How to be Strengthened in Christ for your Task
Notes
Transcript
Dear Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Are you equal to the task? If we had a scale with all that God has called you to do and be on this side. It is is important in life to have a clear view of the dialy duties and callings we have. But on the other sid eof the scale we were to put every little of strength you could muster, if we could suck that out and put on the scale, what would happen? I am sure you’ve had days where you’ve felt I can do this, I got it. Emotionally, physically, you feel bursting at the seams able to take on the world, at least when things go well. You feel that your strength would outwiegh your calling and send the weight of them flying. But be careful, pride comes before the fall. Be careful that the calling, duties, match up with God’s calling to love and glorify and enjoy Him, and to love and serve your neighbour.
But if we are more honest when it comes even to the most basic tasks of humanity - be a good friend, cmpanaion to some, to be a fiahtful member of your family, to help your neighbour, to turn the space you live in -something beatuiful, productive, and then to add the most basic task of the Christian to be wtiness of God’s grace and Christ - word and deed. I am sure if you are honest that because of sin, because of weakness and frailty, because of just plain discouragement and tiredness - there are other days, you’d rather just turn over and pull the sheets over your head, and say nah I’m not up for the task. That your strength has failed, that you can’t launch the wieght of your duties even an inch for a moment. Seem unyeildin and unrelenting.
Well, I hope you understand now the context of this Paul’s last letter before execution. He is wirting to TIothy who is in danger of throwing in the towel, not of his faith, but of his service. He had had enough of the grumbling and the controversy - division false teachers who covered up th hear tof the gospel. He wasn’t sure he wanted to count much less pay the cost of being a Christain out in public inthe Roman Empire and its captial city of the proviince of Asia Minor. Many of the Chrstiains around him, fallen away from assoicating with Paul and the gospel of Christ, - could be arrested, certainly soical and probably economic cost. You know that Pual wanted not only to give ITmothy the shot in the ar encouragement to keep going because it was God who worked in Him, but even more to re-awaken him to the relaization that we have been entrusted by God with the sacred fire of his gospel truth, like water from the first well.not only have to portect it, pass it down, but we need to get into the knitty gritty situations of brokeneness aroudn us and boldly apply its - saving power to people on the spiritual battle fields around us. Some trapped in sin, some doubt is closing in on them, others ensnared in sins that spread to thers, others in need of light! And Pual tells Timtohy - God will gaurd the trust, the sacred fire within us - but Timothy make sure you guard it with HIm in the power of the SPirit. ANd then remember he illustrates this with two examples, of peope around him that he knew - 2 ahsamed of the gospel, dneied it power, deereted Paul and possbily the faith; but Onesiphorus - refresher. And Paul is asking Timid TImothy to be that! And the question this evening is not what is TImothy going to do first, but how is he going to be strengthened to rise o the task.
Kind of like the father of a kid with special needs, met an older dad of mature adults son with special needs. The older father with despair in his eyes, said, you know what it just gets harder. To which the younger father, a cop actually, said people say God won’t give you more than you can handle. Its a cute saying but its not true! God often gives us in this broken world more than we can handle, so that we come to the end of ourselves and turn to the One alone who can strengthen us truly, as we learn to depend on him.
Paul himself knew this truth, when it came to our caling to share the gosopel wiht the world. : 2 Cor 2:15-16
For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?
Paul elswhere said, in our weakness in facing daily tasks, trials and temptation, that’s where the test comes to really find our strength not in our selves but in Christ who has to become our all-sufficieincy: 2 Cor 12:10
For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
This is the secret that a soon to die Paul, who is passing the gospel torch to Timothy and you and me and each successive genreation of belivers - this is the secret he wants to expalin to his apprentice before moving on to some of the tasks.
KEY TRUTH: Divine strengthening happens when you live: in Christ in community, through patient suffering, and with Christ’s saving love emblazoned on the fore front of your mind!
The gospel can’t be understood without understanding grace.
