Endurance through Remembrance

Introduction

Last week:

Gospel-Centered endurance = focusing on the mission without entanglement, adhering to the rules (the Bible), working hard, and listening.

Today:

Anyone have problems with remembering stuff?

Here are some interesting facts about memory?

An adult human's short-term memory can hold seven pieces of information at the same time, but only for about 20 seconds.

Left-handed people tend to have better memories than right-handed people.

Scientists consider smell to be the strongest and fastest memory inducer. Smell bypasses the thalamus and goes directly to the olfactory bulb, which is connected to the amygdala and hippocampus, the primary memory-making parts of the brain.

The “doorway effect” is a psychological event where a person forgets something as soon as they enter a room. Scientists believe the effect is real, but only when our brains are busy

"Gaslighting" is a form of mental abuse in which someone tampers with another person’s memory.

https://www.factretriever.com/memory-facts

Gospel-Centered endurance involves looking to the eternal or remembering certain things:

Remember Christ, the descendant of David, risen from the dead.

Remember that the word of God is not bound.

Remember that we endure for the sake of bringing salvation to others.

Remember the promises and warnings of the Lord.

Vs. 8 - Remember Christ!

Paul calls Timothy to remember Jesus Christ, who was raised from the dead and a descendant of David.

Did he think Timothy would forget? I don’t think so.

Look at what he has charged Timothy with:

Remaining in Ephesus, guarding the gospel, dealing with the false teachers, not giving attention to myths and distractions, and one way to do all these things is to remember, or keep at the front of your mind, the proof of the gospel, which is the resurrection.

We can easily become distracted by things around us. We can see the Lord move in power in one moment and then, in the next, run scared.

Israel had seen the power of God, but then forgot what He did and complained.

Psalm 106:13–15 “They soon forgot his works and would not wait for his counsel. They were seized with craving in the wilderness and tested God in the desert. He gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease among them.”

Stott - “Even so the church has often forgotten Jesus Christ, absorbing itself instead now in barren theological debate, now in purely humanitarian activity, now in its own petty, parochial business.”

Jesus Christ, who was raised from the dead

Looking to His divinity, looking to the fact that proves Christianity is true, and what we can trust.

1 Corinthians 15:12–19 “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say, “There is no resurrection of the dead”? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain, and so is your faith. Moreover, we are found to be false witnesses about God, because we have testified wrongly about God that he raised up Christ—whom he did not raise up, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Those, then, who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone.”

Looking to his life; that he had to suffer and would then be exalted.

Isn’t that why the enemy tried to get Jesus to bow and worship him, so Christ could “avoid” the cross and suffering (Luke 4:5-7)?

Jesus Christ, who descended from David

The human aspect here (Jesus was fully man)

The divine promise of the Messiah

Luke 1:32 “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David.”

Jesus Christ, my gospel

What a note of personal possession.

Something to take hold of and cling to.

I think of Psalm 23:1 “The Lord is my shepherd; I have what I need.”

Can we say this?

This is “my” gospel?

Paul is saying to Timothy, ‘Remember Christ, who is God, the Messiah, the Promised One, the victorious hero over the grave, the One who had to suffer and was rewarded afterwards. Think on Him when things get tough.

When people are persecuting you, remember they persecuted Him

When people talk against you, remember they spoke against Him

When tempted to take the easy way out, remember that Jesus went to the cross.

When threatened with your life, remember, Jesus conquered death and the grave.

Vs. 9 - Remember the Word is not bound!

Paul here was suffering for the Lord and bound like a criminal, even though he was innocent.

His only crime here was telling people about the gospel of Jesus Christ. That was an affront to the Roman Empire.

How interesting that even today, we are seen as criminals who peddle hate-speech because we tell people things like, Jesus is the only way to salvation, the Lord cares about how you live your life, the Lord created two genders, the Lord cares about the sanctity of life, etc.

Acts 20:23 “except that in every town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions are waiting for me.”

We may be bound in certain ways as well.

Through jobs, through family, through physical limitations, etc.

We can bind the word in our lives by being afraid to step out and speak up.

We may be bound, but the Word of God is not bound by anything.

Paul was bound (literally), but the gospel came to the prisons of Rome and to the highest people in the Roman court because of Paul’s chains.

