Love that Calls to Faithfulness

Does anyone remember what i talked about last time i spoke? I talked about what it looks like when we respond to Jesus invitation to follow him. He says follow me and i will make you fishers of men. And then drawing from Jesus Great Commission from Matthew 28:18-20 Read!

Why are you here today? How did get to where you are today? Yes ultimately because of the love and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. But who helped shape you into the man or woman you are? Who spurs you on? Who helps you fight the good fight? As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another prov 27:17 Growth comes through interaction not isolation. And as fathers and mothers, how are we shaping our children. How are we stewarding the influences in their lives. Are we instilling the Word of God into them? The word of god is not meant to stop with but continue through us. Are we passing on what we learned from whoever helped shape our lives. And hopefully a lot of that shaping was done through your parents. . Thats the ideal and gods original design for a family. But as we”ll see today that’s not always the case. And where the ideal is absent gods grace abounds. My desire and prayer for my girls is that someday they accept Jesus invitation to follow him and then invite others to do the same? And some days with Alethea, the struggle is real, and we question whats Gods purpose in all of this. And our heavenly constantly reminds that he sees and cares and that He created her in His image and He knows the plans that He has for her. And Gods plans are always good. He says trust me. And were gonna look at a little bit in revelation 12 , but we often forget that satan specifically goes after our children. So we are to be the gatekeeper for our children. Taking seriously the responsibility to guard what influences enter their lives and shape their hearts and minds.

This morning I want to look at Timothy and the 2nd letter that Paul wrote to him. It spoke to me very deeply right now in my time of life. An encouragement to be faithful. To remember what He a has done in my life through His breaking the power of death and illuminating the way to life through the good news. Saving me and calling me to live a holy life. Being ready to suffer for the sake of Him. Holding on to the pattern of wholesome teaching i learned from little on up. A pattern shaped by faith and love. Carefully guarding the precious truth that has been entrusted to me and passing it on to my children

I want to ask. The Paul’s out there, do you have a Timothy in your life. And the Timothy’s out there. Do you have a Paul in your life?

Mentorship Mentor Mentee

Purpose of book. I believe its bold clear call for perseverance in the gospel in spirit of suffering. Paul calling on his young coworker who becomes like a son, I want you to become a man of god and to fight a good fight. Continue the fight of faith. And that’s God wants for you and for me as a body of Christ. Only by the grace of god to become a man or woman of His. To learn how to fight. And pour ourselves out fighting a good fight. Not for fights that don’t matter. Not for no fights just sitting on the sideline. But that we would pour ourselves out so at the end of life there would be people in our life that we can say i have fought the good fight i have finished the race i have remained faithful and there’s is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which will give me on the day of his return. I want you to be able to say that.

Paul a persecutor of the Christian’s. Going around killing believers. In acts 9 you can read about Paul’s conversion. Paul was bold and fearless. God shines a bright light in his eyes asks him why he’s persecuting him sends him to anianas he prays for him he regains his sight he was baptized Darrien and immediately began proclaiming the good news. He was a chosen instrument to carry Jesus’s name before the gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. His early ministry was in like Jerusalem Damascus Tarsus and later Antioch where he started out with barnabas on his first missionary’s journey. So for most of Paul’s life he’s traveling around planting all these churches. Much of the New Testament is about the churches that Paul plants. Parts of African Asia and southern Europe.

Paul first meets Timothy. This is his hometown. First missionary journey. Read acts 14:8-23. Timothy was probably like 15 years old. In acts 16 Paul returns to lystra. This time with Silas. Paul and barnabas had separated. Here it first talks about Timothy. Timothy joins the team

After joining Paul during the second missionary journey Timothy experienced and extended period of intensive ministry and hardship alongside Paul. He accompanied to Troas, Philippi Thessalonica berea. Going to all these places spreading the gospel across Asia Minor and Macedonia. They would have experienced many hardships together. So along they way Pauls been discipling Timoth. He disciples Timothy for like probably around 14-15 years. During this time he becomes Paul’s trusted representative. He eventually leaves Timothy at Ephesus to pastor there. You’re familiar with the book of Ephesians. Trulan is working through that with us right now. He’ becomes the spirit filled pastor at the church at Ephesus

Now in acts 19 there’s an incredible outpouring of gods spirit. Now we’re gonna read that then.

We first need to understand that Ephesus was morally bad.

Ephesus was a large, busy city

Idol Worship and Spiritual Darkness

The city was home to the Emperor’s cult and the worship of the Greek goddess Artemis1. The cult of Artemis affected business activity and included the practice of magic, sorcery, and fortune-telling2. The cult of Artemis exalted women and considered them superior to men3, which clashed with Christian and Jewish beliefs.

