A Good News Worth Suffering For

All right, well, as we go to the Word this morning, I want to begin with a question for you.

Have you ever had anyone treat you poorly because of your faith in Jesus, specifically?

Have you ever had anyone treat you poorly because of your faith in Jesus?

You know, I was thinking about that this week, and thankfully in my life, I can really only remember a few people

who have treated me poorly because of my faith in Jesus.

The one that stands out the most to me was a co-worker named Harley.

And when I used to work as a courier for FedEx, he and I would stand across from each other.

We had the conveyor belt going right down the middle, the parcels coming down the line.

We had our trucks behind us. We were loading our trucks.

And we'd often talk to each other about all sorts of things each day.

And I prayed for opportunities to share my faith with him.

And on several occasions, I had the chance.

And Harley mocked me.

He laughed at me.

He tried to get all the co-workers that were standing around to just laugh at me.

And it was hard.

Have you ever had anyone treat you poorly because of your faith in Jesus?

Well, this morning as we look into the Word of God, we're going to hear the words of a man who was treated far worse, terribly,

because of his faith in Jesus.

And we're going to hear what he would say to anyone who is perhaps fearful of bearing the scorn and ridicule

and sometimes even suffering that sometimes comes with being a Christian.

We're looking at the words of the Apostle Paul in his second letter to the younger Timothy.

And I'm going to read the passage for us and then we'll examine it together.

We're in 2 Timothy, chapter 1.

2 Timothy 1 · chapter mention

And we're going to start here in verse 6.

Paul says this to Timothy.

He says,

Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel

by the power of God.

He has saved us and called us to a holy life,

not because of anything we have done,

but because of his own purpose and grace.

This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,

but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior,

Christ Jesus,

who has destroyed death

and has brought life and immortality to light

through the gospel.

And of this gospel,

I was appointed a herald

and an apostle

and a teacher.

That is why I am suffering

as I am.

Yet this is no cause for shame

because I know

whom I have believed

and I am convinced

that he is able to guard

what I have entrusted to him

until that day.

So our passage for this morning

has three parts to it.

That first part is in verses 6 to 8

and Paul is just encouraging.

He's exhorting Timothy.

Then in verses 9 to 11,

Paul reminds Timothy

of the gospel.

And then finally,

he puts himself forward in verse 12

as an example

to follow

for Timothy.

Let's look at these in order,

starting with the first part.

Paul says,

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.

Let's look at that word,

fan into flame.

What does it mean

to fan into flame?

In the original language,

this phrase is just one word

and it means

to rekindle.

And this idea

of kindling a fire

is almost foreign to us today

in our electrified society.

But once upon a time,

2,000 years ago,

when this was written,

there was no electricity.

Kindling a fire

was an everyday thing

for cooking

and heating

and I was reminded

a couple Thursdays ago

about how foreign

this idea

has become to us

because we had

half a dozen youth boys

over at the fire pit

just across the street there

on Thursday night

and they were all

rather clueless

as to why the fire

that was lit

just kept going out.

And they were even more surprised

to see me blowing on it

and fanning it

with a piece of paper.

Like,

don't do that.

You're going to blow it out.

Those of you

who have experience

with camping

and fire making

know that to get

a fire blazing

it requires three things.

It requires heat.

It requires fuel,

which in our case

was wood,

not diesel.

I'm looking at the Schmitz.

And it requires oxygen.

And so you've got to blow.

You've got to fan

on that flame.

Not too hard,

but hard enough

so that those

smoldering embers

begin to burn

if it's already gone out

or so that

that fire really takes.

Especially if you're

making the fire down

in a pit

that's got no air holes,

which is what

we were doing.

So this is the metaphor

that Paul is using here.

He's saying,

rekindle.

Get the fire going

again.

Again.

And specifically,

get the fire going again

when it comes to the gift

of God

that is in you,

Timothy.

So what's this all about?

Well,

Timothy has

a gift

from God.

