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On Sep 24, 2014: 2 Timothy 1-4 Hold Fast The Word · Teachings On This Day On FerventWord

• We're looking at Paul's last letter. This letter was written, it seems, around 66 AD, and it's written when Paul is in prison in Rome. Now, this is the second time that Paul has been in prison in Rome. When Paul was in prison in Rome, We know at the end of Acts chapter 28, Paul is there in prison and he spends some time there. He writes a few letters like Ephesians and Philemon and Colossians. And so he sends out those letters from prison. But soon after that, he was released from prison and he goes around to a few different places and continues to minister and to spread the gospel. But then he was arrested again by Rome. And this time Paul is in prison in Rome. And he's not expecting to survive this time. In the previous letters, you know, he expressed his hope and his expectation that he would be set free from prison and allowed to return to those cities that he was visiting. But this time he's expressing something quite different. He's sharing that he will not be or he's not expecting to be released. But he's expecting to finish his race and to be put to death at this time or soon after this is written. And so he's writing these last words to Timothy, who is, of course, a young man who's been with him for about 15, 16 years in ministry. And he left him behind in Ephesus to establish the work there and to set things in order because things had gotten out of order. And he's encouraging Timothy to finish the call that he had been given. And that's the purpose. To encourage Timothy to be faithful to his calling in the midst of persecution. It's during this time that Rome really began to persecute the church and persecute Christians. And so the things were intensifying and getting worse. And there was more trouble. And Timothy... Again, we saw last week, he seems to be a little bit timid and to wrestle with that. And so Paul is encouraging Timothy to not give up, but to be faithful and to press on until the very end. As you look at the timeline with the Ephesian church, we're jumping down to about 66 AD when Paul writes 2 Timothy. This is about three years after he wrote to Timothy the first time. And so he's ministering to Timothy in this time where Ephesus is still struggling. There's still some issues there. There's still going to be some issues for the next few years as Jesus will correct the church as well in Revelation chapter 2. And so it's not an easy ministry that Timothy has. There's a lot of difficulty in Ephesus, in the church at Ephesus, in the environment. There's a lot of persecution and things are very difficult. And so Timothy needed this encouragement to to press on and to be faithful to the calling that he had been given. Well, the geography of 2 Timothy is pretty simple. Paul is there in prison in Rome, and he sends this letter, probably by Tychicus, to Timothy there in Ephesus. And so we pick it up in 2 Timothy chapter 1 and verse 13 is the key verse. And here's what Paul says. Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. In verses 1 and 2, Paul introduces himself as usual and he addresses the letter to Timothy, a beloved son. Timothy was saved. He believed in Jesus Christ as a result of Paul's ministry. And so Paul often referred to him as a son in the faith. But then as Timothy had been alongside of him for so long, and you remember as he wrote to the Philippians, he says, I have nobody like Timothy. There's no one who's like-minded. He's just right on board. He's got the same heart for you that I have for you. And so this Timothy was such a special person in Paul's life who is right along his side. And so he refers to him as his beloved son, this young man who is so dear to him. And you can see that in the letter. He says in verses 3 through 7, I thank God as I pray for you. And so he's letting Timothy know that he prays for him and as he does continually, he rejoices and he thanks God for but also recognizing that things aren't always, you know, glorious and awesome and wonderful and without problem. He says in verse 4, he says, "...greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy." He says, I greatly desire to see you, and he says, I'm mindful of your tears. Whatever's happening in Timothy's heart, whatever's happening in Timothy's life, he's having a really hard time and he's weeping. He's crying. Maybe he has tears because, you know, of the condition that Paul is in and in the reality that, you know, Paul is probably going to be executed and maybe that's why he has tears. Or perhaps he has tears because His challenge to lead the church of Ephesus is exceedingly difficult and he doesn't feel up to the task and he's overwhelmed and it brings him to tears. We don't know exactly the cause of his tears, but Timothy here is afflicted. and he's wrestling with the things that are going on. And Paul says, I want you to know I'm praying for you, and I'm thanking God for you, and I greatly desire to see you. And he's going to call for Timothy to come and meet him towards the end of the letter. But as he lets him know that he's praying for him, he says in verse 6, Therefore, I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of sound mind. Again, Paul encourages Timothy. In 1 Timothy, he told him, don't neglect the gift. And here, he encourages Timothy to stir up the gift. And so, there's this timidity that we see in Timothy where he was holding back. And because things were difficult perhaps or because, you know, he was having a hard time with Paul being in prison. he's holding back and Paul says, you need to stir up those things and be faithful to the call that God has given to you. And Timothy, you're fearful, but God has not given us a spirit of fear. The word fear, it could also be translated timidity or cowardly. And God hasn't given us a cowardly spirit or a timid spirit. The idea or one dictionary described it this way. One who is timid is one who in perilous emergency thinks with his legs. So