Jesus the Risen King

All right, well, we are back in 2 Timothy this morning

as we take time to open up God's Word together.

So if you have your Bible with you, you can open it up to 2 Timothy.

And without getting into all the details,

my preaching schedule for this book is all mixed up.

But it's because Charles and Fred have been gracious to preach in my place

a couple of Sundays so that I could focus on the annual conference

with the BGC in Calgary and on sorting stuff out with purchasing a home.

So we're just going to keep working our way through.

We're going to be in chapter 2, verse 8 to 10 this morning.

And as much as I would have liked to finish this book by the end of June,

we'll just save the last chapter for this fall when I return from sabbatical.

If there's one thing that I've learned in my years of being a Christian,

it's that rushing through the Word of God doesn't really help us very much.

So with that being said, let's pick Paul's words up here in 2 Timothy 2, verse 8.

2 Timothy 2:8

Paul writes,

Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David.

This is my gospel, for which I am suffering,

even to the point of being chained like a criminal.

But God's Word is not chained.

Therefore, I endure everything for the sake of the elect,

that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

There's only one imperative in these few verses.

One command.

What is it?

Remember.

Remember.

Remember Jesus Christ.

Why does the Apostle Paul even need to say this to Timothy?

The guy who has traveled all over the Mediterranean world with him,

countless miles, preaching about Jesus, planting churches.

Why does Paul even need to say this to Timothy?

He's being treated like a criminal.

Because it's all too easy to forget.

Remember Jesus Christ.

Now, I don't think Timothy's in danger of forgetting Jesus completely or outright.

But as we heard in verses 14 to 18,

it's all too easy to forget that Jesus is to be our main focus

and our main message and our main relationship.

It's all too easy to get off track,

to get distracted,

to get sidetracked into other ideas and teachings.

As Paul warned about in verses 14 to 18.

And so Paul doesn't hesitate,

even to this spiritual leader,

Timothy,

there in Ephesus,

to simply say to him,

remember Jesus Christ.

Paul's not saying this because Timothy has troubles remembering things,

but because Jesus is everything.

He's the most important person and reality.

And if we deviate from him,

if we get sidetracked into something or someone else,

we're missing it badly.

So remember Jesus Christ.

And Paul has really just two things to say about Jesus in this reminder.

Two things that he wants Timothy not to forget,

not to lose sight of.

First thing,

he was raised from the dead.

Remember Jesus Christ,

raised from the dead.

And second thing,

remember Jesus Christ,

descended from David,

that he is the Messiah,

descended from David.

But this is it,

he says.

This is my gospel.

The word gospel means good news.

This is my good news,

says Paul.

It's Jesus Christ,

raised from the dead,

descended from David.

Such a short statement of the gospel here.

And yet Paul says,

this is my message.

This news is why I'm suffering as I am.

Even to the point of being chained like a criminal.

Do you hear Paul's point here?

He's saying,

my life is on the line for this,

for Jesus,

the risen Christ.

Nothing matters more.

As we'll hear even more from Paul.

He's saying,

I would gladly die for this truth,

this news about Jesus.

And let's remember,

Paul,

he's in chains,

like a criminal,

but he hasn't done anything wrong.

He's suffering,

and it's because of his commitment to Jesus.

And to proclaiming the good news about Jesus.

Paul knows that Jesus is worth dying for.

And as we can see here,

he takes his faith in Jesus so seriously.

Do you?

Let's consider these two things about Jesus

that God wants to remind us of here.

First,

he calls Jesus Christ.

And says he is descended from David.

What's the significance of this?

The word Christ

comes from the Greek word Christos.

And it's the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word Messiah.

Which means anointed one.

Contrary to popular notion,

Christ is not Jesus' last name.

It's actually a title.

And Paul makes it very clear

that this is what he means

when he spells it out.

Referring to Jesus.

Remember Jesus.

Christ descended from David.

Descended from David.

Who is David?

About a thousand years before Jesus came,

David was the king of Israel.

When David was just a young man,

God sent the prophet Samuel

to anoint him,

to pour oil on his head.

And that anointing signified

that David was God's choice.

It wasn't any man or people

that chose David to be the king of Israel.

It was God himself.

Nobody even suspected that David would be chosen for king.

He was the shepherd boy in the family of Jesse,

the least of Jesse's sons.

And yet we read in 1 Samuel 16

about how God specifically chose David

and put his spirit upon him.

And it's a wonderful account

of what God did there

in the books of 1 and 2 Samuel.

