First Responders

Context

2 Timothy was written towards the end of the Apostle Paul’s life. This much he sensed himself.

2 Timothy 4:6–8 ESV

For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up 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 loved his appearing.

But before Paul departs from this world to the next, he desire to pass on wisom to his sin in the faith… Pastor Timothy. Timothy was pastoring in Ephesus. Timothy and Paul served together for over a decade, and now Paul gives these parting words to his disciple.

2 Timothy 1:3–14 ESV

I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, 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. 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.

Introduction

First responders

FCF

We may be tempted to possess faith in Christ without responding in faith to Christ.

Main Idea

Possessing faith in Christ demands we respond in faith to Christ.

This is to point out that if you are in Christ, that is to say, if you have placed your faith in Christ, are forgiven of your sins and possess assurance of salvation, the biblical expectation is that you respond to your union to Christ in faith. You’ve been saved, so now respond. Respond in faith to Christ. But how do we do that? What does that look like?

Analytical Question

What helps us to respond in faith to Christ?

1. Remember the past (3-5)

A.Q.: What must we remember?

What God has done (3)

Notice Paul expresses a prayer of thanksgiving in v. 3: I thank my God whom I serve...

Often Paul’s prayers of thanksgiving signal the major themes that will follow and a theme we will see develop in these verses is heritage.

Notice Paul’s reference to his ancestors. He is grateful that he serves God from within a long line of faithful servants. God began to unfold his plan of redemption through Israel, and Scripture outlines this plan through the patriarchs like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and it continued to take shape through the covenants, the reception of the law, worship in the temple of God and in the promises of God to His people.

Paul is encouraging Timothy to remember his heritage. He serves a God who acted to provide His people salvation, and it is upon this foundation that Paul, Timothy and every Christian builds upon.

This is true for you and I.

Take time to trace the grace that God expressed to Adam and Eve after they rebelled against Him in Genesis 3.

Take time to trace God’s covenant-keeping love and grace as is seen in Gen 12 & 15 even after the life of Abraham even after he lied about his wife because he feared man twice in Gen 12 & 20.

Take time to trace God’s mercy among the people of Israel when He spared and preserved them on the first passover night in Exodus 12.

We could go on and on. Those of us who are in Christ come from a rich heritage of love and faithfulness. God’s love for His people and His faithfulness to them has remained constant through history and remains in tact towards His people today.

And notice that Paul says, in v. 3, he thanks God with a clear conscience. Why would he say this now. Remember, Paul did not experience service to God with ease. His service to God often lead to hardship. Physical abuse, mockery, false accusations, danger, imprisonment. When you and I experience injustice, we often become angry and bitter.... wallow in self-pity. In the next chapter Paul refers to himself as one who is chained like a criminal.

But what he is doing here in verse 3 is reminding Timothy that serving God with faithfulness must be fueled by God’s faithfulness to him and not the affirmation and approval of men. The world does not value faithfulness to God, but God does. He stands behind those who are faithful to Him, and when that is enough for us, and we are liberated from the desire for human applause and acceptance, we will possess a clear conscience.

This will help us respond to Christ in faith. Remember what God has done. And pray for one another to be able to live under these wonderful truths as Paul did for Timothy night and day.

What else should we remember?

How God has worked (4)

Paul and Timothy were close. They had been through allot together. What Paul is doing in verse 4 is appealing to this heritage of personal relationship. We get a glimpse in the way Paul referred to Timothy in Romans.

Romans 16:21 ESV

Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you; so do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsmen.

They were partners in ministry.

Paul’s reference to Timothy’s tears is not clear, Perhaps Paul received word that he hit some kind of rough patch in ministry or perhaps some other crisis occured in Timothy’s life. We don’t know the particulars, but we do know from Paul’s intensely emotional language that God had worked in their lives and in their gospel partnership. When we experience God’s forming, sanctifying work in our lives with others, we grow closer to one another.

The fact that Paul expresses his concern for Timothy and his desire to see him, is a reminder that he should reflect on the goodness that God expressed to him through his relationship with Paul.

Out of our concern to respond in faith to Christ, we should also remember

Who God has used (5)

2 chapters forward in this epistle, Paul makes this statement to Timothy:

2 Timothy 3:15 ESV

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.

from childhood or from infancy. From where did Paul gain his certainty about Timothy’s early years? He didn’t know him back then. Verse 5 helps us here.

Timothy was blessed to have a grandmother (Lois) and a mother (Eunice) who both had faith in Christ and taught Timothy about Jesus.

