Address—T. Cedarland
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168 and 168. The night is far spent in the day as it can. No sign should be looked for. The stars in the sky rejoiced in these things. Tis your Lords old command. Rejoice, for the coming of Jesus draws nigh. What a day will that be when the Savior appears. How welcome to those who have shared in his cross. A crown corruptible then will be there as a rich compensation for suffering the lust.
What is lost in this world when compared to that day, to the glory that then will from heaven be revealed. The Savior is coming. His people may say, the Lord whom we look for our Son and our shield. We've seen the last two verses of this 168.
Lord.
So we love and.
Love you and I also love the world.
Please, please, I'm learning how are you?
Turn with me, please, to the book of.
Second Timothy. What could Second Timothy?
Second Timothy, chapter one and verse one.
Tylenol, apostle of Jesus Christ, by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus to Timothy, my dearly beloved Son, grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I thank God whom I serve from my forefathers with a pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of being in my prayers night and day. Great desire to see thee, being mindful of my tears that I may be filled with joy. But I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is indeed which swelt first to my grandmother Lois and my mother Eunice and I persuaded that it's in me also.
Wherefore I put thee in remembrance, that thou stir up the gift of God, which is indeed like a putting on in my hands, that God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me as prisoner, but be thou a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel, according to the power of God, who has saved us and followed us with a Holy Father, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given in Christ Jesus.
Before the world began, but is now manifest by the appearing, now may manifest by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and have brought life and immortality to life through the Gospel. When's one appointed a preacher and a fossil, and a teacher of the Gentiles, For which cause also I suffer these things. Nevertheless I'm not ashamed, but I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I've committed unto him against that date.
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Hold fast the form of sound words which thou has heard of me, and faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus. That good thing which is committed to thee. Keep by the Holy Ghost which brought us this. Thou knowest that all they return. Asia, be turned away from me, of whom are fabulous and homogeneous. Lord, give mercy, and to the House of Omospheres for not refreshment, and was not ashamed of my chain. But when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently and found me the Lord. Grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day. And now many things he ministered unto me in Ephesus.
I've noticed very well.
Well.
Look at this little book, the Epistle to the Second Timothy, and we know that First Timothy was written, you might say, when the House of God was in order and there were just a few individuals that were departing from the truth. When we come to the Epistle of Second Timothy, we see the House of God is in disorder and the masses have to be part of the pulses all the way there in Asia turned away from me and it's individuals going on faithfully to the Lord and.
We could say tonight that we're really we're living.
In the Times, as it were, that's the second Timothy was written. One person put it this way once a brother. He said, you know, he said, I'm glad that apostasy set into the church before the apostles passed off the scene because he said that, because that happened. He said we have instruction for holiday. We have a blueprint as to how to live a Christian life in the time in which we're living and so the time that this epistle is written.
We might mention through this, the last epistle. As far as we know, it's the last epistles of Paul wrote. It's his last words, something always significant about the last words of someone. Paul isn't writing this epistle in comfortable conditions. He's writing it from a Roman dungeon. This is not the dungeon or this is not the prison that we read about in the book of Acts where he had complete liberty, where it was coming and going. We know that after that time.
Released from prison and Caesar's fine, and then in Nero's time somewhere about 67 or 68 AV Paul was once again arrested in the city of Rome had been burned. Persecution was stirred up again against the Christians and followers put in this dungeon.
We were to go over to Rome even today, and they would take you down and show you perhaps the very place where they believe Paul was. You don't know for sure, but it's believed that he was in the Never Time dungeon. And if we were to look at that place, it's a place where there's no windows.
It's just a hole in the ground where food and water was let down and the river ran under the city and was cold. Perhaps that's why Paul mentions in this epistle, The cloak with which I left at Troy has been with you, especially the parchments. Do thy diligence to come before winter was a cold place that was in these uncomfortable conditions. That Paul is right in his last words, not to a church or an assembly, but to an individual, an individual named Timothy, who he loved.
And Paul isn't saying that Timothy will. Timothy is just not worth it to live a Christian life.
I've been beaten, I've been shipwrecked, I've been stoned, and now here at the end of my life, after all these things, I'm sitting in this prison waiting to die. Timothy, turn away from the Lord. It's just not worth it. Oh no, those aren't the words of the apostle, but he's writing to encourage Timothy to go on in faithfulness to the Lord. In the day of noon follows him thinking about himself, but he's thinking about others and thinks about this young man, Timothy, who's still out there serving the Lord. He knew that Timothy had been discouraged.
And he didn't didn't want that to continue. And so we could say that if we were to make a little outline of this pistol, we would say that in the first chapter we see encouragement for a believer in the day of room. Paul is trying to encourage Timothy to press on and go on for the Lord. We'll look as we go through this and see some examples that we could learn from the apostle Paul as to how we could be encouragement to others. And then in the second chapter, it's been said that it's the pathway of a believer in the day of ruin.
