A Daily Walk

Guest (Male): Pastor John Randall encourages us to adopt the mentality of a soldier.

John Randall: Jesus was the one who saved me. Jesus was the one who enlisted me. Jesus is the one who gave me my orders. My life belongs to him and so he can tell me where he wants me to go. He can call me to whatever he wants me to do. He can take from me whatever he wants. It's all his. I have to be reminded of that. I'm a soldier. I just say yes, sir. You're the captain of my salvation. You want me to do this? I'm going to do that. You want me to go this way?

I'm going to go that way. You tell me what to do and I'll do it.

Guest (Male): Agriculture is a huge part of America's heritage. It's amazing to consider that farmers are willing to invest so much time and effort into the land and their crops, knowing that they won't see any income until harvest time. And even then, a sudden hailstorm or unseasonable weather can destroy all of their hard work. That sort of diligent commitment is necessary in the Christian life as well. In fact, the Apostle Paul used the metaphors of a hardworking farmer, athlete, and soldier to show us what Christian life and ministry is to be like. Today on a daily walk, Pastor John Randall continues his study of 2 Timothy by having us consider chapter 2.

John Randall: We have your Bibles with you this morning. If you would open up with me now to the book of 2 Timothy chapter 2. 2 Timothy chapter 2 as we continue studying together this final epistle written by the Apostle Paul before his martyrdom. There in the Mamertine prison, writing to Timothy an important letter. 2 Timothy chapter 2 beginning in verse 1, if you'd follow along with me as we read from the word of God. You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 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.

You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. And also, if anyone competes in athletics, he's not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. The hardworking farmer must first be to partake of the crops. Consider what I say and may the Lord give you understanding in all things. At the time in which this letter was written, the church was being severely persecuted. And so great was this persecution because of fear, many had actually departed from the faith.

The boldness that once marked the church in the face of opposition, it began to dissolve. The Apostle Paul had been arrested and sentenced to death. And Timothy had now been called upon to take his place. God had uniquely gifted Timothy. And Paul reminded him that he had to stir up the gift that God had given to him. The fear of man could have easily brought a snare to Timothy and therefore Paul reminded him that God hadn't given him a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Timothy also had a genuine faith and trust in the Lord.

And that faith was now being put to the test. And he had to make a decision. Would he be ashamed of the gospel or would he stand for the gospel? Would he guard that which had been committed to him by the Holy Spirit? You can only imagine that the mounting pressure and the spiritual warfare that surrounded Timothy at this time, it would have been so easy for him to become weary in the work that he was doing. Remember, Paul had just given unto Timothy the reminder of the spiritual desertion of former followers of Christ in chapter 1 verse 15 when he said this, all who are in Asia have turned away from me.

Surely that would have been disheartening for this young pastor. That is why as Paul continued to write, he exhorted Timothy to be strong. In verse 1 it says, you therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Now this strengthening that Paul calls for can refer to a physical strengthening, but more often it refers to spiritual and moral strengthening within. Paul wasn't necessarily speaking of physical strength. A person can be physically strong, but they can be very spiritually weak. Of course, the opposite is also true. But the strength that Timothy needed to sustain him, it says here was found in the grace that was in Christ Jesus.

The Apostle Paul knew this grace and this strength that was found there in his own life personally. In fact, for a moment, if you just turn back only a few pages to 2 Corinthians chapter 12 beginning in verse 7, you'll see that it is so. 2 Corinthians chapter 12 beginning in verse 7. If you've never read this verse, I believe you will find it to be extremely encouraging. If not today, then at some point in your walk with the Lord. 2 Corinthians chapter 12 look at verse 7. And Paul writes, and lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me.

It was a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing, I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in your weakness. Therefore, most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. And I take pleasure in my infirmities and reproaches and needs in persecutions in distresses for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. Paul knew of this sufficient grace in the midst of weakness that sustained him throughout his life and ministry.

He would write to the church in Philippi in chapter 4 and he would say, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Do you have anything in your life right now at this moment that you would say, I just can't do this? You have anything like that? You ever verbalize that? I just can't do this. I can't do that. Or maybe you've thought it. More than likely, it's a true statement. You can't, nor can I in our own strength. However, with the strength that is found in Christ, we can. And it didn't say some things.

