Our Victory is Certain
II Timothy 4:16-18
Purpose: To describe the commitment we should have to serving Christ.
Aim: I want the listener to be inspired to stand up for Christ every day without wavering.
INTRODUCTION: If anyone had ever had a reason to be afraid and discouraged it would have been Paul as we find him here in a Roman jail writing to one of his closest friends. His public ministry had been taken away from him, his freedom as well as his friends were also gone. He was alone and he knew he was about to die. He didn’t even have a coat to keep him warm in the fast approaching winter.
Faithful followers of Jesus Christ often have to go through times of hardship and loneliness. John Paton, a Scotsman who lived a hundred years ago, was no exception. He took the gospel to the New Hebrides in the South Pacific, today’s Vanuatu. Within months his wife and son died. But Paton spent the rest of his life, until he was an old man, planting the church on the Islands. He quoted Jesus’ words, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age," then said, "Precious promise! How often I adore Jesus for it, and rejoice in it! Blessed be his name" [John G. Paton: Missionary to the New Hebredes, An Autobiography Edited by His Brother, p. 154 Quoted from a sermon by John Piper, The Lord Stood By Me...That All the Nations Might Hear”]
Once he was surrounded by a mob seeking his life. He hid in a tree above them and spent a terrifying night there. He wrote later,
"Yet I sat there among the branches, as safe in the arms of Jesus. Never, in all my sorrows, did my Lord draw nearer to me, and speak more soothingly in my soul . . . as I told all my heart to Jesus. . . . I will not grudge to spend many nights alone in such a tree, to feel again my Savior’s spiritual presence, to enjoy His consoling fellowship.” [John G. Paton: Missionary to the New Hebredes, An Autobiography Edited by His Brother, p. 200 Quoted from a sermon by John Piper, The Lord Stood By Me...That All the Nations Might Hear”]
✔ How can we have a positive outlook when we are living in a negative situation? As we come to verses 16-19 we can’t help but notice Paul’s unwavering positive outlook on the future.
REVIEW:
1:1-2:13 I. How Should a Christian React to Stress?
2:14-26 II. How Should a Christian Relate to Fellow Believers?
3:1-17 III. How Can a Christian Reside in a Hostile Culture?
4:1-22 IV. How Can a Christian Remain Faithful to Christ?
LESSON:
Vs.16-19 D. Have confidence in God’s plan
Paul sketched out God’s plan for us in the first 8 verses of this chapter:
Vs.1-5 A. Put first things first “preach the word”
Vs.6-8 B. Focus on the joy of our reward “crown of righteousness”
Then Paul showed us that it is important to
Vs.9-15 C. Ask others for help “come to me soon”
Vs.16 1. Especially when other Christians fail “no one supported me”
It was customary under Roman law for accused prisoners to have a preliminary hearing before their trial. At this hearing, witnesses could speak on behalf of the accused. In Paul’s case no one had come to his defense.[Bailey, M., Constable, T., Swindoll, C. R., & Zuck, R. B. (1999). Nelson’s New Testament Survey : Discover the Background, Theology and Meaning of Every Book in the New Testament (487). Nashville: Word.]
When other Christians are not faithful, it should motivate us to work even harder for the Lord. When we see that others are not standing in the gap, we should see even more reason to be faithful where God has put us. Ezekiel 22:30 “I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one. (NAU)
God used a situation like that in my life once. I gave my life to Christ when I was 12 years old. Around that time, my brother, who is three years older than I am, also came to Christ. Several years later he felt that God was calling him to preach. But then, it appeared that he was not living very close to the Lord. I remember telling the Lord that even though I didn’t feel called to preach, I would be willing to take my brother’s place and serve the Lord. Thankfully, my brother got his life straightened out and he has been serving the Lord faithfully ever since. It wasn’t until many years later that I sensed God’s call on my life to serve him as a pastor.
Notice that Paul treats the unfaithfulness of fellow believers much differently than he does an enemy of the gospel in verse 14. He trusts that God will punish those who oppose the Gospel, but his desire is that the weakness of other believers won’t be held against them.
This is proof that Paul loved the ones who abandoned him. 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 4 Love . . . does not take into account a wrong suffered, (NAU)
When other believers abandon their post and give in to the pressures or the pleasures of this life, we should respond with a concern for them rather than with a concern for the extra work they are leaving for us. After all, I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13 NAU)
Vs.17 2. Because God has never failed “But the Lord stood with me”
The words,“But the Lord...” give us the biggest possible contrast. Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life; Whom shall I dread? (NAU)
What Do We Know About Serving God?