And we get to the third chapter and there's the resources for a believer. A day of ruin. He would have got it. And then in the last chapter, the service.
But here in this first chapter, we see how the apostle Paul encourages this young man who was discouraged, Timothy, And it's a wonderful example if we want to be to help and encouragement. There's some older ones here tonight, older than myself. And here we can see instruction as to how to be encouragement to those who are younger. There's some here who are young couples. You see young people in the assembly. You want to be an encouragement and reach out. You see a blueprint for it in this first chapter and we find in the.
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The second verse.
Paul, The first thing I'd like to call attention to is Paul says to Timothy, my dearly beloved son, as he begins to encourage Timothy, first thing he wanted him to know is that he loved it. And if we're going to be an encouragement to those who are younger, the young people in the assembly, the younger ones know that the older ones love them. Do my brother know? Do my older brother, my younger, know that I love them, that they're giving my heart? That's the way it was with the apostle Paul.
He left no doubt in Timothy's mind. He didn't say Timothy, my son, He said Timothy, my dearly beloved son. He let that person know he loved him. And then we see in the next verse in verse three that he says at the end of the verse, I have remembrance of thee in my prayers. Not only can I be do I love you, but I'm praying for you, praying for you.
Several years ago, I had the privilege to go visit an assembly.
On the east, somewhere further east of here, and there was an older brother that was there. And we came and we were introduced and we shook hands for the very first time. I've never been to that assembly before. And as we were introduced and I told him my name and pause for a moment and he said yes. He said to him, he said, I pray for you every day, every day. I've never met him before, but he prayed for me by name every day. Just passed the summer I had the privilege of going back to that same assembly, hadn't been there for nearly three years.
There's the same older brother, much more evil starting, his memory starting to fail a little bit. I said to his brother, he used to return for me. He said every day, every day. What a tremendous encouragement that was to my heart. I want to know how to be an encouragement to others in the assembly. Not only that, another dear to me to pray for that Paul was praying that. Pray for my brethren, for the younger ones in the assembly, for the older ones. Then he says.
In verse.
Four, he says, greatly desiring to see thee be mindful of my tears, that I may be village.
Not only did he let him know that he was dear and he was crying for him, but he says, Timothy, I'm mindful of your tears. He was sympathetic. He said, I know what you're going through. He didn't just brush aside what Timothy's feelings were and say, well, Timothy, you know that man. He has enough truth. He should be walking farther along than he is. He shouldn't be the Scrooge like that. And really let Timothy have it. Now he sympathize. He said, Timothy, I know what you're going through trying for you. I love you.
Mindful of your tears, greatly desiring to see you, that I may be filled with joy. Many pieces of what I call the remembrance. Verse 5, the unfeigned faith that is indeed which dwelt first to my grandmother Lois and my mother Eunice. And I'm persuaded that it's going to be too. In other words, what Paul was saying is he had confidence in Tennessee. It wasn't that he had confidence in the flesh. Now he knew that work that had been done in Timothy's grandmother and her faithfulness.
And his mother said, Timothy, I'm persuaded that's in YouTube. I believe in you, my confidence in that work that's been done in your heart. And so we can see these different ways that Paul encouraged Timothy when he says in verse 6, Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift which is in thee by the putting on my hands. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power.
I don't love, I know the sound line. Be not thou therefore shame the testimony of the Lord, nor me as prisoner. Be thou particular, be affections of the gospel according to the power of God. Well, in first Timothy we have that expression neglect, or it's the first Timothy. It's neglect not forget what it's going to be, but in second Timothy it's stir up the gift, which is envy. I've often wondered what is the difference? But when you look at first Timothy, we see the House of God is in order.
And Paul has to tell Timothy neglect not to get, which is indeed, because if we're an assembly, everything is going along fine and everything is in order. There's a tendency for a young man, a young brother to sit back, not feel any responsibility, say, well, there's brother so and so and brother so and so. They can carry on The meeting really doesn't matter if I make it to meeting or not. Things are going to continue on. It doesn't matter if I'm exercised without taking part of being a help. There's many other capable brothers who can do that.
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So Paul says in First Timothy neglected alcohift. But I don't want to get to a day of ruin when things are falling apart.
There's confusion people are forsaking the truth of the word of God. He says stir up the gift, which is going to be what's the difference? Well, tendency when things trouble comes in discouragement, just throw up our hands and despair and say well, what's the use, What can I do to be a help? Paul is saying Timothy, if he was ever a day when that gift is needed that you have it's now stir it up, rekindle another translation says the gift which is indeed.
We started that little humor Kendall within us of holy desire. Each one of us says we are garrassed with ourselves. We have to admit we need to be stirred up like Timothy had to be ignored to do. We look at some of the problems and failure among us, thoughts of others and we just want to give up and the faults of ourselves and our own weaknesses and our shortcomings and all the educational fall from that prison to Timothy was stir up which is in the and he says God hasn't given us the spirit of fear.
