Let the Lion Out (Part 2 of 2)

Service look like, sound like retaining boring, but the teaching is the Bible clearly taught. Surprisingly not the case in a lot of churches today on Truth for Life. Alister Beck identifies a warning in the old directive for pastors to hold true to God's call to preach were in second Timothy chapter so to recap the charges.

Solomon straightforward. It is the inerrant word that is to be preached to be preached when the wind is with us when all occasions do inform against us and to be preached patiently and carefully.

The reason this is so important.

Paul now sets before Timothy in the challenge that is his verses three and four.

He's already been made aware of those who have squared from the truth that's in verse 18 of chapter 2 and now you going to exercise the ministry in the absence of Paul faced with people who are turning away from the truth and were wondering into myth, the time is coming. It's always coming. It's a recurring phenomenon we quoted earlier for Moses words in Deuteronomy 4 absolute clarity as God speaks through his prophet to his people and he says this wasn't a visual thing. This was a notable thing. This was about what you would look and see it was about what you would listen and hear what I but they immediately went out and they were intrigued by attracted by all kinds of visual possibilities. Instead of buying before their creator became creatures themselves creating their unmanageable little gods who would accommodate essentially the exchange the truth of God for a lie as Martin Luther observed. If a man will not have God he must have his items so Timothy must be prepared for the times when" people will not endure sound teaching sound teaching is already exhorted him to follow the pattern of sound words and in the first letter he had told him of those who teach a different doctrine. Chapter 6 the does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ. This age of sound is a very British adjective, at least in my background as a boy growing up I would hear of those who apparently were sound and those who will not sound I never really understood it until I had grown up a little bit and I realize that sound was essentially it was a euphemism synonym for the agree with me. But no, not really think it was that it meant they are Orthodox in their view, their understanding of the Bible and so I just one little anecdote as it comes to minors preaching in Northern Ireland years ago and my host was a little retired bank manager called TS Mooney, who was regarded as the unelected Bishop of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in the north of Ireland. He was a very funny man. He had all kinds of one-liners and he was very developed and taught young people, boys in particular for 50 years in a Bible class up to the day of his day and every evening as I spoke at this young People's convention in Londonderry. He would come into their little room in the back of the Methodist Church and we would have a prayer together. He would pray very earnestly that God would help me as I preach. And so one for which I was very grateful and then he would go out and eventually the time would come for me to speak and in the first night as I got through that this is my title and he was already in the third stages of anesthesia he was. He was wrong and it happened on a Monday night happened on the Tuesday night and on the winds because we were living together.

I was living in his flat, and eventually as I was driving when I said TS I said you know every night you come in the prayer time and use Brady's earnest prayers and you you fall asleep every single night and he knew he was caught out he was a funny little man looked at many says Allah is just like the SEC I just stay awake till I know your sound put up with sound doctrine. As soon as it goes sound. They have decided to exit stage left. Instead of availing themselves of teachers and teaching that will make them godly.

Make them healthy and make them useful. They are now in search of the intriguing fascinating speculative.

The spicy will be more interested.

He says a novelty than an orthodoxy they will essentially seek out teachers who tell them what they want to hear. Of course this was not new information. This was not unique to Timothy's day I and Isaiah we find God's people, rejecting the instruction of the prophet, not because it wasn't clear because it was clear they didn't want him to stop preaching. They just wanted him to preach in a manner that suited their fancy that accommodated their passions real challenge for most of us is not that we actually start believing the Bible the real challenges that we actually start using the Bible that we think that we stop submitting to the authority of the word of God in our own lives and in our program and listen to the way in which Isaiah 30 reads. They are a rebellious people lying children. Children unwilling to hear the instruction of the Lord say to the seers do not see, and to the prophets, do not prophesy to us what is right speak to us.

Smooth things prophesy illusions lead the way turn aside from the path led us here know more about the holy one, of Israel now is no new thing to encounter those who are in search of and then proponents of spirituality that is actually disconnected from biblical truth that surely is the environment in which most of us are operating.

People tell is all that I'm a very spiritual person is of no interest in the Bible very special parts. These individuals accumulate teachers the way along the lines of the week women.

