My focus today is on Paul’s 2nd Letter to
Timothy, with a special emphasis on verses 12 and 13: “If we endure, we will also reign
with Him. If we disown Him, He will also disown us; if we are faithless, He
will remain faithful, for He cannot disown Himself.”
Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go
to the house of the Lord.’”[1]
Now that our feet are standing within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word.
As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love
deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.
Oklahomans love to sport team colors. Whether one
wears Thunder Blue, Sooner Red, Cowboy Orange or any other color combination of
the spectrum, we pledge allegiance to our favorite team by dressing “our”
colors. Faithful fans wear colors and logos that identify them with a team.
Why talk about teams, colors and logos – other than
today being the 53rd anniversary of Bill Mazeroski’s walk off home
run that won the 1960 World Series? Because in his letter to Timothy, Paul reminds
him to be as dedicated as an athlete and to be faithful to Christ, but even if
one is faithless, Christ will remain faithful.
We may think we are faithful because we wear colors, logos
or religious symbols, but Paul reminds us that Jesus is more faithful than
football fans on bedlam weekend. With that, my game plan is to review Paul’s relationship
with Timothy, examine what a champion athlete can teach us about dedication, and
question our response.
First, Paul’s relationship with Timothy. Paul knew
Timothy well. He knew that Timothy learned the faith from his pious
grandmother, Lois, and his faithful mother, Eunice. Paul praised Timothy for
his knowledge of the Scriptures.
Timothy accompanied Paul for years as a missionary,
traveling with him throughout Turkey, Greece and Europe. Timothy reported to
Paul the reaction of his 1st Letter to the Corinthians. He also
co-authored six letters from Paul.[2] In
short, Paul knew Timothy as well as he knew his own family.
2nd Timothy was Paul’s last letter, written
from a Roman prison. There were church workers
around Paul, but he knew that some were conspirators and he felt that everyone
in Asia Minor deserted him.[3] He
faced active opposition,[4] and
struggled to proclaim the gospel[5]
and direct missionary work through delegates and correspondence.
Death was imminent, but despite being close to death, he
wrote to encourage and admonish Timothy. Paul wrote because he knew that he was
handing the Gospel to the next generation.
In 2nd Timothy Paul offers no new
theological insights. He simply reminded Timothy of what he already knew and
exhorted him to hold fast to it. Throughout the letter, when Paul mentioned
someone who wronged him or when he saw potential for trouble, he returned to
Timothy, stating, as he did in today’s opening: “You then …” as if Paul were
that father who shares wisdom lest his children fall into a trap.
Here is Paul’s advice. First, he illustrated 3 people
dedicated to a cause – the soldier, athlete and farmer. Second, he presented
himself as a personal example of how to suffer for the gospel.
First, people dedicated to a cause. With a respectful
salute to those who defend our nation and provide food for our tables, I chose
an athlete. This athlete is a member of the LCMS and my stepdaughter, who won a
championship in Oklahoma City. Jennifer Gregg is now a successful corporate
attorney for a San Francisco construction company. Back in the day, she was Jen
Gardner, a member of the UCLA Bruins that won the NCAA Softball Championship in
1999. I asked Jen to comment on dedication. She writes:
Dedication in sports has many components. To be
dedicated to your sport means to be 100% committed to the sport, but also
everything that you do outside the sport. … I had to be dedicated at school. If
I didn't pass my classes, I couldn't play my sport. I had to be dedicated to my
body. I had to do stretching and strength training and take care of my body so
I wouldn't get hurt.
When you are committed to a sport, you sacrifice and
dedicate your time. In high school, I didn't participate in a lot of social activities,
such as going to the prom or parties; instead, I studied or practiced.
The time commitment in college sports was incredible.
I had weights or strength training from 6-7:15am, class from 8-12, practice
from 1:30-4:30, study hall from 6-8pm – every day of the week in
the off-season. Plus, we'd squeeze in conditioning a few days a
week.
Then there’s the physical and mental exhaustion of
dealing with that rigorous schedule. During the season, we left campus on
Wednesday or Thursday and returned on Sunday. I'd study in the hotel, take
tests on the road, and miss a lot of classes.
