1 00:00:04,240 --> 00:00:08,520 This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Lewis 2 00:00:08,520 --> 00:00:12,200 Harold, assistant pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland 3 00:00:12,200 --> 00:00:16,520 County in Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Lewis as he 4 00:00:16,520 --> 00:00:18,920 continues teaching through God's Word. 5 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:39,560 He's basically saying, OK, look, for me, it's just about over. 6 00:00:40,160 --> 00:00:43,600 I'm about to reach my goal, which is to be with Jesus 7 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:46,240 Christ. But for you, Timothy, I'm 8 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:50,120 passing the baton. And before I do that, there's 9 00:00:50,120 --> 00:00:52,080 another charge that I want to give to you. 10 00:00:53,040 --> 00:00:58,600 And he says, I charge you therefore before God and the 11 00:00:58,600 --> 00:01:03,520 Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead. 12 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:08,120 It kind of gives you an idea of the weight or of the importance 13 00:01:08,320 --> 00:01:11,600 of this charge. I'm sure you've never done this, 14 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:14,200 but you know, some people are pretty forgetful. 15 00:01:14,520 --> 00:01:16,920 I'm sure you've never forgotten to do something that you were 16 00:01:16,920 --> 00:01:21,360 asked to do by, say, your spouse or maybe your parents as a 17 00:01:21,360 --> 00:01:23,680 child. But what if you had something 18 00:01:23,800 --> 00:01:27,480 really important to do? What if you were given a task 19 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:30,440 that was a bit more critical than just taking out the 20 00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:33,320 garbage? Today, Pastor Lewis wants to 21 00:01:33,320 --> 00:01:35,920 convey to you the weight of those things that have been 22 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:39,240 commissioned to you from God himself in His Word. 23 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:43,280 Now here's Pastor Lewis in the Book of Second Timothy, Chapter 24 00:01:43,280 --> 00:01:47,080 4, with today's edition of Living Waters of Grace. 25 00:01:47,720 --> 00:01:52,440 I pray that you would speak, that you would preach to us, 26 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:56,640 that you would teach us your doctrines today, Lord, that you 27 00:01:56,640 --> 00:01:59,960 would give us a picture of just what it is that you want to 28 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:04,280 share with us today, Lord, that we would go home changed, that 29 00:02:04,280 --> 00:02:06,800 we will go home more in love with you, that we will go home 30 00:02:07,360 --> 00:02:09,759 looking more and more like your Son Jesus. 31 00:02:12,080 --> 00:02:16,480 Have mercy on us, Lord, extend your grace to us today. 32 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:22,200 Manifest your spirit. We need you Lord, we need you. 33 00:02:22,920 --> 00:02:25,880 If you don't manifest your spirit Lord, then we have 34 00:02:25,880 --> 00:02:31,200 gathered for nothing. So feed us in Jesus name we 35 00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:34,680 pray, Amen. So we are in chapter 4. 36 00:02:34,920 --> 00:02:38,000 Let's just start to read there beginning at verse one. 37 00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:42,400 Paul says I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus 38 00:02:42,400 --> 00:02:47,040 Christ who will judge the living and the dead at his appearing 39 00:02:47,520 --> 00:02:50,120 and his Kingdom. Preach the word. 40 00:02:50,200 --> 00:02:55,040 Be ready in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, exhort 41 00:02:55,080 --> 00:02:59,360 with all long-suffering and teaching, for the time will come 42 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:03,280 when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their 43 00:03:03,280 --> 00:03:06,280 own desires. Because they have itching ears. 44 00:03:06,280 --> 00:03:10,520 They will heap up for themselves teachers, and they will turn 45 00:03:10,520 --> 00:03:18,200 their ears away from the truth and be turned aside to fables or 46 00:03:18,200 --> 00:03:21,760 myths. But you be watchful in all 47 00:03:21,760 --> 00:03:26,720 things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, 48 00:03:26,880 --> 00:03:30,920 fulfill your ministry. We're going to stop there. 49 00:03:30,920 --> 00:03:33,880 As we go back and begin to just make comments. 50 00:03:33,880 --> 00:03:38,200 I was just thinking about Paul as we get into this study. 