Fan the Flame

Did you do anything to prepare for the Arctic blast we got in the middle of last week?

Well, I heard the weather forecast and I lift the pilot light in my gas logs.

And on Tuesday night and Wednesday night, I fired them up.

I enjoyed the warmth.

I enjoyed seeing the fire burn.

Well, I've been thinking about a different kind of fire ever since our men's ministry dinner, supper, whatever it was that Rick cooked.

He did a good job, by the way, last Tuesday night.

Boy Scout brought a great message on the importance of every Christian,

making sure we keep the spiritual fire burning brightly in our lives every day.

He was talking about maintaining a close relationship with Christ in terms of a spiritual fire.

Well, that got my attention.

It really did.

I have thought about the kind of spiritual fire that is really burning in my life right now.

And I've thought about what kind of spiritual fire is burning in the lives of our church family.

It really got my attention.

I've thought about it off and on some this week.

You know, if we are Christians, when we were saved, here's what happened.

God did a supernatural work called regeneration or the new birth.

He gave us the desire to acknowledge our sin and separation from God, to turn from our sin, change our mind about the way we're living, repent.

He caused the light to come on.

I'm talking about He enabled us to see by faith that Jesus Christ is His Son.

And He came into this world to die on a cross as our substitute, pay the penalty for our sins.

When God saves us, He does this work in us to give us such a desire to turn from our sin, to trust Jesus.

He puts His Spirit in us when He does this, to live with us forever.

Every Christian is indwelled by the Holy Spirit.

Now one way to describe this, this work of God when He saves us, is that God's lit a spiritual fire in our soul.

Now, if you are a Christian, you know what I'm talking about.

You may not have ever thought about it exactly this way.

But if you're a Christian, you know that whenever it was God saved you, He did a work in your soul, heart, life, however you want to describe it.

He lit a spiritual fire.

Now, nobody in this room is going to pretend that there's always been a burning, bright, warm spiritual fire in our lives.

So let's just all be honest.

If you're a Christian, is the spiritual fire within you right now more like a pilot light?

A pilot light in my gas logs.

When it's lit, there is fire.

But you've got to go over to the fireplace.

You've got to look down and see that little bitty flame.

And there may be some Christians in this room.

You know that the Spirit of God lives within you.

You know you're a follower of Jesus.

But for whatever reason, the fire is burning very, very dimly right now.

Or would you say that by the grace of God, the fire in you right now, spiritually speaking, is a roaring blaze?

People who know you, they see the Lord in you.

They even feel the warmth of His love when they're around you.

That may be some people's experience right now.

And you thank God if it is.

Or it could be that right now, you're not really a pilot light, but you're not a blazing fire either.

You're somewhere in between.

Well, this message this morning is designed just like that message on Tuesday night.

To cause us all to think about what kind of fire is burning right now.

And to help us do that, I want you to turn to 2 Timothy chapter 1.

2 Timothy 1 · chapter mention

2 Timothy chapter 1.

2 Timothy 1 · chapter mention

And what we're going to do is look at how the Apostle Paul had to encourage Timothy,

a dedicated, committed Christian,

leader.

But Paul had to encourage him

at times

to fan

the fire,

fan the flame that was in him

because it wasn't burning bright enough.

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1.

Let me say this.

I'm interrupting the series

on our stewardship

of time now.

We're talking about our stewardship

in life of our time, talents, and treasures.

Last week, we began the part about time.

We're going to continue it next week, Lord willing.

This week, today,

I want us to think about

the spiritual fire

if

it is burning

and how brightly it's burning in our lives.

2 Timothy 1, beginning in verse 3.

Paul is writing

to Timothy.

This is a letter from Paul to Timothy.

I thank God whom I serve,

as did my ancestors,

with a clear conscience,

as I remember you constantly

in my prayers night and day,

and as I remember your tears.

I long to see you

that I may be filled with joy.

I am reminded of your sincere faith,

a faith that dwelt first

in your grandmother Lois

and your mother Eunice,

and now I am sure.

He's talking about I'm confident.

Not a guess,

but I'm confident

dwells in you as well.

