Introduction - The Prelude, Part 2

We are grateful for that reminder of the fact that people do need the Lord Jesus Christ, and they need you more than they ever realize. And for those of us who have given our life to you, we realize the greatness of your presence in us, the freedom from. From forgiveness, we realize, Lord, that what you have done in us and through us and to us is greater than anything we can ever imagine. And because of that, Lord, we have responsibility to discharge that truth to others, that they in turn will be able to experience the wonderful reality of Jesus Christ in their lives.

And so we ask, Lord, that through what we learned this evening, we would become more aware of that opportunity to give to others the truth of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Those who need the Lord would be able to respond. To your truth. We pray this in your name. Amen. If you have your Bible, I would invite you to turn with me to 2 Timothy chapter 2.

2 Timothy chapter 2 2. One author has said these words: My greatest fear is not that you will fail, but that you will succeed at doing the wrong thing. He was right. You see, many people succeed at doing all kinds of things, but most succeed at doing the wrong thing. In order to succeed biblically, you must succeed at doing what God has asked you to do and being able to live the life He wants you to live. So important. And yet, people, Christians alike, miss the importance of those things of eternal value.

It's important for us to realize that those things that are of eternal worth are those things we should pour our lives into, that we might succeed at doing the right things, biblically speaking. When I was younger, in my late 20s, I had the opportunity to coach college baseball for a number of years, and it was a great joy for me to instruct young collegians in their relationship with Jesus Christ. Coaching baseball was a lot of fun, but winning and losing baseball games was not the end-all-be-. It was about these young men and how they would learn to respond to life situations.

Most importantly, how they would come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and then learn to live for Jesus Christ. That was my main ambition as a college baseball coach. That they would understand Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Because once baseball was over, once their college career was over, very few, if any, of them, would ever go on to play professional baseball. So they needed to understand that the essence of their life was about ser Jesus Christ and living for the glory of God. And so when we would take those trips down to Florida every year from New York to Florida and the 18-hour trip down there and back again.

There'd be many times in which, traveling through the night, you'd have the opportunity to talk to a young man about his relationship with Jesus Christ. To explain to him the essence of his life and what God had for him. And then out throughout that season, talking to them as you travel to and from baseball games, as they would go through difficulties in their own personal lives. Introducing them to Jesus Christ, talking with them through the scriptures that they might see God's plan for their lives.

That was a great joy of mine. And that was the greatest joy about coaching baseball. It wasn't winning baseball games and winning championships. It was about seeing young men grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord. No matter what job you have, no matter where God places you, you have the opportunity to do the same thing, no matter where you're at, because God wants to use you to instruct other people in the truth of God's holy word. And so if we're going to do things that are successful in the eyes of God, we must invest in those things that are of eternal worth.

Last week, we told you there's only two things that last forever: people and the Word of God. So, therefore, we must take the Word of God and invest it into the lives of people. Therefore, what we do is store up treasures in heaven. And therefore, we are doing what God has asked us to do, and therefore our lives will then be successful, biblically speaking. Two comp that are essential in succeeding in life both center around God and His Word. And so, therefore, we must understand them, and we must be able to accomplish what God has ask us to do.

Last week we told you that point number one, as we understand the process of disciple-making, the responsibility before us is a great one.

And we wanted you to understand two aspects about that responsibility. One is that that responsibility was articulated in Paul's last epistle. And that responsibility was acc in Paul's life exper. Let me review that for you.

We went through 2 Timothy to help you understand that Paul says in chapter 1, verse number 13, that Timothy had to retain the standard. That is, he had to pattern God's word cons in his life. That people would be able to see that he was committed to Jesus Christ and that he would keep the standard of God's word every day in his life. So important. We saw in verse number 14 of chapter 1 that he was to guard through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us the treasure which has been entrusted to You. That is, there is a protection about God's Word.

We need not only to pattern God's Word consistently, but we must protect God's Word. Carefully. We are the caretakers of God's Word. We are the guardians of God's Word. We are to fight for God's Word, stand strong on God's word. And then we saw in chapter 2, verse number 15, where Paul told Timothy he needed to study to show himself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth. That is, cutting the word of God straight. So, therefore, we understand that we need to present God's Word correctly.

We must be able to present it in such a way that people know how to walk, how to live. How to speak because we've cut a straight path that they can follow in. Then we looked chapter 3, verse number 15, and saw where God's word was to be persevered in completely. Paul told Timothy: cont in these things which you have learned. Persist in them. Don't back away from them. And then chapter 4, verse number 2, Paul told Timothy to preach the word. We are to preach. The word convincingly, in season and out of season.

