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Second Timothy chapter two and verse 14 to 26. For us is a tremendously important text, especially as it relates to the topic that we’re going to in this text with the theme of Outlasters. And if I put a title on this text, it would just simply be this thought Real Christians and Real Opposition. And this text is particularly important for us as a body of believers because it deals with our attitude and approach to this world, how we stand for Christ in the midst of of opposition, when others may challenge our faith, how we stay true to our faith in Jesus and the thought that we’ve carried with this, this theme, this outlast, this has been this. You want to make your mark on the world, as the world strives to try to make its mark on you. Romans chapter 12 and verse two says this do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. This idea of being conformed to this world carries this idea that the world wants to press you into a mold, but Jesus rather wants to shape you into his image. And so, rather than being conformed to this world, we want to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. How do we stand in opposition? How do. How are we faithful to Christ? I gotta tell you, I’ve prepped for this series, and I’ve thought about this leading into the weeks I knew we were going to go into this text.
One of the things that I have done personally in my life is I just have gone back and just read church history. What was it like to stand for Jesus throughout the centuries and how people did that? And in the beginning when Christianity took a stand in Jesus. If you examine just the early church, they they really had nothing going for them. I mean, they got some ragtag group of individuals together. Uh, Christianity was a grassroots movement that had its, its greatest effect on the slaves of Rome. They really didn’t have places to gather to worship. They kind of depended on the Jewish synagogues. If that didn’t work well, it was just pretty much wherever they could gather. And when people became Christian, and as Christianity began to to grow, the Roman Empire stood against it. And we studied in the text of Second Timothy. The reason Paul’s writing this book is because he’s in jail, about to lose his life because of his faith in Christ. And quickly behind. Paul is about to follow Peter. In fact, pictured above is the Roman Colosseum. A place where many Christians lost their lives in this arena. One of the particular church fathers I was reading this week was a man by the name of Irenaeus. Polycarp was a disciple of John the Apostle, and Polycarp discipled Irenaeus in Christ. Irenaeus received a message from one of the churches from France, and they asked Irenaeus to come and be the pastor there of the church.
And the reason they Asinarius Irenaeus I can imagine if this were to happen today on the phone call, how it would go down with a pastor. Uh, Irenaeus, we need you to come be a pastor. We’re looking for a pastor here at our church in France. Oh, really? Okay, well, tell me about the church. What’s it like? I mean, what happened to the last pastor? Well, the last pastor, he lost his life. As a matter of fact, half the church has just been killed. And the reason we want you to come and share is because at this point, all of our leadership has been slaughtered and their faith in Christ, and we need someone to come and stand for Jesus for us and help guide us in this. How do you stand? I could think in a moment answering a call like that. Okay, I can go to France, lose my life or stay where I’m at. What am I going to do here? Marinus when? Hardships. How did the early church do it? And how, as we as believers could look at a passage like this that Paul is writing to Timothy, knowing his life is about to cost him. Real Christians facing real opposition. How how do we stand in the midst of that? Knowing your faith in Jesus at some point will cost you. If you stand for Jesus. Second Timothy chapter two and verse 15.
Paul begins with the thought of truth. He says. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. Some of your translations will say study, which is somewhat accurate to the way the Greek text represents. But but the word doesn’t actually mean getting books and diving into these books. It’s more this diligent approach to God’s Word, this desire, this yearning, this don’t want to put it down, just want to know it more. Just gather the thoughts of what God’s Word says. This passion lived out through His Word. Be diligent to present yourself to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. This accurately of handling in the Greek literally means to cut the boundaries of. Paul was a tentmaker, and so in forming a tent, Paul would have to assimilate the the exterior of what this tent would be, and he would have to cut the boundaries to define the parameters of what the tent was. And Paul when he begins this text for us as believers, he says, listen, this is one of the most important things that I could say. He says in verse 14, remind the body of Christ of this, please, in verse 15, accurately handle God’s truth. Define it. Why? I believe. Truth was truth before you, were you? And there are some ways that we determine truth as people that are unhealthy.