A. Divine Strengthening by grace, only happens as you’re living in Christ
And so it is that ongoing strength can’t be received outside of this reality of grace. What is grace. One of you shared that you are studying all the different ways the word is used in the Bible. Saving grace was just described by Paul in ch 1. Unmerited gift that cannot be earned, but is just given as a free gift, an din Christianity this becomes the basis, the foundation and framework of a new ongoing relationship with a person. Unlike Roman Catholicism understanding of the sacramental system, grace is not a substance you get tanked up with. Some Protestant’s too - pray the sinners prayer, do churchy thing, don’t sin too bad, well that tanks you up with all the grace you need to get to heaven. But grace is a relationship word. It changes your status and position in a relationship. IE Work for a boss, or negotiatie with judge - based on merit and fear, little differetn watch two borthers in law, taken in as partners by their dad, then given the business - onogni reltinship and about hte dynamics of who you are to each other. Paul said in Christ, from before the foundation of the world, in light of His astounding sacrafice that travels through time - 2 Timothy 1:9
who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,
And then Paul said that grace secured in Christ from all eternity direct to you,m before a day of your life was, but now its been manifest with Christ’s appearing, now its being embraced and applied to you. And this is where we move from grace being given in the past of Chrsit’s sacrfice and rising for you. but now beyond saving grace, there is an onogin grace that flows from Christ and His mediation in heeavne, into the knitty gritty of your daily life! And here is something vital for Chrsitain living, and the abilty to be a proclaimer: While saving grace is passively received in being born again, regenerated - pure gift and no work done by you to earn it. Even your faith and yor repetnance is a reposnse to Christ’s appearing and grace to you! THis on oign grace of sanctification -it is not just God’s work - monoergism; its is a received witha coopertative energy - synergism - working tower of God’s energy and the energy in your own soul. This grace has to be laid hold of and laboured after. So Paul says: 2 Timothy 2:1
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus,
Paul doesn’t say, Strengthen yourself in grace, and here is how to do it. Praye read, serve. No, look at the tense - very uniqe command in the passive voice. It isn’t simply be strengthened as if off on siwtch of strength from Christ. The command is BECOME STRONG. And ongiong process and not a state given or achieved. Keep on being strenthened by the grace. SO often we turn to ourselves for strength but the intrujment that delivers strength in our life - is the grace from Christ Jesus. That’s the stress you want strnegth, what is your source. If you had to give a gps cooridinates, a location of the source of your strength - would it read liquid strenght - the bottle, would it read strength from being aroud other people, would it read strength from my acocmplishments, strength from enough leisure time? This ongoing dialy inflow of spiritual strength, can only be found when you show up at the dialy address of Christ Jesus day by day!
How close do you live to Jesus? I think we can tell by the type of strnegth in our lives. Not by how good or bad life is going, or how many troubles we have, but by how much power is flowing into our istutation from the living Christ to you his child! Do you remember those disciples after the resurrection, how did people view them: Acts 4:13
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
Jesus HIself promised in our words of assurance this morongin from JOhn 14, I will not leave you as orphans, but I will come to you - speaking of the HOly Spirit and His Word - mediating HIs Spiritual presence. Paul moves from strenth located in Christ to how that PResence is mediated: 2 Timothy 2:2
and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.
Now here is a humbling wonder, what Paul received on revealtion from the living Jesus, ascended but appearing to Him from heaven, he spoke that Wrod in a network of people that Timothy was part of. Timnothy was still in Ephesus where those witnesses were still there. Do you undertand as we receive the apstolic teaching from Jesus not just inwardly privately, but with the Word together in the body of Christ. And taht network of those who experienced the presence and instruction, and power of Christ - they are still around TImothy. And I think Paul is saying, as you share that witness with each of other of what Jersdus has done, what he has said, what He is doing in our lives and in our world now - there is a strengthening that happens. Husbands and wives, paresnt and children do you share that witness. Friends in Christ ever share that wintess with each other.
But focused on that strengthening, Paul next says - that proclamation has to continue to the next genreations, and Timothy you have to leave this fellowship at Epehsus. So your task is not just to become an expert on what Jesus does, and a good preacher of that. But look: 2 Timothy 2:2b
and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.
This is the sdame word for God depostiting the sacred fire of the gospel in our lives. Paul says, gospel worker - you need to enturst the gospel into other people’s lkives here. You have got to entrust it to them, you’ve got to coment on the gosepl in their lives. In the short-term, while Tionthy is gone to Rome, but long-term - need faithful men, feaithful people who willl genuinely get the gospel and apply. Now I do try to do this. hospital or death bed visit… not just myself, why don’t we do this together. Difficulty visits - like Jesus ssend them two by two - real learning rela prayer and commitment as network of those touched by Jesus doing gospel work. Dustin Trottman Navigators. And there is strengthening in the midst of that knowing and serving Christ in his earthly body!
But now think back to that young parent inthe parking lot, being told it only gets harder. As troubles and temtpations mount, does your strength increase or decrease? Next, Paul describes a counter-tinutive gospel secret about strenghening grace, it works best through suffering! Now of course, never seek suffering itself, or see it as a sign that we are necessarily in the will of God. But none the less
B. Divine Strengthening by grace operates through patient suffering!
Paul teaches this through 3 simple vivid illustrationgs, mini parables.
i. What do you learn from a solider about strengthening for your task?
