chapter two

and you'll see that there's a number

of pictures that Paul uses.

First of all, he's used that,

my child, so he's used the son

in verse one.

We're going to think now about a soldier,

which we see in verses three and four.

We think about an athlete in verse five

and a farmer in verse six.

And next week, I can't remember

who's speaking next week,

but next week when we look

at the rest of the passage,

we'll see there that there's other images

that Paul uses.

He goes on to elaborate on the soldier,

but he also thinks about a worker

and the vessel and the servant.

And he's given Timothy these different pictures

to help him to understand.

You look in verse seven and it says this,

think over what I say

for the Lord will give you understanding

in everything.

The reason that we're given these pictures

that we're going to depict different truths

around how Timothy's going to carry out his work

is just so that we can look on them

and we can understand really what it is going to mean

to take this word,

this treasure that Paul has entrusted to Timothy

and to entrust that to others

from Timothy.

Now, Paul starts by using,

in verse three,

Paul starts by using this image of a soldier.

And I don't think it's,

I think you look through Paul's writings

as a whole, different letters,

and he uses the image of a soldier often.

I don't think that's surprising

since he lived in a military state

and he himself was in prison.

And he describes in these verses

the characteristics of a good soldier.

A good soldier of Jesus Christ.

You know, Timothy should endure suffering

and hardship in verse three,

sharing the suffering as a good soldier

of Christ Jesus.

You know, you only need to look at 2 Corinthians

and in chapter 11,

and you'll see that list of that many hardships

that Paul had to endure

in his work for the Lord.

You know, when we think about the soldier,

we're going to,

it's describing a soldier

who is on active duty.

Now, I'm going to have to confess something.

I did sign up for the military at some point.

I signed up for the signals

and I was hoping to be a member

of the 81st Signal Squadron,

which is a territorial army,

it's a weekend warrior,

but it's a signals, right?

It's telecoms.

And I thought this would be something

that I would quite enjoy doing.

You know, I enjoy getting out

and getting a bit muddy at the weekends

and stuff like that.

And this would be a way to serve.

But unfortunately, that was not to be.

And probably it turned out very wise in the end,

but that wasn't something to be.

But the picture here is about a soldier

on active duty.

Not somebody sitting at home,

not a dad's army,

not a weekend warrior,

but somebody who is in the thick of it,

somebody who is in combat.

And when you picture that individual,

especially if they're in combat

or if they're in another country,

you know, they don't entangle themselves

with the affairs in the other country,

do they?

You see these pictures on the news

of those incredibly large camps

all over the Middle East

and other places

where you see the British and Americans

and other armies stationed.

And you see individuals

who are not engaging

and entangling themselves

in the affairs of this life.

Now, we come back to this,

we come back to our passage here,

and we're not necessarily

in the same circumstances

because our charge is to go

and to take the message

that we've been entrusted with

and to pass it on to others.

So does that mean then

that if we are going to be involved

in the Lord's service

that we're not to be involved

in some secular activities?

Well, I don't think the Bible

teaches that at all.

You know, you just have to look

into Paul's life

and you see that he was a tent maker.

In fact, he confirms

that he provided

for his own necessities.

And you see there

that there are many people

who worked for the Lord

and were involved

in secular activities.

Nor do I think it means

that we should absent ourselves

from some of the legitimate things

that we have to do as parents

or as children or as friends.

There are legitimate aspects of life

that we must be involved in.

We can't absent ourselves from that.

I don't think it's

what the Bible teaches.

In fact, it doesn't.

If you think of just

the furtherance of the gospel

and how that's been aided

by people who have worked hard

and who have given generously

to the Lord's work

and have seen the gospel

being propagated

right over the world.

You think of the missionaries

that have left the shores of the UK

and ended up right over the world

and all of the mission bodies

that are out there,

the mission organizations,

you think of some of the folks

that we're involved in as well.

Now, that wouldn't happen

unless it was those

that were working secularly

and earning a living

and giving generous to the Lord.

So the Lord doesn't envisage

and Paul doesn't envisage

as he's talking to Timothy here

that we should just all become monks

and hide ourselves away

and devote ourselves

to the work of the Lord

or in that way.

It doesn't envisage that.

But what it emphasizes is this

and the emphasis is on

the word entangles.

You know, the soldier

mustn't allow the ordinary affairs

of life to become

the main objects of his existence.

And I think this is a big challenge

for modern day Christians.

The accolades of our employment,

the material benefits

that that brings,

the car and the house

and the holidays

and all these other bits and pieces.

Sometimes that we make that

the main focus of our existence

rather than what Paul

is teaching here.

You know, we do have to work.

We have to earn a living

to provide for ourselves.

That's a biblical principle

and provide for our families,

which is a biblical principle.

But it mustn't be

the be all and end all.

It mustn't be the main aim

of our life.

Rather, that we have to keep Christ

and the furtherance of the gospel

in a very prominent place

in our life

and these other things

that are legitimate,

they must be there

in the background supporting.

