I Will Be Faithful to the End
Introduction:
Over the past few weeks we have talked about different commitments that we can and should make. We have talked about being better witnesses, better stewards, better students of the Word and better servants for Christ. In all we do we need to strive to grow in our faithfulness to God and not just remain stagnant and not digress spiritually. Too many people are content with the status quo of a lukewarm life.
Our goal is to live a faithful life. I hope that the greatest desire that wells up within you is to live a life that is pleasing to God. In the world though there are many things that we may encounter which can remove us from the course that we are on. The Bible likens the Christian life to a race, and we are instructed to run in such a way as to win the prize. In other words we need to give our best efforts. Those things that may come against you may tempt you to quit the race or divert to a different course, but we must press on. Statistically speaking there are some here who will turn away from their faith, there are some that will die outside of the Lord. My encouragement to everyone here today is that we might make a commitment to be faithful until the end. Whether you know it or not at your baptism that is the promise you were making and sealing before God. The vows we make at our baptism are very similar to wedding vows. We promise to love and to cherish and to remain faithful no matter what outer circumstances come our way. Like with people’s wedding vows though, many times they are nothing more than mere words that sound nice, idealistic and poetic, with not one shred of truth behind them. I hope today you remember that promise, and though you may be tempted I hope that you are able to say firmly that there is nothing that can move me or divert me from my goal and that is seeing the Lord in Heaven one day.
In our society faithfulness and commitment to anything is hard to find. It is hard to find people willing to be faithful to their relationships, to their families, to their responsibilities and even to their faith. It seems that whenever things get a little difficult or when things don’t go the way one wants them to go the best response they can come up with is quitting and not perseverance. We though are called to persevere regardless of our circumstances. We have a duty and an obligation to be faithful to the end. However, there are many things, which can cause us to get off track, but we need to commit ourselves to being faithful.
I believe remaining faithful in a conscious choice that we make. Each day we make decisions about what we are going to do and how we are going to live our lives. We make choices of either giving into temptations that we face or standing strong against those temptations. We must make conscious choices in order to remain faithful though. We can see those choices naturally displayed in the life of the Apostle Paul near the end of His life. As Paul wrote many of his letters that we have in our Bibles he was in prison, and the last known thing Paul ever wrote was his second letter to his young disciple, Timothy. As Paul wrote this letter he was in prison awaiting his execution, he knew without a doubt that his time on this Earth was running out, and we read of this faith filled encouragement, which marks the end of a life dedicated to Jesus, a life which longed for His appearing, a life that Paul lived faithfully until the end. In this last chapter of the last known letter we have of Paul’s we see what made him faithful until the end, and that too should be our goal to be able to say what he did as we near the end of our lives. I hope that we all can strive to be faithful to God in every way and in every aspect of our lives.
Text: II Timothy 4:6-18
Paul spoke of how his life was coming to a close, and that he had fought the good fight, he had finished the course and he had kept the faith, will you be able to say that as your life draws to a near? What a beautiful picture of a life that God rewards!
The faithfulness, which we are called to, is faithfulness to the Lord in every aspect of life. This means we need to be committed to the church and the work of the church. We need to be committed and faithful in the way we live our lives even outside of the church. We need to be committed to obeying the commands of God.
I. Cherish the Fellowship of the Saints
As you read of these last words of the Apostle Paul, what stands out more than anything else as he sat in a prison cell somewhere was how he longed for the fellowship of the saints! He spoke of how he was all alone and no one was there with him. Sometimes we do not realize how great something is until we do not have it any longer. I want to encourage you as the Scriptures do numerous places, to cherish the fellowship of the saints.
Acts 15:36-40
Paul and Barnabas came to a great dispute over the issue of taking John Mark with them on their second missionary trip. The previous trip as they traveled John Mark deserted them and left them. When they were to leave a second time Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them, but Paul didn’t like that idea. Essentially Paul was saying, hey he left us the first time he will do it again; he is not a benefit to our service or ministry. Barnabas disagreed taking the opinion that John Mark should be gives a second chance. The dispute was so great that Paul and Barnabas split ways. Here in Acts 15 Paul is saying, John Mark is not useful. He changes his mind somewhere between there and the end of his life.
II Timothy 4:11
If you read through this chapter you see a list of names and gain the impression that Paul longed for the fellowship of the saints. How important is the fellowship of God’s people to each of us today? I would suggest it is a vital and necessary part of our faith. If we want to remain faithful to the end then we may need to help of our brothers and sisters in Christ. We may need the strength and encouragement that they can provide. We learn that as iron sharpens iron so one man sharpens another. We need that sharpening, yet so many Christian people have no contact with the saints. They make no effort to be together when God’s people meet on the Lord’s Day, and if they do they make no effort to truly fellowship. Your presence alone is not what God wants as we gather together; he also wants your participation. It is a sad thing to see Christians come in last second and leave quickly without ever taking the time to encourage and to be encouraged by one another. Doesn’t that essentially make your trip a waste of time? I love to see after church people lingering around, talking, encouraging, and fellowshipping with one another. That is where we draw strength. That is where we really grow. We grow more in those times sitting together with fellow Christians talking about the Lord than we do from one hundred sermons combined. I really want to encourage you when you come to attend a service here don’t come just to fill a spot in a pew thinking you have done your service, but stay and find someone to encourage and allow others to encourage you. You cannot do that if you are in and out before anyone can see you.
