We are starting a new study this week. We will study the book of Jeremiah the prophet. It might be a bit long, but it should be rewarding.

JEREMIAH: APPOINTED BY GOD
Jeremiah 1:1-9

The Autobiography

Jeremiah served as God’s prophet to Jerusalem in its last days before defeat by Babylon and exile. The first nine verses of the book serve as an introduction to Jeremiah’s life. It is a short autobiography. What does it tell us?

First, it tells us that Jeremiah was the son of Hilkiah. It shows us he was a real person with a lineage know to his original readers. He was not a fictional character.

Second, Jeremiah was a priest. As a priest, he knew the law of the covenant. He taught it and participated in leading worship.

Third, Jeremiah lived in Anathoth. This little town was located about three miles north of Jerusalem. Joshua allotted the land in the area to the tribe of Benjamin, but he allotted the town to the priests, the descendants of Aaron. (Joshua 21:18) Aaron was Moses’ brother and the first high priest.

The first three verses frame the time period of Jeremiah’s ministry. Verses 2 and 3 tell us Jeremiah prophesied during the reigns of Josiah, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah.

Verse 2 says Jeremiah began to receive the word of the Lord in the 13th year of Josiah’s reign. We can use that to date his ministry. Josiah began to reign in 640. Therefore, Jeremiah became a prophet in 627, which about the same time Josiah began his reforms. Jeremiah’s preaching was not popular with the people or the priests, but Josiah probably protected him. They both wanted to return Judah to faithful observance of the covenant with God.

Josiah was killed in battle with the Egyptians when he tried to cut them off from aiding the Assyrians against the Babylonians. Josiah was the last faithful king of Judah. His successor Jehoiakim was not faithful to the covenant and led Judah to further decline. It is no surprise then that Jehoiakim hated Jeremiah and his preaching.

Jehoiakim ruled from 609 to 598. He resisted Babylon and turned to Egypt for help. Babylon invaded in 605 and took captives into Exile, including Daniel and his friends. (Daniel 1:1-2) They invaded again in 597 and took more captives, including Ezekiel.

Zedekiah succeeded Jehoiakim. Babylon attacked again, destroyed Jerusalem and took all but the poorest into exile. Jeremiah stayed with the exiles.

Under the governor, some other Jews revolted and had to flee to Egypt for safety. They took Jeremiah with them against his will. It is the last we hear of him in the book.

The Style of the Book

The book is somewhat complicated. It contains several types of literature including autobiography, poetry, written records of oral sermons, written sermons, history, messages to individuals and condemnations of foreign nations.

To complicate matters further, the book is not arranged in chronological order. Likely the writings were composed at various times in Jeremiah’s ministry, collected and put in this form. The original audience was likely the Jews in exile. Remember Daniel referred to reading it to know the time of the end of the exile. (Daniel 9:2) Those Jews would know their history well enough to understand when each part was written.

Jeremiah is very theological. He presents God as sovereign, promise\covenant keeping and gracious to the repentant. He presents man as sinful, both Jew and Gentile. He shows God will judge sin. He shows that man’s sinful heart will not and cannot obey God. Therefore, God will bring a new covenant in which he will change the hearts of men and women.

There are other themes, but we will talk about them when we come to them.

Having introduced himself and the time period in which he served, Jeremiah discussed his call. This is found in verses 4 through 10.

The first thing that we learn, and that Jeremiah learned, is that God chose Jeremiah to be his prophet before Jeremiah was conceived and born. The Lord told him “before I formed you in the womb I knew you”. (5) The Sovereign Lord decrees what will happen in the future. He knows it because he decrees it.

In Isaiah 46:9-10, the Lord said “I am God and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying my counsel will stand and I will accomplish all my purpose.”

Yet, God did not just know about Jeremiah. He knew Jeremiah. Before the time he did it, God purposed that Jeremiah would be born, would serve him as a prophet and be consecrated to him. God used three different words to make his point here: knew, consecrated and appointed.

I believe the word “knew” here means not just knew of, but, in effect, chose. God chose or purposed that Jeremiah would be his prophet before Jeremiah was born. He emphasized that by saying he appointed him. He also consecrated him, or set him aside to be a prophet. All of this was done by God in his will and for his purpose before Jeremiah had a will.

Jesus said he was consecrated and sent. (John 10:36)

It reminds me of Paul’s calling. Paul said God “set me apart before I was born” in Galatians 1:15. And of course Paul referred to God’s choosing of all believers in this fashion: “even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world” Ephesians 1:4. In Romans 8:29 he said “for those whom he foreknew he predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son”. God did not make anything up as he went along. He had a purpose to accomplish before he ever made the world and knew how he wanted to do it.

RESURRECTION
A KOINONIA BIBLE STUDY
EASTER SUNDAY 2012

The Historical Fact

Christianity is focused on the certainty of Christ’s resurrection as a historical fact.

*All four gospels highlight it.

*The Book of Acts insists on it. (Acts 1:3, 2:24-35, 3:15, 4:10, 5:30-32, 13:33-37)

*Paul’s writings show the resurrection to be indisputable proof that the message of Christ’s status as Savior and Son of God are true. (1 Cor. 15:1-11, 20)

*The Book of Revelation portrays Christ as risen and reigning in heaven until the time of his return. (Revelation 5:5-14)

Jesus’ resurrection was not like the resurrection of Lazarus, who would die again. Rather, he received a remade body that was perfect, not aging or dying. It was eternal. And we will receive a body similar to it. The Bible calls it imperishable. It is a body that will be responsive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit rather than to sinful flesh. That is what is meant when Paul says it is a spiritual body.

It is not that the body is immaterial, or a spirit. It is a physical body. Jesus said he had flesh and bones. (Luke 24:39) He ate and drank with the disciples. (Acts 10:41) He appeared repeatedly to the disciples over 40 days to demonstrate that his body was physical and that he had been physically raised from the grave.

The Doctrinal Significance

(1) It is the justification or vindication of Christ (declaration of his righteousness over against the false claims of the religious leaders of his guilt) (Rom 1.1-4; 1 Tim 3.16).

(2) That Christ is declared righteous ensures the acceptability of his sacrifice and therefore our salvation (or justification) (Rom 4.25).

(3) It is the prophetic declaration of our own resurrection from the dead (1 Cor. 15).

(4) It is the power of the resurrection (the work of the Spirit) that enables us to walk in the newness of life (Rom 6.1-4).


Discussion of the Doctrinal Significance

(1) It is the justification or vindication of Christ (the Father’s declaration of his righteousness over against the false claims of the religious leaders of his guilt) (Rom 1.1-4; 1 Tim 3.16).

Jesus was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead. (Romans 1:1-4) He was vindicated by the Spirit. (1 Timothy 3:16). By the resurrection, the Holy Spirit declared that Jesus was who he claimed to be, the Son of God, and that he was innocent of the charges against him.

(2) That Christ is declared righteous ensures the acceptability of his sacrifice and therefore our justification (Rom 4.25).

Jesus presented himself to the Father as a sacrifice for our sin, securing eternal redemption. (Hebrews 9:11-12) His righteousness is counted to us who believe in his resurrection, for he died for our sins and was raised so that we may be justified through faith in him. (Romans 4:22-25).

(3) It is the prophetic declaration of our own resurrection from the dead (1 Cor. 15:20-23).

Jesus was raised from the dead as the first of many. (1 Corinthians 15) The Bible uses the term “first fruits”, an allusion to the Old Testament concept of taking the first of a crop, the first fruit, and offering it to God. His resurrection is the sign and the guarantee of our resurrection. His resurrection showed his power and victory over death. (Acts 2:24) 1 Peter 1:3 says we have been born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

(4) It is the power of the resurrection (the work of the Spirit) that enables us to walk in the newness of life (Rom 6.1-4).

Our old self died with Christ. That is why its power to enslave us is destroyed. Not only did we die with him, we were raised with him. We live in resurrection power. We died to sin, we now live to God in Christ. Our baptism into his resurrection gives us power to conquer sin and live to glorify God in Christ.

God works in us with the same power he worked to raise Christ from the dead. (Ephesians 1:19-20) So, it is bad for you to say you do not have the power to defeat sin in your life. The greatest power of all is at work in your life.

BELIEVE TO THE END
2 Timothy 4:6 et seq

I love this quote:

"My life's calling remains the same: I exist to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples through Jesus Christ. Pray that I will spend and be spent for this till I can speak and write no more."

This quote is from John Piper, looking at what he will do in ministry in the last stage of life.

In our Scripture passage, the apostle Paul looked at the very end of his life as well. Yet he was further along than Piper. He was in jail. He faced execution. He sensed the nearness of his death. Here is what he said about it in 2 Timothy 4:6-8 (ESV):

For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 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 said the time for his departure was near. Isn't that a great way to put it? It is not a picture of gloom and doom. Rather it is a picture of moving on to something else. He saw moving on as a good thing because it meant he would complete his suffering and go to Jesus.

He was likely tired. He had suffered greatly. All of the beatings, imprisonments, deprivations, travel and hardship had taken their physical toll. His body was spent.

His emotions may have been spent, too. He suffered persecution from his own people, the Jews. His friends abandoned him at this trials. He suffered loneliness when he sent his friends and disciples away to minister, depriving himself of their company.