Now notice how Paul describes Timothy’s faith in verse 5: sincere. In other words, Timothy’s faith was without pretense. It was genuine. It was real. The works of faith that people could observe in Timothy’s life were true and came from a life that was transformed by the gospel.... and it appears that God used his mom and grandmom as affecters of that change.

Paul highlights the chronology to really drive this home. Faith dwelt first in his grandmother then his mother and then in him is the implication here.

And notice the faith os his grandmother and mom and now him dwell in them. The word dwell is only used in Paul’s letters and is often used to describe the Holy Spirit’s presence in believers. The idea here is that God lives among His people, like He did in the OT in the Tabernacle and Temple. God dwelling in and among Hi people was the treasure, more valuable than anything else they would ever experience.

And the way Paul uses the word dwell here describes God’s dynamic and transforming presence. The faith of Timothy’s maternal heritage was not passive or merely surface. It was deep, alive and real. Paul is encouraging Timothy not to loose sight of God’s faithfulness to him through the duration of his life.

You and I face trials today as Timothy did. Not the same ones, but difficulty to be sure. We can’t loose sight of the fact that God intervened in our lives. Gave us the gift of faith to believe the gospel. To believe that Jesus is the Savior who paid, instead of us, the penalty of our sins and rose victoriously over our sin from the grave. The most effective way we contend with our troubles is by living faithfully to Christ. And we are helped to do that by remembering the past.

We will also be strengthened to respond to Christ in faith by

2. Reject spiritual stagnation (6-7)

A.Q.: How do we reject spiritual stagnation?

Before we try to answer that question, we should be clear on what I mean by spiritual stagnation. For something to stagnate, means it has stopped growing. It has stopped developing and there’s little evidence of activity. There are many who suggest that our economy is in a period of stagnation. Spiritual stagnation is a faith that is not growing or developing and presents little evidence of good activity. Now, to be clear, true faith in Christ never dies. We can’t loose our faith in Christ if we truly have it. We can’t loose our salvation. But Paul’s exhortation to Timothy brings up a concern we should all acknowledge.

Now, notice the first few words of v. 6: for this reason. This is referring back to Paul’s confidence that Timothy’s faith is genuine. So what Paul is saying here is backed by his confidence in the authenticity of Timothy’s faith.

So again, how do we reject spiritual stagnation?

Remember the vertical flow of your salvation

Paul reminds Timothy to fan into flame the gift of God.

fan into flame means to rekindle or revitalize. It appears that Timothy was discouraged. Discouraged to the point that he may be tempted to allow his timidity or fear of suffering (both referenced in vss 7 & 8).

gift of God: this exact phrase appears one other place in the NT:

Romans 6:23 ESV

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It is clear enough that the gift of God here is eternal life. The gift of God is the forgiveness of our sins through the atoning death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The fact that we can have peace with God through Jesus… that we can come to a place where our eyes are opened to the truth that Jesus is the only Savior, and that we need to place our faith in Him.

This is the gift of God… our salvation. And Paul is calling Timothy to rekindle it. Now what this makes clear is that Timothy has received something free and powerful from God that can make all the difference in a situation where these challenges of fear, timidity and suffering may be called for.

You see, the answer to dealing with spiritual stagnation is to remember that what we have in our salvation is from God. Remember the vertical flow of our salvation. It is guaranteed that we will face hardship as we strive to live faithfully to God, and we will therefore face the temptation to allow that hardship to eclipse the preciousness of the gift of God.

We fight this by remembering the vertical flow of our salvation. That our salvation and all the promises and privileges that it embodies comes from God.

Something else to keep in mind as we strive to reject spiritual stagnation is to

Remember the horizontal encouragement for our salvation

Looking at the 2nd half of verse 6 where Paul says: which is in you through the laying on of my hands...

Paul is referring to the gift of God that Timothy received, and Paul says he received it through the laying on of his hands. Of course our question is, what does Paul mean by laying on of my hands.

In the OT, laying on of hands was a symbolic action that signified dedication to the Lord’s service. Jesus often laid his hands on the person he healed. He could have healed without laying His hands on anyone. In fact, we know He did. He healed the servant of a Roman centurion in Luke 7. And we know that before Jesus could get to his house, the centurion stoped him from coming because he felt he was unworthy to have Him in his house. The servant was healed from a distance. No laying on of hands.

Paul may have been used by God to bring Timothy to saving faith, and perhaps Paul laid his hands on him in this moment, but this signified the reality that takes place when anyone comes to faith in Christ. We are then dedicated to God. We belong to Him, and He uses us as He wills.