51 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:45,000 Paul's coming to the end of his life and he continues to really 52 00:03:45,000 --> 00:03:49,080 relish this time that he has. And, and he's alone at this 53 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:50,920 time. And I'm sure he's with his 54 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:54,400 thoughts and his thoughts are bombarding him about his life 55 00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:56,720 and he's thinking about the things that he's experienced. 56 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:59,680 And even more so, he's thinking about the things that he can 57 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:02,720 impart to his son in the faith, Timothy. 58 00:04:03,080 --> 00:04:04,440 And I was just thinking about Paul. 59 00:04:04,440 --> 00:04:07,000 You know, if Paul was, if we were to see the highlights of 60 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:10,520 Paul's life in ministry, what would that look like? 61 00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:13,160 Well, it would look, it would look entirely different from 62 00:04:13,160 --> 00:04:16,600 what we see with these, with these athletes and, and, and the 63 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:19,560 people, the coaches and the people that are involved in the 64 00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:21,240 NFL. It will look totally different. 65 00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:23,960 Their highlights all glorify them. 66 00:04:23,960 --> 00:04:26,080 It, it, it, it, it makes them look grand. 67 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:30,280 It makes them look great. Paul's highlights would probably 68 00:04:30,280 --> 00:04:33,360 not be the same. When you watch the highlights of 69 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:37,280 a athlete you're thinking about, wow, wouldn't it be great to be 70 00:04:37,280 --> 00:04:38,880 able to do that? Wouldn't it be great to 71 00:04:38,880 --> 00:04:41,480 experience that? Wouldn't it be great to have 72 00:04:41,800 --> 00:04:45,320 that in my in in my repertoire? But I don't think you would feel 73 00:04:45,320 --> 00:04:48,040 that way about the things that Paul had to go through in his 74 00:04:48,040 --> 00:04:50,200 life. You know, his highlights would 75 00:04:50,200 --> 00:04:54,080 be glorious to the Lord and glorious to to heaven. 76 00:04:54,080 --> 00:04:57,440 But to the common man, his highlights wouldn't be anything 77 00:04:57,440 --> 00:04:59,320 that we would run into trying to do. 78 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:02,160 You know, we always say here, I always say here that, you know, 79 00:05:02,160 --> 00:05:06,520 the Bible is not about great men who do great things for God. 80 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:10,160 It is not about that. The Bible is about a great God 81 00:05:10,360 --> 00:05:13,800 who does great things through mere men. 82 00:05:14,640 --> 00:05:18,680 That's what the Bible was about. So we don't glorify men as we 83 00:05:18,680 --> 00:05:22,640 talk about the Bible, but we acknowledge the power of God 84 00:05:22,640 --> 00:05:25,840 working through these men, just like we acknowledge the power of 85 00:05:25,840 --> 00:05:28,880 God who works through each and everyone of you in your 86 00:05:28,880 --> 00:05:31,200 ministries. Paul was a special brother. 87 00:05:31,200 --> 00:05:33,840 There's no question about that. We call him the gospel 88 00:05:33,840 --> 00:05:35,960 globetrotter. Paul's the one that went from 89 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:40,120 place to place and spread the gospel every single place he 90 00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:42,040 went. But his highlights would be 91 00:05:42,040 --> 00:05:44,200 about his stoning, getting stoned. 92 00:05:44,200 --> 00:05:47,280 His highlights would be about enduring his persecutions. 93 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:49,800 It would be about being imprisoned. 94 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:52,360 It would be about being beaten, being scores. 95 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:55,600 It would be about him being dragged out of synagogues when 96 00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:58,400 he's preached the gospel. His highlights would be about 97 00:05:58,400 --> 00:06:02,440 calling out demons and calling out devils and preaching the 98 00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:05,960 gospel to people and people getting saved under his 99 00:06:05,960 --> 00:06:08,360 ministry. It would be about him setting up 100 00:06:08,360 --> 00:06:12,280 churches and developing elders and all these special things 101 00:06:12,280 --> 00:06:15,120 that Paul has done in the ministry. 