The Soldier, the Athlete & the Farmer

Please do have a seat.

Can I just add as well,

a thank you to Alberto for drumming for us.

I didn't catch him at the corner of my eye there,

so sorry for not mentioning you earlier,

but it is great to be here together,

and we trust that as we come to God's words

that he will speak to us.

So can I massively, massively encourage you

to have your Bibles open there at 2 Timothy,

and let's come expectantly to God's words.

You should have also received one of these sermon outlines

when you came in,

and that's going to be helpful for us,

as well as we journey through this passage together

to see what Paul is saying and what it's saying to us.

So if you don't have one of them,

then please put up your hand,

and Ali Jackson will get one to you.

And let's still ourselves

as we come to God's word this evening.

Let's pray together.

Gracious Father, we would thank you so much for this day.

And we would thank you for your mercies that are new to us

each and every morning.

And we pray now as we come to the close of a busy week,

and as we sit on the cusp of another busy week,

that you would help us to block out any distractions to you this evening,

and that you would help us to focus our minds

and our hearts on you,

and help us to hear your voice.

As we turn to this passage now,

we think of the words that we read,

that Paul instructs Timothy to think on these things.

And we pray,

gracious Father,

that you would help us do that this evening.

All for your glory,

and for the upbuilding of your church

in this nation,

and in this world.

Amen.

Amen.

So I wonder if you have any pet hates in life.

I'll come clean with you this evening.

I've got one big pet hate in my life,

and it's when I read small print.

Don't know if you find that.

We are inundated through our letterbox all the time

with people trying to sell us stuff.

The other day,

I'm just thinking of this week,

I've opened two letters that come through our letterbox.

First one is Virgin Media.

High fiber optic broadband for eight pounds a month.

I thought,

yes,

let's do it.

Small print.

Line rental,

15.99 a month.

All right,

so it's 23 pounds a month.

You know the thing?

I think of another one.

I think of banks,

when they try and sell us mortgages,

what do they say?

They say,

fantastic interest rates.

You can leave all your mortgage worries behind

if you come to us.

Small print,

product fee,

500 pounds.

Small print,

small print,

small print.

Your home will be repossessed

if you do not keep up repayments.

I hate it when people try and sell me stuff.

They sell me fudged truths,

trying to get me in,

and they just don't tell me the reality of the situation.

Do you feel like that sometimes in your life?

And the thing this evening,

as we come to this letter,

the reason I spent this week in this letter,

and I wonder if you've noticed it

as we've journeyed through it

over the last couple of weeks,

Paul,

as he tries to sell Timothy,

what gospel ministry looks like,

he doesn't hide the small print.

He doesn't hide the small print.

He just tells Timothy the reality of the situation.

This is what gospel ministry entails.

This is what being a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ

means for you.

Paul writes this letter to Timothy.

We've seen it the last couple of weeks.

This guy who he's left in Ephesus

to look after Ephesus Evangelical Church.

Things were going swimmingly for so long,

but as John reminded us a few weeks ago,

things have gone very sour,

very quickly in Ephesus.

False teaching infiltrating the church.

Big personalities dominating the church.

Good gospel people leaving the church.

Things have got really bad,

really quickly in Ephesus in this church.

So how does Timothy feel?

Disillusioned with the gospel.

What is he probably already doing?

Drifting from the gospel.

What is he tempted to do?

Well, he's tempted to depart from the gospel,

and especially from any kind of links

with this apostle Paul,

who he heard this message from.

Things have got bad in Ephesus,

and they've got bad really quickly.

And we saw last week that if he does depart and run,

well, he's not the first person to do that from Paul.

Verse 15 of chapter 1, what we read there,

what does Paul write?

All who are in Asia turned away from me.

All of them turned away from me.

When the heat got turned up,

all of them, they got out of there.

Especially, Timothy,

especially, I want you to know

about Phygelus and Hermogenes.

Do you see these two men that he mentions here?

Personally mentions them.

Could it be that Timothy knows these men?

