Cornerstone Mission Church, Sunday Sermon
Here is the image involving the disqualification of Apolo Anton Ohno on Friday’s 500 m finals short track competition. He was disqualified for pushing Canada’s Francois-Louis Tremblay into the padded boards. He later won bronze medal in men’s 5000 meter relay to make it total of eight medals.
He said this about the disqualification… “I kept waiting and waiting and on the last corner, I ran up on the Canadian guy… I put my hand up so I wouldn’t run into him. There was just no space to move up.” “You know, it’s the head Canadian referee out there and there were two Canadians in the race.” He was implying that the judges were somehow favoring Canadian player and unfairly ruling the case against him.
Well, last Friday on that track, whatever Ohno thought happened didn’t matter. What really mattered was what the referees saw and judged. People can argue over it, but at the end of the race, the final call came not from Ohno, but from the judges.
Judging from how Paul used to illustrate spiritual journey with the sports theme, I bet he would have loved watching the Winter Olympic. To Paul, finishing the race was very important to him. The most important thing about finishing the race was the opinion of the righteous Judge. Paul says in 4:1 that it will be the Son of God, Christ Jesus, who will be the righteous Judge who is going to judge the living and the dead. And, sitting in his prison cell, there was genuine happiness about the way he ran the race… “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” No disqualification here… He looked forward to the moment when the righteous Judge would award him on that day, the crown of righteousness for finishing the race well.
Paul said in verse 6, “the time has come for my departure.” He meant the moment of execution. Looking back at his life and looking ahead for his impending execution, and his eternal life, Paul wanted nothing more than Timothy, his spiritual son to run the race and to finish the race without disqualification. So, he wrote his final words to Timothy. That’s what we have it here in the last chapter of 2 Timothy. Would Timothy finish the race, run the race without being disqualified, would Timothy preach the word even though it would cost him?
- Are you proud to be his messenger?
One day, without any exception, we will all face the righteous Judge who is going to account the quality of our lives. Paul knew that the Judge will disqualify many for not finishing the race, not running the race at all, for cheating.
So, Paul gives this solemn charge to Timothy, “Preach the word.” Perhaps, when you hear the word “Preach,” the immediate image that comes to your mind is the ordained clergyman like me standing in his pulpit on Sundays preaching. When Timothy heard the charge to preach, this isn’t exactly the kind of image that came up in Timothy’s mind. Rather, the original Greek word evoked in Timothy’s mind an image of the imperial herald; as the spokesman of the emperor, the Imperial herald proclaimed with authority on behalf of the emperor; and it was understood that the message delivered by the imperial herald was to be accepted and be carried out without delay.[i]
To preach the word is to be King, Jesus’ messenger. This preaching the word, proclaiming and announcing the King’s message requires a sense of pride. Are we proud of the message contained in the word of God? Are we proud of Jesus Christ? Are we convinced that the world needs to hear what the King of the universe has to say to them? Are we so convinced that our non-believing friends, families, coworkers, neighbors, colleagues need to hear the message from Jesus?
Let me share you few accounts of men and women from the first three centuries. These are stories of those who were proud of Jesus Christ and his word and proved their pride in the message of Jesus with their lives.
Ignatius of Antioch was one of the earliest post-New Testament martyr. He was the second/or third bishop of Antioch arrested for atheism, denying the roman gods. Upon his arrest Christians tried hard to free him. But, to those who tried to free him he wrote, “I fear your kindness, which may harm me… You may be able to achieve what you plan. But if you pay no heed to my request it will be very difficult for me to attain unto God.” What was that he desired to attain unto God? He said, “Now I begin to be a disciple… Let fire and cross, flocks of beasts, broken bones, dismemberment… come upon me, so long as I attain to Jesus Christ.”