Why did Paul so badly want the fellowship of his dear friends in the Lord? Maybe because he loved them and wanted to give them some final encouragements. I would assume more than that was because he needed their encouragement himself. We cannot make it through this life on our own, we need the fellowship of the saints, and we need the encouragement we can gain from one another. Without that strong fellowship it becomes increasingly more difficult to live a faithful life. I have been asked can a person be a Christian without going to church? That is kind of like asking if their can be a soldier without an army, a ball player without a team, or a sailor without a ship. Why would a Christian not long to be in the fellowship of people of like faith. For the early church we get the impression that they treasured opportunities to fellowship with one another as they devoted themselves to the Apostle’s teaching and to the fellowship, they met together daily. We need fellowship to strengthen us so we can live faithful until the end.
II. Cherish the Council of the Word
II Timothy 4:13
As Paul was nearing the end of his life, this chapter is a good indicator for what was really important to him. In the midst of all the chaos that must have been going on in his life at that time, he took time for one personal request. He asked for his cloak, some books, but especially the parchments he said. We do not have any way of knowing exactly what the books were or what the parchments were specifically. I though have a speculation of what the parchments were. I believe they were scrolls or copies of Scripture. He wanted his cloak, he wanted some books, which also could have been some Scripture, but he especially wanted the parchments, they were a priority for him. I cannot help but to imagine that Paul wanted the Scriptures to read. Why did he want them so badly? He was near the end of his life, what good would learning more or gaining more knowledge do for him? I do not know exactly what Paul wanted or why he wanted the Scriptures, but I would assume he cherished the council from the Word of God. I would assume that he understood that as he told the Romans, “faith comes from hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” I would assume he remembered what he told Timothy that, “all Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching correcting, rebuking, and training in righteousness.” I am sure he knew and understood that Jesus embodied that Word and that the Word was the way in which God reveal himself to mankind. I am sure he knew and understood that the Bible is the only source of Truth and that within those parchments were God’s instructions and the standard by which he would soon be judged. I am sure he understood that the Word was Living and active, and that what was written was written for our encouragement, and those things on those parchments even applied to an aging Apostle near the end of His life. He knew that the Word was still of use to him.
Perhaps he wanted it to share some truth with others. Perhaps he wanted it for strength to withstand temptations. Perhaps he wanted it for wanting to know God even more that he already did. Perhaps he wanted it for the searching of the soul that takes place as one reads the Word. Whatever the case may be Paul made it clear that he wanted those parchments. If the word was that valuable to him, how much more valuable should it be to us. If you want to stay faithful until the end it cannot take place without the council and guidance from the Word of God. Do you like Paul crave the Word? No matter how old you are, how mature you may be, no matter what standing you feel you have with God we all still need the council from the Word. If Paul as his life neared an end saw a great need for the Word and to read it, how much more shall we need the council from God’s Holy Word?
III. Cherish the Hope of His Coming
II Timothy 4:8, 18
You see in this passage also that Paul was able to make it through this difficult situation because of His hope, which was not in this Earth, but in Heaven. He knew and understood several things that made his hardships a little easier to bear. He knew and understood that he was a servant of Christ and that every situation he was in, he could use that as an opportunity to advance the kingdom. He knew that there was more than just this life, therefore he knew and trusted in the promise of Heaven. This is exactly what Paul was referencing in verse 8, of how he longed for the coming of Jesus.
In order for us to be able to make it through this life and remain faithful until the end we must cherish the hope of His coming. This does not just mean that we believe that He is coming and that we believe in life after death, but it means that we really cherish the thought of the return of Jesus and the idea of spending eternity with God. When temptations begin to get overwhelming and you feel tempted to fall into sin remember the promise of His coming and cherish the hope of Heaven, remind yourself your reward is coming. When life seems overwhelming and you are dealing with trials and difficulties that get you down remember the promise of His coming and cherish the hope of Heaven, remind yourself that you have a promise of a life free from those heartaches and trials. When doubts begin to creep into your mind remember the promise of His coming and cherish the hope of Heaven, remind yourself that one day all you placed your faith in will become sight and each day that passes by makes us one day closer to eternity.
When we consider the hope of His coming and the promise of Heaven it makes this life a little easier, it makes our trials a little more bearable, and it makes own mortality our greatest victory.
