2 Timothy 3:16-17 "The Power of the Word"

                Why should I live my life according to what some book says?  Why should I listen to it, especially when that book is over 2,000 years old and some of the parts of it contain things that happened 6000+ years ago?  Why should my wants, desires, and actions be shaped by a piece of literature that was written by people who couldn’t have imagined the world that we live in today?  How can I really completely follow a book that talks about a sea parting before people’s eyes, 3 year droughts, people coming back from the dead, and demons being driven out of people and into pigs?  You see, these are just a few of the many questions that we face today when trying to convey the importance of Scripture when it comes to our daily lives.  The scary part is that many times, these are the types of questions that we get from our Christian friends.  Our non-Christian friends don’t even ask us these things, because they’ve already dismissed all of Scripture as laughable many times.  Our Christian friends will say, “Yes, I believe in God and I believe in Jesus, but the Bible is just so outdated and irrelevant in today’s world.”  I can’t begin to tell you the number of times that I’ve heard this quote in almost this exact wording.  Even worse, I can’t begin to give you even a glimpse into the heresies and fallacies that have come about as scholars, pastors, and some neo-theologians have sought to update Scripture into our modern context.  They think that the message is still in there somewhere, but that somehow it needs our help in becoming applicable in today’s world.  As we’ll see, the Bible speaks clearly enough to our world today, because it finds its origin, its source of creation, in the One who has known all that will come to pass since before the foundations of the earth.

                What is the Bible?  If someone were to walk up to you on the street leaving church this morning and ask you what the Bible is, what would you say?  Why is it called the Bible?  Well, because the Greek word that means book is biblia.  How many books are there in the Bible?  In total, there are 66 books, with 39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament.  Who wrote the Bible?  Well, the human authors who actually put pen to paper totaled about 40, with their occupations ranging from kings, fishermen, priests, shepherds, farmers, doctors, and government officials.  However, as the words of our text tell us, the Bible ultimately has only one author, and that is God.  Who is the Bible about?  While the Bible has a host of characters throughout its pages, the Bible is ultimately the story of Jesus.  It’s not the story of you or me, it’s not our motivational or self-help handbook (like we’ve said the past two Sundays), but it’s the story of Jesus Christ.

                Paul is writing here in the third chapter of this letter of encouragement to his friend and younger minister Timothy and reminding him of the calling to which he has been called.  Yes, he’s encouraging him as a minister of the Word, but also just as one who is found in Jesus Christ.  Near the end of this encouragement, he gives him this reminder about the power of Scripture.  He says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”  All Scripture (which as it existed at the time of Paul’s writing this was the Old Testament) is breathed out by God, or God-breathed.  All of Scripture, while it may have been penned by human hands, finds its origins in God Almighty.  The Greek word here that is translated as God-breathed, this is the only occurrence of that word in Scripture.  You see, Scripture is not just some collection of works written by a bunch of random folks, but a collection of works written by different people whom God worked through throughout history to compile this complete story about Jesus.  Now, I mentioned a moment ago that these words were in reference to the Old Testament specifically in Paul’s day.  However, we know from the writings and teachings of the early church that the apostles and church leaders taught that this verse was just as true for the New Testament as it was for the Old.  All of Scripture, the entirety of it, every word, every punctuation mark, is inspired by God.  Yes, there are human traits within it, but the substance is from God.

                So, we read and affirm that this God-breathed work is profitable or useful for teaching, reproof, correction, and training.  Well, how is it useful in all of these areas?  I want to take a second and look at each of these elements or aspects that Scripture is useful for, starting with teaching.  This one should be pretty obvious.  Scripture contains the things of God; therefore, we must spend time and energy in Scripture if we are ever to come to know God.  Yes, we may feel God’s presence outside of Scripture or come to an initial faith apart from His Word, but we don’t really get to know Him.  I have a good friend of mine who I went to college with.  We were at school together for two years, but never really spent a great deal of one-on-one time together.  However, when he finished college, he came back to his hometown for a semester before beginning law school.  Since he didn’t want to spend all of his time at his parents’ house, he was over at our house probably four days a week.  I really got to know him on a personal level better in those 4 months than I had the previous few years that I had known him, and to this day he is one of my closest and best friends.  To really know God, we have to be in His Word and be being taught from and by His Word.  We have to spend time alone with God through the study of His Word if we ever want to truly know Him.  Anything else runs the risk of us just making things up about who God really is.