As an athlete, if you're not giving 100% of your
effort, 100% of the time, you're not truly dedicated. This doesn't mean you are
always expected to go all out, every time. If I'm sick, and only have 60% of
myself to give, then I better make sure I'm giving 100% of my 60%.
My parents spent hours driving me to practice, working
with me on skills, traveling to my games, and so on. Their commitment of time
and money in order to allow me to play on the most competitive teams year-long
was incredible. They sacrificed vacations, trips, camping and more for me to practice
and play softball every weekend of the year. I don't think they saw this as a
sacrifice because it was something they enjoyed and loved being a part of.
It was something they enjoyed and loved being a part
of. … Let me ask you: Do you enjoy and love being a follower of Jesus?
Do we dedicate as much time and energy to the Gospel
as Jen did to softball? If there were a World Series ring, a green jacket or a
championship belt for Christians would I have one? Do I give 100% to God
and neighbor 100% of the time? Do I express faithfulness through faith,
hope and love? Are we grateful for God’s blessings? Am I willing to suffer for
the Gospel if necessary?
Are we willing to suffer for the Gospel if necessary?
You know, God calls people to obey, not to suffer; but the lasting image Paul
offers Timothy: “Join with me in suffering even to the point of being chained
like a criminal. Endure everything for the sake of the elect.”
Endure everything for the sake of the elect. Those who
attend our class on 1st Peter know that the elect embrace Christ and
are rejected by society as suspicious foreigners. So, are you willing to sport
colors for Christ so that suspicious foreigners obtain salvation? Are you
dedicated to the point of being rejected by friends and family so that others may obtain salvation? … Recently,
Pastor Ken Klaus spoke of Pastor Jamal,
a Christian missionary, arrested and imprisoned in Iraq for converting from
Islam to Christianity. While imprisoned, like St. Paul, Pastor Jamal shared the
Gospel with Iraqi prisoners. During the 21 months he was in jail, the Holy
Spirit placed saving faith into the hearts of 28 previously lost souls. What a
wondrous thing the Lord has done. It is cause for rejoicing on earth and in
heaven![6] … I can name one group of people
willing to be dedicated and rejected for the elect: The members of the Lutheran
Women’s Missionary League (LWML).
If you could fast-forward 2nd Timothy to
2013, Lois and Eunice, Timothy’s mother and grandmother would be members of the
LWML. Like his mother and grandmother, LWML members affirm each woman in her
relationship with the Triune God, and encourage each woman to use her gifts in
ministry to the people of the world.
Their Gospel Outreach Committee inspires and equips
women to share their faith in Christ. And in typical Lutheran style, their
website follows up the statement with, “What
does this mean?” It means God gave you the privilege of sharing the joy and
excitement of your faith with others. It means being a Christian is a blessing,
and that the joy of Jesus in our lives should be evident.
I began with a reference to faithful fans who wear
colors and logos that identify them with a team. Being faithful to a team isn’t
the most important thing in life. Today’s professional players and teams come
and go – and usually to where there’s more money. So, being faithful to a team
isn’t that important, but for the Christian, being faithful to Christ … to
paraphrase another UCLA coach … is the only thing.[7]
To close, remember this. In 2 months, when you squeeze into T. Boone
Pickens Stadium or plop in front of the TV, remember that God doesn’t wear just
orange or red and doesn’t care for whom you root. So, before kickoff, say a
prayer and remind yourself and all around you that Jesus is more faithful to us
and excited about us than football fans on bedlam weekend. … When you say that, may the peace of God which
surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Phil
4:7). Amen.
[1]
Psalm 122
[2] 2
Corinthians, Philippians, Colossians, 1st and 2nd Thessalonians
and Philemon.
[3]
1:15; 4:10
[4]
4:14
[5]
4:17
[7] It is attributed to UCLA
Bruins football coach Henry
Russell ("Red") Sanders, who spoke two different versions of the quotation. In 1950, at a Cal
Poly San Luis Obispo
physical education workshop, Sanders told his group: "Men, I'll be honest.
Winning isn't everything," then following a long pause, "Men, it's
the only thing!"[1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winning_isn't_everything;_it's_the_only_thing
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