JMD's translation says God has not given us the spirit of cowardice, but a power of love and of wise discretion. I can remember growing up among the Indians in northern Saskatchewan with his brother Earl Bateman, and we went into an Indian Reservation on a Saturday morning. Many of these people, they get paid, get their checks from the government on Friday, and they drink all night, sometimes Saturday and sometime or all night Friday. And sometimes you're still drinking Saturday, still drunk.
So it's not the best day to go visit, but we were in this room, there were a number of people there who were interested in the gospel, mostly women and children, the female. And as we were sharing the gospel there in the room, it was a group of men outside that were partly under the influence of alcohol. And they began to get more and more worked up and stirred up.
And the hatred and opposition as to what was going on in the house. And finally, and one of them.
Headed toward the house and the others followed in a king bursting in the door and he let out a loud cry He said let's throw these white guys out of here Let's throw these white guys out of here Well, we'd go to Bacon if we had the word of God open. We just looked up a command with his kind eyes and he went like that preaching, preaching indeed these people that man he just kind of turned and went out the door ashamed and there were some others out there who who?
Actually stay started a fight outside the house.
Because they were upset that he'd gone in and disturbed the meeting. But what gave that brother that boldness that just stand his ground as it were and continue to fix a little bit. He didn't have that strength in himself. Scripture says about me you do nothing but the Scripture says God has not given us the spirit of cowardice, but power and love and wise discretion. And so Paul says, be not out there for ashamed of the testimony.
Or me as prisoner. I believe it's three times if I'm finding this passage, that word ashamed, not ashamed.
We'll find a little later. He says I'm not ashamed till I know whom I have believed. And he mentions on Essel for us or on a separate pronounce his name. So I pronounce it either way on his Tifras he says he sought me out diligently and he was not ashamed of my chain and so on. Ocean perhaps was a a businessman and every time he would come up to run, he would look up the Apostle Paul.
And the first time that he came, he didn't know which dungeon follows in. And so he went from one prison to the next prison. And every prison that he went to, he would have to ask and tell who he was looking for, and he would have to be identified with this man. He was in reproach Paul, who was down in that prison in James, and he would ask you a friend of Paul, one of those kind of weird Christians, one of the people of that way. But only syphilis is not ashamed of Paul Bean and reproach and being the chainsaw him out until he found him.
And he often refreshed him. But when you see on a synthesis make mention in this book, it's always in the past tense. The Lord give mercy to the House of Roman sickness. Perhaps in a syphilis was one who had already been martyred for his faith or died who didn't know, but he wasn't assumed at all.
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So Paul says to Timothy, being out now, therefore ashamed of the testimony, what does he say? Testimony of the assembly, of the meeting where you're at. He doesn't say that. He says be not down there for a shame of testimony of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's not the testimony of you or of me. If we think of it that way, someone said if we seek to be a testimony, we seek to be one, but it's the testimony of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul says to Timothy, be not ashamed of that testimony.
And then it doesn't stop there, he says. Nor of me is prisoner because Paul was in prison. He wasn't reproached, just not necessarily by the world, but also by the Christians of his day.
He says later in this chapter that all they did in Asia have turned away from me. Doesn't say they turned away from the Lord. There were those who were still going on for the Lord in a measure and still profess Christ, but they had turned away from the apostle Paul. They had forsaken his ministry and they had forsaken him and Paul.
Was in change it was in prison and we can say that today if we could apply it in a spiritual sense that today Paul's ministry is so to speak in prison it's in change it's not popular we look around the room tonight and we see sisters with the head coverings on that's not a popular truth and and there is a certain amount of reproach if you're going to follow the word of God many Christians today who.
Very few Christians today, we should say.
Who are really willing to say what say at the Scriptures with a wholehearted desire to be obedient to it? I meet people and talk to him and talk about verses about the gospel and all that. They love those verses or verses about this or verses about that. But if you talk about the women keeping silent in the church, or about head coverings or assembly order and so on, you don't want to hear those verses because they want to take a teleport to the real threat. So let's say fall, so to speak. His ministry is in prison. It's not popular to take the call, says Timothy. Don't be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord Jesus.
Christ Lord me his presence. Don't be ashamed to be identified with means either Timothy embraces $3 or taker of the abortions of the gospel going to take a stand for the gospel is going to be afflictions. It's going to be persecutions. It's going to be bread and they're going to misunderstand you. They're not going to.
All of go along with what goes on. Much of Paul's affliction and persecution came from even even though it's been through the Lord, but he took a stand and Paul says to Timothy, don't be ashamed of the testimony. Be a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel. Well, we can bring this right home. It's so easy to be ashamed of the gospel. You had a gospel suffering back in in Big Harbor some time ago.