And I don't want to

read into this too much,

but perhaps

Timothy

has

or at least

he's tempted

to let his gift

go

unused

or sort of

just kind of

die down

to a smoldering

ember.

Now,

what is this gift?

Well,

we actually don't know

precisely what

this gift is

that Paul's referring

to here.

We know

it's the gift

of God,

meaning probably

from God.

And we know

that Timothy

received it from God

through the laying

on of hands

by the Apostle Paul.

Now,

some people suggest

here that the gift

of God is really

the Holy Spirit

himself.

and

I think

this is a little

bit unlikely.

It doesn't really

make sense

to tell Timothy

to rekindle

the Holy Spirit.

Most likely,

this gift

refers to some

special

ability

that God

had given

Timothy

likely to do

with all

the things,

the imperatives

that he gives

in these letters

related to

preaching

or teaching

or shepherding

or leading

the local

flock there

in Ephesus.

So,

it would seem

that at some

point,

God gave this

special gift

to Timothy,

a spiritual gift,

perhaps an ability

to teach

or preach

or lead,

and it came

through the

Apostle Paul

laying his hands

on Timothy,

but now perhaps

Timothy is at

least tempted

not to use

his gift

from God,

to let it go

unused,

to let it

like a flame

just kind

of die down.

And Paul's

saying,

rekindle

that gift,

fan it

into flame,

use it,

don't stop

preaching

and teaching

the good news

about Jesus

or teaching

others how

to follow

Jesus.

And with

this exhortation

comes a word

of encouragement,

a sort of

a motivating

reminder

in the next

verse here.

fan into flame

the gift

of God

that is in

you,

for the

spirit God

gave us

does not

make us

timid,

but gives

us power,

love,

and self-discipline.

So Paul

reminds Timothy

that any fear

that he has

right now

doesn't come

from God.

Why would

Timothy

be afraid

right now?

why would

he be

tempted

to let

his gift

go unused

and sort

of just

die down

to a

smoldering

ember?

Any

guesses?

Fear.

Fear?

Fear of

what?

The crowd.

The crowd?

The crowd?

You're in

a foreign

country,

you just

don't want

to fit in

mind.

Stand

out.

Okay.

If you

were here

two weeks

ago,

what's

Paul's

situation

right now?

He's

in jail.

I heard

somebody

whisper it.

He's in

jail.

In fact,

he's chained.

If we look

just down

one verse

from this,

he refers

to himself

as a

prisoner

and

suffering.

And if

we look

ahead a

little bit

further

in the

letter,

we see

that Paul

is near

the end

of his

life and

he knows

that he

will soon

be executed.

So this

is why

Timothy

might be

afraid

right now

and tempted

to let

his gift

fall into

disuse.

This is

why he

might be

tempted

to just

kind of

keep his

head down

and keep

his mouth

shut.

Right

now,

there is

widespread

persecution

of the

followers

of Jesus

and people

like Paul

are suffering.

They are

being imprisoned

and some

even being

killed

because of

their faith

in Jesus.

Right now,

Paul is

on death

row.

But he's

exhorting

Timothy.

He's encouraging

him.

He's saying,

don't let

what's happened

to me

cause you

to shrink

back

or to

keep quiet

about Jesus.

If you've

stopped

preaching

or teaching

or speaking

about Jesus,

start it up

again.

Rekindle

that flame.

And if

you're afraid

that what's

happened to

me might

happen to

you,

Timothy,

know this,

that fear

that you

feel doesn't

come from

God.

God has

given us

his Holy

Spirit,

Timothy,

and the

Spirit of

God in

us doesn't

make us

afraid.

No.

He gives

us power.

He gives

us love.

He gives

us self

discipline.

It's

interesting

that Paul

highlights

these three

particular

things.

I mean,

power,

I think we

can appreciate

Timothy's need

for that

right now.

Like,

power equals

strength.

It equals

the ability

to persevere

and go on

using his

gift to do

these hard

things.

But we

need more

than that

in the

face of

fear and

in the

face of

persecution.

