2 TIMOTHY 2:1-42008 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: 2 Timothy 2:1-4

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2008.

The second illustration that he'll give, which we'll see next week, is the illustration or example of an athlete. And Paul says in looking at an athlete that an athlete needs to compete according to the rules. He can't break the rules. He needs to abide by the rules in order to receive the prize or the crown that is given.

The third illustration or example that Paul gives is that of a farmer and this hardworking farmer and that he is first to receive of the crop. And so as Paul is giving these things to Timothy, he's not going in great detail. In fact, it almost seems to be random thoughts that he's handing out to Timothy. But what he does at verse seven is he tells Timothy, consider what I say and may the Lord give you understanding in all things.

Paul's intent here was not for him to write out a big dissertation on what each of these examples and illustrations meant and all of the parallels between these examples and the Christian life and the ministry that we've been called to.

Instead, Paul just gives just a quick reference and his intent here is for Timothy, as well as you and I, to consider, to seek the Lord and allow him to give us understanding in all things. And so that's why we want to take our time a little bit and look at and consider these things in obedience to what Paul said.

The word considerate means to think upon, to ponder, to heed, or to consider. It's something we're to mull over, to allow to minister to us over and over again as we continually set our minds on these examples and think through these illustrations.

And so as we look at these examples, as we consider and ponder how they illustrate the Christian life for us, we'll be able to take those things and apply them to our lives as believers in Jesus Christ. Paul starts out in verse one and he says, you, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

Now, again, he starts out with the word, therefore, you, therefore, my son, therefore, we want to find out what it's there for. So in quick review of chapter one, Paul told Timothy that we do not have the spirit of fear. God has not given us the spirit of fear, but he's given us instead the spirit of power, of love and of a sound mind.

And we've been encouraged by the Apostle Paul to not be fearful, to not hold back in our Christian faith, but to go forth with power, with the power of God, the Holy Spirit coming upon us to be his witnesses in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the earth. Finishing off chapter one, Paul told Timothy to not be ashamed of the gospel.

Since we've been given not the spirit of fear, but the spirit of power, of love and of sound mind. Paul tells Timothy, don't be ashamed of the gospel message. Don't be ashamed of me or Jesus Christ. Don't be ashamed of the message that you proclaim. Paul uses himself as an example. Hey, I'm not ashamed, Timothy. I'm here in prison. I'm suffering for the name of Christ. I'm imprisoned and in chains as a result of preaching the gospel message.

Timothy, don't be ashamed. Be ready even to go to prison if that's what it takes for you to share the gospel message. He also gave the example of a Nisa for us there in verse 16 of chapter one. Paul said of him, he wasn't ashamed of my chains, but he sought me out earnestly. He he sought to minister to my need.

He wasn't ashamed of the gospel message. He wasn't ashamed of me. Timothy, since we have not been given the spirit of fear, but of power, don't be ashamed, but be bold and proclaim the gospel message in clarity and with power.

As Paul continues on now in verse one of chapter two, he's saying, therefore, connecting all of these thoughts together, since you have the spirit of power, since you're not to be ashamed. Here's what you need, Timothy. You need to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus in order for you to not be ashamed.

of the gospel message, you need to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. There's a need for strength, but it's not a strength that comes from ourselves. It's a strength that comes from the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Paul says, be strong. This word in the Greek is in the passive imperative tense. I'm sure that's not very exciting to you, but let me break it down just very quickly.

Imperative means that it's a command. So Timothy and you and I as Timothy's, this is not an option for us. This isn't. Well, if you want to, if you get around to it, if you want to really be a mature Christian, then you should be strong. We highly recommend it. Paul is saying, Timothy, this is what you must do. You must be strong. It's imperative that you be strong. It's necessary for you. It's a command. But it's also in the passive tense.

Now, passive tense is something that you receive, not something that you do. There's two types. There's passive and there's active. Now, if I say I hit the ball, that's active tense. I hit. I'm the one doing the hitting. Now, if I say the ball hit me, that's passive tense. I'm the one being hit by the ball. And here's what Paul is saying to Timothy.

Be strong. That's not your strength. You're not doing the strength. That's not of you. What you're doing is you're receiving the strength. The strength is hitting you. The strength is impacting you. The strength is filling you. You are not the strength, but you're receiving it. And where are you receiving the strength from? He says, receive strength in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The Christian life is very difficult. The task that God has given to us to make disciples is

can be very hard. Just to make it through each day sometimes can use or require all that we have. It's not easy to be unashamed. It's difficult not to have the spirit of fear. But the good news is that we have unlimited resources for strength and the grace of Jesus Christ.

Paul tells Timothy, be strong, receive strength in his grace. And Paul is one who would know what he was talking about in this regard. Remember, Second Corinthians, chapter 12. Now, here in Second Timothy, this is the last letter that Paul is has written. And so Second Corinthians, that's a letter that was written prior, probably many years prior.