The Word of God will accomplish what the Lord desires it to accomplish.

Isaiah 55:11 “So my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.”

Even when Romanian pastor Richard Wurmbrand was placed in a solitary prison cell devoid of light and sound, he continued to preach to an unseen audience.

After his miraculous release from prison and his eventual migration to the United States, Pastor Wurmbrand wrote several books describing his prison experience and the sermons that he composed and memorized while in solitary confinement. After a few years, he received this letter:

Dear Pastor Wurmbrand, I was raised in a godly home, but I strayed and eventually ended up in prison here in Canada. I wanted to return to God but didn’t know how, so I prayed, “God, if somewhere in the world there is another lonely prisoner who knows you, please bring me his thoughts.” I heard an inner voice telling me to sit quietly and confidently and that God would reach me. Miraculously, night after night I began hearing a kind of sermon that seemed to come from far away. I repented, and after my release from prison, I ran across your book, Sermons in Solitary Confinement, in a Christian bookstore. I immediately recognized these sermons as the same ones I had heard in prison. Thank you for delivering them! Pastor Wurmbrand received two other letters from different countries that contained nearly identical stories. Truly, angels had carried the sermons to others crying out to God.

https://www.persecutionblog.com/2012/05/angels-had-carried-his-sermons.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com

The Lord will use whom He chooses and those who make themselves available to Him.

How many times have we heard where countries who have banned the Bible have their guards eyes blinded to the Bibles that people carry in?

No government can regulate it, no skeptic can prevail against it, and no human circumstance can contain it, because the Lord will send forth His word.

He raises up nations and people to proclaim His word when He desires to.

I love the advice that Esther was given - The Lord will rescue us whether through you or someone else.

Esther 4:14 “If you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will come to the Jewish people from another place, but you and your father’s family will be destroyed. Who knows, perhaps you have come to your royal position for such a time as this.”

It is hard to see so many people of God passing away - Chuck Smith, Billy Graham, John MacArthur. Who is the Lord raising up now?

Vs. 10 - Remember why we endure!

The “why” in a situation is a big motivator. Many people can endure more when they know the “why” of the situation.

Paul here speaks about why he endures suffering. It is for the sake of people coming to salvation.

What did he endure?

2 Corinthians 11:23–27 “Are they servants of Christ? I’m talking like a madman—I’m a better one: with far more labors, many more imprisonments, far worse beatings, many times near death. Five times I received the forty lashes minus one from the Jews. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked. I have spent a night and a day in the open sea. On frequent journeys, I faced dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my own people, dangers from Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers at sea, and dangers among false brothers; toil and hardship, many sleepless nights, hunger and thirst, often without food, cold, and without clothing.”

Why did he endure?

So that many people would come to know the Lord as their savior.

Love - the ultimate motivator.

Going back to the picture of a Soldier who is focused. If I love my family, if I love my fellow service members, then I am going to endure everything I can so I can get home and get them home to their families.

Ellicott - “I, as a faithful soldier at my post, bear up with quiet, patient courage against suffering; and I do it for the elect’s sake, that is, for those whom, in His infinite mercy, God has been pleased to choose as His people, for those who , in his unfathomable love, are yet to be brought into the one fold.”

Look at how much Paul loved his people:

Romans 9:3 “For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the benefit of my brothers and sisters, my own flesh and blood.”

Are we willing to suffer for the sake of Christ so that people may hear, respond, and gain salvation?

Why do we make the effort to come together, to meet with one another? Why do Christians across the world risk their safety to meet together, why do missionaries risk their safety, lives, finances, and relationships?

So that Christ can be formed in people, people can be built up, edified, encouraged, and spurred on to good works, etc.

Vs. 11-13 - Remember the promises and warnings of the Lord.

The quotation of an early hymn which he brings forth as a reliable saying.

two different parallel sayings featuring those who remain and endure and those who become “false and faithless.”

If we die with him we live with him.

A picture of dying for the Lord - 2 thoughts

Dying to sin and death and being made alive through Christ.

Romans 6:3–5 “Or are you unaware that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in the likeness of his death, we will certainly also be in the likeness of his resurrection.”

Dying to self, following the Lord even if it leads to a physical death.

