Open—Nick Simon
DISCLAIMER: The following has been auto-transcribed. We hope it will help you to find the section of this audio file you are looking for.
In the meetings that we had from Luke 12, we spoke a little on some of the difficulties we face in this world. And it's easy to become anxious about circumstances. It's also easy to become discouraged because of the circumstances that we see around us. And I know in the meetings that Jim and maybe others too touched on.
Uh, second Timothy.
And so in, uh, Paul's epistle to Second Timothy in particular, I find it very personal, very personal to Timothy, very personal to myself. But here was a young man that had gotten discouraged, just, uh, backing up a little in connection with what we had in Luke. There the Lord was preparing his disciples for that which would come upon them after his death.
They looked for redemption in Israel.
And the Kingdom wasn't going to come, not at that time. And we know that in the first seven chapters of Acts that we have the testimony of the Holy Spirit. And as was mentioned in the meetings at the end of Stephen's testimony, when he was modded, the witness of the Holy Spirit, it too was rejected. So not only was Christ rejected, but with his.
In the coming of the Holy Spirit, the testimony of the Holy Spirit was also rejected. The 8th chapter we have the bringing of the Samaritans of the 9th chapter we have the Apostle Paul coming in. And then Peter's role diminishes and Paul's role rises, and we have Christian truth beginning to be developed. And historically in the book of Acts, I should say so, even though at the end of Acts 7, Israel nationally.
Was done with them, they were imprisoned as it were, which what we have at the end of Luke 12. They missed their opportunity. God still continued to work with Jews individually. So you have the book of Hebrews. Again, God pleading with those that had outwardly identified with that saved remnant amongst Israel, but persecution had come in.
And there was a fear on the, I believe the apostle Paul wrote the book of Hebrews, but it's actually not good to dwell on that point because the Lord Jesus himself is uniquely the the apostle in, uh.
The Epistle to the Hebrews. But they were looking around them and seeing persecution, and they were beginning to question what they were associated with. And so likewise in our own lives when difficulties come in, when difficulties come in, perhaps in our personal lives, when difficulties come into the assembly, it's very easy for us to start second, second guessing what the Lord has for us.
And we have a real tendency.
To go one of either two ways, but let's just turn to Haggai for a a brief moment. I'm not going to go through anything thoroughly, but just as an encouragement to yourselves and to myself too.
So when persecution comes in, it's very easy to say, well, now is not the time and we'll get back to Second Timothy because that's essentially what Timothy was saying. Now is not the time. And in Haggai we find that in verse four, chapter one, it is, umm, sorry, not the fourth verse.
Uh, MMM.
Yeah, verse 2, Thank you. That's because the Lord of hosts saying this, people say the time is not come, the time that the Lord's house should be built. And so one of our tendencies in the face of opposition, in the face of discouragement, the face of giving up, is to, uh, become occupied with our own concerns and not the concerns of God.
And the, the book of Haggai is a, a simple book to read. It's a very good book to, to go through in your own time and to read what it has to say. They said now is not the time to build the Lord's houses. So they become, they came focused on their own houses. They came focused, they put ceilings in them. That might not seem like very much, but in that day, apparently putting a ceiling in your home was quite the mark of, of uh.
Success.
But the Lord has to reprove them and they have to repent. They have to recognize their failure. Now, if you go back to the book of Ezra where this fits, you might say they had every reason in the world to believe that now was not the time to build God's house. But you know, we have hearts that look for opportunities to give up.
00:05:22
And that's what they did in Ezra's day, sure.
The king and those around them, uh, opposed, were opposed to what they were doing. But God doesn't look at that. He looks at their heart and they have to first of all address the state of their own hearts. It's very easy to look at the assembly and all the problems in the assembly and say, well, this can't be the place where the Lord would have me.
And leave. We can very easily say there's nothing for my children here. There's nothing.
But if we dig a little deeper, I think we'll find the issue lies within our own hearts. And as I said, I don't intend to go through the book of Haggai, but it's broken up into five prophecies. They're each dated. So the first one begins in the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month. In the first day of the month came the word of the Lord.
By Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel, and then the next prophecy. The date of it comes at the end of the prophecy, as mentioned in the last verse of the first chapter. In the four and 20th day of the six months. In the second year Darius the king.