Why does he mention their names?

Does it just bring it home a bit personally a bit?

Timothy probably knows these guys.

Paul wants them to know

that in his time of need,

these guys got out of there.

But Onesiphorus,

oh, I can't say that name.

I tried so hard this week to learn that name.

Onesiphorus, we'll call him that, okay?

Do you notice how he gets a massive pat on the back

from Paul in these verses, doesn't he?

He's a massive big up from the apostle Paul.

He refreshed Paul.

He stood by Paul.

He went towards Paul

when others were running away from Paul,

and he stood by him.

What a guy.

Two men deserted Timothy.

I want you to know about these two men who deserted.

And I want you to know about this one man

who came towards me.

What is the question that he's asking Timothy

as we come to these verses?

Big question.

Who are you going to be like, Timothy?

Who are you going to be like?

Are you going to be like these men who ran?

Are you going to be like this man who came towards?

Are you going to turn away from me?

Or are you going to turn towards me?

And you see, that takes us to the personal summons

of verse 1 of chapter 2.

What does he write?

You then.

Do you feel that the pointy end of his finger

as he writes these words,

as Paul writes these words?

You then.

Does it all the way through this letter?

Just flick with me.

Chapter 3, verse 10.

You've got it there.

What does he write?

You, however.

Chapter 4, verse 1.

What does he write?

I give you this command.

What does he want Timothy to do?

Stay in the game.

Keep running, Timothy.

Question.

How is Paul going to do that?

How do you convince a man who is on his way out

that things are worth keeping going for?

What's his method?

What's Paul going to write?

Well, here's my question for you this evening,

one I was thinking about this week.

If you had to design a poster

that recruited people for being a disciple

of the Lord Jesus Christ,

what would you put on that poster?

What do we see so often on church websites in the West?

We see all the time.

Happy people, right?

Smiley people.

As in, if you come to this church,

you can be happy like the rest of us.

Now, don't get me wrong,

there's joy aplenty in knowing God our Father.

Isn't that joy to call him our Father?

But I wonder if churches,

our brothers and sisters in Syria and in North Korea,

do they have happy people on their church websites?

What's the reality of following Jesus Christ?

Well, do you see how Paul doesn't hide the small print

from Timothy as to what it will mean for him

to be a disciple of Jesus Christ

and to be a gospel minister in particular?

What's it going to mean, Timothy?

It's going to mean hard, hard, hard work.

Following Jesus Christ, if you do it faithfully,

if you stand in a hostile world

and proclaim the gospel,

it's going to mean that life is not going to get easier for you,

it's going to get so much harder.

And Timothy, that's the reality.

I'm not going to fudge it for you.

You just need to get your head around that.

To stand for Jesus Christ, it is hard.

Now, do we know that this evening?

Isn't it hard to stand for him in this world?

We're not the only ones to feel that, are we?

Just straight from the outset there,

be comforted by that.

It is hard.

And when we feel it hard,

it should be hard.

And there are two great realities in this section

that I think Paul is bringing to Timothy's mind.

He's bringing them straight to the front of his mind.

What are those realities?

The suffering.

Suffering.

And the risen Christ.

Do you see what he does in those verses?

Suffering, front of your mind, Timothy.

But right beside it, the risen and the reigning

and the ruling and the returning Jesus Christ.

Right there in front of you.

I think they're the two ideas that hold this section together.

If you just look at the section,

I'll show you how that works.

The suffering idea,

here it comes up at verse 3 of chapter 2.

And it comes up again at verse 9 of chapter 2.

And the person of Jesus Christ,

well, he comes up all the way through this section.

What does Paul write?

In Christ.

Verse 1 of chapter 2.

A good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Verse 3.

Remember Jesus Christ at verse 8.

Verse 10.

The salvation that is in Jesus Christ.

Do you see what he's doing?

Suffering right at the front of your mind

and the risen and returning

and ruling Jesus Christ right there as well.

What is the ministry principle

that he's trying to get Timothy

to understand and embrace?

