Latest / Chapel Talks / More Than Good Intentions | Ezra 7 & 2 Timothy 2 | Bishop Tim Wambunya

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More Than Good Intentions | Ezra 7 & 2 Timothy 2 | Bishop Tim Wambunya · Chapel Talks

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So let me just pray and then I'll speak. Lord
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God, by your Holy Spirit, open your word to our
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hearts. Form us in truth. Strengthen us by grace.
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And make us faithful servants of the gospel of
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our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Now, let me say
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to you that a faithful ministry today requires
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more than just good intentions or strong opinions
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or even managerial skills. It requires ministers
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who know the Scriptures, love the Gospel, and
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can handle the Word of God truthfully, humbly,
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and courageously. We serve in a time of deep
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confusion. spiritual hunger, and lots of cultural
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pressure around us. The Church, not just the
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Church of England, but the Church of Jesus Christ,
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needs ministers who will not simply echo the
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edge, but will preach Christ faithfully, teach
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the faith that we have received, and pastor people
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with biblical conviction and pastoral tenderness.
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And to study, to live and teach the word of truth
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is not just a narrow calling like you would hear
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some people say to you or to us. It is the lifeblood
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of gospel ministry. Feeding the people of God,
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guarding the gospel, making disciples and bearing
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witnesses to Jesus Christ is what God has called
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you and I to do and that's why you're spending
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all this time here in this college. And so, to
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begin with, I just want to thank all of you who
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have decided to offer yourselves to ministry,
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gospel ministry, in whatever choice that God
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has called you to in this season of confusion
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and of challenge to the gospel. I thank you for
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being bold enough and for being brave enough
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to offer yourselves to ministry. But I also want
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to thank your teachers and your tutors for all
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they're doing. And not just the teachers and
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tutors, but all those who work to ensure that
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you are properly formed for the gospel ministry
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that God has called you to or is preparing you
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to go and be part of. It's amazing because as
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a bishop, I always worry about drawing people
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into the Church of England. to train for ministry.
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And last year in Wolverhampton, we didn't have
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anybody to ordain because nobody came forward
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for ordination three years before then. And so
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it's always wonderful to come to a theological
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college such as this and to see men and women
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who can still say to God, here I am, Lord, send
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me. I just want to say it's not something to
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be taken for granted. We know that many are struggling
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today and asking themselves whether this is the
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church they want to continue serving at Jesus
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Christ in. We had two very beautiful readings
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this morning. We had Ezra chapter 7, verse 6
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to 10, and we had 2 Timothy chapter 2, verse
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1 to 15. Ezra gives us a picture of the faithful
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teacher. He sets his heart on studying the law
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of the Lord, doing it and teaching it. Paul gives
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Timothy a charge for gospel ministry, to be strengthened
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by grace, to endure hardship, to entrust the
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gospel to faithful people and handle the word.
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of truth, rightly. And together, these two Bible
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readings reveal the heart of our ministry, our
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gospel ministry. It's not about self -display.
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It's not about novelty. It's not about career
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advancement, but faithful service under the authority
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of God's Word. In our days, we used to be told
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that it was more important to work on the way
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you deliver the message rather than whether your
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message was as faithful to what God was saying.
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So we worked hard on presentation. You probably
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need to work hard on presentation. But if you
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think that your job is to ensure you're presenting
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the gospel in the most attractive way in sort
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of a human point of view, If you think that the
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way you're going to advance in your career in
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the church is by how amazing you are as a preacher,
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rather than how faithful you are to the Word
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of God, then I think you're sliding down the
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drain very quickly. We meet people in the Church
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of England who are working really hard to become
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bishops. If I had my way, I would abolish the
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role of bishops. But then I think if you abolish
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bishops, you wouldn't have confirmation, because
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bishops have to do confirmation. That's why we
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keep the bishops. But we have people working
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really hard, thinking when are they going to
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become bishops. And so they get lost. Instead
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of focusing on God's Word and remaining faithful,
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they begin to be seduced by all these different
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things around us. So my goal this morning is
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simple. I want to encourage all of you, all of
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us here, to study, live, and teach the word of
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truth. To study, live, and teach the word of
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truth, and to do so very faithfully. And so just
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looking at our two readings this morning, It
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seems to me that there are three lessons that
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we can embrace from this two Bible readings.
