Finish the Race (2 Timothy 4.1-22)

Introduction

We’ve reached the final week of this series on 2 Timothy and, before we get into chapter 4, I want to do a lightning quick review and pick out a few highlights of the letter so far.

Quick Review

As we know, this was a letter written by Paul, on death row, to a young apprentice, his spiritual son, Timothy. It’s a last will and testament, a final farewell, famous last words. And he’s passing on a baton, trusting that Timothy will take hold of it, grip it tight, and run with all his might round the next lap of the track. Paul’s race is run.

In 1.5 Paul picks out one of Timothy’s great strengths; although he’s young, inexperienced, frequently ill, and a little timid, Paul says “I remember your sincere faith.” That word “sincere” literally means “without hypocrisy”. The word comes from the Greek theatres where actors wore masks with exaggerated expressions so that people right at the back could see them.

With Timothy there was no masks, no acting, no posturing, no pretence. What you saw of him in public was exactly what he was when no one was looking. That’s why, despite all Timothy’s flaws and frailties, Paul trusted him. He said in Philippians 2 “I have no one like him.”

God loves that kind of transparency and truthfulness of character. He loves it in his anointed Son, the Lord Jesus, and he is looking for it in those who follow him. God doesn’t like flashy and superficial. He looks for depth, consistency, no masks.

Than later in the chapter 1 (v6), do you remember?, Paul says “fan into flame the gift of God that is in you.” Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift. Most have several. 1 Corinthians 12.7 says “To each one (read that again; each one), the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”

You have spiritual gifts. Yes, you do! God doesn’t say “Well, I’m not giving him or her a spiritual gift, there won’t be enough to go round if I give everyone gifts!” No, God gives gifts to all. There are no exceptions and no excuses! It’s your job, nobody else’s, it’s your responsibility, to find out what your gifts are and use them. Fan them into flame. Let’s get this place white hot with spiritual gift flame fanning!

Then in chapter 2 we saw how important it is stick to the script and not adlib the message. There’s one gospel and we are custodians of it. What we have to say to the world is good news. 

Paul says in v16 “avoid godless chatter.” That was written two thousand years ago but it could have been a direct reference to social media trolling. You know what I mean? Negative, offensive, proud comments because I must be right and show someone else up as wrong, and all from the safety of anonymity. It’s the kind of thing Paul says just spreads like gangrene. Walk away. “Avoid it” the Bible says. Let your words bring blessing and life, not anger and conflict.

Then last week we saw how priceless God’s word is, how it makes us – not clever, not well-read, not learned – but wise. Don’t read the Bible just for historical study; there are other history books with greater span and detail. Don’t read the Bible just out of linguistic or literary curiosity; there are better literary works. The Bible was written to “make you wise for salvation through faith in Jesus.”

The Personal Remarks

And so we get to the final chapter, chapter 4.

Paul had been betrayed in Troas (which is the place that used to be called Troy) by a coppersmith called Alexander, and it seems he was arrested and led away in such haste that he didn’t even have time to gather a few personal belongings. It’s nearly winter now, so Paul asks Timothy (v13) to fetch him his heavy coat and his books as he awaits a date for sentencing.

But it’s the end of his trial; it looks like (v17) he’s been spared the usual fate for Christians which was being torn apart by wild beasts in the Coliseum. He’ll be beheaded with one blow of a Roman sword which at least is instant and relatively painless.

There are 8 different places and 17 different people mentioned by name in chapter 4, some who’ve let Paul down and have deserted him, but many are on the move, building up the church. If the Christian life is a race – well, these are the running mates.

Only Luke the medic is by his side – which, as we saw last week, can come in pretty handy. (Thanks to Lawrence and David and those who attended to that medical incident last Sunday morning. This must be the best church on earth in which to be taken ill)!

In v11, it says “Get Mark and bring him with you because he is helpful to me.” A very early source claims that Mark did indeed go to Rome, he met Peter there and scribbled down the eye-witness stories Peter told about Jesus – and that’s how we got Mark’s Gospel. It’s based on Peter’s preaching and, tellingly, it’s the one that is least flattering about Peter. It tells of how Jesus rebuked him. It is the most vivid account of his threefold denial.