Pain now, glory later.

Big idea for this evening.

Pain now, glory later.

What does he do?

Well, he lists six imperatives, I think.

Six things that he wants Timothy to do in this section.

Four of them are to do with how Timothy is to work.

That's verses 1 to 7.

And two of them are to do with why Timothy is to work.

And that's verses 8 to 13.

That's where we're going this evening.

But as we travel,

the big question that we need to have in our minds,

the big question that we need to ask of this text,

and the question that will make a 2D study

into a 3D study,

is to ask the question,

why?

Why is Paul writing these things

to this man at this specific time?

Why is he writing these things?

Because if we get to the heart of that question,

then we can begin to see what these things mean to us.

So let's journey through this section together.

Let's see what Paul writes.

Firstly, verse 1.

Timothy, be strengthened.

Be strengthened.

Now, why does Paul need to write that?

Because Timothy's weak.

He's weak.

And what does he need to be strengthened by?

The grace.

And where is the source of that strengthening grace?

It's in Christ Jesus.

Now, it's not the first time in this letter

that Paul has introduced this idea.

If you look at verse 9 of chapter 1,

you'll see very similar wording there.

Paul writes,

because of his own purpose and grace

which he gave us in Christ Jesus.

So this is the second time in the letter

that he's brought this up.

How are you going to be strengthened, Timothy?

By grace.

How is that grace shown itself?

Do you notice how Paul doesn't just throw that out there

as a token word?

He shows, Timothy, how the grace has shown itself.

Well, the God of the universe

before the foundation of the world, Timothy,

planned to save you.

And he sent his son, Jesus Christ,

in the fullness of time,

who came to give his life for you, Timothy,

and saved you, Timothy.

That's grace.

But even more than that,

he didn't just leave you to go about life

in your own strength.

Verse 14 of chapter 1,

he sent his spirit to live inside of you,

his adopted child.

God has taken you who was dead in your sins and transgressions,

and he has forgiven you and restored you

and put a new heart and a new spirit inside you,

and he's adopted you as his child.

He's with you.

We're going to look at it another way.

God has shown redeeming grace,

and God continues to empower you, Timothy,

with sustaining grace.

That's the reality of grace.

It's what we sing when we sing amazing grace, isn't it?

It's his grace that has brought me safe thus far,

and it's grace that will lead me home.

Timothy, grace, if you get your head around it,

it should massively encourage you.

Let grace sink into your mind and into your heart,

and let it strengthen you, Timothy.

Be strengthened by the grace that is in Jesus Christ.

Now, I wonder whether some of us here this evening

need to be strengthened by the grace that is in Jesus Christ.

Are you here this evening, friends,

and you find yourselves running flat?

Are you here this evening, and you are drifting?

Are you here this evening,

and the fire that was once there for Jesus Christ

is beginning to go out?

Are you running from one thing to the next in life,

and spinning plates,

and carrying the weight of the world on your back all the time?

And do some of us need to stop this evening

and take stock of the grace that is in Jesus Christ?

That it is he who is in heaven,

that it is he who is holding the cosmos in place.

It's not us.

We need to be strengthened by the grace,

the grace that saved us when we couldn't save ourselves.

The grace that God gives to us as his children daily

to sustain us in this life every moment of every day.

Do you see how Paul says these things?

He says these things not just to simply fill up

Timothy's theological bookshelf, okay?

He says these things for Timothy's strengthening.

Be strengthened by the grace that is in Jesus Christ.

Let that encourage you this evening.

Be strengthened, Timothy.

Secondly, what does Paul tell Timothy to do?

Well, verse 2, he tells him to entrust to.

Now, what's the issue in Ephesus that Timothy is feeling the sharp end of?

What is he feeling?

Well, he's feeling probably lonely,

and he's most likely feeling outnumbered.

His go-to guys, the guys in his church who understand the gospel and fight with him,

they're either leaving or their voices are being drowned out

because these false teachers are dominating the church.

How does Timothy feel?

