For example, so many of the things we do, are the result of our parents instilling certain values within us as a child. For example:
• Some vote for the same political party their parents voted for. They would not think of changing political parties, because that was the political party their parents once supported.
• Some attend the same denominational churches that their parents attended. They would not think of changing denominations, because that is the way their parents believed.
Timothy was blessed to have a man like the apostle Paul to instruct him in spiritual matters.
WHAT KIND OF THINGS DID PAUL INSTILL IN HIM?
One of the things that Paul instilled in Timothy, was the tenacious spirit of never QUITTING!
Illus: Churchill was invited to come back and speak at the school he attended as a young man. The news got out about his coming, and the large crowd that had gathered could hardly wait to hear him make his speech to them. The time came, and he walked to the podium and said only two words, “NEVER QUIT” and then sat down. The large audience was surprised he only said those two words, but as time went on, they realized that perhaps this might have been one of his greatest speeches.
Something today that parents and school teachers are failing to do, is to instill in the youth of this nation that spirit of “I WILL NOT QUIT!” We are raising a society of quitters.
• They quit their jobs
• They quit their marriages
• They quit their churches
They do not have that ability that our forefathers had of sticking to commitments.
• Our forefathers stayed on the same job for decades, and after 50 or 60 years, they were given a gold watch. We do not see many of these gold watches being passed out today.
• Our forefathers stayed married 50 to 60 years, and when they had their fiftieth anniversary the children gave them a golden anniversary party.
• Our forefathers stayed in the same churches their whole lifetime.
But sad to say, today’s generation does not place a great value on ENDURANCE!
But you can tell that Paul deeply instilled this DETERMINATION in the life of young Timothy.
HOW DO WE KNOW THAT?
As you read through the book of 1 Timothy, you see how Paul drilled into Timothy this tenacious spirit of not quitting, by talking to him about SOME who did quit.
He refers to these as “SOME” in 1 Timothy. Let’s look at these people he referred to as “SOME”.
• SOME turned from the Truth - TURNED BY SOME
1 Tim. 1:6 “From which SOME having SWERVED HAVE TURNED ASIDE UNTO VAIN JANGLING.”
• SOME turned from the Truth - DENIED BY SOME
1 Tim. 1:19 “Holding faith, and a good conscience; which SOME HAVING PUT AWAY CONCERNING FAITH have made shipwreck
:
• SOME turned from the Truth - DECEIVED BY SOME
1 Tim. 4:1 “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, GIVING HEED TO SEDUCING SPIRITS, AND DOCTRINES OF DEVILS.”
• SOME turned from the Truth - DEPARTED BY SOME
1 Tim. 5:15 “For some are already TURNED ASIDE AFTER SATAN.”
• SOME turned from the Truth - SPURNED BY SOME
1 Tim. 6:10 “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, THEY HAVE ERRED FROM THE FAITH, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
• SOME turned from the Truth - MISSED BY SOME1 Tim. 6:20-21 “O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called: Which some professing HAVE ERRED CONCERNING THE FAITH. Grace be with thee. Amen.”
We can see in these verses how Paul was concerned about SOME who were no longer serving the Lord. He wanted Timothy to take a look at these, so that the same thing would not happen to him.
In order for us not to be QUITTERS, how must we live?
I. THERE ARE SOME THINGS WE MUST NOT DO
We must not be:
A. CARELESS IN OUR DEVOTION.
Something we all understand in the physical realm, is that we must take time each day to eat nutritious food. If we DO NOT, we will find ourselves getting weak and susceptible to every germ that crosses our path.
But the same thing applies to us spiritually. If we do not take time for Bible study and prayer on a daily basis, we are going to get weak, and we open ourselves up to every demon in hell.
Paul recognized that this is exactly what happened to Demas.
Look at 2 Timothy 4:10, “For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world….” Demas once served the Lord with this great servant, the Apostle Paul. But he began to take his eyes off the things of God, and began to get his eyes on the things of the world, and the Bible says, he forsook the apostle Paul, “…having loved this present world.”
