Jump Start # 2356

2 Timothy 3:10 “but you followed my teaching conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance”

The third chapter of Timothy shows a major contrast between the believer and the man of the world. Paul warns the young preacher about coming trouble. The storm clouds were gathering on the horizon. Things were going to get bad. This wasn’t storms from Heaven, but rather, the sinful choices that others were making. They would be causing trouble because they were not following God. They had a form of godliness and they were learning, but it wasn’t doing these folks any good. Their pride and their selfish ways were taking them away from God. The fourth verse describes these folks as: “treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.” There was more, but this is enough. This is enough to understand that those hearts were closed, sealed and nothing Timothy said would do any good.

In deed, troublesome times were coming. They didn’t have to be that way, but it was the choices of these people. Put these folks in a congregation and you have a real mess. I’ve known a few places like this. One person asked for my advice. I told him, close the doors and bulldoze the building down. It’s time to move on. Some are just not interested in doing what is right. Some can’t see the Lord for the mirror that they are holding in front of their face. Try to tell an arrogant person something. You can’t. And, a gossip, whatever is said, is repeated. It seems that these folks needed to start over with the Lord.

Then we find our verse, the contrast. “But you.” Timothy’s not like this. He listened. He followed. He changed. He walked with the Lord. Later in the chapter Paul says, “You, however, continue in the things you have learned and became convinced of” (v. 14). You are different. You are going a different direction. You have chosen the Lord.

Now, all of this brings us to some great lessons that we need to remember:

First, we do not have to be like those around us. Many work among toxic co-workers. The gossip, backbiting, meddling and putting down of all things good and decent is enough to make one scream. You, however, will be different. You will not participate, encourage, nor be a part of such things.

Sometimes, this wicked spirit is found within the family. So, family picnics include destroying the character of those they do not like. But you, however, will be different. Even if it is family, you walk with the Lord.

Sometimes, this wicked spirit is found among brethren. They can be so mean and hurtful. Some love to put others down, while they themselves are doing very little. But you, however, will be different. You come to worship God. You come to encourage others. You will not be a part of hurting the very people that Jesus died for.

Second, these things can wear us down. They can make us more tired that physical work. The fussing. The complaining. The lack of appreciation. The constant fighting. Never happy. Never content. Never thankful. And, if we are not careful, we find ourselves complaining about the complainers. We slide right into that same mold ourselves. But you, however, reminds us that we can be thankful when no one else is. We can be singing praises at midnight, after a beating, while in prison, as Paul did. Our family can let us down. Friends can disappoint us. Brethren sometimes are not there. But, the Lord is. He’s never failed. He’s always been there for you. So, we look not at what is going on around us, but above the clouds to the Lord.

Third, people are the way they are because of the choices that they have made. It may be hard to believe that some would choose to be miserable, but they do. They don’t have to complain, but they do. They don’t have to gossip, but they do. Sometimes the environment in which one is raised certainly pulls a person, but even then, one can choose to be different. With Timothy, it was what he learned from God’s word. He stood with God. Some talk with a potty mouth. They choose to do so. Some can not speak two sentences without cussing. Some can’t see anything positive, even if it was right in front of them. Their choice. Not Timothy’s. Not mine. Not yours. I pretty much have given up on talk radio and TV. Whether right or left, they seem to always bash the other side, complain about how terrible things are, and it puts me in a bad mood. So, I don’t watch things like that. My choice. It’s your choice what you fill your time with and what you feed your heart with.

Fourth, standing with God always gives us an edge. First, we follow what is right. We also know what’s going to happen down the road. And, we realize that God is always on the throne. Fear, worry, criticism, doubt, all seem to go away when you allow God to be God and you allow Him to run the universe. God shows us how to be righteous, kind and servants to others. God shows us how to use grace to forgive others. Some like hanging around pigs. They want to wallow in the mud with pigs. And, then, they want to complain about the smell and the filth. Get out of the mud and get away from the pigs.

Finally, Paul tells Timothy to put some distance between these people. In the fifth verse Paul tells Timothy to avoid such men as these. Don’t hang around them. Don’t let them influence you. Don’t let them decide what is right. Don’t let them rub off on you. And, don’t become like one of them. Avoid them. Avoid them because they are not serious about God. Avoid them because they are trouble. Avoid them because you will get discouraged and upset by their godless choices. Avoid them.

There are just some people that you do not need in your life. This is so hard for some of us to get. When that person happens to be in our family, we throw away all the rules and all the logic. But, they are family, some declare. Yet, they are walking right with these wicked people that Paul told Timothy to avoid. You must be the master of your home. Family or not, if someone is doing something wrong or offensive, show them the door. No one should cuss in your house. No one! No one should blasphemy the Lord or His ways in your house. No one! If they do, tell them to stop. If they don’t, open the door.

Our lives would be better if we simply learned to avoid certain people. They are not helpful nor hopeful. They are not going to bring the better out of us. They will not help us get to Heaven. They stand in our way and they make things worse. It’s enough to deal with Satan. We don’t need others to help him. Some folks on Facebooks just need to be “defriended.” Their comments pull us down and discourage us. It doesn’t matter if they are friends from high school, long ago. Avoid such men as these!

You, however, reminds us of what we ought to be doing!

