Letter to a young Pastor

Good Evening church,

I am so glad to see you all tonight take your Bibles and join in me in 2 timothy 1, . We find here the apostle Paul writing to a young pastor this is the second of the letters written to Timothy and I pray that as we dive in tonight that God would bless us and teach us tonight and that we would leave knowing that we have learned from God’s word.

This is the word of the Lord written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit the apostle Paul writes:

2 Timothy 1:3-2:

2 Timothy 1:3–2:3 HCSB

I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, when I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day. Remembering your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy, clearly recalling your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois, then in your mother Eunice, and that I am convinced is in you also. Therefore, I remind you to keep ablaze the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment. So don’t be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, or of me His prisoner. Instead, share in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God. He has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. This has now been made evident through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. For this gospel I was appointed a herald, apostle, and teacher, and that is why I suffer these things. But I am not ashamed, because I know the One I have believed in and am persuaded that He is able to guard what has been entrusted to me until that day. Hold on to the pattern of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard, through the Holy Spirit who lives in us, that good thing entrusted to you. This you know: All those in Asia have turned away from me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he diligently searched for me and found me. May the Lord grant that he obtain mercy from Him on that day. And you know very well how much he ministered at Ephesus. You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

I am sure that many of you have seen an olympic relay race in the track and field division. This is where 4 runners work together competing against other teams and win a race. Each runner on a team run a segment or leg of the race, and as they run each of those segments they are responsible for carrying a baton.

I never ran track but my wife did and if there was one event I loved to watch as I walked out to the track on those days when there was meets at the school I loved to watch the sprint relay race.

I didn’t care much for track and field but I liked this race because it was a team sport and I loved team sports plus I always liked seeing who ran the last leg of the race. They always seemed to be the fastest and I loved to watch them fly towards the finish line, leaving every ounce of energy on the track. The first thing that I like about this event is that it is a group of men or women working together to accomplish a goal, the second thing I like about this is that the team which wins the relay race is not the neccesarily the team whose runner crosses the finish line first.

The team that wins the relay race is the team whose last runner crosses the finish line first, carrying the baton. You can get around the track fastest, you can be the first to cross the line but if youre not carrying the baton you dont win the race!

Another thing that is interesting to me about the sprint relay race is the runners are required to exchange the baton, in other words pass the baton off from one runner to the next within a certain zone. They have to make that zone and with a sprint relay race thats extremely hard, because the guys on a dead run and the next guy has to take that thing without fumbling it and get going.

They have to time it just right so the other runner can hand him the baton and he can run almost without stopping. So the relay race requires incredible timing and coordination. Going into the 1998 summer olumpics in seol Korea the US the men were predicted to win the men’s 4x100 sprint relay hands down.

We were loaded with talent we had the fastest men on the planet not just on our first team but they even said the backups were faster than many countries number 1 runners, in the track and field competition.

They never got to participate in the finals for the gold medal that year, during a prelimenary race Calvin Smith, and Lee Mcniel didnt pass the baton in the required zone between the third and fourth leg, and the US was disqualified.

Listen we had the fastest runners we had the best team, but we didnt even get to compete for the godl medal because our guys didnt pass the baton in the required zone.

Heres what I want you to focus on this evening, what a tragedy.... what a tragedy to have the fastest runners to have the most talent to have the best team and yet, not iwin the race because you didnt pass the baton in the allowed zone.

Timothy was in a relay race, and he was struggling. Early 60’s AD Rome was beginning to crumble. The Emporer Nero was failing and so he turned up the heat of persecution on Christians. In addition to that general persecution Timothy had some personal problems on his own, just see if you can identify with any of these. The guy was struggling with self-confidence for a number of reasons, one he had some health problems, just a cursory reading of 1 and 2 timothy tells us these things.

He was inexperienced and some of his church members were actually hating on him because they didnt think he was old enough to lead and to perform the task, it was false teaching that was abounding both outside the church and inside the church. On top of that Timothy was apparently just a naturally timid person.

This guys didn’t know how to work a room, you know you come into a crowded room and this was the guy sitting over in the shadows of the corner he wasnt going around shaking hands with anyone, he was over there waiting for people to come over there to him, or better yet hoping that nobody would come over to him.

