Friday, July 22, 2016,
8:00 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “Broken and Contrite.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read 2 Timothy 4:1-8, 16-18 (ESV).
Be Ready (vv. 1-2)
I
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, and exhort, with complete
patience and teaching.
Most all of us are teachers in one way or another, even
though all of us don’t have the gift of teaching. We teach every day of our
lives just by how we live our lives, by how we treat other people, and by what
we say to them. If we have children and grandchildren, they learn from our
examples and from the things we say to them, or from the instructions we give
to them. So, we need to watch our lives closely, and carefully weigh the things
we say to others. And, we need to guard our own hearts and attitudes, because
whether we recognize it or not, we are teaching others, if by no other way than
our own life examples.
Also, there are many different ways in which we teach others
besides just standing or sitting in front of a group of people and purposefully
and thoughtfully imparting to them some knowledge or wisdom or understanding. In
other words, as followers (disciples) of Jesus Christ we are to be his witnesses
in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with those who need to hear (Ac. 1:8). We
are to make disciples (of Christ) of people of all nations, baptizing and
teaching them to obey all of Christ’s commands (Matt. 28:18-20). We are the
light of the world and the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13-16), and we are to
proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his
marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9).
Paul instructed Timothy to preach the word; to be ready in
season and out of season; and to reprove and exhort with complete patience and
teaching. We read in 2 Tim. 2 that “if
anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for
honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for
every good work” (v. 21). So, we are to make ourselves ready spiritually for
every good work God has for us, through repentance and obedience, in the power
of the Holy Spirit now living within us, and in cooperation with the Spirit’s
work of grace in our lives, including we should always be ready to share Christ
and the truths of his word with others.
“For
we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10).
“In
your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a
defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do
it with gentleness and respect” (1 Pet. 3:15).
Be Sober-Minded
(vv. 3-5)
For
the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having
itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own
passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into
myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an
evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
That time has already come when people will not endure sound
teaching. In America, in particular, so many people are flocking after teachers
who tell them what sounds good to their ears and what allows them to continue
in sin without guilt and without remorse. So many people who profess to be
ministers of the gospel and teachers of the Word are teaching the philosophies
of humans, instead. They tell people that they don’t have to repent of (turn
away from) their sins, and that they don’t have to obey Christ and his
instructions to us. And, then they convince them that God is pleased with them no
matter what they do, and that nothing bad will happen to them, i.e. that God
will never discipline them or chastise them for their disobedience. They
convince them, too, that a mere confession of Christ as Savior gets them out of
hell and promises them heaven.
But we are to be sober-minded, i.e. we are to take God and
his Word seriously, and we are to follow (obey) Christ, being doers of the Word
and not hearers only. If we continue in sin (in living sinful lifestyles), but
we say we have fellowship with God, the Bible says we are liars and the truth
is not in us (1 Jn. 1:6). If we walk (conduct our lives) according to the
flesh, we will die, but if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of
the flesh, we will live (See: Ro. 8:1-14). Jesus Christ died that we might die
to sin and live to righteousness (1 Pet. 2:24). He died that we might no longer
live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us (2 Co. 5:15). His
grace, which brings salvation, teaches us to say “NO!” to ungodliness and
worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we
wait for Christ’s return (Tit. 2:11-14). So, don’t be fooled! One day you will
stand before God and many are going to hear, “Depart from me, I never knew you.”
So, for those of us who are Christ’s followers, we need to
stand strong in our faith and on the word of God, and we should not give way to
the devil’s evil schemes against us. We should never compromise truth to be
accepted by people or to be liked, but we should continue to share what we know
of God’s word with whomever will listen. And, we should be faithful to whatever
God has called each one of us to do collectively as well as individually.
Keep the Faith (vv.
6-8)
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. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which
the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me
but also to all who have loved his appearing.
