November 3, 2019
Morning Service

One thing we all have in common is that we are dying.  The good news for us is that we really don’t know when our time will be up.  As Paul writes this second and final letter to his spiritual son Timothy, he knows his time is near.  Paul is facing death, but not from natural causes.  He was alive and well, but was convicted as a follower of Jesus of Nazareth and that would end with his martyrdom for his faith.  His condition was terminal.  This letter is a like farewell note from a father who knows his time is short to his son.  Paul tries to stress the most important things that he wants to be sure to pass on to young Timothy who has been chosen to carry on the ministry he has started.  I am sure there is nothing new in here that Timothy has not heard before in the many hours that Paul has invested in mentoring his young pupil.  It is now the time that Timothy must step up to the challenge as Paul passes the torch of leadership down to him.  This is a very intimate, somber and moving letter as Paul tries to encourage and reaffirm young Timothy to continue his life’s work of spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ to this world.

2Ti 1:1-2 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, (2) To Timothy, a beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

            This letter came about 2 years after the first and Paul now is imprisoned at Rome in a cold, dark, solitary dungeon unlike the “house arrest” he was under previously that allowed visitors to come and go and they pleased.  It does not seem like the environment that would initiate a letter of encouragement such as this.  It is indeed a lesson for us not to let our circumstances dictate our attitude.  God is good all the time, and all the time God is good!  Even in Paul’s terrible state, he finds a way to stay the course and finish strong.  Are times tough right now?  There is hope in Jesus, so hold on and keep the faith.  Paul did and so can you.

 

2Ti 1:3-5 I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, (4) greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, (5) when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also.

            Paul makes his love for Timothy very obvious here as he speaks of his great desire to see him one more time.  He states that he prays for him “without ceasing,” showing that even though we are not together with those we love we are not powerless to impact their lives through consistent prayer.  Distance means nothing in our prayers, so our prayer formula stays true; prayer equals results no matter where it is needed.  This indeed is a comforting thought.

            Paul also mentions Timothy’s mother and grandmother as contributing to his great faith.  Parents and grandparents, you have a very important job to do with the children that God has placed in your care.  Point them to Jesus who is able to save their souls and offer them the gift of eternal life.  That has to be the #1 priority goal because nothing matters as much as to having your kids exposed to who Jesus is and given an opportunity to choose to give their lives to Him!  Our society seems to point to things like sports and academics as the most important things to be sure our kids excel at.  Introducing our kids to Christ and modeling a committed life of love, joy, peace and contentment that comes from putting God first in our lives is our single most important task we have to do on this earth!  Don’t let it slip down the list as God promises this:

 

Pro 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.

 

2Ti 1:6-7 Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.  

            Paul begins to encourage Timothy by reminding him of events that he has already experienced along his journey of following Jesus.  He reminds him of the time that through the laying on the hands of spiritual leaders, the full authority of the church and Christ were given to him.  The laying on of hands is a symbolic way that authority is transferred as the leaders in the church at Antioch laid hands on Paul as he began in ministry (Acts 13:2).  The NLT translates his encouragement to “stir up the gift of God which is in you” as “fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you.”  When we see someone who is walking very closely with the Lord and putting Him first in their life we often say “they are on fire for the Lord!”  Oh I pray that God sends a spiritual wind much like the ones that are blowing in California right now that “fans into flames the spiritual gifts we have been given” into a wild fire!  May we be burning with a passion that motivates us to seek His face and walk the path He has given us faithfully and obediently.  Paul now describes the attitude we need to live this way.

 

2Ti 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

            One of the traits Timothy had to overcome was his timidity.  I know I can identify with this one.  It seems at times we know that we need to say or do something for the Lord and we are just too timid or afraid to do it.  Paul is reminding us here that “God does not give us the spirit of fear, but of power, love and of a sound mind.”  Paul here is encouraging us to a boldness in the Lord knowing that it is the Holy Spirit that empowers us to action and we need only to be ready and willing to take the first step without fear.

The call to “fear not or be not afraid” is a theme that runs throughout the Bible.  It was told to Abraham in the Book of Genesis, to Mary and the shepherds at Jesus’ birth and to the church in the Book of Revelations.  Fear does not come from the Lord.  We often allow the fear of the future to dictate how we live our lives each and every day.  The fear of dying often keeps people from truly living.  Why do we fear and worry instead of trusting the path that Jesus is leading us down?  “We are not given the spirit of fear but of POWER and of LOVE and of a SOUND MIND.”  Fear lies to us and pushes us towards being timid, limiting us from truly serving the Lord with all of our heart.  We fear rejection or ridicule or even just doing something that we feel stretches us too far as we are afraid of change. Our motivation to follow Jesus comes from love for Him and all that He has done, does, and will do in our lives because He loves us.  Love overcomes fear.  John wrote this:

 

1Jn 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

 

 

 

 

 

 

            We allow fear to cancel out the effects of perfect love in our lives.  With perfect love, God’s love, there should be no fear or doubt but only confidence and trust.  Fear causes me to question the promises God has given me.  It renders me confused and powerless.  A Christ follower is not to be either one of those.  We are given the spirit of power and love to walk the journey set before us fully trusting that God is in control and confident that He will not let us down!  He loves us and gives us the Holy Spirit to empower us to be able to do things that we never thought we could ever do.  Alone we would fail, but with God all things are possible because perfect love casts out fear.

 

Heavenly Father grant to us a greater faith to be able to put fear out of our lives and to trust You fully with everything that we encounter along our journey to meet You.

 

Zach Williams: “Fear is a Liar”