My mom, my Youth Pastor from when I was a teenager, my friend Sam, my father-in-law and mother-in-law, my wife, my children, my fellow pastors and elders at my church and others have been and are being used by God to encourage me in my walk with Christ. They are not ultimately responsible for my spiritual progress, nor are they held accountable for my lack of maturity, but God does use people to encourage me.

This is what I want us to know today. God has granted to us our salvation and He uses people to encourage us in our possessing of this gift. He uses other Christians. And as we think of the imagery of laying on of hands, remember that we have been dedicated to God as His possession and for His service. God uses the church to encourage us in this truth.

The people around you here today and, Im sure, others that could not be here, encourage one another as you strive to respond to God with faithfulness.

one other thing when it comes to rejecting spiritual stagnation

Remember the transformation work through our salvation

Paul begins v. 7 by making clear what God has not given us: a spirit of fear. Here’s that timidity that Timothy dealt with.

Paul is attempting to rally Timothy’s confidence in God. He tells Timothy what is not of God: a spirit of fear, but then tells him what God has provided him: His power, love and self-control. These 2 are incompatible with one another.

What Timothy had in his salvation transcended all his insecurities and inclinations to yield to his sinful tendencies. He was given the power of God, the love of God and divine self-control. Timothy could respond to these temptations with self-control. Not will power, but the power of God, the love of what God loves.

If you are in Christ, there is not any part of you that has not been affected by your salvation. We are in a process of transformation, we continue to wage war against our sin, but we have been transformed and are therefore able to fight against all that is not compatible with the gift of God.

So what we have been saying so far is that

Possessing faith in Christ demands that we respond in faith to Christ. How do we do this?

First, by remembering the past

Second, by rejecting spiritual stagnation

3. Rehearse the works of God (8-12)

as we being to consider the works of God we see in verses 9-12, I want us to consider what Paul says in v. 8 to help us gain a clear perspective on his line of argument.

Verse 8 begins, what we would understand as a run on or at least very long sentence.

The first word of v. 8 is therefore, which signals he’s referring to something said previously. What Paul is saying is that in light of what God has furnished to Timothy and to us who are in Christ, he should put behind him any lack of zeal for the gospel itself and gospel partnership with other… specifically Paul.

Notice in v. 8, Paul exhorts Timothy not to be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord. This may recall what Paul said in Rom. 1:16 where he said that he is not ashamed of the gospel. I think what Paul is doing is attempting to summon Timothy’s confidence in this testimony. Paul wants him to have a sense of boldness. Here.

The word testimony in v. 8 could also be translated witness. The idea behind this word is a publically observed reality. This was not Paul encouraging Timothy to embrace the inward, personal reality of his connection to the gospel only, but exhorting him to embrace along with all others who identify Jesus as Lord and as Savior, the witness of Christ. That He saved His people through His death and resurrection. He’s encouraging Timothy to not be hesitant about it. Don’t let the world’s rejection of Christ deter your zeal for Christ. Don’t follow the world… follow Jesus.

And that naturally flows into an enthusiasm for partnership with others in the gospel. Paul calls Timothy to not only be zealous for the testimony of Jesus but for him as a prisoner for the cause of Jesus. Perhaps Timothy felt the burden of the threats that came from the world for a commitment to Christ. Paul was a prisoner, people were being persecuted, Timothy was a young pastor.. a little timid… a little fearful… Paul was urging him not to loose heart.

One commentator said this:

It was neither safe nor simple to identify with those under imperial indictment; for someone to make such identification was courageous and commendable

Robert W. Yarbrough, The Letters to Timothy and Titus, ed. D. A. Carson, Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; London: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos, 2018), 358–359.

Only the power, love and self-discipline of God could fortify Timothy to remain steadfast for Christ in such a context.

And what will help us to maintain this zeal? One thing is to, again

Rehearse the works of God

A.Q. How can we categorize God’s works to facilitate our rehearsal of God’s works?

Works completed (9)

Paul makes the completed work of God clear in v. 9. The ground of our salvation and our purpose as His people (holy calling) was not secured by our effort but by God’s purpose and grace. And this work was not reactionary. God did not save a people as an after thought. He didn’t act this way out of frustration or panic. Before the ages began God determined to do this work.

the election of God

the bestowal of salvation

Ephesians 1:4 ESV

even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love

The work necessary for our salvation began and ended with God.

Another category of God’s work to rehearse in our minds is His

Resources provided (10-11)

manifested: there is, as a result of the completed electing and saving work of God, manifested or disclosed resources available to God’s people.

the appearing of our Savior provided to glorious truths

the abolition of death

the dissemination of of life and immortality through the gospel

1 Corinthians 15:55 ESV

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

For those in Christ, we have a resource in knowing that not even our own death can stand in the way of God’s faithfulness to us or our faithfulness to God.

