What I Learned from Preaching Through 2 Timothy

I wrapped up preaching through 2 Timothy this past weekend. If you missed any of the weeks, you can get all the resources and sermons here.

The context of 2 Timothy is that it is a letter written from the apostle Paul to Timothy, a young leader/church planter he has raised up and mentored. Paul is on death row and this letter is essentially a last will and testament of what he wants Timothy to know. It is like having an older follower of Jesus, in his 70′s or 80′s sitting across the table from a 20-something and say, “This is what I need you to know about being follower of Jesus, about being a leader.”

I have spent several months reading and studying this short, but powerful letter.

A few things jumped out to me:

• Don’t be afraid. When it comes fear, whether that is failure, death or being alone, we shouldn’t have it. It doesn’t come from God. Paul says that God has given us a spirit of power, not fear. Fear plagues so many of us, it keeps us from moving forward, taking chances, having faith and also freedom. Many of us carry things around that we want to be free of, but we are afraid of what that will mean, so we continue to carry them. We don’t take risks, we don’t pray big prayers because we are afraid that it won’t happen or we’ll fail. That is not from God.
• Have focus. This is one of the biggest things I took out of this book. Many of don’t know how to make decisions, figure out the will of God or become paralyzed in life because we lack certainty of the prize. Athletes, soldiers and farmers (and ultimate fighters) don’t lack certainty on the prize. The prize is the crown of righteousness, finishing well, standing before God with no regrets. Focus on that, push for that and then see clarity seems to come into your life. Paul lived his life and went to his death with those goals in mind and he had clarity, passion, and no fear.
• Know scripture. The verse that is quoted to understand the doctrine of the Bible is 2 Timothy 3:16, which is a great verse and lays out the purpose of the Bible. But, verse 17 explains why so many Christians do not see God move powerfully and why God does not use churches or answer prayers the way we’d like. We aren’t ready. Verse 17 says to know your Scripture so that you are ready and equipped for every good work. Chapter 4 lays out the good work, preach the gospel, in season and out of season, always ready to fight for the gospel and move it forward.
• Finish. People rarely finish anything in our culture. Projects are left undone, careers are left, marriages are thrown away, goals, dreams. It seems that if you finish anything in your life, you should get an award because it rarely happens. So much so, that when you finish a renovation project in your house, you have all your friends over, not just to see the finished project but to show them you finished. Paul tells Timothy, the goal is to finish and to finish well. Don’t quit, don’t give up, finish. Fight all the way to the end.