I invite you to turn with me to the book of 2 Timothy. We are in 2 Timothy chapter 4. Today we'll be looking at verses 1 to 5. The title of the sermon is called, Preach the Word. So let us give attention to the reading of God's words starting in verse 1 of chapter 4. It says, I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing, and his kingdom. Preach the word, be ready, and season, and out of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth, and will wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. This is God's holy and inspired word. May he add his blessing to it. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we are thankful once again that we can come here to worship you. We thank you, Lord, for the book of 2 Timothy, and as we have been able to go through it verse by verse, seeing the importance of the primacy of your word, and seeing how as we proclaim it, knowing that that might bring hardships and hostility to a world that hates you and hates your word. So Lord, help us as we seek to be further committed to your word and further understanding what is all necessary to fulfill ministry, to empower us by the power of your spirit to be able to endure and proclaim all the more. We pray in Christ's name, amen. So this is the last chapter that Paul will write within scripture. He is sitting in his cell, writing to Timothy, his beloved protege. And as he's doing it, what is foremost on his mind is that the gospel will continue to be proclaimed, that the word of God will continue to go forth. Paul himself has faced a ton of hardships and hostility throughout the ministry. And he knows Timothy is facing some of that too. And he will face more of that if he is to be faithful. He's facing now, because he wants to be faithful to Christ, the ultimate cost. For his commitment to Christ and proclaiming the good news of the gospel, he'll be executed. He'll be beheaded. And so this chapter here is his last exhortation that he has to his beloved protege, Timothy, and to pastors in general so that the baton can be passed to one generation to the next. And while this is chapter four, the chapter divisions, remember, are not inspired. They're not exactly helpful here because it kind of breaks the thought from what we just saw earlier in chapter three. But what is meant to see is there's a logical progression between seeing the word of God that is breathed out by him that is profitable for teaching. And now this charge that he has before Timothy to preach the word because it is the inspired word of God. The logical progression then is to preach it because it is sufficient. And since it is sufficient, You need to be proclaiming this throughout your ministry. So the big idea is this, because the word of God is God-breathed and profitable to equip, we need to be committed to preach the word no matter the season, even if it means suffering. We're gonna see this in four ways today. First, remember who you're accountable to. Second, make the word the centerpiece of your ministry. Third, do not give in to consumeristic ears. And fourth, endure to fulfill your ministry. So let's look at the first point Paul has here. Remember who you're accountable. Look with me at verse one. He says, I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead and by his appearing and his kingdom. So right here we see Paul just up the ante. He wants Timothy to see the seriousness of who he's doing ministry in front of. The word here for charge that he's doing means he's not giving his personal opinion, he's not giving his thoughts on the matter, he's giving a serious proclamation here. And he wants them to know it's not just Paul who's giving the charge, but it's Christ Jesus himself. This word here for charge in the Greek doesn't really come out as much in our English, but in the Greek it means this, to exhort with authority in matters of extraordinary importance. He's wanting to solemnly urge, to really exhort. And this isn't the first time Paul used language like this. In fact, in 1 Timothy 5.21, he says this, in the presence of God in Christ Jesus and the elect angels, I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging. Do nothing from partiality. So he's used this kind of language to help Timothy see the seriousness of his ministry. He goes, this is no ordinary task here, Timothy. This is something you need to take seriously. This is something that I want you to feel the weight of, of the responsibility that's before you, so you're ever committed to it. And by heightening this, he wants him to know who he's accountable to, look at the text, in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus. So here he's calling the witnesses that are behind this charge. He's calling the witnesses here and he's saying, it's not just my authority, but God the Father and Christ Jesus are here as well. And Paul being the ambassador, the spokesman on behalf of God, is speaking on behalf of God and the message is coming directly from God through the instrumentality of Paul. So the charge is from God himself, he's telling Timothy. And this is language that we see used in the court of law. It's a typical format during that time if you want to bring something legal on someone. And so it's to say like, if you were to get a letter from the jury saying you're summons to court, that's kind of what Paul is doing here and saying, we're summing you together, Timothy, to charge you with this. We see this in Genesis 24. Abraham charges his servant to go out and find a son or a daughter for his son to marry. And he raises the seriousness by using this kind of language. It says in Genesis 24 verse two, it says, Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, whom