For this reason,

I remind you

to fan into flame

the gift of God

which is in you

through the laying on of my hands,

for God gave us

a spirit not of fear,

but of power

and love

and self-control.

Does the fire

of Christian faithfulness

need to be fanned

into a flame

in your life

right now?

Think about it.

Sometimes,

in all of our lives

as Christians,

sometimes the fire

is low.

Maybe the flicker

of a pilot light.

Sometimes,

the light is just not,

the fire is not

what we know

it ought to be,

what it has been

in the past,

what we want it to be today.

And so,

even in faithful Christians,

sometimes we need

to fan the fire,

fan the flame.

That was true

about Timothy.

Paul met Timothy

on his second mission trip.

It's recorded

in Acts chapter 16.

Acts 16 · chapter mention

We see from

the New Testament record

in Acts

and in some of Paul's letters

that they had

a very close relationship.

Paul considered him

to be like

a spiritual son.

Paul was Timothy's mentor.

And Paul had

a lot of confidence

in Timothy.

He sent Timothy

sometimes to be

his representative

to another church.

He had confidence

in Timothy's ability

to be a faithful

Christian leader.

He even gave him

the responsibility

of leading the church

at Ephesus

and dealing

with some hard issues

for a period of time.

Both 1 and 2 Timothy

in the New Testament,

two letters,

1 Timothy,

2 Timothy.

Both were written

to this young man

when he was still

at Ephesus

leading the church

there.

Timothy was not

nearly as strong

a leader

as the Apostle Paul was.

Paul knew it

and he knew him well.

That's no knock

on Timothy.

It's just who he was.

And so sometimes

as you read

through these letters,

sometimes you see

Paul having to

encourage Timothy.

Sometimes he's

having to

prod him along.

Sometimes he just

basically giving him

a list of instructions.

Sometimes Timothy

had to be told,

remain faithful,

be strong,

hang in there,

fulfill your

responsibilities.

If you have any doubts,

read 1 and 2 Timothy.

You see this.

And now what we're

looking at this morning

specifically,

verse 6,

for this reason,

I remind you

to fan

into flame

the gift

of God.

Now,

if Paul

had to say

that to Timothy,

being the man

that he was,

mentored,

trained,

equipped

by Paul,

how much more

do we need

to hear that

at times?

And this may be

the very time

that you need

to hear this

as well.

But,

before we go

any further,

why would Timothy

need to hear this?

Why?

Why do we

let the fire

that God lights

in us

as a Christian,

that sometimes

blazes brightly,

why do we

let it go out?

Why does it

get dim

at times?

Well,

no doubt

there's a lot

of reasons

and if the fire,

the spiritual fire

of faithfulness

is not,

you know,

blazing up

in your life

right now,

you think to yourself,

why?

What are some reasons?

Identify the reasons,

that's important

before you can

find the solution.

For some people

it may just be

the busyness of life.

You may not have

really thought about it

right now,

but you're just

so pulled

in different directions.

So many demands

on your time,

you never intended

for it to be,

but when you're

confronted with this

question this morning

about the fire,

the spiritual fire

of commitment

in your life,

you know,

you have to admit,

it is not nearly

as glowing

as it used to be.

A lot of different reasons,

but there's two

in Timothy's life

that we see in Scripture

and so that's where

I want us to focus

our attention this morning.

Number one,

he had some physical problems.

Timothy dealt

with physical illnesses

at times

and Paul instructs him

on how to deal with it

in 1 Timothy chapter 5.

1 Timothy 5 · chapter mention

He says,

no longer drink

only water,

but use a little wine

for the sake

of your stomach

and your frequent ailments.

Now Paul's not encouraging him

to go out

and become an alcoholic.

He is saying,

use wine

for the sake

of your stomach

and your frequent ailments.

Paul knew Timothy.

He knew that he had

stomach problems

that evidently

caused him

not to be able

to function

or function well

at times.

And so,

here's the solution.

You got a problem?

There is a legitimate,

helpful way

to take care of it.

Paul's saying,

do it.

We don't know

why he stopped,

but Paul's telling him now,

take care of yourself.

Do what you need to do

to be in better

physical condition.

Now,

before we go any further,

I want to say something

to make this real clear.