Where oh death is your sting and victory? It has been lost because of the victory of Jesus.

Luke 9:23 “Then he said to them all, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.”

Not only living with Christ, but a reward for enduring.

If we endure, we shall also reign with him.

If we hold on, if we keep the faith, if we persevere, we will be rewarded.

Revelation 2:10 “Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. Look, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison to test you, and you will experience affliction for ten days. Be faithful to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

Bill Drake - Wear the Crown - “For the martyrs, for the heroes, For the one's who gave their lives, On the altar of the lost, There's a sowing, there's a reaping, There's a death that comes alive, Through the power of the cross Draw back the curtain, tear away the veil, There's a crown of glory waiting for the witness that prevails, When the days have all been counted, when we face the final hour, We'll hear, "Welcome home my child, It's your time to wear the crown" For the mourning, for the grieving, For the sacrifice of love, That redeems the works of hate, There's a dancing, there's a praising, There's a celebration raised, As a saint completes the race Let the mantle pass to those who're left behind, Let the runners grasp the batons of their lives, Let us follow Christ no matter cost or price, We'll hear "Well done, faithful servant!" As we cross the finish line

Stott - “For the road to life is death, and the road to glory is suffering.”

Look at what they would have to endure in Matthew 10?

Rejection over the message, family betrayal, scourging, death, persecution, etc.

If we deny Him, He also will deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful - for he cannot deny himself.

Deny - This word deny means “to refuse to recognize or acknowledge” Rick Brannan, ed., Lexham Research Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, Lexham Research Lexicons (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020).

Gill - “There is a denying of Christ in words… in works… a secret denying of him… an open denying… a partial denying (Peter)… and a total denying (apostasy) from which there is no recovery.”

Those who reject Christ and deny him will be denied by Christ before the Father.

He will not force himself upon us. If we willfully reject him, He will respect that.

Note: The enemy loves to condem, so maybe you feel like you have denied him and there is no hope for you. If you are here and convicted over that fact, I would say you are not in that type of trouble. Ex: Peter was restored.

Faithless - “to betray a trust, or be unfaithful.”

If you take these words (denying and faithless) to mean the same thing, then you are left with “he remains faithful” to mean that He is faithful to His word.

He is faithful to His promises, decrees, and word. He will judge those who reject Him, He will forgive those who are repentant - he will not deny himself.

If you take deny/faithless to be different where Deny is a total rejection of Christ and Faithless is messing up, then you can see that he is faithful to His word which also means restoring those who are legitimately repentant.

Total Denial - Pharaoh (not an actual repentance) and Judas

Faithless - Peter

Either Way -

Let us continue to strive and seek the Lord for strength to die daily and endure for the sake of the gospel and not flirt with the idea of denying and being faithless.

We do not ascribe to what be been coined as “cheap grace.”

The Cost of Discipleship - Bonhoeffer - “Cheap Grace is the deadly enemy of our church. It is grace without price: grace without cost!… Cheap grace means grace as a doctrine … an intellectual assent … Cheap grace means the justification of sin without the justification of the sinner … Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession … Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”

Romans 6:1–2 “What should we say then? Should we continue in sin so that grace may multiply? Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still live in it?”

Conclusion

Just as gospel-centered endurance is a focused, rule abiding, hard working, and teachable follower of Jesus.

We can also endure the suffering that is brought into our lives because of the gospel by remembering or looking to the eternal.

We remember who Christ is, his resurrection and messiahship

We remember that the word is not bound

We remember that our suffering can play a part in the spread of the gospel

We remember the blessings of remaining steadfast and the warning of denying Christ.

Timothy could and we can endure present suffering because of the power of the resurrection which showcases the power of God, the control of the Lord over our circumstances, and our part to play in the spread of the gospel.

Dear friends, hold on to the eternal, our present sorrow doesn’t compare to our future glory of living and reigning with the Lord.

Stott - “It is this principle (no cross, no crown) which had brought Paul his chains and prison cell, in order that the elect might obtain salvation and glory. It is the same principle which makes the soldier willing to endure hardship, the athlete discipline and the farmer toil. It would be ridiculous, therefore, to expect our Christian life and service to cost us nothing.” John R. W. Stott, Guard the Gospel the Message of 2 Timothy, The Bible Speaks Today (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 65.