At the time, she was 11 years old. My name is Lisa. Lisa asked one of her friends from school to come to gospel meeting. And actually this girl lived across the street from her. And the girl went home to ask your mother. And the mother said, no, you can't go back to the gospel meeting. The girl came back with her face down. She was disappointed. And she told Lisa that. She said, my mother won't let me come. Lisa said, well, that's OK. She said, sit down here on the porch. I can tell you how to be saved. You don't have to go to a gospel meeting. I'll tell you the gospel.
And they're in simple, childlike, they achieve that, that little girl.
Praise the gospel to that Lady and to that girl and led her to the world. That little girl accepted the board because he said he's not ashamed. Recently in our own we we have a neighbor, but we've sought to try to encourage or try to reach out to with the gospel and her husband was away on a business trip. She has a little boy and.
So we invited them both over to their health script for a meal and I had a little 4 year old boy and while I was in Sunday school, a Sunday school teacher given one of these little hearts like a wordless book. There was a black heart on the outside and it said, oh, I've seen which I'm sure the word of God. And then you turn to the next part and there's a red heart, the blood of Jesus Christ, God, Son and Son of us from all sin. Then you turn to the next heart of the life heart. Wash me and I shall be lighter than snow.
The last one was a golden part and there was a verse about, you know, being in heaven. And so this lady came to our home and she knows that we're believers, yet we were perhaps a little bit of shame to come right out and witness to her about the Lord. This little 4 year old boy, he comes over and he he doesn't even talk very well, has a little bit of a speech problem and he can't even pronounce all of his letters. He often speaks with everything starts with an H almost.
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But he went through the through the little heart of those. So Jody, he said this is the way our hearts are before we come to know the Lord Jesus. They're black hearts. And he said we need to get a red heart. We need our hearts to be washed in the blood of Jesus. Then they will be white as snow. He said, then we get to walk on that. All he could say was the heats of gold couldn't say the streets of gold. You get to walk on the heats of gold. You know, after after he had said that, Jody said, you know.
I understood everywhere, he said.
We look at a little child, he was not ashamed to speak with the dust, but how often you were ashamed sometimes we think like coldness might fill us with grief, and ashamed so much to be loved so we may the Lord stir us up to be not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. The power of God well we find in the.
12 First Paul speaks about not being ashamed. Then verse 13 just mentioned this. It says hold fast the form of sound words which thou hast heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus. So he's saying, Timothy, hold fast upon words of what you've heard of me in faith and love. Those two words, faith and love, I have an underline in my Bible because we can follow the truth and thankfulness and not have love.
But we can be all love and no faithfulness, and there's that perfect balance.
John wrote the third the second epistle John, and it brings in the importance of truth.
And he tells the elected lady, these people are coming, bringing false doctrine. Don't bring them into your home and throw your arms around them and show them love. He says you're a partaker of their evil deeds if you do that. And so we brought in the importance of the truth and not love in connection with dealing with evil. But then in the next epistle, when he likes to, there's a gayest, he speaks about an end doctrine. He's who perhaps had a lot of head knowledge. He knew the truth. He had a lot of truth in his head and he had control.
Many brethren that sided with him, he didn't have any doubt. And then the servants of the Lord came. He wouldn't receive them and even cast them out of the church because he was a man. Perhaps he had truth in that love. And so those two epistles bring out both of those aspects of the air of having love without truth or having truth without love, and for faithfulness, as we see here, going past the form of sound words in faith and in love, which is in Christ Jesus.
So he's encouraging Timothy to hold fast the form of sound words or have an outline of sound words and I just mentioned tonight it's important to get an outline of scriptures. Those are younger here verse 15 and this don't know us that all they that are in Asia have turned away from me.
And he mentions these two by name who had done it.
Doesn't say that they they weren't Christians, but they had turned away from the full gospel that Paul had preached. Many mentions a mess for us in this household that was not ashamed to mention. And then we come to the second chapter. The 2nd chapter brings before us the pathway.
Of a believer in a day of the world and he starts out he says now therefore my son, be strong in the grace between Christ Jesus and the things that thou has heard of me among many witnesses the same commit thou a faithful man who shall be able to teach others Also it's been pointed out that there's seven things in this Chapter 7 characteristics of the servant. It starts with a son and it ends with a servant. Verse one there's a sermon and verse 3 there's a soldier.
In verse four there is you could say verse five there is an athlete when he's driving through the games and verse 6 there's the husbandman or the farmer.
And then in verse 15, there's the Workman.
Verse 21, there's the vessel, and in verse 24 there's a servant in this.
Possible perhaps to take each of those up and study them. They don't have time tonight to go into them all comment on them, but it starts out here now therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that's in Christ Jesus, strong in the grace. And we would think that in a time when things were falling apart in a day's ruin, they fall in right to Timothy and say Timothy, bring on the law with those brethren into shape. They're they're getting off the track. They're forsaking me. Straighten them out. Bring on the wall and that's what the Paul says.