102 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:17,480 And all these things didn't glorify him. 103 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:19,920 It glorifies the God who works through him. 104 00:06:20,800 --> 00:06:23,640 And if we see how special Paul is, we have to acknowledge the 105 00:06:23,640 --> 00:06:26,840 fact that Paul was working through the power of the Holy 106 00:06:26,840 --> 00:06:29,360 Spirit. Every time he preached, every 107 00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:32,400 time he prayed for somebody, every time he called out a 108 00:06:32,400 --> 00:06:35,600 demon, every time someone was healed, he did it through the 109 00:06:35,600 --> 00:06:39,320 power of the Holy Spirit. And we need to understand that 110 00:06:39,320 --> 00:06:42,880 we too need the Holy Spirit in our lives and whatever ministry 111 00:06:42,880 --> 00:06:47,640 it is that we are in. So Paul comes to the end of his 112 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:49,960 life now. And this is probably the very 113 00:06:49,960 --> 00:06:54,840 last chapter that Paul will write ever that he will write. 114 00:06:54,960 --> 00:06:57,000 This is it. This is it. 115 00:06:57,360 --> 00:07:01,600 Paul knows that he's looking at his mortality, but yet his 116 00:07:01,600 --> 00:07:05,240 charge was to a young man who he's going to be passing the 117 00:07:05,240 --> 00:07:08,040 baton to. He's basically saying, OK, look, 118 00:07:08,040 --> 00:07:11,840 for me, it's just about over. I'm about to reach my goal, 119 00:07:11,920 --> 00:07:13,840 which is to be with Jesus Christ. 120 00:07:14,320 --> 00:07:16,800 But for you, Timothy, I'm passing the baton. 121 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:20,920 And before I do that, there's another charge that I want to 122 00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:24,160 give to you. And he says, I charge you, 123 00:07:24,480 --> 00:07:30,360 therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will 124 00:07:30,360 --> 00:07:34,520 judge the living and the dead. It kind of gives you an idea of 125 00:07:34,520 --> 00:07:38,400 the weight or of the importance of this charge. 126 00:07:38,680 --> 00:07:44,160 It gives you an idea of just how significant this urging is that 127 00:07:44,160 --> 00:07:47,280 Paul is giving to Timothy. Look at the audience that he's 128 00:07:47,440 --> 00:07:50,440 giving this oath to that he's giving this this testimony to. 129 00:07:50,440 --> 00:07:55,120 He said, I'm charging you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ. 130 00:07:55,120 --> 00:07:57,680 Now those are one, it may sound like it's two different people, 131 00:07:57,680 --> 00:08:01,840 but in this in the Greek, this is actually one God and the Lord 132 00:08:01,960 --> 00:08:06,360 Jesus Christ who will judge the living and the dead. 133 00:08:06,520 --> 00:08:09,240 In other words, Timothy, I'm giving you this charge. 134 00:08:09,880 --> 00:08:12,680 I'm giving you, I'm urging you to do something here. 135 00:08:12,840 --> 00:08:16,320 And you have to remember, the one that I'm urging you in front 136 00:08:16,320 --> 00:08:19,000 of is going to be the very same one that's going to come and 137 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:21,520 judge you as he's going to judge me. 138 00:08:22,320 --> 00:08:24,200 So this is a very serious charge. 139 00:08:24,440 --> 00:08:27,880 And what is that charge? It's the same charge that he's 140 00:08:27,880 --> 00:08:31,960 been given Timothy all along. It's the same thread that goes 141 00:08:31,960 --> 00:08:35,840 through this entire book, throughout the entire Pastoral 142 00:08:35,840 --> 00:08:38,240 Epistles. It's the very same charge. 143 00:08:39,159 --> 00:08:44,560 He says preach the word, Timothy, preach the word. 144 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:48,480 I can read this over and over and over again, and every time I 145 00:08:48,480 --> 00:08:51,040 read it, it has significance to me. 146 00:08:51,360 --> 00:08:54,960 Preach the word. He's telling Timothy, first of 147 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:57,840 all, what to preach, Timothy, preach the word. 148 00:08:58,120 --> 00:09:01,480 Don't preach your experiences. Don't preach little short 149 00:09:01,480 --> 00:09:04,360 stories. Don't preach clever lines. 150 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:09,960 Don't preach motivational speeches, preach the word, 151 00:09:10,640 --> 00:09:16,000 Timothy, don't preach a word, don't preach A sermon, don't 152 00:09:16,000 --> 00:09:22,400 preach a message. Preach the word, the word. 153 00:09:22,760 --> 00:09:25,520 And and he's like I said throughout the entire Scripture, 154 00:09:25,800 --> 00:09:29,440 this is what he's been encouraging Timothy to do. 155 00:09:29,720 --> 00:09:32,800 And in First Timothy chapter 1 he says teach no other doctrine. 156 00:09:33,760 --> 00:09:36,640 No other doctrine. In First Timothy chapter 3 he 157 00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:39,160 said leaders should be able to teach. 158 00:09:40,520 --> 00:09:44,720 In First Timothy chapter 4 he says, till I come, give 159 00:09:44,720 --> 00:09:48,880 attendance to reading, exhortation, and teaching. 