And then in chapter 2, verse number 2. Timothy was to pass on that word continually. He was to entrust the things that he had heard. The Apostle Paul's life, or heard through his message and seen in his life, pass it on to faithful men that they in turn could pass it on to others also. Folks, this is so important. I wish I could spend weeks on helping you understand the importance of God's Word in your life and living in accord with the Word of God. This is so crucial. I can recall a time when I was a dean at a Christian college back east, and I just had finished coaching the last game of the season.

And I was the dean and the baseball coach at this institution. And I was called into the academic dean's office. And he happened to be one of my professors when I was in college because I graduated from the school that I was working for at the time. He called me and said, Lance, I don want to let you know something. We're going to have to let you go. I said, You are? He says, Yeah. He says, We need to fire you. I said, okay. Could you help me understand why you're firing me? He says, yeah. We've come to the conclusion that you don't keep enough professional distance away from the students.

You're too close to the students. You're in the dorm at night, you're having Bible studies with them in the dorm, and you're having them over to your house, and you're constantly working with these kids in a non-professional kind of atmosphere. And that's not what we want to see happen here. I said, okay, I understand that. He says, so this is what I want you to do. We want you to write a letter of resignation so that we can have it on file. I said, you want me to write a letter of resignation? But I'm not resigning.

You're firing me. He says, well, that's just what they do, you see. You see, if you write a letter of resignation, then when someone else wants to hire you, then what's on file is a letter of resignation and not the fact that we're firing you. And I said, you have to excuse me for a moment, but that goes against everything you taught me as a student for four years here at school. On top of that, it violates the Word of God. You're asking me to lie about something that's not happening. You're firing me.

So, you know what? Go ahead. That's okay. You can fire me because my God is so big that He can get me another job. I don't have to write a letter of resignation. He says, th, if that's what you want, that's what we'll say. I said, that's not only what I want, that's the truth. And I want the truth. So I said, thank you for the opportunity to work here. Needless to say, I got fired and that led me to my next college institution, but God taught me a lot through all that. And I realized as I went back that there was something that was important in my life that had been patterned to me through my Father.

My father never backed down from truth. He never did. I used to watch him in business meetings in the church. I used to watch him in a Sunday school class. I used to watch how he interacted with people. He never backed down back down from truth. Never did. And I can recall him standing up uh i in in business meetings as as a church that we were in as growing up was about to split and you know what my father wasn't afraid of a church split. That didn't scare him because truth was what was important to him.

And so he would stand strong in the truth. And as an elder in the church, he would stand against what. People wanted because what they wanted wasn't necessarily the truth of God's word. And I would watch him and I would observe him as people would be upset with him, but it didn't phase him. It never phased him. He just kept on doing the right thing. And I realized when I walked out of that office one day. When I was 25 years of age and I walked out of that office, I walked out with my head high, realizing that I had took a stand on truth, that I wouldn't lie, that I wouldn't fudge.

The truth. I would stand on the truth and say, Lord, you're big enough to do for me what no one else can do. And I would trust you. And so I had to go back to my players. I had to go back to my students and tell them what had taken place and tell them that I had been fired from my job and that I had been asked to resign, but I wouldn't do that because that wouldn't be the truth. And I wanted to model to them the importance of standing on the truth, even if you lose your job. Not only did I lose my job.

It was one week after that, we found out that my wife had cancer, and it would be 15 months later that she would die. So we were out of insurance, we were out of a job, we were out of everything. But you know what? God took care of all that stuff. Because that's the way God is. God says, if you honor me, I will honor you.

You have to honor the truth of God. It has to be supreme. Paul was that way. Nothing caused Paul to dishonor the truth of God's word. He made so many enemies because he stood strong on the truth. But it never fazed him because he wanted to honor God more than he wanted to honor man. If you could just learn that truth And live that truth for the rest of your lives, everything around you would change. Everything would. The most important thing. Is the word of God. Remember Psalm 138, verse number 2?

Thy word, O Lord, is magnified even as thy very name. The Word of God is magnified to such a level, it's on the same plane as the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. And at the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. God holds His wor in highest esteem. We as His children need to do the same. And Paul says, Timothy, these six aspects about the Word of God, as he wrote about them in his last letter, this is his last epistle.

This is his last chance to give it. All that he has. This is the last chance he has to say it for the last time to make sure that Timothy gets it. And so he gives them the most essential truths about the Word of God so Timothy will adhere to them. That's what we need to do. And so Paul would articulate in his last epistle those key aspects. That will last forever. It's all about God's word. It's all about God's people. So you take God's word and you retain the standard, you guard it, you persevere in it.

