Keep The Fire Burning
II Timothy 1:6-8
If you have a fireplace in your home then you know that you cannot simply kindle a fire and expect it to burn continually without any attention. It is necessary to periodically stoke that fire in order for it to keep burning. It has rightly been said that “a fire that cannot spread will go out”. In a similar way, if we do not give constant attention to our spiritual gifts they will “burn down” so to speak.
There are many servants in the church who were once vibrant and productive for the Kingdom of God; however, over time something has changed. For many, the issue is that they have not given proper attention to their spiritual gift. Our selected text reveals the importance of discovering, using and developing the talents, gifts and abilities that the Lord has given us to use for His glory. Paul called on Timothy to “stir up the gift of God that was in him”. His intention was to instruct and encourage his young protégé. We would do well to listen to Paul’s counsel and apply these truths in our own lives.
- I would like to examine this passage and preach on the subject “Keep The Fire Burning”.
By way of introduction let me remind you that this letter is one of Paul’s Pastoral Epistles and it was written to one of the most special people in his life. These two men were more than fellow servants and even closer than brothers in Christ; Paul calls Timothy his “beloved son”.
This letter was written during one of the most difficult moments of Paul’s life. He is currently in a Roman prison and facing certain death. However, in spite of his circumstances, he was comforted, encouraged and filled with hope and assurance. He knew that he belonged to the Lord and nothing could happen to him apart from His Sovereign will. Therefore there was no need for him to fear anyone or anything.
In verse 3 Paul tells Timothy that “without ceasing” he remembered him in his prayers “night and day”. He wanted his beloved son in the faith to know that he constantly mentioned him in his prayers. Not only did Paul regularly pray for Timothy, he also had an intense desire to see Him. (v4 “greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy”.) When Paul thought about Timothy and prayed for him he was often reminded of “the genuine faith that was in him”. Because Timothy’s faith was genuine he would be able to endure the troubles, trials and hardships that he would face in his service to the Lord.
It is important for you to understand that if you are born again you possess a gift (or gifts) that are to be used in service to the Lord. As we consider these few verses I would like to examine four truths about your spiritual gift. In the process I hope that we can see how to “Keep The Fire Burning”.
- Let’s begin with the fact that it is important for you to:
I. DISCOVER YOUR GIFT
There are certain indicators that Timothy was timid and often fearful. I am sure like most Christians there were times when he was even tempted to turn away from the faith. For this reason, Paul wrote to encourage him; he says in:
v6 Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.
A great fire was burning within Timothy, but it was important for him to “fan the flame” so to speak. “Stir up” literally means “to keep the fire alive”. Paul does not specify exactly what “gift” he is referring to concerning Timothy. We know that Timothy was the first bishop of the Ephesian Church. He was also a gifted evangelist and was actively involved in missionary work. Regardless of the specific gift that Paul had in mind, it is clear that when Timothy was called into Christian service he was given a special gift. This young servant of God needed to know the importance of “stirring up” that gift.
In his first letter Paul had warned Timothy not to “neglect the gift that was in him” (1 Timothy 4:14); now he calls on him to “fan it into flame”. Timothy did not need anything new, or anything more than what he already had. But it was important for him to fan the flame that was already burning.
The Lord gives His children certain gifts that are to be used for His glory. The Bible has much to say about various spiritual gifts and how they are to be used properly. Within the local church there are people who have been blessed with talents and abilities such as preaching, teaching, leading, giving and laboring in various other areas. On top of these specific gifts, every born again Christian can and should be involved in evangelism and the ministry of prayer.
Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift. It is important for you to discover that gift and use it to honor and serve the Lord. The natural question is “how do I discover my spiritual gift?” There is no universal formula recorded in scripture that gives us a step by step process concerning discovering our spiritual gift. However, like any other aspect of the Christian life, the answer will be found by spending time with God in prayer and His Word.
There are four main passages that describe the gifts that are available to the Christian. They are 1 Corinthians 12:8-11; 1 Corinthians 12:28-31; Romans 12:4-9 and Ephesians 4:11-12. These passages (and others) tell of gifts such as Administration, Discernment, Evangelism, Exhortation, Faith, Giving, Healing, Hospitality, Knowledge, Leadership, Mercy, Prophecy, Serving, Teaching, and Wisdom.
I would encourage you to read and study these passages closely to see what gifts are available. It would also be beneficial for you to study the TRUE meaning and the BIBLICAL purpose of these gifts. God gave His people spiritual gifts so that they can serve Him, reach the lost and build up the Church. Many people have been supernaturally blessed by God with amazing talents, yet somewhere along the way they began to use them for their own glory instead of His. This is very dangerous and there will be consequences for those who use their gifts improperly. Therefore, I encourage you, if you seek to discover your spiritual gift, ensure that your motives are pure!