He feels on his own, and he feels isolated.

I think what, in the context, Paul is saying is,

Timothy, if that's how you're feeling,

then what you need to do to solve that is you need to find,

and you need to train,

and you need to invest in,

and you need to deploy more people to stand beside you

and fight for the battle that is gospel ministry.

And what you need to do is you need to expend yourself

in getting that gospel DNA into people who will stand with you.

Get that into them,

and they will pass it on to others,

and they will pass it on to others yet.

You see how Paul has got four generations of people in mind?

I mean, this guy is a long-term strategist,

four generations in mind.

Paul is going to pass it to Timothy.

Timothy is going to pass it to reliable men.

Reliable men are going to train and teach others.

Passing on this gospel message,

passing on the gospel DNA.

What is the principle behind that?

What Paul is saying there,

well, it's that the main way that the gospel message

is going to be protected,

and it's going to be strengthened,

and it's going to be furthered in the church,

and in the world,

and in the city of Ephesus,

is by passing it on to others.

In other words,

it's going to be by training people.

Let me ask you this evening,

what are you doing by the way

of passing on the gospel message,

the whole counsel of God

to the next generation?

You think about it,

just practically in your life,

what does this look like?

In our families?

Husbands,

the way that we lead our wives

and sacrificially care for them

and lead our children,

what does it look like

as we pass on this gospel message?

The way that we participate

in our home groups,

what does this look like?

The way that we plan

our kids' church lessons,

what does this look like?

The way that we do

one-to-one Bible studies with people,

the way that we visit people,

the way that we conduct ourselves

on Sunday morning,

do we have this mindset in mind

that we are passing on

this gospel message,

that we're helping one another

as we do that?

That's why we do these things,

all these activities in church.

It's not just so that me and John

can feel good that we're doing stuff

in church.

It's not just ticking a box.

We do it because we need

to be passing on

the gospel message

to one another.

Friends, this evening,

have you got that mindset?

Would your diary reveal

that mindset?

What are you passing on

to the next generation?

It's interesting,

I was listening to Five Live

in the drive up,

I had the football phone in,

I love the football phone in,

listening to it in the drive up,

and I don't know if you've been

following the Leicester City story

in the English Premier League

this year,

but the guy,

they're interviewing a Leicester City fan

who was sitting in the pub

with his son and he said,

I wanted to be here

because I wanted to tell my son

that I watched Leicester City

win the league.

No, they didn't win the league today,

but they'll probably win it.

I wanted to tell my son

and him to see Leicester win the league,

and I wanted him to tell his son

about Leicester winning

the Premier League,

and I wanted him to tell his son

that he was there

when Leicester winning

the Premier League.

And I thought to myself,

if that is worth passing on

to the next generation,

if football is worth passing on

to the next generation,

how much more the gospel,

the eternal gospel.

Now, why is this important?

Well, if we don't pass it on,

the message,

it probably is going to die with us.

Isn't it?

That if we fail to pass this on,

what happens?

The next generation,

they assume it.

What happens next,

that and past,

the next generation,

they question it

and probably depart from it.

All the churches we know

up and down this land

that were once thriving centers

for the gospel

and are now nowhere.

Why is that?

Because of this,

that they didn't pass on

the gospel.

Are we taking seriously

the command

and making this a priority

in the life of our church

and in our lives?

And especially, I think,

those in Christian leadership.

You know, you think about those

probable interns

that we'll have in September,

those who are raising their hands

and saying,

yes, we want to give this a shot.

We feel like God

has given us this gift.

What are we doing

to encourage them

and to push them on

practically as they do that?

And what are we passing on?

We're passing on

the whole counsel of God,

the whole thing,

not just the bits that we like,

not just a soft

and easy discipleship,

not just rules and regulations.

What are we passing on?

A living faith in

and a burning love

for our Savior

and King Jesus Christ.

That's what we're passing on.

Be strengthened, Timothy.

Be strengthened in grace

and pass it on.

Thirdly,

what does Paul tell Timothy,

verse 3?