                Secondly, Scripture is useful for reproof.  Actually, I’ll handle reproof and correction together, since they are (or at least ought to be) two-sides of the same coin.  You see, reproof, Biblically speaking, is being shown what sin is.  Reproof is being shown that sin is a transgression or breaking of God’s law.  So, when we say that Scripture is useful for reproof, we’re saying that Scripture is useful for showing us our sins.  John Calvin, who viewed and promoted three uses of God’s law, stated in his first use this principle of reproof.  Calvin stated that the law is a mirror that while showing us God’s holiness, also shows us our sinfulness and our weakness which in turn drives us to Christ.  So, when we learn about God, then we see how far off we are from God through our sinfulness, and hopefully we seek to correct those sinful acts and tendencies.  Now, this is where the disconnect comes in that I opened with this morning.  People have no issue learning about God.  They even have no problem learning what sin is and what things are considered sinful.  The problem comes in in that there is, for many, little-to-no desire to correct their sinful behavior.  This is quite honestly a mind-boggling thing to me.  It’s just foolish.  It’s like having a gas appliance that you know leaks carbon monoxide and having no desire to do anything about it.  Carbon monoxide is deadly in the physical sense just as sin is in the spiritual sense.  We hear things like “Everyone sins, so what’s the big deal?”  Well, the big deal is that when you understand the severity of sin, then you understand how saddening a statement like “everyone sins” truly is.  We try and dull the power of Scripture by saying that it has lost its meaning and application in today’s world because of its age.  If something is inspired by God and is without fault, error, or inaccuracy, then why would we not do everything in our power to adhere ourselves to such a standard?  Maybe it’s because many Christians don’t believe the Bible to be without error; maybe you’re one of those who doesn’t think that Scripture exists without error.  If Scripture isn’t fully inspired and fully without any flaw, then it cannot be our source of reproof and correction like Paul so plainly tells us that it is.

                Finally, Scripture is useful for training in righteousness.  This is a nice way of saying that Scripture is useful for preemptive correction.  It’s a beautiful way of saying it that conveys the sense in which it isn’t reactionary discipline, but something that seeks the good of others.  In all of this hatred-spewing that has seemed to go on in our world recently with court cases and political agendas, we have seen this firsthand.  Amy had some friends who were having an online debate over the issue of same-sex marriages and one of the girls stated that the reason why she opposed it was because she loved her friends deeply and didn’t want to see them commit such an egregious sin.  The other girl responded with, “You can mask hate any way you want to, but it’s still hate.”  Now, this second girl’s misguided and incorrect response aside, the initial comments made by the first girl is the nature of Scripture when it comes to discipline.  Scripture isn’t a list of do’s and don’ts placed upon us to hinder us.  The things that we are called to in Scripture, some of them things to do and others things not to do, are for our benefit.  If we can’t see that they are for our benefit, then that’s a problem with us, not with Scripture.  My son Robert loves to be outside.  That kid would spend all day outside if we let him.  One of his favorite things to do is to try and put his face in the dog’s water bucket outside just like the dog does.  Now, every time we get on to him about it he cries (or at least pouts).  Amy and I aren’t fussing at him to be mean; we’re fussing at him for his own good.  There’s no telling what he could catch from that bucket if we just let him do what he wanted to do.  The only act of love that we have is to stop him from doing it.  We’re not being loving parents if we let him continuously drink from a bucket that has much more than water in it.  God doesn’t place certain commands and responsibilities on us for our lives because He’s mean, unjust, unfair, or any other adjective you’ve heard.  He places them upon us for our benefit, so that we may live holier lives that draw us closer to Him, where we were originally created to be.