he had charge of all, he said, put your hand under my thigh and I make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I dwell. So he uses this kind of language to say, look, heaven and earth is all my witnesses here. This is serious, don't do this. Moses does the same kind of thing when he's bringing the law to the people and giving them the covenant. In Deuteronomy 4.26, he says this, I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you're going over the Jordan to possess. You will not live long in it, you'll be utterly destroyed. So he says, if you break this covenant, heaven and earth are witnessed here. They're charging you here that the covenant curses will be enacted. Paul, in similar fashion, heightens the language of this charge by saying, in the presence of God and Christ Jesus. He goes, I'm charging you with all the authority under heaven and earth that you must not waver from this. This is the charge that all of heaven is watching you, Timothy. And be aware of this, the charge that you're given is serious. Notice the witnesses, notice it says God and Christ Jesus. You might be saying, well, aren't that the same person? Well, yes and no. God is one in being, comprised of three persons, right? We call that Trinity. Here, the reference to God, I believe, is a reference to God the Father. God the Father here, and then he specifically says of Christ Jesus. So also God the Father, but also God the Son, the God-man Jesus. Jesus is fully God as well, but here particularly, it's Christ Jesus who's the one who earned the redemption, who paid it by his own blood. What about the Holy Spirit? Just because the Holy Spirit isn't mentioned here doesn't mean he's not a witness as well. The Holy Spirit definitely plays a role in our salvation. So all of heaven, the Godhead, is a witness here in this charge. It's as if the Godhead, the Trinity, is giving this charge directly to Timothy himself. And so he says, while you cannot physically see these witnesses that are before you, Timothy, while you're just reading my letter here, you are living quorum Deo, before the face of God. He sees everything that you do in life and in ministry, and you're accountable to him. And that's not limited to your actions, your outward actions. Actually, he knows the thoughts and intents of your heart. God is watching. He is the witness before here in this charge. So while pastors preach before men, the ultimate witness is God himself. Christ Jesus himself, he is watching. Notice he heightens this even more and says, who is to judge the living and the dead? Notice this who here is connection back to Jesus. He is the judge. He is the one who ultimately will judge when he comes again. Notice it says, by his appearing in his kingdom. So when Jesus comes, there will be a judgment time. When he comes again, he will judge the living and the dead, even ministers. In Acts 17, it says, because he's fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed. And of this, he's given assurance to all by raising him from the dead. Well, who's that? Jesus Christ. He is the judge whom God has appointed. So Paul is wanting Timothy to feel the weight of this charge, to take it seriously. You can't ignore this. You can't just let it slide and go through the motions, Timothy. God's watching. William Hendrickson says this, Paul emphasizes that it is under the very eye with the full approval of God that these directives have been issued. This is the very God who through Christ Jesus will one day judge all men. Hence the apostle is, as it were, putting Timothy under oath to comply with the mandate which he received, knowing the one who breaks the oath will be judged. Hebrews 4 talks about this right after it emphasizes the Word of God is living and active. What does it say? There will be a time when we stand before our judge, Christ Jesus, and we must give an account. In 1 Timothy 6, Paul says, just as Jesus received a charge and kept his charge and was given a reward, he said, so too, I charge you, and you should keep it. He says in 1 Timothy 6, I charge you in the presence of God who gives life to all things and Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession to keep the commandment unstained, free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. Sounds pretty familiar. Paul is using this language again throughout his first letter of 1 Timothy and 2 Timothy to charge him with this great task. So when he appears again, that will be the second coming, he will appear as judge. John 5 says this, for as the father has life in himself, so he's granted the son to have life in himself. He has given him authority to execute judgment because he is a son of man. Now the judgment he's speaking here, we must clarify, he is speaking of an eternal judgment. Everyone who ever lived will one day stand before the God of the universe, before Jesus Christ, and they must give an account. Well, what are they giving an account for? Well, God demands that we live in an absolute perfection. He gives the law and he demands we do it perfectly. Be holy for I am holy. Be perfect for he is perfect. The problem is one sin is worthy of eternal hell. And so God demands absolute, perfect, personal, perpetual righteousness. The problem is we sin. We do not do that. We fall short of his glory and the wages of sin is death. So we must face eternal judgment if we are left in and of ourselves. But for everyone who is resting in Christ Jesus, that eternal judgment has been taken care of because Christ Jesus has shed his blood for all who place their faith in him. He has achieved the righteousness necessary for a right standing with God. He obeyed the law perfectly. He