160 00:09:49,680 --> 00:09:52,600 And then in Second Timothy chapter 1 he says, hold fast the 161 00:09:52,600 --> 00:09:57,000 pattern of sound words. Second Timothy chapter 2 rightly 162 00:09:57,000 --> 00:10:01,960 divide the word of truth and then in Second Timothy here in 163 00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:05,000 chapter 4, he says preach the word. 164 00:10:05,480 --> 00:10:09,760 So he has always encouraged Timothy to first of all stay 165 00:10:09,760 --> 00:10:14,400 with the word and to preach the word because this is what Paul 166 00:10:14,400 --> 00:10:16,880 did. No matter where he went, the 167 00:10:16,880 --> 00:10:20,440 first thing he would do was walk into a synagogue and he would 168 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:25,440 preach the Word regardless of the circumstances. 169 00:10:25,560 --> 00:10:28,440 And then he gives Timothy the conditions in which he should be 170 00:10:28,440 --> 00:10:31,160 preaching. He gives him the conditions. 171 00:10:31,600 --> 00:10:34,320 He says be ready in season and out of season. 172 00:10:34,320 --> 00:10:36,280 There's two times, Timothy that you should be preaching this 173 00:10:36,280 --> 00:10:39,760 word. Preach it in season and preach 174 00:10:39,760 --> 00:10:43,360 it out of season. Those are the two times you 175 00:10:43,360 --> 00:10:45,840 should be preaching this Word. It's not always convenient to 176 00:10:45,840 --> 00:10:48,240 preach the Word, but you should preach the Word. 177 00:10:48,680 --> 00:10:52,000 It's not always easy to preach the Word, but you should preach 178 00:10:52,040 --> 00:10:54,200 the Word. The word that you're teaching is 179 00:10:54,200 --> 00:10:57,680 not always easy to hear. But Timothy, preach the Word. 180 00:10:59,560 --> 00:11:02,680 Preach the Word. Don't sugarcoat it. 181 00:11:02,960 --> 00:11:06,800 Don't make it easier to go down. Don't put bread with it or some 182 00:11:06,800 --> 00:11:10,200 other kind of sweet sauce to it to make it more palatable. 183 00:11:10,880 --> 00:11:15,760 Timothy, preach the Word, preach the word, He says, be ready in 184 00:11:15,760 --> 00:11:18,640 season and be ready out of season. 185 00:11:19,360 --> 00:11:23,280 Do it all the time, he says. And the word should convince or 186 00:11:23,280 --> 00:11:27,240 convict or correct. It should rebuke and it should 187 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:30,880 exhort. Every time one of us comes up 188 00:11:30,920 --> 00:11:34,600 and teach this word, one of those three things should be 189 00:11:34,600 --> 00:11:37,920 happening. It should either correct us. 190 00:11:39,960 --> 00:11:45,120 It should either exhort us or encourage us or should warn us 191 00:11:45,120 --> 00:11:48,960 or caution us. But the word should always have 192 00:11:48,960 --> 00:11:52,360 impact is what Paul is saying. The word will always have 193 00:11:52,600 --> 00:11:55,080 impact. And this is to be done with 194 00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:58,200 long-suffering and teaching, or in other words, patience. 195 00:11:58,480 --> 00:12:02,640 Paul is talking about patience because he understands that as 196 00:12:02,640 --> 00:12:08,000 Timothy, as you speak to your congregation, everyone is not 197 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:11,000 going to be at the same place spiritually. 198 00:12:11,840 --> 00:12:16,160 So people will need to be, you will need to be patient because 199 00:12:16,160 --> 00:12:18,800 people are going to mature at different levels. 200 00:12:19,200 --> 00:12:22,360 As we mature at different rates, we're going to mature 201 00:12:22,360 --> 00:12:27,080 differently. So Timothy, be patient, but be 202 00:12:27,080 --> 00:12:31,600 patient through teaching. Don't always want to just call 203 00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:34,520 somebody out. Let the word change people, 204 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:37,360 Timothy. So do it through teaching. 205 00:12:37,880 --> 00:12:40,320 Let the word help people to mature. 206 00:12:41,440 --> 00:12:44,520 That's the importance of teaching the Word with patience. 207 00:12:44,680 --> 00:12:47,400 And then he said for the time will come when they will not 208 00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:49,680 endure sound doctrine. And that's why you should teach 209 00:12:49,680 --> 00:12:52,400 the Word now, Timothy, because there's going to be a time when 210 00:12:52,400 --> 00:12:55,160 there's going to be people who will not want to endure sound 211 00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:57,240 doctrine. There will be a time when people 212 00:12:57,240 --> 00:13:00,440 will want to not hear a word that convicts them. 213 00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:03,520 They're not going to want to hear things that will hold the 214 00:13:03,520 --> 00:13:07,080 mirror up to their lives and cause them to be able to see 215 00:13:07,080 --> 00:13:09,240 what they look like or what we look like. 216 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:11,600 They might not want to hear that, Timothy, after a while, 217 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:14,800 they're not going to want to hear about righteousness. 