Roger

Jump Start # 2355

1 Timothy 6:12 “Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

NOTE: Monday is a holiday and there will not be a Jump Start that day.

Memorial Day Weekend is upon us. Picnics and cooking out. Graduation parties. Big car race in Indy. Beatles festival in Louisville. Lots of stuff going on. But it is also a time to reflect. Veterans Day honors the service men and women who serve. Memorial Day honors those in uniform who never made it back home. They gave their lives serving their country. I often wonder what impact wars have had upon congregations. There have been times when just about every able bodied male was involved in the war effort. This must have drained congregations of deacons and possible even elderships. And, when the wars were over, some never came home. The impact not only to the families but to the people of God must have been enormous.

Our verse today, one of several in which Paul reminds the preacher Timothy that they were engaged in a spiritual battle. There was a fight of faith taking place. Paul expected Timothy to be involved in that fight and to battle well. Those strong military terms often do not set well with our times today. Folks want peace at all costs. Can’t we get along, often means laying down the sword and smoking the peace pipe of compromise. Toleration is the new definition of love. Don’t judge. Don’t condemn. Don’t point fingers. And, definitely do not engage in battles. Today’s philosophy has no fighting the good fight, other than condemning Christians for simply doing what the Bible says.

Fight the good fight of faith. Several things to pull from those thoughts.

First, the world, especially Satan, is hostile to our faith. Satan can appear nice. He can engage in conversations with Eve. He can look like one of the sheep. He can appear to be helpful, nice and not all that bad. Oh, but he is. He wants to kill you. He wants to destroy your marriage, wreck your congregation and get you on that downward path to Hell. His words are lies. His fruit is poison. He confuses with his twisted thinking. He shifts priorities. He focuses upon things that do not matter. He is external and shallow. He is all about the moment. He hides the consequences and provides a crowd to cheer you on as you happily slide away from the Lord without realizing it.

We are engaged in a battle. We are going different directions and we are after different things. What is of value to the Christian, is mocked by the world. Labels, name dropping, image, and impressing others seems to mean a lot to the world. The child of God is interested in pleasing the Lord.

So, we must protect what is dear to us. We must guard our children. We must keep our congregation free from error. We must keep our lives and hearts pure. We do this by feeding upon the word of God. We do this by saying “No,” when the world wants us to say “yes.” We must draw lines and never cross those lines. We must teach, protect and walk continually with the Lord. Little by little, Satan is trying to chip away at our values. A show here. A movie there. A book. A website. A friend. A step, just one step, closer to the world. After a bit of time, just one step, that’s all, closer to the world. Then, only one more step. And before you know it, there we are, standing right beside the world. How did we get there? A step. Then another step. We weren’t paying attention. We weren’t sharp. We weren’t fighting the fight. We weren’t holding our ground.

Second, there are some things that are non-negotiable towards the world. Our families are off limits to the world. Our congregations are off limits to the world. Our hearts are off limits to the world. Fighting can be intense. Our brave military men and women are first trained, then they are equipped with the best weapons in the world, and then they are led by those who are experienced. They are not left on their own. That’s what we must do to both our families and our congregations. We must train them. We must equip them. And, then, we must lead them.

I have never been in the military. My dad was. He was a marine in World War II. We’ve watched many war movies together. Most times he’ll say, “It wasn’t like that.” He’s told me some stories. I’m amazed. He was just a country boy freshly graduated from high school who had never left the county he was born in. When I think about all of that, I’m fairly certain that I wouldn’t have made it. Wars are not nice. Property is destroyed. Fields are torn up. Animals die. And, the greatest causality, is that people are killed. Name the war, and people died. Look at the battles in the Bible. People died. Look at the battles in history. People died.

When I think about this expression, “fight the good fight of faith,” this is intense. It’s going to be tough. Wars are dirty, hard and exhausting. I wonder how we translate all of that spiritually? We need a seriousness about what we are doing. This is why the apostles tell us to be sober minded. Pay attention. Get serious. Not everything is funny. Not all of life is to be a joke. Families are dying all around us spiritually. Sexual affairs, addictions, neglect, indifference and apathy are killing the people of God. It’s time to put on the full armor of God. It’s time to lace up our boots and grab our shield and sword. Someone is after your heart. Are you going to let them get it or are you going to fight to the very end, defending what you know is right?

Third, unlike physical wars, the outcome of this battle is certain. The Lord wins. Read Revelation. Satan is punished forever in the lake of fire. The tools God gives us will defeat Satan. Stick with God and you’ll come out on the other side victoriously. You may have a few wounds and a scar or two, but it’s war. It’s hard not to have a few scars. But in the end, we win. We win because God wins. Satan wants you to feel overwhelmed. Satan wants to scare you. He wants you to lower your weapon and give up. He wants you to believe that there is no hope. He wants you to think that you just cannot go on any more. He wants you to surrender, because he knows that if you stick close to the Lord, that you will win. He cannot defeat the Lord. He tried and he failed. Jesus crushed the head of that ole’ serpent. And, yes, Jesus had a few scars. There were nail prints. There was a pieced side. There were wounds from a crown of thorns. But, those were not enough to conquer the Lord.

This Memorial Day, remember that we are all soldiers. We are fighting the greatest battles of all time, the battle for our hearts. Thanks be to God who gives us the victory!

Roger