INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• Today we are back in our series entitled, “Committed.”
• The aim of this series is to help each one of us to strengthen our commitment to Jesus, who is fully committed to you.
• WE examined the story of Zacchaeus to gain understanding of the concept of being committed to transformation. Next we examined the principle of counting the cost of following Jesus so we could get a firm grip on what it takes to truly follow Him.
• Two weeks ago we surveyed to notion of following the voice of Jesus.
• Today our investigation will take us to the issue of longevity, “Keeping the Faith.”
• Following Jesus is not a sprint, it is a marathon. Running a marathon is not easy, it takes a lot of sacrifice and energy just to compete.
• If you watch the end of the Boston Marathon, those who finish do not look very rested and fresh, they are exhausted, and leaving everything they had on the course.
• The passage for today is one of my personal favorites in the Bible. In our examination of 2 Timothy 4:6-8 we will gain some insights and encouragement from Paul to “Keep The Faith!”
• Keeping the faith is imperative for those who want to see Jesus! We will see some of the same phraseology in our text today.
• SLIDE #2
• Revelation 2:10 (HCSB) 10 Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. Look, the Devil is about to throw some of you into prison to test you, and you will have affliction for 10 days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
• Jesus does not want us to start the race and then quit, He wants us in for the long-haul!
• Today my prayer is we will be encouraged not to ever quit the race!
• Let’s start with verse 6 today
• SLIDE #3
• 2 Timothy 4:6 (HCSB) For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time for my departure is close.
• In order to keep the faith one must be…
• SLIDE #4
SERMON
I. Prepared for the present. (6)
• If one is in a race right now, they must be prepared for the present.
• If one is not prepared for the present, they will either drop out of the competition or they will lose.
• Many of us have watched athletic events in which you can tell a team, or individual is not prepared for the present.
• It is frustrating as a fan to watch your favorite team play a game, only to perceive they were not adequately prepared for the competition.
• I always hated the, “WE SHOULD HAVE WON” STATEMENTS THAT ILL-PREPARED TEAMS WILL MAKE ON OCCASION.
• Paul was prepared for one of the toughest parts of his race, the present. He had served the Lord well, he has faced many trials and tribulations; however, Paul was about to face one of the more difficult moments of his life very soon.
• He speaks of being poured out as a drink offering, he actually states he is already being poured out as a drink offering.
• Paul uses the same phrase during his first Roman imprisonment in Philippians 2:17 with this exception; in Philippians 2:17 he slightly changes the phrase to, “But even if I am poured out.”
• In the Philippians passage Paul surmised that if that were to happen at that point he would still be an example of what it means follow Jesus until the end!
• Now he knows he IS being poured out as a drink offering.
• A drink offering was a cup of wine that was poured on the sacrificial victim at the conclusion of the sacrifice. Exodus 29:40-41; Numbers 15:1-10, etc…
• The home stretch of the race can be one of the most exhilarating as well as the most taxing. The fourth quarter of a hard fought football game will separate the men from the boys.
• There were times when my body said quit, but my mind said NO, the game was not over!
• I remember watching Rachel the year she ran cross country. The last 100 years of the three mile race, those girls gave their all because they saw the finish line. In my girl there never has been any quit.
• Those girls would empty the tank those last 100 years then collapse.
• Paul said his departure time was near. He could see the finish line and he was not about to quit!
• The word “departure” paints the picture of a ship that is about to weigh anchor and sail away, it is the perfect picture of what Paul was about to do, he was going to leave this life and sail into the next!
• If one is going to keep the faith, it starts with keeping it today. We must be prepared for today.
• In 7th grade, I went out for the wrestling team. All we did for the first week was RUN, RUN, and RUN.
• I complained the whole time, I was not on the track team until later in the year, I was wanting to body slam people like on TV!
• Well, once the wrestling started, I came to understand why we ran so much, wrestling was the most strenuous thing I had ever done, and without the running I would not be prepared to survive the mat.
• Let’s examine verse 7
• SLIDE #5
• 2 Timothy 4:7 (HCSB) I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
• How was Paul prepared for the present?
• Paul was prepared for the present because his present was…
• SLIDE #6
II. Built on the past. (7)
• Strength in the present is built from preparation from the past. Paul was able to keep the faith in the midst of dire circumstances because he used his past time wisely in preparation.
• What one is able to do in the retirement years is built on what one does with their money in the past.
• Paul uses three verbs to describe how he used his time and resources to build his past.
• Each of these verbs are written the perfect tense indicating these actions happened in a definite time in the past with continuing results into the present.
• The I’s of Paul was strong, let’s examine them.
• First he says, I have fought the good fight.
• The word we translate as FIGHT in the English does not catch the full flavor of the word in the Greek.
• This word was an athletic term which included all kinds of contests, racing, wrestling, boxing, or any athletic event which required the participant to strain, sweat, and exert great amounts of energy in order to participate.