False Teaching Inside the Church

Timothy had to fight false teachers within his own congregation. The church was dealing with false teaching, and Paul mentioned Hymenaeus and Alexander as two individuals who had to be removed from the church for rejecting faith and a good conscience2. These false teachers were focused on myths and family histories, misused God’s law, forbade marriage and certain foods, and used religion to make money2.

Problems Within the Church

Men and women needed instruction about their roles in church, faithful leaders needed to be chosen, widows needed to be cared for, and some people were tempted by the desire for wealth2.

This is where Paul leaves young Timothy to become the pastor

Timothy had to stand firm against pagan culture and all these false teachers. This is why Paul’s call to courage matters so much.

The most likely occasion for Timothy’s tears is when Paul knelt and prayed with the Ephesian elders, after which there was great weeping as they embraced Paul and kissed him, grieving especially over his statement that they would not see his face again (Acts 20:36–38). This farewell scene from Acts 20 fits the emotional intensity Paul references when he recalls Timothy’s tears in 2 Timothy 1:4.

Timothy was deeply moved during a significant parting with Paul—likely during one of their separations when Paul’s imprisonment or ministry circumstances forced them apart. The emotional weight of Paul’s memory suggests this wasn’t a casual goodbye but a moment when Timothy grasped the reality of potential permanent separation or the dangers Paul faced.

Paul remembers Timothy’s tears because they reveal Timothy’s genuine love and investment in their relationship. The tears aren’t a sign of weakness but evidence of authentic spiritual relationship . When Paul says he longs to see Timothy to be filled with joy, he’s reciprocating that emotional bond—showing that mentorship involves real affection, not just doctrinal transfer.

This adds another dimension to your sermon’s theme: courage doesn’t erase emotion or attachment. Timothy can weep over separation from his mentor and still stand firm in the gospel. Paul models this himself—he’s imprisoned, facing death, yet writing with both tenderness and

So at the end of Paul’s life he ends up in this prison. Hey Timothy, always remember 2 tim 2:8-10

2 Tim 4:6-8 He says the time of my departure is near…

In 1 Tim 6:11-16 fight the good fight for the true faith. Paul probably 50s or 60s says I have fought the good fight.

How does Timothy become the man he becomes.

To Timothy my dear son. If we look in acts 16 again Timothy was the son of a Jewish mom but a Greek gentile dad. We don’t know that much about his family. But his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice are mentioned for their faith but his dad is not. His name is not mentioned only ethnicity. The picture is given that Timothy is primarily raised by his mother and grandmother. Early on they were the primary influences for his the spiritual formation. It’s agreed upon, that he becomes a fatherless child, Whether his dad died when he was young or abandoned him. Now it’s interesting that out of all the disciples that Paul had, there’s only three guys he refers to as a son. Timothy Titus and onesimus. Whatch for that language when you read those books. Paul takes Timothy under his wing. And he’s like I’m going to be your spiritual dad that you never had.. and they were tight. Paul brings him on all his missionary journeys. And they experience life together. You can see how close they were in what he says in verse 3 read! I believe he’s referring back to acts 20 when he leaves the Ephesians elders Read! Reminding him to fan into flame the spiritual gift God has given you. The spirit of god is in you. He’s looking at tim who didn’t have a dad and saying son, god has not given you a spirit of fear but of power and of love and a sound mind. Fight the good fight Timothy. When reading this letter I’m sure he would have been reminded of the final word from Ephesians 6:10-18. Take note this is how we fight.

I don’t know how often you have a man of god lay his hands on you and love and encourage you and pour blessing into your life but let me tell you its powerful. It will rock your world.

Do you have a relationship with anybody like that? Are you giving and receiving guidance, teaching, encouragement, and advice. This is discipling and what god has called us to do. It spurs us on in the fight. And for you young guys and ladies out there like me, let’s search for spiritual fathers and spiritual mothers. Men and woman that are older than us. Trust me we need the guidance from the older. We don’t know as much as we think we do in our 20s They know a whole lot more than we do.

Where do you find somebody like that? I ask you that because I’m asking that right now. I am so grateful for a number of older brothers that speak life into me, what a blessing, but right now i do not have a one dedicated mentor and I’m desiring to have one. For me it’s coming out of a desire to draw closer to Christ. And this is a step i can take in order to do that.

Read 8-12 So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord.

