A Legacy Of Faith Series

INTRODUCTION

• SLIDE #1

• What was the memory verse from last week?

• What about from 2 weeks ago?

• Today I am going to give you a memory verse break.

• Today we will be in 2 Timothy 3:14-15. This is not one of the verses I have committed to memory, but it is a good one to remember. Next week’s message from 2 Timothy 3:16-17 is another life verse we will look at. You can get a head start on it.

• Today is a day in which we recognize our mothers. It is a day that society honors the institution of motherhood.

• Being a mother is not an easy thing, I am not sure it has ever been easy.

• I want to bring you a message that not only applies to mothers, but it is a message that we can all learn from.

• I believe a question that all of us, not only parents ask is, “How can I make a difference in the life of another person. For parents, the question boils down to what kind of a difference can I make in the life of my child.

• I hope for all of us the question is addressed to all the lives we touch as we live.

• What can you give to those you love that will make an eternal difference? What can you give to someone that will help them to be able to handle the pressures of life?

• Can you think of any material items you can give to someone that would help them to be able to better handle the pressures of life?

• Today I am going to share something with you that you can give to another person that will make an eternal difference in their life.

• Today we are going to explore “A Legacy of Faith.”

• What is a legacy? According to the dictionary, it means: something that is handed down or remains from a previous generation or time.

• If you have your bibles with you, let us turn to 2 Timothy 3:14-15.

• As we look at our text, we need to understand the context of the chapter.

• Paul is explaining to the young evangelist Timothy, that there would be hard times ahead for him.

• He tells them in the first part of the chapter that people will be self-centered, not wanting to hear the truth. He shares with him that these people will drag other people down with them.

• In verse 12 he tells Timothy that everyone who desires to live a godly life will be persecuted.

• People will be deceived and will deceive others.

• We are going to learn from Paul how we can stand strong in the face of opposition, how we can stand firm when things are not going well in life.

• Paul is going to tell Timothy that in order to stand strong, he will need to continue to follow the legacy of faith that was given to him. We will look at where that legacy came from in a few minutes.

• The first thing we need to understand is that a legacy of faith will help us to stand firm.

• SLIDE #2

SERMON

I. A LEGACY OF FAITH WILL HELP YOU TO STAND FIRM.

• When you are going through difficult times, you need something to anchor your self to in order to be endure the times. Where do you turn when the chips are down?

• What gets you though the problems that life throws at you?

• Timothy was going to face a lot of opposition, opposition that could make him want to abandon his faith.

• Look at part of verse 14 with me.

• SLIDE #3

• 2 Timothy 3:14 (NASB) 14You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of,…

• If Timothy is going to be able to withstand the attack on his faith he will endure, he is told to continue in the things he learned and that he was convinced of!

• To continue means to abide, to live.

• Jesus uses the same word in a few places "If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples" (John 8:31; cf. John 15:4-7), and "if you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love" (John 15:10; cf. 1 John 4:16).

• SLIDE #4

• John 8:31 (NASB) 31So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;

• Timothy was given a legacy of faith so that he would continue to live in that legacy.

• Notice the faith he has is not a faith that he was born into in the sense that he took no ownership of it, it is something that he had learned and had become convinced of its truthfulness.