And as he writes to the Corinthians in 2 Corinthians chapter 12, he's writing to them about a thorn in the flesh, something that tormented him, something that was very difficult for him in his life. And he said, I pleaded to the Lord. I asked the Lord three times to remove this from me. And what was God's answer? I'm sure you know it. 2 Corinthians 12, 9 says, he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness.

Paul, in a point of weakness and a point of great torment and difficulty, cries out to God. And God's answer is, my grace is sufficient. Be strong. Receive strength from my grace, Paul, for my strength is made perfect in weakness. And now Paul takes that message that he received from the Lord and passes that on to Timothy. Timothy, receive strength in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Whatever you go through, whatever you face, God's grace is sufficient for you. There's nothing that you could go through that would be so great that you would not receive the strength that you need by the grace of God. His strength is made perfect in your weakness. His strength is demonstrated in your weakness. His strength is.

shines forth, is abundant, it's evident in your weakness. In your weakness, God is glorified. So Timothy, and you and I as Timothys, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. He goes on in verse 2 to say, And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

Now he gives Timothy his task. Timothy, this is your ministry. This is what you are called to do. You need to be strong. You need to receive strength because here's the requirement for you. Here's the command that you are to fulfill. And it's the same task, the same command that you and I have today, because as I remind you, you and I are Timothy's as believers in Jesus Christ. We're called into the ministry.

Compare what Paul said with what Jesus said. First, let's look at verse two again. He says, the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Now compare that, consider that, keep that in your mind while I read to you Matthew 28, 19 and 20. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Verse 20, notice this.

teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Jesus's command, go make disciples. What does Paul say? The things you've heard from me among many witnesses. The idea here is Paul is saying to Timothy, look, you were there at the Bible studies, Timothy. You were there as we went from place to place. And I taught the word and I taught the doctrine of Jesus Christ.

You heard it among many witnesses there as I preached the gospel message. Timothy, those things that you heard, commit those to faithful men. Commit, it means to pass on, to entrust the things that you've heard to faithful men. Jesus said, go make disciples, teaching them to observe all the things that I have commanded you.

Jesus said, all the things you've heard me teach, all the things I've commanded you, all the things that I've passed on to you. Now you go and make disciples and teach them those things. Teach them to walk in those things. Teach them to be obedient to those things. Now, I know this is something we visit frequently, especially as we've been going through Second Timothy and First Timothy.

I remind week after week, hey, we're Timothy. We're called to the ministry. We're called to make disciples. God has placed people in your life because he wants you to teach them how to walk with him, how to have a relationship with him, how to grow in their relationship with God. He has put people in your life. Every Christian. There's no exceptions. We're called to make disciples. And there's someone in your life.

that you are responsible for and accountable for to God, to make disciples, to raise them up, to encourage them and strengthen them in the Christian faith. And every week we go through Timothy and are reminded again, we're Timothy. This is the ministry that we've been given. Why do we go through this every week? Perhaps you've heard the illustration of a pastor who recently came to a church where

The church's previous pastor had gone for whatever reason. And so they brought in a new pastor and this new pastor, he he taught this message this first week and it was just incredible. It was amazing. People were taking notes and man, it was just out of this world. Everybody was so blessed. So next week, as they came into church, the people were ready. They're anticipating man. Last week was so great. This week's going to be awesome again.

And the pastor got up and he taught the exact same message word for word that he taught the first week. People still took notes. There was great insight. They saw things that they didn't see the first time. Well, the next week comes and the pastor again teaches the same thing. Finally, the elders come up to the pastor and say, look, it was a really good message. First time, second time, but third time, that's really pushing it. I mean, do you have something else? Can't you share something else? Do you have anything else to teach? And the pastor responds, well, no.

When they start practicing this one, then I'll teach another one. The idea is, look, we're just going to keep going over these things until we get it right, until we put it into practice. And I think in the same way, until we start making disciples, God will not move on to something else. He's going to continue to remind us because we need to be reminded. We're not yet at the point that he wants us to be. We're not yet making disciples the way that he's called us to. And so every week he reminds us.

Make disciples. There's people in your life that God has placed there because they need to be encouraged. They need to be instructed. They need to learn how to walk with God. And he's put them in your life so that you can do that work, so that you can be a part of the kingdom of God. Paul says to Timothy, the things you've heard from me, pass them on. What type of people was Timothy to pass these things on to?

Again, the word committed, it means to entrust. This isn't just, you know, teach a Bible study, Timothy, but but pass it on to them so that they may be able to teach others also. This is making disciples who will make disciples. This is entrusting them with ministry and trusting them with the truths of God and enabling them and encouraging them to pass those things on to others as well. What type of person was he to look for in this work?

