Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction:

If there is going to be a war, men must be ready to fight.

This is the lesson of the first battle of Manassas (or Bull Run), the first major engagement of the American Civil War.

There had been talk of war for months, ever since South Carolina fired on Fort Sumter in early April of 1861.

Both the North and the South hurriedly prepared for the conflict.

By early July, each side was ready for war and certain of an easy victory.

When Union general Irvin McDowell addressed his troops on the eve of battle, his only fear was that the enemy would be unable to put up a good fight.

The first shots were fired in northern Virginia late on the 8th of July.

News of the skirmish reached Washington by nightfall.

Since a Union victory seemed inevitable, the battle was treated as the social event of the summer.

The next morning, the ladies and gentlemen of high society gaily packed their hampers, piled into carriages, and rode to Bull Run for a picnic.

But the day turned out to be anything but festive.

The scene of battle was one of unimagined chaos and horror.

The commanders were unaccustomed to warfare on such a grand scale.

The armies did not so much engage as collide.

The fighting was fierce until Stonewall Jackson led the Confederate soldiers on a bayonet charge.

The Union was routed, with three thousand soldiers left dead or bleeding on the battlefield.

The Washington socialites ran for their lives, their army defeated because it was not ready to fight.1

As a Pastor himself, Paul turns to his young Pastor Son and reminds him that he is going to have to fight.

True Pastors are Pastors that fight the spiritual war that is waging.

When John Calvin was pastor at Geneva Switzerland, the prolific years were anything but an “ivory tower” experience.

The pulpit at Geneva is some magnificent to see; in the middle of the is a large column with stairs winding up leading to the pulpit overlooking the congregation.

While ascending his pulpit regularly, he met much difficulty on every side.

Frail in stature, Calvin suffered many ailments.

He also endured physical threats to his life.

Yet Calvin never ceased his exposition.

Further, groups of Geneva’s citizens caused him much pain, not the least of them being the Libertines, who boasted in sinful licentiousness.

Sexual immorality was permissible, they claimed, arguing that the “communion of the saints” meant that their bodies should be joined to the wives of others.

The Libertines openly practiced adultery and yet desired to come to the Lord’s Table.

But Calvin would have none of it.

In an epic encounter, Philibert Berthelier, a prominent Libertine, was excommunicated because of his known sexual promiscuity.

Consequently, he was forbidden from partaking of the Lord’s Supper.

Through the underhanded influence of the Libertines, the City Council overrode the church’s decision, and Berthelier and his associates came to church to take the Lord’s Supper with swords drawn, ready to fight.

With bold audacity, Calvin descended from the pulpit, stood in front of the Communion table, and said, “These hands you may crush, these arms you may lop off, my life you may take, my blood is yours, you may shed it; but you shall never force me to give holy things to the profaned and dishonor the table of my God.”17 Berthelier and the Libertines withdrew, no match for such unflinching convictions.

Paul is giving to his son a great, great charge and it is a great charge for us as well.

I.

The Responsibility Directed (vs.

18)

After having given to young Timothy an introduction into the work that must be done and after having given to him all the reasons why God can use him to accomplish this task, Paul now takes the directive and makes it absolutely personal to Timothy.

Because Timothy needed to understand that though this is a task that but for the Grace of God could never be accomplished and even though Paul calls himself the upmost sinner and God still uses him and can; therefore, use Timothy; and though God is sovereign and can is responsible for results of what happens, Timothy still bore some major personal responsibility.

And the Apostle, lovingly; yet pointedly, breaks down Timothy’s responsibility.

A. Timothy has a Command to Obey (vs.

18)

Paul says, “this command”....stop right there.

It is the Greek word “παραγγελία” and it literally speaks of “a charge” or “instruction”, it is the announcement of something that must be done.

Paul as already given Timothy his apostolic credentials so that anything that Paul commands Timothy to is said to be as from God; Paul being the very mouth piece of God.

In Classical Greek, this Greek word was used in the context of a military order being given to a soldier, so there was no negotiation with the mandate.