He had to be tired of prison. Roman prisons were not like ours today. He may have just been put in a large hole in the ground with others. It would be wet and cold. Nothing makes you more ready to move on than having discomfort or pain in this life.
So, Paul thought of death as a departure. Prison was like an uncomfortable waiting room in a bus station. Execution was the mode of transportation. His destination was Christ's fellowship in heaven. He would see his Master and receive his reward.

Remember his words to the Philippians? He knew he had more ministry to do, but was ready to go. In Philippians 1:21-23 he said:

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.

Paul did not fear death. He looked forward to it as the means to be with Christ.

The process had already begun. In verse 6, Paul said he was already being poured out like a drink offering. The Old Testament drink offering was an offering of wine brought with the burnt offering or grain offering. The priest poured it out on the altar as an offering, a sacrifice to God. Paul thought of his execution not only as a departure, but as an offering to God, a sacrifice of himself for the glory of God.

Notice here that Paul used the passive tense. He said he was being poured out. I think he means that God was doing the pouring. It was the Lord’s will to use his death to the Lord’s glory. Remember Jesus’ words to Ananias about Paul’s calling. In Acts 9:16, he said “I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” Jesus called Paul to suffer. He preordained his suffering. And Jesus did it for the sake of his name. This is the same as saying “for his glory”. Jesus intended to gain glory, to be glorified, in Paul’s suffering and, ultimately, in the death of Paul.

One reason Paul looked forward to being with Christ is that he knew he had faithfully completed the task God assigned to him. He “kept the faith”. Paul used two sports analogies to illustrate his point: (1) he finished the race and (2) fought the fight. He was at the end of his course.

In verse 7, Paul said he had kept the faith. He believed Jesus and he stayed faithful to him. The test of salvation is continued faithfulness. People do not lose their salvation. Rather, people who are not saved, whether or not they hang out in a church, often leave, especially if the gospel is regularly preached. We are often surprised by this. 1 John 2:19 says “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

The Bible gives us this fact many times. Here are a few.

1. Matthew 10:21-22. Jesus said believers will be hated, "But the one who endures to the end will be saved."

2. Colossians 1:21-23. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard ...

3. Hebrews 3:13-14. Exhort one another every day as long as it is called 'today', that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have shared in Christ if only we hold our first confidence firm to the end.

4. Revelation 2:10. "Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life."

Paul said he measured success in his life by whether or not he had kept “the faith”. So, what does it mean to keep the faith? If we were to measure our lives this morning by this standard, as Paul did, how would we do it? How would we know we kept the faith?

Keeping the faith means we believe what Jesus said (and what his apostles taught about what he said) and we demonstrate that by our confession and our practice. In other words, we demonstrate keeping the faith by what we say and what we do.

First, this means we believe Jesus died to obtain the Father’s forgiveness for our sins. Jesus said, "The Son of Man came… to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45). Paul wrote “…while we were still sinners Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” (Romans 5:8-9).

Second, we believe that we have eternal life. Jesus said, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16).

And when I say we believe these things, I mean we have confidence in Jesus to do these things, not just that we know the Bible says these things.

Third, we believe Jesus works for us and in us as we live for him. Jesus said, "My grace is sufficient for you; my power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 112:9) Paul wrote “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ”. (Philippians 1:6) He also wrote “it is God who works in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure”. (Philippians 2:13)

We believe Jesus can do these things, wants to do these things and has the power to do these things.

We confess all these things if we believe. By confess I mean we say we believe them. We believe Jesus said them and that he will do them and we say that to ourselves and to others.

But we not only confess these things, we live them out. I am still struck by the simple clear word of my pastor a few weeks ago when he said if our belief does not change the way we act, we do not really believe no matter what we say.

Many people say they believe what Jesus said, but they act as though they do not. Here is a quick example. Jesus said the Father would not only give eternal life to believers, he would provide for their earthly needs. Many of you know this quote by memory. Jesus said “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33)

“These things” in this passage include clothing, food and drink, the necessities of life. He assured us the Father knows we need these things. He made us, he knows we need food, water, clothing and shelter.

Jesus’ point was that the Father wants us to pursue as the most important thing the kingdom of God and God’s righteousness. If we do that, Jesus said the Father would provide the necessities of life.

We say we believe that. But what do we do? We spend all our time getting the necessities of life, plus some luxuries. We spend little or no time pursuing the kingdom of God and his righteousness.

We say we trust God to provide, but we stay awake at night and lose sleep over whether we will get what we need. Or we live in panic and fear. Or we will not take a job God presents us because we do not trust him to provide enough for us through that job.

I am not saying this is always easy. I think it gets easier the more you do it. I do not think Paul said it was easy. In fact, he used the metaphor of a fight or a race. Both of those are struggles. Both require endurance.

I would love to say I had run a marathon. I would love to have the medal and a picture of myself at the finish line wearing it. But I do not get the medal if I do not finish the race. I can run 20 miles and quit. Everyone will say “nice try”. But I do not want to hear “nice try”. I want to hear “welcome to eternal life. Well done”.

Your biggest obstacle to finishing well is your self, your self -loving, sin-loving, world-loving self. You must submit it to Jesus over and over and ask him to change it into a righteousness seeking selfless spirit. You pursue it by faith. Jesus provides it by grace.

Yes, you will be opposed by the world. When you love Christ’s kingdom more than the world, you become the world’s enemy. Jesus said “You will be hated by all for my name’s sake.” Luke 21:17

In the alternative, the world seduces you by appealing to your sinful self. In verse 9, Paul wrote that Demas abandoned him because he was in love with this present world.

You will be opposed by the devil. He is not that keen on your transformation. 1 Peter 5:8: “Your adversary the devil prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

But, your old self is the first big ugly giant that must be slain.

Paul said he ran the whole race. He finished. He was faithful. He believed Jesus for eternal life, but also for the ability to get him through this life intact. He was able to proclaim that Jesus was faithful through it all. He said “But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. “And because he had, there was a crown of righteousness laid up for him. (8) The crown here is eternal life. His faithfulness to the end was proof of his salvation and the result was eternal life.

So, this task of believing Jesus and trusting him and his word lasts until the end of your life. There is no retirement except death. If you are faithful until the end, you get a crown of righteousness on “that Day”, the day of Christ’s coming and judgment. (8)

HARD TIMES IN THE LAST DAYS
2 Timothy 3 (ESV)
1-9
3 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6 For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7 always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. 8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. 9 But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.

Although Paul wanted Timothy to approach the ungodly in a Christ-like manner, he warned him that people in the last days would be difficult and would make the times difficult. He hoped the ungodly would repent, but knew they would cause trouble.

What are the last days? Many think the term only applies to a short period before the return of Christ. I think, however, that it applies more broadly to the church age, the time between the resurrection of Christ and his return. In Acts 2:14-21, Peter applied the term to his time, saying the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost began the last days and fulfilled the prophesy of Joel 2:28. The writer of Hebrews makes the same application in Hebrews 1:1-2. He said God has spoken to us in the last days by his Son. In 9:26, he said Christ appeared once for all at the end of the ages. 1 John 2:18 said they were in the last hour.

You might note that the Greek word for “last” is “eschatos” (ἔσχατος). That is the source of our word “eschatology”, meaning the study of last things.

Paul meant that, despite Timothy’s Christ like defense of the faith, there would be difficult times and difficult people who would oppose the church and obstruct the gospel. He described the types of people Timothy would encounter. We are still in the last days and will encounter them also. He gave a long list. He said the people will be:
lovers of self,
lovers of money,
proud,
arrogant,
abusive,
disobedient to their parents,
ungrateful,
unholy,
heartless,
unappeasable,
slanderous,
without self-control,
brutal,
not loving good,
treacherous,
reckless,
swollen with conceit,
lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.

Lovers of Self
In our time, people not only love themselves but exalt the idea. Whitney Houston, a popular singer, recently died. People started quoting songs she sang. One is a tribute to self love called “The Greatest Love of All”. Here are a few of the lyrics:
I found the greatest love of all
Inside of me
The greatest love of all
Is easy to achieve
Learning to love yourself
It is the greatest love of all

Whitney Houston professed to be a Christian. Yet, the Bible teaches that the greatest love is the love of God for sinners expressed in the sacrifice of his son for their salvation. Jesus said, referring to his love: “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) Second to that is our love for God with our heart, soul and mind as Jesus said in Matthew 22:36. Third is the self sacrificing love of one for his or her neighbor. Jesus called the last two the greatest commandments. The Bible never exalts self love. Yet, Ms. Houston exalted self love by singing this song.

Lovers of money

Paul says the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. We live in a time where people love money, sacrifice family and faith to get it, commit crimes to obtain it and revere those who have a lot of it. Remember the show “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”? Presently there is a Wealth Channel on cable television.

Note that both of these are examples of misplaced love. Their love is not for Christ, not for his church and not for people. It is for themselves.