Understand that prayer is essential in this process as well. As you seek to discover your spiritual gift, pray for God’s guidance. Ask the Lord to make His will abundantly clear and for Him to reveal the specific gift that He has for you. Rest assured that anyone who has a sincere desire to discover their spiritual gift and to use it for God’s glory will be blessed by Him. In His time and in His way God will reveal His plan for your life and ministry. When that time comes then you must be willing to step out on faith and use your recently discovered gift to serve the Lord.
- This leads us to the second thing I would like to consider; once you discover your gift, then you must:
II. USE YOUR GIFT
v6 Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.
Notice that Paul says that this gift was in Timothy “through the laying on of (his) hands”. There are a couple of different views as to the exact meaning of this verse. Some see this as a reference to ordination; especially when coupled with the reference to “the council of elders” in I Timothy 4:14. There Paul says “Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you”. Others take a more literal interpretation and believe that this specific gift was one given to Timothy by the laying on of Paul’s hands. If this interpretation is correct, then it is important for us to understand that this would have been a supernatural power specific to the Lord’s Apostles and not something that is possible today.
Warren Wiersbe says “The laying on of hands was a common practice in apostolic days (Acts 6:6; 13:3), but no believer today has the same authority and privileges that the Apostles did. Today, when we lay hands on people for the ministry, it is a symbolic act and does not necessarily impart any special spiritual gifts to them. It is the Holy Spirit who enables us to serve God, and through Him we can overcome fear and weakness.” (Wiersbe, Warren: Bible Exposition Commentary)
There is no question that the gift that was within Timothy came from the Lord. This is true for us today, whatever our gift; it is a supernatural ability that has been bestowed upon us by the Lord Himself. This is a tremendous honor and it should serve as motivation for us to use that gift to honor and serve the Lord Jesus.
Again I say, if you are a Christian you have a spiritual gift that the Lord has given you and He expects you to use it for His glory. Many scriptures speak to this fact. Paul says in Romans 12:6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; 7 if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; 8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Likewise, Peter says in 1 Peter 4:10 As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 11 Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Our motivation for using our gifts should never be to receive the praise of men. Whatever your gift, it should be used for the advancement of God’s Kingdom. It is important for you to discover you gift and when you discover it you must use it! Use your gift to evangelize the lost, to edify the saints and to exalt the Savior.
- As we move further we will see that it is important for us to give constant attention to the gifts that God has blessed us with. Let’s consider the fact that you should:
III. CULTIVATE YOUR GIFT
We should not think that Timothy had become apathetic, rebellious or that he was in a backslidden state. There is much evidence that he was actively involved in serving the Lord and His Church. At this point in time he was currently ministering to the Ephesians; he had been faithful in other areas prior to this and he would continue to serve the Lord upon his departure from Ephesus. Without a doubt, Timothy possessed certain spiritual gifts and he was using them for the Lord.
Spiritual gifts tend to fade (or in the context of this passage, “burn down”) when they are not used and proper attention given to them. For this reason it was imperative for Timothy to keep the fire burning. In spite of all the troubles surrounding him, he was to remain devoted to the task at hand. It was not enough for him to simply maintain the status quo, the fire needed to be kindled afresh. Timothy needed to continuously progress in his faith and service.
The same is true for every modern day servant of Christ. Many of you possess spiritual gifts and you are faithfully using them to serve the Lord. This is admirable but we must resist the temptation to become complacent. Not only should we discover and use our spiritual gift, it is vital that we cultivate (or continuously develop) our spiritual gifts. This may sound like a contradiction since we have already said that our gift is bestowed upon us by the Lord. Though spiritual gifts are given by the Lord and we are empowered by the Holy Spirit for service, there is a need for cooperation on our part.
God gives us gifts and then opens doors for us to use them. In His divine wisdom He has given us a choice as to whether or not we will walk through those doors and use our spiritual gifts. When we seize the opportunities that God presents us with and use our gifts for His glory we become more familiar with those gifts and we will be better equipped to use them properly. Spiritual gifts are much like natural talents and abilities, the more time we spend employing these gifts, the better equipped we will be to use them in the future.
- So far we have seen that it is important for you to discover your gift, use your gift and cultivate your gift. Finally, I would like for you to see how important it is for you to:
IV. GUARD YOUR GIFT
v7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
As Paul continues to encourage Timothy, he reminds him that God has not given His people a spirit of fearfulness. Instead, God has made a way for us to live with power, love and a sound mind. We are not to be consumed with fear for God has given us everything necessary to live lives of great power and boldness. We must never forget that the powerful Holy Spirit dwells within us.