It said all things. Timothy needed to be strong in the grace that was found in Christ because he had a job to do. He had a responsibility. Not only was he to be strong, but he was to teach. It says in the very next verse, and these things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will also be able to teach others also. It's as if Timothy was a link in a chain. Came from the apostles, to Paul, to Timothy, passed on to those who would follow after him.

Ultimately, it led back to Jesus. And Timothy was to take the truth of the word of God that had been entrusted unto him. And he was to pass it on. He was to make disciples. All the letters that Paul wrote, Timothy was well aware of them. He spent time with Paul on the road in the ministry traveling alongside of him. He heard his Bible studies. He heard what he preached. He read the letters that he wrote. Paul said, these things that you've heard from me in the midst of all of these witnesses, what I've given to you, that's what you need to take and teach others also.

What you have received, you then in turn need to impart. Remember that Jesus when he prayed to his father in John chapter 17 right before his crucifixion, he prayed these words. He said, for I have given to them the words which you've given me. And they have received them and have known surely that I came forth from you and they have believed that you sent me. Jesus said, father, the things that you gave me, I passed on to them and they have received it, speaking of his disciples. Jesus would say to his disciples in the Great Commission in Matthew chapter 28 in verse 19, go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus, what he had received, he then imparted to the disciples and he said, now you take what I've given you and you go and disciple other people. Paul in writing to the church in Philippi in chapter 4 verse 9, he said, the things that you have learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do. And the God of peace will be with you. In Psalm 145 verse 4 it says, one generation shall praise your works to another and to declare your mighty acts. It is the responsibility of one generation to then pass on to the next what it's received, what's been imparted by way of the word of God.

And Timothy was to impart these things not to just anybody, but to faithful men. Faithful men who would be able to in turn impart it to other people. And sometimes it's hard to find faithful people in that regard, but to those who were faithful, pass this on to them and they in turn will give it to others. I love that quote from John Wesley. It's I think it's probably one of my favorites. He said, quote, if I had 300 men who feared nothing but God, hated nothing but sin, and were determined to know nothing among men except Jesus Christ and him crucified, I would set the world on fire.

Would to God that we had such people that we could impart God's truth and they could in turn impart it to others. I am personally indebted in a sense grateful for the men that God has used in my life and ministry. Those who have handed off the baton as it were, and I am in turn committed to handing that off to others. And I'm committed to handing it off in the way that I received it. The heritage that I've been given, I am dedicated to passing that on to other people. I will not in any way divert from that.

Let me ask you a question. Who are you discipling right now? Who are you imparting God's truth to? That which you have received, who are you passing it on to? Who are you discipling? You should have a Paul in your life as it were. You should have a Barnabas in your life and you should have a Timothy in your life that you can be passing these on to, these truths. In order for Timothy to be strong, grace that was found in Christ and to continue in trusting the truth of God's word to other faithful men, Paul will cite three examples for him to follow.

First of all, he'll talk about a soldier. Then he'll talk about an athlete and then he will talk about a farmer. And there are certain characteristics found in the lives of these individual people that you could apply to your life and ministry. First of all, he mentions the soldier in verse 3. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. As you continue to walk with the Lord, you come to realize rather quickly that we are in a spiritual conflict.

In fact, it's more than a conflict. The Bible actually refers to it as a war. And it's a war that's not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers and spiritual hosts of wickedness, the Bible says, in heavenly places. There is an ongoing battle and we are soldiers in this battle in a sense. Soldiers of the cross. And the Apostle Paul had spent a great deal of time with soldiers in his ministry. Sometimes he would be chained to them. And he would observe the regiment of the soldier, the discipline of the soldier, the attention to detail that they had, and the endurance that they would need especially in the face of battle.

It's no wonder that he wrote to the Ephesians and he said that we need to put on the whole armor of God that we might be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. And having done all to stand, were to stand therefore. And he goes on to list all of the pieces of the spiritual armor that are to cover the life of the child of God. Paul points out to Timothy that in order to be an effective soldier, first of all, he had to be willing to endure hardship. Because there is bound to be hardship, being a soldier isn't an easy life.