You make sure you study it carefully. You make sure you preach it accurately. And you make sure you give it to people so they in turn will give it to others because those are the only two things that last forever. And that's what our lives need to be about. And I will even go so far as to say this: that if your life is not about those two things, you're not living, you're just existing. You're just existing. And your life will be a bore. It'll be a drag. You'll get depressed. You'll get saddened.

You'll wonder if you have any kind of identity whatsoever. You will. But if you stick to what God's word says, you won't be depressed. You won't be saddened. You'll understand your identity. Because you understand your responsibility before God. You understand your call in life. And that's what leads us to the second aspect of the greatness of this responsibility: it was accentuated in Paul's life exper.

I mean, everything he told Timothy to do, he did. And Timothy was able to observe it. So Timothy had an example to follow. He was able to see the man in action. And so you begin to understand when Paul says in chapter 2, verse number 2, you therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. You see, evidently Timothy wasn't being strong. And you ever get to that point? You ever get to that point in your life where you feel like you're starting to be ashamed of the gospel? You're starting to back away from the truth.

You're not standing like you should stand on the truth. You're not saying what you should say about the truth. You ever get to that point? Sure, you do. We all get to that point. So this is a good reminder because Paul tells Timothy chapter 1 verse number 6 stir up the gift Timothy fan the flame Timothy you've been gifted by God you've got to stir that thing back up you got to get back on the right path Timothy you got to be doing the right thing not the wrong thing You want to be successful at doing the things that count, not the things that don't count.

So he says, Kindle afresh in verse number 6 of chapter 1 the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of Of my hands. He says down in verse number eight: Do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me. His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God. Don't start being ashamed, Timothy. You can't afford to go that direction. Then he tells them, Look, you have been suppl with the promises of God. Verse number seven. He says, God's not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and a discipline.

So therefore, don't start being ashamed, Timothy. Because that would contradict the truth, the reality of who you really are in Christ, what He's given to you. Don't start being ashamed, Timothy, but be strengthened by the power of God. And so Paul says, You therefore, my son, you be strong. You see, Paul was concerned about the church at Ephesus. And he was concerned about how that church in Ephesus would impact that city. If Paul was alive today and he was writing to us, he would be concerned about Christ's community church and our impact.

In West Covina, our impact in Baldwin Park, our impact in La Puente, our impact in Covina, in West Covina, and Glendora, the whole S And we should be concerned about that, shouldn we? We should be concerned as well as consum with our testimony. In this area, and the ministry that God's entrusted to us here in this valley. This should be of utmost importance to us. And Paul says, Timothy, you can't afford to back away. You've got to be strong, Timothy. And you've got to live for God. And so I want you to notice with me the pattern.

And then I want you to notice with me the principle. This is a little bit of a review from last week, but we didn't get really into it. But I want to go back because I want you to see how this whole aspect of God's word into the lives of God's people was accentuated in the life of God. Of Paul or Paul's life experience. Remember back in Acts chapter one? Acts chapter one. It says these words: the first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach.

Luke says that The Gospel of Luke, the Gospel that Luke himself wrote, he also wrote the book of Acts, he says, That gospel was about all that Jesus began to do and to teach, meaning that what he began is not yet fin. We know that the work of redemption is complete because Jesus said it was finished on the cross. But there's a continuing ministry. That goes on through the lives of those who are committed to Christ. And that's what the book of Acts is about. The book of Acts is about the unfinished work of Christ.

Through the lives of people who are committed to Him. And so the book of Acts, that historical book, chronicles for us the birth of the church, then the growth of the church, and the spread of the church throughout the world. To eventually it's gotten to you and me, and we've given our lives to Christ. But it doesn't end with us, it's to go out from us to other people. And sure enough, it says that in 1:8 of Acts chapter 1, verse number 8, the Lord says, You're going to receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.

And you should be my witnesses, both in Jerusalem and all Judea, Samaria, even to the remotest part of the earth. And the book of Acts chronicles that. And Christ says, Listen, I'm going to give you what you need to accomplish the mission that I've assigned to you.

Because what Jesus began needs to be finished. God is continually building his kingdom. He's continually adding people to his kingdom. How is he doing that? He's using people like you to spread the gospel, to tell people about Christ. And the Spirit of God works in their hearts. They repent of their sins. They give their lives to Christ. And the kingdom itself is built. Well, through all this, there was a man by the name of Apostle Paul, who was at that time named Saul, who gave his life to Christ.

You know the story in Acts chapter 9 on the Damascus Road. And the Lord appeared to him, and he said, Lord, what is it you want me to do? And Saul was converted. That man's life was transform by a miracle. God. And this man, through a series of events, got involved in the church. He grew. Next thing you know, he becomes the first missionary along with Barnabas sent out from the church in Acts chapter 13.