Timothy, join me in suffering.

Why does Paul need to say that?

Was it not most likely

that Timothy thinks suffering?

Nah, I'm not up for that.

Paul's saying,

lift your head above the parapet.

And what's Timothy doing?

He's lowering his head

lower and lower below the parapet.

Do you see again

how Paul is not hiding

the small print from Timothy?

Now what is it going to look like

for him to share in the suffering?

Well, do you see how Paul

gives him three pictures

of what this is going to look like

in these verses,

4, 5, and 6?

The soldier,

the athlete,

the farmer.

Now why does he use

those three illustrations?

What do each of them

have to tell and teach Timothy?

Well, let's look at them together.

Firstly, the soldier.

What does a soldier,

why does Paul commend the soldier?

For not getting entangled

in civilian affairs.

Now what is that speaking of?

Not getting distracted.

Not getting distracted.

A soldier,

he knows why he's there.

A soldier knows his job.

A soldier knows

who he's trying to please.

Let's think of the guards

that stand outside

Buckingham Palace

every moment of every day.

Have you ever seen those guys?

I mean, they are unflinching,

are they not?

The people come up to them

and try and take selfies with them.

They'll try and make them laugh.

And I've never seen

a soldier that's standing

outside Buckingham Palace laugh.

In fact, when I googled it before,

the first thing that came up

was soldier falls.

A soldier had,

they did the changing of the guard

and he'd fallen over.

And so this,

because this never ever happens,

this was big news.

The soldier had fallen and tripped.

It was all over the news

because it never happens.

Because these soldiers are dedicated

and they know what their job is.

Like the soldier, Timothy,

you need to not get distracted.

You need to keep your mind

on the reason why you're doing

what you're doing.

Let me ask you this evening,

are there things in your life

that are distracting you

from pursuing Jesus Christ?

Are there things in your life

that are drawing your attention

and your concentration

away from Him?

Like it just,

it can be so many good things,

can't it, in life?

Like a new house

or our hobbies

or our job

that just slowly

diverts our attention

from Jesus Christ.

See, that's the challenge, isn't it?

To never allow good things

to rise up

and become bigger than God.

There's the soldier,

but what about the athlete?

What is the thing about the athlete

that Paul draws

Timothy's attention to?

He competes

according to the rules.

Big point,

Timothy,

don't cheat.

Now why does Paul write that?

Why do you have to tell him

not to cheat?

Well, could it be

that Timothy is tempted

to cheat,

to take shortcuts

in his ministry,

to avoid those

awkward conversations

that need to be had,

to avoid

addressing the false teaching

that's making its way

into church,

or even could he

be tempted

to cheat

by subtly

changing the gospel message

to avoid conflict

and to avoid people

leaving the church?

Always the temptation,

isn't it,

to cheat,

to change the message.

Don't cheat, Timothy.

And what about the farmer?

Well, the farmer

is up early in the morning

sowing his seed.

Big point,

Timothy,

like the farmer,

work hard.

Work hard

and don't be lazy.

Why does the farmer

have a crop

at the end of the season?

Well, because he did

the hard work

of getting up

at 5 a.m.

to sow the seeds

every morning.

Why is Paul

saying this to Timothy?

Well,

it's the easy

and lazy thing

not to do

when things get hard

in the life

of the church.

Is it not easy

just to ignore things?

Or,

worst case scenario,

just to walk away?

Do you think that's what

Timothy's being faced with?

Investing in people?

Hard work.

Dealing with people?

Hard work.

Addressing false teaching?

Hard work.

Listening to people?

Hard work.

Visiting people?

Hard work.

Praying for people?

Hard work.

Putting Ephesus

Evangelical Church right?

Hard work.

Timothy,

don't get distracted.

Don't cut corners

and cheat.

Don't get lazy.

What's the big thing

that holds these three

images together?

The soldier,

the athlete,

the farmer.

What holds them together?

Pain now.

Glory later.

Pain now.

Glory later.

