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Introduction:
We are at the start of a new and exciting year together. And in our studies of 2 Timothy, at the start of our year, we are focussing on the very end of the Apostle Paul’s life. Please turn to chapter four of 2 Timothy, where we see Paul’s last will and testament. But he hands on to Timothy, and through Timothy to us, something far more precious than property. He gives us the task of gospel ministry, the charge to preach the Word for which he, Paul, is about to die.
The message of tonight is that if you belong to Christ, then, unlike the Australian cricket team, you are in a win-win situation. As Paul put it elsewhere, "To live is Christ, and to die is gain." Or, Romans 14 verse 8, "If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord, so then whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord."
2 Timothy 4 verses 1 to 5 are about Living to the Lord.
And verses 6 to 8 are about Dying to the Lord.
Let’s look now at verses 1 to 5, Living in Christ.
Chapter 4 verse 1.
The Charge of gospel proclamation:
- In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:
2 Preach the Word;
In this first verse Paul gives the charge of gospel proclamation. This is very serious stuff indeed. It is given in the presence of God and of Christ who is the judge, and whose return and eternal kingdom is coming.
Now why does Paul give Timothy this command to preach the Word? And why does he make it so serious? Because Timothy is tempted NOT to preach the Word. Timothy is tempted to be silent in the face of opposition. Just like us really. It’s much easier just to go with the flow and say nothing, than to proclaim the Word of God about His son Jesus. Even a dead dog can float with the tide. But all Christians, and especially Christian teachers and preachers, are called to swim against the tide, to preach not what is popular, but what is true about God. Now we see in verse 2, the content of this truth, this gospel proclamation we are called to. It is the Word. Preach the Word.
The content of gospel proclamation: the Word
The word ‘preach’ can be misleading. Perhaps a better translation would be proclaim the Word. Don’t think that it has nothing to do with you, just because you’re not someone who preaches in church like Steve or I. There are plenty of examples in the bible of ordinary believers proclaiming the Word to others. It does have a primary application to those who are preachers. But it also includes any gospel proclamation that any Christian has the chance to do.
We are called to proclaim the Word. What’s that mean? Well there are several things I can say about that.
First, it means to tell the gospel. The Word is the body of truth about the Son of God who died for our sins and rose again. Do you know the truth? Do you know the gospel? If you don’t, then you need to learn it. Soon I will be running a four week course called "The People of God." It will be open to people of all ages. If you are interested in doing it, see me after.
Now another aspect of preaching the Word is that all through the bible, it is the Word, and not the Image that is the prime means by which God communicates to us. In fact, everywhere in the bible, images of God are called idols. We live in a society that is obsessed with the image. And more and more it will be the task of Christians to preach the Word to a society for whom Truth is relative and the Image is everything. How you gonna do that? Have you thought about it?
Finally, the Word is Jesus himself. The gospel about Jesus is in words, it is reasonable and able to be understood. But the Word is more than words. The Word is Jesus himself. Through the written and spoken Word of scripture, we meet personally the Lord Jesus, and through preaching the Word we introduce our Lord to others.
Now we’ve considered the Charge to proclaim the Word, and the Content of that Word. But in verse 2 we also see:
The Context for gospel proclamation:
be prepared in season and out of season;
correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
Be prepared in season and out of season. What’s that mean? Whether the weather is hot or cold? What it means is that you have to be ready to proclaim Christ at any time. When it comes to planting crops, you know what season to plant them, and you wait for the right time, and then you plant. Not so with gospel preaching. You have to be ready at any time, to plant, water, and harvest the seed of the gospel in people’s lives, whether it is the right season or not, that is, whether it is convenient for you or not, whether it is expected or not, whether it will get you into trouble or not. Whether it will destroy your comfortable harmonious relationship with your godless society or not.
Think – what situations might occur in our society where we have to make this kind of stand? Does this mean we can be rude to people, and insist on telling them the gospel, even if they don’t want to hear it? Why or why not? [for discussion]
Be prepared. Stand ready. You can’t do that without effort and training. If someone asked you to explain the Christian message simply and quickly, could you do it? If you can’t, then you need to learn how to do it. Otherwise, how can you Preach the Word, and how can you be prepared at all times? If you’re interested, see me about doing the People of God course, or about learning how to use a gospel tool like 2 ways to live.
Now Paul says, correct, rebuke, and encourage. And this bit shows that he has in mind not just preaching to the unconverted, but proclaiming the Word within the church as well. The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to correct us when we are wrong, rebuke us when we have sinned, and encourage, or comfort us when we need to be lifted up. It’s much easier just to sit back and let our friends in Christ continue to make mistakes, continue to sin, or continue to be depressed and in need of encouragement, than it is to enter their lives with the Word of God.