There are a few interesting little footnotes in the last few verses too. Linus (v21) became the Bishop of Rome. According to tradition, Pudens (v21) gave Peter board and lodging when he came to Rome. Ancient documents record that he was married to Claudia who was probably highborn and, if it’s the same Claudia as many scholars think it is, she would be the only person of British descent in the Bible.

Ready for Anything

The two main points of chapter 4 though come in the first 8 verses and here they are: be prepared and finish well.

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction.

In the 2006 Football World Cup, Germany played Argentina in the quarter finals. It was a 1-1 draw. Extra time couldn’t separate the teams either so it went to a penalty shoot-out.

When the Argentines stepped up one by one to take their penalties, the German goalkeeper Jens Lehmann took a folded piece of paper from his sock, looked the penalty taker in the eye and read the note. It wasn’t a bluff. He had studied the Argentine penalty talkers and worked out their favoured technique. The note was eventually sold for 1.3 million euros in a charity auction.

It read: “1. Riquelme left high. 2. Crespo long run/right, short run/left. 3. Heinze left low. 4. Ayala long wait, long run, right. 5. Messi left. 6. Aimar long wait, left. 7. Rodriguez left.” Needless to say the Germans won on penalties.  If you're well prepared, you win before you even start.

Daley Thompson, the former Olympic decathlon champion was once asked what his favourite day was. He said “Christmas Day.” The interviewer said, “Ah, one day in the year you can allow yourself to eat and drink a bit more!” He said, “No. All my competitors and rivals are taking a day off. That’s why I’m out training like every other day and that gives me an advantage. That’s why it’s my favourite day.”

Verse 2 says “be prepared in season and out of season.” You might think of sports when you hear “in season and out of season.” Or gardening perhaps. But it means “when it’s convenient and when it’s not, when the wind is behind you and when it’s against you, in promising situations and unpromising ones, under favourable conditions and unfavourable.”

On morning, in a Chicago coffee shop, Willow Creek pastor Bill Hybels was sitting down reading his Bible. This is how he tells the story.

A young woman looks over and asks “why are you reading that?”

Bill looks at her and says (and this is an exact quote): “Because I don’t feel like going to hell when I die.” (He struggles to express himself assertively sometimes…)

She says, “There’s no such thing as heaven or hell.”

He says, “Oh, that’s interesting, why do you say that?”

She says, “Everybody knows that when you die, you die. Your candle goes out – and that’s it.”

He says, “You mean to tell me there’s no afterlife?”

“No” she says.

“So that means everyone can just live as they please?”

“That’s right.”

“You mean, there’s no judgement day or anything? Well, that’s fascinating to me, where did you hear that?”

She says, “I read it somewhere.”

“Wow,” he says, “can you give me the name of the book?”

“I can’t remember.”

“OK. Can you give me the name of the author of the book?”

“I forgot his name.”

“OK. Did the author write any other books?”

“I don’t know.”

“Is it possible that your author changed his mind two years after he wrote this particular book, and then wrote another one that said there is a heaven and a hell? Is that possible?”

“It’s possible,” she says, “but not likely.”

“All right, let me get this straight. You’re rolling the dice on your eternity predicated on what someone you don’t know said in a book you can’t recall the title of. Have I got that straight?”

She looks back. “That’s right.”

So Bill Hybels summarises. “You know what I think, my friend? I think you’ve created a belief that guarantees the continuation of your lifestyle. I think you made it up because it is very uncomfortable to think of heaven. It is very uncomfortable to think of hell. It is very unnerving to think of a holy God in the day of reckoning. I think you made it all up.”

Now that’s brilliant isn’t it? That’s what can happen when Christians are ready to go, in season and out of season.

And it gives a reason why Christians should be prepared in season and out of season, and to do the work of an evangelist.  It says (v3-4) that a time is coming when preaching will be unpopular. People will shut their ears to sound doctrine. They will call for a message that exactly mirrors the changing values of liberal society.

Bishop Rod Thomas said recently “A Christianity that merely recycles the norms and values of the prevailing culture renders itself irrelevant and subservient.”

Jesus was once approached by his disciples who said to him, “Do you know that people were offended by what you just said?” Jesus replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots.” In other words, anything not in line with the Word of God will come to nothing, forget it.”

