Lock In

INTRO

Prison life.

People who have endured incarceration all walk away with the same feeling; that if you haven’t been locked up, you don’t understand.

They will all tell you that if you haven’t experienced it, you haven’t been changed by the system.

Within their group there are multiple levels of this experience as well;

There are those who only served time in gen pop (general population)

PC (protective custody) this is reserved for those who are either law enforcement, informants, or people who are targeted by gangs within in the prison.

Solitary - which I’m sure we all understand

And supermax sometimes referred to as ADX (for the Federal Administrative Maximum Prison in Florence, Colorado. Here, prisoners spend 23-24 hours a day within a reinforced, windowless cell.

You learn things when you’re locked up.

You see things.

You begin to understand things you’d never been able to understand until you’re in that position.

At the time when 2 Timothy was written, most people understood that Roman soldiers were often cruel and demanding because they had been conscripted into the military against their will.

But here in prison, Paul began to see them in a whole other light.

Their absolute obedience to every command — they never questioned their commanding officer, even when they didn’t like the order.

He also learned that, while some of his fellow prisoners in this deep dark dungeon of Mamertime known as Tullianum, had been military as well.

Images of Tullianum.

This prison had been converted by the Romans from an old 5th century cistern (an old underground water tank) and made into a jail.

Mamertime wasn’t just any prison, this was the Romans version of supermax.

Once inside the doors of Mamertime, prisoners were lowered down by a rope through a hole in the floor.

There they would remain until they were executed.

You didn’t serve time in Tullianum unless you were going to die.

Inside that cistern sat criminals, murderers, political opponents of the emperor, and dishonored soldiers.

Here, in this dark, disgusting dungeon, Paul was able to see that once a soldier, always a soldier.

Moreover, Paul found within himself, that same sentiment to be true.

Once an apostle of Jesus, always an apostle of Jesus — this situation, his circumstance, wouldn’t — couldn’t change that he was a witness of Jesus and his job, his very life’s purpose was to testify of Jesus to everyone, everywhere.

Literally everywhere.

Even in this situation.

It was within the walls of Tullianum that Paul penned the words that Holy Spirit inspired within him;

be a soldier.

Be an athlete.

Be a farmer.

In today’s language, Paul would probably say one thing,

LOCK IN

Stop drifting

Stop being distracted

Stop living with one foot in the kingdom and one foot in the world.

Lock in on the mission Jesus gave you.

Because soldiers lock in.

Athletes lock in.

Farmers lock in.

And Christians must lock in too.

SCRIPTURE

2 Timothy 2:3-7 NLT

3Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 

4Soldiers don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them. 

5And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules. 

6And hardworking farmers should be the first to enjoy the fruit of their labor. 

7Think about what I am saying. The Lord will help you understand all these things.

Once more Paul reminded Timothy to endure or share in the suffering WITH me.

Did you see why Paul told him to do that?

But don’t just do it because you’re a good guy, Timothy…

Do it because you’re a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Paul was able to witness soldiers who had been thrown into Tullianum as they continued to behave with the attitude, obedience, and single-minded focus, even though they were sentenced to death.

He used that experience to explain to Timothy that it wasn’t an option for Christians to share in the suffering — but it’s what we do.

Soldiers

2 Timothy 2:4

4Soldiers don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them. 

A soldier is never supposed to get so involved in political matters, in drama, in social events, in anything and FORGET that they’re a soldier.

One commentary wrote how a soldier on active duty is single-minded; they know what they’ve been deployed for and every day they can never be off-duty.

Whether a deployed soldier is in the market, at the barracks, or at their post… they are constantly on guard, on duty, ready for anything.

Paul wasn’t intimating that Christians can’t have fun, that we can’t get involved with LIFE!

He was expressing that we should NEVER get so wrapped up into ANYTHING that we forget that we are on a mission, and within us completing that mission we DESIRE to PLEASE our Commanding Officer, Jesus.