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This is now therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that's in Christ Jesus. We look at the end of the chapter. He says it's certainly Lord must not strive, but the gentleman to all men have to teach and so on. So he says and the things that thou has heard of me among many witnesses. The same commit out of faithful and doesn't sit gifted men says faith in them will be able to teach others Also Paul says those things that you've heard me teach.
He says among many witnesses.
Says those things that you've heard me teach.
He says among main witnesses, so this wasn't something that Timothy had heard in a point or somewhere, just a few brethren with some new strange truth. This was truth that had been attested to by many witnesses. He says Timothy Hussein connected out of faithful men who be able to teach others also. And I believe that what we learned is first is that the truth is meant to be passed on. Truth is meant to be passed on. I thank God and there were brethren who went ahead of me.
And I have parents who sought to teach me the truth, just like Timothy did, and like Paul taught Timothy well.
Someone talked the truth to them. Someone talked the truth to some of these brethren that we know who passed off the scene and they have turned around and passed it on to us. And there's that responsibility for us to pass it on to others. And the parents and many young couples here tonight, we have a responsibility to pass on the truth to our children.
Not to just be so busy with other things that we don't take the time to pass it on, but to take those things that we've learned and teach them to our children. Give them that same inheritance, inheritance that's been given us. Some of us have had the true candidates on a silver platter. We haven't had to pay a price for it like other generations passed, and we don't value it as we should. Paul says. Take that tooth and pass it on. Commit it to the faithful man who will in turn be able to teach others. They'll pass it on.
That's how the truth is spread if you join the thought. I find this in my own life. If I'm enjoying something, if I don't share it, I lose it. But if the Lord gives you something and you share it, you remember it and you enjoy it. Becoming bitter even more. And so we have a mouth. I was getting damnated, feared. The Lord spake off and more together, and I don't have remembrance. We're getting to them that that thought upon his being. So as we were down together, we should be speaking about those things that we've enjoyed.
Out of the word of God. Well, he says in verse three. Now therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that war is entangled himself with the affairs of his life that he might please hear him who have chosen him to be a soldier. What he's saying here Timothy.
Endure hardness as a good soldier. This was a day when people were giving up. If I was saying to Timothy, press on, don't be afraid of the hardships just because things aren't going real easy for you because your brother not walking around and adding you on the back and complimenting you through everything that you do.
Maybe nobody appreciates it. Maybe you just be criticism. Maybe there's many kind of attacks from without by the enemy. What do we do? Are we going to give up? This is Timothy endure hardness is a good soldier. No man at war with entangled himself with the affairs of this life that he might please him when we try to please.
Although we should seek to my offend them, but to please the Lord Jesus Christ, please Christ, and then if we please him, it says, if a man's ways, please the Lord.
You make us even as enemies to be at peace with them, so you might please him who have chosen him that privilege. Those of us being like we've been chosen in the Lord Jesus before the foundations of the world, we've been chosen. And so he says do our hardness is a good surgery. No man that wore a container himself with the affairs dislike, but he might please him who had chosen him to be a soldier. And if a man strive for the masteries of the games, he's not strived except he strived lawfully or according to the rules.
Some of us perhaps remember that this past, it was this past summer, they had the Olympic Games. Some place, I don't even know where it was. I remember hearing and reading of a man who his name was Danny Johnson and he was in those games and he said he broke a world record for the base that had been 100 yard dash. I don't know what race it was, but he broke a world record and everybody made him a hero.
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And then it was discovered that he had before that race, he had taken steroids.
And so he had not gone according to the rules. They stripped down his gold medal and went back home to the country of Canada in shame, went back home and dishonored with his head down because of his daughter according to the business. Well, how are we going to know how to run according to the rules? Well, drop down, skip down just for a bit to verse 15 and we see how it is. It says study to show myself approve them to God, a Workman that needed not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
I know how to live my Christian life according to the rules. I need to study and show myself food to God and I need to learn the rules on my English book. This is the book. It's going to tell me how to live a life that's going to be pleasing to the Lord. You know, if a person was going to build a house and they were to go to a builder and say, I want you to build this house for me, here's the plans. And we hand them the blueprints. And the builder looks at those blueprints and says, well, I really don't like the way these rooms are laid out. I think I'll build it the way I want to.
So we built a nice house, but the man who whose house he's building it for, he comes in and looks at it and he'd be happy. No, he wouldn't be happy because the man had not followed the instructions. So if we're going to live a life, it's going to be pleasing to the Lord. We can't go by your own thoughts or somebody elses opinion on how we should do it. Look into the Word of God. That is where we're going to give our destruction. And there may be other brethren who can come along and be a helper because they can point out a scripture to us that will help us along the way.
We should welcome that, but not to live by somebody else's rules offered by quoting the rules and what has been laid out, the blueprint.