In my own time as a preacher I have felt under pressure at times to promote preaching that is superficial rather than substantial, novel rather than biblical, frivolous rather than weighty, flattering rather than frank, cosseting rather than challenging, playing to the gallery rather than pleasing God, academic rather than understandable, fictitious rather than factual and so brief it’s of no real consequence. 

There’s a story about a very verbose, repetitive vicar from Yorkshire who would speak for an hour and say very little. He was shaking hands at the door one day and a grumpy old chap said “Your sermon was much too long – as usual.” The vicar just smiled and said, “Well, my child, we are exhorted to proclaim the milk of the word are we not?” To which the grumpy old chap replied, “Well, make it condensed milk next time!”

Racing to the End

Final point; finish the race. Verse 6:

The time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day…”

That’s your challenge and mine. Fight the fight till it’s over, run the race till it’s finished and keep the faith.

When I was at school, I was pretty average academically and usually bottom of the class at maths, but I was a pretty good cross-country runner. In fact I used to run for my school in county races and I did OK. I loved middle-distance running and my greatest ever race was a 1,500 metres, the whole class of 30 boys – 4 times round the stadium size running track.

The race started well and I was tucked in to a group of about six or seven, setting a decent pace. Then after about a lap, out of nowhere a skinny kid called John Gattrell kicked hard and opened up a sizeable lead. He accelerated away from the pack and as we took the bell, which signals the start of the last lap, he was already half way round the track and closing in on victory.

But pace setters usually burn out. And I said to myself, If you make a move now, believe you can do it and give it everything you’ve got, you’ll catch him.” He was struggling, his legs were full of lactic acid, you could see from 200m back he was spent. I started to kick into a good stride. The gap closed. I could see it was going to be close. He was so far ahead but I was travelling much faster. As I turned into the last bend I began to sprint. Gattrell was virtually at walking pace and gasping for breath. And I pipped him on the line, winning by a fraction of a second. I’ll never forget it.

The thing is, the Christian life is compared to a long-distance race. Like an Olympic 10,000m, it doesn’t really matter how well you start. But unlike an Olympic 10,000m, it doesn’t matter who crosses the line first. God not interested in winning. It only matters that you complete the course, you run to the end and cross the line. Are you still in the race? Are you going to finish well?

I remember Billy Graham was interviewed on BBC Radio once and the presenter said, “Billy Graham, you’ve travelled the globe, you’ve preached to millions, you’ve seen countless conversions to Christ, you’ve appeared on Gallup’s  "Ten Most Admired People in the World" for thirty-two consecutive years, more than any other individual in the world, you’ve spoken personally with world statesmen, you’ve led prayers at the inauguration of several American Presidents… when you finally get to those pearly gates, what do you think will be your finest achievement?” And without a moment of hesitation, Graham said, “Just to have got there, just to have made it.”

Billy is 98 now and still running the race. His wife Ruth finished hers and is now with the Lord. The epitaph on her grave says “Ruth Bell Graham 1920-2007. End of construction. Thank you for your patience.”

Ending

How did it finish for Timothy? The Bible doesn’t say but we can reconstruct from documents outside the Bible and ancient traditions. Piecing it all together it seems he did go to see Paul before he died. He stayed with him till the end, saw Paul's execution, got into trouble for being associated with him and was himself imprisoned.

But Hebrews 13 says “our brother Timothy has been released” so unlike Paul he was reprieved. He was made bishop of Ephesus. When he was 80 timid Timothy was still fanning into flame the gift and doing the work of an evangelist. He bravely preached the gospel in the streets during a pagan festival. The crowd became angry, beat him, dragged him through the streets, and stoned him to death. He was true to the end.

I love to picture the scene at heaven’s gate. Timothy arrives and asks if he can see Paul to let him know he finished the race, just like Paul charged him to do. And just as Paul’s about to arrive, pushing through the crowds, Jesus appears in all his triumphant glory. “Timothy!” he says. “You made it! You fought the good fight. You finished the race. You kept the faith. Here's your crown!” 

It’s what he’s going to say to you one day, if you keep fighting, keep running and complete the course. Fight the good fight. Finish the race. Keep the faith. 