                So, what is the point of it all?  What is the point of Paul reminding Timothy of Scripture’s origin?  What is the point of Paul reminding Timothy of these four ways in which Scripture is for our benefit?  Well, because as he says in verse 17, that “the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”  Now, this doesn’t show up in the English, but in the Greek, the words translated as competent (or completed in other translations) and equipped are variations of the same Greek word.  In other words, the children of God aren’t just equipped; they’re super equipped, perfected for every good work.  Notice that Paul isn’t just talking about ministry work, but every good work.  Being taught, learning from Scripture, equips us for every kind of good work that we can imagine.  We’re not just somewhat prepared, we’re perfectly prepared.  I was never a boy scout, but my wife will tell you that I have their motto down pat.  I’m always prepared.  I’m not the guy who rolls into a situation and doesn’t have what he needs.  When I show up, I have what I need, what someone else might need, and even the things that I might need in case of the most bizarre of emergencies.  Paul is telling Timothy that through Scripture, God has given him everything that he needs for a life of ministry, as well as just living a Godly life.

                I want to close this discussion on the inerrancy, infallibility, inspiration, and power of Scripture by reading to you something that Dr. R.C. Sproul wrote about his view of Scripture.  Sproul wrote, “I think the greatest weakness in the church today is that almost no one believes that God invests His power in the Bible.  Everyone is looking for power in a program, in a methodology, in a technique, in anything and everything but that in which God has placed it—His Word.  He alone has the power to change lives for eternity, and that power is focused on the Scriptures.”  Friends, there is no greater source that we can look to other than Scripture.  There is no added wisdom that God is going to impart upon us in terms of knowing who He is.  Yes, He may reveal certain things to us, but those things come through careful study of and complete trust and obedience in His Word.  All Scripture is God-breathed for our benefit.  Don’t waste this precious gift that God has given to all of us.  Don’t allow you Bible(s) to collect more dust than they do tears, wrinkles, and smudges from constant use.  Don’t allow the Word of God to become stale and complacent in your life.  After all, God has given His Word to us so that we might be drawn closer to Him.  Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

2 Timothy 4:9-15 "Christian Retirement?"

If we ever want to look to Scripture to find an example of someone who has lived a tough life there are numerous choices. We could look at the book of Job and find a man who had everything taken away from him so that God could prove to Satan that suffering doesn’t necessarily separate us from God. We could look to any number of martyrs that we find throughout Scripture. Some of the beatings and tribulations of Godly men and women in the Bible are so severe that it leaves us thanking God every day that we are not faced with the same circumstances. Perhaps no person fits the term “rough life” better than the Apostle Paul. After Paul’s conversion to Christianity, his life seemed to be filled with one hardship after another; all while working to establish and foster churches here on earth.

Having a very brief history of the Apostle beginning with his conversion will help us to see just how much Paul suffered for the sake of the gospel. Shortly after his conversion, which took place somewhere between 33 and 36 AD, he was nearly killed in Damascus. Only three years after becoming a Christian Paul traveled to Jerusalem in order to spread the gospel. From 46-48 Paul embarked on his 1st missionary journey. He went from Antioch to Cyprus to Southern Asia Minor and back to Antioch. From 49-52 he undertook his 2nd missionary journey. During this 2nd journey, Paul was imprisoned at Philippi with Silas. He escaped this situation when an earthquake hit and allowed one of the prison walls to collapse. This is the story of the Philippian jailer, who upon witnessing these events, immediately devoted his life to following the teachings of Jesus. Paul’s 3rd and final missionary journey began only one year after returning from his 2nd journey. In 60 AD he made a trip to Rome. On this trip to Rome is where Paul was imprisoned once again, and it was there that Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy that we are looking at today. In all, Paul’s travels after his conversion total up to be an estimated 14,000 miles. Remind you that this is on foot. This would be the equivalent of me walking out the door in the back of the sanctuary, and walking to my childhood home in Meridian, MS and back around 27 times.

Now add in the fact that Paul’s travels often took him to some less than desirable locations. Very few times when Paul arrived at places where a church was already established did he find it peaceful and a time of relaxation. Usually there was some conflict within the church that Paul himself had to address. There is also the “thorn in the flesh” mentioned in 2 Cor. 12, which is most likely a physical disability Paul gained during his ministry. Add to that the continuous persecutions, beatings, and aforementioned imprisonments along the way and you start to get the picture. Paul managed to squeeze all of this into about a 30 year period. This letter to Timothy was written only a few years prior to his death in Rome.