And the message that came had to have been the shortest prophecy that we find in the Word of God in verse 13. It gives us the actual prophecy. So then spake Haggai, the Lord's messenger, in the Lord's message under the people saying, I am with you. And in Hebrew, that's two words. That was the end of the second prophecy.
I am with you.
And it just reminds me of some of the encouragement, encouraging words that we read there in loop 12.
I am with you, what more do we need? You know, when umm, uh, Gideon was called, there was two things that the Lord told Gideon and that's all he needed to know.
And uh, you don't have to turn to a Judges 6 and verse 12.
The Lord, the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him and said, the Lord is with thee. And then the second one I think is in verse 14, it says, have not I sent thee. That's all he needed. He didn't have to look at circumstances. He didn't have to look within. He didn't have to say, wow, I'm the least in Israel, why pick me? God said, I'm with you, I have sent you. That's all you need to know, Gideon.
Now let's go back to to Timothy.
Timothy had been the Apostle Paul's faithful companion. We know quite a bit about him personally. If you dig through Scripture, we as was brought out in the meetings, he was apparently somewhat a timorous young man. He was young. We're told that he was probably 20 years younger than the apostle Paul. Umm, he was timorous and in the first epistle.
The first letter that Paul writes to him.
He had to tell him in the 4th chapter, the 14th verse. Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy.
He was timid. He needed encouragement to exercise the gift that he had received. But when we get to the second epistle and the verse was read in the meetings there, it says in verse six of the first chapter. Wherefore I put in remembrance that they'll stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting all of my hands. The word stir up could be translated rekindle. It wasn't a question now of a timid young man afraid to use his gift. He had used his gift.
He had used it in the service of the Lord apparently, and Paul sent him to Ephesus. You find that in the the 1St letter, but he was a young man who was discouraged and he had given up and read this first chapter and read it as if, as it is a letter to an individual to Timothy. Read it as if it's a letter.
To you and to me. And we find at the end of that first chapter the well known verses where the apostle Paul says this. Thou knowest that all they which are in Asia be turned away.
00:10:01
From me all those in Asia have turned away from me that include Ephesus, that include colossi included Philippi, included Legacia.
They all turned away from the apostle Paul and Timothy thinking to himself, now is not the time. And what Paul tells him in this in this second letter is Timothy, now is the time.
As things get weaker.
And, and we see it on every side. We feel it ourselves. You know, the book of Judges is a tremendously encouraging book because the individuals that God raised up in the book of Judges are all very flawed individuals. So if you're looking for perfection.
In those that labor amongst you.
You're not gonna find it. You will not find it.
And so here Paul encourages Timothy. He says, uh, well, we don't have, I don't intend to go through it all, just bring out some, some important points. In the last chapter of the previous letter Paul had written to Timothy, he says, you have been entrusted a deposit.
We've been given a deposit of truth, and everyone in this room has received a deposit of truth. And there was something very interesting in the 12Th chapter of Luke that wasn't brought out in the meetings. And remember, what we have in Luke, though we can find parallel portions in Matthew, is not prophetic, but it's bringing out moral principles that gives us a good deal of flexibility as to how we can apply them.
So in loop 12.
It said in verse 48, in verse 47, the servant which knew his Lord's will and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
You have received much. You have greater responsibility, but not about it says in verse 48. But he that knew not, and did not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be excused.
No, it doesn't say that. It says he shall be, uh, beaten with few stripes. We mentioned in the meetings that there was a degree of punishment. Have you ever thought that you. So I started out by saying everyone in this room has received a deposit of truth. You can block your ears, you can pretend you've never heard of it, but even if you haven't heard it, you're still going to be held responsible.
We have the word of God before us. You cannot plead ignorance before God.
You cannot walk out this room and pretend that you've never heard the truth concerning the church. You cannot, you cannot back up and say, well, I wish to be identified with Sadas.
With fire tire, heaven forbid.
Which is the Roman Catholic Church.
Note we have received the deposit of truth. What are you are we going to do with it? And so in second Timothy, the end of that first chapter, we find that that deposit of truth is mentioned again. He says in verse, Paul says to Timothy in verse 13, hold fast the form of sound words which I was heard of me in faith and love, which is in Christ Jesus.
That good thing. And in the new translation it says keep by the Holy Ghost, which dwells in us. The good deposit entrusted Timothy, you have received a deposit of truth.
Despite circumstances, despite what you see around you, despite the fact that you see that I have been rejected. And that brought Timothy to tears.