Verse 3 gives us a reason to make sure that we are proclaiming Christ in the church. Because heresy doesn’t start outside the church, but from within. It speaks of:
The combat against false gospels:
3
For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine.Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
You may remember Tammy Faye & Jimmy Bakker, that infamous couple of American tele-evangelists who ended up in prison for their various financial improprieties. Tammy Faye is less well known for this astounding remark: She once said, "The Christian life is so wonderful, I would believe it even if it weren't true." Now you may laugh at that, but the sad thing is, many Christians have in effect taken Tammy Faye Baker as their model of a theologian. What matters is not whether it is true, but whether you have a good time. Whether you have wonderful Christian experiences. But such fuzzy, shallow, and experiential Christianity can never stand the test of time and trouble. God calls us not to syrupy religious experience, but to the truth, and to perseverance in sound doctrine, no matter what the cost. [Illustration from Brad Harper, 1st Evangelical Church of St Louis County, Missouri, May 1, 1994, wording changed] When one considers that Tammy Faye’s idea of the Christian life contained a good deal of wealth and prosperity, it makes it even less likely that she would be willing to continue believing it if she had to go through what the Apostle Paul went through for the sake of Jesus His Lord. Instead of a Rolex on his wrist, he wore manacles. Paul would never have been willing to suffer and die for what he knew to be a lie. No, it does matter whether the Christian message is true. If it’s not, then you may as well all go home now. Truth is not what you make it, and the Lord who said, I am the Truth, calls us to a life and a death that is firmly fixed on the solid foundation of His Word.
Heretics on the Net.
Heretics at school and in churches.
You young people are going to be bombarded in the next few years, by every heresy, wrong teaching, temptation to immorality, that you can think of. And some that you can’t even imagine now. The devil will seek to confuse you, divide you, discourage you, and lead you into wrong thinking about God and yourself, and wrong living. People will try to convince you that Jesus is not Lord. That he is not truly God and truly human. That he did not really rise from the dead. That the Trinity is not true. That the bible is not the Word of God. That sexual practices which the bible condemns are normal and natural and okay. That abortion and euthanasia are good things. How will you stand against such lies, unless you know the Word of God and are firmly prepared to stand in it?
Look at the contrast between the false teachers, and how Timothy is to be. Verse 5.
The contrast of the gospel proclaimer:
5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
William Barclay tells of an old man who, as he lay at death's door, was obviously troubled. When asked what was disturbing him, he replied, "One day when I was young I was playing with some other boys at a crossroad. We reversed a signpost so that its arms were pointing in the wrong direction, and I have never ceased to wonder how many people were sent in the wrong direction by what we did."
When you get to the end of your life and ministry on this earth, you don’t want to be troubled in this way. You don’t want to look back and see that you led others away from Christ like those false teachers. You don’t want to lament all those missed opportunities of correcting a friend in Christ who was going the wrong way. Paul wants Timothy to be able to say, along with him, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race." I have fulfilled my ministry.
Graduation Day!
6For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Paul’s life is ended. He is about to be beheaded for his faith in Christ, because he will not bow to the emperor as a god. I’ve just read a great book about the remarkable survival of the Cambodian church. Let me read to you of the death of one Cambodian family who preached the Word and fought the good fight and finished the race, like Paul. Illustration from ‘Killing Fields Living Fields." Page 233.
I heard Bette Middler singing on the radio today the song ‘The Rose’ and there’s a line from that song which goes, "It’s the one afraid of dying who never learns to live." Now what is just a schmalzy line in a song, is actually true for the Christian. Paul, who is not afraid of dying, has really learned to live. Nothing in life has overcome him. And Death is not the end. Rather, it is merely the completion of the race, after which all that remains is the victor’s crown. Paul is like Michael Klim, touching the wall at the end of his amazing world record swims today. All that remains is for him is to turn around and look at the good news on the scoreboard. "I have finished the race," he says, "now all that is in store for me is the victor’s crown of righteousness." How can Paul be so sure of that? Is it because he thinks he has earned his salvation? No! It’s because he knows that the crown has been earned for him by Christ. All he did was to complete the race.
What would you do if you were told you had six months to live? An FM radio station once posed that question on a talkback show. People rang up with all sorts of ideas. One said he'd buy a Kombi and travel round Australia. Another more up market person said they'd buy a Ferrari and travel round Europe. Another guy said he'd get a second opinion on the diagnosis! Truth is, we should live every day as though it were our last. Every day is another opportunity to glorify God. What will you do with the life God has given you? It's so short.
John Wesley, who founded the Methodist church, was once asked what he would do if he knew that he would die tonight. He replied, "Exactly what I am doing now." Can you say that? If Jesus returned today, would you want him to find you living the life you are? Or would you want to change?
Living for God is the best way to live life to its fullest. What will you do with your life?
Graduation Day is coming. All of our life leads up to death. How will your life be summed up?
Which fight are you fighting? The good one, or your own? How will you finish the race?
Some of you may have recently graduated from Uni or High School. In a few weeks I will graduate from my part-time Master of Arts in Theology course. And it is a relief not to have to worry about essays and exams and lectures any more.
Paul is about to die. But for Paul, death is not the end. It is not a thing to be feared. It is like his graduation day, and he eagerly looks forward to it.
Have you ever thought about life like that? You only graduate from life by dying. Everything you do with your life is leading up to one thing – death, and beyond that eternity. Most people, when they are at school, look forward to graduating, to leaving, to experiencing the life which school was, supposedly, training you for. Is that the way you feel about your life in this world? Do you eagerly long for your graduation day? For the day when your earthly tasks are completed? Or do you only think about life in this world? For the believer in Christ, death is a graduation to things far better and far more wonderful than we can imagine. How will your life be summed up? On that great graduation day? Will you be able to have the confidence that Paul has here, that you will pass with flying colours and receive the award? Will you be able to say, "I have finished the race"?