David was opposed fiercely

by his father-in-law,

Saul, who had the throne at the time.

And Saul tried numerous times

to murder David,

but nothing could stand against

God's choice and God's plan.

And we read about how God intervened

in all kinds of ways

to protect David

and to end the rule of Saul

and to establish David

as king over all his people in Israel.

God described King David

as a man after his own heart.

It was David who wrote many of the psalms

that we have in the Old Testament,

the prayers and poems

and songs of worship we find there.

And God made a special covenant with David

a set of solemn promises.

And we read about this

in 1 Chronicles 17.

And I'm just going to read

a portion of Scripture from there.

I'm going to take us back

into the Old Testament a little bit.

And as I read this,

I want to encourage you

to think about David

and how these words apply to David.

But also, I want to encourage you

to think about how this relates to Jesus,

the descendant of David.

Reading from 1 Chronicles,

1 Chronicles 17 · chapter mention

chapter 17.

After David was settled in his palace,

he said to Nathan the prophet,

here I am living in a house of cedar

while the ark of the covenant of the Lord

is under a tent.

Nathan replied to David,

whatever you have in mind,

do it,

for God is with you.

But that night,

the word of God came to Nathan,

saying,

go and tell my servant David,

this is what the Lord says,

you are not the one

to build me a house

to dwell in.

I have not dwelt in a house

from the day I brought Israel

up out of Egypt to this day.

I have moved from one tent site

to another,

from one dwelling place

to another,

wherever I have moved

with all the Israelites.

Did I ever say to any of their leaders

whom I commanded

to shepherd my people,

why have you not built me

a house of cedar?

Now then,

tell my servant David,

this is what the Lord Almighty says,

I took you from the pasture,

from tending the flock,

and appointed you ruler

over my people Israel.

I have been with you

wherever you have gone,

and I have cut off

all your enemies

from before you.

Now I will make your name

like the names

of the greatest men

on earth,

and I will provide

a place

for my people Israel

and will plant them

so that they can have

a home of their own

and no longer be disturbed.

Wicked people

will not oppress them anymore

as they did

at the beginning

and have done

ever since the time

I appointed leaders

over my people Israel.

I will also subdue

all your enemies.

I declare to you

that the Lord

will build a house

for you.

When your days are over

and you go to be

with your ancestors,

I will raise up

your offspring

to succeed you.

And I will establish

his kingdom.

He is the one

who will build

a house for me,

and I will establish

his throne forever.

forever.

I will be his father

and he will be

my son.

I will never take

my love away from him

as I took it away

from your predecessor.

I will set him

over my house

and my kingdom

forever.

His throne

will be established

forever.

forever.

So what did God

promise to David

all those years ago?

Thousand years

before Christ came,

he promised to raise

up the offspring

of David

to succeed him

as king.

He promised to

establish the kingdom

of one of David's sons.

He promised to

establish the throne

of one of his sons

forever.

And he said

that he would be

the father of this

son of David

and that this

son of David

would be his son.

These are the promises

God made to king David

about a thousand years

before Jesus was born.

And there's a near

and a soon

fulfillment

to these promises

and there is a far

and distant future

fulfillment

to these promises.

Yes,

God was in these promises

referring to David's

immediate family.

One of your own sons

was fulfilled

in Solomon.

King Solomon.

He was the one

who built a house

for the Lord,

the great temple.

And so,

there was this near

and soon fulfillment.

But there is also

without a doubt

a far and distant

future fulfillment

to these promises.

Three times,

God used the word

forever

to refer to this kingdom.

The throne

that would

go on forever.

I will establish

his throne forever.

I will set him

over my house

and my kingdom

forever.

His throne

will be established

forever.

How can the throne

of Solomon

be established

forever

if Solomon

does not live

forever

but eventually

dies?

So,

even the way

that these

promises are phrased,

there's something

more being promised

than just one son

of David's

immediate family

to sit on the throne.

what's being promised

is an enduring

kingdom,

an everlasting

dynasty.

So,

how would God

keep this promise?

Well,

prior to the coming

of Jesus,

I mean,

we might have expected

that God

would keep this promise

just by ensuring

that in every generation

there is a descendant

of David

on the throne

of Israel.

and for many

centuries after

David,

King David,

there was.

But as we read

the Old Testament

history

and God's words

through the prophets,

we begin to see

glimpses of how

God intended

to keep this promise

that he made

to David

in a different way.

