Good morning. All right, take your Bibles to 2 Timothy. This is our 14th week in the epistles of Paul, and it's our last one. As Tim mentioned last night in our Sunday School activity, we're going to be starting a series next week on worship. Tim and I have been reading and talking and different books and I'm excited. It's a topical, biblical look at worship. It's really opened my eyes and I'm excited for it. And so we're going to take that through the end of the year and maybe even into next year a little bit. All on worship, I think you're going to, you know, I don't like to say you're going to enjoy it, you know, because we're not here to enjoy things, but you're going to learn a lot from it. It's cool when we can enjoy things, but it's going to be beneficial. I'll tell you that. And so I'm really looking forward to it. But today we're going to finish the epistles of Paul. We're in 2 Timothy. This is Paul's final and most personal letter that is recorded in the Bible. I can't say this is the last thing Paul ever wrote. I don't know that, but this is the last thing that's preserved in the Word of God. And he wrote it from yet another time in prison, and it is addressed here to his dear co-worker and his son in the faith, young Timothy. And we don't know exactly how much time has passed since the writing of 1 Timothy to 2 Timothy, but we can see through reading this that Paul's situation has changed for the worse. And it's getting darker and darker what he's going through. He's imprisoned in Rome. And that could be one of two things. If you go to Acts chapter 28, which you don't have to turn there, but Acts chapter 28, it talks about a house prison situation. Could be that. I don't really believe it is. I believe that he served his time in house prison. I believe he got out of house prison and did another season of ministry. And then now he's back in prison again, being arrested. in the city of Troas. That's what I believe just from clues in the Bible. And so I think that's where we're at. So he's already been in prison. He's already had a trial. He was released. He's done another season of ministry, if you will. And so now he's arrested again, and he's in the middle of a court trial, if you will. We'll put it in our terms. And it's not going well. It's not going well. Either way though, that whatever you believe, you can see that it's a very dark situation for Paul. And I get emotional every time I read. This is a great letter, but knowing what's gonna, I mean, we know how it ends. You know, we know what happens to Paul at the end of this and reading it in that light and thinking about everything that we've seen in the last 14 lessons that Paul has written where he's cared about churches and he's cared about individuals. He's cared about the gospel and how things should be done. He's cared about Jesus Christ. He's communicated all these things and And it kind of culminates into this very, very personal letter to, like I said, his son in the faith, if you will. And so what we're going to see here is Paul appeals to Timothy, who seems to still be in Ephesus, to do a couple things. He asks Timothy to come to be with him. in prison so he could pass on really the church planning philosophy and the church planning missionary or mission that he had started to Timothy. And so this letter is designed very, very simple. There's two charges, if you will, that Paul's going to give Timothy. And then there's, I'm not going to say a conclusion, I'm going to say the conclusion. that's really all this letters broken down to so first the first charge that he's going to give is to Timothy to accept his calling and we'll talk about what that means but he wants him to accept his calling that's the first charge and you'll see that at the chapter 1 and all the way into the middle of chapter 2 and then starting in chapter 2 going into chapter 4 Timothy is going to be charged to deal with those corrupt teachers who are still there in Ephesus that he had mentioned in in 1st Timothy, there's still a problem. And you know what that tells me? There's always gonna be people that are just, that's by design. If there's someone who's standing for the word of God and for right, there's always going to be a counterfeit. And so there's always gonna be these people that are still there that Timothy is supposed to deal with. And then in chapter four, again, he concludes the letter. So that's really the breakdown. It's very, very simple. It's nothing like last week that was that was totally different. But this is very straightforward and simple. So let's look in chapter one. And what we see here is that Paul begins by thanking God. You can see in verses one through four, he's thanking God for Timothy and for his family and specifically for his grandmother, Lois, and for his mother, Eunice. And what we'll find out later is they immersed young Timothy in the story of Old Testament scriptures. I mean, if you want to thank God for a godly heritage, you know, you can identify with Timothy. He had a mother and he had a grandmother that they shared with him. And here's the deal, when I say they shared with him scriptures, well, the only scriptures they had were Old Testament scriptures. Understand that we're we're in a New Testament letter, which means all they had was the Old Testament But they shared with him every night before bed They gave him a story from scripture and they just immersed him with it and that really helped him develop the faith that he had and helped him become a The man that he was they instilled in him this deep faith in the Messiah. Let's just let me