Paul has comanded us to be fellow-sufferes for Christ and to suffer for each other for Christ’s cause. Paul lived in a Roman society that was increasingly getting drunk on its riches while society itself was falling apart. Like our soiecty it was about instant gratitication - hedonism - everyting was measured by my own pleaseure now. And in the face of this Paul raises up the image they’d see very day. There is a Roman soldier - look for 20 years of long service, he is striving with full comminent! THe picture is not oa halfhearted mercenaries, for hire, who fight just for profit. NO they have a legitmate captain and enlist to enter into a conflict against what is evil and destructive to the commmon good, and to serve and defnd the innocent. THink of our soliders at Holland Christian Homes now. Ther e is right way to serve that gives strength - but it requires strong arm, sobreity, awakednessss and continaul vigilance.
Those Roman Soliders - weren’t bi-vocational - they couldn’t puruse solidering 3 days a week, and then farm 2 days. There commander would call that having divided loyalties. The governemnt had systems in place for any solider to be free from other business to be dedicated to the state. They keep the longterm goals of their commander in view and persever in them. DO you see yourself and those aroundina spiritual battle, that God has prepared and provisioned you for daily action? Proverbs 11:30
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and whoever captures souls is wise.
ii. But hten Paul cahnges the image and its like they are playing a game of matching, how do these bleong together. 2 Timothy 2:5
An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
Now their was a rule for the Ithian and Olympic Games in Paul’s day - ten months before each competeion - they had to devote themselves to a complicated regeime of preparation, diet, and pre-game physical traininng. The early church’s great pastor and preacher Chrysostom says: “It is not enough that he enters inthe lists, that he is anointed, and even engages, unless he compoly with all the laws of the exercise, with respoecct to diet, temperance and sobreity, and all the rules of the wrestling school.” You are enrolled in a church, you have professed faith, you show up for the event and service. Paul is saying the rule is that you are in daily training in the things of God - and like any athelete will tel lyou the strength is in the training. And so too in the Christain life as you disicpline your passions, desires, and perosnal linterestes to become like Christ, that is where spiritual strength is found for your tasks! Oh it is so worth it this training unto righteouness and sticking to the service: Philippians 4:1
Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.
Paul at this end of the letter says, I know a garland, the athletes crown is in store for me, - because assurance is found in the dialy carrying out of the Chrsitain living!
iii. But the most interesting image I believe is the last, the farmer. 2 Timothy 2:6
It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.
So many of us get a hankering for fresh produce, satisfaction of having grown your own food. Plant a garden - buthten you see farming even in the smallest scale is hard working. You love the harvest, but you hate the cultivating, the planting, the weeding. God ordains the ends - salvation heaven, paradise, shalom, but he is also the God who ordains the ends, means the tools! Wihtout the disciplines crops will not grow.
You know for me the most satisfying job I ever had, was building twon houses in 3 or 4 days. The tintess and teh 2x4s never talked back. Crew of 3 or 4 and see instant results - we built that! But you can imagine why I find gardening hard. I’d plant that seed, and every morngin Id’ dig it up again has it sporouted . Struggle to wait, patient in the hard work and suffering taht is what is required - not just the disicpleins of platingn adnwatering, but the waiting and depending on the miracle of what’s beyond ou control A farmer waits on LORD in different way than most of us. HOpe a trust a dependence. = delayed gratification - each season. Paul says, I planted, Appolos watered, but it was God who gave the growth!
Farmers live in the slow patience t4esting reality every seson. IN the suffering adn dleayed gratitciation, you know a farmer - though they may coplain about the ewther a bit, long terms season by season perective. And we are not lose sight of the spiritual harvest we are labouring for. Jesus said Matthew 9:37-38
Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
You want strength in Christ, puruse daily obeidence, preparation, patient work. We have such joy in children accomlishments, but greatest - spotnaneously mature Reuben - I am being patient. Paul said, we every Christian - are not to get sidetracked by various passionas of youth, nor by greed, or fear and anxiety. He says, we have all been given a spirit of power and of love and we exercise the pwoer and love daily - through gifot the Spirit of self-control. Paul says, chew on this for while, meditate on it - how in my life am a solider, how am I an thelete in training, how am I a farmer. Good stubbornness, a vital self-control - Of ocurse, all our effort with being in Christ, amounts to nothing, but there will be no growth and effective and strength in our Christain lives, without th radical comitet, energetic prepartion and steady perseverence illustarted bythe soldier, the athelete, the farmer in spiritual life!