He was just timid, he just wasnt an outgoing person, and in addition to that his mentor and friend was imprisoned for the second time and was about to be executed, so timothy was lonely, he was frustrated he was discouraged. Timothy’s hand was unsteady, the target he was providing was unstable. Quite honestly when we read 1 and 2 timothy one of the things that we see is this guy was just ready to quit.

Now you might think that Paul would write to this guy and he would say hey bro, I didn’t see this coming, I didn’t see the persecution coming I didn’t know how the dynamics were going to work with you as a pastor so listen why don’t you just take a break. Why don’t you just lay low for awhile and when things settle down, then you can pick the baton back up and get in the race and start again....

That’s not what Paul does he writes to Timothy and basically he is saying brother dont you even think about quitting, the stakes are to high the time is too short, he tells him YOU STAY IN THE RACE AND YOU DO EVERYTHING YOU CAN LISTEN, you have got to get the gospel around the track and you make sure you pass it, you pass it on to some others, who will be able to pass it on to some others, who come behind you...

Paul was Timothy’s Spiritual father, this is a text about Fatherhood. Now listen to me this is a text primarily about spiritual fatherhood. Look at verse 2

2 Timothy 1:2 HCSB

To Timothy, my dearly loved son. Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 2:2 HCSB

And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

Now look over at the next page in chapter 2

2 Timothy 2:1 HCSB

You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

This is a term of endearment its a term of tenderness. It is a tenderness that displays the love that a biological or even adoptive father would have for the kids within his family.

This is a text about father hood and what fathers are to do, but obviously if this is a text about fatherhood and what Fathers are supposed to do, this is also a text about what everyone of us as disciples of Christ are supposed to be a part of.

God is saying this to every single one of us, this is about the stweardship that God has given to everyone of us, an assigned leg of the race that each of us are in. It hasnt been going on forever it won’t last forever but right now weve got an assigned leg of the race to run and we have been given the most precious baton in all of the universe to carry while were here and make sure that we pass it on to others.

So let me show you this race and let me show you this responsibility.

there are 4 aspects of this race, first I wanna show you the race were running then I wanna show you the baton were carrying because it is a very specific baton. then I wanna show you some inspiration God has given to us, and then I wanna show you, your leg of the race, my leg of the race and what were supposed to be doing.

The Race

Look at the passage

2 Timothy 1:3 HCSB

I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, when I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day.

2 Timothy 1:5 HCSB

clearly recalling your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois, then in your mother Eunice, and that I am convinced is in you also.

Do you see what Paul is doing, Paul says my ancestors handed this to me, and I handed this to your grandmother Lois and she handed it to your mother Eunice and they handed it to you and I am confident youve got it right now brother.

But Paul wasnt done

2 timothy 2:1-2

2 Timothy 2:1–2 HCSB

You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

Paul says my ancestors handed this to me, I handed it to your grndma and your mom and they handed it to you, and now Timothy now its your turn to run and as your running you look for some who can be trusted… to take this baton from you, and they will be trusted to pass it on to those who come behind them.

This answers the question why are we here? Not just why are we here tonight but listen to me, why are we on the planet? Listen to me parents grandparents why has God given you children?

ITS NOT JUST TO RAISE CHILDREN AND ENJOY THEM AND HOPE THEY TURN OUT OK, THAT THEY GET MARRIED TO A GOOD WIFE OR HUSBAND, THEY FIND A GOOD JOB AND THEY GIVE YOU GRANDCHILDREN… and LIVE GOOD MORAL LIVES.

THATS NOT THE END GAME!!!

Paul says theres more… there is a responsibility that you take what has been handed to you and you hand to them and make sure they get it and run with it, and you make sure they understand that the race doesnt end with them and they need to pass it on as well.

This is about a race.

The Baton

What exactly are we carrying?

This is the key of this passage of scripture, this is not just some imagery, this is a reality about a stewardship, this text indicates has been entrusted to you and has been entrusted to me. You know what that baton is? Its the gospel of JEsus Christ.