218 00:13:14,800 --> 00:13:16,720 They're not going to hear about holiness. 219 00:13:16,880 --> 00:13:18,560 They only want to hear, you know, they're going to be 220 00:13:18,560 --> 00:13:20,960 looking for people who will only teach the, you know, the 221 00:13:20,960 --> 00:13:24,400 goodness of God or the mercy of God or the grace of God or the 222 00:13:24,400 --> 00:13:26,720 love of God. They don't want to hear people 223 00:13:26,720 --> 00:13:29,760 that's going to teach about the holiness of God and the law of 224 00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:32,560 God or the righteousness of God. They're not going to want to 225 00:13:32,560 --> 00:13:36,440 hear that. Want to hear people talk about 226 00:13:36,440 --> 00:13:41,080 sin, things that I want to do. Don't call it sin. 227 00:13:42,720 --> 00:13:46,520 That word sounds so bad when you call it sin, but it's things 228 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:48,800 that I want to do. They don't want to hear that, 229 00:13:49,240 --> 00:13:52,040 Timothy. So preach the word because 230 00:13:52,040 --> 00:13:53,520 they're not going to hear sound doctrine. 231 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:57,240 But because of but, but, but according to their own desires, 232 00:13:57,680 --> 00:14:02,000 because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves 233 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:04,320 teachers. They'll just listen to the 234 00:14:04,320 --> 00:14:07,400 teachers, Timothy, that they want to hear, the ones that's 235 00:14:07,400 --> 00:14:09,640 going to make them feel good when they leave every time. 236 00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:13,400 They'll never hear about things that I need to change in my life 237 00:14:13,400 --> 00:14:16,840 or or never hear a word that convicts me or challenges me 238 00:14:17,320 --> 00:14:19,720 about things that I'm doing or things that I'm thinking about 239 00:14:19,720 --> 00:14:22,320 the way that I'm treating people about my unforgiveness. 240 00:14:22,520 --> 00:14:24,680 They don't want to hear a word that challenges that. 241 00:14:24,880 --> 00:14:28,280 They want to hear something that just makes them feel good, that 242 00:14:28,280 --> 00:14:31,160 just makes them feel good, something that just motivates 243 00:14:31,160 --> 00:14:34,440 them, you know, 5 steps to acquire, you know, to acquiring 244 00:14:34,440 --> 00:14:38,360 wealth, 5 steps to a good marriage, 5 steps to, you know, 245 00:14:38,360 --> 00:14:42,200 to, to really being able to excel in business, 5 steps to 246 00:14:42,200 --> 00:14:47,360 making myself a better person. Hear things like that instead of 247 00:14:47,640 --> 00:14:50,920 the things that the Bible teaches us about change, about 248 00:14:50,920 --> 00:14:53,920 holiness, about the things the Bible teaches us about 249 00:14:53,920 --> 00:14:56,320 obedience. They're not going to hear that, 250 00:14:56,320 --> 00:14:58,440 Timothy. And then they said they're going 251 00:14:58,440 --> 00:15:00,040 to turn away their ears from those things. 252 00:15:00,040 --> 00:15:01,680 They're going to turn away their ears from the truth. 253 00:15:01,920 --> 00:15:05,760 And they're going to turn to fables, turn aside to myths, to 254 00:15:05,760 --> 00:15:10,880 fables, to turn aside to things that are not lined up with the 255 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:14,600 word of God. Turn aside to prosperity 256 00:15:14,600 --> 00:15:19,360 teaching or turn aside to, you know, it being OK to live with 257 00:15:19,360 --> 00:15:23,080 somebody or turn aside to those things that say everybody's 258 00:15:23,080 --> 00:15:25,600 going to heaven. You know, turn aside to teaching 259 00:15:25,600 --> 00:15:30,560 like that because it's easier for them to listen to as opposed 260 00:15:30,560 --> 00:15:33,080 to being challenged through the word. 261 00:15:34,280 --> 00:15:36,960 But then in verse 5, he says, but you Timothy, so he's 262 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:39,880 switching gears here, Timothy. That's what they that that may 263 00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:42,280 be what they want to hear. That may be where the false 264 00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:44,640 teachers are. That may be where people were 265 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:47,480 the unbelievers are or people who are being challenged in 266 00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:48,880 their faith. That may be where they are. 267 00:15:49,000 --> 00:15:53,200 But you, Timothy, as a pastor, I want you, Timothy, to be 268 00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:58,080 watchful in all things. In other words, that that that 269 00:15:58,080 --> 00:16:02,760 that word means to be sober in all things to be sober. 