you know that's the kind of timidity that Timothy was wrestling with. Where it's like it's dangerous so I got to get out of here. Or it's scary so I'm not going in there. And And that's something that I'm sure that we can all relate to. There's those things that you know that God's called you to do, but you really don't want to do them, you know? And do you think with your feet? And so you run away instead of being faithful to what God has called you to. And Paul tells Timothy, listen, God hasn't given us a spirit of fear. That's not the way that he's called us to live. But he gives us instead power and love and of a sound mind. That Timothy, you can decide, you can make the choice to rely upon the Lord and do the things that you're fearful of doing. And do the things that God has called you to do. Well then in verses 8 through 12, he tells Timothy to not be ashamed of our Lord, he says, nor of me. And so there's this temptation for Timothy to back down on the testimony of Jesus and the testimony of Paul, the testimony of his relationship to Paul, because of the persecution that is beginning and intensifying. And so he encourages Timothy in verse 8 to share with him in the sufferings. Timothy, I'm suffering for the name of Jesus. Join me in that suffering. Don't shy away from that suffering, but participate in that suffering. Be not ashamed of our Lord nor of me. He describes there in verse 9 and 10 and 11 how God has saved us. And the amazing grace and mercy that God has demonstrated. And he's basically telling Timothy the gospel is worth suffering for. The gospel message is so powerful. It's so necessary. It's so essential. It's worth dying for. It's worth suffering for. And so join with me. in this suffering for the gospel's sake. Stand fast and hold fast to the gospel message. Paul says in verse 12, for this reason I also suffer these things. Nevertheless, I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep what I have committed to him until that day. Verse 12 is a powerful verse, but you got to meditate on it a little bit to understand what Paul is saying. He says, for this reason, again, talking about the gospel, I suffer these things. And so because of the gospel, he's in chains. Because of the gospel, he's facing execution. But he says, nevertheless, I'm not ashamed. I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. He wrote to the Romans earlier on. Because it's the power of God unto salvation. And so he says, I'm not ashamed. I'm not backing down from the testimony of this gospel message. Why not? Well, he says, because I know whom I have believed. Notice he doesn't say, I know what I have believed. But Paul's recognizing, I know whom I have believed. I believe in Jesus Christ. And as we often say, Christianity is about relationship with Jesus. And so it's not just a list of doctrines or a list of facts or a list of beliefs. It's a person. I know whom I have believed. I believe in Jesus and I'm persuaded that he, he says, is able to keep what I have committed to him until that day. Paul says, I've committed something to Jesus and I'm persuaded that Jesus can keep it until that day, that final day when I stand before him. And what is it that Paul has committed to Jesus? His soul, his heart, his eternity. He says, I've committed myself to Jesus and And I'm persuaded he's able to keep what I've committed to him until I stand before him in eternity. And so I'm not ashamed because I'm just fully resting and trusting in Jesus. And I know if I am executed, I will be with Jesus. I'm fully persuaded of that. And so if it costs me my life, I will be faithful to the Lord. So Timothy, do not be ashamed of our Lord. You can trust him too. And don't be ashamed of me because I know that he is able to keep what I have committed to him until that day. And so then in verse 13 through 18, he encourages Timothy to hold fast the pattern of sound words that you heard from me. Hold fast to what you've heard from me, Timothy. Hold fast to those things that I've spoken to you. Hold fast to the things that I have taught you. Now he says in verse 15, this you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. So hold fast, Timothy, because not everybody holds fast. Everybody who is with me They have turned away. Even these two specific guys. Now these names don't really mean anything to us. But Timothy would be like, whoa, they turned away from you? I mean, that's pretty surprising. I wouldn't expect them to turn away from you. And so Paul is saying, Timothy, don't be like that. Hold fast to the pattern of sound words. Because there is a danger in people because of the persecution, because of the intensity and what is going on. People are turning away, but you don't turn away, Timothy. Hold fast. Join in the suffering. Don't shy away from it. It's what you've been called to as a witness to Jesus. But as Paul mentions these two who specifically turned away from him, He also then goes on to mention another guy named Anisophorus. In verse 16 he says, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chain. But when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me. I always like this passage or these couple verses here because this is a cool picture here. You have people turning away from Paul because of the persecution, because of the suffering, because of the difficulty. And so people are abandoning him. But then here's this guy, Onesiphorus, who comes in and he's not afraid. He doesn't like abandon Paul or pretend like, oh, I never heard of Paul. I don't know who he is. Instead, he zealously seeks him out. He's knocking on prison doors. Excuse me officer is Paul the apostle in here? He's not in here. Okay let me go to the next prison. Excuse me officer is Paul the apostle here? I'm a friend of Paul and I want to you know minister to him. And he zealously sought Paul out. He found him. He wasn't ashamed. And he says he often refreshed me. And I want to encourage all of us this evening to look at this as a model, as a picture that, you know, God wants to use you in that way