Message
2 Timothy 4:1-8
Finish Well
I want to start by talking about epitaphs. An epitaph is the words which are written on a tombstone and they act as a way of remembering a deceased person’s life.
One day a man and his brother were walking through a cemetery in the country which contained old gravestones. Most of the gravestones contained epitaphs like, “Loving father”, “Beloved mother”, “Rest in Peace”. “Asleep in Jesus”, and so on. Eventually they came across a grave which contained these words: “A man of unquestioned integrity”. That is a great way to be remembered isn’t it.
When you die, how do you want to be remembered? What will be the defining phrase that summarises your life?
That will be your epitaph.
It might not be written on your gravestone.
But everybody will have one.
This morning we are going to focus on Paul and the epitaph which defined his life.
It is found in 2 Timothy 4:1-8
Paul is encouraging Timothy here to focus on the fundamentals of ministry.
• Preach the Word … and be prepared to defend it.
• Don’t be distracted by worldly arguments … but instead press on.
• Be willing to stand firm in the difficult times.
It was a word for Timothy but a word that has been spoken at the ordination of many pastors, teachers, and leaders.
However it is also a word for each one of us. Because when we are running the race this is our calling. To be those who keep the word central. To not be distracted by the world. To stand firm in difficult times.
We do that because Jesus has come into our lives to help us in the race and to be able to finish well. Have a look at 2 Timothy 4:6-8. It is the epitaph of Paul where he describes “finishing well”.
6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 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 Timothy 4:6-8
How do we finish well?
By being those whose lives are focused around passing on the baton of the Gospel.
Paul’s last will is for people to see that the fight for faith is the noblest fight you can participate in.
To fully appreciate the impact of Paul’s words it helps to know a bit about
Paul’s present circumstances.
The year is about 65ad and Emperor Nero has taken the throne – Nero despises Christians and persecutes them with severity and brutality. Paul is a casualty of this persecution and is in prison awaiting his death. It is in that situation that he says, I am already being poured out like a drink offering and the time has come for my departure.
To see what that is all about we need to go back to the Old Testament.
The drink offering accompanied nearly every temple sacrifice which was made.
The morning and evening temple sacrifice.
The sacrifices made at all three Israelite feasts.
It also accompanied all personal sacrifices.
The drink offering was the last step in the sacrificial process. The whole fermented drink was poured out in the holy place – nothing was held back from God. Whenever this was done the result was a pleasing aroma to the LORD.
I am a drink offering.
I am always before God.
I have been set apart for service to God.
My purpose is to please God.
That is my calling.
And knowing your calling is very important ... because it gives you purpose and enables you to know you are contributing to the overall goal.
For a long time now there has been work going on to widen the Gateway arterial.
It has been a huge task involving massive earth movers, and cranes putting in huge concrete trusses, and large trucks. But what I find amazing is that there will always be a man in a tiny excavating machine working on the project. I don’t know what he is doing but his contribution to the massive project must be just as important, and have just as much purpose, as the people driving the heavy machinery.
When we know our place in the God’s plan … and see our place in the church … then we have a calling. We are contributing to the overall purpose of God’s plan. And we can make that contribution no matter what circumstances are taking place at the time.
That brings us back to Paul and his circumstances. When Paul makes this declaration about the calling of God on his life he does so when ... he is in jail having been imprisoned for his faith.
It was a small dark, damp room with a tiny opening in the wall for light.
Paul had to rely on friends to look after him because the jailers didn’t care.
He would rarely leave the cell.
He was sentenced to death.
Paul has been serving God for over 30 years. And it all comes down to this.
It is time for his departure. In the Greek “departure” is the word they use when they are untying of a boat from its moorings. So this is not a departure in the sense that the end is over. But departure in the sense that a new journey is going to begin.
Paul is coming to the end of one adventure:- 30 years of ministry for Jesus.
Now he is going on another adventure:- an eternity before Jesus.
And it has all been worth it.
When you see Paul act this way we can’t help but be faced with a pretty important question.
Do we have enough trust in the plan of God to “finish well” even when we find ourselves in difficult and faith-testing circumstances?
It’s not always easy to have that sort of attitude … true? There are times when we catch ourselves thinking “I have had enough and I just want to give up”. Perhaps it was a while ago … or a month ago … or a week ago … or yesterday. Maybe you have that feeling right now. “I’ve had enough and I just want to give up”.
We struggle financially.
We struggle emotionally.
We struggle physically.
We struggle spiritually.