David Guzik points out, when Timothy looked for those he could pour apostolic doctrine and practice into, he was to look for the quality of faithfulness. He didn't need to find smart men, popular men, strong men, easy men, perfect men, or good-looking men. Paul told him to look for faithful men. What's necessary for you and I to be able to make disciples? Faithfulness. Paul said it's necessary for an astute disciple.

For there to be found faithfulness. We need to be faithful to God. There needs to be faithfulness. It needs to be a part of our life. And the people that we pass on the ministry to, the people that we pass on God's word to, they need to be faithful. See, when I say God has placed people in your life, there's a lot of people in your life. How do you recognize the ones that God is wanting you to disciple? Look for the faithful men and women around you.

Look for those who are steadfast, who have a genuine love for God. Look for those who are seeking God. Look for those who are faithful. Our task is to disciple others to disciple others, disciple other people to make disciples. You know, God did not design for Christianity to be propagated by a few select ministers. OK, there's these evangelists and there's these people and these pastors and and they're to do all the work.

No, the job of pastors and evangelists and pastors and teachers, according to Ephesians chapter four, is to equip the saints for the work of ministry. God calls every believer into the ministry and every Christian to make disciples. The things that you are learning, the things that you have learned, the relationship with you, with God that you have passed that on. You're to share that with the people around you.

You're to find faithful men and women and pass those things on and teach them to walk with God and to make disciples of others. Teach them how to apply God's word to life situations. Teach them how to live it out. As Jesus said, teach them to obey all the things that I have commanded you. This is not an easy task. That's why we need to be strong in the grace of God.

To illustrate that this is not an easy task and what is required for this task of making disciples. Again, he doesn't go into incredible detail here. Instead, he gives us three illustrations and says, consider these, think about these, ponder these. And so I want to encourage you, not just this morning during service, but even this following week and the weeks to come to consider, to meditate, to be obedient to Paul's command here.

And to consider these illustrations, consider these things and learn how they apply to you and to your life. Now, this is where if we were in a different environment, it would be great to be able to communicate back and forth and have some discussion about what these illustrations mean. And I suggest to you that that's something we can't really do on a Sunday morning, but I would encourage you.

That you can do that amongst yourselves as God is showing you things and giving you insight. Share with one another.

We have on our website, we have a blog and I'm going to be posting some things in regards to this, some different messages from different pastors and in these different categories and being a soldier and athlete and farmer. And I would encourage you, as God speaks to you, to to take part in that, to share your thoughts and comments and share the things that God is speaking to you, because it's something that is not meant for there to be just one thing. Paul says, consider these things.

Let God give you understanding. And I believe God wants to give you understanding and wants you to share that with others. And so I'd encourage you to check it out. We'll be doing that in the coming week. And so as the Lord leads, be a part of that. But let's look at this first example.

This first illustration, we've been given this task. It's difficult. We need to be strong in the grace of God. And to illustrate that, he gives us the picture of a soldier in verses three and four. Verse three says, you therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. We'll stop there for now.

The first thing Paul says about a soldier that we're to learn and the example that we're to ponder and consider is that a good soldier must endure hardship. A good soldier must endure hardship. And he says, you must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. You are a soldier of Jesus Christ. Now, when it comes to the military, I am not a soldier. I've never been in the military. I've never been in battle.

And so this past week, I've asked some brothers who have been in battle and have been in the military. We have some contacts through Pastor Tom and Rick in Okinawa and the bases that they work with continually over there. We also have some brothers here in the body that have served in the military. And so I just asked them some basic questions and I want to share with you some of their answers as we go through this so that we might consider them.

What does it take for a good soldier to be a good soldier? What type of things must be endured? What hardships must be endured? One of the men who I communicated with, his name is Kevin. He's in the U.S. Army Special Forces. He's a Green Beret.

One of the things he said about being a soldier is this. He said every special forces soldier has to endure physical and mental hardships voluntarily just to be able to wear the green beret. First, they must volunteer, willingly choose to accept the risks. Up front, you will be told that 20% of your classmates who make it will be maimed or killed in combat within the first couple of years.

For me, this was true. Not just me being wounded, but my friends also have been wounded and killed. Kevin, as he responded, as he started out, he said, First things first, to be involved in special forces, you have to volunteer. You must willingly accept the risks. When it comes to being a soldier for Jesus Christ, the same is true. You have to volunteer. You must willingly accept the risk.

Now, when you became a Christian, whether you knew it or not, you were enlisting in the Lord's army. You were engaging in battle. You became part of a great war that is taking place.

And we see the picture of military things in relation to Christianity several times throughout the scriptures. Of course, one of the most predominant ones that we see is Ephesians chapter six, verses 10 through 20, where Paul goes through there and lists the armor of God and looks at a soldier and the things that he wears and compares that to us as believers and how we need to be equipped and to have the armor of God on so that we might be able to withstand the attacks.