And what he does is he goes out and spreads the gospel, telling people about Jesus Christ. And as he goes out into the community, lo and behold, through the region of Galatia. He runs into two women who give their lives to Christ, Lois and Eunice. Second Timothy 1: speaks of them.

When Paul says this to Timothy, for I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which was first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that is in you as well.

There was a time on that first missionary journey where Lois and Eunice gave their lives to Christ through the ministry of Paul and Barnabas.

And when you come to the 16th chapter of Acts, you have these words concerning the second missionary of Of the Apostle Paul, when it says, And he came also to Derby and to Lyst, and behold, a certain disciple was there named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek.

And he was well spoken of by the brethren who were in Lyst and Ic. Timothy had come to saving faith through the ministry of his mother and grandmother. And now his testimony was such that he was well spoken of in the region. This man had a living example, he had a living faith. And he was well spoken of by people in the area. So you have what? You have the Lord. He comes into the earth. He chooses his disciples. One of them, and these disciples begin to grow in their walk with the Lord. And they are used in such a way to spread the gospel throughout the book of Acts.

And the Lord calls Paul to himself. And Paul is used to spread the gospel to all kinds of people, two of them, in particular, Lois and Eunice, who give their lives to Christ, who in then turn. Tell their son Timothy about Jesus Christ. He is saved. And now, Timothy, in 2 Timothy:, is to take what he has learned. From the life of the Apostle Paul and entrust it to faithful men. That's the pattern. That's what took place. And that's just a thumbnail sketch of the events that took place. And I just want you know that if you're a mother here today and you've got a son or you have a daughter or you have two sons or two daughters, your responsibility is to lead them to Christ.

is to tell them about Jesus Christ and to be instrumental in their walk with the Lord. And that's why Paul would say in 2 Timothy 3, verse number 15, Timothy, you continue in the things that you have learned from your early childhood. From your early childhood, from the earliest time of your life, Timothy. So evidently, Lois and Eunice were teaching Timothy from the early stages of his life. About the coming of Messiah, who he would be, and that young man would give his life to Christ after his mother and grandmother had realized that the Messiah had come.

And the Jewish people, along with the Roman soldiers, put him on a cross and killed him. And so now Paul tells Timothy: Timothy, listen, you have responsibility. To discharge the gospel, to give it out. So, therefore, Timothy, you be strong in the grace. Are strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard in me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men. We told you last week that word entrust is a banking term. You you take it and you you deposit it into faithful men.

Now, let me ask you a question. Let's say you had a million dollars, okay? And every time you took the million dollars and you gave it to somebody else, you'd automatically Receive another million. Okay? So you take that million and you give it to somebody else so they will have a million. And now you still would have a million. You'll take that million, you'll give it to somebody else, and you'd still have a million. I mean, that'd be a great thing, right? Wouldn you like to give a million dollars to somebody?

I thought they'd be neat. Here, here's a million bucks. Go buy a house. Go buy a car. You know, go pay off your church. Whatever you got to do. Here's a million bucks. You know, and yet, lo and behold, you still have a million bucks in your bank account. And you give it to somebody else, and you give it to somebody else. You see, the word of God Is like that. Why? Because the Bible says in Psalm 119: that the law of thy mouth is better to me than thousands.

Of go and silver pieces. God 's word is a treasure. It 's a valuable treasure. It 's more valuable than gold. It 's more valuable than silver. And we should be taking the treasure and entrusting it into the lives of people. And every time we do, we don't lose any of the treasure. We still retain the treasure. That's the greatness of this invaluable product. And so, as we entrust it into the lives of others, they now see the value of the Word of God. And they then will take it and entrust it in the lives of other people.

And that's the ministry of discipleship. And that's what God has called us to do. That's what a psal said Psalm 119, 127. That therefore I love thy commandments above gold, yes, above fine gold. Why? Because every time he needed to be revived, he would go back to the law of God. He would go back to the testimony of God. Every time he needed comfort, he would go back to the precepts of God, to the promises of God, because God's Word does that kind of thing. It's living, it's active, it's powerful.

And therefore, the psalmist understood the value of the word of God. And Paul tells Timothy, this valuable treasure that's yours, entrust it to faithful men, that they in turn will be able to teach others. Also. Why? So that the next generation will receive it. The next generation will grow up understanding the truth of God's word. You know, one of my most favorite times of the month is when we meet with our leaders on the first Monday of the month.

We gathered together in here and there's somewhere between 50 and 70 of them depending upon which ones come that week. But it's a great time. And they're able to come and ask whatever question they want to ask of the leadership of our church, and they're able to interact with us, and they're able to ask questions about the church. And then we go through the Word of God together, and they can ask whatever question they want about our doctrine, whatever it is we're teaching. Those are great times. But you know what?