And what happens when we take one of those avenues to determine truth that leads to an unhealthy root? When you get pressed, when you get challenged. You’ll back down. But if you can establish for yourself what the parameter of truth is. When the challenge comes and you know the truth is truth. Regardless, it gives you more of a foundation to solidify yourself and take a stand. In fact, Paul said this in Ephesians chapter four and verse 14, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by trickery of men, by craftiness and deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love. We are to grow up in all aspects into him who is the head, even Christ. Establish truth. Sometimes within our culture today, the way that we tend to establish truth in an unhealthy sense is like this. If it looks good and feels good, then it must be good. Therefore it is true. Now I want you to know God created feelings and God wants you to experience joy in him. But feelings. Feelings aren’t the way to determine what is true. Because this is how it would have happened with the early disciples. They would have said, you know, I believe in Jesus. Irenaeus, if you go to France, you’re going to get your head lopped off. Oh, well, that doesn’t feel quite as good. So I don’t know that I believe in Jesus that much.
Right? Or I believe this and this happened, but it looks like it might challenge me. And and it was solidified upon feeling. And so now it’s looking a little rocky and so I can back away. When the church lay down their lives. For Jesus, this this was the fact that they stood upon. They saw a dead man walking. Their faith was not based upon a philosophy or an idea. It was identified in a person. And they couldn’t deny the fact that Jesus had overcome the grave. That Jesus had fulfilled everything that was promised in the Old Testament with his coming. And the truth was established outside of themselves. Truth was truth before you were you. And you aren’t the litmus test for truth because truth is determined outside of yourself. Feelings. And fruit. If it looks good and feels good in Christianity, we we kind of mask it this way. Spirit and fruit. Right? Feels good. Looks good. Spirit and fruit. When you dive into scripture, the the Bible warns us about determining truth this way. Let me let me give you a couple passages and a few examples. It says in in second Corinthians 11 and verse 14, Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Had a discussion just yesterday with a lady who who was talking to me about people that were using rods to get these feelings about spirits and, and they use these different equipments.
They thought there was this ghost or some sort of spirit in this building they were in. And so they were testing it and, and she wanted to know what I thought about that. And, and. If I just narrowed it down to one thought, I would say this. Demonic activity. And spiritual influence. That’s contrary to Jesus. Is not going to feel like a pitchfork with a red tail. It’s going to feel like an angel of light. Because the best thing an evil spirit could do is to make you feel good with his presence, because you wouldn’t. That situation would be more inclined to go for that spiritual feeling again. So if all of us had some sort of encounter where we had a spiritual feeling, where we just felt horrible in that spiritual feeling, we would never go back to it. But if Satan is literally trying to deceive us in a spiritual world, one of the things that Satan would hope to do in our lives, to deceive us by a positive spiritual feeling in that experience. And so it says in second Corinthians chapter 11, verse 14, talking about the spirit. Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. In fact, John says it this way. Paul said it that way. John says it this way do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. In First Timothy. In chapter four and the last book Paul wrote to Timothy says.
The spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons. That’s scary to say. Spiritual feeling. Does not necessitate truth. In fact, it doesn’t establish truth because truth is truth outside of ourselves. Let me give you an example. If I were to say that my truth is truth based on a spiritual feeling. There is nothing that determines my truth external from those of other faiths. Meaning spiritual feeling is an exclusive to me. Matter of fact, if a Hindu came in this room of their faith and a muslim or anyone of any religion, they’re going to claim a spiritual acclimation to the faith in which in which they hold. Now, how do we know which one is true then? Because under the basis of a spiritual feeling that validates all faiths. Yea. All faiths cannot be true because they teach about a different God and a different truth. And so using a spiritual confirmation to confirm truth doesn’t necessitate that it is truth and in fact can lead us into deceitful paths. Determining truth. As Paul says in Second Corinthians or Second Timothy chapter two and verse 15, it is important for us as believers cutting what truth is being diligent in truth? It is important for us. But laying the foundation according to to feeling can be misleading. And even dangerous. There has to be a way to measure truth outside of the spirit.
Otherwise, we have no way to differentiate. Differentiate? Excuse me one truth above another. Because all faiths claim a spiritual feeling. The second thought is this is fruitfulness. Some people will conclude truth by looking at all the good and deciding. Therefore, it must be true because it looks good. I just want to remind us with that thought and thinking this morning, just challenge it, that that we are all created an image bearers of God. It doesn’t matter what walk of life you come from, where you live. We’re all created as image bearers of God, and at points in our lives will reflect the character of God and the qualities of the way that we live our lives. Being made in his image, love and and faithfulness and joy and peace. And those things are manifest in our life being made in his image. But good doesn’t determine true. In fact, throughout the Bible, the the Bible records thoughts on this. In Second Timothy chapter three. It says this holding to a form of godliness but denying its power. Looking good, but not in Jesus. In Matthew 23, Jesus is talking to the Pharisees, said this woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you are like whitewashed tombs, which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside are full of dead men’s bones. Matthew 13 and verse 24 to 30 Jesus tells the story of the wheat and the tares as it relates to the church, that within the church there will be some that grow up that is, that are wheat and others that are that are tares, and you don’t know until the harvest.