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Firstly, set your heart to study God's Word.
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It's very simple, doesn't it? Set your heart
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to study God's Word. And secondly, let the Word
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shape your life before your teaching. Let the
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Word shape your life. before your teaching. And
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third, rightly handle the Word and entrust it
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to others. Rightly handle the Word and entrust
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it to others. So firstly, set your heart to study
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God's Word. In these readings here we see that
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Ezra is introduced not initially by his personality
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charisma or public platform but by his relationship
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to the word of God his ministry begins with a
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settled inward resolve listen again to Ezra chapter
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7 verse 10 it says this For Ezra had devoted
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himself to the study and observance of the law
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of the Lord, and of course to the teaching of
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his decrees and laws in Israel. That's verse
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10. So we see that Ezra is well -versed in the
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law of Moses. This did not happen accidentally.
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Because faithful teaching grows out of disciplined
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attention, repeated reading, prayerful reflection,
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and humble submission to Scripture. And the key
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phrase is that Ezra had devoted himself. Or in
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older language, set his heart. And this is more
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than academic study. It is love, hunger, reverence,
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and surrender before the word of the living Lord.
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Notice that the law is not treated as a human
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tradition to be managed, but as a word which
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the Lord, the God of Israel, had given. And so
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evangelical ministry begins here. God has spoken.
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And his word is trustworthy, sufficient, and
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life -giving. And so I want to say to you this
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morning that all the studies you do here are
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very important and all really matter for you.
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Whether it's Hebrew, Greek, I was very good at
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Greek or Hebrew. I had to have a private tutor,
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the principal's wife. took me into the principal
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house, and every time people came for Greek class,
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I went for my own private lessons. And I still
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just managed to scrape through. Didn't really
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get a distinction in Greek. But all these things
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matter. Hebrew, Greek doctrine, church history,
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ethics, preaching, and pastoral theology. All
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these are not just hoops to jump through. They're
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part of learning to hear God's word carefully.
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so that you may be able to feed God's people
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faithfully. Imagine a medical doctor. A medical
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doctor does not begin with public confidence,
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but with long study. It takes about six or seven
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years to qualify as a doctor. They have to study
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anatomy, diagnosis. They've got to study medicine.
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They've got to study patient care. All this must
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be learned carefully because lives are at stake.
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A careless doctor will harm bodies just the same
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way that a careless preacher will harm consciousness,
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faith, and eternal hope. And so the first lesson
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is this. Set your heart to study God's Word.
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Do not merely Seek to complete assignments, yes,
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you must complete them, and you must do them
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well, but become a lifelong learner of Scripture,
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a servant under the Word, a minister who listens
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before speaking. And yet Ezra does not just stop
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at studying. The Word studied must become the
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Word obeyed. Which brings us to our second lesson.
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Let the Word shape your life before your teaching.
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We see that Ezra's pattern is deeply important
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here. He studies, he does, and he teaches. And
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that order is very important. Study, do, and
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teach. And Paul says something similar to Timothy
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as well. The minister must be strengthened by
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grace and leave as a faithful servant before
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teaching others. Listen again to 2 Timothy 2,
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verses 1 and 2. He says, You then, my son, be
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strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
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And the things you have heard me say in the presence
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of many witnesses entrust reliable people who
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will also be qualified to teach others. And so
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Paul begins with grace. Be strong in the grace
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that is in Christ Jesus. Ministry is demanding,
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but it is not sustained by self -reliance. The
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minister's strength, your strength, and my strength
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is not in our egos or cleverness, but it is in
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the grace that comes from drawing closer to Jesus
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Christ. Paul then presents three pictures for
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us in this passage. The picture of a soldier,
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picture of an athlete, and a farmer. The soldier
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is focused, the athlete is disciplined, and the
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farmer is patient. And together they describe
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the shape of a life formed by the gospel. This
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is where Ezra Spartan becomes searching. He studied
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the law and observed it. The preacher never becomes
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a signpost. The preacher must never become a
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signpost pointing others to a road. that they
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refuse to walk themselves. And so I say to all
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of us who are here, your future congregations
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or your present congregations will need more
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than your sermons. They will need your life.