It starts to become

obvious when God

deliberately reduces

the once great

kingdom of David

and Solomon

by ten tribes

and then allows

the northern kingdom

to be conquered

and many of its

inhabitants to be

led away into exile

and then

even allows

the southern kingdom

to be conquered,

even Jerusalem

to be conquered

and its inhabitants

led away into

captivity

and its king

removed.

And if you read

through the prophets,

it's quite surprising.

Hundreds of years

before any of this

happened,

God was warning

the people,

he was telling

them,

I'm going to

bring disaster

if you keep

on this wicked

course that you're

on,

if you do not

repent and

humble yourselves.

And God even

spells out in many

of these passages

in the prophets

explicitly what

that disaster

would be.

He takes all

the credit

for dismantling

what remains

of the kingdom

of Israel

and yet at the

same time

we hear in the

prophets him

promising to

restore it

someday

and make it

the greatest

kingdom

that this

world has

ever seen.

And so this

is why a

thousand years

after David's

kingdom,

the Jewish

people of

Israel had

this expectation

and anticipation

of a coming

Messiah,

a great king

of God's

choosing,

whom God

would use to

establish the

kingdom again

and this time

permanently,

this time

forever.

We see this

anticipation and

expectation all

over the

gospel accounts

in the New

Testament.

We see it in

John chapter 4

John 4:25

verse 25 with

the woman at the

well.

I know that

Messiah is

coming, she

said.

He will explain

everything to us.

We see it when

she reports back

to the town,

her encounter

with Jesus.

Could this be

the Messiah?

We see it a

little later on

in the gospel

of John.

The people are

wondering,

they're asking

the question,

have the

authorities really

concluded that

he's the

Messiah?

When the

Messiah comes,

will he perform

more signs

than this man?

Some were

saying he is

the Messiah.

Others were

saying, well,

how can he

come from

Galilee?

They were

talking about

where he was

to come from.

Does not

the scripture

say that

the Messiah

will come

from David's

descendants and

from Bethlehem,

the town where

David lived?

Even Jesus'

opponents,

Jesus said,

they were

expecting the

Messiah.

They were

looking at

this promise.

He said,

why do the

teachers of

the law say

that the

Messiah is

the son of

David?

This was

what the

high priest

asked Jesus.

Are you

the Messiah,

the son of

the blessed

one?

looking back

on that

promise

made long

ago?

Even at

Jesus'

trial,

this was

at the

center.

He

opposes

payment of

taxes to

Caesar,

the religious

leader said,

and claims to

be Messiah.

And what's the

significance of

that?

A king.

And even as

Jesus hung on

the cross,

the people

jeered and

mocked.

He saved

others,

let him

save himself

if he's

God's

Messiah,

the chosen

one.

So there

was all

this

anticipation

and expectation

that a

Messiah was

coming,

a king of

God's choosing,

the great

king,

the one who

would rule

over this

kingdom

forever.

not only

do we see

the anticipation

though,

we see all

over the

gospel accounts

that Jesus

was and

is that

Messiah,

the king

of God's

choosing.

We see it

in the

genealogies

given in

the gospels

tracing Jesus'

ancestry back

to David.

We see it

confirmed in

the census

order that

moved Mary

and Joseph

forcing them

to go back

to Bethlehem

to the town

of David

to register

further proving

that Jesus

was descended

from David.

We see it

at the birth

announcements

of Christ

that were

made by

the angels.

The Lord

God will

give this

child the

throne of

his father

David

and he

will reign

over Jacob's

descendants

forever.

His kingdom

will never

end.

We see it

declared by

the demons

that Jesus

drove out

of people.

Jesus

rebuked the

demons

and wouldn't

allow them

to speak

because they

knew he

was the

Messiah.

This was

the message

that Jesus

declared right

from the

start.

The time

has come.

The kingdom

of God

has come

near.

Repent

and believe

the good

news.

And we

see it

declared on

the lips

of the

apostles

and disciples

who saw

the miracles

that Jesus

was doing

and believed.

We have

found the

Messiah

that is

the

Christ.

And so

this issue

of whether

Jesus

was the

Messiah,

whether he

was God's

chosen king

for Israel

is at the

very center

of all of

it.

It was at

the very

center of

what happened

during the

Passion

Week.

Remember how

Jesus rode

into Jerusalem

on a donkey

in fulfillment

of that

messianic

prophecy in

Zechariah

to shouts

of blessed

is the

king of

Israel?

and that

he was

claiming to

be the

Messiah

was the

accusation

being made

by the

religious

leaders

after his

arrest.

It was the

question

Pilate asked,

are you

the king

of the

Jews?