It's important for us to invest into our leadership because our leadership is investing into the lives of other people. They need to know what we believe and why we believe it. They need to understand it. They need to grasp it. They need to get it. They need to take that treasure and then impart it into the lives of other people. But you know what? That's a fun time for me. Because they ask questions about certain points of doctrine and or they'll ask questions about our church and they get to know about what's happening.

That's probably the most important time for the people of the church, although they all don't come. They're all invited. But they can come and ask whatever question they want to ask about whatever it is that's on their heart and mind to the leadership of our church. And that's open to everybody in the church. And it's a great time because there's that interaction. And going back to the Word of God, what does God's Word say about this? It's always important to ask the questions or to answer the questions that people are asking, right?

That's important. So that leads us to the principle. And we gave you the principle last week. That personal affection, when coupled with biblical instruction, culminates in spiritual maturation. That's the principle. And that's the principle that will run throughout the entire 12 weeks of our series. You need to get that. Paul says, Timothy, you are my son. Personal affection. You are dear to me, Timothy. And I want you to be strong, that is in the grace of Jesus Christ our Lord. And Timothy, I want you to take those things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses.

That's the biblical instruction. And I want you to entrust it to faithful men that they in turn will be able to teach others also. So they're now going to teach others also that that is their growth, their ability to be able to give out now what they have learned. That's their spiritual maturation. And that will eventuate into supernatural reproduction. And that is a process of disciple-making. Paul modeled it over in 1 Thessalonians chapter 2, verse number 8, when he said these words. He said, Having thus a fond affection for you, we were well pleased to impart to you.

not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us. There it is. Personal affection, biblical instruction. And the Thessalonian church Was probably the most mature church in the B. These people grew great leaps and bounds in the faith. And that principle of personal affection with biblical instruction is crucial. So crucial. And to be truthful with you, or not truthful, but be honest with you, is the fact that it happens mostly in your home. So if you're a parent and you have children, this becomes a very valuable thing for you.

Because those are the people you're closest to, right? So that personal affection with your children, coupled with biblical instruction, is going to cause them to grow. Let me give you an example.

Yesterday there was an incident that happened with my children. And when I got home from work, my wife told him. Told me about it, and she was concerned about it. And so we dealt with it last night in a disciplinary issue, and we dealt with it this morning. In a textual issue. So we sat down around the table this morning and said, okay, we need to talk about something. Your attitudes last yesterday afternoon between one another. And the complaining spirit that you have. You see, I don't like complainers.

Okay, that just doesn't sit well with me. P like to complain and bellyach and bicker and cry and moan and whine. Okay? That just doesn 't set well with me. So my children, when they do that, are in big trouble. And so he said, okay, listen, let's talk about what the Bible says about complaining.

Murmuring and grumbling. So, let you tell me what Bible verse you would go to to help you understand how not to do that. And so Anna raised her hand. She says, Well, the Bible says we're going to honor our mother and father.

And if we're going to grumble and mumble, then we're not honoring our mother and father because we're complaining about what they ask us to do. Good verse, An. Good job. That's a great job. And we went around the table, and different ones of them said different things. And I said, you know, I want to share with you just a couple of verses out of the Bible because we need to understand what God says about this.

And so we turn to Philippians chapter 2, and when Paul says, you know, we're to do all things without murmuring and disputing, without a complaining kind of spirit. Because we are to be the lights into the world. We are to shine in a crooked and perverse generation. And the characteristic of a crooked and perverse generation is that they murmur and they grumble and they complain and they whine and they moan and they bellyache. That's the characteristic of a crooked and perverse generation. That is not the characteristic of a child of God who is as shine as lights in the world.

And then I took them to 1 Corinthians chapter 10 to show them that God killed people who murmured and complained and belly ached. Their eyes just got huge. And it's the record of Numbers chapter 16 where Byron and Korah and Dathan, they rebelled against Moses and Aaron and their leadership. And they wanted to know why they were leading and they couldn't lead. And God opened the ground and God swallowed them up, and 250 priests with them, and they all died because they murmured and complained against the leadership that God had appointed.

And so I said, you know, it's important for us to understand that God is not very pleased with people who complain. We shouldn't be that way. How should we be? We should rejoice. We should be thankful people, right? You see, the most important time to teach people is when there's a crisis, when there's a situation, or when they're asking questions, so you can give them the answer. My children began to learn about the effects of murmuring and complaining and grumbling and belly aching, that God takes it seriously.

You see, we don't take it seriously, do we? We just think it's just no big deal. And so we go around, you know, heads are always down all the time. We're always, you know? And what does God say about that? It's almost as if we don't care what God says about that.