Paul says

the Spirit

also gives

us love.

What lies

beneath our

efforts to

proclaim the

truth of

Jesus in

our world?

Love.

Love.

fear might

tempt us

to keep

quiet if

the world

around us

becomes

intolerant of

the message

about Jesus.

But love

for the

people in

our world

will keep

us speaking

because we

know the

desperate need

of the people

around us to

have that

salvation,

that same

salvation that

we have

found,

that same

forgiveness

that we

have found.

So Paul

reminds Timothy

that the

Spirit inside

us gives

us love

for our

fellow man.

And that

love will

lead us to

speak about

Jesus,

even when

it's hard,

even when

it might cost

us dearly.

And then the

third thing,

he says,

the Spirit

gives us

self-discipline.

Well,

what's

self-discipline

for?

When's it

needed most?

It's needed

when we

know the

right thing

to do,

the best

thing to

do,

and yet

our feelings

are running

strongly in

the opposite

direction.

And feelings

are very

powerful.

Self-discipline

implies that

there's something

that we must

do despite

what we kind

of want to

do or how

we really

feel.

And here's

the good

news.

God's Spirit

living in

us gives

us self-discipline.

He gives us

the ability

to do the

right thing,

the hard

thing,

even when we

don't feel

like it,

even when it's

hard,

and the

things we

feel inside

of us are

pushing.

No,

don't go

that way.

Go the

opposite

direction.

In the

context here,

Timothy is

feeling fear.

At least

that's what

Paul refers

to when

he says

spirit of

fear or

timidity.

What is

good and

what is

right is

for him

to keep

using the

gift that

God has

given him.

Probably to

keep preaching

and teaching

the message

about Jesus,

the truth

about Jesus.

And so I

find this

really encouraging.

Sometimes

talking to

people about

Jesus is

hard.

Sometimes

it's just

uncomfortable.

if I

think back

to those

conversations

with Harley

and the

way that

he was

responding to

me,

I was

just tempted

to say,

well,

forget it

then.

I'm not

going to

talk about

this at

all.

I'll just

keep

quiet.

But God's

spirit,

says Paul,

who lives

in us,

who lives

in all of

his people,

gives us

power,

gives us

love,

and gives

us that

ability to

make

ourselves

do what

we don't

want to

do or

don't feel

comfortable

doing.

We're not

called to

be comfortable.

We're

called to

follow Jesus,

to take up

our cross

and follow

him,

and to

proclaim

him,

and to

share the

good news

about him

with the

nations.

And God

is in

us,

and he

is with

us,

and he

gives us

exactly what

we need

to do

what he's

commanded

with whatever

unique gifts

that he

has given

to us.

Paul goes

on here,

verse 8,

he says,

so do not

be ashamed

of the

testimony

about our

Lord,

or of

me,

his

prisoner.

Rather,

join with

me in

suffering for

the gospel

by the

power of

God.

As we'll

see in

the weeks

ahead,

there is

a tone

of sadness

in Paul's

heart,

because some

who have

claimed the

name of

Christ have

deserted him.

They've

abandoned him.

Some are

ashamed of

him because

of his

chains,

because he's

in prison.

And as

this suggests,

some are

even ashamed

of the

gospel,

the message

of Jesus,

the name

of Jesus.

that's

the name

that's at

the center

of all

this.

The

persecution

and the

suffering

is coming

and it's

all around

this name

of Jesus.

And so

what does

Paul urge

Timothy

to do?

He says,

do not

be ashamed

of the

testimony

about our

Lord,

or of

me,

his

prisoner.

Timothy,

don't be

ashamed of

the true

testimony,

the true

account of

Jesus Christ

that we've

been

proclaiming.

Don't be

embarrassed by

it,

even if

people think

poorly of

you,

or mock

you,

or scorn

you because

of it.

What's

Timothy

thinking here?

You know,

what if

continuing on

this way is

going to lead

me into

suffering?