This battle that we're engaged in, this war that we're fighting, it's not against flesh and blood, Paul says. Ephesians 6, 12. It's against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. And so he says in verse 13 of Ephesians 6, Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all to stand.

Paul says this is a battle. There's a war taking place. And if you're not prepared, if you don't have the full armor of God on, you won't be able to stand. You will be a casualty of war. You are part of God's army. But here's what Paul is asking us to do as part of God's army. To make disciples is to volunteer to be part of God's special forces, to engage in the ministry, to go on the front lines.

And you must understand that there will be casualties. Again, as Kevin said, first they must volunteer, willingly choose to accept the risks. The command is for you and I to make disciples. It's a command. It applies to every believer. But not many, in regards to percentage, take this command and live it out. But I'm encouraging you to do that, to make disciples, to look around, to find the faithful men and women, and to pour yourself into their lives.

To make disciples, to raise them up, to build them up, to encourage them, to strengthen them and teach them to make disciples. But here's the thing you need to know. You must choose. It's voluntarily. It's willingly. You must choose and you must know that there are risks.

And you must be willing to take those risks when you actually start to do what the Bible instructs us to do. You will find yourself the target of great attack. Now, if you convert to Christianity, if you say, I believe in Jesus Christ, he died on the cross for my sins, but never seek to live the Christian life and take God's word and live it out. Well, you probably won't experience much battle. You won't grow. There will be a great lack of maturity in you as well.

But when you take these things and believe God at his word and seek to live it out and therefore seek to make disciples because it's the command that's given to us. Understand when you make that choice, you're doing it willingly, but there are risks involved. The war is real and there will be casualties. There's going to be hardship that you will have to endure. There's hardship in training. Now, pretty much all of the guys that I spoke to made reference to this.

The hardship that's involved in training for a good soldier. Again, looking at what Kevin said, he said to be selected, you must endure nights alone in the woods with a rucksack on your back and a map and a compass in hand as you look for a chem light somewhere in the woods.

You must endure rain, snow and sleet outside without any wet weather gear and no sleep for multiple days on end. You must be able to make important decisions quick on your feet that may affect the lives of your buddies while in a sleep and food deprived state. You will have to work with others who may not like or agree with you. Then you will have to ultimately allow yourself to be captured and tortured just to learn how you might react to it.

This is all to be able to wear a green hat, the green beret. Kevin says, look, this is just the training to be engaged in this battle, to be involved in the special forces. You have to endure all of these things facing the weather, facing the elements. I like what he said. You'll have to work with others who may not like or agree with you. Now, sometimes in the Christian faith, we as Christians, we get hung up on those things.

We were just commenting a couple weeks ago not to condemn. Hey, you got to be right with your heart before the Lord. But it was raining. Service was light. Someone made the comment. Service is usually light when it rains, huh? Well, yeah, it's harder to be out when the weather's bad. There's it's just a trend. It's just something that's observable. Sometimes service is light when the weather's good. You know why? Well, because there's other things that are more entertaining and more appealing than sitting in church, right?

Sometimes it's very difficult. Now, Christianity is not all about church. Please understand that there's hardships that we have to endure. And it it's sometimes just in the training. Sometimes we give up on the hardships that are that are just the training for the actual battle. We're not even to the battle yet. We're not to the war yet. But we're in training and already the training is too difficult for us.

So we don't move on to actually become effective as soldiers of Jesus Christ. Mike Silva, who is a U.S. Marine, he's not active duty anymore, but he's still working with the Marines.

He shared this. He says, as a Marine, I used to participate in training exercises that challenged my physical and mental ability. These training exercises would prepare the Marine for warfare, major lack of sleep, hunger, pain, blisters, cuts, bug bites, sleeping on the ground when it's snowing and raining on you, training in extreme situations. So you know how to react in these types of circumstances.

You make these sacrifices because you know it's for your own good. It will help keep you alive in combat and it's for the benefit of others. The continued freedom for those who live in the United States of America. Mike Silva, he's in Iwakuni, Japan.

He's one of our missionaries that we continually pray for and lift up. Former Marine. He says, look, I used to, when I was a Marine, well, once a Marine, always a Marine, they say, so I don't know what you call them when they're not. Anyways, he says, I would go through these trainings and exercises and listen to what he talks about. Major lack of sleep, days on end, staying up.

This is just the training. This isn't the real battle yet. This is just the training. Now, how many of us as Christians would be willing to have a major lack of sleep in order to do the work that God has called us to do? Hunger, pain, blisters, cuts, bug bites. Sounds like the mission field. It's just the training, guys. Paul says, endure hardship as a good soldier. But sometimes as Christians, we give up in the training.

We consider that the training is too difficult for us, but we know it's not because, again, we have the infinite resources of the strength of God that's found in the grace of God that we receive. It's not our strength. It's the strength that he gives to us. But we give up in the training because it's too hard. It's too difficult to spend time reading my Bible. You know why? Because I'm tired. Oh, really? Have you stayed up days on end? Is that why you're so tired? Is it because...