Well, it says in verse six, the husband that Laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits or it could be translated laboring first. The husband must be particularly fruits. You have a lot of farmers here in the Patel area, in Sydney area. No, I don't think there's anybody that goes out.
And plows up the field and comes back the next day and says, well where's the problem?
And get discouraged and walk away. Know that farmer goes out and falls up the field and he comes back and puts fertilizer in the soil and he plants after the crops start to come up. He killed the beach. Maybe he has to scrape the bugs. And finally, after much effort and much cloud at the end of the crop, he's rewarded for his labor. And the same time we can get his spirits when we don't see results. By the way, the scripture says be not weary and well doing for due season. You leave if you think not if you have a daughter or a son or a relative or somebody you work with that you're praying for.
That they'll come back to the Lord, That they'll get saved and they don't see it. It's easy to give up and quit crying for that person.
But here it says laboring first, the husband must be particularly the fruits. Abraham even was one. It seemed like he had a hopeless task of trying to be a help to buy a lot, fixed his tent towards Sodom. And in the days of Cheddar Lammer, the kings came down and invaded Sodom and Gomorrah and carried away locked captive too. And Abraham takes 318 trained men and he chases out for those people and he gets a lot and he rescues him and brings him back what his life do.
He moves right into Sodom and urine and then three men come to Abraham and God says shall I hide from Abraham the things I'm going to do? He tells him he's going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and say we're going to praise for that. He says if there's fifty, we're going to destroy the city. Lord says our spirit for 50 seconds there's 50 righteous and he gets it all the way down to where there's 10 righteous and then Abraham. And then the word means off top of the Abraham.
And we read that fire and brimstone reigned out of heaven on the side of the world. But the one thing we don't need is that Abraham, about his pals, ever crossed again. Don't read that. Abraham was walking along one day and found a lot out there. Oh, you were saved from that fire. Abraham may have died thinking the block had perished in the flames of Sodom and Gomorrah. They were going to get to heaven. And there's a lot tells us in the New Testament. He was a righteous man and vexed his righteous soul.
From day-to-day. So we may not even see in this lifetime the fruit of our efforts and seeking to serve the Lord, but it will be true. It was a lady that I know in the prisons. Her name is Ruth.
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She had godly Christian parents and sought to bring her up for the Lord. When she was 16 years old, she kicked the traces she left home. She said, I don't ever want to hear anybody tell me anything about the Word. I don't want a Bible in my house. I don't want them book in my house. And for 50 years nearly this woman lived a life for salt and put it for the devil. And at the end of that time, it actually could age 68.
This lady.
Tested and put in prison with a life sentence for murder. And there she was in prison at that age. And in that prison she read the gospel and she got saved. And remember standing there talking and where she was in the audience and she listened and listened. But she said, I just don't think that I could ever be saved. It's too late for me. I turned my back on too much light. And finally one day I walked in there and she came running up with a phase ready and enjoy.
And she said, you know, last time you were here, I went back to my room and I got down on my knees and I asked her to forgive me. And it seems he has never lived to see if we can belabor the food of bringing their children up to the Lord and praying for them on the same to be gone straight. But I get to heaven. We'll see that that effort was all worthwhile. It's all worthwhile. So Paul was saying, Timothy, don't be discouraged when you see don't see the results.
Of walking in obedience to the Lord and trying to strive according to the rules. You look at others who are cheating and doing it and taking shortcuts and doing it contrary to the word of God and seems like they're having great results. Timothy, it seems like nothings happening for you. Don't be discouraged. Labor comes first.
I only be a particular absolute well, this is consider what I say verse seven in the Lord give the understanding and all things. Remember that Jesus Christ, the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel. Well, thank you for going to labor for the Lord. We have to have an object and that object is the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul sets that forth in first Corinthians or in Hebrews chapter 12 he says.
Let us lay aside every weight and sin that does so easily, he says.
And run with patients to race, except before is looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher, the leader and completer of update good for the joy that was set before him endured the cross despising machine. And he says consider him who has endured such great a contradiction of sinners against himself, lest he be worried and faint in your body. That's what Paul, Simon, Timothy here consider the Lord Jesus think about what he went through. Have him ever before you.
Then you won't be discouraged seeking the good for the world of David. It was no brother. He's long wanted to be with the board. I think every time I saw him and he came to our assembly and traveled through there as a servant of the Lord, he would say to you these words. He'd say, what's that? What's up? Keep your eyes underneath. Jesus can't say that I always followed his advice, but I know that in the times when we do that, we don't get discouraged if you look around.
We get discouraged if we look within, we get discouraged, but if our eyes are on the word Jesus Christ, we're looking up. It won't be discouraged. So Paul, the same thing.
Remember. Remember Jesus Christ.
Well, this goes on here, it says.
In verse 12, If we suffer with him, we shall also reign with him.