We can tell from the previous words in this letter that Paul had a feeling that his life was soon to come to an end. Earlier, in 4:6-7 we find, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Paul’s acknowledgement of the nearing end makes what we find in our text today an even more impressive message than what we might find simply by a surface reading. After requesting that Timothy come and visit Paul (no doubt so that he may continue to teach and train him for the continuation of his ministry) Paul moved on to reminisce of some of his fellow workers of the past who had worked honorably and dishonorably.

The first name that Paul gives to Timothy is the name Demas. Now this isn’t a name that I expect everyone to be able to recall off the top of their head, but it is someone that Paul has referred to at other points during his letters. In Philemon, Demas is listed in a group of men that Paul calls his “fellow laborers.” In Colossians 4 his name is simply listed without any other qualifying information. Here, we find that the name Demas carries with it a negative connotation. “Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica.” We can take this as Paul warning against loving worldly values more than the spread of the gospel.
The next two names, Crescens and Titus, are of two others who Paul had sent out. When it comes to Crescens there is nothing else known about him other than this passage of him being sent to Galatia. Now Titus, we know from Paul’s letter to him and brief mentions in other letters, was a close friend and associate of Paul’s. Regardless, both of these men have left Paul’s side at this present time.

Whether this desertion was meant as a negative or simply just Paul’s telling Timothy where the others had gone, there is now a shift from those who have left Paul to the one who was still with him. Luke alone was with Paul. It’s funny, despite the fact that Luke wrote his gospel and the book of Acts, little is known about Luke the person. We know from inference that he was with Paul on his last journey to Rome. It is also mostly likely that Luke even willingly accompanied Paul to prison in Rome (this no doubt shows why Paul speaks so lovingly of him). As far as definitive references to Luke go in Scripture we have similar evidence as we do for Demas. In Colossians 4 Luke is described as the beloved physician is also listed as a fellow laborer in Philemon 24. It has been suggested that Luke’s skills as a physician allowed Paul to carry out his journeys despite his physical ailments. The best quote that I have found for summing up Luke is as follows, “The Church is full of talkers and of people who are there more for what they can get than for what they can give; Luke was one of these priceless people—the workers of the Church.”

The next person we come to is a person who has redeemed himself in the eyes of Paul. Paul says that Mark will be useful for him in ministry. Now the Greek word used here for ministry carries with it a wider sense of service. In other words, Paul is saying that having Mark with him was beneficial at this time. This is unexpected in light of what happened during Paul’s first missionary journey. Mark had been picked by Paul and Barnabas to join them on the mission and to become a contemporary of theirs. We are told, however, in Acts 13 that Mark left them and went home. Paul took this defection so hard that when Mark wanted to go with Paul and Barnabas on Paul’s second missionary journey, Paul refused to have such a quitter accompany them. Paul and Barnabas argued over this issue so much that they actually parted ways because Paul would have nothing to do with Mark. We don’t know exactly what happened to mend the relationship between the two, but Paul is now asking for Mark’s presence.

The next name, Tychicus, is someone who Paul had sent out to visit the church that he had established in Ephesus. He was the one who delivered the letters to the churches in Colossae and Ephesus. Then, the final name mentioned is Alexander the coppersmith. It is unknown what exactly Alexander had done, but we can determine from the text that he had worked to disrupt the spread of the gospel and caused Paul personal harm.

Now sandwiched between these last two names is what I want all of us to focus on this morning. Listen to the personal requests made by Paul to Timothy, “When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.” Despite Paul’s seemingly dire situation, this language seems to indicate that he still had work to do. Paul wanted his books, or in the Greek, his biblia, which literally means papyrus rolls, and it is most likely that these rolls contained the earliest forms of the gospels. He wanted the parchments. Perhaps these were legal documents such as his proof of Roman citizenship. However, it is most likely his copy of the Hebrew Scriptures, or as we would say, the Old Testament. Paul was acting like a man who still had work that needed to be done. Even though Paul had been through so much and was certain that the end was near, he continued to work for the sake of the gospel.