When we start to get CARELESS IN OUR DEVOTION, watch out! This is what happened to Demas, and he goes down in the history books as a QUITTER. And worst than that, he has to stand before the Lord one day, as a man who could have really made a difference with his life, but who got side-tracked by the things of the world, and became a quitter.
There are some here, who in years gone by once served the Lord, but now all the Lord can get from them is two hours on Sunday morning. WHAT HAPPENED? They got slack in their devotion by being side-tracked by the world. Demas was once a great servant of the Lord, but he got side-tracked by the world.
We cannot be CARELESS IN OUR DEVOTION, or…
B. CASUAL IN OUR DEDICATION
Paul said in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but THIS ONE THING I DO, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
The problem today with most of us, is that we want to do to many things with our lives. And perhaps these are not bad things, but we soon get so involved in so many of these things in our lives, that they squeeze the Lord out of our lives.
The reason the apostle Paul was the successful Christian he was, is because he concentrated on ONE THING in his life that stood out above all the rest, - HIS DEDICATION TO SERVING THE LORD. He never reached a place that he felt he had it all, he kept pressing daily to, “…reach the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
We can never be successful in serving the Lord if we are going to be CASUAL IN OUR DEDICATION. Also, we can not be-
C. CARNAL IN OUR DECISIONS
The decisions we make this coming year, must be made prayerfully, not through fleshly desires. When we as Christians make “Fleshly Decisions”, we pay a dear price.
Illus: Look at Lot, he made his decision based on the lust of the flesh.
Look at Genesis 13. Lot and Abraham’s flocks got so large that they could no longer dwell together. And Abraham, being the man of God he was, went to Lot with the problem.
In verses, 8-11, we read, “And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren. Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left. And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar. Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other.”
But notice, Lot made his decision based on fleshly lust, it looked good. What looks good, is not necessarily good. It was one of the worst decisions he ever made. It cost him his testimony and the life of his wife.
We cannot be CARNAL IN OUR DECISIONS. These are some things WE MUST NOT DO. But let us look at-
II. SOME THINGS WE MUST DO
If God would be gracious and leave us here for another year, it is because God has a plan for our lives.
There are some things He wants to do through us, but He will not do them until we recognize that THERE ARE SOME THINGS WE MUST DO. WHAT ARE THEY?
He want us to recognize -
A. THE PROBLEMS THAT SURROUND US
If the business world operated the way some Christians operate their Christian lives, they would be out of business in a short time.
Illus: Every business has problems, but the SUCCESSFUL business:
• Does not pretend there are no problems
• Does not ignore them and hope they will go away
THEY DEAL WITH THE PROBLEMS!
They define the problem, and then they find a solution to the problem. The same thing should apply to Christians. We need to sit down in quietness and define the problems in our lives. Then we need to ask the Lord for wisdom in how to solve these problems.
Look at James 1:5 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”
God said:
• If Any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God
• If you ask for wisdom, It will be given to you
God has promised to give us the solution.
We need to look at THE PROBLEMS THAT SURROUND US, but also look at-
B. THE PLACE THAT SURROUNDS US
The book of Esther is a very exciting book to read. It is exciting because it tells about the life of King Ahasuerus, who was emperor of Media-Persia, with its 127 provinces reaching from India to Ethiopia.
• In Chapter one we see where he chose to have a great celebration at the Shushan Palace.
• He invited the governors, aides and the many officers of his powerful army.
• The celebration lasted six months.
When the celebration was over, he decided to have a special party for all the palace servants. This party lasted seven days.
• Drinks were served in golden goblets. Everyone could have as much as they wanted.
• During this time, Queen Vashti gave a party for the women of the palace.
• On the final day of the party, King Ahasuerus sent for Queen Vashsti to be brought to him, wearing the royal crown on her head, because she was beautiful, and he wanted to show her off.