from time to time or maybe even regularly. That sometimes, you know, we just kind of kick back and we wait and say, well, hey, if you want to be encouraged, come talk to me. You know, I'm over here sitting down and you can come to me whenever you want to. But but we don't like zealously seek it out like Anissa Forrest did. And I want to encourage you to keep your heart open to that and be led by the Spirit. You know, sometimes there are people who come in here and we look from the outside and we think, hey, everything is great. I mean, their life is awesome. And just to let you know, like for me myself personally, like that's my tendency. I just, I look at you, I think, wow, look at you. Yeah, you're doing awesome. You're doing great. You must be like on fire. You're having the best religious experience, you know, best time with God you've ever had in your life. That's typically what I see when I look at you. And so if you go, man, I was like really hurting and like nobody noticed. It's because it's like you kind of just assume everybody's doing great. But you know, sometimes people come in and they need to be refreshed. They need to be encouraged and strengthened. And I don't want to encourage you. I want to encourage me. Let's remember to be like Anissa Forrest. And don't just wait for people to come and ask, but to search out those who are in need and refresh them and build them up and strengthen them. And there needs to be that desire and that attitude. And listen, we need that from time to time as well. And I know you've probably experienced that when other people have come and ministered to you when you have needed it. And so let's continue that. Let's love one another and look for those opportunities to refresh one another in that way. We're going on now to chapter 2, verse 15. He says, be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. He goes on in verses 1 through 13 to encourage Timothy to be strong and endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus. Paul's not really trying to fake Timothy out and say, Timothy, everything's going to be glorious. You're going to have cake and ice cream every day and you're never going to have problems. You'll walk on fluffy clouds and not sharp rocks and things are just going to be beautiful. No, he's preparing Timothy, Timothy, it's going to get rough. And you need to be strong in the grace of God so that you can endure hardship. You need to kind of gear up and prepare yourself to endure difficulty. Endure hardship. Like a soldier. He gives him a few illustrations for him to consider. In verse 7 he says, Consider what I say and may the Lord give you understanding in all things. And he's referring to verses 4, 5, and 6. In verse 4 he talks about a soldier. He says a soldier... who's engaged in warfare does not entangle himself with the affairs of this life that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier and so timothy you need to be like a soldier in enduring hardship but also in being careful of what things you get entangled with in this life so that you can please god but then in verse 5 he gives him the illustration of an athlete He says, if anyone competes in athletics, he's not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. And so, Timothy, there's some rules that you have to follow. There's some discipline that needs to be in your life. You need to follow this training plan, right? In order to be able to compete. And you can't take shortcuts. You got to compete according to the rules. You got to put in the work. You got to put in those times of training. And those times of exercise. And you got to run that race well. Not trying to you know get some kind of advantage by cheating. And then in verse 6 he gives them the illustration of a hard-working farmer. And he is the first to partake of the crops. And so he gives him these three illustrations and there's lots of things that we could consider there. But the overall point that Paul is making is endure hardship. If you think about a soldier, Timothy, soldiers have to endure hardship. In the training that they undergo, the boot camp that they experience, but then also in the battle that they face. You know, they're out in the field. They're, you know, on low food. They're in difficult circumstances, on very little sleep. They're in great danger. They have, you know, these difficulties, these things that they must endure. And an athlete as well has to endure. Endure. Has to finish the race. Has to endure the many, many hours of training. Has to endure, you know, that match and make it to the end. Has to get to the point of exhaustion and then push yet further to be able to finish well or to win the fight. And a hardworking farmer has to endure. They have to endure long hours. Farmers are ruled by the crops. They don't get to decide, well, you know, maybe I'll just harvest a little bit today. It doesn't work that way. Maybe I'll just plant a little bit today. It doesn't work that way. And they have to do what needs to be done. And so they have to endure the long hours. They have to endure the long seasons and press on and endure hardship. And even if it's bad weather to continue to work. And so Paul gives these illustrations to Timothy and he says, consider what I say and may the Lord give you understanding in all things. Let these pictures, Timothy, help you understand you as a minister need to endure. Now as we study these things and consider these things this evening, again I would encourage you, these are things that Paul would write to us. You are Timothy. And you are called to ministry just as much as Timothy is. You are called to make disciples just like Timothy was called. The specifics of your calling might be a little bit different. Maybe you're not called to pastor a church in Ephesus. But it's ministry nonetheless that you've been called to. The gospel message has still been entrusted to you. The making of disciples is still our commission. And so we must gear up and prepare ourselves. To be strong in the grace of God and endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus. Pastor Chuck Smith once said, We have too many softies in the ministry. Not willing to go the extra mile. Not willing to put up with a little discomfort or hardship. To many, sacrifice is a dirty word. We do. We have a lot of softies in the ministry. reading that extra chapter, spending that extra time with the Lord, attending that extra service, ministering to that person. It's just, it's too difficult. It's too hard. And we just kind of bail out because we're softies and we need to toughen up and endure hardship. Now is the time. He said in verse 2, going back a little bit, he said, Notice the quality that Paul told Timothy to look for. It wasn't look for the smart men or the most popular men, the most good-looking men, but look for faithful men. That's what we need is faithfulness. We need to be faithful in the midst of hardship. That's what God calls us to. To be faithful to walk with him even when it's difficult. When it's difficult because of our flesh and we're tired and weary and weak. When it's difficult because of persecution and opposition. When it's difficult for whatever reason. What we need is faithfulness. That we would endure hardship and continue to walk with the Lord. Continue to spend time with the Lord. Continue to proclaim his name. Continue to obey him and be faithful to his word. To continue to do what he's called us to do. No matter what. To press on. What he's called you to do is what he's called you to do. And that's what you need to do no matter what. And that's what Paul is encouraging Timothy here. And so he goes on in verses 14 through 21 to say, Timothy, think about who it is that you are trying to please. Ultimately, who you need to please is God. And so be diligent, Timothy. Work hard to present yourself approved to God. Work hard to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed. I think we all could easily understand what it would be like to stand before the Lord ashamed. Realizing, yeah, Lord, I've really blown it. I haven't done what you called me to do. I wasn't really faithful in the time of prayer and the time of reading. I wasn't really faithful to share with the people you wanted me to share with. I wasn't faithful to serve in the ways you wanted me to serve. I wasn't faithful. I wasn't faithful. I wasn't faithful. And we, it's not hard. It's not a stretch for us to imagine what that would be like, right? We all understand that. And that's why we need to realize you're Timothy. I'm Timothy. And so let's receive this. Let's be encouraged. Be diligent. Work hard. Be faithful to present yourself as a worker who does not need to be ashamed. God's not expecting perfection from any of us. He's expecting faithfulness though. And there's too many of us who are softies, give up too easily, who give in without the fight, without the endurance. And we need to be diligent to present ourselves approved to God. Be pleasing to God. Work hard at it. And one of the big aspects of that, Paul goes on in verse 15. He says, rightly dividing the word of truth. Sticking to the word of God. Sticking to what it means, what it says. The idea of rightly dividing, it could also be translated cutting it straight. And perhaps here Paul is kind of alluding to his idea As a tent maker. Following the pattern. You had to cut it straight. In order for it to fit together. In order for it to work. In the same way. Learn how to cut straight the word of God. To accurately interpret. To understand it. To obey it. Be diligent to present yourself to God as a worker who's done what they've been called to do, holding fast to the Word of God, not twisting it for your liking or your preferences or your sins, not twisting it for your convenience. You know, well, I don't really need to do that because, you know, I'm going to decide that was cultural. Paul wasn't talking to me because that was something he was just talking to, you know, someone in that culture 2,000 years ago. But understanding, no, what applies? What doesn't apply? What is God saying? What is God declared? And interpreting it right. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God. Be more concerned about what God thinks of you than what anybody else thinks of you. In verse 16 he says, but shun profane and idle babblings for they will increase to more ungodliness. So learn how to cut straight, how to dig in and understand the word of God and disregard profane and idle babblings. There's a lot of profane and idle babblings. It will increase to more ungodliness. There's a lot of nonsense that you can read, that you can listen to, that you can watch. He says in verse 17, their message spreads like cancer. So watch out for that. Stay away from that and dig into the word of God and learn how to rightly divide that. Learn how to understand that. Well, then in verses 22 through 26, he tells Timothy to flee youthful lusts and pursue righteousness. He's to flee youthful lusts But as we've talked about a few times already going through these letters of Paul, there's the putting off and then there's the putting on. So it's not just stop with the youthful lusts, but then it's start doing something else. And that is the pursuit. So run from sin and run towards righteousness. Run towards doing what is right. He also encourages them in verse 23 to avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife. Shun profane and idle babblings, he said a few moments ago. And now as you're fleeing lust and pursuing righteousness, you also need to avoid foolish and ignorant disputes. Don't get caught up in those disputes that don't accomplish anything. They just generate strife. The word avoid, it means to beg to be excused. And so as the dispute is arising, you, well, you beg. Please, let me get out of this conversation. Let me get out of this dispute. I don't want to participate in this. This generates strife. Now, there are things that are worth striving for and striving about. There are the essentials of the Christian faith. The essential elements of the gospel message, the