I know

that people have

physical illnesses,

problems,

problems that prevent

them from doing

a lot of things

they would like to do.

There may be times

in your life

when there is a physical

issue going on

and you just cannot

do what you want

to do,

what you've committed

to do,

and it's legitimate.

So,

I'm not trying to inflict

guilt on someone

who has this kind

of problem.

But some problems,

some issues

that we deal with,

they just make us

feel bad.

They may

cause some pain.

They may

make us a little bit

weak.

But the truth is,

we can deal with it.

Truth is,

there's a lot of things

that happen to us

in life,

we just gotta learn

to suck it up and go.

That is,

what can be sucked up

and gone with?

We live today

in a very soft world.

You don't have to tell

many people

to take care of themselves.

They go overboard

in taking care of themselves.

But in a day gone by,

more people,

Christians and otherwise,

just had the mentality,

you do what you can do,

even if it is

in the midst of difficulty.

One of those men

was John Calvin.

One of the most

influential Christians

who has ever lived

was John Calvin.

Most people in this room,

you're familiar

with the Protestant Reformation.

One of the most

important events,

God breaking into history

in the history

of the world.

The two most well-known

and leading reformers

were Martin Luther

and John Calvin.

Calvin lived a very

productive life.

He wrote many books

on the Christian life,

on theology,

the deep things of God.

He wrote a commentary

on just about every book

of the Bible.

Not all,

but just about every book

of the Bible.

He preached numerous times,

most weeks,

and multiple times

on Sundays.

He corresponded widely

with people.

One of his greatest influences

was through his written correspondence.

He was also very involved

as a civic leader

in the city of Geneva.

Calvin did more

than anyone I've ever known.

Accomplished more

than anyone I've ever known.

I want you to look

at how he did all this

in the midst of dealing

with multiple illnesses.

Look at this.

He was plagued

with constant headaches

which hardly ever left him.

The pain was so intense

that many nights

he could not sleep.

He also had some kind

of disease of the trachea

which,

when he spoke too much,

caused him to spit blood.

Several attacks of pleurisy

prepared the way

for consumption

of which he finally died.

He had acute hemorrhoids,

the pain of which

was unbearably increased

by an internal abscess

that would not heal.

He had gallstones

and kidney stones

in addition to stomach cramps

and wicked intestinal influenzas.

To top it all off,

he had acute arthritis.

In one of his letters

to a friend,

he said,

if only my condition

were not a constant

death struggle.

Now,

what I've just read

about Calvin

is widely known

by people

who read him,

historians.

I read where

some people said

that Calvin was,

he was sometimes

hard to deal with.

He was irritable a lot.

Wouldn't you?

But Calvin

was used by God

in a tremendous way.

But all that he did,

he worked through pain,

discomfort,

dealing with multiple

physical issues.

He left a lasting mark

on the Christian church

in the midst of all this

and in a relatively short life

of 54 years.

It's hard to find

someone like that today,

isn't it?

We live in a world

where people are soft

and they use

the least little problem

as an excuse

to avoid fulfilling

their responsibilities,

to avoid work,

to avoid fulfilling

their commitments

to friends,

to family,

in the church.

Now again,

I want to emphasize,

some people are truly

disabled

and unable

to live

a physically demanding

life.

And if that's you

at times,

don't feel guilty.

Don't feel guilty

for what you cannot help

and it's serious.

It prevents you

from doing things

you really want to do,

fun things,

as well as things

you might not want to do

that are more

of a responsibility.

But many people

are too quick

today

to give in

to physical problems

and to refuse

to just work through

minor pain

and discomfort.

What we all need

to understand,

God calls us

to serve Him

with the gifts,

talents,

and abilities

that He gives us

both in the world

and in the church

and God's call

is not limited

to just serving Him

on the days

when we feel great.

God's call

is not limited

to just the times

when everything's

going our way

and we have no aches

and pains

or things like that.

God calls us

to be faithful,

for you to be

a faithful husband,

father,

wife,

mother,

child,

student,

worker,

worker in this church.

Even on the days

that you don't feel

real good,

on the days

that you'd rather

just be sort of

taking it easy,

sitting back

in your easy chair.

