Sermon Central
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John Piper's Journey From Pulpit To Poetry
By SermonCentral .com on Feb 17, 2026
"I was so moved that the desire to say it again another way kept urging me on. So I wrote this."
John Piper's Journey From Pulpit to Poetry
In a world glittering with distractions and shifting truth claims, Paul’s charge to Timothy is simple and urgent: stay. Stay in what you have learned. Stay in the sacred writings. Stay in the light of God’s inspired Word. This poem captures that pastoral plea, portraying Scripture not as dry doctrine but as a radiant world within the world, a firmament of clarity amid confusion. The Word is not illusion, not sentiment, not inherited fantasy. It is God-breathed reality that nourishes, guides, exposes shadow, and reveals the King. To remain in Scripture is to remain in light, wisdom, joy, and life itself.
After preaching on the inestimable value of God’s inspired word on August 11th, I was so moved that the desire to say it again, another way kept urging me on. So I wrote this poem.
The Truth
A Meditation on 2 Timothy 3:14–17
Stay, Timothy. Stay in this firmament,
This world of light within the world. Relent
From wandering, from chasing mist. Remain!
Outside awaits the glistening world, insane.
Stay, Timothy. This sky, this vast terrain
Where you now stand, is not a painting, vain.
Nor is your mother fanciful. God wrought
This world. You were not fooled, but brought.
Stay, Timothy. A thousand flowers, fraught
With heaven's milk and holy fragrance ought
To make you stop, so strewn with deity
This sacred garden spreads. Eternally.
Stay, Timothy, my son, and do not be
A fool. The brightness here is how you see
Your way to heav'n. And there is shadowing
That shows in silhouette your shining King.
Stay, Timothy. Remember, everything
In this bright world is beneficial. Sing,
And feast on holy food, and taste the way
Of love. Then it will be your joy to stay.
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