essential elements of the person of Jesus Christ, the essential elements of the clear teachings of scripture. There's a lot of things that are worth striving about and fighting for. But Paul is telling Timothy there's a lot of useless things to fight over as well. There's a lot of disputes that are not worth fighting over. And so just excuse yourself from those disputes. Don't get in the middle of those. They just generate strife. All it does is just generate more trouble. And so don't be involved in that. He says in verse 24, a servant of the Lord must not quarrel, but be gentle to all, able to teach, and patient. So don't get involved in those. Ask to be excused because, well, as a servant of the Lord, You're not to be involved in quarrels. You're to be gentle. When there are things that are not essential to the Christian faith, it's not worth fighting over. Instead, be gentle. Be tolerant is the word. And sometimes as Christians, we can become quite harsh in our attitude, in our treatment of others. We can, well, we can do great damage. But that's not how we're to be as servants of the Lord. We're to be gentle to all, even those who are not gentle towards us. Able to teach, or it could also be translated, teachable. There's a humility there that, well, maybe we don't know everything. I know that thought doesn't often cross our mind, but maybe we need a little sign in the mirror to remind us each morning. Maybe I don't know everything. I need to be teachable. Let others input. Maybe there's something worth considering and praying over. There are essentials that are worth fighting for. There are essentials that are worth dividing over. But there are many, many things that are not. Many things are a matter of opinion, preference, style. They're just not worth fighting over. So take a deep breath. It's okay. Everyone does not have to think the same way that you do. Just... Take a moment to say that to yourself. Okay? Everyone does not have to think the same way that I do about this thing or that other thing. It's not my job to persuade the world in everything. It's my job to present myself approved to God as a worker who's not ashamed, who rightly divides the word of truth. That's my job. But sometimes we get caught up in these other things, in these disputes and quarrels. And it takes us down a path that we shouldn't go as a servant of the Lord. Notice the objective, he says in verse 26. He says that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will. Our objective in not involving ourselves in the disputes is that those who are caught up in them may come to their senses. Now, we are often full of ourselves and we're determined. We're thinking, you know, if only I could get in what I have to say. Then they'll come to their senses once they hear what I have to say. And Paul says, you know, it's probably best, step back, be gentle, excuse yourself, don't quarrel. Again, just focus on rightly dividing the word of truth and you present yourself to God. And that's the best hope that they have of coming to their senses and escaping the snare of the devil. You want to be available to them so they have somewhere to turn. Don't burn those bridges by involving yourself in the dispute. Instead, be gentle to them that they have somewhere to turn. Warren Wiersbe says it this way. He says, ignore the arguments but not the people. A servant's purpose is not to win arguments but to win souls. Sometimes we want to win the argument and we forget about winning the soul. And whatever arena you want to argue about, you know, politics or technology or whatever, our objective is to win the soul. And we must not forget that. And so he encourages Timothy to not get involved in the disputes, but to be gentle and to be focused on pleasing the Lord. Well now chapter 3 verse 16. He says, all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. Here Paul warns Timothy in verses 1 through 9 that perilous times will come in the last days. Again he's not trying to like trick Timothy into thinking everything is going to be always wonderful. There's disputes, there's battles, there's hardship, and there's perilous times that are coming. And these perilous times really center around the condition of the people. Notice he says in verse 2, for men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy. And he goes on and on and on all the way through verse 5. He says they have a form of godliness but denying its power from such people turn away. Perilous times are coming because people are going to be more and more ungodly and full of themselves against God. And so things are going to get rougher. Things are going to get more difficult as humanity, society turns away from God more and more. And so he says, from such people turn away. Those who have the form of godliness but deny its power. That is, they name the name of Christ, but they don't live the life of Christ. Don't hang out with those people. Turn away from those people who have the form but not the power. And he gives an example in verse 8 of Janice and Jambres who resisted Moses. And he's referring back to Exodus chapter 7, who were magicians in Pharaoh's court. And as Moses was doing the miracles to prove that he was from God, they were doing the miracles and duplicating them until, you know, God did things that they were incapable of. But they tried their best to have the form of godliness to say, hey, we have the same power. We have the same ability. We can do that too. And they resisted Moses, but only to a point. Because they are not able to do what God can do. And there's a lot of people who try to duplicate and try to pretend, follow my path. And it can accomplish in you the same things that you've seen accomplish in other people who turn to Christ. Follow Christ this way. Follow our pattern. Follow our religion. Follow our whatever, 12 steps. And they have the form of They use the same terms, but they don't have the power. And they try to duplicate it. And they can to a point, but they can't really change the heart. And they can't grant forgiveness