It was the

thing written

on the sign

over his

head on the

cross.

This is

Jesus,

the king

of the

Jews,

to which

the religious

leaders

took issue.

No,

write that

he only

claimed to

be the

king of

the Jews.

This was

even

symbolized

in the

crown of

thorns

that was

put on

his head

and the

purple robe

that they

gave him

to wear

as they

mocked him.

And that

Jesus was

the Messiah,

the Christ,

the son of

David,

was confirmed

three days

after he

died when

God raised

him back

to life

from the

dead.

It was

confirmed

again 40

days later

when God

took him

up to

heaven

right before

the eyes

of his

followers

to sit

on

heaven's

throne.

This

theme

of Jesus

as Christ,

as Messiah,

as king,

is one of the

central themes

of the entire

Bible.

You can trace

it right from

Genesis all

the way through

to Revelation.

God was

hinting at it.

He was

foretelling it.

He was making

promises about it.

He made a

covenant about it

for generations,

adding more

and more

details as

to what

this is

going to

add up

to and

look like.

And then

in the

New Testament

we read

of how

he began

fulfilling

it,

that the

first coming

of Jesus

2,000

years ago

in the

first century

and this

forever

kingdom

will reach

its ultimate

climax

when Jesus

the king

returns

to rule

and reign

right here

on earth

someday

in the

future.

It may

seem

like Paul

is not

saying a

whole lot

about Jesus

here

when he

says

remember

Jesus

Christ

descended

from David

but actually

he's saying

so much

about Jesus.