So whether you’re at work,

getting groceries or supplies,

whether you’re discussing a political issue,

if you’re at a town meeting,

or just hanging out with some friends…

YOU ARE ALWAYS ON DUTY! You’re MISSION is to share the gospel, testify of Jesus, to everyone — everywhere.

AND SOMETIMES, YOU MAY HAVE TO USE WORDS!

Meaning, everything you do, the way you behave, the way you perform your duties, the way you don’t get drunk, the way are the church, the way you treat your family, they way you pray openly, the way you worship and give, the way you are kind, hospitable, gentle, long-suffering… these all are part of your witness!

Galatians 5:22–23 ESV

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

When you live like this people KNOW it’s from God because PEOPLE DON’T LIVE LIKE THIS!

So you live out the fruits of the Spirit AND vocally share the gospel of Jesus with people around you.

Soldier — you have been enlisted into the family of God — as we discussed last week, you aren’t here because you EARNED a spot in the family of God, you are HERE because God knows with whom, all the people who you are capable of sharing the gospel!

You, me, WE ALL have jobs to do!

And we need to be SINGLE-MINDED just like a soldier. Always aware of our role and duties.

A soldier who isn’t locked in becomes a liability.

He misses instructionss

He loses situational awareness

He gets distracted at the worst possible moment.

Paul says Christians can’t afford that.

We HAVE to lock in on our mission.

We have ONE Commanding Officer.

One gospel

One assignment

One Purpose

Athletes

5And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules. 

Paul says that getting to the finish line isn’t enough… you must follow the rules.

Paul discusses a finish line, winning a prize… this all suggests one thing — that you were originally qualified to win the crown.

What this means is that the race is only for those who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus.

In this race, there are rules to follow if you want the crown.

The crown or the prize are special accommodations and rewards from God while in eternity.

The rules?

Faithful obedience to Christ. This isn’t some self-made religion which allows you to behave and do only those things which make you comfortable or happy.

Perseverance in hardship without quitting. Staying in the race even when things get really hard, not abandoning your faith when you have to suffer, and not compromising to avoid pain.

Running according to the gospel. Hold onto sound doctrine, refuse false teaching and myths, and rightly handle the gospel!

Integrity with how you run the race. No cheating behind the scenes where you think no one can see. Be consistent with how you belief and how you behave. And no short-cuts to God.

Ultimately, the rules aren’t about earning the starting line—they’re about refusing to abandon the race, even when it costs you everything.

Even when you feel the pain of serving Jesus.

Even when it looks like it’s all for nothing.

Athletes compete and continue to run even when they KNOW for a fact, 100%, it’s going to be hard.

Every athlete knows there comes a moment in training when talent isn’t enough.

There comes a moment when they have to LOCK IN.

Nobody accidentally becomes a champion

Nobody accidentally develops endurance.

Nobody accidentally wins the prize.

They lock in when everyone else is sleeping.

The lock in when everyone else is quitting.

They lock in when the pain says to stop.

Christian maturity works exactly the same way.

Don’t give up - serve Jesus like an ATHLETE.

This means you gotta train!

Read, pray, worship, give…

Then the next day;

Read, pray, worship, give…

Then the next day;

Read pray worship, give

Until this model of living becomes 2nd nature - just like an athlete - we gotta work our spiritual muscles until these things become nothing more than muscle memory.

You’ll begin to pray before you realize what’s happening!

Farmer

Finally, Paul mentioned the farmer…

6And hardworking farmers should be the first to enjoy the fruit of their labor. 

The understanding, again, isn’t that every farmer deserves this… there is a qualifying word “hardworking”.

What makes a hardworking farmer?

Paul isn’t meaning someone who spins their wheels with drama and busyness.

He’s talking about someone who is on task and works hard to get er done!

Paul writes about this hardworking farmer as if everyone knows what that looks like…

Farmers understand something our culture hates:

You can’t microwave a harvest.

You lock in during planting season

You lock in during weeding season

You lock in during drought season

You lock in when nobody even sees the work

And eventually God brings the harvest.