There's the need for endurance. And Paul was saying to Timothy, he had to be willing to take his share of the rough treatment with Paul. Paul didn't want Timothy to have any misunderstanding, misgivings about what ministry was about, some, you know, visions of grandeur that weren't realistic. Timothy, it's about being a soldier. That's what this is about. And And Timothy had to be faithful to the truth that he'd been given. He had to be unwilling to compromise for personal gain. He had to constantly be preaching the truth which would inevitably lead to hardship, lead to some kind of difficulty.

Listen, if there's no hardship in our Christian life, then I wonder if we're really doing anything that is affecting the battle at all. But if you're engaged in the battle, if you're in the spiritual fight through prayer, through the word, through service, through evangelism, whatever it is that we're doing for the cause of Christ, there will be hardship and our faith will be tested. Someone once wrote, a faith that costs nothing and demands nothing is worth nothing. I mean, there's just something to this. And you don't want to have any misunderstandings of what this is about.

I remember reading on one occasion an advertisement that was in uh historically an advertisement in a London newspaper early in the 20th century. And here's what it said. Quote, men wanted for hazardous journey, small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. There no misunderstanding about what this is about. If you want to sign up for this, all right? And those were the words that were written by Sir Ernest Shackleton, the famous South Pole explorer. And commenting on the overwhelming response that he received, Shackleton said, quote, it seemed as though all of the men in Great Britain were determined to accompany us.

The soldier must be willing to endure hardship. But secondly, he must avoid entanglements. That is what Paul mentions here. No one verse 4 engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life. The word entangle means to braid. It means to twist or to tie. Figuratively, it meant to become involved in an activity to the point of interference with the objective. It's not that you don't have to be involved in the affairs of this life, but you can't allow the affairs of this life to cause you to compromise the objective, what you're actually here for.

You have to be mindful of that. And the word was also used to describe a person entangled in their garments or someone who is caught in some kind of vine. Also, it was used of a runner who was tripped up or hindered in his ability to run. And it also described, interestingly enough, a sheep whose wool was caught in the thorns. The Bible tells us in Hebrews chapter 12 verse 1, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us. And let us run the race with endurance.

There are many things that can easily entangle us, easily ensnare us. But if I'm a soldier in this in this spiritual battle, I can't allow those things to entangle me, to entwine my life, to like the thorns that Jesus talked about in that parable that come in and choke out the work of the spirit in my life. And I have to be mindful of that. Timothy needed to be mindful of that. Roman soldiers were intense. Once a man enlisted on a campaign, there were certain things he had to avoid in order to give careful attention to his service as a soldier.

In fact, there was a Roman code. And it said, we forbid men engaged in military service to engage in civilian occupations. Is there anything this morning that you've allowed yourself to get entangled with that is hindering your walk with Christ? Anything that is currently tripping you up? Are you a sheep that's caught in the thorns of the cares of this life or the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things? Jesus said in Matthew chapter 6 verse 24, no one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and be loyal to the other or he will be loyal to the one and despise the other.

You cannot serve God and mammon. You cannot be entangled in these things. And like a good soldier, Timothy needed to endure hardship, avoid entanglements. And what was the goal in mind? Why do that? There's one reason. He wanted to please the one who enlisted him. Folks, that's why we're engaged in the battle. That That's why we're part of this warfare because ultimately the goal is to please Jesus. Jesus was the one who saved me. Jesus was the one who enlisted me. Jesus is the one who gave me my orders. My life belongs to him and so he can tell me where he wants me to go.

He can call me to whatever he wants me to do. He can take from me whatever he wants. It's all his. I have to be reminded of that. I'm a soldier. I just say yes, sir. You're the captain of my salvation. You want me to do this? I'm going to do that. You want me to go this way? I'm going to go that way. You tell me what to do and I'll do it. That's the mentality of the soldier. But not only did Timothy need to be like a soldier, Paul uses another example, that of an athlete.