and offer eternity. And so he says, turn away from those people. But then he goes on in verse 10 through 15 to say, you must continue in the things that you have learned. And here Paul is providing a contrast. The false versus the true. He says in verse 10, but you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, long-suffering, love, and perseverance. This idea of Timothy following Paul is the idea of like if you follow a particular team. So perhaps you follow, you know, the Lakers or you follow the 49ers or whoever you like, you know. And you pay attention to them and you track them and you know what their stats are and what their scores are and where they're playing next and where they played last and what their chances are of making it to the Super Bowl or the grand finale or whatever it is. And you follow that. Well, he says to Timothy, you followed me. You've paid attention. You've watched me. And you've seen the doctrine that I've taught, that I've lived. You've seen the purpose that I've had, the faith that I've had, the long-suffering and the love and the perseverance. You've watched me, Timothy. And so you know what the real thing looks like. So turn away from the false and those who have the form but not the power. Turn away, those men who will rise up in perilous times, turn away from them because And remember to hold fast. You have me as an example, Timothy. And so these are the things that you can watch for and test in a leader's life. And for us, these are the things that we can watch and look for and test in a leader's life. And not just as they have one or two here or there, but these characteristics should be evident in the life of a genuine minister of Jesus Christ. Their doctrine should be right on. It should be rightly dividing the word of truth. Their manner of life should be consistent with that. The purpose of which they do things and their objective should be in line with that. Their faith should be in line. Their long suffering, that is, they don't give up just because it's hard or they're suffering. Their love is still demonstrated even in the midst of that suffering. There's perseverance and they carry on. They don't quit. They don't give up. There's persecutions and there's attacks against them and there's afflictions as well. And throughout all of this, they're consistent in their doctrine and manner of life and purpose and faith. These characteristics need to be evident in the lives of those that we allow to be our leaders. We need to look for these things, to pay attention to these things and to compare and to recognize these things. are the characteristics of those that are called to lead by the Lord. It's the genuine versus the false. In verse 12, Paul says, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. Paul says, you've seen the example in me and all the suffering that I've gone through, and yet I've been faithful. But I'm not unusual. I'm not some weird exception that, wow, every other Christian just has, you know, glorious blessings every day. But Paul, man, he has all kinds of suffering. Paul says, anybody who desires to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. That's a promise. And again, you are Timothy. I am Timothy. We need to take these things to heart and recognize there will be persecution. We need to kind of set our expectations that there is going to be suffering. Walking with Jesus will cost you. There will be a price to pay. At some point, in some way, there will be affliction, persecution, opposition, and we need to be prepared for that. He says in verse 13, evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. Those who want to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. That you can count on, and you can also count on, evil men and impostors are going to get worse and worse. There's going to be more deception. There's going to be more evil. It's going to continue. Things are going to get difficult. Because our hope is not in this life. Our hope is not here and now. Our hope is in eternity. Here and now, we're on mission. We're on the battlefield to reach people with the gospel message. And our job is to be faithful to our calling. Faithful to what God has given to us. And too many times, our objective and our mission is Is to be comfortable and to, you know, have wonderful things and lots of goodness. And God wants to give you wonderful things. But that's not the primary focus and it should not be the primary focus of our lives. In verse 14 he says, He refers back to his mom, his grandmother, which taught him the scriptures. And then also his example in the Apostle Paul. Timothy, you must continue. Don't give up. Don't quit. Don't waver. Don't follow these deceivers. They're going to continue. They're going to get worse and worse. And you need to go back and hold fast to the scriptures that you've been taught. Hold fast to the word of God. Why? Well, verse 16 and 17, he says, all scripture is given by inspiration of God. This is what we need, Paul tells Timothy. This is what we need. This is profitable. This is useful in the life of a believer for doctrine. Do you need to know what to believe? Paul says, Google it. No, he says, look at the scriptures. This has everything that you need to know about what to believe. It's profitable for doctrine. It's profitable for reproof and for correction. Now that may not be our favorite, but we know that we need it. Where do you look to? For reproof and correction. You better look to the scriptures. And receive the reproof and the correction that the scriptures provide. Because this is the truth. And this is what God has designed his word to accomplish for us. He says it's profitable for instruction in righteousness. You want to learn how to live right? You want to learn to be the best dad you can be. You want to learn to be the wife that you can be or the employee or employer or neighbor or whatever. If you want instruction in righteousness, that's what the Bible is for. That's what God has designed it for. It's profitable. This is what we need to