just read the first five verses It says Paul an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God according to the promise of life Which is in Christ Jesus to Timothy my dearly beloved son grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I thank God whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day. greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy, when I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee." So he's saying, I've identified this unfeigned faith that's in you, and now he's gonna tell them, not the source of the faith, that's not, because your faith doesn't come from your grandma, but the origin of your faith, okay? So this is where the seeds got planted, is what Paul is about to say. He says your unfeigned faith in which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois and thy mother Eunice and I am persuaded that in Thee also so because of that firm faith that he has Paul is going to offer his first challenge to Timothy right out of the gate in verses 6 through verse 18 We're not going to read all of them, but he calls him listen. First of all, here's the first thing you need to do Here's the first challenge right out of the gate in this letter. You need to reject the the temptation to be ashamed of the good news about Jesus Christ and what you're hearing about me. And we're thinking, okay, you know, we're on the other side of that. What does that mean? Well, Paul is a man who claims he's a follower of Jesus Christ, claims he's an apostle, claims that he's a preacher of the gospel, and all he's doing is getting in prison. So people who want to be against Paul say he's a criminal. And so what happens is there's people who want to follow the teaching of Paul, so you want to follow a criminal? And so what that's doing is that's leading people to go away from Paul, but more importantly, to go away from Paul's message. And so what he's saying to Timothy is, don't be ashamed of that. Don't be ashamed of what you hear. And then we're gonna read verses about fear. And this fear we're talking about, and we, boy, we like to use these verses talking about fear of the unknown. This is fear of being ashamed of what people are saying about you. That's the context here. And so, Paul is warning Timothy, watch out for that. You know, I'm in prison. I am suffering for announcing the gospel of Jesus Christ. And Paul needs to emphasize this because, again, there's this negative stigma that's going around that he's gained from his frequent times in prison. Let's just start reading in verse six. He says, Wherefore, I put thee in remembrance. Now, here's the first challenge that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner. But be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God, who hath saved us and called us a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose, and grace which he has given us in Christ Jesus before the world began but is now made manifest in our appearing in the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ who has abolished death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel where am I am appointed a preacher and an apostle and a teacher of the Gentiles look at verse 6 or verse 12 for the which cause I also suffer these things nevertheless I am not ashamed For I know whom I believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." So these are great verses, and these are beautiful verses, and these are verses we're all familiar with, but the problem that these verses are telling us is there's people who are using Paul's criminal history, if you want to say it that way, against him. And I'm telling you, Your character is on trial when you start witnessing for the Lord. I want you to understand that. How you park in your works parking lot, how you shop, how you treat people, how you tip, how you mow your yard, how you do everything in the public eye is on trial when you start testifying for Jesus Christ. That's just how it should be. But that's how it is. And for Paul, it is amplified. And he doesn't want Timothy to fall into this trap of kind of distancing himself. He's a little radical. I'm gonna start distancing myself from Paul. Timothy, don't do that, he's saying. Don't fall for that. Don't have the fear. And here's what he says. He says, you wanna know how you can have the strength to do this? It's in chapter. Well, let me just back up. So many of Paul's co-workers are doing this, by the way. I think we can see that. And he mentions two guys in verse number 15. Specifically, he says, This thou knowest, that all of which are in Asia be turned away from me. It's the same problem. Who are Phygelius and Hermonigenes. And so there's two men specifically, they have deserted Paul because they were ashamed. So Paul's even given examples of men who are doing exactly what he's warning Timothy not to fall in that trap. Don't be weak for a moment. Don't give an inch to the devil. Don't have fear about this situation. Don't be ashamed because the moment that that expresses inside of you, It can just manifest into some real backpedaling for the cause of Christ. That's what he's saying here. And so in an overall view, that's what he's saying here. They deserted Paul because again, they were ashamed. They did not want to be associated with a criminal. So Paul says, come and see me. I'm telling you what, that is a big risk for Timothy. And that would come at a great cost. It's easy to read. We don't really understand the logistics here in our American mind to go from Ephesus to Rome to visit someone who has got this stigma that Paul has. It's a great