then went to the cross to die a sinner's death on your behalf for all who place their faith in him. And the punishment that you must face for all eternity, Jesus faced as the God-man. For you, his blood was shed for the forgiveness of sins. And all who place their trust in Jesus, repent of their sins and trust in him, they'll be considered righteous. They'll be considered forgiven. And when eternal judgment comes, there won't be the eternal judgment of fire that awaits for you. So that's a time when we talk about the great white throne of judgment where Jesus will separate the sheep from the goats. But here, there's a sense in which God will still judge even believers. Jesus, yes, will judge everyone who is not resting in him by faith, but for those who are resting in him by faith for the forgiveness of sins, in a sense, there's still a judgment. Well, what does that mean? 2 Corinthians says this, 2 Corinthians 5.10, Now the word for judge here in the context doesn't mean eternal judgment, but rather it means to evaluate or to decide or come to a conclusion for a prize. And so in 1 Corinthians, we actually see this here in 1 Corinthians 3, verse 13, it says, So we all do these sense of work for Jesus as when we're saved, we're called to live for him. Some of the work might be wood, clay, stubble, some might be jewels and stone that will last for all eternity. And then when the fire comes, the judgment fire, some of them will be burned up and consumed, but that which is done for Christ, that which is done with eternal implications will last. That's why it says invest in eternity. This is especially true for teachers of God's word. You're hold to a stricter judgment, right? According to James 3. But Christ is watching, he's the judge, and he's looking at all the work that we do. Romans 2 says this, on the day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus. So because he's bought us at a price, because he shed his own blood for the forgiveness of our sins, we are then called to live for him. He doesn't just take you to heaven right when you're saved and that's it. He leaves you here for a purpose, to shine as lights for him, to be a salt in this earth for him. And the time that he has given you, we must all stand one day before him and give an account to if we've been faithful. And this is ever true for ministers who are entrusted with proclaiming the word of God. So Paul wants to press this issue on Timothy. Yes, you might be saved from eternal judgment, Notice he also says, This is referring to the timing of the judgment that is to come. Notice he doesn't say this just to make Timothy feel the weight of the seriousness. There's also implied here is to have great assurance. Notice again, he's going to appear, which means he's not dead. He's living. He is ruling and reigning. There's gonna come his kingdom. So there's glory, there's victory here. There's assurance that you're to have in light of your charge to preach the word. In light of the seriousness, you can have great assurance because this is the King of Kings. 2 Timothy 1.10 says this, So Paul uses this language of appearing here to refer to when Christ came into the world. So we can say there's the first appearing, the incarnation. He came into the world and through this work, he abolished death by living a perfect life, by dying a sinner's death. He brought life and immortality to the gospel. But Jesus didn't just die. He arose and lives again. And as such, he promises to return again. So there's gonna be another appearing. And that's what Paul's referring to here, that he's judging, he's ruling, he's reigning, and he will appear again. the second coming of Christ. Titus 2, 12 says this, that we in this present world are to live godly lives in this present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. So he's gonna appear when he returns again. We don't know when that's gonna happen. It says in the scriptures he could come as like a thief in the night. He can come suddenly, we're to expect it. It's guaranteed, but we don't know when. So we're to live every moment as if he's coming at any time. But notice when he appears, what else appears? Notice it says, and his kingdom. So when he comes, he will consummate his kingdom for where the king is, his kingdom is. Today happened together. This is one event. This isn't a big separation of years between the two. When the king returns, so does his kingdom. He is the victorious king who has accomplished the greatest defeat of our enemies over sin and death and through the resurrection he will come again in glory and come as the king of kings and lord of lords. And it's at this time when he comes and brings in his kingdom that he will judge the living and the dead. What is he referring to where he says the living and the dead? Those, when he comes, there will be those who haven't died yet, who have never tasted death. But the majority of those who've believed in the faith have died and gone, their spirit has gone to be with the Lord, though their body's buried. And when he returns again, the dead will be raised. But those who are living, won't have to taste death. They'll automatically be with the Lord, be given that glorified body. But when Christ comes again, you'll have the judgment seat. And the living and the dead will be judged. Those who are in Christ will be judged according to their service to Him. Not in an eternal judgment sense, Christ has paid for that. But those who are in Christ will be judged based on how they lived for him and served him. And there will be a reward given for that. 2 Timothy 4, just look at verse eight. It says, henceforth, there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge will award me on that day, not only to me, but also to all who've loved his appearing. Why is Paul getting that reward? Well, because he was found faithful, because he ran the race. He ran in such a way to win the prize. Christ promises, if you're faithful to me, there'll be a reward. You'll be faithful with much, you'll be given much. And so Paul knew this and he's trying to exhort Timothy, see the seriousness of your charge. The Lord Jesus has given you this charge to preach the word, to be a minister of the word, and you are to do so in such a way to win the prize. Because he is watching everything you do. He is aware of everything, your thoughts and intents of the heart. When no one even sees you, he sees you. And he is judging the living and the dead. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is coming again. And so live in such a way that shows you're going after the prize. Jesus taught a parable about this in Matthew 25. With a faithful servant, what does he say? Well done, good and faithful servant. You've been faithful over a little, I will set you over much. Enjoy, enter into the joy of your master. So when he comes again, we will stand before him. And though we will be washed by his blood and forgiven and there's no eternal torment or judgment that will come, he will evaluate us on how we live for him today. And Paul doesn't say this to make Timothy freeze in fear. or to run away. He's saying this to encourage him to be faithful. He's the living king. He's coming again to consummate his kingdom. He has risen. He is living right now. And though there's hardships and hostility and suffering awaiting you as you preach the word, stick to your commission. Stick to your charge to please the one who enlisted you. You're a good soldier. Paul himself knew this and lived this out. He knew Christ would one day judge him and he sought to please him. And in 1 Corinthians 4, he says this, this is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mystery of God. Moreover, it's required that stewards be found faithful. But with me, it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself, for I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am already thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore, I do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes the heart." In 1 Corinthians these false teachers are accusing Paul of wrongdoing, they're accusing him of false accusations and his motives and he says, look, I'm not so concerned about the judgments of men. What matters to me is the judgment of Christ. He is my judge and everything will be revealed. The intents of the heart will be known and my aim is to glorify Him. He'll go on to say in Colossians 3.22, Like Timothy, we are all called to live for the glory of Christ, especially those who are ministers of the word. But the seriousness of this statement is not limited to pastors alone. While it is for pastors and it's directed to us as pastors, it's directed to everyone who bears the name of Christ. As pastors are to be the model for sheep to follow. In a sense, the life we have and the allotment we've been given, we will still give an account to the Lord. He's aware of everything we do. He's never looking the other way. He's never distracted. He sees all and knows all and nothing escapes his eye. And one day everything will be evaluated and we will give an account. He is watching. And so one day when we stand before him, we're gonna give an account for how we've used our time for his glory. So ask yourself, how am I using my time for him? Am I doing it to please me or am I doing it to please man or ultimately to please God? We can see man, we can fear man, we can fear the persecution. The world can tempt us to maybe tone down our message or to not preach this, but we need to have this in mind, the great charge. We need to have a courage to remember who we're accountable to. The one who judges justly is greater than any man, is greater than any king, any ruler, and our aim needs to be to seek to please him and him alone. even if that means man and the world might be hostile to us. And that's what Paul's trying to encourage Timothy to do, to be emboldened, to remember who you're accountable to. Yes, people are persecuting you, Timothy. Yes, people are speaking bad about you because you're proclaiming the word. Don't give up. Don't let the flame go out. Preach the word. Be committed to these things. And in light of this, we should be praying for our leaders. We should be praying for one another. that we seek to be faithful to him. Paul then explains the seriousness of this, but he also wants us to know the charge that we are to take so seriously. Look at verse two. In this one verse, there are seven commands that Paul gives in light of these things to do ministry. And he's gonna give a few more even in verse five. These are the things you do before Christ that you're gonna be accountable to. Notice the first, preach the word. He's not saying discuss the word. He's not saying just, you know, talk about it, just blog about it, just tweet about it. You know, those things are all good, but they're no substitute for preaching of the word. The word to preach here means to herald, to announce, to proclaim. It's to herald forth the word of God. Hendrickson says this, heralding or preaching is generally the divinely authorized proclamation of the message of God to men. It is the exercise of ambassadorship. This is what the minister is to do. He's to preach the word. This is why you call him a preacher. It symbolizes the main thing that he is to do. It's his chief task to proclaim, to preach, to herald the word of God. And this is an imperative. It's an obligation he has. He's a herald of the king. So he's to preach forth. And Paul would even say this, woe to me if I don't preach the gospel. Preaching is God's way to have his words proclaimed to his people, to feed and nourish his people as it's proclaimed faithfully. 