be holding on to and learning to rightly divide. Notice he says in verse 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. The scriptures have what we need for every good work. We need to look at the word of God. We need to study the word of God. We need to read the word of God because it's inspired by God. It's given to us by God for this purpose. He's given us everything that we need. There's another passage later on, 2 Peter 1, verse 3, where Peter tells us that God gives us everything that we need for life and for godliness through the knowledge of Him. That as we know God, as we know Jesus, as we walk with Him, we have everything that we need for life. So that's husband, spouse, parents, whatever your role is in the community, family, Whatever the role is in your family or in the workplace, everything you need for life is found in knowing God. It's found in the scriptures. Spending time with God in His Word. For life and for godliness. Everything that you need to learn how to live the Christian life. It's found in knowing God and walking with Him and spending time with Him in His Word. That's what the Word of God is given to us for. A few months back, we did a series called Equipped to Believe. And the first session was on believing the Bible. And I'm not going to repeat that session right now, but just to remind you of the points that we covered. And you can go online and check out the message if you want to get more in depth in it. But we saw the scriptures, the Bible is the word of God. This is God's word to us. We saw that the Bible contains mysteries, but not contradictions. The Bible contains all inspired books, that there are no inspired books that are not included in our Bibles. The Bible's prophecies are perfectly fulfilled. That as you look at those things that God foretold, they happen exactly the way that God described. The Bible contains reliable copies of the original manuscripts. What we have today accurately represents what was originally written by the many different authors who contributed, who were used by God to write the things that we have in our Bibles today. And then finally, the Bible accurately records history. When the Bible talks about the things that have taken place, it's accurate. And archaeology continues to demonstrate that over and over and over again. The Word of God is an amazing mystery because it's inspired by God. It's living. It's active. It's used by God powerfully. It's far beyond what we can really understand. And yet, because God has given us His Spirit, the things of the Lord are spiritually discerned. And he gives us eyes to see and ears to hear. And we're able to receive from God and hear from him. He's given us this incredible gift. The scriptures are inspired by God. They're profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, instruction, righteousness, that you may be complete and equipped for every good work. Well, finally now, chapter 4, verse 2. Paul tells Timothy, preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching. So since this is the case, these guys are going to get worse and worse. You have me as an example and you have the word of God. So preach that word of God in season and out of season. Get to work, Timothy. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching. In other words, be faithful. Be faithful to do what you've been called to do. He says, I charge you in verse 1. Before God, before Jesus, he's making it clear this is a serious matter. Paul is passing on the torch. These are possibly his final words to Timothy. I charge you, preach the word. This is your call. This is your mission. Be faithful to complete it. He says the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine. And that's why you have to preach it in season and out of season. Sometimes it's easy to preach the gospel. Sometimes it's easy to preach the word. We experienced after September 11th, 2001. Yeah, 2001. It was easy in our nation to preach the word. There were national calls to prayer. Things have changed a little bit. It's a little bit more out of season now. There may come times and we pray, God, bring revival and bring it back in season. Bring it back in style to preach the word. But whether it's in style or out of style, whether it's popular or unpopular, whether it's accepted or rejected, whether it's at the threat of your life or not, preach the word. Preach the word, even if the time comes when they will not endure sound doctrine. Paul says in verses 6 through 8, I have fought the fight and finished the race. He says in verse 6, the time of my departure is at hand. Again, he's expecting not to survive this imprisonment. He's expecting his execution. And he says, Timothy, I've finished my race. I've fought the good fight. I've kept the faith. I've come to the end of what God has called me to do. And I've done what God has called me to do. What an incredible statement. Will you be able to make that statement? Again, you're Timothy. Paul says, I charge you. Preach the word. Declare the word of God. Rightly divide it. Hold fast to it. Convince and rebuke and exhort. Finish your race. Be faithful to what God has called you to do. Yes, you will have to endure hardship. There will be suffering. There will be opposition. But fight the good fight and finish the race. He says in verse 8, Finally there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day, and not to me only, but also to all who have loved his appearing. So Paul says, this is not just about me. But I've finished the race. I fought the good fight. And there's a crown that's awaiting me as I stand before the Lord. And it's not only to me. But if you love the appearing of Jesus. And if you finish your race. If you're faithful to your call. As you look forward to his return. There's a crown of righteousness awaiting you. There's reward for fulfilling the call that God has given to you. Well, then Paul goes on in verses 9 through 16 to say, come to me quickly. He's calling for Timothy to come to be with him. Again, he's not expecting to live for