Larry Brincefield
larkayb@earthlink.net
Sunday Morning, January 19, 2003
Memorial Roll Sermon
Title: Departures and Arrivals
Text: 2 Timothy 4:6-8
Introduction
1. Have you ever been to the airport?
A. At the airport, one of the first things you might notice...
B. throughout terminal, there are banks of TV screens.
C. Some of them are for arriving flights....
D. others are for departing flights.
2. If you are at the airport to catch a flight to somewhere,
A. you will look at the departures...
B. find your airline and flight time....
C. and find out where your gate is so that you can be at the right place to catch your plane.
3. The apostle Paul, in writing to Timothy,
A. realizes that he is coming to the end of his life.
B. and he uses language that is similar to what we might use when we are going to catch a plane.
4. Read text: 2 Timothy 4:6-8
5. When Paul says, "the time has come for my departure" 2 Tim 4:6 (NIV)
A. He is using a word that takes its meaning from the idea of a ship sitting in the harbor...
B. and the time has come to cut loose the ropes that hold the ship in the harbor...
C. so it can set sail for parts unknown.
D. Of course, we don’t frequently use ships for transportation today....
E. like they did in Bible times.
F. Today, airplanes are just ships in the sky.
G. And Paul is saying, "The time has come for me to catch my plane"!
H. He uses the same word in Philippians 1:23, but let me back up to verse 21 to give you the context,
I. "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far" Phil 1:21-23 (NIV)
6. Paul’s attitude....
A. seems almost like an excitement to die....
B. because he knows that he will go to be with Christ!
7. Last week, Jason (my 6 year old son) was playing in my office;
A. when out of the blue, he said, "Daddy, I want to die"...
B. It kind of caught me off guard!
C. I asked him why he wanted to die...
D. he said, "so I can go to heaven".
E. I told him that I was glad he wanted to go to heaven...
F. but that he wouldn’t die and go to heaven until God was ready,
G. and until then, we would just enjoy being here.
8. That attitude is completely foreign to people in the world.
A. People who don’t know Christ seem to have this great fear of death.
B. And while death is somewhat unknown for the Christian...
C. it is different for us.
D. For us it is like a departure...
E. we are cutting loose from this life...
F. and setting sail for the next!
G. An exciting journey!
9. In our text, it explains why Paul was able to have such an excitement catch his plane!
Body
1. First of all, Paul says, "I have fought the good fight". 2 Tim 4:7 (NIV)
A. Paul uses language that basically means "to contend for a prize, struggle"—NASB Greek-Hebrew Dictionary
B. Paul indicates that life has been a real struggle at times...
i. And you know exactly what he means...
ii. life can be a real struggle.
iii. Raymond Hawkins and Allen Luttrell knew that life can be a struggle.
C. Not only life itself...but the end of life can be a struggle...
i. spending time in hospitals or nursing homes is never easy....
ii. struggling with health problems at the end of life is a real battle.
D. Paul’s life was a real struggle at times,
i. He tells us that "I have worked much harder,
ii. been in prison more frequently,
iii. been flogged more severely,
iv. and been exposed to death again and again.
v. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.
vi. Three times I was beaten with rods,
vii. once I was stoned,
viii. three times I was shipwrecked,
ix. I have been constantly on the move.
x. I have been in danger from rivers,
xi. in danger from bandits,
xii. in danger from my own countrymen,
xiii. in danger from Gentiles;
xiv. in danger in the city,
xv. in danger in the country,
xvi. in danger at sea;
xvii. and in danger from false brothers.
xviii. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep;
xix. I have known hunger and thirst
xx. I have been cold and naked" 2 Cor 11:23-28 (NIV)
E. And the reason that Paul & the reason that you and me can face our departure time with confidence,
i. is because, in spite of the battles that we have faced...
ii. in spite of the tough times...
iii. we can have spiritual victory!!
F. So for us who are Christians....
i. we are encouraged to "fight the good fight"....
ii. to remain faithful, even during the most difficult circumstances...
iii. to hang in there, no matter what...
G. because we know that when we do,
i. we will one day arrive at our departure time....
ii. and our departure here...
iii. means our arrival in heaven!
2. The second reason Paul could be so positive about his pending departure...
A. He says, "I have finished the race" 2 Tim 4:7 (NIV)
B. We know how Paul STARTED the race...
i. It started when he met the Lord on the road to Damascus...
C. In racing, a good start is important...
i. a sprinter will practice his start over and over again...
ii. so he can get out of the blocks quickly...
iii. and get up to full stride as fast as he can...