1 Corinthians 1.21, it says, It's the wisdom of God that he uses the foolishness of preaching. He uses fallible men to proclaim his infallible words. And with that comes a great importance. Not only for the preacher to prepare the word and to proclaim the word, but also for you to hear the word. To listen to it, knowing this is the word of God. Preaching is God's ordained means of grace that he uses to nourish and feed his sheep. And he takes it seriously. So we need to take the hearing of it seriously as well. Romans 10 says this, verse 14. How are they to hear without someone preaching? How are they to preach unless they're sent? As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news of the gospel. So God prepares, equips, and calls certain people to proclaim the word of God for the good of his sheep, to equip the sheep to bring them more and more into the image of Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit as the words proclaimed. But notice the content one is to preach. It's not his opinions, it's not his funny stories, it's the word, the word. And this is what Paul's really been emphasizing throughout the book, right? So what is the word exactly? Well, it's just going back, rewinding through 2 Timothy. It's all scripture, which is breathed out by God, profitable for teaching, reproof for correction, and the training of righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. It includes the sacred writings, the Old Testaments that's made to make one wise for salvation. The word preached is the good deposit that has been entrusted. It is the pattern of sound words that have been heard by Paul. It is the word of truth that's to be rightly handled. It's the summary of the good news of the gospel, as all scripture is about Jesus. It's to proclaim Him and Him crucified, as we heard in our scripture reading. It's to preach Jesus, that He has ransomed sinners and purchased them by His life, death, and resurrection, saving them, and then calling them to live in good deeds for His glory. And that's why Paul says, I'm determined to preach Jesus Christ and am crucified. So to preach the word is not to give a good moral lesson. To preach the word is not to give positive self-help. To preach the word is not to just give personal stories or to preach some kind of story that's sprinkled with Bible verses. To preach the word is to preach the fullness of the word and proclaim Christ through it. This is the preacher's ultimate task, is to labor diligently and study so he can proclaim it to the people. This is why the word preached is the centerpiece of the church's worship, the primacy of preaching. The word preached is to be proclaimed faithfully. Calvin said this, wherever we see the word of God purely preached and heard, there the church exists. even if it swarms with its many faults. Paul now elaborates what it means to preach. What does it look like? Well, he says, be ready in season and out of season. This idea for be ready means to be prepared, to be persistent or opportunistic, to be ready, always being prepared to bring the word when called upon to do so. This means you have to be constantly in the word. You need to be dwelling in it so it's richly in you. And in season and out of season, this means, the word season here means time. So in other words, the word of God needs to be proclaimed all the time. No matter the climate, no matter the circumstances, there's never not a right time to proclaim Jesus and him crucified. It means the words need to be preached whether it's popular or whether it's not. He has to do it when it's convenient and when it's not convenient. When it's out of season, preaching, the word must still continue. And right now Timothy's getting a taste of it. He's getting a taste of what it's looking like to be out of season. He's feeling the tensions. He's tempted to give up. He's tempted to tone down his message to avoid the persecution. And Paul is saying, I charge you under heaven and earth with Christ Jesus as my witness, who will judge the living and the dead. You preach the word. Preach the word in season and out of season. And it's becoming more and more apparent, it's out of season right now, isn't it? If you look at our climate, if you look at our culture around us, people hate the word of God. They hate the truth that it proclaims because people love their sins. And we're not to back down, we're to understand exactly what the word of God proclaims and to preach it boldly. We ought to be ready and opportunistic to proclaim the word that we believe. In 1 Peter 3.15 it says, That's not limited to pastors alone. That's something we all bear a responsibility to do. If we bear the name of Christ, we have an opportunity to share the hope that is within us. And there is never not a good time for that, in season or out of season, when it's popular, when it's not. There will be times that we ought to pray for when God opens doors and we should share. We should be ready to speak. Always being prepared means you've thought about it beforehand. You've read the scriptures and you're able to articulate the good news of the gospel. We are not to decide to preach only when people want it. The word preach is very much out of season. And so we should be all the more emboldened to proclaim it. And as a result, when it's out of season, people aren't gonna like the message, which might mean persecution. And so Paul