Well, often it's just because we give up. We don't receive the strength that God has for us in his grace. And so we bail out during the training. Another Marine currently serving as a Marine, he says, Nathan, Nathan's his name. He says you can train through hunger, pain and discomfort to try to simulate the battlefield, though it's very difficult oftentimes to achieve the same feel.

The good soldiers endure this type of pain because they're hopeful of the future and the impact that they can make. Jesus, when he was praying in John chapter 17, he told the Lord, I sanctified myself for their sakes. Jesus set himself apart. He endured what he endured. He went through and lived the life that he lived for us, for those people, he says to the Lord.

In the same way, the training that you and I go through, the training that God wants us to put through, the hardship that we need to endure is for the sake of others so that they might be blessed, that they might be ministered to, that they might be impacted with the gospel message. Again, Mike said you make these sacrifices because you know it's for your own good. It's going to keep you alive. God often is seeking to condition us, to teach us how to survive because the battle's coming and he wants to train us. But as Christians, many bail out on the training.

It's too difficult then. It's not worth it. If Christianity is hard and this hard, man, I just can't do it. God wants to train us, guys. We must be willing to endure hardship. Think about Jesus' temptation in the wilderness in Matthew 4 and Luke 4. How long was he without food? Anybody know? 40 days. 40 days. Why? Was that the battle? That was the training.

The battle was yet to come. The life that he would live, the cross that he would bear. It was preparation. It was training. It wasn't even the real battle. And yet it was very intense. He had to endure hardship because the battles would come. The tough times, the difficulties, the hardship was going to be far greater in battle. The same is true for the life of a Christian, guys. God seeks to train us. As believers in him, he wants to establish us.

To strengthen us, to prepare us for the battles that will take place. And so we go through hard times. We go through times of pain. We go through hunger and difficulty. Endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Don't let those things disqualify you or cause you to bail out. But endure, persevere, press on, even though it's hard, even though it's difficult.

Keep going forward. Keep walking. Keep seeking to fulfill your ministry. Keep ministering to others. Press on no matter how difficult it is or how much it hurts. No matter how hungry you are, no matter how lonely you are. Keep pressing forward. Endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Pastor Chuck shared in this passage that we have too many softies in the ministry.

Not willing to go the extra mile. Not willing to put up with a little discomfort or hardship. For many, sacrifice is a dirty word. As good soldiers, we need to be willing and ready to sacrifice. Some casualties are those who drop out because of hunger. I'm hungry. I'm not satisfied. God really hasn't been speaking to me lately. I haven't heard his voice. I don't have the things that I want. Life's still hard. Life's still...

Why isn't God speaking to me? Why can't I hear his voice right now? You ever go through a dry season? You know what that's for? That's training. That's Jesus in the wilderness. Why? Because there's a battle ahead. Endure hardship. Don't bail out because of hunger. Some casualties are those who go through pain. It's oftentimes when we're going through pain, we say it hurts and it does. Why would God allow this? You know why? It's training. It's a battle ahead. Why?

God wants you to be prepared. There's warfare that's taking place. Yeah, it hurts. Yes, there's pain. There's pain in life. There's pain in ministry. There's pain when you invest yourself in someone and you share with them and you encourage them and then they turn and walk away from the Lord or they rebel or they reject or they ridicule or whatever. Yeah, there's pain. Sometimes there's pain at our own decisions and our own failures and shortcomings.

Endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. I know it hurts, but keep going. A soldier on the battlefield can't say, it hurts. Sergeant, can I go to the back of the ranks? I don't want to be on the front lines. It hurts. A good soldier can't say, I'm hungry. I don't feel like fighting right now. I was thinking about, remember, the Revolutionary War and the British soldiers, you know, and they would have their tea time, you know. Okay, well, time out.

Can you imagine trying to do that in today's war? Excuse me, sir. Can I have a tea break? I need a cup of tea. It just doesn't work. You can't do that. That's not a good soldier. Don't bail out because of hunger. Don't bail out because of pain. Some casualties give up because it's too hard. It's too difficult to follow Christ. And man, I try and this and that. And it's just so hard. Yeah, it's hard. It's difficult. But it's not more than you can handle.

Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus and make disciples. Endure hardship as a good soldier. Now what's really worse than all of those who bail out is those who pretend to go through the training. But they've never really been discipled. They've never really been disciplined themselves to follow Jesus. And then in the midst of the battlefield, they're a danger to themselves and to others. If I went onto the battlefield today without the training, I'd be a danger.

I'd be dead. I could tell you that for sure. But I might take some others with me. I'll be a liability. Other people will get hurt because I'm not prepared. I haven't trained. I haven't been disciplined in the same way in the Christian walk. Hey, you can pretend to be a Christian. You can come to church. You can say the right things. And probably most of us will never know. But in the midst of battle, not only will you become a casualty, but you're going to hurt others as well.