cost to Timothy. And he says, you need to reject any fear of shame You need to come see me and he knows this is a very costly request that he's gonna put Timothy even at risk For doing this and so he reminds Timothy look at chapter 2 verse 1 He reminds Timothy that Jesus's grace is the source of this power that you need to come see me He says thou therefore, you know because everything I just asked you to do to not be ashamed my son be strong and in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. You need to get a hold of this grace of God, and you need to not have fear, and you need to not be ashamed, you need to not be influenced by these men, and you need to come see me. That's really important. And you're going to need this grace, he's saying as we move into chapter 2. You're gonna need this grace because, get this, following Jesus Christ is not easy. It's not easy. Simple? Sometimes. Easy? No. Are you ready for this? Do you remember the message last week? Are you ready for this? Remember the Sunday morning message from the book of Matthew? Are you ready for this? Paul is asking Timothy and what he's going to do then is he likens following Jesus Christ to three metaphors. First of all, in chapter two, verses three through four, he's saying that following Jesus Christ is like enrolling as a soldier who is striving to please their commanding officer, or it's like an athlete, and I'm being real high level here, there's a whole lot there, but we gotta move on, but it's like being an athlete who is training their body for competition in verse number five, or it's like a hard, dedicated, Farmer, you know who's hard-working and what do all three of those have in common? Well, let me tell you all three of those metaphors involve a person who is committed to something bigger than themselves Okay, and that's what being a Christian is all about you have to be committed to something bigger than yourself And that's what Paul is saying that Timothy you've got to get a hold of this you have to be willing to sacrifice and to endure challenges to accomplish a greater goal and And that's what we need to do. And then he goes down into chapter two. He starts saying in the verse number eight says, remember that Jesus Christ of seed of David was raised from the dead, according to my gospel. So he's saying the best example of someone greater, someone committed to something far bigger than themselves was Jesus Christ. He was committed to the father so much so that he put down his life to die, to die and to be crucified by the Romans. And then he says in verse number nine, wherein I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even unto bonds, but the word of God is not bound. He's saying, so not only do we have these general metaphors of a soldier or a farmer or an athlete, but we have Jesus Christ as an example. And if you need another example, you have myself who I'm being treated like an evildoer because I'm spreading the good news about Jesus Christ. He's saying, listen, I am suffering hardships in a Roman prison, but here's the deal. Hardship and sacrifice are inherent to the Christian life. It's just, it's just part of it, Timothy. You're not supposed to have fear. You're not supposed to be ashamed. I need you to come to me and they're going to convince you and try to tell you all these things. But listen, that's just part of it. That's just part of it, Timothy. That's why, I mean, chapter two, verse one is so important, that be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. That is the solution for you to being able to do this. And so then, what he does is, is he puts it in another way, starting in chapter 11. It's very, very poetic. Chapter two, I should say, verse 11. He says, it is a faithful saying for this. And then he's gonna say it one more time in a different way. If we be dead with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him. If we deny him, he also will deny us. If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful, he cannot deny himself. So let me just tell you what that means in terms of hopefully we can, hopefully we understand that, but let me just say it in another way. For those who will take the risk of trusting and following Jesus Christ, God promises vindication and life. That's what he says in chapter 2 verse 11. It's a faithful saying, for if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him. So if you take the risk, and that's just one way of saying it, if you take the risk of becoming a follower of Jesus Christ, God is faithful and he's going to give you life. That's the first part. Number two, for those who reject Him, and some people have a problem with this. It says, for if we suffer, we shall also reign with Him. We understand that, but listen to this. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. Some people have problems with that, but let me just tell you this. For those who reject Him, now listen very, very carefully, because God has given everyone an opportunity to decide if they want to accept Him or reject Him. And if you reject Him, God will honor that decision. He'll honor that decision. That's not His will. His will is that everyone will come to Him. But if you reject Him, He will honor that decision and He'll do the same. He'll do the same. That's what that means. That is free will. That is free will. You have a choice that you can make. You can either accept him or reject him. But then they get this, then it says in verse number 12, if we believe not, yet he abideth faithful, he cannot deny himself. For those people who are faithless, your faithlessness, your faithlessness will never compel God, will never compel God to abandon his faithfulness. Never. His faithfulness is greater than your faithlessness. God is faithful. I mean, it is exciting to know that we serve a God like that. And he says that he cannot deny himself. He will never be faithless. So that's what Paul's telling Timothy. He's like, listen, I need you to come. I need you to quit worrying about this. That's the first challenge. And then starting in chapter two, verse 14, he's going to move over into the, so he's already, he's like, Timothy, remain faithful. It's gonna come at a cost for you to come visit me. But now here's the second thing. You need to deal with those corrupt leaders, or I'm sorry, not leaders, those corrupt teachers that are in Ephesus. So he moves on the whole second half of the letter, starting in verse number 14. He wants Timothy to confront these corrupt teachers in Ephesus before he comes to Rome and their teaching is Honestly, it's spreading like a cancer in this church and they are they they have targeted and they've corrupted a number of Influential women and if you want to probably the same women we talked about and first Timothy you can go back and listen to that But they've targeted these influential women. They've planted these seeds of false teaching and now these women I've taken it and run with it and it's sprouting out and it's just it's not from the Word of God It's not the message of God, but that's what these people are doing And he wants, he's like, listen, you need to deal with these people before you come. And get this here, as you, on your own, as you read chapter two and chapter three, never once, except there's a slight hint, but never once does Paul offer much detail about the teacher's bad theology. Like he doesn't give us examples. You know why? Because Timothy knows what it is. Timothy's living it. You know, when you're like, you should be smart enough, when you read this, you're like, oh, there's obviously a problem here, and Timothy's aware of the problem, Paul's aware of the problem here, but they don't say what it, that's because it's real. You're like, you're at Walmart, and you got this mom, and you got this baby, and the baby's crying, and the mom is narrating for everyone to hear. Oh, someone didn't get their nap today. So everyone on the aisle knows why the baby's crying. You know why that is? You know why that narration takes place? Looks like someone's hungry. We better hurry. You know, there's the mom that always narrates what the kid's doing so everyone hears. You know why that is? Because that's not real. If Paul did that here, oh, Timothy, we know because he's teaching this and teaching that. This isn't real. But Timothy knows what the problem is. Paul doesn't have to say it. Timothy's living it every single day. So for Paul to rehearse it, I would have doubt in the word of God. I'd be like, why? That's not real. That's because when people do that, it's not real. So that's how real the word of God is. He does say this though. He does say this in verse number 18, he says, who concerning the truth have erred. And then he gives us one hint of what one of the problems is saying that the resurrection is past already. Overthrow the faith of some so so there is a hint of what's going on But these teeth it would be a waste of Paul's words to rehearse to Timothy the problems that Timothy's dealing with He's he's living it every day. So that's how real conversations work Have you know? Yeah, you you don't you don't go up to somebody in our prayer list and say I'm praying for you because of this because of this and because of this and And they say, oh, thank you. Yeah, that's all the problems that was listed. Thank you very much. That's very sincere. You don't do that because they know why you're praying for them, and they appreciate the fact that you say you're praying for them. That's not real if you say it the other way. That's why there's sometimes that are like, oh, the Bible's got this mystery, and there's all these gaps. No, it's how real conversation works. It's how people who love each other talk. You know, and so it's just a wonderful thing. I just love stuff like that in the Word of God when you're reading it. Second thing, let me just say this. This is free. In verse 15 it says, Study to show thyself approved unto God a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. I'm not endorsing or condoning, I'm not saying, I've been studying Awanas for something else, not for Bree and Bev's church, not for, but I was like, what is that? Is that a Greek word for something, Awana? You know, because that's in 61,000 churches around the world, it's an organization for youth. I've been studying it for something else. And Awana, A-W-A-N-A, comes from this verse. Approved workmen are not ashamed. And so that's how that word came up. That's free. I learned that in my study for a while. I'm not endorsing them at all or condoning them, but that was a good way for me. I love verse number 15, and that's what I learned in that. So anyways, let's move on. So here's what he's saying. He's saying, listen, there's this group of people that have rejected the resurrection. There's other problems going on. Paul calls Timothy here's what you need to do Timothy in verse number two of chapter two he goes back to say this he says you need to raise up some faithful men who could stand and be able to teach others also that's the only way you're going to do this and here's what these men should do and if you read the rest of chapter two And you read to chapter three, the men that you raise