says in 2 Timothy 2, Verse 80 says, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering. I'm suffering on account of the gospel, he says. I'm in chains as a criminal, but the word of God is not chained. It continues to go forth. It continues to be emboldened, and people will proclaim it. So even in times of crisis, even in hostility and persecution, the church is called to stay on task. Preach the word. Notice how he does that. Reprove, rebuke, and exhort. So preaching isn't merely a discussion. Preaching is a hard task. It involves difficult things. If one is proclaiming what God requires, he's gonna call out sin for what it is. A preacher doesn't shy away from proclaiming the law of God and proclaiming where people are in sin, breaking it. So to just preach a self-help message, hey, Jesus loves you and wants you to have a positive life, here's some seven steps to live your best life now, that's not preaching. Preaching without sin, without reproving, rebuking, is not preaching according to the gospel. Preaching is not just giving a grammatical historical context and then explaining what it means. It's addressing the people where they are as well, applying the word of God to their lives, And sometimes that means reprove. This word for reprove means to expose or convict, to examine carefully and bring to light. And the Word of God does that, right? That's what we read in Hebrews. The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, revealing the intents and thoughts of the heart. The Word of God, when it's preached, is like that light that shines, exposing in the darkness the sins of our hearts. And when it's done, it's done to reprove. That means to correct their opponents. And so the preacher who is called to preach the word of God isn't afraid to reprove when necessary, to state that this is wrong to do. It's not lining up with what God says in his word. But not only that, also rebuke. This is very similar, but it's a bit more firm. It means to express strong disapproval or to warn in order to prevent a certain action that might bring someone to an end. Sometimes confrontation is necessary for the sake of the Lord. It's demanding that this is not in accordance with the word of God, so cease from this and pursue holiness and righteousness. And the word of God, Jesus actually used this word to rebuke here, to rebuke the winds and the waves. What happened? They instantly ceased when he rebuked them. What happened when the demons were there and he rebuked them? Instantly they had to obey. And so this rebuke brings a strong disapproval to prevent someone from falling into a certain action. And the Word of God does that as it's preached faithfully, but also exhorts. This can be translated as urging or appealing. In 1 Thessalonians 2.12, it says, we exhort each one of you and encourage you and charge you to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. So he goes, you're to reprove, you're to rebuke, you're to exhort and encourage them. So expose the sin, call it out as wrong, call it out as sin, and then encourage them how to live in a way that is godly and holy, in a way that pleases Christ. Appeal to them. Tell them what's at stake if you don't live in accord with godliness. And if this is done faithfully, if this is proclaimed and sin is called out for what it is, for those who love Jesus, for those who love his word, they love this kind of stuff, even though it's hard to hear at times. But the normal man, the natural man, they're gonna hate it. They'll be offended because the gospel is an offensive message to say you're not holy and this is what God demands So repent and believe in Jesus, that's not a popular message to hear. That's gonna offend people and as such, that will bring persecution. That'll bring hostility and Paul knows that and wants to equip Timothy. But for those who love in Jesus and his word, they'll accept it. Proverbs 12, one says, whoever loves discipline, loves knowledge, whoever hates reproof is stupid. We're a fool. So these are the three verbs that, these are all commands, so they're not options. This is something the preacher is to do. A preacher that does not preach what God requires is calling out sin for what it is, isn't a true preacher of the word of God. But as he does this, notice how he's to do it, with complete patience. Patience is required. People can often be slow to hearing the word, to obeying the word. They can be forgetful. They can become distracted and think about, you know, what's for lunch? But sometimes, people will even resort in hostility, in opposition, and in so doing, the preachers to respond in patience. Patience is required. That ultimately described Paul, didn't it? He responded in patience. Ultimately, it's a picture of Jesus. Jesus is the one who did reprove, who did rebuke, who did encourage, here's how to live in holiness, and he was completely patient, wasn't he? He was so with his disciples who were very hard-headed. Even though he told them numerous times what would happen, they still didn't get it. And that's a model of how the pastor is to reflect as well. Notice what else and teaching. So all preaching is teaching, but not all teaching is preaching. Preaching definitely involves a teaching aspect. It's a careful instruction. to show here's what God requires and here's how to live in accordance with it. It also implies teaching doctrine about God. And this all comes from the word as it's proclaimed. To sum it all up, Timothy's called to preach the word, to apply it to his hearers no matter the season, no matter when it's popular or not. This is the main task. He is a herald of the word of God. But in a culture like ours, when preaching