God calls us

to be faithful

to Him,

to the responsibilities

of life

that He has given us

and sometimes

that means

we've got to deal with

and work through

some pain

and discomfort.

You know,

sometimes God

uses us

specifically

our weaknesses

instead of our strengths.

That's what Calvin

discovered in his life.

You know,

you might think,

well,

what could Calvin

have accomplished

if he'd have been well?

he may not have

accomplished half

as much as he did

because God

used him

in those kind

of situations

the way it did.

That's what the

Apostle Paul learned.

Calvin,

no doubt,

took comfort

from what Paul said

in 2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12.

See,

Paul had some kind

of problem

called what he called

his thorn in his flesh.

Some people think

he may have been

poor eyesight.

Some people think

he may have battled

malaria off and on

throughout his ministry,

throughout his life.

Well,

Paul understood

his weaknesses,

that thorn in the flesh,

and I want you to look

what he did

in relation to God

about it.

He says,

three times I pleaded

with the Lord

to take it away from me.

But he said to me,

my grace is sufficient

for you,

for my power

is made perfect

in weakness.

God chose

for Paul

to have to deal

with whatever

that thorn was,

and God

was going to use him

in that particular

weak situation

for greater glory,

for greater good.

Paul's life

was not one

of fun

and feel good,

but God gave him

the grace

to work through

the pain,

the suffering,

and be the effective

man of God,

servant of God,

writer of Scripture,

missionary evangelist

that he was.

I want to emphasize

here to today's parents,

grandparents,

teachers,

influencers,

influencers of children.

Children need to learn

that just feeling bad

is not an excuse

to stay home

from school

or church

or not fulfill

your responsibilities.

If I make somebody mad,

so be it.

don't allow

your child

to be weak

because you are weak

and you teach them

to be weak

and just give in

to any minor ache

or pain

or not feel good

or somebody hurt

their feelings

and things along

this matter.

don't allow

your child

to use such

excuses

to be lazy

and or

irresponsible

which a lot

of people

will

both children

and adults.

The best way

to teach

your children

this is by

example,

by you being

this way.

When I was

growing up,

my mother

at times

had extreme

migraine headaches.

But I can probably

count on one hand

the number of times

she actually

went into bed,

went to bed,

got the room

real dark

and only came out

to go to the bathroom

to throw up.

She battled

those headaches

for years.

Got up every

morning and went

to J.P.

Stevens Clemson's

textile plant

and worked

all day,

every day.

Came home

and worked.

That was the

model,

example,

she set for me.

And I can remember

one time as a kid

saying something

to her about,

I don't feel good,

mama.

I don't want

to go to school

today.

And I can remember

it very well.

She told me

there's a lot of days

I don't feel like

going to work.

There's a lot of days

you're not going to

feel like doing

a lot of things

but you just got

to do it.

My mother was

a fine Christian

woman,

hard worker

and she was

sympathetic

occasionally

when you really

needed sympathy,

seriously.

but she saw

through the

scams,

the whining,

the being

weak.

She just

basically told you

suck it up and

go bud

and that's what

you need to do

as a parent,

as a grandparent,

as a teacher.

Oh,

I know you'll

get into it

today because

of these weak

parents that

don't support you

as you're trying

to help their

children.

Our hats ought to

go off to every

teacher in this

building right now

because of all the

junk they have to

put up with

from parents

who don't truly

know their child

and love their

child and be

willing to do

whatever it takes

for their child

to be their best,

Christian or not.

But we as

Christians,

we need to set

the bar high

on what we are.

We don't just

give in to

little weaknesses,

but we truly

seek to be

faithful to the

Lord, feel like

it or not, and

not let the fire

grow out just

because we're

lazy, don't feel

good, have a

little ache and

pain here or

there.

Paul told

Timothy to deal

with his

treatable physical

problems and not

let it keep him

from being faithful

to God's call on

his life.

That wasn't

Timothy's only

problem.

He was timid,

shy, whatever

you want to call

it.

So we're going

to look at this

under the category

of personality,

psychological,

emotional issues.

And again, let me

say, I know there

are psychological

serious issues,

mental illnesses.

We're not talking

about that in this

point.

