Our Sermons

Bible Passage: 2 Timothy 4:1-8
Pastor: Pastor Schlicht
Sermon Date:  June 25, 2023

Everyone gets the same amount of time in a day, but it seems like some accomplish much more than others. It’s why productivity experts often say that the one commodity more important than your money or even your time, is your focus. I often enjoy looking at week-planning templates aimed at increasing productivity. One thing that almost all of them have in common is that they tell you to first write down your long term vision at the beginning and then to work out all the details from there. The experts say that you need to have a clear vision and remind yourself of it every single day, or else you naturally become burdened by all sorts of trivial things that don’t really align with your purpose. All the supposedly-urgent little things crowd out what’s truly urgent and important. This happens to us in faith, doesn’t it? We come to church and hear God’s Word. But at some point earthly things come between the altar and our eyes. We lose sight of Christ’s appearing and become distracted. How often isn’t our view dominated by society, by cultural norms, or by certain individuals we want to impress? My friends, today we look at Paul’s inspired words and focus our lives in view of Christ’s appearing.

What we call the Book of 2 Timothy is really a letter written by the Apostle Paul. And he writes it to Timothy whom he calls his true son in the faith—a young man whom he had personally trained as a pastor. And if you read Paul’s letters or epistles in the New Testament, you’ll notice something special about 2 Timothy. This is the last letter that the Apostle Paul wrote, or at least the last that we have preserved. He writes from prison in Rome in the late 60s A.D. because he was preaching the Word of the Lord. This is the beginning of Nero’s time as Emperor  whose reign would be defined by his slaughter of Christians. But Christianity was just taking root in Rome in these days due in large part to Paul’s preaching and teaching. And so he was thrown into prison for speaking about a man that was executed on Roman authority—remember Jesus was crucified under pontius pilate.

So Paul finds himself in prison, actually for the second in Rome. The first time he was imprisoned he had a little bit more freedom, he could speak with people and send out writings to churches with ease,  it was more like house-arrest. But this time Paul is in a jail and he is alone. He’s had one hearing and it didn’t go well. He knows that his time is short. So there’s this urgency, this special intensity to 2 Timothy. And also, 1 Timothy was personal, but this one is even more personal. Just a few weeks or months before he is martyred, we have his heart laid out for us in these pages of Scripture. Indirectly, we listen with Timothy to these sacred, final words of the great apostle. And chapter 4 is the climax, it’s where Paul gives Timothy a solemn charge, taking an oath before God. This is where we see what we should be focused on, what should always be kept in view:

“I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who is going to judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom:  [VERSES 2-5] 6 You see, I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. 8 From now on, there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness. The Lord, the righteous Judge, will give it to me on that day, and not only to me but also to everyone who loved his appearing.” Note that both at the beginning and at the end Paul speaks of himself and especially draws attention to that fact that Jesus will return—will appear—as judge over all the earth. This is the frame of the solemn charge that Paul gives to Timothy. I’ll illustrate it like this:

So the actual content of the charge—the way Timothy is to focus himself as a pastor—only makes sense and only finds its power within this frame. Only in view of Christ’s appearing should we understand the following words as urgent and necessary. This is true on a broader level with all of life as a Christian. It only makes sense, it only is urgent and necessary to live for Christ, in view of his appearing! If we forget that our Savior is coming back to judge the earth in righteousness, we get distracted and distraught. We become, as we confessed in our first hymn, prone to wander.

My friends, in view of his appearing, does the way you spend your time during the week make sense? Does the amount you put in the offering make sense? Does the way you direct your influence and skill make sense? Are you focused on Christ’s appearing and his kingdom? Frankly, in view of our wandering, distracted hearts we should probably not desire Jesus to come back as judge. But that’s the stubbornly surprising joy of the Gospel. We know what Christ did for us when he first appeared, dying and rising for our salvation, and so we know that we can always desire his second appearing. We raise our heads and look forward to our redemption when our Savior returns. We approach death with confidence because we know that it is the door to true life. So, this is our solemn charge as well, in view of Christ’s appearing, let us focus our lives to God’s glory and the salvation of souls. Let’s get busy being productive for his kingdom.

