How to Endure Hardship
2 Timothy 2:3-6
Introduction: Ill. The story is told of a king in Africa who had a close friend with whom he grew up. The friend had a habit of looking at every situation that ever occurred in his life (positive or negative) and remarking, "This is good!" One day the king and his friend were out on a hunting expedition. The friend would load and prepare the guns for the king. The friend had apparently done something wrong in preparing one of the guns, for after taking the gun from his friend, the king fired it and his thumb was blown off. Examining the situation, the friend remarked as usual, "This is good!"
To which the king replied, "No, this is not good!" and proceeded to send his friend to jail.
About a year later, the king was hunting in an area that he should have known to stay clear of. Cannibals captured him and took him to their village. They tied his hands, stacked some wood, set up a stake and bound him to the stake. As they came near to set fire to the wood, they noticed that the king was missing a thumb. Being superstitious, they never ate anyone who was less than whole. So untying the king, they sent him on his way. As he returned home, he was reminded of the event that had taken his thumb and felt remorse for his treatment of his friend. He went immediately to the jail to speak with his friend.
"You were right," he said, "it was good that my thumb was blown off." And he proceeded to tell the friend all that had just happened. "And so, I am very sorry for sending you to jail for so long. It was bad for me to do this." "No," his friend replied, "This is good!"
"What do you mean, ’This is good’? How could it be good that I sent my friend to jail for a year?"
"If I had not been in jail, I would have been with you." (Sermon Central Ill.)
In the book of 2 Timothy, the apostle Paul charges Timothy with the duty to endure hardship. We read about it in 2 Tim. 4:5 (NIV) - “But you keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.” Paul also refers to it in a reliable phrase of their day in 2 Tim. 2: 12 “.. if we endure we will also reign with him.” And in 2 Timothy 2:3-6 Paul not only encourages us to endure hardship, but instructs us through 3 analogies, how we must endure hardship!
1) like a Good Soldier,
2) like an Athlete, and
3) like a Farmer.
I. We must Endure Hardship like a Good Soldier
"Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs-he wants to please his commanding officer." - 2 Timothy 2:3, 4
Not only are all ministers like Timothy to be soldiers of Jesus Christ but every Christian is called to be a soldier. We all enlist in God’s army to fight for the captain of our salvation, we fight under his banner, and for his purpose, and for his glory.
As Christian soldiers we must endure hardship; we must expect it and count upon it in this world, know that it will come, if we are ready for it or not. We must get accustomed to it, hardened to it and patiently bear with it, knowing by faith there will be an end to it at the proper season.
As a soldier we leave the civilian life behind to live a new life, no doubt, one of honor and nobility, but most importantly it is a life of service. We are called to be soldiers, and once we enter into service we should not be looking back like Lot’s wife secretly desiring the life left behind or like the seed sown among thorns, entangled with the cares, worries, and the pleasures of life. A soldier has no time for it! It is not his concern what the issue of the day is, He has a war to fight and he must fight it!
Recently, there was quite a controversy over the soldier Beau Bergdahl being traded for 5 Islamic terrorist generals. His fellow soldiers were outraged at what appeared to them to be an effort to gain sympathy for him, as to gain justification for the trade. Why were they outraged? Why did they appear on news networks condemning him? They claimed that in the heat of battle, Beau Bergdahl deserted them and He deserted his post and cowardly walked away from his duties that He himself signed up for. (There is a difference between a soldier and a good soldier)
Paul writes Timothy about a similar experience with a deserter named Demas. “Do your best to come to me quickly for Demas, because he loved this world has deserted me.” – 2 Timothy 4:9. Demas apparently could not endure hardship of ministry. Unfortunately, the ease and comfort of civilian life was too great a temptation not to love.
When we are called to follow Christ we must not abandon our duties or we abandon Christ himself. When we leave our post, others suffer. When we walk away, we walk away leaving something or someone depending on us behind. A soldier’s life is not easy. This is why the apostle commands us to 'endure hardship'. If we walk away, we walk away the same way Beau Bergdahl deserted his platoon. Or in the same way Demas deserted Paul. Knowingly or unknowingly, they both claimed allegiance with the enemy. Shameful.
We must please our commanding officer by not getting caught up in the affairs of this life. When we enlist in this army we pick up a new weapon and we set out on a new course, to serve a new captain whose name is Christ the LORD!
Transition: We not only must endure hardship like a good soldier but also like a striving athlete.
II. We must Endure Hardship like an Athlete
"Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules." - 2 Timothy 2:5
One thing that is promised here is a victor’s crown, but with a condition: you won't receive that crown unless you follow the rules. Like a marathon runner strives to overcome fatigue, dehydration, & cramps, we must strive to overcome vices, sins, lusts, and corruptions, to finish our race so that we won’t be disqualified and not get our crown. Matthew Henry notes that ‘we cannot expect the prize unless we observe the laws’.