• But she refused to come.
• He was afraid her disobeying him would cause people to loose respect for him.
• He consulted with his lawyer and asked what he should do.
• They advised him to forever banish her from his empire.
Then we come to chapter two.
• After he got over his anger, he misses her greatly.
• His aides suggested that they find the most beautiful women in the empire, and bring them to the king.
• Naturally this suggestion pleased the king.
• There was a Jew, by the name of Mordecai, that was there as a result of God’s people being captured by Nebuchadnezzar.
• Mordecai had a beautiful cousin who had no living parents, and he raised her as his own daughter.
• As a result of the King’s decree, she was brought to the palace.
• Hegai, who was responsible for the harem, was impressed with her beauty and gave her the most luxurious apartment.
• Mordecai would come daily to check on her.
• Before these beautiful women could go to the king, they had to submit themselves to a royal beauty treatment that lasted six months.
• When the time came for Esther to be taken to the king, he literally adored her.
• He was so delighted in her, that he took the royal crown and placed it on her head, and declared that she was to take the place of Queen Vashsti.
• The king never knew that she was a Jew.
In chapter three, we see that-
• The King appointed Haman as the prime minister.
• He was the most powerful individual in the kingdom next to the King.
• All the King’s officials bowed before him, because they recognized he was a powerful man.
• But Mordecai refused to bow to him.
• It was brought to the attention of Haman that Mordecai refused to bow.
• Haman found out that he was a Jew, and decided he would show his displeasure with Mordecai by destroying him and all the Jewish people.
• Haman went to the king, and told him there was a race of people who refused to obey the laws of the land, and asked for permission to kill all the Jews.
• The King gave him the approval.
• The date was set when all of them would be killed.
In chapter four, when Mordecai had learned what was done, he was very upset. When Esther, a Jew, heard what the king was going to do to Mordecai and the Jews, she was shocked. The Jews began to pray and fast.
• Mordecai sent a message to Esther for help.
• Esther sent a message back to Mordecai, and said no one can go into the king’s presence unless he holds out the golden scepter, and she said the king has not called for me.
• Mordecai sent this message back to the queen. “Do you really think you are going to survive, when all the Jews have been killed and they later find out that you are a Jew also?” He said, “If you keep quiet at a time like this, all the Jews will die. “
Then Mordecai said these words to her in Esther 4:14 “… and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this? In other words, “Esther, GOD has PLACED YOU HERE FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS.”
Three days later she appeared before the King. He looked up and saw her, and held out the golden scepter for her to approach him. She said, “I would like to invite you and Haman to come to a banquet I have prepared for you.“
They came to her banquet. During the wine ceremony, the king said to her, “Now tell me what you really want and I will give you up to half my kingdom.” She said, “If you really love me, I would like for you and Haman to come to the banquet again tomorrow, and I will explain what I want.”
Haman was happy, but he became furious when he left the gate and saw Mordecai who refused to bow as he walked by. But he restrained himself. He went home and boasted about what a “Big shot” he was, because the queen herself had invited him and the King.
But that night the king had a difficult time sleeping, and he began to read the historical records. He read how Mordecai had exposed the plot of two men who wanted to assassinate him. The King asked the courtiers, how was Mordecai rewarded for this. And they said he was not rewarded.
Haman and the King appeared at Queen Esther’s banquet. The King wanted to know how could he please her. She told him, “Save my life and the lives of my people.” The King wanted to know who would dare touch her. And she told him that wicked Haman was their enemy.
Haman knew he was in some serious trouble. The king commanded he be hung on the same seventy-five foot gallows Haman had built to hang Mordecai,
Conclusion:
DON’T QUIT! If we are going to be successful in serving the Lord, we need to remember there are ….
I. SOME THINGS WE MUST NOT DO
II. SOME THINGS WE MUST DO
Note: If you would like to hear some of the sermons that Dr. Odell Belger preached type...YOUTUBE LKESLAND