These verses summarize the gospel for which Gods servants suffer. They are a reminder of the power of god on whom Christian’s rely. Pauls exalted language suggests he is also arguing that such a glorious message is worthy of their suffering. Paul contrasts works, which do not save, with gods purpose and grace, which brings life.

Pauls suffers because his current imprisonment. To guard means either that god will guard the gospel, which has been entrusted to Paul or that god will guard Paul’s life either way, it is this confidence in god that prevents Paul from being ashamed. His boldness arises not from self confidence but from god confidence.

Let’s look at vs 13-14. You know the story of Timothy’s life is not determined by the faithlessness of his dad, but by the faith of his mother and grandmother and then continued on by the faithfulness of Paul. Many scholars think that on Paul’s first missionary journey when he was in lystra his mom and grandma got saved but his Dad did not. We don’t know this for sure. What we do know is that his dad did not circumcise Timothy. Under Jewish custom a mother line determines Jewish identity, but a father typically oversaw the ritual of circumcision. Timothy was left uncircumcised until Paul circumcised him so they could minister among the local Jewish communities. And with Paul praising the sincere faith of Lois and Eunice, his father is noticeably absent implying he played no active role in Timothy’s spiritual upbringing or conversion. And like i said we know that this is not the ideal how God designed family. But this is what happens for Timothy. Grandma Lois and mom Eunice they look at little Timothy and understand the responsibility that have to instill faith in Jesus into his heart. So if you think back to genesis 2, this is where god establishes the first family, when he created eve to join Adam. But Satan shows up in chapter 3 His intent is to destroy this good thing. So the idea here is that when you start a family, you’re starting a fight. If we look in revelation 12 whether its past or future, it pulls back the curtain to show the spiritual battle that wages. A battle that has ultimately been won by Jesus but continues to play out here in our timeline. We can see the vision of the dragons intent on destroying the Messiah and the people of god. Let’s read it.

Satan prowls about like a roaring lion seeing who he can devour. And he’s going after our children. So if we can step in between Satan and our family and be like no no in the name of Jesus, you may have no part of my family. As for me and my house we will serve the Lord. I will fight for my family. That s a good fight. We have a lot of young families here. We need the guidance and affirmation from you older ones. I think i can say for most of us. We truly desire it. We want your input.

So a few things i believe we must do.

One is prioritize the right things. Knowing God as the highest priority. Helping them understand who he is and what it means to follow him. Not just bible knowledge but a genuine relationship with god. And along with that teaching them his Word. We as parents are the primary teachers. Read scripture with them talk about it answer their questions. And connect it to everyday life. And prioritize our walk with Christ. Children will learn more from what they see in us than what we actually tell them. But hopefully that goes hand in hand. Prioritize prayer with them . And let them see you pray. Prioritize serving people. Think about prioritizing whatever matters for eternity. It’s well worth it.

Secondly, its very important that we steward our childrens influences. Remember this world is lorded over by Satan the father of lies. We need to learn to stewards our children’s influences and be very wise about what and who gets into our children’s eyes and ears. It will get to their hearts. You cannot idolize worldliness and grow into godliness. Let’s be intentional about what gets access to our and their hearts and minds- media, technology, friendships, attitudes, values. And we often think it’s just entertainment but they are literally called influencers. An influencer is a who affects the thoughts, values, choices, attitudes, or behavior of other people. And we shouldn’t just ask what should we keep out but what should we fill them with? Proverbs 4:23 says guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. As parents, we are called to protect our children’s hearts. Please lets make sure that this…..is getting into their heads and the people of god are getting into their heads.

thirdly, I want talk to us as dads. The role of Spiritual leadership and the protection of our families is primarily placed on us. That’s our job. We cannot stand idly by and let Satan devour our families. Just like Adam did back in genesis 3. This book right here in Timothy is calling us to stand up and fight the good fight of faith. The number one determiner of whether a child embodies the faith of their parents when the child grew up is the warmth of the dad. The warmth of the dad. When a child grows up and they think about their father, is their thought, my dad loved me and cared about me and protected me and he loved Jesus. So dads I’m calling us to fight for our children. We’re in a generation now where almost as many kids grow up without a father as with a father. And we wander why our world is the way it is? What’s that require of us dads? It requires us to bend our knee and surrender ourselves to the lordship of Jesus Christ and stand up and act like a man and fight for the hearts of our children.