up, they should avoid senseless arguments that result from debating with teachers. And he says, here's what you need to do, Timothy. You and these men, before you come, here's all you gotta do. It's very, very simple. You need to just keep the main thing, the main thing. That's what you're supposed to do, Timothy. That's what these men need to learn how to do. They don't need to be distracted with what this teaching is about the resurrection or anything like that. Because all these false teachers are doing, let me just tell you, they're doing this hyper-spiritualized Christianity that's disconnected from everyday life. Know anyone like that? That's what they're doing. They're trying to teach this really hyper-relationship stuff. And they're not just saying, here's the word of God. This is what God wants you to do. This is how God wants you to live. This is how you can worship God. It's just, you need to learn to teach them, to keep the main thing. The main thing, Timothy, that's what you should do. You should focus on the core storyline and the message of the Scriptures. Now, he says that, but like I said earlier, in Paul's day and in Timothy's days, when he says you need to focus on the Scriptures, they primarily mean the Old Testament, because that's the Scriptures they had. And these Scriptures, Paul says, are able to give you wisdom that leads you to salvation. So if you're in chapter 3, go on to chapter 3 verse 14, because what he's saying is the whole point of scriptures is to tell this unified story that points the reader to Jesus Christ. Look at verse number 14 of chapter 3. He says, but continue thou and the things which thou hast learned and has been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them. that from a child now that we've already talked about this when we talked about chapter 1 and from a child that has known the Holy Scriptures which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine for reproof for correction for instruction and righteousness that the man of God may be perfect thoroughly furnished unto All good works. So here's what he's saying Paul talks about how scriptures nature and scriptures purpose here He says that all scripture is given by the inspiration of God and this this this is a reference I hope most people understand that that this is a reference to the Holy Spirit's role in guiding the biblical human author their God breathed but they're from the the hand and the pen of a man and so we have the man's background and the man's Character if you will mixed in with the message from the from from the Holy Spirit of God And that's how we get scripture if you will and we could spend a whole lot of time on this But again, we're just kind of kind of being in a in a overview, but that's what it is It's guiding God breathed this this Human author and he wrote what God wanted people to hear that's what Paul is saying here. I think it's awesome then you can really really just just delight in our Savior and when we know that He inspired Paul to write that, and what Paul wrote became scripture. I mean, it's just a beautiful, beautiful moment there that Paul has with the Spirit of God. They're in communion together in the middle of a devastating part of Paul's life. It's really neat when you just kind of think about all of it together, at least in my mind. So what Paul's saying here is God speaks to people through his word. That's what he's saying. And it's very practical. He says that they are useful for teaching all scriptures given by the inspiration God is profitable for doctrine That would be teaching so that's telling me things that I didn't know before. I mean, I hopefully we've all Experienced that in life where we're like, I didn't know that before but the Word of God showed me Okay, sounds like the Word of God is true. It's useful for challenging us because it says that for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. So it's useful for challenging us. You know, getting in my face is what the scripture does. And the scripture will get into my face and it will say, hey, you said that you believe this. Why are you not living this? That's what the scripture does to me. It says it's reproving me. It's saying, you said that you believe this. In fact, people heard you say you believe this. Why aren't you living consistently with it? Scripture does that. It's not a wife or a spouse that does that. It's the Word of God that does that to my life. And then it says for correction. It's useful in correcting me. So Scripture exposes my messed up ways of thinking and my messed up ways of behaving. That's what the Word of God does. And then it's useful for training me into righteousness because it's Scripture that shows me how I'm supposed to live. And then why why are we supposed to do this because if you look at the very last of 17 verse 17 Why are we supposed to do all this? The Word of God when you read it and when you hear it preached and when you hear it taught is to prepare you for doing good That's what it says unto all good works There there are no other good works. You can do that aren't Christ centered works. I Okay, nothing else is good. That no other task that occupies your time is good unless it involves Jesus Christ. And so scripture will come into your life and show you all that and prepare you for good works. And then we get into chapter four where he closes. We'll do this as the best we can because he's closing the letter Reminding Timothy that he is probably not going to make it out of prison alive Now that that's a that is a very somber thought I just I don't I'm not capable