He's saying

yes,

he is the

king of

God's

choosing

not just

for Israel

but for

the whole

world

forever

he is

that

king

of

kings

the

forever

ruler

of

earth's

last

kingdom

the

kingdom

of

God

who

would

have

thought

that

God's

plan

was to

keep

this

millennia's

old

promise

made

to

David

not

by an

unbroken

succession

of

kings

but

by one

flesh

and

blood

descendant

of

David

who

was

God

himself

born

into

our

world

to

live

to

die

to

be

raised

to

life

and

as

both

God

and

man

to

live

forever

and

so

to

reign

forever

when

he

comes

back

sometimes

in the

church

we

neglect

this

part

of

the

gospel

you

know

the

atonement

part

the

part

about

Jesus

dying

on

the

cross

for

forgiveness

of

our

sins

it

makes

sense

to

us

we're

comfortable

with

that

Jesus

is

our

savior

it

makes

sense

but

Jesus

as

Christ

Jesus

is

king

as

our

messiah

of a

kingdom

that is

still

coming

this

can be

difficult

to relate

to in

our

modern

times

and in

our

different

culture

but

this

too

is

no

less

the

good

news

of

Jesus

than

the

part

about

our

forgiveness

remember

Jesus

Christ

raised

from

the

dead

descended

from

David

this

is

my

gospel

we're

not

called

to

follow

an

idea

or

just

some

historical

person

we're

called

to

believe

and

follow

and

pledge

allegiance

to

the

greatest

king

that

this

world

has

ever

seen

who

is

coming

back

soon

to

rule

and

to

reign

we're

called

to

follow

the

man

who

right

now

is

seated

on

heaven's

throne

at

the

right

hand

of

the

father

waiting

until

that

day

when

he

will

ride

down

as

king

and

take

up

his

seat

on

his

earthly

throne

and

show

this

world

what

real

righteous

leadership

and

government

looks

like

what

did

the

prophet

Isaiah

say

nearly

2,500

years

ago

Isaiah

Isaiah 9:6

9

verse

6

and

7

for

to

us

a

child

is

born

to

us

a

son

is

given

and

the

government

will

be

on

his

shoulders

and

he

will

be

called

wonderful

counselor

mighty

God

everlasting

father

prince

of

peace

of

the

greatness

of

his

government

and

peace

there

will

be

no

end

he

will

reign

on

David's

throne

and

over

his

kingdom

establishing

and

upholding

it

with

justice

and

righteousness

from

that

time

on

and

forever

the

zeal

of

the

Lord

almighty

will

accomplish

this

Jesus

is a

king

worth

living

for

and

as

we

hear

now

in

the

words

of

Paul

Jesus

is

a

king

worth

dying

for

let's

look

for

just a

moment

at

this

second

thing

that

Paul

says

about

Jesus

here

he

says

remember

Jesus

Christ

raised

from

the

dead

raised

from

the

dead

why

didn't

Paul

say

remember

Jesus

Christ

crucified

on

the

cross

in

fact

to

the

Corinthians

Paul

summed

up the

good

news

with

that

very

language

he

said

the

message

we

preach

is

Christ

crucified

but

here

in

Paul's

summary

of the

gospel

to

Timothy

there's

no mention

of the

cross

whatsoever

it's

Jesus

Christ

raised

from

the

dead

why

does

Paul

choose

to

so

emphasize

this

particular

gospel

truth

that

Jesus

rose

from

the

dead

in

this

letter

and

I

think

it

has

everything

to

do

with

Paul's

situation

right

now

he's

at the

end

he's

on

death

row

he is

soon

to

die

and so

what's

the

remedy

to

that

it's

the

resurrection

of

Jesus

from

the

dead

it's

Jesus

promise

to give

eternal

life

in the

same

manner

to all

who believe

in his

name

the

resurrection

of

Jesus

has

become

exceedingly

precious

to

Paul

because

it

is

the

guarantee

that

Jesus

who

promised

this

everlasting

life

this

resurrection

to his

followers

can actually

deliver it

and

without

the

resurrection

of

Jesus

I

mean

what

kind

of

kingdom

would

this

be

the

promise

of the

forever

kingdom

and all

its

goodness

and all

of its

blessings

rests

on the

shoulders

of the

forever

king

who

defeated

death

and rose

to life

and will

ever

live

to reign

over

this

kingdom

of

God

and so

these

are the

two

precious

realities

of the

gospel

that Paul

wants to

remind

Timothy

of

near the

end

of his

life

Jesus

conquered

death

he is

the

long

awaited

king

of

God's

choosing

to

fulfill

all the

good

promises

God

has

made

this

is

why

I'm

suffering

as

I

am

even

to

the

point

of

being

chained

like

a

criminal

but

God's

word

is

not

chained

he

says

they

may

be

able

to

tie

me

down

and

restrain

me

but

they

can't

restrain

the

gospel

message

about

Jesus

our

Lord

it's

going

to

spread

and

it

cannot

be

stopped

verse

10

therefore

I

endure

everything

for the

sake

of

the

elect

that

they

too

may

obtain

the

salvation

that

is

in

Christ

Jesus

with

eternal

glory

why

is

Paul

willing

to

suffer

like

he

is

and

even

die

because

through

his

preaching

the

gospel

the

people

that

God

has

chosen

will

obtain

salvation

with

eternal

glory

just

like

with

Jesus

himself

a

willingness

to

be

condemned

in

the

courts

of

man

and

die

will

bring

about

the

eternal

salvation

and

glory

of

those

who

believe

it's

like

Paul's

life

is

following

the

same

pattern

as

Jesus

by

refusing

to

be

silent

by

continuing

to

preach

this

message

of

Jesus

the

Christ

the

people

whom

God

has

chosen

will

be

saved

forever

and

though

Paul

suffers

now

and

dies

soon

after

writing

this

letter

those

who

hear

the

gospel

and

believe

it

will

be

saved

forever

they'll

come

to

enjoy

life

and

glory

with

all

the

others

whom

God

has

chosen

for

himself

it's

just

like

he's

doing

a

bit

of

a

calculation

here

like

my

temporary

suffering

my

momentary

death

because

of

my

preaching

the

gospel

of

Jesus

will

result

in

eternal

salvation

and

glorious

life

for those

who

hear

and

believe

those

whom

God

has

chosen

and

that's

a

pretty

good

trade

people

have

us

that

we don't

know

exactly

who

the

chosen

are

only

God

knows

that

but

do

we

know

that

God

intends

to

use

us

to

bring

those

he's

chosen

to

salvation

and

eternal

life

sometimes

as we

think of

these

kinds

of

conversations

with

people

I

think

we

get

stuck

wondering

what

might

I

lose

if I speak up?

If I speak about Jesus,

if I take the risk

and talk to them about spiritual things,

what might I lose?

But I pray that God would use these words

to help us think differently.

Not what might we lose,

but what might they gain

if I take up the name of Jesus,

if I speak up,

if I take a risk,

if I tell them this hope that I have.

And isn't that worth

whatever scorn or insult

or ridicule or mistreatment

may come my way?

Of course, not everyone we share with

will believe,

but some will.

And that's a difference of eternity

for that person.

And so let us not get distracted

or sidetracked

as we've been talking about this morning.

Let's not get caught up,

so caught up in the things of this world.

Remember Jesus,

the risen King,

may this be our gospel

for which we live

and if it comes to it,