A Good Follower of Christ

Intro

- June 6th 1944 at 5:50 in the morning a group of 100,000 plus soldiers set sail for the beaches at Normandy

- They had no idea what was in store for them that day

- All they knew was there was a mission for them to accomplish, and that mission required their focus

- That morning marked the beginning of the end of WWII

- As a child of God, we are in spiritual battles everyday

- We have to be prepared for the battle

- Give passage location

- Paul is giving Timothy instructions on how to be a good follower of Christ

- Last words of Paul

- Read passage

I. We must be strong (1)

- Strong – to empower, grow strong inwardly, to increase in strength

- Passive imperative—not something we do but we allow to happen to us

- We must realize our strength is not in ourselves but from God

- II Tim 1:7

- There is a pertinent dialogue in the sixteenth chapter of Judges. Delilah says to Samson: “Please tell me wherein your great strength lies” (v. 6). After three unsuccessful attempts to discover the source of Samson’s strength, Delilah renews her efforts. Finally, Samson succumbs and declares his power is in his hair. You remember the rest of the story. He not only lost his hair, but he lost his strength. When we consider Christian ministry of all believers, irrespective of station or training, we must inevitably ask, where does the strength come from? First and foremost, it comes from God!

- We are strengthened by the power of God – God will equip us for what He calls us to do

- We are strengthened by God’s grace—we understand grace when we realize how helpless we are without him

- Paul says this grace is found in Jesus Christ

o Not in Mohammed—he does not and did not contain this strength

o Not found in a self-help book or sermon

o It is found when we accept as our savior and lord

II. We must disciple others (2)

- As we learn we are not supposed to keep taking in but rather we are to give out and disciple others

- We need people who are willing to train others with the expectation they will train others as well

- Paul had discipled Timothy

- Timothy was to take what Paul had taught him and pass it on to faithful men

- Then those faithful men were to pass it on as well

- This plan covers 4 generations of the gospel

- More is caught than taught

- Late nights with Mac

- Power of multiplication if you make one disciple a year and they commit to one disciple a year and so on 20 people here do this

…after one year, there would we 20 discipled people …after two years, there would be 40 discipled people …after three years, there would be 80 discipled people …after four years, there would be 160 discipled people …after five years, there would be 320 discipled people …after ten years, there would be 10,240 discipled people

- Even if they don’t all stay here at FBC and we don’t want that imagine if you kept 10,000 at 500 a service you would need 20 services a week to hold the people

- You would have to have new buildings and guards at the doors to keep people under control.

- It sounds so simple why do we fail?

- Mostly because we fail to disciple and train others

- Not my calling that is pastor and deacons

- Matt 28:18-20

- D L Moody—it is better to train 10 people than do the work of 10 people but it is harder

- Dawson Trotman

III. Me must stay faithful (3-6)

- (you therefore must NKJV) Share – not a suggestion but rather a command from Paul to Timothy

- Paul then gives 3 example of a good follower and being faithful

A. A soldier (4)

o Share in suffering—endure hardship—to bear evil treatment along with… not

§ Laying back

§ Trying to escape our duty

§ Refusing to carry your load

§ Disobeying the commander

o A good soldier is with his fellow soldiers and is willing to endure the hardships of battle

o He sacrifices all he is and has for Christ

§ He gives body, soul, and mind to Christ and his cause

§ He gives time and energy

§ He gives money and possessions as well

o He doesn’t get wrapped up in the day-to-day things of life

o He stays focused on Christ and reaching a world without Christ

o He aims to please the one who called him

B. An athlete (5)

o When we think of an athlete, we think of one strong in discipline and self-denial

o He has dedicated his life and all that he has to his chosen sport

o As a Christian we are not to be professionals in life—the Christian life is not a part time gig

o The Christian life requires dedication, energy, and effort and then some

o We have to push through the wall when we want to quit

o Our bodies may ache from tiredness, but we have to push on even beyond our limits

o we must compete according to the rules or we are disqualified from the contest

o Kenneth Wuest says, “The Greek athlete was required to spend ten months in preparatory training before the contest. During this time he had to engage in the prescribed exercises and live a strictly separated life in regard to the ordinary and lawful pursuits of life, and he was placed on a rigid diet. Should he break training rules, he would … be a castaway “disqualified,” barred from engaging in the athletic contest)

C. A farmer (6)

o Hard working—means labor that is diligent, laborious, exhausting

o It is working to the point where we can’t put one foot in front of the other

o But the hard-working farmer is rewarded not the lazy one

o This is true of Christians as well if we are diligent, we will be rewarder by Christ as well

IV. We must have understanding (7)

- Paul has just explained three illustrations of the Christian life—a soldier, an athlete, and a farmer.

- Each of these three occupations need great perseverance to succeed

o The soldier who stops fighting before the battle is over never sees victory

o The athlete who quits running be the race ends never wins the race

o The farmer who stops working before the harvest is in will never see the fruit of his crops

- Paul wants timothy to see that perseverance is the key

- God is faithful to give understanding in all these things

- He gives us grace to be strong but we must receive it