It was a command given that must be obeyed, without question.

The idea of the word is that obedience is demanded and expected without further delay and without further question.

The mandate is so strong that Paul, later on in the Epistle, made Timothy accountable to God the Father, Jesus Christ and the elect angels.

Once again, in this Epistle, Paul held Timothy accountable to God for his actions.

Listen, this is a staggering responsibility, not one to be taken lightly.

Obedience to this command is so important that he borrows that Greek word from Classical Greek as an indication of the importance of that order; just as disobedience to a military order would result in a court marshal and having massive earthly affects, disobedience to this order would result in massive eternal affects.

Timothy had a duty to God in the Church, something that our self-indulgent society knows nothing about, and his obedience was required.

Timothy was not the only one whose obedience to commands are required; as is as well.

We talk about freedom, success, joy, and peace, but little about our responsibility to the God, who is the Head of the Church.

We are duty-bound to obey the commander.

Those things are not optional; faithful obedience is the key to Timothy’s work and is key to ours.

Christ stresses the importance of obedience:

Paul clearly understood the concept of obedience; to King Agrippa he says:

Paul understood that he was under a divine obligation to use his gifts and fulfill his calling.

To the Ephesian Elders he say:

Acts

Every servant of the Lord is duty-bound to carry out his ministry.

Moses (Ex.

4:10–16), Isaiah (Isa.

6:8–11), Jeremiah (Jer.

20:9), Ezekiel (Ezek.

2:7–8), and Jonah (Jonah 1:1–2) all were given a charge to fulfill.

In 2 Timothy 4:1–2 Paul commanded Timothy to preach the Word “in season and out of season.”

In our society, with its emphasis on entertainment, anti-authoritarian attitude, critic mentality, and psychological orientation, our message will often be rejected.

That, however, does not excuse us from our duty (cf.

Jer.

7:27; Ezek.

2:4–5; 3:7; 33:30–32).

Timothy’s Responsibility Directed was that he has a Command to obey.

B. Timothy had a Commission to Fulfill (vs.

18b)

The word “entrust” is “παρατίθημι” and again it meant in classical Greek “to place beside”, it was used of an expression that means that you place beside someone something of great value and you trust them with it.

Paul tells this young man that I have laid beside you a command to obey, and this command is of great worth and am trusting you with the command.

You know, when you think about life; and it particular your spiritual life, the Father has laid trust on us.

Typically speaking God does not come to you and force you do this or do the other; he is similar to the way that Paul here is with Timothy, I am trusting you with this command.

I am laying it beside you and I am trusting that obedience will be the result.

Now, admittedly, there are things that compel us.

So, certainly, there are things things that compel us to service and obedience, but at the end of the day God trusts us with obedience.

And we, like Timothy, have a commission that we must fulfill.

With Timothy’s Responsibility Directed, he had a Command to Obey, He had Commission to Fulfill.

C. Timothy had a Confirmation to up to (vs.

18c)

“To the prophecies” , and this is very strange and I want to explains this to you.

If you go later on in the book of 1 Timothy Paul says this:

And what he is talking about here is the same thing that he is talking about in our Text.

When Timothy was ordained, there was preaching, there were exhortations…there was a service just like it is today and certain things were said.

And Paul is reminding Timothy of that, he is encouraging Timothy to be a minister.

He is encouraging him to be true to his ordination vows and true to his promises and true to his calling.

When these prophetic words were spoken to Timothy, probably referring to the time when Timothy was singled out for a special service in God’s kingdom and all the things that went along with it.

“Timothy, you have all of those obligations and responsibilities to live up to”.

And the authority by which Paul expected Timothy to obey the command, was not only his authority as an Apostle and his spiritual father, but also he believed and reminded Timothy of those things that are expected of him by others.

Listen, if I may just put this also on the level of the believer sitting in the pew for a moment.

You also have a directed responsibility.

You too have a command that must be obeyed.

You have a commission to fulfill

God has entrusted these orders to you and have a Directed Responsibility to Fulfill those Commissions.