is out of season, the temptation is to focus on other things. The temptation is to tone down the message so we don't become a target. When the word deems that they have a certain idea for truth, then they're gonna hear what we proclaim and say, well, that's hate speech. Demand penalties against it. But to tone down the message, to not preach these things, is to not honor the Lord. And so Paul's encouraging Timothy, be reminded of this charge, continue in what is normal, preach the word. The next thing is he says, do not give in to consumeristic ears. Look at verse three. For a time's coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions. Paul now gives the difficulty that we face as preachers. When you're preaching in a world where it is out of season to preach the word of God, there will be opposition. There will be hardships. And he's not just saying this is what describes the culture, but this is also what's coming into the church. Today, we are seeing this. Rather than the word of God being proclaimed and people striving to live in accord with it, people would rather have their ears tickled, he says. That means hearing what they wanna hear. They'll accumulate teachers to hear exactly what they wanna hear. They're firm in their beliefs, they're firm in their sins, and they don't wanna hear anything else that contradicts it. They're only gonna listen to the teachers that promote what they want. In the day of the internet, that's so easy to do. People don't wanna hear what the word of God says about family or sexuality or the evilness of abortion. There are churches who are now caving into these things as appeal to the culture. And more and more, the churches are starting to look like the culture so they could draw a crowd. And the result is the word of God isn't proclaimed, it's not honored. And people just bring teachers that say what they want. Because they're so fixed in their ways, they only want to hear what they agree with. So it says they get teachers to indulge their own passions. The word for passions here is the word lust. Gets at the idea of their sins. They're so dedicated to their own sins that they'd rather not hear truth so they can keep them. And this was happening, this is nothing new. This was happening even in Israel's day. In Jeremiah five he says this, an appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land. Prophets prophesy falsely and the priests rule in their direction and my people love to have it so. People wanna have teachers that say what they want, that make them feel good, that give them validation for what they're doing. They have short attention spans. They want a quick sermonette sprinkled with Bible-proof text. People would rather be entertained than hear the word of God exposited and explained and applied to their life. And as a result, notice verse four, and we'll turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths. So notice the active turning away from truth But then there's a passiveness that happens as a result. They actively turn away from the truth and as a response, they're wandering into myths. People don't want to hear the truth because they want their ears tickled. They want to feel good. They don't want to feel confronted or convicted. They don't want their sin exposed. Whatever they might be, they want their idols. They want their sins. It might be sexual morality. It might be money. It might be politics. It might be comfort. It might be social justice. You can find a church that'll allow all those things. You can find preachers to promote all these things rather than the gospel. Some of them might even be decent, good things, but they're not the gospel. The preacher of the word is not to accommodate to the desires of the consumeristic crowds. He's not to do this to build his popularity. He's not to do this to build the church. He's not to build into the consumeristic mentality, but rather, remember who he's accountable to. To preach the word and to know in season, out of season, the mission remains the same. He's to please Christ rather than men. Which brings us to the last point, endure to fulfill your ministry. Look at verse five. ministry. So while people are rejecting truth, while people are wandering into myths, just building teachers around themselves, when you see the other churches exploding with enduring all these kinds of things, these popular, well-spoken preachers that don't really preach about sin, you, Timothy, stay the course. You preach the word, in season and out of season. Finish the work you've been entrusted to, It's a call to faithfulness. Do this to fulfill your ministry, fulfill your calling. And so he gives a few commands on how to do that. Always be sober-minded. This means to be alert, to be serious, to have a moral awareness, to be clear-headed, He uses this in 1 Timothy 3, 2 as a qualification for elders to be sober-minded. The idea of sober, the opposite of that is what? Drunk, where you can't think straight. He says that ought to not describe a preacher of the word, an elder of the church. In the midst of a culture that is contradictory to the word and doesn't want sound teaching, the minister needs to be aware, needs to understand what's going on. Don't freak out or lose your mind when you face opposition. This happens by being discernible, by being able to identify truth from error, trusting in God, depending on him for help. Alistair Begg states this, we must avoid being fat-headed or puffed up with pride. We must also avoid being bobble-headed, bouncing around from every doctrinal fad. We also must avoid being empty-headed. ignorant of controversies, we must also avoid being hot-headed, exploding to critics and anger. Rather, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the minister is to be sober-minded, self-controlled, level-headed, stable. What else he's supposed to do? Endure suffering. Because some don't want to hear the truth, Timothy needs to be prepared to endure the hardships. Not to try to avoid it, not to try to tone down his message, he has to preach the word. And this has been the theme throughout 2 Timothy, hasn't it? Timothy is gonna face opposition, but he needs to endure. 