Around here, we know about hardworking blueberry farming. Many of you had jobs as a child raking blueberries.

Back breaking hard work!

Where I’m from we know about soybean and corn farming. 100s of acres of crop!

If you didn’t have more than 600 acres, you owned a small farm!

So what’s this hardworking farmer look like?

1. He works with patience, not speed

He:

plants before he sees results

waits through seasons he can’t rush

trusts growth he cannot manufacture

When we’re understanding this from a hard-working Christian viewpoint, we see someone who…

keeps doing right things without immediate payoff

refuses shortcuts when results feel slow

believes God is working even when nothing looks “productive”

2. He embraces repetitive, unseen work

Farming is not flashy. It’s:

tilling

sowing

watering

weeding

waiting

doing it again

Paul’s point: sharing the gospel is often, difficult, hidden, and repetitive

In ministry terms:

showing up again

sharing Jesus again

praying again

serving again

forgiving again

being the church again and again.

Not glamorous—but essential if we EVER Desire to see people come to Jesus in our lives.

WE MUST BE CONSISTENT!

3. The farmer works through difficulty, not just in good conditions

A farmer doesn’t quit when:

weather is bad

soil is stubborn

pests come

seasons delay harvest

So spiritually, a “hardworking farmer” is someone who:

doesn’t abandon obedience when life gets hard - they stay consistent in their reading, praying, worshiping, giving, and being the church.

doesn’t give up because it doesn’t seem like their testimony is “getting through” to someone.

doesn’t stop sharing what Jesus has done because their own life comes under attack - like a swarm of pests.

doesn’t interpret resistance as “God isn’t working”

stays faithful in dry seasons - when God seems far away, and when their testimony of Jesus seems to be falling on deaf ears.

Finally,

4. He expects a harvest—but doesn’t control it

The farmer:

works diligently

but cannot force the growth

That means:

faithfulness is our responsibility

but fruitfulness belongs to God

So this hardworking farmer doesn’t burn out chasing results or quit when results are delayed.

The hardworking farmer knows what his job and leaves the rest to God!

A “hardworking farmer” in 2 Timothy 2 is someone who:

faithfully does the slow, repetitive, often unseen work of obedience and ministry—trusting God for the growth 

Closing

Paul wraps up his thoughts not with a witty remark or some piece of amazing wisdom; he simply (like the hardworking farmer) plants a seed into Timothy’s spirit…

7Think about what I am saying. The Lord will help you understand all these things.

Marinate…

Meditate..

Let it simmer and stew.

Chew on this…

Don’t simply rely on your own interpretation…

Allow Holy Spirit to wreck you a little bit with this…

Ask yourself;

Am I a good soldier? Am I listening to the commands of Jesus or am I busy living for myself?

Am I a good athlete - focused not simply on the finish line but looking for the prize, the crown, the words, “well done my good and faithful servant”?

Am I a hardworking farmer? Am I consistent, resilient? Am I swayed by distractions and dry seasons?

What is Holy Spirit speaking to you today about?

What’s it going to look like for you to lock-in and commit today?

Speak these things to God right now in a prayer:

Tell him how you’re going to do these things…

Commit to sharing Jesus with someone.

Again and again and again.

Water that seed you’ve planted with prayer — because someone prayed for you, you will pray for them!

Commit to work the soil of that person’s life. — remove the weeds that might choke out the gospel by YOU living consistently for Christ -YOU be the church, YOU showing kindness, gentleness, self-control, meekness - let your light shine brightly so that they glorify God because of you!

The soldier locks in on the mission

The athlete locks in on the prize

The farmer locks in on the work

Paul says the Christian must lock in on Christ.

Not tomorrow

Not when life settles down

Not when things become easier.

Right now..

Lock in on prayer

Lock in on worship

Lock in on holiness

Lock in on the mission of sharing Jesus

Because eternity is too important to drift through life distracted.

So the question ins’t whether you’re saved

The question Paul is asking us today is…

ARE YOU LOCKED IN?