Time spent carrying out

your orders now,

being faithful

to your duties.

You get your well done

from your commander-in-chief

later.

Time sweating out

in the gym

or on the track,

building those muscles.

Pain now.

Gold medal later.

Time up early,

sowing in the field.

Hard work now,

harvest later.

Do you see what he's saying?

Pain now,

Timothy.

Pain now.

Glory later.

And what does Paul say

to Timothy,

verse 7?

He says,

reflect on these things.

Think about these things,

Timothy.

If you've got an ESV there,

that's what it says.

Think about these things.

These are the lessons

that I want you to

mull over,

Timothy.

Think over what I'm saying

to you.

Now,

why is Paul saying that?

Well,

could it be that Timothy

has stopped

stilling himself

before God?

That he's stopped

listening for God's voice?

Could it be that

Timothy has stopped

allowing the Holy Spirit

that God has put

to dwell in him,

convicting him

of things in his life

that he needs to change?

Could it be that

Timothy has stopped

opening the Scriptures

every day

and doing the hard work

of stilling himself

and thinking upon

what God is saying?

Is that some of us

this evening?

Are we neglecting

to listen to God's voice?

Are we resisting

the Holy Spirit

as he seeks to

shape our lives

more and more

into the image

of Jesus Christ?

And probably particularly

in terms of our

faithfulness to God

the Father

and our faithfulness

to the Gospel?

Some of us here

this evening,

do we need to seriously

think upon

these things?

Think over what I say,

Timothy.

Meditate on these things.

Pray over these things.

Go out

and look at these things

and study them.

Because God,

in his grace,

has stuff to teach us there.

Fifthly,

verse 8,

what does he write?

Timothy,

remember Jesus Christ.

Remember Jesus Christ.

What is it in particular

that Paul brings attention to?

The fact that Jesus Christ

is risen.

He's risen.

That is the realm

in which Timothy operates,

the risen Christ.

That is the thing

that's got to define

how Timothy lives his life.

That it's not just

any old captain

that Timothy serves.

His captain is the creator

and the sustainer

of the universe.

He is the judge of all

and he's the one

who has conquered death.

That is the captain

that he serves.

Has Timothy

maybe lost sight of that?

Jesus is risen

as God promised

in the scriptures

that God is faithful

in keeping his words.

Do you see how we're on

to the second section now?

If suffering is the big one

that he's got to have

in his mind,

right next to it

is the risen Christ.

And I wonder

if some of us

need to get

the person

of Jesus Christ

back to the forefront

of our minds

this evening.

That things may be hard

but we serve

our conquering king,

not an impotent king.

We worship

a living saviour.

We don't worship

a distant memory

from the past.

We have a brother

who walks beside us

and who is able

to sympathize with us

in our weaknesses.

Now how is that

going to make a difference

in Timothy's life?

Well the same way

that it transformed

and it shapes

Paul's life

day after day

it's going to mean

that he will endure everything.

Do you see how he writes that?

Endure everything.

Why is Paul in chains?

Because of his faith in Christ.

Why is Paul mocked?

Because of his faith in Christ.

Why is Paul suffering?

Because of his faith

in Christ.

And notice the link

that Paul makes.

Why does Paul do this?

Why does he do it?

Well a bound apostle,

a chained apostle,

means a free gospel.

Now the logic is

that if Paul,

he's saying if he did

the easy thing

and he didn't preach

the gospel,

he would be free.

Because no one would want

to arrest him

and put him in prison

for preaching something

that everyone wants to hear.

In fact he'd probably

have his own show

on the God TV channel.

Isn't he going to be free

because he's

not preaching

the full gospel?

But if he did that,

then the very message

that has the power

to save men and women

would be in chains

and would be unable

to move

because he would

robbing it

of its power.

Why does Paul

make himself vulnerable?

Well he makes himself

vulnerable because

he knows that the gospel

is the power

of God

unto salvation.

It's the consistent

shape of his life.

That's why Paul

does these things.