Proud & Arrogant

Humility is not highly valued in our culture. Pride is a desired trait, at least up to a point. There are certainly many arrogant people around, also. You probably ran into at least one this week. To be arrogant is to feel and act superior. It is common among attorneys. I have them come into my office and tell me how good they are all the time. But God values humility. James 4:6 says “But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

Abusive

Abuse of women and children was common in Paul’s time. Women were the property of their husbands or fathers in many cultures. No one intervened if a man abused his wife or children.

Abuse is rampant is our society. Husbands abuse their wives verbally and physically. Most police departments and prosecutors offices have special units for child abuse and family violence. Human trafficking is a big problem in America. Girls and boys are forced into prosecution. Women from other countries are held captive to be maids or prostitutes.

Disobedient to their parents

One of the 10 Commandments tells us to honor our parents. (Exodus 20:12) God set up lines of authority to govern human life. The family is the unit that governs most of life. The role of children is to obey and respect parents. The penalty for disobedient and abusive children was severe in the Old Testament times. Ephesians 6:1 quotes the commandment and instructs children to obey parents. Elders and deacons were to have children who submitted to their authority. Paul points to the rebelliousness of children as a sign of a society breaking down as it refuses to obey God’s law. Yet, many teach that parents should not discipline their children or control their behavior.

Ungrateful

The Bible tells us to be grateful to God for our blessings. The ungrateful are considered reprobate.

Unholy

Holiness was not valued in Roman culture and is not valued in our culture. Hypocritically, we condemn political candidates who have moral lapses, but enjoy actors and celebrities who are sexually immoral or indecent. We make it fun to be a little naughty. Las Vegas even advertises that you can come there and be unholy and no one will know back home. Yet, again, that value of our culture is contra to the standard of God. He told us to be holy because he is holy.

Heartless

There is not much sympathy or empathy out there. Already in Paul’s time, the Romans made their enemies fight to the death. They burned Christians alive and fed them to lions while people watched and cheered. Unwanted children were thrown into fields. Today there is just a lot of meanness going on. Violence is common. We have all been the victim of someone’s “road rage” in traffic. People stand by and watch while a man is beaten or a woman is raped. Some take videos and post them on You Tube.

Unappeasable

Appease means to bring to a place of calm or to make someone stop being angry. It reminds me of the accidental burning of a few Korans in Afghanistan which has led to Muslim mobs attacking people, killing some even and destroying property. Apologies were made for the mistake, but they will not be appeased.

Slanderous

Slander means to attribute false actions or motives to another. This happens all the time. Political candidates regularly lie about the actions of others or the effect of those actions. Christians are prone to it, ascribing bad motives to people when they do not know the persons actual motives. Some of that went on recently in our own church over the worship style and the number of services.

In the debates in our denomination over theology, proponents of one view regularly misstate the views of the other side while arguing against them. In debate, that is called a straw man.

Without self-control

Certainly first century Rome was known for many excesses. Sexual immorality was rampant. Violence was common. They are both common in our culture.

Brutal

The Romans were certainly brutal to their enemies. The Jews were brutal toward Christians. Mexico today suffers from great brutality in the drug gang wars that are going on. In many cities and towns there, police are gunned down or beheaded.

Not loving good

Christian morals were not respected in Timothy’s day. They are less respected now in our time than in the past, especially in our country.

Treacherous, Reckless

Always ready to betray, these people gain by their betrayal of others. I used to have to attend a Monday morning meeting of the top people in a corporation. The leader would always find a person and pick on him, and often others would “throw someone under the bus”. It was a terrible way to start the week.

Swollen with conceit

Conceit is an excessive appreciation of your own value or ability. It goes along with pride and arrogance.

Lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God

Man is always tempted to do what feels good to him rather than live up to God’s standards of holiness. This is loving pleasure rather than God. It is a lot of what drives the abortion movement. Women want sex without consequences and men are happy for them to have it because it helps them avoid consequences. Aborting an imperfect child means you are not tied down to meet special needs and can spend the time on your own pleasures.

So, the last days are characterized by the clash of values between humanity and God, even though intervened to send his Son to teach his values and bring people into his kingdom.

Having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power

Paul pointed out to Timothy that these men wore a cloak of religious piety but were not godly. They like the trappings but do not really believe and serve an all powerful God. They do not believe God works effectively in the lives of believers.

This certainly describes a lot of self designated Christians in our time. They will say they are Christians and even claim membership in a particular church. However, they deny God by their lifestyle or by their theology. This is why I resist all attempts to reduce the power and sovereignty of God in theology. Those who continually exalt mankind and believe man limits God will ultimately deny the power of Godliness or lead others to do so.

In verse 6, Paul specifically says they mislead women and take advantage of their guilt over sin. Evidently they would teach that every thing is acceptable or the other extreme, that they needed to live in denial of all good things. Women in Paul’s age were often confined to the home and uneducated. They were very susceptible to false teaching. In Luke 17:2, Jesus said it would be better to drown with a millstone around your neck than to lead someone into sin.

Paul told Timothy to avoid these kinds of people. He already told him to be kind to them when discussing their differences. But he was not to be part of their group. It would dilute Timothy’s spiritual authority. It might corrupt his own theology and faith.

As an example of these kinds of people, in verse 7, Paul referred to Jannes and Jambres who opposed Moses. These names do not appear in the Biblical account of Moses or anywhere else in the Bible but here, so Paul had to refer to some other history. Exodus 7:10-12 speaks of Egyptian magicians who performed the same miracles as Moses and Aaron, until Aaron’s rod ate their rods. They are not named. But the Jews had many embellished stories of Moses, since he was the giver of the law.

Paul's may have obtained the names of the two magicians from the Book of Jasher. The Jews regarded it as a trustworthy historical document. It is quoted in 2 Samuel 1:18 (i.e. Jasher 56:9) and Joshua 10:11-15 (Jasher 88:61-65). Paul may have studied it while getting his theological training as a young Pharisee. Since he wrote this to Timothy, he clearly assumed Timothy knew the story also.

Jasher 79:27 says “ And when they had gone Pharaoh sent for Balaam the magician and to Jannes and Jambres his sons, and to all the magicians and conjurors and counsellors which belonged to the king, and they all came and sat before the king.”

Origen wrote that there was a book called The Book of Jannes and Jambres, containing details of their exploits. He wrote that Paul quoted from that book. However, that book has not been discovered.

Almost every decade has a person who appears on the religious scene with corrupted theology and practice. It is the job of the church to show their error and to seek their repentance. It is also the job of the church to avoid hanging out with them.

In contrast to these corrupted theologians, Paul commended Timothy’s theology and faith in verses 1--17.

10 You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, 11 my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and sat Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. 12 Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13 while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God2 may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Timothy stayed true to Paul’s teaching and example. (10) He stayed true even through Paul’s persecutions. (11) After all of his warnings to Timothy, he wanted him to understand that Paul knew he was still sound.

In verse 12, Paul gave a good reminder to Timothy and to us all. “All who desire to live a godly life in Christ will suffer persecution”. Ungodly people resent godly people. They will persecute them at some level. It may be severe, as Christians are beaten and killed in parts of the world. It may be social shunning. It may be ridicule in person or in the press. One of the Catholic presidential candidates has received a lot of criticism for his beliefs, for example.

The bad news is that these people go from bad to worse. Timothy lived to see that in Asia. We live to see it today. Take anyone who came to prominence for a slightly different twist on Christian doctrine. Follow him for 10 years. You will find someone who has left the orthodox Christian faith. And Paul leads us to believe opposition to the gospel will increase. It certainly increased in Paul and Timothy’s day.

Timothy, however, had firm knowledge and belief in the Biblical faith. He was taught Scripture as a child. He was discipled by Paul, an apostle. Paul centered his faith and Timothy’s in scripture. He said it is able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ. (15) We need desperately to heed this message. Philosophy is not the key to faith, eternal life or godliness. It is knowledge of, belief in and adherence to the word of God. It is all we need. That is what Paul cogently stated in verse 16. God’s word is sufficient for us. We do not need humanist philosophy.

That is because “All Scripture is breathed out by God”. We believe the Bible is God’s word. It was written by men who were inspired and directed by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:21 says “For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit”.

Not only is the Bible inspired, it is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. You do not need those books which have secrets to reveal, or psychology to implement or philosophy to explain. There is more in God’s word for you to learn and incorporate into your life than you will ever get done before you are glorified in Christ. Go to the Bible to solve your problems, ease your anxieties, learn what is right and wrong, learn what pleases and displeases God and makes you live righteously.

Not only is the Bible inspired and profitable, it is sufficient. Verse 17 says that the man (and woman) of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. It is all you need to be a complete Christian. It is all you need to be equipped for every good work.

Books that help you understand the Bible are good. Books that say they give you spiritual insight but do not quote the Bible as the source are not good. But no book, good or bad, should replace your dedication to the Bible. Do not read so many books you neglect The Book.

How can you apply this lesson? Do this:

 Ask God to teach you
 Read your Bible
 Study you Bible
 Act on what you learn

THE LAST DAYS: WHAT THEY ARE AND WHAT THEY LOOK LIKE

2 Timothy 3:1-9 (ESV)

3 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6 For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7 always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. 8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. 9 But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.

Although Paul wanted Timothy to approach the ungodly in a Christ-like manner, he warned him that people in the last days would be difficult and would make the times difficult.