The ball is already like mentioned in the letter. Those individuals who were always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. The accumulate you just imagine that their Facebook page. Just filled up with teacher after teacher after teacher, did you hear this, when did you see that this one tweeting while your points are trying to find new information all the time. If CDs from every imaginable place in the world good line on an entire trailer truck with the mall. Of all the information, but if you asked Amanda and what you know of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. They know nothing was learned of the never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. John Holt is worth recording. It is an appalling and horrible thing has happened in the prophets prophesy falsely the priests rule there. This direction and my people love to have it so now I have the unfortunate distinction of living in the city that is more losing sports teams than frankly is manageable under any circumstances far more devastating is the fact that in Cleveland we have the headquarters of arguably the most liberal Protestant denomination in America, namely the United Church of Christ. Their current marketing slogan, which is all around me as I drive in Ohio is God is still speaking in the byline is never place a. Where God has placed her, the God that actually from the papers of Gracie Allen well-known theologian who was married for most of our life to the comedian George Burns and all signs very proposed seems very accommodating at a recent gathering in Cleveland where representatives of the denomination high-ranking representatives, clergy, people were arguing in favor of a gay-rights agenda friend of mine happened to be going down on the elevator with this man and his husband, who had been there representing the church in this discourse, my friend, to his courage in his hands said kindly to the man.

What you may sorry if I may ask Matthew 19, where Jesus said, have you not read that he created who created them from the beginning made them male and female went on to say. For this reason a man leave his father and his mother and the two will become one flesh. My friend said the man looked at him quizzically for a moment and then he said, but of course we don't believe the Bible. While this clarity is that self and yet those churches of people in them every single Sunday. Not manning are sinfully but it is in that environment that we find ourselves ministry I say without any spirit of condemnation flies far and beyond their rings out. Sadly, in my native land as well as in my adopted home while the charge is clear is that verses one to the challenges grade verses three and four and so verse five Paul says it provides him an opportunity to display his character this stuff for Ferris adds four more imperatives to the five that are present in verse two Timothy is assigned a tall order man sized challenge here in this fifth verse we have as one commentator put it in a realistic statement of what Christian ministry is all about confronted by opposition by isolation would be all too easy for Timothy just to throw in the towel to quit the fight to lie down in the grass to exit the race. This is no time for self pity is an opportunity to stay steady to face whatever suffering may come keep on preaching the gospel to complete the task. And so, without much elaboration… Notice this fourfold directive number one always be sober minded. He was surrounded by some of it becoming intoxicated with all of their mythological notions. They had wandered away. They had drifted off. This would be a good time for Timothy to use a pastoral cruise control or automatic pilot. You dearly fall asleep for his own sake and for the sake of those under his care.

He must be vigilant, so must we must be alert must be prepared to ensure you must make sure that is not susceptible to the speculative notions, nor that he is unduly influenced by the numbers of people who flock in the direction of these kinds of teachers always always be sober minded or in the NIV. Keep your head in all situations.

Secondly, endure suffering of Paul began his letter by inviting him to join him in suffering for the gospel. He spoken about his suffering all the way through. This is my gospel, for which I'm suffering. He says again and again. Timothy would not of been able to recognize many of our approaches to what it means to be a gospel in Paul's case, the suffering was obviously physical intimidation case may not be for many of our brothers and sisters in the world. It is physical.

For others it may be more mental or emotional, but it's real. Nevertheless, this people chase around in search of a more politically acceptable gospel. There's a cost involved in guarding the good deposit is a cost involved to declare in public and then in private. The Bible's assessment of man as being sinful and guilty and responsible and lost his.

It is hard to do that and say come in and bring your coffee and doughnuts. We want you all to just have a lovely time this morning on anybody getting upset or anything, but by the way your sinful guilty responsible and lost. Don't spill your coffee. You see, you can you can do it and that's why superficial worship and silly introduction.

Do not set the scene for decent biblical preaching and after the context in which worship takes place is so unlike anything that the Bible would regard as worship makes it far harder to actually bring any kind of solemnity partners into the expedience of the Scripture Timothy not to endure suffering you be you be on the receiving end of accusations. The insinuations of the evil one who comes to deceive you to discourage you to derail you if he possibly could.