One of the ways in which you know that you have fully entered into adulthood is when you start thinking about retirement. Now, obviously Amy and I aren’t thinking about retirement any time soon, but it’s something that we began planning for several years ago. We don’t know what it will look like. I imagine a cantankerous old Presbyterian preacher sitting on the porch with his eternally beautiful bride somewhere, but you never know. After all, what does a preacher retiring even look like. Most preachers I know who have retired have gone right back to work doing something else in ministry. After all, my calling is that of making disciples, and you can’t really retire from that can you? You know we say that we have two jobs in life; we are a doctor, teacher, lawyer, etc., but we are also Christians. It is my opinion, as it is most likely yours, that the later job is a calling that is much more than a profession. As such, it is something that last for a lifetime and never really has a retirement. You can’t retire from Christian service.

If there was ever a person who had a right to say that they were retiring from Christian service it was the Apostle Paul. After penning 13 New Testament epistles (along with numerous other letters that are not in our Bibles) and some 25 years of missionary travels, he could have said he was done and no one could have second guessed him. The truth of the matter is that he didn’t. Despite all of the physical pain, prison stints, the loss of co-workers, the regrets of his lifestyle prior to his conversion, he continued onward. I mean, the man was sitting in prison talking about the fact that he had work to be done. He didn’t know for certain whether or not he would even make it out of prison. Paul knew that one never retires from Christ. You don’t stop being a Christian. When a teacher retires, they no longer go to the school every day. When a lawyer retires, he doesn’t go in every morning to the practice. Retired doctors don’t keep the same schedule as they did before retiring. Christians never retire. They never quit being Christians if they are faithful to the Word of God.

Friends, as we continue during this season of stewardship of self, we are at a crossroads. We have made great progress in suring up the operations of our own church family, but is that the goal? We have worked hard to get ourselves to a stable position in how we operate, but is that the ultimate goal? Well, I don’t think I even need to answer that for you. The goal isn’t about us, but about proclaiming God’s Word and reaching all those around us who are in need of it. We have to continue to be active in our efforts to establish God’s kingdom here on earth. We have to continue to work in the area missions and outreach and evangelism. We have to continue to support and take part in the Christian education of this church. We have to continue to fan the flame of Christ that burns within each of us. Friends, I know that it doesn’t take long of completely devoting ourselves to something before the feeling of being burned out sets in. I know that people in churches many times feel like they need a break and that it’s time for someone else to worry about it. I want to encourage you, just as I have to encourage myself constantly, to keep the mindset of the Apostle Paul. There is still work to be done. Christ has commanded us to continue in our efforts, for He is with us “to the end of this age.” There is never a time, as long as we have air in our lungs, in which our service to Christ is done. We should work each and every day, in some manner or way, at growing Christ’s kingdom upon this earth. There is no such thing as retirement from being a Christian. Glory be to God; in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