But we should care, right? Because God's word's the standard. And so, as we begin to study it, as we begin to implement it, we begin to understand: Lord, help me not to have a complaining spirit. Help me to have rejoicing sp So we gathered around together, around the table this morning, and we started to pray and said, Lord, help us to have good attitudes today. Help us to have a good spirit. Help us to have a helpful spirit. Help us to be able to rejoice even when things go bad. Help us to have the attitude that honors Jesus Christ.

Personal affection, when coupled with biblical instruction, will ultimately produce spiritual maturation. That's the principle. That's what we have to learn. That's what we have to get a hold of. Point number two.

Now, most of that was just review, but I wanted to make sure that you got it because it's going to become up over and over again through the next 10 weeks. The resource Is grace. If the responsibility is great, you're saying, wait a minute, I'm not sure I can do this. If you know anything about me, if you knew anything about my parenting, if you knew anything the way I was at work, if you knew how I was, I can't do this. Let me tell you something.

If God asks you to do something, He will give you all the resources you need to pull it off. God's not going to ask you to do something, sit back and say, ha ha, see, you can't do it. I asked you to do something, you can't even make it. He's not going to do that. He gives us the resources to pull it off. And that's what is so great. The responsibility is huge. But God says, that's okay.

I'm going to give you the resource. Paul states the resource first. He says, Timothy, you be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. That's the exhortation. There's an exhortation, there's an explanation, and then there is an application. Let me give it to you.

First of all, the exhortation. Here it is. Timothy, this is the way you got to be. You've got to be strong, Timothy. You've got to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Timothy, you need to be strengthened for the task. Timothy, you need to understand that God needs to fill you with His strength, Timothy. You can't accomplish this on your own. Listen.

Spiritual ends can only be accomplished through spiritual means. Disciple-making, like anything else in the church, like anything else that we do, can very easily be relegated to a fleshly act. That I can do this, I can handle this, I can accomplish this. And the answer to that is: no, you can't. You need the power of God in your life to accomplish this. Paul knew it. He wanted Timothy to get it. So he says, Timothy, you be str. Those people just went to Russia. I mean, do you think that when you go into a third world country, in a cross-cultural kind of ministry, that it's easy to do that?

No. To go to a place where there are no showers, so you can't shower for a whole week, where bugs are bigger than the state of Texas, where it is just, the weather is horrendous. The food is horrendous. There is no drinking water. It's a tough environment. And you're only there for 10 days, but it seems like an eternity. Do you think you just go over there and do that? No. It needs to be accomplished through the Spirit of God energizing your life. Or it's just another trip. It's just another plane trip to another country and who needs that right if you're going to take a plane trip to another country.

Don't go to Russia Go to Tahiti Number two, the explanation. The exhortation, Timothy, you be strong in the grace. The explanation is this. Timothy, by means of the grace that is in Christ Jesus, Timothy. Listen, over in chapter 1, verse number 9, Paul says this. God has saved us. Called us with a holy calling, not according to our own works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity. It's the grace of God. How are we saved? We're saved by grace.

Okay? It's God's grace that saves us. Over in Titus chapter 2. Paul tells Titus, verse 11, for the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us. To deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly and righteously and godly in the present age. So not only does God's word save us, I mean God's grace save us, but God's grace sanctifies us. It teaches us what not to do so that we can do and be what God wants us to do and be. See? Now, Paul says: not only does God's grace save us, not only does God's grace.

Sanctify us, but God's grace grants us the ability to serve Him and to serve Him in a way that brings honor to His n. We serve by means of the grace of God. Remember what Paul said in Ephesians 6, verse number 10: Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Why? Because spiritual enemies are warring against the soul, and they want to get you to learn to trust in yourself and no longer trust in God. Let me tell you something, folks.

Satan's biggest attack on your family. Satan's biggest attack on your ministry is to get you to believe you can do it on your own. You're good enough to do it. That's Satan's lie. I remember when Lori and I were married and we stood up at the wedding reception and I had the opportunity to thank the people for coming. And I said, I just want to share with you a verse, a verse that Lori and I have decided to. To make the life first for our family and for our marriage together.

And I just want to share it with you because I want it to characterize our lives. It's Psalm 20, verse number 7. It reads as follows: Some trust in chariots. Summon horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They shall be brought down and fall, but we shall rise up and stand firm. There are many things that we can trust in. We can trust in our horses, we can trust in our money, we can trust in our expertise, we can trust in our education, we can trust in our experience, but Every time you do, you will fall.

And God says, I want you to trust in me. I want you to trust the name of the Lord your God. And you shall rise up and you shall stand firm. But Satan is out there to get you to trust in yourself. And as soon as you do, you are on your way down. And Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, let tell you something. It's all about the grace of God. If you're going to accomplish this task, it's not because you've been trained by me, it's not because you're a disciple of mine, it's not because of your grandmother and your mother, it's because of the grace of God in your life.