As I read and reread this as we got. I thought how often they must've taken to himself that we would take a piece of hard candy and keep it in your cheek, take to himself the opening statement of Paul in the second chapter, Timothy strengthens be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus would've said to it again and again. That said, I'm strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, sober mind, endure suffering thoroughly do the work of an evangelist.

Also Paul wants to get a new job.

He's is a change of role isn't is not to be a pastor teacher is going to be an evangelist and on things. Rather, he is reinforcing the charge to preach the word Debbie Phillips paraphrases it again and you can tell I like Phillips paraphrase, go unsteadily, preaching the gospel go unsteadily, preaching the gospel be gospel man, Timothy, if you're going to be known for one thing be known as a gospel man Packard in the quest for godliness is a wonderful quote really says if one preaches the Bible biblically, one cannot help preaching the gospel all the time and every sermon will be as Bolton said at least by implication evangelistic so that we are ultimately saying, we beseech you on Christ's behalf be reconciled to God. You're not here simply to be informed a little with a few practical tips to take home for conversation in the preach to you is McShane preach as men who will soon die to those who are on the way. Therefore, we beseech you, on Christ be God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not counting our sins against is he who knew no sin became sin for us that in him we might become the righteousness of God that the only safe haven in the center is in the nursery of self and when this begins the dog on the preacher and on those to me preaches then were moving in the realm of useful effective Biblical evangelism in my lifetime, such as it is.

I watched sadly many good, godly, effective gospel ministers deviate from their course.

I determined that it is now their calling to chase down the heretics so their ministry becomes one of denunciation or simply to curse the darkness. Do you realize what a mess we're in, and their ministry becomes one of condemnation or the same time to embrace political agendas so that it now becomes politicizing and what happens work of evangelism is not Timothy dear not neglect this work. The grading of the son of God came to die for us and for our sins, that he offers to clothes, and his righteousness and all that God has done for us. As Calvin said, is of no value to as long as we remain outside of Christ to misquote John Murray, the passion for evangelism.

He said the passion for missions, the passion for evangelism is quenched. When we lose sight of the grandeur of the gospel.

He said it eventual, and for some of you young man. Let me just say this final word to you. Some of you have rolled over in your beds and discovered biblical theology and for that I rejoice. One of the incumbent problems that is come when it is that somehow or another nurse stymied when it comes to pressing upon people. The claims of Christ and the free offer of the gospel. Beware of this love points.

Choose your mentors well and listen again to Murray. It is on the crest of the wave of divine sovereignty that the unrestricted summons of the gospel comes to the wheelie and the heavily this is Jesus own witness, and it provides the direction in which our own thinking on this subject must proceed any inhibition or reserve in presenting the overtures of grace should no more characterize our proclamation that it characterizes the Lord's house. Finally, fulfill your ministry, which in my case means stop going finish the job carry on to the floor.

The commission that God is giving you in the secular Greek verb sometimes denotes the fulfilling of a promise or the repaying of the debt life and we can finish their Timothy had promised in his ordination, and so have we as a lesser call to this task. Timothy was indebted to Paul just as we are indebted to those who lead us to Christ who have nurtured us continue to encourage and inspire us Jesus and paying a debt he didn't all kept his promise to the father and in turn receive the promise of his father granting him the nation's as his inheritance, so perhaps an old mission him seldom song can serve as our conclusion. You know these words facing a task unfinished that drives us to our knees. I need that undiminished rebukes are slothful needs. We resolved to know him declare before his throne. The solemn pledge wheel to go on making known.

We bear towards the flaming fell from the hands of those who gave their life's proclaiming that Jesus died and rose and ours is the same ambition the same glad message hours fired the same ambition to your we yield our parks. The challenge that we face is clear the character that we forge is in process the charge that we find this all straightforward, I say to my brothers let the lion out the line that is Alistair Begg with the final message in our encore 2021 series listening to Truth for Life will keep listening. Alastair will be back in just a minute to close with prayer. If you've enjoyed listening to some of Alistair's most requested messages from the past 12 months. I will recommend to you a USB drive that contains some of Alistair's most popular teaching from the past decade.

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