Like not

just scorn

and derision,

but real

suffering for

me.

We don't

know if

Timothy had a

family at

this point,

but maybe

for his

family too.

What does

Paul say to

Timothy here?

He says,

join with

me in

suffering for

the gospel.

Yes,

I am

suffering.

Suffer with

me for

the sake of

this truth

about Jesus

our Lord.

And you

won't be

alone in

this.

God's

spirit is

in you.

He's

going to

give you

power.

He's

going to

give you

love.

He's

going to

help you

to endure.

This is so

explicit,

isn't it?

I mean,

Paul doesn't

just say,

Timothy,

you might

suffer.

I hope

you don't,

but you

might.

No,

he says,

join with

me in

suffering for

the gospel.

Imagine for a

moment that

you're

Timothy.

what's

your

response

to this?

Do you

say,

yes,

I'm

willing to

suffer with

you,

Paul,

for the

sake of

Christ and

the gospel?

Or do

you say,

thanks for

the invitation,

but no

thanks.

The cost is

too great.

at this

point,

Paul takes

a minute

to remind

Timothy

of what

the gospel

is,

what the

good news

about Jesus

is,

and he

reminds

Timothy

that we

have a

gospel

that's

worth

suffering

for.

Let's

see this

in the

next couple

verses,

starting in

verse 9.

He has

saved us,

says Paul,

and called

us to a

holy life,

not because

of anything

we have

done,

but because

of his

own purpose

and grace,

this grace

was given

us in

Christ Jesus

before the

beginning of

time,

but it has

now been

revealed through

the appearing

of our

Savior,

Christ Jesus,

who has

destroyed death

and has

brought life

and immortality

to light

through the

gospel.

So not

only does

Paul remind

Timothy of

the gospel

here,

but his

underlying point

really is that

we have a

good news

about Jesus

that's worth

suffering for.

It's a

good news

about how

God has

saved us,

how he has

delivered us

from the

punishment that

we deserve

because of

our sins.

It's a

good news

about how

God has

called us

to a

holy life

or a

holy calling

as some

translations say.

God is a

holy God.

God is

like no

other and

he has

chosen us

specially.

He has

called us

specially for

a special

purpose to

belong to

him, to

be his

people, to

be his

children, his

treasured

possession and

to live lives

that are

holy now,

set apart from

the world in

its ways.

we have a

gospel that

is worth

suffering for

and it's

about a

God who

has saved

us and

specially

called us

and chosen

us to be

his holy

people and

to live

holy lives

and he

just keeps

going on.

It's a

good news

about how

God has

done this

for us,

not because

of anything

that we

have done.

This

salvation,

this holy

calling are

not dependent

on how we

have lived.

It's not

because we're

so good

that we're

saved.

It's not

because we

haven't sinned

so much

that we're

saved.

If we read

other places

in the Bible,

it's actually

despite how

much we've

sinned and

blown it.

Yet God

has saved

us.

He has

called us.

Why?

Because of

his own

purpose and

grace.

God is a

good,

gracious,

generous

God,

truly

benevolent,

and it's

out of that

goodness and

generosity and

giving nature

that he has,

that he has

purposed to

save us and

to call us

to himself.

Another way

to say it,

God has

decided to

save us and

to call us,

not because of

who we are,

but because of

who he is.

We are

unworthy

of God.

We're

unworthy to

be in a

favorable

relationship

with him

because of

our sins,

because of

our corruption.

But he is

the kind of

good and

gracious God

who has

real compassion

and mercy

even on

sinners like

you and

me.

And so

salvation is

his gift.

And it's a

free gift.

And that

is the

good news.

Paul goes

on.

Amazingly,

Paul says

that God

had this

gracious plan

to save

us through

sending Jesus

even before

our world

began.

he saved

us and

called us.

This grace

was given

us in

Christ Jesus

before the

beginning of

time,

but it has

now been

revealed through

the appearing

of our

Savior,

Christ Jesus.