Paul says it's not the time to give up. It's not the time to let go of these things. It's not time to give up on Paul's doctrine.
You know the.
The uh, churches of Asia.
Gave up on the Apostle Paul.
But the apostle Paul never gave up on the churches of Asia. We turn now to the last chapter.
We see there in verse 12 The apostle Paul says Antichecus have I sent to Ephesus.
Technicus I have sent to Ephesus all they have. Asia have turned away from me, but I'm not going to give up on them.
00:15:03
It's just that really wraps up what I had to say. There's one other thing that I've been exercised about of Light and that has caused Dimas. I don't wish to speak at length on him, but Deemeth hath forsaken me, having loved his present world, and departed into Thessalonica.
You know, it doesn't say Dimas gave up the faith that simply that Dimas have loved this present world.
Again, it's, it's easy, just like the, uh, those Israelites in the days of Ezra when things are going difficult around us to let go, to give up, to look for, umm, whatever it is that we're seeking in the world.
Wealthiness has been the ruin of the church.
And I'm not here to tell you what is worldly and not what is not worldly.
I think we know in our hearts what that is, but each age has its own trials, its own, umm, challenges that is faced with and I can't go back to a previous era and try to live like they live. I have challenges in this modern world and as we had in the last meeting.
That Satan tries to trick me with to pull me away with.
To turn me aside with.
But the Weld has been the ruin of the church. And you could go through the seven churches in the chapters two and three of Revelation and you can see that downward progression as the, uh, well, I'll, I'll, I'll, I'll read a note, a list that I put in my Bible. Umm.
Brother Robert Bullard was in Denver recently and he encourages to make lists.
And put them in our bibles because I don't have a good memory.
But uh, if I can, umm, so in emphasis, we do have an assembly that is separate from the world. Smyrna, which was that period between about 100 AD and 300 AD, was the persecuted church there we find the church persecuted by the well, they didn't, they didn't have a choice. The world persecuted them. You don't make that, you don't make friends with.
Someone that persecutes you. But with Pergamos we find the Church receiving the protection of the world, and she settles down into the world. With Thyatir, which of course is that great system of Rome, we find the Church ruling the world. With Sadas, which is partisanism, you can go back historically and look at it. We find that the Church sought the world's protection.
Came at a cost.
In Philadelphia we have a remnant separate from the world, so it's an exception in this list. But by the time we get to Laodicea, we have a Christianity that's completely indistinguishable from the world.
Just some.
Things to one for our conscience and also for our heart and and on that note, so Haggai, it's interesting, the Lord sent two profits to Israel at that time, Hagia and Zechariah Haggai spoke to their conscience. He said why are you living in? Why are you plastering the insides of your home when my house is going unfinished straight to the conscience.
You want to read Ministry to the conscience that there's various right? Reaching CHM, uh, Macintosh.
If we spoke like Macintosh wrote, umm, people would walk out the doors.
Umm, I find it very pointed, uh, for my own self. But God also said another prophet, Zechariah, which lifted their eyes to that which was beyond. He spoke uh, a word of encouragement to their hearts. Now we highly live in eyes of the days of Haggai and Zechariah. We live in the days of Malachi.
But again, we find that word of encouragement at the end of Malachi Malachi 316.
00:20:06
#2 in the attendance.
OK, I saw that.
All right, now it's been a year ago. I won't do it.
To me.
Perhaps we could stand and sing the last two verses as a prayer to the Lord.
OK.
My Lord.
Jesus.
Must I instead when we?
00:25:00
Are doing I am ill.
Our blessed Lord Jesus.
Had before us suffering at the hands of man.
And thy sufferings at the hand of God.
We thank thee for thyself, Lord.
Had brought before us.
Setting our minds on the.
And glory.
Things about.
Not being discouraged.
We think he.
That our hope is in the.
We thank you. That's our dear friend.
Help us to.
Commune with teeth.
To see the world for what it is.
The systems of this world.
See thy heart of love.
For ones who are treading on.
Broadway to destruction.
Help us to enjoy thyself for Jesus.
Keep us close to the.
We get the all the praise and glory, the honor. That's me with our worthy.
And when we see the Lord Jesus.
Shall any of these things down here?
Matter.
Oh.
Fix our eyes on the.
So we commit ourselves to the.
Now worthy and blessed name, Lord Jesus, Amen.