Let’s stand to pray…

Sermon preached at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 22 January 2017

Be Strong In Grace (2 Timothy 2.1-26)

Introduction

Famous last words. Sometimes profound, sometimes poignant, sometimes pathetic.

Groucho Marx’s last words in August 1977 were: “This is no way to live!”

Convicted murderer James W. Rodgers was put in front of a firing squad in Utah in March 1960. He was asked if he had one last request. He said, “Yeah, bring me a bullet-proof vest.” They were his last words.

Louise-Marie Thérèse de Saint Maurice was Marie-Antoinette’s sister-in-law to in 18^th Century France. With family solemnly gathered round her, on her deathbed, she suddenly broke wind which quite startled her. She said, “Good! A woman who can fart is not dead.” And then she breathed her last. Maybe an oxygen mask would have helped…

We’ve called this series on 2 Timothy “Famous Last Words” because this was the last letter that Paul ever wrote. He was on death row. He’d just had the verdict of his final appeal. It was turned down and the death sentence was inevitable.

He knew he wasn’t going to be around much longer. So he sat down and wrote one final letter to hand on the torch to a young leader he trusted called Timothy. All the things he could have said… what would you want to say?

A few years ago, there was a funeral here for a vibrant Christian woman called Cath Taylor. She died in her early fifties from cancer. She knew she was dying and she wrote a letter to be read at her funeral which made a real impact on those gathered. The gist of it was “You may mourn today, but I go to my death certain of God’s goodness, trusting in his promises and confident of heaven. One day your time will come. Put your faith in Jesus and enjoy the assurance I have as the end of my time on earth draws near.”

Last week, we saw how Paul urged young Timothy to fan into flame the gifts God had put in him. What gifts have God given you? Are you using them? Are you ablaze, are on fire, and eagerly desiring spiritual gifts? Or are you too safe? Are you coasting? Is your spiritual flame flickering weakly under a bushel?

This week, we’re moving on to chapter 2 and, as usual with Paul there’s loads in here. I could easily give four or five different talks on this chapter alone.

But with the one overarching thought from v1 “be strong in the grace that us in Christ Jesus” I am going to try and condense this chapter down to three main thoughts.

(People say that’s the optimal structure for the human mind to absorb and retain. A man preaching on the Prodigal Son said, “I have three headings; his madness, his sadness, his gladness.” Then he said “under the first heading; he caviled, he travelled, he reveled. Under the second heading, he went to the dogs, he lost his togs, he ate with the hogs. And under the third heading, he got the seal, he danced the reel, he ate the veal!”) So here we go…

1. Stick to the Script

Number one, stick to the script.

I was listening to an obituary of the actress Carrie Fisher on the radio over the Christmas break and the presenter was saying she used to take George Lucas’ script for the Star Wars films and savage them with a red pen.

She was a gifted writer and in particular had a feeling for the natural rhythms of human speech. George’s scripts were wooden, stilted, artificial - they didn’t sound real, so Carrie reworked them. She took stuff out, she added stuff in, she rephrased certain words, she shortened the sentences. And she improved the film’s dialogue beyond recognition.

That’s fine with a science-fiction script. But not with the gospel. Verse 2 says, “The things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.” The gospel is a baton to pass on.

And this is a recurring theme in the letter. Paul has to insist on it again and again. In chapter 1, verse 13 he said, “What you have heard from me, keep (not redefine, not rework, not edit, not update) but keep as the pattern of sound teaching…”

And the next verse adds this: “Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you.” Guard it. Defend it from attack. Protect it from corruption. People hate it and are out to disfigure it.

Chapter 2, verse 14 says: “Keep reminding God’s people of these things.” Verse 15 talks about “correctly handling the word of truth.” Chapter 3, verse 14 says: “Continue in what you have learned… because you know those from whom you learned it” and he goes on to talk about the Scriptures and how vital they are.

We have no liberty to alter the gospel. The Bible says “If we, or even an angel, preaches any other gospel that the one that was preached, let them be under God’s curse!”

The gospel is not a Middle-Eastern do-it-yourself counselling technique. It’s the good news about grace offered free to anyone who will repent of sin and come to God. It not only washes the guilty clean, it grants adoption rights into God’s royal family and lavishes blessing upon blessing on everyone who accepts it.