of putting my mind into Paul's mind at this moment you know, I've anticipated things in my life, but never never death and And he asked Timothy to come as soon as possible, possibly before winter. He doesn't want to freeze in his cell and he's going to need his heavy coat and he wants some scripture and some scrolls and just some parchments. He wants those that he had to leave behind. And he's wanting Timothy to grab those personal documents that he left in Troas when possibly again he got arrested. And he mentions a man named Alexander. Boy, if you've ever wanted to be in the Word of God, this is how you don't want to be mentioned in the Word of God. You wouldn't want to be Alexander, who is especially dangerous. He's a very dangerous man. that Timothy should avoid. It's probably Alexander that's responsible for Paul being put in prison at this most recent time. I'm guessing just how the harshness of the words are. And Paul concludes by mentioning how nearly everyone, everyone has abandoned him in prison and his only source of comfort The personal presence of Jesus Christ. I mean it is I'm gonna read it because he's talking about how the presence of Jesus stands with him and will deliver him Even if he dies, it's just some amazing words. Let me just I'm just gonna read the whole chapter To the best of my ability verse 1 I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus the Lord Jesus Christ Who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing in his kingdom preach the word? Be instant, in season, out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears. They shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned into fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. And then he kind of, verse six is where he starts to share some realizations with us. He says, for I am now ready to be offered. and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up to me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at the day, and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me, for Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica. Cretans to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Take Mark and bring him with thee, for he is profitable to me for the ministry. And Tychius have I sent to Ephesus. The cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil the Lord reward him according to his works of whom be thou where also for he hath greatly withstood our words And at my first answer, no man stood with me, but all men forsook me. I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge. Now that first answer, I believe that was either a previous trial or a pre-trial, where he already had to come in front of who I would say would be Caesar's men. I doubt it'd be Caesar himself at this point. But here's what he says about that. He says, notwithstanding the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, that by me the preaching might be fully known and that all the Gentiles might hear and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. The lion being the Roman government court system. So whatever happened at that first answer, the Lord persuaded their minds perhaps to go Paul's way. But we're past the first answer now. And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil. So now it's this court case. He shall deliver me from every evil work and will preserve me unto the heavenly kingdom to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Salute Priscilla and Aquila and the household of Onesiphorus. Erastus abode at Corinth, but Trophimus have I left in Miletum sick. Do thy diligence to come before winter. Eubus greeted thee, and Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia, and all the brethren. I believe Linus might be the pastor in Rome. I'm not 100% sure about that. This is a real man with real Christian brothers and sisters, and a real influence on everyone around him. These are his final words that the Word of God has preserved. He says, and the Lord Jesus Christ be with thy spirit. Grace be with you. Amen. And with that, the letter ends. In the letter of 2 Timothy, it really stands as a reminder that Paul's very influential life and mission were marked by persistent challenge and suffering and struggle all through his life. And following Jesus Christ, I hope you understand, I hope you get this part, involves risk and sacrifice. Are you ready for this? Are you ready for this? It means inviting tension and discomfort into your life. That's what it means. Are you prepared for that? Are you I mean the message the title last week was perfect for the message in Matthew chapter 11 Are you ready for this? Are you ready to invite tension into your life? And let me be clear Tension and discomfort that come into your life because of your faithfulness to Jesus Christ That is not a sign of Jesus's absence in your life When you decide to follow Christ, and then you are dealt with tension, and you are dealt with discomfort, that doesn't mean Christ is absent from you. No, no, no, no. What Paul is saying, and what countless Christians in this room can testify, is that when those come, when those dark and difficult moments come, that is precisely when Jesus' love and faithfulness can become the most tangible. And that is exactly what Paul is dealing with right here. When he says that Christ is standing with him and will deliver him. It is real, it is tangible, that relationship is stronger when that tension and when that discomfort comes. That's what Paul is saying. And that is what 2 Timothy, Paul's final letter is all about. Let's get ready for big people church.