Timothy was shy

or timid.

Look in 2 Timothy

1, 7.

For God, he's

telling him, fan the

flame.

For God gave us a

spirit not of fear,

but of power and

love and self

control.

Paul says things

throughout this

letter to encourage

Timothy, assert

yourself, boy.

Be a man.

Be a leader.

Stand up.

Speak up.

Confront some

people.

Don't just let

everything go.

There's false

teachers who are

going to destroy

the church.

They're going to

destroy the gospel

among these people

if you let them.

And Paul was

having to tell him,

you be assertive.

Don't let that

happen.

Paul even pointed

this out to the

church at Corinth

and asked them to

take care of

Timothy.

I want you to look

at this.

I want you to think

about what this is

saying.

Paul is writing to

a church and he

says, when Timothy

comes, see that you

put him at ease

among you.

Maybe they were just

mean people.

Or maybe Timothy

was so shy that he

was easily

intimidated.

For he is doing

the work of the

Lord as I am.

So let no one

despise him.

Help him on his

way in peace that he

may return to me for

I am expecting him

with the brothers.

Timothy was not a

natural born leader.

That's why Paul had

to go to bat for

him, encourage him,

prod him like he

did.

Evidently, Timothy

did not like being

out front.

Taking on the

responsibility as a

church leader to

confront and

correct people and

issues.

But God called him

to do that as a

church leader.

And Paul had

mentored him and

prepared him and

sent him to this

particular church or

group of churches in

Ephesus to do this.

The point needs to be

made here that God

calls us to step out

of our comfort zones at

times.

I'm talking about in

terms of our

personality.

He calls us to not

give in to some

personality or

psychological,

emotional weaknesses

that we would cause us

to naturally want to

sort of stand back.

not do what we're

supposed to do.

You know, the most

well-known and

respected and

influential preacher of

the 19th century was

Charles Spurgeon.

He accomplished a lot

like Calvin through his

preaching, his writing,

starting in school,

orphanage, lots of

things.

You know, he battled

depression throughout his

ministry.

He was sometimes so

depressed.

He was bedridden and

unable to preach.

There were times,

periods where he just

couldn't get up and go

for two out of the four

Sundays of a month.

He described the effect of

depression that it had on

him like this.

My spirits were sunken so

low that I could weep by the

hour like a child, and yet I

knew not what I wept for.

I want you to understand

what I'm saying here.

Depression can be real.

It can be devastating.

This man that God used in a

great way who did not want,

he wasn't looking for an

excuse not to do what he

was called to do.

There were times he was

overwhelmed with depression

and he could not function.

And what compounded his

depression sometimes, some of

his biographers say, is he

felt guilty for it.

He battled real, what would

be called today, clinical

depression.

That if he had been in our

day, he'd have been treated

with medication and other

ways for that.

That's one of the reasons why

I'm pointing it out.

He had some real problems.

And it knocked him down at

times.

But by the grace of God, he

never gave into it.

He never gave up.

He was knocked down at times,

but by the grace of God, he

didn't stay down.

He came back time after time

after time.

It was a battle, don't

misunderstand.

A battle throughout his life.

But he wouldn't give up.

He refused to give up.

Don't ever count yourself out

because of your limitations.

God uses imperfect

people.

God uses all kinds of people

to accomplish his purpose in

this world and in our church.

And I want to, again, stress

this to parents.

Don't let your children use

excuses like, I'm too shy.

I get nervous in front of

people.

Or I just want to stay at home

all the time.

Don't let your children

retreat into a world of

unreality by playing video

games all the time or spending

hours a day on social media.

Such unreality will not help

them.

But it will certainly hurt

them.

It will damage them.

Your child, your grandchild,

your, the children you have

influence over, they need to

learn to develop healthy social

skills and where possible

develop a healthy, active body.

And they cannot do that inside

all the time with their face

buried in an iPhone, an iPad,

a computer, or some other

electronic gadget.

And I want to say this and

make people even more mad.

If you're a parent, you are in

or supposed to be in control.

And you can take things.

You pay for it, it's yours.

It ain't theirs.

We got too many weak kids today

because we have too many weak

parents.

You don't have, if you were a

parent, your goal was not to be

their buddy.