William MacDonald says “Through the enabling of the Holy Spirit, the believer can serve valiantly, endure patiently, suffer triumphantly, and, if need be, die gloriously.” (MacDonald; William: Believer’s Bible Commentary)
The Christian also possess a “spirit of love”. When we love God the way that we should, and love others to the point of genuinely caring about their eternal destiny, we will abandon timidity or fearfulness and serve Him no matter the cost. In spite of opposition, persecution or even death we will remain devoted to the One who has blessed us immensely.
Paul also points out that God has given us a sound mind. “Sound mind” is better translated as self-control, self-discipline or sound judgment. This means that no matter how difficult our circumstances or how intense the persecution we are able to be discerning and steadfast. A “sound mind” will prevent us from acting impulsively or irrationally. In all circumstances the Christian servant should live cautiously, discerningly and respond appropriately.
Paul goes on to say in: v8 “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God”.
In those days God’s servants were suffering extreme persecution at the hands of the Romans. Preaching, teaching or even publically professing to be a Christian had the potential to bring imprisonment, physical suffering and even death. For some the persecution was so intense that they eventually turned from the faith. Timothy needed to be reminded and encouraged to remain steadfast and immovable no matter the cost. He should not “be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord”, nor should he be ashamed of his connection with Paul who was currently in prison.
At this point, several of Paul associates had departed; some had deserted him and even worse some had turned away from the Lord. In this letter he informs Timothy that Phygellus and Hermogenes had turned away from him, Hymenaeus and Philetus had strayed concerning the truth, Demas had forsaken him, and Alexander the coppersmith had done him much harm. It seems that persecution arose and those men became fearful and ashamed of their relationship with the Lord and their connection with Paul. They were not willing to “share in the sufferings for the Gospel”. They knew that their identification as followers of Christ and their connection with the Apostle Paul could have resulted in their own persecution, imprisonment or death. These men had a good start but they did not finish well; some did not finish at all!
Paul did not want the same thing to happen to Timothy. He wanted him to live courageously and victoriously. So Paul exhorts him to remain faithful, fan the flame, trust in God and remain devoted to Him. Instead of trying to avoid hardships, Paul wanted Him to join him and endure whatever may come his way for the glory of God and the advancement of the Gospel.
If you seek to use your spiritual gift to serve the Lord, opposition will come. People may come against you and circumstances may arise that have the potential to negatively affect the flame that is burning inside of you. For this reason you must guard the flame; you must protect your gift!
Recently I was attempting to start a fire outdoors. I had no problem getting a small flame to burn, but as soon as it was kindled the wind would extinguish it. In the end I had to turn my back to the wind and guard the flame long enough for the flame to flare up enough to resist the wind on its own.
If you are a Christian there is a fire burning within you. God has blessed you with a spiritual gift that you are to use for His glory. It is important for you to discover your gift, to use it and to cultivate it. It is also exceedingly important for you to guard the flame. Storms will come, the winds will blow, people will come against you and circumstances will arise that have the potential to negatively affect your flame.
On top of all of this, you have a great Adversary who will do anything he can to extinguish the fire that is burning within you. He will use fear, discouragement and frustration to cause you to cease your service for the Lord. When Satan attacks and troubles come there is a temptation to run for fear, in an attempt to avoid the hardships of life.
In times such as these there is also a temptation to abandon the use of your spiritual gift. For this reason it is vital for you to “stir up the gift of God that is within you”! You must kindle the fire afresh and fan the flame. Like Timothy and Paul you must be willing to “share in the sufferings for the Gospel”.
Do you belong to the Lord? Have you repented and believed in Jesus Christ for salvation? If not, you need to know that there are severe and eternal consequences for those who die lost in their sins. This is devastating news; but the wonderful reality is that Jesus paid the price for your redemption and you can be born again and forgiven eternally if you will surrender to Him.
If you are certain of your salvation, then you can be just as sure that God has given you a spiritual gift that is to be used for His glory. If you do not know what that gift is, I encourage you to take the proper steps to DISCOVER YOUR GIFT. Once you have discovered it, then step out in faith and USE YOUR GIFT. Not only should you use your gift, it is important for you to CULTIVATE YOUR GIFT. When you do this, do not be surprised if the Enemy attacks and trouble comes, this is common and for this reason it is imperative for you to GUARD YOUR GIFT. Heed the sound advice that Paul gave to his most special friend Timothy, apply these truths and “Keep The Fire Burning”.
