Unfinished: Here and Now
2016-09-11
Pastor Jonathan Falwell
Memory Verse:
2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:1-7 NKJV
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, 2 To Timothy, a beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 3 I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, 4 greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, 5 when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. 6 Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
God has placed us here and called us now for a purpose. Often in life, we struggle with questions, “Why am I here? Why was I even born? What’s the point?” Over the coming weeks, I want to use God’s Word to help us all see why we’re here, why the church exists, what’s the point of following Christ and…what does He want us to do?
It is vital to start this discussion by laying some groundwork from God’s Word. We will spend the next few weeks walking through the book of 2 Timothy. These are Paul’s final words to us yet are so important for all of us to understand from the outset. Paul was attempting to get in some key thoughts to Timothy before Paul was to be executed so that Timothy would carry on the great work. Let us think of these words in the same context as we read them. They were given to us so we will carry on the UNFINISHED work God has for us in life.
1. Life Exists Only In Christ
– vs 1b …according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,
– Not just life eternal
– LIFE HERE!
– Purpose & meaning in life is only found in a life lived for Christ
2. In a crazy world, hope only comes from Him
– vs 2b …Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
– While the world searches frantically for hope in hopeless situations, our hope is found in Him
– Grace, Mercy, Peace
– Grace – charis – of the merciful kindness by which God, exerting his holy influence upon souls, turns them to Christ, keeps, strengthens, increases them in Christian faith, knowledge, affection, and kindles them to the exercise of the Christian virtues
-Mercy – eleos – kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them
– Peace – eirēnē – of Christianity, the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is
3. Finding purpose in life starts with Him
– vs 3a I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience…
– “service”
– vs 4 greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy
– When our lives are fixed on serving Him, we desire to serve others
– Natural results = JOY
4. It’s been entrusted to us
– vs 5 when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also.
– This is a great gift given to us by others, for others, and to be passed on to others
5. Our starting point
– vs 6 Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.
– Stir up the gift…
– We must work diligently towards accomplishing what God has already placed within us
– Unique gifting to be used for the Kingdom
6. Peace through strength
– vs 7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
– While we live in a world gripped by fear, because of God, we should have none
– Power – dynamis – inherent power, power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature, or which a person or thing exerts and puts forth
– Love – agape – affection, brotherly love, care
– Sound Mind sōphronismos – an admonishing or calling to soundness of mind, to moderation and self-control
This is a pretty amazing picture painted by the opening verses of 2 Timothy. A picture of a life that is understands meaning and purpose, a life that is focused on being all we’re intended to be. It’s also the setup for a letter written to challenge Timothy, and us, to a great work. This is a great work because of the unfinished nature of our world. God has a plan, a purpose and a mission for all of us to reach this world with truth, the Gospel. It’s an UNFINISHED WORK ENTRUSTED TO US!