That’s it, beautifully simple, and perfectly plain. There’s no “gospel –plus…” We talk about the prosperity gospel, the social gospel and the eco gospel but they are not the gospel. There’s one gospel, and that’s it.

Furthermore, there’s no “new, improved” Bible either. Fine, let’s translate it in modern speech and help people understand it. But it’s complete as it is. There’s nothing to add. God has said what he wants to say and has sat down.

One of the founding documents of the Church of England, written in 1563, is the Thirty-Nine Articles, and it states this: “The Holy Scriptures containeth all things necessary to salvation: so that whatsoever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man, that it should be believed as an article of the faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation” (Article 6).

In other words, what it’s saying is this: everything you need to know to have a relationship with God is in here. And if it’s not in here, no one can say you have to believe it. You don’t.

All the way through 2 Timothy there is this passionate appeal to stick to what God has revealed to us, never mind what anyone else says.

Someone said, “Truth is like poetry. And most people hate poetry.” People hate truth. Everywhere you look people have opinions and ideas they think are better than the truth God has revealed to us here.

Everywhere you turn people will tell you what they think about spirituality, and how they think we can live well. People hire lifestyle gurus and personal coaches and spiritual directors. In every bookshop there’s some new self-help best seller paperback.

“Never mind the latest fads and philosophies” says Paul. Hold on to what was passed down to you, and pass it down to others uncorrupted.

Einstein once wrote, “I cannot conceive of a personal God who would directly influence the actions of individuals or who would directly sit in judgement on creatures of his own creation.” But what matters is not Einstein thinks about God, but God thinks about Einstein!

The second half of the chapter is subtitled “Dealing with False Teachers.” So he says to avoid quarrelling about words (v14), godless chatter (v16), teaching that spreads like gangrene (v17). Gangrene is life-threatening condition caused by a critically insufficient blood supply to the limbs. If it goes unchecked, they go black and drop off. Bad teaching is like a choke on your spiritual blood supply that sends you into spiritual A and E.

There’s talk of keeping away from foolish and stupid arguments (v23) that just produce squabbles and arguments. Some Christians get sucked in to spending all their life absorbed by some political issue, or who should get voted off a reality TV show, or whether Apple is better than Samsung, or some trivial theological nuance. Don’t go off on tangents and get distracted by side-issues.

Build your life on a foundation that’s going to endure. As John MacArthur says, “Satan continues his efforts to make sin less offensive, heaven less appealing, hell less horrific and the Gospel less urgent.”

In the Episcopal Church in the USA, the Bible has been undermined and attacked or ignored for decades. It has led to a whole denomination drifting completely from the apostolic faith handed down. Those who routinely dismiss the Gospels as mythical and legendary have all the positions of power.

One of their priests left his wife and children to move in with his male partner - and they made him a bishop. It’s a denomination in membership freefall. Attendances are collapsing, churches are closing. The presence of God has long gone.

By contrast, in 1949 all missionaries were ordered out of China. Christians went underground, meeting secretly, and disappeared from view. Persecution continued with varying severity.

There were no church buildings or training centres. Churches met in houses or wherever they could. They had the simple gospel and untrained local leaders. But they had the Bible and Holy Spirit. In the 60 years between 1950 and 2010, that underground church grew from 1 million to 50 million.

There is no future for a country, or a church, or an individual who substitutes human wisdom for God’s revealed word. Stick to the script!

2. Expect Hardship

Number two, expect hardship. Let me spell this out as best I can. If what you want above everything else is an easy life, following Jesus is probably not for you. Life is hard, and there are particular hardships and costs involved in following Jesus.

So chapter 2, verse 3 says “Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” Look back to 1.8. It says the same thing, “join me in suffering.” What an invitation!

What did Paul mean? A blacksmith called Alexander betrayed him leading to his arrest. He was in jail, just for being a Christian. People were afraid or ashamed to associate with him. Everyone had deserted him. He says in 2.9 “I am suffering, even to the point of being chained up like a criminal.” His appeal had failed. The death sentence was pronounced. He had weeks to live.

He’s saying, “Look, there’s a cost involved in following Jesus. Taking a stand will make you unpopular. It will lead to ridicule. You will be pigeonholed as old-school. Your views will be considered unacceptable.”