Also in this picture of a soldier,

we see there that

he must keep himself

in readiness

for the orders

of the one

who enlisted us,

enlisted him.

When he gets the orders

from headquarters,

then he must be ready

to please him.

You know,

his desire is to please,

the soldier's desire

is to please the one

who enlisted him.

But for us as a Christian,

then we can say

that we have been enlisted

by the Lord Jesus.

And our love for him

should encourage us

to maintain

a slightly lighter hold

on the things of this world

and that,

as we have seen in Paul,

taking that step back

and if anybody's,

as I say,

if anybody's written a will,

you take a step back

and you realise

that you're only here

for a short time

and that you are going

to pass on this

to somebody else

in the future.

And the encouragement there

as a soldier

is that we would hold

these things lightly

rather than just amass them

for ourselves.

We then come on

to the next verse

and it says this,

an athlete is not crowned

until he competes

according to the rules.

You know,

the figure changes

and this is where

there's just a little bit

of a different aspect

that comes out

in Paul's writing here.

And this is an athlete

that competes in games

and it could be

in any kind of sport.

I think normally

when we think about athletes,

we think of running the race.

Paul writes about that

in another area,

but this could be

in any kind of game.

And they compete

in order to receive a reward.

But in order to do so,

they must obey

the rules of the game.

And so it is

in Christian service.

You know,

how many times

do we look at some Christians

who have started out well

and I think

in the modern day

where so much is

videoed and shared online,

we see this even more.

People who start out strong,

who make bold claims

for the Lord

and yet fall short

of the finish line.

You know,

they become disqualified

because they weren't able

to maintain

an obedience to God's word

and a devotion to it.

And this charge

has been given to Timothy

to entrust it

to faithfully,

to entrust it

to faithful men

who will entrust it

to other people.

Some of it's become

a popularity context.

Some of it's all

about themselves.

You'll know about it

and some of us

will smile

as you'll probably remember

at churches like this

where it all became

about the pastor.

It all became about

that leading brother.

It all became about

the main man.

And then when something happened,

the whole church fell apart.

And you don't need to look,

I'm not thinking about Brunsfield

in this aspect,

but you don't need to look

too far from Brunsfield

to see that.

People who were very,

very gifted

and yet they didn't do

what is outlined here

in 2 Timothy.

They didn't pass it on

and they didn't pass it on

with the qualification

that the individual

be strengthened by the grace

as in Christ Jesus.

That's why Louis XVI

lost it all

because he couldn't

pass on that spirit

that was there.

So, as we're thinking

about this athlete,

what are the kind of rules

in connection to Christian service

that we should observe?

Well, you know,

you don't have to look

too far in Paul's writings

to find a number of things

that are the rules

that says you've got to,

an athlete is not crowned

unless he competes

according to the rules.

Well, first of all,

you read about it

in 1 Corinthians.

Paul writes that a Christian

must practice self-discipline.

Well, any athlete

that's going to compete

is going to have to

be self-disciplined.

I don't have the body

of other people

in this room

and it's because

I'm not self-disciplined.

I don't go to the gym.

I don't lift weights.

There are some people

here that do

and they're in much

better shape than I am.

But if you're going

to compete as an athlete,

then you've got to be

disciplined.

1 Corinthians 9, 27

tells us that.

You come then

to 2 Corinthians

in chapter 10

and in verse 4

and it reminds us

that we've got to fight

with spiritual weapons,

not carnal weapons.

We don't fight

in the same way

that the world fights.

Our fight

is a spiritual fight

and we therefore

fight with

spiritual weapons.

We're also encouraged

to keep ourselves pure

and you can think

about the diet

in that sense

of an athlete.

And lastly,

we are also

encouraged to be patient

and I think

if you're going

to be an athlete,

then results

don't come overnight.

You've got to be patient

if you're going

to see results

and these are just

a few ideas

that you'll see

dotted about,

certainly in Paul's

letters that you'll see

dotted about

around some of the rules

that you would have to keep

if you're going

to maintain

this image

of an athlete

and if you're going

to compete

according to the rules

and in return

have that crown,

that never-fading crown

that will be given

to us

as we have thought

about in verse 18

from the Lord

on that day.

And then

we come on

to

the farmer

in verse 6.

In fact,

just one point

that I want to make

about the athlete

is this,

that there is no

spare time Christians.

You know,

it's easy to go to the gym

once a week,

you're never going

to see gains.

But there are no

spare time Christians.

It's a contradiction

in terms, right?

You know,

if you are going

to compete,

if you're going

to be that athlete,

then it is that

daily discipline

that must happen.

It's basically,

if you look at

some of these people

and I've been thinking

about,

I was thinking about

Andy Murray

and the car

on the way in,

what his mother

poured into him,

there was a result

that happened there.

But his whole life,

his every single

fibre of his being

was focused on

his sport

and to achieve

the crown

that that would bring.

Then we move on

to verse 6

and this is the

hard-working farmer

who would partake,

would first partake

of the crops.