And that's what I love

about this man Paul.

That he may be

the most persecuted man

that I have ever read about.

Ever read about.

But he strikes me

as the most freest man

that's ever walked

the face of this planet.

Does he not?

To live is Christ

and to die is gain.

That's where I want to be.

It's where I want to be.

Oh to have that mindset

that I endure everything.

That everything

that life throws at me

for carrying this message.

I'm going to take it

on the chin

because I know

what is at stake.

And I know

what is ahead of me.

And particularly

I know who is beside me

and who is ahead of me.

And he is worth it.

And I endure everything

because I want others

to know that message too.

I want to play my part

in seeing men and women

from around this world

who God has elected

to come to himself.

To enter into the joy

of knowing Jesus Christ

and to one day

stand in eternity

with them

worshipping before the Lamb.

That's what I want to see.

Timothy, join me.

Endure everything.

And I think that's what's going on

in verses 11 to 13.

What does Paul write?

If we died with him,

Jesus Christ,

if we died with him,

we'll live with him.

If we endure,

we will reign with him.

If we disown him,

he will disown us.

It's a little line

from Paul probably

correcting Timothy

because that's the way

he's heading.

Paul wants him to know

about the stakes.

If we are faithless,

he remains faithful.

When we are up and down,

Timothy,

when we stumble,

when we fall,

when we know our flesh,

when we know our weakness,

remember that our God

does not change.

He does not change.

He's a God

full of steadfast love.

A loving Father

in whom there is

forgiveness aplenty

if we were to confess

and to turn to him.

He's a compassionate brother

who is right there

throughout all of this

with us.

Do you notice there

the tight-knit connection

that Paul makes

between the believer

and Jesus Christ?

He is right there

with his people.

Maybe that's a word

for some of us this evening.

Let that encourage us

that he knows

and he walks beside

with us

because we are in him.

No small print,

Timothy.

No small print,

no being around the bush.

Gospel ministry,

it is pain

and it is pain now.

It just is.

It's tough following

and standing for Jesus Christ.

But the truth of it is

that it is hard work now,

it is pain now,

but it is glory later.

Glory later.

You're one of my favorite

examples of someone

who didn't hide

the small print

in his advertising

was Ernest Shackleton.

Have you ever heard

the famous advert

that he placed

in the paper

trying to recruit men

for his upcoming

Arctic expedition?

And he puts the advert

in the paper

that reads this,

Men wanted for hazardous

journey,

low wages,

bitter cold,

long hours

of complete darkness.

Safe return,

doubtful,

but honor and recognition

in event of success.

Paul seems to be saying

something similar,

doesn't he,

to Timothy?

Pain now,

Timothy,

glory later.

Brothers and sisters,

let me leave you

with the big question

that Paul asks

of Timothy

in this section.

What about you then?

Are you prepared for it?

Are you up for it?

Are you willing

to follow Jesus Christ

wherever he may take you

and whatever comes at you?

Are you prepared

to do it?

Well, here's what

I want us to do

as we finish our time

together this evening

before we rush off

into the busyness

of another week.

Let's just take

a few minutes now

to do what Paul

instructs Timothy

in these verses

and to think

on these things.

So I found

in my preparation

there were

five big questions

that I was challenged on

as I prepared for it

and as I studied

this passage

and I've jotted them

down on the back

of the sheets

that you've got

you should have

in front of you there.

So what I invite you

to do just as we close

let's just take

a few minutes

and let's just

think about these things

and let's pray

about these things

and let's see

if God

has got stuff

that he still

wants to say

to us this evening

and then I'll close

in just a few minutes

time.

Let's pray.

Our loving Heavenly Father

we would thank you

for our time together

this evening

and we would ask

that you would

continue to help us

to think on these things

that we've seen

in your word

this evening.

We ask that you

would continue

to strengthen us

by the grace

that is in Jesus Christ.

Would you help us

to love you

and cherish you

above all things?

And this is our prayer

made through the precious

name of your Son

Jesus Christ.

Amen.