About a century ago, a band of brave souls became known as the one-way missionaries. They bought boat tickets to the ends of the earth and never expected to return. Instead of suitcases, they packed a few earthly belongings into coffins they took with them. They waved goodbye to everyone they loved and all they knew, knowing they’d never come home.

Mark Batterson, who spoke at New Wine last year, wrote in one of his books about a Scotsman called Peter Milne, who was one of these one-way missionaries. He went to the New Hebrides in the South Pacific, a place known today as Vanuatu, knowing that head hunters there had killed and eaten every missionary before him.

Well, maybe he didn’t look all that appetising, but he survived. After 10 years of faithful service, making their home his home, learning their language, adopting their customs – not the cannibalism bit – he didn’t have a single convert to show for his labours.

But he stuck at it. He lived there 50 years, and eventually led many to faith in Jesus Christ and planted churches. It’s said that when he died, they buried him in the middle of the village and wrote on his tombstone: “When he came there was no light. When he left there was no darkness.”

They say that life begins… at the edge of your comfort zone. Do you believe God wants you to settle in safe places, and do easy things? Or kick the gates of hell down and give the devil a hard time?

In v4-7, there are three examples of the kind of hardship we can expect as followers of Jesus. Following Jesus is like serving in the military, training hard for athletic competition and daily graft on the farm. All three demand discipline, dedication, hard work, long hours and commitment.

No one says, “I want a cushy job. I know, I’ll join the army and risk my life on a tour of Afghanistan.”

Or “I’m looking for a comfortable desk job. I’ll train hard for the triathlon and go through the pain barrier to make the Olympics in Tokyo 2020.”

Or “I’ve always wanted a stress-free career. I’ll get up at 5am every day to milk the cows, muck out the pigs, feed the chickens, shear the sheep, plough the earth, do the books, and flop down every day at 9pm.”

Look, life is hard. Following Jesus is demanding. He said it would be. He said the world will hate you because it hated him first. It will and it did. But he also said you will not be left alone like orphans, your joy will be complete, you’ll have life in abundance, you’ll have peace not like the world gives, you’ll be fruitful, you’ll be free indeed, and dozens of other promises besides.

John Piper said it really well recently: “If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full.”

Stick to the script, expect hardship and, number three, keep your eye on the prize.

3) Keep Your Eye on the Prize

The squaddie who is sent on a tough tour of duty comes home to a hero’s welcome. It’s worth it in the end.

The athlete who trains hard all through the cold, dark winter stands on a podium and fights back tears as the anthem is played. It’s worth it in the end.

Farmer Giles who works like a Trojan all year produces a bumper crop and is on the cover of Farmers Weekly. It’s worth it in the end.

“Look, I’m suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal” Paul says in v9. Whenever life is especially hard, you can focus on the injustice, the humiliation, the disgrace.

You can nurse a grievance and go around with a chip on your shoulder. Or you can keep your eye on the prize. …”OK, I’m chained like a criminal but God’s word is not chained” he adds. It’s worth it for that.

We’re not stuck in a miserable loop of Good Friday looking at a failed Messiah strung up like butchered meat. We are Easter Sunday people. Jesus is alive! He came out on top.

Broken lives are being mended. Prisoners are getting released. People are getting saved. The gates of hell are getting battered and God is on the move.

Halfway through the battle of Waterloo, Napoleon could see he had victory in sight and, in a moment of hubris, he dispatched a messenger off to Paris. “Tell the nation that I have prevailed” he said. But it was premature. Prussian reinforcements arrived to strengthen Wellington’s beleaguered troops, the battle turned, and Napoleon snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

Well, on Good Friday the devil sent message off to Hell. “Victory is ours!” But that too was premature. Three days later, Jesus ripped up the form book, threw off the grave clothes, and strode out of the tomb laughing and triumphant.

Ending

You see, to slightly misquote Hubert van Zeller, if you live independently of God, life can disappoint you when it all goes wrong. If you live for God everything can still go wrong - but not in a way that will disappoint you.

That’s why Paul can say in v10 “I endure everything”. Betrayal, beatings, desertion, unfair trials, harsh sentences… “I can put up with that” he says. “Just a flesh wound. Because, look! I can see salvation and eternal glory.”

Let’s pray…

Sermon preached at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 8 January 2017