What are the last days? Many think the term only applies to a short period before the return of Christ. I think, however, that it applies more broadly to the church age, the time between the resurrection of Christ and his return. In Acts 2:14-21, Peter applied the term to his time, saying the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost began the last days and fulfilled the prophesy of Joel 2:28. The writer of Hebrews makes the same application in Hebrews 1:1-2. He said God has spoken to us in the last days by his Son. In 9:26, he said Christ appeared once for all at the end of the ages. 1 John 2:18 said they were in the last hour.

You might note that the Greek word for “last” is “eschatos”. That is the source of our word “eschatology”, meaning the study of last things.

Paul meant that, despite Timothy’s Christ like defense of the faith, there would be difficult times and difficult people who would oppose the church and obstruct the gospel. He described the types of people Timothy would encounter. We are still in the last days and will encounter them also. He gave a long list. He said the people will be:
lovers of self,
lovers of money,
proud,
arrogant,
abusive,
disobedient to their parents,
ungrateful,
unholy,
heartless,
unappeasable,
slanderous,
without self-control,
brutal,
not loving good,
treacherous,
reckless,
swollen with conceit,
lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.

Let's examine a few of these:

Lovers of Self

In our time, people not only love themselves but exalt the idea. Whitney Houston, a popular singer, recently died. People started quoting songs she sang. One is a tribute to self love called “The Greatest Love of All”. Here are a few of the lyrics:
I found the greatest love of all
Inside of me
The greatest love of all
Is easy to achieve
Learning to love yourself
It is the greatest love of all


Whitney Houston professed to be a Christian. Yet, the Bible teaches that the greatest love is the love of God for sinners expressed in the sacrifice of his son for their salvation. Second to that is the self sacrificing love of one for his or her neighbor. The Bible never exalts self love. Yet, Ms. Houston exalted self love by singing this song.

Lovers of money

Paul says the love of money is the root of all evil. We live in a time where people love money, sacrifice family and faith to get it, commit crimes to obtain it and revere those who have a lot of it. Remember the show “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”?

Proud & Arrogant

Humility is not highly valued in our culture. Pride is a desired trait, at least up to a point. There are certainly many arrogant people around, also. You probably ran into at least one this week. To be arrogant is to feel and act superior. It is common among attorneys. I have them come into my office and tell me how good they are all the time. But God values humility. James 4:6 says “But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

Abusive

Abuse of women and children was common in Paul’s time. Women were the property of their husbands or fathers in many cultures. Abuse is rampant is our society. Husbands abuse their wives verbally and physically. Most police departments and prosecutors offices have special units for child abuse and family violence. Human trafficking is a big problem in America. Girls are forced into prosecution. Women from other countries are held captive to be maids.

Disobedient to their parents,

One of the 10 Commandments tells us to honor our parents. (Exodus 20:12) God set up lines of authority to govern human life. The family is the unit that governs most of life. Church is the other. The role of children is to obey and respect parents. The penalty for disobedient and abusive children was severe in the Old Testament times. Ephesians 6:1 quotes the commandment and instructs children to obey parents. Elders and deacons were to have children who submitted to their authority. Paul points to the rebelliousness of children as a sign of a society breaking down as it refuses to obey God’s law.

Ungrateful

The Bible tells us to be grateful to God for our blessings. The ungrateful are considered reprobate.

Unholy

Holiness is not valued in our culture. Hypocritically, we condemn political candidates who have moral lapses, but enjoy actors and celebrities who are sexually immoral or indecent. We make it fun to be a little naughty. Las Vegas even advertises that you can come there and be unholy and no one will know back home. Yet, again, that value of our culture is contra to the standard of God. He told us to be holy because he is holy.

Heartless

There is not much sympathy or empathy out there. Already in Paul’s time, the Romans made their enemies fight to the death. They burned Christians alive and fed them to lions while people watched and cheered. Today there is just a lot of meanness going on.

Unappeasable

Appease means to bring to a place of calm or to make someone stop being angry. It reminds me of the accidental burning of a few Korans in Afghanistan which has led to Muslim mobs attacking people, killing some even and destroying property. Apologies were made for the mistake, but they will not be appeased.

Slanderous

Slander means to attribute false actions or motives to another. This happens all the time. Political candidates regularly lie about the actions of others or the effect of those actions. Christians are prone to it, ascribing bad motives to people when they do not know the persons actual motives. Some of that went on recently in our own church over the worship style and the number of services.

In the debates in our denomination over theology, proponents of one view regularly misstate the views of the other side while arguing against them. In debate, that is called a straw man.

Without self-control

Certainly first century Rome was known for many excesses. Sexual immorality was rampant. Violence was common. They are both common in our culture.

Brutal

The Romans were certainly brutal to their enemies. The Jews were brutal toward Christians. Mexico today suffers from great brutality in the drug gang wars that are going on. In many cities and towns there, police are gunned down or beheaded.

Not loving good

Certainly our culture values a little naughtiness.

Treacherous, Reckless

Always ready to betray, these people gain by their betrayal of others. I used to have to attend a Monday morning meeting of the top people in a corporation. The leader would always find a person and pick on him, and often others would “throw someone under the bus”. It was a terrible way to start the week.

Swollen with conceit,

Conceit is an excessive appreciation of your own value or ability. It goes along with pride and arrogance.

Lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God

Man is always tempted to do what feels good to him rather than live up to God’s standards of holiness. This is loving pleasure rather than God. It is a lot of what drives the abortion movement. Women want sex without consequences and men are happy for them to have it because it helps them avoid consequences. Aborting an imperfect child means you are not tied down to meet special needs and can spend the time on your own pleasures.

So, the last days are characterized by the clash of values between humanity and God, even though intervened to send his Son to teach his values and bring people into his kingdom.

Having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power

Paul pointed out to Timothy that these men wore a cloak of religious piety but were not godly. They like the trappings but do not really believe and serve an all powerful God. This certainly describes a lot of self designated Christians in our time. They will say they are Christians and even claim membership in a particular church. However, they deny God by their lifestyle or by their theology. This is why I resist all attempts to reduce the power and sovereignty of God in theology. Those who continually exalt mankind and believe man limits God will ultimately deny the power of Godliness or lead others to do so.

Paul told Timothy to avoid these kinds of people. He already told him to be kind to them when discussing their differences. But he was not to be part of their group. It would dilute Timothy’s spiritual authority. It might corrupt his own theology and faith.

As an example of these kinds of people, in verse 7, Paul referred to Jannes and Jambres who opposed Moses. These names do not appear in the Biblical account of Moses or anywhere else in the Bible but here, so Paul had to refer to some other history. Exodus 7:10-12 speaks of Egyptian magicians who performed the same miracles as Moses and Aaron, until Aaron’s rod ate their rods. They are not named. But the Jews had many embellished stories of Moses, since he was the giver of the law.

Paul's may have obtained the names of the two magicians from the Book of Jasher. The Jews regarded it as a trustworthy historical document. It is quoted in 2 Samuel 1:18 (i.e. Jasher 56:9) and Joshua 10:11-15 (Jasher 88:61-65). Paul may have studied it while getting his theological training as a young Pharisee. Since he wrote this to Timothy, he clearly assumed Timothy knew the story also.

Jasher 79:27 says “ And when they had gone Pharaoh sent for Balaam the magician and to Jannes and Jambres his sons, and to all the magicians and conjurors and counsellors which belonged to the king, and they all came and sat before the king.”

Origen wrote that there was a book called The Book of Jannes and Jambres, containing details of their exploits. He wrote that Paul quoted from that book. However, that book has not been discovered.

Almost every decade has a person who appears on the religious scene with corrupted theology and practice. It is the job of the church to show their error and to seek their repentance. It is also the job of the church to avoid hanging out with them.

BE FAITHFUL IN MINISTRY
2 TIMOTHY 2:14-18

Paul gave Timothy commands or instructions on how to conduct himself faithfully. First, he dealt with faithfulness in ministry.

Paul knew the Apostles were passing from the scene. He would soon die. Peter would also die soon. He wanted to prepare Timothy for the time when the Apostles were not present to guide the church. We live in the time Paul worried about. So his guidance shows us how to live for Christ without the personal presence of either Christ or his Apostles.

First, Paul told Timothy to remind his congregation of “these things”. What are “these things”? They are the things Paul just instructed on, including the catechism of verses 11-13 and his explanation of the gospel in chapter 1. Basically, Paul wanted Timothy to continually remind his congregation of the gospel.

You might think that, once you become a believer, you do not need to hear the gospel again. Paul, on the other hand, wanted Timothy to continually remind them of the gospel. Believers should not see their conversion simply as one and done. They should continually live their life in light of the gospel. It should affect and influence every area of life.

Paul said the gospel was of first importance. (1 Corinthians 15:1-9)

American evangelism has been guilty of moving away from the gospel to center on either financial prosperity or counseling for emotional needs with psychology. But you cannot center your life on anything other than the gospel and live as God intended. The gospel message is the most important, most revolutionary and most astounding word off all time. When you know this, you live your life in the proper proportion. Christ is paramount, most important. You can bear loss, suffering, difficulty and need in light of eternal life. In contrast, if you are not focused on the great gift of God for eternal life, the concerns of the day will overwhelm you.