There's the truth of reality when you suffer for the Lord. Some of us put this way, this is not our reigning time. This is our training time. This is not our waiting time. This is our training time. Everything that we suffer for the world is preparing us for that day and we're going to reign. Peter says the trial of your faith being made much more precious than gold will be tried with fire, but it might be found in the praise and glory about, oh Jesus Christ that is occurring. It is coming a day.
And all those things that have happened with sorrows and heartaches, we don't understand why they even happen. We never maybe see how they work together for good. As it says in Romans 828, one day it will all be on display for the praise and the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So verse 14 he says, Strive not about words to no prophet, but to the subverting of the hearers. Study to show thyself approved unto God, a Workman that needed not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the truth.
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Satan would seek to get us major in the minors. He would have us occupied with the minor things somebody said the other night and the other day, how we shot our shoes and whether we have that tie on, just riding all those things, how he was trying. Satan would have us occupied spending all of our energies with that. Well, there's no gospel outrage. There's a brethren fighting amongst ourselves and the truth is being neglected and so on. The Bible is not being good and all those things because.
We get majoring in your minors, but Paul says don't strive about words and more prophet, but study to show yourself and say study to be able to tell all your brother how to live and straighten them out. He's a study to show yourself that Timothy is individual. It's personal.
Approved unto God and work one that needed not to be shame rightly. I love this. Rightly dividing the truth.
Read in the Old Testament that says in those days Speaking of the days when Saul was king and says there was number Smith and in Israel.
So it was a time where there were those who couldn't, in my setting type, rightly divide the word of truth, those who couldn't sharpen the weapons of the soldiers of the Lord to go out to that need dismissed today. We need people who can understand the scriptures and rightly divide the root of God. And I was talking to somebody in prison once that had come into prison.
And seemed to be going on for the Lord bright happy testimony. And then they left and you know, I thought to myself when they left, I said, well, that person will never come back. They're really going on for the Lord. They won't be back here unless sometimes off in the right. You can tell those who are going to come back and those who but that's am I surprised about a year later this person was back. They violated the role in the back of prison. So I said to him when I saw him, I'm surprised to see you here.
I said, have you been reading your Bible and praying? He said of course now, but I wouldn't be back here.
No, I'm really much of a problem. So because we don't spend the time what we should in the word of God, this book is our spiritual food. The person is going to go out at a professional boxer and be involved in a fight. He wouldn't say, well, tomorrow I'm going to go and fight tomorrow evening. So I think that I'm just going to skip dinner tonight and skip breakfast tomorrow, skip lunch, and then I'll go out and meet my opponent and I'll be ready to meet him.
What happened to that person, he would very quickly run out of energy, run out of strength because he didn't have the fuel to go on in that battle. You know, sometimes it's Christians, you know, the weather, so tired, don't have energy hardly to sit down and do the Bible with our family at the dinner table and don't have time much to pray. And I don't seem to have any strength to be able to live as others because we don't spend the time that we should improve that. We spoke to my empire before leaving on this trip. I was sitting down with my brother Jim Kill company visiting.
He said, you know, brother, I find that if I want to maintain.
The attitude that I need to properly serve the Lord that all the attacks of the enemy are trying to stop the work. He said I need to spend at least three hours a day and we literally prepared. Well, I really spoke to me. So I have to say I don't know how to spend 3 hours a day in in the living fair. In fact, more often than not I do. I must confess that, but you need to spend that time. You will find that we're not zapped. It's spiritual. This is our our food. This is what we need to make the enemy so it says as newborn babes desire with sincere milk of the word.
You may grow your body.
Well, he goes on and here and he says verse 19. Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure having this seal the Lord knowing them what are his let everyone that name of the name of Christ depart from iniquity. Here it was a day when things were in such ruin that Timothy couldn't even tell who was saved and who wasn't. Paul says Lord knows them that are his, but those that are going on for the Lord, he says instruction depart from iniquity.
The great house there are vessels of gold and vessels of silver, muscle of wood and a bird, some to honor and some to dishonor. But if a man purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel in honor, sanctified in meek for the Master's use, prepared unto every good work. Flea also youthful lust that follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace with them to fall on the Lord out of pure heart. Foolish and unlearned questions avoid that maybe generous life.
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What we see in connection with the vessel, that if the vessel a person is going to be used to the Lord.
Also, there has to be a clean vessel, it has to be a clean vessel and so that vessel has to separate from those who are not going on for the boat. You're hanging around people who are going on and things that are contrary to the word of God and dishonor into the Lord. You go along and spend time with them. I don't say reaching out trying to help them, but to go along with them. Scripture says evil communication for what good matters. So they warns him about his company.
We we have that principle way back in the first chapter.