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They will need your prayerfulness, integrity,
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repentance, courage, kindness, holiness, endurance,
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and most important of all your love for christ
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imagine an impressive bridge and london has many
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bridges chelsea westminster hammersmith or london
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bridge a bridge must support the weight placed
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upon it it is not enough for it to look impressive
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it must have strength beneath the surface in
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the same way Public ministry rests on hidden
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formation, on prayer, on repentance, on obedience,
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discipline, and grace. And so the second lesson
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is this. Let the Word shape your life before
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your teaching. The Church does not need flawless
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ministers, but it needs honest, repentant, and
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obedient ministers whose lives are being conformed
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to Christ. And when the Word has been studied
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and lived, it must be taught clearly, faithfully
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and courageously. Which brings us to our third
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lesson. Rightly handle the Word and entrust it
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to others. Paul knows that Timothy's ministry
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will be tested by suffering, false teaching and
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destruction. Therefore, he calls Timothy to careful,
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approved and faithful handling of the word of
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truth. Listen again to just a few verses from
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2 Timothy 2. Verse 8 says, Remember Jesus Christ.
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raised from the dead. And then verse 9b says,
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but God's word is not shamed. And then verse
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15, do your best to present yourself to God as
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one approved, a worker who does not need to be
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ashamed, who correctly handles the word of truth.
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Paul says, remember Jesus Christ. The center
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of faithful ministry is not technique or ideology
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or institutional survival. The center is Christ,
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crucified, risen, David's son, God's Messiah,
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the only Savior. Paul is chained, but God's word
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is not chained. And this is a wonderful encouragement
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to all of us. Because human circumstances may
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restrict us, institutions may disappoint us,
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culture may resist us, yet the word of God remains
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living and powerful. Timothy must correctly handle
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the word of truth. That means careful interpretation,
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honest preaching, gospel clarity and courage.
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We do not twist Scripture to suit ourselves.
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We submit to Scripture so that it may rightly
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shape the church. And Paul also says, entrust
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to reliable people. And so we see that ministry
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is not something we possess, but it is something
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that we steward. The gospel we receive must be
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passed on to others. future preachers, lay readers,
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children, young people, families, parishes, and
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communities. Imagine a steward in Buckingham
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Palace. A steward in a great house does not own
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the treasure in that house. They guard it, they
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use it faithfully, and they pass it on according
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to the master's will. It's the same with us with
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the gospel. We do not invent it. We receive it.
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We guard it. We proclaim it. And we entrust it
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to others. And so very simply, the third lesson
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is this. Rightly handle the word and entrust
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it to others. The minister is a worker before
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God. Not a performer before an audience. Our
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task is to make Christ known faithfully. So how
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are we to aspire to faithfully study, live and
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teach the word of truth? I say this to all of
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us. Make scripture your daily home. Read it devotionally.
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Study it carefully. Preach it faithfully and
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let it examine you before you explain it to others.
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To those of us who are involved in tutoring,
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in teaching, in lecturing, continue forming ministers
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who are orthodox in doctrine, evangelical in
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conviction, pastoral in heart, and courageous
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in mission. And for our church, the wider church,
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let us pray for those who are considering ministry.
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Encourage and support them and ask God to raise
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faithful laborers who will rightly handle the
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word of truth. And may the Lord grant us a heart
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to study the word, to study his word, a life
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shaped by his word, and a ministry faithful to
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his word. Let us pray. Faithful God, thank you
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for calling your servants to minister in your
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church. Strengthen all who are preparing for
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ministry. Give them Ezra's devotion, Timothy's
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courage, Paul's gospel clarity, and above all,
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a deeper love for Jesus Christ. Make them faithful
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workers who need not be ashamed, rightly handling
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the word of truth. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.