Paul lived that way. He said ‘For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21) That is one of the most astounding statements in history. If Paul lived, he lived for Christ. He suffered for Christ, he preached for Christ, he worked for Christ, he did everything for Christ. If he died, it was to his gain, for he would be with Christ. He said “my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.” (Philippians 1:23)

How do you handle getting older in a culture that worships youth? You do it by knowing you honor Christ by growing in grace as you grow in age. You do it by longing for heaven rather than clinging to earth.

How do you handle being poor in a society that worships wealth? You do it by knowing you are rich in grace and have the greatest gift of all: eternal life. You set your mind on heavenly things and not earthly things.

How do you handle being rich and needing to give away a lot of your money for the poor and for the ministry of the church? You do it be denying yourself and honoring Christ with your money.

But you cannot do any of these things unless the gospel is constantly before you.

Second, Paul told Timothy to instruct his congregation not to quarrel about words. The NASB uses the word “wrangle” which seems like a good Texas word. He is talking about “nitpickers” who live to argue. He said it does no good and ruins the hearers. (14)

It is important that we defend the gospel. No one will argue with you harder than I when it comes to defining and defending the gospel. But we should not get off into speculations about things not revealed to us, or get into fights over secondary issues, or secret meanings. We should not devote our time to discussions that do not lead us to Godliness.

The church has split into many, many divisions. This does not honor the Lord who claimed to have one body. Some of the splits had to occur because of doctrinal error. Others came over small issues of disagreement. I will stand against you if you deny the deity of Christ or the existence of the Trinity. I will not throw you out of church for being premillenial.

And always we must strive for a gentle and respectful demeanor. The meanness of our disagreements has driven many from us.

Third, Paul told Timothy to strive to handle the word rightly in order to be a worker approved by God and not ashamed. Erasmus interpreted this to read a workman that “does not blush”. Paul directed Timothy to think about the end, when he will stand before God to give an account of his ministry.

I think all the time about Jesus’ words in the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25. To the servant who invested and multiplied the talents entrusted to him, Jesus said “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” (Matthew 25:23)

It is essential that the preacher and teacher handle the word rightly or correctly. The word picture hear is of a tentmaker who cuts a straight line through his material rather than a slanted one.

Our world is saturated with teaching that abuses the word of God. These people will be ashamed when they stand before God. Some do it through ignorance. Some do it for manipulation. Both are bad.

Here is an example. I heard a man on the radio preaching about the story of the widow who gave the two mites, or copper coins. He read from the Cambridge Edition of the King James Version, which says she gave out of her “want”. In the language of that time, “want” mean poverty or deprivation. The later editions of the KJV uses “penury”, meaning poverty. Newer versions usually use “poverty”. So, this preacher said this mean she gave because she wanted something from God, so we should give to God to get from God. I do not know if he was ignorant of the meaning or manipulating the meaning, but he incorrectly used the text. You have heard many sermons on this passage that use it to promote giving. That is also a bit of a manipulation of the text. In context, this story is about the burdens the Pharisees put on others, including poor widows, so they could take away their property.

You must not only teach what the words say, but what they mean in the context. It is the word of God. You do not have the right to pervert it, even for good reasons. God will call us to account and we will be ashamed if we do it improperly.

Fourth, Paul told Timothy to avoid irreverent babble (ESV) or godless chatter (NIV). The reason is that the babble will lead people into ungodliness and spread like gangrene. Gangrene is a condition where the blood supply to tissue is cut off or restricted so that the tissue dies. Sometimes it is caused by an infection. If it is not treated, the area of dead tissue grows and gets bigger. If an infection is involved, the person gets septic and dies.

This is what happens when people come up with ideas that are not in the Bible and spread them as truth. They become ungodly because they are not bound by the truth. They infect others. Eventually, part of or even all of the body dies.

Paul gave an example. He named two men: Hymenaeus and Philectus. (17) Their irreverent babble was their theory that the resurrection had already happened. (18) This upset many, for they believed they had been left behind and so were not saved. Paul dealt with the same issue in Thessalonika. Paul gave specific instruction about this in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-11. There are still some who hold to this concept today.

An example in our time might be Clark Pinnock who taught at New Orleans Baptist Seminary. He embraced open theism, the idea that God does not determine or even know the future. He also did not believe that Jesus was the only way to get to heaven.

Jesus said it would be better for you to be cast into the sea with a stone tied around your neck than to lead someone into sin. (Luke 17:2) He also said teachers would be accountable for their teaching. James 3:1 says “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.”

The teaching of the two men Paul mentioned shook the faith of some. But Paul says the foundation of our faith is firm. (19). The gospel tells us God knows those who are his. Jesus said “I know my own and my own know me”. (John 10:14) Since he knows us, he will not leave us behind.

A person who gets sidetracked by strange teaching often ends up in moral trouble. In fact, many non-biblical ideas have the goal of avoiding Christian morality or responsibility. One who is focused on the gospel will live to imitate Christ and please the Father. Paul said “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity”. (19) By putting away sin and embracing holiness, we reflect God’s nature and become useful to him. (20) We must act like those who are set apart because we are set apart.


BE FAITHFUL IN PERSONAL LIFE
2 TIMOTHY 2:19-21

After dealing with questions of theology, Paul dealt with questions of conduct. It is important that the minister of the gospel deal with the Word correctly. It is also important that he or she live a faithful and Godly life to demonstrate the power of the gospel.

First, Paul told Timothy to flee youthful passions. (22) Our society tells us to indulge youthful passions. There are whole industries that cater to and encourage your youthful passions. Marketing is directed at the flesh not the spirit.

Instead, Paul said Timothy and all who call upon the Lord from a pure heart (hopefully all believers) should pursue several traits that mirror those of God. They are righteousness, faith, love and peace.

Righteousness stands in opposition to youthful passion. When we seek righteousness, we deny our passions and take on the qualities of Christ. The Beatitudes of Jesus reflect this. Jesus specifically said “blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness”. (Matthew 5:6) Romans 8:5-8 says:

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

So this is clear. No matter what this culture tells you, the Bible says you cannot live in a way that pleases God and a way that caters to your flesh at the same time.

We are also to pursue faith. (22) We should constantly grow in faith, both in knowledge of our faith and in actual trust. Constantly examine yourself and see what areas of life need to be submitted, turned over, to Christ. Where do you fail to trust him? Repent of that and step out into faith. To believe is to change from dependence on self to dependence on Christ.

We are to pursue love. We know this is a fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22) That should be obvious also because God is love. The Bible tells us to love each other. It also tells us to love our enemies. Maybe if we love our enemies, we will win them to Christ.

We are to pursue peace. Peace is also a fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22) The person who has the Holy Spirit should be a person of peace. Jesus said the peacemakers are blessed. (Matthew 5:9) Deacons are charged to maintain the unity of the congregation. In my experience, the people of peace are revealed when change occurs. Many react to any change with hostility and anger. These are not the traits of Godliness.

In verse 23, Paul warned Timothy to avoid foolish or ignorant controversies, just as he was to instruct his congregation. It breeds quarrels. Paul went on to say the Lord’s servant himself should not be quarrelsome. (24) Maybe we should send this up to be read at the convention. I have heard horrible things said at both the state and national conventions, as well as private meetings of leaders.

Instead, the Lord’s servant should be kind to everyone. (24). That includes people who disagree with him or her. He should be able to teach. That is, he should be able to take the Bible and demonstrate the truth of his position.

It even means to endure evil. (24) This is very hard. When you are reviled, you want to strike back. Yet our model is Jesus, who was reviled but did not retaliate.

So, we correct our opponents with gentleness (25). That is because the goal is not to win the argument. But as verse 25-26 says, the goal is to proclaim the truth in a loving way in hopes that God will grant them repentance that leads to them knowing the truth and escaping the devil. In other words, the goal is to win souls not arguments.

I do not claim perfection in this area. I am better than I was a few years ago. I have been reviled by non-believers and believers alike. I pray that God will continue to work on me and in me so that I approach each of these situations in way that glorifies him and reflects Christ.

I pray also that you would live for the gospel: learn it, know it, defend it, proclaim it, and rejoice in it. It is precious. And it is entrusted to us.

Be Faithful

2 Timothy 2:110-13

Because the gospel is not bound, Paul was willing to endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they would obtain salvation. Paul used the Greek word ἐκλεκτός which transliterates to “eklektos”. It means “picked out” or “chosen”. And in our context, it means chosen by God. Sometimes it is translated elect and sometimes chosen.
He is thinking of those who will come to Christ, but had not yet. He was willing to suffer to get the gospel to them so they will share with him the salvation that is in Christ, in eternal glory.

Paul knew that preaching the gospel would result in the salvation of those God chose. That gave him hope and strength – his preaching would not be in vain. For example, God told Paul to preach in Corinth because (Acts 18:10) “I have many people in this city”. There were many who would come to Christ through Paul’s preaching because God had chosen them to do so.

Paul finished this part of his plea for faithfulness by using a song or possible catechism that was likely well known to complete his exhortation to faithfulness (2:11-13). The song has four couplets: 2 positive & 2 negative. Each starts with “if” to describe an action of a believer, then follows with the reaction of God. The “if” actually assumes it is true. We more commonly use the word “since” in this situation today.