Lastly it takes faith in our Heavenly Father. Let’s go back to verse 2, may God the father and Christ Jesus our lord give you grace mercy and peace. Three different words. Mercy is not getting the bad things you deserve. But because of Christ our only hope is mercy from the father. The wages of sin is death but the gift of god is eternal life through Jesus Christ our lord. Romans 6:23. And back in Ephesians 2:4-5 but god who is rich in mercy for his great love wherewith he loved us even when we were dead in sins hath quickened us together with Christ. His mercies are new every single morning. Pauls telling Timothy god has mercy for you Timothy. He has grace for you. Grace is god freely giving us what we do not deserve. 1 John 3:1 see what great love the father has lavished on us that we should be called the children of god. He pours out his love abundantly not dependent upon our level of obedience to him. It’s dependent upon Jesus sacrifice on the cross. And then peace. Oh don’t we need peace. Checkout Isaiah 9:6 for unto us a child is born unto us a son is given and his name shall be called THE PRINCE OF PEACE. The only way have peace is to know the prince of peace. We can try to set to set up this little set of circmustances. Have all these things fall into place a certain way. And then we’ll have peace right. Not gonna happen. It’s interesting that only in Paul’s letters to Timothy does he use this phrase. Grace mercy and peace. In the other letters he just says grace and peace. So here is Paul chained in prison soon to take his last breaths saying Timothy my dear son my beloved child May god the father and Christ Jesus our lord give you grace mercy, and peace. He’s like hey Timothy everything you didn’t get from your earthly dad your Heavenly Father has in store for you. And this is what gives Timothy the courage to walk forward as a follower of Jesus. Love that calls to faithfulness. A love from the father that was lavished on Paul grandmother Lois, mother Eunice and then continued on through Timothy.

Pauls final and most personal letter. He wrote from yet another time in prison. It’s addressed to Pauls coworker young Timothy. Imprisoned in Rome. He’s in the middle of court trial. He appeals to Timothy who’s in Ephesus. He asks him to come be with him in prison. Paul wanted to pass on to him the church planting mission he started. Accept your calling Tim. He begins by thanking God for Tim and his family. Specifically his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice. They instilled in him a deep faith in Jesus. Because of that firm faith Paul offers his first challenge to Timothy. He calls him to reject any temptation to be ashamed of the good news about Jesus. Or of Paul in prison announcing that good news. His many times in prison made many of his co workers doubt his calling as an apostle. He mentioned phygelus and hermogenes. They were ashamed of being associated with him because he was and accused criminal. He reminds Timothy that Jesus grace is source of power. Which is really important because following Jesus is not easy. It requires everything that you have. He likens it to a soldier who’s striving to please a commanding officer. Or like an athlete who’s training their body for a competition. Or like a hard working farmer. They all involve a person who’s committed to something bigger than themselves. And who’s willing to sacrifice and endure challenges to reach a greater goal. Jesus is the highest example of this. Because of his commitment to the father he suffered crucifixion by the Roman’s. And similarly now Paul himself is suffering in a Roman prison. Hardship and sacrifice are inherent to the Christian life. This is why Jesus resurrection is the foundation of Christian hope. Paul puts it in a short poem. Gods love for the world has opened up a new hope through the death and resurrection of Jesus. For those who take the risk of trusting and following Jesus, god promises vindication and life. For those who reject him god will honor that decision and do the same but peoples faithlessness will never compel god to abandon his faithfulness. So Paul calls Timothy to faithfulness knowing that it may come with a cost.

The most likely occasion for Timothy’s tears is when Paul knelt and prayed with the Ephesian elders, after which there was great weeping as they embraced Paul and kissed him, grieving especially over his statement that they would not see his face again (Acts 20:36–38). This farewell scene from Acts 20 fits the emotional intensity Paul references when he recalls Timothy’s tears in 2 Timothy 1:4.

Timothy was deeply moved during a significant parting with Paul—likely during one of their separations when Paul’s imprisonment or ministry circumstances forced them apart. The emotional weight of Paul’s memory suggests this wasn’t a casual goodbye but a moment when Timothy grasped the reality of potential permanent separation or the dangers Paul faced.

Paul remembers Timothy’s tears because they reveal Timothy’s genuine love and investment in their relationship. The tears aren’t a sign of weakness but evidence of authentic spiritual relationship . When Paul says he longs to see Timothy to be filled with joy, he’s reciprocating that emotional bond—showing that mentorship involves real affection, not just doctrinal transfer.

This adds another dimension to your sermon’s theme: courage doesn’t erase emotion or attachment. Timothy can weep over separation from his mentor and still stand firm in the gospel. Paul models this himself—he’s imprisoned, facing death, yet writing with both tenderness and