Paul is very specific look at how he describes it in 8.

2 Timothy 1:8 HCSB

So don’t be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, or of me His prisoner. Instead, share in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God.

and then he describes it again a little later in verse 13

2 Timothy 1:13 HCSB

Hold on to the pattern of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

the pattern of sound words

This is something that speaks of a very specifc web, a very specific construction. He says follow that and then in 14

2 Timothy 1:14 HCSB

Guard, through the Holy Spirit who lives in us, that good thing entrusted to you.

he actually uses the gospel at the end of verse 8 and again in verse 10

2 Timothy 1:10 HCSB

This has now been made evident through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

in between those two words gospel you actually have a summary of the gospel. Look at it in 9

2 Timothy 1:9 HCSB

He has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.

Paul encapsulates the gospel here its not every little detail but it is a bite sized portion to remind us of what we have rested our eternal hope on.

2 Timothy

He wants Timothy to understand what he is responsible for carrying, it is the message of God leaving Heaven and coming to Earth and living a ;ife that you couldn’t live and I couldn’t live and dying a death in our place so that we might have Heaven and a relationship with God Himself.

You do know what a life lived worthy of getting into HEaven is dont you?

perfection!

There isn’t anyone who is going to step accross the threshold of Heaven that will not be perfect in every way. Now beloved if you hear this tonight you must be thinking what I am thinking… preacher I am messed up , I mean if no one gets in unless they are perfect then Heaven is going to be empty...

Your exactly right because this is a perfect God and a Holy God that we serve… we will spend all of eternity with, and He cannot dwell with anything that is not perfect. Thats why Jesus had to come, to do for you and me what we could never do for ourselves.

He paid a debt He did not owe because we owed a debt we could not pay.

He came to be perfect and meet that standard of righteousness and He did it!

He did it but He wasn’t done He took that perfect life that sinless life and He took it to the cross on our behalf. The wrath of His own Father was poured out upon Jesus and He hadn’t sinned at all, and He did in your place and in mine.

Then HE rose from the dead He defeated death and the grave he died and was buried but then he rose triumphant over the cruse of sin which is death and now stands in victory and promises Heaven to all who would accept the free gift of salvation he bought with His own blood.

Isn’t that a love like you’ve never known?

He did something we would never be able to do He defeated death and He put the life of God that we were intended to have back inside of us. Christians listen this is the message this is the baton that we have been called to carry.

With all the manners and morality that we teach our children and all that we teach them about life and honor and respect and all of the things we want to instill in our children dont miss this! our primary responsibility is to pass this gospel on to them!

That they might be consumed by this GREAT NEWS! So that they grow and grow and look more like Jesus, we get church all wrong if we think after were saved that this is all about us, this is about Jesus worshipping Him and thanking Him and being equipped so that we might instill in the next generation of people this blessed hope, THIS IS WHY WE HAVE CHURCH! THIS IS WHY WE TAKE OUR BREATH TO PASS THE TORCH!

But they must also understand the responsibility to pass it on to those behind them this is what Paul is talking about here.

(GRACE)

(JOSH)

Niether of them is perfect they are still going to strugle with sin but the beauty is this that once there was no desire for church and the word and now even though it has not been a part of thier lives they are making it a priority.

That is the evidence of the Holy Spirit’s life within them ‘

JESUS SAVES US AND CALLS US TO A HOLY CALLING NOT BC OF OUR WORKS BUT BECAUSE OF HIS OWN PURPOSE AND GRACE!

Let me tell you I do not care if you have been baptized and have been a member of a church your whole life if you have not been changed from the inside out where you desire Jesus and His word and desire to be around His people called the church, then I would suggest to you that you may not have the eternal gift within and if you will call out to Him to save you He will give salvation to you freely and willingly and it will change your life.

Paul contrasts here in other verses people who deserted the gospel and he contrasts those guys with men who were faithful.

2 Timothy 1:15–16 HCSB

This you know: All those in Asia have turned away from me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains.

2 Timothy 1:15-

If you are faithful be ready.... be prepared to suffer

2 Timothy 2:3 HCSB

Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.