In the fifth verse, he says, and also if anyone competes in athletics, he's not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. Certainly Timothy needed the devotion of a soldier, but he also needed the self-discipline of an athlete. The Romans considered sports a good form of entertainment much like we do today, most men at least. And the Greeks saw athletes in athletics as a means of personal enrichment at a young age. Most cities of substantial size would have a gymnasium within them. And young boys would get started right away developing and and working and and growing physically.

In ancient Greece, the games, the Isthmian games that took place in Corinth as well as the Olympic games that took place were religious events where they would actually sacrifice to their gods. The games were so esteemed in ancient times that if two different states were at war, they would stop the war in order to have the games go on unhindered. Many of those who competed were actually soldiers in those games. And then once the games were over, they would get back to warfare. That's how important it was to them. It's no wonder that the Apostle Paul, in light of the culture in which he lived, would often use athletic metaphors to describe the Christian life.

Have you noticed that? He talked about it in 1 Corinthians chapter 9. He said, don't you know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Therefore, run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate. The word is self-controlled, disciplined in all things. And they do it for what? For a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. As an athlete, there are certain things that you have to avoid lest you become disqualified. You have to compete, it says here, according to the rules.

How many of us have observed over the years those who competed, but then you came to find out later they didn't compete according to the rules. They hit so many home runs, but a good portion of that time they were on the juice that enabled them to hit the ball even later in life out of the park. And so there's always this, he hit this many, but there's an asterisk by their name. We don't think he competed against the rules. In fact, he's tested for this and tested for that. Or some runner in the Olympics who is the fastest person that's ever run on the face of the earth.

And then they do a test on him. Oh, that's why he was faster than anybody else. He had an edge. He didn't compete according to the rules. And so what Paul is saying Timothy, in light of this battle that you're in, you got to be a soldier, but you also need to have that self-discipline lest you be disqualified. You have to be mindful of these things, self-controlled. And then he adds to this another example, that of a hardworking farmer. The hardworking farmer must first partake of the crops. Paul was not only fond of using athletic metaphors, but also agricultural metaphors in his epistles.

He talked about at one point being rooted and grounded in Christ. Jesus oftentimes would use parables that referred to the farmer. Talked about the seed being like the word of God and the person that sows the seed of the word, throws it on the different areas. And as the seed goes into the ground, it bears fruit. He talked about the wheat and the tares that would grow up and eventually they would be divided. All of these examples talked about trees being planted and to give us an idea. But the hardworking farmer, Jesus would say no one having put his hands to the plow and looking back is fit for the kingdom.

The The farmer had to work hard, especially in those days when when things when the tools that were available were so primitive. I mean, how are you going to break up fallow ground? Probably by hand with some kind of tool that you were given. And then you have to take an yoke of oxen and plow through the field and then you have to sow the seed and then you have to to pray for rain. And then you'd have to wait. A hardworking farmer.

Guest (Male): Three great pictures of the Christian life and ministry. A farmer, a soldier, and the athlete. This is a daily walk with Pastor John Randall. And what you heard today was just part of a study in 2 Timothy. Would you like to hear the study again or maybe share it with someone who might benefit by hearing this? Just drop by a dailywalk.org or oneplace.com and you'll find our app when you search for Calvary South OC. Today we'd like to make special mention of a newly released book from our friend in the ministry, Jack Hibbs. It's called to take a bold stand.

You can be sure that bold faith is necessary in this troubled world. And this book will urge you to be courageous, effective, and to make every moment count. You can order it today for the cost of $11 by going to a dailywalk.org or call 877 242 0828. And please remember us in your giving to the Lord. It's not only appreciated, but will be responsibly used. We want this ministry to please God and help as many people as possible in their daily walk. And your gift, whatever the size, will help us accomplish that goal. Make a donation online at a dailywalk.org or again call 877 242 0828.

If you find these studies helpful to your daily walk, Pastor John would like to know. He reads your emails and is so encouraged by what you have to say. Write to him by email at a dailywalk at gmail.com. That's a dailywalk at gmail.com. And let us know the station you're listening to. We also want to tell you about the a dailywalk devotional. Watch the video and be encouraged each day. You'll find it at a dailywalk.org We're again talking about living in the last days next time on a daily walk with Pastor John Randall.

John Randall: This program is brought to you by Calvary South OC and made possible through the support of our listeners.