To accomplish God's purposes through your life. That's what it's about. And Timothy needs to understand that. We can do no more spiritually than we can physically. And we need self-discipline. When you need self-discipline to develop yourself physically, so you need self-discipline to develop yourself spiritually. Self-discipline that speaks of spiritual strength that comes from self-sacrifice, self-denial, and self-discipline. Paul said in chapter 1 of 2 Timothy, verse number 12. I'm sorry, chapter 1 of 1 Timothy, verse number 12.

He said these words, I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me. It's God who strengthens me. That's the exhortation. Here's the application. How do you do that? Four ways. Number one, you got to ask God for it.

You got to ask Him for it. Over in the Gospel of Luke, 21st chapter, 36 verse, it reads as follows. But keep on the alert at all times, praying in order that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place and to stand before the Son of Man. If you don't want to be strengthened by the grace of God, you need to go to your knees and ask God for it. You need to pray. Number two, you need to accept God's promises.

Except what God has said. It says in Romans chapter 4 of Abraham in verse number 19, it says, And without becoming weak in faith, he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb. Yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God. Here was Abraham, 99 years old, going to have a son. Here is Sarah. She's 90 years old. Her womb is dead, but God gave a promise.

God gave a promise, and Abraham clung to that promise. And when he clung to that promise and said, God, I believe what you say, he grew strong in his faith. He grew stronger with each passing day. At 99, he was stronger than he was at 29 when it came to his faith. Because he believed in the promises of God. You ask God for it, you accept what God has already said, because God says, listen.

In Matthew 28, when he, Go into all the world, make disciples. He, What? Lo, I'm with you always, even to the end of the age. God says, I'm with you.

I'll be with you throughout the whole process. We got to accept that and say, yes, Lord, I believe you're with me. I will trust you to help me through the process. Number three, you have to acknowledge your weaknesses.

You have to acknowledge your weaknesses. If you want to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, you got to acknowledge your weaknesses. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12, verse number 9. My grace, or Paul was told by God, my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Paul had asked for the thorn in his side to be removed. He'd asked three times, and God says, Paul, my grace is sufficient for you.

And through your weaknesses, you will be made strong. And so the principle is that we need to acknowledge our weaknesses. We need to acknowledge where we can't accomplish things. And trust God to work through us because it's Him who's going to show Himself strong through us. And fourthly, we need to appropriate God's word. Appropriate God's word. In Colossians chapter 1, verse number 10, Paul says these words. He had prayed that those at the Church of Colosse may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord to please him in all respects.

Bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. And Their request is that this church would increase in the knowledge of God. And upon doing so, verse number 11, they would be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might. for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience. They would attain the strength. Let me tell you something.

The strength that you come is directly proportionate to the appropriation of the word of God in your life. What did God tell Joshua? Joshua, be strong and courageous, right? Be strong and courageous. Here's Joshua. He's leading. All these Jews into the promised land. All these people who wanted to kill the greatest leader who ever lived. God said that Moses was the greatest leader who ever lived. Moses didn't say he was the greatest leader who ever lived. Joshua didn't say that. Who said that? God said that.

God says, Moses, you are the greatest leader who ever lived. And yet, the people of Israel wanted to kill Moses because they didn't like the way he was leading them. Now, God says, Joshua, now you're the leader.

I want you to lead these people. And Joshua already knows he's not going to be the greatest leader who ever lived because Moses has that tag attached to him. So, the best he could be would be the second best leader who ever lived.

And if they wanted to kill the first leader or the best leader who ever lived, what do you think they're going to want to do to the second greatest leader who ever lives, right?

So God says, You be strong and courageous, Joshua. Be strong and courageous. Be strong and courageous. Three times, He tells them, You'll be strong. You'll be strong Be strong. What's he telling him? This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but you shall meditate on it Day and night, that you may observe to do all that is written therein, and then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. And every time I read that, I think to myself, who of us has as much responsibility as Joshua?

Does anybody here lead a million people? Answer: No. All of us together don't lead a million people. Joshua did. And God says, Do you want to be strong, Joshua?

You want to be courageous? You meditate on my word day and night. You make it the sole passion of your existence. And you will understand success, and you will become very prosperous, Joshua, because my word will be lived through your life. That, my friend, should be a powerful example to all of us to realize how much time we need to spend in the Word of God. The responsibility is great, but the resource is grace, God's grace. And the results, point number three, the results will always be glorious.