D. But, as important as a good start is....
i. a good finish is critical...
ii. you can start out great....
iii. but if you give out before the end;
iv. you have failed to finish the race.
E. The same is true in our Christian lives...
i. a good start is important....
ii. it is important for Christians to get off the blocks
iii. and reach full stride quickly...
F. but if we give up before our race is over....
i. we have failed to finish the race.
G. To me, one of the most tragic things I’ve seen...
i. is when a person starts the race so well...
ii. so on fire for Christ....
iii. so excited....
iv. but then, along the way...
v. sometime happens...
vi. maybe they fall, and don’t want to get up...
vii. maybe they get winded; and decide the race is too hard...
viii. for whatever reason, they give up the race before the finish...
ix. and they end their lives bitter, lonely, and sad.
H. But Paul faced his departure with confidence because he had finished the race...
i. and, like Paul, we can face our departure with confidence,
ii. if we finish the race!
3. The 3rd reason Paul was so confident about his departure...
A. He said, "I have kept the faith" 2 Tim 4:7 (NIV)
i. In spite of the battles...
ii. In spite of the difficulties along the way...
iii. In spite of the dangers and temptations...
iv. Paul remained faithful to Christ to the end!
B. Jesus says, in Revelation 2:10 "Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life." Rev 2:10 (NIV)
C. When Paul said, "I have kept the faith", the word has the meaning, "to watch over, to guard"—NASB Greek-Hebrew Dictionary
D. We need to watch over and guard our faith as if it is a precious treasure; but it is so precious!!!
i. And there are those who would like to see us fail...
ii. there are those who would try to steal our joy!
E. Obviously Satan is one of these...
i. but there are ordinary everyday people who have this great animosity toward Christianity...
ii. and they would like nothing better than to see a Christian fail...
iii. and if they could assist in that effort,
iv. they would.
F. Paul could face his departure with confidence because he had kept the faith...
i. and as Christians, we can face our departure with confidence...
ii. if we will keep the faith...
iii. guard it as if it is the most precious thing we have...because it is!!!
4. Paul not only explains how he can face the departure with confidence...he tells us some things about our arrival!
A. When we go to the airport,
i. and check out the monitors for our departing flight...
ii. we sit in our seat and endure the flight...
iii. at the end of the flight,
iv. there is an arrival!!!
v. We are excited to complete the journey...
vi. and when we finally get there,
vii. oftentimes there is someone we love waiting for us.
B. The same thing is true for the Christian...
i. we can face the departure with excitement...
ii. not so much because of how exciting the departure itself it...
iii. but because of where we are going!
iv. We are departing this life...
v. and our destination is heaven!!
C. Paul says, "Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness" 2 Tim 4:8 (NIV)
i. We may not see a whole lot of reward here on earth...
ii. but one day, if we remain faithful....
iii. we will receive the "crown of righteousness"
5. Another exciting thing about our arrival...
A. Paul tells us that "the Lord, the righteous Judge" will be there. 2 Tim 4:8 (NIV)
i. If the decision were left up to me or to you...
ii. I’m sure mistakes would be made...
B. But, Praise the Lord, the decision isn’t up to us...
i. there is a Righteous Judge--His name is Jesus.
ii. and whatever He does...it will be right!!
C. Genesis 18:25 says, "Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?"
i. and the obvious answer is...of course He will!!
6. And the last thing Paul says about his arrival in our passage of Scripture "not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing". 2 Tim 4:8 (NIV)
A. Paul is telling us that,
i. because he fought the good fight...
ii. because he finished the race...
iii. and because he kept the faith...
iv. that he will receive this crown of righteous
B. But Paul goes on to explain that this crown of righteousness is available to everyone who ...
i. fights the good fight...
ii. and finishes the race...
iii. and keeps the faith!!
Conclusion
1. I don’t mind plane rides...
A. although they aren’t the most enjoyable things in the world...
i. waiting in line...
ii. those little seats....
iii. tiny aisles...
iv. small compartments to put your luggage...
v. and I won’t even start on the bathrooms!!
B. Flying isn’t always the most pleasant experience....
i. but I don’t really mind so much....
ii. because it gets me to my destination so much faster.
2. When the time comes for our departure...
A. it may not always be the most pleasant experience...
i. hospitals,
ii. nursing homes,
iii. illness,
iv. and so on.
B. But, if we can keep our eyes on our destination!!!
i. It will be worth it all!!
(I got the idea for this sermon from a sermon written by G. R. "Scott" Cundiff that appeared in The Preacher’s Magazine, sorry don’t have the date)