• The word good denotes something which is morally upright.
• The good fight Paul fought was the fight against Satan. The fight manifested itself in the forms of temptation to sin, temptation to quit. Quarrels with the Jews, dealing with false doctrine. Fighting in the churches, jealousy from others who were preaching the Word.
• If we are not willing to fight the good fight, we will not be prepared for the battles of today, we will simply give in.
• This why it is so important that one does not simply justify sin, where does it stop?
• Instead of letting Satan win the fight, we must fight the good fight and do what is right, we must lovingly stand for what is right, we must support with is right.
• This is what the good fight requires of us if we are to be able to keep the faith.
• One cannot simply keep SOME OF the FAITH if they are seeking victory, we must strive to keep THE faith!
• Next verb, Paul stated, I have finished the race.
• Paul said he successfully completed the course Jesus set for him. The picture this statement is meant to paint is one of a course that is laid out for runners to follow in order to compete in the race.
• On April 21, 1980 Ruiz appeared to win the Boston Marathon's female category with a time of 2:31:56. Her time would have been the fastest female time in Boston Marathon history as well as the third-fastest female time ever recorded in any marathon.[3][4][5]
• However, suspicions mounted about Ruiz almost from the beginning. Men's winner Bill Rodgers, who had just won his third straight Boston Marathon, noticed that Ruiz could not recall many things that most runners know by heart, such as intervals and splits.[2]
• Other observers noticed that Ruiz was not panting or coated in sweat, and her thighs were much flabbier and fatter than would be expected for a world-class runner.
• She later released stress-test results showing her resting heart rate as 76. Most female marathoners have a resting heart rate in the 50s or lower. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosie_Ruiz
• Later it was confirmed she had jumped in late in the race. As of the year 2000, she still maintained that she ran the entire 1980 Boston Marathon.[2]
• In a race there are no short cuts, one must stay on the course in order to win.
• Paul did not compromise his walk with Jesus, this prepared him for the most difficult challenge he would face.
• We cannot compromise our faith, we must finish the race. To finish means to COMPLETE the race. You cannot throw up your hands in victory half way through and quit.
• Paul’s course was laid out for him by Jesus!
• SLIDE #7
• Acts 20:24 (HCSB) But I count my life of no value to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of God’s grace.
• The final verb Paul uses to describe his past was, I have kept the faith.
• This is another athletic metaphor Paul uses to describe his actions of the past.
• The phrase “I HAVE KEPT” deals with the fact that Paul followed the rules. He did not foul out of the game and therefore disqualify himself from finishing or winning.
• To keep the faith means more than to simply guard it, it also denotes observing it and following it!
• Back in the 1980’s Olympic sprinter Ben Johnson was disgraced by revelations that he had used steroids and was stripped of his gold medals.
• One would think he would walk or run the straight and narrow after that; however, that was not the case.
• Johnson lost his gold medal and world records and admitted he'd been taking drugs since 1981. Suspended for two years, he was caught again in 1993 and banned for life. Read more at http://www.espn.co.uk/onthisday/sport/story/283.html#3AiJurBpXoDEYdL1.99
• Paul was loyal to the message until the end! He took no short-cuts, he did not veer off course, and he did not disqualify himself.
• SLIDE #8
• 1 Corinthians 9:26–27 (HCSB) Therefore I do not run like one who runs aimlessly or box like one beating the air. Instead, I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified.
• Let’s look at verse 8 now!
• SLIDE #9
• 2 Timothy 4:8 (HCSB) There is reserved for me in the future the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me, but to all those who have loved His appearing.
• Since Paul was prepared for the present because he built upon his past, now we see Paul…
• SLIDE #10
III. Anticipating the future. (8)
• This whole passage is dripping with athletic metaphors, so Paul finishes it up with a final one. After the race, there is an award assembly!
• He anticipates the time he stands before the Lord receiving his crown!
• There are two words in the Greek translated crown, one is the crown a king wears and the other, a laurel wreath a victory received after winning. This laurel wreath is what is spoken of in this verse!
• The crown of righteousness is a combination of being declared righteous by God along with receiving the full blessings from God!
• This is in part what Paul alludes to in Philippians 3:9
• SLIDE #11
• Philippians 3:9 (HCSB) and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ —the righteousness from God based on faith.
• In exuberance Paul reminds us that the crown of righteousness is for all who love Jesus appearing!
• One who loves Jesus appearing is one who in love and obedience responds positively to Jesus.
• The verb tense of the word LOVE implies a steadfast maintaining love for Jesus.
CONCLUSION
• The context of this letter is that Paul, who is close to death is encouraging his protégé Timothy in verse 5 to fulfill his ministry. Not to give up, and never to quit!
• If we want to receive the crown or righteousness from God, we must keep the faith!
• Be prepared for the present by building strength from the past so you can eagerly anticipate the future!