The first one says, if we have died with him, we will also live with him. We often say that Christ’s death was substitutionary: he died for us or in our place. But his death is also vicarious. That is, his death is attributed to us. His death becomes our death.

In legal terms, a company can be held liable for the actions of its employees. It is vicariously liable. The actions of the employee are held to be the actions of the company. In tribal or clan cultures, the act of a member of a clan is the act of the clan, so another clan may kill an innocent member of that clan in retaliation.

Christians are deemed to have died with Christ. His death is attributed to us. In Galatians 2:20, Paul said “I have been crucified with Christ”. The result of that death is that he may now live for Christ and not for his own flesh. He said “for through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God.” (Gal. 5:19) He also said “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God…” (Gal. 5:20)

Ironically, Christians live as dead men and women: dead to sin and flesh, alive to Christ. (Romans 6:1-4) Therefore, we may live to please him and bring glory to God.

The second couplet says “if we endure, we will also reign with him”. This is a reference to eternal life. It is endurance that proves salvation. It is the opposite of “apostasy”, which is to abandon the faith or the crucial tenants of the faith. One who sins or temporarily falls away is not apostate. The best example is Peter. He denied Christ three times, yet was restored and lived his life and died for Christ.

On the other hand, Charles Templeton used to tour and preach with Billy Graham. He began to question the Bible, however, and eventually renounced his faith publicly. He wrote a book about it and died without repenting. As far as we know, he was apostate.

The reason endurance to the end is the true sign of faith is that God preserves those who believe in Jesus and have been converted or saved. The Bible says this repeatedly. For example, Jesus said “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (John 10:29). Romans 8:28-30 tells us that those God called, he glorified.

Peter put it clearly in 1 Peter 1:9. He said those God caused to be born again have an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for them.

Jude 24-25 tells us God is able to keep us from stumbling and to present us to himself blameless.

It is also the point of Jesus’ parables in Matthew 13. The parable of the soils and the parable of the tares both show that we cannot know who is saved for sure until we see they endure. God knows, but we do not. The believer will endure to the end.

In contrast, the third couplet is a warning. If we deny him, he will also deny us. If we apostasize, or deny Christ and his teaching, he will deny us at the judgment. Jesus said “…whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven”. (Matthew10:33) This verse alone defeats the idea of Universalism, which teaches that everyone gets to heaven. Only those who confess Christ get into heaven. If Christ denies you, you have no basis as a sinner to get in.

The fourth couplet is also a comfort. It is a statement about the character of God. It says “if we are faithless, he remains faithful”. We have seen repeatedly that God was always faithful to his covenant with Israel, though they often were unfaithful. You may stumble and fall sometime. Some of us look back at times we fell in the past with great shame and remorse. Some will fall in the future. Some who were in the class in the past fell and are still fallen. God remains faithful. He will get the believer back.

The example again is Peter. Jesus found him and restored him to his place in the ministry. He hurt him a bit doing it, asking him three times if Peter loved Jesus. Peter was grieved. But Jesus drove home his point.

Paul added a line of explanation: “for he cannot deny himself”. God never changes. The theological term is immutable. One of my favorite verses is Malachi 3:6. There God says “For I the Lord do not change”. The context of the verse is that he is faithful even when Israel is not.

God the Father is Faithful. God the Son is faithful. God the Holy Spirit is faithful.

Therefore, we should be inspired to be faithful. One of the fruits of the faithful Spirit is faithfulness.

Be faithful, brothers and sisters.

2 Timothy 2:8-13
Enduring With Christ

One interesting thing about these people is that they were willing to suffer because of Christ and the resurrection. They were so excited about Jesus they would suffer for him. In fact, they were kind of happy about it. Look again to the book of Acts. After the apostles were arrested and beaten, they left “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.” (Acts 5:41) That means they thought it was a privilege to be beaten up for being identified with the name and person of Christ, so they rejoiced.

Paul felt the same way. Here in 2 Timothy 2:9, he said he was suffering for the gospel and was bound by chains as if he were a criminal. This is exactly what caused some of his followers to abandon him. But notice that Paul knows he can be bound but God cannot. He said “But the word of God is not bound!” (9) And it is not. The gospel roared forth from a few men to spread all over the world. By the time Paul wrote Colossians 1:23, he proclaimed that the gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven”.

Because the gospel is not bound, Paul was willing to endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they would obtain salvation. Paul used the Greek word ἐκλεκτός which transliterates to “eklektos”. It means “picked out” or “chosen”. And in our context, it means chosen by God. Sometimes it is translated elect and sometimes chosen.
He is thinking of those who will come to Christ, but had not yet. He was willing to suffer to get the gospel to them so they will share with him the salvation that is in Christ, in eternal glory.

Paul knew that preaching the gospel would result in the salvation of those God chose. That gave him hope and strength – his preaching would not be in vain. For example, God told Paul to preach in Corinth because (Acts 18:10) “I have many people in this city”. There were many who would come to Christ through Paul’s preaching because God had chosen them to do so.

Paul finished this part of his plea for faithfulness by using a song or possible catechism that was likely well known to complete his exhortation to faithfulness (2:11-13). The song has four couplets: 2 positive & 2 negative. Each starts with “if” to describe an action of a believer, then follows with the reaction of God. The “if” actually assumes it is true. We more commonly use the word “since” in this situation today.

The first one says, if we have died with him, we will also live with him. We often say that Christ’s death was substitutionary: he died for us or in our place. But his death is also vicarious. That is, his death is attributed to us. His death becomes our death.

In legal terms, a company can be held liable for the actions of its employees. It is vicariously liable. The actions of the employee are held to be the actions of the company. In tribal or clan cultures, the act of a member of a clan is the act of the clan, so another clan may kill an innocent member of that clan in retaliation.

Christians are deemed to have died with Christ. His death is attributed to us. In Galatians 2:20, Paul said “I have been crucified with Christ”. The result of that death is that he may now live for Christ and not for his own flesh. He said “for through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God.” (Gal. 5:19) He also said “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God…” (Gal. 5:20)

Ironically, Christians live as dead men and women: dead to sin and flesh, alive to Christ. Therefore, we may live to please him and bring glory to God.

The second couplet says “if we endure, we will also reign with him”. This is a reference to eternal life. It is endurance that proves salvation. It is the opposite of “apostasy”, which is to abandon the faith or the crucial tenants of the faith. One who sins or temporarily falls away is not apostate. The best example is Peter. He denied Christ three times, yet was restored and lived his life and died for Christ.

On the other hand, Charles Templeton used to tour and preach with Billy Graham. He began to question the Bible, however, and eventually renounced his faith publicly. He wrote a book about it and died without repenting. As far as we know, he was apostate.

The reason endurance to the end is the true sign of faith is that God preserves those who believe in Jesus and have been converted or saved. The Bible says this repeatedly. For example, Jesus said “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (John 10:29). Romans 8:28-30 tells us that those God called, he glorified.

Peter put it clearly in 1 Peter 1:9. He said those God caused to be born again have an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for them.

Jude 24-25 tells us God is able to keep us from stumbling and to present us to himself blameless.

In contrast, the third couplet is a warning. If we deny him, he will also deny us. If we apostasize, or deny Christ and his teaching, he will deny us at the judgment. Jesus said “…whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven”. (Matthew10:33) This verse alone defeats the idea of Universalism, which teaches that everyone gets to heaven. Only those who confess Christ get into heaven. If Christ denies you, you have no basis as a sinner to get in.

The fourth couplet is also a comfort. It is a statement about the character of God. It says “if we are faithless, he remains faithful”. We have seen repeatedly that God was always faithful to his covenant with Israel, though they often were unfaithful. You may stumble and fall sometime. Some of us look back at times we fell in the past with great shame and remorse. Some will fall in the future. Some who were in the class in the past fell and are still fallen. God remains faithful. He will get the believer back.

The example again is Peter. Jesus found him and restored him to his place in the ministry. He hurt him a bit doing it, asking him three times if Peter loved Jesus. Peter was grieved. But Jesus drove home his point.

Paul added a line of explanation: “for he cannot deny himself”. God never changes. The theological term is immutable. One of my favorite verses is Malachi 3:6. There God says “For I the Lord do not change”. The context of the verse is that he is faithful even when Israel is not.

God the Father is Faithful. God the Son is faithful. God the Holy Spirit is faithful. Therefore, we should be inspired to be faithful.

Be faithful, brothers and sisters.

FINAL INSTRUCTIONS
2 TIMOTHY 2

Carry On The Ministry
2:1-7

In chapter 1, Paul exhorted Timothy to be strong and to avoid being ashamed of the gospel or of Paul. He urged him to guard the gospel. He gave examples of those who were ashamed and abandoned him. But he concluded with the example of Onesiphorus, who was not ashamed of Paul, but rather came to Rome and searched until he found Paul and helped him. So, when Paul says “you then”, he refers to these examples.

Paul told Timothy several things to do in ministry. They are part of not being ashamed of the gospel. He told him to:

1. teach the gospel to others who will be able to teach;
2. share in suffering; and
3. avoid entanglements in the world.

