The Final Instruction

Text

2 Timothy 4:1–5 NASB95

I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Introduction

Paul is near the end of his second letter and leaves his final instruction for the young evangelist Timothy.

He is close to his execution but he has a final charge.

This charge is one that ecapsulates everything that went before. . . “Preach the word”

Whilst this is for him it’s a message for the body. Timothy’s work in the church causes growth in his personal development and institutional development.

This is a reminder for Timothy to discharge his duty with effectiveness, faithfulness, intergrity, and without fear, favour and partiality.

This is a encouragement for the church because when the evangelist does His duty God is pleased and God will work in the life of the church.

THIS IS God’s church. We still need to do things with His will directing ours!!!

2 Tim 4:1 “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God| and of Christ Jesus|, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing| and His kingdom:”

Paul says to Timothy, I charge you meaning warn, emphatically state and assert. [Timothy don’t miss this - this is not something you neglect, shun, take for granted.]

This word used for charge usually included witnesses since it was used in a legal sense for transactions and trials.

These are the witnesses: A present and continuous sight of:

God

Christ Jesus [who is to judge the living and the dead]

His appearing [Is imminent and definite return]

His kingdom

This charge, assertion, statement, warning is not without witness.

What is Timothy charged to do?

2 Tim 4:2 “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”

A verse laced with five (5) imperatives:

Preach the word - It is imperative, speaks of a herald [some similarities]

Heralds represented the king

Herlds spoke the king’s message NOT his own

Heralds spoke regardless of the nature of the message

Let the word do the work, you just administer the dose!

Be ready

Persist in or stand ready to act

When? “in season and out of season. The word means in a favourable time

APPL. Some times are favourable [people are hungry, people are willing to act on the word, people are growing; the amens are coming in, there is humility and openness regarding the growth process]

Some times are unfavourable [people are not listening, inactive, settled on their comfort zones, even rebellious towards the word, persecuted for preaching]. Paul needs Timothy to understand that regardless of the season, PREACH the word.

Reprove - means to expose a fault. Show what the wrong is. Matt 18:15 ““If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.”

Rebuke - means to denounce a fault, tell them to stop

Exhort - means to encourage, call towards something [God] tell them how to stop and what to turn to

These are all encased in PATIENCE & INSTRUCTION

PATIENCE - the full and unsurpassable readiness of generous and forgiving grace. Paul says Jesus was patient with him as he persecuted the church 1 Tim 1:16. This means I’m not giving up on you easily.

INSTRUCTION - teaching, *

Horst, Johannes. “Μακροθυμία, Μακροθυμέω, Μακρόθυμος, Μακροθύμως.” Ed. Gerhard Kittel, Geoffrey W. Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich. Theological dictionary of the New Testament 1964–: 380. Print.

2 Tim 4:3 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,”

2 Tim 4:4 “and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”

“For” implies reason. There is purpose behind this final charge

The reason = there will come a time wehn they will not endure [put up with] sound doctrine. A time when. . .

Instead, they would ‘pile up’, ‘heap up’. They will gather teachers to satisfy their ears. They seek what they want to here not what they need to hear

Jokes not Jesus, satisfaction not sin or salvation, feel good not get well, wanting to obey God on their terms not God’s, desiring speakers that sound good but aren’t sound! Entertainment and not exposition, Dynamism and not doctrine

Nothing is wrong with Dynamism if there’s doctrine

Nothing is wrong with preaching style if there’s substance

Nothing is wrong preaching loud or soft make sure the WORD is preached!!!

The reason why I sometimes need to endure sound doctrine is it is hard to hear sometimes.

It’s hard to endure a truth that hits home. [not opinions, views, etc.] The word that cuts the heart is a hard word to hear. Have you ever sinned and then heard a word on the same sin???

What’s the big deal about truth?

James 5:19-20 “My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

1 Pet 1:22 “Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,”

1 Tim 2:4 “who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

Gal 5:7 “You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth?”

Jn 8:32 “and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.””

2 Thes 2:13 “But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.”

Equal to the gospel of salvation Eph 1:13 “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,”

2 Tim 4:5 “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

Be self-controlled - the opposite of every kind of fuzziness; clarity of thinking regarding God and the calling

Endure difficulties - be ready to suffer misfortunes; SICKNESS, HARDSHIPS, BETRAYALS, PAY-CUTS, DROP IN MEMBERSHIP

Complete your service as an evangelist - when there’s a preaching to be preached fulfill it, when there’s a teaching to be taught fulfill it, when there’s a training to be trained fulfill it. . .you might need an Elijah moment [to sit under a juniper tree, rest, get some food and be reminded I have 7000 that haven’t bowed]

Application

Timothy is to keep the Lord’s return in mind as he discharges his duty. This means for the believers we receive teaching with the same mindset.

God has a deep deisre to save everyone, this is why much care is to be taken regarding preaching.

DO I make every effort to access God’s word?