Matthew seven. I think Jesus gives one of the best explanations for fruit. He says this beware of the false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not produce bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then you will know them by their fruits. Now I know this is saying fruits. I’ll clarify it in just a minute, but let me explain. Verse 15. Verse 15 is saying that based on fruit, there are those who look like they belong to the sheep. But are really wolves. Outwardly, everything looks good, right? You know the scary thing about sheep? Or excuse me, as wolves dressed in sheep’s clothes, is that wolves never see themselves as wolves. Wolves always see themselves as misunderstood sheep. And that’s why it becomes dangerous. Wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing. And I realize as we go through this, I’m just this is just freak out after freak out this morning.
Don’t worry. We’ll we’ll get to where we’re going. But wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing. So. So let me move on real quick and I’ll come back to what he’s talking about with the fruit. Jesus goes on and he gives another story. Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my father who is in heaven, will enter. Many will say to me, look at these good deeds. Many will say to me on that day, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name and perform many miracles? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness. Like verse 22 explains the goodness of these individuals. Everything they do looks good. But in verse 23. Jesus shares an important truth. Well, everything you do looks good. There’s the most important thing that’s missed here. You do not know me. My relationship is not extended to you and your relationship is not extended to me. You do not know me. When Jesus is saying here is good does not necessarily necessitate godliness. Jesus didn’t come to make bad men good and good men better. Jesus came to bring dead men to life. And Jesus is saying in this passage, the most important thing that all of us could understand, that it’s not based on what you do. It’s based on him. Jesus has already done it all.
And even in goodness. It’s wolves in sheep’s clothing. So what’s Jesus saying about the fruit in chapter seven, verse 15 and on? There is a way you can still test fruit. When a wolf comes and he declares truth to sheep. The way that the sheep test the wolf is not by looking at what the wolf does, because the wolf looks like a sheep. The way the sheep test the wolf is listening to what the wolf says and matching it to truth. The fruit of the wolf will be made known. And what he declares. Let me give you an example. Jesus says, A fig tree, figs, a great tree, grapes, a proclaimer of God’s Word. Test what he proclaims. In fact, Paul says in in acts chapter 17, they were more noble than those in Thessalonica, because they received the Word of God with readiness of mind, then searched the scriptures daily to determine whether or not it was true. Now let me tell you the scary part about what I’m saying. I still haven’t gotten to it. What I’m saying this morning. Is that truth was truth before you? Were you right? And I’m saying. Don’t use yourself to be the test for what is truth. Feelings and goodness will not necessitate that it is true. Now, I’m not going to tell you. Don’t trust in feelings and don’t trust in self trust. What I have to say that would not be good either. Don’t.
As a matter of fact, don’t trust that either. We take everything that said according to the words that are communicated and we match it to a truth claim, a truth foundation, and this is where it rests for Christianity. Jesus gave us two ways. He says, I am the way, the truth, and the life. And then he prays in John 17, sanctify them through truth. Thy word is truth. And the question we ask this morning, I’ll tell you, I’m not going to give you the complete answer until next week. It’s. How do you know God’s word is really true? If God’s Word is true. Truth then, is determined outside of ourselves. We have the litmus test for us then to examine what’s being said, to determine if it’s accurate. I’m going to say to you this morning, if in your head you’ve wondered, is God’s Word, has it been translated correctly? Has it been corrupted? Why are there so many translations? Can I really trust God’s Word? If you’ve wrestled with those in your mind, I want you to come next week because I can’t pour everything into it this week. But Paul lays that foundation for us next week. But he begins this week by saying to us, it’s just important to to know how to determine what is true. And God. Looking towards his people. I love the fact that he has given us written truth. Because it leaves us as, as individuals, as corporately as a church or as the Church of God, not to define truth with this ambiguous feeling.