2 Timothy 2.3, share in the sufferings as a good soldier. Philippians 1.29, for it has been granted to you that you, for the sake of Christ, should not only believe in him, but also suffer for him. like those in the hall of faith in Hebrews 11, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. And as we depend on the Lord, as we depend on the Holy Spirit by the grace that he supplies, we can be strengthened with the ability to endure. Then he says, do the work of an evangelist. This is to proclaim the gospel, proclaim the good news. It's going to the lost, proclaiming the hope that they have within them. Preach Jesus and him crucified. It's not limited to the walls of the church, but even going out to the lost. The labors are needed, the field is plentiful, and it's not limited to the pastor alone. We all have a responsibility to proclaim the good news, and God places us in different settings in life, different circles of influence that we have to be a witness for him, and we will give an account for how we spent our time in that time. He doesn't just give us a job merely to provide for our families, that's a good thing, but also to live for him. Do your coworkers know that you're Christian? Can they tell a difference between how you act on Sunday and how you act throughout the week? The work of the evangelist is constantly in mind knowing that he's pleasing Christ and he wants to proclaim him and he wants to live for him in a lost and dying world. When you do all these things, you will then fulfill your ministry. He goes, this is what you need to do, Timothy. This is the charge before you. All heaven and earth is witness to this. Complete your assignment. Don't give up. The minister by the grace of God is able to do this. He's able to fulfill his calling as he depends on the Lord and preaches the word faithfully in season and out of season. And this is a serious calling. The eye of Christ is ever watching. May we not be those who cower in fear or give up the task. Paul is saying all this to say the victory has already been won. Christ is returning. He is coming again as King of Kings. He rules. He will come again. He will judge the world. But know this, you can press on in the midst of hardships. You can endure because of that fact. Because he's redeemed you and called you to live for him and preach the word, do it no matter the cost. So there's a great responsibility in the word preached. This is why here at PBC we make this the center of our worship, the primacy of the Word of God. It's to be proclaimed. So knowing that, do you pray for your pastors as they prepare it and seek to labor for this? With this charge, this also comes a charge to listen. Do you prepare your week with the mentality that I am coming to hear the Word of God? I am resting from my labors to receive what God is giving me through his work. Because it's through this he's gonna equip me for every good work. It's through this he's gonna build me up to be a witness for him. And I must give an account for the time I use. Lastly, do you know Jesus? He will come again and judge the living and the dead. And for those who are not found in Christ Jesus, this will be a day of great terror. It'll be a time of everlasting judgment and a fiery furnace. But for those who are in Christ, that judgment has been taken upon Christ. The eternal judgment doesn't await us anymore. We will live with Christ in glory. But if you know Christ, is then living for Him the aim of your life? Are you living for Him or yourself? Are you just seeing the gospel as a get-out-of-jail-free card? Are you seeing out of love and gratitude for what He's done to live for Him, knowing you will give an account for how you live your life, for everything you do? So may we be aware though, may we be those who are aware of the seriousness of this charge, but also the great glory that comes behind it, knowing that Jesus reigns. He's coming again, and this is what He's entrusted us to proclaim. May we be ever committed to it in a world that is hostile against it and will continue to be as we trust in Christ, as he emboldens us with faith, as we stand firm on the Word of God, no matter what the world might throw. So because the Word of God is breathed and profitable to equip, we need to be committed to preach the Word no matter the season, even if it means suffering. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we are thankful for your Word. We're thankful that you give men, weak men, who are able to preach your word, who you trust to preach your word and empower by your Holy Spirit. Lord, we pray that you would equip us through these things. You promised to do so, and we thank you, Lord. We pray, Lord, for all of us as we seek to live for you in this world. Help us to have in mind the seriousness of the time you have given us, that we must give an account one day. Help us out of love and gratitude to seek to give you all the glory to be salt and light on this earth, to not cave in to the different things this culture has to say, but to honor you above all, standing on your word of truth, for it is the word of God that is living and active, that is very God-breathed. We pray this in Christ's name, amen.