And life and immortality makes sense when we think of he gospel message. Jesus resurrected from the dead. Life and immortality. His people, though we die yet shall we live.

Do we understand the resource of encouragement we possess through the gospel? Rehearsing the gospel is something you and I should do regularly.

There is a little book that I have come to appreciate called, “A Gospel Primer” by Milton Vincent. Here’s something he said:

…this book is based on the premise that all Christians should become expert in their knowledge and use of the gospel, not simply so they can share it faithfully with non-Christians, but also so they can speak it to themselves every day and experience its benefits.

Reflect on the resources provided to us through the gospel. Victory over death. Life and immortality. This will encourage us towards faithfulness to God and will dwarf all that is in us and around us that opposes God and His good purposes for us.

And also, don’t miss God’s

Purpose bestowed (12)

Paul states that because of his role as a preacher, apostle and teacher of the gospel, I suffer as I do.

Now Paul understands his purpose through who He knows God to be and what he knows God is able to do.

He knows that God is faithful and that He (God) will not let him down. Notice that Paul brings the issue of shame up again. Paul possess an unwavering confidence in God and does not let his suffering or anything else get in the way of what God has given him to do as a minister of the gospel.

This is crucial for you and I. In order to live a life that reflects we belong to God, we need to know whom we have believed.

And concerning what God is able to do, Paul knows God is able to guard what has been entrusted to Paul. The word entrusted is unique and refers to property entrusted to another. In this case, it seems best to understand this as the gospel that Paul was to proclaim will be guarded by God through all of Paul’s trials.

Paul’s purpose was to proclaim the gospel, and while he suffers for that cause, underneath all his effort, striving, toil and experiences is God’s steadying, hand. Paul is on the foundation of God.

And Paul knows that God’s preserving work will continue until the final day… the final judgement.

So get in the habit of rehearsing the works of God. Take time to reflect on the the completed works of Christ in His atonement and resurrection and ascension. Take time to reflect on what God has provided you in Christ, Death no longer has any power because those who are in Christ have life eternal. And while possessing eternal life will not guarantee a suffering-free existence, because we know whom we have believed and that what He has given us to do will be preserved through all our hardship, we will be preserved until the final day.

Possessing faith in Christ demands we respond in faith to Christ.

One final step we can take to that end

Reflect on what you have received (13-14)

A.Q.: What have we received

We come to the first command that Paul issues in this passage in v. 13: Follow the pattern…And the first point of reflection is

Good teaching (13)

I say good teaching, because the phrase that Paul uses in verse 13 - sound words means healthy words. Paul is commanding Timothy to follow the pattern of the good teaching he has received. The healthy teaching.

Paul refers to something similar in Rom.

Romans 6:17 ESV

But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed,

The point here is after nearly a decade of partnership with Paul, Timothy is being urged by Paul to reflect on what Paul has taught over those years and to follow or keep (obey) the good teaching.

This pattern of good teaching is something that was taught and modeled to Timothy. Again, Timothy is being urged to continue in Paul’s foot steps here.

But this is not a call to merely imitate Paul’s behavior. This is not just recall of information. This is to be a respnse characterized by trust in God and love. Out of a love for God and an abiding trust in God, keep the pattern of good teaching.

So as those who have received salvation we are to

be on the look out for good teaching

and we want good teaching because we trust God and love God.

Precious doctrine

I use the word precious because of the word guard. It means to protect. This is also the 2nd command in our text. Really vss 13 & 14 are very similar. Paul is commanding Timothy to value and take seriously what he has recieved in the teaching of the word of God.

Listen, good teaching from the bible is valuable. More fundamentally, the word of God is precious.

For all of us who are in Christ, a faithful response to what we have been give by God in our salvation is to treasure what we have received in the word of God. How can we do that?

Read and meditate on it regularly.

Pray as you read it

Also, notice how v. 14 begins. By the Holy Spirit who dwells in us… We cannot respond to the word of God in the way Paul is commanding. We do not possess the resources necessary to guard the good deposit or follow the pattern of sound words. But we can, by the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells within all who have come to faith in Christ.

Conclusion

So, if you are in Christ, something happened. You life was changed. You were transformed. And this change demands a response. We are responders. First responders of sorts. And first responders respond to God in faith by

remembering the past

rejecting spiritual stagnation

rehearsing the works of God

reflecting on what we have received

So Christian, fuel you faith by dwelling on the goodness of God to you. You will find a treasure of soul-nourishing joy in the word of God. Respond, and go there.