Many of us are suffering rejection and persecution for our
faith in Jesus Christ, for our witness for him, for our testimonies of his
saving grace, and for the sake of the gospel and the teaching of truth. We long
for our heavenly home, but we know God still has a purpose for us on this
earth. So, we will remain, and we will continue in Christ and in what he has called
us to do until he calls us home.
As Christ’s followers, we are in a spiritual battle. Our
enemy is Satan and his many hordes. They want nothing more than to destroy
(obliterate) the gospel and to dissuade, discredit and/or to destroy its
messengers. So, God has supplied his servants and messengers with spiritual
armor with which to fight off our enemy’s evil schemes and attacks against us (See:
Eph. 6:10-20). And, daily we must fight this battle for our own survival, yet
we don’t fight it in our own strength or with our own resources. We fight in
the power and strength of the Lord who has already won this battle for us. And,
we use the weapons of warfare he has supplied to us. When Satan lies to us, we
respond with the truth. When he tempts us to doubt, we respond with faith. When
he twists the Word of God to his advantage, we pull out the sword of the
Spirit, which is the Word of God, and we proclaim it with confidence.
We don’t give up, either, even when things get harder and
harder. We don’t retreat out of fear of what humans might do to us. We will
never make things better for us by shrinking back. Running away from God or
trying to escape our circumstances so that we don’t get hurt doesn’t work. We
only make things worse for ourselves, not better. The best place to be ever is
right in the palm of God’s hand, doing exactly what he has called us to do and
to be no matter how much we get hated, rejected and persecuted in return. There
is no peace in this world like the peace that comes to a life surrendered to
Jesus Christ and to his will for our lives. We keep running the race, keeping
the faith, and fighting the good fight! And, one day we will see, if we don’t
now, that it was worth it all to follow Christ and to impact other lives for
Jesus Christ and for eternal salvation.
Trust in God (vv.
16-18)
At
my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be
charged against them! But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that
through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might
hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from
every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the
glory forever and ever. Amen.
I love these words! They are so encouraging to my heart.
Even if everyone we know and love turns against us, God will never leave us or
forsake us. Even if all desert us, he will stand by us and he will strengthen
us, if we are his followers. Even if Satan throws all his darts at us and he
threatens to undo us, we trust in God’s complete sovereignty over our lives,
and we believe in his many promises to us, and we rely on his strength to see
us through it all. Satan will try to get us to fear opposition, but that is
when we put on our spiritual armor and we fight off his lies with the truth. No
opposition against us can prevail against us unless God allows it, and he
allows it for a purpose, and that he will equip and empower us to respond to it
in a way that is fitting a servant of the Most High God.
Our God may not always deliver us physically from
persecution. In fact, his word teaches that we are destined for it, and that,
as his followers, we will be treated as he was treated. But, he will rescue us
spiritually, and he will strengthen and encourage us in our faith, and he will
supply all we need to persevere and to grow in our faith to maturity through
these difficult times. We just have to trust him with our lives, believe that
he has our best interest at heart, and be confident in his love, grace and
mercy - that he will work out all things for the good (what is best) of those
who love him. We just need to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and not on our
circumstances, and believe him to heal our broken hearts.
Broken and Contrite
/ An Original Work / May 13, 2012
I come before You, Lord, my
Savior,
With humble heart and crushed
in spirit.
I bow before You, I implore
You,
Heal my broken heart, I pray.
Love You, Jesus, Lord, my
master,
You are the King of my heart.
Lord, purify my heart within
me;
Sanctify me, whole within.
Oh, Lord, I long to obey fully
The words You’ve spoken through
Your Spirit.
I pray You give me grace and
mercy,
Strength and wisdom to obey.
Father God, my heart’s desire,
Won’t You set my heart on fire?
Lord, cleanse my heart of all
that hinders
My walk with You, now I pray.
Oh, Jesus, Savior, full of
mercy,
My heart cries out for
understanding.
I want to follow You in all
ways,
Never straying from Your truth.
Holy Spirit, come in power,
Fill me with Your love today.
Lord, mold and make me;
Your hands formed me;
Live Your life through me, I
pray.
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