270 00:16:03,880 --> 00:16:08,880 And there's a lot of things that can be intoxicating to us that 271 00:16:08,880 --> 00:16:12,600 causes us to not think clearly and a lot of things that causes 272 00:16:12,600 --> 00:16:16,560 us to not have self-control. To be sober means to have to 273 00:16:16,560 --> 00:16:19,000 think clear and to have self-control. 274 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:23,560 To be sober mean to not be under intoxicating influence. 275 00:16:23,760 --> 00:16:27,520 That's what it means to be sober, to think clearly, to act 276 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:30,880 clearly. But there's things out there 277 00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:34,600 that we can listen to or things that we allow to get into our 278 00:16:34,600 --> 00:16:39,520 hearts that will cause us to not think clearly, that will cause 279 00:16:39,520 --> 00:16:42,760 us to not act under self-control, and it causes us 280 00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:44,560 to act like we're under the influence. 281 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:47,800 We can be under the influence of bad things. 282 00:16:47,880 --> 00:16:52,080 Intoxicating teaching can put us under the influence and cause us 283 00:16:52,080 --> 00:16:56,960 to act that way. And he says, Timothy, be careful 284 00:16:56,960 --> 00:16:59,440 that. Be watchful, be watchful. 285 00:16:59,440 --> 00:17:02,360 The things that you allow to come into your ear gates. 286 00:17:03,680 --> 00:17:05,560 Be watchful. Parents, be watchful. 287 00:17:05,560 --> 00:17:07,880 The things that come into your kids ear gates. 288 00:17:08,599 --> 00:17:11,440 Be watchful the things that come into your eye gates, the things 289 00:17:11,440 --> 00:17:16,319 that you allow your eyes to look upon, David said in Psalms 119. 290 00:17:16,319 --> 00:17:23,400 Turn my eyes away from empty things because he knows that to 291 00:17:23,400 --> 00:17:26,920 look at things that are empty can be intoxicating and it can 292 00:17:26,920 --> 00:17:30,720 change you. And he says, Timothy, I want you 293 00:17:30,720 --> 00:17:34,080 to turn away from those things. Guard your ear gates, guard your 294 00:17:34,080 --> 00:17:38,840 eye gates, guard your heart. For out of it are the issues of 295 00:17:38,840 --> 00:17:42,600 life. So, Timothy, be careful and be 296 00:17:42,600 --> 00:17:45,640 watchful. Be aware of the things that 297 00:17:45,640 --> 00:17:47,640 people were saying around you, the things that people were 298 00:17:47,640 --> 00:17:49,240 teaching. Be aware of that. 299 00:17:49,360 --> 00:17:52,080 Be aware of the things that you listen to, the things that you 300 00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:55,480 read. Be aware of those things. 301 00:17:55,840 --> 00:17:58,240 You know, one thing, I, I, I look, you know, Pastor Clark is 302 00:17:58,240 --> 00:18:02,000 very well read, very well read lot more well read than I am. 303 00:18:02,720 --> 00:18:08,400 And there are books that can sometimes appear to be OK, but 304 00:18:08,400 --> 00:18:10,640 once you get into them, you read them, you'll find out that it 305 00:18:10,760 --> 00:18:15,240 that it's not that it does not line up with the word of God. 306 00:18:15,560 --> 00:18:18,760 It does not. And a lot of times, before you 307 00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:23,360 even have to open up the book and be exposed to that, Pastor 308 00:18:23,360 --> 00:18:26,360 Clark will have known something about it in some degree. 309 00:18:26,360 --> 00:18:29,720 I mean, it's amazing how many times that he's been able to 310 00:18:29,920 --> 00:18:33,800 hear an author's name or hear a book that has that has come out 311 00:18:34,040 --> 00:18:37,880 and he's aware of where that book goes, how that book 312 00:18:37,880 --> 00:18:41,440 separates from the Word of God very well read that way. 313 00:18:42,240 --> 00:18:44,400 We have to be careful of those things. 314 00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:46,880 That's why it's so much easier to just stick with the Word of 315 00:18:46,880 --> 00:18:49,080 God. We don't have to worry about it. 316 00:18:49,160 --> 00:18:52,440 You know, if I swim in my swimming pool, I don't have to 317 00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:55,560 worry about, you know, having to worry about any drop offs or any 318 00:18:55,560 --> 00:18:57,160 surprises. You know, if I'm swimming in my 319 00:18:57,160 --> 00:18:59,680 own swimming pool, you know, I have to worry about anything 320 00:18:59,680 --> 00:19:02,800 that's going to surprise me. You know, I know what's in it. 321 00:19:03,600 --> 00:19:06,440 I know what's in my pool, so I don't have to worry about it. 322 00:19:06,560 --> 00:19:08,760 But if I'm swimming out there in some place that's open, where 323 00:19:08,760 --> 00:19:11,480 anything can have access to me, that can be a problem. 