First, Paul instructed Timothy to teach others who would be able to teach. The heart of the gospel ministry is to teach and preach the gospel message. Jesus commissioned the apostles to do it. He told them to teach their disciples to observe all things that Jesus commanded them. (Matthew 28:20) They were to take what they were taught by Christ and teach it to others. Jesus specifically instructed Peter to do this. He said three times “feed my sheep”. (John 21:15-17)

The apostles understood their mandate. They immediately began to teach and preach. The Jews arrested them. (Acts 5:18) The high priest said “you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching”. (Acts 5:28)

The apostles protected their teaching time by appointing deacons to accomplish the ministry to widows. They said “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.” Acts 6:2.

Paul continued the work of the apostles, preaching and teaching all over Europe and Asia. He found younger men who could preach and teach and trained them, then sent them out to churches. Now he wants Timothy to do the same. This is the pattern of ministry that built the church and the pattern that should continue today.

Second, Paul told Timothy to share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ. (2 Timothy 2:3) This is somewhat like his instruction in 1 Timothy 1:18 to wage the good warfare. He wanted Timothy to take the fight to the enemy even though it resulted in suffering. He wanted him to be aggressive for the gospel, out there preaching and teaching the gospel without reservation and without corruption. Both the Romans and the Jews would come to persecute those who did so. But it was God’s calling.

Third, Paul told Timothy to avoid entanglements in the world that would sidetrack his ministry. He said no soldier gets involved in civilian pursuits. Rather he fights to please his commander. (2:4). This applies to preachers and teachers first of all. They are to be devoted to teaching the gospel, teaching the Bible, not involved to distraction in other things, such as politics or sports or the accumulation of wealth. The Word comes first.

But it also applies to all of us in a way. There is not really a secular world and a religious world. We believe all the world comes under the domain of Christ. Abraham Kuyper said “In the total expanse of human life there is not a single square inch of which the Christ, who alone is sovereign, does not declare, That is mine!"

We have the duty to live for Christ and speak for Christ at all times. There is no time off and no secular space. We live first to please God.

Paul gave two examples. First, the athlete only wins the prize if he competes according to the rules. Those who try to jump in at the end of a marathon and claim to win are disqualified. Jesus made the rules for us. He often called them commandments. To please him, we must follow his instructions. We must obey his commandments. We must want to do this. Jesus said “if you love me, you will keep my commandments”. (John 14:15) It is we who have created exceptions to living totally to please him. He calls us to it full time.

The second example Paul used is that of a farmer. The hard working farmer gets the first share. (6) Paul again encouraged Timothy to be strong in the task, to get out there and engage the world for Christ.

Now, drop back to verse one of this chapter. Paul told Timothy to “be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus”. This faithful, hard work of the ministry can be done despite Timothy’s human nature and ours. We draw our strength from grace. God knows we are weak. Some are weak because they have timid natures. Some are weak because they are prone to pride. He does not expect us to rely on our own strength. We should not expect it either. Rather we constantly seek and receive his strength, then move out in faith to rely upon it.

Notice here that Paul does not ask Timothy to remove his mind from the process. Too many in our day stress emotion and minimize the mind. Paul told Timothy to think over these things and God would give him understanding. (7) God would provide the understanding as Timothy used his mind on the problem. That is why God renews our minds when he regenerates us. So we can know and understand more of his mind and behave accordingly.

Romans 12:1-2 tells us that it is this renewal of the mind that transforms us from understanding the world to discerning the will of God. Paul prayed that the Colossians would be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in spiritual wisdom and understanding so that they could live in a way that fully pleased God. And in doing so they would even increase more in knowledge. (Colossians 1:9-11)

I love the fact that Ravi Zacharias calls his radio show “Let My People Think”. He challenges the church to think about everything in Biblical terms. Then he goes to non-believers and challenges their thinking also.

To further strengthen Timothy, Paul even preached the gospel to him. He said “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel…” (8) Certainly Timothy had not forgotten the facts of Christ and his resurrection. But they needed to be a present reality for him. Paul continually burned with passion because he experienced the risen Christ and longed to please him. His divinity (his being God) was proven by his rising from the dead.

Your religion can get really abstract. You can go through the motions. You can look good, but be rotten on the inside. You can be intimidated by atheists and liberals. Eventually you will come to doubt.

But consider this if you believe Christ rose from the dead. It is the most revolutionary fact in history. It means he defeated death and reigns in heaven. It means all will stand before him in judgment. It means he is the only thing that ultimately matter.

For example, Jesus does not exist to make your marriage better. Your marriage exists to glorify Christ. Jesus does not exist to make your job better. Your work exists to bring glory to Christ.

That is why those early church members were so crazy about Christ and about each other. They believed in the resurrection and it was the most exciting thought they had and it consumed them. It consumed them so much, awe came upon them. (Acts 2:43). They devoted themselves to the study of the word as taught by the apostles, to fellowship with each other, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. (Acts 2:42) They went to the Temple every day, then went home and had meals together.

They shared everything they had together. They did this because possessions were not near as important as having fellowship with everyone who believed in Christ and his resurrection. They were grateful for what they had. They were so radical and excited and good that people came and joined them every day.

Have you seen the video on YouTube of the kids reading John 3:16? It was made by Focus on the Family and they played it during a football game. You can see it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1fdAHbUM9o&feature=endscreen&NR=1.
At the end, a kid says “wow!”. And it is “wow”!

What happened to us? What happened that we hear the gospel preached and we do not say “wow”. What happened to make it so people do not come to worship for a year at a time, do not read God’s word (I mean, it is God’s Word!), we do not talk to God, we do not live for him or talk about him or worship him?

Let’s repent and get our “wow” back!

PAUL'S FINAL INSTRUCTIONS TO TIMOTHY
2 TIMOTHY 1:10-18
THE WORK OF CHRIST

Next Paul described God the Son. (10) He, Christ, abolished death and gave us eternal life. This is the heart of the gospel. Christ through his death on our behalf brought eternal life to those who believe in him. Jesus said it this way: “For God so loved the world (or God loved the world this way), that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life”. (John 3:16)

Let’s talk about death for a minute. When God placed Adam in the Garden, he gave him instructions. In my opinion, he made a covenant with him. He said in Genesis 2:16: “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that eat of it you shall surely die.” Adam ate the fruit of the tree. He violated the covenant with God. He disobeyed God’s instructions. So God, who is always faithful to fulfill his part of the covenant, imposed death upon Adam. First, there was spiritual death. God drove him out of the Garden and out of his presence. He also was condemned to physical death, for he was prevented from reaching the tree of life. (Genesis 3:22).

Paul picked up the theme in Romans 5 as he compared Christ to Adam. He wrote “…sin came into the world through one man (Adam) and death through sin…” (Romans 5:12).

So, we inherit death through Adam. This is the theological concept of original sin. There are two thoughts that are relevant to this. First, because Adam sinned, every human being born since then, including you, entered the world with a fallen nature. We have sinful tendencies and desires from birth. David acknowledged this in Psalm 51:5. Jesus said “…whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God”. John 3:18. We are children of wrath unless and until we become children of God. Ephesians 2:1-3. If you do not believe children are sinners, go to the children’s building and watch.

Second, the guilt of Adam's sin is credited not just to Adam but to all of us. God regards us as having sinned in Adam. Therefore we deserve the same punishment as Adam. So, we inherit sin and death from Adam.

But do not worry if you think this is unfair. The Bible says we all sin. Romans 3:23. And the wages of sin is death. Romans 6:23. So, either way you get to the fact that you sin and you must die. Every man and woman must die physical death unless they are blessed to be alive at the Second Coming. That is the judgment on mankind.

But part of Adam’s punishment was banishment from the presence of God. Not only will we die physically, but we will die spiritually. Hell is the place where those who reject God are gathered to live outside of his presence and blessing. So it will be terrible. It is so bad, Revelation calls it the Second Death. Revelation 20:14-15 describe it as a lake of fire.

Jesus spoke of eternal punishment in parables. In the parable of the weeds, Matthew 13:24-30, he said used weeds as a symbol of those who rejected Christ and said the weeds would be gathered first and burned (verse 30). He explained the parable to his disciples in verses 36-43. He said “…at the close of the age the son of man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all breakers and thrown them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashingof teeth. (verses 39-43).

There is only one exception. That is the gospel message. Here, in 2 Timothy 1: 10, Paul said Christ abolished death and brought life and immortality. When we commit our lives to Christ and repent of our sins, God imputes our sin to Christ who paid for it on the cross. He also imputes Christ righteousness to us and gives us eternal life.

This physical body will die for now. But our spirit will live forever. And one day, Christ will renew and remake our physical bodies and we will walk the new earth forever in them and in his presence.

In 2 Timothy 1:11, Paul states again that he was appointed to preach this message (preacher), to take it to other nations (apostle) and to teach its ramifications (teacher). This is the message of the gospel Christ appointed Paul to preach (11).

This gospel is the reason he was persecuted. (12) Why was he persecuted? Why do men hate the gospel message and the people who preach it? If it is such good news, why do many react so violently to it?