2 Timothy 4:9-15 Christian Retirement?

If we ever want to look to Scripture to find an example of someone who has lived a tough life there are numerous choices. We could look at the book of Job and find a man who had everything taken away from him in order to so that God can prove to Satan that suffering doesn’t necessarily take us away from God. We can look to any number of martyrs that we find throughout Scripture. Some of the beatings and tribulations of Godly men and women in the Bible are so severe that it leaves us thanking God every day that we are not faced with the same circumstances. Perhaps no person fits the term “rough life” better than the Apostle Paul. After Paul’s conversion to Christianity, his life seems to be filled with one hardship after another; all while working to establish and foster churches here on earth.
Having a very brief history of the Apostle beginning with his conversion will help us to see just how much Paul suffered for the sake of the gospel. Shortly after his conversion, which took place somewhere between 33 and 36 AD, he was nearly killed in Damascus. Only three years after becoming a Christian Paul traveled to Jerusalem in order to spread the gospel. From 46-48 Paul embarked on his 1st missionary journey. He went from Antioch to Cyprus to Southern Asia Minor and back to Antioch. From 49-52 he undertook his 2nd missionary journey. During this 2nd journey, Paul was imprisoned at Philippi with Silas. He escaped this situation when an earthquake hit and allowed one of the prison walls to collapse. This is the story of the Philippian jailer, who upon witnessing these events, immediately devoted his life to following the teachings of Jesus. His 3rd and final missionary journey began only one year after returning from his 2nd journey. In 60 AD he made a trip to Rome. On this trip to Rome is where Paul was imprisoned once again, and it is here that Paul writes his second letter to Timothy that we are looking at today. In all, Paul’s travels after his conversion total up to be an estimated 14,000 miles. Remind you that this is on foot. This would be the equivalent of me setting out from the parking lot to go to my parents’ house in Meridian and back around 63 times.
Now add in the fact that Paul’s travels often took him to some less than desirable locations. Very few times when Paul arrived at places where a church was already established did he find it peaceful and a time of relaxation. Usually there was some conflict within the church that Paul himself had to address. There is also the “thorn in the flesh” mentioned in 2 Cor. 12, which is most likely a physical disability Paul gained during his ministry. Add to that the continuous persecution, beatings, and aforementioned imprisonments along the way and you start to get the picture. Paul managed to squeeze all of this into about a 30 year period. This letter to Timothy was written only a few years prior to his death in Rome.
We can tell from the previous words in this letter that Paul has a feeling that his life is soon to come to an end. Earlier, in 4:6-7 we find, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Paul’s acknowledgement of the nearing end makes what we find in our text today an even more impressive message than what we might find simply by a surface reading. After requesting that Timothy come and visit Paul (no doubt so that he may continue to teach and train him for the continuation of his ministry) Paul moves on to reminisce of some of his fellow workers of the past who have worked honorably and dishonorably.
The first name that Paul gives to Timothy is the name Demas. Now this isn’t a name that I expect everyone to be able to recall off the top of their head, but it is someone that Paul has referred to at other points during his letters. In Philemon, Demas is listed in a group of men that Paul calls his “fellow laborers.” In Colossians 4 his name is simply listed without any other qualifying information. Here, we find that the name Demas carries with it a negative connotation. “Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica.” We can take this as Paul warning against loving worldly values more than the spread of the gospel.
The next two names, Crescens and Titus, are of two others who Paul has sent out. When it comes to Crescens there is nothing else known about him other than this passage of him being sent to Galatia. Now Titus, we know from Paul’s letter to him and brief mentions in other letters, was a close friend and associate of Paul. Regardless, both of these men have left Paul’s side at this present time.
Whether this desertion was meant as a negative or simply just Paul’s telling to Timothy where others have gone, there is now a shift from those who have left Paul to the one who is still with him. Luke alone is with Paul. It’s funny, despite the fact that Luke wrote his gospel and the book of Acts, little is known about Luke the person. We know from inference that he was with Paul on his last journey to Rome. It is also mostly likely that Luke even willingly accompanied Paul to prison in Rome (this no doubt shows why Paul speaks so lovingly of Luke). As far as definitive references to Luke go in Scripture we have the same similar evidence as we do for Demas. In Colossians 4 Luke is described as the beloved physician and he is also listed as a fellow laborer in Philemon 24. It has been suggested that Luke’s skills as a physician allowed Paul to carry out his journeys despite his physical ailments. The best quote that I have found for summing up Luke is as follows, “The Church is full of talkers and of people who are there more for what they can get than for what they can give; Luke was one of these priceless people—the workers of the Church.”
The next person we come to is a person who has redeemed himself in the eyes of Paul. Paul says that Mark will be useful for him in ministry. Now the Greek word used here for ministry carries with it a wider sense of service. In other words, Paul is saying that having Mark with him is beneficial at this time. This is unexpected in light of what happened during Paul’s first missionary journey. Mark had been picked by Paul and Barnabas to join them on the mission and to become a contemporary of theirs. We are told, however, in Acts 13 that Mark left them and went home. Paul took this defection so hard that when Mark wanted to go with Paul and Barnabas on Paul’s second missionary journey, Paul refused to have such a quitter accompany them. Paul and Barnabas argued over this issue so much that they actually parted ways because Paul would have nothing to do with Mark. We don’t know exactly what happened to mend the relationship between the two, but Paul is now asking for Mark’s presence.