Remember, Jesus said, I don't want you to be hot. I'm sorry, I want you to be hot or cold, but not lukewarm. Don't be pretending. Don't be faking the Christian life. You're more dangerous and more deadly that way than if you're cold or hot. We need to endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Now, that was just the training. There's much more that we could go into when it comes to real battle, when it comes to real life within the military.

But there's one other aspect that I want to look at as far as enduring hardship. And again, looking at something that Kevin said, Green Beret for the U.S. Army, he talked about enduring hardship in spiritual warfare. He said, "...and being a Special Forces soldier comes with more hardships than just with training. On deployments, you are not only attacked physically but spiritually as well. There are temptations to get involved with drinking and prostitution."

temptations to harm others or the enemy unnecessarily to take aggression out on some more so than you need to. These are physical temptations, but more so I think they are spiritual. The devil seeks not only to destroy you physically, but spiritually. He wants us to become disqualified before our peers, that our lives would be of no effect on the spiritual well-being of our comrade in arms.

There's a hardship in training. There's hardship in preparation. But on the battlefield, there are those same hardships and more. And he cites them. He shares the reality here behind the scenes. What many don't know is that this is spiritual warfare. And on the battlefield and here at home, spiritual warfare is a reality.

Peter tells us in 1 Peter 5, 8, be sober, be vigilant because your adversary, the devil walks about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. The enemy really exists. The devil is alive. He hates you and he seeks to destroy your life. And so you've got to be vigilant. You've got to be alert. You've got to be awake. You've got to be prepared. You've got to be on guard. You need to endure hardship because he wants to wipe you out and destroy your life.

As a Christian and making disciples, you will experience spiritual attack again as you seek to apply and live out the word of God and do what he instructed us to do. You become the target of special attack. Now you're not some person on the back lines, just kind of minding your own business. But now you're on the front lines seeking to do battle with the enemy.

And you will experience spiritual warfare, oppression, depression, mind games, temptation, discouragement, attacks on your faith, attacks on your righteousness, your peace, your salvation, attacks on your family, your friends, and your disciples, those that you're seeking to minister to. It's an all-out war. It's a reality. Satan doesn't play fairly. He doesn't take tea time breaks. He's out to kill.

And you must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ, no matter what attacks may come. But it's hard. I'm oppressed. I'm depressed. There's this temptation. I don't know if I can believe anymore. I don't have peace. My family's really struggling. Endure hardship. What are you going to do? Give up? We need to say with Peter, hey, Lord, to whom would we go? Where would we go? You only have the words of eternal life. What else are you going to do? Yeah, it's hard. Yes, it's a battle. Yes, you have to endure hardship. But what else are you going to do?

Just lay there and be defeated? Timothy, endure hardship. In the training, in the spiritual war, in hunger and torture, without sleep, facing the weather and the elements, in loneliness and discomfort, etc., etc., etc. There's so much more that we could consider about enduring hardship.

But I leave that to you. Ask around. You have friends and family in the military. Ask them what they think about these verses, whether they're believers or not. Have the dialogue. Have the discussion. What does it mean? What type of hardships does a soldier have to endure? And then consider, what does that mean to me as a Christian? Does that mean sometimes I'll have to go without a meal so that I can minister to this person? I'm going to sacrifice my lunch break to be able to share with my co-worker? Yeah, that's what it means sometimes.

Does it mean that sometimes there'll be a lack of sleep? Yes. Does it mean that there'll be great attacks? Yes. Endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Regardless of what it costs you, you be obedient to what your commanding officer has instructed, has commanded. Endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Not only is a soldier to endure hardship, but also a soldier is to stay focused, Paul says. Look at verse 4.

No one engaged in warfare and tangles himself with the affairs of this life that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. The second part that that Paul asks us to look at and consider in regards to being a soldier. The second thing that he uses to illustrate this task that we have to make disciples is that a good soldier does not entangle himself with the affairs of this life. Now, when I asked these same men what they thought about the affairs of this life, they

What they what they considered these things to be as a soldier, I was somewhat surprised really by the answer. I really expected them to say that, you know, well, that means we can't be thinking about stuff back home. I was reading some different reports and things as I was preparing for the message. And there's a debate that's going on in military forces because of the instantness of communication.

And there's concern. They were sharing that, you know, writing letters and diaries and things like that have always been a part of of warfare and soldiers being out on the battlefield. But the fact that now it's instant through blogs and email and different things like that, there's a concern that these things could be causing distractions.