You know,

according to all

the principles

of righteousness,

the one who labours

to bring forth crops

has a right

to participate in them.

Now,

I don't necessarily

think that

there's a self-indulgence

in this way

that means that

you've just got

this right

to take out

the part for yourself.

I think scripture

would teach us

that we should give

the Lord the first part.

But when we come

on to the transmission,

and I was thinking

about this just as I left,

but when we come

on to the transmission

of the word of God

from one generation

to the next

to the next,

and anybody who's preached

will understand this.

As you study,

as you read,

as you start to understand

what has been taught

in the scripture,

who understands it first?

In fact,

in all the reading

that I've done

over the last couple of weeks

in preparation for this,

there's an enormous amount

that I have learned

that I probably

maybe knew some of it,

I didn't know it all,

and there's been connections

to other places in scripture

that I've been meditating on this

that I've really understood.

And I've said,

ah,

there's a version there

that teaches me this,

or this is some,

you see,

the same example

that Paul writes

to somebody else,

to another church

in another place.

And in a sense,

in the transmission

of God's word,

there is the sense

that as we diligently sow,

and as we plant,

and as we water,

then the farmer

who does that,

in a sense,

he's already received

that reward.

And, you know,

I say this as I preach tonight,

there's a lot

that I have learned of this

that I can't even convey

in the half an hour

that we've spent,

I can't convey it to you.

Some of that

you will need to go and read

and understand for yourself.

And I think that's kind of

what's envisaged here,

that hard-working farmer

who ought to have

the first share

in the crops.

Well,

in the transmission

of God's word,

I think that is where

that,

I think that's where

the example

kind of comes out.

And then lastly,

we get to verse 7.

It says this,

think over what I say,

for the Lord

will give you

understanding

in everything.

You know,

there's more to these

illustrations

than just a soldier

and the brief illustration

that we've given,

or just an athlete

or the farmer

as we have just mentioned there.

You know,

there's far deeper,

there's a lot

that you can glean

as you just think

about these things,

as you meditate on them,

as you see

different passages

and verses

come together

to build a picture

of what God envisages

the Christian worker

to look like.

You know,

Timothy is exhorted

to consider them

and to meditate on them.

And as he does so,

Paul prays

that the Lord

will give him

understanding

in all things.

You know,

Timothy will realize

that the Christian ministry

does resemble warfare

in a picture sense.

It does represent athletics.

It does represent farming.

You know,

and in each of these

responsibilities,

each of these occupations

has their own responsibilities,

their own nuances,

their own caveats.

But in each of these,

they also bring

their own reward.

And as I say,

Paul is stepping back

and he's having

a bigger picture.

He's having a big look

not only of his own life,

but to those

who will come after.

But if you even just

read through 2 Timothy,

you'll see that he takes

a much bigger step back.

And as you see in here,

it says in verse 3,

chapter 1, verse 3,

I thank God

whom I serve

as did my ancestors.

You'll then realize

as you work through

that there is

a wide lens

on the eternal history

that Paul is looking at.

And then as we come

into verse 18

at the end of chapter 1

there, it says this,

May the Lord grant him

to find mercy

from the Lord

on that day.

And he's writing

about Onesiphorus

who was looking for him

when those who had

all deserted them in Asia.

And he is looking for him.

It says he often

refreshed me

and was not ashamed

of my chains.

But when he arrived in Rome,

he searched for me earnestly

and he found me.

And Paul's thinking

about the reward

that he will have

on that day.

So Paul is taking

this big step back

and he's realizing

that he only has

this tiny part to play

in history.

And it's an incredible

part to play in history

because it gives us

what we have today

in our scripture.

You think it's just

what Paul's legacy is

that he has left for us

in this book

that we have

and that we so

dearly treasure

and cherish.

Well, my encouragement

tonight is that

we should read it,

we should understand it,

we should obey it,

we should love it,

we should allow it

to change our lives.

And it says this,

think over what I say

for the Lord will give you

understanding in everything.

You know,

I don't necessarily,

I think God calls,

God equips

those who he calls,

but he doesn't just

give special understanding

to those who teach.

You know,

we have a particular

responsibility to be able

to teach it in a way

that you can understand it

and you can put it

into practice

and that it can

transform our lives.

But each and every one

of us has a responsibility

to get to know

the Word of God

and to understand it

and to put it into practice

and where possible

to share it with others

and to compete

in the ways

that we have

thought about

as an athlete

or in the ways

that we have thought

about a soldier

or as a farmer.

Now,

the last slide

I wanted to share

just before we finish.

So the verse

I quoted earlier

that said,

you know,

we rest on thee

our shield

and our defender,

we go not forth

alone against the foe,

strong in thy strength,

safe in thy keeping tender,

we rest on thee

and in thy name we go.

The verse 3 says this,

we go in faith,

our own great weakness feeling

and needing more

each day

thy grace to know,

yet from our hearts

a song of triumph

pealing,

we rest on thee

and in thy name

we go.

Thank you for listening.

Thank you for listening,

Thank you.