But Paul’s last instruction on how to be strengthened is the encouraging:
C) Divine strengthening requires remembers Jesus at the forefront of our minds!
When I say Jesus I bet you think of him in the first half of his ministry, humble earthly service from the cradle to the cross. BUt Paul says, that can’t be the only remembering of Christ you do. He says dialy remember this season in the church clendar - Resurrection into the reality of the Asdcension. THink on the raissed, glorified and ruling Jesus! That’s the Messiah now we must deal with. 2 Timothy 2:8
Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel,
Do you have those two desdcirtiohn os of Jesus as the forefront of your minds. Remember - He’s not just a historical person, not just a title for work done by God in the past.
7x already Paul has used the Christ Jesus in just a chapter in half. Why the change to Jesus Christ. One emphasizines his work and fofice, but now Paul says, keep the living Person Himself in your remembrance. You know I remember my wife my children everyday. But when I really think on them, how they are doing, what they mean to me and I to them. I don’t just think, wife, son, daughter, But Marianne, Elissa Isaiah, Ptere, Rueben. And Paul says, you want strengthen think not only of the jobs of Jesus, but of His living perosanlity in relationship to you!
but a living person - more alive than you or I. Out of the fulness of life, he brings life from above. But to what end? At the forefron tof your mind also fix this picture not only of the Risen Jesus, but also of the Messiah, the annointed king as the Christ, the offspring of David. He is both the root from which David grew to model him, pre-existiging before Creation, and from before Creation voulnttering to come to be to us the Fixer, and Lover of Gods’ people! DFavid grw out ofht eroot. But in His human nature, Jesus is also the descendeant of King David. Having died on the Cross and Risen to regin, he ascends the tthrone of earth and ehave to reign forever in a new way, with our very human nature. Imagine it my brother is on the throne of heavn, he knows my infirmities isndie out and remmebers my poistion and struggle and task.
Paul says that’s at the heart of my gospel, directly revealed from living Jess through Him to the worldk rsurrection, and Reigning as just holy loving merciful greater son of David, establish a world wide glrious kingdom. Paul boldly says: 2 Timothy 2:9
for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound!
I will endure all trouble struggle, challenge, I will suffer in the same patterrn as Christ -for others to come toi know this resurrection and this king and kingdom, to come under the reign of grace. And stragnely Paul’s witness is wider and stronger in the suffering and efven being boud in prisoin, than if whe was free to walk around to each church one at a time. And this letter this Proclamation, gets written for all the churches, it guets passed down to even you and me 2 millenia later. And Paul closes with the truths theat cement a strnegth to live ithe rest of life in for TInothy: This is the last trustworthy saying:
We die with Crhist, in our suffering, our being crucfied with him to sin. but From that past action we know live new life with him. But now in the present we endure with him, and what uis promised in the future: 2 Timothy 2:12a
if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us;
That’s the pattern that brings strength to our service. Its the cross in the dark, before the crown with the saints in light. It s grace in borkenness before glory in perfection. DOn’t despise the day of small begininngs, don’t despise what looks weak in the eyes of the world, endure persevere in the grace taht grows. Here comes his warning: 2 TImothy 2:12b. He is quoting Jesus - they will persecute you, in this world you have trouble - but I will be with you I will strengthen you - that soul that on Jesus does lean for repose, I’nver nonever no never forsake. But you deny me before man, I will deny you before my heavenly father.
But that warning is not the final note, but the reminder that enduring with Christ is the secret. And so Paul concludes this instruction to persevere with a truth that will sustain us because our persevering isn’t perfect.
Peter denied but that was not apostacy was it. It was his weakness but not his rejection of the Christ. And so Paul says 2 Timothy 2:13
if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.
Christ gave everything so n o one could snatch us out his hand out his grace. Paul has said, modelling Christ’s never failing loyalty and love to us: 2 Timothy 2:10
Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
And he says keep this Jesus before you. What a surprise if we deny him, he will deny us. But if we stumble in faithlessness - he will remain faithful to us. Do you feel it? When someone belives in you - they invest everytihng in you! All the chips Jesus is all in with those who have turned to hi in faith even if imperfect faith, It is his promise to you and me tonight: John 6:37
All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.
At then ed of the day its not how strong you belive in him, but how strong he belive in you that matters in the end! He cannot deny hismelf, made that proimse, you have taken hold of it. And it is his strength that holds you not your own!