Before the

beginning of

time is maybe

not the best

translation in

my opinion,

without getting

all philosophical

on us this

morning.

Some of the

other translations

capture this

well, I

think.

The idea is

before time

as we know

it began,

or as

some say,

before the

world began.

God is

amazing.

He knows

the future

with perfect

clarity.

He knew

that we

would disobey

him and

become rebels.

And even

before we'd

made the

choice,

even before

he'd made

the heavens

and the

earth,

he had

this gracious

plan and

intention to

rescue us and

to forgive us

and to

save us by

sending Jesus

Christ into

the world.

And this

saving grace,

this call of

God has now

been revealed,

says Paul,

through the

appearing of

our Savior,

Christ Jesus.

We have a

glorious good

news about

what God has

done to save

us and to

call us because

of his goodness

and grace and

at the center of

this salvation

plan of God's

is the man,

Christ Jesus

who has now

appeared,

says Paul.

And he keeps

going.

What has

Jesus done?

Our Savior,

Christ Jesus,

who has

destroyed

death,

says Paul,

and has

brought life

and immortality

to light

through the

gospel.

I love

these words.

Jesus has

destroyed

death.

Quite

literally,

he has

abolished

it.

He's

rendered

it

powerless.

That

great

inevitable

fate of

every single

person who

has ever

walked this

earth,

death,

that unbeatable

demise that

overtakes all

of us,

Jesus has

abolished it.

He's broken

its power.

And,

says Paul,

Jesus has

brought two

things to

light.

light.

This is

metaphorical

language here.

He has

brought life

and immortality

to light.

The sense

of this is

that there

were these

two things

that were

lost to

us in

darkness.

We

couldn't

find them.

Really,

when it boils

down to it,

both of these

things are the

same thing,

life and

immortality.

They were

lost to

us.

We would

live,

but only for

a little

while.

And then

death.

We couldn't

find that

life that

endures.

We couldn't

find immortality.

But now

Jesus has

come,

and he has

shone the

light on

life,

on immortality.

He has

helped us

find what

was lost

to us.

He's helped

us see that

there is a

way to

have life

and

immortality.

Or is

Jesus called

eternal

life.

And if

we listen

to the

testimony

about

Jesus,

the good

news of

Jesus,

we discover

that Jesus

is the

way to

that life,

even more,

that Jesus

himself is

that life.

And he

gives that

life to

those who

repent and

believe in

his name.

We have a

gospel,

we have a

good news,

that is

absolutely

worth

suffering

for,

about a

gracious and

loving God

who has

saved us

and called

us to be

his own

special people

and live

with him

forever.

Why is it

that Paul

places so

much emphasis

on this

little bit

about life

and immortality,

on this

part of the

good news?

He could

talk about

all kinds

of things,

atonement

for sins,

reconciliation

with God.

Why life

and immortality?

Because death

is the worst

thing that

can happen

to us

when we

suffer for

the sake

of Jesus.

What's the

thing that

Paul's facing

right now?

Death.

And that's

why he's

clinging

so tenaciously

to Jesus'

promise of

life as we

saw in the

first verse

of this

letter.

He's soon

to be

executed.

He's soon

to die.

And what

does he want

Timothy to

remember?

Timothy,

Jesus has

destroyed

death.

He's shone

the light

on immortality,

on life.

And if

Jesus has

nullified the

ultimate

devastation of

death for

us, then

we need not

fear.

You don't

need to fear

for me,

Timothy.

You don't

need to

fear for

yourself.

If you

keep using

your gift

and you

come to

suffer

yourself.

love.

And if we

have a

salvation so

great as

this, if

we have a

remedy to

death, a

promise of

life like

this, how

can we be

ashamed of

it?

How can we

let fear keep

us silent

about it?

Shouldn't we

be willing to

suffer for

this, to

make this

news, this

remedy known,

known?

This

Savior, Jesus,

known.

In these

last couple

verses here,

verse 11 and

12, Paul puts

himself forward

as an example

of the kind of

courage and

faith that he's

really urging

Timothy to have

here.