Just hoping that all of us are leaning in the right direction. But together we can look at God’s Word and determine whether or not it is accurate. And trust in his truth. And so the Bible says this. And verse 15, be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. Paul at least lays it out for us where it is truth. And then he goes on further and he says in verse 24, The Lord’s bond servants must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all able to teach patient when wronged. Paul then begins to lay out for us a foundation beyond the truth of God’s Word. To further establish ourselves that when opposition comes. Where we live, in opposition in our lives, we hold true to the truth. Well first becomes in determining what truth is and laying that foundation. The second one’s truth is determined. We we find that identity in Christ and therefore make ourselves bondservants of him. The word for bondservant here is doulos. It’s literally slave. And this slave can be defined one of two ways. Someone who’s been bought with a price, which is what Jesus has done for us, or someone who willingly gives up their life to become a slave as an individual. Now. Why would you do that? Our picture of slavery is based on the 1830s of America to 1860s, or whenever slavery began to the 1860s when it ended.
But in Rome, slavery wasn’t localized to one individual ethnic group. Slavery extended to everyone. And slaves were treated differently in some cases than they were in American society holistically. And so in Roman society, some slaves were treated so well that they began to realize that if they went out and they got a job in the workforce, they could never have it better than where they have it with their master. And so they become their slave. Their identity belongs to them. And Paul saying, once you’ve established truth, this is what happens in your life. You you become one who belongs to Jesus. You have given your life to him because you realize not only not only is His Word truth, but Jesus is truth. In John 15 when Jesus was talking about the spirit. Since we know as believers we do have the spirit indwells within us. Jesus says this, this is what the Spirit’s going to do. He says in verse 26, with the spirit comes whom I will send to you from the father, the spirit of truth, who goes out from the father. He will testify about me. Meaning, here’s the job of the spirit. Here’s how you know the Spirit of God is really at work within the people of God, is that it is making much of Jesus. Like if you if you belong somewhere.
That doesn’t make everything about Christ. And Jesus says that’s not what his spirit’s about. Jesus. Comes to give us truth, to give us freedom in him. And Paul goes on further and he says this now flee from youthful lust and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Paul talks about our relationship to Christ and immediately begins to relate that relationship to those around us. Listen to stand for truth. It’s important to have a community that’s truth based. Because when the going gets tough, you need one another to lean upon, to encourage you to to strengthen you. And so he tells Paul, listen, Paul, run away from everything that’s going to pull you from this truth claim. And Timothy run away from everything that’s going to pull you from this truth claim and pursue this with those who genuinely love Jesus to. The call on the Lord. From a pure heart. Paul and calling us to community. Also then points out something significant about the community. What are we centered upon? It’s the heart. We focus on Christ because Jesus, he by his power in us, transforms the heart. Paul points out the character of the heart and not the religious activity of the people who are gathering. I find that important for us as a community in Christ to recognize. Because when the Bible talks about being corrupted in Scripture, listen what it says in Colossians two.
This is Paul’s warning. Therefore, no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink, or in respect to festival or new moon or Sabbath day, things which are mere shadows of what is to come. But the substance belongs to Jesus. Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting and self-abasement worship of angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen inflated without cause by his fleshly mind and not holding fast to the head. You see what Paul is saying? He he’s saying listen. In religious context, this is what they focus on. They focus on feeling and the self abasement and delighting and inflating yourself in the mind. They focus on legalism and the festival of moons and the celebration of holidays. What you eat and drink, he says in First Timothy chapter four, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils, speaking lies and hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry and commanding to abstain from meats which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believed and know the truth. So again, he’s saying seduction and the spirits that feel good marriage and what we’re going to do with marriage and making laws over forbidding of marriage and and abstaining from meats. It’s all forms of legalism, rules and rules to make yourself more godly. You know, I love I love what Jesus does in Matthew, in the sermon on the Mount, in chapter five to chapter seven, because he comes in to the religious leaders who think they’re living this law to attain to God for his acceptance of them.
And Jesus comes to into these chapters and he says this you you think that if you commit adultery, you’ve done wrong. But I just want to tell you, you who’ve lusted in your heart, you’ve committed adultery. You think doing murder is wrong, but you who have angered in your heart you have committed murder. And what Jesus is saying about the law is we as people think that we can create this system of rules to please God. But God’s standard is far beyond any amount of laws you could ever add to your life. To assume that the Jewish Old Testament laws were the extent of what God could place upon people in the holiness he demands is ridiculous for us. And in fact, that’s exactly what Jesus says in Matthew. He’s raising the bar of the standard and saying, listen, these laws are far beyond what you expect in your Jewish living of legalism and religion. What God’s really interested in. It’s not. Your legalistic religion. Because no matter how much you do. It doesn’t transform the heart. I mean, you can do all day long in your heart. Never be in it. Or you can do all day long in the very purpose and reason for which you do it is really to gratify self. It’s not to honor Christ.