Sometimes you're going to be in

their eyes so mean, you're like

the devil himself.

I don't mind the fact that I

sprouted horns a lot with my

boys.

When they needed it.

There are some hills worth

spilling blood on.

I spill too much blood on too

many unnecessary hills.

But there are some that it's

worth the fight for your child's

spiritual, emotional, physical

well-being.

So I want to encourage you, do

what it takes.

Don't bail them out every time

they get in trouble.

Be the parent.

Be the one in charge.

Whatever it is, however you can

have the influence that you can

have.

Some Christians allow the

spiritual fire of Christian

faithfulness to die down because

of their unwillingness to get out

of their comfort zone.

And they use personality,

emotional, psychological issues

as excuses not to be faithful.

What does your spiritual fire

look like right now?

Is it a pilot light?

Or is it a roaring fire?

Or where is it in between?

One more question.

Will you ask God to help you to

fan your fire of Christian

faithfulness into a flame right

now?

Paul pointed out the key to

fanning the flame into a real

fire in verse 7.

He says,

For God gave us a spirit not of

fear but of power and love and

self-control.

Timothy had God-given power.

The word spirit there, look on

the screen there.

It's a little s.

It may be a general reference to

what God does in us to strengthen

us, our spirit.

I think it's more likely Paul's

talking about the Holy Spirit there

and that it should be translated

with a capital S that for God gave

us his spirit who indwells us as

Christians and his spirit is not a

spirit of fear but he is a spirit of

power and love and self-control and

will work that in and through us.

The truth is whatever our gifts are,

God supplies us with the power and

ability to use them.

Look at this verse.

One of my favorite verses in all the

Bible, for it is God who works in you

both to will and to work for his good

pleasure.

If you're a Christian, there is a fire

within you.

Whether it be bright or not, there is a

fire in you.

That's the spirit of God working in you

and he is the one who gives you the

desire to be pleasing to God, to do

God's will and gives you the ability

to do it.

When we use our gifts in the power of

the Holy Spirit, we will not be

crippled by fear.

Paul says we'll serve God with power,

love and control.

I want to wind this up by something

Tommy Lee, professor at Southwestern

Seminary when I was there years ago.

He does a good job of describing what

it means for Christians to fan the

fire of Christian faithfulness to a

flame.

Look at it.

Because Timothy had genuine faith,

Paul urged him to set it ablaze.

The expression fan into flame describes

the act of rekindling the embers of a

dying fire.

The command does not imply that Timothy

had let his spiritual flame go out.

It's an appeal for a continual, vigorous

use of his spiritual gifts.

Rekindling his gifts would involve

fervent prayer, obedience to God's word,

and demonstration of an active faith.

If your spiritual fire is not a roaring

blaze right now, I want to encourage you

to go to God in prayer, spend time with

him and his word on a regular basis and

just ask him, fan the flame.

It'll never happen if you don't spend time

regularly, daily with the Lord in meaningful

prayer, just talking to God, reading his word,

listening to him.

I want to encourage you also to find a

Christian friend to talk about the things

of God with.

Pray for each other.

Encourage each other.

Challenge each other.

Find a friend.

Make a new friend to do this with.

It could be you do it with your spouse.

It could be you do it with an older child.

Your parent.

Find somebody.

And then start using what God's given you.

Your talents, your gifts, your abilities.

In some kind of ministry that will truly honor

God and help us as his church to serve his

purpose.

Ask God to help you know what you need to do to

fan the flame of Christian faithfulness now so that it

will burn more brightly this coming week.

Let's pray together.

Father, show us now how we should respond.

Help us to see, to be certain, and then to respond that way.

Father, if there are people in this room who there is no fire

within them because they do not know you, they don't have a

relationship with Jesus, help them to see that clearly, but to

know if they will admit their need, turn from their sin and trust

Jesus, call upon him to save them, that you will light the fire

right now.

You will change their life.

Help them to do that.

Let's just all, in an attitude of prayer, listen to the Lord and

respond to him however he's speaking to you.

If I could pray with you here at the front, I'd be happy to do

that during these next few minutes.

Let's just respond to the Lord.

Thank you.