And it says God divided the light from the darkness, and what fellowship hath light? The darkness. So if I'm going to be used for the Lord, you need to be careful and I don't become contaminated, but I stay with us and be sanctified. One of the things that sanctifies us. Get it in Ephesians by the washing of water, by the Word. That's what's going to keep them clean, what they use for the Lord to be a clean vessel, you need to spend time in the middle of that.
Then he says go with those that fall on the Lord out of a pure heart as David he said I'm a companion of all them to hear thee Antifa cousins. Then in verse 24 he says the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men have to teach patience and meekness, instructing those that oppose themselves. If God for adventure will give them to repentance, give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. They may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive by them that they will, that is William.
Well, at the end he's saying remember Timothy his divorce were thought we were not able to do. Sometimes we think that if I don't get in there and get involved in this problem with the whole meeting is going to fall apart. But it's the words where he says certainly Lord must not strive and gentle unto all men at the beach. I remember the case of the sunny back home. Actually it was in Tacoma at the time. There was a brother that came out to some gospel meetings that we had and he seemed to have a real interest.
And the truth. And it wasn't long before he took his place at the Lord's table. And for about 6 months he seemed to go on very happily for the Lord. But then after about six months time, he began to look around his eyes off the road and he became very critical with his Brennan. In fact, he even criticized the clock on the wall.
Didn't think the meeting should be regulated by time. It's amazing we're getting a bad state of soul having little things we find to be critical about but.
Finally this brother left the meeting. He put coming for a while. So another brother and myself went to see him and we tried to reason with him through the word of God. I tried to encourage him to come back to the meeting, but all he did was sit there and criticize different rhetoric and assembly and so on.
And so once in a while I give him a call on the phone every couple of weeks and try to talk to him and encourage him for that. For a while, it just seemed that he just didn't want to be bothered. It's almost like I got the feeling that I was bugging him. So I told him on the other phone, I said, brother, I'm not going to call you anymore. So I get the feeling that you just want to be left alone. But I will pray for him. And if you ever I said, and I know there will be others that will be playing for you and if you ever want to come back to the meeting.
I'd be the first to want to hear about it.
If you, I said, have you ever missed the fellowship that we've enjoyed? I'd love to have that fellowship. Give me a call. But I said I'm not going to call you anymore. I'm just going to play for you.
Well, two years in the fight, never heard a thing. And that brother during those two years old little bits of pieces from others. God is land. And finally, one day the phone rang. I picked up the phone. There was this voice, strangely familiar on the other ends. Tim, this is so excited.
I've been a real jerk. He said, you know, ever since I went to me, I haven't been happy. He said I've been to the Open Brethren, I've been to the Baptist and you know, all these places. And he said all the time, I knew that exactly. But he said it's taken me this long, humble myself and come back. And he says I want to come back.
What brought him back and say the weather is being restored?
All of my efforts and the efforts of others to try to make him come back and to get him over the head. We might say the Scriptures, perhaps only Jordan farther away. There's a place for that also. Timothy, remember Timothy to serve on the Lord must not cry. It's the Lord the gentleman, the appetite should be ready to teach and maintenance, constructing those that oppose themselves. It's interesting that I oppose the truth and really only opposing myself. I'm my own worst enemy.
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When I turn away and I try to fight the principles of you would have done, but he says uniqueness, instructing those that cause themselves if God destroys work her adventure.
Will bring them give unto repentance to the acknowledging the truth, that they might recover themselves out of the snare of the desert. We've taken them captive as we.
Well, attendance gone if the word leads to perhaps we can take up this last two chapters in this book. We can look back and see in this first chapter how Paul sought to encourage to the faith and encourage him. And may the Lord help us to follow some of those principles and encouragement to others. And we see in this this second chapter the pathway of a believable and we can look at these examples of it as a soldier and a fruit farmer and an athlete.
And the vessel being formed and the Workman that needeth not to be ashamed, one that can write to the Bible truth. And the servant who doesn't strive, but is ready to be used in the Lord, and ready for what the Lord do. The Word. Somebody made the comment once about a number of great men about it. They said it was an average of 10 years and named off some familiar names that we could make tonight before these people came to the point of their life where they quit trying to work for the Lord.
And they were ready to let the Lord look through them.
The May the Lord bring us to death. We're not trying to do it in our own strength.
The vessel is ready to be muted and we have some new rich for us to do because we mentioned in the third chapter we get the resources first. We get the instruction about the last days and the conditions. And it's not the last days of the world that's mentioned there. I just made this point. It's the last days of professing Christendom. He doesn't say the world. He says those that are have a form of godliness but deny the power of their life and so.
You can pick it up tomorrow if we're still here and look at the last chapter and see service how we can go on to positive and serve the Lord that David made help with us. We could just.
Saying 296.
296.
And Brown?
Subscribe by British and well reigning all night faithful.
Staying proud, sweaty early.
Dark skinned.
Saturday.
Night.
James Brown in the air.
And heaven waiting.
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Hard ways and to work share the past life of lordly lost and one.