very much longer and he wants to see Timothy once again. He says, bring the cloak that I left with that guy and bring the books, especially the parchments. I want to spend some more time studying the scriptures, but come to me quickly. Now, part of the reason Paul is calling Timothy to him is because, well, he had sent out some of the others who were with him. In verse 10, he says, I sent Crescens to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia, Dalmatia, one of those. In verse 12, he sent Tychicus to Ephesus. All these guys I've sent out, even though Paul's in great need, he lets these guys go for what God has called them to do. And so Paul is explaining, I'm alone. Only Luke is here with me, so come to me. Because I had to let these guys go do what God has called them to do. Sometimes we need to let people go do what God has called them to do. We'd much rather hold on to them. Sometimes parents hold on to their kids. Sometimes we hold on to those that God wants to send out. And we need to let them go, even if it costs us, even if we're in a position of need. Some abandon Paul, though, and some will abandon us as well. That's something we need to accept. Demas, he says, has forsaken me in verse 10. Demas had been with Paul probably for about five years or so, based on how he was mentioned in other letters. And so Paul was always bringing people close to him, and then some he sent out because God called them out. But he says, Demas, he's loved this world, and so he left me. He went on to Thessalonica. And that hurts. And some will abandon us. Some will break away. And of course that tends to make us say, well forget it. I'll do it on my own. I don't want to risk being hurt like that. But as you look at the example of the Apostle Paul, let me remind you that God did not design us to live this life on our own. He never called us to be lone rangers. He called us to bring people around us. We need one another. He designed us to be intertwined as members of the body of Christ. And there's great blessing in that. But we also need to recognize sometimes God's going to pull them away and send them out. And there are those who will abandon. And we can't just not do it because it might hurt later. We need to turn to one another and rely upon one another. And then some return. He says in verse 11, to bring Mark with you. I think that's interesting. Because John Mark was the one who abandoned Paul and Barnabas in the middle of their second missionary journey. Or their first missionary journey. And then when it came time for the second missionary journey. Paul's like I'm not bringing him with me again. He bailed on us. But then now at the end of his life. There's been a restoration of their relationship. Mark has proven himself faithful. So he says bring Mark with me. Or with you when you come Timothy. Some people will hurt you and let you down. But when they repent. We need to reconcile with them and allow them back in to our lives. And so I would encourage you to look at the example of the Apostle Paul and bring people close to you. Yes, some will be sent out. Some will bail. Some will bail and then later on need to be restored. But that's part of the relationships that we need in our lives. We need people around us that can encourage us and help us. In verse 17 and 18, he says, the Lord stood with me and will deliver me. So even though I'm alone, only Luke is with me, but God's with me. He says, I know God's with me. He will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for his heavenly kingdom. He's expecting to be executed, but he says, God will deliver me. So he's not expecting a physical deliverance. He's expecting an entrance into eternity. And then finally in verses 19 through 22, he He says, grace be with you. And he extends this grace, God's riches at Christ's expense, undeserved, unearned favor and kindness from God to Timothy. Remember earlier, he encouraged him to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, that he could endure as a good soldier. And as we finish up this evening, I want to encourage you, you are Timothy. And Paul's exhortations to Timothy really centered around the Word of God. Hold fast the pattern of sound words. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, rightly dividing the Word of truth. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, so preach the Word. This book needs to be central in our lives. It needs to have a place of great priority today. We need to be spending time, not just religiously reading and just like marking off a checkbox, but seeking God, spending time in prayer, spending time in his word to be faithful to finish what he's called us to do. And we will never be faithful to finish the work that God's called us to do if we're not faithful to spend time with him in his word. We'll never endure affliction. We'll never endure persecution if we're not faithful to spend time with him in his word. This is what we need to be complete and thoroughly equipped for every good work. And so let's be faithful in the word of God. Let's hold fast the pattern of sound words, shunning all the foolishness, all the things that we can get caught up in. Forget all of that. Let's dig into the word of God. Let's rightly divide the word of truth that we can finish the race that God has set before us. Let's pray. Lord, I pray that you would help us to finish the race, to be faithful, to persevere, to endure hardship, to fight the good fight. Lord, recognizing there are great blessings in following you, but Lord, we should also expect the opposition because the time to rest, the time of reward is is in eternity and so until then lord help us to be faithful to not let our guard down to not get lazy but lord help us to stir up the gift that is in us to press forward to be faithful in your word that we might be prepared to do all that you've called us to do and so lord help us to overcome to endure and to shine your light to the world around us in jesus name we pray amen We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.