IV. Beware of Stumbling Blocks
We always need to be on our guard against those things, which may cause us to stumble. The Hebrew writer said it like this, “let us throw off the sin that so easily entangles us.” One way that we can remain faithful is to keep watch for those things, which may cause us to stumble and remove them from our lives.
The danger of a stumbling block…
a. They Can Influence Your Doctrine
II Timothy 4:3-5
Paul wanted to make sure towards the end of his life he gave one final warning. He warned about some hurtful people whom Timothy should beware of and he warned against the danger of false teaching. He warned of false teachers who would come. In chapter 2 he even mentioned two other teachers by name that they should watch out for. There are many false teachers out there that we need to guard against because they can influence our doctrine. There are many things out there, which seek to shape the way we think. We need to guard against those stumbling blocks.
b. They Can Influence Your Actions
II Timothy 4:14-15
Last words are always interesting to me; they seem to greatly reveal something about a person. Some of Paul’s last words were words of warning about people that may cause his brothers and sisters in Christ some spiritual harm. He warned of this man named Alexander who the people should beware of. The reason why Paul spoke like this was he was trying to guard the church the best that he could. He knew and understood that it does not take much for evil people to come and influence people’s actions and lead people astray. He knew that as he said in I Corinthians that bad company does corrupt good character. I believe we too need to greatly guard the company that we keep. Beware of stumbling blocks and people that can negatively influence your actions. We have to be careful whom we hang around because we have a tendency to become like those we spend time with. This can be a good or a bad thing. It can be good because there are people that can help us to be better people, but there are also those which can cause us to stumble and can influence our actions
II Timothy 3:1-5
We have revealed to us what is right and what is wrong. God tells us what he expects and we can even learn about what we should believe and what our attitude should be like. I find it discouraging though that much of what God tells us we should do is the opposite of the message of our culture. Therefore we need to be very careful not to conform to this world. It is very easy to let this world shape us, but we should be shaped by the Word. If you read those warning Paul gave about that we just read we see that those are the messages our world brings to us, but they are contrary to the message God reveals to us. Perhaps today you need to get stumbling blocks out of your way. Maybe you need to remove some things, which negatively influence you and may cause you to stumble.
Matthew 5:29-30
Let us do our best to get stumbling blocks out of our lives at all costs, whether they be relationships, addictions, temptations, things we watch that may influence our minds and language, things we listen to which could impact us. Many may say that those things do not influence them, but I would give you a warning before it is too late not to let the Devil get a foothold and not to allow something to cause you to sin, if something causes you to sin, remove it from your life.
I do not know if this is because I am weak, but from time to time there are things in my life, which I have to eliminate so that I will not stumble. Sometimes those things I eliminate are in order to prevent the next step. Sometimes those things I choose to eliminate some may not consider wrong, but they are things that for me could cause me to sin or may negatively influence me. There are some shows on television I refuse to watch because I do not want to endorse them or be influenced by their language, philosophy or their agenda. I would rather make sacrifices and give up things than be stuck in a situation where I am rooted in sin. Most of the time the great danger is that the things which cause us to stumble we do not recognize as stumbling blocks until we have stumbled and then many times it is too late, the damage has been done. The danger of stumbling blocks is that once we have fallen over them many times we have already become calloused or hardened or shaped by them. Let us avoid the pain of the fall and remove stumbling blocks from our paths.
There is nothing in our lives worth holding onto if it will cause us separation from God. If you want to be able to say, I will be faithful until the end guard against and remove stumbling blocks from your path so that your way is made a little easier.
V. Beware of the Devil’s Schemes
II Timothy 4:17
We have taught numerous times that the Devil’s end and demise is certain. In the mean time he wants to take as many people with Him as he can. I am not going to lie to you and tell you that it is easy to take your stand against the Devil’s schemes, but he is cunning and crafty, even masquerading as an angel of light. His temptations can be strong, but we must overcome! We must beware of the Devil’s traps. He will see to lead us astray by the lust of our eye, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life. In other words by things that may seem to look appealing, feel appealing, or make ourselves more appealing to others. We must be on our guard.
So, why should we remain faithful? Why does it really matter? It matters because our faithfulness here during this life has everything to do with the reward we will receive. I love the thought of the words we will hear as we stand before God at judgment. I do not get the picture there will be a long and drawn out speech given to anyone, just one of two phrases we will hear and it will have everything to do whether or not we finish the course, fight the good fight, and keep the faith! We will either hear depart from me you evildoer or well done my good and faithful servant. I can’t wait to hear those words, but until then here is what I am going to do. I am going to do my best to learn as much as I can and to become more like Christ in my words, actions and thoughts. I am going to serve Him to the best of my ability; working diligently for the Kingdom and to advance it’s cause. And I am going to fight the good fight and finish the course marked out for me as I keep my eyes fixed upon Jesus. I will not let the Devil entice me, the worlds trap me or conform me, and I will not let evil people advance against me. I will not give in to my own evil desires, but I will be faithful until the end.
Revelation 2:10