Polycarp was a bishop of Smyrna. He was arrested at the age of 86 for his message of the gospel. Before the local proconsul, Satius Quadratus Polycarp was threatened to be thrown to wild beasts, to be burned at the stake… To this Polycarp responded by saying while the proconsul’s fire lasts but a little while, the fires of judgment cannot be quenched. And, he concluded, “But why do you delay? Come, do what you will.” So, the soldiers grabbed him to nail him to a stake. Polycarp stopped them and demanded, “Leave me as I am. For he who grants me to endure the fire will enable me also to remain on the pyre unmoved, without the security you desire from nails.”
Perpetua… a Christian noblewoman at the turn of the third century lived with her husband, her son, her servant, Felicitas in Carthage of North Africa. Emperor Septimius Severus was determined to cripple Christianity so he focus on North Africa. She was arrested as she and four other prepared for baptism. All she had to do to be free was to deny that she was a Christian. On her trial, Perpetua’s father who was a pagan intervened by carrying Perpetua’s son in his arms and burst into the room and begged Perpetua, “Perform the sacrifice. Have pity on your baby!” And, the governor, Hilarianus chided her, “Have pity on your father’s gray head; have pity on your infant son. Offer the sacrifice for the welfare of the emperor.” To this Perpetua replied, “I will not.” “Are you a Christian then?” asked the governor. “Yes I am,” Perpetua replied. She and others were sent into the area floor to be devoured by the beats and be slayed by the sword.
Timothy lived in the time the cost of believing in the message and the cost of proclaiming the message confidently and proudly was huge; Paul was the living example of how costly it was to preach the word in the pagan world.
Paul experienced rejection from the people who rejected and opposed the gospel message, but he also experience rejection even from well-meaning Christians when they deserted him at his first defense in Rome (4:16).
Yet, we see Paul unfazed, so confident and proud and faithful witness to God’s message. He had his head in all situations, always sober, clear-minded, he endured hardship, and he discharged all the duties of his ministry that is he fulfilled his ministry. We see no fear as death stared at him. Death was simply the time for his departure (4:6) into present of Christ whom he longed to see (4:8).
How was this possible? I believe it was because Paul was proud to be the messenger of Christ? Are you proud to be his messenger?
- Are you ready?
How do you know if you are really proud of Jesus? How do you know when people are proud of something? They show it by their enthusiasm. Don’t they?
Mark my words… in short months, you are going to see people walking into your favorite coffee shops and café with their brand new IPad. Eyes will turn and people will talk.
Have you met parents who cannot stop talking about their little children? I might be one of them. I don’t normally update my Facebook. But, when I do, you bet it has something to do with my girls. Latest update on my Facebook reads… “My 4 yr old girl asked me, “Can God juggle?” My answer, “Well… I think God can juggle!” LOL. How would you answer her?” Guess what… I got zero responses… I thought it was so cute how Audrey thought about God and wanted to share it with the world. But, the world doesn’t seem to get excited about it. But, guess what… the next time I share something on Facebook, I bet it is going to be something about my girls…
When people get genuine excited about something, they tend to be spontaneous instead of calculating to find the exact moment to display their excitement. Imagine what would it be like to be so genuine excited about Jesus Christ and we start talking about him spontaneously? Paul had this uncontainable excitement, enthusiasm and conviction in the message of Jesus Christ that, even in the most hostile environment, he managed to share the message of Christ.
I don’t know about you, but I have this tendency to wait for the right “even” divine moment to share the gospel message with someone. To this Paul says, “No, you don’t wait for the right or perfect moment to share. You don’t wait for the opportune time. You don’t wait until when people beg you to share the gospel. You share because you are proud of Jesus. You share because you are convinced that people need Jesus; it just they don’t know it yet. You share because you know that there will be a day when everyone will have to stand before the righteous Judge and all must give account for their lives. You share because you want to expose the lies of Satan, expose the wrongs, and encourage and cheer for that which is right.
[i] Kenneth S. Wuest, Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament : For the English Reader (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997).
No comments:
Post a Comment