It’s just to get what you want from God and to make him your sock puppet. Jesus reaches to us. Jesus reaches for the heart. Which is why when you read in the context of Scripture, when Paul lines this out, he begins to describe it. We’re going to see in just a minute what he describes for us as far as the matters of the heart. When you read about the fruit of the spirit. It’s not rules to obey it’s characteristics expressed from the heart love, joy, peace, patience and Galatians. Kindness. Gentleness. Can I tell you as parents? As parents. It’s it’s a good way to mimic this in your relationship to your children. Like when your kids do something and you’re really proud of that, your kids, when they come up to you, you don’t just gratify the fact that they accomplished the task, but take the time to acknowledge within your children the thing that was expressed within their heart that allowed them to accomplish the task. So your diligence, your perseverance, the way that you looked at that, how you approached the way you were caring for one another in that those things within your heart, that is what made that beautiful. And I’m glad you accomplished the task to. But I love the way your heart expressed itself. Why do we do all this? And Paul says in the last point. The Lord’s bond servant. Must not be quarrelsome. We’ll stop there and just say, Timothy, I know, I know, I’m about to lose my life.
And I know probably many thing the rage within you would probably want to stand up and just start fighting those people that take my life. But the Lord’s bond servant. Must not be quarrelsome. Be kind to all. Able to teach patient when wronged. With gentleness, correcting those who are in opposition. If perhaps God may grant them repentance, leading to the knowledge of the truth. And they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. Church. The early church didn’t have a lot going for them. But within three centuries, they saw the very city that took Paul’s life become the capital of Christianity. I’ll look at a text like this and think, God, how can you work in our lives knowing that we fight battles to? And this is where Paul explains this. And I just want to encourage you this way. As a church, you should strive to make it hard for people to hate you. When people think about you, they think of something, right? And hopefully, hopefully if they stand in opposition, it should be this. They love Jesus. They don’t agree with, but they absolutely love me. Make it hard for people to hate you in your love for Christ. You may live in a society where you feel unwelcomed. And you know what our tendency is as people.
As in that aggravation to make them feel unwelcomed back. But I want you to know we should have the liberty. Not not to be silent in that, but just to simply say, hey, hey, that, that feel unwelcomed. But I just want you to know I love you more than anything. I care about you. Paul says this is what happens with within our lives in verse 26, and they may come to their senses. This is this is what he’s saying in this word for senses. It’s kind of insulting. So don’t repeat this to people. But, but, but this word for senses means a drunk becoming sober. All right. So when you meet someone that opposes you, don’t be like, man, you’re just drunk, you know, don’t don’t do that. But that’s Paul’s describing that. You know what it’s like when you talk to someone that’s contrary to you. You feel like, did I get the crying drunk or the angry drunk here? But I feel like I’m beating myself in the head because you are not getting what I’m trying to say to you. But gentleness. Gently correcting them. Showing them the truth. It’s not determined by spiritual feeling. If it were, every religion in the world would be validated. It’s not determined by fruit. If it were, every belief system in the world could have some sort of validation. Truth was truth before you were you. And truth is measured out outside of ourselves. It’s more than a feeling.
And this is what I believe. We base it on feeling when the going gets tough and that feeling isn’t so good. What we’re going to do is tuck tail and run. But if we look like Seipel’s, look at the resurrection of Jesus and the truth claims of who God is, and we lay our foundation outside of ourself on the hope that rests outside of our self, and a foundation that is way more secure than simply self. But rest in the power of God. When challenges come, you can stand. And as you stand, you think about the way you stand. Because just as the grace of God has come into your life. So it can the lives of others. As you gently share with them. Here’s the beautiful ending. Today if you were to go to the Roman Colosseum. There is a specific gait in which the emperor would stand. And that would be the place where he entered. And he would sit down and he would reside over the games and he would determine whether someone lived or someone died. On the battlefield would be Christians. Living or dying. And today, if you were to go to the Roman Colosseum, you would see that there is a cross standing at the gate where the Emperor would enter into the Colosseum. Rome became a place for the beauty of Christ. Your home. Your community, the people around you love and care about. Second Timothy is the explanation on how that battle is won. May we live. And love and grace. Reaching out to those we care about.