10.20.24 Sermon @ Tulip CC - Expect Tough Times

6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Just a reminder, when Paul wrote this letter to Timothy, he was about 60 years old. He was in prison in Rome, and he knew his time on earth was drawing near to end.

You know, I used to think of Paul as an old man. Funny how getting older causes us to see things differently. Men’s group surveys…I’m now among the oldest.

Paul was still on mission…do you know what our mission is?

Transition to Message:

Our Mission - Make Disciples

Matthew 28:19–20 (NIV)

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Acts 1:6–8 (NIV)

6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Fallen Condition Focus (FCF):

The world tells us we don’t have to suffer hardship…we can have everything we want the easy way.

Dominant Thought (DT):

Expect Tough Times - the Christian life is really hard - and really worth it.

Passage Focus & Teaching:

Our Misery - Expect Tough Times

Three Pictures of Endurance - Roles of Endurance - 2 Timothy 2:3-6

We most often think in terms of pictures, images, and metaphors - and our mental metaphors matter because those images create expectations that influence our behavior.

Soldier

2 Timothy 2:3–4 (NIV)

3 Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer.

Complete Dedication, 20 yr hitch, forbidden to marry, only 50% survived to retirement

A soldier’s life is tough, once you have enlisted your life is not your own

Soldiers don’t get to choose what time they get up…

Soldiers don’t get to choose what they eat or when…

Soldiers don’t get to decide how far they run…

Endure - soldier holding position, soldiers don’t know the word quit

Soldier preserved at Pompeii - ruins of a Roman sentinel preserved at the city gate, standing his ground, hands still grasping his weapon.

When you look in the mirror, that is a soldier looking back. Soldiers expect hardship, and soldiers don’t quit.

Athlete

2 Timothy 2:5 (NIV)

5 Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules.

Paul likes sports: running (Galatians 2:2), boxing (1 Corinthians 9:26), wrestling (Ephesians 6:12), gladiator contests (1 Corinthians 4:9), and chariot races (Philippians 3:13-14).

The oath every Olympic athlete had to take, pledging to enter ten months of strict training before the Games. Before these athletes could win the crown, they had to push themselves through the suffering.

Any of you watch the Olympics…the competitions, not the other crazy stuff…see I know were some of our minds go. The races, the games, the competitions…those races, those games…they weren’t won on that day. They were won at 5 AM everyday for the last 12 months leading up to that race. Investing millions of seconds for the opportunity to perform for just a few seconds.

Athletes train, athletes sacrifice, athletes persevere…they don’t give up, they don’t give in, they don’t quit.

Athletes aren’t surprised by pain and struggle…they expect it

Christians ought to expect difficulty. 1 Peter 4:12

1 Peter 4:12 (NIV)

12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.

2 Timothy 3:12 (NIV)

12 In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,

When you look in the mirror, that’s an athlete looking back. Athletes expect hardship, and athletes don’t quit.

Farmer

2 Timothy 2:6 (NIV)

6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops.

Farmers are hard workers, and the same was true in Paul’s day. Hard work meant sweat and struggle, bent back and straining muscles, exertion and exhaustion.

John Stott, “Unlike the soldier and the athlete, the farmer’s life is totally devoid of excitement, remote from all glamour of peril and of applause.”

Friends…I see you, I’m thankful for you. You labor, and it is not in vain. You get up early, you stay up late. You work the ground, you tend the herds, you sacrifice time with family and friends.

When the combine breaks down, you don’t just leave it set and go home. You start fixing it…until it is running again. When grain prices are down, when fuel costs are up, when there is too much rain or not enough rain…you don’t give up.

Farmers…then and now…knew if they didn’t work, their family didn’t eat.

When you look in the mirror, that’s a farmer looking back. Farmers expect hardship, and farmers don’t quit.

Closing/Call to Action:

Our Motivation - We Win in the End

Three Purposes of Endurance

A soldier gets a medal after pleasing his commanding officer (2 Timothy 2:4)

An athlete wins a crown after competing according to the rules (2 Timothy 2:5)

A farmer reaps a harvest after working hard in the fields (2 Timothy 2:6)

Reason for Purpose: “He who has a why to live can bear with almost any how.” - Viktor Frankl (Jewish psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor)

“Too many Christians want the medals, but they don’t want the scars. “ - some preacher

We want the victory, but we don’t want the battles. We want the harvest, but we don’t want to labor in the field.

Three reasons for persevering:

You become more like Christ

As Christians, we say we want to be like Jesus, but are we willing to endure hardship to see it happen?

In 2 Timothy 2:8 Paul references the cross of Christ before he references the kingship of Christ.

2 Timothy 2:8 (NIV)01

8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,

You bring people to Christ.

Who among us doesn’t want to see people come to a redeeming and saving relationship with Jesus?

You save your seat with Christ

Do you know what Jesus is doing right now? This very minute…He is preparing a place for us in His Father’s house. It’s a big, big house…with lot’s and lot’s of rooms. There’s a big, big table…with lot’s and lot’s of food. He’s there interceding on our behalf now…and He went to that cross 2000 years ago, preparing the way.

Expect Tough Times - the Christian life is really hard - and really worth it.

Sermon Planning & Notes

DT Restatement:

Complements:

Illustrations:

Scriptures:

2 Timothy 2:3–13 NIV

3 Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer. 5 Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules. 6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this. 8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. 10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. 11 Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; 13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.

2 Timothy 4:6–8 NIV

Matthew 28:19–20 NIV

Acts 1:6–8 NIV

6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

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