324 00:19:12,200 --> 00:19:14,560 That can be a problem. But he said be watchful in all 325 00:19:14,560 --> 00:19:15,800 things. Then he says, endure 326 00:19:15,800 --> 00:19:17,960 afflictions. And this is another thing that 327 00:19:17,960 --> 00:19:21,240 has been consistent throughout Timothy's life and throughout 328 00:19:21,240 --> 00:19:24,400 Paul's life as he has endured afflictions. 329 00:19:25,640 --> 00:19:27,560 Paul can definitely talk about enduring fictions. 330 00:19:27,560 --> 00:19:30,560 Back in chapter 3, we just talked about the afflictions 331 00:19:30,560 --> 00:19:35,400 that he endured over in Antioch and in Iconium and in Lyster 332 00:19:35,400 --> 00:19:39,080 where he actually suffered the stoning that took his life or 333 00:19:39,080 --> 00:19:42,280 could have taken or we think that actually did take his life. 334 00:19:42,720 --> 00:19:45,560 So Paul knows a lot about enduring afflictions. 335 00:19:45,560 --> 00:19:49,280 And these are all along with these, you know, the commands 336 00:19:49,280 --> 00:19:52,680 that Paul gave to Timothy. The first was breach the word 337 00:19:52,840 --> 00:19:55,520 and the second is be watchful in all things. 338 00:19:55,520 --> 00:19:59,000 And now the third here is endure afflictions and endure 339 00:19:59,000 --> 00:20:02,560 patiently, not just go through them complaining, not go through 340 00:20:02,600 --> 00:20:06,240 them, you know, murmuring, not go through them, you know, with 341 00:20:06,240 --> 00:20:10,200 a bad attitude, but endure afflictions, endure it in a way 342 00:20:10,360 --> 00:20:14,320 that it brings glory to God. When you go through changes on 343 00:20:14,320 --> 00:20:18,200 your job that may afflict you, that may cause some discomfort 344 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:21,680 to your may interrupt the way that you do things on your job, 345 00:20:21,800 --> 00:20:24,040 how do you do it? Do you do it with, by 346 00:20:24,040 --> 00:20:26,480 complaining and murmuring? Do we talk about the boss? 347 00:20:26,480 --> 00:20:30,080 Do we, you know, do we get with the water cooler crew and, and 348 00:20:30,080 --> 00:20:32,160 put down the people who are making the decisions? 349 00:20:32,440 --> 00:20:34,440 Or do we go through it patiently, just trusting the 350 00:20:34,440 --> 00:20:38,840 Lord that he will work it out, that he will work it out. 351 00:20:39,000 --> 00:20:42,000 That's what makes us different. That's what makes us different. 352 00:20:42,240 --> 00:20:46,040 And so he says endure afflictions and then he says, do 353 00:20:46,040 --> 00:20:50,200 the work of an evangelist, do the work of an evangelist. 354 00:20:50,360 --> 00:20:54,160 Now the word evangelist is only mentioned three times in in the 355 00:20:54,160 --> 00:20:56,480 Bible. The first time it's mentioned is 356 00:20:56,480 --> 00:21:00,400 in the book of of Acts in chapter 21 where he refers to 357 00:21:00,680 --> 00:21:04,720 Philip as an evangelist. The next time it's mentioned is 358 00:21:04,720 --> 00:21:08,960 over in Ephesians chapter 4. When, when, when, when Paul 359 00:21:08,960 --> 00:21:13,160 talks about the gifts that Jesus left with the church and one of 360 00:21:13,160 --> 00:21:17,960 those gifts was an evangelist for the purpose of equipping the 361 00:21:17,960 --> 00:21:20,520 Saints. And then of course, here in 362 00:21:20,520 --> 00:21:26,200 second Timothy chapter 4, he mentions the evangelists or, or, 363 00:21:26,200 --> 00:21:29,000 or evangelism. Now, evangelism is very 364 00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:31,200 important. It's very important to the whole 365 00:21:31,200 --> 00:21:33,920 gospel. It's the what they call the pre 366 00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:38,800 salvation preaching is what they call evangelism, pre salvation 367 00:21:38,800 --> 00:21:41,440 preaching because it's the, it's the word. 368 00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:44,120 It's the one that introduces you to the gospel. 369 00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:47,640 People were introduced to the gospel through evangelism. 370 00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:50,160 And then, of course, once they become believers, they are 371 00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:52,720 discipled through the word of God and they're learning the 372 00:21:52,720 --> 00:21:55,760 doctrines and they're coming here and they're being taught 373 00:21:56,080 --> 00:21:58,120 the gospel are coming other churches and they're being 374 00:21:58,120 --> 00:22:02,120 taught the, you know, how to live the life that they were 375 00:22:02,120 --> 00:22:06,560 just birthed into. But the purpose of evangelism is 376 00:22:06,560 --> 00:22:10,360 to equip and encourage believers to share the gospel, to share 377 00:22:10,360 --> 00:22:13,280 that good news and to live that gospel out. 378 00:22:13,840 --> 00:22:17,000 He preaches the gospel and calls for repentance is what an 379 00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:19,400 evangelist does. He calls for repentance. 