When serving God gets hard we need to know what we can depend on. When you spend many hours trying to encourage a friend to follow Christ, but he still isn’t responding; when you go out of your way to help a person through a tough time in their lives and then they turn away from Christ; when a person you are spending much time helping, breaks promise after promise to you; how can we keep going? We can hold on to four things.
The Lord will stand with those who serve Him “The Lord stood with me”
Matthew 28:19-20 19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, . . . teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (NAU)
We have the awesome promise of Christ’s personal presence.
The Lord will strengthen those who serve Him “the Lord...strengthened me”
1 Timothy 1:12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, (NAU)
2 Timothy 2:1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. (NAU)
My promise to help you is weak at best, but when the King of the universe promises to help you, you have the most powerful force in the universe behind you. Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. (NAU)
Deuteronomy 31:6,8“Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.” “The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” (NAU)
Serving God is proclaiming the Gospel fully “proclamation might be fully accomplished”
Paul uses the same word FULLY ACCOMPLISHED back up in verse 5 where he told Timothy to “fulfill your ministry.” In other words, we aren’t done serving Christ until we have shared Christ with everyone we can.
Serving God means spreading the Gospel widely “that all the Gentiles might hear”
The church is not supposed to be an exclusive club. Our goal is not just to reach those who are just like us. Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. (NAU)
Paul saw his court hearing as an opportunity to share the Gospel. Here is a lesson for us. In every difficult circumstance we should look for ways to display Christ. ✔ God allows difficulties so that His grace can be put on display.
The question is not “Why is life hard for me right now?,” but “How can I lift up Christ in this situation?”
Vs.18 3. Because God will never fail “The Lord will rescue me”
Paul ends verse 17 with “I was rescued” and he begins verse 18 with “The Lord will rescue.” Paul is even more confident about the future because of God’s faithfulness to him in the past. Paul is not talking about physical safety, look at verse 6: he knew he was about to die.
Paul was delivered by God’s power. In verse 17 he was delivered FROM death, in verse 18 he is looking forward to being delivered BY death. His soul was safe either way. 2 Corinthians 5:8 we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. (NAU)
CONCLUSION: Paul’s last recorded words urge us to finish well the course that God has laid out for us. How sad it is to see people give in and collapse toward the end of their lives. Sometimes we label this “retirement.” For some, it is not so much a collapse as it is a “relax.” We think that we have somehow earned the right to retire, basking in comfort and self-indulgence, when we should, like Paul, be furthering the cause of the gospel. Let us not slack up as our departure draws near, but let us press on to the end of the race.
May God take Paul’s powerful farewell and challenge to Timothy and apply it to our hearts and lives as the day of His return draws near. [From 2 Timothy - Perseverance in Difficult Days by Bob Deffinbaugh, Th.M. Online at, http://bible.org/page.php?page_id=4858]
Joshua 13:1 Now Joshua was old and advanced in years when the Lord said to him, “You are old and advanced in years, and very much of the land remains to be possessed. (NAU)
✔ The church isn’t a country club, it’s a boot-camp for soldiers of the Cross. Hurt feelings are never an excuse for a soldier to stop fighting.
William Carey, the father of modern missions left for India from England in 1793 and never came home. He labored 40 years without a furlough. He lost two of his three wives in death. When he had a fever they attached 110 leeches to his thigh. And on March 11, 1812 – after almost 20 years of work – a fire broke out and destroyed years of irreplaceable work. The draft of the great polyglot dictionary. The Sikh and Telugu grammars. Ten versions of the Bible that had been going through the press. The translation of the Ramayana which he and his partners had been working on for six years.
Carey was out of town in Calcutta. When Marshman told him tears filled his eyes, and later he said,
“In one short evening the labours of years are consumed. How unsearchable are the ways of God! I had lately brought some things to the utmost of perfection of which they seemed capable, and contemplated the missionary establishment with perhaps too much self-congratulation. ✔ The Lord has laid me low, that I may look more simply to him.”
His watchword, was ✔ "Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God." In that order! First trust him. Trust his promise. He will stand with you. He will give you strength. Then . . . THEN . . . "attempt great things for God." [Mary Drewry, William Carey: A Biography, p. 154. Quoted from a sermon by John Piper, The Lord Stood By Me...That All the Nations Might Hear”]
What great things are you attempting for God?