He says,

and of this

gospel, I was

appointed a

herald and an

apostle and a

teacher.

That is why I am

suffering as I

am.

Yet, this is

no cause for

shame, because I

know whom I have

believed, and I

am convinced that

he is able to

guard what I have

entrusted to him

until that day.

It's this

wonderful,

glorious,

good news of

God's gracious

salvation, his

promise of life,

that I'm suffering

for, Timothy.

I've been

heralding this

gospel, I've been

declaring it

loudly, proclaiming

it publicly,

teaching it,

speaking it on

behalf of God as

an apostle, and

that's what's

landed me here in

prison, says

Paul.

That's why I am

suffering as I

am.

But make no

mistake, this is

no cause for

shame.

And I love these

words.

Paul's words

just drip with

confidence.

They drip with

trust in Jesus.

This is a man on

death row.

And he says,

this is no cause

for shame, because

I know whom I

have believed.

And I know the

one that I've put

my trust in.

I am convinced

that he is able to

keep what I've

entrusted to him

until that day.

What has Paul

entrusted to Jesus?

to keep for that

day?

Himself, his life,

everything.

Everything's at

stake here.

And Paul says,

I'm absolutely

convinced.

My life is safe.

My life is secure

in his capable

hands.

He is able to

keep what I've

entrusted to him

until that

day.

What day?

Not the day of

his execution.

The day beyond

that.

The day that

is coming.

The day when

Jesus Christ

himself busts

through the

clouds and

returns as a

king to reign

and raises

Paul to life

an immortality.

Never to die

again.

Never to suffer

again.

So these are

the reasons.

I'm not ashamed,

says Paul.

And I think

his intention

is that

Timothy would

hear this

and that he

would take

these reasons

for himself

now as he

goes out

and uses

the gift.

Don't be

ashamed,

Timothy.

Don't give

in to fear.

Remember,

the spirit

of God

lives in

you.

Join with

me in

suffering for

Jesus and

this saving

truth about

Jesus.

What's the

worst thing

that can

happen to

you,

Timothy?

Death?

Jesus has

destroyed

death.

He has

brought life

and immortality.

Don't let a

fear of that

keep you

silent in

these difficult

days,

Timothy.

How does

all this

apply to

us 2,000

years later?

Well,

if you're

here and

you're a

Christian,

if you're

a true

believer in

Jesus,

I think

what Paul's

urging of

Timothy,

he would

basically just

say the

same thing

right to

us.

Pretty

close

anyways.

We may

not have

the same

gift of

God,

the same

spiritual

gift as

Timothy

had,

but we

all have

the same

spirit who

gifts us

each in

different ways

for the

unique work

that God

has called

us to

do.

Now,

we may

not be

experiencing

or seeing

the same

kind of

suffering or

persecution

that Timothy

and Paul

were in

those days,

at least

not the

same intensity

here in

Davidson,

here in

Canada.

And yet,

even without

that,

even with a

relative lack

of suffering

and persecution

in our

time and

place,

we're still

tempted to

be silent

at times,

aren't we?

We're still

tempted at

times to

keep quiet

about Jesus,

as Jesus

said,

to hide

our light

under a

bowl.

But that

temptation,

that fear

that we

feel,

is not

from God.

God's

spirit is

with you,

Christian.

he lives

in you.

He gives

you power

and love

and self-discipline

so that you

can be a

witness,

so that you

can use your

unique gift

in the cause

of the

gospel.

What happens

when you

hide a

candle that's

lit under

a bowl?

It goes

out.

The flame

dies out

for lack

of oxygen.

Don't let

it die

out.

Fan it

into flame.

Use whatever

gifts and

skills and

abilities God

has given

you for the

cause of

this gospel

because we

have a

gospel that's

worth suffering

for.

We have

the promise

of life

that Jesus

has given

us.

Don't be

ashamed of

Jesus or

his gospel.