380 00:22:19,400 --> 00:22:23,400 He, he causes us or lets us know that we can repent and we can 381 00:22:23,400 --> 00:22:27,360 turn from that old lifestyle and, and, and, and anyone who's 382 00:22:27,360 --> 00:22:30,760 listening who have not given their hearts to the Lord or not 383 00:22:30,760 --> 00:22:35,320 trusted Jesus Christ for your salvation, repentance is open 384 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:37,080 for you. It's available for you. 385 00:22:37,960 --> 00:22:41,400 Evangelism is what we're doing right now is just sharing the 386 00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:44,120 gospel. Jesus Christ died for your sins 387 00:22:44,120 --> 00:22:48,200 and we are all sinners and Jesus Christ died for those sins. 388 00:22:49,200 --> 00:22:51,440 He died for those sins and we all are sinners. 389 00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:55,080 Everyone of us have sinned and I've come short of the glory of 390 00:22:55,080 --> 00:22:59,400 God and that sin will have to be dealt with. 391 00:22:59,800 --> 00:23:02,840 The wages of sin is death according to the word of God. 392 00:23:03,440 --> 00:23:06,720 That's the wrath that unrepentant sinners have to face 393 00:23:06,720 --> 00:23:11,800 is death. But Jesus Christ came and died 394 00:23:11,800 --> 00:23:16,240 for our sins. He was buried three days, He 395 00:23:16,240 --> 00:23:19,480 laid in the grave, and then he arose. 396 00:23:20,280 --> 00:23:23,960 And that gives us our hope for eternal life. 397 00:23:25,360 --> 00:23:29,160 Anyone who's listening who have not trusted Jesus Christ for 398 00:23:29,160 --> 00:23:32,000 your Savior, you can repent right now. 399 00:23:32,560 --> 00:23:33,880 You don't even have to say it out loud. 400 00:23:33,880 --> 00:23:38,120 You can repent at home, but it's available through the grace of 401 00:23:38,120 --> 00:23:39,800 our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 402 00:23:40,240 --> 00:23:44,080 So he says, do the work of an evangelist and then he says, 403 00:23:44,080 --> 00:23:48,720 fulfill your ministry, fulfill your ministry, finish your 404 00:23:48,720 --> 00:23:51,240 ministry. You know, have your ministry, 405 00:23:51,400 --> 00:23:53,960 you know, whatever it is that the Lord called you to do. 406 00:23:57,080 --> 00:24:00,400 Here on Living Waters of Grace, we're in the books of First and 407 00:24:00,400 --> 00:24:03,960 Second Timothy. Pastor Lewis Harrell is walking 408 00:24:03,960 --> 00:24:06,800 us through these letters written from Paul to Timothy. 409 00:24:07,320 --> 00:24:10,120 Toward the end of these letters, Paul is anticipating that his 410 00:24:10,120 --> 00:24:13,320 time here on earth is coming to a close. 411 00:24:13,720 --> 00:24:16,600 He's giving some final words of advice to his mentee. 412 00:24:17,160 --> 00:24:20,240 Paul writes in Second Timothy 4, verse seven. 413 00:24:20,240 --> 00:24:23,000 I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. 414 00:24:23,320 --> 00:24:26,960 I have kept the faith. Wherever you are in your journey 415 00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:31,240 of faith with God, our hope is that you have the willingness to 416 00:24:31,240 --> 00:24:36,000 fight for what's true, not compromising, but holding fast 417 00:24:36,040 --> 00:24:39,640 to the Word of God. Paul was reminding Timothy of 418 00:24:39,640 --> 00:24:43,760 this, and it's a good reminder for you and for me today, too. 419 00:24:44,320 --> 00:24:47,640 For helpful input throughout this series, why not listen to 420 00:24:47,640 --> 00:24:51,200 all of these teachings from First and Second Timothy on our 421 00:24:51,200 --> 00:24:55,200 website? Go to calvarychapelonline.com to 422 00:24:55,240 --> 00:24:59,480 access teachings, download our app, and more. 423 00:24:59,960 --> 00:25:03,320 If you'd like to visit us this weekend, we'd be delighted. 424 00:25:03,720 --> 00:25:07,360 Living Waters of Grace is a ministry of Calvary Chapel 425 00:25:07,360 --> 00:25:12,160 Westmoreland in Greensburg, PA Come to our service held at 426 00:25:12,160 --> 00:25:16,720 10:30 AM on Sundays. We're located at 400 E 427 00:25:16,840 --> 00:25:21,800 Pittsburgh St., Ste. 6B. For any other information on our 428 00:25:21,800 --> 00:25:25,560 weekly service, visit calvarychapelonline.com. 429 00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:30,880 You can also join our e-mail list, give online, or submit a 430 00:25:30,880 --> 00:25:32,680 prayer request right from the site. 431 00:25:33,360 --> 00:25:36,920 If you can't make it in person, be sure to tune into Calvary 432 00:25:36,920 --> 00:25:39,040 Chapel Westmoreland's YouTube channel. 433 00:25:39,520 --> 00:25:42,240 Subscribe so you never miss new teachings. 434 00:25:42,680 --> 00:25:45,800 We thank you for tuning in today and ask that you come back for 435 00:25:45,800 --> 00:25:51,360 more solid and biblical teaching from Pastor Lewis right here on 436 00:25:51,360 --> 00:25:52,840 Living Waters of Grace.