Ill. May 29th, 2011Dale Earnhardt Jr was in first place as he rounded the last lap of the Coca-Cola 600. It seemed scripted: The National guard was sponsoring him on Memorial day weekend and there was a patriotic theme running throughout the broadcast, not to mention he hadn't won in over 100 races, so it would have made a great story. As he came around the backstretch of the last lap, fans were hysterical - cheering, stomping and celebrating. All of the sudden, the race was over. Just as Dale Earnhardt Jr. rounded the last corner, He ran out of gas on the last lap of his race.
The worst thing I think could happen in our race is that we would be disqualified for lack of fuel. Let’s determine not to be disqualified for lack of fuel. Let’s not let our lamp burn out for lack of oil. Let’s not allow the gospel seed to die for lack of soil. Because barring those things at the end of the race we will be crowned - victorious.
Transition: We endure like a good soldier and a striving athlete, and lastly, we must also endure hardship like a hardworking farmer (husbandman).
III. We must Endure Hardship like a Farmer
"The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops." -2 Timothy 2:6
There is a great reward for those who win others to Christ and those who labor in the Lord's field will get the first fruit. We must labor with diligence and patience to get the fruit and vegetables from our gardens. Paul warns the Thessalonians against idleness and says "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."
As our church was congregating in the foyer after our last Sunday service, the subject came up about how much labor is involved in tending our gardens. It brought a great spiritual truth to me this week that, before we reap a harvest; we must labor first! The disciple’s great catch of fish didn’t just jump into his boat, it came by throwing out the nets and then pulling them in. (As a result they had so many fish, they needed help to bring them in. And the boats were so full they about sunk! Luke 5:4-7)
When I was between churches, I worked for my dad out at the family farm in Tahlequah. I remember one day in particular, that I was given the duty of working the garden. And that is exactly what it was. Work! It was hot that day. I mean HOT HOT! The kind of heat that forces you downward. This Oklahoma heat had weight to it, you know what I mean? My first task was hoeing the weeds, so I began by throwing my hoe into the ground and . . . Clank! I hit rock, so I tried somewhere else with the same result. It wasn't long and my shoulders and back were throbbing as I worked that Cherokee county ground, infamous for having the type of soil that teased you - made you believe there was more of it than there was rocks, which was awful because I was also charged with the daunting task of removing them all. So, not only did I find myself hoeing out the weeds but picking out the rocks as well. It was about as easy a task as picking up the sand on the Arkansas River bottom. I sympathized with whoever fought that Greek mythical character: the Hydra, you know the one where if you remove one head then two more take its place. If I was to remove every rock in that garden I can assure you, I wouldn't be able to preach to you today. So, I resolved to get as many of the big ones as I could and kept hoeing. After what seemed a couple of hours I looked up and realized … I only finished the first row. Ugh.
But I kept my head down and kept working and I remember being so grateful to God when the time finally came when that moment of a hot day where light fades and the sun and the heat seem to melt away and soon after you hear the crickets. I never thought I would be happy to feel the bite of mosquitos but they reminded me the day was over. I heard the crackle of the gravel under the wheels of my dads Ford pickup as he rolled up and hopping out He said: "It looks real good!"
And that was enough for me!
Sometimes we forget the purpose of a garden. It is to produce fruit. We get caught up in the hardship of labor and we forget our purpose. And anyone who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is not fit for service in the kingdom of God. At the end of the day, if we labor patiently, our father will arrive saying "well done, good and faithful servant"
"Do not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time you will reap a harvest if you do not give up." - Galatians 6:9
I believe some weariness may be due to laboring in flesh instead of the spirit. You're laboring because of some sense of obligation to God as opposed to an internal desire to please God. It's like the difference between the husband who feels obligated to buy something for his wife on Valentine’s Day and the newlywed husband who can't seem to buy enough flowers, candy, teddy bears, and anything else to show He truly LOVES her! One is obligation and the other is desire. (Rom. 8:12,13) One is of the flesh and the other is of the Spirit. Where does this powerful desire come from? Acts 1:8 sheds some light - “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;…”
Jesus gives us some good news for weariness in Matthew 11:28, when we feel weary or tired He said "come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest."
Kyle Idleman points out in his book ‘Not a Fan’ that there was a church in Ephesus who overcame hardship but forgot the amount of zeal they had for their first love. “…you have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.” Rev. 2:4,5
It may be time to rekindle our Christian spark or add fuel to our fire for Christ by doing what we did in the beginning of our walk with God: Cast aside all worldly distractions, disruptions, and diversions. Revisit that old Christian book store you used to enjoy so much. Play that worship music you used to sing so loudly to. Surround yourselves with other sword sharpening believers and God-fearing teachers. Get on the knees and pray longer than 5 minutes and read more than two passages outside of church. If today is not a day for fasting then what would be? Can you leave this world on fire for God? How would you leave this world?
If your death was imminent could you tell your family what Paul tells Timothy in the fourth chapter?
“…the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith, Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
-2 Tim. 4:7,8
Notice that Paul departed this world, fighting the good fight like a good soldier, like a striving athlete he finished the race, and He kept the faith like a hard working farmer. And as a result HE HAD FINALLY WON HIS CROWN!