That is the frame of Paul’s charge, now let’s look at the content. He tells Timothy “Preach the word. Be ready whether it is convenient or not. Correct, rebuke, and encourage, with all patience and teaching. 3 For there will come a time when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, because they have itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in line with their own desires. 4 They will also turn their ears away from the truth and will turn aside to myths. 5 As for you, keep a clear head in every situation. Bear hardship. Do the work of an evangelist. Fulfill your ministry.”  Now, these words are directed specifically to a pastor, but there’s something that indirectly speaks to you. Notice that the Apostle Paul says that there will come a time when people will not put up with sound doctrine. We know that time is certainly here. And it’s not like they stop listening to sermons, no they just get a different preacher, so to speak, who will teach what they want to hear. They enjoy the confirmation bias of their favorite political commentator. They will search on Youtube and find a community that supports their ideology. They massage their sin into an idol in which they take pride. Why? Because they have itchy ears… They crave validation and they accumulate teachers, they collect people who talk in line with their own desires.

Note, it doesn’t say that they reject the truth of God’s Word because they have thought it through and decided it just doesn’t make sense. No, they may think they reject it on purely intellectual grounds, but ultimately it’s because of their desire. Philosopher Charles Taylor wrote about our Secular Age and he found that those who reject Christianity do so primarily because of their desire for a different story. Many people like the story that secularism tells, it tells humans that we are good by nature, that we are mature and wise, it tells us that there is no ultimate judge, it tells us to go for our desires because nothing matters eternally. And if Taylor is correct, and I believe he is, this is the story that people in the Western World are now being born into. In this view Paul’s charge seems ridiculous.

My friends, this is the air we breathe. This is the music playing constantly in the background. If you walk through the mud, try as you might, your shoes get dirty. Let’s not be naive and assume that we aren’t affected. Let’s not deny that our ears itch too. We are all tempted by Secularism’s siren song. We all love to be validated in our opinions, in our actions, and our morality. No one naturally enjoys to be corrected and rebuked, as Paul encourages Timothy to do. I ask you today, in view of Christ’s appearing, what kind of sermon do you want to hear? What kind of preacher or teacher do you desire? One that agrees with you? Or one who preaches the Word? Do you read the Bible in order to confirm your behavior or do you stand under God’s Word and let it correct, rebuke, and yes encourage you? Do you want me to preach law and gospel, or would you rather hear something that itches your ears but doesn’t touch your conscience? Christ is coming back! Do you want to be prepared? What kind of sermon do you want to hear? I think that every pastor should love his people more than he loves their good opinion of his sermons. I pray that my and Pastor Berg’s sermons make your sinful nature uncomfortable.

You know, it may seem obvious, but in view of Christ’s appearing a pastor and his people are on the same team. You want me to teach you the Word in a way that is loving and winsome, but also in a way that does not just scratch your ears. And on your part, I give thanks every single Sunday that you come to hear God’s Word, not my own. We are on the same team! I’ll continue to pray earnestly for you. And I need your prayers too. Will you pray for me? Will you pray for Pastor Berg and all pastors and teachers of  Christ? I humbly ask, that you would pray for us, that we would continue to preach the God’s Word in truth, to correct, to rebuke, and to encourage with all patience as Paul charges us, whether it’s convenient or inconvenient. Please pray that we would study the Bible not to scratch our own ears, but that we read it against ourselves, that we would genuinely query the Word and conform ourselves to God’s truth so that we can preach it honestly. Pray that we would love you more than our own comfortability. Pray that we would fulfill the charge of the Apostle Paul to preach the Word, that we would for your sake, keep a clear head in every situation. That we can bear hardship and do the work of an evangelist. That we would fulfill the ministry to which we are called.

That’s what I will close with, realize that when all sorts of people turn away from truth and reject God in light of their earthly desire, what does Paul tell pastors to do? He doesn’t tell us to foster an “us vs them” mindset, he doesn’t tell Timothy to get his people to rebel against Nero. He doesn’t tell the leaders of God’s church to circle the wagons and put up a wall. No, in essence, the solemn charge that Paul gives pastors and, by extension, his members, is to simply stay focused on preaching the Word. My friends, in view of Christ’s appearing, let’s stay focused!  With all that is going on in the world, despite persecution and pressure, regardless of whether it’s convenient or inconvenient, let’s preach the Word. At church, at home, wherever we go, let’s be productive for God’s kingdom. Keep our head, don’t become distracted or distraught. Christ is with us. Before us, behind us, beside us, and within us. Christ gives the church this charge and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. In view of his appearing, trust that God will give us the strength to fulfill the ministry has given us. Amen.