I think it is because it puts all power on God and none on man. Man is only saved because God has mercy on him and extends grace. It is not because of personal worth or good works. We would rather think God must accept us because we are acceptable for whatever reason. Jesus said they hated me and they will hate you.

Paul suffered terribly. Yet, Paul was not ashamed. He said this in his introduction to the book of Romans: “I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes…” Romans 1:16. The gospel is the only message for salvation.

In verse 12 (2 Timothy 1:12), Paul stated the reason he was not ashamed, the reason he did not back away from the gospel when he was persecuted. The reason was that he trusted Christ to preserve him and the gospel. He said this in verse 12: “for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.” (ESV) Other versions say “what I have entrusted to him”, and the hymn you know is written for that translation because it is based on the KJV.

However, the context here and later in the letter is Timothy’s guarding the gospel that was entrusted to him as it was to Paul. Paul will later tell Timothy to entrust the gospel to other faithful men as it was entrusted to him. It is the same idea of Paul’s saying he was made a steward of the gospel. (1 Corinthians 4:1-2).

Christ entrusted the gospel to Paul, then to Timothy, then to us. We are pretty weak. We do not spend enough time concentrating on what the Bible says. Many redefine the gospel. But Paul says God is able to guard the gospel, to keep it undefiled. He has many times brought revival or reformation to accomplish that. He raised up men and women who read the Bible and cry out against those who have corrupted its message.

So, in verses 13-14, Paul exhorted Timothy to guard that deposit of the gospel. He could do this by the power of the Holy Spirit. As can we.

How could Timothy do that? How can we do it? Paul told Timothy in verse 13-14. He said “Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.”

Timothy was to follow the teaching of Paul. Paul followed the teaching of Christ. Make of list of the things Paul taught and put them up against a list of the things Christ taught and see how they match up.

What of us? We are to follow the teaching of Christ and of the apostles. Read and study your Bible. Listen to sound teaching. Only by knowing the truth do you recognize counterfeit. You must do this to be safe.

The job of the teacher is to learn the text and teach what it means. It is not the job of the teacher or the theologian to come up with new ideas that are not Biblically based. It is not the job of the teacher or the theologian to explain away the text. Be on guard when any message starts with the words “this does not really mean this”. It is the inspired word of God. You may not change it.

Does any false teaching or preaching occur today? Since there is no accountability for media based ministries, you have to judge what they say. There are some great ones. There are some terrible ones. There are many cults and spin offs of Christianity. You must guard against them. And if you are a teacher, you are even more accountable.

Part of Paul’s suffering was due to the fact that many he won to Christ abandoned him. In verse 15, he states that all in Asia turned against him. He named two men specifically. In contrast, he touted Onesiphourus, who stayed faithful to Paul and even found him in Rome and refreshed him. To him Paul said the Lord would grant mercy on the day of Judgment. The implication is that those who abandoned him would not find mercy, but rather judgment, for they had fallen away.

Follow the steps of Paul and Timothy. Whether you are persecuted or abandoned or live in freedom, proclaim the Gospel, guard the Gospel and bring glory to God.

Because God gave Timothy the spirit of power, not fear, Paul told him not to be ashamed of the gospel or of Paul. (8) Many had turned against Paul. They were ashamed of him. In verse 15, he said “all who are in Asia turned away from me”. Can you imagine the pain of that? Paul preached the gospel to them. He started their churches. He taught them. Then, when he went to prison for the gospel, they abandoned him. Was it because they did not want to be put in prison also? Was it an opportunity to take over control? Imagine having invested your life in people who abandoned you when you needed them the most.

That is the way it goes, though. Jesus experienced it. The Twelve abandoned him when he was arrested. He told his disciples they would experience the same. He said “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my sake.” Matthew 24:9. He also said “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you….If they persecuted me, the will also persecute you.” John 15:18

Paul knew Timothy would take flak for being Paul’s protégé. He told him to stand his ground and not shrink back in fear or timidity because of that. Paul also knew persecution had begun and would get worse. He admonished Timothy not be to ashamed of the gospel. Rather he was to be ready to suffer for the gospel by the power of God. (8)

The gospel normally takes hold through suffering. We preach the gospel. We suffer for it. People believe it. This was the story of the early church. The church suffered until Rome broke under the weight of it. The Reformation was brought about by a return to the preaching of justification through faith and suffering for it. Men were killed for preaching the gospel in almost every country in Europe. Luther lived in hiding for years for his preaching. Calvin left France for Geneva to avoid death. The French slaughtered hundreds of Huguenots. The English garroted and burned men alive for translating the Bible into English and preaching the gospel. The Catholic Scots beheaded Protestants and displayed their heads or sent them to their families.

Pastors in China today vanish or go to jail. Muslims bombed a church in Nigeria recently. Christians in Iraq are bombed, beaten and killed now that the control of Saddam Hussein has been removed. Iran hangs believers. Christians in Afghanistan have lost their church buildings and live in fear of death. Indonesian churches are bombed and burned.

Yet, Christ calls us to stand for him in the face of persecution. Jesus said “if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Luke 9:23. That is a scary verse. But verse 26 is even scarier. He said “For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.”

Paul was always able to launch into a little sermon about the gospel at any given time. Here he did it describing God in verse 9. He described both God the Father and God the Son.

First, Paul saved us and called us to a holy calling. He did not do this because of our works. In Ephesians 2:9, he said it is not the result of works so that no one may boast. Isaiah said “…all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment”. (Isaiah 64:6) Titus 3:5 says “he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy…” Our works can never save us.

Much of the Bible was written to point this out to us. God created Adam with a free will and no sin nature. He placed him in a perfect place. He gave him a wife. He walked with them daily. Yet, they rejected God and chose to elevate themselves. God created the nation of Israel, redeemed it from slavery in Egypt, made a covenant with them and blessed them. Yet they rejected him in favor of gods of stone and wood.

Rather, God saved us because of his own purpose and grace which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began. (9) It might humble you a little to reflect on the fact that God saved you for his own purpose, not just for your sake. There are larger things going on than your life. God has a purpose in this creation and in humanity.

What was that purpose? That is a big discussion. But, we start with the simple proposition that God created humanity for God’s glory. He made Adam in God’s image. He was to rule the earth as God’s representative. He was to reflect the glorious character of God. He was to spread the knowledge and glory of God over all the earth. Paul portrayed Jesus the Second Adam because he accomplished what Adam failed to do.

God chose and created Israel for the same purpose. In Isaiah 43:7, God referred to his people as: “everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made”.

God chose us, we who believe, before the foundation of the world, to be holy. (Ephesians 1:4) That is, he chose us and saved us to reflect his glory. He is holy. He says be holy as I am holy. He is saying because he is holy, we must be holy to reflect his nature and bring glory to him. (1 Peter 1:15-16) We are to reflect his glory of holiness. Romans 8:29 says “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son…” The result is the “praise of his glorious grace” (Ephesians 1:6). When we live holy lives, we reflect God’s perfect nature and bring glory to him. This is our holy calling (8).

We are to spread his glory over all the earth, just like Adam. Psalm 37:29 says “The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever”. Jesus told his disciples to make disciples in all nations. Matthew 28:19.

And what is the picture of eternal life at the end of the Revelation? It is a new earth, made like the Garden of Eden, over which the glory of God is permanently manifested. Revelation 21:23 describes it this way: “And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light and its lamp is the Lamb (Jesus).”

In other words, we were not saved because we did good things. We were saved because it was God’s purpose to save us and he did it through his grace. He planned this all before the world began, but later manifested it when Christ appeared. So, to an extent, Paul was speaking of God’s election of believers. God knew what he was going to do for us before he made any of us.

Next Paul described God the Son. (10) He, Christ, abolished death and gave us eternal life. This is the heart of the gospel. Christ through his death on our behalf brought eternal life to those who believe in him. Jesus said it this way: “For God so loved the world (or God loved the world this way), that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life”. (John 3:16)

This is the message of the gospel Christ appointed Paul to preach (11). This gospel is the reason he was persecuted. (12) He suffered terribly. Yet, Paul was not ashamed. He said this in his introduction to the book of Romans: “I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes…” Romans 1:16. The gospel is the only message for salvation.

In verse 12 (2 Timothy 1:12), Paul stated the reason he was not ashamed, the reason he did not back away from the gospel when he was persecuted. The reason was that he trusted Christ to preserve him and the gospel. He said this in verse 12: “for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.” (ESV) Other versions say “what I have entrusted to him”, and the hymn you know is written for that translation because it is based on the KJV. However, the context here and later in the letter is Timothy’s guarding the gospel that was entrusted to him as it was to Paul. Paul will later tell Timothy to entrust the gospel to other faithful men as it was entrusted to him. It is the same idea of Paul’s saying he was made a steward of the gospel. (1 Corinthians 4:1-2).

Christ entrusted the gospel to Paul, then to Timothy, then to us. We are pretty weak. We do not spend enough time concentrating on what the Bible says. Many redefine the gospel. But Paul says God is able to guard the gospel, to keep it undefiled. He has many times brought revival or reformation to accomplish that. He raised up men and women who read the Bible and cry out against those who have corrupted its message.

So, in verses 13-14, Paul exhorted Timothy to guard that deposit of the gospel. He could do this by the power of the Holy Spirit. As can we.