For those soldiers who are on the battlefield that their minds would be distracted that, oh, my goodness, the washer broke and my kids sick. And and here I am trying to fight and that there's these distractions. And that's kind of what I expected from these men when I asked them about this. But they didn't really say that they dealt with it a little bit. But but here's what Nathan said. He said a soldier must manage his personal life.

his wife, his kids, his finances, his bills, and possess strong character and positive attitude with his troops in order to have a clear focus on the battlefield. Here's what Nathan's saying. It doesn't mean that you neglect and forget about the things of this life. Instead, that you're diligent with the things of this life that they're taking care of so that when you're on the battlefield, you don't have to be preoccupied with those things. You've already got them taken care of and you can be focused on the task that is at hand. In the same way, in the Christian life,

This is the life that we're to live, that we're to be diligent with the things that God has given to us. Good stewards of our families, of our bills, of our resources, of those things, not tied to them, but just good stewards of them so that we can be free and clear and focused. When God says, go on the mission field, go minister to Mexico, go share with this person, that we can be ready and prepared because while things back home are taken care of,

Kevin said it this way. Many of my fellow soldiers would automatically say that it would be your family that is the affairs of this life. He says, in fact, this is how the army would treat your family when you're gone. The army tells your wife when you leave not to call and distract your husband with problems at home and worries from home, but only to tell him good and encouraging things which sound good and

But I believe it's not scriptural. He says, as a husband, I'm still responsible to my family, even though I'm gone. I am still accountable before God to make decisions for the well-being of my family and called to love and care for my wife. Kevin says, that's not biblical. I'm still supposed to care for my wife and love my wife and take care of those things, which is why I need to be diligent when I'm not in battle.

To take care of those things. He went on to talk about the importance of when I'm home, I need to be involved in church so that when I'm gone, my wife has support so that she's there. And there's believers that we've been in contact with and there's people around that we've grown to know so that they can help her while I'm gone. He talked about investing in her and the need to do those things. And the point is being entangled in the affairs of this life is not talking about

neglecting your family or neglecting your home or neglecting your job. Those things are necessary. We need to take care of them. In fact, we need to be diligent in them so that for the battle, we can be prepared. We can be clear. So if that's not the affairs of this life, that we're not to be entangled with, that a good soldier is not to be involved with, what are the affairs of this life? Kevin goes on to say, I believe the affairs of this life would be

He says,

Here's getting involved in the affairs of life, getting entangled in things that I ought not to when I'm engaged in warfare. The temptation to get involved in drinking or prostitution or seeking after the things of this life. Mike Silva, in regards to the affairs of this life, says it's about being tied up in the things back home when you should be focusing on your mission. Now, that's because you haven't been diligent. You haven't prepared.

He also said it's looking at pornographic materials as Marines always seem to have this type of stuff rather than keeping an eye out for the enemy. And the third example he said is that it's sleeping because you're often so tired. You must fight off sleep to maintain your God and the safety of those around you. That last one, sleeping, really caught my attention because over and over we're reminded in the scripture to wake up, to not sleep.

Jesus, as he was emphasizing his return over and over, said, watch, be alert, wake up.

Paul in Romans 13 says it's high time to awake out of sleep for our salvation is near as for now. Our salvation is nearer than when we first believed the night is far spent. The day is at hand. Therefore, let us cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light. That's military words were to put on the armor of light and fight the battle. We need to wake up and not be asleep because the day is almost here. Roman was sharing about that last week.

The end times that we're living in, the soon return of Jesus Christ. It's high time for us to wake up, to not be entangled in things of this life, in our own desires, in following the desires of the flesh, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye and the pride of life. But it's time for us to wake up and to put on the armor of light, to engage in the battle, to stay focused on Jesus Christ.

Colossians 3 verse 2 says, set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. We're not to be entangled and wrapped up in. The idea of entangled is, well, I think of Spider-Man. If you're entangled in a web, you're not able to do anything. You're useless. If you're entangled in the affairs of this life, if you haven't set your mind on the things above, if your mind's on the things of this earth, if you're entangled in these things, it prohibits you from doing the work that God wants you to do.

He says in verse five of Colossians three, therefore, put to death your members which are on the earth. We got to cast those things aside, leave them behind and not become entangled. Or what? What's the consequences for a soldier who doesn't stay focused, for a soldier who becomes distracted? Again, as I was looking through and researching these things over and over and over again, everywhere I looked, it was a distracted soldier is a dead soldier. And it's true in the Christian life as well.

The distracted soldier who has his mind on the things of this earth and not on Christ, who is above, is a dead soldier. That's a casualty. Again, think about it this way. If I were again to go on the battlefield, but to not realize that I was in a battle, what would happen? If I walk out there on the battlefield, trenches on either side, the enemy entrenched against the other, and I walk down the middle with a football saying, hey guys, let's play catch. What's going to happen? I'm going to get wiped out.

That's why, Christian, you need to know that you're in a battle. Hey, when you wake up and you head out the door and you don't consider, hey, I'm in a battle, you're in a dangerous position. When you forget that there's a reality to spiritual war, you're in a dangerous place, just consumed with life, not focused on Christ. You're going to get hurt. You're going to get beaten up. You're going to be a casualty. Again, Mike Silva said, warfare is serious stuff. There's no room for goofing off.