The next name, Tychicus, is someone who Paul has sent out to visit the church that he had established in Ephesus. He is the one who delivered the letters to the churches in Colossians and Ephesus. Then, the final name mentioned is Alexander the coppersmith. It is unknown what exactly Alexander has done, but we can determine from the text that he has worked to disrupt the spread of the gospel and cause Paul personal harm.
Now sandwiched between these last two names is what I want all of us to focus on this morning. Listen to the personal requests made by Paul to Timothy, “When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.” Despite Paul’s seemingly dire situation, this language seems to indicate that he still has work to do. Paul wanted his books, or in Greek, his biblia, which literally means papyrus rolls, and it is most likely that these rolls contained the earliest forms of the gospels. He wanted the parchments. Perhaps these were legal documents such as his proof of Roman citizenship. However, it is most likely his copy of the Hebrew Scriptures, or as we would say, the Old Testament. Paul is acting like a man who still has work that has to be done. Even though Paul has been through so much and is certain that the end is near he continues to work for the sake of the gospel.
At any given moment I like to stop and see what words I could use to describe what is going on in the Robinson household. For the last few months, one word that has been flying around our house is the word retirement. Now, this may seem strange for Amy and I, at our age, to think about retirement, but there have been some events that have brought this on. You see, Amy’s dad, after 33 years of working for the Corp of Engineers, is eligible for retirement. Her parents have bought a house on the coast and are making plans for what retirement holds for them. We imagine that they will spend a great deal of time like Amy’s grandparents and travel and see family. Her grandfather who retired after a lengthy time of service in the Air Force, and her grandmother is a retired teacher at USM. There has also been the recent retirement of legendary MSU announcer Jack Cristil. My dad, who I think has been following MSU sports for as long as I can imagine, has never had anyone else other than Jack Cristil tell him what was going on at Scott Field. Now in every one of these cases, the retirement is well deserved. Each of these individuals have worked a great deal to be able to enjoy the time that they have left. But all of these retirements got me to thinking, what does Christian retirement look like? You know we say that we have two jobs in life; we are a doctor, teacher, lawyer, etc., but we are also a Christian. It is my opinion, as it is most likely yours, that the later job is a calling that is much more than a profession. As such, it is something that last for a lifetime and never really has a retirement.
If there was ever a person who had a right to say that they were retiring from Christian service it was the Apostle Paul. After penning 13 New Testament epistles (along with numerous other letters that are not in our Bibles) and some 25 years of missionary travels, he could say he was done and no one could second guess him. The truth of the matter is that he doesn’t. Despite all of the physical pain, prison stints, the loss of co-workers, the regrets of his lifestyle prior to his conversion, he continues onward. I mean, the man is sitting in prison talking about the fact that he has work to be done. He doesn’t know for certain whether or not he will even make it out of prison. Paul knows that one never retires from Christ. You don’t stop being a Christian. When a teacher retires, they no longer go to the school every day. When a lawyer retires, he doesn’t go in every morning to the practice. Retired doctors don’t keep the same schedule as they did before retiring. Christians never retire. They never quit being Christians if they are faithful to the Word of God.
I want to quickly share a story with you of some people who I know who have changed churches. There was a couple who was very involved in their local church and had been for many years. The church went through some hard times, many people left the church and the overall tone of the church dropped. Eventually this couple left their church to find another church family where they felt more at home. Now there isn’t anything inherently wrong with moving churches in and of itself, especially in this case where the couple couldn’t properly worship God because of how terrible their mindset was upon entering the doors of the church. When they found a new church, they decided that they were going to join but that they didn’t want to be involved beyond the level of membership. Is that really was we should be doing? Is the attitude of “we’ve been involved before and would like to simply just attend” really the attitude we should have? I think that we can all agree that Scripture is calling each and every one of us to not only be part of a local congregation, but to be active and working in that congregation.
We are soon to be faced with a similar situation here at Grace Chapel. God has blessed us greatly over the past several years. We are poised to open our new educational building some time this fall. The possibilities are endless for Grace Chapel with such a great tool at our disposal for spreading the Gospel. However, I want to take this time to warn against the temptation that might exist to feel like the opening of the building is the finish line; that we can just sit back and wait for the people driving along 463 to see our new building and come and worship God with us. We have to continue to be active in our efforts to establish God’s kingdom here on earth. We have to continue to go into neighborhoods with our door-to-door evangelism campaign. We have to continue to volunteer to serve our missions and outreach activities. We have to continue to support and take part in the Christian education of this church, especially our children. Friends, I know that it doesn’t take long of completely devoting ourselves to something before the feeling of being burned out sets in. I want to encourage you, just as I have to encourage myself constantly, to keep the mindset of the Apostle Paul. There is still work to be done. Christ has commanded us to continue in our efforts, for He is with us “to the end of this age.” Praise be to God, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.