Just because we say we belong to the family of God that does not mean that everything will go smoothly. There are some days when we feel we have given our best, but our best doesn’t seem to make the grade. We find ourselves going through times when all we can do is count the sacrifices we need to make for the sake of the Lord; and the blessings seem to be so out of reach.
Being a disciple can be so hard. When we seek to fulfil our calling and life does get hard we need to stop and recognise that we have a Saviour who has endured for us.
We can picture Jesus in heaven before He came to earth. Willing to be the sacrifice. Willing to do all that was necessary to bring mankind back to God.
We can picture our Lord at His birth. Barely noticed. Not of interest to the religious leaders. Hunted by a crazed Herod.
We can picture Christ in His ministry. Maligned. Misunderstood. A suspected cult figure. Taken for granted.
We can picture Him in the garden of Gethsemane. Almost overwhelmed by what lies ahead … God’s wrath in all its fullness.
We can picture Him on the road to Golgotha. Whipped. Beaten. Punched. Kicked. Blood dripping from a thorny crown pressed deep into His head. Every step an effort as He is spurred on by mocking faces. Laughter as He falls and the cross beam comes crashing down upon Him.
We can picture that can’t we? But could you picture this?
Jesus has stumbled for the 10th time – the crowds roaring with laughter and spite. But this time He stands up and says “All right, that’s enough – I can’t take it anymore. I won’t take it anymore”.
Why should I endure what is not Mine to pay. It’s not My sin it’s your sin – you deal with the consequences.
I came to give life – you just sought to drain the life from Me. Well no more.
I’m not going to do this. Why should I. You are the ones who made yourself God’s enemy and who abused the greatest gift from God.
… … …
We think, “Jesus could never have done that”. But the possibility was always there. At any stage in His ministry Jesus had the capacity to abort the mission and go down a different path. Remember His words to Peter at His arrest.
Do you think I cannot call on My Father and He will at once put at My disposal more than 12 legions of angels?
On that same night Jesus had prayed Father, “If you are willing take this cup from me.”
In the midst of all the suffering Jesus could have said, “Enough is enough – it’s time to call in the angels and get Me out of here”. But He didn’t.
We have a Saviour who willingly gave His all, including His life, so that we can “finish well” as we follow Him and continue the journey He started for us.
When we are tempted to give up that is what we look towards. We look towards the fact that Jesus has begun the work and now … and now Jesus is relying on us to continue that work.
Paul’s epitaph helps us realise that our main objective is to finish what Christ has started.
We are expected to be drink-offerings:
We are always before God.
We have been set apart for service to God.
Our purpose is to please God.
That’s our calling.
There is 800km trail that winds through the mountains of Washington, and California. Those who go on this hike face all sorts of obstacles including:- lack of food and water, danger from wild animals, days of rain and mud, incredible physical exhaustion, loneliness, blisters, mosquitoes, and the extremes of heat and cold. A study was made about this trail and it was discovered that 90% of those who planned to walk the whole trail never make it.
50% never get started
40% quit after they start.
Only 10% ever finish this long-distance hike.
A further study was made to determine the 10% succeeded. And it was discovered that they all made two important decisions.
1) First, they decided they would finish the trip no matter what happened.
2) They expected bad things to happen and decided they would not be surprised or dismayed.
They finished well because they started well.
They finished well because they were determined to run well.
They finished well because they failed well.
Running the race, and finishing well, can happen.
Which means we want these verses to be the epitaph of our lives.
I have fought the good fight.
The good fight is a fight for souls – as such we are doing battle with Satan himself.
It’s a fight which uses all our energies.
A fight that demands rigid denial of self.
A fight against many obstacles.
And it is a fight which is done with the salvation of many in mind.
When we take on the good fight we think of ourselves second and others first.
I have finished the race.
There are many occasions where Paul could have felt it was time to stop.
He’s been ship-wrecked.
He’s been imprisoned.
He’s been starving.
On none of those occasions did he stop because, as long as he had the Gospel baton in his hand, he knew there was still more of the race to go. He didn’t let his own difficulties bring his race to a pre-mature end.
I have kept the faith.
Through thick and thin Paul has retained his personal trust in God.
A trust which held out through ship-wreck, imprisonment and starvation.
A trust which gives strength through financial, and emotional, and physical and spiritual struggles.
A trust that brings us through testing times knowing that the sacrifices we are making for the sake of the Gospel are more than worth it.
Fix your eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
And finish well.
Prayer