Always. Why? Four things. Number one, because sinners are saved. That's why sinners are saved. You're going to entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also, heteros, others of a different kind, that is the evangelism aspect. You're going to disciple people, you're going to grow people that they in turn will be able to tell others. Who are not saved about Jesus Christ, and they will come to Christ. Sinners will be saved. What's the Bible say over in Luke chapter 15, verse number 7?

There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance. Sinners are saved. Can you think of anything more glorious than that? Listen, the most glorious thing in the church is when somebody gets saved. It's like a newborn baby in your family. You know, you got this family, you know, things are going. All of a sudden, the wife's pregnant, and you get Prepared to have the baby, and then the baby's born. And lo and behold, you're in the hospital, you got your baby brother buttons on, you your baby sister buttons on, you got your balloons.

It's an exciting time. There's somebody new coming home. And the whole atmosphere of the house changes because of one newborn. Same thing happens in the church. Same thing. You know what happens to churches that get stale and old and stagnant and dry? There's no newborns. No newborns. Everybody's just been around forever. And they're not telling anybody about the treasure. They're not entrusting the treasure. They're just coming and enjoying themselves. Us four, no more. Shut the door. And that's it.

And that's all they do. But all of a sudden, somebody gets saved, and the whole church changes. Somebody's excited about Jesus for once. Someone says, Amen. Someone says, Praise the Lord. Someone says, Man, I'm sharing my faith. I'm talking about somebody about Christ. Sinners are saved. That's the most glorious thing in the church. Somebody gives their life to Christ. Number two, believers are built up.

Believers are built up. You go back to the book of Acts in the 14th chapter, and what a tremendous story. I wish we had time to go into it, but it says in verse number 19: the Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the multitudes, they stoned Paul. They drived him out of the city. Supposing him to be dead. Can you imagine that? They stoned the man. They stoned him so badly, they thought the guy was dead. They were convinced Paul was dead. He's gone. It's over. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!

Pass the ammunition! Paul's dead! We can live our lives in peace now. But while the disciples stood around him, He arose. Can you imagine the disciples' hearts? All those new believers, he's dead. What are we going to do? He says, he arose and And into the city. He went back into the city. The man's crazy. The people who stoned him and killed him and left him for dead, he goes back into the city. And the next day, he went away with Barnabas to Derby. And after they had preached the gospel to that city.

and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and Ic. That was where the Jews were from who stoned him. And he says this: Strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, Through many tribulations, we must enter the kingdom of God. He had to go back and strengthen them. Why? Because they had to realize that this is the pain. This is what you might have to face. They might hate you. They might stone you too. Through many tribulations, we enter the kingdom of God.

So he had to go back and strengthen the souls of the disciples. How did he do that? He would preach them the word of God. He would build them up and they would grow. That's why the Bible says we're to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord.

2 Peter 3:18. The Bible says over in Peter's epistle, 1 Peter 2, verses 1 and 2, as newborn maes desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.

That's why the results are so glorious. Sinners are saved, and believers are built up, souls are strengthened. Thirdly, God is glorified.

God is glorified. It says in Acts 13, 4, and when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. Listen, whenever you teach the word of God, God is put on display. He is. Whenever you live, the Word of God, God is put on display. You see, it's all about God and people seeing God in your life. And that's why we preach the Word of God. And these people glorified the word of the Lord. God is glorified. And that's what we want to see happening, right? We want God lifted up.

We want God magnified. We want God on display. And when sinners are saved, And when believers are built up, God is glorified. And lastly, a legacy is left. A legacy. Is left. It was David who said in Psalm 7. These words in verse number 17: O God, thou hast taught me from my youth, and I will still declare thy wondrous deeds. And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me until I declare thy strength to this gener, thy power to all who are to come. That, my friend, is the legacy you want to leave behind.

What are people going to say about you when you are de? What are they going to say? What legacy are you leaving behind? In Ecclesiastes 7, verse number 1, it says that a good name is better than a good ointment. Why is that? Because Psalm 112 tells us that the righteous will be remembered for how long? Forever. Forever. And we need to leave a legacy. There is a generation coming up after us. And we need to teach them and instruct them in the ways of God. And we want to leave a legacy behind that's all about Jesus Christ and His glory and His honor.

That should consume us. And the only legacy worth leaving is a legacy around the Word of God and the people of God. And that's why God has called us to go into all the world and make disciples. Let's pray. Father, we thank you, Lord, for tonight and a chance to be into your word. We thank you, Lord, that you have given us your word to instruct us. We thank you, the Apostle Paul, his ministry, his life, his legacy. Thank you for Timothy and how you used him, his mother and grandmother, faithful, committed women of the word.

I pr that we here tonight would be committed to the Word of God. We 'd be committed to the people of God, all for the glory of God. In Jesus' name. Am.