And you can't make up your own rules. Military rules and procedures can be difficult and challenging to keep. That's what many say about the scripture. That's just too hard. Challenging to keep. But he goes on to say, but they're proven methods that help to protect and save lives. Anything less than a full commitment to those rules and regulations during warfare is to be entangled in the affairs of this life. And it puts that person and those around him in danger.

Here, Mike says, anything less than full commitment. I'm going to go forward with Jesus Christ. I'm going to go 100%. I'm going to be obedient to God's word. Anything less than that full commitment is to be entangled in the affairs of this life. And for that person and for those around them, there's great danger. Great danger. It's high time that we awake, that we put on the armor of light, that we fight the good fight. He went on to give a couple examples.

Marines goofing off, doing the cowboy thing, shooting from the hip. But one accidentally, as he was goofing off, pulled the trigger and shot his buddy that he was playing with in the head. He said, miraculously, he survived. But they were goofing off, not awake, not aware of the dangers, not aware of the reality of war. He shared of another time when he was in Iraq and there was a guy who just disregarded what the procedures were and what he had been trained to do in regarding to cleaning his weapon.

And so he's cleaning his weapon while it's loaded. And as he's cleaning his weapon, it goes off right into his chest. He was dead instantly. He said he left or made a young lady a widow. And I'm not sure if he had any kids. Warfare is serious stuff. There's no room for goofing off. You can't make up your own rules. Anything less than a full commitment to those rules and regulations during warfare is to be entangled in the affairs of this life.

The consequences of not being focused, of not being fully committed to the rules and regulations, the consequences are deadly. They're serious. There are Christian casualties. There are people who have abandoned the faith, rejected the things of God, turned against God. The consequences of not being focused, not setting your mind on things above, they're very deadly. Paul says, Timothy...

You need to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Receive the strength that comes from his grace because you've got the task ahead of you that is to make disciples. It puts you on the front lines. It's a difficult task. It's like saving Private Ryan. You've got to go into enemy territory. Find that guy and pull him out. It's what we're called to do. So, Timothy, you need to be like a good soldier. You need to endure hardship and you need to stay focused.

Jesus endured hardship. He endured great hardship. The Apostle Paul, he endured hardship. Second Corinthians chapter 11 talks about all the things he went through. Three times I was beaten. One times I was stoned. Five times I received the 40 lashes. Three times I was shipwrecked. But for some Christians, the list is a little bit different. I gave up. I don't go to church anymore because, well, three times there was hypocrites and five times they said this about me and four times the preacher said that and six times I didn't like the song that they were singing.

We need to be Christians who are willing to endure hardship, difficulty, pain, hurt, because we know it's training for the battle that lies ahead. Other people's lives are at stake, and we need to stay focused. The last person I asked regarding these things was Charles, who served in the Army some time ago now, I think. And Charles, I really enjoyed his response. It wasn't at all what I expected.

The first part of his response was, life itself is a hardship. I said, what kind of hardships do you face as a soldier? Life itself is a hardship. He didn't take me back to Vietnam, which is where I thought he would take me. He didn't take me back to the battles that he fought and the things that he'd endured. Instead, he's focused on right now, right where he needs to be. He's not telling the ancient battle histories and the things of the past. He says, life is hard enough. It's a hardship now.

To have the right priorities. To seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. To bear fruit and live for our Lord Jesus Christ. That's hard. And I agree. That's why we need to endure hardship. We need to stay focused and seek first the kingdom of God. One last thing as we close. Matthew chapter 13. Consider it later. Jesus tells the parable of the sower. The four different types of soils. Here in 2 Timothy chapter 2.

We find two of those soils. The stony soil, Jesus says that's the ones who receive Christ and they walk, but then there comes trial and tribulation, hardship, and they fall away. There are Christians, there's seed that's sown, they receive it, but when hardship comes, they fall away. Other of the seed fell on the thorny soil, which Jesus said when it grew up,

They became entangled with the thorns and he said, that's the cares of the world. They became wrapped up in the cares of the world, the affairs of this life, and they died. You and I as Christians, we must understand that we're in a battle. What kind of soil is this seed falling upon? Is the word of God falling upon in your heart? Are you a good soldier of Jesus Christ? Paul gives the example, the illustration of a soldier, an athlete, and a farmer. We'll look at the others as we go in the coming weeks. But he ends his life

In 2 Timothy 4, 7, he says, I have fought the good fight, the soldier. I finished the race, the athlete. And I've kept the faith, the farmer. Paul gave us these examples and illustrations. And as he's ending his life, he says, I've done it. Guys, it's possible. You can do it. Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. His strength is sufficient for you. It's made perfect in weakness. So rely upon him. Look to him.

Endure hardship and stay focused on Jesus Christ.